Chapter Two: Aquitar

The Gold Ranger demorphed once she entered her ship. Tria collapsed in the docking bay as Zordon struggled to climb inside. He dropped his weapon, the red tiger sword, on the ground as the ship began to lift off, falling to a knee himself. He and Tria had been found by Vile's troops patrolling that particular sector. The two fighters had clawed their way through the planet's rough terrain to get to the Triforian ship waiting for them. Activating the golden cog attached to its engine, the ship became invisible and made its way into space.

"Huh? Who's driving the ship?" Zordon asked Tria.

"I am." A young girl with black hair said, walking into the room.

Once she had seen they were out of danger's way, she had set the ship on autopilot to get to their destination of Aquitar. She looked over, smiling at Zordon.

"And who might you be?" Zordon said as he wiped his blue hair from off his sweat covered brow. He looked at the girl and found her to be quite stunning. She had black hair that fell down to her waist and fair skin.

"Oh, my! Tria!" The girl said, rushing over to Tria. She hadn't noticed Tria's condition when she entered the room.

"You should be more concerned with your fallen comrade than with introductions." Someone said from the door. He was a young man, roughly the same height as Zordon. He had short blonde hair that he wore slicked back. Despite his advice for concern to Zordon, he stood unmoving in the doorway watching the scene.

Zordon sneered at him as he forced himself to his feet. He turned to see the young woman help Tria up.

"Zordon, this is my crew. This here is...my sister Trinity. And...the man at the door..." Tria tried to finish her sentence, but was having difficulties after the experience she had fleeing from her enemies.

He raised a hand, closing his eyes and nodding as he began to walk into the room. He marched over to Zordon and extended his hand, offering it. "Name's Yoral. I'm from Eltar, like you. I guess that gives us something to talk about before we get to know each other."

Zordon turned to Tria without shaking Yoral's hand. As he did, he answered the other Eltarian in the room by saying, "Yeah, I guess."

As Tria drank some water Trinity was giving her, she continued speaking to Zordon. "My sis mans the ship while I go onto the planets I help. Yoral here was hired to stay behind and be a bodyguard."

Yoral chuckled at that. "Yep. I'm a grad from the Alliance and served for five years as a soldier under Commander Risp. I'd say I'm more than qualified to help protect this piece of... fine machinery." He said, winking at Zordon.

Zordon caught on to what Yoral was insinuating. Eltar was one of the more wealthy planets in The United Alliance. The ship they were in was hardly suited for flight by the standards of wealthy Eltarians.

Trinity turned to Zordon. "Our ultimate mission while helping out these planets in need is to find Master Ivicar. His ship was captured two months ago by enemy forces. We are trying to find where he is being kept.

"Quite a hefty challenge you've given yourselves..." Zordon said.

"Nothing we can't handle!" Yoral said, laughing.

"Someone has to do it." Tria said.

"So, you have potential information on Aquitar, I take it?" Zordon asked.

Trinity turned away and pretended to begin to fix something on the workbench next to where Tria was sitting. Tria shrugged.

"...Not exactly. You see, since Ivicar disappeared, a lot of the Morphing Masters have been trying to continue the work of the Alliance the best way they saw fit. Delphine kinda did that by...starting a war against Triforia... So we aren't going to Aquitar for Aquitar's sake. We're going to speak in favor of Triforia." Tria said.

"It's been a pain... Even with the Gold Ranger." Yoral said from behind Zordon.

Perking up a little, Trinity turned to Zordon. "But now that you're here, you can help us!" She wore a large smile, cooking her head to the side and looking up while leaning forward, trying to make eye contact with Zordon.

I can't get involved with these small battles... there's too much on the line. I have to make sure I don't make The Guardian's work meaningless... But how do I explain this? Zordon thought.

"I'll stick around until we find Ivicar. After that, I have more important things to take care of..." Zordon said, instantly realizing how rough he had been. He hadn't wanted it to be so mean, but it was done and he didn't want to make himself look needy by chasing after her to give an apology.

To Zordon's surprise, her smile did not fade. "So... you're joining the team?"

"What team?"

