See chapter 1 for Story notes. Thanks for the reviews! Please consider leaving feedback. It really helps and is much appreciated. Here is invidual responses to reviews. Sorry I forgot last week. I had a bit of time crunch, so I'll respond to the reviews for the last two chapters:
Tulie4Ever: Eventually, they will have Ranger powers, but not for several chapters yet. Hope you continue to enjoy.
Ghostwriter: Yep, Goldar has added many things to this island. Glad you're enjoying!
MMPRFansince93: I would not either. Glad you're enjoying!
Thunderstruck
Chapter 5:Island of Doom
Goldar's Dark Dimension
Kira walked around the cell, pacing nervously and humming quietly, as she tried to calm herself. Tori huddled in the freezing cell with Kimberly and Katherine on either side of her, looking more distraught than Kira had ever seen her. She was usually the positive one, no matter how bad things looked. The bruise on her blonde friend's cheek reminded Kira of the situation they were in and the swirling blue portal they'd been shoved through.
Upon their arrival in this hell hole, they had come face to face with a man that had haunted the Californian news for three years, detailing his spree of rapes and murders of young women all over the state. To find out that this same man was actually still alive and had an axe to grind against all living former rangers was a hard pill to swallow. Positivity wasn't something that was in their ability to muster right now.
"We're going to die, aren't we?" Tori asked. Katherine hugged the young blonde close, gently stroking her hair.
"Not if our boys have anything to say about it. Do you think your friends aren't looking for you?" Katherine asked. A tear slipped down Tori's cheek.
"I know they are…I just wish I hadn't taken so many things for granted, you know?" she asked. Kat nodded.
"Yeah, I know sweetie, but that's why when we get out of this, you have to make sure you never take anything for granted again," Katherine told her.
"And if you have feelings for someone, then keeping them to yourself is just a waste. So promise me that when we get out of this that you won't waste any time and tell him how you feel and you know who I'm talking about," Kat instructed. Tori nodded.
"Promise," she whispered.
"We have to have faith. Tommy and Jason will find us," Kimberly assured her.
"Knowing our boys, they're already here," Aisha added.
"How right you are, little bear," a male voice cut through their chatter. Tanya pulled herself to her feet and approached the bars where Kira stood frozen, as Goldman reached through the bars and lifted her chin. She swatted his hand away and pulled the younger yellow back.
"I wonder what Zordon would think if he knew his decision to give me a second chance would result in the slaughter of his sons and daughters?" Goldman goaded.
"Save it Goldar and get to the point. Why are we here?" Kimberly snapped.
"My dear Kimberly, haven't you guessed by now? I want you all dead…but not before you suffer like I have," Goldman spat.
"Suffer? What have you suffered, you twisted freak?" Trini hissed.
"Oh, I am so glad you asked that, darling Trini," Goldman drawled.
"I would have preferred being turned to dust over this mundane human existence, but I don't expect any of you to understand that," he spat.
"I was once a proud Titan warrior until he robbed me of what was my true form and turned me into this," he hissed.
"I can never return to my people, because of what your mentor did to me and for that, his children will suffer!" Goldman roared.
"You're sick…" Tori spat. His eyes darted to the blonde.
"Sick…oh you haven't seen sick yet," Victor spat, as the bars disappeared and he lunged at the girls, grabbing Tori's arm and slamming her against the wall.
"You know what I do to young women now, don't you? You've watched the news and read of my exploits haven't you?" he hissed, as his psychotic eyes glared into her frightened sapphire ones.
"No…let her go!" Kimberly cried. Goldar raised the pointed end of the Z staff to Tori's throat, stopping their advance.
"Then if you don't want to see me defile her and then slit her throat, you'll stay where you are," he said, as Sabrina entered and cuffed each girl, while Goldar handled Tori and forced them to follow them from the cell.
They landed on a sandy beach, where a lagoon of purely blue water greeted them.
"Okay…so dark dimension looks like paradise," Dustin mentioned.
"Don't let it deceive you. The paradise part is the illusion," Jason warned, as they looked around. They heard the water slosh behind them and Adam's eyes widened, as a monster emerged from the lagoon.
