Dino Thunder: Return of the Eclipse: Chapter 19: Copy That
Disclaimer: Saban owns all Power Ranger lines.
Copyright: All unrecognizable parts and characters are under December's Phoenix's copyright.
Summary: Copying is hardly fair.
A clattering of glasses and a tray had the table filled with four Rangers turn to the sound. All four found Ethan sprawled out on the ground, colorful drinks spilled all around him. Conner, Kira, Crystal, and Lucy stared at their downed teammate. "Clean up on aisle 5." Conner joked, chuckling.
Crystal clicked her tongue. "Be nice." She returned Conner's shrug with one of her own.
Kira laughed. "Yeah, since when do you work here?"
"Hayley's been short-handed since Trent quit," Ethan answered, rising from the floor and picking up the glasses. "Just trying to help her out."
"I guess kicking our butts has kept Trent busy these days." Conner bit, leaning on the table.
"Yeah, no doubt," Lucy muttered, rounding the table to help Ethan. Crystal followed, moving to grab some towels Hayley had stashed in the back.
"I think you guys might have been right. Maybe there is no good left in Trent." Kira sighed.
Crystal shook her head, soaking up the liquid while Lucy and Ethan cleared the glasses and trash. "Don't say that." She told her, rising to one knee to look over the table. "Despite everything Trent's put us through, we have to hold out that he's going to turn."
"Weren't you the one to suggest that spell of cleansing?" Kira shot back.
Crystal's features flattened. "Okay, that was a mistake. Look, Trent's going to have to figure out if he wants to remain on Mesogog's side or come to ours."
"Why are you like this?"
"Like what?"
"Wise and teacher-like."
Crystal laughed. "I'm a sensei for a powerful ninja school, and I've been in your spot."
Conner's morpher beeped, making everyone gather around him. "Come in, Rangers. We've got a situation. I need you over the city center right away." Dr. Oliver reported.
The Rangers took off from Hayley's. "Come on, over there!" Kira pointed to behind a trolley cart.
"Ready?"
"Ready."
Dino Thunder, Power Up!
Eclipse Ranger, Dino Power!
Dino Power!
Guardian of the Moon!
Guardian of the Sun!
"All right, creep, we're taking you down!" Conner yelled. The five Rangers slowed across from what looked like a copy machine and a pepper.
He spun around. "Oh yeah?" He asked, now holding a red pepper in his hands. "Says who? Here's the pepper for you." He threw it in the direction of the Rangers.
Kira pulled her saber out, slicing down and sending the pepper back to the monster. "I'm not supposed to have too many spicy foods. Thanks anyway." She nodded, shouldering her blade.
"Then how about some seafood!" The monster threw his arms to the side, producing shells. "This is what I call shell-shocked." He threw them at the Rangers. He watched Ethan slash all of them to the ground. "You'll pay for that!"
"Tricera-shield!" Ethan called, lifting his weapon.
"That's exactly what I was waiting for. Now it's time for my secret power. Copy!" The monster held up one arm, letting the purple light shine before the Blue Ranger's secondary weapon appeared on his arm. "Tricera-shield!"
"No way!" Ethan cried out before he stumbled back, hit with the same power he held on his arm. He crashed to the ground with a grunt.
"Ethan!" Kira called, landing right next to him.
"You okay?" Conner asked from the other side of the downed Ranger. He turned to see the Guardians standing there, helmets tucked like they were going to attack.
Kira climbed to her feet. "Now it's on." She commented. She and Conner pulled their secondary weapons out. "Ptera-grips."
"Tyranno-staff," Conner announced.
"Copy." The monster stated. In two flashes, he held identical weapons in his hands.
Conner gaped. "He copies our weapons!"
"That's cheating!" Kira added. The monster charged the two, hitting Kira and Conner with their weapons and sending them to the ground. "He's got our weapons. What else does he want?"
