From Deep In The Shadows

In the weeks that followed, Alia became friends with the Rangers. She was getting along better with Joel ever since he'd turned his sights to Ms. Fairweather. And she'd stopped addressing them by their surnames as well. However, in spite of their little friendships, Alia was still quite wary of them as they were her enemies as well as her husband's and she knew not everyone on the Aquabase fully trusted her and was suspicious because of her unexplainable knowledge of demons and her constant reclusiveness.

Anyone who asked or saw her ring knew she was married, but she never mentioned his name. When asked where he was, she just said, "working overseas for the army." It was true enough in a way. The Rangers had only asked about her family once as Alia had said, "You ask too many questions," and they'd taken the hint.

It took a great deal of control to hide her impatience for it to be her and Ryan's twentieth birthday from the others. Ryan and the other demons were also impatient. The demons were more anxious for a victory than anything else. Alia hadn't helped the Rangers like in their first battle, but they were still winning. Diabolico's tolerance for the failures was wearing thinner than a sheet of paper.

Finally, three months after the Rangers' battle with the demons began, it was the eve of Alia and Ryan's twentieth birthday and as such, Alia once again journeyed to the Skull Cavern where her demon guardians and human husband were awaiting her. The minute she arrived, she was swept into Ryan's arms.

"Lia!" said Ryan. He kissed her. "It's been too long. I've missed you."

"It's only been a day since I last came here, beloved," said Alia, chuckling.

Ryan gave a rare grin. "Far too long, my love," he said.

She kissed him and then pulled out a small wrapped gift from her pocket. "While I know you're not twenty and nor is it our anniversary for another few hours, I think it's time enough. Happy Birthday and Happy Anniversary," she said.

Ryan opened it to find a new titanium pocket watch with the word, Forever, inscribed on the inside.

"It's great. Thank you." He handed her a gift. "This is for you."

Alia's gift was a silver necklace in the shape of a cross with sapphires set into it. "It's beautiful, beloved. Thank you."

Ryan fastened it around her neck and then kissed her again. "I'm glad you like it."

There was the sound of someone clearing their throat and then they saw the other demons had arrived.

"If you're quite finished with that, we'd like to get on with the report," said Loki. "Alia, do you have news to report or don't you?"

"Patience, Loki. I have news to report, I assure you," said Alia.

"What kind of news?" asked Vypra.

"It's good news, I assure you," said Alia. "For the past three months, the Rangers have been constantly gaining victories against us, even without my help. But the time has come for them to fall and fall hard."

"Oh?" said Diabolico. "What is it you have planned?"

"My twentieth birthday is midnight tonight," said Ryan. "The time has come for me to take my revenge at last. We'll use the Rangers own powers against them in the only way we can."

"Lightspeed's been working on a new power to defeat you. They've tapped in the Morphing Grid again and created the Titanium Morpher. Far more powerful than all of the other Rangers combined. But its power is far too much for an ordinary human to bear. But if the Morpher went into the hands of another…" Alia paused for effect as the others caught on and grinned.

"Ah, I see. This is perfect!" said Diabolico. "This could be the chance we've been waiting for. Ryan will be the new Titanium Ranger."

"Exactly our thoughts, my lord," said Ryan.

"The Red Ranger is going to be its last test subject. But the poor fool doesn't even know I've altered the Titanium Morpher so only my husband can be its wielder," said Alia, scornfully. "Ryan's only one with enough strength and power to do so."

"Excellent," said Diabolico. "Our patience will at last pay off. Alia, you will only interfere when necessary. Otherwise, Ryan must do this alone, understood?

She nodded.

"You've done wonderfully, Alia," said Ryan, looking pleased as he placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'll take the Titanium Morpher tonight. And then tomorrow we'll hide no more and we'll have our revenge at long last."

XXX

After midnight that night, Ryan dove into the waters of Mariner Bay and rose up through the pool. He kept the shadows of the dimly-lit halls, leaving the small puddle of water in his tracks. With the training he'd gotten from the demons over the past fifteen years, he was quite skilled at sneaking around. But his skills were hardly needed as the base was devoid of any human life, save for the night guards who failed to notice a thing.

