Thank you to those who took the time to review the first chapter! It means a lot to me!
Notifications once again aren't working on this wonderful platform (such a wonder why I'm starting to work more with AO3...) but I am trying to keep an eye out!
Hope you like it!
Chapter 2: Sporix Unleashed
"It's Morphin' Time!" Zayto's shout was loud, but there was nobody around for miles to hear him. The only ones who did, were Ryne, Ollie and Amelia as they stood in line with him. There was a pulse of energy as they activated their Morphers, only for Zayto to quickly duck under the arm that Amelia swung wildly.
"Sorry…I keep doing that…" she apologised once again, going red in embarrassment.
"Let's go again," Zayto didn't dwell on it as he turned from her to check that both Ollie and Ryne were ready. "We need to get the Morphin' sequence right. We can't afford mistakes," he reminded them seriously, and lifted his fists as he once again moved into position. The others followed suit. "It's Morphin' Time!"
This time all of them moved in unison as Amelia repeated the steps in her head fervently. "Dino Fury Key!" Zayto called next, only for Ollie to lose his grasp on the Blue Key in his hand. Ryne caught it before it could go tumbling into the grass and vanish.
"I was just…testing your reflexes," Ollie tried as he straightened. Ryne gave him a droll stare that matched Zayto's, and handed back the Key.
"Again," Zayto instructed. "Dino Fury Key!" at his shout, they all drew their Ranger Keys that thrummed quietly with power. When he didn't fumble it this time, Ollie gave a breath of relief. "Activate!" the four connected their keys to the Morphers on their wrists.
"Link to Morphin' Grid!" with a twist of power, the four Morphed into their Ranger suits and held their sabres at the ready. "Dino Fury Power!" they shouted.
Light clapping earned their attention, and the four turned as Teddie emerged from behind the Spinosaurus statue with a grin on her face.
"Not bad. Didn't take you too long to get the sequence down," she praised them. Amelia was grateful for her helmet as it hid the blush of being praised by someone she had admired all her life.
"I thought you were helping Solon clean up," Ryne on the other hand, still sounded exasperated. She had done so since Teddie's dramatic arrival in the base underground, even as she explained to Amelia, Zayto and Solon who her mother really was.
"I did. Your base is now secure. Well…as secure as any Ranger base can be," Teddie shrugged, leaning against the dinosaur statue with her arms folded. "And the big hole that Void Knight left is all covered up. Nobody will think anything happened…if anyone even comes out here," she added as she looked around. Ryne watched her mother closely for another moment, realising that she hadn't gotten an answer as to why Teddie had shown up to begin with.
"There's nine statues, but only four of us," Ollie spoke up before Ryne could press the matter. Zayto was quiet at the observation as Teddie watched Ryne, her smile telling Ryne that she knew what was on her mind.
"Do you have the other Dino Fury Keys?" Amelia asked when he didn't say anything. "Can we recruit more Rangers?" she gasped, excited at the very idea.
"Can we?" Ollie asked, finding the idea of gathering more allies preferable.
"Nine potential Rangers…almost as bad as us," Teddie murmured, thinking back to her Dino Charge team.
"The other keys were lost with the original Rangers," Zayto finally managed to speak, but his words were quiet and filled with grief. Ryne reached out and put a hand on his arm, not saying anything. After a moment, the Red Ranger let out the breath he'd been holding, and nodded at her. "Let's move onto Boost Keys," he said, quickly moving past the subject as he lifted a different Key to the ones they used to Morph. "We have many; each one gives us a special ability," he explained as they leaned in to study it.
"Sounds cool!"
"They kinda sound like power ups in a video game," Ollie's comment reminded Ryne of Devon, and she couldn't help but laugh quietly, wondering how her old team were getting on and how they'd react to her news.
"Before you try those out…" Teddie spoke up as she pushed off the statue she was leaning against. "I did come out here for a reason. Solon needed to show you all something," she told them. Zayto nodded.
"We're on our way," he told her. Teddie nodded, vanishing in a burst of white and green sparkles. Amelia gasped quietly, still unused to it all. The four demorphed, and Zayto turned to his team. "Remember: to teleport, you turn the ring, then push the button," with his demonstration, Zayto vanished back into the base.
"Now that's going to take some getting used to," Ryne admitted as she looked at her Morpher. She was well accustomed to teleporting her weapons and Morpher when needed, but not herself. She didn't hesitate, however, as the three followed Zayto's instructions.
In a flash, they reappeared inside of the base. Ryne looked around at the repaired base, which showed no sign of the battle that had taken place only a few hours ago. She could feel the lingering magic in the air, sending a small shiver down her spine.
"Gotta get used to that…does it make you weak in the knees too?" she glanced at Amela as she walked unsteadily away.
"No…" Ollie moaned, his hand against his stomach. "Just really nauseous," he admitted, afraid he was about to see his breakfast again. Seeing Ryne unaffected, he stared at her. "Does anything bother you?" he groaned, afraid to talk too much. Ryne tilted her head, and flashed a cheeky smile at him.
"I'm built different," she answered simply. Ollie would have rolled his eyes, had he not been afraid to do so. That was putting it lightly.
"I've got our defence systems back online," Solon said as they approached her and Teddie. "No-one can get into the base but us," she told them.
"And Teddie," Amelia glanced at the woman, who winked at her.
"The perks of being the Legendary Protector and all that," she shrugged, trying to sound modest. Ryne snorted, and Teddie lightly batted her shoulder.
