So the last month has been pretty mental for me, so I haven't had as much as I would have liked written. But I have finished this story so updates will be as frequent as I can, while also giving me time to write the next one.

Anyways, I hope you enjoy it!

Let me know what you think!

Chapter 24: Blue Ranger, Twin Danger

The six fallen Rangers got back to their feet slowly, staring at the new arrivals who didn't move as they watched them. Nobody dared to even take a breath, afraid of what they could set off.

"Awaken!" Scorch called, and the four Masters chained to the wall, whose heads had fallen forwards, seemed to awaken, but their expressions were blank. They stepped forwards, the chains moving with them. They then fell into fighting stances as Dai Shi and Camille smirked. Minos's expression hadn't changed. To use the four Masters against their students...he wasn't sure if he liked it.

After a long, tense silence, the four strange Rangers fell into fighting stances.

"Let's power up!" Casey yelled quickly.

"JUNGLE BEAST, SPIRIT UNLEASHED!" they Morphed, and the strangers ran at them. They began to fight, with Theo and Dom fighting the Black Ranger as Casey and RJ fought the light Blue Ranger. Lily took on the Green Ranger, leaving Ari to take on the Silver Ranger.

"Jungle Whip!" Ari called on the Whip and flung it out, but the Silver Ranger dodged it and struck Ari with one of her own. Ari stumbled backwards, a bad feeling settling in her stomach. They fought for a while at long range, and every time Ari tried to get in close, her opponent pushed her back. Finally, she caught Ari in the stomach, making her cry out and sink to the ground, before being struck and knocked backwards. The Rangers regrouped, and the four new Rangers laughed, standing together too.

"They know every move we're gonna make," Lily groaned.

"They're Power Rangers! Except they fight us with our Masters' Spirits!" Theo turned to the others. "Bat Technique!"

"Elephant Technique!"

"Shark Technique!"

"Spider Monkey Technique..." Ari whispered, staring at the Silver Ranger.

"They're Spirit Rangers..." RJ realised. The four Rangers ran at them again with loud yells.

"Jungle Master Mode!" the four students changed forms quickly, and the fighting continued. This time Ari was able to dodge the Silver Ranger's Whip, and got in close, but the Ranger bounced out of the way of Ari's slash, moving around her and kicking her into RJ. The Violet Ranger caught Ari, and moved her out of the way to catch the Silver Ranger's arms. He held her tightly, before his eyes widened as he peered into her visor.

"Jenna?" he breathed.

Jenna gasped as the silver aura around her disappeared, and she shattered the chains holding her.

"Oh no!" she looked around as Dai Shi's smirk vanished. She grabbed Finn, shaking him and causing the aura to fade from him. He was pulled backwards, and Jenna ran over to the other two Masters, shoving them back against the wall as they cried out. As she went to free them, she heard a shriek and looked around.

"Enough out of you!" Talon snarled, slashing at Jenna. The young woman screamed and slammed against the wall, hitting the ground hard.

"Stop!" Minos' snap made everyone look at him in shock. Even he looked surprised at his own outburst. "If you damage her, then she won't be able to continue fighting," he pointed out, and Dai Shi relaxed, nodding.

The Rangers regrouped as the Spirit Rangers regrouped, breathing heavily.

"What was all that about?" Casey asked, a hand to his side. They had all taken a hard beating against the new Rangers.

"Not sure...but I may have an idea," RJ told them quietly.

"So you think the Spirit Rangers are being remote controlled from the Masters," Casey summed up what RJ had explained to them.

"Yeah. Mental radio waves, if you will," RJ nodded.

"That would explain why they can fight just like our Masters," Lily agreed with the idea.

"Well I have to say, I'm completely lost," Xander admitted.

"You and me both," Dom nodded. "How do we destroy them?" the White Ranger asked curiously.

"Destroy them?" RJ echoed, his eyes wide. "I have no idea," he admitted as Fran walked over, tapping Theo on the shoulder and handing him a note. "Right now, I'm just hoping to slow them down," he said.

"Hmm...I think I might have an idea," Ari spoke up, her arms folded.

