Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.
Chapter 27 – Now The Final Fury
"Master Finn we have to get to the others and find Jarrod and Lily!" Using his Morpher, Casey called the others and they met up to discuss where they might be, though Kira quickly got frustrated with the number of possibilities and lack of ideas and so contacted Alpha and had him run a search. The faithful robot came through, as always, and had located both Lily and Jarrod at the Pai Zhuq Academy. With Dai Shi having his body back, which Casey had immediately informed the others of, there wasn't much time and so Alpha once again came through and teleported Casey, Theo and Kira to the Academy while Dom, RJ and the Spirit Rangers stayed behind to defend the city. Once they arrived, all three began running towards the hidden room that had held Dai Shi, somehow knowing that is exactly where they'd be. As they approached the chamber they heard Jarrod's voice, though it was choked with tears.
"It's all my fault, I let him control me. I had to get away before I hurt anyone else."
"It's not your fault Jarrod!" Lily insisted. "You didn't have a choice! Dai Shi didn't give you one, how could that be your fault?"
"It was my Lion Spirit he used to hurt people. It's too late for me…"
"No! You're wrong Jarrod!" Casey cried as the three of them rushed into the room. "It's never too late to start over."
"Whatever happened in the past doesn't matter. What matters is the future, and what you're going to do with yours." Theo added.
"No, I've done too much." Jarrod insisted. "With all the harm I've caused with it, I'll never call on my Lion Spirit again."
"You're giving up!" Kira cried. "You think you're the only one who's been forced to do evil things? It would take me longer to count the people I know that have done something evil then to count those who haven't. You're not alone in this Jarrod. Don't let yourself lose your future, your future with Lily, because of what Dai Shi forced you to do in your past."
"I've caused too much harm…"
"And so did Astronema!" Kira yelled. "You remember that? 1998, the worldwide battle that took place when Astronema's forces attacked Earth. But they didn't just attack Earth they attacked the entire universe, they conquered the entire universe with Earth being the last stronghold. She did all that, but I don't care about her past. To me, she's just Aunt Karone."
"Aunt?!" Casey and Theo asked, never having heard this story.
"Wait, Karone? The one we met at Christmas? She was Astronema?!"
"Yes it's the same person, and yes she was Astronema. The point is, is that you can't let your past define you. It happened, it sucks, it really sucks, but now's the time to step up. You think you've caused too much harm? Well right now you're proving yourself right. Is that what you want?" Jarrod didn't answer and so Lily stepped in.
"Jarrod, Kira's right. By sitting here and moping when you have a chance to help people, you are proving yourself right. I'm not saying you have to get over it, or feel great about yourself right now, but you need to understand that what happened wasn't your fault, and there's so much good you can do." Again Jarrod said nothing and this time they were interrupted by the Rangers' Morphers going off. With a final look to Jarrod, the three ran off. When they were gone, Lily waited a moment longer and when Jarrod still was silent, she stood and went to the door.
"I'm going to help them." She said, this earned a desperate look from him for no matter how much he grieved, he still wanted to protect his mate. "They need help to defeat Dai Shi, and I'm going to give it to them. You told me that Dai Shi chose you because your Lion Spirit was strong. You could use that strength to help defeat him for good. But fine, if you want to mope, then go ahead. But when this is over, when I come back, the pity party ends. Got it?" She didn't even wait for a reply before running out, missing Camille's arrival by teleportation by just a few seconds.
-C/K-
The three Rangers teleported to a street filled with rubble that had people running away, while their friends tried to help the civilians.
"We have to calm these people down, this is exactly what Dai Shi wants." They heard RJ say as they suddenly appeared next to him. "Woah!"
"Yeah, sorry." Kira apologized, thought she wasn't really sorry.
"Kira!" Connor cried as he ran over, having joined the others when things took a turn for the worst.
"Jarrod?" RJ asked.
"We struck out. But Camille's talking to him. Maybe she can make him see sense." Said Casey, having been the one to get Kira to get Alpha to teleport Camille to Jarrod. Their next move was interrupted as a sinister laugh sounded throughout the city and Dai Shi's Spirit appeared high above them.
"I have harvested enough energy to open a portal to the Spirit World." At his command, the portal appeared and dropped down dozens of monsters that they'd already fought. "The time for the final Spirit War is here!"
"The worst of the worst." Theo muttered, for indeed Dai Shi had summoned those monsters that they'd had the most trouble defeating. With another sinister laugh, Dai Shi disappeared once again to await what he assumed would be the destruction of the Power Rangers.
