Chapter 14 'Plans Revealed'

This was it.

Eve gripped Mia's hand tightly as the Moogers latched onto them. The Mooger handling Eve was aggressively pushing her towards the cliff edge. She tried anchoring her feet, holding her ground. Mia did the same. She fought the Moogers' strength by ramming her back against their insistent pushing. But the number of Moogers grew and it soon became possible to exit the clearing without being shoved into the waters below. Due to the oncoming storm, the water churned violently until it was a full out tempest.

Half of Mia's foot was already off the cliff. The rock crumbled from underneath her shoe. Pebbles had already tumbled into the raging waters. Mia strained to hear a splash and was stunned to listen to the waves crashing. Eve closed her eyes and squeezed her mother's hand. If she was to die today, then let it be with her mother. Her breath hitched as she felt the force of the Moogers' hands on her arms, shoulders, and back.

She barely comprehended the push until her footing was lost and she felt unbalanced. They didn't know who fell first, all they knew was the feeling of flight before dropping.

It happened too fast. Eve could hardly finish her last thoughts. Her head was full of making peace with the world. She should have apologized to everybody she had ever lied to...her friends and her family. To Ryder, who drives her crazy with his impulsive and thoughtless actions. She didn't have to be so hard on him, after all he was just trying to make most of his time. To Lewis, the one friend that stuck by her since birth. Eve scolded herself for being inconsiderate towards his feelings for her. If she weren't on the road to death, she would have given him a chance. Her mother, her father... she never did tell him where she was going on the day of the time travel. Would he ever find out? No, she said to herself, thanks to me mom dies. They would have never married and would have never had me. She brought this upon herself.

Eve braced for the cold water to envelop her. But she never fell in. She heard Mia sigh in relief. Finally opening her eyes, she saw that they were hovering above the water,. A cloud of air was keeping them afloat. This could only be the work of an Air Symbol Power.

Mia looked at Eve, "Are you doing this?"

She shook her head, "I thought it was you!"

"Eve! Mia!" They both looked up, 40 feet above them on the cliff side was Jayden in his Red Ranger suit. He had created the Air Symbol Power with his own Samuraizer. Mia had only heard about cross element symbol power once and the one who had done it before was Mike. Since Mike's element was closely related with Emily, he was able to use Earth based powers. But fire and air are very different, for Jayden to use Air Symbol Power took a great load of strength and power. He wouldn't sustain the cushion of air for long. Jayden slashed another system of symbols to bring the two girls back up in a flash.

Once brought back, Eve hopped off the cloud and ran into her father's arms, hugging him. She had been so close to dying and was happy to see her family again. It was an experience she didn't want to repeat ever again

"Are you okay?" he asked concerned, looking back forth from Eve to Mia.

"You came," Eve whispered into Jayden's shirt.

"Of course. I always will,"

She broke the hug to see how her father had taken care of the Moogers. It turned out, they were still there. He must of hacked his way through the swarm to get to her and Mia just in time. Kevin and Lewis, morphed, were battling the Moogers, and they were indubitably outnumbered. The swarm could basically eat them up if she didn't have anything to do about it. Her eyes scanned for a weapon and found a fallen Mooger's sword on the ground.

She picked it up and looked back at her dad. Jayden nodded solemnly, as if he gave her permission to fight. Without a second thought, she ran to the action. Eve expertly maneuvered her way through the Moogers with a series of attacks that led her to the center where Lewis and Kevin were. Once done blocking a strike, she rotated to slash an unexpected Mooger behind her. She relatively improved since her first run in with the Moogers.

Lewis spotted Eve beside and was relieved to see her alive, though was unsettled at the fact that she was relentlessly throwing herself in danger by fighting. He wasn't a strong fighter like Eve or Ryder, but he managed fairly well in such circumstances. He felt something tap his head lightly. It was raindrop. No problem. But soon that raindrop gradually turned into a heavy pour, which didn't help Lewis in defending himself. The dirt had grown wet and muddy, causing Lewis to slip a few times. He would have been finished if it weren't for Kevin who pulled him back to his feet and fought a few Moogers for Lewis.

