Chapter 2: Evox's Revenge
Landing heavily on the dust covered ground, Asher groaned, feeling a weight on her.
"Get off, idiot!" she shoved Blaze off, and he growled. She put a hand to her face, instinctively checking for her glasses, before realising she wasn't wearing them, yet her vision was fine.
"Where are we?" Roxy's question stopped Blaze before he could fight with Asher. The three stood, surveying their surroundings. All around were ruins of buildings, and the sky was an eerie dark red.
"We are wherever Nate teleported us to," Blaze said as he looked around. Their bodies flickered, betraying their Avatar bodies.
"You're in the Cyber Dimension!" the three whirled around, ready to fight whoever had spoken. "I'm the mighty Scrozzle, and this is my kingdom!" a robot with glowing pale green eyes stepped into view, doing a small twirl. "So, you fools are Avatars. Tronics!" Scrozzle snapped his fingers, and purple robots appeared in a flash around him. The three immediately moved into fighting stances, looking alarmed, and Asher raised a hand, but nothing happened.
"Oh, well that sucks," she complained, realising that her powers wouldn't work as an Avatar.
"I'm in charge here. Bow down!" Scrozzle ordered. However, he screamed in fear as light burst from the computer that had been brought with the three, and Evox revealed himself. He fired blasts that deleted the Tronics in a burst of flames, and Scrozzle threw himself to the ground in an attempt to protect himself. "Have mercy!" he wailed.
"You bow down to me!" Evox roared at the cowering robot. "Understand?" he demanded as Scrozzle continued to beg for his life. The three Avatars just watched, unsure of what to do. 'Silence! I must get out of this dimension now!" Evox declared.
"I can help you! I have a teleporter right here," Scrozzle gestured to the device on his arm. "Only...it's out of power...sorry," he apologised.
"Not for long," Roxy smirked, lifting a small canister of glowing green liquid that had been taken with them. "Heard of Morph-X?" she offered.
"Oh!" Scrozzle gasped, grabbing it from her. "It's pure Morphin' energy! How did you get this?" Scrozzle demanded.
"The place we came from is full of it," Evox told him, still towering over the robot.
"This isn't nearly enough power to move someone of your might between dimensions," Scrozzle said as he examined the canister. "But it could be enough for robots or Avatars," he looked at the two beside him.
"I must return. Go to your Earth's dimension with this creature, and get me enough Morph-X," Evox ordered Blaze. Asher raised an eyebrow as she looked at the battered robot who stood with them. "Do not fail!" he shouted.
"As you wish, Evox," Blaze bowed his head to the Virus.
"So, what did you think of the Battle Simulator?" Zoey asked as the four left the Simulation room. Devon was still bouncing with excitement, even a few days after becoming Rangers.
"It's unreal! It's gotta be the best video game in history!" Devon declared.
"Thanks," they looked around as Nate approached, having heard them talking, and grinned. "I'm pretty proud of it," he said, and Devon's jaw dropped.
"You made it? Up top!" Devon high-fived the genius, who laughed. "And I will beat your score, Ryne," he warned the black haired girl, who smiled innocently back at him.
"I might not be as good as Ravi, but I'll keep my score higher than yours," she told him.
"You totally have an unfair advantage," Devon replied, but was still smiling, too excited. Ryne just stuck out her tongue, not taking offence to his words. They'd all accepted her without hesitation when she told them about her family and her powers.
"Come on," Nate was still laughing. "The Commander wants us all to meet in my lab for an announcement," he led them away from the Simulation room and back towards his lab. Ravi laughed quietly to himself, and Zoey looked at him quickly.
"You know something?" she asked, seeing his smile.
"Isn't it obvious?" Ravi looked at them, and saw three blank looks in response. "I bet the Commander's going to announce me as the team leader," he said smugly.
"Congrats," Ryne said simply, while Zoey laughed a little.
"Wow, just cause she's your mom doesn't mean that she'll pick you," she teased, and Ravi frowned. "I mean, what if I want the job?" Zoey beamed at the idea of being their leader.
"You? Really?" Ravi scoffed.
"Looks like you've got some competition there, Ravi," Devon laughed as Ravi slowed his pace.
"Not interested?" Ryne asked the Red Ranger, looking up at him as they followed Zoey to the lab. Devon just shrugged.
"I dunno. Not enough to compete for it. I'm just happy I finally got to try out the Battle Sim," he told her. "You?" Ryne shook her head quickly when Devon turned the question around on her.
"Nah, I'm no leader," she dismissed the idea, happy to let someone else take charge.
"Good morning, Rangers," Commander Shaw smiled as she reached the lab at the same time. "It's time to meet your new tactical companions," she announced.
