Disclaimer: Power Rangers and all its related logos are property of Saban and/or Disney Entertainment. I am using them without permission, but I do not intend to make a profit. I mean it, I don't. If I do happen to make some quick cash from it, I promise to sponsor a child for seventy-five cents a day with the money I made. Possibly even two of them.

A/N: This fic takes place with the assumption that power rangers are and always were real, though the secret identities of the rangers have remained secret over the years. You may see cameos from other rangers, but this will deal primarily with original characters. It is set some time after Dino Thunder, but before SPD.

This chapter contains portions of chapter nine, Connections. Because of the time travel issue, some scenes may seem to repeat, but I assure you, its all intentional.

Saturday March 19th, 2005 1:06pm ... Reefside, California

"This is Cassidy Cornell reporting for channel six news. The city itself is in complete chaos. No one knows where these creatures have come from, or what they want, but they have been wreaking havoc in the city for days now, destroying everything and everyone in their path. To combat the threat, rangers from other cities as far as Silver Hills, California and Marnier Bay, California, but all of them have fallen to these creatures. The leader of the malicious group, Demorielle, is demanding the unconditional surrender of the entire city, or the remaining population will be destroyed as well. With no one to resist, it seems as though it's only a matter of time before the city is forced to give in to their demands. It seems…" she pauses as there is an explosion in the background, knocking both her and the camera to the ground. The signal is completely cut off, and there is nothing but static on the screen.

Ms. Fairweather had seen enough, reaching for the remote control and turning off the television, shaking her head in disbelief. They'd done everything they could to stop Demorielle and the demon attackers, but without success. 'We should have known better. If the first group of rangers we sent were destroyed, we should have known that these teens wouldn't have been able to do any better,' she thought to herself, recalling being responsible for sending out the original group to stop Demorielle, but they never returned.

The Aqua Base had taken heavy damage over the last few weeks, most of the major areas were completely flooded… or worse, completely destroyed. There were lifeless bodies laying in the corridors of the base, some of the killed long before the attack, some due to the flooding. Over half her staff had been seriously injured, including Hayley, who she considered to be one of her most trusted friends. All the remained of the staff for the base was herself, Cam, and Gaby, but she too had been hurt and was confined to the infirmary.

The doors to the room slid open as Cam, who had his right arm in a cling, rushed in.

"Angela, we just got word for Blue Bay Harbor, the demons have attacked there and taken over both of the ninja academies. A lot of my students were killed in the attack…" his sentence trailed off. "Tori w-was…" again, his sentence trailed. He couldn't even muster up the strength to say it.

"Oh God, I'm so sorry," she sighed.

"We need to do something and we need to do it now. At this rate, the entire world will fall to Demorielle," he said.

Angela could hear the anger in his voice. "What do you expect us to do? The rangers are dead. Rangers from other cities gave their life to help us, and it didn't help. We're all that's left," she mentioned.

"There has to be something we can do. If the rangers had access to their zords, we could have stopped Demorille, but…" he paused as an idea came to mind. "Are you familiar with Eltarian legend at all?" he asked.

"Not really, why?"

"Zordon was from Eltar, and the demons originated there, on his planet. They were able to drive them off his home world, but it didn't take them long to find a new place to invade; Earth. If I remember the sacred text correctly, there was an amulet of some kind that protected their warriors from the demons possession, and the amulet was the key to unlocking the zords hidden power source," he brought up.

"Where is this amulet now?"

"The only being who knew was Zordon, but he's gone now," he sighed. "The amulet, according to legend, was broken into two parts and given to two brothers to keep safe. Neither of them knew the other, and neither of them knew what powers the amulet had," Cam said.

"What else can you tell me about this amulet?" she asked him.

"Its not an amulet at all," the two of them turned around as Tommy walked into the room. "Its an arrowhead," he told them.

