Chapter 11
"Would you turn that off, Toshi?" a second voice, that Izuku and Melissa didn't recognize, asked casually.
Izuku tore his hands off the panels, and the machine chimed in protest. He hopped off the chair. Dropped into a karate stance. Held his fingers just above the Morpher. Melissa also shifted into a fighting stance. Nezu stood on his chair, and drew a high-tech gun that looked like it shouldn't have fit anywhere in his outfit. Tommy did not appear to react. However stun guns, unseen behind sliding panels in the walls and ceiling, powered up.
Toshinori also didn't react. Didn't move beyond turning his head to look at the four intruders.
The one in the lead was familiar to Izuku and Melissa. It was the red-haired woman Telos avoided when he was leading them out of the shrine. Almost as tall as Toshinori, she was somehow muscular, slender, and curvaceous all at once. Her bright red hair was short on the sides but slightly longer on the top and in the back. Unlike the skin tight red top and white jeans she had been wearing when they encountered her in Kyoto, her black and red jeans and white t-shirt looked more comfortable while still showing her form well. She had traded pumps with a slight heel for sneakers. She was also wearing a red windbreaker, unzipped, over her shirt.
Just slightly back from the red-head, on her left, was a woman in a charcoal grey with navy pinstripe suit jacket and knee length skirt. She was also wearing matching pumps and a cyan blouse. Her hair was stark white, and in a way that it appeared natural rather that age related. It was drawn into a professional ponytail that reach past her shoulder blades. Her eyes were a grey-green color. Her tan skin crinkled slightly around the corners of her lips and mouth. The emergent crow's feet gave her the look of someone in her mid to late forties. Her build was fit; that of someone who kept in shape without trying to get too athletic. She was taller than Melissa, but still only came up to the chin of the first woman.
Slumped behind those two, the third intruder seemed to be introverted if not actually hiding. Hair of literal ice, pale blue eyes, and stark white skin made their Quirk obvious. And though their face and form were feminine, and arguably attractive to those who favor that type, something about the way they carried themself made the Echo team feel it would be polite to confirm this person's pronouns rather than defaulting to 'she'. The ice user wore a navy hoody, a white men's button shirt with a paint spatter pattern in multiple shades of blue, construction work grade jeans, and black steel-toed boots. They were about the same height as the white-haired woman, though the crystalline spikes made them look a few centimeters taller.
And the last intruder Melissa immediately knew. On the red-head's right was traditional looking Japanese girl. She had light brown eyes, almost amber in hue. Her long black hair was braided this time. And instead of a kimono and geta, this time she wore a short-sleeved pink sundress, grey tights with stripes of white and two pinks, and sneakers.
"Ali," Shield referred to her friend by a nickname.
"How did you get in here, Ria?" Toshinori countered. His eyes narrowed slightly as he not quite glared at the red-head.
"Magic," she responded simply, grinning at him.
"Who are you?" Nezu demanded. However the dog-bear also relaxed, given that the Number One Hero did not seem aggressive, or even concerned.
"Perhaps introductions are in order," the white-haired woman said, confirming that she was the one who had interrupted Melissa. It also allowed the Echo Team to detect a New Zealand accent to her English.
"Sure," the taller woman agreed with a smirk, "I'm Tenkasei Rhian. Leader of the Red family of the Dai Clan, and thus the de facto leader of the clan as a whole. Melissa already knows Tenpusei Aleia, leader of the Pink family."
Rhian indicated the girl on her right, for Nezu and Tommy, and to a lesser degree Izuku and Toshinori.
"Lurking behind me is Tenjusei Orisonth," she continued, "Or Ori for short. They are the leader of the Blue family."
Izuku's eyes widened slightly. Telos had implied the Blue family generally stood with the Green and Yellow in terms of maintaining the Dai Clans' secrets and anonymity. So he was surprised that the Blue leader was here and the Red leader casually introduced them.
Rhian glanced to her left, but did not introduce the fourth invader.
"And I am Madison R. Russell, the Fifth," the white haired woman said simply, "I am both the CEO of Mystic Records, and more importantly to this situation, descendant of Nick and Madison Russell. The Mystic Force Red and Blue Rangers. I am also currently the High Sorceress of Oceania."
"You used magic to break into the Command Center?" Tommy prompted.
