Chapter 25: Beast King Rampage

Lewis admired Commander Shaw for her dedication to her work. She was stern, but she had the same expectations of herself as she did everyone else around her, and he knew for sure that Grid Battleforce would never have succeeded without her at the helm.

To see her pale and exhausted from a lack of sleep, pacing in the Command Centre, was a strange sight for the young man. He didn't dare try and stop her or suggest that she rest. Commander Shaw made it clear that despite how tough she was, she loved her son deeply, and for him to have been captured and brought into the past had turned her life into a nightmare.

Instead, Lewis just passed her tea now and again - a recipe that he'd learned from his grandmother from her travels around the world - to keep her at least somewhat hydrated while they waited for the Rangers to return.

Finally, hours after Devon had led the remaining Rangers through a portal into the past with Spencer's help, the portal reopened in the middle of the Command Centre. Commander Shaw finally stopped her pacing, and everyone stopped what they were doing to stare.

"Oh man, what a trip," Devon couldn't help but laugh as he stepped through. There was dirt streaked across his face and clothes, and he looked tired. He stood straighter as he saw Commander Shaw, before glancing to the portal. Ravi stepped through, looking tired as well, but no worse for wear.

"Ravi, you're alright," Commander Shaw broke her blank resolve and rushed over to hug her son. Ravi couldn't hide his surprise at the sudden show of affection, before he hugged her back.

"I'm sorry for worrying you," he apologised quietly, staying in the embrace as Zoey stepped out of the portal, followed by Nate and Steel. After a moment, Ryne stepped through, pushing her hair from her face.

"That was just…so weird," she muttered, shivering as Lewis tilted his head.

"It's good to see you all back in one piece," Commander Shaw cleared her throat as she released her son and stepped back. She still looked exhausted, but the tension she had carried was gone. She smiled faintly at the team. "Thank you all," she said, and they smiled back.

"We would have gone regardless, Commander," Devon said with a slight shrug.

"He's right. Ravi's our friend. We wouldn't have left him," Ryne agreed. Ravi shot them grateful looks, not having had the time to thank them during the chaos of Draven's Fortress.

"Why did they take Ravi?" Lewis wondered, arms folded. "The Kudabots weren't anything to do with us," he pointed out.

"They were working for someone called Lord Draven," Devon started. "He was kidnapping Rangers from all around the timeline, using them as fuel to create robot copies of them in his plan to take over all the timelines," he explained. As his excitement faded, he started to realise just how tired he was.

"All of the timelines? I suppose that explains why Spencer was involved," Commander Shaw frowned. Despite how tired he was, Devon snorted. Ryne shot him a glare, and Lewis didn't miss that Ravi, Zoey and Nate were hiding their laughter now too.

"What are we missing?" he asked, curious. Ryne stayed stubbornly silent, which only made him want to know more.

"We weren't the only ones there to save a stolen team-mate. We met a lot of Ranger legends," Devon smirked. "Including Tommy Oliver, Ari Bly, and the Ninja Steel team," he said, and Lewis couldn't stop the burst of laughter that escaped him. He quickly put his hand over his mouth.

"It was awesome to see Teddie in action when she was our age," Zoey spoke up.

"And fighting alongside my predecessors was phenomenal," Nate nodded. Ryne looked at the pair with an expression that could only be described as utter betrayal as Lewis couldn't stop his laughter. Even Commander Shaw couldn't help but smile faintly now that her son was out of danger.

"Your involvement would be the reason for their memories being wiped of the event," she spoke up. "At any rate, it is good to have you all back. Now, you should all go home and get some rest. You'll be needed back here first thing tomorrow morning," Commander Shaw made them all exchange looks.

"What's happening tomorrow morning?" Devon asked, and Commander Shaw gave a quiet sigh.

"General Burke has announced he will be visiting with some news, along with Mayor Daniels," Devon frowned at the mention of his father. "I don't have any information regarding it past this. Get some rest, Rangers. You've earned it. Dismissed," Commander Shaw said firmly, and started to lead Ravi out of the base.

"I wonder what they're planning," Steel said, always curious about everything. "I hope it's a party!" he exclaimed, and the rest of the group exchanged amused looks. He'd already been convinced that he was getting a surprise party thrown for him recently.

"Whatever it is, it can wait until tomorrow, when I can sleep and hopefully forget everything that happened today," Ryne said, making them laugh once more.

"Come on, it can't have been that bad seeing your parents," Lewis chuckled, patting her head.

"It was weird. They're exactly the same as they are now," she complained, shivering as she thought about it. "Imagine if it was you and your dad and his dad," Ryne told Lewis. He hummed, thoughtful as he mused this over.

"Okay yeah, you've got me there," he allowed. "Go on and get some rest. I've got training to plan and your cousin to try and convince to help me," Lewis shooed, before giving Nate a haughty look. "I heard you're trying to poach her from me. You'll regret it," he warned, and the Gold Ranger just smiled back at him.

