Thank you for the kind words, debaVsdeba. :) I hope you like this newest chapter!

Chapter Seventeen: Trick or be Tricked

Tria looked around. She knew she could not be seen: she had finally mastered using the Golden Cog Rito had left behind during Master Vile's attack on the Intergalactic Conference. She learned that junctioning it to her Power Staff granted an invisibility field around her.

She saw her prey and knew it was a matter of time before she would take its life. She held fast to her Power Staff.

Although she could not be seen, her prey had amazing senses and would hear her if she was not careful. When she knew she was in position, she struck. Leaping down from the tree, her Power Staff hit the prey, taking its life.

She focused on severing her connection to the Golden Cog through her Power Staff, then appeared. She was still in the jungle on an unknown planet. Ever since she had lost the ability to morph after her confrontation with Lord Zedd, she had lived there. It had been weeks, but she did not know that: all she knew was that it would likely be her permanent home, and she needed to learn to survive.

She looked at the beast below her. She knew she needed sustenance, and weeks prior had scanned the area for animals she could eat that were not sentient. She recognized one from a report she had done back as a cadet in the Academy, and aside from berries and water, her diet was restricted to that beast.

As she prepared a fire to cook the animal, she heard something overhead.

Impossible! She thought.

Looking up, a ship split the trees which had been a canopy over her during her time on the planet. She focused on the Golden Cog and became invisible, hoping to dodge whoever had come.

"Master Tria?" A voice said through the ship's external audio system. "We have a reading on your bio signature. This is the Triforian Police: We are here to take you home! Repeat: We come in peace and are here to help!"

Severing her connection to the Golden Cog, she fell to her knees. She looked at the blood on her hands and Power Staff. She looked at the environment around her. Although a short time, she knew she had grown into a tougher warrior there. She had become stronger and more diligent, even without the Gold Ranger powers.

For becoming a stronger warrior, though, she still had her emotions. She looked up at the ship as a tractor beam found her. She was laughing, tears of joy spilling down her face.

Lord Zedd looked at his opponent, fury burning in his eyes. Inhabiting the same mind, Commander Zedd peered through what had once been his eyes and caught a glance of his reflection, coming off of the ship his body was standing next to.

Oh, my! He thought. He looked as if he had aged a significant amount in the weeks since he had been possessed by the Dark Lord. The strain his body had gone through during the short time between his possession and the creation of the Z Staff had taken a toll on his mortal frame.

Lord Zedd addressed his opponent. "How dare you stand against me! I am Lord Zedd. Bow to me, before it is too late!"

The man in the gold mask grinned. "There is nothing you can do to defeat me. I have more experience in battle in one week's worth of time, than you have had in your entire life!" Dregon pointed a pistol at Zedd's feet. "This I can tell by your stance."

Zedd continued to glare. "Stand down now and let me take this planet as my own, and you will not suffer the consequences!"

Lord Zedd, no longer constrained by the body he had as the Dark Lord, still had the need to feed, though not like before: All he did was point his staff at a planet's surface and drain it of energy until he was satiated. He had found a planet during his drifting, and something inside him told him the planet's name: Edenoi.

What he had neglected to foresee was that it was currently being invaded by a bitter man: Count Dregon. Zedd targeted Dregon with a blast from his staff.

Dregon caught the blast with his hand and redirected it at Zedd. The explosion sent Zedd flying backward. Clutching his chest, he looked up at the tyrant before him.

"I admire your tenacity. I will grant you... a pass. Leave now. I am sure you can find some other place to attack." Dregon said, honestly pitying what he thought was an old man before him.

He must have been quite the warrior in his youth. Dregon thought, still under the impression that Zedd was an old man and not a withered soldier yet in his youth. I don't wish to be the one to bring him fully back to reality, to see what he has become.

Dregon gave the man before him another nod, followed by a gesture to leave. "Go now, Zedd. May the Power protect you."