"What?!" they glanced at Theo as he cried out in alarm. He hurried off to make a phone call as Ari bit her lip.

"What's the idea Ari?" RJ asked her hopefully. His worry for his dad and Jenna was only growing, the longer they were being held.

"I've had some experience in severing mental links using magic. If I work on it, I might be able to sever their connection, kinda like disrupting a signal," Ari told them, looking thoughtful.

"That sounds good, but just one problem," RJ nodded. "Until we rescue the Masters, the Spirit Rangers will keep coming back like a bad rash," he commented. Ari frowned, but nodded, turning and walking off to meditate. If she was to at least attempt her theory, she'd need to be prepared for it.

"Take them away!" Scorch ordered as the Masters struggled against the Rinshi.

"Where are you taking them?" Camille asked as she approached.

"We don't answer to you, lizard," Talon sneered, and Camille bristled.

"Then answer to me," they looked around as Dai Shi approached. Talon and Scorch bowed to their leader. "We must attack again immediately," he ordered.

"The fight has drained their spirits, Dai Shi," Scorch explained. "We must let them recover," he told Dai Shi.

"Not to mention one is currently injured. The Spider Monkey Master will not be able to fight again until she has rested," Minos spoke up. Dai Shi glared, and walked away without a word.

"What is wrong with you?" Camille whispered to Minos. "You've been acting strange since you gained the power of the Green Mystic's Animal Spirit," she accused.

"I'm fine," Minos hissed back at her, walking off.

"Don't tell me that you are showing mercy to the Master just because she reminds you of-"

"I'll thank you to stay out of my business, Camille," Minos snapped suddenly, making his sister stop in surprise. With a snort, Minos walked off.

"Hey Ari, do you reckon that severing the link is a good idea?" Xander asked as they walked down into the kitchen. "What if it does lasting damage?" he asked, worried. "To them, or you," he added.

"It worked fine for Trent with no lasting damage," Ari shrugged.

"That was an accident, with help from Mystic Mother," Xander reminded her. Ari sighed, running a hand through her hair.

"I have to try, Xander. You saw what happened, they kicked our asses," she pointed out. Xander didn't reply straight away, thinking back to the fight. She was right, of course. The fight had been completely dominated by the Spirit Rangers. They had years of experience and power over the others, and were being fuelled by the Phantom Beasts. "You didn't see RJ's face when he found out both his dad and Jenna had been taken...and now he's found out that they're being controlled by evil to fight us..." Ari shook her head.

"Aw, you're so sweet," Xander pulled her into a hug, and Ari couldn't help but giggle. "Who'd have thought you cared so much?" he sighed as she struggled in his grasp.

"Hey! I care plenty!" Ari argued, insulted by his words. "Dork!" she stuck out her tongue.

"Idiot," he returned, kissing her. When soft music began to play, they pulled apart. "Is Kira here?" Xander asked, and they walked into the restaurant. "Okay...I didn't know Theo played guitar," the Green Ranger commented with a raised eyebrow.

"That's not Theo," Ari frowned, folding her arms in confusion.

"Hey, just because he's playing guitar and smiling at people, doesn't mean-okay, yeah, you're probably right," Xander's argument crumbled as Ari looked at him with an incredulous stare. The door opened, and RJ walked in with another Theo, both looking confused.

"Told you," Ari smirked.

"Why do I ever question you?" Xander wondered aloud. Everyone applauded as Theo's doppleganger finished playing.

"The-oh!" the other Theo ran over and hugged him.

"This is weird," Ari muttered as RJ walked over to join them. "Twin brother?" she asked, glancing to her Master.

"It would seem so," RJ nodded.

"Thank god. I've had enough clone stories for one lifetime," Ari muttered, earning two confused looks.

"Isn't he cool?" Lily smiled as she joined them.

"I'll say..." Casey muttered, and Ari grinned at his jealousy.

Jenna snapped awake from her poor sleep as she heard her cell door open. Her eyes opened and she glared up at Minos as he set a tray down with food on it.

