Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers, Saban does. I own all characters, events, and places not found in Ninja Storm.

Chapter 2: Encounters

After stretching and doing some pull-ups, Chris searched for a path for him to run along. Finding one close to his new apartment, he took of on his daily 5 mile run. He grabbed some grapes, celery, and peanut butter after he got back and took a shower. He decided to explore more of the city and took his car out. While looking at the city, the White Ranger decided Blue Bay was a beautiful place, monster attacks aside.

Along the way, Chris went across the sports shop he was told about, Storm Chargers. Seeing it reminded Chris that he wanted to see what the city offered in winter sports activities. Since the city was in the mountains, he wanted to check out snowmobile trails, as well as see what competitions the city offered.

"I think I'm going to like this city," Chris thought as he felt the refreshing chill of the mountains. His right arm iced up as he called on his element. The arm became translucent. "Yes, I think I'm really going to like this city."

After driving back to the apartment, the Ice Ninja stepped out to grab a more substantial meal when he saw some Kelzacks fighting the Rangers, along with a monster standing by. Chris stepped into an alley to morph and went into the woods to get into position. As he did, he noticed another monster hiding, ready to ambush the Rangers. Chris quietly snuck up behind the monster, covered its mouth, and drove his sword through its heart. The monster spasmed, and went limp. Chris threw the body into the battlefield, startling both Rangers and monster alike.

"What happened," Tori asked as the body landed near her.

Sam approached the dead monster and noticed the wound in its heart. "It's been run through with something. This was an execution. Hold on," she said, pulling out her sword. She compared the width of the wound to her sword, and got her answer. "A sword very much like our own was used to slay the monster."

Lothor's remaining monster used the opportunity to fire its lasers. Hunter and Blake, being the only Rangers to stand back and keep an eye on the monster, rolled out of the way and started fighting it. The others got back up and started fighting as well.

Lothor's ship

"Zurgane!"

"Yes, Sir!"

"Find out who slew that monster. It wasn't one of the Rangers. Find the one who did, and report back to me!"

"Yes, Sir!"

Rock quarry

Zurgane showed up at the battle, catching Hunter's attention. He immediately went after Lothor's General, and the fight was on. Zurgane thought he could lure out whoever killed the alien by getting involved himself.

With the other Rangers, the monster had managed to blast most of the team away, leaving Tori and Sam to pick up the slack. The monster got in some glancing blows until he got frozen.

"What's going on," Tori rhetorically asked.

A White blur dashed towards the monster and attacked several times, freeing the alien, but inflicting heavy damage. The alien couldn't get a beat on its attacker and swung wildly hoping to connect at least once. It failed and eventually exploded. It didn't come back in giant form. The White blur moved to the top of the cliff overlooking the battle, revealing a tall individual in a White Ranger suit. The chest had a unique mark enclosed in a gold circle. The symbol was one the Rangers had never seen before, and Zurgane saw the mystery Ranger, as well. Lothor informed Zurgane to return immediately. Before the others could say anything to the mystery Ranger, he disappeared.

"Rangers, return at once. We know what you saw, and we have much to discuss," Sensei's order came loud and clear.

Lothor's ship

"An Ice Ninja. They were supposed to be mere legends, a bedtime story. This is disturbing," Lothor exclaimed to Zurgane.

"What do we do, Sir? Their power is legendary," Zurgane said.

"We can't let him join up with the Rangers. We'll have to proceed with caution around this one."

"Yes, Sir!"

Ninja Ops

"We saw what happened. The ability used by the new Ranger is called cryokinesis," Cam explained. "The ability to use and manipulate Ice. This new Ranger is an Ice Ninja."

"Ice Ninja," Shane repeated, and Sensei nodded.

"They are a very rare and elusive sect which hasn't been seen in a long time. They were thought to have faded into mere legend," the guinea pig explained.

"Well, this one seems to be very real," Shane pointed out.

"Indeed. We must not allow him to fall into Lothor's hands. The kind of power the Ice Ninja possesses would tip the scales in Lothor's favor."