"Copy." The monster announced. "Hi, I'm the Yellow Ranger. Aren't I cute?"
"My voice!" Kira snapped.
Lucy winced. "That's just plain cold, dude."
"That's enough." Conner practically snarled
"I agree," The monster turned around to take off. "I have more important things to copy."
"How are we going to stop this guy?" Ethan asked.
"We start by finding him." Crystal nodded, taking off before her team.
"Guys, the signal is coming from over here." Lucy pointed to a spot, making the Rangers pull their bikes to a stop in the middle of an abandoned road.
Conner glanced around, then over his shoulder at his girlfriend. "Luce, you sure?"
"I have never been more sure about anything in my life," Lucy nodded, then paused. "Okay, I take that back."
Crystal chuckled. "Figured you might." She glanced around. "Lu, where is he?"
"Looking for me?" The monster sang, appearing out of nowhere. The Rangers scrambled into a line against him. He pulled two peppers out from behind him. "I was picking peppers." He threw them at the Rangers.
The four dodged the explosions. Conner, Kira, and Ethan rolled one way while Lucy and Crystal rolled the other. "Careful," Ethan spoke. "Remember, he can copy our weapons."
"Then how do we fight him?" Kira asked.
"I got it." Conner clapped. "We close up the head of the Z-Rex blaster. He makes a copy, and then it explodes."
"Sneaky. I like it." Ethan nodded.
"Are you done with your meeting over there?" The monster snarled.
"Just a minute," Conner announced, calling on his staff and closing the head of it.
"Z-Rex Blaster." The three called.
"Get ready," Conner called.
The monster lifted his arms. "Z-Rex Blaster, ready." He held the weapon against the Rangers. "Oh, I almost forgot." He reached over, opening the head of the Tyranno-staff.
"No!" Lucy yelled out.
"Now it's ready." He sang. "Fire." He blasted the Rangers back into a miniature lake behind them. He followed the three. "Now get up so I can blast you again."
"I don't think so." Dr. Oliver turned, making the monster turn around to face him.
"Another one?" He asked.
"Brachio staff. Wind strike." Dr. Oliver slammed his weapon into the ground, pushing the monster back with the force of a hurricane. "Guys!" He called, running to the three downed Rangers.
"Copy." The monster called, holding his arm up. He held the weapon up. "Brachio staff. Wind strike." That sent the Rangers back into the water.
"Guys!" Crystal called, appearing in front of the four downed Rangers. Lucy stopped next to her. The Gold Ranger pulled her blade out.
"No!" The Rangers yelled out.
The monster laughed. "Copy!" He commanded. Nothing happened. No weapon appeared in his hand, no swords to use against the Rangers. "What?"
"Get with the program," Crystal laughed, placing her broadsword on her shoulder. "Our powers can't be duplicated."
"Looks like you're out of luck," Lucy added, pulling her blade out. The two began to attack, shoving him back into the forest surrounding the lake while the Rangers recovered. Once they did, it could have been more pretty.
Conner grunted when he connected with the tree behind him, having been tossed into it by the monster. He turned to see the monster standing over the four downed Rangers while the Guardians stood over them. "How's the dirt taste?" He laughed.
Then a motor noise resounded, and suddenly Trent came out of nowhere on his ATV, blasting the monster back. He whipped around, stopping across from the Rangers and the monster. "Looks like you could use a little help." He took off, slashing the monster like the ninjas do. He jumped up, slashing down.
The monster stopped the swing, slicing down his chest and sending him rolling back. "Let's see how you like it." The monster called, pawing at the dirt with his foot before he took off, streaking across the White Ranger.
"That's crazy." Kira sighed, getting supported by Crystal after being hauled to her feet.
Trent flew back, hitting the tree and landing roughly on the ground.
"Who's side is he on now?" Conner asked.
"Is that all you got?" The monster questioned, standing across from Trent.
