Power Rangers: Mythic Descendants
Disclaimer: I do not own Descendants, Power Rangers or Kingdom Hearts! Descendants and Kingdom Hearts belong to Disney. As for Power Rangers, ownership of the series has been returned to Saban (though for how long is anyone's guess). Meh…the point is that I don't own them.
Additional Disclaimer: If you see anything else that is a part of the official Disney franchise, I don't own that either. This generally means stuff from other Disney movies that I don't want to mention by name in the disclaimer because it would spoil too much.
Chapter 03: The Keys to Color (Part I)
Mal opened her eyes, finding herself once again surrounded by thick, fluffy clouds. Is this…another vision of the past? She wondered as she felt the same vivid sensations as she had during the vision/dream that she had two nights before, of the final battle of the Ancestral War. If that's the case, then show me the vision.
In response to her wishes, the clouds parted ways, revealing the scene that was to play out before her. Mal found herself standing next to a purple-armored woman that she recognized as Maylana, the Purple Ancestral Knight from whom she descended, and the creator of her Purple Mythicore.
Mal followed her ancestor's gaze and saw that she was standing before a giant, purple dragon. Under most circumstances, Mal would freak out and panic at the sight of a massive, fire-breathing reptile; but somehow, this felt…different, but in a good way. It was as if the dragon was giving off some kind of calming, friendly aura that told Mal's instincts that it was a friend.
Looking more closely, Mal noticed something odd about the dragon. Its scales…they had a kind of shine to them due to the light that reflected off of them, but they didn't look like normal dragon scales. They looked almost…metallic, like it was a robot, and yet…the daughter of Maleficent couldn't help but think that it looked just as lifelike as her mother's dragon form.
"Here thou go, Draconia," Maylana said as she took a large, five foot-long salmon from the giant bucket sitting next to her and presented it to the dragon. "'Tis time for supper!"
Mal watched in amazement as Maylana tossed the giant fish high above her head, while the dragon–Draconia–extended its neck and caught the salmon in between her razor sharp teeth. "Good job, girl!" Maylana praised. "Who be'ith a good Mythizord? Yes, 'tis thou! Yes, 'tis thou!"
The Ancestral Knight raised her hand and scratched Draconia at a certain spot underneath her muzzle, the same spot–Mal realized–that she used to calm Tick-Tock down. Sure enough, the purple dragon's posture slackened as she let out a soft, satisfied growl.
Suddenly, Maylana turned her head to her right, as if to look directly into her descendant's eyes. "To thou who art mine descendant, know this," she said with a serious look on her face. "In thy quest to defend the lands from mine mother's return, thou and thy comrades shall need the strength of our most loyal and trusted of allies. But before thou can call upon their aid, thou must be deemed worthy. If thou is to gain the respect of the Dragonzord, thou must prove thineself. This riddle shall guide thee."
Maylana took a deep breath, then recited:
"Evil rises, the wicked ones grow,
When none can match so mighty a foe,
Find creatures five who art sealed in stone
Near the mystic waters which guard our home.
Release the lock to set them free,
But first thou must earn the key.
A knight shall stand, joined together,
In the end, happily ever after."
"The best of luck, mine descendant," Maylana said as the clouds began to move again, gradually concealing the knight and the dragon from view. "I bid thee good fortune on thy journey."
Mal's eyes snapped wide open as she panted heavily, her heart racing about a mile a minute. Wiping the sweat from her brow, she focused some of her magic into her eyes and made them glow an acid shade of green, much like she did back when she used to have those "evil-glaring" contests with her mother. Now able to see in the dark, she reached over to her nightstand and picked up the journal and writing utensils that laid on top of it. Opening it up to the next blank page, she quickly began to furiously write in it.
This wasn't the spell book her mother had given her that Mal was writing in. No, it was something that the Fairy Godmother had assigned her to do.
~~~~Flashback, the Day Before, Headmistress' Office~~~~
Fairy Godmother pulled out a small, spiral notebook with a purple cover and placed it on top of her desk, right in front of Mal. "There you go, dear," she said. "I think you'll find that most useful."
"Er…thanks," Mal replied awkwardly as she picked up the notebook and flipped through the blank pages. "But…what's it for?"
"On the same night that the Mythicores first awakened, you had a vision of the final battle of the Ancestral War," the elder fairy explained. "As the descendant of Maylana, the most powerful magic-user among the Ancestral Knights, you may have more such visions in the future. Whenever you have such a dream–if it's not too much trouble–I would like for you to write down everything that you can remember about it in this journal as soon as you wake up. We need all the advantages we can get to fight Malevolence's forces as they slowly begin to return."
~~~~End Flashback~~~~
Once Mal had made the final stroke, she sat back and reviewed what she jotted down. On the left page, she had composed a brief summary of the vision. She mentioned both Maylana and the purple dragon, and how she had been given a warning and a riddle by her ancestor. Beneath that, Mal had written all of what she was able to remember of the riddle.
Mal turned her gaze to the right page, which she had devoted to a detailed sketch of the dragon she had seen in the vision. Of all the things she had seen, the image of that dragon was the most vivid thing in her mind. She remembered feeling a sort of kinship to it, not unlike the one that she shared with Tick-Tock the Crocodile, who was currently curled up in his magically-enlarged doggie bed at the foot of her bed.