"I've also put the T-Rex Champion Zord on standby," Solon continued. Amelia's eyes lit up.
"T-Rex Champion? That sounds awesome! Who names these Zords?" she asked eagerly. Nobody answered, all staring at her.
"Anyway…" Solon continued slowly as Amelia went red for her outburst. "As Teddie and I were cleaning up, I found this," she held up a device in her hand.
"Hey, that's Void Knight's scanner. He must have dropped it," Ollie realised as he took it from her and studied it intently.
"That's how he tracked down the Sporix," Ryne remembered, a similarly fascinated look on her face.
"Do you think he'll come back for it?" Amelia worried.
"Void Knight will have to wait," Zayto shook his head, not finding it a pressing matter. "Right now, the Sporix are loose, and we need to warn people," he reminded them of the bigger problem.
"Agreed. If those eggs you warned us about are just lying around town, people could get hurt," Teddie said, though she was keeping an eye on how intently Ollie was studying the unfamiliar device in his hands.
"I'll reach out to Grid Battleforce. They'll know it's a serious matter and help us get the word out," Ryne suggested. "SPD too. Should we get Uncle Spence looking into Void Knight? Whoever he is, he's not human. So either he's alien…"
"Or he's from the Magical Realm," Teddie finished Ryne's train of thought. "I'll make a visit to Rootcore and check with Nora," she said. While she had taken on the title of Legendary Protector, Nora and her team of Mystics were still the ones who handled any issues within the Magical Realm.
"And I will put aside my mind being blown about the Magical Realm and everything else you two just said," Amelia grinned. "We'll notify the police here and spread the word on social media. I'll contact Buzz…blast…" she slowed as she noticed that Ollie was in a world of his own. "Ollie!" she called the new Blue Ranger's name, but he still didn't look up.
"And they say I'm bad," Ryne muttered, shaking her head before reaching up to flick her boyfriend's nose. He jumped, flinching away. "What are you thinking?" she asked him curiously.
"If we find all the Sporix, there won't be any danger," Ollie's eyes were bright with the idea that had come to him. "My mum's drone has aerial scanning, and this thing detects Sporix energy," he walked away from them as he spoke. "If we combine this with the drone, we can scan the city and find all of them before they hatch!" he suggested.
"Whoa, wait a second," Ryne shook her head as she walked over. "As much as I like the idea, we have no idea where that scanner is from or how it works. Combining it with your mum's drone could cause more harm than good," she warned him. Ollie turned to her and smiled.
"You worry too much. Trust me, I'm sure mum and I can figure it out if we had a little time," he insisted. Ryne's eyebrows furrowed at his insistence.
"Time is what we don't have," Zayto reminded him. "Our priority is to warn the town," he decided.
"Not to mention, messing with the enemy's tech could bring him straight to you and your mum, and you can't drag innocent people into Ranger business. It's secret for a reason," Teddie added. Zayto nodded.
"They're right," Amelia agreed. "We can't risk anyone getting hurt," she said. Ollie let out an irritated sigh, but nodded, knowing he was outvoted.
"Yeah. Fine," he said, but his rough tone told them he wasn't pleased. "We alert the city," he nodded.
"I'll let you know what Nora and my brother say," Teddie gave a two-fingered salute, and vanished once again as she used her magic to teleport.
"That is so cool…do you think your mum would teach me some magic?" Amelia asked Ryne hopefully. The new Purple Ranger smiled at her eagerness.
"She'd probably jump at the chance, seeing as I never really followed down that path," she shrugged. Amelia stared at her as if she'd grown a second head.
"Why? It's magic!" she exclaimed. Ryne shrugged.
"I know some spells, and they've come in useful in a fight," she admitted, thinking about the few times she'd had to douse Ravi to cool him down. "But it's just never my first thought. I like building things and solving problems that way," Ryne explained.
"I guess when you grow up around all that stuff, it's not as wondrous," Amelia considered. Ryne shook her head.
"It's still incredible even growing up surrounded by magic, trust me. I'm just more technically minded. Mum blames my dad for it," she chuckled. Ryne then sobered, turning to Zayto. "I'll go visit my old team in GB and get them to help spread the word," she told him. He nodded, smiling thankfully at her.
"Sounds great. We'll handle the main focus in town," he said. Zayto looked at Amelia and Ollie, and the two lined up beside him to teleport out of the base. Ollie shot Ryne a smile, and she smiled softly back before they vanished.
"Okay…it shouldn't be difficult to use this thing to teleport to Coral Harbour, right?" Ryne looked down at the Morpher around her wrist, and over to Solon. She was still unused to the device around her wrist, which was clunkier than the communications device she had worn as the Pink Ranger. She still carried it with her, but hadn't worn it since leaving Grid Battleforce.
"Of course," Solon nodded in encouragement. "These were designed to teleport you anywhere around the world. As long as you can picture your destination, you'll be able to go there," she repeated what Zayto had explained when he had first told them about the teleportation capabilities of their Morphers. Ryne had almost ripped hers open then and there to see how it was possible.
"Great. Thanks, Solon. I'll report back when I'm done," she told the cyborg dinosaur.
"Good luck," Solon spoke gently, smiling as Ryne stepped into the centre of the room where the others had been standing moments before. The new Purple Ranger took a deep breath, closing her eyes as she pictured the Grid Battleforce building, searching her memories for the best place she could teleport to without drawing attention.
