The skies raged on with an immense battle. Winged Twilight Beasts flew across the clouds being pursued by the Shadow Strike Megazord. On the ground, the Lunar Knight and Legend King Zords were fighting giant Shadowlites.
All the Rangers were in their Master Legend Modes for an extra power boost to their machines. As Legend King destroyed two, Noah suggested, "We should maintain this formation and we-"
The boy was cut off by Jared, who was not in the best of moods. "Ultimate Formation!"
In seconds, Legend Ultimate: Paladin Mode formed and was mowing through the remaining enemies.
"Ultimate Paladin Finish!"
As the Rangers descended to the ground, Jared walked off without a word to his friends.
"What's his problem?" Sonia asked, crossing her arms.
Chris shrugged. "Ever since that Slayer's Test, he hasn't been the same."
Alicia informed, "We should also take a moment and say that he's the only one who doesn't know Asher is our son."
Noah looked on as his best friend walked away. "What's wrong with you Jared?" He asked himself.
Jared was still fumbling with the words from his test. The realization that his friends were far stronger than him didn't bother him; the thing that bothered him was his lack of change. He thought he had grown stronger after all this time when really he hadn't.
"Extinguish? What does it mean?" He asked himself again and again. "I'll tell them..."
~Cue Theme~
~Dark Void~
Slade steadily made his way into the Throne Room and knelt before Cepheus. "My King, I have found a way to get rid of the Rangers."
Cepheus did not really believe his minion. "Your subordinates have been uttering those words for nearly two years. What makes this plan so different?"
"It's because I have information that will change the story of the future."
~HQ~
Everyone stood in HQ. Lydia, Spencer, Tobias, Scott (who snuck away from the Dark Void), and Claire sat on the sides as the Rangers met with Xander on the training floor.
"Alright," Dr. Bly grinned at the Seven Rangers. They were standing in front of him, all dressed in athletic clothes. "It's been a while since we sparred. Let's see how much you've grown." While six of the Rangers grinned in confidence, Jared's eyes were still unfocused. Xander cast a spell, causing the HQ space around them to become that of a forest.
Immediately, Liam shot vines forth from his hands, but Xander easily blocked them with a shield spell. This distraction was enough for Sonia and Asher to jump forward and engage in a hand-to-hand fight with their mentor. Asher blinded Xander with a burst of bright light as Sonia came around and hummed a Mugic Spell, which caused ropes to wrap around her target.
Xander laughed and snapped his fingers, disappearing into thin air.
"Thought we had him," Asher groaned, but Sonia comforted him.
"Stay alert. Alicia?"
Alicia closed her eyes and focused her mind. She felt the presence of her friends. She extended her powers out, sensing the emotions come off of all of them. Jared's was a bit overwhelming, but she regained focus and tried to find Xander. A feeling crept up on her and she saw an image of Xander appearing overhead at 7 o'clock.
"7 O'Clock!" She shouted.
"Got it!" Noah nodded as he raised his hands up. He activated some sigils on his back and cast a spell that caused a wave of invisible force to rocket out of his palms just as Xander appeared where Alicia predicted.
"Woah!" He gasped as the wave knocked him out of the air. He landed on his feet and grinned in pride. "Not bad."
"You haven't seen anything yet!" Chris called out. In a low gravelly voice, Chris chanted rapid latin, that made violet flames shaped like dragons pounce on Xander. Impressed Xander jumped back and cast a counter-spell, dispelling the dragons. This left him open for Chris to cast a shadow net spell to trap the older Wizard in place.
Xander easily broke out as the Seven rushed at him. They tried to overwhelm him with numbers, but he was able to keep up, but just barely. To even the odds, Xander disappeared into the ground and sprang back up a few feet away. He was accompanied by clones of himself that he conjured. Each Ranger fought a clone.
Noah used his superspeed to literally run circles around his opponent. The Xander-Clone sent vines out to attack, but Noah was able to freeze them into place before making them explode. He cast another sigil spell that reversed gravity around the Xander-Clone, launching him into the air. He then cast one more Sigil Spell, sending forth a rush of ice that destroyed the clone.
Alicia gracefully danced around each one of her opponent's attacks. "Your aim's a bit off. Maybe it's the age," she winked, which she felt a little annoyed impulse within her Xander-Clone's mind. She used that to her advantage. She rushed forward and let her hands and feet glow a warm pink. She threw a few punches and kicks. But, everytime her Xander-Clone blocked him, he'd feel a mental shock in his mind. His sense of annoyance would ramp up to 11 and his mind felt like it was being electrocuted every time he came into contact with Alicia.
