Chapter 2: It's Morphin Time! Pt. 2
Review Replies
BetweenTheDragonsAndMe: I'm already loving this! Please if you can make a Bakugan or Ben 10 story next.
Dragon Emperor0: Actually, we already have a couple! Check out Kaijugan and Kaijugan: Gaia Rising. And Ghoul + Vampire and Ghoul + Vampire: Omniversal. They may be worth looking for you.
ThermalsniperN7: Fair warning about Ghoul+Vampire, though: I was personally under a bit of emotional stress in its later moments, so things felt different at the time.
Dragon Emperor0: Just as a bit of context.
shirkahn: Nice start! And, yea... RIP JDF. -_- He didn't deserve to go the way he did. I'm looking forward to the next chapter.
Dragon Emperor0: You are exactly right. That man deserved better, he was a national treasure. Thanks for your viewership.
SuperShadic2002: Okay, I thought that's where you were taking Zedidiah, but it's good to have confirmation. Good work, either way. This should be interesting.
Dragon Emperor0: Thank you. Say, how come you haven't been reviewing the other stories of mine you've been reading? I've been expecting feedback for awhile now.
ThermalsniperN7: I was wondering about that…
In loving memory of Jason David Frank. Requirescat in Pace JDK. Once a Ranger, Always a Ranger.
-Angel Cove, California-
Ryuji groaned as he heaved the last of the fossilized dragon bones from the cliffside and into boxes, having wrapped all of the mineralized bones in enough layers of plaster to match a baklava.
"I know it'll be worth it, but getting those bones out of there was a pain." He sighed as he sat in a foldable chair and drank some water. Working on a fossil like that had really made him thirsty.
As he rehydrated himself, he pulled out the disc that he found and looked at it, wondering just what it was that he had found.
'This almost looks like one of the stones or prisms that empowered the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers back in the day…' He mused to himself mentally.
It made him wonder if this was another variation of the Rangers' prisms or if it was something else. It also made him wonder why he was finding this now, of all times.
Profound as his internal debate was, it was of poor timing, however, when it became clear that he was not alone… as various paracausal rifts began opening behind the boy as he continued looking at his prism.
It was the Taken, and despite what you may believe, these were not directly sent by Zedidiah. Rather they were sent by one of his Generals to search for Zordon, but became sidetracked by the energies of the Prisms.
As Ryuji got up and took another sip of water, he turned… and did a spit take when he saw the Taken standing there.
"What the hell?!" He yelled in shock as he looked at the twitching creatures of corruption.
A few Taken Psions twitched as they all split apart in front of him, causing the boy to look at all of them.
"Aw great, now I'll never remember all your names." The boy quipped nervously as he reflexively got into a fighting stance.
Then the corrupted creatures started attacking, getting up close and personal with him and trying to smash his skull in. Ryuji fought back as hard as he could, but there were a large number of occasions where the Psions split in two and made him waste his energy. It was a matter of time before he was overwhelmed by their numbers.
"Shit shit shiiiiiit!" The amateur treasure hunter yelled as he was dog piled by the Taken… only for a dark purple light to glow through the cracks and allow Ryuji to blast them all back in a shockwave of power, his body glowing black and purple. "Ohohohoho yeah! You guys are so fucked!" He grinned as he slowly started to go translucent–until he was unable to be seen.
The Psions looked around for him, wondering where they went… Apparently losing their wills also meant they lost their common sense because they didn't think to look at the ground, where Ryuji left footprints as he walked. The teen was able to take advantage of this (albeit unknowingly) and snapped the neck of one Psion, startling the others.
He then proceeded to take around eight more out by either taking knives the corrupted aliens had and stabbing them into their skulls or by snapping their necks. After a bit, though, he was visible again.
"Awww Shi-take mushrooms…" He groaned before a Taken Centurion decked him in the face and sent him crashing through several trees, reducing them to splinters
Ryjui let out a pained hiss as he sat up, and saw the Taken encroaching on him, stepping over the destroyed foliage.
Taking a minute to marvel at the fact that he had just been punched through several trees and wasn't dead, he noticed that his grandfather's ring, a silver ring with a silver Spanish Doubloon at the center, had fallen off his finger.