Saturday March 15th, 3001 1400 hours ... New Silver Hills, California

Trip leaned back in his chair, disturbed by what he saw. 'The timeline is beginning to shift again,' he sighed inwardly, watching as events unfolded according to the history logs. It was one of the benefits to having access to records of every event from every point in time. Moving ahead in the timeline, he observed the aftermath of what was to be the final battle for the Virtual Rangers, and he didn't like what he saw.

"Oh no," he sighed, noticing a small inconsistency.

Before he could look into the situation, he was interrupted by the sound of the door sliding open behind him. He didn't even have to turn around to know who it was. "Hello Commander," he mumbled slightly.

Commander Alexander Drake approached him slowly with his arms behind his back, wearing a pair of deeply tinted sunglasses. "Internal sensors informed me that someone was accessing the history logs without authorization. You care to explain to me what you're doing in here Trip?" he asked him in a dry, monotone voice.

Trip turned around, facing him. "I was doing a routine sweep of the timeline, looking for any abnormalities, and I believe I've found one sir. I big one," he brought up.

"What is it?"

"In the year 2005, the Virtual Rangers are on the verge of being defeated by Demorielle. There has been a shift in the timeline, and the rangers haven't been able to access their zords, nor does Red Predator Ranger have the amulet he needs," he told him.

"What caused the shift?"

"I haven't been able to track down the actual cause, but there was a temporal displacement in the year 3001, and the temporal wake of it has caused an adverse ripple effect that has trickled backwards through time. This event along with several others have been changed, and if they continue, it would erase history as we know it completely, replacing it with an alternate timeline," he paused. "Based on these readings, and keep in mind its only preliminary, the world will be dominated by Thoron and the demon race," he explained.

"But there is no way to know what actually caused it?" Alex asked.

"I could look into it, but I'm afraid that the more time we waste with the investigation, the harder it will be to repair the damage done to the timeline," he said.

"What are you suggesting?"

"The amulet Predator Ranger needs is in our vault, I could take it to him, and I could give them the necessary instructions to access their zords," Trip suggested.

"No," Alex said coldly.

"But sir, I…" he was cut short.

"You asked, and the answer is no. I understand that there has been a shift in the timeline, but you don't know what caused it, or what further damage you could do by going there yourself. The rangers in that time will have to figure it out on their own," he told him.

"I don't think you understand sir. If we don't do something now, history… future history could be altered forever," he said.

"I understand the situation Trip, and I understand even more that this is not for us to get involved in. Do you understand me? By no means do you attempt to contact the rangers from that time or offer them assistance. Are we clear?"

"Yes sir. Perfectly clear."

Saturday March 5th, 2005 9:17pm ... Reefside, California

"I can't believe I was such an idiot," Jen screamed, kicking over a metal containing and sending it across the room.

It was Patrick who walked over to her, putting his hand on her shoulder. "You couldn't have known. You thought it was your mom. Everyone here would have done the same," he told her.

Jen snatched away. "I let my guard down, listened to what it had to say, and now Belial is free," he paused, turning to her mother, who was lifeless on the floor. "Oh God, mom," she sighed, going to check on her.

"She's fine, just unconscious," Dana said as she quickly checked her vitals.

It was Liz who stood up, walking over to Jen. "I know you're pissed, I know you're feeling guilty… use it," she told her.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"You can sit here and feel sorry for yourself and whine like a bitch, or you can use those emotions to your advantage. You've got all this frustration, use it. We'll go after Demorielle and Belial, catch them off guard. They won't know what hit'em," she said.

Jen smiled deviously. "Sounds like a plan to me," she turned to Dana. "You'll take care of my mother for me?"

Dana nodded. "Of course."

"Lets go finish this shit once and for all," Jen said as she headed for the door.

"Wait," a voice called out. The three of them turned as Carl walked over to them. "You're not the only one with a score to settle with those body snatching bastards. Count me in," he said.

"No, you have no powers. You'll be defenseless," Patrick said.

