Category: TV Show » Power Rangers

Author: Twix3780

Language: English

Rated: Fiction T

Genre: Fantasy/Family

Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.

Author's Note: Welcome to Book Ten of the Hellhound universe. I can guarantee definite changes to the original series here on out, so make sure you are up-to-date on what has happened so far in this universe, other things will be confusing.

Nym stared up at the large white building ahead of her. Today was supposed to be her first day at a new school - new human school, that is, and the only reason she was here was to advance her training in the Mystic Realm so that she could go undergo the undercover portion of her training.

"Why are you so nervous?" asked her companion. His name was Aidan Romero, he was her best and only friend.

"Uh, maybe because, unlike you, I'm not human," said Nym. She lowered her voice so that passersby wouldn't hear them.

Aidan rolled his eyes. "You forget," he said in turn. "I only attended school until I was eleven. After that I went to the Elemental Academy, and then lived the rest of my life in the Mystic Realm."

"You still have a human education," said Nym. "Not to mention an understanding of how human school works."

"You'll be fine," Aidan stressed. "Besides, I'll be right there with you."

But still, Nym was hesitant. Like she had said, she wasn't human. At least, not in every sense of the word. She physically looked human, but biologically she was … creature? She wasn't even sure of the right term to use.

"Look," said Aidan, taking her hand. "Mum wouldn't have authorised this if she didn't think you could handle it."

Nym sighed. The 'mum' that Aidan was referring too was Kali Briar. She had adopted them both a long time ago - Aidan eight years, after his father and brother had disappeared, and her not long after. She had been discovered in a dragon nest. It had seemed Fireheart wasn't the only dragon left in existence, and after the world had entered its fourth era of peace more creatures had returned to the Mystic World, dragons amongst them.

"I dunno," Nym hesitated. "Maybe I'm not ready for this?"

Aidan sighed and turned to his friend. He could sense the nerves coming from her and squeezed her hand, firmly. "Look, if you're not ready then we'll just call mum and tell her to call the whole thing off," he said. "Unfortunately, it will be a long while before she can rearrange another assignment like this."

"Why couldn't I have gone to Reefside?" Nym asked. "At least I would know people there." After the Dino Thunder Rangers had graduated, some of their allies had remained behind to protect the school, Doctor Tommy Oliver being one of them.

Anton Mercer, being another.

"Reefside is full, you know this," said Aidan.

"I know," Nym whined. "I just -"

A bell sounded far away, and Aidan recognised it as the warning bell, telling students that they didn't have long until their first lesson. He turned expectantly to Nym. She had to decide what she wanted to do now. If the second bell sounded and she hadn't decided, it wouldn't matter, they would officially be students and late on their first day.

Not a great start.

"Last chance," said Aidan.

Nym looked again at the building. Her heart was beating so fast she could hear it in her head. The pounding was enough to make her feel faint.

"You'll be there the whole time?" Nym asked.

"Every step," said Aidan. "We're in this together, remember?"

Nym nodded. She knew he was being sincere. Aidan had never left her side since she had been discovered, even for the first few years of her life which she spent in her dragon form, he had been there. She had bonded with him, like most creatures did to a person. He was more than a friend; he was her partner.

"Okay," said Nym. Her voice shook as she decided her fate. "Let's do it."

"Great." Aidan dragged her toward the building. "We're supposed to meet at the receptionist desk to get our schedules. It's located, according to Mum, in the main building. Let's go before you change your mind."

Heart still racing, Nym let Aidan drag her across the school quad. It was still filled with a few students, all of whom looked intimidatingly older than her. She wondered if they were. Kali had already told her that High school consisted of four different grades - Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, and Senior - she, at age sixteen, would be starting school as a sophomore, despite being seventeen in a few weeks. Aidan was supposed to be starting as a Junior, given he was older - only a few months - but he was being held back since he had been out of school for almost a decade.

~X~

Kali paced back and forth inside Rootcore. The Crystal Ball had picked up a disturbance but couldn't pinpoint an exact location which is why Cam Watanabe and Hayley Ziktor where currently stationed around the old tree, trying their damnedest, to link up new security alerts with the current magic. Normally, things like this weren't an issue, but lately, with more refugees seeking asylum on Earth - more specifically the Mystic Realm - it had been necessary. And it wasn't only Rootcore that was getting the upgrade, every other hotspot had been getting one, too.

Cam had recently finished upgrading the defences at the Wind Ninja Academy, the Thunder Ninja Academy, and the Pai Zhuq academy their new alert systems worked well with their old ones, allowing both Ninja magic and Mystic Magic to co-exist. Their new defence was to keep an eye on the Human world, while Hayley, who worked with Doctor Oliver in Reefside, had upgraded their defences to coincide with a new base of operations that had opened in Silver Hills - Space Patrol Delta. They were, if Kali was being honest, the reason so many refugees had been coming to Earth. Space Patrol Delta, or SPD, as many shortened it too, was an intergalactic police academy. Many of its employees were alien, but some where human, while the majority were Mystical.

Lorna and Xander Bly had taken up residence there along with their two children, Sylvie, and Nico.

Even Kali's own children - Aviva, Aziva, and Joe had expressed an interest in attending the academy when they were older. First, Kali had insisted they finish their mystic training, then they could discuss future endeavours.

"Son of a -" Cam cut off as Kali raised an eyebrow. "Sorry. It's just… I don't understand why this system is being so difficult."

"What are you stuck on?" Hayley asked.

"It's the main interface," said Cam. "It won't let me download the new data. Without it, we can't pinpoint intergalactic threats outside of Briarwood."

"But we can pinpoint them within the city?" Kali asked.

Cam nodded.

"Then does it really matter?"

Cam shrugged. "I thought Rootcore was the hub of all things magical?" he asked, "don't you want to be informed of things happening outside?"