"How? He's just one guy," Blake said.

"The Ice powers are said to be the most powerful and rare of all the elements," Cam stated.

"It is because of this power that they were highly sought after when they moved openly among the other elemental users, and it was usually for undesirable activities. Fed up with people trying to use them, the Ice Ninja vanished, and haven't been seen for over 200 years," Sensei continued.

"No wonder people thought they're just a fabled group now," Blake said.

"There's two things you should know," Cam continued. "Part of the reason the Ice Ninjas are so rare and powerful is because they also possess hydrokinetic abilities."

Hunter slowly nodded while Tori raised an eyebrow. However, there were a few who didn't understand.

"Dudes, am I the only one lost here," Dustin asked.

"No, I'm kind of lost, too," Blake said as Shane nodded.

"He's saying the Ice Ninja also have Water powers," Tori explained.

"Which actually makes sense, as Ice is solidified Water," Hunter added.

Cam nodded at both the Thunder and Water Ninjas, grateful that he didn't have to explain yet another thing. Both Hunter and Tori have proven they have above average intellects, and he didn't have to explain much to them. He didn't know Sam well enough to say one way or another, but she had impressed him so far. The others were of average intellect, and required explanation of his devices or plans most of the time.

Sam bit her lip, and spoke up for the first time. "He seems to show up at battles, right? So the next time there's a battle, we have to make sure we talk to him."

"But how? He disappeared when we spotted him," Tori said.

"We didn't "spot him," he let himself be seen," Sam corrected.

"Sam's right. I'm willing to bet that area of dead space that first time was really this Ice Ninja defeating surveillance devices. If he doesn't want to be found, he won't be found."

"So we have to be very delicate in how we approach him." Sam turned to Shane. "Which means it's probably not a good idea for you to talk to him."

Shane looked incredulous. "Why not? We need to get this guy here; if I have to drag this guy here, I will."

"You just proved her point! You don't know the meaning of tact," Tori said. "If anything, she's the best choice," the Blue Ranger continued in support of the Forest Ninja.

"What's the second part," Blake asked before an argument broke out.

"It is said the Ice Ninjas can be as frigid as their element. The stronger the power, the more distant they can be. The reason why was never known. Some thought the power of the element itself somehow altered the Ninja's personality. Others thought it was a mere coincidence, and since there weren't a lot of Ice Ninjas at any given time…"

"It was hard to prove one way or another," Hunter finished for Cam, picking up on the train of thought.

"Even more reason to let Sam or Tori do the talking," Blake said.

"Exercise extreme caution around the Ice Ninja, guys. We don't know if he's friend or foe," Cam said. The computer beeped, alerting the Rangers to another attack.

"Here's your chance. Be on the lookout for Zurgane, though. Lothor will undoubtedly try to turn this guy to his side," Cam said.

Downtown Blue Bay

"Where are you, Frosty," the alien asked in a low hiss. "Show yourself!"

"Be careful what you ask for," came a disembodied voice as a torrent of Water knocked the alien off its feet. That attack was followed up by an Icicle tearing through the alien's shoulder, making it scream in pain and fury. It looked around and saw the Ranger standing not even 10 yards away, looking as if he didn't care. The alien didn't know if the Ranger was stupid, insane, or overconfident, nor did it much care. It rushed the Ranger, who stepped back and started his onslaught. He unleashed a flurry of powerful kicks and punches, culminating in a front snap kick, knocking the alien away.

The other Rangers appeared in time to see the White Ranger produce some Ice blades seemingly from thin air.

"Shouldn't we be helping him," Dustin asked.

"He seems to be handling his own quite well," Sam said. "Let's hold back just in case of an ambush."

Shane nodded. "Split up and look for Zurgane or anyone else from Lothor's army. We also have to watch out for that beam stunt Lothor used on Hunter back on Portico Island."