"Emotional Reflection." Xander realized quickly, jumping away from Alicia. "Your powers grew."
"Took you long enough, Dr. Bly," Alicia smiled before chanting, "Ekams-Dna-Srrorim!" Mist erupted from the ground, obscuring the Xander-Clone's vision. Alicia appeared above him, levitating. She rocketed down, but the Clone dodged her. Not good enough- Alicia waved her hands, sending forth a wave of concussive telekinetic energy, destroying the Clone.
Liam and his Xander-Clone were exchanging rocks and vines in a rapid volley of Earth Magic.
"You're getting better," Xander complimented his student.
"It's my Fairy side," Liam shrugged. "Speaking of which…" The boy in green willed his Mana to the surface and he grew large green fairy wings, similar to Maia's. The boy flew into the air and flapped his wings, letting green dust shower over Xander. The clone was bombarded with illusions of Liam attacking him, but every time he struck back, the attacks would pass through the illusions. Finally, Liam trapped the Xander-Clone within a forcefield and destroyed him.
Sonia was thrown onto her back by her Xander-Clone. The Clone came down with a strong hammer punch, but Sonia caught him and let loose a strong current of electricity. The Xander-Clone yelped in pain which let Sonia recover and clap her hands, a sonic boom knocking him away.
She cast a Mugic Spell, which strengthened her body's durability as she sprinted forward and rammed the Clone into a large stone that Liam had erected for her. She then let her Goddess powers erupt, electrifying the Clone with golden bolts of lightning, destroying it.
Asher hovered over his and Chris's clones, continuously blinding them with beams of bright light. He laughed in glee at their expense. "How's it coming, Chris?"
"Almost done!" Chris called back with a grin. The Black Ranger was speaking in latin, as he willed his Warlock/Demonic pieces of him to bend to his will. Violet characters of an unknown language flowed in circles below his feet as they charged with power. "Now!"
Asher grinned and snapped his fingers, turning himself and Chris invisible. The Xander-Clones looked around confused, only to be bombarded by bursts of light and beams of violet energy. In moments, they were destroyed.
Jared was not having as easy of a time as his friends. Unlike the others, he was stuck with the real Xander. The mentor could sense how unhinged Jared was and continuously dodged all of the Red Rangers unfocused attacks. It was clear the boy who had once demonstrated his skills to his friends the year previously was far below that of his peers.
Jared cast a spell, firing a golden ball at Xander, but the older Mage easily sent the ball back at Jared, knocking him to his back. Xander then took out his Wand and fired a concentrated beam of Eldritch Green Magic at Jared.
Quickly, Jared erected a red wall of his own Eldritch Magic. He could feel the overwhelming power breaking his shield. He looked around as his friends met up, having defeated their opponents. Upon seeing Jared in trouble, they rushed over to him. This enraged him, causing his eyes to glow a malicious red. Screaming, Jared channeled the powers of his Phantom. His shield swallowed Xander's magic and rushed forward as an Eldritch Lion. It pounced at Xander, but he shielded himself. The force of the spell was still enough to knock Xander off his feet and onto his back, ending the simulation spell. In moments, they were all back in HQ.
Jared's aura was flared up and he was breathing like an animal. It took the calming words of Alicia to get him to stop. This was enough for Noah to demand what was going on.
"You've been distant for days! And you overdid it with Dr. Bly. What's going on man?"
Jared sighed, and let them in, knowing better than to keep his friends at a distance.
"Not strong enough?" Asher repeated as Jared finished telling everyone his experience in detail. On the wall mounted screen was Scott in his quarters in the Dark Void.
"I'm useless." Jared concluded. "And that's not all. I also learned that because of my lack of growth, I'm bringing down our collective power as a whole."
"You're wrong." Sonia stated. "You're our leader. You brought and kept us together. You're not weak."
"I don't have the power." Jared argued half yelling.
"There may be a way." Scott suggested after a drawn out silence.
"What?" Alicia asked.
Scott said, "I did some more research from the records down in the Dark Void, and it appears that the three factions of the Triquetra can be channeled into one host. If Cody and I can give our pieces to Jared, he may be able to balance out your collective power."
"It sounds plausible." Noah agreed. "What do you think, Jared?"
"It's worth a shot." Claire nodded. "It could work."