Finding his father's office was an easy task, considering he had the Aquabase's schematics memorized thanks to Alia. The Captain's office was dark and Ryan turned on his flashlight to see.

He began searching the room and came to the desk. The first drawer he looked through contained the keys to the vault, along with something else he had not seen in a very long time.

It was a photograph of his father, sister and himself. His father was holding Dana high in his arms and clutching Ryan's hand from where he stood down below on the ground. They were all smiling and looked happy. Unconsciously, he tenderly rubbed the photograph before his anger came back.

Father did nothing but lie to everyone, he thought, angrily. He only cared about my sister! He took the photo, half-tempted to go after his father now, but he quickly turned his mind back to his mission. He'd waited fifteen years for vengeance. A few more hours wouldn't make any difference.

Ryan grabbed the keys and shut the drawer. After a few more moments of searching, he found the vault and then opened it. He rummaged through the vault's contents, found the Morpher. Smirking, he attached it to his wrist and then quickly left the Aquabase.

This place should fix its security. This was too easy, he thought. They practically gave it to me!

When he was back at the Skull Cavern where Alia and the others were waiting, he held it out proudly. He shouted, "Titanium Power!" and then he morphed.

The amount of power that rushed through him, the strength he gained…it was beyond words. He felt better than he ever had before. For the next few hours, he practiced his Ranger powers and afterwards, the demons looked pleased and Alia looked proud.

"The Titanium Ranger will lead us all to victory," said Diabolico. "It is all I have foreseen and more."

"You truly are magnificent, beloved. I look forward to seeing you battle the Power Rangers," said Alia. "All our waiting will have paid off at last."

"Indeed," said Ryan.

He was looking forward to the morning.

When morning came, Vypra and her Batlings quickly began attacking Mariner Bay to get the Rangers' attention and her plans succeeded. The Rangers found her at a warehouse and hit her with their Thermo Blasters.

"Ah, my next target," she said, smirking.

"There's not going to be a next target this time, Vypra!" growled Carter. "Get out of here!"

Vypra just stood her ground. "It's only a matter of time before Mariner Bay falls to Diabolico!"

"Oh, I know when that'll be," said Joel, sarcastically. "Never!"

"Attack!" Vypra ordered her Batlings.

Four of the Rangers and the Batlings fought against each other while Carter dueled Vypra and then it all came to a standstill.

"I'm not going to tell you again!" said Carter. "Get out of Mariner Bay!"

"Yeah, forever!" agreed Kelsey.

"Wild horses couldn't drag me away," said Vypra. "Now is the moment I've been waiting for, the moment you meet your match!"

Suddenly, a thunderstorm-like portal appeared and out from it came Ryan in the form of the Titanium Ranger much to the shock of the Lightspeed Power Rangers. He took his fighting stance.

"It can't be," gasped Carter. "No one had access to the Morpher!"

"Who are you?" demanded Dana.

"Your worst nightmare!" said Ryan. He began walking towards them as the Rangers walked back in fear.

"Stop right there!" said Kelsey.

"We don't want any trouble with you!" said Chad.

"Well you got it," said Ryan. He grabbed his Titanium Laser and fired, causing a deadly blast no Thermo Blaster could match.

He then began fighting the Rangers, soundly defeating them with his superior fighting skills, agility and strength. Every time they tried to hit him, he merely dodged or blocked it and counteracted with more powerful blows. Eventually, he caused them to leave the warehouse and summon the Rescuebird.

"Stop right there!" ordered Carter.

But Ryan just ignored him and pulled out his Titanium Laser again. But this time, he began adjusting it.

"I warned you!" said Carter, as he fired.

But to everyone's shock, Ryan's Laser merely absorbed the Rescuebird's blast and then he fired it back at them, cackling. The damage he caused, forced them to retreat back to the Aquabase.

"Captain says we have to retreat, but this isn't over!" shouted Carter.

"On that much we agree!" hissed Ryan. "It won't be over until you're all destroyed."