Satisfied with what she had written down, Mal returned her vision journal and writing utensils to her nightstand and turned off her night vision. Resolving to tell the Fairy Godmother about this first thing in the morning, she tucked herself back into bed and fell back to sleep.
~~~~The Next Morning, Headmistress' Office~~~~
The five Mythic Rangers were gathered together in the Fairy Godmother's office, having been summoned by her after Mal came in with news of another vision. After 10 minutes of carefully reading and analyzing Mal's writing, the Fairy Godmother closed the journal and handed it back to Mal.
"So?" Mal asked. "What do you think?"
"It's hard to say for certain," the Fairy Godmother replied thoughtfully. "But if I had to guess, I would have to say that Maylana is telling the five of you to find the legendary Mythizords."
"I think Maylana mentioned something about 'Mythizords,'" Mal commented as she carefully thought back to her vision. "Yeah…I think she called the dragon a 'good Mythizord.' But what is a Mythizord, anyway?"
"The Mythizords were, for lack of a better term, the animal familiars of the Ancestral Knights," Fairy Godmother explained. "I say this because while the fairy tale indicates that the bonds between each Ancestral Knight and their Mythizord were akin to such, they were far more powerful than any normal familiar bond. It is said that when the Ancestral Knights were faced with an opponent that was beyond even their great abilities to vanquish, they need only to call upon them, and no how far away they were, the Mythizords would come to them. According to the texts, many of the Ancestral Knights' battles would have been lost if not for the Mythizords' aid."
"Are you saying that the Ancestral Knights had their own Zords?" Ben inquired. Fairy Godmother nodded. "But I thought that Zords were sort of a 'Power Rangers'-only deal."
The Fairy Godmother chuckled. "The Great Power that fuels the Morphing Grid, which gives all Power Rangers their powers, has existed since the beginning of time, long before the formation of the first team of Power Rangers," she explained. "It should be no surprise that the Great Power has been wielded by people other than official Ranger teams. In fact, from what I understand, there has even been a team of Rangers whose Zords have existed for over 3,000 years." (A/N: A proverbial cookie to the first person to guess that team correctly.)
"So, what happened to the Mythizords?" Jane asked.
"Not long after the final battle, the Mythizords just mysteriously disappeared without a trace," Fairy Godmother replied. "Many of my colleagues on the Council of Good Fairies believe that they simply died, but Mal's vision indicates that they may still be alive today, waiting for the descendants of their old friends to come to them."
"How do we find them?" Lonnie inquired.
"The riddle says to 'find creatures five who art sealed in stone near the mystic waters that guard our home,'" Triton spoke up. "I would assume that means we should search magical bodies of water, such as the Enchanted Lake or the Bayou de Orleans."
"What about underneath the ocean?" Ben asked. "The waters near Atlantica would be magical, right?"
Triton shook his head. "I doubt that the Mythizords would be hidden beneath the sea," he replied. "Most of them are probably unable to breathe underwater, so it would be a poor choice to hide them so far below sea level. No, the Ancestral Knights probably hid them near an in-land body of water."
"Good point," Lonnie agreed. "So, where should we look first?"
"If I might make a suggestion," Fairy Godmother spoke up, offering advice to the Mythic Rangers. "I would recommend starting with the Enchanted Lake. It's the closest magical body of water to here, and its dark magic-cleansing properties would make it a great place to hide the Mythizords from the forces of evil."
"Okay, so we'll go to the Enchanted Lake today after school," Ben suggested. "It's Friday, so we'll have the whole weekend to investigate. Does anyone have any objections?"
"I do," Mal said. "Why wait until after school? Why not just go right now? The sooner we find the Mythizords, the better prepared we'll be for the next monster attack."
"We can't just skip school, Mal," Jane replied. "That would be wrong."
"But we don't know when the next monster attack will be," Mal insisted. "For all we know, we might end up needing the Mythizords before this afternoon."
"Grimhilde just launched her first monster attack a few days ago," Ben pointed out. "She probably won't send out another one for a while."
"But we don't know that," Mal reiterated. "I'd feel much better if we reawakened the Mythizords as soon as possible, before there's any chance of Grimhilde, Jafar or Cruella launching an attack that we're not ready for."
"What do you think about this, Fairy Godmother?" Lonnie asked.
"While as an educator, I can't condone five of my students–one of whom is my own daughter–skipping class," Fairy Godmother said carefully. "Mal might very well have a point. After all, she grew up around the very villains that we're up against, so she knows them better than we do."
"Still, we can't just skip class," Jane said. "Someone is bound to notice if all of us are missing, especially those of us like Ben who have a public image to maintain."
"I can go check out the Enchanted Lake alone," Mal offered. "No one would find it suspicious for a VK to skip class."
"Out of the question, Mal," Ben said firmly. "While I admit that you have a point about awakening the Mythizords as soon as possible, going off on your own would be a very bad idea. It would make you an easy target for an ambush, and if you got hurt, no one would be around to help you."
"Then I'll bring Jay or Carlos along with me," Mal countered. "Again, VKs–ditching–not suspicious!"
"Except for the fact that we're supposed to keep our identities as Rangers a secret," Triton pointed out. "If you brought either of those two with you, you would have to explain to them exactly what it is you're doing. Your mother may be the Mistress of All Evil, but not even you could come up with a convincing cover story as to why you're trying to find the Power Rangers' Zords without telling them that you're a Ranger yourself."
