Once again, my chapter is late… Work has been pretty crazy, so that's what I'm going to blame the lateness on. I mean, I've been watching Loki and just saw Black Widow, so there's two nights I didn't really work right there and… You know what? I'm not going to bore you with the details. Just know chapters will probably continue to be a little late. However, it's still pretty close to on schedule, so I guess I can't complain.
I want to thank JTWAS1994 and Golden Mewtwo for their continued support with their reviews (still need to read the newest chapters of their fics… Getting on that soon, I promise!) and also want to thank Dragon Bone Z for his interesting take on my first chapter. The guy/girl definitely knows their mythology. Finally, I want to thank Grendel Symbiote for following the story and Shiranai Atsune for following the story and me. I honestly wish when people followed me that they would have more stuff to look at...That is the dream, isn't it? Soon enough, I guess.
(2022 Spidey here. Just updated Cronus's dialogue to better match his later character. This is one of, if not THE, last edits I am doing before the 40th Chapter drops. Thank you for your understanding during this whole process!)
Anyway, on with the story!
Myth 35: Good Luck!
Valerie Onasis looked around at her fellow Rangers. They were sitting in the pizzeria Dan worked at in one of the booths in the corner of the room. Because it was Sunday, the place was somewhat busy, but the teens knew that they wouldn't be overheard in the corner. They currently had a few kinds of pizzas on their table for the teens to grab at.
"Guys," she said, "we've got a problem on our hands."
"Shouldn't Jay be here if we've got a problem?" Nate asked as he grabbed a slice of pepperoni from the tray and took a bite before speaking with his mouth full of pizza. "He's usually on top of these sorts of things."
"Jay's the one I want to talk about, actually," Valerie replied. "He's been rather...different lately."
"I concur," Mera said with a nod, "he has been avoiding most things relating to our Ranger duties. Not necessarily slacking off, but definitely acting distant to them."
"Honestly, he's been acting distant to a lot of things," Valerie said. "We were supposed to go out to dinner a few nights ago and he canceled, saying he had homework. Thing is, he didn't turn in a History assignment the day after."
"A similar thing happened in Math," Diana said. "Mr. Ford called him up to the board to answer a problem about a week ago. He seemed like he didn't even recognize the material."
"And most of us were there to see him in Gym," Victor said. "He just laid there on the grass, thinking."
"My hypothesis based on previous instances of this behavior in the past makes me think that his depression must be acting up again," Mera said.
"That makes sense," Valerie said, "especially because it seemed to start after Hermes was captured."
"Yeah, we were all messed up by that, and Jay probably blames himself," Nate said.
"But Jay told Hermes to go to the Temple," Adrian said. "If I recall correctly, he asked Hermes to go multiple times."
"But if he had left, we would have been destroyed by Nemesis," Victor said, "so there wasn't much of a choice. Hermes did what he had to do."
"I do not believe Jay sees it that way," Mera said. "In his eyes, he failed to protect Hermes and gave Cronus exactly what he wanted."
"Still, it's strange that Cronus hasn't played his hand yet," Diana said, "I just wish he would. The sooner he does, the sooner we can beat him."
"Maybe he's playing the waiting game," Adrian suggested, "wait until our guard is down and then spring a massive attack on us or Olympia Hills."
"I'm more worried about Jay than I am Cronus," Valerie said. "Besides, Jay is the easier problem to solve."
"While it may be easier, do not assume it will actually be easy," Mera warned. "It was hard to get him out of this state before when the Dark Order attacked. We did not even succeed. Zeus did."
"We still have to try!" Valerie said a little louder than she meant to.
"Whoa," Dan said as he walked up to the group. "We have to try what?"
"Definitely the Meat Lover's Pizza," Nate said. "I could really go for a slice right now."
"I don't think that's what she meant," Dan said as he pulled up a chair and sat down. "What's going on?"
"Aren't you supposed to be working?" Adrian asked as he looked at the Purple Ranger.
"I'm on a break," Dan said. "Now tell me what's up."
One short explanation later, Dan was sitting back in the chair, nodding his head.
"Yeah, I heard the message you sent out to me and the other reserves about Hermes being captured," he said. "I didn't realize it would affect Jay so poorly, however."
"We need a way to get him out of the slump he's in," Valerie said. "Any ideas?"
"The way I see it, Jay's life's taken a downturn," Dan said. "You just need a way to give it a push upwards."
"I don't follow," Diana said as she stared blankly at Dan.
"I do," Mera said. "We need something to distract him from his negative thoughts. Preferably something he will enjoy."
"Well, unless you've got something fun to do lying around, that idea does us diddly squat," Nate said. "Now Dan. About that Meat Lover's?"
"I'll see what I can do," Dan said with a laugh before he looked at his watch. "That's the end of my break anyway. Maybe we can talk again in a few when I bring you that slice."
As Dan walked away, Valerie seemed to be thinking about something.
"Do you have an idea, Valerie?" Victor asked.
"I think I do," Valerie said as she stood up and pulled a fifty dollar bill from her wallet. She handed it to Victor, who looked at it with wide eyes.
"Use that to pay for the pizza," she said. "I'll be back."
"Where are you going?" Adrian asked.
"To make a call," Valerie replied as she pulled her morpher out as she walked out of the building. As soon as she reached the nearest alley, she activated it.
"Christina?" she asked into the morpher. "Connect me to Jasmine."
Jay threw the rubber ball and watched it bounce off the ceiling before it fell back into his hands and he threw it again, creating a loop of events. All he could think about was those last minutes he saw Hermes.
We can't let Cronus get you! his own voice echoed in his head. We'll find a way to defeat Nemesis ourselves! Get to the Temple now!
'Good luck, Rangers," Hermes's voice echoed in his head, 'I know you can win.'
Jay cringed at the sound of Hermes's voice.
"I should have done something!" he said out loud as he threw the ball harder against the ceiling, causing it to bounce off course and land in the closet. Jay grumbled as he stood up to go grab the ball before noticing the light emanating from something on his desk and onto the wall. He walked over to investigate and grabbed the flash drive Jason had given him a little while ago off his desk. He lifted it up to look at it and confirm that it was, indeed, glowing.
"Ok…" Jay said as he looked at it, "what's going on?"
He moved some papers from the desk and opened the laptop that was under them, plugging the flash drive into the USB slot. As he opened the computer, the screen loaded up a giant encyclopedia of Legendary Rangers.
"I've been looking through this already," Jay said. "So why was it glowing?"
He looked around the laptop at the flash drive.
"What are you trying to tell me?" he asked.
As if to answer, the screen changed to a series of video files that automatically began to play. Jay watched as Red Rangers throughout history had to make tough choices. Turbo Red Ranger TJ giving up the Rescue Zords to try and destroy Goldgoyle. Galaxy Red Ranger Leo firing at point blank range at Trakeena, almost sacrificing his own life to destroy her. Even the time Space Red Ranger Andros destroyed Zordon, sending his wave of good energy throughout the universe. Each time, the Rangers made a hard choice and each time it worked out, with Jay now seeing the positive effects each choice made.
"I get what you're trying to tell me," Jay said, "but just because things worked out for them doesn't mean things are going to work out for me. I practically gave Cronus Hermes on a silver platter!"
He was about to talk to himself (and/or the Ranger Database) some more when he heard a knock on his bedroom door. He sighed as he stood up and opened the door. To his surprise, Valerie was standing there.
"Hey, Val," Jay said. "What's up?"
"Your parents are out of town again, right?" Valerie asked.
"Uh...yeah," Jay said. "Why?"
"Because I've got a surprise for you!" Valerie said. "How would you feel about going to see the filming of a Super Sentai episode in Japan for the weekend?"
"I...what?" Jay asked, very confused.
"I talked to Jasmine and it turns out that she managed to get the crew of the newest Super Sentai to allow her and a few guests on set for a day."
"Val, I'm not really in the mood to…" Jay said before he saw the look on Valerie's face. "What?"
"Come on, Jay," she said. "I'm trying to help you feel better. Can't you meet me halfway here?"
"Fine," Jay said with a sigh. "When do we go?"
"About an hour from now," Valerie said as she looked at her phone's clock.
"Val, it's seven at night!" Jay said. "Why do we have to go so soon?"
"I think you're forgetting the 13 hour difference," Valerie said. "Now pack a few things in a backpack. We're only staying there a few hours. School starts at 7:30 tomorrow morning, so we can't stay too long."
"What about your parents?" Jay asked. "Aren't they going to be mad if you're out so late?"
"I've already got the others covering for me," Valerie said. "Now don't worry so much. We're going to have fun, I promise."
"...Ok," Jay said as he put his head down in defeat. "Let me grab a few things. I'll be ready in about ten minutes."
With that, he closed his door again.
He's worse than I thought, she thought. I figured he would jump on this opportunity and I almost had to force him. I really hope this works.
And with that, she went downstairs to wait.
"Seems the Rangers are on a world tour," Hades remarked as he watched the exchange between Valerie and Jay. "First London and now Japan."
"It seems like the perfect opportunity to strike again," Cronus said.
"Why should we attack again?" Hades asked, "we have Hermes and we have the Olympian Gem shavings. Shouldn't that be all you need?"
"Are you saying that you have an idea on what my plan is?" Cronus asked as he looked over at Hades, his face expressionless.
"All I know is that there's a lot you can do with either of them," Hades said. "So putting them together has to be even better. But no, I have no idea what you are planning."
And it worries me, he added in his head.
"Good," Cronus said as he looked over at the blue flame screen with Jay and Valerie on it. "If you can't piece it together, then the Rangers probably can't either. However, we need to keep them distracted from trying to figure it out. We need a new Dark God to challenge them."
"I take it you have one in mind?" Hades asked.
"I do," Cronus replied. "bring me Fortuna."
"As you wish," Hades said as he bowed his head before standing up and heading towards the double doors. The armored Spartoi had now been replaced with enhanced ones, their black armor flickering in the blue light of Hades' portion of the Flame of the Gods. They saluted as they opened the doors for the god of the Underworld.
He walked down the hall and into the dungeon. The first thing he noticed was how silent it was. Normally, the prisoners would be talking to each other or banging on the bars. But right now, not even Dionysus was talking. As Hades walked past, he could feel the glares directed at him.