Quickly grabbing it, he booked it out of there as fast as he could. Knowing full well that he couldn't handle all of these creatures in his current state.
So he decided it was time to run and did just that, slowly turning invisible again to shake the Taken.
(Elsewhere)
-Abandoned Skatepark, Angel Cove-
Meanwhile with Keith, the young skateboarder was still having the time of his life performing pro level tricks on his board, all while listening to music on his phone with his Soundcore earbuds.
Specifically, he was listening to Pump it Up by Joe Budden while his Red Prism dangled from a chain around his neck.
"Woohoo! Oh yeah, this is more like it!" He grinned as he did a spin in the air, even going as far as to remove his feet from his board briefly before he landed.
Skidding to a halt he popped and caught his board and started walking towards the cooler he'd brought with him, pulling out an ice cold Gatorade Frost, specifically a Glacier Cherry flavored one.
As he downed the drink, he got an unpleasant surprise in the form of a Taken Fallen Captain appearing in front of him. This caused the teen to spit out his drink… right onto the Taken alien.
There was a beat of awkward silence as the two stared at one another, Keith looking both sheepish and spooked, and the Captain wishing it could flip off the human in front of it.
Of all the times to have three digit hands instead of four or five digits…
"Well, I'm out." The boy said as he kicked the captain clear across the park and started skating away on his board. "Just what the fuck was tha–WHOA!" Heyelled as an Anomalous Pulse was launched at him from behind, causing him to jump off his board and dive out of the way, rolling on the dirt ground.
"The fuck?!" He cursed as he looked back to see the Captain stalking towards him, twirling its sabers as it did. "Damn it, how do I even fight back?!" He growled to himself as he got to his feet.
The captain then pulled out a corrupted scorch cannon and started firing, but as the projectiles went straight for Keith, the boy's heart began to race–but slowed as his prism glowed red–as did he… and then everything else started to slow down.
"Huh…?" Keith murmured in confusion as he looked around and back at the projectiles. Deciding not to look a gift horse in the mouth, he got out of the way and ran toward the corrupted alien.
He then smacked the gun out of his hands, tossed away its sabers, decked it in the face and swept its feet out from under it. When everything sped back up again, his actions resulted in his aggressor falling to the ground while groaning in pain.
"Whoa… I have super speed?!" The red clad boy gasped in shock. "Awesome!" He exclaimed, jumping in the air–right as more Taken started appearing. "... Yeah, nope. Exit stage left!" He yelped as he zipped away in a flash of red.
(Meanwhile)
Lance was at a rock climbing wall in a gym, doing what he did best: trying to impress girls by climbing the wall… without a harness. He actually got a few impressed looks from a few ladies as he did this.
Although the stupidity of this was indeed palpable, the brunette didn't seem to be worried, as he seemed to be much more agile than he remembered himself being, even able to do several tricks on the actual wall without falling.
Though this would come to an end no matter what. The moment he reached the top of the wall, a Taken Acolyte appeared and roared in his face, startling him to the point he fell.
"Whooooa!" He yelled as he fell flat on his back, causing the girls to run away as Acolyte after Acolyte leapt down to the ground and surrounded him. "Oh, well, this is just great…" He grunted as he got back to his feet.
As he did, his prism started to glow again and the Acolytes started rushing him, and he met them with wild force, elbowing two in the face and then rolling into a hand lift and slamming his knees into another.
He then hopped on a bench press and started fighting off another Acolyte, sending a knee to its ribs and making it fall down. Then he kicked another pair back.
This beat down continued until the acolytes started blasting him with paracausal fire from all directions, causing him to be blown back by an explosion, slamming into a dumbbell rack..
"Oof!" He grunted as he got back to his feet, and saw more Taken appearing. "Yeah, that's definitely my cue to go." He said to himself before making a run for the exit, dodging paracausal fire as he went.
(Elsewhere)
-Junkyard, Angel Cove-
Hunk sighed as he sat down on the hood of a rusted out car after hauling a car engine bare handed. He was able to do this feat not long after finding his prism, his strength somehow increasing tenfold for some reason.
He didn't complain, though, since it made his job easier.
"Man, I dunno what happened to me, but I like it." He mused, flexing his fingers a bit.