The others nodded and did as ordered. Meanwhile, Chris was throttling the alien, and froze it with an Ice blast. He used his blades to create a deep gash in its chest, and it fell, gasping as it bled out and the White Ranger watched. Soon enough, a Scroll of Empowerment was seen hovering over the monster, and it grew. Before the others could call upon their Zords, the White Ranger tapped a button on his morpher, and a growl was heard in the distance.

Tori and Sam came across Zurgane, who was waiting in ambush. He was surprised when he was kicked off his lookout point, falling over 30 feet and landing face first. He got up and wobbled for a minute while Tori and Sam started their attack. The other Rangers heard the battle and joined the girls, while Hunter hanged back. The girls were doing great, and he wanted to make sure there wouldn't be a sneak attack or another mind-altering beam like the one he was exposed to on Portico Island. Zurgane was eventually defeated, and he teleported back to the ship.

As the Rangers turned back to the main battle, they saw a Polar Bear Zord show up, and the White Ranger jumping into the Zord. The Zord stood on its hind legs and quickly dropped, causing a small tremor and knocking off the alien's equilibrium. The Zord did it a few more times, and the alien fell. The Zord then stood on its hind legs and began a transformation. The head lowered down onto the chest as a hidden helm rose in its place. The Bear's form became slender as its smashed its clawed paws together, and summoned an Ice Sword.

"Whoa, check out the cool Zord," Dustin gasped in awe. The other Rangers nodded as they saw the Bear's head fire an Ice blast, freezing the alien. The Ice Sword was raised and slashed diagonally several times, quickly defeating the creature for the final time. The Ranger leapt from his Zord and pressed the button on his morpher, sending the Zord back to its resting place. He quickly demorphed, leaving him in his Ninja uniform. His uniform had White piping and his mask covered his entire face, leaving only the eyes exposed. The others could see he was in very good shape, possessing a build similar to Hunter's. As Chris was about to leave, the Green Ranger sprinted towards him.

"Wait! Please wait," she said as she approached him.

He stopped and turned towards Sam as she came up on him. Shane was about to step forward and try to say something when Dustin held him back. Dustin simply shook his head when Shane looked at him for an explanation. Sam appeared to be doing a good job in convincing the Ranger to at least come back to Ops and listen to their mentor. Chris turned his head and gave a slight nod, silently giving his word to listen to their pitch. She smiled and gestured the others over.

"Cam, I've convinced the White Ranger to come back and listen to Sensei. Standing by for teleport," the Green Ranger said.

"Understood," came the reply as the others gathered around and Shane grabbed the Ice Ninja's arm. The Ice Ninja looked down at Shane's hand, which was griping his arm tightly.

"Unless you want to lose that hand, I suggest you let go now," Chris growled.

Shane took his hand off Chris' arm, looking none too pleased with the threat.

Ninja Ops

As soon as the Rangers arrived, Chris turned an intelligent gaze to the room, looking it over.

"Ice Ninja," Sensei started, bringing Chris' attention to the guinea pig. "I am Sensei Watanabe, who met with an unfortunate incident, transforming me into what you see before you. Could you tell us who you are?"

Chris bowed to Sensei when he introduced himself, and took off his mask. What they saw shocked the room's occupants. The Ice Ninja appeared to be identical to Hunter: His hair was the same shade of blond, although it was cleanly cut as opposed to Hunter's messy hair. The Ice Ninja's eyes were also a much darker shade of blue. But his build and height were very similar; he appeared to be slightly taller, though. The others stared at him, while Chris also wondered why the one in the Crimson Thunder uniform looked so similar. Shane groaned as he saw the resemblance; he still had some lingering issues with trusting Hunter.

"Uh Hunter, do you have a twin brother you never told us about," Dustin asked.

"Not that I know of," Hunter said, just as transfixed as the others. Finally, the Ice Ninja brought his gaze back to Sensei Watanabe and the other occupants.

"My name is Chris Hanaori, the son of the Sensei of the Ice Academy."

"Dude, no offense, but you don't look Japanese," Dustin said.

The Rangers groaned and Chris raised an eyebrow as he looked at the Yellow Ranger, then at Cam. "Is this guy for real," Chris asked, gesturing with his thumb over his shoulder at Dustin.

