Mal heard her iPhone going off and she almost wanted to ignore it. Then she realized it was just a regular call and she reached over for it. "H'llo?" She mumbled half asleep.
"Mal, it's me." Amy said, sounding rather bright and cheerful. Clearly she had been up a for a bit. Mal pulled back to see that it was almost nine. "We've got Amber on hold until you guys get here."
"Okay, be there in a minute or two." Mal told her sister and then hung up. She turned onto her back and stretched a moment before getting out of the bed she had borrowed while the team had stayed overnight at Ben's home. She hoped before they had to take off for their next quest she would have a bit of time to freshen up.
Making her way to the library she saw that she was the last to arrive. It seemed out of the group only Amy, Will, Lonnie and Miranda had not been woken up from sleep. Mal had no doubts that Amy had gotten up somewhere between seven and eight and had come to the library to explore the Belle's library. She wasn't sure what had gotten the pink, green and new Highlands ranger up so early.
Luckily the table in the center also had some light breakfast foods and drinks set out for them. Mal reached for an orange juice and a blueberry muffin. She saw both Evie and Audrey eating a chocolate croissant. Amy was slowly making her way through a strawberry muffin. Ben was eating a chocolate chip muffin. Ally had a blueberry muffin of her own. Jay had a croissant but with ham and an egg in it. Carlos was eating a banana nut muffin. Aziz was eating an apple. Will and Lonnie both had their own muffins, looked like poppy seed. Jane was working her way through a cranberry muffin. Miranda had made an impromptu omelet with the egg, ham and cheese. Jordan didn't seem interested in the food.
"Enjoying the library?" Mal asked as she sat down by her sister and unwrapped her muffin.
Amy nodded. "Yeah. It's so cool. I'd love to have a library like this when I get older." She said. She then smiled. "Maybe I could even write some of my own work."
"I'll be the first to read it." Mal promised her with a smile. "Though you might want to let Jane or Evie proof read it though." She then looked to Jane. "Alright, we're here. Let's get this started and hope for the best."
Jane went over to one of the large bookcases to reveal the screen behind it and let the call come through. At a table on the screen was Amber, Jason, Tommy, Kim, Kat, Andros, Ashley and Karone. It looked like they too were enjoying breakfast during this conversation.
"Did you guys all sleep well?" Kat asked them.
"Pretty well." Audrey replied. "I think the long day we had yesterday went a great deal toward that."
Not one for small talk Andros was the one who got on topic. "We did find something that Alpha is pretty sure will not only restore your powers but even make you stronger Ben." The young king's ears perked up at that.
Amber leaned over out of view just a little and returned with a long elegant sword, the blade rounding out slightly from the hilt until it tapered at the very edge of it. The hilt itself had two yellow looking gems on either side of it and one at the bottom of the hilt. "It took Alpha a while to figure it out. We're not entirely sure what it's made out of but it's immune to radiological scans, just like the weapon we once had that proceeded it." She told them all. "But it shows mild shifting properties, enough to fit into the shield of and reactivate your powers."
"The original weapon became stronger as the enemies around were defeated." Jason said. "So the possibility of this weapon doing the same thing is there."
"That sword looks so awesome." Evie said. Mal was sure she would have loved to analyze it on her own, and was sure Doug and Jane felt the same way.
"This is called the Sword of Praeleanthor." Tommy told them. "The original weapon spoke to Amber when we retrieved it and that's what it called itself but this one hasn't shown that characteristic. We named it after what we assume was the ancient race that created these two weapons."
"What's the best way to get it to you guys?" Kim asked them.
"Right here at the table works." Ben said.
Tommy nodded. "Alright, we'll have it over to you in a few minutes." He replied.
Unknown to them the same transmissions appeared on the view screen of Paradias's ship. Most of the background was unknown to those who stood on the bridge. But it was known and fully understood by Paradias, who unknown to any of the rangers had been alive during that time and knew everything about that incident, including details they would never find in the ancient civilizations carvings.