"Maybe she's as afraid of your training sessions as the rest of us are," he said innocently, and Lewis just rolled his eyes.

"Now you're just being ridiculous," he complained, sounding offended.


The next morning, the team arrived at Grid Battleforce to meet with General Burke. Now that they were rested after a tough fight, they were more curious about just what the meeting was about.

"Hey Ravi!" the Blue Ranger turned at the greeting, and found Ryne and Asher catching up with him.

"Hey guys. Asher, you're here for the meeting too?" he asked, and she shook her head.

"Nah. I still have to give an answer on if I want to work with Lewis or Nate. I'm just coming in to see what kind of work both would have me do, to see what I'd prefer," Asher explained, and Ravi nodded. Asher had been completely on the fence about what she'd prefer to do, even with Ryne's advice.

They walked into the Command Centre, where Commander Shaw was already waiting with General Burke, and one other person that Ravi found oddly familiar. Ryne, however, stopped in surprise.

"Calvin?" she addressed the one that the rest of the team had found oddly familiar, and he turned at his name being called. The man smiled brightly as he recognised Ryne.

"Ryne! It's great to see you. I heard you were part of all this now. It's good to see you. You've grown," he said.

"Don't lie to her," Devon muttered, and Ryne angled to glare at the Red Ranger.

"Wait, you know each other?" General Burke asked, looking from Calvin to Ryne.

"I went to school with her mum. We're good friends. A good team," Calvin said, and winked to the rest of the Rangers. Their eyes widened as they caught onto his meaning, realising just who he was and why they recognised him.

Ryne couldn't help but stare at the man, finding it bizarre to see him now. This was how she remembered him, having been around SPD so much growing up, as well as him being good friends with her parents. But the memory of the fight against Draven was fresh in her mind, really only yesterday for her, but had happened several years ago for the man.

"Yeah, it's weird for me too. The memories only just started coming back," Calvin seemed to understand exactly what Ryne was thinking. He found it just as weird, as he and the rest of his team started to remember the fight - the memory alteration spell having faded after it had happened for the Beast Morphers team - and they realised they'd fought alongside a team from the future.

"I hate time-travel," Ryne complained. Logically, she could understand it. What was yesterday for her, was several years ago for the man. Logically, that made sense. But experiencing it was entirely differently, and it was giving her a headache. Calvin laughed lightly, patting her head.

"So what's going on?" Devon asked as Ryne, Ravi and Asher fell into line.

"Listen up, Grid Battleforce," General Burke cleared his throat, his voice loud to command their attention. "The Mayor and I have been working on a top secret project with the assistance of Calvin Maxwell, one of the head engineers at SPD," the man waved to the team with his easy smile. "And today you get to see it in action," General Burke glanced to the doors as they slid open, but the only person to walk through was one of the surveillance team. "Hmm, the Mayor seems to be running a bit late," he commented, unsure of how to proceed. "Mr Maxwell, do you have the details?" the man asked Calvin.

"I sent them all over to you last night," Calvin reminded him in a patient tone that told the Rangers that he'd been dealing with the man for some time. General Burke coloured red, clearing his throat.

"Oh, of course, yes I remember now, I-"

"It's okay," Calvin chuckled, sparing the man who had clearly forgotten to bring the data with him. "I can get it. Give me just a moment," he lifted a tablet from his bag, and turned away from the others. Nate's eyes narrowed a little when he didn't see Calvin making any movements on the tablet itself.

"General Burke, what is your secret project?" Commander Shaw asked, lacking the patience that Calvin held in abundance.

"Ah, yes," General Burke straightened, and cleared his throat. "That would be…the Beast-X King Zord," the Rangers all straightened in surprise at his words.

"Uh…" Nate tore his eyes away from Calvin. "Did you say Zord?" he asked, a little incredulous.

"You're kidding, right?" Ravi stared.

"You can't just make a Zord…" Asher muttered.

"It's easier than people think," Ryne pointed out, and Asher rolled her eyes at her cousin. "But…isn't that Nate's job?" she wondered.

"This isn't just any Zord," as usual, General Burke forged ahead, not seeming to listen to them. "It's a top-notch piece of technology, made with lion DNA. We've been working closely with SPD's finest to achieve this," he looked over at Calvin, who'd turned back to them. He gave a bashful smile.

"Finest mechanic," he amended.

"The plan is to build lots of them to protect the global network of Morph-X Towers," General Burke continued to explain as Commander Shaw approached him, her face like thunder.

"You built a Zord, without involving Grid Battleforce?" her voice was low, but the danger in it was enough to make everyone in the room nervous. "SPD didn't think to involve us?" she turned to Calvin, who blanched.

"We were led to believe that Grid Battleforce were aware," he said carefully, looking at the General for backup. This only made Commander Shaw look even more furious, and the Rangers all looked concerned.