"Still upset I recaptured Hermes?" he asked as he looked around at the gods and goddesses. "I don't see why. He stood in our way, so I captured him again. It's as simple as that."
"That's not what they're angry about," Zeus's voice said from his cell. He looked up as Hades walked over. Somehow, he looked even worse from last time.
"Then enlighten me," Hades said. "What are they angry about?"
"If you're asking that question, then you must not be aware of what Cronus is doing," Zeus replied. "You haven't noticed the number of gods and goddesses dwindling over the last two weeks? Cronus is using them for something. And it's clear now that you have no idea what's going on in your own realm."
"Tell me!" Hades demanded.
"I wouldn't even if I did know," Zeus said with a shrug. "All I have seen is that they leave and never come back. Soon, none of us will be left and you will have no one to send to fight the Rangers."
"I'm sure Cronus has his reasons for taking them," Hades said, "and I'm sure he'll tell me what that is soon."
"Keep telling yourself that, Hades," Zeus said as Hades began to walk away. "Keep telling yourself that."
Hades continued down the cells until he reached a cell containing a goddess in the traditional white robes that most of the goddesses wore. What was not traditional was that she had cloudy eyes.
"Is someone there?" she asked as she reached out towards Hades. "Come closer."
"You can't fool me," Hades said, "I know that the rest of your senses are sharp as ever."
He snapped his fingers and waited as enhanced Spartoi marched up to unlock her cell. They chained the blind goddess' hands together and led her after Hades as he walked away.
The double doors flew open as Hades led the Spartoi and goddess into the throne room before going to his throne and sitting down in it.
"Fortuna," Cronus said. "You will gain your sight back and become one of my Dark Gods."
"I have no need for sight," Fortuna said as she gazed in Cronus's general direction. "My other senses give me all of the 'vision' I need."
She stomped on one of the enhanced Spartoi's feet and pulled against the chains, bringing her dangerously close to Cronus before the other enhanced Spartoi held her back using its chain.
"I can see that," Cronus said. "Very well. I will make you a Dark God and not give you sight."
"I never said I wanted to be a Dark God either," Fortuna said. "I was just making an observation that I no longer require vision."
"The thing is," Cronus said as Hades offered him a ball of blue fire for Cronus to put his dark-golden energy into, "I don't recall asking."
He nodded and Hades hurled the ball of blue fire into Fortuna's chest. The fire burned whatever it touched, leaving a shadowy aura in its wake. It reached her eyes last, making them glow a strong blue, even though they were still cloudy.
"How may I serve you?" Fortuna asked as she was unchained and fell to one knee.
"The Red and Pink Ranger are going to Japan for a little while," Cronus said. "Why don't you make their trip...interesting?"
"Understood," Fortuna said as she stood up.
Hades reached down and grabbed another ball of blue fire before throwing it at the wall, creating a blue ringed portal. Fortuna stepped through before it closed behind her.
"Now that the Rangers are occupied," Cronus said as he stood up. "I have something I must attend to."
He turned his head to look over his shoulder at Hades.
"Do not follow," he ordered as the enhanced Spartoi opened the double doors for him. He stepped through before they closed behind him.
Persephone sat up as soon as Cronus left.
"Hades!" she shouted. "You must end this madness! Seal Cronus again with the Rangers!"
"Silence, woman!" Hades snapped. "I am so close to getting my revenge on the Olympians. I will not be swayed by your words!"
"Let go of your desire for revenge!" Persephone pleaded. "You saw how it helped the Hades Knight!"
"I will not!" Hades shouted, "now be quiet before I make you!"
He ignited his fist to enhance his point.
Persephone fell quiet and sat back down on the board she called a bed.
I hope you know what you are doing, she thought to herself as she looked at the blue flame screen that was still burning in the air, and I hope the Rangers can stop you both.
"Tokyo Dome should be right around this corner…" Valerie said as she pulled Jay along. She caught sight of Jasmine and waved.
"Valerie-chan! Jay-kun!" Jasmine exclaimed as she ran up to them. "So good to see you again!"
"Jasmine, thanks for inviting us!" Valerie said. "I know you're missing school, but…"
"Hey, it's a good cause," Jasmine said. "Anything to help you two out. Besides, I usually fall asleep in class anyway."
"Yeah…" Valerie said awkwardly before she turned to Jay. "Shall we go in?"
"Sure," Jay said with a reluctant nod.
"Follow me!" Jasmine said as she led the way into the Dome.
"So has Super Sentai filmed here before?" Valerie asked.
"They did some shots outside the stadium for Boukenger and Go-Busters," Jasmine said, "but you would probably know them better as the Overdrive Rangers and Grid Battleforce Rangers. But they've never done it inside the stadium until now."
"Hey, just out of curiosity, what is the new series and which team is it based on?" Valerie asked.
"Yeah, I haven't heard much in the States on what's going on," Jay said.
"No one told you?" Jasmine said as she stopped in front of a poster. On the poster were some very familiar suits.
"It's called Shinwa Sentai OlympiRanger or Mythos Squadron Olympian Ranger," Jasmine said as she gestured to the poster, "but you would know it better as the Power Rangers Olympian Force."
"Man, while Valerie and Jay get to spend time in Japan, we're stuck here!" Nate complained. "Sparring isn't even exciting anymore. I know all of your moves!"
He gestured to Adrian, Diana and Mera with that last remark.
"If Victor were here, he might actually be a real challenge with his strength," Nate continued.
"Yeah, well, Victor elected to spend time with his family," Diana said. "He's only been spending the last week trying to get his parents to even be in the same room as each other without arguing."
"You know no one's making you stay, right?" Adrian said. "You could go home if you wanted to."
"But then he cannot stay here and complain," Mera said. "He merely wants attention, like usual."
"Hey, if you're looking for a challenge, we could try sparring with each other," Paul offered as he stood up from the steps he had been sitting on.
"You rely on your weapons too much," Nate said. "Do you even know how to spar?"
"I think I've seen you guys do it enough to give it a shot," Paul said as he stepped onto the mat.
"Hey, your funeral," Nate said as he stepped onto the mat as well.
Mera signaled for the two of them to start and Nate took off running towards Paul. Paul caught him before judo throwing him to the ground. Nate tried to pull away, but Paul was holding his arm as he struggled.
"Ow ow ow!" Nate said as he struggled some more and continued to pull against Paul, "Ok, so you're not a pushover without your weapons. Could you let go now?"
Paul immediately let go and Nate went stumbling forward before falling on his face.
"You good?" Paul asked.
"That is why continuing to pull was a poor choice of action," Mera said as she stood up. "Now that my entertainment for the day is done, I think I will see if Chiron and Christina need any help."
"Not your finest moment, Nate," Diana said as she stood up. "But speaking of weapons, I'm going to practice with mine."
"Sounds like a good idea," Adrian said as he also stood up and followed her.
"No one's going to see me kick his ass in Round Two!" Nate said before Paul sweeped out his legs and caused him to fall to the ground. "You know, on second thought, do what you're doing. Nothing to see here!"
"Mom?" Victor asked as the two of them walked down the street. It was night, so the sky was dark, but the lights from the city made it hard to notice.
"Yes, Victor?" his mother asked as she looked at her son and noticed his face. "Is something the matter?"
"Well…" Victor said. "Are you sure it's a good idea to see Dad again? What if he decides something we don't like? He was really on the fence a week ago."
"He was," Victor's mother agreed as both she and Victor thought back to about a week ago at Steel Works...
Flashback
"What are you doing here, Mary?" Mr. Steel asked, almost sounding like he was demanding an answer.
"It's good to see you too," Victor's mother said. "Can I sit down?"
"Go ahead," Mr. Steel said as he gestured to the pair of seats next to the desk, "but I don't know how much I really have to say to you."
"That's alright," Victor's mother said as she and Victor sat down in the seats Mr. Steel had offered while Mr. Steel himself sat in the chair on the other side of the desk, "I have a lot I want to say."
"So you've finally come around to my way of thinking?" Mr. Steel said. "Or have you come to argue with me some more after 11 years?"
"Don't make this about you, Roger," Victor's mother said, "I only came back because my anger had been hurting Victor and your relationship and I wanted to fix that. I shouldn't have run away. It hurt Victor more than I could have imagined. Especially after you pressed on with your plan for him and drove him away too!"
"My plan is for his future!" Mr. Steel said. "He may not be happy, but he will be successful!"
"Whoa!" Victor said. "We haven't even been here five minutes and you're already arguing again. Can we talk like normal people?"
"I'm sorry, but weren't you the one who told Tom to send me the message that you were 'coming for me next'?" Mr. Steel said. "You seem to have chosen your side. At least stick to it!"
"I don't want to pick a side!" Victor said, "I just want us to be a family again!"
"Well, until you come around to my way of thinking, that isn't happening," Mr. Steel said as he crossed his arms.
"Alright, let's say I did," Victor said. "What would you have me do?"
Victor's mother looked at him, confused, while Mr. Steel raised an eyebrow before answering.
"Well, first you would graduate high school," he said.
"I already plan to do that," Victor said. "So our ideal paths don't split yet."
"Then you would major in business at Rutgers," Mr. Steel continued.
"And that's where the problems start," Victor said. "I don't want to major in business. I don't even really want to go to college. My ideal path would be me opening a metal-working shop right here in Olympia Hills. I would have to work a few jobs for a few years, but I could get the money eventually."
"I won't hear of it," Mr. Steel said. "You are not getting your hands dirty! Not while I'm around!"
"Why are you so against me getting my hands dirty?" Victor asked. "You're the only person I know who's so set against the idea."
"I would like to know as well," Victor's mother said. "You've never explained it to me."
Mr. Steel leaned back in his chair and sighed.
"You really want to know?" he asked.
Victor and his mother nodded together.
"The way I got to where I am was through lots of hard work," Mr. Steel began. "I had to do a lot of manual labor to get the money to even get through college. I did all sorts of odd jobs, just to make ends meet. Then my big break came when I got an internship at Bio-Lab in Silver Hills. Albert Collins taught me a lot there, and I took what I learned to create Steel Works. But I never forgot the work I had to do with my hands to get to success. And so I swore that I would work hard in my then-new company to ensure that any children I had wouldn't have to go through what I did."