Zedd, broken and embarrassed, teleported back into space from off Edenoi's surface. As he flew off, he looked back in anger.

Commander Zedd could feel the Dark Lord attempting to find information about Dregon in the brain they shared. He quickly cut the intruder off from the information.

Mentally laughing, he taunted his parasite: I guess you're not the big, bad master you thought you were!

Gritting his teeth and clenching his fist, he yelled, "I hate Count Dregon!"

Zordon looked at his wrist tech, going over the assignment again in his head. He was to go with Masters Orion and Michael to hunt down "Master" Vile. They had a plan they had decided upon: They were going to make a false transmission, allowing Vile to overhear it. Planting false information, they would lead him to believe those three Masters had the Zeo Crystal, and were going to deposit it in the Deserted Planet. They planned on Vile showing up with a good portion of his army. Once he did, they would send a signal and Rahp and his men would appear, waiting in orbit, ready for a final confrontation with the demon.

He wondered how the other divisions of the Morphing Masters were. He knew Dulcea, Kamen, and Gosei were taking advantage of the plot against Vile to finish the final fortifications on Earth's moon, and also the transferring of the Zeo Crystal to what they all hoped would be its new home under the palace of that moon. The palace once was the headquarters for the Morphing Masters, centuries ago. To ensure things went smoothly, Luka Miller, one of the United Alliance's best generals, oversaw defenses, aided by Captain Louse.

While Gerlit, Animus, and Magnus took care of affairs back at the Alliance headquarters, Masters Ivicar, Estro, and Dimitria were to go to Triforia (with the proper paperwork that time) and do some investigating. Ivicar had decided it would be best for everyone involved if Estro went with him instead of Magnus, due to what had occurred the last time Magnus went to Triforia a few weeks earlier. Magnus was extremely frustrated with the situation, saying it was not fair that he was being "benched".

What made Zordon, and everyone for that matter in the Alliance, uneasy about the current affairs was Sentinel Knight: he decided to become an active member in the fight, even with his commission over the Corona Aurora. Sentinel had taken fleets commanded by Alliance fighters Risp and Filcar with him to search for Lord Zedd, along with Master Delphine. Accompanying them was Margaret. She had finally recovered from the massive amount of Blue Magic she had used on the day the Gold Ranger attacked the Morphing Masters' base of operations, and was ready to do her field exam. Upon completion of it, she would be the newest Morphing Master.

Getting his thoughts in order, Zordon approached Burai in the lab for Research and Development. Lightning Cruiser and Storm Blaster greeted him as he walked into the area. Saba trailed Zordon, looking around cautiously, still unsure of how to walk in public. Up until recently, Saba had been a secret Zordon had kept, fearing how Sentinel Knight would've reacted to him and Zordon's research. Now that Saba was proven to not be an Alliance taboo, he walked around freely.

"Burai, is the transmission ready?"

Burai nodded. "I left a small opening in the transmission's coding. It should look as if it was an overlook on our part. I cannot see how they would not think otherwise."

Zordon looked at Masters Michael and Orion, already in the room waiting.

Orion gestured with his hand to the radio. "It's all yours, kiddo."

Zordon disliked being called a "kid", but shrugged it off. There were more important matters on his mind. He approached the radio and began the transmission:

*This is Master Zordon broadcasting over a secure connection. This message is intended for Master Orion and Master Michael. We have finally secured an area for the Zeo Crystal: We will be heading to the Deserted Planet and arriving there at fourteen hundred hours, Alliance time. That is all.*

Michael looked at everyone around him. "Okay guys. Let's get ready. We're going to battle."

Magnus sat, literally twiddling his thumbs in the council chamber. Gerlit practiced some spells with a key in a corner of the room, while Animus hurriedly ran through paperwork. They had decided to take shifts with the documents, and Magnus awaited his turn.

"This is a declaration to the Alliance." The familiar voice rang over the speakers. Magnus bolted out of his chair and turned on the communications monitor.