As he got back up, he lifted a medium sized refrigerator and carried it towards a large pile of scrap before hurling it onto said pile.
Right as he turned around, however, a Taken Phalanx appeared in front of him.
"What the–!" He gasped as several more of them appeared.
The creatures then started shooting at him, forcing the boy to get behind a car, using it as a shield.
"What the heck am I supposed to do about this?!" He muttered to himself over the gunfire. Looking around he soon took notice of a sledgehammer that was leaned against the car. "... That'll work." He nodded as he grabbed the blunt object and flipped the car, kicking it and flattening the phalanxes right as more Taken Cabal appeared.
Brandishing his hammer, he stared them down.
"Stop! Hammer time!" He quipped as he glowed yellow. Then he slammed it down and sent a wave of rocks at his targets, killing them on impact.
He then started batting around Taken Legionaries and Psions, even flattening the skull of a Centurion. But as he routed them to the pile he was just at, he found himself surrounded by Phalanxes–and they were behind their shields.
Then the shields started glowing…
"Oh no…" Hank groaned before the Phalanxes blasted him out of the junkyard. "AAAAAHHHH HO HO HOIII!" He screamed as he was sent flying.
(Elsewhere)
-Angel Cove Library-
Paige sighed as she flipped through a book that she'd taken off the shelf in front of her, with her green prism in her other hand.
The book she was reading happened to be one called the Power Rangers Codex, a comprehensive book explaining the history of the Rangers and their various power sources. But for some reason, she couldn't find a reference to this 'prism' anywhere.
"What am I missing?" She whispered to herself, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
Her focus was disrupted when a Taken Goblin appeared across from the table she was sitting at, causing her to look at it and let out a startled scream.
"Hey, quiet over– WHAT IS THAT?!" The librarian started as he marched over to her, before yelling in fright at the corrupted machine.
The goblin shrieked again as it started shooting at everything around it, blasting apart the shelves and sending fake wood splinters and paper flying everywhere as more Taken Vex appeared.
The other people in the library screamed in panic as they all ran to escape the rampaging Taken, but Paige was pinned down and unable to get away.
As she bobbed and rolled to avoid getting stomped on by a Taken Minotaur, her prism glowed green and her arms suddenly got covered in green energy turtle shell scales, causing the creature's leg to shatter and disappear as she blocked its next kick.
"What the..?" She muttered as she looked at her arms, seeing the scales on them. "What's causing this?" She wondered before a line rifle shot whizzed by her head, reminding her of the situation she was in.
The Vex then started blasting her again from all directions–which she blocked with her armor–but a Taken Hobgoblin's sniper shot nailed her right in the chest, sending her flying and crashing against a shelf, causing a bunch more to fall like dominoes, and the one she hit to fall towards her.
"Oh shit!" She gasped as she futilely held her hands up to try and stop it…
Sike!
When she put her hands out, she projected a forcefield that stopped it from falling on her and stopped several more shots from her mechanized aggressors from hitting her a moment later.
Said force field looked almost like the force bubble from Halo.
"Okay, I think I can get used to this." Paige nodded as she slowly got up, and made her force field expand past her and ram into the Taken Vex, sending them flying.
Taking advantage of the opening she made for herself, she made a beeline for the door and ran as fast as she could.
(Elsewhere)
-Mighty Morphin Citadel-
"Ay ay ay ay ay!" Alpha gasped as he shot up from his desk, getting the attention of Zordon and Tommy.
"What's wrong?" Tommy asked, walking up to him.
"It's the Renegade Prysms! All but one of them are active!" The droid replied, causing Tommy and Zordon's eyes to widen.
"That means that the Pink Prysm hasn't been found yet." Zordon noted.
"Regardless, we need to find these new Rangers and bring them here. Before Zedidiah and his cronies can find them." Tommy nodded.
"I think we're too late. I'm reading Taken forces in different parts of the town, probably looking for the Renegade Rangers." Alpha interjected as he ran some scans and detected sterile neutrino scattering, which meant the Taken were detected.
"Then try to lock onto their positions and bring them here, we need to get them to regroup or we won't be able to stop Zedidiah." Zordon told the robot.
"On it!" The droid nodded as he got to work.
