Chapter 5
A/N: Info on Alura revealed in this chapter! In saying that, it might sound strange, but hopefully it will make sense as more info is revealed. If it doesnt really make sense once I have explained everything, let me know. But that will be later on.
And, I probably should have mentioned this a little earlier, but to understand this story well, you probably need to have seen Mighty Morphin Power Rangers through to Zeo. I will be bringing a few characters from those other seasons back into this story. Who knows...
Okay, in this chapter, I'm bringing back... Ninjor! I absolutley ADORE Ninjor, he was my favourite part of Season 3 :) And, in my story, his temple is located on Earth, in the desert, a fair distance away from Angel Grove. I think in the TV show it was on another planet? Changing its location to Earth was just more convieniant for my story.
Enjoy! And please leave a review! :) I think this will be the last chapter I upload today, cos I need to edit the other chapters before posting them.
Alura xx
By the time that the Zeo Rangers arrived at the scene after Billy and Zordon had tracked the Gold Rangers teleportation residue, all they found was the Gold Ranger standing over the body of smouldering metal that was Magnedude. She reclaimed her sword from his grip as the rangers ran up to her.
"What did he want?" asked Tommy.
"He's an old rival of mine," said the Gold Ranger, avoiding the question.
"Is he-" started Kat.
"No," said Alura, re holstering her sword. "He's not dead. Magnedude comes from one of the moons of my home planet. Don't worry; I'm going to take him back to my system. His people were generally rather kind to me, so it's my duty to show mercy to him now."
"That's an unusual way to show pity," Adam gestured to the smouldering metal on the ground.
"I can heal him when I take him back home," said the Gold Ranger. "It's just safer for all of us that he is in this state for now."
At that moment an unusual robot appeared, clutching a smaller robot. Alura could tell that the Zeo Rangers had seen him before, as they all immediately stood defensively between her and the new robots. The larger robot began to ramble at the rangers, but Alura didn't hear it. She was distracted by Magnedude, as he was twitching slightly as if in anticipation of something. She was bought back to reality as the robot began to swing the smaller robot around his head.
"… around and around and away you go!"
Alura instinctively ducked as the robot flung the smaller robot onto Magnedude. Before she could stop it, Magnedude was healed, his seared body growing to a massive height. The Rangers jumped back; the Gold ranger jumped more out of anger than surprise.
"We need super Zeo Zords, now!" shouted Rocky.
"No!" said Alura. "Your Zords are made out of the same metal that he's made of," explained the Gold Ranger. "He'll render your Zords useless with his magnetic power!"
"Then what do we do?" asked Tanya.
"Please," said the Gold Ranger, holding up her hands to stop the Rangers from interrupting her further. "I'll deal with him. It's the least I could do after you all saved my life last week."
Tommy nodded. "Be careful."
The Gold Ranger nodded back and stepped forward, raising her and to the sky. "I call upon the power of Pyramidas!"
There was a blinding flash of Gold as the summoned pyramid appeared in the sky. The Gold Ranger was teleported into it as Magnedude stomped across the desert towards her.
"Pyramidas, power up!"
Pressing the buttons on the control panel in front of her, the Pyramid charged across the desert and collided with Magnedude. The Zeo Rangers scrambled back to avoid the two clashing metals. A bolt of energy rocketed along the ground from the Pyramid and struck Magnedude.
He was electrocuted with energy, and he fell to the desert floor, sand and flames erupted around him. He shrunk back to his original size, but didn't show any signs of defeat. His magnetic head began to glow and he concentrated on any magnetic metal within the Pyramid. Inside the Pyramid, Alura could feel the strain on the Pyramid as it to be pulled across the desert toward Magnedude. She climbed out of the hatch and stood on the front of the pyramid, and began combating his force with her own power. The others could see that this was putting strain on the Gold Ranger as well as her Zord.
"Let's help the Gold Ranger out, guys!" shouted Tommy. "You know what to do."
The others nodded. "Right! Zeo cannon!" The Zeo cannon appeared and they positioned it at Magnedude. Tommy locked in his fuel cell. "Fire!"
Alura could only watch as Rangers destroyed Magnedude. He fell down to the ground and exploded into nothingness. Alura was shaking with rage as the Zeo cannon disappeared. Hadn't she just told the Rangers that she was going to take him home, not kill him? She could have destroyed him, but she didn't, only to have the Rangers finish the job. How could people who had such virtuous intentions kill so lightly? She clutched her head, trying to get rid of the aggression, before it was too late. Kat was the first to notice her rage.
"Guys…" she pointed to the Gold Ranger on the pyramid. Alura's rage took over, and she could no longer control what she was doing. She just hoped that the Rangers were smart enough to get out of her way before it was too late. She launched herself off the Pyramid and flew through the air, somersaulting and landing in a crouched position behind the Rangers. They spun around to face her, and her body language immediately screamed aggression towards them.