There was silence for a few seconds as Victor and his mother processed the information. Finally, Victor spoke.
"So this has all been a big way to protect me?" he asked.
"That's one way to put it," Mr. Steel said with a nod. "I just don't want you to suffer like I did."
"Roger, part of childhood and young adulthood is learning," Victor's mother said, "and it sounds like you want him to learn how hard working with his hands is. But how is he going to learn that if you don't even let him try?"
"I guess I never thought of it that way," Mr. Steel said as his face softened, "Victor. I know I've been hard on you, but I just want you to have the best life possible. And that's why I struggle to allow you to go down the path you want. My path for you is the safe and successful way."
"But what if my ideal path is successful too?" Victor said. "Like Mom said, I'll never know unless I try."
Mr. Steel sat there for a minute, thinking, before finally answering.
"I'll consider it," he said, "just give me time to think. Why don't we meet a week from Sunday at that restaurant we used to go to all the time when you were young? Ellie's Diner, wasn't it?"
"Sure, Dad," Victor said, "if time is what you need, we can give some to you."
End Flashback
"I'm sure we have nothing to worry about," Victor's mother said. "He said he needed time and we gave it to him. We just have to hope for the best."
The two of them arrived in front of the diner and found Mr. Steel waiting for them.
"What did you decide?" Victor asked.
"Why don't we discuss it over dinner?" Mr. Steel offered. "We're already here, after all."
"Sure, Dad," Victor said as he opened the door for his parents, silently praying that he would get the answer he was looking for.
"I guess it makes sense," Valere said as the three of them walked onto the field. "Previous Super Sentai have been based on other teams of Rangers. I just didn't expect the Olympian Rangers to be next."
"Not many people did," Jasmine said as she led the way, "some actually thought Sentai would be canceled after last season with the poor toy sales."
"Hey!" a cameraman yelled as he ran up to them. "Watch your step!"
"Watch my…" Jay looked down to see that he was about to step on a piece of lighting equipment. "Oh! Sorry!"
"I knew the director letting kids on set was a bad idea," the cameraman said with a sigh as he put his face in his hands before removing it just as quickly. "Could you go over to the chairs we set up for you. And for god's sake, don't touch anything!"
"Sorry," Jasmine said as she bowed her head before leading the two teens towards the chairs. "Careful not to step on anything, guys. I don't have any clue what this equipment costs, but I'm going to assume it's more than I have right now."
After a few minutes of weaving around lights, wires and cameras, the three teens finally reached three black chairs with the kanji for guests in white on the back. They were obviously not in any of the cameras' lines of view and were seated near the director's chair, which had the kanji for director on the back in white.
"Hello there," an older man in a green t-shirt and black jacket said as he noticed the three and bowed, "I am Koichi Sakamoto, the director of this particular episode of Shinwa Sentai OlympiRanger. It's nice to meet you."
"It's nice to meet you too, Sakamoto-san," Jasmine said as she bowed her head, leading Jay and Valerie to do the same.
"Thank you for allowing us to come to set today," Valerie said as she lifted her head.
"Oh, you speak Japanese!" Sakamoto said. "It's rare to see a foreigner like yourself speak our language so fluently."
"I've had some practice," Valerie lied. "Speaking with my friend Jasmine really helped."
"And you," Sakamoto said as he looked at Jay. "Do you speak Japanese as well?"
"I do," Jay said. "So luckily I'll be able to understand the actors today. Don't have subtitles in real life, after all."
"Well said," Sakamoto said. "Speaking of the actors, you guys are in for a real treat. Because I work as both a director and a stunt choreographer, you get to see the actors and the senshi (warriors) today."
"I've heard that normally they film separately so you could film two sets of scenes in one day," Valerie said. "Why the change?"
"It's mostly for you three," Sakamoto said. "You out-bid for the tickets to this, after all. Might as well give you a good show!"
A younger man ran up and whispered in Sakamoto's ear.
"Ah, it seems we're ready to begin," Sakamoto said as the younger man ran off to somewhere else on set. "Take your seats and let us begin!"
"'Out-bid'?" Jay asked as the three went to their seats. "Valerie, what did you do?"
"I may have used a few thousand dollars of my family money to pay for this," Valerie said as they sat down.
"I don't…" Jay said before he rethought what he wanted to say. "Is it really worth that much money just to cheer me up?"
"It is to me," Valerie said as she took his hand.
"Quiet on the set!" Sakamoto said, "and...action!"
The camera zoomed in as five Japanese individuals ran into the Dome from the main entrance. Each one was dressed in a white robe with the edges lined in red, blue, black, yellow or pink, with the first three being male and the other two being female. The robe covered most of their body, only allowing the bottom of their black pants and different shoes to be seen. The one in red had medium black hair and a fiery look in his eye. The one in blue looked more stoic and calm, his longer brown hair flowing a bit in the quiet wind. The one in black looked more laid back and had short black hair. The one in yellow had blonde hair that looked realistic, but could still be seen as dyed. She had glasses with black frames. Finally, the one in pink looked more regal and had a collected presence to her, which could be seen in her long brown hair that looked like it had a few products in it.
"Where is he?" the one with the red lining on his robe shouted as the group looked around. "We just saw him run this way!"
"Calm down, Yuto. He's probably just hiding somewhere inside the dome," the one with the blue lining said. "We just have to search for him."
"Or we could make him come to us, Enkai," the one with the yellow lining said as she pushed up her glasses. "We could smoke him out if I had the right chemicals."
"Man, that sounds too complicated, Chika," the one with the black lining said. "We should just wait. He has to come out eventually."
"Do we have to, Homuru?" the one with the pink lining said. "It's so...dirty in here."
"We do, Aimi," Yuto, the one with red lining, said. "We have to find him and kill him before he can hurt anyone else. Nothing is more important than that."
"I guess…" Aimi, the one with the pink lining, agreed reluctantly, "but I'm not going onto that sand. It'll ruin my shoes!"
"Chika, what chemicals would we need?" Enkai asked. "Because that could be a good plan."
"Searching will be faster," Yuto said as he glared at Enkai while stomping towards him.
"And forcing him out is certain to work," Enkai said calmly. "We can't waste time, yes, but we need to be certain to get him."
Yuto looked ready to argue again when a figure appeared in a flash of light in the bleachers in front of the five. He had on a baseball uniform in blue that contrasted nicely with his large orange sun-like head.
"Now now," the figure said. "Don't argue on my account. Why don't we play a game of baseball instead?"
"It's over, Helios!" Yuto shouted. "Now that we've found you, nothing's going to stop us from killing you and protecting the people of Tokyo!"
"I'd like to see you try!" Helios said with a laugh.
"Yoshi! Ikuzo!(Alright! Let's go!)" Yuto shouted as he unwrapped the robe from his body and threw it aside in one motion. He held up his right wrist, showing off some familiar bracelets.
"O! (Yeah!)" the four others agreed as they did the same.
"Gorin (Olympian) Change!" all five shouted as they punched one fist out before slamming it into their open palm.
"...And cut!" Sakamoto shouted as the camera turned off. "Good job, guys! We'll review the footage and see if we need another take. Why don't you go take five? You could talk to our guests if you want."
The five nodded as they rolled back up the sleeves before taking the cloak off and laying it on the bleachers. Underneath they had traditional clothing in the same color as their lining. Chika pulled off her glasses and put them in her shirt pocket.
"What did you think?" Yuto's actor asked as he and the others walked up to Jay, Valerie and Jasmine.
"You seem a lot calmer now," Valerie noted.
"It is called acting for a reason," Yuto's actor said with a laugh. "But yeah, Yuto's a bit of a hothead. It's part of the reason I like playing him. I'm nothing like that in real life, so it lets me get my extreme emotions out as I play the character."
"So what's a normal day like for you guys?" Jay asked. "I assume it isn't this all of the time."
"Not at all," Enkai's actor said. "We started with a lot of stunt training for the stunts we have to do as ourselves. Whatever we physically can't do or is considered too dangerous is done by the stunt doubles. Besides that, we have to maintain a healthy diet so we can actually do our stunts, so no McDonalds for us."
He chuckled before continuing.
"After that, it was a lot of practice readings and memorization," he said. "What you saw was pretty rare for us, as things don't usually go perfectly."
"Yeah, I usually flub my lines," Homuru's actor said with a laugh. "Which is kind of sad given that Homuru is a pretty laid back guy and doesn't put a lot of effort into things. Meanwhile, I actually have to put in extra effort to memorize my lines."
"I do have one question," Jay asked as he pointed to the Helios suit as the guy in it took off the head to get some water. "What's up with the monster suit?"
"Well, Super Sentai is known for the monster suits in particular," Chika's actress said. "Besides, we can't use the likeness of the real Dark Gods given how little footage there is of them in American news."
"It also gives us a difference from the American news," Aimi's actress said. "No one wants to watch the same thing twice."
Everyone laughed at that. As Jay talked to the actors, Valerie watched him with a smile.
"I'd say Jay-kun's feeling better," Jasmine said as she walked up to Valerie from behind and stood next to her.
"Yeah, he seems to be," Valerie said. "So mission accomplished, I guess."
"Alright, min'na (everyone)," Sakamoto said as he walked up to the group of actors. "I reviewed the footage and it looks good. We're going to film the action part that you already did the dubbing for, so you can just sit and relax for a little while."
The actors nodded as they walked over to some spare chairs that had been put out for them and Jay walked over to the girls before all three sat down again.
"Now where are those stunt guys?" Sakamoto asked as he looked around. "You think that they'd be hard to miss with those brightly colored suits."
As if on cue, five people in the Olympiranger suits ran out onto the field from the entrance.
"Sorry we're late," the one in the Black Ranger suit said. "We got a little lost."
"At least you're here now," Sakamoto said. "We're ready to begin."
The people in the Olympiranger suits ran to where the actors had been before as Sakamoto sat back in his chair.
"Normally, we would dub the dialogue later, but because we already have it done, we'll be playing it as the stunt guys perform," he said. "It also gives you a better look at what's actually happening."
"Got it," Jay said with a nod.