"The Rangers are way too busy keeping the city safe," General Burke defended, standing tall against the woman. "This project won't disturb your operation one teensy-weensy bit," Lewis winced at how condescending his words were. "We even have our own designer. She used to work here," Commander Shaw frowned as the doors slid open. "And here she is now with the Mayor," General Burke smiled as two people walked in.

"Hey dad," Devon greeted, before all of them froze as they recognised the young woman walking with the Mayor. "Megan?!" Ryne immediately froze up at the sight of the woman. Asher's eyebrows shot up. She'd heard all about how she had tried to take over Nate's lab.

"Hi…everyone…" Megan was quiet and subdued, avoiding their gazes.

"No way…" Zoey looked at Nate, whose expression was almost as dark as Commander Shaw's.

"Why would you hire her?" Nate turned to General Burke. "She blackmailed Zoey!" he pointed out furiously.

"Not to mention how she bullied Ryne," Steel spoke up. Asher's eyes went wide, and she looked at Ryne, who had edged towards Asher with an uncertain expression.

"She what?!" she snarled, and Devon grabbed her arm quickly, shaking his head in warning. Asher glared at Megan, who was staring at the floor.

"Easy," Mayor Daniels spoke up. "Megan mentioned that there was some bad blood between you, but she submitted an amazing design," he looked at her, smiling as Megan managed to look up at him despite shame making her stomach churn.

"No wonder Sky dumped this on me," Calvin muttered under his breath as he watched this unfold. The Commander of SPD had frequently commented that Calvin had the patience of a saint.

"Her knowledge and experience make her the right person for this top secret assignment. She's done a great job," Mayor Daniels told them confidently.

"Even if she's not above using unscrupulous methods to get what she wants?" Lewis asked, and snorted. "Can't half tell that SPD and Grid Battleforce were left out of the loop on most of this," he muttered.

"Lewis," Commander Shaw addressed him quietly; a warning to stay quiet. He huffed, but did just that. Megan finally looked up, taking a few slow steps towards Zoey and Nate.

"I know what I did to you guys was wrong, and I am truly sorry. You as well," she glanced over at Ryne, whose hands were clenched tightly. Megan's words to her had come flooding back, and it was only because Asher had grasped her hand that she was able to keep her powers in check. "When the Mayor told me about the project, all I wanted to do was help," Megan pressed. Zoey looked unsure, but Nate hadn't stopped glaring at her, clearly dismissing her words.

"Let's show them," General Burke put a hand on her shoulder. Megan looked at the Rangers again, before taking a breath. She walked over to Calvin, who held out the tablet to her.

"It's all on there," he said quietly, looking worried. The amount of hostility in the room put him on edge.

"Thank you," she whispered back, taking it from him. She walked over to an empty space, and took another deep breath before turning to face everyone. "This Activator summons the Beast-X King Zord," she held up her wrist to show the device strapped there. It was blue and gold, and very reminiscent of what Nate designed. He scoffed. "For the purposes of the test, I will control it from this tablet," she then turned to the monitors. "Now I'll just bring up the cameras," she activated the cameras in place.

"You okay?" Asher whispered to Ryne. The Pink Ranger didn't reply straight away, taking a deep breath before letting go of Asher's hand.

"Yeah. Just…caught off guard," she replied quietly. Asher bumped her lightly with her elbow, and Ryne managed a small smile back.

"Okay, this is Pine Ridge Woods," they looked up as the screens showed the forest on the outskirts of Pine Ridge. She then held up the key, activating it, and the tip glowed green with Morph-X. "Deploy Beast-X King Zord," she inserted the key into the device on her wrist, and turned back to the screen. Trees had begun to shake with the tremors, and a moment later a Lion Zord leapt into view.

"Whoa! Are you guys seeing this?" Steel shouted as the rest of the team stared. Even Lewis and Asher were speechless. "It really is a Lion Zord," he exclaimed.

"Just as majestic as we'd hoped," General Burke declared proudly. Calvin smiled as he watched the Lion bounding along on screen.

"We may have taken some creative liberties from…elsewhere," he admitted, and despite the anxiety fading, Ryne glanced at him and smiled, knowing exactly what he meant.

"Mr. Maxwell was invaluable in the design process. I'd thought SPD only worked with machine-themed Zords, but the Lion theme was his idea," Megan confessed, glancing over at the man. He shrugged.

"Wait, what's that glow?" Nate asked, finally speaking to Megan as he approached. All of them had seen the purple haze shimmer across the Zord.

"That's weird…" Megan muttered, pressing a key. When nothing happened, she pressed multiple buttons, her touches getting more and more frantic.

"What's going on?" General Burke frowned.

"I commanded the Zord to stand down, but it isn't responding," Megan gasped when the mane on the lion began to glow. "I don't know what's happening!" she cried, starting to panic. They stared at the screen as fire poured from the glowing light, torching the edge of the forest.

"Let me try," Calvin was over by her in an instant, not having made a sound, and took the tablet from her. The moment he touched it, however, he cried out and staggered backwards, dropping the tablet as he clutched his head.