Finally she turned the ring and pressed, and felt the tug in her stomach as for just a moment, her feet lifted off the ground. When they pressed against solid ground again, Ryne took in a breath and looked around. As she expected, the closed off road beside Grid Battleforce was empty, and Ryne couldn't help but look at the wall nearby. The scorch marks had long since washed off, but the damage was still there - a reminder of her fight with Vargoyle. A shiver ran down her spine as she remembered it well, and pushed herself to start walking.
"ID plea-Ryne!" the guard exclaimed as he looked up and saw Ryne approaching. She smiled at the man she remembered well from her time working at Grid Battleforce.
"Hey, Mark. Can I go through, or do I need one of the others to get me?" she asked him. The older man brightened, happy that she remembered his name.
"Not at all. The Commander made it clear that you were always welcome. Go on through," he swiped the machine, opening the doors for her, and Ryne stepped through as she thanked him.
Grid Battleforce hadn't changed in the slightest since she had left, and it made her realise how much she'd missed it. While Ryne didn't regret her decision to step down as the Pink Ranger, she did miss spending almost every day there.
"Ryne!" it felt like the delighted roar echoed through the entire building, and it made Ryne jump. She whirled around just in time for the familiar lanky, leather jacket-clad figure to collide with her. She was lifted off her feet as Lewis delivered a crushing hug.
"Can't…breathe…" she managed to groan out, but the young man still took his time setting her down with a wide grin.
"It's been too long. We've missed you around here," Lewis told her. Ryne rubbed her ribs, shooting him an exasperated look.
"I would have said the same, had you not tried to crush me," she told him. Lewis didn't look guilty at all as he laughed.
"What brings you back to Grid Battleforce all of a sudden? Change your mind about working in the lab? Or better yet, replacing Blaze as my assistant?" he winked, and Ryne couldn't help but laugh.
"I thought Blaze was doing a good job," she pointed out. Lewis shrugged.
"I guess. You'd do better," he told her. Ryne's smile widened, before she put a hand on her Morpher.
"I have bad news. I need to talk to the Commander," she explained softly. Lewis looked down at the device around his wrist, and sobered.
"Come on. She should be in the Command Centre," he said, leading the way towards the room that Ryne hadn't seen since the day she had stepped down. "The Rangers are out at the minute. I sent them on a run through the forest and told them that if they don't clear it by sundown, they have to do the same tomorrow," Lewis grinned, and Ryne snorted.
"I don't miss your ruthless training methods," she told him. He shrugged.
"They were mouthing off during weapons training yesterday. It was their own fault," he replied loftily. The doors to the Command Centre slid open, and Commander Shaw looked up from her work at their arrival. Her eyebrows twitched upwards - the most surprise that she would show in front of others.
"Ryne, what a pleasant surprise," she rose from her chair and smiled warmly at the young woman. "Although, from the readings we picked up early this morning, I can only assume that it's for a reason that's not so pleasant?" Commander Shaw guessed. Ryne nodded, always impressed by how sharp the woman was.
"That's right," she lifted her hand off her Morpher and held it up. "I was at Dinohenge in Pine Ridge with Ollie and his mum, and we were attacked by someone who called himself Void Knight," Ryne launched into the story of what had happened only that morning, and both Commander Shaw and Lewis remained quiet as they listened.
"So these Sporix are littered around the city, ready to hatch into monsters that make Evox's robots look like a joke," Lewis summed up. Ryne nodded.
"They already destroyed another planet. They almost destroyed this planet millions of years ago. The others are trying to warn the city now, but I thought we should alert you too," she said. Commander Shaw nodded.
"We appreciate the heads up. And if you should ever need the help, you only have to call," she said, and Ryne nodded, grateful.
"I have to say though, so much for stepping down as a Ranger," Lewis commented as he prodded the Morpher around Ryne's wrist. She gave a tired sigh.
"Tell me about it. But I guess it runs in the family," she shrugged, having already come to terms with the fact that she was a Ranger again. There was no point in moping over what had already happened. Ryne then shook her head. "I do have another favour to ask," she told Commander Shaw, who had sat down again.
"Name it," the woman said, knowing that they would never ever be able to fully repay the Rangers who had defeated Evox, even if the Rangers themselves refused to accept it.
"Mum's already asking Nora and Uncle Spence about Void Knight, but is it possible for someone to look into him here? Just in case he's not magical or alien," Ryne said. The thought had crossed her mind as she had arrived at Grid Battleforce.
"So a potential digital threat. Worth looking into," Lewis agreed.
"You're right. I'll have Nate look into it whenever he has returned from…training," the Commander shot Lewis a look. To his credit, Lewis just smiled back at her. A strange beep trilled suddenly, interrupting, and Ryne looked down at her Morpher. For a moment, it felt bizarre - to answer a call when she was standing with the one who used to send her the same messages.
"Oh, that's going to take some getting used to," she muttered, lifting her arm to activate her Morpher's communication link. "What's up?" Ryne answered.
"Sorry to call you away, but we've got trouble," Amelia warned. "The first Sporix hatched in town, we need you," she requested.
"On my way," Ryne told her, and looked up as she ended the link. "I better go," she said, aware that they had heard what Amelia said.
"Of course," Commander Shaw nodded. "Take care, Ryne. You're always welcome back here, even for non-Ranger related events," she said. Ryne managed a small smile, before groaning as Lewis threw his arms around her in another tight hug.
"Be careful," he told her, and Ryne grumbled as he set her down. Lewis gave her a confident grin as she stepped away from him. "Now go show that Sporix just who he's messing with," Lewis said, and Ryne matched his confident look as she nodded.