"Tactical companions?" Ryne repeated as she opened the door to the lab and stepped inside. Tilting her head, Ryne followed the others inside. They all gasped as they saw the four robots standing ready for them.
"We get our own robots?" Devon asked, jaw dropped.
"I prefer the term 'Beastbots'," Nate corrected. "Since their circuits are infused with animal DNA," he explained.
"You built these as well?" Zoey stared at the young man, who nodded. "Amazing!" she exclaimed.
"This one's yours," Nate activated the short Yellow Beastbot, who had long ears and rolled along the ground. He looked around for a moment, before seeing Zoey.
"Ah, Zoey! I'm Jax," he introduced himself as he wheeled towards her. "I'm here to make sure you're fast and efficient!" Jax told her as she crouched in front of him.
"Great, thanks!" Zoey smiled down at him. "Oh, you're so cute!" she exclaimed, excited, and put a hand on his head. Immediately his ears drooped.
"I hate when people call me 'cute'," he grumbled. Zoey gave an awkward chuckle.
"Sorry," she apologised as she stood again quickly.
"Ravi!" the Blue, bulky Beastbot exclaimed as Nate activated him. "My name's Smash! Bring it in!" he held out his arms to hug Ravi, who stepped back quickly.
"Sorry, not really the hugging type," he told Smash, who slumped.
"Aw…" he groaned. "But I like hugs…" he whined.
"Ah, so you're Ryne," still laughing at Smash, Ryne looked over at her own Beastbot as she was awakened. Smaller than Jax and Pink to match Ryne's Ranger colour, the Squirrel Beastbot had a long tail and rolled along on wheels barely visible. "It's a pleasure to meet you, my name is Scramble," she introduced herself, and Ryne crouched in front of her.
"Nice to meet you too," she grinned, and reached out to touch the cool metal.
"That tickles," Scramble squirmed as Ryne studied how she was built.
"Oh, sorry," Ryne apologised, letting go of her. "You're just amazing," she breathed, fascinated. Scramble seemed pleased by her words, and Ryne smiled as she straightened up.
"Hi Devon!" the final Beastbot greeted his partner when he activated. "My name is…" he trailed off as he started to wave. "Wait, what is it again?" he asked, turning to Nate.
"Your name is Cruise," Nate answered, smiling patiently. "He's a little forgetful," he explained to Devon.
"That's right! I'm Cruise!" the Red Beastbot introduced himself. "Would you like to take a ride?" he asked, and backflipped, transforming into a bike.
"That is so cool!" Devon gasped. "These Beastbots are awesome!" he declared.
"That's amazing," Ryne breathed as she and Devon approached Cruise, both fascinated.
"Hey! We've built something to help you out," they looked around to see Betty walk in. Ben followed, holding a testing dummy and looking nervous.
"Let's just hope it works this time," Ben said, trying to sound as confident as his sister.
"Hang on, I thought you two were security guards," Devon frowned, having seen the two accosting his dad when he'd sneaked into the building. Ryne tilted her head as she watched them set up.
"Ben and Betty assist in any area I see fit," Commander Shaw explained. "And some areas I don't see any fit at all," she muttered, trying to smile; clearly having dealt with the overeager pair a lot.
"We give you...the latest in defence technology," Betty held out a bulky blue device. "The Zappo-matic," she announced. "Ready?" She turned to the testing dummy and held it out. However, when she tried to activate it, it backfired, sending an electric current through her body.
"You have to aim it right, big sis," Ben laughed nervously as Betty twitched, her hair standing on end. "Like this," after taking a breath, Ben tried to activate it, but the same thing happened to him.
"You guys okay?" Zoey asked nervously.
"Can I see that?" Ryne asked, giggling as the two gave a thumbs up.
"Be-be careful," Ben twitched as she took it from him. Ryne hummed, opening the back of it up.
"Wow, this is really good," she admired their work. Despite the leftover static running through her, Betty smiled proudly.
"What, you know about this stuff?" Devon asked as Ryne walked over to one of the tables. She didn't answer him, lifting a pen to nudge the wiring.
"Um…" Nate started forwards, but stopped as he reached her, seeing her adjusting the wires with ease. He remembered when they'd met, how she'd easily navigated his computer systems in an attempt to help, and instead watched curiously with the rest.
Ryne hummed to herself, one of her mum's older songs that she'd had as a lullaby when young, adjusting the wiring, and before long she slipped the casing back on.
"Wires were just crossed. Should work now," she smiled at them, offering the device to the siblings. Ben hesitated, scared to be shocked again, but Betty grabbed it. She made an attempt to smooth her hair, only for it to stick up again, and activated the Zappo-matic. The electricity shot out, only this time forwards at the dummy. It jerked backwards, falling to the ground, and Betty cheered.