"We can't allow Benny boy to get that sword." Chad stated. The idea that his former friend could out do him again did not sit well with him. The only thing that would have made it worse in his mind was if the sword was supposed to go to Audrey.
"And we shall not." Paradias announced as he stood. "They have been using the Iconian Gateway to travel between their own world and Auradon."
"Shut it off then and we can isolate the Auradon Rangers from the others and keep that sword on away from the king." Gregory supplied.
Paradias hated to admit this. "Completely shutting down the gateways are beyond even my abilities." He informed the gray ranger. Instead he looked to Maleficent and Nerissa. "But with our combined energies we can direct the Praeleanthor sword away from the castle and to another destination where we can get a hold of it and destroy it."
"An excellent idea master." Nerissa said.
"Then let's get it done before the ranger's ruin our chance." Maleficent said. The three magical beings joined together in a triangular pattern on the bridge and began to a chant lead by Paradias.
The team waited anxiously for the sword to appear to them. They had even cleared off a spot for where they hoped it would appear. A few minutes passed and they looked to the screen. "Was the sword sent yet?" Carlos asked.
Tommy checked with the bridge only for his face to go grave with concern. "Alpha sent it through the gateway; it should be with you guys right now." He told them.
Jordan pulled out her iPhone and then looked up in alarm. "There's a massive amount of magical energy being directed around the hemisphere of the planet." She told them and added, "It's coming from Paradias's ship."
"What good would that do?" Evie wondered. "It wouldn't stop the gateways from functioning." She looked to the view screen. "Would it?"
It was Ashly who responded. "It wouldn't stop it from functioning but it might disrupt the targeting." She replied. "They might be doing that to try to stop you from getting the sword."
"We have to try to track it." Mal said as she looked to Jane. The girl was already working on her iPhone. "Is there anything you can tell us right now?"
"That the signals been all jammed up." Jane said. "The magic that Paradias is working is interfering with whatever targeting scanners the gateway uses and our own sensors. We may not even know where it is until it appears."
"I'm going to contact the command center and get them working on this too." Jordan said as she stood up with her iPhone and headed toward the window. She looked at the rest of her friends. "I think those of you who just managed to drag yourselves to this meeting should take a few minutes to freshen up because we might not have another chance for the rest of the day."
They all knew the genie girl was right. "Contact us when you know anything." Audrey told her.
Jordan nodded and then transferred the information Jane had to her iPhone so Jane could do the same thing. Then she moved on to talk to Doug who had picked up.
About ten minutes later Jordan saw Will, Carlos and Jay entering. It was no surprise to her that the guys would finish up first. She in fact expected some of the girls, like Audrey and Evie, to be the last ones in.
"Where do we stand?" Carlos asked Jordan.
"Fluctuations." Jordan answered. "Andros has Alpha tracking them too. We're starting to think it's not just Paradias interfering." She revealed.
"Who else would be interfering?" Jay asked as he picked up a chocolate donut even as Aziz came into the room.
"Maleficent and Nerissa." Will guessed grimly.
"I'm sure they have to be helping." They heard Cassie say from the bridge of their own ship. "But I think it's more than that. I think that prince you mentioned with Maledict's blade is helping."
"Chad?" Ben questioned as he came into the room, messing a little bit with his shirt collar. It was clear he probably rushed himself more than he usually would to make sure he didn't miss anything. Jay thought about teasing him for his princely habit but didn't as now was not the time. "How?"
"He's probably not doing it consciously." Cassie replied. "It's probably an effect of possessing Maledict's blade."
"The demons and that civilization are old enemies." Karone reminded them from a little further up on the bridge. "Whatever part of the blade that retains demonic energy can sense whatever energy remains in the Praeleanthor blade and is probably trying to repel it too."
Ally, Miranda and Lonnie came into the room. Ally stumbled a little and Aziz caught her. "How did you ever get to become a ranger with your grace?" He teased her softly.
"It's because of my charm and beauty." Ally replied in a soft teasing voice.