"Is that what you do on this planet?" asked the Gold Ranger, in a deep throaty voice that certainly wasn't her own, nor induced by that of the translation wire. "You get rid of anything that is different? I've seen it happen before…" She stepped closer. " But I never thought that Rangers would commit such an act."
"That creature was going to destroy you," said Tommy, stepping back a little, but still holding his ground. "No matter how kind you were to it. We know that your intentions are good, but not everything else in this universe can see that way."
"Obviously not." The Gold Ranger tilted her head to the side in a curious and mocking manner. "You stoop to the level of your enemies by destroying, but what would you do if you had a monster as an ally?" She laughed a little, sending a shiver up the Rangers spines. "Since the Gold Ranger won't introduce me, I'll introduce myself. I am the so-called 'secondary power source' that you were talking of. I am the power within." Tommy was the only one to hear her next sentence. This is your fault, Thomas Oliver.
Suddenly she doubled over. Kat ran forward to help her, but Tommy held her back, sensing danger. The Zeo Rangers watched in utter horror and disbelief as the Gold Ranger who had once helped them transformed into an elegant yet vicious dragon. This dragon which stood in the Gold Rangers place had purple eyes, the colour of amethyst, and along its spine from the neck to tail was a swirling gold pattern, as if flames were burning down its back. The black shimmering scales were complemented by a pale gold coloured underbelly. She had no wings and a fearsome spike on the end of her tail. Just like the Dragonzord, thought Tommy. What the hell is going on here? Alura was no longer in control; the power within had taken over her senses, especially that of reason. It was as if the Gold Ranger had never existed in that body. The dragon roared and stalked towards them aggressively.
"Tommy!" said Tanya as the Rangers began to back away. "We've never seen anything like this before! What do we do?"
"I don't know," said Tommy. "Don't attack. We might be able to reason with it…." He stepped forward cautiously. He couldn't help noticing that the dragon had been staring at him the whole time, and hadn't even glanced at the others.
"Gold Ranger," he said, trying to reason with the creature. "Listen to me. The only way we can guarantee everyone's safety was if we destroyed that monster. Some creatures are born evil, they know nothing else."
The dragon didn't seem to hear him, and swiped at him, hitting him with its sharp talons. Sparks flew as Tommy was knocked back, forced out of his morph. The others stood defensively in front of him.
"I'm fine," he told the others, but they knew that if he had been forced out of his morph, then it must have been a hard hit. The dragon growled, bearing its teeth.
"You're not a monster," said Rocky. "We know that you are good."
"Yes" agreed Kat. "We've seen you use your powers for good, not for evil."
Good…for good… what does that even mean? She thought. What's wrong with me?
The dragon saw Tommy and recognized his face from years past. Alura's mind began to gradually take back over her body. Slowly, her dragon form melted away, as if scattered by a breeze, her scales like leaves as they floated away into nothing. There was silence between them. No one could think of what to say. The Gold Ranger turned and launched herself in a powered leap to the pyramid.
"Wait!" called Adam. "Where are you going?"
"The power within me has put you all in danger." She said, her male voice ringing across the desert to the rangers. "And I promise you that it won't happen again."
"Stay with us," said Tommy, who was discreetly holding an injured arm. "Maybe we can help you."
"That wouldn't be fair, Rangers. I came to help you, and I haven't done much good so far. I refuse to be a burden to you." Alura turned away from them slightly. "You will see me again when the time is right." She looked to the sky. "I know you can hear this," she said, now addressing Mondo Rita and Zedd. "You've seen what I'm capable of. And I don't care that you know things about me, because that won't stop me from giving up on the things that matter." She turned her head back to the Rangers. "Tell Billy I said thank you."
She climbed into the hatch; the golden gates of the Pyramid closing behind her, The Rangers could only watch and stare in awe and astonishment at these events as she took off and activated the cloaking device. Alura took off her helmet and stared at her sorry self in the reflection of a shiny panel in the cockpit. She took out a small blade from the sole of her boot and made three small parallel cuts on her left cheek. She knew that she would have scratched Tommy's arm in a similar way just now. This was a mark of shame. She was a Power Ranger, and she refused to be a monster, and she would not see them again until the marks had healed completely.
As the pyramid disappeared, Tommy raised his scratched arm to talk into his communicator. "Billy, can you trace that signal?"
"I'm afraid not, Tommy," they heard Billy say. "That Zord has the most advanced cloaking technology I've ever seen."
"Do not fear, Rangers," they heard Zordon say. "I am certain that the Gold Ranger will not leave the planet."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because she has nowhere else to go."
In his sacred Temple, the warrior Ninjor felt a disturbance in power balance somewhere near him. He emerged from his bottle as he felt a familiar presence nearby.