"I will. Now…this is the tech that Nate's going to lose his mind over," at their confused looks, Ryne winked and turned the dial of her Morpher, pressing it down. Instantly she vanished in a flash of colour, and Lewis whistled.
"She's right. Nate's going to kill for that kind of tech," he commented. Commander Shaw didn't reply, but she agreed entirely.
Ryne appeared at the Pine Ridge water dam at the same time as the other three Rangers, teleporting in just in time to hear the frightened cries of civilians who had been on a nature trail.
"Come back and face me!" a high-pitched yell wasn't what they expected, and the four turned to see a monster that was slime green in colour, with a mushroom cap on her head and bright pink and red clothes. "I am the mighty Mucus!" the Sporix yelled, but her shouts weren't entirely intimidating.
"Mucus?" Amelia repeated, disgusted.
"For real?" Ollie turned to Zayto, looking baffled. "That's a Sporix beast?" he asked, and turned to Ryne in hopes of seeing a similar reaction on the Purple Ranger's face.
"It's definitely…different," she allowed, her head tilted to the side as she watched the strange monster.
"Yes! Who's going to stop me from tearing this city apart!" Mucus yelled gleefully as she turned around, delighted that she'd scared everyone off.
"Oh, we are!" Amelia shouted, earning her attention. "The-"
"Power Rangers!" Ollie finished grandly for her. Amelia turned a glare on him as Ryne shook her head.
"Oh come on! I was going to say that!" the Pink Ranger whined at him.
"I miss my old team," Ryne said, loud enough that the two glared at her.
"Hey!" Ollie protested.
"It's Morphin' Time!" Zayto ignored their comments, jumping straight into business as he grabbed the Key from his pocket. The other three didn't hesitate to follow his lead, pressing the button on their Morphers to activate them, turning them into the coloured dinosaur heads.
"Dino Fury Key!" all of them yelled together, clicking their Keys open and moving. Zayto paused, looking impressed by their synchronisation.
"Smooth," the Red Ranger told them, making them grin.
"Activate!" they all shouted. "LINK TO MORPHIN' GRID!" the four shouted, spinning their Morphers. In a burst of power and light, they Morphed into their Ranger suits, ready to fight.
"T-Rex Fury, Red Ranger!"
"Tricera Fury, Blue Ranger!"
"Ankylo Fury, Pink Ranger!"
"Spino Fury, Purple Ranger!"
"Dino Fury Power!" they chorused. Mucus gave a slow clap, having been watching.
"Well done, everyone. I love the colours," she told them, only seeming to be half taunting them. "Now, here comes the pain!" Mucus warned as she suddenly charged towards them, swinging her arms wildly. She gave a battle cry as she ambled forwards, slow enough that Zayto was able to give one powerful swing of his Dino Sabre and cut through her.
There was a loud splatter as Mucus exploded in green slime, splattering all over the ground around them. Even Zayto made a noise of confusion as he straightened up, not having expected to defeat her in one strike. He then turned back to the other three, and shrugged.
"I had no idea it would be that easy," he admitted with a laugh.
"Because it isn't! Watch out!" Ryne pointed, and Zayto whirled around as a second monster ran into view.
"Another one?!" the Red Ranger groaned as he pointed his Sabre forwards.
"I'm the best one!" Shockhorn declared as he didn't hesitate before charging in towards the Rangers. Zayto met him head-on, blocking his first strike before moving around the monster to catch him from behind. As Shockhorn staggered, Ryne darted past and slashed across his side, barely making a dent in his thick armour. The team fought in sync, striking when they could and dodging his attacks. "I warned you, I'm the best!" Shockhorn yelled as he rolled away from them and leapt back up.
"He's annoying," Ryne complained, her hands on her hips as she frowned at the monster.
"Toot your own horn much?" Ollie shook his head. Shockhorn charged at them again, shoving both Amelia and Ollie backwards.
"Rangers! Remember those Keys I mentioned?" Zayto called to them as he lifted a new Key.
"The power-up ones?" Ryne remembered as Ollie and Amelia struggled to push Shockhorn away.
"Stink Dino Key, ready!" Zayto's words made Ryne's face scrunch up in confusion as she watched him insert the key into the mouth of the dinosaur on his Sabre. "Watch this!" he activated the Key, and when he swung his arm down, purple armour covered his arm.
"Hey, that's my colour," Ryne commented, watching.
"Stink Boost!" Zayto declared.
"Is he saying 'stink'?" Amelia wondered as she and Ollie managed to push Shockhorn away.
"Stink Out!" Zayto swung down, and a yellowish green pellet flew through the air before exploding out in a large, foul smelling cloud. Unfortunately for the Rangers, they were right in the middle of it. All of them groaned, retching at the stench that assaulted them.
"He definitely said 'stink'," Ollie replied to Amelia as he put a hand to his helmet in hopes that he could smother the smell.
"You know what, you can keep it," Ryne groaned, shuddering at the smell that was so potent, it made her eyes water. "I don't think this smell is ever going to wash out," she complained as the cloud finally began to dissipate. Shockhorn was on the ground, writhing.
"It burns my nose!" he moaned.
"It-" Zayto shuddered. "It worked!" he exclaimed, on the ground as well from the overwhelming stink. "He's down!" the Red Ranger pushed himself up and charged at the immobilised monster.