"Besides, remember how much trouble you and I had against the minions before we became Rangers?" Ben asked. "Based on that, how much of a chance do you think Carlos and Jay would have against them?"
"I guess you have a point," Mal sighed. "If anything, I would end up being the one protecting them."
"Exactly," Ben nodded. "I'd feel better if you had at least one other Ranger with you as back-up, instead."
"I'll go with you, Mal," Lonnie offered.
"Are you sure, Lonnie?" Mal asked, surprised that the daughter of Mulan would be so willing to shirk off school, even given the current circumstances.
"Positive," Lonnie replied. "I always love a good adventure. Besides, my car just got back from the auto shop, and I've been dying to take it for a test drive."
"Okay then," Mal nodded, before turning to her boyfriend. "Is that enough back-up, Your Majesty, or do you want to send your royal guard, too?"
Ben sighed. "I know I'm going to regret this, but okay," he reluctantly agreed. "Just be careful, you two."
"Don't worry, Benny-boo," Mal said teasingly as she and Lonnie walked out the door. "We'll be fine."
~~~~Isle of the Lost, Bargain Castle~~~~
(A/N: For those of you who haven't read Descendants: Isle of the Lost, the Bargain Castle is where Mal and Maleficent lived on the Isle of the Lost. I'm not entirely certain, but I think it's the run-down place at the beginning of the movie where the Evilest Four–Maleficent, Jafar, Queen Grimhilde, and Cruella de Vil–meet with their children.)
"Damn it!" Cruella de Vil roared as she slammed the book she had been reading down on the table next to the piles of tomes that she and the other two members of the Evilest Three had already finished, causing the piece of furniture to shake.
"I take it that book is a dead end, as well?" Jafar asked.
"What do you think?" Cruella sneered.
"I can't believe this," Queen Grimhilde grumbled. "We've read through every book that Maleficent has regarding the Ancestral Knights, and not even one of them mentions how to defeat them! How are we supposed to beat those 'Mythic Rangers' if we can't beat their powers?"
"I believe I can be of assistance," an arrogant voice with a thick accent said as its owner walked into the room. The Evilest Three turned in the voice's direction and saw a thin man with black, shoulder-length curly hair and a thin, sharp-angled mustache. He wore a white, frilly cravat underneath a crimson coat with matching cuffs and gold lining. He also had an orange sash over his right shoulder that held a scabbard for his rapier at this left hip. On the lower half of his body, he wore rose pants and white, knee-high socks, as well as black boots with a pink circle on each. Topping off his appearance was his large, crimson hat with a huge feather stuck in it.
"What are you doing here, Hook?" Jafar asked as he glared at the infamous "World's Most Famous Crook."
"Word on the poop deck is that the Evilest Four–now Three–have acquired Maleficent's staff, and have been using it to wage war against Auradon," Captain James Bartholomew Hook replied. "I simply wish to offer my services in defeating the colorful crew that stands in your way."
"And what, exactly, do you have to offer us?" Grimhilde asked suspiciously.
"An evil plan, and the means to carry that plan out," Captain Hook answered. "You say you wish to defeat the Mythic Rangers, correct? Well, instead of searching for ways to defeat their ancestors' powers, I suggest looking for ways to defeat the scalawags who are wielding those powers."
"Hmm…there may be some sense in that," Grimhilde conceded. "From what we've read, the powers of the Ancestral Knights can only be used by their chosen descendants, so if we were to incapacitate the Rangers themselves, then their powers would be useless."
"And I have come up with a way to do so," Hook said. "The Purple and Pink Rangers are both part-fairy, which means that their existences are inherently tied to the state of their fairy magic. Relieve them of that, and they will be bedridden if not outright sent to Davy Jones' locker, reducing the Rangers' numbers down to three."
"That just might work," Grimhilde said, starting to like this idea.
"And I even have the perfect host for the monster to carry out this task," Hook said as two of his crew members dragged in a small, plump boy with platinum-blonde hair. "I present to you Samuel 'Sammy' Smee, the son of my late first mate, Mr. Smee."
"Let me go!" Sammy whined as he struggled against the chains that bound him. "Please don't do this, Uncle Hook!"
"You would offer up your own godson as the host for one of our monsters?" Cruella asked bewilderedly, before chuckling evilly. "I like it!"
"Hold on," Jafar spoke up as he looked at Hook. "What's in it for you, Hook?"
"All that I ask for in return is the fairy magic that the monster plunders," Hook replied, ignoring Sammy's pleas.
"That is acceptable," Grimhilde nodded as she raised Maleficent's staff and pointed the Dragon's Eye at the son of Mr. Smee:
"Spirit of Evil, hear my call;
Arise from your ashes and become my thrall!
Possess this body and make it your own,
And serve your mistress as she reclaims her throne!"
A mass of evil-green-colored smoke rose from the ground and engulfed the screaming young boy. Once the smoke had sunk in, in Sammy's place was a giant, crimson-colored monster with a large, blue pirate hat; a torso shaped like a treasure chest; a pirate hook in place of its right hand; and a butterfly net strapped to its back.
"Arrgh! I be the Pixie Dust Pillager!" The newly-formed monster roared in introduction. "What be your orders, Mistress?"