"Was that really necessary?" Toshinori focused his question on Rhian.
"Yes," she said, "Partly because we wanted to test your defenses and see what Melissa was able to do with Ali's lessons."
"But more importantly," Madison cut her off, "Our spells were able to detect the increasing concentration of Grid Energy. We suspected that meant you were preparing to create Melissa's Coin. So it was important that we entered immediately. Otherwise our reason for being here would be null and void."
"Your reason for being here?" Izuku parroted thoughtfully, wondering if what he suspected and hoped could be right.
"Yes," Aleia nodded, "We are here to help."
"Specifically, all four of would like to offer our magical assistance in your endeavor," Madison added, "However I also am bringing you these."
She took out a small box. And slowly stepped forward and offered it to Melissa. The American took the box and opened it.
"Are these..." the blonde started in wonder.
"All of the fragments of the Mystic Force Power Coins that we have been able to collect," the sorceress confirmed, "One piece of the Pink Coin that you missed, but also fragments of the Blue, Yellow, Red, and Solaris Knight Coins."
Then she turned to Tommy, and told him, "I know you only asked for the Blue and Yellow fragments for the second Echo Ranger project. But I thought that if the other fragments would help, all the better. And if not, you might still find another use from them. Unfortunately, we have never found any remains of the Green Mystic Force Coin."
"I thought you couldn't help me," Melissa said to Aleia.
"That was before Darkonda," the Pink leader said, "The idea that there are Shadows still around, and our debt to Izuku for destroying Darkonda..."
"It was enough to convince the rest of us," Orisonth interjected.
"Though you really didn't agreed until Madison contacted us," Rhian ribbed them gently, "No caster worth their mana would turn down a chance to work with her on a ritual spell."
"In the end," Aleia said, "All of the families agreed, though Green and Yellow forced us to stipulate that only half of the family heads would participate."
"Is that was Telos isn't here?" Izuku asked. Aleia smiled gently.
"It was supposed to be Telos, Ori, and I," she answered, "Unfortunately, Telos' daughter caught a rather strong strain of the flu, so he is taking care of her."
"I'm stronger than him anyway," Rhian insisted.
"That is true," Aleia confirmed, "But Telos is connected to Midoriya. And the families have noticed all the time you have been spending in Tokyo lately."
Toshinori coughed suddenly.
"So you came to help with the Echo Pink Coin?" Melissa steered the conversation back on track.
"If we can," Madison confirmed, "And if you will let us."
Melissa glanced at her teammates. They all gave her nods of approval or shrugs indicating it was her choice.
"Magic is the largest element of the original project that we are missing," Shield told them, "I'd be happy to hear your opinions, and accept any help you can offer."
Then she bowed to them and said, "Thank you."
"Excellent," Nezu smiled broadly, "Melissa, may I suggest you show them the Echo Project's notes, while start seeing where these new Yellow and Blue fragments will fit into their respective hybrid Coins?"
Another round of nods from both sides of the room, and the nine of them got to work.
Sunday afternoon wore into evening. And they decided to split up for the night. Which only meant Izuku and Nezu going home. Toshinori offered to let the four spellcasters stay in his spare rooms. And they accepted.
It was decided that the magic users would spend the next few days studying the mandalas used to help create Izuku's Coin, while Melissa, Nezu, and Tommy worked on both the new matrices with the new fragments, and also answered any questions about differences between the first and second Echo Projects and Coins. On Wednesday they would reconvene to discuss next steps.
That did not exclude either teen or either teacher from school, and so Monday morning saw Izuku starting his second full week at UA. Or third week, if one also counted Golden Week. Morning classes were normal, and Izuku was distracted by the previous day's events. When they broke for lunch, Izuku ate with Melissa as usual, and they softly discussed the Ranger descendants. They were blissfully unaware of the rumor mill churning around them.
Class 1-A returned from lunch to find All Might waiting for them.
"Hello, young Heroes," he greeted them, "This afternoon, we will be holding a class called Attackers vs Defenders. It is a team based activity. You will be split into teams of five. One team will be Defenders, heroes attempting to guard a device from the villainous Attackers. And the other team are the heroic Attackers, who have fifteen minutes to deactivate the device before the evil Defenders can activate it. It is to give you experience working as a team and in light combat."
