Author's note: Sorry for the wait! I was very busy. My boyfriend's back from Canada and I hadn't seem him for 6 months, so I've been spending plenty of time with him. Here's the chapter! More to come! Review!

Chapter 31- Darkness Falls

Pandora was beginning to worry. Grumm hadn't stepped foot out of the throne room in 48 hours. With no one to order her around, she had plenty of free time. She was no slacker, though. Training for four hours against Orange and Blue Head Krybots was all that she had done of the last two days. If she was going to beat the Rangers, she would have to be in the best physical condition. She was certainly not doing that if she just sat around the ship. Other people didn't think the same. Mora had spent the whole week holed up in her room, wallowing and lamenting herself over Sam's loss. Frankly, it was getting quite annoying.

It simply wasn't fun anymore. She knew something weird was going on when Grumm didn't even threaten her or the little girl even once in the last 48 hours. She groaned and went to the Observatory. After turning on the computer's radar and enlarging its image on the window's surface, she opened her desk's drawer and took out a large tome on the topic of Troobian Magic. It was evident the free time was affecting her. Never before had she expressed an interest in it, but the recent events sparked something inside her. Unlike Morgana, she didn't have the gift. That didn't mean she wasn't interested in learning its history. She remembered Grumm had once told her that it was invaluable weapon during battle. Maybe that's what she needed to up her game.

She opened up the book to the fifth chapter entitled "Elemental Magic". The more she read, the more interested she became. Pandora's eye suddenly caught something on the page. After reading on the elements she would never get to control, she finally caught a break. She smiled when she read the title of the section.

Darkness

The dark, unknown to most, maybe the most important and most abundant element in existence. Its existence is ignored galaxy-wide. This is one of the most fundamental mistakes all living creatures commit on a daily basis. Darkness exists on every creature with free will. It is present on a different level on each individual. Saying that there is no darkness is simple blasphemy. Just like without evil there can be no good, without darkness there would be no light. It will always be present. There is no way to completely get rid of it.

Having said that, increasing the darkness inside's one soul is easier than making it decrease. The most common method to do so is the ingestion of the drug Black Crystal in large doses. Other methods, such as coming into possession of one of the three Troobian Darkness Stone, are unknown to non-Troobians. Possessing the Stone is not an easy task. Simply touching it is already a risk. The ones who comes into possession of one of them should be warned that the power that comes with the Stones is both great and deadly. Prolonged exposure to its powers can cause death.

If the reader is brave enough to go after one the three Stones, there is a map indicating each of the locations the Troobian Mages hid them in.

Pandora's eyes shifted to an old map of Troobia. She groaned. The planet had been destroyed over a century ago. With that in mind, she lost any hope of ever finding a Stone. They were gone forever.

She laid eyes on the book again and began reading, in hopes of finding another way of becoming stronger without the Stone. Another way to increase the darkness, probably the hardest if you have a heart is through murder. Humans call it a sin. To us Troobians, it is the vilest act that can be committed by any being. Murder is the quickest way…

She stopped reading. She was ruthless, but murder seemed like something only Grumm would do. This wasn't her style. At least she would conserve that small shred of decency she had left in her. She placed her hand on the map, trailing the locations with her fingers longingly. She wanted the Stones of Darkness badly. Before she could close the book, a bright purple glow emerged from the paper. She closed her eyes. When she opened them again, there was a clear outline of a NewTech city map in its place. She traced her finger over a small point drawn over the city square's plaza.

"Just as I was about to give up hope." She read further on the subject. Each of the three Stones is looked after by a guardian. The guardians will not only protect them with physical means but also with magic. The guardians must be trained Mages. They will do anything to keep the stone from falling into the wrong hands…

She shut the tome and put it inside a drawer on the desk. Interrupting Grumm was unwise; she would just have to do this all by herself. But first, she needed a distraction. Lucky for her, she knew exactly who to call for help.

SPD Base

Awoken by the alarms at exactly 1 am, the Rangers headed to the Command Center wearing their pajamas. What an ungodly hour Grumm had chosen to attack. None of them had had enough sleep. Three hours wasn't much. They shrugged it off and saluted the Commander.

"There's a disturbance downtown." The picture of an alien on rampage shoed up on the screen. "Be careful. Drakel is a Vampirinoid."

"What's a Vampirinoid, Kat?" Z rubbed her eyes.

"An alien with the ability to absorb its opponents' energy." Cruger answered through his helmet. Clearly, he was ready for action. "We cannot go unmorphed. We'll be easy prey."