Speaking of the the Blue Ranger, Kevin was in the middle of fighting when all of the sudden the five Moogers he was in combat with went down simultaneously. Antonio, as the Gold Ranger, popped out from behind, twirling his Barracuda Blade.

"Thought you wanted a piggyback ride earlier,"

Antonio smirked underneath his helmet at Kevin's statement as he disarmed another Mooger, "Just needed a little breather that's all. We're not going to mention that again, right?"

"No promises!" Kevin saluted before returning to battle.

Lewis let out a sigh. His parents, Mike and Emily had caught up with them, bringing Ji along. Ji hid behind a tree to avoid invitation to the fight. Emily showed no sign of pain as she fought alongside her now deemed 'boyfriend'. Together, they took care of the remaining Moogers blocking the perimeter of the clearing. That left about 40.

Mike and Lewis teamed up when facing a ring of Moogers near the wooden pike where Eve and Mia were tied to before.

"I'll take the right while you take the left," Mike instructed. Then with perfect synchronicity, the father son duo fought half the ring in a matter of a minute. Emily took the liberty to finish off the other half.

"My boys," she murmured proudly.

During all the fighting, Jayden stood away from the action. He wanted to make sure Mia was alright. Though Mia wasn't greeting Jayden as warmly as Eve did. She was still peeved from the argument earlier.

"I'm fine!" she snapped at him, "Jayden, this doesn't make up for what you did. So don't think I'll forgive that easily.'

He was about to apologize properly when he suddenly had to summon his Spin Sword to and shielded Mia from an incoming attack. Jayden disarmed the Mooger, grabbed his wrist, and flung him to land on another group of Moogers.

"You're welcome!" Jayden couldn't help but snap back at her. He had come a long way to save her life and the least he deserved is a 'thank you'.

"I could have taken care of that myself," To prove it, Mia pried the sword from a fallen Mooger's hand and with an expert hand she twirled the sword above her head and finished with a thrust at the Mooger behind her. The rotating sword had grazed three Moogers in the eyes, disabling their sight completely. Mia plunged her sword into the ground before performing the pole vault move Jayden had seen Eve perfect in their training sessions. The Moogers were standing next to each other ,so once her foot made contact she stepped onto their chests as if she was climbing up the stairs. They were pushed down to the ground and never made an attempt to get up again.

Jayden shook his head, laughing. He was impressed. He recalled the ferocity he had seen in Mia's eyes back to when she had beat him in that practice fight. Now he could see it emanating from her as she fought. Inappropriately in this situation, he found that attractive.

20 to go.

Eve noticed that the rain was getting heavier and a cloud of fog was starting to appear. She could barely see anything in the midst of all the fog. She bumped into somebody. Instinctively, she raised her sword.

"Woah, Eve! It's me," Lewis's voice rang in her ear, soothing her and all of her felt his warm touch on her shoulder and she momentarily forgot about where she was. She had to force herself to snap back to reality when lightning crackled in the night sky.

"You need to Morph!" Lewis yelled to Eve. The other Rangers, apart from Jayden and Mia, were already morphed. The Red and Pink Ranger were far out of hearing range.

"I don't have my Samuraizer," reminded Eve.

Lewis quickly unzipped Eve's bag and fished out her Samuraizer. "Here. You should have never left it in your bag,"

He placed it in her open hand,"I guess that's the downside to skirts: No pockets!" Eve laughed. She tossed aside the Mooger sword then morphed.

"Go Go Samurai!" Her suit materialized over her civilian clothes. Once inside the helmet, her sight was instantly better. There was a special screen covering her helmet which allowed her to see through the cloudy atmosphere.