"Really? An island full of horrors and Goldar picks old, worn out monsters to attack?" Rocky questioned, as the Slippery Shark from the past shot a blast and blew Rocky back. He landed painfully and groaned, as Tommy and Adam helped him up.
"You and your big mouth," Adam said.
"Shut up," Rocky grimaced, as Jason keyed off and charged the shark monster, exchanging blows with him. He got in a few good hits, before he was knocked back and Tommy took his place. He avoided the monster's sharp swipes, but ultimately was knocked away too. He landed in the sand, but got to his feet quickly.
"Goldar definitely gave him an upgrade. I don't remember fish head being this strong," Tommy warned.
"Or you're just older," Ethan quipped, earning him a very stern glare from his former mentor. Ethan smirked sheepishly.
"Kidding, Doctor O," he said, as he charged next, using his dino skin, while Connor ran circles around the monster.
"Knock him back in the water!" Hunter called. They shrugged and cornered the monster, while Tommy stepped up and delivered a stylish corkscrew kick, catapulting him back into the water. Hunter did his signature hand motions and a crimson thunder bolt struck the monster in the water. The water conducted his electric attack and the monster exploded. Unfortunately, a few of them were caught in the splash zone and were sprayed with fish guts.
"Ooooohh…" Shane winced.
"Dude…that's nasty," Dustin commented. Hunter winced too.
"Sorry guys," he apologized.
"It's okay…it's hard to be mad when you can do an attack like that," Jason said, as he patted his shoulder.
"Good show, rookie," he added. Tommy rolled his eyes.
"Okay, now that we're done with Jaws…guess it's onto the Jungle Book," Ethan said.
"Dude…lay off the movie references," Conner admonished.
"Why…why are you doing this?" Tori asked, as a few tears slipped down her cheeks. He had taken her into a deep cavern beneath the mansion, revealing that it was filled with water and a dinosaur type water beast dwelled there. Now he was securing thick manacles on her wrists.
"I'd say it's not personal, but you're a ranger and that will always be personal for me," Goldar answered.
"And a highly trained Ninja…we all are. They'll find me," she warned. He smirked.
"I'm counting on it…and let's be honest with ourselves, Ms. Hanson. It's really the crimson ranger that you wish to be found by. It's poetic since you'll die together. Do be sure to tell him how you feel before the beast rips you apart," he said, as he pushed her off the narrow network of scaffolding that they were standing on. She screamed, thinking she would be plummeting into the waters. But the manacles stopped her and painfully so, as she now hung there, awaiting her friends to find her. The beast below took note and started to make attempts at getting to her. She cried, from both the pain in her arms and fear, as she remained just out of its reach. But she didn't lose hope. She knew the guys would find her.
"You always were a psychotic bitch," Aisha spat, as Scorpina put her and Tanya in manacles, which secured them against the wall of the small, humid room. There was a fog at their feet and the ground was squishy and seemed very unstable. Scorpina smirked.
"Careful, little bear or my blade just might slip and give you a few scars on that pretty face," she threatened.
"I'm not afraid of you, bitch. I knew you were poison the minute I met you, even if you were trying to hide your identity then," she said.
"But Adam didn't think so…he liked me just fine," she goaded.
"But it seems you went the other way and married the ape instead," she commented, dissing her husband.
"Rocky and Adam will find us…there's no doubt," Tanya interjected.
"Yes…we're certainly counting on it. Have fun," she said, as she disappeared.
"Ugh…she hasn't changed," Tanya complained.
"Yeah…but we know the guys. They're probably already here," Aisha replied, as they hoped they were right.
"You know, it's a good thing Zack isn't with us. These bugs are the size of small dogs," Jason commented, as they trekked through the jungle, as a few monsters dropped out of the trees.
"Speaking of bugs…" Tommy said, with a sigh.
"Recycling old monsters…lame. I'd expect better even from you, Goldilocks!" Rocky taunted with a shout.
"Dude…don't piss him off more," Shane complained.
"He's already unhinged," Cam reminded, as the familiar monsters, at least to the veteran rangers, surrounded them.