Aziz laughed. "You won't get any arguments from me on that one." He promised her.
"Are you two trying to compete with Ben and Mal?" Carlos asked with an exaggerated roll of his eyes.
Lonnie stood by Will, placing her hand on his arm. "I heard that we're facing some form of demonic opposition now." She mused.
"In a roundabout way." Will replied.
Mal and Jane were the next ones in. Jane immediately went to find out from Jordan what she had missed as the purple haired girl went over and kissed Ben lightly on the lips before asking, "What's the good word?"
"We have words." Ben told her. "Not necessarily good. It seems like the Maledict blade may be working to stop that Praeleanthor sword from showing up here."
"That's just great." Mal said with a roll of her eyes. She saw Evie and Amy rush, Amy very nearly ran into the couch they had sat into earlier and she let out a little laugh.
"Were you two racing?" Ben asked them.
"Maybe." Amy said with a giggle.
"She won." Evie added with a shrug and a giggle of her own.
Jay and Mal exchanged glances and were about to leave to when Audrey walked in. "Sorry." Audrey said softly as she came in. "I was in a war with the shampoo bottle. It nearly won." She said so seriously but with amusement in her eyes that everyone laughed a little, even Amy.
"I've got something." They heard TJ say from the view screen. "We're losing any form of it here so it must be coming to your world now."
"I can see the signatures." Jane reported now. "It looks like it's falling toward the ocean, where we last tried to take a break at."
"Then I guess we're going to the beach." Mal said. "It's not exactly the way I would have wanted to go there but at least we're going."
"I'm coming with you, powers or no." Ben declared. Mal wanted to argue that for just a moment but knew it would be futile. Besides if they found the sword he would need to be there anyway and so she just nodded in agreement.
"We'll keep this channel open on your iPhones just in case." Andros told them. The group nodded and the view screen went to black.
"I'm not even in the right outfit for it." Audrey said with a roll of her eyes.
"I don't disagree there." Jay said with a smile that Audrey had seen on Chad that had creeped her out, but on Jay it just made her blush and wish the trip to the beach wasn't ranger related.
"Looks like it went into the ocean." Gregory said. "The rangers might not find it, but we won't either."
"I wouldn't be so certain of that." Maleficent said with an evil glint. "Fortunately I made some small changes while I was back on the isle when I cast my spell. I think one of those should come in handy right about now."
They made their way to the beach as fast as they could. Audrey knew it would have been too easy for them to find the sword in the sand, and of course she was proven right. They moved to the beach's shore as far as they could without going for a swim to look any signs of it.
"I don't see it anywhere." Carlos said. "How far do you think it could have landed?"
Jane hesitated only a moment. "It could have landed anywhere in the ocean. It could beyond our sight and who knows where." She finally admitted. "And that's assuming it floats. If it sunk into the ocean we may never find it."
"Can't we scan for it?" Aziz asked.
"Remember what Amber said, its immune to radiological scans." Evie reminded him. "And since no one is sure what kind of alloy was used to make it we can't even guarantee we could build something to draw it to us."
"How did Nerissa get ahold of the Maledict blade then?" Ally wondered.
"Something tells me evil demons weren't concerned about giving an evil blade to an evil sorceress to give to an evil minion." Jordan said with some annoyance.
"Are you suggesting that the keyword here is evil?" Lonnie asked with seemingly complete innocence as she glanced around. She ignored Jordan's scowl of annoyance.
Amy had an idea. She entered the water ankle deep and then leaned down to try to feel the sword out. It was true that they couldn't detect the sword itself but she knew she could feel objects in the water, something she tested out during her solitary time on the isle. But she had never tried to find anything specific and she had never tested the limits of her senses. She did remember Amber saying the other weapon was alive, and if any spark of intellect was in the sword as well her empathic powers might allow her to sense it unless for whatever reason it was immune to that as well. It had never come up before, and Amy had never admitted it, but Freddie from the Isle of the Lost was one of the few things she had run into that forever reason she could not read with her empathic powers.