Scott continued, "The three of us just need to be in the same place."
"We'll do it." Jared stated standing up.
Inside the Forests, the Rangers, Cody and their parents waited patiently for Scott to arrive. In a flurry of black orbs, Scott appeared in front of the Teens with his hood drawn.
"Let's get this done." He told them.
"Come here, Cody." Jared grabbed his brother's wrist and stepped forward.
Scott explained, "I have the upper faction of the Triquetra so I place my hand on top. Cody, you have the bottom left so your hand is in the Middle. Jared, place your hand under ours."
The two nodded and held their hands out.
As the three put their hands together, Scott chanted, "Power of Triforce; the Harmony of Darkness, Light, and Balance. Bring them together to stop their clash..."
All three symbols on the triplets began to glow and combine. Asher had a terrible feeling well up in his stomach. "Something's not right..." He whispered.
The boy was correct; as Scott continued his chant, the sky cracked with a bright flash of lightning. The force sent everyone onto their feet.
"What was that?!" Jack Ryder asked looking around. A stream of red sparks flew at the group, but Liam raised a barrier to block it.
"You really thought we didn't know about your betrayal?!" Came Slade's voice as he appeared from nowhere. "Alviss, you fool." Limply floating next to him was Roxas, battered and beaten.
"Dad!" Scott yelled to his unconscious father.
"Matthew!" Melissa called out to her husband.
"You'll all be together soon." Slade grinned under his mask. He raised his left hand and waved it, sending Roxas back into the Dark Void. As this happened, a hand made of shadows grabbed Scott and began to drag him into the ground.
"No!" Jared shouted diving forward. However, he was too late. By the time he got to Scott, he was well on his way back to the Dark Void.
"And you're next!" Slade threatened firing a purple orb from his palm.
"Jared!" Chris orbed in front of him to take the hit. He thought he could take the pain, but it was excruciating. Chris shook and spasmed as the force from the attack made his body go on overload. In seconds, the boy disappeared into bright purple lights.
"Chris!" Sonia called out.
"Spirit Legend, Awaken!" Five of the Rangers, Jared was still on his knees in shock, ran forward to attack Slade. Noah kicked forward then round kicked again and again, but Slade was too fast for him. Liam cut in with a few punches while Alicia jumped in from above with a chop. The Twilight General grabbed the two's wrists and threw them overhead into Trees. Sonia sliced forward with her Daggers and repeatedly jabbed, trying to land a solid hit. She too was cast off like a rag doll.
The Parents couldn't sit down any longer and took action. Hilary Ryder flicked her wrists and froze Slade's molecules. Her powers were far beyond Noah's, and Slade couldn't break free from her grip. Elizabeth Gregory created metallic shackles from the Earth to bind Slade's arms and legs.
Lily Morgan conjured a storm by waving her hands above her while her husband Henry pointed his left hand up and right hand out. A bolt of yellow lightning roared down to the ground and struck Henry as if he was a lightning rod. The man redirected the burst right at Slade, searing the Twilight with massive amounts of force. Melody Ford used her divine powers to keep the electricity running through Slade to paralyze him.
Jack Ryder flashed forward, storing his Mana into his right fist for a fatal punch. Meanwhile, Melissa focused her powers and chanted her attack incantation, sending forth a golden disc.
The projectile struck Slade as Jack jammed his fist into the General's stomach, sending him flying into the air.
"It's true..." He gasped getting to his knees. "You're all strong. But you pale in comparison to me." Three purple orbs flew from his arm and struck Elizabeth, Cody, Hilary and Jack.
"Mom!" Liam screamed.
"Mom! Dad!" Noah called out trying to get up. In no time, the four were gone.
"Cody!" Melissa and Jared cried.
"Henry! Melody!" Lily called out. "Again!" She began to conjure more storm clouds, but Slade knew how to counter.
"That won't work." He appeared behind Mrs. Morgan and blasted her with the orb, sending her spinning through the air, fading into pink lights.
"No!" Alicia bawled, her voice cracking in between.
Henry, his eyes wild with anger, howled letting loose hundreds of bright crimson bolts of electricity, electrifying Slade. Melody joined him and fired off her own golden beams of lightning.
Slade redirected the two attacks into the trees behind him and swiftly launched purple orbs at the two, sending them away.