"Eat. You're going to need your strength," he told her in a flat voice, turning and shutting the door. She watched as he did the same for each of the Masters, all of whom watched him suspiciously.

"You're Minos, correct?" he stopped as he made to leave Master Finn's cell. Glancing around, he frowned silently at the blond Master, who was on his feet. "You were once on our side, you fought on the side of Pai Zhuq," he accused as the other three Masters watched from their cells in surprise.

"How do you-"

"My family have been of Pai Zhuq for many generations," Finn told him as Minos frowned. He was sure that Master Mao had eradicated any sign of him from Pai Zhuq. "I know what happened, to your family," the Shark Master barely had the words out, before Minos slammed him against the wall.

"Don't talk of the past that you weren't involved with, Shark Master," Minos growled at him. "Eat. Or don't, either way, your precious students will be destroyed by your own hands," he released Finn, who sank to the ground with a groan. Minos then turned and walked off, slamming the door to the cell. As he disappeared, Jenna put her hands to her face as tears burned at her eyes. They all remembered what they'd done under the influence of Rinzin power, and attacking RJ and Ari haunted her.

Scorch walked into the main chamber with the warrior Dynamere, where everyone else was waiting for them. Scorch pushed Camille out of his path as he walked past her.

"General Scorch, energise the Spirit Rangers," Dai Shi ordered as he watched them approach.

"It's too early," Scorch replied as he fell into a bow before his master. "It could destroy them," he warned. Dai Shi let out a growl, leaning forwards as he made it obvious that it wasn't a request. "As you wish. I'll have Dynamere assist them," Scorch decided as Dynamere stood.

"My lord, they aren't much good to us if they destroy themselves in the process," Minos advised Dai Shi.

"If I wanted your opinion, Minos, I would ask for it," Dai Shi told him without looking at the man. Minos bristled, and looked to Camille, who kept her gaze on the ground. Clenching his fists, Minos kept quiet.

"Ari, that isn't practising your magic the right way!" Xander complained as he hovered in midair. He was looking unimpressed as Ari giggled, holding her hand up.

"You sound like my dad. That isn't the way of the Mystics, don't do this, stop that, fun is bad!" she mimicked her father, and despite struggling to keep himself upright, Xander couldn't help but grin at her impersonation of Daggeron. "This requires focus, right? And so will cutting off a Spirit Ranger from their power source," Ari set him down gently.

"Oh yeah?" Xander raised an eyebrow, before grabbing her. Ari squealed as he tickled her sides, and she flailed in his grip.

"Hey! Stop it!" she cried out, pushing him. Xander winced as she hit his chest, forcing him to release her. Ari immediately looked guilty. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't-" before she could finish apologising, he began to tickle her again. "Cheat!" Ari shrieked, laughing loudly.

"Then don't apologise, idiot," Xander grinned at her, but he was just as worried as Ari.

His brave face hid his worry over losing not only his Animal Spirit, but his magic. If they didn't figure out how to get back his spirit, he'd lose it entirely, and not only would it mean losing a part of himself, but he knew Ari would never recover from the guilt, blaming herself no matter how many times he told her not to. It was why he didn't blame RJ anywhere near as much as he normally would have for harming Ari. Some things were out of their control.

"Uh..." they stopped, looking around.

"Hey Luan," Ari sniffed, wiping her tears of laughter. "Theo's room is down there, second door to the right," she pointed down to where the bedrooms were located.

"Oh, thanks," Theo's twin gave a small smile, going towards the rooms before stopping. "How...?"

"I know all dude," Ari smirked at him.

"Ari's weird," Xander rolled his eyes, ignoring Ari's cry of protest.

"Hey Ari," RJ called Ari as she sat meditating. She opened one eye, seeing the Master standing with Casey. "Dom never made a delivery he went out to make an hour ago," he told her, and the Gold Ranger immediately stood up.

"Think it's them?" she asked.

"I hope not, but are you ready to give that spell a try? Just in case?" RJ asked. Ari nodded, and as Casey hurried off, she caught RJ's arm.