"He's right. You'll end up hurt, or worse," Jen said.

"But…"

"No buts, its for your own good," she paused. "Wait, where are the others?" Liz asked.

"Rick left in a hurry after you died, Jake went home to get some things, and as far as I know, Elaine is still at the café," he said.

"Round everyone up and we'll meet at the café. One way or another, this ends tonight," Jen said.

Saturday March 19th, 2005 1:18pm ... Reefside, California

"An arrowhead?" Ms. Fairweather inquired.

Tommy walked over to them, reaching under his shirt and revealing his half of the arrowhead, which he had on a necklase around his neck. "Years ago, during my zeo quest, I was given this arrowhead by a man named True of Heart. He told me it was to remember my time with him, but I never knew what it was for. Later, I was reunited with my brother, David, who had the other half. King Mondo wanted the arrowhead for himself because he thought it was the key to unlocking incredible power, but no one knew quite how it worked. Even Zordon wasn't able to access its power. Last week my half of the arrowhead began to glow, so I contacted David, and he told me his was glowing as well. I headed out to Stone Canyon and got his half of it," he reached in his pocket, pulling out the other half. "I wasn't sure what they did or how it would be important, but something inside me said I should bring them to you guys," he explained, handing both halves of it to Cam.

Cam cautiously put the two halves together, and combined, began to glow even brighter. "This is the power source we need to access the zords, and it should be able to stop demons from possessing whoever holds it," he said.

"That's great, but what do we do with it now?" Ms. Fairweather asked.

"I can use the scroll of time to go back to a point before Demorielle was free, give it to the rangers," he paused. "I'll give it to Red Predator Ranger. If he had it before it went running off to fight Demorielle on his own, that battle may have turned out differently," Cam said.

"If you can go back in time and stop this, why not just go back to a time before the demons were set free?" Tommy asked.

"If I were, they would only escape again, and we'd have the same problem. There's no telling how prepared we'll be if were to happen again, so its best that we do it at a point in time where we're ready for them. I will go back, find Predator Ranger and give it to him," he said.

"But wait… if you do, this time line will never have existed, and you will cease to exist," she brought up.

"I know," Cam sighed.

"Are you sure its worth it?"

"This timeline will be gone, but it will pave the way for a much better one; one where the rangers had a fighting chance. Its worth it, in my opinion," he told them.

"Good luck, and may the power protect you," Tommy sighed.

Saturday March 5th, 2005 9:24pm ... Reefside, California

"How do you know my father?" Elaine asked, standing up and backing away from Trent slowly.

Trent, who had a concerned look on his face, remained exactly where he was. "I didn't know Smitty took you on that mission with you. I knew he'd gotten hurt, but my father never told me Smitty had his daughter there," he mumbled to himself.

"Hello? How about sparkin' up a conversation with me instead of talking to yourself. Tell me what you know about my father," she insisted.

"Your father worked with my dad at Mercer Industries. He, Dr. Oliver and your father were out on a routine survey of some kind and your father was injured. If I remember correctly, he was on life support for months until finally he passed away," he said.

"I know that much. Tell me something I don't know."

"Mesagog was able to rebuild him, giving him cybernetic implants of some kind, turning him into Zeltrax. Even with his new body, he blamed Dr. Oliver for what happened to him and vowed revenge," Trent said.

"You're saying my dad was a robor?"

"Yes… no… well, kinda. There wasn't much of Terrence Smith left in Zeltrax, only the desire to destroy Dr. Oliver. We defeated both Zeltrax and Mesagog in the final battle," he told her.

"He was… alive? All that time? And he never came to see about me?" she sighed.

"Again, he was consumed by hatred and anger. I doubt it was your father at all by the time Mesagog rebuilt him. You wouldn't have recognized him anyway," he said in an attempt to comfort her.

"Still, I would have liked to have known that he was out there, somewhere," Elaine sighed.