"What are ye doing?" Miranda asked her.
"Trying to see if I can feel it in or on the water. If it has any spark of intelligence like Amber said maybe that will help too." Amy answered her. "If this works we can track it down without a needle in a haystack problem."
Then there was a movement no one needed help to see but it wasn't a sword. It was a large tail that emerged from the depths before crashing back underwater.
"Oh, my pink." Amy gasped. She felt the larger body underneath the surface. "That is not good."
"What was that?" Audrey asked no one in particular.
"Are there any sea monsters in Auradon?" Mal asked now.
"Not that we know of." Ben answered. "But a great deal of our oceans are unexplored despite the mer population that lives in the seas itself." He didn't know it but that was one way in which their world resembled Earth.
"I've actually heard stories of such creatures." Miranda voiced now. "But honestly most of them don't bother comin' this close to land."
At that point a giant blue head rose from the depths. It's red eyes glared at them, its razor sharp teeth gleamed in the sunlight, along with the blue scales that covered its body. The beak like nose of the creature had water and what they feared was blood on the tip. As the tail swished up a bit they noticed an additional amount of red scales from the end of what would be the spine to the tail. They saw small three clawed appendages that could have been hands on about midway down the scaly hide.
"Oh that is so not good." Carlos said and then amended, "I mean it's kind of cool, but so not good."
"I don't suppose it's friendly." Jane said uneasily.
"Something tells me a creature with teeth like that doesn't know what it means to be friendly, unless it's looking to gobble something down." Will noted with uneasy sarcasm.
"How could we possibly have missed it all these years?" Lonnie wondered. She too agreed that something like that wasn't known for being friendly. She also doubted it hid away shyly in caves.
"At least it can't come over to us on the sand, right?" Evie asked.
The creature opened its mouth and unleashed a massive stream of energy at right at them from its position. Ben grabbed Amy and pulled her with him even as the rest of the team scattered out of the way of the attack.
"Looks like it doesn't need to come over here to threaten us." Audrey noted.
"No, it doesn't." Mal agreed. Right now they couldn't be sure if it this thing was a natural born but terrifying sea creature, a really terrifying monster that Paradias had released, or somehow some demon that was here to stop them from finding the Praeleanthor sword, or maybe even something else unknown, and right now it didn't matter. "Let's get to work."
"Easier said than done." Aziz pointed out as he took out his iPhone.
The rest of the team took out their iPhones too, except Jane who needed the magic wand, and then they all transformed.
"I didn't get the time I needed to see if I can find the sword." Amy revealed to them. "I have to get in close to the water again if there's any hope of my idea working."
"Right now I'd be more worried about keeping all of us alive than finding the sword." Audrey pointed out. "We have to get rid of that thing first."
The creature again shot a stream of energy from its mouth at the team. This time Evie had her mirror force shield up and ready, collecting the energy and reflecting it right back at the monster. It roared in anger and even a bit of agony and dove back into the water.
"Was it really that simple?" Carlos asked.
"No." Jordan said. She pointed to some of the waves. "It just descended into the depths, but it's still here."
"Do you think that thing can get any closer to the beach than it already was?" Lonnie put forth. She was sure it didn't really need much more distance to try to snap any of them into its jaws but if it moved in closer they would have a problem.
"It doesn't need to get any closer to get a hold of us." Miranda said as if she had read her mind.
Mal frowned a bit. The relative distance of the creature made it hard to fight it with everything they had. "We have to keep that thing off of Amy so she can try to find the sword." She said. "Will, Jay, Carlos, Aziz, your normal weapons have no range options so you'll have to stick with the blasters." She took out her own blaster and gave it to Ben. "I know you want to help, and we can use all the long range support we can get."
"Are you sure?" Amy asked. She knew no one wanted her to really be that close to the water with that thing there.
"We don't have a choice." Mal said softly. "Lonnie and I will go closer to the water with you in case we need to pull anything off. Our long range options are still limited." She looked to Ally, Audrey, Jordan, Jane and Evie. "Yours should work pretty well so you guys stay behind the guys for maximum effectiveness."