"Wow, that was amazing," Devon told Ryne, who shrugged.
"No big deal. My dad helps build stuff for SPD, I've been messing with scraps since I was little," she brushed it off. "Plus I can cheat, my eyesight is different," she pointed to one of her brown eyes.
"Very impressive. Good work, Ryne," Commander Shaw praised, and Ryne's smile grew wider.
"So, Commander, was this your big announcement?" Ravi turned back to his mum, hopeful.
"Not exactly. There's something else," Commander Shaw smiled. "Follow me," she instructed, turning and leading them out of the lab. Ravi's smile grew wider, and Zoey's did too, both eager for a chance to become leader.
Scrozzle was working rapidly, desperate to appease Evox and get his teleporter working. As he did, he told the curious Avatars about the Cyber Dimension, and how he came to be lurking in the ruins.
"So, you're hiding here from a robot named...Vargoyle?" Roxy summed up as she paced around the makeshift lab that Scrozzle had built.
"Sounds lame," Asher said, sitting cross-legged on the ground looking bored.
"Trust me, if Vargoyle was after you, you'd hide too," Scrozzle shot Asher a glare, and lifted the keys he had been powering with Morph-X. "I built all the Tronics to protect me," he explained. Blaze scoffed, leaning against one of the unstable walls.
"I don't need any protection," he said, arrogant.
"Yeah, you're so tough, kid," Scrozzle mocked, turning to him. Blaze glared at him. "Without Scrozzle, you'd be stuck here forever," he pointed out. "Ha! I've upgraded these keys I found in the wreckage. Put 'em in your Morphers, and boom, you teleport," he held it out to Blaze as Roxy walked over to examine his work. Asher's indifferent look didn't change. "Think you can manage that, hotshot?" Scrozzle then walked over to his computer, shutting it over. "Now, we'd better not keep Evox waiting. Let's go," he lifted it and turned back to Blaze, who was studying the key.
"Good luck," Roxy smirked. Blaze raised the key, and a small green beam appeared from it. He connected it to his Morpher, and vanished in red light as Scrozzle vanished in purple.
Jax and Scramble led the way towards the back of Grid Battleforce, to an area where only certain personnel were allowed.
"The Beastbots will not only assist you in training, but also function as the control consoles of...your Zords," their eyes widened as they walked into the bay and had to tilt their heads far back to take in the massive machines. The Red Zord was designed to look like a car, while the Blue Zord looked like a truck. The Pink Zord resembled a bike, while the Yellow Zord was a helicopter.
"Check 'em out!" Jax exclaimed.
"Whoa," Ryne breathed, jaw hanging slack. High above, workers were still fixing them up, ensuring that they were fit for battle if necessary.
"Incredible," Zoey laughed.
"My life is suddenly like one big video game," Devon laughed.
"With all this new hardware, it's critical that the team have the right leader," Commander Shaw told them, turning back to the group.
"I'm happy to accept that responsibility, Commander," Ravi turned back to her quickly. "Thank you," he smiled, but Zoey frowned.
"Excuse me," she turned to stand beside him and smiled at the Commander as well. "I'm not so sure that she had you in mind," she said, and Ravi's eyebrows rose.
"Who else?" he asked, somewhat dismissive. "Remember, I am the only one who actually trained to be a Ranger," he pointed out. Zoey's smile vanished and heat coloured her face at his words. "I've got the most experience," Ravi bragged.
"I have experience," Zoey blurted out, determined not to be overlooked or outshined. "I reorganised the entire Grid Battleforce laundry department," she explained, and Ravi snorted.
"Like that's tough," he muttered, and Zoey's blush grew as she looked hurt.
"How would you know?" Commander Shaw asked, raising her eyebrows in a curious look. "You've never done a piece of laundry in your life," she pointed out. This time it was Ravi's turn to blush hard. Zoey fought not to laugh, but a giggle slipped out as Ryne couldn't help but wince sympathetically. Even Nate had to avert his gaze. "Devon, Ryne, what do you think?" she asked the two who had been watching on the sidelines.
"I uh…" Ryne scratched the side of her head, thinking about it, and looked at the two, before turning back to Commander Shaw. "Personally, I don't have much of an opinion built yet," she admitted, not knowing the two well enough to make a decision. Commander Shaw nodded.
"And Devon?" She turned towards the Red Ranger.
"I think that…" whatever Devon was going to say stopped as two people went by, pushing a cart. "That is one awesome blaster!" he exclaimed, gazing at it.
