Author's notes - thank you to the lovely people who sent me messages and left reviews for me. Sorry, I meant to reply in chapter one, but it's been a while since I've last posted a story here, so I'm still getting back into the swing of things. I feel like, returning after a long holiday ... and I've got no idea what's happening :). I appreciate the feedback, always. Every writer does. So thank you.

ChibiDawn23, it was great to hear from you! I've always seen Power Rangers as having a global scope. Future chapters of Nyctophobia will take place in France, Ethiopia, Chile and a tropical island in the south Pacific, but for the first chapter, I wanted to send my two boys on a nice road trip with a local flair. All of the locations I mention in Part One are real places (although I think the model train display shut down a few years ago, sadly). Anyway, glad you're back onboard, and I'm happy you're following the story.

Into chapter two!

Part One

Chapter Two

I scarfed down the rest of the coconut slice while Jason stored the antique lantern in the back of his car. A short distance down the street was a tourist information board with a map of the local area. We jogged over to take a look.

"There's the start of the trail near Lana's farm," Jason said, tracing the path with his hand. "It runs through thick forest along the side of the mountain."

"But here's the northern entrance," I said, and tapped the map. "It's not too far. And if we start following the track here, we won't run into park ranger creepy."

"Great idea. Let's go."

We got in the car and made our way towards the northern entrance of the trail. I'd joked before, but Jason knew I was all business, and my head was buzzing with questions as we talked through the case. Had there been a miscommunication, or had someone blocked the trail off for a reason? It seemed certain that Ranger Broxsen was involved, but given the man's unearthly demeanour, was he trying to cover up a local crime, or were Jason and I about to stumble onto something a lot less terrestrial?

The carpark in front of the track was deserted as we drove in, but at least the trail hadn't been blocked off. Taking a second to check we weren't being watched, Jason and I stepped onto the track and began following it deeper into the forest. It was cool in the shadow of the trees, and we were alone apart from the birds in the branches above us. We passed clearings of ferns and made our way under towering fig trees, but saw no signs of trouble.

Finally, the trail came to a fork. "Check it out," Jason said softly.

The path that branched off to the right continued on towards a bubbling stream, but the path on the left had been hastily blocked by a pile of rocks and branches. I saw that a signpost off to the side of the track had been vandalised. The arrow directing hikers to the right track was intact, but the arrow pointing left had been broken off.

"Someone really doesn't want us turning left," I said.

"That's our path," Jason nodded, then lowered his voice. "We should be careful. What good is all that ninja training if we never use it?"

Keeping as quiet as possible, we stepped around the barricade and continued. While Jason scanned the trail ahead, I kept an eye on the path behind us, both of us wary of danger. It was even colder here, and there were no more birds in the trees around us. After only a few minutes, Jason held up his hand, bringing us to a stop. But I'd heard it too. There were two distinct voices up ahead. One was the deep, thundering tones of Ranger Broxsen, but the other was softer, a frantic murmuring that barely sounded human. Using the trees for cover, Jason and I crept closer and peered around a tree trunk to the source of the noise.

Before us was a small clearing. The rainforest canopy was particularly thick, with very little light filtering down to the forest floor. In the centre of the clearing was the base of a tree trunk, and resting on the trunk was a metal cauldron. We could hear something splashing around in the cauldron but couldn't see what it was. The plants around the trunk were brown and wilting, as if the life itself had been leeched out of them. On the far side of the clearing stood two figures dressed as park rangers. I immediately recognised Broxsen, but the Ranger beside him was taller and thinner with a nervous, twitchy appearance. He too was wearing dark sunglasses that protected his eyes.

"…and you're certain, dear brother," Broxsen was saying, "that the trails are empty?"

The other ranger nodded. "A barren land devoid of life, but for the monster on the mountain," he replied.

"Good," Broxsen said, and peered into the cauldron. "Only a few more nights of moonlight, and the crystal heart will be ready. Once we've revived our stone assassin, this planet will be ours for the taking!"

"For years, the wolf has waited to pounce," Broxsen's brother murmured. "Finally, in the dark, he stirs."