"Take a contingent of minions to Auradon and steal the fairy magic of the Pink and Purple Rangers, as well as any other fairies that you may encounter!" The Evil Queen commanded.
"As ye wish, Mistress," the Pixie Dust Pillager saluted before leaving the Bargain Castle.
~~~~Auradon, Route 21 (Destination: Enchanted Lake)~~~~
Route 21 was almost always a prime example of peace and serenity. On a clear, sunny day, the forested main road to the Enchanted Lake would be filled with the sweet sounds of songbirds chirping in harmony; on stormy days, the tree canopy gave those traveling along the route shelter from the rainfall, and thunder and lightning seemed to avoid the vicinity.
Whether this phenomenon was a residual effect from being so close the Enchanted Lake or a mere coincidence was unknown, but either way, Route 21 was considered one of the best roads in all of Auradon to take a leisurely drive on. For this reason, when traveling on Route 21, most people like to slow down and take the time to bask in its aura of beauty and calmness…
"Woo-hoo!" Li Lonnie hollered joyfully as she drove her giant SUV down the paved road, just barely keeping to the 45 mph speed limit (A/N: For those of you who use the metric system, that's about 72.4205 kilometers per hour).
"You know," Mal said offhandedly from the front passenger seat. "When you mentioned having your own car, I kind of pictured you having something a little more…tame than this."
"And by 'tame,' you mean something like Audrey's top-of-the-line, hot-pink Volkswagen Beetle?" Lonnie smirked knowingly, not taking her eyes off the road.
"Pretty much, yeah," Mal nodded. "I mean, I'm not complaining or anything–this car is totally wicked–but why would a princess have something so hardcore?"
"Okay, first off, I'm not a princess," Lonnie replied. "My mom's 'princess' status is honorary, not hereditary, so me being her daughter doesn't automatically make me royal. And second, like I said before, I love traveling and going on adventures. A car like Audrey's buggy wouldn't last five minutes off-road, while this baby can drive on pretty much any terrain that's not vertical."
"Fair enough," Mal shrugged. "Just one more question."
"What's that?" Lonnie asked.
"What's with all the yellow?" Mal asked, referring to the SUV's yellow paint job, yellow steering wheel cover, yellow upholstery, and yellow…pretty much everything.
"It's my favorite color," Lonnie replied.
"And you being the Yellow Ranger has nothing to do with it?" Mal raised an eyebrow.
"I don't see how," Lonnie shrugged. "This SUV was a 16th birthday present from my parents. They took me to the dealership their cars are from and told me to pick out any one car in the lot."
"But still, it's odd, don't you think?" Mal asked. "I mean, your car is yellow; I haven't seen Triton not wear at least one blue article of clothing at any given time–even Ben's started wearing red everyday!"
"Not to mention you and Jane," Lonnie pointed out, seeing what Mal was saying.
"What do you mean?" Mal inquired.
"Well, Jane's always wearing a mini-version of the pink bow that her mom wears on the front of her top," Lonnie explained. "The only times I've ever seen her not wear that bow is at sleepovers when she wears her pajamas–which, now that I think about it, are also pink."
"And what about me?" Mal asked.
Lonnie looked at Mal incredulously. "Are you kidding me?" She asked. "Mal, everything about you is purple. Your hair, your clothes–pretty much everything you own is purple."
"You may have a point there," Mal said as she thought back and realized just how much purple stuff she had. Now that she thought about it, she had always been drawn to things that were her favorite color. At the time, she had thought of it as her way of emulating her mother (not to mention the fact that there weren't that many clothes on the Isle that went well with purple hair), but maybe it was something deeper…
Mal was driven out of her musings as Lonnie suddenly slammed on the brakes and sent her jerking forward, the seatbelt being the only thing keeping the Purple Ranger from flying straight through the windshield. "What was that for?" Mal grumbled.
"Look," Lonnie said, pointing ahead of her.
Mal looked up and saw a barricade extending across the entire road, stopping them from proceeding further. At first, the barricade looked like it was unguarded, but then she looked closer and saw several specks flying around it.
"Fairies," Mal said aloud in realization.
"But why are they blocking the road?" Lonnie wondered.
"Only one way to find out," Mal replied as she rolled down her window and stuck her head out. "Hey, pixies! What's the big idea?"
Lonnie face-palmed. "Great idea, Mal," she said sarcastically. "Go ahead and be rude to them, why don't you?"
"Just be quiet and let me do all the talking," Mal said as one of the guard-fairies fluttered over.
"What can I do for you ladies?" He asked.
"You can start by telling us why the road is blocked off," Mal answered. "We have some important business at the Enchanted Lake."
"If you're going to the Enchanted Lake, then I'm afraid you came all this way for naught," the guard-fairy said. "It's been quarantined and roped off due to enviro-magical safety hazards until further notice."
"By whose order?" Mal asked.
"The Council of Good Fairies, of course," the guard-fairy replied. "All magical locations in the United States of Auradon fall under their jurisdiction."
"You know, that's funny," Mal said. "Because we're here on the orders of the Fairy Godmother herself, and she certainly didn't mention anything about a quarantine."
"Well, I don't know what to tell you, but my orders are quite clear," the guard-fairy said. "No non-fairies beyond this point–no exceptions."
"Is that so?" Mal asked. The guard-fairy nodded. "Well, in that case, you should have no reason to stop us. You see, I'm half-fairy on my mother's side, so in other words, I'm not a 'non-fairy.'"