"The Cheetah Beast Blaster," Nate told him, happy that Devon was constantly praising his creations. "It interfaces with the Red Ranger's Zord, hyper-charging its attacks," he explained.
"A final attack sort of thing?" Ryne asked, impressed as well.
"That's right," Nate nodded. An alarm suddenly blared loudly, making them all jump.
"Commander!" Ben ran into the room with Betty close behind. "We've detected a security breach," he warned.
"It's outside a Morph-X distribution centre," Betty told them as the Commander walked over to them.
"I'm on it!" both Ravi and Zoey shouted together, bumping into each other as they tried to lead the way. They glared at each other and groaned, before running off. Ryne looked at Devon, who was trying not to laugh.
"Come on," he nodded to her, and they followed the Yellow and Blue Rangers out.
"They might need backup. We'll go too," Betty volunteered.
"We will?!" Ben demanded, baffled by her words. Betty gave him an expectant look. "Uh, oh, yeah, we will," he agreed reluctantly, laughing helplessly as Betty pulled him along.
When the Rangers reached the distribution centre where the security breach was detected, they found Blaze's Avatar emptying Morph-X into a bottle, while a strange robot stood with him, seeming to be barking orders.
"I knew it," Ravi muttered as he watched them through binoculars that he'd brought. "It's Blaze. Nate said he'd find a way back to this dimension," he said, glaring at the evil Avatar of his friend.
"That's good in a way. We needed them to, if we're to wake up the real versions," Ryne said. "But why are they stealing so much Morph-X?" she wondered. They looked at Zoey when she wordlessly started to walk forwards, and Ravi quickly followed. Devon sighed.
"You guys wait here where it's safe," he told Ben and Betty, who were hiding behind the open door of the car.
"Are you sure?" Betty asked, ready to help.
"Yes, he's sure," Ben groaned, and shoved her into the car to keep safe. Devon looked up at Ryne, who was smiling in amusement at the two.
"Let's go," he told her. Ryne nodded, and they followed Zoey and Ravi over.
"We've got company," Scrozzle announced, tapping Blaze on the shoulder as he continued to drain Morph-X. "Are these friends of yours?" he asked, pointing to the Rangers. Blaze glanced around, seeing the four standing together.
"Oh, we're not friends anymore," Blaze smirked. He turned properly and raised his key, transforming into his armour with a chuckle. The Rangers quickly moved into fighting stances. "Hey rookies. Meet my new friends - Scrozzle…" he gestured to the robot, who bowed politely. "And Tronics!" He summoned a wave of footsoldiers in purple.
"Whoa," Zoey gulped.
"What are those things?" Devon gulped.
"More robots, I'd wager," Ryne said.
"Get them!" Blaze ordered, and the Tronics rushed forwards. The Rangers split up, each fighting a group of Tronics separately, and Ryne moved towards the grass with several running after her. She then turned, and her hands lit up with blue energy.
"I suppose the bad guys always have to have some creepy followers," she muttered, swinging her arms out. Her powers arced through the air like lightning and hit the Tronics, making them jerk before turning to dust. The ones behind then ran in without hesitation, and Ryne leapt over their heads, kicking out and knocking one into the others. She then dropped to the ground and kicked out, sweeping their legs out from under them.
"Get down!" as she finished off the Tronics around her, Ryne looked around, hearing Zoey's shout. She saw Ravi crouch, and Zoey blasting two of the Tronics behind him. "And that's how a true leader protects her team," she smirked at Ravi as he straightened up.
"Oh, really?" Ravi scoffed. "I had those guys," he insisted.
"Oh, really?" Zoey laughed back. "It didn't look like it!" she taunted him, riling up the Blue Ranger more. "Just admit that I'm the better leader!" she demanded as a full argument broke out. Ryne sighed, and ran over to help Devon with Blaze, kicking him in the side and knocking the armoured Avatar into the side of a car.
"Thanks," Devon nodded to her, and she smiled.
"Well, I was a cadet too!"
"Oh, so you got cut," Ravi nodded in understanding as Zoey went red.
"That's because I was juggling a job at the same time?" she defended herself as Ravi smirked. Groaning, Devon ran over to the two.
"Guys!" his shout snapped them back to attention. "Stop fighting each other, and start fighting them!" He reminded them of the battle around them as the Tronics recovered and ran at them again. The four continued to fight off the footsoldiers, slowly gaining the upper hand.
"This is gonna be fun!" They looked around at the new voice, and saw a new monster standing with Blaze and Scrozzle.
"Where'd that come from?" Zoey asked as the Tronics lay scattered around them.
"It doesn't matter," Devon shook his head. "Let's send it back," he told them. Both Ravi and Zoey then rushed forwards, and glared at each other again.