"RJ, I'm going to warn you now, this might not work. Are you okay with me risking hurting your dad? Or Master Swift?" she asked him carefully.

"Right now, I'll take anything over what they're going through. You and I both know what that place is like. It drains hope, Ari," RJ told her softly. "I'm willing to do anything to make sure my dad and Jenna are safe," he said. Ari smiled, and nodded.

"Hey," Xander stopped Ari before they could go. "You be careful too. You've not got an infinite supply of magic," he reminded her.

"I'm no Light, but I'll do," Ari smiled, and he kissed her gently.

"Be careful," Xander told her firmly. Ari nodded, serious this time, and she and RJ ran off to catch up with Casey.

"Uh oh," RJ gulped when they spotted the JKP scooter, and a fallen pizza that had been eaten by wild animals.

"That's not good...why didn't he call?" Casey asked, looking around. Thunder suddenly boomed, making them jump.

"Okay, that's getting old fast. Hunter and Blake are going to make me nervous now," Ari muttered as they looked around for the cause of the thunder. They didn't have to look far as the four Spirit Rangers appeared, running at them. They fought for a moment, before being thrown backwards.

"JUNGLE BEAST, SPIRIT UNLEASHED!" Ari and Casey Morphed and continued to fight. However, the fight was easily going in the favour of the Spirit Rangers, who floored them again.

"This is tough," Casey groaned as RJ, also Morphed, fell into them on the ground. Ari was thrown into some crates, and groaned.

"Yeah," RJ muttered, before another figure appeared, and blasted them before they could do anything to defend themselves.

Theo, standing nearby, stared in horror at the sight, stared as RJ and Casey were locked into mirrors. He ran over to Ari, who stood, only to fall back to her knees as she demorphed.

"What?! Impossible!" Dynamere cried as he saw the Blue Ranger. "I've already captured you in my mirror," the Phantom Warrior looked down at his collection of mirrors.

"Luan..." Theo realised that he had mistaken his twin brother for him. "You're gonna pay for this!" he yelled angrily.

"Get him!" Dynamere ordered the four Spirits.

"Not so fast!" Ari held up her hands, which began to glow golden. She then fired the magic at the four Spirits, who stumbled, and disappeared.

In their prison, the four Masters began to glow golden, before suddenly snapping back to reality, their auras fading. No longer under the control of the Phantom Beasts, they were yanked back by their chains, slamming against the wall. Jenna sagged, her legs shaking and barely able to keep her upright as she gasped for breath, her vision swimming.

"What?!" Scorch growled.

"Something broke through our control," Talon realised.

"Impossible," Scorch looked over to Dai Shi, who didn't look impressed.

"More like someone," Minos whispered.

Ari collapsed, unconscious as Theo knelt beside her.

"Ari! Ari!" Theo shook her, but Ari just let out a moan, out for the count.

"No matter, I'll add you both to my collection!" Dynamere tried to hide his horror, and ran at them. However, before he could reach the pair, a figure in black and white suddenly leapt down and struck the monster, throwing him backwards and directly into Xander's axe. As Dyanmere was thrown out of the way, the two looked over to Theo, who stared.

"Why am I not surprised?" Cam sighed as he walked over.

"Who are you?" Theo frowned.

"This is Cam, mate, he's a good friend of Ari's," Xander told him quickly.

"I go away for a while and look at her, sleeping on the job," Cam shook his head, before looking around at Dynamere.

"Cam, can you keep an eye on her?" Xander asked.

"Of course," Cam nodded, and Theo stood up, grabbing his Morpher.

"JUNGLE BEAST, SPIRIT UNLEASHED!" he Morphed, and he and Xander ran at Dynamere. They fought him off, but were thrown aside.

"He's powerful, and my magic is nowhere near helpful," Xander warned Theo.

"It's okay, I've got this. Jungle Master Mode!" Theo called on his greater power, and quickly overwhelmed Dynamere with some help from Xander, forcing him to drop a mirror that landed beside Cam and Ari. Luan was freed, looking around bewildered. The warrior then dropped the other four, releasing the rest of the team. Theo and Xander demorphed, and Theo ran to his brother as the others saw Ari.