"Team Victory." Yoral answered. "The Alliance adopted the word 'victory' as their motto, and Trinity has the idea that if we all stay together with the same goal, we'll be able to do better."

Smart girl... Zordon thought.

"..." Zordon just stood there, almost in a trance as he stared into Trinity's eyes.

"Nothin' to say?" Tria asked, smirking.

"...Let's just get going. There's a lot of work to be done." Zordon said, turning around.

"Hey! You made you leader!?" Yoral complained. Not answering, Zordon left the room to find someplace he could be alone and think.

Gokai Red flew through a wall into a building. He stood up and dusted himself off, awaiting another attack.

"Is that all you got?" He asked Alliance Red as he charged into the building.

"Oh, there's plenty more on the way. Don't you worry, pirate." The Alliance Ranger said as he swung at Gokai Red.

Grabbing his arm, they stood at a standstill for a moment, staring at each other. Gokai Red then pulled out his sword and attempted to hit Alliance Red before Alliance Red kicked him in the gut.

"Oomph." Gokai Red said, staggering back. "I'm gonna get you back for that!" He warned.

Outside, Gokai Green kicked Alliance Green in the chest, sending him flying before fall to the ground. As Alliance Green stood back up, Gokai Green began rubbing his hands on the bottom part of his green vest. He was trying to get the wrinkles out of his suit.

"Uh... what are you doing?" The Alliance Ranger asked.

"Oh, um... hey! I'm OCD! You can't make fun of me! That's not nice!"

Alliance Green through his hands in the air. "Whoa! Whoa! I'm not making fun of anyone! I was curious!"

"Liar!" Gokai Green yelled as he charged Alliance Green. As he did, he tripped on a rock and fell into Alliance Green. They both fell back in a tangle and interrupted Gokai Yellow as she battled Alliance Yellow.

"Hey! Don't interrupt, Doc!" Gokai Yellow complained.

"Get yourself together, soldier!" Alliance Yellow ordered.

"Sorry, Luka..." Gokai Green replied.

Saluting his superior officer, Alliance Green exclaimed, "Yes, ma'am...sir...ma'am! It won't happen again!"

A few yards away, Gokai Blue stood staring at Alliance Blue.

"You ready?" The Gokaiger asked.

Without a word, Alliance Blue raced forward, his mini-cape flapping in the wind behind him. Under his helmet, Joe smiled and ran to meet the oncoming attack.

Alliance Pink dodged an attack easily from Gokai Pink.

"Wow! You sure are fast!" Gokai Pink said, admiring the Alliance Ranger.

"Uh... thanks?"

"Can you teach me sometime? I'd rather like that..." Gokai Pink said, clasping her hands in front of her.

Alliance Pink cooked her head to the side in confusion. "Huh?"

Meanwhile, Alliance Red found himself flying through the air as Gokai Red menacingly walked toward where he was to land. Gokai Red had his blade in hand, ready to finish off the ranger in front of him.

"STOP!" The ten warriors heard from up above. As they all looked up, the Galleon flew over. A figure jumped out of the ship and landed in the middle the rangers. It was Villamax.

"What. Are. You. Doing!? I let you go on one mission without me and this is what happens!? Marvelous: what are the mission parameters?"

"Find treasure and leave..." Gokai Red replied, looking down at the ground in embarrassment.

Villamax pointed at Gokai Yellow. "And I'm especially disappointed in you. Of all people, how could you forget the objective is to find treasure? Honor your purpose, Gokaigers! If you want to he pirates, then be pirates!

"And you, Alliance Rangers! You're supposed to be protectors of the planets. Do you think that is what you have done? No! Look at the damage to property you all have caused! Honor. Your. Purpose! Gokaigers: let's go!" Villamax commanded. And before the Alliance Rangers could react, Villamax and the Gokaigers were on their ship, speeding away into space. Before it left, though, a glass bottle flew down and hit Alliance Green in the head.

"Ouch!"

Alliance Pink walked over to it and picked it up. Inside was a rolled parchment. She uncorked the bottle and pulled pulled it out. She began reading it to herself.

"What does it say, Priscilla?" Alliance Yellow asked.