"Mr. Maxwell!"

"Calvin!" Ryne pushed past Megan, who had barely caught the tablet, trying to steady the man. "What happened?" she asked as Calvin caught his breath.

"Haven't felt something that bad since…" he trailed off, thoughtful. "Something's really wrong. The Lion Zord isn't himself," he turned back to the others.

"What are you talking about?" Devon frowned, not understanding. Calvin hesitated to elaborate, with Megan, General Burke and Mayor Daniels standing there. While they were aware of the current Rangers, he didn't want to reveal himself and potentially the rest of his own team.

"There's some kind of malware!" Megan spoke up instead as the screen of her tablet flickered purple. "The Zord is totally out of my control!" she exclaimed, panicking as she found herself at a completely loss.

"Not your control," Calvin muttered. "Something has taken over the Zord," he said, rubbing his temple as the pain continued to linger.

"The Zord's glow," Ryne realised, turning to Nate, who had the same idea. He looked from Calvin, to Megan.

"Did you install a firewall against viruses?" he demanded, almost incredulous that he would even need to ask such a thing. Calvin looked to Megan, not wanting to point out that he'd asked her to do so the night before.

"I was going to, but…"

"You didn't," Nate growled, furious. "It's Evox. He's taking over control of that Zord with a virus!" he warned the rest of the team.

"Smart move, not installing a firewall on something designed to defend against a computer virus," Asher's snort made tears sting at Megan's eyes.

"Devon, get out there in the Racer Zord and stop that thing before it does any real damage," Commander Shaw ordered sternly. Devon nodded.

"Roger that, Commander," he turned and ran out the doors.

"I don't understand how this could happen," Megan whispered. Calvin flinched as another sharp pain shot through his head, and frowned, wondering just what had caused it, while none of them noticed the smirk on Mayor Daniels' face.

"Calvin, what happened?" Ryne asked him quietly as the rest of the Rangers remained on standby, just in case Devon needed backup. Nate walked over to him as well, hoping to get some information about the Zord.

"When I tried to get through to the Zord, there was this…static in response. Felt like nails digging into my brain," he explained quietly.

"Calvin can communicate with technology," Ryne whispered to Nate, seeing his confused expression. "It was the power he got from the Super Ninja Steel, like how mum can give a boost to the powers of others," she said, and Nate nodded, remembering. Since she had inherited the power from Teddie, Ryne had brought it up shortly after she'd become a Ranger, and had already used the power to give boosts to both Ravi and Devon. Both she and Zoey were a little too nervous to attempt it with Zoey's Jumping ability.

"That's what you were doing earlier," Nate realised, and Calvin gave a sheepish smile.

"Should have known General Burke wouldn't have remembered the data," he chuckled. "Now come on, we need to find a way to break Evox's control," Calvin patted Nate's arm and led him over to one of the computers. "Megan, come on," Nate's face screwed up as Calvin tried to coax the girl over, but she didn't listen, still trying to get the Zord to react to her inputs.

"It doesn't look like the virus was there before," Asher considered as she looked through the tablet she'd lifted. She leaned against the side of the desk as Nate checked the systems at a rapid pace.

"There definitely wasn't," Calvin agreed, his hand on another as he listened to it explaining the data they'd already collected. "I would have known about it," he said confidently. Ryne glanced over at Megan, who was muttering to herself as she watched the Beast-X King Zord fighting Devon off with ease. The young woman looked stressed, and had completely shut down, at a loss on what to do.

'Nate, it's not giving up!' the Red Ranger reached out to them, wincing as he was thrown around the cockpit of his Racer Zord. 'Can you regain control?' he asked hopefully.

"I don't know, Devon," Nate admitted, unsure of how they'd break the Zord free of Evox's control. "But we're going to figure it out," he vowed confidently.

"There as no virus before," Megan said, certain of that. She'd checked the systems several times herself. "The Zord was fine in all of my simulations," she muttered.

"Nate," ignoring Megan, Asher held out her tablet to Nate, whose eyes widened.

"Aha!" he leapt to his feet and rushed away.

"Whoa!" Steel moved out of the Gold Ranger's way just in time. "What is it, bro?" he asked.

"Look at this," Nate swapped the footage on screen to what had been recorded earlier. "It's the footage from earlier. See anything?" he zoomed in closer, just as something small seemed to pierce the thick metal of the Zord. Purple light flooded from it, and the Beast-X King Zord roared in anger.

"What is that?" Megan wondered aloud.

"That's the virus being uploaded," Nate answered her, before turning to the rest of the group. "My guess is that Zord has had a visit from Evox's crew. Which wouldn't have been a problem if you had installed a firewall," he turned a cold glare on Megan. Her face burned in shame. She stammered, trying to come up with an answer.

"Very disappointing, Megan. Very," even Mayor Daniels sounded grave. Megan blinked back tears. Commander Shaw sighed.