"It's Morphin' Time!" they chorused, which only annoyed them more. Devon stood beside them, and Ryne sighed before doing the same. They swung their arms around, and pressed the button on their WristComs, summoning their Morphers. They then lifted their keys, which started glowing green at the end.
"ACTIVATE BEAST POWER!" they Morphed into their Pink, Yellow, Blue and Red suits. "Unleash the Beast!"
"Rangers?!" Scrozzle yelped as he saw their outfits. "I didn't sign up for this!" he whined.
"Fine," Blaze rolled his eyes. "Scrozzle and I will take the Morph-X. You did with the Rangers," he ordered Cycletron, who saluted with his tyre-shaped hands.
"Let's rock and roll!" he growled as Blaze grabbed the half-full bottle. Blaze and Scrozzle then vanished, leaving the Rangers to fight the Robotron and more Tronics.
"Transport - Beast-X Sabre!" they teleported their weapons from the base, and the Tronics raced in to fight again.
"Just how many of you creeps are there?" Ryne asked as she sliced through one of the Tronics and punched another. Nearby, Devon used his superspeed to cut through the Tronics before they could even move, and they fell to the ground, exploding in purple lights. Ravi was fighting the Cycletron, and Zoey was leaping through the air, landing on the Tronics and destroying them.
Ryne focused, using her new power to react as soon as the Tronics tried to move, and she used her sabre to cut through each one, getting past their strikes without being touched. However, as she turned to continue doing so, her focus flickered to Zoey, who was continuing to bounce through the air, before she shook her head. "Focus," she whispered to herself, continuing to fight.
"Devon!" Betty's warning shout caught Ryne's attention, and she looked around to see a Tronic sneaking up on the Red Ranger, who'd just stopped racing around with his superspeed. He looked around quickly, only to take a blow to the chest. He cried out, seeming to feel it a lot worse despite his suit, and crashed to the ground.
"Devon!" Ryne gasped, turning to run towards him, only for more Tronics to surround her. "I-wait, what?" Ryne struggled to focus on one particular enemy. Nearby, Betty stepped between the fallen Red Ranger and the Tronic, and Ben stood behind it. As the Tronic turned around, Ben used the Zappo-matic, and the Tronic jerked violently before collapsing.
"Whoa!" Devon got back to his feet, suddenly feeling fine. Betty hugged her brother, cheering him on as he grinned. "Thanks guys," Devon called to the pair, before running to help Ryne, who was starting to take hits from the Tronics. "Ryne, what's wrong?" he called as he blasted a way to her.
"Can't...focus," Ryne shook her head as if to help clear it. "I can't-" she stopped, attention diverted by Ravi firing shot after shot at Cycletron, only to miss each one.
"Ryne?" Devon took out the Tronics around her, seeing that she wasn't able to pay attention to more than one thing.
"Yikes! Someone needs to work on their aim!" Zoey taunted as she ran over, seeing how bad Ravi's shots were.
"My aim is just fine!" he started shooting at her instead. Zoey gave a startled yell, using her power to dodge his attacks.
"Stop him!" Ryne managed to stay focused enough to warn Devon, whose eyes widened as he saw Zoey on the ground, suddenly too exhausted to move. Ravi was aiming his blaster at her, ready to finish her off.
"Ravi, stop!" Devon ran in and grabbed Ravi's blaster, stopping him. He then shoved the Blue Ranger to the ground, and took aim at the Robotron nearby. "Beast Blast!" He fired a powerful shot, destroying the robot. "That was way too close. Something is going wrong with us…" he thought about how the one strike from the Tronic had stunned him far longer than it should have. He looked around to see jeeps from Grid Battleforce pulling up, ready to help.
"Ravi, this isn't you!" Smash jumped out and ran over, restraining Ravi before he could attack the distracted Devon.
"Let me go, you beast!" he snarled.
"Whoa, Ravi!" Devon gasped at how angry Ravi was, struggling against Smash.
"Ow! He's burning up!" Smash yelped, feeling how hot Ravi was. His suit was giving off steam, he was so hot, and Smash was struggling to keep him restrained.
"Someone help Zoey!" Jax cried as Zoey demorphed, barely conscious. "She's in bad shape," he groaned, and a guard ran over to help her up, practically carrying her over to the cars.
"Ryne!" Scramble wheeled over to Ryne, who was crouched on the ground, eyes squeezed shut. "What's wrong?" she asked, trying to figure out what was wrong with the Pink Ranger.
"I...I don't know!" Ryne managed to say as her suit vanished.
"Nate, something seriously weird is happening to us," Devon warned as the genius ran over, having come to see in person.