"Who's next?" Slade asked calmly. "I guess I should start with the children now." He created an orb and threw it at Liam, only for it to be blocked by a golden triangle shield created by Melissa
"Stay. Away. From. Them." She threatened launching golden discs between words. Slade was left unfazed. He swiftly appeared in front of Mrs. Gordon, grabbed her by the neck and pulsed the purple energy through her, making her disappear.
"No!" Jared yelled with tears coming down his face.
"That's it..." Jared muttered letting it all go. He got to his feet and sprinted straight for Liam to pull out his True Soul, as it was the most offensive out of the group.
"Liam! Hold still!"
"Not so fast!" Slade called out, knowing Jared would do this. He flashed in front of Jared, kicked Liam away and grabbed his right arm.
"This power is mysterious. It's the only one I haven't cracked after all these years..."
"Years?" The Slayer thought. "It's only been two..." Jared tried to escape, but he couldn't move. Slade had paralyzed him somehow. Jared broke free and sent swift kicks and punches at Slade, but failed. He spun kicked but was blocked and was then sent flying back.
He got up, but Slade struck him over and over with a sword.
"Therefore, I must eliminate it." Slade reached down and squeezed as hard as he could and broke Jared's wrist, causing him to scream. The General then sent his energy through Jared's arm making his yelp even louder. The boy felt as if his arm was being shredded apart by a wood chipper. When he had finished, Slade pulled his hand back, pulling bright red energy out of Jared's body. The energy took the shape of Jared's body itself then condensed into a red sphere.
"Jared!" His friends called out. The boy was tossed away and landed in Noah's arms.
"What'd you do to him?!" Sonia demanded.
"I merely took 99% of his power. His Fire Spirit, Ranger Powers, Slayer Powers and Magic. He's not a warrior anymore..."
"We have to fall back." Noah said taking command and grabbing Jared by his waist. As Jared looked down at his arm, he found that it was torn up and bloody. No feeling came from it; it was just a limp extension of his body.
"Come on!" Noah pleaded to his friends.
"Go on without me." Liam said standing up, his voice stoic and calm.
"What? No!" Sonia protested. "You can't beat him."
"I know... but I have to buy you guys some time. Now go!"
"Come on, Sonia." Alicia said, grabbing her friend's hand. Alicia cast a teleportation spell and left Liam alone with Slade.
"Master Legend, Start Up!"
~Transformation Sequence~
A bright green ring of energy passes over Liam, as it goes along, it changes his regular suit into the Master suit.
~End Sequence~
"Take this!" Liam screeched, creating giant fists with his barrier energy.
The Rangers got back to HQ to find it empty.
"Lydia? Tobias?" Noah called out with no answer.
"Claire? Dr. Bly?" Sonia asked.
"Guys, look." Asher informed typing at the computer. He turned on the giant screen and replayed security footage.
As soon as the Rangers left, Wiseman appeared in HQ and attacked everyone. In seconds, without being able to fight back, Dr. Bly, Claire, Tobias and Lydia exploded into bright lights.
"No..." Alicia whispered covering her mouth.
"This is my fault!" Jared finally yelled slamming his good fist into a wall. "I agreed to this!"
"No, it's not." Noah replied, getting irritated. "We all went along with it."
"If I wasn't so weak then we wouldn't be in this mess!" Jared argued. He didn't even feel his right arm as it began to bleed again, prompting Alicia to patch it up.
Realization dawned on Sonia. "Wait, Slade knew how our parents fought. Would that mean..."
Fear jaggedly stabbed itself into the remaining Rangers. Without a word, they teleported away.
"Gone!" Alicia cried trying to fight back her tears, anger and sorrow raging inside her. She sat on her brother's bed looking back at the past with her spells. Evan was attacked by a Shadowlite and sent away just like her parents. That was it for her; things were different now. She vowed to never stop fighting and utterly destroy the Twilight. Pulling herself together, she went to meet her friends...
In the park, the remaining Rangers sat in silence. They had no help, no support and no families; they only had each other.
Jared's right arm was wrapped in bandages and rested on his lap.
"What now?" Asher asked. "What do we do?" His mind was pondering on the Triquetra unity ceremony. Something about it still gave him a terrible feeling.
"You die." Came Slade's voice. A purple orb rocketed from above and struck Asher, making him disappear.
"NO!" Alicia screamed, throwing her hands forward.
"We have to get out of here!" Noah beckoned again.