A few feet away near the cliffside, Jayden and Mia were battling, both lost in their opponents' actions. They were facing the opposite directions from each other, unaware that the other was behind him/her. When Mia stepped back from a swipe, her back touched Jayden's. Both whirled around ready to attack to have their swords meet in an X position, a position they were all too familiar with. Mia could feel Jayden's short breaths. Their faces were close to each other's, only centimeters apart. Jayden leaned in.

Mia, realizing where this was leading, angrily pushed off of Jayden's sword. She ran to where the team was and continued brandishing her sword skills from there. Jayden was left frozen. He had ruined his chances with Mia. She may never forgive me.

Then Lewis's theory came into effect. According to the theory, this friction between Jayden and Mia hindered the timeline at which they would get together, get married, and eventually have Eve. As soon as Mia refused the almost kiss, Eve knew something was wrong. Her body reacted to the change in the timeline. Her movements became slow and her reflexes were not up to par. She felt nauseous. She wanted to lay down but she was in the middle of a battlefield.

Lewis stopped and saw Eve swaying back and forth. She could faint in any was only a few feet away. He tried to reach her, but once again, he slipped and fell onto the muddy terrain. Eve, too disoriented, dropped her sword. Time was being rewritten.

The change happened fast. Her Ranger suit was dissipating into thin air, her helmet shattered, and she was getting weaker and weaker. Once her gloves were gone, Eve's eyes widened at the sight of her hand losing color and bit of its flesh. The rain pelted through her ghost hand as if it was a screen door.

What's happening to me? It was terrifying to watch but she couldn't pull her eyes away from the transformation.

A big mistake.

A Mooger seized the opportunity to charge at a defenseless Eve. His sword stabbed Eve's lower abdomen. Lewis witnessed the scene unfold in horror. In blind rage, he stood up and attacked the Mooger who dared hurt his best friend in front of him. He struck down the Mooger and fought in a way he never fought before. He moved his sword left and right, not caring which attacks to perform. He only wanted to destroy the Mooger. He had the creature pinned down. Lewis's sword was ready for the final blow to the Mooger's chestplate.

He couldn't bring himself to do it. This creature was not worth his time. Eve needed immediate attention. He stepped off the Mooger and sheathed his Spin Sword. The time he wasted in killing the Mooger could have gone into helping his best friend.

"Eve!" By the time he reached her, blood was gushing from the open wound. Lewis cradled her head in his arms, brushing wet strands of her hair away from her face. Her eyes were fluttering close, "No, no, no. Come on! Keep your eyes open, okay? Everything is going to be alright," he cooed. Then he yelled for his parents, for the other Rangers, "Just stay with me. Please...Eve."

"Octoroo is it done?" Dayu was finishing tending to Master Xandred when Octoroo stumbled onto the ship with a gleeful skip in his step.

He held the Chalice of Deviation in victory and nodded, "Ooh ah ooh! It went perfectly!"

As much Dayu wanted to put a damper on Octoroo's success by pointing out a flaw in his plan, she honestly couldn't find one. That was because most of his plan was kept in the dark. She was sure not even Xandred knew all the details.

"How is the Master?"

"Oh he'll live. He took a dip in the river not long after you left. But he wants to know what exactly do you plan with that Sanzu River water and that Chalice," And so do I.

"Okay, okay, I'll tell you. You can talk to Xandred after this because I will be leaving again very shortly," Octoroo propped himself up on a wooden crate and acted as if it was storytime. He clapped gleefully at his own accomplish and it was starting to agitate Dayu. She would smack him with her harmonium if he wasn't about to tell her the plan

"We know that to destroy the original Samurai Rangers, we need to pilot that futuristic contraption. However, there's no Nighlok in the Netherworld with enough skill or mind to do that.

No surprise there. Dayu rolled her eyes. Obviously they wouldn't send a Nighlok for the job, We are getting to the point, yes?"