"So we meet again, rangers," Grumble Bee buzzed.
"And I see you've brought fresh meat," Spidertron hissed. They leapt into battle and between all of them, they dispatched the two bugs rather quickly and moved on.
"What's his play with old monsters? He can't still be that daft," Adam commented.
"Yeah…there's definitely a shoe waiting to drop. I can feel it…" Hunter said.
"Your Ninja instincts serve you well," a ghostly voice rasped, as the sky went dark and they looked up into the face of none other than Lokar.
"What the hell is that?" Conner asked.
"Lokar…" Tommy said.
"And he is?" Ethan asked.
"Bad freaking news," Billy answered. But it got worse and Lokar's ethereal sky appearance became one of substance, as he appeared in sentient form before them.
"Okay…that's new," Jason said.
"Yes…Goldar has seen fit to reward me with physical form. Something Lord Zedd or Rita would never do," he said, as his eyes became black and it made Hunter gasp.
"He's a Dark Ninja…" Cam realized, as he had seen this before with his Uncle. Before any of them could do anything, he disappeared into a ninja streak and struck them all with lightning speed.
"Holy hell…" Conner groaned in pain.
"Rita and Zedd never gave me a physical form…because they knew I was more powerful and would destroy them. But Goldar and I have the same goal…your destruction, rangers. See you soon…" he said, as he disappeared, as quickly as he came. They managed to pull themselves to their feet and Dustin groaned.
"Didn't see that coming…wonder if Sensei knows this Lokar?" he asked.
"Trust me...I'll be asking my father. If we ever get out of here alive," Cam replied.
"We will…let's go," Hunter said, as they followed the veteran rangers through the rest of the jungle.
After he had taken Tori somewhere, Goldar returned and Kim and Trini were taken somewhere with magic. It was clear that the altitude was very high, as it became hard to breathe and that it was somewhere elevated above the compound and inside a volcano. They were far above it, suspended on a platform and put into cages.
"You know, you can put us in a volcano, but Tommy and Jason will still find us," Trini said.
"Oh I know…but it's fun to make them work for it," Goldar quipped, as he noticed Kimberly's pensive and forlorn look.
"Don't worry Kimberly…he'll come for you and when he does, you'll both die, along with that spawn inside of you," he said, as he chuckled.
"You have Zedd's staff…why not just use it to turn yourself back into your alien form?" Trini questioned.
"And you don't think I tried that? Even Zedd's magic has limits and it can't override Zordon's cleanse. He had no right!" Goldar ranted.
"I was born a Titan…into the most prestigious line of warriors and I vowed I would die with my people, as all the others before me. But I can never return there now. I can never rest. Your precious Zordon wasn't as good as you think he was," he added.
"You're a liar!" Kimberly shouted, as he disparaged the wise, old sage that was like a father-figure to them. Especially the first eleven of them. He stepped toward her cage and glared at her with murderous rage in his eyes.
"You know nothing of his exploits in the centuries before he was confined to that tube! He had a long history of sending children to fight his battles and their blood on his hands. Just picking up a morpher ensured that each of you will be haunted your entire lives by the power. Once you touch the morphing grid…it never leaves you alone for long," he claimed.
"It's beings like you that make the power necessary," Trini argued.
"Perhaps…but regardless, Zordon's entire legacy dies today," Goldar replied, as he disappeared, leaving them suspended above a river of lava.
"This is brutal…" Dustin said, as they continued to trek through the humid jungle.
"No lie," Shane said, as they looked ahead at the back of Hunter's head. The brooding crimson ranger was silent and they could barely keep up with him, as he barreled through the jungle.
"Dude's totally got it bad," Dustin said.
"Yeah…but does Tor feel the same?" Shane wondered.
"Dude, trust me, it's mutual," he said, as Shane and Cam looked at him with incredulity.
"What? How am I the only one that has noticed how they spend all this time together when they're not teaching?" he asked.
"He's got a point. Reefside is closer to the Thunder Academy than Blue Bay Harbor, yet Hunter still commutes," Cam acknowledged. Before there could be further discussion, they finally exited the jungle and came upon a massive compound.