"I don't suppose you have some kind of ID or documentation verifying this, do you?" The guard-fairy inquired.
"I can call the Fairy Godmother and have her verify it," Mal replied. "Or how about my boyfriend? I'm sure the word of the King of Auradon would be accepted as legit."
"King of Auradon?" The guard-fairy repeated in confusion. He looked closer at the girl in front of him. After a few moments of scrutiny, his eyes widened in shock and realization. "Y-you're–"
Mal nodded. "That's right," she confirmed. "Mal Faerie, live and in person. Now, unless you want me to call King Ben so that you can explain to him why you're not letting his half-fairy girlfriend into an area that's only roped off to non-fairies…"
"Uhh…" the guard-fairy said hesitantly. "I…I've got to check with my superiors." With that, the guard-fairy flew over to the other fairies patrolling the barricade and began to speak to them in hushed voices.
Lonnie used her driver's side controls to roll up the passenger window and then turned to Mal. "Wow, one month at Auradon Prep, and you already know how to throw authority around," she commented. "Impressive."
"It's not that big a deal," Mal shrugged. "I had to do stuff like that from time to time when I lived on the Isle of the Lost. The only difference was that I threatened to bring my mother–their leader–into it if they didn't agree with me."
"So, on the Isle of the Lost, you were sort of like…a princess?" Lonnie asked.
"I guess that's one way of putting it," Mal shrugged. "Of course, I prefer to use my own merit instead of other people's, but when you've lived on the Isle of the Lost for your entire life like I have, you learn to use whatever resources you've got to get your way and survive."
Lonnie didn't know how to reply to that, but fortunately she was spared from doing so by the light tap of the guard-fairy from before on the car window. The daughter of Mulan quickly rolled down the window so that they could speak with the fairy.
"So, what's the verdict?" Mal asked.
The guard-fairy glanced side to side nervously, then turned to the two girls in the car. "Okay, we'll let you two through, but you have to promise not to interfere with the situation," he whispered. "Got it?"
"Got it," Mal and Lonnie replied.
The guard-fairy signaled to the others and they magically vanished one of the road blocks. Lonnie slowly drove the SUV through the opening and continued on, the fairies restoring the road block once the vehicle had passed through.
~~~~Enchanted Lake~~~~
"Status update!" Fairy Mary said, calling the fairies in charge of each team present to her. "Animal Squad, report!"
"All of the cute little forest critters have been evacuated from the lake and are currently being treated for any possible ailments caused by the gunk," Fawna, the fairy in charge of the Animal Squad, reported. "However, because we can't break through the gunk, our efforts to evacuate the cute little water critters have been…what was the word you used, Rosetta?"
"'Stagnated,'" Rosetta, the fairy in charge of the Flora Squad, sighed as she rolled her eyes.
"Right," Fawna nodded before continuing her report. "Our efforts to evacuate the cute little water critters have been stagnated in the parts of the lake already covered by the gunk."
"Okay," Fairy Mary sighed. She turned to the next fairy in line. "Water Squad, report!"
"We've managed to stop the gunk from proceeding any further than it already has," Silvermist, the fairy in charge of the Water Squad, explained. "However, we've been unable to figure out how to clean up the section of the lake that has already been contaminated."
"Flora Squad, report!"
"We're in a similar situation as Water Squad," Rosetta replied. "We've managed to stop the gunk from infecting any more plants than it already has, but we've been unable to cleanse the ones that have already been infected."
"Wind Squad, report!"
"We've been transporting pixie dust from Pixie Hollow with the assistance of several owl carriers provided by the animal fairies so that the other squads can continue working 24/7," Vida, the fairy in charge of the Wind Squad, said. "However, Terrance says that the amount of pixie dust being used here is twice his original estimates, so we're having double our efforts to provide enough pixie dust to the initiative."
"Light Squad, report!"
"We've been working with several water fairies that we enlisted with Silvermist's permission to search the parts of the Enchanted Lake that have already been covered by the gunk," Iridessa, who was in charge of the Light Squad, reported. "However, our efforts to find out more about the gunk have mostly been unsuccessful."
"Why is that?" Fairy Mary asked.
"Whatever dark magic is in the gunk is interfering with our illumination spells," Iridessa explained. "I'm telling you, Fairy Mary, I've never seen anything like this."
"Thank you for that assessment, Iridessa," Fairy Mary replied. "Now, lastly…Tinker Squad, report!"
There was a few awkward moments of silence, at which point they realized that the fairy in charge of Tinker Squad was missing. "Where's Tinkerbell?" Fairy Mary asked.
"Knowing our dear Tink, she probably found some interesting knickknack," Rosetta sighed. "Remember how excited she got over the picnic that we found when we first got here?"
"Well, she did manage to turn it into a base of operations for us to use while we're here," Silvermist reminded them as she gestured to the turned-over picnic basket that they were currently under. Several fairy-sized holes had been cut into the sides of the basket so that fairies could enter and exit the "base of operations" as needed.
"I still don't get why we even brought Tinkerbell with us, anyway," Vida said.
"Vida!" The other squad leaders gasped in horror.
"Seriously, guys, Tinkerbell's tinker magic just isn't that useful in this situation," Vida said. "If anything, she's just using up extra pixie dust that my squad has to carry."