"Come one team!" RJ called. "Let's show them who we are!" Every single one of them raised their arm and formed a fist, allowing their Master's Stripes to be seen, Casey's coming as a surprise to everyone but Master Finn, for he hadn't had a chance to tell them.
"Pai Zhuq! Order of the Claw!" They cried together. The Rangers then reached for their Morphers and in an instant of inspiration, Kira and Connor silently combined their powers, which saw the creation of four more Morphers, which appeared before the Masters and Connor.
"These will temporarily turn you into Power Rangers, not just your Spirits." Kira's voice spoke into their minds. She knew that for this final stand, the Masters would want to actually be there to fight, and Connor…well there was no chance of him leaving his mate to fight Dai Shi without him, especially as he too was a Pai Zhuq Master.
"Ready?" Casey called.
"Ready!"
"Jungle Beast, Spirit Unleashed!" Nine voices called out. They all morphed and began their roll call, the time it took them to do so allowing for the run off power to leave them.
"With the Strength of the Tiger! Jungle Fury Red Ranger!"
"With the Stealth of the Jaguar! Jungle Fury Blue Ranger!"
"With the Speed of the Cheetah! Jungle Fury Yellow Ranger!"
"With the Courage of the Wolf! Jungle Fury Wolf Ranger!"
"With the Power of the Rhino! Jungle Fury Rhino Ranger!"
"With the Spirit of the Shark! Jungle Fury Shark Ranger!"
"With the Spirit of the Elephant! Jungle Fury Elephant Ranger!"
"With the Spirit of the Bat! Jungle Fury Bat Ranger!"
"With the Spirit of the Lion! Jungle Fury Lion Ranger!"
"Power Rangers Jungle Fury!"
Connor's suit appeared almost exactly as the former Spirit Rangers, the majority of it in white though with accents of a dark crimson and the helmet in the shape of a lion's head. With their roll call done, and run off power gone, the Rangers charged the monsters, taking them on along with the Rin Shi they brought with them. While the Rangers had had trouble defeating these monsters in the past, they did not have that trouble now. Their added strength since they'd fought some of these monster was enough to send them back to the Spirit World, while those newer ones, like the Phantom Beasts, were a little harder to deal with though by no means impossible. The Rangers determination to see this finished, and knowledge that they could most certainly defeat these guys, gave them an edge. All the same, there were a lot of monsters, and while the Rangers were sure they'd defeat them eventually, doing so quickly was not an option for they were already tiring. Lucky for them, Dai Shi opening a portal from the Spirit World, allowed for not just his monsters to return. A blast of pure power hit the monsters that Theo, Kira and Casey had herded together to be able to fight them as a team. When the smoke from the resulting fireball cleared, it was to the sight of their others Masters.
"Master Guin!"
"Master Rilla!"
"Master Lope!"
"Master Mao!" They all cried, rushing over to their Masters' sides.
"When Dai Shi opened the portal, we came through as well." Master Rilla explained.
"We wouldn't miss this battle for the world." Master Mao added as the four of them went on the attack. With the added power of their Masters, the monsters were dealt with swiftly, but with the portal from the Spirit World open, they knew the monsters would only return unless something was done.
"Come, quickly!" Master Mao called, gathering every one of them together. "We must all combine the power of our Animal Spirits to stop them from ever returning from the Spirit World again!" Agreeing with him whole-heartedly, all the Masters, those in the spandex and out, called on their Spirits and willed them to close the portal. When it was done, they all gasped for breath, having expended a great deal of power.
"There…" Master Mao panted. "Now a portal from the Spirit world can never be open again."
"So does that mean you get to stay?" Dom asked, glad to see Master Mao once more.
"No. We will return to the Spirit World once Dai Shi is defeated." He answered. "But once we do, we shall never come back. The portal shall never open from inside the Spirit World again." Although disappointed, no one could say that they had truly expected any less.
"You shall never defeat me!" Dai Shi's voice cried as he appeared before them, in his physical body this time. He could not have been uglier had he tried. Dai Shi had the Spirit of the Dragon, but his new body did not resemble one save for the multiple dragon shaped heads that grew from his body. He launched an attack at the Rangers and Masters, one that literally sent them flying from the edge of the city to a large clearing near a cliff in the forest.