After morphing they stepped onto the city square, their eyes darting all over the place. The dark itself allowed plenty of places to hide for Drakel. Weapons out and ready, they split up. Each one of the Rangers covered a different alley. They'd asked Kat to open a line of communication between all of them just in case they didn't have time to retrieve their morphers. The only thing audible was each of their breaths. Bridge, Sky, Jack and Z had already confirmed there was no sign of the alien. They all wondered what'd happened to Shadow Ranger.

Sky tried contacting him, but all he got from him was static. "He isn't answering. There must be something blocking his communication."

"Try your morpher." Z suggested.

He tried, but static was all he got again. "Still nothing. Let's regroup."

The four Rangers joined in the square. They began moving stealthily to their Commander's location. A loud growl on their communication system stopped them from moving farther. It was like someone had turned on the volume on each of their helmets. Then, it ceased. The Red Ranger made a signal for Yellow and him to get closer while the Blue and Green Rangers stayed behind in case they needed backup. Green and Blue stood on opposite sides of an alley, waiting for further instructions from their teammates.

They moved in only after their leader told them it was safe. "Where's the Commander?"

It wasn't until they heard a commotion on the following block that they realized where he'd gone. Upon joining him, they encountered the terrible Drakel. It was a tough fight from the look of it. One of the creatures many specialties was physical combat, according to SPD's extensive database of intergalactic criminals. He was also known for his draining powers, which made him very dangerous. The tentacles on his back were deadly. Once inside, the absorption was almost unstoppable. With blasters aimed directly at Darkel's head, they began firing. The alien didn't seem affected, though. On the contrary, he seemed to get more powerful with every blast. Cruger's Shadow Saber wasn0t being of much help either. According to the alien, the powerful strikes had merely tickled him.

Desperate was an understatement for them. They had nothing else to attack the alien with. Using RIC was a good idea, but it was still getting fixed by Kath. Cruger wasn't doing any better. Out of all of them, he was doing the worst. He'd battled with Drakel for almost half an hour ago and not even a scratch. On the alien, that was. The Commander had taken the worst hits.

"You can't stop me!"

Z fired a powerful blast from her Deltamax Striker. He positioned himself to receive it. "Thank you for the gift, Ranger." He sneered.

Immediately after taking the hit, he ambushed the Commander into a wall. Once Doggie had unmorphed, Drakel took his chance. His tentacles slithered through his back, crawling like hungry snakes for mice. Slowly, one of them found a way to its prey's neck. Upon feeling the prick, Cruger knew he was doomed. He felt his energy leaving him, slowly being drained from his body. He was fading fast. The street and the Rangers simple blurs in his sight.

Everything went black.

Retrieving the tentacle, Drakel began walking away. The Rangers were no match for him now. Each of his tentacles acted like a whip against his remaining enemies. With enough force to stop them from chasing after him, he smashed each one of them into the walls. They had expected Drakel to come after them too and absorb their energy. Apparently not. He disappeared a few seconds later.

Battered and hurt, they slowly approached their fallen leader. After an aura scan, Bridge concluded he was still alive, barely he clarified. Cruger's life was now hanging by a threat and they were fighting alone an unbeatable foe. Grumm was sure snickering at their dismay somewhere in the galaxy.

NewTech City Library

Her plan had worked to perfection. While Drakel created the perfect distraction, she had come into possession of a Stone. The book must have been wrong. The Troobian Mage behind its protection had barely given her a fight. She had learned his name was Larkin when he kindly introduced himself when she first set foot in the store. Even though he'd greeted Pandora warmly, she knew Larkin sensed something dark in her from the moment she walked inside. He had been apprehensive when she asked about the rock. She didn't take long to find it.

With a deep purple color and engravings in Troobian, the Stone itself was a work of art. A hand grabbed her ankle. She looked down and made a face of disgust when she saw the Mage was still alive. Barely alive, she corrected herself. After what the fight she had given him, it was incredible how resistant he was. It was her fault for not making sure he was really dead. "I though I had killed you already."

"The Stone is dangerous, girl. Do not use it!" He warned in a raspy voice. She gave Larkin a small smile in return. "Hush, old man."

"Please listen to me…" His statement was interrupted by a loud gurgle that emerged from his throat. It was starting to sound like the beginning of the end for him. "That Stone will bring you nothing but misery."

"How can absolute power bring you misery? With this" Pandora pointed to the stone. "I will be unstoppable."

"Just remember that without light, there can be no darkness." Another nasty gurgle took over his voice. Dark spots invaded his sight. He felt himself floating away. Gripping his robes tightly, he began convulsing. With no one there top help him, he died minutes later.