"Unfortunately, he is," Cam replied in a sigh.

Chris turned to Dustin, who was waiting for a response. "I'm adopted," he put bluntly.

"Great, he looks like Hunter, and acts like him, too."

"I'm sorry," Chris asked while Hunter's eyes narrowed at Shane's comment.

"The other tall blond guy," Sam explained. "Maybe we should start over. Rangers aren't supposed to fight each other," she said pointedly, looking at Shane.

"OK. You already know my name. I'll be working at the Youth Center, which opens next week."

"You will? Me too," Sam said. Chris looked at her. "Did Rocky and Aisha tell you about me?"

"No, but there was a lot to go over, so it probably slipped their minds."

Sam shrugged. "Fair enough. I'm Samantha Sinclair, but I prefer Sam. That's Tori," she said, pointing to the Blue Ranger who smiled and waved. Chris greeted her with a nod and Sam continued. "The one in Navy is Blake, the guy in Yellow is Dustin, and the one at the computer is Cam; you were told about Hunter, and moody over there is Shane, the Red."

"And they say I lack tact," Shane mumbled.

"What was that," Sam asked in a low voice.

"There was no need for that comment. We just got one Hunter under control, now there's another?"

Chris wasn't sure he liked the Sky Ninja, and was already swiftly losing what little patience remained with him. It was time he showed that he wouldn't roll over for the leader. Hunter also pushed off the wall at Shane's comment, but Tori held her arm out, silently stopping the Crimson Thunder Ranger. She wanted to see how Chris would handle the sometimes-unruly Red. Hunter looked at Tori, but gave in.

"You got a problem," Chris growled, stepping closer to Shane.

"Yeah, we know nothing about you, and you've already proven to have a temper. How can we trust you?"

"Shane!"

Sensei's rebuke brought the Red Ranger's attention back to him. "Sorry Sensei."

"Sensei Watanabe, may I please be excused? I don't want to do something he'll regret," Chris explained. Sensei nodded his ascension.

"That would be wise," the guinea pig stated. Chris bowed to him, and disappeared in an Icicle that shattered into very fine powder after he left. Sam turned to Shane in anger.

"God Shane, you were told about the Ice Ninja's powers, and the effect they could have on his personality. Yet you deliberately tried to provoke him! Did you have to be such an asshole," the Forest Ninja spat angrily, shocking everyone. The redhead was usually quiet and a very pleasant person to be around. Now, looking at her, Shane decided he definitely didn't like getting on her bad side, as her face seemed to be as dark red as her hair, and her words cut deep. She took a deep breath to calm herself down. "We're supposed to try to gain his trust, not alienate him from us. You might drive him right into Lothor's grasp."

"If I drive him into Lothor's grasp, he wouldn't have really been on our side, now would he? Have you forgotten that he already assassinated one of Lothor's aliens? Since when does a Ranger kill outright?"

"That alien was sent here to kill us, in case you forgot! If anything, he saved us energy, which is hardly a bad thing, as sometimes there are two or God forbid, more attacks a day. And once again, he saved our hides! Show a little gratitude for once, and stop trying to pick a fight! Now I'm going to try to see if I can talk to him, and try to get him back here. He did the right thing in trying to blow off steam out there rather than fight you, despite your blatant provocation. You could learn a thing or two from him," she finished in a growl of her own, storming off after she bowed to Sensei Watanabe and gaining his permission to leave.

Blake also received permission to take off, as well as the others. They bowed to Sensei, who told Shane to remain, with Cam continuing to work on the computer.

"You deliberately tried to escalate the situation. After being informed, you still tried to provoke an altercation. You will start cleaning Ops now," Sensei said, pointing to the storage closet. Shane sighed but pulled out the cleaning supplies and got to work.

"Chris?"

The White Ranger turned as he heard Sam walking up to him in the forest where he was practicing a kata. Now that he got a closer look at the Green Ranger, Chris felt his mouth go dry. She had fiery red hair, emerald eyes, a body models beg for, and her face had light freckles. She was easily the most stunning girl he had ever seen, and her Irish lilt made her even more attractive.