"You might think this will only result in two matches, but there will be six. After each pair of tests, you will be reassign to different teams. The software is designed to make sure each of you will be on each side of the battle at least once, and paired up with each other student no more than twice."
Then he stared at them sternly, "Remember, this is a class. Anyone hurting their classmates, especially intentionally, will result in low grades and possible disciplinary action."
"However, before that, you will need to take an important first step on your path to being great heroes!"
He pressed a button, and five racks of four numbered cases rolled out from the wall.
"Based on your conversations with our experts," he said, "Here are your prototype costumes!"
The students collected their cases. Most of them were excited. Todoroki and Tokoyami pretended to be calm, but their eyes betrayed them. Kodai looked nonplussed, though that was her general demeanor. And Izuku was generally indifferent.
"Do I really need a costume?" Izuku asked the pair across the table from him. One was a tall, slender man in silk shirt and trousers, impeccably tailored. And the other was a voluptuous woman of middle years, wearing a long-sleeved shirt and sweat pants, littered with pins and measuring tapes.
"Of course," the man insisted, "Every Hero need a costume for protection and branding."
"But my power is transformative," Izuku argued, "I am covered from head to toe, including whatever I am wearing."
"Show us," the man said.
"Mode Green."
"Hmm," the man tapped his lips. He slid out of his chair, and walked over to Izuku. He walked around the boy, taking the Ranger uniform in.
"Hmm," the designer repeated. Then he looked to woman and asked, "Thoughts?"
"Strong lines," she said, "Looks like a good defense. No storage. Limits? And 'Mode Green'?"
"Good points," the man nodded, turning back to Izuku, "'Mode' implies multiple. Do you have others? And are there specific limits to your Quirk?"
"Yes," Izuku said, "to both. Mode White."
"A color swap and a few cosmetic changes."
"And I also have Mode Black."
"Again similar," the man almost seemed disappointed, "And your limits?"
"The only limit I know is time," Izuku said, "I can stay transformed for over three hours at this point. And it is getting longer the more I use my power."
"In that case you definitely need a uniform. For before you transform, or for if you run out of time during an extended emergency.'
Izuku opened the case and looked inside.
There were a pair of just above the ankle black boots, and matching gloves. The pants were spandex; the thick bullet and fire resistant version of the material used for Heroes who favored skin-tight costumes. But these were double layered, giving him slightly more protection and slightly more coverage. The pants were the same green as Izuku's Mode Green suit, and had a rectangle on the outside of the leg made of of a single white and a single black triangle. So they resembled his transformed state but were not exactly the same. There was a black belt with a dozen, gold, utility pouches. There was a white t-shirt of the same material as the pants. And lastly was a green hoody. It wasn't spandex, it was a loose, cotton like version of the same protective cloth. It had the same white/black rectangle down the sides and on the outside of the sleeves. And there were three golden circles in an equilateral triangle on the back, one with each of the Echo Ranger's chest emblems.
"Everyone get changed and come outside to Urban Combat zone B." All Might told them.
"You are all looking great," All Might told them. Though he deliberately was not looking at Yaoyorozu or Hagakure.
"You should be aware that these are just preliminary costumes," he reminded them, "So you can see how you like the design and the features. And, of course, most of you are still growing, both physically and in your powers, so you will need adjustments or even new version to cope."
"Okay, with that out of the way, are you all ready?"
"Yeah!" Izuku and a few of the others shouted, while most of the responses were more reserved.
"Well then," All Might hit a button on the remote he was holding, raising a screen into view, "Here are the matches we will be having today."