"Hengemen!" Shockhorn managed to call in backup just in time, and Zayto couldn't stop his momentum. He gave a yell as the footsoldiers jabbed at him with their spears, and he fell to the ground with a cry.
"Zayto!" Amelia gasped as the three ran over to help him.
"The indestructible Mucus is back!" to their horror, Mucus reformed nearby, seeming entirely unharmed. She stood between Shockhorn and the Hengemen, giggling with delight.
"Attack!" Shockhorn took advantage of their surprise, sending the footsoldiers forwards.
"So Void Knight already found the big guy. That's just great," Ryne complained as she dodged the strikes of the Hengemen that surrounded her.
"Wowee!" Mucus exclaimed as she just watched the Rangers fighting off the Hengement. "Those things obey you? What a clever horsey you are!" she exclaimed. Ryne leapt over the head of one, landing in the middle of more of them, and huffed a sigh before swinging her sword hard. When she cut them down, she saw Shockhorn swing his weapon angrily at Mucus, who gave a cry of alarm as she dodged it.
"They're…fighting?" Ollie asked, confused as they watched.
"Usually takes them longer than a day for that," Ryne considered, kicking one of the footsoldiers that was charging at her.
"I'm Shockhorn!" the larger Sporix exclaimed as he continued to attack Mucus.
"Sorry, sorry!" she wailed as she grabbed his sword under her arm and stopped him. "Listen, I want to help you! Us Sporix Beasts should stick together," Mucus told him brightly, even as he struggled to free his weapon.
"Get off me, you fungus!" he yelled as she freed him. "I answer only to Void Knight," Shockhorn declared firmly as the fight nearby seemed forgotten.
"You have a boss? I love taking orders! Sign me up horsey!" Mucus declared. Shockhorn gave an angry growl, but grabbed her arm so the two could teleport away. As they vanished, the Rangers finished off the Hengemen, allowing them to catch their breath.
"They're gone. Let's get to base," Zayto instructed. The others nodded, and they followed suit to teleport away from the dam and back to base.
Solon looked around as she heard the sounds of the Rangers returning to the base, and turned to see the four standing together as they demorphed. Amelia and Ollie looked worn out, and Ryne found herself a little out of breath.
'Been out of action too long,' she considered to herself.
"How did it go?" Solon asked as she walked over to them.
"It stank," Ollie answered honestly. "In more ways than one," he shot Zayto a look, and Ryne tried to hide her giggle.
"The other Sporix Beast got away," Amelia explained when Solon looked confused. "But that Stink Attack was awesome! I wanna try a Boost Key!" she told him, her eyes bright with excitement. "Can it make me taller? Stronger, faster?"
"Make you stop believing in ghosts?" Ollie suggested. Amelia rolled her eyes, and Ryne jabbed her elbow into his side. He grunted in pain, putting a hand to where it hurt.
"Play nice," she warned him.
"You'll find out, but right now we need to warn people," Zayto said as Ollie pulled a face at Ryne, who responded in kind. "Especially if the Sporix Beasts are teaming up," he added, not having considered that method.
"How'd it go at Grid Battleforce?" Ollie turned to Ryne, who had taken her phone from her pocket as she leaned against one of the tables.
"They're going to put the word out as best they can. If we can get a statement out in town, they'll be able to back it up," she said as she looked up at him. "They're also going to look into Void Knight to see if they can find out any information about who he is," Ryne added.
"That's great," Ollie smiled, an arm going around her as she turned her attention to her phone.
"Thanks for all your help, Ryne. I'm glad your former allies were able to help," Zayto nodded, appreciating her work. Ryne didn't look up, but her face flushed. She'd told them all about being the Pink Ranger for the Beast Morphers team, seeing no point in hiding it, especially since Zayto had seen it when he'd shaken her hand.
"Mum struck out with Nora, they've not heard of a Void Knight. Think they're glad for that, there's not been any evil knights since Nora's grandfather was still Koragg," Ryne considered, more to herself than them.
"Whoa," they looked at Amelia, who was checking her own phone. "That Sporix video has thousands of views, and now there's a citywide alert for people to watch out for them," she reported.
"We could retrieve any Sporix they find, but that may take a while," Zayto considered as he looked at each of them in turn.
"How are we going to do that? Go off reports on social media?" Ryne pointed out, unsure of how to proceed. "We would need someone constantly monitoring it," she considered.
"I may have a faster way to find them," Ollie grinned, and they turned to him curiously. "My mum's at the Dino statues, mounting Void Knight's scanner to her drone. If it works, then-"
"Hold on," Zayto stopped him, looking annoyed. "That was not the plan," he pointed out. They'd all shot down Ollie's idea only a little while ago.
"What? Come on guys, we're fighting monsters here!" he protested, not understanding the reaction. He turned in surprise as Ryne pulled out of his grasp, her own annoyance clear on her face.
"That's exactly why we said not to do it," she shook her head. "Messing with tech you don't know is one thing, but combining alien and human tech is dangerous. You have no idea what could happen," Ryne pointed out. Ollie huffed.
"What, you think my mum's not smart enough to do it safely?" he challenged. Ryne rolled her eyes.
"Your mum is plenty smart, and that's part of the problem," she argued with him. "You could be putting her in danger by leaving her with Void Knight's scanner," Ryne told him. Ollie's eyes narrowed.
"She's right. Void Knight may come back for his scanner. If your mum has it, we need to check on her. Now," Zayto ordered.