"I actually don't know how well my crystal cards will work at this distance with a monster that big." Ally interjected. "I may have to fall back to the blaster with the guys."
"If that's what you have to do then make it so." Mal replied. She looked to Miranda. "What about you, where do you want to be?"
"At home." She said with a deadpan joke. "Seriously, I can use my swords to and shoot energy at it which might be more effective than the blasters but not as effective as the other girls."
Mal nodded. "Okay then. Go where you think you're best." She said. She looked to Amy and Lonnie. "Are you ready?" Both pink like rangers nodded. "Let's do it everyone." She formed her dragon's eye staff and Lonnie her hurricane tessens and they moved with Amy to the water's edge.
"Everyone get ready." Audrey commanded. The guys knelt down on one knee with their blasters raised. Evie readied her mirror force shield but even she wasn't sure rather she should defend or attack with it. Audrey prepared a hail of lightning arrows. Jane prepared to unleash a magical barrage. Jordan got ready with her lamp cannon and Ally had her cards positioned for whatever she thought it would be worth.
Just as Amy's foot touched the water the creature reared up from the waves again and let out a ferocious roar. Then it brought up one of its massive appendages and then slammed it into the water, generating a near tidal wave that headed straight toward the beach.
"Can you stop that?" Lonnie asked Amy in slight fear.
Amy took a deep breath. "I…I don't know." She confessed. If it had been natural she thought maybe she could, but with the force of it generated from a monster she was definitely not sure.
"Don't worry about it!" Audrey called out as the arrows shifted from electric to ice and she unleashed it upon the tidal wave. It took a bit longer than any of them would have liked for it, but the arrows effects froze the tidal wave up. The massive paws of the creature shattered the ice walls as if they didn't exist.
"I think it's time to go on the offensive here." Miranda said. Audrey, Evie, Jane and Jordan nodded. Audrey released a hail of lightning arrows and Evie released a storming mirror force as the other three girls released blasts of energy from the magic wand, lamp cannon and two swords respectively.
They struck the hide of the creature and it roared in pain before turning away from the three girls on the beachfront and more toward the small brigade further on shore. It then unleashed a massive stream of energy that forced them all to disperse.
"We just don't have the size for this." Carlos noted with annoyance. "We need a better plan."
"The size." Mal murmured. Then she had an idea, it was a long shot but it was better than what they had now. "I need dragon power now." She called out.
From the darkening skies her dragon zord emerged with a roar. It got the attention of the sea creature that looked up at it with malice in its eyes. It unleashed a stream of energy from its mouth at the dragon zord but its own attack blocked that one out.
The creature leapt out of the water and slammed right into the dragon zord. The dragon zord however was more nimble and just managed to slip out of the monster's full attack as it plummeted into the water, apparently wanting to take the zord with it. Mal had no idea how her dragon zord would fare underwater and didn't wish to test that out.
Amy again reached out sense for the sword. This time she found it. She surmised the tidal wave must have moved it from wherever it had crash landed. But as she tried to reach out for it, she felt something move around it. Then she let out a small scream of pain.
"Amy." Mal gasped and was at her side. "Are you okay?"
"Something else is in the water." Amy revealed to her. "And it just found the Praeleanthor sword."
As if on cue there was a large explosive burst from the sea. Out strode a woman with gray hair and gray skin. She had the body of an appendage of an octopus surrounding her legs and she swirled the blade with expert precision. "Hello again. It's so nice to meet you." She said with a cruel sneer on her face. "I see you've had the pleasure of meeting Daedalus, my pet." She added with laughter.
"It can't be." Amy whispered.
"No way." Mal agreed.
"Oh my gosh, how?" Evie wondered.
"What are you talking about?" Audrey asked her. "How do you know her?"
"That Undine, Ursula the sea witch's daughter." Carlos told the brunette princess with trepidation. "And she's basically everything you feared Mal would be."