(Meanwhile)
-Angel Cove Municipal Grand Mall-
In the parking lot of the local mall, Ryuji slowly came out of his invisible state as he hid behind a corner, looking around it to make sure no one was there–right as a flash of red zipped right beside him, revealing a doubled over and heaving Keith as he tried to catch his breath.
"Okay… I think I lost 'em…" Keith panted before noticing Ryuji next to him. "... You, uh, wouldn't call me crazy if I said I can move super fast and had to run from black and white aliens, would you?" He asked after a beat passed.
"Not if you wouldn't call me crazy for doing the same thing while turning invisible." The half Japanese boy replied, turning a single arm invisible to prove his point.
"Wicked." Keith nodded.
A few minutes later, Lance ran up to them, looking over his shoulder as he did.
"Okay, no sign of those crazy bastards." He sighed before looking at Ryuji and Keith. "... Uh, were you–?" He started to ask before his question was finished for him.
"Running away from teleporting black and white monsters? Yeah." Keith told him.
"Man, what is going on?" Ryuji wondered, running a hand through his hair.
"I have no idea!" Lance said before stopping a moment as he recognized the two. "Wait, Keith?! What're you doing here?" He questioned.
"Do I know you?" The skater boy questioned.
"It's me, Lance, we're in biology together." The brunette stated.
"Oh yeah. You were more concerned with trying to get a date with your lab partner." The red clad boy chuckled, getting a groan of exasperation in return.
"Hey, don't hate the player, hate the game." The boy retorted, causing Ryuji to facepalm.
"Ladies, ladies, please, can we continue this discussion after we've gotten a safe distance away from whatever's chasing us?" He stated.
"And who died and made you leader?" Lance questioned as he folded his arms.
"No one. My name's Ryuji Shirogane and I'm going to Angel Cove University. And I'd like to live long enough to graduate, thank you very much." The college student responded.
It was at this moment that Paige joined them.
"Hey, uh, got room for one more in this little group?" She asked, shaking a bit from her near death experience.
"Lemme guess, you got attacked by a swarm of twitching abominations?" Ryuji questioned.
"Yeah. Robots, specifically." She nodded before looking at two of the other boys. "Hey Lance, Keith." She said to the two.
"Hey Paige." They said in unison.
"Now that everyone's here, leads go hide in–." The Hafu boy stated as they went to the mall doors, right as the sound of someone yelling came towards them.
"Whooooa! Incomiiiiiiing!" Hunk yelled as he sailed past the parking lot and crashed into the others, causing them to tumble into the mall in a dog pile, with the yellow clad boy on top.
"... Ohhh, my everything…" Keith groaned in pain, his right arm twitching.
"Who the hell…?" Paige groaned, dazed from the impact.
"Hunk, I swear to God you have ten seconds to get your but out of my face before I skewer you!" Lance growled as the large boy's rear was right on him.
"Ugh, sorry, Lance…" The heavy set teen groaned as he got up, allowing the others to get back to their feet and rub their heads, trying to get rid of the cobwebs.
"Where'd you even come from?" Ryuji asked as he got his bearings back.
"I got blasted from my junkyard over by the quarry by a bunch of crazy monsters." Hunk replied.
"Okay, this is happening way too frequently for it to be a coincidence." Paige said, sitting down in one of the food court chairs while the others joined her.
And as they did, the speakers in the mall played Everybody Wants to Rule the World throughout the empty building, giving it a surreal feel.
"Yeah, I can't say for certain, but I'm pretty sure my problem started when I found this." Ryuji stated, taking out his prism disc and setting it on the table they were sitting at near the Yummy Japan food stall. The black crystal in the center of the gold disk glowed a bright purple outlining the black dragon on it.
"I found a similar one, too." Keith added, putting his own disc on the table, taking it from around his neck, the red crystal's glow matching its color and outlining the fox on it.
"Yeah, me too." Lance nodded, bringing out his own glowing blue crystal, the wolf being visible now.
"This is seriously weird." Hunk continued, placing his own yellow medallion on the table, tiger image glaring in defiance of its glow.
"Do you think this could mean something?" Paige wondered, as she put her own disc down with the rest, the turtle glowing a serene green.