Just then, Jake rushed into the café, hurrying over to the two of them.

"Its go time Elaine," he told her.

"What?"

"We're about to make our move on Demorielle. We have to ranger up and meet the others in the Nemesis Triangle," he said.

"Lets do it," Elaine said.

"You two be careful," Trent said.

"Don't worry, we'll go defeat the forces of evil and be home in time for the Friends marathon on TNT tonight," he said.

His statement was enough to make Elaine stop dead in her tracks. "Wait, you like Friends?" she asked.

He paused. "Um, yeah."

"Oh my God, that show is so lame," she said.

"It is not. If you give it a chance, it's pretty funny. I like Ross and Rachel," he mentioned.

"Oh God, you're one of the Ross/Rachel fanboys aren't you? Next you'll tell me you write fanfics about it and making little music videos using clips of the show," she added. "I bet you have an account on YouTube, don't you?"

"Oh please, what kinda loser does that all day?" Jake asked.

"You'd be surprised," Trent chimed in.

"Lets just go get it done, I wouldn't have to deprive Jake here of his Monica and Joey fix later," she said.

"Hey! It's Monica and Chandler, okay? Joey eventually got his own spin off," Jake brought up.

"Whatever," she said as she reached for her morpher, disappearing in a stream of light.

"If it means anything to you, I like Friends, too," Trent mentioned.

Jake cracked a smile before he reached for his morpher, disappearing as well.

Saturday March 5th, 2005 8:59pm ... Reefside, California

"Come on your slimey fuckers, let's go!" Red Predator Ranger snarled, breathing heavily. The last of the creatures paused for a moment, but simply ran off, disappearing into the jungle. "Figures… lame ass bastards," he sighed, then continued on his way towards the fortress.

As he continued forward, he heard the sound of someone approaching from behind. It was enough to make him stop, waiting for just the right moment to make his move. The sound stopped, and almost instantly, Red Predator Ranger turned around, swinging his blade at whoever… or whatever was behind him. The mystery attacked managed to duck his attack.

"Slow down, I…" he wasn't allowed to complete his sentence as Predator Ranger lunged at him, flipping the attacker over and up against a tree. The attacker was flat on his back, and Predator Ranger stood over him.

"Who the fuck are you and…" he paused, getting a look at his attacker. "Cam?" he asked.

"Oh sure, recognize me after you knock me on my ass," he said. Predator Ranger stood aside, allowing him up. Cam stood up, dusting himself off. "I'm here to help you."

"What makes you think I need your help?"

"I'm from what you would consider the future, about two weeks or so," he said.

"So you came two weeks into the past? How lame is that? Why not a few years?" he asked him.

"I came to give you this," he reached in his pocket, pulling out an amulet. "You were suppose to find this by now," he said.

"What is it?"

"Two halves of an arrowhead that originally belonged to Lerigo, but were given to Tommy and his brother David for safe keeping. It was responsible for the entrapment of the demons in the first place thousands of years ago. The amulet was created as a shield of sorts, giving the wearing the ability to withstand possession," he said.

"And this is for me?"

He nodded. "In a few minutes you're going to go charging into Demorielle's chamber, but they'll be expecting you and it's a trap. You'll need this," he paused. "The final battle with Demorielle is a lot closer than you think, and you and the others need to be ready for it," he told him.

"How do I know this isn't one of Demorielle's tricks?" he asked.

"That's a good question. Usually, the demons can take the form of people you know and try to convince you to give them something. I'm not asking for you anything, I'm giving you something," he brought up.

"Yeah, but it could be a trap."

"Rick, listen to me. The timeline is shifting, and any moment I'll be gone. Soon everything you know and love will be gone, and I don't have time to convince you I'm here to help. You're going to have to take my word for it," he said.

"If you're really from the future, that means you know everything about me, right?"

"I guess so."

"Tell me something about myself that I've never told anyone."