"Quiet on the set!" Sakamoto said. "And...action!"
"Sora no senshi!(Warrior of the Sky!)" the 'Red Ranger' said as he posed, "OlympiRed!"
"Umi no senshi(Warrior of the Sea!)" the 'Blue Ranger' said as he posed, "OlympiBlue!"
"Hono no senshi! (Warrior of the Flame!)" the 'Black Ranger' said as he posed, "OlympiBlack!"
"Chie no senshi! (Warrior of Wisdom!)" the 'Yellow Ranger' said as she posed, "OlympiYellow!"
"Ai no senshi! (Warrior of Love!)" the 'Pink Ranger' said as she posed, "OlympiPink!"
"Ningen no sekai wo mamoru tame ni umarekawatta kami-gami (The reborn gods destined to defend the mortal world!)" all five shouted as they posed together. "Shinwa Sentai OlympiRanger!"
"Whatever!" Helios shouted as he created some fireballs in his hand. "You may believe you can defeat me, but you're dead wrong! Now taste my fastball!"
With that, he pitched all of the fireballs one after another, sending a barrage of them at the Olympirangers. The Olympirangers ran forward as they dodged the balls, causing them to explode behind them.
"Jinraitou! (Thunderstriking Saber!)" OlympiRed shouted.
The camera cut for a second before it refocused on OlympiRed holding the blade. It looked identical to Jay's Lightning Sword with the red hilt and the golden blade.
"Wait, Yuto!" OlympiBlue shouted as he tried to put out a hand to stop OlympiRed.
OlympiRed ignored him and leapt up into the bleachers, helped by invisible wires strapped to him, before slashing with his blade at Helios.
Helios cried out as sparks flew from the monster suit. He was thrown backwards into a set of seats further back in the bleachers.
The other Olympirangers leapt up to the bleachers and stood next to OlympiRed.
"That was reckless," OlympiYellow said as she shook her head in disapproval, "but I suppose it worked."
"You're supposed to wait for the rest of the team," OlympiBlue said as he used his finger to scold OlympiRed.
"Well, you guys are slow," OlympiRed argued. "I dealt with the threat quicker than you could have."
"So you can dodge my fastball," Helios said as he stood up a little unsteadily, "but can you dodge my curveball?"
He created more fireballs before pitching them to the right, far from the OlympiRangers.
"Can't pitch very well, can he?" OlympiBlack said as he scratched his helmet like he was confused. "We're not standing over there."
"Didn't he say 'curveball'?" OlympiYellow said. "I may not know many baseball terms, but the name implies a curve."
The Olympirangers looked as one to the left and were met with fireballs to what felt like every part of their bodys. They cried out as they fell to the ground, the camera switching to catch their descent.
"That guy hits hard!" OlympiRed said as he quickly stood up. "So we have to strike back even harder!"
"Hold on," OlympiBlue said as he blocked OlympiRed's way, "we just played right into his hands once. We should at least plan before we play into his hands again."
"Fine," OlympiRed said with a sigh. Can we just be quick about it?"
OlympiBlue looked to him to answer when a pained cry erupted from the other side of the stadium. The audio quickly died as everyone looked over to see a cameraman being held by his neck by a figure surrounded in a black aura.
"A real Anshin (Dark God)?" Sakamoto asked. "What is it doing here?"
"I have come for the Rangers!" Fortuna shouted, her excellent ears picking up the director's normal volumed question over the great distance between them. "Give them to me and I may let you survive!"
"Min'na(everybody), run!" Jasmine shouted as she pointed to the exit.
"I don't think so!" Fortuna shouted as she pointed her hand at the fleeing crew and fired a golden light. The light washed over the crew, but seemed to have no effect as they kept running.
"I don't know what she just did, but you need to get them out of here," Jay muttered to Jasmine and Valerie. "Then we can morph and call the other Rangers for backup."
"Got it," Valerie said. "What about you?"
"I need to rescue that man she's holding," Jay said. "Get back when you can."
With that, he ran off to an area behind a green screen that had been set up for later and morphed in a flash of red light. The Red Olympian Ranger stepped out from behind the green screen, glad that everyone was focused on escaping instead of grabbing their equipment. He leapt into the air before coming in with a flying kick into Fortuna's side. There was a thumping sound as she cried out and dropped the man she was holding. The man, to his credit, back crawled away before getting up and running to the stairs.
"Ah, the Red Ranger," Fortuna said. "I was hoping you would come to me."
"How do you know which Ranger I am?" Jay asked. "You're blind, aren't you?"
"Now why should I tell you that?" Fortuna said as she kicked Jay in the gut, sending him back a few feet.
With the two unmorphed girls, they were trying to lead the crew to the exit. However, that was when the trouble started. As the crew ran, some of them began to trip on what seemed like nothing, while others stumbled into each other. One even was struck by a few nails and screws that fell from the lights.
"What's going on?" Valerie asked as she helped a man stand up before gesturing towards the exit. "They're just tripping on nothing!"
"I have no idea," Jasmine said as she did the same, "but if the Anshin (Dark God) did this, then we need to help Jay-kun as soon as possible!"
Meanwhile, Jay was standing up again after the last strike Fortuna had landed.
"Knew I should have used the Hero Armor," he remarked, "well, better late than never. Hero Armor, power up!"
His omega symbol expanded into his Hero Armor as he summoned his Lightning Sword.
"Ready for round 2?" he asked before running past Fortuna and raking his sword against her side as he did so.
"Let's see if you're so eager after you're struck by my Luck Wave," Fortuna asked as she aimed a hand at Jay. He rolled behind some seats as she sent her wave of energy at the area near where he had been.
"Fine," Fortuna said as she summoned a blade that was curved like a goat's horn and had a wide hole in the bottom. "I'll just have to make you come out."
She was about to move forward when a pink energy arrow flew at her. Fortuna swung her sword to block the arrow before turning around to "see" that Valerie, fully morphed and Hero Armored, had fired the arrow from her Love Bow.
"I was hoping you would come to your boyfriend's rescue, Pink," Fortuna said. "It makes you the perfect target."
She fired the golden wave of energy from her hand at Valerie. Valerie, to her credit, tried to roll out of the way, but the way the attack was fired bathed enough of the area around her that it struck her anyway.
"Uh oh," Valerie said as she heard a creaking near her. A large light post quickly swung downwards and smashed her into the ground.
"Valerie!" Jay shouted as he watched Valerie struggle under the weight of the post as it held her down before whirling towards Fortuna. "You'll pay for that!"
"I have a better idea," Fortuna said as she slashed with her sword, using the momentum to send Jay flying next to Valerie. "Why don't you join her in her fate?"
Fortuna aimed the opening on the bottom of her sword at Jay and fired off large pieces of fruits and vegetables that quickly piled up on top of him, forcing him to the ground.
Jay grunted as he struggled against the produce, but it didn't seem like it was budging. He looked over at Valerie and could see her struggling under the light post as well.
Fortuna leapt down from the bleachers and walked up to Jay as he struggled some more.
"Cronus never told me what to do with you," Fortuna said as she put her sword on Jay's neck, "but I assume he wants you dead."
She was about to raise her sword when a trident struck her in the head, sending her to the ground.
"Someone call for the cavalry?" Nate asked as he, Mera, Adrian, Diana and Paul, all morphed and Hero Armored if they could, came out from behind the pile of fruit holding Jay down.
"I did!" Jasmine said as she ran up to the group. She was also morphed and seemed ready to fight.
"Alright, Nate," Adrian said. "What's the game plan?"
"Mera and I are going to free Jay and Valerie. The Hero Armor enhances our strength enough that we should be able to do it," Nate said. "Meanwhile, the rest of you attack her and keep her occupied. Once he's free, Jay can figure out the rest."
The others nodded before Adrian, Diana, Paul and Jasmine summoned their weapons and charged while Mera and Nate stayed behind.
"Ok, each of us should be able to save one of them," Nate said. "Plus it saves us time."
"No," Jay said as he tried to shake his head, "save Valerie first."
"I don't know if that's the best idea," Nate said, "I'm no expert, but something tells me that that much stuff shouldn't be on you for too long before bad things start to happen. If I help you and Mera helps Valerie, we can try and stop those bad things from happening."
"In other words, we can minimize the damage to each of you if we divide and conquer," Mera said.
"Valerie's been under longer than I have," Jay argued, "and I can take it. Save her first."
"Nope, not happening," Nate said as he started to shift fruits and vegetables off of Jay. "We're saving you both."
Jay tried to voice his protests, but Nate ignored him and continued to move the produce. Meanwhile, Mera slowly lifted the post off of Valerie's body as Valerie shimmied forward.
After a couple of minutes, both Rangers were free.
"Tell us what to do, Jay," Valerie said. "How do we beat this Dark God?"
"I...don't know," Jay said. "She seems to manipulate luck somehow. She called her attack a 'Luck Wave'. We need to avoid being hit at all costs."
"Too late for me," Valerie said with a small laugh, "but I can still try and support you the best I can."
"Alright, let's get in there!" Nate shouted as he turned to run forward...only to be bathed in Fortuna's Luck Wave energy immediately. "Oh, come on!"
Mera ran around the area of light and shifted her spear into a crossbow gun, similar to the Olympian Crossbow but smaller. She fired a few energy bolts at Fortuna, only for Fortuna to whirl her sword in front of her to block the attack.
"Jay!" she shouted as she transformed her weapon back into a spear and put her arms out just in time for Jay to use her as a springboard to launch his attack. He swung his sword downwards as he landed, striking right into Fortuna.
Jay was ready to press the offensive when an arrow flew right into his helmet. He turned his head to see that Valerie had just fired that arrow.
She put her head down apologetically as Jay turned back to swing at Fortuna again, only for Adrian to stumble into his path and take the brunt of the swing.
"You Rangers only seem to be hurting each other!" Fortuna said with a laugh. "What terrible luck for you!"
"It's only because of you, you blind hag!" Diana shouted as she leapt at Fortuna with her daggers. Fortuna easily dodged her strikes and ducked in time for her to strike Paul instead. Paul stumbled backwards and tripped on a grass knot before falling onto his back.
"We have to retreat," Jay said before he talked into his morpher. "Christina, we need a Door."