"It's gotta. We wouldn't be getting chased otherwise." Lance nodded.
"Yeah, but what could it be?" Keith questioned.
"Isn't it obvious?" Ryuji started as he looked at his own prism. "Guys, what has Angel Cove constantly had in its history that basically everyone knows about?" He asked.
"The library?" Lance offered.
"Skatepark? Museum maybe?" Keith interjected.
"Krispy Kreme?" Hunk asked, getting a quartet of odd looks. "What? I get hungry when I'm nervous." He defended.
"What?" Paige questioned.
"It's the Power Rangers, guys. I mean come on, five generations alone made their homes right here in this same town. The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Chief among them." Ryuji told them, tapping the table for emphasis. "The citadel is even still standing. Can't you see what this means?" He questioned.
"Oh you've gotta be kidding me. We're the next generation?" Keith groaned in realization. "Man, I did not ask for this. I shouldn't have to be involved with something that isn't even my business." He added.
"Yeah. I don't wanna have to spend my summer vacation on this stuff." Lance sighed in agreement.
"... Are you fucking for real?" The blue haired teen questioned as he looked at them with his naturally menacing gaze. "Our home is most likely under attack by God knows what, our families possibly in danger. Including the state, country, if not even the world and you're more concerned about your stupid summer vacation?!" He snapped, slamming his fists on the table, causing the Prisms to bounce.
"Seriously, guys. We have bigger problems than your personal lives." Paige commented, frowning at them in disappointment.
"Uh, I dunno guys." Hunk gulped nervously. "I mean, those creatures totally trashed us. Strictly speaking, if we can't beat the foot soldiers of whatever's out there, what makes us think we can handle whoever they work for?" He questioned, raising a valid point.
"Okay, we clearly gotta do something to practice or we're all screwed." The only girl present sighed.
"That we can agree on." Ryuji nodded.
"Hey, this isn't my business, so–" Keith started to say before Ryuji cut him off.
"Keith, tell me something. Do you have a family?" The Half Japanese boy questioned, looking at the teen with an expression that was stone cold.
"Y-yeah?" The rebellious teen stuttered in reply, feeling intimidated.
"And how would you feel if you never got to see them again because you found them dead or dying by the hands of whatever the hell's hunting us?" Ryuji pressed further. "And how would you feel when you think 'I could have saved them' but didn't because it 'wasn't your business'?" He added.
That hit home hard for not just Keith, but Lance, too. There were monsters chasing them, and would be liable to target their families all to get at them. If they turned their backs on this, then they could put them at risk all because they decided to say "fuck this shit, I'm out."
That kind of guilt could actually be lethal.
"Thought so." Ryuji nodded, leaning back in his seat, satisfied with the results.
"Uh, guys?" Hunk said, causing them to look at him. "I think something's happening to the Prisms." He added, pointing at the objects which were now in close proximity, and glowing brightly.
"What the fuck is happening…?!" Paige gulped uneasily.
"I don't–" Lance started to reply before all five of them shot a beam into the sky… which apparently also destroyed the ceiling and roof in the process.
In the distance, the Taken that the kids were fighting all started heading towards the mall, having found their prey.
(Elsewhere)
-Mighty Morphin Citadel-
"Zordon! Are you seeing this?!" Tommy exclaimed as the Citadel's new monitors showed the beam being shot into the sky, which was captured on the news.
"I am, Tommy. It must be the new Renegade Rangers!" The wizard nodded as he looked at the screen.
"Ay ay ay! We better hurry and get to them, because I'm reading Taken closing in on the beam!" Alpha exclaimed in alarm.
"Crap!" The original green Ranger hissed.
"Alpha! Initiate homing teleportation sequence!" The first Ranger ordered.
"Yes sir!" Alpha saluted, doing just that.
(Elsewhere)
-The Dreadnought, Deep Space-
Zedidiah leaned his cheek on his hand as he slept on his throne in the Dreadnought, when a surge of energy seemed to snap him awake, causing his gold cat-like eyes to snap open.
"What…. What was that?" He gasped before focusing his senses on it. Not only did it come from Earth, he knew what it was based on what his parents had told him prior to their demise. "New Power Rangers. There just had to be a new generation." He grunted, a migraine starting to hit him.