"We need to focus on resolving this," she took charge quickly, sparing Megan more harsh words. "Nate?" Commander Shaw turned expectantly to the Gold Ranger.

"I might have an idea," he considered, and turned to the others. "Ravi, Steel, Zoey. I need you out in the field. Ryne, I'll need your help," the Rangers nodded. "Ashe, you too," Nate glanced to the young woman, who nodded.

"Of course," she agreed.

"Being poached right in front of me," Lewis grumbled under his breath.

"What can I do?" Megan asked as Steel and Ravi hurried out. Nate glared at her.

"Nothing. I'll fix this," he said, turning and storming out.

"Here," Megan stopped Ryne, who gave her an uncertain look. She held out the tablet, as well as the command console and key for the Zord. "You'll need these," she said quietly. Ryne stared at her for a moment, before taking them.

"Thanks," she muttered, turning and running off. Lewis glanced up at the monitors, which had resumed showing Devon trying to subdue the rampaging Zord.

"What a mess," he muttered.


"Got it, then what?" Steel listened closely to Nate's instructions as he carried two large cases out to where Ravi's jeep was waiting.

"Point the satellite dish at the Zord," Nate told him as they hurried to get into the car. "It'll beam new programming into the Zord's system," he explained.

"Zoey?" Megan called out uncertainly to the Yellow Ranger, who glanced at her before turning away, climbing into the car. Megan withdrew more, before meeting Ryne's eyes. The Pink Ranger hesitated, but before she could turn to her, Asher stood between them and glared at Megan.

"By the time you get there, I'll have the new programming ready to go," Nate told Ravi, who nodded as he started the car.

"Roger that," the Blue Ranger answered, driving away.

"Devon," Ryne contacted their leader. "Ravi, Zoey and Steel are on their way with a satellite dish," she told him.

'Copy. Fingers crossed,' Devon replied, hopeful that whatever Nate was planning would work, and fast.

"Come on," Nate said to Ryne and Asher, leading them back out of the Zord bay.

"Please, Nate, I can help!" Megan pleaded, trying to get him to listen.

"Not now," Nate snapped at her, not stopping to listen to what he was saying.

"Ryne, please!" the Pink Ranger was forced to stop when Megan grabbed her wrist. She turned to the taller girl, before Megan was pushed back by Asher.

"Don't touch her," she warned. She didn't really know Megan past what she remembered during her initiation. She'd been ambitious and didn't have many friends, but Asher had never really spoken to her before. Knowing that she'd bullied Ryne, and having seen how Ryne reacted to her made that protective feeling well up.

"Ashe, wait," Ryne soothed her cousin, patting her arm gently. "What is it?" she asked Megan.

"I know what he's planning, and it's going to backfire," Megan warned, desperate to try to get them to understand. Ryne hesitated, before shaking her head.

"Nate know what he's doing. And after everything you pulled, how can we trust you? How do we know this isn't another stunt to take Nate's job?" she challenged. Megan sighed, lowering her head.

"Ryne, I'm sorry for what I did back then. It was horrible," she apologised. "I was too ambitious, and I turned into a monster. I hurt a lot of people trying to get ahead. It was so selfish. But please, Ryne," Megan focused on the Pink Ranger, trying to ignore Asher's glare. "Please just believe that I've changed," Ryne's brow furrowed at her words. "The reason I agreed to build that Zord was to show you that I want to help the Rangers. So that maybe you could give me a second chance," Megan's eyes were teary as she looked away. "But now that's all messed up too," she muttered.

Ryne was quiet for a moment, shifting on the spot as she thought about Megan's words. She couldn't deny that she was different. The cold, calculating young woman who had first shown up in Nate's lab was a stark contrast to now. Megan had looked as if she was going to be sick when she'd arrived with Mayor Daniels, her voice shaking.

"We have to go help Nate," she finally said, knowing that there was more pressing matters to worry about.

"I'm telling you, his idea won't work!" Megan pleaded, but Ryne and Asher just kept walking. Megan groaned, wishing she could get them to listen.


'We're in position,' Zoey's voice came from Ryne's wristcom, and she looked over to where Asher and Nate were working quickly.

"Copy that," she answered, looking over at the pair. Nate nodded at her. "The new programming signal is ready to be sent out," Ryne warned them, before switching her communication link. "Devon, get us an opening," she called.

'Roger that,' the Red Ranger answered, before giving a cry. Ryne winced, fighting the compulsion to go help him. Nate had already explained that as their second in command, she was best suited for keeping the three parts of the team working together. 'It might not be easy,' Devon muttered, and Ryne smiled slightly.

"When have you ever preferred easy mode?" she asked, and Devon laughed.

'That's true,' he admitted. There was a struggle, before Devon shouted again. 'Quick! Here's your chance!' he warned, having landed on the back of the Beast-X King Zord and forced it to land.

"Sending data now," Nate sent the data to Steel, Zoey and Nate. Devon's yell echoed from Ryne's wristcom.