Round 1
Attackers: Fumikage Tokoyami, Katsuki Bakugo, Mashirao Ojiro, Shoto Todoroki, and Toru Hagakure
vs
Defenders: Denki Kaminari, Hanta Sero, Koji Koda, Tenya Ida, and Tsuyu Asui
Round 2
Attackers: Eijiro Kirishima, Kyoka Jiro, Mina Ashido, Ochako Uraraka, and Yuga Aoyama
vs
Defenders: Izuku Midoriya, Mezo Shoji, Momo Yaoyorozu, Rikido Sato, and Yui Kodai
Round 3
Attackers: Eijiro Kirishima, Koji Koda, Ochako Uraraka, Toru Hagakure, and Tsuyu Asui
vs
Defenders: Katsuki Bakugo, Rikido Sato, Shoto Todoroki, Tenya Ida, and Yuga Aoyama
Round 4
Attackers: Izuku Midoriya, Kyoka Jiro, Mashirao Ojiro, Mezo Shoji, and Momo Yaoyorozu
vs
Defenders: Denki Kaminari, Fumikage Tokoyami, Hanta Sero, Mina Ashido, and Yui Kodai
Round 5
Attackers: Hanta Sero, Mashirao Ojiro, Mina Ashido, Momo Yaoyorozu, and Yui Kodai
vs
Defenders: Eijiro Kirishima, Fumikage Tokoyami, Katsuki Bakugo, Kyoka Jiro, and Mezo Shoji
Round 6
Attackers: Koji Koda, Ochako Uraraka, Rikido Sato, Tenya Ida, and Toru Hagakure
vs
Defenders: Denki Kaminari, Izuku Midoriya, Shoto Todoroki, Tsuyu Asui, and Yuga Aoyama
Two of the class 1-A boys scanned the list intently. The greenette was mildly pleased with a particular aspect of the match-ups, while the blonde teen fumed silently.
"So what do you all think we should do?" Yaoyorozu Momo asked her four teammates, in the small amount of prep time they had before their match started.
"Kirishima-kun's Quirk is highly defensive," Izuku mused out loud, "though it does seem to increase his strength slightly and the sharp edges can be weaponized. Jiro-san's Quirk is seems to be informational and flexible. But I wouldn't be surprised if she can generate sonic vibrations in a target. Ashido-san's acids seem to be fairly powerful. Uraraka-san can make things weightless, but she has to touch them and may have some limits. And while Aoyama-san calls his Quirk a laser, it seems to be more concussive force than focused light."
The two girls nodded thoughtfully, while the two boys just looked impressed.
"Shoji-san is strong, but also has even better senses than me. I'm not sure how Sato-san's strength compares to my Mode White, but we seem to be pretty close," the Ranger-in-training continued.
"Yeah, but you don't seem to have the drawbacks I do," Sato responded, sounding slightly down.
"Maybe, but we are both still learning," Izuku tried to reassure him. Then he returned to his analysis, "Yaoyorozu-san can make things, and Kodai-san can shrink or enlarge things."
They were all looking at him now. And Izuku, like All Might, was trying not to look at Yaoyorozu. He was committed and thought Melissa was prettier and in better shape. But his black haired classmate was close in both categories, and her costume made that abundantly clear. It was distracting, and also made Izuku feel guilty.
"So this is my idea," he said, forcing himself to focus, "Yaoyorozu-san, can you make materials that are both sturdy and acid resistant? Maybe some alloy of nickel and titanium?"
"Let me look." She took out her phone.
"If she can, she can make a bunch of locks out of that. And we lock all the doors on this floor and the floor below. But more importantly, Yaoyorozu can make small planks of the same material. Then..."
He trailed off and looked at Kodai.
"Kodai-san," he started.
"You can just call me Yui," she said flatly.
"Yui-san, are their any limits to your Quirk? An upper size or mass limit? A number of items? Or a time limit?"
"Yes," she said, "There is no number, mass, or time limit that I have found. But I can only change an item's dimensions proportionally, increasing or decreasing by a factor of 343 either direction."
"So seven times length, width, and depth?" Izuku asked for confirmation.
"Yes," she agreed, "And I can either leave the mass the same, or scale it along with the size."
"Found it," Yaoyorozu told them.
"Great," Izuku smiled, "So Yaoyorozu makes planks of the resistant material. And Yui enlarges them. We cover the floor with them, and then stack them against the walls. Preferably floor to ceiling, and two or more layers deep. Shoji-san, Sato-san and I will hold the barriers them in place, against Uraraka or Aoyama. We only have to hold out for fifteen minutes, so that should be doable."
Then he blushed slightly, and asked, "Right? There isn't anything I'm missing? Or pushing you two too hard?"
"No, I think I can do it," the longer-haired girl decided.
"Yes, it should work," the size-shifter agreed.
"Then if you can provide us with the locks," Shoji said, "Sato and I will start laying out the decoys, while you three start building up our defenses here."