"I am. I am! Then I thought of something so ingenious!" Octoroo slid the Chalice from his cloak sleeve and waved it in front of Dayu's face, " It hadn't been done for centuries. But this Chalice of Deviation? It has metamorphosis abilities. It can turn a butterfly into a donkey, a crocodile into a bird-"

"A human into a Nighlok?" Dayu said, finally understanding, "But who did you choose?" Turning a human into a Nighlok? Vague mermories of her and Dekker crossed her mind. Her shoulders slumped at their short time together.

"Oh that pesky daughter of the Red Ranger! I had poisoned their water supply. That water from the far side of the Sanzu was safe for human consumption, it does nothing to them apart from hydration. But when drinking from the Chalice, she gradually transforms into a Nighlok."

The sudden concern for the Magenta Ranger snapped Dayu from her sentimentality. Concerned? Why? I don't care if that little spawn of the Red and Pink Rangers turns into a Nighlok. Dayu couldn't help but feel sorry for her. The oncoming years would be filled with eternal torment and despair. Nothing to do but wade in this blood stained river...playing your sorrows through songs.

"How long...is this transformation?"

Octoroo changed his tone from melodious to unsure, "Can't say. Only furiating anger and despair could trigger the complete transformation. It could take months or years. But once the transformation is complete she will be here soon," Then his attention turned to the GAP he was using to spy on the Rangers. He saw that the Rangers were still fighting. He decided to toy with their endurance with a little surprise.

Eve couldn't wake up. She wanted to, but her body refused. She was aslep yet awake at the same time. Her eyes wouldn't open her demand. She was lost in the darkness.

I must be dead. I can't die now!

She told her arms to thrash,. She willed her legs to shake. She wanted her mouth to pen and let out a scream. But they didn't obey. She felt her body being lifted from the ground. Eve heard Lewis speaking, telling her to hold on while she was taken back to the campsite.

This could have been prevented. Her curiosity had gotten her into that time machine, into this mission that she realized that now was stupid. This mission had gotten her friends in trouble and their existence was in jeopardy.

There was nothing left to do but think. Yes, I tend to think when close to dying. Her brain was the only thing that was functioning anyway. She thought back to what started this mess.

December 11, 2030

Eve came home from school. It started as a day like any other. She entered the living room of the grand Shiba House when she heard yelling coming from the kitchen. It was her parents. They were fighting a lot lately and this worried her. They were always so happy with each other...until a couple of weeks ago. They thought Eve didn't know, but she would hear them arguing from their room late at night.

Yearning to listen in on the conversation, Eve plopped her bag onto the couch and rushed into the dojo across the hall. She pressed her ear agaisnt the wall that connected the dojo and the kitchen.

"Jayden, this possibly cannot work anymore!" Mia, her mother shouted.

Eve winced. Those words never sounded good. A frightening thought of a divorce came into mind.

"Please, Mia. A few more weeks would do until this situation fully settles in,"

"No. I have to leave. It's best for this family's protection," Where was she going? How would leaving be for their protection

"My songbird," he said softly. He was on the verge of tears, "I'll go. The prophecy says-"

"-I know what the prophecy says. We both know it has to be you who has to train the Savior,"

Prophecy? Savior? Eve needed to know what was going on.

"Jayden, I'm in no condition to be training anybody. If Ji was still alive, he would want you to do this. So please, let me go, They are coming for us and I just have to go for her sake," Her? As in me?, thought Eve, This didn't make sense.

Eve stopped listening after that. She took off into the lower levels of the Shiba House. Only the Red Samurai Ranger and his family knew about the cellar. It was where Ji, the Mentors and Guardians before him kept the Ranger archives. Every single scroll written by the generations of Samurai was in there, placed in the many shelves of the Shiba House cellar.

She entered the circular room, "Where is this prophecy?" Eve scrambled through every shelf and crate. If only they had gone digital, she would searched 'Prophecy' on the computer and see what the results were.

She needed answers on why her family was splitting apart and who this savior is. There must be a new threat. Could Xandred be returning?