"She'll be fine, she's just worn herself out," Cam told them before they could ask questions.

"And you are...?" Dom frowned at the Samurai, before Ari groaned.

"Cam? Am I dreaming?" she opened her eyes.

"No, but you'll wish you were when I tell Zoe you put yourself in danger again," he smirked at her. Ari groaned again, this time in horror. They looked around as Dynamere got back to his feet, letting out an angry yell.

"Breaking mirrors is bad luck...for you," Casey smirked as he, Lily and Dom stood together. "Ready?"

"Ready!"

"JUNGLE BEAST, SPIRIT UNLEASHED!" they Morphed as the monster began to grow.

"We can match that!" Casey smirked. Ari let out a moan as they summoned their Zords, and held up her hands, summoning the Squirrel Zord so they could form their Megazord. The others watched from the ground.

"I'm bigger, and so are my boomerangs!" Dynamere declared, and struck Jungle Master Megazord with his lights. They disappeared, kicking the Rangers out and leaving Dom to fight him alone.

"Looks like we're up," Theo glanced to RJ, who nodded. They ran off, and Luan glanced to the others, who watched. Dom was blasted repeatedly with his power, until RJ and Theo flew in using the Bat Spirit with the Wolf Pride Megazord. They kicked him hard, before Dom finished him off a powerful strike from his sword. Luan cheered loudly, proud of his brother.

"Luan, your taxi's here," Dom called as he ran up. Theo was sitting nearby, playing guitar as Luan packed the last of his things.

"Be right down," Luan smiled to the White Ranger, before sniffing his shirt and pulling a face. He then stuffed it into his bag regardless, and began speaking with his brother.

"Please don't tell Zoe," Ari pleaded with the Samurai, whom she had come to see as an older brother over the years.

"Fine, I won't. This time," Cam told her as she sat on the sofa, a hand to her head. "But if I hear it happened again, I'll tell her, and don't think I won't," he warned the girl.

"You're the worst, you know that?" Ari grumbled. Cam smirked.

"I seem to recall you saying that I'm the best multiple times," he told her.

"I've heard that too," Xander grinned.

"You guys suck," she grumbled, before looking up as RJ approached her.

"Your magic seemed to work," he commented. "But at a cost I don't think we can risk again. If they return-"

"If they return, I'll do it again. The Spirit Rangers are too strong RJ, we can't win against them," Ari told him firmly. RJ frowned at her.

"So much for not being reckless again," Cam muttered.

"I was already low on energy when I did it, that's why I passed out," Ari argued. "If I do it without getting knocked about first, I'll be fine," the Gold Ranger insisted, smiling slightly at her Master. "I'm not going to let them hurt us. They'd never forgive themselves," RJ bristled, knowing what she was talking about. He clenched a fist, and moved it behind his back.

"Alright, but if it happens again, I'm putting a ban on it. And if necessary, I will bench you," RJ threatened, before smirking slightly. "And I'll tell Zoe," he added, and both Cam and Xander smirked.

"And here I was going to make you the next best after Cam lost the title," Ari whined, throwing herself back in a childish tantrum.

Dai Shi paced in front of the weakened Masters, his fury radiating off him.

"I hope you Generals are stronger than your warriors," Dai Shi growled low, before turning to face Scorch, standing over the General. "And you expect me to become your King," he mocked before walking off. Scorch growled, and Talon turned her head, glaring at Dai Shi. She didn't expect him to become her King. She had argued the idea, but the other three had voted in favour of joining forces with Dai Shi, knowing that their internal battle had cost them the Beast War.

"We'll see about that..." the Sparrowhawk hissed, shooting another glare at the four Masters before storming off.

To answer the questions that popped up in reviews: Yes, Spencer and Teddie are Ari and Xander's kids, as is Chase - I didn't include canon characters in my list. And yes, Annie is Hunter and Zoe's daughter, because the three have already appeared at some point in the series, I didn't bother adding that in. My bad!

Anyways, I'll update pretty soon (between more episodes of Bleach. I got hooked again.)

Please review!