Sato gave him a thumbs up.
After the taller boys left, Izuku went into Mode White. Momo somehow decided that planks meant LEGO planks, to which neither Izuku nor Yui objected. She created metal versions of the toy, handed them to Yui to enlarge, and Izuku to build.
"I like your costume," Izuku told Kodai. The white accented red spandex unitard, with matching skirt, boots, and hat reminded him a lot of various Ranger uniforms.
"Are you a Power Rangers fan?" he prompted.
"You might say that," the quiet girl said softly. And for the first time he could remember, showed a ghost of a grin.
Round 2 went easily to the Defenders, though All Might complimented Ashido and Aoyama for combining their efforts to try to create a weak spot to break through. In the end, Izuku ended up winning the MVP for the second and fourth rounds. The sixth round MVP almost went to Todoroki-kun, for using his ice to weigh down Izuku, Kaminari, and Aoyama after Uraraka tagged them. Ultimately the Attackers Hagakure got the MVP for creating the distraction that allowed Uraraka to land her hits, and for sneaking through to the machine on her own.
Bakugou took no small pride that his teams won rounds 1, 3, and 5, while Izuku's teams only won 2 and 4. He convinced himself that Izuku's two MVPs to Katsuki's one did not matter.
"just means the Deku was able to cover better for these dead weight extras."
Wednesday, after UA let out for the day.
"Umm, what are we doing?" Izuku asked nervously.
"We are going over the results of the last few days of work," Nezu said, "What our magic using friends have learned, the adjustments Melissa and I made with the new Yellow and Blue Coin fragments. And how we will integrate that all together, what tests we can run, and any additional changes before Saturday."
Then he took a sip of an electric blue drink in a giant glass via a curly straw.
"I know that," Izuku protested, "I mean why like this?"
He gestured down at his body, clad only in green swim trunks. And the sand under his feet.
"Everyone needed to relax," Toshinori said, "And now that Nezu and Melissa were able to get the training room working, they wanted to test it out."
Said test consisted of simulating a large pool with a beach to one side, a bright, sunny sky, and a cool breeze.
"Mostly working," Melissa said, "We still can't materialize a body for Tommy in here. His AI is too large and complex."
She was wearing a bikini. The top was pink on the right and white on the left, while the bottom was a twist of the two colors.
It wasn't the first time they had gone swimming, but previously the blonde genius had worn a one-piece suit that didn't reveal nearly as much skin. Izuku was torn between wanting to look, and wanting to be respectful. But this time, looking was winning, and Melissa seemed to like it. Though she was blushing slightly.
"OF course the real reason," Rhian said, stretching suggestively, "Is that Melissa heard the rumors about your sexy classmate with the stripper costume, and wanted to make sure your eyes were on the right body."
"Rhian!"
"She's not lying," Orisonth smirked slightly. The Blue family leader was wearing a blue tankini and spats with black racing lines. Despite technically being a two-piece, it provided them with the most coverage of anyone in the room. They were also wearing sunglasses and floating lazily in a tube in the pool.
Rhian, on the other hand, wore the second smallest suit, a strapless tube style top and boy shorts in bright red. Only Toshinori's brief-style speedo, in an All Might pattern, covered less.
Nezu was also floating in a ring, wearing an old-timey green and white stripped suit. Aleia was in a pink one-piece, only slightly more revealing that what Ori wore. But the Pink leader looked entirely mortified.
Madison was also wearing a one-piece, hers racing style swimsuit. It was also blue and black, with some translucent panels. And at the moment, the New Zealand sorceress was the only one actually swimming in the holographic water.
"I know were my eyes, and heart, belong," Izuku said firmly. Melissa's blush deepened. But she also struck a bit of a pose for her boyfriend.
"So what have we learned?" Shield said quickly, desperate to change the subject.
Madison stopped at the edge of the pool, and said, "It looks like there were two spells that were used in the first Echo Project. Both are based on well known existing spells, but were altered and made more focused on the creation of a Power Coin. The first spell, the one Udonna cast, was a spell magic smiths use. It stops metals from burning if over heated, and keeps the distribution and structure of alloys uniform. And the spell Rita used..."
She snorted a laugh before continuing.
"... is a good luck spell," she finished, before chuckling more.