"'Until next time! Sincerely, Captain Marvelous. P.S. Your suits look weird.'"

As the Alliance Rangers began cleaning up the mess they left behind due to the battle, a young man who had been hiding in the shadows began running home in excitement. He had never before seen a spectacle of that proportion.

"Power Rangers are so cool!" He said, almost giddy.

"Stand down, Dregon." Lord Zedd warned his foe. He pointed his Z-Staff at the gold masked man.

"How many times must I embarrass you?" Dregon said calmly, waiting to attack. He studied Zedd's new body. He found it interesting that the fighter who he once saw as an old man who he had taken pity for now looked like a menacing beast. He wondered what could have happened to have caused this transformation.

Lord Zedd was feeling weak. The serum Finster had made for him six months ago was beginning to run out. The tubes placed on his body to act as a vascular system were near empty, causing him to dig deep for power. He had been able to feed off a planet within the last two months, but since his body had been given a taste of the molecular properties that he once had access to as The Dark Lord, the lifestream of a planet was not enough on its own. He needed Finster's serum.

While traveling the cosmos, by chance, Zedd had stumbled upon Edenoi. He had looked upon the planet and remembered the humiliation Dregon had handed to him before. Outside of needing to feed, Zedd wanted retribution for the last battle. He had figured with the power he now possessed from the Zeo Crystal, he would be able to defeat Dregon easily. It just so happened that at that point, Zedd's power was failing him more than he had thought.

"Would you like me to finish the beast, Count Dregon?" Cyclopter said from a few feet away, ready to serve his master.

"No, Cyclopter. This is between him and me. Observe my fighting technique." Dregon said casually. He pointed a blaster at Zedd as he jumped into the air, firing on him. Zedd easily blocked the blast with his Z-Staff. He shot a beam of his own toward Dregon, who was still in mid-air. Dregon avoided the attack by spinning away as he landed.

Zedd fell to a knee, clutching his left arm. The blast he had just sent was the final drop of water in a full bucket: he had nearly depleted his energy store. As a safety precaution, his body began to shut down to ensure he wouldn't continue pushing himself. For all intents and purposes, he was "bonking", or hitting the wall.

"You... have not... seen the last... of Lord Zedd!" He said as he teleported back into space.

"I. Hate. Dregon!" Zedd said furiously. He began to fly through space. He knew he needed Finster's serum, but did not know where to find him. As he thought about the scientist, flashes of the palace on the moon reeled through his mind. One of the images he saw was that of Finster toiling away at his laboratory in the palace.

"Excellent! I have found him! Now, I must feed!" He said as he made his way to the palace on the moon.

"I do not wish to have Power Rangers on my planet." Delphine said matter of factly. She looked at Zordon and the Gold Ranger disapprovingly.

"Power down..." Tria said. She had come down to the planet in her battle attire, knowing the planet was in the middle of a civil war. She did not give any thought that it wouldn't run well with negotiations between her and Aquitar.

"Our apologies, Delphine. We did not mean to offend." Zordon said.

"Power Rangers are what destroyed the Alliance. I do not know why you insult me with your presence, Tria. You attacked the Morphing Masters and helped Master Vile get away. You were an instrumental part of the Final Siege. The only reason I have agreed to this meeting is because of Zordon.

"Now, Zordon. After you passed our bio-scan, we were able to identify that you really are who you say you are. I must ask, then: how are you here? I watched you be destroyed by the Orb of Doom."

Zordon shook his head. "I wasn't destroyed. The Orb of Doom hit me with temporal displacement. I was shot forward six months into the future. I guess you could say I got off lucky." He said, not telling the whole truth.

"Interesting. We would love for you to, at some time, come to our research labs. I'm sure our head of research, Cestro, would love to get some information for us to better understand time travel." Delphine said.

"Okay, but look, Delphine. We are here to speak about Aquitar's attacks on Triforia."

"Yes, Zordon. We are launching a campaign against them. They are a traitorous race and a cancer. I cannot sit idly by as they spread throughout the universe. They were first, followed by Edenoi, then the Karovan System. They must all be removed before they spell doom for The United Alliance." Delphine said, looking intently at Zordon and ignoring Tria.