"Queen Clarion specifically requested that Tinkerbell be placed on this assignment," Fairy Mary said. "Quite frankly, I'm just as baffled as you, Vida, but who knows? With her creativity and ingenuity, maybe she'll find a way to fix this mess."
As if on cue, a green blur flew into the base at high speed. "Fairy Mary, Fairy Mary, come quick!" Tinkerbell said quickly as she skidded to a stop in front of the older fairy she had scared witless.
"What is it, Tink?" Fawna asked.
"I found something!" Tinkerbell replied excitedly as she tugged on Fairy Mary's arm.
"Tinkerbell, I've told you before," Fairy Mary said. "You don't need to show me every lost thing you find."
"But this isn't a lost thing!" Tinkerbell said. "I mean, it is a lost thing–my tinker sense led me to it–but it's not like any lost thing I've ever seen!"
"Tinker sense?" Vida repeated. "What the heck is a 'tinker sense?'"
"A tinker fairy's ability to find lost things, like the stuff that washes up on the shores of Neverland," Fairy Mary answered quickly before turning back to Tinkerbell. "Tinkerbell, you know I like an interesting lost thing as much as the next tinker fairy, but right now I need to focus on coordinating efforts to save the Enchanted Lake."
"But–" Tinkerbell protested.
"No 'buts,'" Fairy Mary interrupted her. "Unless it's something that could help in our efforts to save the Enchanted Lake, I don't want to hear about it at the moment."
"…Fine," Tinkerbell pouted dejectedly as she fluttered out of the base.
~~~~Enchanted Lakeside~~~~
"The minions are in position, Lord Pixie Dust Pillager," one of the minions–who had been designated as Pixie Dust Pillager's "first mate"–reported. "We are ready to ambush the fairies at your command."
"How many times do I have to tell ye, ye scalawag?" the Pixie Dust Pillager growled. "If ye're going to be me first matey, ye have to talk like an honest to badness buccaneer." (A/N: since "Pixie Dust Pillager" is such a pain to write over and over, it will from now on be abbreviated as "PDP")
"Er…just one moment," the first mate said as he pulled out a copy of "Pirate Talk for Idiot Minions" and opened it up. "Um…aye, captain!"
"That be a good start," PDP nodded. "Now, repeat ye last report, but this time, talk like a real buccaneer."
The first mate groaned as he frantically flipped through his book to find the appropriate phrases. "Uh…all the hatches be battened down and…the crew be ready to grab the booty?"
"Yo ho ho! That be more like it!" PDP commented approvingly. "Now, give the men the order to attack immediately!"
"Aye, captain!" The first mate replied as he sent the order for the minions to attack.
~~~~Enchanted Lake~~~~
The fairies from Pixie Hollow were fluttering back and forth across the Enchanted Lake, trying their best to undo the enviro-magical catastrophe being caused by the mysterious gunk. They were so focused on their tasks that they didn't notice the rustling of leaves from the foliage lining the lakeside.
Therefore, it was a huge shock for the Never-fairies when a bunch of pirate-dressed goblins armed with battle axes and butterfly nets jumped out from behind the trees and bushes.
"Ahh! Run away!" One of the water fairies screamed as the fairies all began to scatter and flee from their attackers. Due to the element of surprise and the massive size difference, however, many were unable to escape and were quickly caught in a fairy's kryptonite–butterfly nets.
"Argh!" The PDP growled approvingly as he stepped out from behind the bushes after his men had gathered up most of the fairies. "This be a good first haul, ye scalawags! Now it be time to harvest me ill-begotten booty in me chest!"
"W-what are you going to do to us?" One of the captured fairies asked fearfully.
"Oh, don't be scared, little lassie," the PDP said in mock-assurance as he raised his pirate-hook right hand and slipped it into the butterfly net that held the fairy who had spoken. "All I be doing is taking ye fairy magic!"
With that, the PDP stuck the tip of his hook straight through the screaming fairy. Instead of being killed, however, her entire body was turned into pixie dust which melded together into a golden sphere about the size of the PDP's fist. The PDP then pulled the sphere out of the net and opened up the treasure chest in his chest, where he stowed it for safekeeping.
"Yo-ho-ho!" The PDP said cheerfully, having gotten his first taste of fairy magic in over 1,000 years. "That hit the spot! Bring me the next little pixie, ye scalawags!"
"Not so fast!" A female voice shouted. The PDP and his minions turned in the direction of the voice and saw two adolescent females standing on the lakeside.
"Argh!" The PDP growled. "Who be these lassies that be interrupting me plundering?"
"Looks like you were right, Mal," Lonnie said. "The Evil Queen's next monster attack came sooner rather than later."
"Then it's a good thing we're here to stop it," Mal replied as she raised her Purple Mythicore over her head. "Ready?"
"Ready!" Lonnie nodded as she raised her Yellow Mythicore.
"Mythos…Descendium!" Mal and Lonnie called out as they raised their other hands and tapped the crystals embedded into their Mythicores.
(A/N: The following bit are Mal and Lonnie's morphing sequences. I've decided to write out the morphing sequences of each Ranger so that my avid readers can get an idea of what they look like. I'm going to write out the morphing sequence for each Mythic Ranger once, and then every time the Rangers morph in the future, I'll make a note to refer back to the first morphing sequence.)