"Christina's back at home right now, but I can open that Door," Chiron said as a door in one of the dugouts began to glow blue.
Jay and Jasmine led the Rangers from the front as Mera took up the rear, helping the Rangers as they fell down and stumbled into each other.
"Are we sure she didn't just make us walk like we're drunk?" Nate joked before Jay shook his head in disbelief and pushed him through the Door. One by one the Rangers walked through until only Mera was left. Just as she was about to walk through the Door, Fortuna sent a Luck Wave at her. Mera looked towards the wave and dove through the Door as fast as she could to avoid the attack. However, a small piece of her did get struck by the wave. Then the Door closed, leaving Fortuna alone in the empty ballpark.
"Cronus is not going to be pleased," she said as a blue ringed portal appeared behind her. She stepped through before it closed behind her.
"Interesting…" Cronus said as he looked at the worn book that was open in front of him. "Combined with some of the other information I've found in Hades's library, I should be able to accomplish my goal soon."
He picked up the book and used some of his power to create a portal in front of him. He stepped through and made it close behind him.
"I have returned," he said as he stepped into his secret laboratory. A woman in a white robe and battle helmet noticed him and kneeled before him.
"Grandfather," she said as she raised her head to show her glowing blue eyes "You have come back. Did you find the book I requested?"
"I did, Athena," Cronus said as she stood up and he handed the book to her. "When will they be ready?"
"It should be about a week before we can begin our test run," Dark God Athena said, "Hephaestus and I still need to design the weaponry."
"Make it as close to the originals as possible," Cronus ordered. "Where is Hephaestus?"
"Back in the forge you made for him," Dark God Athena said, "I assume he'll be ready in a few days. But the connection to the Morphing Grid will be hard to achieve."
"That's why I gave you the Olympian Gem shavings," Cronus said. "They should already be connected to the Morphing Grid."
"They are," Dark God Athena said, "but each Ranger has a slightly different connection to the Grid. We currently have the connection for the Green Olympian Ranger. But we don't have it for the other Rangers due to not having their Gems to study."
"I already have a Dark God gathering that data, just in case of this sort of thing happening," Cronus said. "Use whatever she gives you and the gods I have provided for you to get those connections working."
He gestured to multiple tubes that were filled with a misty gas that concealed who was in them. However, bits of the white robes and togas that the gods wore could be seen every once in a while.
"The only way I can think of doing it is-" Dark God Athena said before Cronus interrupted her.
"Do what you have to," Cronus said calmly, "and get those results I want. I will visit again soon, and I will not be so generous as to give you a third chance."
"Yes, my lord," Dark God Athena said as she lowered her head in submission.
"But start with the twins," Cronus said, "they should be able to exploit the weak links in the Rangers."
"It'll still be a week until-" Dark God Athena said before Cronus interrupted her again.
"Then you'd better get started," he said simply before whirling around and creating another portal that he then stepped through. The portal shut behind him, leaving Dark God Athena alone. Without a word, she turned around and began to work.
"What happened out there?" Chiron asked. "I had to adjust the computer to Japan's camera systems, so I only saw the end of the battle."
"Some goddess who manipulates luck attacked us," Jay said as he and the others demorphed. "Valerie and I got crushed by a light post and a pile of fruit respectively and almost all of us have been hit by the Luck Wave the Dark God is using."
"If it was luck, then it must have been Fortuna," Chiron said, "but who's unaffected right now?"
"Jay-kun, Mera-chan and I," Jasmine said. "I..."
"You can take me off that list," Mera said as she watched their escape play on the computer. "It appears she managed to hit me in the leg. I am compromised as well."
"Come on, guys," Nate said. "It's just affecting luck. What's the worst that could happen?"
He stepped forward to walk to the computer and lost his balance on the steps up.
"Whoa!" he shouted as he fell on his butt.
"Worse things than that," Adrian commented, "especially considering a light post fell on Valerie. Speaking of which, are you ok after that?"
"I'm fine," Valerie said. "I think my suit protected me a lot and Mera saved me before it could really damage me."
"And how about you?" Adrian asked as he looked at Jay.
"Yeah, I'm good," Jay said.
"Glad you weren't squashed?" Nate asked as he stood up.
"Was that pun truly necessary?" Mera asked with a sigh.
"It was to me," Nate replied.
"Now that we know everyone's ok," Valerie said. "We can start on a way to beat that Dark God, right?"
With that, Jay began to think as the others talked.
"I don't know what we can really do," Adrian said. "We all saw you hit Jay with an arrow and me stumbling into Jay's path. It seems we're more of a liability than an asset in a fight."
"There has to be something we can do!" Diana said, clearly frustrated with the current turn of events.
"Luck…" Mera said as she thought about it. "We need a way to counter bad luck…"
"Why don't I just use my powers?" Jasmine asked. "if you all stand together, I should be able to use my powers to bless you with good luck."
"We can try it, at least," Valerie said. "right, Jay?"
"Sure," Jay said, still deep in thought. "It's worth a shot."
The affected Rangers all stood in a close circle as Jasmine morphed and summoned her scepter. She created an aqua orb with white energy in it and hurled it at the Rangers. It broke over them and sent white light particles raining down on them. However, as the particles were about to fall on them, a shadowy aura appeared around each of them and repelled the particles.
"Her power is too strong," Jasmine said as she demorphed. "Even my powers can't undo the bad luck she's created."
"That means it's two Rangers against Fortuna," Paul said. "Not great odds…"
"If we can get Victor in, at least it's three," Valerie said. "I would suggest we call the reserves, but Dan is probably closing the shop around now, Marcus is still grieving his mother, Mikhail is still stuck on his family's farm and Virginia isn't going to be much help."
"Jeez, Mikhail is still grounded?" Nate asked. "Those are some strict parents. It's been over two months!"
"From what he's mentioned to Christina, they aren't letting up," Valerie said. "At least we have Jasmine for now."
"I can only think of one way to beat her," Jay said, "and that's to use the powers of the Red Hoplite Ranger again."
"Jay, that's not happening," Valerie said. "Remember how long it took you to heal last time you used it?"
"But that time wasn't the last time I used it," Jay said, "I used it against Aeolus and I wasn't burned at all. I'm just trying to figure out why."
"Because the plot demanded it?" Nate asked. All he got back were blank stares.
"I'm not sure what that means, but I think there was a real reason," Jay said. "And we need to figure it out."
"Chiron, do you have anything?" Valerie asked, "we could really use some insight. You know more about the Flame of the Gods than we do, after all."
"I've heard of the gods' bodies getting used to the Flame's power over time," Chiron said as he stroked his chin, thinking, "but that would mean it would steadily get better. It sounds like this just happened instantaneously."
"So you have no idea?" Adrian said. "There goes our chances of figuring it out."
"I may not know, but there is a group who does," Chiron said.
"And who's that?" Jay asked.
"Why, the beings who created the Flame," Chiron said, "the gods themselves."
"Uh, newsflash!" Nate said. "The gods have all been captured! They can't really help us in the Underworld!"
"There may be a way to contact them," Chiron said as he walked over to Jay and pointed to his Olympian Morphers, "I've been studying the Gens closely over the last few months and those Gems still have a connection to Zeus, even if it has been millennia since he placed his power into them. You may be able to contact him, even with him being in the Underworld, if you use their power."
"And we haven't done this before because...?" Nate asked, trying to get an answer out of Chiron.
"The strain it puts on both parties could be very dangerous," Chiron said. "Not to mention the Gems themselves. They could very well shatter if the conversation lasts too long."
"Be quick, got it," Jay said with a nod. "So how do I do this?"
"From what I have gathered through my research, you must be completely focused on contacting him," Chiron said. "There can be no distractions. If you do that while you mentally call out to him, he should answer. I have no idea what will happen after that."
"Are you sure this is the best plan?" Valerie asked as she walked up to Jay. "If this backfires, we could lose you."
"Hey," Jay said as he took Valerie's hand and gave it a squeeze. "I'm going to be alright. It may be dangerous, but I have a great reason to succeed. Coming back to you."
"Just...be careful, ok?" Valerie said as Jay let go of her hand and she backed up.
"Always," Jay said, "but Chiron, how do I completely focus on contacting him?"
"I have found that meditation is a good way to focus on a single thought," Mera suggested. "Perhaps you could try that approach?"
"Sure," Jay said with a nod. "Tell me how to do it."
"Ok, this has been a nice dinner," Victor said, "but you still haven't answered the question that I'm here to learn the answer to."
"I've been thinking of the best way to put it," Mr. Steel said, "but I guess I might as well just come out with it. I was wrong."
Victor looked at him, a little shocked that he was getting the answer he wanted.
"While I was trying to protect you, I hurt you instead," Mr. Steel said. "First by driving your mother away, and then driving you away many years later. I thought my path would make you happy in the end, and I never considered your feelings in the present. For that, I am truly sorry."
"Dad, I...I don't know what to say," Victor said. "That's what I've wanted to hear for a while now and I know how hard it must have been for you to say it. But I just want you to know that I forgive you, but only if we can work together to decide my future."
"I would love to," Victor's father said. "Let's create a future for you that balances the hard work you want and the success I want."
"Sounds great," Victor said as he looked over at his mother. She had a tear coming from her eye that she quickly wiped away.
"Mom, are you crying?" Victor asked. "What's wrong?"
"You did it, Victor," she said, still pretty emotional. "You brought our family back together, just like you wanted to."
"I did, didn't I?" Victor asked as he looked at his parents, both of whom were looking at him proudly. "So what's next?"
"I'd like you to move back in," Victor's father said, "but I don't want to rush you if you aren't ready."
"Is right after this too soon?" Victor asked. "Because the bedbugs are starting to eat a third hole in my mattress and I think Mom can only put up with the ripped couch a few more nights at most."
"If that's what you would like," Victor's father said.
"I would," Victor said as he looked out the window and thought he saw a familiar tree in the park across the street. "But first, there's something I want to do."
A few minutes later, the Steel family was walking across the street towards the park Victor had been looking at.
"I remember this park," Victor's father said. "We came here quite a while ago and I never came back after your mother left. But why are we here now?"