'I think you've got him!' for a moment, it seemed like they were successful. Then the doors opened, and Lewis and Calvin rushed inside.

"Guys, I don't think you've calmed him down," Lewis warned, bringing up the satellite cameras onto the screen nearby.

"He's changed modes. This isn't good," Calvin gulped.

'Uh, guys? Was that supposed to happen?' Devon demanded, his Zord on the ground after being thrown off.

"No, no, no!" Nate groaned as he worked furiously. "Instead of reprogramming the Zord, the signal triggered it to change to Battle Mode," he realised, putting his hands to his face.

"Do you have any way to help, here?" Lewis turned to Calvin, who shook his head.

"I'm a mechanic. I worked on the hardware. The software, including the commands to change to Battle Mode, that was all Megan," he explained. Nate's hands dropped.

"Megan gave it a Battle Mode…?" Nate started to work again.

"Devon, you okay?" Ryne asked the Red Ranger.

'Yeah, but I don't know how long I can hold off this Zord,' he admitted, aware that his energy levels were dropping and his Zord was starting to struggle.

"Be careful. We'll switch up if it's looking dicey," Ryne told him, before swapping the link once more. "Guys, get back to base. We have to try something else," Ryne contacted the rest of the team quickly.

'On our way,' Zoey answered as they quickly packed up the satellite to hurry back.

'Nate, what do we do now?!' Devon shouted, reaching out once more as he took another dangerous hit.

"I don't know how else to help, Devon," Nate admitted as once more he hit a block. "But we'll figure it out," he closed over his laptop and stepped back, closing his eyes. "Come on, think," he hissed, desperately running through every idea he could.

"Megan," his eyes opened at Ryne's quiet voice. "She warned me that this wouldn't work," she was thoughtful in how she spoke, and it just annoyed him more.

"Megan caused this problem in the first place," Nate pointed out angrily. Ryne frowned, standing her ground against the Gold Ranger.

"Look, I know you're upset with her. You have every right to be. She messed with us, she almost got us hurt, and now the Beast-X King Zord is on a rampage. But this is more important than our feelings," she told him. "Megan knows the Beast-X King Zord better than anyone. You heard Calvin, she's the one who did all the work for programming it," Ryne told him firmly, glancing over at the former Ranger. He was grinning, his arms folded as he watched. "We need to put feelings aside and have her help us, or we run the risk of it falling into Evox's hands for good," she warned him.

Nate didn't reply, but his expression made it obvious that he hated the idea. However, he knew that Ryne was right. Devon wasn't going to last much longer against the Beast-X King Zord, and he knew that if he didn't accept Megan's help and failed to come up with something in time, it would be on him.

"Fine," he muttered, turning and running off.

"What's with you?" Lewis asked, seeing the look on Calvin's face. The man shrugged.

"Just getting some real nostalgic vibes," he chuckled, and Ryne tilted her head. "Mick was always good at getting us to figure out stuff on our own, but Teddie, well, she was always more of a brutal honesty type of explaining," he said. Lewis snorted.

"Just like someone else we know," he said, and Ryne rolled her eyes as she looked at him.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she said dryly.

"Ryne!" she turned as Nate ran back in, breathless as Megan followed him in. She smiled faintly, glad that he'd listened to her. "The Ultra Bow," he told her. Her eyes widened, and Ryne ran over to the weapon sitting on the table.

"Here," she lifted the heavy weapon over, placing it over on Nate's workbench.

"This is a prototype of the Ultra Bow," Nate explained as the others gathered around.

"I see you've put Jackrabbit, Squirrel and Gorilla DNA in it," Megan commented as she studied it carefully. "We'll need to load in lion DNA too so it's compatible," the doors opened as she spoke, and both Ravi and Zoey frowned, confused.

"You're right, thanks," Nate nodded, approving of her suggestions. He had to admit, the work she'd done on the Beast-X King Zord was impressive, and the safety function to prevent external forces from taking control was brilliant.

"You're uh…working together now?" Zoey asked hesitantly.

"Affirmative. We're all on the same side," Nate agreed.

"If we want to stop the Beast-X King Zord's rampage and help Devon, the past needs to be put aside," Ryne said as she saw Zoey's expression. "This is more important," she said. Nate nodded, smiling at the Yellow Ranger softly. Zoey nodded.

"Yeah. You're right," she agreed.

"Okay. Step One: we need to get the programming into an arrow," Nate said.

"Let's do it," Megan smiled as her confidence grew.

"I'll get started on the arrow," Ryne volunteered, moving over to her own workbench.

"I'll help you two out," Asher told Megan and Nate.


'Hey team? I'm running low on Morph-X here,' Devon's warning came through as Nate carefully inserted the arrow into the Ultra Bow. The Bow itself was connected to a laptop, humming with power.

"It's almost done, Devon," Zoey replied. Megan was working on the laptop, adding the finishing touches to the programming.