Mal's Morphing Sequence
Mal swung her now-glowing Mythicore as she spun around in place, thus bathing her body from the neck down in a purple light. The spectral apparition of a purple dragon then erupted from her Mythicore and flew over her head. The dragon then descended back towards Mal and crashed into her, creating an explosion of white and purple light. The light faded after a moment, revealing Mal in her Ranger suit from her neck down. The dragon's head then floated up to her eye-level and faced its Ranger, before bursting into a flurry of purple, white, and silver sparkles that surrounded Mal's head and formed her dragon-themed helmet. Now in her full Ranger form, the Purple Mythic Ranger made a heroic pose.
End of Mal's Morphing Sequence
Lonnie's Morphing Sequence
Lonnie swung her now-glowing Mythicore as she spun around in place, thus bathing her body from the neck down in a yellow light. The spectral apparition of a yellow phoenix then erupted from her Mythicore and flew over her head. The phoenix then descended back towards Lonnie and crashed into her, creating an explosion of white and yellow light. The light faded after a moment, revealing Lonnie in her Ranger suit from her neck down. The phoenix's head then floated up to her eye-level and faced its Ranger, before bursting into a flurry of yellow, white, and silver sparkles that surrounded Lonnie's head and formed her phoenix-themed helmet. Now in her full Ranger form, the Yellow Mythic Ranger made a heroic pose.
End of Lonnie's Morphing Sequence
"Dragon of Magic: Purple Mythic Ranger!" Mal called out as the crystal in her Mythicore and the various identical crystals embedded into her belt and the sides of her helmet flashed and the spectral image of the purple Dragonzord appeared, then just as quickly disappeared in a flash of purple light.
"Phoenix of Sun: Yellow Mythic Ranger!" Lonnie followed up, the crystals in her suit flashing as well, her own yellow Phoenixzord briefly appearing behind her in a flash of yellow light.
"Argh!" The PDP growled. "Minions, attack!"
"Aye aye, captain!" The 20 minions replied as they charged across the gunky surface of the Enchanted Lake (which was solid enough for even them to walk on) towards the two Rangers.
"Armiocomus!" Mal called out as she and Lonnie ran into battle, summoning her Dragon Baton and activating its Staff Mode they did so. "Dragon Baton: Staff Mode!"
Mal started off by jabbing one end of her staff into the minion immediately in front of her, releasing a powerful jolt of magical energy through its body and sending it flying back into the minion behind it. As two more minions came at her from the 1 o'clock and 11 o'clock directions, the Purple Ranger swung her staff in a wide arc in front of her, disarming both minions. She then followed up with a leap into the air and an enhanced kick to each of their heads, leaving both minions with a serious migraine as the sound of Mal's foot connecting with their helmets rang through their heads. Stepping over the unconscious forms of her fallen opponents, Mal continued onto the next set of minions.
At the same time, Lonnie was fighting her own group of enemies. As they were fighting in an enclosed space which did not lend itself well to ranged weapons, she had already decided not to summon her Phoenix Bow and to just stick with hand-to-hand combat. With that in mind, Lonnie leaped into the air and landed a roundhouse kick on the side of her first enemy's head, sending flying to the right and crashing into the rocky beach that sat next to the Enchanted Lake. Gracefully landing on the ground, the Yellow Ranger then drop-kicked two more minions as they came at her from either side. From her crouched position, she then delivered a vertical kick straight into the next minion's chin, before following up with another kick straight into the minion's stomach.
What I wouldn't give for to have a short-ranged weapon right now, Lonnie thought as she dodged a clumsily-executed slash that a minion attempted with its cutlass. Being a martial arts experts, the daughter of Mulan could easily tell that these guys had just been given their new swords and had not yet learned how to use them. While this meant that she didn't have to worry about any swordplay, the minions' clumsiness and lack of control over their new weapons actually made them very dangerous.
Meanwhile, Mal had already finished her way through all of the minions she had to deal with and was now facing the PDP. "So, you've got a name?" Mal asked as she held her staff in preparation to attack.
"Ye might call me the Pixie Dust Pillager!" The PDP introduced himself. "Of course, ye once knew me as a little, blond-haired guppy before me godfather brought me to the Evil Queen to become the creature ye see now."
Underneath her helmet, Mal's eyes widened in realization. "Sammy Smee?" She asked incredulously. "Is that you?"
"Argh! That be correct, ye lil' lass of a fairy," the PDP confirmed as he drew his cutlass. "Now, I be taking your booty and making it me own."
"Sorry, but I already have a boyfriend," Mal quipped as she ran forward and swung her staff, creating a flurry of sparks as it clashed with the PDP's blade. The sword now occupied, Mal tried to slip the other end of her staff under the PDP's feet in order to trip him, but the PDP had anticipated that and caught it with its pirate hook. Catching the young half-fairy off guard, the PDP ripped the Dragon Baton out of her hands and threw it to the side.
"Take this, lass!" The PDP said as he slashed Mal across the chest. Her suit protected her from getting cut in half, however the force of the impact still sent her crashing into the rock face on the side of the lake.
"Now, I'll take ye loot, Purple Ranger!" The PDP said as he tore through Mal with his hook.
"AHHHH!" Mal screamed in pain as the pirate-themed monster ripped out a glowing, purple silhouette of her from her body. Once the silhouette was completely separated from her body, Mal fell to the ground as her Ranger suit vanished in a flash of white light and she fell out of her morph.