"Because of that," Victor said as he pointed to the "Steel Family Forever" carved into the tree trunk, "I wanted to add something to it."
He pulled out a swiss army knife and carved a line under the "Forever" part, emphasizing it even more.
"Ok, done," he said as he backed up to view his handiwork. "How does it look?"
"Perfect," Victor's mother said, "absolutely perfect."
As the three members of the Steel family turned and walked away, Victor looked back at the tree one last time. The tree turned translucent for a moment, revealing Oakley inside. She smiled and gave an approving nod before the tree changed back to normal.
"Thanks, Oakley," Victor said quietly, "for everything."
"Are you coming?" Victor's father asked, "I'm going to go on a limb and assume the things in your apartment aren't going to move themselves. Unless you built them to do that."
"I'm not that great at building," Victor said with a laugh.
"Yet," Victor's father said as he reached up and ruffled Victor's hair as they walked. "After all, you and I are going to work together so you can become the best metalworker you can be."
"Right," Victor said with a nod as the Steel family walked towards the busy city.
"Alright, so if Fortuna shows up again, it's down to Jasmine to slow her down," Jay ordered. "The rest of you aren't to go into the field. You're just going to trip over each other."
"Got it," Valerie said with a nod. "Good luck."
"Yeah," Jay said as he looked around the blank room Chiron had created on the computer. "I'm going to need it.
Chiron had programmed this room into the pocket dimension as an extension of the Temple and the purpose was to allow Jay to focus without any distractions, just like Chiron himself had suggested.
As Valerie walked out, Jay sat down on the matted floor and closed his eyes. He focused on one thing: contacting Zeus through the Olympian Gems that were still on his morphers on his wrists. They began to faintly glow red as Jay focused more and more, gaining a peaceful feeling inside. However, right at the pivotal moment, Jay recalled his failure with Hermes and the glowing stopped as the peaceful feeling faded.
"It's all my fault," he said as he slammed his fist into the ground. "I failed then and I'm going to fail now. I may be a Red Ranger, but maybe I shouldn't be!"
"Now, now, my successor," a familiar voice said, "let's not be hasty and say things like that."
"Zeus?" Jay asked as he looked around. "Where are you?"
"I'm still in the Underworld," Zeus's voice said, "but in order for us to talk face to face, you need to focus and strengthen the connection."
"It's easy to say, but really hard to do," Jay argued. "How can I focus when I'm such a failure? I don't know why everyone keeps looking to me to lead when they've seen how I fail when it matters most!"
"From what Hermes has told me, you tried your best to get him to safety," Zeus's voice said. "He made the choice to help you at the expense of his freedom because he believes in you. As do I and all of your friends. I know that they do not blame you for Hermes's capture. They see that all of the right calls you have made as their leader outweigh the 'mistakes' you have made. Everyone makes mistakes, even the gods. But it is how we learn from our mistakes and grow that define us."
"I guess," Jay reluctantly agreed.
"But I assume you are using our connection for a different reason," Zeus said. "We don't have much time before the strain on both of us becomes too much. You must focus to strengthen the connection and then we can speak about why you are communicating with me."
"Got it," Jay said as he closed his eyes and began to focus again. The Red Olympian Gems on his morphers began to glow again. As he reached the crucial moment once again, he kept his mind focused on strengthening the connection instead of his failure. In a flash of red light, he was gone.
Zeus opened his eyes as a ghostly version of Jay appeared in front of him.
"Welcome, my successor," Zeus said. "Welcome to the Underworld."
Jay looked around at the dinghy cell Zeus was being held in. The 'bed' looked like it was hard as stone and the toilet in the corner had definitely seen better days.
"This is where Hades and Cronus are keeping you? And you look like that now?" Jay asked as he looked back at Zeus, who was more dirty and disheveled than ever, "I'm so sorry. We should have protected you better and…"
"You did the best you could," Zeus said as he put up a hand to stop Jay, "but like I said before, you are contacting me for a specific reason. What is it?"
"I have a set of armor that was forged in the Flame of the Gods," Jay said, "but it burns me every time I use it due to the excess power. However, I used it a month ago and it didn't burn me then. Can you use your knowledge of the Flame to help explain to me why?"
Zeus sat there for a minute, thinking, before he finally spoke.
"There is a long answer and a short answer," he said. "As we don't have much time, I will stick to the short answer. The reason the armor didn't burn you was because of your confidence in yourself."
"What?" Jay asked. "What do you mean?"
"The Flame of the Gods has a consciousness far beyond what we Olympians planned it to have. One such way it shows this consciousness is through burning those it finds unworthy," Zeus explained, "and one way it can measure worthiness is the user's self-confidence. When you doubt yourself, the Flame will burn you and when you don't, the Flame will not harm you."
"That doesn't make any...wait a minute," Jay said as he thought about it. "When I first got the armor, I was doubting myself because I had to fight Paul. When we fought Gryphon with Hercules's power, I doubted we could win because of said power and the fact he had healed or deflected every other attack. For the enhanced Spartoi, I doubted I could fight them with just me and Paul and win, especially because of their regenerating abilities. Also, Eris had been messing with my friends and I was afraid I couldn't help them. But when I fought alongside Jason and the other Legendary Rangers, I was inspired by them to do my best and believe in myself. So it actually does make sense."
"Precisely," Zeus said with a nod. "Now, you must hurry back. I can sense that a Dark God is still here and I can only assume it's Fortuna. You must return to the Temple to prepare for her return to the mortal world. Best of luck, my successor."
With that, Jay's ghostly form dissipated into the dingy air. As soon as he disappeared, Zeus gasped in relief as he felt a release of energy that had been slowly hurting him.
"You didn't tell him about the gods being taken somewhere else," Poseidon said from his cell across from Zeus. "He should know that Cronus is planning something. He already took Athena and Hephaestus, along with who knows how many other gods."
"If you believe I should have told him, you weren't listening to the conversation well enough," Zeus argued. "He needs the least amount of subjects that can damage his belief in himself. He might doubt himself again if he knew what was happening here. It's better for him to be able to face the present threat than worry about future ones."
"I guess," Poseidon said reluctantly, "but the shock of what he and the others might face next could ruin his confidence all over again."
"We can't afford for that to happen," Zeus said. "The Rangers are our only hope of getting out of this place. In the end, it will be up to their resolve to get them through."
"The Rangers are strong," Hermes said from a few cells over. "They can beat whatever comes their way."
"I hope you two are right," Poseidon said as he sat back down on his bed, "for our sake and theirs'."
"Why are you back here?" Hades demanded. "Cronus told you to keep the Rangers occupied! You can't do that from the Underworld!"
"The Rangers fled," Fortuna said, "but not before I hit most of them with my Luck Wave. Only the Red and Aqua Rangers are unaffected by it right now. The others just tripped over themselves as they tried to attack me. As soon as I get those two and the Black Ranger, they'll destroy each other when we battle!"
"Once again, you can't do that from here!" Hades shouted. "So get back out there!"
Suddenly, the double doors flew open and Cronus stepped through.
"Hades, why are we shouting?" he asked as he walked past Fortuna and sat down on his throne, "Fortuna is just...preparing herself for another round with the Rangers."
"Yes, of course," Fortuna said with a nod, "I wanted to lull the Rangers into a false feeling of security. Now I will go back and have them destroy themselves during our fight!"
"As I would hope," Cronus asked as he looked over at Hades. "There is nothing to be angry about, Hades. While the Rangers might have had time to plan, nothing they can do will counter the pure power of luck."
Hades growled in frustration as Cronus turned to Fortuna.
"But I will not give you a third chance," he said. "Do not return until the Rangers are dead."
"Understood, Master Cronus," Fortuna said as she bowed her head.
"Hades, create a portal for her and send her on her way," Cronus ordered.
"Yes father," Hades said angrily before he created a ball of blue fire and hurled it at the wall, creating a blue ringed portal.
The God and Titan watched as Fortuna stepped through the portal before it closed behind her.
"Tell me, Hades," Cronus said. "Do you think she will actually destroy a Ranger?"
"No," Hades said, still annoyed. "I think the Rangers will find a way around her powers and will quickly destroy her. Seems like a waste of a Dark God if you ask me."
"It may look that way to you," Cronus said, "but I see an opportunity to advance my plan."
"And what is your plan, father?" Hades asked, "I know you have been taking gods from the cells. What are you doing with them?"
"Do you want to destroy the Rangers and the entire mortal world?" Cronus asked.
"Of course I do," Hades said. "Why are you asking me such a question?"
"If you want those things to happen, you will not question me," Cronus said, "I know how to win this war and I need complete obedience on your part to succeed. Is that understood?"
"Yes, father," Hades said reluctantly.
Complete obedience, huh? Hades thought to himself. I'll just have to go along with his plan until we succeed. Then, when he is weakened from the power he had to use to destroy the mortals and their entire world, I will overthrow him and take my rightful place as the ruler of the desolate Earth!
Jay opened his eyes to hear the alarm going off in the main room. He quickly got up and walked into the main room just in time to see Fortuna on the mosaic computer.
"Did you get the answer you needed?" Valerie asked. "Because Fortuna's attacking Olympia Hills instead of Japan."
"Nice of her to move closer," Jay remarked.
"Victor isn't answering his morpher. That leaves you and Jasmine to face her," Chiron said.
"Are you sure you don't need us to come with you?" Paul asked. "We may be unlucky, but we can still fight."
"I don't know…" Adrian said before Nate interrupted him.
"Yeah. It's just some bad luck. We can take her," Nate said as he did a one-two punch in the air before spinning around and swinging his outstretched arm and fist into Diana by accident. "Oh shit."
After that, he took off running with Diana right behind him, yelling at him all the while.
"I believe Nate just proved Adrian's point for a second time," Mera commented. "So, unfortunately, we will have to sit out this battle."
"It's probably for the best," Jay said, "but don't worry about me and Jasmine. I know what I have to do now."
"If you're ready, I'll open a Door for you two," Chiron said as he leaned down and typed a few dozen keys. "It's ready."
"And so are we," Jay said as he and Jasmine stepped through the Door.
"I know the Rangers are certain to come out if I target their home city," Fortuna said as the Spartoi around her started to attack the people who were closing their shops for the night, "so keep attacking, Spartoi! Draw them out!"