On the screen sat Tria, sitting next to the king of Triforia. She held her Power Staff, with the king's insignia sitting atop it, suggesting the king's presence in and of itself on screen wasn't enough to show his support.

"I was, until recently, a Morphing Master. A chain of events has occurred, and I have been branded a traitor. I am not a traitor: I was not the person who attacked the United Alliance weeks ago. I have been stranded on a planet near Mirinoi for several weeks, and have evidence to prove this. Triforia has not been harboring me: I was recently rescued by them, and we have documentation of this as well.

"I wish to be an ambassador of peace. I implore the Alliance to end the war with Triforia before it starts. We await your response."

"Hmph. Just what a traitor would say..." Magnus scoffed.

Although he knew Tria better than Magnus, Animus had no rebuttal: the evidence was not good, and he personally had seen and fought against the Gold Ranger.

Why are you doing this, Tria? He thought.

Gerlit broke his silence, looking at his peers with concern is on his face. "I wonder how this will affect Ivicar. He should be getting to Triforia soon..."

"We have the proper documentation. You have confessed over television that you have Tria: by law, you must give her to us for questioning!" King Estro demanded.

The troops blocking their way through the passport terminal refused to budge, holding their blasters in a sentinel-like stance.

"Incorrect, Masters." A general said, making his way to the three. "You declared war on us weeks ago. We actually have the right to blast you away if we wanted..."

Estro's eyes widened. "Oh, please... no!" He backed away, hands in the air.

"Do we look as if we have come ready to fight?" Dimitria asked.

The general chuckled. "You guys are Morphing Masters. You're always ready for a fight."

With this, he stepped forward. With a frightened look on his face, Estro started screaming. "Dimitria! Get down!"

He launched himself into the man, tackling him. Soldiers started firing as Ivicar pulled Dimitria behind a wall.

Ivicar looked around the corner to see if Estro was doing well. He snuck back to Dimitria.

"The king is holding his own. We must get back to the ship."

Dimitria groaned. "He just made things worse. That general wasn't attacking! I think we need to talk things out with Triforia."

Ivicar shook his head. "Estro may be impulsive when he gets nervous. He may have jumped the gun... but do you think with the way that general was talking things wouldn't have happened like this anyway?" Shots were heard from behind them.

He continued. "He may be a buffoon at times, but I think he may have bought us time. He isn't a senior Morphing Master by chance."

Dimitria scoffed at that. Becoming a senior member was as much about politics as anything else. Leaving out their individual ranks, though, Dimitria saw the wisdom in Ivicar's words.

Smiling, she nodded. "I guess there always is the optimist's perspective. Thank you, Ivicar."

With that, they made a dash back to their ship. They began running into soldiers on the way.

Focusing, Dimitria caused the ground around her to quake. To avoid the attack, Ivicar jumped into the air. As he descended, he sent cascades of purple lightning against those who kept their footing against Dimitria's maneuver.

As they approached the ship, a very muscular man stood, waiting menacingly. He wore a smile on his smug face. He then divided into three different versions of himself.

Dimitria smiled. "I can handle this." She winked at Ivicar and walked forward, assuming a fighting stance.

Two of them charged her, leaving the third watching in case she squirmed away.

"Let's dance, shall we?" She said.

Dimitria tapped the Morphing Grid and suddenly found herself being able to perceive those around her as if they were in slow motion. To those watching, she appeared to move at speeds which were faster than light. She could feel the chroniton particles bind with her neuronal synapses, increasing her reaction time.

She ran to the first attacker and pushed him into the one watching. To the clone left over, she grabbed him by the hair and dragged him behind the watcher. As fighter number one flew into the watcher, she kicked the legs out from under fighter number two. Once time resumed itself for her, she watched the sight: the two parts of the fighter collided into the third who was on the ground. They all fell in a heap.

Chuckling, Ivicar levitated them onto a rafter on the roof.

Dimitria looked around. "It seems as if the coast is clear."