Broxsen rested a soft hand on his brother's shoulder. "My poor Riviel," he said. "The price you paid to attain the heart was too high. I can see that now. But it'll be worth your sacrifice, brother. I promise. You'll see. Once the heart is ready, the rivers of this world will run red with…" but glancing into the cauldron, his voice trailed off. "What is this? The heart beats already? What other dark magic has it been absorbing?"

As Riviel looked on, Broxsen reached into the cauldron. Watching from the shadows, my jaw dropped, and I glanced to Jason in alarm. Broxsen was indeed holding a crystal heart. It was smaller than a soccer ball and made out of a red gemstone, yet it was pulsating, throwing off a sliver of dark magic with every beat. Small wriggling tentacles were sprouting across the heart's surface. One of them wrapped around Broxsen's wrist, but he tore it free and threw it away. The tentacle disintegrated before it hit the ground, while another was already growing in its place.

Broxsen's face lit up. Even Riviel couldn't disguise his delight. "It's time brother," Broxsen said. "Three days early, but it is time. Let us awaken our stony friend." With the heart held at arm's length, Broxsen stomped away through the trees, with an enraptured Riviel close behind.

We waited until they were out of earshot. "What the hell was that?" I asked.

"I really don't like the sound of that stone assassin they're trying to wake up," Jason breathed. "We just have to stop them from using the crystal heart."

"Should we call the others?" I asked.

"We don't need to," Jason replied. "We can handle two insane park rangers by ourselves. Worse comes to worse, we'll call Zordon later."

We raced off through the forest after the two brothers. They were easy to track. Broxsen was a big guy and he left a wide trail through the trees. After only a few seconds, we emerged in a wide field at the edge of the forest. Across the field was a short wire fence, marking the western boundary of the national park with the valley beyond. In the distance, partially-hidden in the trees, was a tall statue, seemingly unremarkable but for the twisted snarl on its face. Immediately in front of us were the two brothers, heading straight for the statue.

Hearing us, Broxsen spun around, but Jason took to the air and slammed his foot into Broxsen's shoulder. The fake park ranger stumbled back as Jason dropped to the ground. The crystal heart flew from his grip and rolled into the shadows at the base of the statue. Finding his footing, Broxsen turned to face us, purple with rage.

"Who dares?" he roared.

"We do," I said.

"It's morphin' time!" shouted Jason, and we reached for our back pockets.

"Stegosaurus!"

"Tyrannosaurus!"

The brothers shielded their eyes as the field exploded in light and sound. When the storm died down, they looked again to see the Orange and Red Rangers standing before them. Riviel looked suddenly apprehensive, while Broxsen grinned in cruel delight. Encouraged by his brother's confidence, Riviel stepped forward.

"This is perfect," Broxsen sneered. "The Power Rangers have found us."

"The clowns come before the pineapple," Riviel agreed.

"No need for pretence anymore," Broxsen continued, and the brothers threw away their disguises. Yep. Definitely aliens. Without a shirt, Broxsen was even more imposing, powerfully-built and incredibly strong. He had tan-coloured skin. His head was bald but for a mohawk of spikes. He had pointed ears and eyes that glowed a frosty blue. Riviel had similar features, but his skin had a blue tinge and his eyes were green. While his brother was shirtless, Riviel was wearing overalls that were stained in hideous, frightful colours. Pouches had been sewn on seemingly at random, full of clinking blades and odd tools with spikes and sharp edges.

"Whatever you're doing, you are not waking that thing up," Jason said.

"That's your assassin?" I added. "He doesn't look like much."

"Idiot whelp!" Broxsen snapped. "While he's little more than granite now, once the crystal heart awakens him? He'll be the most dangerous assassin in the galaxy! Riviel and I spent one hundred and seventy-three of your Earth years seeking him out. As long as he's being watched or observed, he's protected by the ultimate defence, his impenetrable stone armour. But the second you look away? His armour releases him and you become helpless prey. You cannot stop him, Rangers. The stone assassin is invulnerable in that form, an unbeatable opponent!"

"We've dealt with enemies wearing unbreakable armour before," I shot back.

"So many would-be conquerors seem to forget about basic physics," Jason added.