"Nice place," Conner mumbled sarcastically, as they looked at the spooky mansion before them. They were already tired and weary from outrunning poisonous snakes, bugs, man-eating Venus flytraps and old monsters. Eerily, the gates swung open invitingly and the guys all exchanged looks.
"Dude…this is totally like the Temple of Doom," Dustin quipped.
"Yeah and this whole thing screams trap," Trent added sourly.
"Doesn't matter…they're in there," Billy added.
"He's definitely expecting us, which means there's no telling what's waiting for us. Everyone stay alert," Tommy warned, as he and Jason filed in first, followed by the rest with Trent and Ethan bringing up the rear.
"Welcome rangers," a voice boomed over what sounded like an intercom.
"Cut the crap Goldar…we know it's you. Where are the girls?" Jason demanded.
"I'm sorry Agent Scott, but you're not in charge here. Your teammates may jump when you bark orders, but I do not," the voice continued. The former red ranger scoffed.
"I don't give a damn about anything you have to say, now where are my wife and the others!" Jason demanded. Tommy put a hand on his shoulder and tried to calm him down.
"Jase…this isn't going to help the girls," Tommy told him quietly. Jason sighed and tried to calm down.
"Tommy…always the voice of reason," Goldman's voice boomed sarcastically.
"We're here now, but you knew that we would come so what now?" Tommy demanded to know.
"The game continues. I'll have to say, I'm quite impressed by your abilities to bypass all the dangers outside this fortress. You veteran rangers should feel proud that the younger generations have been so well trained. Wouldn't Zordon just be simply delighted to see what his children have become?" Goldman goaded sarcastically. Billy smirked.
"So…this is about Zordon. You're pissed that his magic cleansed your body and made you human. Titan would never accept you back into their society even if you could somehow prove that you're still Goldar, despite your new appearance," Billy said.
"Still trying to profile me, Dr. Cranston?" Goldman asked with an air of superiority.
"What you and Agent Scott do for a living is fascinating stuff. I myself have spent years profiling all of you as well. The lovely young women you're so desperate to get back have been placed in rather precarious places throughout this compound. You should start finding them, for I'd hate to see something tragic happen to any of them," Goldman said sarcastically, as he chuckled evilly, before his voice was gone.
"Come on, let's get going and find them," Tommy said, as they trekked into the tunnel ahead. Behind them, the walls crumbled and rock-like creatures emerged and followed them. Dustin heard a growling behind him and turned, only to find the rock creature's hard fist barreling toward him.
"Whoa…" Dustin cried, as he ducked and the creature's fist slammed into the wall beside him, causing their surroundings to shudder and the tunnel walls began to crumble.
"What are these things?" Shane cried, as they ran from the cave in.
"Probably wraiths of some kind. Goldar's answer to foot soldiers," Billy deduced, as the tunnel caved in and they barely made it out of the mouth of the cave. They stopped short, finding themselves clinging to the walls of the wide underground cavern, which had a huge hole in the center. There was a rumbling and they looked around, trying to see where it was coming from. The walls around them crumbled and more rock wraiths emerged. Ethan crossed his arms over his chest to block a blow, his Dino skin protecting him from the attack.
Rocky ducked a vicious blow and struggled to keep his footing on the narrow ground. A precisely aimed side kick sent the wraith to its doom in the dark hole.
"Guys…there's stable ground over there! Grab on and we'll Ninja streak!" Shane called, as he grabbed Conner by the collar and Trent by the arm and streak across the abyss, landing solidly on the platform.
"Look!" Trent called, as they saw a door at the end of the crevice where they now stood.
"There's a door over here!" Shane called, as they suddenly heard two screams coming from behind it.
"That was Aisha!" Rocky cried.
"Tanya too," Adam said anxiously, as Hunter grabbed their arms.
"Hang on," the Thunder Ninja told them, as he streaked his way there. Tommy and Jason continued to fight the wraiths, while Dustin fired his earth Ninja beams, blowing them apart into nothing more than harmless rubble.
"Guys…look up," Billy called, as he and Cam tried to fight off their own batch of wraiths. They did so, finding a network of platforms that led up further than they could see.