"Don't panic, she can take care of herself-" as Ollie spoke, Zayto activated the teleportation and they found themselves back in the woods by Dinohenge. "I'm sure she's…fine…" Ollie groaned out the last word as his stomach roiled in protest. "Hey…tell me before you do that," he complained as he took a breath, trying to settle his stomach.
"You sure she's fine?" Amelia whispered, pointing past the bushes. They turned and looked out at Dinohenge, to where Lani had been working.
"Start the scan, doctor!" Shockhorn ordered, blocking Lani's escape route as she stumbled away in fear. She turned, and froze as Void Knight's sword pointed at her.
"Find me the Sporix," he ordered coldly as Lani stared him down for a moment, before reluctantly moving towards her laptop. There was a loud beeping, followed by the whirring of the drone's propellers. "Good," Void Knight growled.
"Mum!" Ollie hissed, charging in. The other three followed quickly, grabbing their Dino Keys.
"LINK TO MORPHIN' GRID!" they called as they charged in, Morphing before Lani could see them.
"What?!" Void Knight snarled as he heard their approach, turning and growling.
"Power Rangers…" Lani breathed as she stared at them.
"You get away from her," Ollie warned, furious that they were threatening his mother. Mucus gave a gleeful laugh, enjoying what she was watching as Void Knight growled angrily at being interrupted.
"Shockhorn, with me!" he ordered, leading the Sporix Beast to fight the Rangers. As Ollie and Amelia fought off Shockhorn, Ryne joined Zayto in battling against Void Knight. Letting her power charge up in her hand, Ryne threw out the energy to explode against his purple armour, and Void Knight let out an angry snarl.
"Purple's my colour," she told him as she let another bolt of blue energy gather in her hand.
"I've wondered about that power since you first used it. I thought I'd heard of it before…" Void Knight spoke softly, before raising his sword to block Zayto's strike. He shoved the Red Ranger backwards, focused on Ryne. "But it's not possible, Sentai-6 was destroyed long ago; its people with it," he said. His words caught Ryne off guard, and the power vanished.
"What? How do you know about Sentai-6?" she demanded. Void Knight gave a dark laugh, and suddenly lunged at her with a roar. Ryne's Squirrel power kicked in, and she dodged each of his strikes before kicking him hard in the stomach. He went tumbling to the ground as Zayto glanced to Ryne, but whatever he wanted to say was lost as another shout carried over to their fight.
"Look out!" Lani screamed, and the Rangers reacted fast enough that they were able to get clear of the drone, carrying Void Knight's scanner, hurtled from the sky and collided with Shockhorn. The two different technologies shattered at the collision, causing an explosion that threw the Rangers even further away. Shockhorn let out a scream as he found himself carried through the air; his momentum too difficult to fight against as he vanished over the treeline. Void Knight slammed against a tree and hit the ground, and Mucus ran over to him.
"Boss!" she exclaimed, recovering from being thrown about by Lani wielding a power cable. "Are you okay?" Mucus asked him, but Void Knight ignored her as he stared at the broke, smoking wreckage.
"She destroyed my scanner…" Void Knight groaned, as for a moment he lost the angry growl and let out a quiet, tired sigh. Then the moment was gone as quickly as it came, and he forced himself to his feet. "She'll pay!" he snarled, but before he could even think about getting close to Lani, he found his path blocked.
"Stop right there," Ollie warned as he stood ready to fight, his sabre raised as the others caught up.
"Like we'd let you past us," Ryne warned as her hand once again lit up with energy, but she couldn't help but think of Void Knight's words.
"I won't forget this," Void Knight warned them, fury lacing his words. He then turned to Mucus. "Let's go," he ordered her as the growl returned to his voice. Mucus nodded, wisely staying quiet for once, and the two vanished in a flash of purple.
"Hey mu-" Ollie stopped as Ryne elbowed him quickly, her warning obvious. He cleared his throat quickly. "Ma'am," he corrected himself as he hurried over to her. "Are you okay?" Ollie asked as he deepened his voice. Ryne rolled her eyes, reminded of Devon doing the same thing to Kerry.
"Fine, thanks to you," Lani nodded, a frown crossing her face. "And you sound familiar…have we met?" she asked curiously as Ollie gulped and stepped back, unsure of what to say. He quickly shook his head.
"No, no," he denied, forcing himself to talk even deeper. "He may come back, so please get to safety," Ollie requested. Amelia fought hard not to laugh at his attempt to hide his identity.
"Yes, of course. Thank you," Lani said softly, before turning and hurrying away.
"Good job," Ryne spoke softly, touching her fingers to Ollie's hand. He glanced at her, and nodded, finding himself hating that he had to hide his identity from his mother.
"Shockhorn could grow giant any minute," they turned to Zayto as he warned them of the looming danger. "We need to find him and stop him from hurting anyone, while I activate my Zord," he told them.
"So we might finally see a Zord?" Amelia gasped.
"Eh, you've seen one Zord, you've seen 'em all," Ryne shrugged. Ollie shoved her lightly as Amelia started to laugh.
"Let's go," Ollie told them, and they teleported away, leaving Zayto to call on his Zord.
It didn't take long for Amelia, Ryne and Ollie to find Shockhorn, as he recovered enough to terrorise the civilians who had been in the area where he had landed.
"No-one will call me 'little horsey' ever again!" Shockhorn yelled as he started to grow to a giant size.
"There he is…yikes," Amelia gulped as they stared up at the massive Sporix that now towered over Pine Ridge.
"So when Zayto said 'giant', what he meant was ginormous!" Ollie groaned, staring at the massive unicorn-like monster that shimmered with power.