"Actually, no," Trent answered. "Super Dino Mode!" He called, letting the power wrap around him. All the black spikes on his uniform transformed into real spikes. A crest of them around his helmet while two sharp ones hung off his gloves.
"He's got super dino mode!" Conner pointed out.
Crystal held her helmet in her gloved hand. "Thank you, Captain Obvious."
Trent lifted his arms. "And I like it." He clenched his fists together.
"Big deal." The monster fired shots at him that Trent avoided. The smoke continued to rise. "Bye now."
Trent came out of the smoke, flying. "We not done yet." He tackled the monster, shoving him back until he smashed into a tree.
"Thought we were on the same side." The monster tried.
"Not anymore."
Conner stepped up. "Is this another trick?"
Trent pulled away from him, letting the monster spark and explode while he walked over to the Rangers. He turned up to see the monster standing over them. "Copy this, Rangers!"
"Brachio!" Dr. Oliver called, watching his zord rumble through the city.
The three primary Rangers took off, quickly entering their zords and forming their Megazord. They landed across from the monster, who snarled. "I'm ready for you, Rangers." The two charged each other.
Down on the ground, Dr. Oliver and the Guardians stood together. "I know you can take this guy. Stay focused." He turned around just in time to see Zeltrax running at him. He yelled out when he hit the ground. "You again?"
Zeltrax laughed. "I have been waiting for this moment for a long time." He lifted his sword to hit Dr. Oliver.
But something stopped him. Dr. Oliver looked up, and instead of seeing a Guardian broadsword, he saw Trent and his blade between him and the general. "Get back, Zeltrax." The White Ranger snarked.
"You!"
Trent pushed his blade up, kicking Zeltrax in the chest. The Guardians appeared behind him, weapons drawn. "What the hell is happening?" Crystal asked, moving to stand in front of the downed doctor.
"Honestly? No idea." Lucy laughed. "I'm a little more than confused."
Trent charged, kicking again. Zeltrax blocked it, swinging over Trent's head. He swung again. Trent blocked Zeltrax's arm with his own. The White Ranger grabbed his wrist, knocking their swords up.
"Okay, now I'm really confused." Dr. Oliver nodded.
Trent flipped away from Zeltrax, whipping around and firing the laser part of his weapon at the general. Zeltrax dodged, turning back to the White Ranger. "Laser fire!" He threw his arm out, sending his own lasers at the Ranger.
Trent hid behind a tree to avoid the blasts and quickly moved out to see Zeltrax right at him. Trent tottered back to the three other Rangers in the forest with him. Dr. Oliver took that chance, running into the battle. He kicked up, hitting Zeltrax's arm. He spun around, kicking again. He sliced down.
Zeltrax ducked and blocked the next swing, pushing Dr. Oliver out of the way. He dodged Trent's attack. He barely avoided the slice from the Solar Ranger. Crystal grunted, her broadsword connecting with his sword. Zeltrax kept his eyes on Crystal, utterly unaware of the Lunar Ranger behind him. She rammed her shoulder into his side, sending him away from the Rangers.
Zeltrax snarled, rising to his feet and pushing off the ground to kick at the two Guardians. But the White Ranger beat him to the punch, his foot colliding with Zeltrax's stomach. The general hit the ground roughly while Trent landed beside Crystal. Lucy stood on her other side with Dr. Oliver next to her. "You will pay dearly for that, traitor." Zeltrax bit, thrusting his sword in the air and disappearing into the invisa-portal.
The White Ranger stepped forward, then turned to the three veteran Rangers. "You guys okay?"
Dr. Oliver stood behind the two sisters. "What do you want?" He demanded.
Trent lifted his blade into the air, slicing down. "Power down." He started moving closer to the three.
"Stop right there." Crystal snarled, raising her blade higher.
Lifting his arms in surrender, Trent breathed. "You three have to listen to me."