"A good luck spell?" Nezu repeated, his disbelief audible.
"Yeah," Rhian nodded. Then she looked to Aleia, who nodded.
"There are two types of luck spells," the Pink leader explained, "True Luck spells and False Luck spells."
Madison nodded, a single head bob of approval. Nezu nodded thoughtfully, indicating he understood and she should continue. Melissa and Izuku listened, while Rhian took the chance to leave the conversation and start swimming. Toshinori followed her.
"True Luck revolves around truly random and hard to control things," Aleia said, "I'm not a physicist, but things like the uncertainty principal and quantum weirdness. True Luck spells are able to neutralize or even harness those. The blacksmithing spell Madison-dono mentioned is similar to a True Luck spell. But True Luck spells usually work on the sub-atomic and smaller level."
"Things that our current understanding says should not be detectable, much less controllable," Nezu mused, "But I suppose that is what makes it magic."
"False Luck spells effect us," Madison took over, "Things that seem like luck, but are actually determinable and succeed or fail based on our actions or opinions."
Izuku was frowning, so she addressed him.
"To give an example, if you were throwing a d20, a True Luck spell would subtly alert the laws of physics to get you a better result. And a False Luck spell would influence you, changing how you hold the die and when you release it, so that you get a better result without changing physics."
"That makes sense," the boy agreed.
"That said, one of the most common elements of False Luck is suppressing doubts and fears that cause people to subconsciously hesitate or hold back. Or not hold back. To miss what they know is the right time or right amount of effort."
"There are other spells to do that, too," Ori added, "But a luck spell can influence things we don't know or notice, while a confidence spell can't."
"Also correct," Madison inclined her head to the icy caster.
"Rita's spell is complex and genius," the sorceress resumed, "It combines both a True Luck spell on the materials and machine creating the new Coin, while spreading a False Luck spell on people enacting the process. In order to make it usable by herself, with her husband providing mana but not magical power or intent, she had to make it very specific to the Ranger Coins. This spell would not help a swordsmith. And if a more general version could be created, it would take seven or eleven casters of my power and skill to cast and maintain it. If it is even possible in the current state of the world..."
"Which brings us to our plans," Rhian stopped splashing about, "We can tweak the spells a little to fit better with the altered process Melissa and Nezu have devised. Then Aleia can cast Udonna's spell. Madison and Ori will cast Rita's spell together. And I will provide the three of them with mana."
With that, everyone looked at Melissa.
"I don't know much about magic," she said, "But that fits with what I read. And I trust you as our allies and the experts. Besides, we still have two more days to smooth out any issues and lock everything in place. So we'll proceed with this plan for the time being."
Izuku directed Grid Energy into the machine. It felt easier, stronger than in their previous, aborted attempt. He knew logically that was at least partly the influence of the spell. Despite that, he wanted to believe he had also improved.
"Activating interlocks," Nezu said for the second time that day.
"Dynotherms connected," Tommy confirmed.
"Infracells up," Melissa said, "QP torches are go."
She glanced briefly at the others, then hit the button.
Heat, electromagnetism, magic, and Grid Energy flowed into the molds. They began to glow, bright yet somehow not painful to look at. Then the molds began to press together.
"Alignment of the coin fragments is well within tolerances," Nezu told them.
"Initial contact," Tommy reported.
"Beginning transmission of the Grid Matrix," Melissa simplified the readings she was getting, "We are still all green. The Grid bronze is melting. Original Matrix elements are shifting, merging with the new systems. Morphin' Program is stable. Entering final stage."
The press whined. Then hissed as the air in the voids between the fragments was forced out. The glow intensified.
Suddenly everything stopped. The glow faded and the hydraulic pressure eased. Orisonth stepped up to the table. One lock of their hair grew and stretched, wrapping around the machine without touching it. Cooling the air rather than the metal directly. After half of a minute, they snapped off the ice, and it melted normally. Toshinori wiped the water from the table with damp towel.
The presses retracted. Melissa hopped out of her chair, and jogged to the table with the machine. It took all she had not to skip or flat out run. She carefully brought her hand up to the heads side mold, testing that it was not too hot.
She grasped the thin plate of shining bronze, and gently pulled it away from the armor fragment. She examined it. The tails side had a clean press of the designated symbol. And the head was a stylized mechanical turtle. The edges of the symbol had hints of pink and blue tarnish; about 70% pink and 30% blue.