Ivicar nodded and they ran toward their ship.

Suddenly, they heard clapping coming from their intended destination. Dimitria was shocked to see the Gold Ranger standing in front of their ship.

"Tria!?" Dimitria said, nervous. She had feared a showdown with the Gold Ranger was inevitable.

The Gold Ranger laughed and threw a small device at her. Dimitria felt shockwaves of Morphing Energy hit her from the device. It felt as if she were being ripped apart on a molecular level, which was actually close to what actually had been occurring to her.

She turned slowly, hands outstretched to Ivicar. "...help..."

Dimitria hardly had the strength to make this declaration. She was trying to fight back, charging herself with chroniton particles to try and escape the demolecularizing device. As Ivicar dove to grab her hand, she disappeared.

He turned to the Gold Ranger as Triforian troops encircled them.

The Gold Ranger looked at the troops and sent out an order: "Capture him: dead or alive." Extending an arm into the air, the Gold Ranger then teleported away in a gold light.

Ivicar had a look of disgust on his face. As he got ready to fight for his freedom, he noticed something: Estro sneaking behind the troops into the ship. As he boarded, he saw the ship's blasters activate.

Ivicar relaxed and shook his head. "Oh, if you boys knew what was coming next, you'd be running." He then ducked as the blasters started firing.

On the Deserted Planet, Michael punched the monster about to chomp on Zordon's arm in the face. He was standing with Zordon, back to back, with a group of Vile's henchmen circling around them.

"Ready for a final dance?" Michael asked Zordon.

Wiping tufts of blue hair off his brow, Zordon nodded.

"Power up mode!" Orion screamed.

With that, a ball of light appeared and wiped away the foes. Orion, in his enhanced armor, emerged from the ball of Grid energy.

"Rahp has his hands full with a group of twenty Blue Globbor on the other side of this city. I figured I'd come over and relieve you of your party guests so you could come over and help. Lightning Cruiser and Storm Blaster can only replace you two up to a point." Orion said, laughing as if the situation wasn't dire.

It worked: the Masters laughed and started walking to the other battle, trying to recover as they did.

"What I wouldn't do to be Dimitria right now, handling paperwork and bureaucrats in Triforia. Why do we get the hard stuff?" Michael joked, not knowing what had just befallen Dimitria on Triforia.

Zordon smirked, thinking how his life had gotten so difficult in such a short amount of time. Looking at the remnants of the battle they had just endured, he turned to Orion.

"So, who is the general right now? I figure Vile has yet to show, or I would've heard by now. So, is it Rito? I hope it's Novact. I have a score to settle with him..."

"You and me both, kid." Orion said, feeling the scar on his stomach where Novact had gutted him a few weeks earlier. "You know what? I haven't seen any general..."

The three stopped in their tracks. Michael turned away in frustration, all of them realizing what had happened.

"We're the ones being duped, aren't we?" Zordon said, leaning against an abandoned building, slinking down to a sitting position.

"Looks that way..." Orion said as they all forgot Rahp and his men.

Michael got off his wrist tech, shaking his head in disbelief and a look that said "of course" written on his face. "I see no evidence of any other activity in the area." He yelled and punched a wall.

"Well, if they're not here, then where are they?" Zordon wondered aloud.

"Novact, Rito. Are you ready?" Vile said, delight dancing in his voice.

Rito sniffed his armpits, then nodded. "You better believe it!"

Novact stared at Rito like the idiot he was, then turned to Vile. "Everyone is in position except Woe: Kegler's men haven't finished her vessel yet."

"Then we go without her! It's not as if she has been helpful as of late, anyway." Turning to Rito, he continued. "Your sister should be able to handle Woe's assignment as well as her own." Vile said in a moment of clarity that shocked and impressed the now ever skeptical Novact.

He looked out of the window of the Skull Ship at the palace on Earth's moon.

"We've done it, boys! The Zeo Crystal will finally be ours!"