"Those powers…" he questioned to himself. "But… why is she-"
His ramblings were cut off as the whole temple and the gardens surrounding it shook as the Pyramid flew at low altitude over them. Ninjor grasped his sword and launched himself to the temple entrance, speeding through the gardens and going out to the desert. He stood defensively by the entrance, not sure whether to expect friend or foe. The hatch opened and the Gold Ranger tumbled out, rolling down the side of the Pyramidas, landing heavily in the dust. Ninjor approached the weakened figure cautiously, but stopped when he saw the Ranger get to her feet.
"Oho?" called Ninjor. "Be thee friend or foe?"
The Gold Ranger put her hand on the side of the pyramid, activating the cloaking device and turning it invisible. She breathed heavily, speaking in her female voice, knowing that she was protected from prying eyes in this area. "Friend."
At this, Ninjor re holstered his sword and ran to her as she stumbled forward. He helped her into the temple garden, closing a stone door behind them.
"It's good to see you again, Ninjor."
Ninjor sat Alura down on some rocks. "I wish I could say the same to you," he said "Look at you! I haven't seen you like this since the Dragonzord incident."
"Well," said Alura. "The past does most often come back to haunt us."
"Spoken like a true warrior." Ninjor noticed her inhale a little too sharply for his liking, and then he noticed her rib. "I thought I told you to take it easy if you get hurt badly." He put a hand on her rib, and instantly knew where the injury came from. "You were stabbed by Herox the Bounty Hunter last week? You need to rest to heal this wound properly, have I taught you nothing?"
"I can rest when I'm dead," said Alura. "Besides, you have taught me many great things, which is why I seek your wisdom now."
"Let's talk inside where you can rest more comfortably." They went inside the temple, where they went into a room that looked like a meditation room, but was set up like a first aid room.
"Power down." Said Alura, and there was a flash of gold light as she de morphed. Under her ranger armour she was wearing traditional Aerovillian battle attire, which consisted of clothing that could hold various weapons, including a huge sword which she had strapped to her back.
"So"' said Ninjor, sitting her down. "What brings you to earth? You could have gone to KO-35 or Triforia, or even Aquitar, but you chose to come here. Why?"
He looked at her rib which she had roughly bandaged, but it had bled through the material.
"A few years ago I broke into the Alliance headquarters, and I uncovered top secret plans. They are overtaking intelligent, superior and developing planets. After destroying my own planet in an attempt to aquire my powers, this planet is now their next target. And after this planet is destroyed, they will more on to KO-35, then Triforia and possibly Aquitar if they can find a way to get past all the water." She began to unwind the bandage slowly and painfully. "Those planets can look after themselves, but this planet is young and inexperienced." Ninjor picked up an ointment. "These humans are capable of so much, Ninjor. It's their time now, the time of Aerovils is up, and the time of humans is beginning." Ninjor cocked his head to the side. "But they are still a young race. I need to assist them. I have knowledge of the Aerovils to help me, but the humans here do not have knowledge of ages except for the knowledge that they gain from elders such as Zordon and yourself."
"You should have contacted me about this before you came," said Ninjor. "I thought that you were dead."
Alura shrugged. "I was coming to see you, but then I had to help the Rangers against Wolfbane. It was better that you thought I was dead for the time being… because they don't only want to kill me for my powers. They want to kill me for the information I possess. I know all of their plans. Tell only who you must, Ninjor, but make sure that they don't find out that other people know. If the Alliance finds out, they will launch Operation REDLESS."
"What is that?"
"They will destroy all of earth's previous, current and future Red Rangers. Unfortunately, they accessed files from the Dekabase in Japan which gave them information on every Ranger team on earth for the next ten or so years."
"So that's why you're here. The Dragon warrior is now the Red Ranger." Ninjor poked some of the ointment into her wound, and she flinched sharply. "Well, if you had let it heal properly it wouldn't hurt so much!"
"I lost the link with the Dragon Warrior when he lost his powers for the second time." said Alura. "I didn't know that he was the current Red Ranger until I came to help them against Wolfbane. When he spoke I recognized him, but I didn't know for sure until I saw him in the flesh."
"You are more stubborn than a Putty, Gold One. You have to understand that your power is unlike anyone else's, no matter how much you want it to be so. You and the Dragon Warrior are not alike."
"I thought… maybe… I would finally find someone like me…I guess I'm just tired of being alone." She sighed. "But your right, as usual. We're not alike. I hurt him. I know that he would never intentionally hurt his friends."
"I know that you wouldn't hurt your friends intentionally either, Alura. Those dragon powers are not yourself, and you must remember that."
A heavy silence fell over them as Ninjor redressed Alura's knife wound with a special bandage.
"I can teach you some mind techniques to supress the power within so that your powers don't fluctuate so often while you're here.' said Ninjor. 'I can't guarantee that these techniques will last for the amount of time that you will spend on this planet, but they will certainly help."
"Thank you, old friend."
"Never fear, Ninjor's here!"
Alura smiled at her friends' catchphrase. It had been a long time since she had smiled.