"Let's pep things up." The monster brandished two large peppers, throwing them and two more at the Rangers. The Megazord couldn't avoid them, stumbling back as the peppers exploded. "Spicy." He threw his arms out, firing lasers from his eyes at the Rangers.
They stumbled back. "Oh, it's on now!" Ethan turned to Conner.
The Red Ranger lifted his morpher. "Ankylozord." The stout, lumbering orange Ankylozord trotted out from the top compartment, roaring before he replaced the Tricerazord arm.
The monster fired another round of lasers, which bounced off the spinning shield of the Ankylozord. "Double drill attack!" The two drills spun rapidly. The Megazord lifted them, racing at the monster and striking him with both. He screamed in pain, falling back and landing with an explosion and sparks.
"Anyone know why Dr. O and the sisters wanted us to meet them?" Ethan asked, turning to look at Conner and Kira while the wall behind him rose.
"Lucy said something about a big surprise," Kira told him. They received a morpher call from the Silver Guardian, who only stated that there was a surprise in the lab. Kira thought it had to do with the Guardians more than anything else. She turned to see the wall halfway open.
"Hey guys," Trent spoke. The three fell into fighting stances when the wall finally opened up. "Hold on."
"Whoa, how did you get in here?" Conner demanded.
Dr. Oliver turned from the chair at the computers. "I let him in."
Lucy held her hands up by her shoulders. "Surprise?" She supplied, standing on the stairs with her sister.
"What?" Conner breathed, following the two into the lab. He and Ethan moved around to meet the ninjas and Dr. Oliver while Kira stood on the other side. "But he's—"
"On our side now." Dr. Oliver nodded.
"Yeah, right." Ethan rolled his eyes. "Every time we hear that, he burns us. Why should we believe him now?"
"Because…he saved our lives," Crystal spoke.
Conner glanced at Lucy, who only nodded before he turned back to Trent. "Is that true?"
"Yeah." Trent breathed, turning his head in thought before returning to the Rangers immediately. "I'm in control of the dino gem now. I want to use it to fight with you."
"I wouldn't have brought him here if I didn't think he was telling the truth. But only you can decide whether or not you trust him." Dr. Oliver spoke, nodding to the two male Rangers.
Ethan finally sighed. "Well, if Dr. O and the sisters are down with it, then I guess I'm on board too."
"Yeah, I guess we got no choice, considering I'm kind of tired of fighting you," Conner added, tuning his hands into his pockets and feeling Lucy loop her arm through his.
Trent turned and walked to Kira. He sighed. "Look, I know I got a lot to make up for, but I promise… this time, I won't let you down."
"Well, I guess everyone deserves one last chance." Kira smiled. She turned to the rest of the team. "But, isn't there a rule that says newbie Rangers must wash all the Zords?"
The teenage Rangers laughed. Ethan grinned. "Hey, I forgot about that rule."
Crystal snorted. "How could you? Lucy and I made you three wash your own zords."
Lucy cackled. "I completely forgot about that one."
"The zords?" Trent asked in disbelief. The three primary Rangers gathered the cleaning supplies. "But they're gigantic."
"Yeah, they are," Conner told him, adding to the pile of supplies. "So better get started."
Trent sighed, shaking his head. He walked out of the lab and to where the Zords were stored. Crystal slung her arms around Ethan and Conner's shoulders. "This is going to be fun."
Lucy snorted. "Don't sound like a psychopath."
"I wasn't."
"You did."
Kira laughed. "You two can argue about anything."
Crystal nodded. "It's a miracle we've made it so far." The Rangers laughed.
Lucy stopped laughing, turning to the Rangers with a serious look. "No, it is." She nodded, making them laugh harder.
Hello! It's been a while since I left a note for all you lovely people. Some of my favorite episodes are coming up in the next couple of weeks, and I'm so excited to share them with you. I hope you guys have enjoyed it so far, and I can't wait for you guys to see what I have in store!
Next Episode: Triassic Triumph