Melissa pulled over a number of machines. She prodded the coin. Scanned it. Weighed it. Clipped three electrodes to it. Then smiled broadly.
"The Echo Pink/Blue Hybrid Coin is complete," she said, setting it next to a very similar Coin of Pink and Yellow, "It would be fully functional and stable, were it not for the lack of Grid Energy. It has about a fifty-two percent charge, versus fifty-three for the Pink/Yellow Coin."
She picked up one coin in each hand. Rotated each ninety degrees, only in opposite directions. Placed them back to back. Pushed slightly. The matched and mirrored logos fit together and effectively locked into place. The Coins could still be pulled apart, but would not come apart on their own.
"We're good," she said, "We'll take a break, have a snack, let Izuku and the casters rest. And then we'll finish the Coin merger."
Madison, Orisonth, and Aleia relaxed as they released their respective spells. Rhian cracked her neck, as she stopped supplying them with extra power.
Melissa separated the Coins, and set them back on the table. Then she walked behind Izuku, and started gently rubbing the tension out of his neck and shoulders. She leaned down.
"Thank you," she whispered in his ear.
"You are always welcome, 'Lissa," he told her. She kissed his cheek. And continued her ministrations.
Melissa lifted the coin. She dropped it into the slot.
The merging of the two Coins into one went off without a hitch. They reused the face dies as support dies. It want entirely smoothly, the logos matching as they had when Melissa fit them by hand. A different Matrix, joining the two individual Coins and allowing them to reinforce and feed each other. Once the molds split and cooled, Melissa pulled free a Coin with the Pink and Yellow Ptero-Gyro on one side and the Pink and Blue Terrapin Tank on the other.
Melissa's only regret was she didn't have the weird 'three head' effect of Izuku's Echo Coin.
The Black Squadron Ranger's Morpher had been disassembled, and rebuilt in a new form. It was necessary to make sure everything worked, and to integrate the new components to make it a Multi-Mode Morpher like the Master Morpher and the first Echo Morpher. She also gave it a new casing, so it looked more like Izuku's Morpher.
The controls on the Morpher lit up. Melissa closed the lid. The device buzzed. The Coin flashed. Then the entire Morpher flashed. It vanished, leaving only the Coin behind. The disc dropped to the table, spinning for a moment before falling. Everyone else step closer.
"It's done," Melissa told them. Her voice tired, and apprehensive. She just looked at the Coin. They waited almost a minute, until...
"What are you waiting for?" Rhian asked, "Take it."
"But," Melissa stammered, "what if it rejects me? What if I'm just the medium, not the vessel? I..."
Izuku wrapped her in a hug. And Toshinori place a hand on her shoulder.
"I don't think that will happen," Tommy told her.
"And if it does, it means you were meant for something else," Aleia reassured her.
"Thanks, Izuku, Ali," Melissa said. Her boyfriend moved away, to be safe.
Melissa took a deep breath. She reached down and picked up the Coin.
There was another flash, this one blinding. And when their vision returned (or immediately in Tommy's case), the Coin was gone. Instead, Shield was wearing a very nice watch on her previously empty left wrist.
The girl smiled broadly, tears forming in her eyes.
"Congratulations, Melissa," Madison said happily.
"No, thank you. All of you. This has been my dream for almost as long as I can remember. But the kind of dream you never expect to come true. Now, thanks to all of you..."
"No," Toshinori said, "Your dream would have come true. Maybe not as soon, maybe not in exactly the same form. But I believe you would have succeeded."
"Me too," Izuku said.
"I concur," Nezu said.
"They are right," Madison said, "Something is moving. Izuku finding the Coin. You meeting him. Both of you meeting the Dai clan. This was meant to happen."
"Thank you," the girl repeated.
"Can you Morph?" Orisonth asked softly.
"Can I?" the blonde girl looked over to the AI.
"You have been training alongside Izuku for eight months," Tommy reminded her and informed the others, "You should be able to transform. At least for a few minutes."
"Right... Okay..." Melissa stepped back. She shook out her limbs.
"It's Morphin' time! Echo Ranger Pink, Mode Blue!"