When the Rangers were gone, Diabolico appeared, cackling. "Excellent work. I knew you'd be the perfect addition to our team. With your new powers and when Alia makes her true allegiance known to the Rangers, the city will soon be ours!"

"Yes, very soon," he agreed.

Everything they had planned and worked for fifteen years would soon come to pass at long last.

XXX

Back at the Aquabase, the Rangers and base staff were reeling at the theft of the Morpher and the Titanium Ranger who wanted them destroyed.

"Stolen from your safe?" said Chad, shocked, when the Captain spoke to them.

"Then it had to be someone in Lightspeed!" said Kelsey.

"Yeah, but nobody would do that," said Joel.

"Who else?" said Kelsey.

"Father, exactly who had access to the Morpher?" asked Dana.

"Only Alia and I knew how to gain access to it," said Captain Mitchell. "But given that the Titanium Ranger is a male and Alia has a solid alibi for the time of the theft, we can rule her out as a suspect. When Alia comes—"

"Captain, Alia's gone," interrupted Ms. Fairweather, bursting into the room.

Everyone stared.

"Wait, what do you mean she's gone?" asked Chad.

"Alia disappeared during the battle and she never came back to work. I've checked the entire base and no one else has seen her," said Ms. Fairweather. "She hasn't even showed up on the monitors and she wasn't caught on the security cameras. She's gone and we have no idea where she is."

"So our demonic advisor is MIA and we've got a very powerful Titanium Ranger working for demons who wants to destroy us?" said Joel. "Man, I knew I should've stayed in bed this morning."

"This doesn't make any sense," said Carter. "No demon could have gotten in to the base and taken her, so Alia must have left by herself, but where would she have gone and why now?"

"There's no telling where she would've gone if she left willingly. We'll send out a search party for Alia soon. And regardless of who or what stole the Morpher, the fact remains that Diabolico has the Morpher and the Titanium Power and possibly Alia as well. We have got to get both back as soon as possible," said Captain Mitchell.

"That won't be easy," said Ms. Fairweather, sighing.

The situation was not good. Not good at all.

XXX

Back the Skull Cavern, the demons were rejoicing over their victory. Alia and Ryan were kneeling before the demons.

"If the Rangers fight, then they'll be destroyed," said Vypra. "If they run, the city is ours!"

"Either way they choose, we win!" said Loki.

Diabolico stepped over to Ryan. "You have mastered the powers of the Titanium Morpher, thus proving yourself worthy of being the Titanium Ranger. Now we'll use those powers and Alia's magic to take back our homeland! Launch another attack within the hour."

"As you command, my lord," said Alia.

"We will not disappoint you, my lord," said Ryan.

"I know you won't," said Diabolico.

XXX

In Mariner Bay, a search party was underway for Alia and everyone was on the lookout for the Titanium Ranger, whoever he was. It was like the calm before the storm and then suddenly, the storm hit.

Downtown, a bright light appeared and then when the light vanished, Ryan was in its place just as the Lightspeed Rangers appeared.

"Who are you?" asked Carter.

Ryan turned to face them. "It doesn't matter anymore."

"Man, we don't want to have to hurt you," said Joel.

"Hurt me? Your pathetic powers are no match for my Titanium Powers!"

The Rangers then morphed.

"Don't make us do something we're going to regret!" said Carter.

"Give it your best shot!" challenged Ryan.

Once again Ryan began fighting them with his martial arts skills and Titanium Laser, and once again he was soundly defeating them until Ms. Fairweather had the Rangers summon the new V-Lancers which they used to fire upon Ryan.

For a moment, the blast seemed to have destroyed him, but then Ryan's strength began to return and he staggered to his feet, much to their shock and horror.

"I don't believe it!" said Carter. "He's still getting up! Nothing could've survived that!" He turned to Ryan. "Stand down before this escalates! Don't force us to destroy you!"

Ryan just ignored him and started walking towards the Rangers, forcing them to fire again. But this time, their blasts didn't even touch him as suddenly a shield came up around him, preventing the second V-Lancers blast from harming him and then a figure in a black and silver hooded dress with long flowing sleeves appeared. It was the same shield that had protected them in their first battle so long ago. To find it protecting their enemy was a shock, to say the least.