"How much do you want to bet some of the girls are up there?" Jason asked.
"There's a good chance. Dustin, can you and Cam streak us up to one of those platforms?" Tommy asked.
"Shane is the air dude. My powers are better on solid ground," Dustin replied.
"Shane, switch places with Dustin. We'll go up there and you guys continue on," Cam said, as he held onto Billy's arm and streaked up to the first platform.
"Do you think we should really split up?" Ethan asked, as he blocked another blow with his Dino skin.
"Doesn't look like we have much choice. We'll never find them all if we don't," Jason said, as Shane arrived and streaked the rest of them up to the platform, while Dustin burrowed his way to the others.
"Let's go," Rocky called, as they reached the door. Adam happened to look up and saw a massive rock falling from above.
"LOOK OUT!" he cried, as he pushed Rocky out of the way, as the rock slammed onto the ground and rolled toward the abyss. The rest of them dodged, as the rock rolled into the dark hole in the center.
"Are you guys okay?!" Tommy called from above one of the platforms.
"Yeah, told you this was like the Temple of Doom," Dustin called back.
"Everyone's fine I think," Conner called, as they suddenly heard a supersonic scream and then a normal sounding scream, much softer, coming from the dark hole.
"Kira…" Conner said, as he rushed to the edge of the precipice, trying to see into the black abyss, but it was too dark.
"Kira's down there," Conner said, as he slid down the slippery muddy slopes toward the abyss.
"Conner…what are you doing?" Ethan cried.
"Kira's down there," Conner repeated, as he started repelling down the sides of the dark precipice.
"I think that was Kat too," Billy said, as jumped down and slid down the muddy slope with Conner.
"Dustin, you're the earth guy, go with them," Shane called. The yellow Ninja nodded.
"Got it," Dustin said, as he made hand motions and burrowed into the mud, taking Conner and Billy with him.
"Let's keep going," Adam said, as he pressed the opener on the panel next to the steel door. It buzzed, refusing to open without a password.
"Password protected? Seriously, we don't have time for this," Rocky hissed, as he slammed his fist into the stupid device.
"Destroying it won't help," Adam chided. Crimson thunder left Hunter's fingertips and fried the panel, allowing the door to slide open.
"Frying it might though," Hunter replied, with a smirk.
"Nice work," Adam grinned, as they stepped into the room.
"Careful guys…the floor is unstable…" Tanya cried. She and Aisha hung suspended by the arms, as their husbands slowly made their way toward them.
"See if you can get this other door open behind them. I think we're better off trying to get out this way then going back out there," Adam said to Hunter. Carefully, the thunder ninja made his way to the door on shaky ground, as they freed Aisha and Tanya. The two women sighed in relief, as they used their now free arms to hug their husbands.
"Rocky…it's Goldar…" Aisha started to explain.
"And Scorpina…we know, we figured it out and Rita helped us get here," Rocky replied, as Hunter fried the panel and the door slid open.
"Let me guess…you must be Hunter," Tanya guessed. He looked at her, wondering how she knew.
"Tori talked about you," Tanya told him.
"You saw Tori?" he asked anxiously. The girls nodded.
"We were all together for a while and then they separated us," she explained.
"We need to get out of here, before this floor caves in," Trent said anxiously. As he said that, the floor beneath Hunter gave out, plunging him through it.
"HUNTER!" they screamed, as they heard him land with a thud.
"Ugh…I'm okay, the drop wasn't that far," the former crimson ranger called back up, as he picked himself up and dusted off. He found himself in an underground cavern and it was very damp. There was a stale, musty smell in the air, leading him to believe there was probably water nearby.
"What do you see?" Rocky called.
"Not much, but I think there's water down here," Hunter called back, as he prepared to climb back through the hole he had made…until a beastly roar accompanied by a scream stopped him dead in his tracks.
"Tori…that was Tori!" he cried, as he ran into the damp cavern, not heeding the others' calls to wait.
"What now?" Ethan asked.
"We have to trust he'll be okay and that he'll find Tori. She needs him if she's really down there. We should find a way out for now," Adam decided, as they continued on…