"Please, Delphine. Listen to me. That was not me. That was an impostor."

"It's true Delphine. It was not Tria." Zordon said.

"If I am to believe this, then where is your proof? I have never seen any proof conclusive to this idea of two Gold Rangers. How do I even know you are fighting for what is right, Zordon?"

As Delphine said this, two Aquitians entered the room. They wore a suit of armor similar to what Alliance soldiers would wear.

"You see, Zordon, I wanted to hear for myself your stance on the battle against Triforia. The last I had known about you, you were destroyed by the Orb of Doom. Now you are here. What if the Orb just sent you to Master Vile's ship? What if... he had trained you up in how you should be now. Six months is plenty of time to undergo a brainwashing procedure with the right kind of Black Magic..." Delphine said as the two Aquitian soldiers stood at attention.

"Delphine... please don't do this..." Tria pleaded.

"Corcus? Aurico? Arrest these two. They are supporters of the vigilante forces destroying our universe." She said with a blank look on her face. She was cold and emotionless, ready to do whatever was needed to secure her beliefs.

As the two soldiers advanced, an explosion rocked the door of the room, sending it flying off its hinges. At the door stood Yoral and Trinity.

"Come on, you two. Let's hustle!" Yoral said, motioning for them to follow him.

"It's morphin' time! Gold Ranger power!" Tria cried at as she ran forward, morphing into her power suit. She summoned her Power Staff as she ran.

Zordon felt useless. He was forced to leave his sword on the ship by Aquitar officials. Without Saba with him, he was unable to teleport it to his person.

"Hey, Zordon, catch!" Trinity yelled, tossing the saber to Zordon. He caught it just as a soldier appeared in front of him, coming from an adjacent corridor in the hall's network. He blasted at the soldier's feet, causing the soldier to jump out of harm's way.

As they approached the docking bay, they saw a legion of soldiers standing as a blockade between them and their ship. Zordon knew not what to do. Not only did he wish to bring no permanent harm to the soldiers there, he also did not know how he and his group could overcome such a large number of fighters. He lowered his weapon and began to wonder what he could do.

Suddenly, a black figure flew down from the rafters and began swooping through the crowd. When Zordon looked, he saw he could not find the Gold Ranger.

"Oh, no..." Trinity said.

"What is it?" Zordon asked.

"She's gone into Shadow Mode. That attack is very powerful. The more she uses it, the closer she gets to exhaustion. She hasn't even fully recovered from the last time she used it. That's why she was so bad after that last adventure the two of you had when I picked you guys up." She said, worry filling her face.

As the Gold Ranger continued to pounce along the fighters, Zordon and Yoral began to fight their way through the crowd as well, with Trinity following behind. Zordon did everything he could to only incapacitate the soldiers. He did not want to know he had the blood of an innocent fighter on his hands.

The Gold Ranger finished taking out the majority of the soldiers. As she landed, she dropped to a knee. Her power suit started fading in and out around her. The powers were becoming unstable once again. She dug the hilt of the Power Staff into the ground and pulled herself to her feet. With the last ounce of energy she had, she staggered onto the ship.

Zordon knocked over two guards before turning to Trinity. "Run in there and make sure Tria's okay." He ordered. "Then get that ship running. We'll hold them off as long as we can!"

Trinity ran to the ship and did as Zordon directed. After getting Tria some water and placing on a bench to rest, she ran and began to start the ship. As Zordon heard the ship's engines turn on, he ran toward the open door of the ship's cargo bay. He turned around to see if Yoral was following.

As Zordon looked, he saw Yoral use his sword on an Aquitian soldier, slaying him. He looked around and noticed many Aquitians on the ground, slash marks across their bodies. Yoral was fighting to destroy, not to incapacitate. Zordon's eyes narrowed and his lips curled.

"Yoral! Get here now!" He ordered.

Yoral turned around and glared at Zordon. He then started walking casually back to the ship as, unnoticed, an Aquitian soldier began running full speed toward Yoral. Zordon quickly charged an attack and sent a ball of white Morphing Energy at the soldier, knocking him off his feet. Yoral's eyes had widened as the ball had flown past him. He turned around and saw the soldier fall. Delphine, Corcus, and Aurico entered the room as Zordon finished his attack.