"For too long the Pai Zhuq have stopped my plans for ultimate rule! Today, I will get my revenge. Starting with the Red Ranger!" Dai Shi's many heads left his body, being pushed by very long necks, greatly resembling a snake. Casey dodged the attack as best he could and Kira and Theo quickly joined him, not willing to let him face Dai Shi alone. "Now for the final strike!"
"No!" Two voices called at once. One jumped from the cliff, and the other merely appeared right in front of the Rangers, casting their Animal Spirits to protect them. When the energy waves died down, the figures were revealed to be Lily and Camille, the former of whom had trekked through the jungle and so arrived at the same time as Camille who'd used her powers to get there.
"Please, let us help." Camille said.
"Of course!" Said Casey, smiling brightly at Camille though she couldn't see it under his helmet, though he could see her smile that appeared at his words before she turned and summoned her Chameleon armour. Lily had no such armour but was no less determined to play her part. The Rangers called on their Animal Spirits to form the Megazords in hopes that they would be enough to take on the giant Dai Shi. Camille and Lily too were able to find it within themselves to make their Spirits grow and help the Rangers. Unfortunately, their assault did no good, and the Rangers quickly found themselves thrown from their Megazords, de-morphing as they fell, as their Animal Spirits returned to them.
"It's no use. Nothing we do can even touch him!" Theo cried.
"I can!" Another voice called.
"Jarrod!" Lily cried, knowing immediately who it was, and running into her mate's arms.
"You were right. And I'm sorry." He murmured, kissing her on the forehead before gently pushing her aside and turning to face Dai Shi.
"What are you gonna do?" Lily asked fearfully. She'd wanted Jarrod to help, not to face Dai Shi on his own.
"Whatever I have to, to end this." He answered honestly. "Spirit of the Mighty Lion!" He called, summoning his own armour. "I'm here Dai Shi!"
"The Lion has returned." The villain sniggered. "Have you come to your senses?"
"Yes. You told me I had the strength of the Lion but not the heart. I'm here to show you that you're wrong! The heart of the Lion is noble and good. I can be too!" Calling on all the power of his Animal Spirit Jarrod launched himself at Dai Shi, turning into energy and entering the beast.
"No! Jarrod!" Lily screamed, tears flowing down her face. Kira and Connor had to stop her from joining him, though they realized that without an assurance, an absolute one hundred percent assurance, that Jarrod would be alright, they had no right to deny her joining her mate, for they would do nothing less. So, not wanting to lose two friends, Kira decided to give her that assurance.
"Lily, Lily listen to me. Lily look at me!" Kira screamed forcing Lily's attention away from Dai Shi. "I promise you Jarrod will be alright."
"How can you-?"
"Because I'm unique, remember? And remember that power Connor displayed before we gained our Jungle Master Mode? We have the power to make sure Jarrod lives and we will. I swear to you, but you need to let us do our job. Please." Lily still looked fearful but with the assurance of Kira's Cheetah who came forward to comfort her friend, Lily's Cheetah, Lily relented, knowing somehow that Kira was telling the truth. Thankful that Lily was listening to her, but still not sure she trusted her not to run off, Kira and Connor released Lily into the hands of the Masters, knowing they'd watch over her. With that taken care of, Kira and Connor turned their attention back to Dai Shi who was clearly fighting Jarrod.
"He's weakening!" Jarrod's voice called from within. "Hit him now!"
"Only the chosen three Guardians can defeat Dai Shi for good." Master Mao said, looking to Casey, Kira and Theo. Although two of them hadn't originally been chosen as Guardians, they knew he was saying that there was a reason these events had happened, and they were meant to be the Guardians.
"It's up to us." Said Casey, and the three took a deep breath, closing their eyes and looking deep inside. "A Pai Zhuq Master doesn't ask. He knows. There is a higher level of our Animal Spirits."
"One that has never been reached before, by student or Master."
"It's time to push beyond the possible, to our highest potential." The three felt their Animal Spirits well up inside them like never before, and Kira compared this power to her power as The Child, feeling the difference between an extremely powerful power, and an ultimate power. She had to admit that this got pretty close and wondered if her power was truly ultimate, or if she simply hadn't tapped in to it to it's highest potential. When the power completely overtook them, the three released it, shooting it at Dai Shi and watching as it came together before hand, forming a giant sphere of pure power before hitting Dai Shi and blowing him to a million pieces. True to Kira's word, Connor reached out with his power just before Dai Shi was destroyed, searching for Jarrod. He found him and encased him in his power, saving him from the carnage and bringing him down to Earth.