"Yeah, I saw," he nodded. "Let's get back to the lab," he told the Red Ranger, who nodded and ran to help Ryne as Smash continued to restrain Ravi.
"This isn't going to work!" Scrozzle shouted as he saw the half-full bottle of Morph-X. "It's not nearly enough to get Master Evox back to your world," he complained.
"Great job," Asher taunted Blaze sarcastically, who glared at her.
"But…" Scrozzle continued. "This could be enough to power one of my giant Gigadrones," he considered, pouring it into a nearby container. "Yes, I'll get the motherlode - an entire Morph-X tower!" he laughed.
"Well Commander, they're not in any danger," Nate reported his findings to Commander Shaw, who had been waiting impatiently for results on the four Rangers. They'd both seen how oddly the four had been behaving out in the battlefield.
"Any theory as to what might have caused these...weaknesses?" she asked. Devon stood beside her, arms folded as Zoey lay on one of the scanners, still exhausted, while Ravi lay on the other, covered in ice-packs. He'd finally calmed down enough to demorph, but was still burning up, and the ice-packs had to be replaced every few minutes.
"To be honest...I have no idea," Nate admitted as he turned to her. "Yet," he added when he saw her brow furrow.
"I dare Blaze to come back. Next time, I'll take him down," Ravi growled, still angry.
"Not if I get to him first," Zoey tried to push herself up, but both fell back.
"Guys, you have to stop competing," Devon finally stepped in, tired of their behavior.
"But-"
"No buts," Devon stopped Zoey before she could argue. "Listen. Ben and Betty saved me from a Tronic today. They did amazing, because they worked together as a team. And we're also supposed to be a team," he reminded them. "You two were so focused on who would make a better leader, that you just kept arguing. The only one who could work as part of a team today was Ryne," he looked over to where the black haired girl was sitting at the end of Ravi's scanner, fiddling with a small device. She looked up.
"Blaze got away with some Morph-X because we weren't all working together. Ravi, you can't stop acting like you're better just because you were chosen for this mission and we weren't," she told him, and the Blue Ranger looked away. "Zoey, you haven't been much better. You need to stop taunting Ravi and trying to prove that you're more capable than him," she ignored his reaction and turned to Zoey, who looked embarrassed.
"We've got to pull it together," Devon said, determined not to let the team fall apart.
"He's right," Zoey accepted, looking over at Ravi. "They both are," she added, knowing that she'd gone a little overboard trying to make Ravi look less competent than her.
"Sorry guys," Ravi apologised. "Next time, we'll do better," he promised, and both collapsed back against the metal scanners they were lying on.
"Commander," Devon stood and turned back to the woman, who had been watching. "We have to figure out what caused these weaknesses. I'd like to go back to the distribution center, take a look around," he requested. She nodded.
"Go," she agreed to his idea.
"I'll come with you," Ryne offered, standing, and Devon turned back to her.
"You're okay now?" he asked, seeing that she seemed back to normal. Ryne nodded, slipping the small device into the pocket of her green jacket.
"Yeah, back to normal," she confirmed. Devon watched her for a moment, thinking about it.
"You stay here. See if you can help figure out what caused these problems from here," Devon decided. Ryne nodded, and Devon hurried out to try and find some clues out in the field.
Scrozzle's laughter rang out through their small part of the Cyber Dimension as he worked.
"My giant Gigadrone will do a better job than you three," he glanced over his shoulder at the three Avatars watching him work. "Now, let's get started!" Scrozzle declared. He pulled a level, and the ground rumbled. "If you've never seen a Gigadrone before, you're in for a real treat," he laughed as they looked up. In the distance, a tower had risen from the ground, and slowly opened to reveal a massive robot. "This alpha model's a personal favourite," Scrozzle told them.
"Eh. You see one giant robot, you've seen 'em all," Asher shrugged, not very impressed.
"I've got hundreds just like it, right under our feet," Scrozzle ignored her input. "They can all morph with Robotron data when they teleport," he explained, and they watched the robot vanish, using Scrozzle's technology to teleport out of the Cyber Dimension.
Ryne giggled as the latest scan tickled, and she squirmed away from Nate as he tried to study her brain functions.
"Sorry," he apologised, smiling a little as he drew back. "Everything seems normal," Nate told her, shaking his head. "If it was time-based, Ravi and Zoey should have been okay ages ago," he commented, looking over to where Zoey was asleep, and Ravi was finally starting to cool down.
"Maybe it's different?" Ryne asked. "I mean, Devon was okay almost immediately," she pointed out, and Nate hummed to himself, before the ground rumbled and the alarm blared. "What was that?" Ryne asked as Nate immediately went back to his computer.