"Nice!" He stated, giving Zordon a thumbs up. He then turned around and headed for the soldier. As he got into close proximity, he lifted up his sword and plunged it into the Aquitian's chest, twisting it as it sank in.

"Nooo!" Zordon and Delphine yelled simultaneously.

Chuckling to himself, Yoral ran back to the ship. As he ran up the ramp, he flashed a smile at Zordon. Once inside the cargo bay, Zordon grabbed Yoral by the collar of his long, white jacket and slammed him against a wall. He looked into Yoral's eyes, fire seemingly burning in his own.

"What were you thinking? Those are innocent men!"

"And so are we! They wouldn't have hesitated to destroy us! Why should I hesitate?" He pushed Zordon off of him and straightened his jacket. He then moved his neck around, popping sounds emanating from his neck as he did.

"That's not for us to care about. We don't kill. That's that."

"Oh, really? That's that? Who made you boss!?" Yoral yelled back.

"No one." Tria said, sitting up from the bench on which she lay. Both Zordon and Yoral jumped a little, startled. They hadn't noticed her in the room.

"I'm in charge." She said. "And I say we listen to what Zordon said. If at all possible, no killing."

"Hmph. Fine. I'll be in my quarters if anyone needs me." Yoral said as he walked out of the room.

"He's a hothead." Zordon said to Tria.

"Yeah, but his heart is in the right place." Tria replied.

"I hope so." Zordon said, staring at the door from where Yoral had left the room.

Back on Aquitar, Delphine stared at the bodies lying on the floor. Tears ran down her face. This is my fault... if I hadn't let them in here, this would not have happened. I was a fool for thinking I could capture them so easily. All I did was put my people in jeopardy once again. She thought as she saw the medics tend to the wounded.

"Delphine, please do not cry." Cestro said as he approached her. He gave her a hug that she desperately needed.

"First, I cause the Civil War. Now, I bring in these beasts to destroy our base... I've done nothing but trouble for Aquitar as of late."

"Delphine, these things happen. No one could have done better. I trust you. Please, have faith in yourself."

Finding her composure and taking a deep breath, Delphine calmed herself down. "Thank you for those kinds words, Cestro." Then, switching gears, she looked at him and asked, "Do you have any news from the surface?"

He shook his head. "No. Our forces are still keeping the Groundlings at bay. I do not know how much longer they can hold up. Their forces are gaining more power."

Delphine frowned. "They must be getting outside aid. No doubt from Master Vile or any of the other villains running around as of late."

"Delphine, there is something I wish to ask you... I have some schematics..." He handed her the paper. Her eyes widened as she looked it over.

"How could you propose such a thing!?"

"I found these schematics on an old hard drive from one of the computers we salvaged from the old research and development lab. I think it is a viable option for us, especially with the current atmosphere of the universe. This option is trending..." Cestro said.

"But we will just add more to the problem. Someone needs to take a stand and fight for what Sentinel Knight believed in."

"We are going to be swept up by modern tech if we don't follow suit, though. I mean, the main portion of the Alliance has already-"

"They are not the Alliance. They are a splinter soldier group that used to be run by Ivicar. I have no evidence saying Ivicar authorized that sort of power to be wielded by the Alliance. And even if he did, he is wrong. Sentinel Knight would have never allowed for such a thing." And with that, Delphine walked around, angry. She began to help the medics as they continued their care.

Cestro looked down at the schematics. On the bottom right corner was the name of the scientist who had made the schematics: Burai. Cestro continued to look at the paper and the designs Burai had uploaded to his own personal account. Since the crash of the Alliance's mainframe, Cestro had collected as many computers as he could from the old headquarters and had his team work on hacking into all of the accounts on each computer, looking for information to help them boost their military.

The designs Cestro was looking at came from five coins shown on the document. They each had symbols on them. On the notes throughout the pages, Burai mentioned the purpose of the coins: to create a new team of Power Rangers.