He paused. "Fine," he sighed. "The real reason you agreed to help Ethan with virtual reality game is because your sister was on the team led by Anthony Coulbourne, and she was presumed dead. The only reason you signed up to help was because you were sure you'd be able to find her if you did. You tried to find her, but ended up getting captured by Demorielle," he told him.

Predator Ranger paused slightly. "Fair enough. Just tell me one thing, is she…"

"I don't know if she's alive or not. I wish I could tell you more, but just by coming here, I've altered the timeline. Make sure that once you get back, you give this to my other self in this timeline. He should be able to access the zords with it," he explained.

Predator Ranger took the amulet, putting it around his neck. "Are there any magic words or something? All this mystic shit has a special phrase or something to it," he pointed out.

No, you don't have to say or do anything special. It will work on its own," he said.

"Thanks for the assist."

"No worries, just be careful. And oh yeah, may the power protect you! I've always wanted to say that," he said.

Predator Ranger turned to walk away.

"Surprise you ugly bitch," Red Predator Ranger said with a sinister tone in his voice.

Demorielle smiled slightly. "Surprise? On the contrary Rick, I've been expecting you," she said, nodding slightly.

Before he had a chance to react, several portals opened up, almost surrounding him, and demonites swarmed out. They all charged at him, finding their way into his body. A wave of disorientation washed over him, and he fell to his knees, doing his best to fight it. The more he fought, but more they consumed him, until eventually, all of them were gone.

He rose to his feet slowly, watching as Belial walked over to Demorielle, putting his arm around her.

"He will make an excellent addition to our forces," Belial said.

"Yes… he will," Demorielle sighed. "Now, take your place at our side, and assist us in the complete destruction of the Virtual Rangers and the total domination of the Earth realm."

"It will be a pleasure," Predator Ranger said, approaching her slowly. He stood by her side, folding his arms.

"With their leader in our grasp, the rangers will be defeated swiftly, and there will be no one to oppose us," Belial added.

Predator Ranger glanced over, realizing that Belial had the Dragon Dagger. "You were able to get the dagger away from the rangers, excellent," he said, trying to sound evil.

"Yes, after possessing Spectra Ranger's mother, I was able to trick her into releasing me. I even assisted them in bringing one of the rangers back to life by using the dagger as a way to gain their trust. When I did, I…"

"Wait, you brought a ranger back to life?" he asked.

"Yes. Allumier Ranger. Her essence was trapped within the dagger, and I showed them how to free her. Not that it will happen, since all of them will be destroyed very soon," Belial said.

"Liz is… alive?" he mumbled to himself.

"Our conquest is at hand. Soon no one will oppose us," Demorielle said.

At that moment, Predator Ranger reached over, snatching the dagger out of Belial's hand.

"W-What are you…"

Before Belial could finish his statement, Predator Ranger caught him with a kick to the chest, knocking him to the floor. Demorielle reached out to grab Predator Ranger, but he side stepped her, grabbed her arm and pulled her forward as he shoved the Dragon Dagger into his stomach, turning it for good measure.

"Like I said, surprise bitch!"

Demorielle fell to her knees, eventually falling over onto the symbol on the floor. Belial was back to his feet, but instead of going after Predator Ranger, tried to tend to Demorielle.

"Demorielle, speak to me!" he called out.

Her blood began to spill, filling the small cracks along the symbol. As it continued to pour, the symbol itself started to glow, and soon, even the symbol along the wall had blood flowing through it. The room began to shake, and the symbol on the wall opened up. Smoke filled the room, and a chill fell over them as a huge, rock like hand reached out from the symbol.

"FINALLY, I AM FREE!" a voice echoed.

Belial turned to the symbol, dropping to both knees. "Thoron, you have returned," he said.

Predator Ranger glanced down at the dagger, which had blood dripping off of it, and then at the symbol, which had blood flowing through out it, immediately realizing what he'd done.

"Oh shit, my bad," he sighed.