"A giant robot just appeared in the city," he breathed. "Devon's on it, but I need to figure out what's going on first," Nate's worried look grew.
"Hey, you'll figure it out," Ryne soothed him, smiling. "Don't panic. Devon can handle this until you do," she said confidently. Nate nodded slowly, looking slightly less frantic.
"R-right," he turned back to the Ranger information, trying to figure it all out. He then paused. "Wait, Ryne," he looked over at the young woman who was looking through information on one of the tablets. She looked up, and tilted her head. "When we got back to the base, you were messing with something," Nate remembered. Ryne nodded, and fished it out of her pocket.
"It was Ashe's. I found it in her place," she held it out to him. "I made it for her when we were younger, for her birthday. It was just a little light feature, not much to it. It broke a few years ago, and I figured I'd fix it for whe..." she trailed off, and Nate knew the ending of her sentence. When they defeated Asher's Avatar, and woke her up. He took it, examining her work. Like she said, it was old and worn, and didn't have much to it.
"You work on fixing tech a lot, don't you?" Nate asked, handing it back. Ryne nodded. "Your Squirrel DNA lets you hyperfocus on your enemies and improve your reflexes, but then you couldn't focus on anything...and Devon, he has Cheetah DNA. Cheetahs have low stamina...and Devon had just used his superspeed when he took a hit. That must have been why he was so stunned afterwards, even when his suit absorbed the attack," he realised, looking at Devon's DNA charts.
"Surely such strong weaknesses would have come up when you were designing these," Ryne was surprised by his conclusions.
"Yes, but…" Nate walked back over to the other two as Zoey stirred, still looking tired. "When you guys became Rangers, you briefly made contact with the Evox virus. It looks like it corrupted your animal DNA, causing these odd weaknesses," he realised, looking at one of the other screens. "Of course!" He turned to Ryne. "Your focus was so strong, your mind couldn't keep up, meaning you couldn't focus on your fight. But when you concentrated on something important to you, you were able to restore that focus," he explained, before grabbing his lunchbox, taking out one of the carrots he'd packed. "Zoey, eat this," he held it out to her. Zoey pulled a face, but took it, trusting him, and bit into it.
"Whoa!" the moment she swallowed the first bite, she perked up, suddenly looking a lot more alert. "It's like a rush of energy," she said, taking another bite. "Suddenly I feel great!" Zoey laughed.
"Because of your Jackrabbit DNA. Carrots will replenish your energy levels," he told her. "Ryne, you can't use your power for long, or it will become too hard to focus," he said to the other young woman.
"What about me?" Ravi asked, and Nate's brow furrowed as he thought about it.
"All of your muscles activated when you fought as hard as a gorilla, and the corrupted DNA sent you wild," Nate considered. "Just try not to overheat, and you should be okay," he told Ravi. "Now go, go, go!" Nate ushered them out. Zoey jumped up and was rushing to the door as energy rushed through her, and Ravi brushed away the melted ice-packs to follow her out.
"Right behind you Zoey!" Jax followed the Yellow Ranger into the Zord bay. "Let's take that hunk of junk down!" he cheered. As they took off, Ravi and Ryne went to their own Zords.
"I think my Zord is faster. I'll help Devon stall the big robot," Zoey told them as she flew off in the Chopper Zord.
"Roger that, Zoey," Ravi nodded as he reached his own Wheeler Zord.
"Meet you there," Ryne called, entering the Speeder Zord.
"Scramble Linked," the Squirrel Beastbot connected with the Zord, and Ryne cheered as she raced out of the base and towards the fight.
"I have eyes on the giant bot, I'll cut him off!" Zoey reached Devon first as expected, flying in to block the monster from reaching the Morph-X Tower that it was after.
"Watch out!" Devon warned, before the Gigadrone blasted both his and Zoey's Zords.
"It's blasting us! We're hit!" she cried out as alarms blared in her Zord. The new, massive Cycletron roared and lashed out at Zoey again.
"Oh no you don't!" Before it could land a blow, Ryne's Speeder Zord appeared, colliding with the Gigadrone and knocking it away.
"Ravi, where are you?!" Zoey called as her Zord started to drop from the sky.
"Right beneath you," Ravi grinned as his Wheeler Zord matched the Chopper Zord's pace and allowed Zoey to land. "Gotcha," he laughed as the Chopper Zord landed roughly.
"Nice save!" Jax praised.
"Yeah, thanks guys," Zoey breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hope this makes up for going bananas on you earlier," Ravi told her, making her smile.
"Let's kick some robot butt!" Jax declared as the systems recovered, allowing Zoey to take to the sky again.