She had read the entire archive in her spare time. There were only a few places where she hadn't looked at yet, mainly because it was forbidden. Eve weaved through the shelves to the back of the cellar. There, placed in front of a stone wall was a table and on it was a tray of scrolls. She scanned through them, even though she wasn't allowed to read the secret information only meant for Samurais far into training. None of the scrolls proved to have any information about the prophecy her parents were talking about. Frustrated that her family was falling apart before her eyes, she slammed her fist on the table, a couple of the scrolls rolled off of the table and onto the floor. She bent over to grab them when she saw something embedded on the corner of the stone wall.

戸口

The symbol for door.

Eve scooted the table to the side and examined the wall. The edges of it was curving outward and from knocking on it, the wall was hallow. Her hand swept away dust on the wall, revealing more kanji symbols. It was a full sentence, but she could only make out a few key words. ' Open by...Red...powers...great' The rest were a mystery to her.

Underneath the message was a keyhole. It was in a shape of a long rectangle with a teardrop shape coming from the end.

Eve knew there was only one thing with that exact shape: a Shodophone. In fact, her Aunt Lauren's Shodophone.

She had to find Aunt Lauren. But she didn't know where to start. She and her father had lost the Red Ranger powers and the Shodophone was locked away somewhere. Ji was the only one who knew where it was. If there was a way to find Lauren and talk to her. The prophecy might be behind that door. But Aunt Lauren hadn't been seen in years.

July 11, 2031

It was after dinner at the Zen House. Eve and the other Samurai kids were fully settled to moving from their old homes and into the Zen House. They had been living there for half a year already.

Eve met up with Ryder and Lewis in Lewis's room. The machine was nearly complete.

"The first thing I'm gonna do is to travel to next week, find out what the lottery numbers are..." Ryder trailer off when Eve glared at him.

Unknown to them, Eve had been planning where they would be going for months. It was a perfect way to find Aunt Lauren. She heard that in 2012, she was around the Panorama City area, her last known whereabouts.

"No Ryder. We already agreed to 2012 and see what it was like when our parents were Rangers," Lied Eve.

"I concur with Eve," Lewis called from underneath the time machine in capsule form. He was putting the finishing touches on the engine. His face was covered in oil and sweat. Eve handed him a washcloth.

"I mean, all the training we missed so we could put this thing together? We could witness firsthand how our parents fought in battle, learn a few things. And I'm curious to the technology back then. It was back when smart phones were in!"

Ryder crossed his arms, surrendering, "Fine. But on one condition- we get fight a Nighlok."

"No!" Eve and Lewis shouted together. Though they really had no say. Ryder was the only one capable of flying the time machine.

Eve couldn't believe that she agreed with it. The next morning, the time machine was done. Now it was time to collect supplies. They found a tent in the attic and packed some food and water. Eve sneaked into her father's room. She rummaged through his closet and found a wooden box. Opening it, she found two emergency backup Samuraizers: Magenta and Turquoise

She stole them and hid them with the supplies. Ryder was equipped with his dad's morpher. Later that night, they stepped into the time machine and traveled back to 2012.

Now that Eve looked back on what she had done, she was deeply ashamed. She stole and lied. She didn't deserve to be a Samurai or have her friends' trust. She was a disgrace to the Shiba family name. She should have asked her dad about the Prophecy, but she figured that if he was keeping things from her then she should do the same.

Her mother left and she was on her own. She resorted to figure things out for herself, which explained her independent ways.

That was until she came to 2012 and learned more about how relying solely on yourself was good in some ways but not for everything. It was sometimes best to be part of the team...if only she found that out sooner.

A/N: School is trying to murder me. I thought I had this chapter uploaded already but it turns out I haven't put it up yet. Sorry.

Oh well it's here now.

Getting close to the end. 3 more chapters to go!

Thanks to everybody supporting this story. I really appreciate all the positive and negative feedback.

R&R

*~Phoebee~*