Staring down at the body, she began wondering about the meaning of his cryptic last words.

Without light, there can be no darkness.

With each stroke of her fingers, the darkness rose a little. She closed her eyes, fully taking in the effect. Light-headed, she exited the bookstore. Light-headed or not, this had to be the best she had ever felt in years. As the wind blew threw her hair, she could feel every single strand being lifted. The warm air hitting her face at every step. Her nostrils filled with the aroma coming from the nearby donut and hot dog stands, normally, she would have never even stopped to smell the air. Tonight was different.

Every one of her senses was on edge. She didn't want to get down from her cloud. She made up her mind to give the Rangers a little something by launching a surprise attack on the city square. The anxiety was killing her. With no purpose or use for Krybots, she summoned them anyway. Wrecking stuff seemed like a fun activity for the night. "Don't stop until I say so."

Almost immediately, the wrecking process began. Krybots terrorized the late-night wanderers while Pandora simply stood on the hood of a red convertible, overlooking the commotion. The citizens' reactions were priceless. Nothing made her happier than terrorizing innocent civilians. She looked down at her nails absent-mindedly. The real fun was about to begin.

The Rangers, sans the Shadow Ranger, made an appearance. She jumped down from the car and shot them a menacing look. They split up into teams of two, Yellow and Red to take the Krybots out, Blue and Green to take Pandora out. She would definitely enjoy herself tonight.

The guy in blue was first to approach. When the attack on her began, she blocked every move. Her body was not only on edge, she was moving faster than ever. It was as if the world was moving much slower than her. Every move made by him, she knew when and where it would strike. Consequently, she knew how to stop them. She raised her knee and hit him right in rib cage. To finish him off, she fired a blast from her hands. When she laid eyes upon her handiwork, she was more than proud. The Stone was working quite well. Her blasts had not increased in size, but also in magnitude. The Ranger had been taken out by only one. She could only imagine if it had been double the size. He'd probably be dead, what a nice thought.

"You're next, Green Ranger."

He opened fire, sensing the same fate as his fallen comrade. Even though the blasts hit her, she appeared to be unhurt, walking with the same confidence and strut she always did. To deflect the blasts, she turned into a diamond. She closed her eyes and cackled as they hit her. They had not even made a single scratch on the pristine surface. It was impossible. She had never been this strong before.

Pandora's shiny armor vanished. This could only mean one thing. She was ready for the kill. The Green Ranger hid behind a dumpster in one of the alleys, also trying to get a good shot. Her eyes darted around the street. She began whistling in the creepiest way imaginable. This reminded him of the scary movies he was such a fan of. Usually, the killers or monsters taunted their victims in the movies. This was exactly his case. He could tell she was close. The clicking of her heels was not far from where he was hiding. Closer and closer they got. In a panicked frenzy, he tossed the dumpster at her and ran as fast as he could. It wasn't of any help though. He fell after one of her blasts hit him in the back. Grunting and panting, both fallen Rangers reunited.

Two down, two to go, though Pandora. She applauded the remaining two Rangers. "I may have underestimated you. You took my lackeys out without any help from your beloved Shadow Ranger."

"What do you want?" There was only a simple answer to his question. "Fun."

With her head cocked and a smirk on her face, she unleashed two of the most powerful blasts the two of them had ever been hit with. For a moment during her confused daze, Z could swear that the girl's eyes had turned all black. Before she could confirm her suspicions, she passed out. Jack put her head in his lap, gently stroking the girl's hair. His fingertips grazed upon something wet and thick. The irony smell of blood was undeniably in the air.

Pandora turned around when the two other called her out. Sky was taken aback by her aspect. Her eyes were nothing but black. She looked possessed. It was scary to see her like that. She shifted her gaze to the stars, observing them in silence.

Suddenly, she turned to look at them, a big grin on her face. "We'll meet again."

She turned away and vanished into thin air; her rose petals were not only black this time. They had scorch marks on them. The Rangers feared something darker was coming their way.

The Terror

Hooked by the power the Stone had given her, she's vowed to keep it out of anyone else's hands. After wrapping it on a chunk of soft velvet to prevent it from scratching, she stored it inside her drawer. The power was solely hers. In her mind, the Stone had chosen her specifically. Mora's voice in the room snapped her out of her thoughts, "Where have you been?"

"I've been out. Working." She hissed. "Something you apparently don't know the meaning of."

"I work plenty. That's all I do for Grumm. Draw, draw and draw!" Pandora turned to face her. "Oh, boo-hoo."