"Well…I think now would be a good time to try a Boost Key or two?" Ryne suggested to Amelia, who gasped with excitement.
"I'll attack from above," Ollie nodded, running off.
"And you?" Amelia asked Ryne, who grinned under her helmet.
"I'll go this way. Good luck," she told the Pink Ranger, and started running to circle around the massive Sporix. Amelia shook her head.
"She's way too casual about all this," she commented under her breath.
Teddie appeared in a shower of sparks beside Solon, but the cyborg dinosaur barely even reacted as she worked hard.
"Let me guess, the monster went giant?" she asked as she watched what Solon was working on. "Classic," Teddie chuckled.
"Zayto is going to call on his Zord, while the other three are in the city keeping Shockhorn busy," Solon told her, and Teddie looked over to where Zayto was striding over to them.
"Okay Solon, activate my Zord," Zayto requested, ready to go.
"Let's hope this works…" Solon hit buttons quickly with an expertise that came from years of experience. "Deploying T-Rex Champion Zord!" she declared, slamming a clawed hand down on a button beside her. The screen above lit up, and Teddie grinned.
"Oh yeah, this is gonna be fun," she said.
Shockhorn was laughing as he watched people fleeing in terror, but as he went to smash a fist through the building closest to him, something cold and heavy wrapped around his arm. The lights that had appeared changed to chains, and the ball on the end was heavy enough that it yanked him down, holding the Sporix in place.
"Now that's a fun Key," Ryne commented as she took a moment to watch it.
"Your turn guys!" Amelia called as she held Shockhorn in place so he couldn't move away. Ryne looked up as she saw Ollie leap off a building to use a Boost Key, only to be swatted out of the air like a fly. She inhaled sharply.
"Ollie! You okay?" she called into her Morpher quickly, her heart pounding.
"Yeah…I'm fine," he groaned, and Ryne let out a quiet growl.
"Starting to get it now," she muttered under her breath, lifting a Dino Key from her pocket. "Ramming Dino Key, ready!" she connected it to her saber and activated it, feeling the white armour that covered her arm. "Go!" she threw a punch with the arm covered in armour, and watched as energy materialised behind Shockhorn as he broke free of Amelia's hold. He didn't turn in time, and let out a roar as the Boost Key power slammed into him and sent him crashing to the ground.
"Whoa!" Amelia was still reacting when Ryne teleported to where she and Ollie were standing.
"I hope that bought Zayto enough power," Ollie said as Ryne helped the two to their feet. She was answered by a loud roar, and they turned to look up at the T-Rex Zord charging into view. It crashed against Shockhorn, who was only recovering, and he crashed back down to the ground.
"Oh man!" Amelia gave a delighted laugh as she watched. "Finally, a Zord!" she exclaimed.
"That's so cool," Ryne laughed as Zayto met them on the bridge.
"So much for seeing them all," Ollie nudged Ryne, who was too excited to argue.
"Now it's time to finish this beast!" Zayto declared, and opened the golden buckle of his belt to reveal another Dino Key. "T-Rex Champion Zord, Battle Mode," he declared, and hurled it into the air. It connected with the T-Rex Champion Zord, which began to change form as they watched. "Let us show you what we can do. Stay here," Zayto told the other three, and teleported into the Zord before they could argue.
"You know…" Ryne leaned on the railing as she watched Zayto piloting the Zord with all the experience he'd gained in the past, easily overpowering the Sporix. "I'm starting to get why mum and grandma are always talking about Dinos being the best," she admitted as both Ollie and Amelia cheered Zayto on.
The T-Rex head on the front of the battle mode Zord suddenly moved, attaching to the fist. A shimmer of energy passed through the Zord's battle mode, charging up for a powerful move.
"Mega Fury Sabre!" Zayto's voice carried as he summoned the weapon to wield. "T-Rex Rex Champion Chomp!" at his shout, he swung down, and the T-Rex Champion Zord delivered a powerful blow that smashed through Shockhorn's armour easily. The monster's shrieks carried across the city as he landed in the outskirts, exploding. "Dino Fury Victory!" Zayto declared.
"Look!" Ryne was the first to spot the Sporix Egg as it plummeted back towards the ground. It landed with a heavy splat, yet bounced back into its normal shape despite the force it landed at.
"What is that?!" Ollie gasped, pointing down at it as Zayto teleported back to them.
"Blowing up a Sporix Beast doesn't destroy it. It turns back into a Sporix with even more power," Zayto warned them.
"Well that doesn't sound fair at all. They're supposed to stay blown up," Ryne complained, glaring at the egg below that was pulsing with power.
"We have to get it," the urgency was clear in Zayto's voice, and they leapt down to the lower level where the Egg was pulsating. Before they could reach it, however, Void Knight appeared in a flash of purple beside it. "Void Knight!" the Red Ranger growled as the dangerous being leaned down and picked up the Egg.
"Just what I needed," he murmured, more to himself than the four Rangers. He straightened up, finally looking at them. "Thank you, Rangers," Void Knight spoke smugly.
"No!" Zayto launched forwards, but they were too late. Void Knight teleported away, taking the Egg with him.
"That creep waited for us to take out the Sporix before appearing," Ryne said as they went to Zayto's sight. He let out a frustrated, angry sigh.
"That Sporix is many times more powerful than an ordinary one," he muttered, angry that they'd let it slip from their fingers.
"Why does he want them so badly?" Amelia wondered as she turned to Zayto.