"Start the sequence," Nate stepped back as the arrow slotted into place.

"Initiating Lion DNA Morph," Megan announced. For a moment, it seemed like nothing happened.

"Whoa!" Ryne gasped, seeing the pale blue light travel along the cable. It hit the Ultra Bow, spreading across the weapon until it hit the arrow, which flashed with light. A beat later, the middle of the bow transformed around where the arrow sat, taking on a blue lion-like appearance.

"Phenomenal!" Nate exclaimed as they unhooked the cables, allowing him to lift the bow. "It's now the Beast-X King Ultra Bow," he announced as he studied the powerful weapon in his hands.

"What a mouthful," Asher laughed.

"Amazing! It's time for the mane event," Steel chuckled to himself as they hurried out.

"Hey, Megan," Nate called as he turned back. The brunette turned, curious. "Great work, seriously," he praised, and a shy smile crossed her face.

"Thanks," she said softly. "You too. Now go," she shooed him out. Nate grinned, and hurried out.

"Hey, uh," Megan turned to Asher as the taller girl approached her. "I'm sorry. For the way I acted towards you. It wasn't my place," Asher apologised, taking Megan by surprise.

"No. You had every right to treat me the way you did. The way I behaved towards the Rangers, it was…disgusting," Megan shook her head, still angry at herself for letting ambition cloud her judgement so badly.

"Yeah, but you've clearly learned from those mistakes. And if the Rangers can see that, well, who am I to argue?" Asher chuckled. "Nate was right. You did amazing work," she said, and Megan blushed.

"Thanks. You did as well. Nate picks his assistants much better than he did before," she said. Asher shook her head.

"Oh, I'm not his assistant, I-"

"Let's face it, Bly," Lewis clapped his hands on her shoulders. "I doubt you've have jumped at the chance to help me as quick as you did for Nate today," he teased, making Asher go red.

"You're probably right. Sorry, Lewis. And thanks for the offer," she told the young man, who shrugged.

"Eh, I'll find better," he said, and cried out when she punched him.


The team was tense as they drove towards where Devon was still fighting the rampaging Beast-X King Zord. The car had barely stopped before they'd jumped out in the clearing in the forest, looking up.

"Oh, man!" Steel exclaimed as they watched Devon's Racer Zord trading blows with the Beast-X King Zord.

"We've got one shot at this," Nate warned. They'd not had time to make more arrows, not with Devon already running low. Hearing a sound behind them, Ryne glanced around and groaned.

"Great," she muttered as they turned to face the robot copies of Blaze, Roxy and Asher, along with the Tronics that accompanied them. "We'll handle this," Ryne decided, looking at Nate. "You take the shot," she told the Gold Ranger. He nodded, hurrying off to find a clear shot, and the other four ran towards the robots.

"What, no time for witty banter?" Robo-Asher chuckled.

"Let's go," Robo-Roxy smirked.

"Don't you ever get tired of being destroyed?" Ryne asked as she met Robo-Asher in the middle of the fighting. She knocked away the robot's punch, and dropped low to kick out at her legs.

"It'll all be worth it when I finally destroy you," Robo-Asher retorted as she jumped back and kicked out, knocking Ryne backwards. The Pink Ranger glared back as she recovered, and as Asher's hand began to glow golden with solar energy, Ryne let her own powers flow and threw her hands out to let the energy arc out. Their attacks collided, exploding and tossing both back.

"Ow…" Ryne groaned as she landed on her back, before looking up as there was a loud rumble. To their delight, they saw the Beast-X King Zord backing away, reverting back to its lion form. It lay down, and the red of its eyes faded, returning to a white colour, and she gave a laugh. "They did it!" she grinned, getting back to her feet to continue fighting.

"No!" Robo-Asher snarled as she got back to her feet as well. "You little-ah!" she screamed when Ryne's powers slammed into her chest again. "No, no!" she wailed, exploding in a burst of dark smoke, and Ryne caught her breath.

"One down…" she muttered.


"They did it!" Megan cheered, unable to contain herself as they watched from Grid Battleforce.

"You all did it," Commander Shaw gave a rare smile as General Burke looked delighted.

"Excellent work, wouldn't you say, Mayor?" he turned to Mayor Daniels, and found that the man was already walking away. Asher, who was standing beside Lewis, glanced over and frowned, wondering why the Mayor was leaving without a word.

"It was impressive," Calvin agreed, rubbing his temples as a small headache prickled at him.

"That's the Rangers for you," Lewis commented. Asher nodded her agreement, smiling.

"Devon, take the Beast-X King Zord back to its hangar, then you can help the others," Commander Shaw contacted the Red Ranger.

'Copy that, Commander,' he replied.


The fighting continued as the Robo versions of their friends only seemed to get angrier at the loss of the Beast-X King Zord. Calling in more Tronics, they watched from the sidelines as the Rangers were forced into the centre, standing together.

"You deal with the Red Ranger," Roxy told Blaze, smirking confidently. He glanced down at her, and his own smirk grew.