"Now what's going to happen?" said Kelsey.

"Now you're to deal with me as well as him. Kenzia!"

Bright bursts of energy blasted from her hands, knocking them all down and wounding them and then she stepped closer to Ryan, who was smirking beneath his helmet as he was healed by a spell.

"Did you really think I'd stand by and let you destroy him, Rangers? You're more foolish than I thought you were."

"Who are you?" asked Chad.

The figure drew back its hood to reveal Alia. Her hair was up and glittering on her neck was a silver and sapphire cross. She looked very little like the woman they had all come to know. In fact, she looked dark and beautiful in a frightening way.
"Alia?" said the Lightspeed Rangers in unison.

"But you can't have powers or be on his side! That's not possible!" said Joel.

"You always were narrow-minded, Joel Rawlings," sneered Ryan.

"How do you know about him?" demanded Kelsey.

"He knows everything about you that I know because we share a magical bond," said Alia. "It's a bond of my own creation that allows us to share in each other's strengths, feelings and thoughts."

"But how?" asked Carter.

Alia smirked. "Come now, Carter. None of you ever pieced it together? My middle and surname, Lamia Daemin, it translates as 'witch-demon.' I'm a powerful half-witch, half-demon. Diabolico himself raised and trained me alongside my husband."

"What?" said Carter, shocked. "But why?"

"After my mother was destroyed and my father abandoned me, Diabolico took me in," she explained. "He made me and my husband into what we are today."

"But Alia, you—" Dana began, but she was cut off.

"Oh, come on, Dana," interrupted Alia. "Can you honestly tell me that none of you wondered about how I just happened to come to Lightspeed's aid with an extensive knowledge of demons a few months before they needed it most? You never wondered what I meant when I said I had experience with demons or how I was able to create the right weapons to work against them? You never wondered whyevery test subject's body rejected the Titanium Morpher? You never wondered just how the Morpher was stolen when only the Captain and I knew how to gain access it?"

This silenced them all.

"I altered the Morpher to only accept a stronger being and I gave the Titanium Ranger the information needed to enter the base and steal it. It is rightfully his, after all. He's the only one strong enough or worthy enough for such power."

"But why?" asked Dana. "Why come here and just betray us? I thought you were our friend, and loyal to our cause!"

Alia scoffed. "How could I be friends with the enemy or loyal to those who always guarded me with suspicion and never trusted me? Not that it really matters anymore. My only loyalty has always been and will always be, to my husband. And my husband is the Titanium Ranger." She held up her left hand, showing the titanium diamond wedding ring.

"She was sent here by Diabolico for one purpose: to infiltrate your ranks and prepare for my arrival before we win the war for Diabolico," said Ryan. He lowered his visor for a brief moment, revealing his bright blue-grey eyes. "Go ahead, try and destroy us. See how far you can get."

No one was completely willing to harm Alia, even if she was a traitor, but they had no choice. She'd chosen her own fate and the Titanium Ranger was their enemy. They were prepared to fire when suddenly…

"Don't fire!" yelled Captain Mitchell.

"What?" said Carter.

"Hold—your—fire!"

"What is he talking about?" demanded Chad.

"But sir!" protested Kelsey.

"Don't shoot," said Captain Mitchell. "Return to base immediately."

"Yes, sir," said Carter.

The Lightspeed Rangers retreated to the Aquabase and then Alia teleported herself and Ryan back to the Skull Cavern.

XXX

The Lightspeed Rangers went back to the Aquabase, confused, hurt and angry in more ways than one.

"Retreat? Sir, we had them!" shouted Carter.

"They would've destroyed us without thinking twice!" said Joel.

"Now they know we have the V-Lancers!" said Chad. "And heaven knows what else, now that we know Alia's on Diabolico's side!"

"That was our chance, maybe our only chance!" protested Kelsey.

But the Captain's back was to them and he was quiet.

"Why, sir?" asked Carter, his tone softer. "None of us wanted to fight Alia, but why did you stop us?"

"Because…the Titanium Ranger's my son and Alia's my daughter-in-law," said Captain Mitchell, finally facing them at last.