"World domination doesn't seem like the answer. He wants the Eggs, not the monsters they hatch into," Ryne shrugged, having been wondering the same thing.
"Whatever the reason, it can't be good," Zayto muttered. He knew firsthand what the Sporix were capable of. He couldn't think of any reason that was positive that required the monsters.
At the sounds of the Rangers teleporting back into the base, both Solon and Teddie turned to the four. They demorphed wordlessly, with Zayto's frustration still visible on his face.
"Welcome back, team!" Solon exclaimed, glad to see them back in one piece. "How did they do, Zayto?" she asked the leader.
"They all fought very well today," Zayto managed to smile, proud of the three Rangers that had joined his team.
"Great job," Teddie gave a thumbs up. "A first battle couldn't have gone any better," she said. Amelia flushed, delighted at the praise from her idol as even Ryne smiled.
"Maybe, but…" Ollie sighed. "I still messed up, and put my mum in danger. I should have stuck with the plan we agreed on as a team," he admitted. "I'm sorry," he apologised. He looked at Ryne as her hand slipped into his, and she smiled up at him. It was far better than the look she'd given him when he'd admitted what he'd done, and it made his stomach squirm.
"Water under the bridge," Amelia clapped a hand to his shoulder roughly, grinning at him.
"You learned from this," Ryne squeezed his hand as Zayto nodded.
"Mistakes are guaranteed when you're Rangers. It's what you do to fix those mistakes that matters," Teddie spoke up, sounding more amused than anything. Ryne arched an eyebrow at her mother.
"Nobody speaks better from experience than you," she said. Amelia looked curious, fighting her impulse to bombard Teddie with questions as the woman just smirked, not arguing what Ryne said.
"I'm just glad to have three good teammates by my side," Zayto spoke, patting Ollie's shoulder. "I think it's time that the Rangers put a message out to the city," he said to Solon, who tilted her head as Teddie chuckled.
"Now that's something that will get people listening," she said.
"Working together will keep us safe," Zayto spoke formally and with utter confidence as he stood in front of a camera. It had been Amelia's idea to go to Buzzblast to get the message out - knowing that their reach on social media would reach those who were most likely to spot the Sporix around the city. "If you find a Sporix or a Sporix Beast: call, text or direct message the Ranger Hotline immediately," he gestured as he spoke the lines rehearsed in advance.
"And…cut!" the young woman behind the camera called.
"An impressive idea," Teddie spoke softly to Ryne. She had a baseball cap on with her hair tucked into it, obscuring her face so that she didn't draw any attention to herself. "Amelia's going to be one hell of a journalist," she considered as she watched the new Pink Ranger, who was chatting to her boss, Jane, about putting the message out everywhere. The woman was already stunned that Grid Battleforce had reached out to promote the message.
"Yeah she is. Though we should probably get our own tracking system built," Teddie glanced at her daughter, who was leaning against the wall with a thoughtful look on her face. "If we can get at least one Sporix back, I can work on something," she said, and jumped when Teddie patted her head roughly enough to mess up her hair.
"Sometimes I wonder if you're not Sarah's kid. That look in your eye reminds me so much of her," Teddie told her. Ryne flushed, aware that she could get very excited about her tech. "Speaking of Sarah, I can smell her tech a mile away," she turned her attention over to what seemed to be a short young woman with orange hair that stood beside Jane - Jborg, Amelia had explained.
"A collaboration between Sarah and Rose, I believe," Ryne said, chuckling. Sarah, who had worked for years under the Hartford name with Rose, was well known as an inventor in her own right, but still worked closely with the other former Pink Ranger when it came to robotics. "How did it go with Uncle Spence?" Ryne asked her, looking up at Teddie.
"They hadn't heard of anyone going by Void Knight, but they did mention that they'd had some burglaries of alien tech not long before he came to Pine Ridge. They're looking into it, but I reckon Void Knight swiped the tech and built the scanner. Why it led him to Sporix of all things, hopefully we don't have to find out," Teddie said softly. Ryne grimaced, annoyed that they were no closer to learning about who Void Knight was, or why he wanted the Sporix.
"And the reason why you were around in the first place?" Ryne asked the question she'd been trying to ask since Teddie had arrived that morning. The woman chuckled.
"I'm sure you sensed it. Not too far from Dinohenge," Teddie said. At Ryne's frown, Teddie tilted her head. "You're not that separated from your magical heritage," she pressed, and Ryne finally remembered the strange feeling she'd picked up on before Void Knight had appeared.
"There's a portal to the Magical Realm?" she breathed as realisation sunk in. Teddie nodded.
"Less than a mile from the statues. They picked up on the disturbance and I was free, so I said I'd check it out. What a coincidence, eh?" she chuckled. Ryne sighed wearily. "Come on, it'll be fun. Though I am leaving you to tell your father the best part," Teddie's smirk widened.
"The best part?" Ryne repeated, confused. Teddie laughed, pushing off the wall as Amelia finally managed to escape Jane.
"You know. The part about who's wearing the Blue suit now. I believe Heckyl had one rule when it came to you dating," Teddie teased as she made her way to the door. Ryne groaned, putting a hand to her face.
"What's wrong?" Amelia asked as she caught up to the pair.
"What's wrong is that my family are exhausting," Ryne declared, and Teddie's laughter echoed as Amelia only looked more confused.
Updates are likely to be a bit slow, working through a lot of things currently and will be travelling next weekend. Will hopefully get another update out before then!
Hope you liked it!
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