Why couldn't he just have things be simple without the universe throwing a wrench in everything? Now he had to send his army to deal with them, and based on his parent's experience, this was going to be an absolute chore.
Though before he could ruminate any further on the incessant pounding of his cranium, his ears picked up the sound of slithering across the floor of his throne room, before feeling slick and smooth scales rub against him as two beautifully supple, slender and feminine olive skinned arms wrapped around his neck, bringing his attention to the person in his lap.
"Is something the matter, my beloved?" An impossibly seductive voice asked, drawing the new dark wizard's attention to its owner.
It was a Lamia, one who had the bottom half body of a large Anaconda, and the top half of a beautiful woman.
Her upper half consisted of bronze or olive colored skin, yellow eyes whose pupils were slitted, a beautiful face framed by black hair that actually reached where her human half ended and her serpent half began, and a pair of D-cup breasts. Her only attire was a gold colored armored bra and various pieces of beads and jewelry.
"Only an annoyance, Echidna my love. Do not worry yourself with it." The young man responded as he stroked her hair. "After all, you do have our hatchery to attend to." He continued, his lips grazing her neck as he leaned into it.
"It's not the same without you helping me tend to our children. You know I like it when you help me with them." Echidna told him with a small moan, her tail twitching from her lover's actions.
"I know, my sweet, I know." Zedidiah sighed as he got up, taking her into his arms. "How shall I make it up to you, then?" He asked as a figure approached them.
"Pardon the interruption, my lord, but I have news." The figure spoke, getting Zedidiah's attention.
"What is it?" He demanded, irritated at being interrupted during his moment with Echidna.
"It would seem that your attack on Zordon has caused the planet Mars to begin a course to Earth. And Zordon is assembling a team of Rangers to stop it." He explained.
"... I knew about the Rangers because I could sense the energy. But Mars colliding with Earth because of Zordon? That surprises me." The Dark Ranger blinked. He figured he probably had a hand in that when he blasted the wizard into the planet. "Hmmm, then perhaps all I will need to do is stall them…" He hummed before looking at his lover who smiled at him. "Send a Tormentor to face these new Rangers." He ordered.
"Yes, sir." The figure gulped in reply with a bow before leaving to carry out his orders.
"A Tormentor? I would call that overkill in most cases." Echidna commented with a chuckle.
"It probably is, but it serves the purpose of showing these Rangers what they're facing." Zedidiah shrugged in reply. "As well as testing their threat level." He continued. "Now, what is it you would like me to do to make up for being absent?" He asked as he carried his bride out of the throne room.
"I certainly won't complain if you were to make love to me for the next fortnight." The lamia giggled as they headed for their bedroom.
"Hmmm, I think I can manage that." The dark wizard nodded as they entered the bedchamber, the door locking behind them.
Dragon Emperor0: Well, I may not have been able to end this in two parts. But at the very least, we can end it in a Rule of 3.
ThermalsniperN7: Fair enough on that. Anyway, the gang has gotten together (except for one of them, apparently) because the Taken attacked… I swear I got Vietnam flashbacks when Hank got blasted by those Phalanxes…
Dragon Emperor0: Same here, bud. And now on top of those hoards, Zed's sending in a motherfucking Tormentor! Jesus fucking H Christ, those Scythe wielding orangutans still give me nightmares. What else does he have? Primeval Taken? Chimera Servitors? Jesus. It's Lovecraft city all over again.
ThermalsniperN7: I find that a good helping of "Guardian Super Souflette" gets rid of the Tormentors easily. But if Zedidiah calls in anything resembling Rhulk or, Traveler forbid, the motherfucking Black Fleet, I'm gonna lose my sanity!
Dragon Emperor0: Uh… Holster that thought, my dude. Anyway, yes, next time will be the third and final introduction chapter. It's Morphin Time Pt. 3, where both sides show that they aren't messing around and when we meet one of Zedidiah's Generals (besides Echidna): Darksteel Sam. Metal Gear fans, get your popcorn ready, cuz this is gonna be good.
ThermalsniperN7: "Memories broken, the truth goes unspoken, I've even forgotten my name~!" Damn, I love that song! See you guys next time!