"Show him what we've got! Rapid blast!" she fired the blasters on her Zord, hitting the Cycletron as it recovered from Ryne's hit.
"Let's show off Jackrabbit Mode!" Jax suggested. The Chopper Zord transformed into a more rabbit-like Zord, hopping along the ground.
"Beast kick!" she struck before digging underground and vanishing. She reappeared behind the Gigadrone, and kicked him high into the air.
"Incoming!" Cruise warned, and Devon narrowly avoided the robot as it crashed beside him.
"That was close," Devon couldn't help but laugh. "Let's finish this creep! I'm gonna try that awesome blaster Nate showed me. Transport - Cheetah Beast Blaster!" he called on the new Blaster, which appeared in his hands. "Racer Zord, Cheetah Strike!" He took aim and fired, which allowed his Zord to deliver a powerful slash attack and destroy the Gigadrone.
"Alright!"
"Go team!"
"That was amazing!" the team cheered at their victory.
"Virus, eliminated," Devon declared quietly.
The four Rangers were still chattering excitedly about their new Zords as they returned to base for their debriefing.
"That was amazing!" Zoey exclaimed.
"Awesome!"
"The Zords were so big!"
"And so strong!" they exclaimed as they walked into the main command room.
"Rangers," Commander Shaw's greeting instantly shut them up. They looked up at her as she stood from her chair, hands going behind her back as she remained in a firm stance walking towards them. "I'm deeply concerned that Evox's dangerous allies have returned," she confessed. "They're clearly after Morph-X," she said as the Beastbots stood nearby, with Ben and Betty there too. "But...after seeing you work today, I'm confident we'll be ready for them," Commander Shaw's praise made them all smile. "Your first official mission was a success," she told them, smiling herself. "Well done Rangers," she nodded as Cruise and Smash cheered quietly. "As for who should lead the team-"
"Sorry, Commander, but, um," Zoey interrupted, and immediately grew flustered at interrupting the woman, especially when Commander Shaw's attention focused on her. "Ravi and I were thinking, first off...Devon really saved us today when our weaknesses kicked in," she said, taking the Red Ranger by surprise.
"And he reminded us to work together as a team," Ravi spoke up, standing beside Zoey. The two then turned to him.
"We think you should be our leader," Zoey told Devon, who stared at her as she put a hand on his shoulder, smiling. Ravi nodded.
"And Ryne should be a sort of second-in-command," the Pink Ranger started when Ravi turned and put his hand on her shoulder. "Since she wasn't afraid to put us in our places today and back Devon up when needed," he said, and Ryne went red.
"I don't know what to say," Devon hadn't been expecting them to turn and volunteer him as their leader, especially with how much they'd been fighting over it.
"Just said 'I'd love to, guys'," Zoey whispered to him.
"I'd love to, guys," Devon repeated, stammering a little.
"And Ryne?" Commander Shaw asked. "It has to be unanimous. Are you happy with these choices?" she asked the Pink Ranger, who looked up at her team. All three smiled at her.
"Y-yeah," she nodded, a little embarrassed. She had expected Ravi and Zoey to be upset with her harsh words, but instead they seemed to have appreciated them.
"Well, as the new leader, I want to thank you two for all your help," Devon then turned his attention to Ben and Betty.
"Ah, don't mention it," Ben waved it off, trying to be modest. Betty, however, wasn't as modest.
"No, do mention it," she said, shoving her brother back. "A lot," she insisted with a grin, making them laugh.
"Group hug!" Smash declared, opening his arms in an inviting gesture. The others moved in for the hug, with Devon dragging Ravi in as the Blue Ranger groaned, before they all jerked and pulled away from one another.
"Sorry!" Ben laughed, pulling a familiar device from his pocket. "I left the Zappo-matic in my pocket," he admitted with a laugh, making them all laugh even more.
Apologies for the delay in an update, things have been a bit chaotic and I kind of got hyperfocused on writing Whims of Fate, my Thor 2 fic, instead. However I'm very close to finishing writing that, so once I have, I'll be focusing on this for a bit!
Anyways, I've decided to take a leaf out of Twix3780's book and start updating on an actual schedule, so that I can be ahead, especially before November. I have NaNoWriMo, plus the new FFXIV Expansion, which is released the same day as the new Pokemon game.
I'll be updating this story on Saturdays, and Whims of Fate will be on Friday. Reckless Heart, once I get a little more ahead, will also be continued.
Please also check out my Instagram account, FallenArcanaFanfiction, for faceclaims and other random things to do with my fics!
Okay, rambling aside, I hope you enjoyed it! The next chapter will be introducing two new characters ;)
Please review!