"Yo-ho-ho, what a prize!" The PDP said as he compressed the purple silhouette he had taken was compressed into a solid, purple sphere the size of a basketball and put it in his "treasure chest" chest. "The magic of the Purple Ranger–it all be mine!"
"Ugh…" Mal groaned as she sat herself up. "Give me back my magic, you scurvy bastard!"
"I be thinking…not, lil' lassie," PDP replied as he raised his cutlass. "But I wouldn't be worrying too much about me magic, if I were ye. After all, ye won't be having a need for it in Davy Jones' Locker!"
"Get away from my girlfriend, pirate head!" Ben said as the Red Ranger suddenly leaped out of the bushes and struck the PDP with his Griffin Sword, sending the pirate-themed monster stumbling back. Meanwhile, the Blue and Pink Rangers were leaping into action over where Lonnie was being ganged up on by the minions and helping her out.
"Ben?" Mal said weakly as she looked up at her boyfriend in shock. "But how…?"
"Apparently, there's some kind of alert spell woven into our Mythicores that activates as soon as one of us morphs," Ben explained as he helped his girlfriend to her feet. "Our Mythicores started glowing as soon as you and Lonnie engaged these minions, at which point we rushed here as fast as we could. But enough about me, what about you? Are you alright?"
"Honestly? Not really," Mal replied as she started to move away from Ben and tried to stand on her own, only to stumble as soon as he was no longer supporting her. "That monster…I think he stole my fairy magic somehow."
"That be exactly what I did," the PDP said as he got back to his feet. "Ye fairy magic would now be belonging to me, ye scurvy mutt, and I never be giving it back!"
"Oh, I think you'll be giving it back, alright!" Ben growled as he waved his Griffin Sword menacingly. "Nobody steals my girlfriend's magic and gets away with it!"
"And what makes ye think that I'll just give such a bountiful booty back?" The PDP challenged as he waved his hook in the air. "With the magic of such a powerful fairy in me possession, me powers now be much greater than they were before. Now, I'll be taking the magic of every fairy that still be around!"
"No!" Mal gasped. She watched helplessly as every fairy that was still trapped in a butterfly net or bird cage was turned into small, golden spheres of pixie dust, which then flew into the PDP's open "treasure chest" chest and "swallowed" whole.
"Ah!" The Pink Ranger cringed as she felt an invisible force tug at her magic. Recognizing that the force was trying to rip her magic out of her, Jane immediately began fighting back against the force that was trying to steal her power, just as her mother had taught her to do when she was little. Fortunately, the PDP's plundering spell had been cast over such a wide area that its strength had been spread out too thinly to absorb the magic of a human-sized fairy who was also a Power Ranger.
Realizing this, the PDP canceled the spell. "Ah, well, I was hoping to plunder the booty of both fairy Rangers, but I be guessing that one Ranger lass and a boatload of Never-fairies will be enough for now," the pirate-themed monster shrugged and gathered up his men. "Minions, retreat!"
"Oh no, you don't!" Ben roared as he charged forward with his Griffin Sword held high. Before he could reach the monster who had stolen his girlfriend's magic, however, the PDP and his forces vanished in an evil-green light.
"Get back here, you monster!" Ben demanded furiously. "When I get my hands on you, I'll–"
"Ben, calm down," Triton said as he walked up to the Red Ranger. "The monster and the minions are probably long gone by now. Shouting at someone that isn't even here isn't going to do any good."
"I'm going after that thing, Triton, and nothing's going to stop me," Ben declared, his mind still clouded by anger.
"Do you have any idea where they went?" Triton asked. Ben's silence was answer enough. "I didn't think so. Don't get me wrong, I want to defeat that monster just as much as you do, but we can't do that if we just wander around, searching blindly for it. Our best hope is to go back to Auradon Prep and have the Fairy Godmother find it using her magic."
"But I–" Ben protested.
"And besides," Triton continued. "We need to take Mal back anyway so that she can get medical attention."
"I…I'm fine, Triton," Mal said weakly, still bracing herself against her boyfriend. "D…don't…w-worry about me…"
Ben put his gloved hand under Mal's chin and gently lifted her head up so that he could see her face. Her skin looked even paler than usual (if that was even possible), and there were dark circles under her eyes, making her look like she hadn't slept in days. Her green eyes looked dim and lifeless–and was it just Ben's imagination, or was her purple hair gradually turning gray?
"No, Mal, we need to get you to a doctor," Ben said, his concern for his girlfriend instantly taking the place of his hatred for the monster that had done this to her. "Triton's right."
"No…" Mal protested as she shakily moved away from Ben in order to prove that she was alright. "I…I'll manage, Benny-b…"
Mal was cut off as her legs gave out from under her and she fell to the ground. Her vision was becoming dark and blurry as she began to lose awareness of her surroundings. The last thing she heard before passing out completely was the sound of Ben calling out her name…and then she knew no more.
To Be Continued…
A/N: Cliffhanger! Sorry it took me so long to post this chapter, but I had a busy Christmas break and now I'm back at college with a tough semester ahead of me. I wanted to fit the entire episode into a single chapter, but then I realized how long it already was and decided to make it two-part. Once I finish the second part, I'll post it, but after that, don't be expecting me to post any more chapters until May.