"Jarrod!" Lily cried seeing him; she wrenched herself out of the Masters' grasp, rushing to his side. His armour disappeared and it was obvious he was weak, and slightly injured, but far from dead. "Oh Jarrod!" Lily sobbed, clinging to him like she never had before. She cried for a minute before lifting her head with a fire in her eyes. "Don't. Ever. Do. That. Again!" She growled, enunciating each word with a hit to his chest. The others took that as the ok to approach and for the congratulations to be said all around. When that was finished, Master Mao informed them that it was time for him and the other Masters to return to the Spirit World. It was a bittersweet goodbye, but one they knew had to happen. When all that was over, no one was exactly sure what to do.
"Let's head home." RJ suggested and no one disagreed. They headed back to JKP, to find the place more or less cleaned up from the Phantom Beasts attack, and Fran taking a few pizzas out of the oven.
"Oh thank god!" She cried upon seeing them, putting the pizzas down and holding on to the counter for support. "I was so worried, so I thought if I cleaned I wouldn't be able to worry so much, and then I thought that you'd be hungry when you got back so I started on some pizzas and I refused to believe that you wouldn't come back cause that would just be too horrible and-"
"Breathe Fran!" They all cried together, ending in peals of laughter at the normalcy of the moment after the battle they'd just had.
"Well I'm so glad you guys are alright." She couldn't help but add. "And that it's over. No more Dai Shi….right?"
"Right." Dom said, coming over and stealing the first piece of pizza and a kiss to Fran's cheek that made her turn beet red.
-C/K-
A month passed after Dai Shi had been defeated and things had returned to normal, or rather had become their new normal. As members of the Pai Zhuq High Council, Finn, Swoop and Phant saw to the return of the students and other Masters to the Academy and stayed long enough to ensure it was up and running again before they returned to their normal lives outside of the Academy, but they certainly always knew what was going on with the Order of the Claw. Before he'd returned to the Spirit World, Master Mao had had a quick word with the three Masters who saw that his wish of having Casey instilled as the Head Master, with the others sitting on the High Council, was fulfilled. Not all the Masters were happy about it, they were merely children after all, but they calmed down when they learned that those children had defeated Dai Shi.
Casey took his job as Head Master in stride, learning from the other Masters as he offered his own insight. Theo, Kira and even Connor joined him on the High Council, along with Phant, Swoop, Finn, RJ and Dom, and were teachers at the Academy, though on a part time basis. Kira still had three more years of school to get through, though it was summer vacation at the moment, so her teaching would be relatively limited for the time being. Connor complained about being on the Council, saying he knew nothing about Pai Zhuq, though the Master's Stripes on his arm said otherwise and he was quickly shut up on the matter. He too would be teaching alongside Kira, though like his mate he had life in Reefside he needed to get back to, having been away from the team for far too long. Theo, surprisingly enough, decided to take RJ up on his offer of staying at JKP as a manager, RJ never having liked all the paper work that came with the business; he just wanted to make pizzas. The partnership of the two worked out really well, especially as they kept Fran and Dom on as employees. JKP thrived after Dai Shi for word got out that the monsters had attacked the pizza parlour and the Rangers had even shown up, so naturally JKP became a tourist attraction for Power Ranger fans. Dom and Fran, for their part, had finally stopped dancing around each other, though had not confessed anything of potentially being mates, or even having any deeper feelings for the other, though they were, technically speaking, dating.
Lily returned to the Academy to finish her training along with Jarrod and Camille. The two ex-villains had wanted to completely start over and so Jarrod returned, and Camille joined, as Cubs. The Masters who knew Jarrod could not understand why he wanted to start over as a Cub, not knowing he'd been possessed by Dai Shi, nor could they understand Camille's desire when they learned she had her Animal Spirit and could summon it, but Casey gently told them to back off; he respected their decision. Lily was very proud of her mate, knowing that he was trying to move on from his time as Dai Shi, but also knowing that he was doing what he needed to do so that he could move on, and if that meant he started over as a Cub, she was all for it. Camille had become close to Jarrod once he was free from Dai Shi. Jarrod admitted that Scorch had been right when he'd said that Camille brought out the human in him. Lily had kept Jarrod alive while under Dai Shi's control, but Camille had, without even realizing it, given him that little extra push whenever he thought he would succumb to Dai Shi entirely. Lily was very happy with this, for Camille was also her friend and it was nice to see them help each other heal. Though Casey also played a part in Camille's healing, the two having grown especially close over the last month and everyone knew it was only a matter of time before they got together.