"Are you alright?"

Her question brought Chris back to reality, as he realized he had been staring. "Yeah, I just had to get away before I put Shane on his ass."

"Shane had problems with Hunter when he first came. I think he was trying to punish him for his stunt as an evil Ranger. But he eventually got his act together."

"Really? Could've fooled me. But why punish me for his issues with Hunter? I was extremely close to turning him into a popsicle!"

Sam sighed. "Wish I knew. Since you look so much like Hunter, Shane was probably reminded of the troubles we had the Bradleys, and didn't want an encore. But that doesn't excuse his actions. Especially when he grabbed your arm like that."

Chris's eyes narrowed when he thought back to that. "Nobody grabs me like that."

Sam saw her chance. "Changing the subject now. If you don't mind my asking, did you know there was someone out there who looked like you? Did you wonder about a twin?"

"Honestly, no. I never knew my real parents, and my first foster parents never said anything about a possible brother. Maybe they didn't even know."

"Your first foster parents? What happened?"

Sam sat down on a nearby rock as Chris took a deep breath. "They were murdered when I was 5."

"By Lothor?"

"No. He called himself Darkonda. I later found out he was a mercenary who worked for Dark Specter, the Monarch of Evil."

"But Darkonda and Dark Specter were both destroyed in the Countdown. That was back in the late 90's."

"It happened a little after my fifth birthday in 1990. We were coming home from dinner when that monstrosity leapt out and just slew my parents with no warning or provocation. I can still remember his maniacal laugh, as they couldn't even throw one punch. He turned to me and tried to grab me when the Rangers of the time forced him back. He fled, but not before saying that he'll get me yet and use my power to have him achieve glory."

Sam didn't know what to say to that. Sorry would seem inadequate. "I…I wish I could say I knew how to make you feel better. I can't imagine what that must have been like."

Chris shrugged again. "It still hurts, but not as much as before. I may have been denied my revenge, but Darkonda and Dark Specter still got what was coming to them, and that helped a great deal. And after my first set of foster parents died, Sensei Hanaori and his wife took me in and officially adopted me. That's why I have their name."

Sam nodded. She didn't need the explanation, but it did clear up some things she was wondering about. She changed the subject again.

"So, you have Water powers," she asked. Chris nodded slightly.

"All Ice Ninjas instinctively know how to use the Water powers. We never knew why, just that we do. Some postulate that it's due to the correlation between Water and Ice, while others believe there's a more complex reason than that. Whatever the reason, we know how to use them, although a lot of my kind ignores the powers in favor of using strictly the Ice powers, a rather limiting frame of mind."

"So you don't ignore it? You use the Water powers?"

"Yes. It's the perfect setup for an Ice attack."

"I've always been meaning to ask Hunter why he can use Lightning powers when Blake cannot," Sam said in an afterthought.

"What do you mean he can't? He's a Thunder Ninja, right? He should have the power, as well."

"I don't know. Not even Cam knows. Sensei Omino should have the answer, but he's been captured, along with the surviving students and teachers of the Thunder Academy."

Chris' eyes hardened at that. "Yes, and we have to get them back, along with everyone else."

"We will. Anyway, I just wanted to talk, and see if you're alright."

"I'm better, now. Thanks," he said as she smiled in response.

"Not a problem. Now that I know we're going to be co-workers, we have to stick together, right," she said with mirth.

Chris didn't mind that prospect at all. "Yeah, we do. I'll see you around. I'm going to continue exploring the city. Once I find the way out of here, of course."

"I'll show you. I forgot we didn't show you where this place is, and how to get to and from."

After being shown the way to gain access to the Academy and Ninja Ops, Chris went back to his apartment to take a quick nap before he went back out. He didn't know what was in store, but he knew he wouldn't put up with Shane's temper tantrums. He'd try his best to not start a fight, but he'd certainly finish it, and God help Shane if he started one.