"You are aware you're bleeding, right?" She wasn't. She looked down at her white, now blood-stained white, shirt. She had no clue as to how it'd happened. The pain never came. She then remembered when the Green Ranger had opened fire on her while unprotected. The Mage had tried to warn her. But a little blood wasn't going to stop her. She was hooked and it was a high she wasn't sure she would ever get down from.

SPD

Z had been lucky according to Doctor Felix. She had only experienced a minor concussion and was going to be perfectly well after getting some rest. Cruger, on the other hand, hadn't been as lucky. He was fighting for his life as they spoke. Drakel had taken most of his life energy, leaving him unable to even open his eyes. Kat was more than worried about his friend. For the past hour, she's tried to keep herself busy with musings such as reading through old files and checking surveillance cameras. Hell, she had even gone through Sydney's old rack of magazines she had found while searching for Z's pajamas. Not even the cutest of shoes were enough.

With the alarm blaring once again, she went to her post. To her surprise, Jack, Bridge and Sky were all standing there. "There's been a murder in the square's library."

Secretly, they all wondered the same thing as they left. Would that night ever be over?

The silence inside the library was deadly. Upon entering, the trio felt their hairs stand on end. Before separating to investigate the areas, Bridge couldn't help but feel someone's eyes on his back. He could now relate to a zebra being hunted by a lioness in the wilderness. He shuddered and let it go. It was crucial he concentrated on the task at hand. Setting his eyes on an open silver box above a desk on the far end of the room, he walked up to it and began inspecting it. He couldn't off the bad vibes. He took off his glove and watched the visions of Pandora taking out an object similar to a crystal out of it unfold before him. "She was here."

Jack groaned, "She's becoming stronger. One thing we have to get very clear is that Pandora isn't our friend anymore. Syd is gone."

Overhearing, Sky replied angrily, "That doesn't mean Syd's not there anymore. We will save her."

"Maybe, Sky." He put his arm on his shoulder, reconsidering his choice of words. "The way she fought against us tonight, it was like…"

A book dropped from one of the shelves. Removing the blasters from their holsters, they pointed them towards the source of the noise. An alien, identical to the murder victim, stepped out of the shelf with his hands thrown to the air in surrender. "Who are you?"

"I…I….I'm Baskin." He stuttered nervously. "That's my twin brother, Larkin."

"This is a crime scene, you can't be in here." Sky stated.

"I mean no harm." Bridge scanned his aura. His colors indicated sincerity. He signaled the others to lower their weapons. Having lowered them, he went on, "I'm sorry for the disturbance. I'm looking for a valuable object my brother left for me. You must understand that if this artifact falls into the wrong hands, well… you get the idea."

"Was it hidden inside that silver box?" He pointed to the table. Baskin, having realized that it had been taken, nodded grimly. He shook his head in desperation.

"What exactly was the stolen artifact?" He shook his head. It was far too dangerous for them to know more. Back in Troobia, the tribe had given him the sole duty to protect the Stone in case his brother passed away. Involving humans in his business was far too dangerous. Exposing them to dangers beyond their wildest imagination would forever remain in his mind. He wasn't ready to live with the consequences of being reckless.

"I don't know. My brother never told me what it was. He just told me to guard it." He lied. While his other two teammates were satisfied, Bridge wasn't. He prompted to get more out of him. Prompting aliens with question until they got annoyed and spilled the beans was his specialty.

"So you've never opened the box before?"

"No." He lied again, more unconvincingly than before.

"Are you sure he never told you what it was used for? Surely you wouldn't have gone through all this trouble for an heirloom." He prompted, hoping Baskin would get fed up soon.

"It is not an heirloom." He replied. "So you do know what it is?"

He nodded grimly. "I know what was stolen. You won't be interested; it's a long story and I'm sure you're busy…"

"We've got plenty of time." Jack assured him.

"One of the three Troobian Stones of Darkness was stolen. My brother, a Mage, was designated with the task of protecting it from evil hands when our home planet was destroyed by that miserable bag of bones." The last three words came out in an exasperated voice. "Whoever took it is a fool."

"While it is a bringer of power, it also breeds eternal misery on whoever abuses its power." Each of them put the pieces of the puzzle together. Pandora's heightened abilities, the murder, the Stone…

"I know it's late to mention it, but that Stone must not come into his possession." The Ranger sighed. Too late, they thought. At any minute, Pandora could just walk in and hand it to him on a silver platter.

Sky assured him they would try to get it back as soon as possible. The key word in the sentence was try. None of them had any idea of how they would defeat Pandora 2.0 with her heightened abilities. This was going to be hard. But since when had saving and protecting the Earth become an easy task?