"That's enough!" Jay shouted as he and Jasmine ran up to face Fortuna and her enhanced Spartoi. "If you want to attack something, attack us!"
"Red and Aqua, I presume?" Fortuna asked, "I was wondering when you would arrive. Cronus has ordered me to destroy you. I think I'll let luck decide how it happens!"
With that, she aimed her hand at them and sent a Luck Wave out of it. The two Rangers rolled out of the area just in time before returning to their original positions when the light faded .
"We need to attack before she does that again," Jay said as he prepped his morphers. "Ready?"
"Ready!" Jasmine agreed as she prepped her morphers as well.
"Aqua Olympian Power!" Jasmine shouted as she crossed her arms over her chest, her Aqua Olympian Gems glowing with power.
"Red Olympian Power!" Jay shouted as he crossed his arms over his chest, his Red Olympian Gems glowing with power.
In a flash of red and aqua light, the two Rangers were morphed.
"Hoplite Bracers!" Jay shouted as he crossed his arms over his chest again. In a flash of bronze light, the two bracers appeared on his wrists.
"Red Hoplite Ranger!" Jay shouted as he raised his arms to the sky and was struck by a red lightning bolt. As the flash from the bolt died down, Jay stepped out as the Red Hoplite Ranger.
"Jasmine, hit me with a blessing orb!" Jay ordered.
Jasmine summoned her scepter and created an orb with white energy inside it. She used the scepter to hurl the orb into Jay. The orb shattered against Jay, bathing him in white light.
Jay summoned his spear and shield and charged forward with his enhanced speed. He stabbed at Fortuna, only for her to barely block it with her summoned sword.
"You'll have to do better than that," Fortuna said
"I plan to," Jay said as the two warriors whirled away from each other.
Fortuna stopped spinning once she was facing Jay again and pointed the bottom of the hilt of her sword at Jay. She fired a barrage of fruits and vegetables from the hole, hoping to bury Jay in produce again. In a matter of seconds, Jay was trapped under a pile of fruits and vegetables again. Fortuna changed her target to Jasmine and buried her in produce as well, with Jasmine unable to dodge due to the rapid speed the fruits and vegetables were coming out at.
"There's no group of Rangers to save you this time," Fortuna said as she strolled over to Jay and raised her sword, "but they'll come running to me once I destroy you, hoping to avenge their fallen leader."
"One problem with that," Jay said.
"What's that?" Fortuna asked as she lowered her sword slightly.
"You aren't going to destroy me," Jay said as he stood up quickly, sending the fruits and vegetables that had been on top of him flying. "It's actually the other way around!"
He dashed forward again, but this time rapidly struck in different places with his spear. Fortuna buffeted from the sparks the attacks were creating as Jay sped around her. Finally, Jay stopped his rapid attacks and aimed his spear at Fortuna's head as she fell to the ground. He was breathing a little heavy, but there were no signs of the armor heating up.
"Jay-kun, you're amazing!" Jasmine said as she ran up to her red teammate. "Where did all this power come from?"
"Yes, where did it come from?" Fortuna asked as she slowly sat up, "I'm sensing a more enhanced version of the Morphing energy I felt before!"
"That's for me to know," Jay said, "and you to never find out! Jasmine! Let's finish her!"
Jasmine nodded as she ran up to Fortuna and struck her with a few attacks from her scepter. Just as the scepter hit Fortuna's chest for the last time, Jasmine sent a curse orb out of it that splashed her with red energy.
"Let's see how you like having bad luck," Jasmine commented as she did a back-handspring away from the Dark God.
Fortuna tried to stand up, only to stumble and fall. She looked pretty panicked as she continuously failed to get up, both from her own fatigue and damage and from Jasmine's curse orb.
"Phalanx Strike! Attack!" Jay shouted as he put his spear into an overhand grip over his shield and pointed it forward. Multiple ghostly hoplite soldiers appeared around him and formed into the phalanx formation in front of him.
The phalanx, ten men wide and eight men deep, marched forward in formation. The front line had their shields up and the other lines had their spears protruding in between and above the shields. The ghostly forces trampled Fortuna under their boots before they disappeared as quickly as they appeared.
"Guess my luck ran out!" Fortuna shouted as she exploded.
Jay sent the Hoplite Armor back into the Hoplite Bracers before sending the Bracers themselves back into the pocket dimension. He looked himself over and saw no blacked areas that had been burned.
"What Zeus said really worked," he commented to Jasmine. "I can't say I'm surprised, but at the same time I really am."
You know what isn't a surprise?" Jasmine asked. "That you figured out how to make whatever he said work for you."
"Know what else isn't a surprise?" Jay asked as he looked past Jasmine to Fortuna's remains before pointing to them. "That!"
The pieces glowed with a blue fiery aura and pieced themselves back together before growing to several stories high.
"What a stroke of good luck!" Fortuna said with a laugh as she grew.
"Jasmine, head back to the Temple and tell the others to come out here with their Zords," Jay ordered. "It looks like we still have more work to do."
"Jay did great out there!" Valerie said, marveling at her boyfriend's new found power.
"Yeah, but now she's growing," Nate commented, "and we can't form the Megazord or Ultrazord without Victor."
"I'm here!" Victor shouted as he ran through the Doors of Janus into the Temple. "I'm sorry! My parents are finally getting along and my dad agreed to work with me to create a future we both like."
"That's great, Victor!" Adrian said, "but we need to get out there. Jay needs us to help create the Ultrazord to defeat Fortuna."
"She's...blind?" Victor asked as he noticed her misty eyes.
"Yeah, but she somehow knows which Ranger we are through our 'Morphing energy'," Valerie said.
"Fascinating," Victor said as he stroked his chin, "Our suits create a specific form of electromagnetic energy so…"
"Fight now! Talk later!" Diana said as Chiron programmed the Door before giving a thumbs up. Diana led the charge through the Doors just as Jasmine ran in. While she didn't get trampled, she did get spun around a lot by the running Rangers. She took a few wobbly steps out of the way of the Doors before falling to the ground.
"Guess even Rangers get dizzy," she commented as she demorphed.
"Are you alright?" Chiron asked as he walked over with his horse legs, "I would offer to help you up, but I'm not sure I can reach that far."
"I'm good," Jasmine said with a smile as she stood up, the room having finally stopped spinning. "I'm more worried about the others, honestly. Their Megazords may not be powerful enough to handle her."
"You haven't seen the Ultrazord yet, I presume?" Chiron asked, to which Jasmine shook her head. "It's quite the piece of machinery. I think the Rangers will be just fine. Especially with Jay back in top form."
"I hope you're right," Jasmine said as she walked over to the mosaic computer to watch.
"I know I am," Chiron said. "Besides, after Hermes, we could really use a win."
"You guys are here. Great!" Jay said as he watched the others arrive. "Let's summon the Zords and get out there!"
"Right!" the others said with a nod.
"Send the Zords," Jay ordered into his morpher.
"On their way," Chiron's voice said from the other end.
In a few seconds, the Zords had arrived at the scene and the Rangers leapt into them.
"Let's form the Ultrazord right away," Jay ordered. "We can't take any chances of being hit by her Luck Wave."
"Roger!" the other Rangers said as they pressed the ULTRAZORD button.
The Bull Zord was the first to change, as the head came off, the body split apart and the legs flipped around 180ᣞ and the front and back legs combined.
The Horse Zord was next, as its head went into a chest cavity while the front and back legs combined together and connected to the Bull Zord legs, forming a complete waist, legs and feet.
The Eagle Zord was next. As its wings clipped off together in one long arc-shaped piece and its legs slid into its body before it connected to the Horse Zord, it was now forming the entire body of the combination.
Next came the Owl Zord. As its head detached from the body and the body detached from the wings, the wings formed foot platforms under the Bull Zord's feet.
Fifth was the Fish Zord. As the entire dorsal fin and tail came off, it popped open completely in half before coming onto the Eagle Zord's body as a chestplate and combining together again.
The Deer Zord split in half vertically before reattaching at the waist, forming the bottom of an armored tunic resembling the one a Roman soldier would wear.
The Raven Zord's legs came off before the main body and head of the Raven Zord clipped onto the front of the Megazord's belt, forming a gentle u-shape with its wings and fitting in front of the Deer Zord tunic.
Finally, the Cerberus Zord shifted into the Cerberus Knight Megazord before it's arms and legs folded into the body and the center dog and Megazord head came off as the rest split in half, revealing two silver gladiuses. The center dog head unfolded an omega symbol design in gold before it reattached in the center of the chestplate of the Pantheon Megazord, with the head going right under the omega symbol. The two halves of the Cerberus Knight Megazord folded to become arms, with the dog heads acting as shoulder pads before going on the end like hands. The robotic face inside the helmet flew out as the Cerberus Knight Megazord's head flew into it backwards, revealing a new face that gave the combination gold eyes to match the omega symbol on its chest .
The Rangers rose up into the cockpit, with Paul in the front center and Nate and Victor on his left and right respectively. Diana, Mera sat on the left of the large platform Jay was standing on and Valerie and Adrian were on the right of the platform.
"Olympian Ultrazord, ready!" the eight Rangers announced as the Olympian Ultrazord stood ready.
"So much Morphing energy!" Fortuna said. "It's almost too much for me to perceive!"
"Is that a compliment?" Nate asked as the others looked at Fortuna, confused.
"Of a sort, I suppose," Mera replied. "Though I worry about what she actually 'sees' and how it may aid her. We should defeat her swiftly."
The two silver gladiuses that had been in the Cerberus Zord's body appeared in the Ultrazord's dog head-hands, with the teeth holding the hilt in place. The Ultrazord stomped forward and slashed at Fortuna with one of its blades. Fortuna, however, ducked under it, almost as if she had seen the attack coming.
"How did she dodge that attack?" Diana asked. "She's blind!"
"This is exactly what I was afraid of," Mera said. "I hypothesize that she can 'see' our Morphing energy similar to how a bat 'sees' using echolocation. That is, she sends out a wave that bounces back and tells her where objects with Morphing energy are. And this Ultrazord is giving off so much Morphing energy that she can see directly where we are down to the nanometer."