"I'll take him down with a surprise Gigadrone from Scrozzle," with a low chuckle, Blaze grabbed his key and vanished in a flash of deep yellow.

"There's no way out, Rangers!" they glanced over at Roxy as she transformed into her purple tinged armour, laughing loudly.

"It's Morphin' Time!" Nate shouted. The five called on their Morphers, standing with their backs to each other as they stood taller.

"ACTIVATE BEAST POWER!" Morphing, the Rangers quickly started to fight again, overpowering the Tronics with ease.

"Beast Spinners!" Ryne called on her Chakrams and threw them out, cutting through several Tronics, including the ones that were trying to surround Zoey.

"Thanks," the Yellow Ranger nodded to her before turning her attention to Robo-Roxy. She and Nate worked together to overwhelm the purple-clad robot, while Ryne, Ravi and Steel fought off the Tronics. They smashed through the footsoldiers, causing each one to vanish in a flash of purple light.

"This is too easy!" Steel exclaimed as he threw another Tronic back.

"Careful, Steel, or you'll jinx it," Ravi warned with a quiet laugh, using his Gorilla Strength to send another three Tronics flying across the clearing. They hit a tree, breaking apart and vanishing as they fell to the ground.

"No!" Roxy's shriek echoed as Zoey sent her tumbling backwards.

"Beast-X King Power Bolt!" Nate shouted as he fired an arrow. Roxy screamed again, exploding as the arrow destroyed her. "Phenomenal! Robo-Roxy's toast!" the Gold Ranger exclaimed as they all ran over to him.

"Looks like Robo-Blaze isn't doing too good either," Ryne pointed up to where the Gigadrone was fighting Devon. They watched as Devon used both the Racer Zord and the Beast-X King Zord, overwhelming Blaze before he activated the Battle Mode of the new Zord.

"Should have known when to give up, Blaze!" Devon shouted as Blaze's Zord got back up, only to be beaten back down and destroyed in a final attack.


"So this is Evox's dart?" Ravi peered closely at the purple-tipped dart in Calvin's hand.

"It's a nasty piece of work," he admitted, having tried to peer closer into the technology, only to receive nothing but abuse back. "We'll need to get rid of safely," Calvin said, setting it down carefully.

"I'm sure glad that Beast-X King Zord's on our side now," Devon said, having been amazed at the power of the Zord in battle against Blaze's Gigadrone.

"When you need it in battle, use the Beast-X King Zord Key and Activator to summon it," Megan held out the blue and gold devices to Devon. She smiled at him. "It belongs to the Rangers now," she told him.

"I owe Grid Battleforce - and SPD - an apology," General Burke spoke up. "We should never have done this without your help, or made it seem as if Grid Battleforce was in the know," he looked over at Calvin, who gave a light shrug. "It won't happen again," he vowed.

"Lucky for us, we had a top-rate engineer working on that Zord," Nate smiled, turning to Megan. Her eyes widened at the praise. "Without her, today would have been very different," he said honestly, and she smiled as he hugged her.

"He's right. Your work was amazing," Ryne agreed with a nod.

"It was," Calvin nodded. "That's why we've recruited her to join SPD, to help with our own tech," he told them, and Megan smiled proudly.

"That's amazing," Nate told her, happy for the young woman who had proved she had changed.

"Thanks," Megan smiled, excited for the opportunity to work with Calvin further. "And thank you all, for giving me a second chance. It means a lot," she told the Rangers.

"You worked hard. You earned it," Zoey told her. She'd been reluctant at first, just like Nate, but she'd seen Megan at work, and knew that she'd more than earned the second chance.

"She's right," Ryne nodded. "You did an amazing job with the Beast-X King Zord, and letting us use it…well, it's huge. Evox is gonna be scrambling to stand up to us with that at our disposal," she grinned, and the other Rangers nodded in agreement. Megan blushed at their praise.

"Well, we better get back to New Tech," Calvin said, checking his watch. "We need to report all of this to Commander Tate," he glanced over at General Burke, who looked a little nervous at the mention of the man who ran SPD's Earth base. "And I'd like to see my wife at some point," he added with a chuckle.

"Thanks for all your help, Calvin," Devon told the man, who nodded.

"Any time," he told them, once more trying not to think about how strange it was to see them all together now, exactly the same as they were all those years ago. "Well, come on. Time to face the music, General Burke," Calvin said cheerfully. "And Megan, I'll introduce you to Bridge and Kayden. I'll warn you now," he said as he guided the girl to the door. "They're probably the weirdest people you'll ever meet," he warned her.

"They're former Rangers. Of course they're weird," Lewis said, and the Rangers all turned to him, looking insulted. He tilted his head. "What?" he asked, smiling innocently.

"Hypocrite," Ryne muttered.


This was a really fun chapter to write. Adding in Calvin was something I thought of ages ago and was super excited to get to do.

I hope you liked it!

Please review!