With two Rangers down, they were already losing. It wasn't a nice sensation. After Baskin left, the three traveled in silence, thinking of new strategies. They were not going to sleep tonight. Finishing the task at hand for Z and the Commander was more important than leisure time. They sat round the table, discussing plans.

"We know Drakel absorbs energy." Bridge pointed out and read something that got his attention. "I know why he wasn't affected by our attacks now."

"Enlighten us, professor Bridge." Jack propped his feet up on the table and put his hands behind his head.

"His skin absorbed them as energy."

"Great, what do you suppose we do now? Use physical violence as our only weapon?" The outcome of that battle would be catastrophical. Sky could already picture the trio in the medical wing.

"How about we override him? Give him too much energy at the same time, I mean. So much he couldn't handle." They had to admit that their extravagant teammate was onto something. The only question was how to do that without getting hurt.

"We won't be able to do it without getting killed in the process." Bridge blew up an image of Pandora on the screen. "I'm not talking about our energy. I'm talking about hers."

"So you mean, when she fires her blasts, I…"

Bridge replied simply. "Yes, that is exactly what I'm suggesting."

The following morning, the Rangers reported for duty at an abandoned warehouse. Inside, they say their new favorite villains, Drakel and Pandora. She noticed only two Rangers, Red and Green, were left standing after the brutal battle they had endured last night.

She pouted. "Was I too strong for your friends?"

"You gave us all a beating yesterday. We won't let you have another chance like that." Red assured her. Her sense of smeller was a lot keener since the Stone had found her. There was something on the air. It rang an alarm inside her head, telling her it simply didn't belong. The citrusy and soapy smell had no place in a place like an old warehouse. She nodded for Drakel to take care of the other two while she searched the warehouse. As the heels of her boots clicked against the gravel close to him, Sky hid behind a tall stack of silver crates, awaiting the enemy.

Her nose guided her directly to the silver crates on the far end of the room. Hoping to find something, she blasted a hole through them. Lucky for him, he'd moved or he would have now had a hole though his head. Having not foud anything was unsatisfying. It still reeked of the same aroma.

In order to get a better shot, he switched his location stealthily, knowing she would follow his scent like a dog. She was closer. Her breathing was audible in his ears. He peeked through the side and smiled when she came his way.

She smiled and scoffed. "You can run, but you can't hide!"

Pandora formed a powerful blast in her hands and sent it down his way. Perfect, he told himself. Just a few seconds before it could reach his body, Sky created a powerful force field, capable of surviving anything thrown at it. When the blast hit it, he prayed that it wouldn't just simply be absorbed, but also deflected. It took a few seconds, but when the blast finally got deflected, he smiled. That morning's target practice had paid off.

"Now!" Sky screamed at his teammates. Pandora ducked upon seeing the blast's direction. If it had been intended for her, they'd failed at making their plan work. Her grin faded as soon as she saw what the Rangers were holding in their hands. A containment card with Drakel inside.

She swallowed a huge lump in her throat and began running towards an abandoned lot. Her head was aching like never before, a strange ringing overcame her thoughts and senses. She got on her knees and groaned in pain. Her stomach hurt like never before. It felt like she had just ingested acid. Moments later, her hands began to shake. Light-headed, she rose to her feet and stared at the sky. Black spots clouded her vision and suddenly, she felt herself being lifted off the ground. Moments later, she was numb, deaf and blind.

The Rangers couldn't believe what they were witnessing; a cylindrical tower of her energy had been shot into the sky. Inside the tower was a floating girl they had once come to know as Sydney. She was simply floating there like an angelical creature. Just as they were beginning to wonder the tower's effect on the city, the sky suddenly became pitch black. A violent gust of wind replaced the calm air.

"What are we supposed to do now?"

"I don't know, Bridge. You've got any more brilliant ideas?" Sky snapped.

A familiar voice interrupted their bickering. "I know what to do. But I will need the other two Stones."

"Baskin!"

"One of you must go and retrieve them. This will only get worse as time ticks away." The mysterious Mage explained.

"I'll go." Sky's hand shot up in the air.

After Baskin handed him a map with the Stones' locations. Jack approached him and put something in his hands. He opened his palm to reveal the keys to Jack's Patrol Cycle. "Take it."

Sky grinned. This was even better than that time his mom had gotten him that video game for his 11th birthday. "Thank you. I'll take care of it."

"I know you will."

Having put his helmet on, Sky rode off on his quest for the Stones.