"Not like this," Broxsen smirked. "That armour has been fortified with the magic of an alien race who worshipped a black sun for a thousand years! There's nothing in the galaxy like it. No force on Earth can break through it! My brother and I were hunted across the galaxy by bounty hunters and the Senturians before Zedd came to us and offered us a deal. We could awaken the beast here on Earth, but our first target had to be Zordon's Rangers. A deal we gladly accepted!"

Riviel giggled softly. "You can't escape! She hunts you in your dreams!"

Broxsen grit his teeth. "He, brother," he said, and Riviel looked crestfallen.

"Maybe Zedd should've told you a bit more about us," I began. "Whoever you are? Whatever you're doing? It ends now."

"You take the artist, I'll take the fighter," Jason said. "Keep them away from the heart. Go!"

The grassy clearing erupted with sounds of combat as Jason and I raced towards our two opponents. Standing his ground as the Red Ranger closed in, Broxsen bellowed and lashed out with a ham-sized fist. Jason dived under the blow, spinning around with a high kick and catching Broxsen on the shoulder. The blow barely fazed the alien warrior, and Broxsen slammed his fists into the grass, forcing Jason to leap to safety as the ground shook beneath him. Even as Jason found his footing, Broxsen reached for a large stone and flung it at Jason's helmet. Jason shattered the stone with a punch, but Broxsen charged through the dust cloud and tackled the Red Ranger, sending them crashing through a tree and shattering the trunk to splinters.

A few metres away, I kept my distance as Riviel pulled two jagged knives from his pockets.

"Are the stars particularly crimson today?" the alien murmured.

"I get it," I snapped. "You're charmingly insane. But you're still evil, so I really don't care."

Riviel shrugged and charged, slashing out with his two blades. I stepped around the move and the air sizzled with the oddest smell as the knives flashed by me. He slashed again with his right, giggling the whole time. I blocked his wrist, struck away his left and landed a rapid strike to the alien's chest. He stumbled away with a grunt of pain, but recovered quickly and slashed his blades for me again. I spun around the move, summoning my Power Sword with a thought and catching both knives as they fell, keeping them in check. Riviel roared in frustration and his eyes lit up. The blast smashed into me before I could leap to safety, and I crashed to the ground in a shower of sparks.

Across the battlefield, Broxsen caught one of Jason's hands and aimed a glancing blow to Jason's ribs. Jason yelped and stumbled back, quickly retreating to where I was just climbing to my feet.

"They're tougher than they look," I said, "but at least we've stopped them using the crystal heart."

"Have you?" Broxsen asked. We glanced to the statue and saw the heart dragging itself to the assassin's chest using its tentacles. Jason reached for his blaster but it was too late. Broxsen slammed the heart into the statue's chest, the heart seemingly passing straight through the stone. For a few seconds, nothing happened, and then deep growls filled the clearing as the statue began to shudder. Even as we watched, cracks along the statue's body began filling with light. There was no mistaking it. The stone assassin was waking up.

With no other choice, Jason raised his communicator to his helmet.

Across the field, Riviel's expression suddenly fell, and his face contorted into a look of absolute horror. He grabbed frantically for his brother's shoulder.

"Broxsen!" he shouted. "Broxsen! The first link falls!"

There was a flash, not of light but of shadow, and for a fraction of a second, everything went black. I felt something go straight through me, like a blast of cold wind, and it chilled me to my bones. Across from us, an invisible wave slammed into Broxsen and Riviel, launching them off their feet in a blaze of sparks and smoke. They tumbled to the ground, dazed and confused.

"You okay?" Jason asked.

"I think so," I replied. "What did they do?"

"I don't think it was them," Jason said. "Check it out."

The alien brothers were still picking themselves off the ground, and both seemed stunned. Taking the opportunity while the brothers were down, Jason tapped the top button of his communicator.

Nothing.

His face fell and he tried again. Still nothing. There wasn't even any static or feedback. It was just dead. My stomach sank, and I tried my own communicator in the hope that Jason's had been damaged during the fight. But it was no good.

"Whatever that was," I said quietly, "it must've knocked out our communicators. We're on our own."

To be continued.