In the beginning of August, not long before Kira's fifteenth birthday, it was decided it was time for her to head home. Her parents had given her a bit of time after Dai Shi's defeat but they definitely missed their daughter and wanted her home. Kira was alright with his, having missed her family as well, and knowing she'd see her friends often as she taught at Pai Zhuq and visited JKP often. It was around this time that Dom also decided that he'd been in one place long enough and was ready to head back out onto the road, though this time not to find his path, but merely to see the world. A party was planned at JKP for Dom's departure, after which Kira would also leave for Reefside. Everyone gathered at JKP for one last get together while they were all still in one place. Theo and Kira were in the back making pizzas when Flit came in with RJ.
"And the dough is flying as our two intrepid young pizza chefs work their magic producing pies. What a team!" Flit had the Spirit of the Fly, an unusual Spirit to be sure, the Masters could not remember there ever being someone with that Spirit before, and had been a sort of commentator for the Rangers' Megazord battles, always taking this opportunity to stick it to Camille. After Dai Shi had been defeated, Camille remembered Flit whom she'd trapped with a curse three thousand years ago. She released him from the curse, returning him to his human form and Flit had moved into the loft with RJ and Theo, RJ having become Flit's first friend in three thousand years.
"Thanks for the play by play Flit." Said RJ.
"No problem boss! Since Camille turned me back into a human I've got lots of time to help my friends."
"Uh…yeah…let's remember what I said about not telling the customers the part about you having been a fly." Flit nodded and went back to exploring the kitchen, it all being new to him. "Come on guys." RJ directed to Theo and Kira. "The party needs you." They left Flit alone knowing he'd come out when he was ready, but also that after nearly three thousand years with only Camille as company he was a bit skittish around people.
"Casey!" Kira cried, seeing the now former Red Ranger, at least that's what he called himself and so soon after their battle ended Kira didn't have the heart to tell him that he'd never truly stop being a Ranger. "You made it."
"Yeah, looks like I got here just in time to say goodbye."
"Well, goodbye everyone."
"See you Dom." Kira leaned up to hug him. "Don't you dare let this go on much longer. You know you're hurting her." She hissed into his ear referring to Fran who was sitting in the corner looking like she was about to burst into tears. They all knew Dom liked his jokes, and that he had one planned for he'd never leave Fran, but they thought this was going a bit far. Of course they didn't know Fran as well as Dom, and they had to trust that he knew what he was doing.
"RJ."
"See you later my friend." The two hugged quickly and Dom then shook hands with the others before saying goodbye and heading out the door, leaving behind one very confused group of people. They all sent each other looks and were about to send Kira out after him, for if there was one person that could beat some sense into Dom, or any of them, it would be Kira, when the man in question returned.
"You know I forgot something."
"What's that?" RJ asked, looking a bit guarded instead of his usual cheery, quirky self.
"That I got Fran a ticket too." Everyone turned to face Fran as Dom approached her. "Fran, how'd you like to backpack through Europe with me?" Fran stared at him, unsure what to say, but needing to know something.
"What if I said no?" She whispered.
"Then I'd hand my ticket to the first guy I saw and stay right here with you." He replied with complete sincerity and no hesitation. The tears in Fran's eyes that had threatened to fall finally did, though she smiled brightly and nearly jumped Dom who thankfully caught her as she captured his lips in a kiss. When she pulled away she slapped him over the head and glared at him.
"Prank or not, don't you ever do that to me again! Got it?!" She growled and Dom nodded quickly.
"Good. Then yes, I'd love to go backpacking with you." She said wiping away her tears. "Oh but first I gotta go home and get my backpack, and my camera, and my journal, and some extra socks in case it's cold-" Dom shot their friends a look and they all shook their heads and smiled at the familiar scene.
"Breathe Fran!"
A/N - And the end of Jungle Fury! Do not worry though, this will not be the last we see of these characters!
Heads up for next chapter: Kira and Connor's relationship drastically changes. It is titled 'Physical Maturity' and you may assume what you like based on the information already given in previous chapters. You're all smart people, I'm sure you can figure out why I'm giving fair warning. Even if some of you think the warning is unnecessary, you're getting one anyways cause I'm covering my ass. Even though this fic is technically rated M so I may not have to cover my ass...anyways unimportant. Also, this is your only warning, there will not be one at the beginning of the next chapter.
Review please!