She tapped the face of her watch as she had seen Izuku do. Energy flowed out, covering her body.
Her uniform wrapped her body like spandex, and tailored spandex, not off the rack. It was most pink, with large swaths of white and black. But there were a number of blue accents, including her entire gloves.
"You look like the Neo Mighty Morphin' Pink Ranger," Tommy told her, "Except for the blue elements. And the weapons."
Melissa reached down, and took the heavy mace off her belt. She slipped her left arm into the grips of her turtle shell buckler. Melissa took a few experimental swings with the bludgeon.
"Then, let's see," Melissa said, "Mode Yellow!"
Unlike Izuku, the only thing about her appearance that changed was the blue segments turned yellow. Her helmet did nor change, nor did she have an emblem to swap. However her weapon did change. The shield vanished, motes of light twinkling into her mace, which transformed into a longbow.
"Did you plan that?" Tommy asked her, "That basic uniform, or the bow?"
"Not really," she said, "I didn't really think about the costume or weapons. Just the Zords and the Coin itself."
"Maybe it is because of your connection to Kimberly," Tommy mused.
"Whatever the reason, you look great," Rhian gave her a thumbs up.
"Power down," Melissa said, panting slightly.
"I see what you mean," she told Izuku.
"We'll work on it," he assured her happily.
"We should probably be going then," Madison said, "I, at least, am in for a dressing down from the board of directors for suddenly taking a week off."
"We haven't heard of anything happening in Kyoto," Ori considered, "But I don't like being away this long."
"If you need anything else Melissa, especially anything magic related, let me know," Aleia added, "And I'll be expecting to see you over the summer, if not before."
"Yeah," Melissa smiled again.
"And you can contact me as well," Madison offered, "I may not have the strength of a Ranger, but I would be happy to help. To be honest, this week has been the most interesting and exciting time I've had in years."
"I'll show you out," Toshinori offered,
"And I should get home, too," Nezu said.
"May the Power protect you," Madison bid them farewell.
The adults all left, and Tommy made a show of shutting down. Leaving the young couple alone.
Izuku walked over to Melissa, and put his arms around her waist.
"Congratulations," he told he fondly, "And nice to meet you, Pink Ranger."
She leaned down and kissed him passionately.
"Hi, Dad," Melissa greeted brightly, when the incoming call connected, "What's up?"
"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" Davis Shield countered suspiciously.
"Hmm? Why?"
"Four hours ago, there was another surge of Grid Energy in Japan," David explained, "87.4% as strong as the one last year that sent you scurrying off to Tokyo. And since then, world-wide levels of Morphin' Grid Energy have increased by almost one percent."
His expression softened, as her face showed genuine amazement.
"I've been distracted," she said softly.
"By Izuku?" he prompted.
"DAD!"
Author's Notes: Hopefully the last for a while, but I do like the interaction and speculation...
First, a tip of the iceberg, Madison is not just descended from Nick and Madison Russell (and thus ovbiously from Udonna and Leanbow), but also from Chip Thorn, Leelee and Phineas, and Daggeron and Itassis. It's just that her name and the longer and fewer generations of the Russell family makes her feel closer there.
Second, origins of the Echo Red Coin (potentially). 1) Melissa and company make it for the future Red Ranger after she loses her Quirk. 2) After Rita and Zedd got the completed Echo Coin and went into hiding, a second project was started to create a second Coin, because Rangers need to be teams. 2A) same as 2, but the Echo Red Coin was incomplete and Melissa and crew need to fix it. 3) the bad guys make it for an evil Ranger. 3A) the bad guys steal the 2A Coin and they fix it. 3B) the bad guys steal the 2A Coin but don't fix it, Melissa fixes it later.
Third, origin for the Red Ranger; 1) the Red Ranger is invited by Izuku and co and is always part of the team. 2) the Red Ranger is either the inheritor of the version 2 Coin or steals the version 3 Coin w/o becoming evil, and starts off as a separate independent Ranger who looks down on Izuku and Melissa (works better for Advisory wanting to keep her students out of trouble, or Ragdoll trying to keep unlicensed Heroes off the streets) 3) the Tommy/Trent (a brainwashed evil Ranger who joins the team after their curse is broken).
Fourth, Heroes vs Villains didn't go over well in my last story, so made it a lot shorter here.