The Rangers made their way through the forests and into a natural clearing. The mountains were in the distance behind a large river. The Rangers had been running for hours, the sun setting overhead. They took a break, kneeling on the riverbed, which was made of rocks. Behind them was a wooden cabin that hadn't been used in years. On the riverbed was an old swing bench that slowly rocked back and forth.
"I didn't think this would happen." Sonia whispered, her arms wrapped around her knees.
"We've got to do something." Alicia said looking out over the bright blue waters. Everything around them felt untouched. It was as if nothing had happened, but the realization tossed this notion aside.
All of a sudden, the lake water began to bubble like water in a boiling pot. A wave geysered up and burst, sending vapor in all directions.
Slade floated above the surface with his arms crossed. "I didn't think you'd run this much." He taunted.
The three able Rangers morphed up and sprinted at him with full force. Over the water, the five clashed with ferocity. A swift high kick from Noah, was followed by a chop from Alicia and an axel spin kick from Sonia. The three, despite losing their friends, worked perfectly together.
They morphed into Master Mode and proceeded to use their augmented Supernatural Powers to drive Slade back.
Jared could only watch helplessly as his mind cast itself back to his lack of strength.
The teamwork was shattered when Slade decided to hit Sonia with a bright purple burst. The force sent her flying into the Riverbed and demorph.
"Sonia!" Noah cried super speeding to her side. He scooped her up and held onto her.
"This is it... Noah..."
"Don't go." Noah whispered, his world beginning to shatter. He held her close and kissed her forehead repeatedly.
"I..." Her body began to dissolve into yellow sprites. "... love you..." As she uttered the last two words, she scattered along the wind... this forced the last three Rangers to retreat.
"We have to keep going!" Alicia beckoned her friends. At that point, she was the last one who still kept herself together. Noah and Jared were in a sort of daze from the shock of losing their loved ones.
"Noah! Jared! Snap out of it! I need you two here."
"Sonia needed me..." Noah whispered, earning a slap across the face.
"Listen to me, both of you! We do not give up. Giving up is never an option. Our friends, our loved ones, they're still counting on us. The world is counting on us. We have to keep it together and protect it or it'll be doomed. We are this world's best chance and you can be damn sure we'll live up to being its protectors."
"You're right..." Noah said. "We can't give up. Can you heal Jared?"
"No... this magic is beyond my own. But we have to keep fighting."
"How valiant." Slade laughed as he appeared in front of them. The three edged their way away from Slade. They were approaching a high mountain cliff that looked over the ocean.
"Take Jared and run." Noah commanded.
"What about you?"
"Just do as I say!" Noah ordered as he sent forth molecular bursts to drive Slade back.
"Go!"
Alicia nodded, grabbed Jared and sprinted for the cliff ready to cast a spell to escape.
"Noah!" Jared called out as the boy was quickly defeated by Slade.
"Jared..." Alicia whispered, setting the Slayer down. "Use your magic and get out of here."
"Alicia... I can't do this alone. I'm not strong like I used to be. I can't just fight alone!"
"You ARE strong Jared. You just need to see that..." The girl sprinted forward and morphed into her Master Mode.
She sent concussive waves of telekinetic energy forward, bashing into Slade. The two clashed as equals, causing the air around them to tremble. After a little while, the girl was sent flying and demorphed as she landed in front of Jared.
"Now, it's your turn." Slade stated, launching a final orb at Jared.
"No!" Alicia yelled. She got up, grabbed Jared and jumped off the cliff, the orb hitting her in the back.
"Alicia..." Jared whispered.
"It's just like that time..." She whispered back, referring to when he took an attack for her while fighting a Bount.
"Jared... I never told you this..." She held him tightly, as the ocean waters came on fast.
The ocean water below hit them with a cold splash, surrounding the two in darkness. Alicia, slowly fading away, did her best to get herself and Jared to shore.
The two crawled their way onto the shore below the cliff where Slade couldn't see.
Smiling, Alicia fell onto her side. Jared struggled to get to her and when he did, finally placed her onto his lap, her eyes looking into his in a beautiful connection.
"I love you, Jared Gordon. I've always loved you..."
"Alicia... I love you too..."
"I'm so glad... I'm so happy..." The girl closed her eyes in her moments of final bliss as she felt herself fade away.
The darkness after Twilight came as a spell of dusk, coating the two in shadows. As Alicia completely disappeared in pink sprites, Jared alone, looked into the newly born night sky and sobbed in anguish...
A/N: Part 2 will be soon!
Jared is on his own once more! What will he do next? Stay tuned and later days!