"So how do we beat her?" Adrian asked. "The other combinations don't have enough power to keep her down, but the Ultrazord is easy for her to dodge."
"We need another source of Morphing energy," Victor said. "That's my thought based on what Mera has said."
"I have an idea," Jay said before he spoke into his morpher. "Jasmine, how do you feel about piloting a Megazord by yourself?"
"Hades thinks that I'm just sending Dark Gods to get destroyed," Cronus said as he paced around the forge, "I know he once compared himself to a chess player, but if he doesn't see the calculated sacrifices I'm making, he doesn't deserve to make that comparison. All of my attacks were specifically planned. Gryphon with Hercules's power was just to get the Onyx Gems to a stable location with Paul, even if it gave me a new enemy. Eris was to show the weaknesses in the Rangers that I can exploit, even if they worked past some of them. Aeolus got me the Olympian Gem shavings I required. Nemesis collected Hermes for me. And Fortuna is gathering the data I need for the Ranger's powers from her enhanced senses and ability to detect parts of the Morphing Grid."
"Meanwhile, Hades was just throwing out Dark Gods left and right to try to destroy them outright," he continued as he shook his head. "Foolish if you ask me. You must destroy your enemies with cunning, not power. Power against power usually comes down to a punching contest. Cunning against power turns the power against itself."
"Of course, grandfather," Hephaestus said before he slammed his hammer into the piece of metal, bending it into shape. "But what if the Rangers figure out your plan? Some of them are almost as clever as Athena at times."
He flipped up his mask to reveal that, just like Athena, he had glowing blue eyes to show he was under Cronus's power.
"The Black and Yellow Rangers can be clever, yes," Cronus said, "but they are also only human. Unlike us immortals, they are capable of lapses in judgment and being driven by emotion instead of logic. These traits are why I consider my mission a necessary one. Humankind was a mistake that must be corrected and those who made the mistake of humanity should be the ones to watch it all burn. And you will help me do it."
He looked down at Hephaestus's work and gave an approving nod. Hephaestus stepped away for a minute, revealing what he was making to be a golden bow almost identical to Adrian's.
The Gladiator Megazord stomped up to join the Olympian Ultrazord as the two faced Fortuna. Fortuna's focus seemed to keep shifting, as if she was unable to pick one to focus on.
"Alright, you distract her and we'll land as many attacks as we can," Jay ordered.
'Got it, Jay-kun," Jasmine said as the Gladiator Megazord stomped up to Fortuna and lashed out with its Leopard Zord tail-whip. Fortuna raised her sword and blocked the whip, having it wrap around the blade. She spun the sword in the opposite direction, unwrapping the whip from the sword. As she was doing this, the Olympian Ultrazord slashed at her with its gladiuses, landing a few nice hits to her side.
"You were right, Jay," Valerie said in the Ultrazord's cockpit. "There's so much Morphing energy that she can only focus on either the Gladiator Megazord or the Ultrazord!"
At that moment, Fortuna changed to focus on the Ultrazord and blocked its next sword strikes with her own blade, only to be struck in the butt with the Gladiator Megazord's whip.
"Oh...the media's going to have a field day with that footage," Nate commented, "and a few weird people on the internet."
Fortuna kept swapping between the combinations, but no matter what she did, she was getting hit by the Rangers attacks. Eventually, she dropped her sword.
"Jasmine, wrap her up and we'll do the rest!" Jay ordered.
The Gladiator Megazord stomped up to Fortuna and lashed its whip around her body before detaching it and stepping back.
"All yours, Jay-kun," Jasmine said.
"Begin final attack!" Jay ordered.
The twin gladiuses disappeared as the heads on the dog heads/hands opened up and two cannon barrels came out. The same thing happened with the chest head, giving the Olympian Ultrazord three cannons.
"Olympian Ultra Beams!" the Rangers shouted, with Jay pushing his hands forward and the others pressing buttons on their controls.
Golden energy beams flew from each of the cannons and pierced right through Fortuna's body, leaving gaping holes in her.
"Error, error," Fortuna said as she fell to the ground and exploded. Little bits of metal fell from her severely damaged body as a little drone flew out of the wreckage off to who-knows-where.
"What?" Nate asked as he stood up from his chair. "She was a robot?"
"I think she was an automaton," Victor said, "but why? Why send an automaton as a fake Dark God?"
"Let's go back to the Temple," Jay suggested. "Maybe we can figure it out there."
"Fortuna was an automaton all along…" Chiron said, "but why would Cronus do something like this? It doesn't make much sense."
"Well, if she was an automation," Adrian said, "then Mera's theory still works. It was just using radar instead of echolocation."
"But how did she do the Luck Waves if she wasn't the real goddess?" Jasmine asked. "Because really unlucky things happened to you guys when you fought her."
"I believe she was messing with our inner ears using a high pitched frequency," Mera said. "As such, we lost equilibrium. The Wave itself must have been a way to detect what frequency would accomplish that effect for each person."
"In other words, she was using noise to make us dizzy and disoriented," Victor explained.
"But what about that light post falling on me?" Valerie asked.
"Or the energy arrow that Valerie shot striking me instead?" Jay added.
"Magnetics," Mera answered. "The automaton must have used magnets to pull the light post down and then to draw the magnetic particles in your energy arrow towards Jay's head."
"You know, for someone who had no idea that she was an automaton, you really have all of the answers," Nate said. "The author must have either really planned this out or pulled it out of his ass to explain things now or in the future. This better not start a Life Model Decoy thing!"
"What in god's name are you talking about?" Diana asked. "You're weird, you know that?"
"Better weird than what you are," Nate retorted.
Diana was caught a little off guard by that.
"And...what am I?" she asked a little timidly.
"I was going to say angry, but now you seem...scared," Nate said with a confused look.
"Are you good, Diana?" Jay asked as he walked up to Diana. "Is something scaring you?"
"No, I'm fine," Diana said a little shakily. "I think I'll just go home. Good job, guys."
With that, she motioned for Chiron to work the Door controls on the mosaic computer, which he did. The Doors couldn't open fast enough for her as she ran through.
"What's with her?" Nate asked.
"I'll go and check," Adrian said. "Good job figuring out your Hoplite Armor, Jay. And Victor, good job with your parents. We knew you could do it."
WIth that, Adrian ran through the Doors after Diana.
"What did you do?" Victor and Jay asked at the same time, causing everyone to laugh.
"You go first," Jay said.
"I got my parents back together!" Victor said, "and I'm moving back in with my dad to work on planning out my future together."
"I was hoping it would turn out this way," Jay said as he patted Victor on the back. "Good job, buddy."
"What did you do?" Victor asked.
"I figured out how to get my Hoplite Armor to not burn me anymore," Jay said. "So I won't need that heat-resistant armor anymore. I feel like I should keep how a secret, just in case Cronus or Hades can somehow hear us."
"In the Temple?" Mera asked. "Unlikely."
"Hey, Hades managed to get into the Mosaic Computer before," Jay said, thinking back to his first day as a Ranger along with the other four core Olympian Rangers. "He could have a way of doing it again, especially if Persephone was the one who stopped him the first time."
"Persephone?" Paul asked, "isn't she Hades's wife?"
"It's a loooong story," Jay said. "Let's go to a diner and talk about it. Anyone know a good one?"
"Try Ellie's Diner on 10th and Main," Victor suggested. "You'll know you're there when you see the park across from it."
"Who wants to come with?" Jay offered. "I promised not to replace people, so you all can come with us."
Everyone but Victor voiced their agreements.
"I kinda...just ate there," he said, causing everyone else to laugh again, "but you guys enjoy yourself. I'm going back to see my family. We have to plan out the 11 Christmases, Birthdays and Easters we missed, along with all of the other holidays!"
"12," Mera said, "last Sunday was Easter Sunday. You have missed 12 with your family."
"C'mon, Mera," Jay said as he led the group towards the Doors. "Let's let Victor plan out his holidays while we get some good food!"
"I recommend the Grilled Cheese!" Victor called after them as they stepped through the Doors and said Doors closed behind them.
"Prep me a Door to my father's house," Victor said. "We have a lot to do."
"Ah, you have finally reached me," Cronus said as he stuck his hand outside a window into the dreary Underworld and the drone from earlier flew onto his finger. "I must ensure Hades doesn't find you. I hope you have all of the data I need. After all, I know the best way to deal with Rangers is with other Rangers."
He opened a portal and stepped through before closing it behind him, leaving an empty hall with no trace Cronus had ever been there.
Just for those who want to know, this is what the Sentai Rangers' names mean.
Yuto (OlympiRed) comes from Yu- meaning which can mean superiority and -to which means fly or soar; Enkai (OlympiBlue) means deep sea; Homuru (OlympiBlack) is the masculine form of Homura which means flame; Chika (OlympiYellow) comes from Chi- which can mean wisdom and -ka which can mean good or beautiful; Aimi (OlympiPink) comes from Ai- meaning love or affection (it's actually used for Jasmine's last name as well) and -mi meaning beautiful. I actually realized about halfway through that I needed to name the Sentai Rangers. I've played around with writing a Sentai version of Olympian Force (don't worry, it would be really different and not just the same story with Japanese names), and this is a step towards me possibly doing it. First I have to finish this and then Legendary Knights, so if I did, it would be a looooong way off. Even if I don't, this was a fun experiment all the same. I did create a Fanon page on Power Rangers Fanon to have a little more fun experimenting with this idea. It could be posted here as a story one day. I also experimented with sprinkling in a few Japanese phrases into the Japanese characters' dialogue, though I did give English translations. I had a good amount of help from Kamen Rider Giorno on the Power Ranger Fanon Discord Server with the Roll Call and the name of the Lightning Sword's counterpart, so thanks to him for all of his help.
Review, follow or favorite if you enjoyed this chapter. But even a view counts for something, especially because we're close to 10k in views and almost 350k in words. So you keep adding the views and I'll keep adding the words, deal? In all seriousness, do not spam the views. I have a feeling doesn't like that. But tell a friend or reread an old chapter. See the (limited!) foreshadowing in the earlier chapters! Or just wait for the next chapter. It all works for me. Just enjoy the story however you want to. And, in the great words of Zordon, may the power protect you.