"It's no bother if you can't get it to work, Cam," said Kali. "I still have the Hellhound. They're pretty good at detecting threats, no matter how far away they are."

"But even you have your limits."

That was true, Kali had to agree. The Hellhound could detect a disturbance as far outside of the mystic realm as it wanted, but space? That was a long shot. The last disturbance it had detected was the Nighlok in Paranoma City, and the rise of the Samurai Rangers. It didn't, however, pick up on the disturbance that they were search for right now. SPD had, and they had contacted Rootcore. They were still waiting on orders on how to proceed.

At the moment, despite their abilities to be independent, all mystical residences - the academies, SPD, even the Dino Lab - took orders from Rootcore. No one moved unless the Hellhound authorised it.

"What did SPD say the disturbance was?" Hayley asked. "Maybe I can hack into their mainframe and get a data dump from there."

Kali gnawed at her lower lip. "I don't really want to go hacking into friendlies," she said. "The last thing we need is a revolt."

"Sorry. Old habits," Hayley apologised.

Kali waved her off and reached for her mystic morpher. It still worked, even after all this time, but she only used it these days to contact the rest of the Mystic Force. These days they had more than enough Mystic Defenders that the Mystic Force Rangers were pretty much retired.

Maddie had retired to Summer Cove with her husband Ben, the guy she had met over ten years ago. When he had found out she was a Power Ranger, and a Mystic Defender to boot, he had been stunned; not because she hadn't told him - he understood the definition of secret identities, but because he, apparently, had had a crush on the Blue Mystic Ranger from the minute she arrived in Briarwood. All his friends had either crushed on the Pink or Black Rangers, some even wanting the Green, Yellow, and Red, but none had taken an interest in the Blue.

Not like Ben had.

They had taken up residence within the Elemental Academy, where Maddie now worked full-time as a Water Mystic, teaching the students the way of magic. Her son, Joshua, was also a student there.

"I'll just call Xander," said Kali. "See if he can get us an update. I'll be right back." She left the room.

Xander answered on the second call.

~X~

Nym eyed the schedule warily as she waited for Aidan to be finished the school receptionist. A young, brunette woman with a small face, shallow eyes, and pale complexion. Her hair was long, way past her shoulders, and upon their arrival had greeted them by name. It took Nym a while to realise where she had seen the woman before. Her name was Veronica, and she had been a teacher at the Mystic Academy in Briarwood. Kali had stationed her at Summer Cove high, it seemed, to keep an eye on things.

"If either of you need anything," said Veronica, catching their attention. "I'll be right here. Kali has informed me of everything, and I'm here to make the transfer as smooth as possible. Are you okay, Nym?"

"She's fine," said Aidan. "First day jitters, an all that."

Veronica eyed the young girl curiously. She then smiled and nodded. "Remember - no one here knows about the Mystic Realm, we'd like to keep it that way. Don't use your magic. You're here to be normal teenagers. The whole point of undercover is that no one thinks any differently of you," she said. "Passing this test will mean you'll be covered for all undercover missions in the future."

"Thanks, Veronica," said Aidan.

"Good luck."

Nym smiled as Aidan turned her away. The ball in the pit of her stomach tightened again, and she was sure she was gonna be sick. Her dragon spirit was restless, she could feel it stirring deep within, and it took all her combined strength to not transform there and then in the middle of a packed corridor.

"It's official," said Aidan, beaming. "We're high school students."

"Great," Nym murmured. She clutched her schedule tightly, her hands shaking.

Aidan stared at her. He wasn't quite sure what to say. His mother had always been better at pep talks than him, but he couldn't understand why Nym was so nervous when she had been the one to ask for this assignment. She had wanted to be able to go undercover with him for months - he had already passed his undercover assignment, he had only agreed to this one so that Nym wouldn't be alone.

The inside of the school was far busier than the outside. Students of all ages, ranging from fourteen-eighteen roamed here, there, and everywhere. The younger students either moved in packs, or alone. It was easier to make out the students that had come together from elementary, and those that hadn't. They kept to themselves, smiling at people who passed, and only speaking when spoken, too.

"Hey, check it out," said Aidan, nodding at one lad dressed in all blue. "He looks like uncle Chip."

Nym snorted. The kid didn't resemble their uncle Chip in physical appearance, but he did dress like he would had when he was at school. "Magician, maybe?" Nym asked. The top hat was a dead giveaway.

"Not real magic that's for certain," said Aidan. "There's no way someone would be using magic to fool humans. It's against Mystic Law."

Nym nodded. Kali had made it illegal for anyone to practice magic in order to trick non-mystics. Not everything agreed with the law, but those who didn't want to come under the wrath of the Hellhound followed the new rules. The Mystic Realm of old was no more, much to the dismay of a lot of residents, but the Mystic Realm of new was thriving. The old Mystic mentors had watched their home disappear and be reborn with the Mystic Force team back in two thousand and five and continue to grow even after the defeat of the Master.

"Maybe we should introduce ourselves?" Aidan offered.

"Maybe we shouldn't?"

Aidan sighed. "Nym, you can't pass this assignment if you don't intergrate," he said. "The whole point of being undercover is to work your way in, be a part of the scene, make people believe you belong there. Standing on the outskirts is a sure way to get yourself identified as a mole. Come on," he caught her hand and dragged her across the hall.

The boy in blue looked up, smiling as he met their gazes. "Hey, I'm having a magic show after school," he said, holding out a flyer. "You should come by and check it out. Only if you want too, of course, I mean, it's not compulsory, or anything."

"You're rambling," said Nym.

The boy chuckled and rubbed his neck, nervously. "Uh, yeah, sorry," he said. "I always get nervous when performing."

"But you still do it?"

The boy shrugged. "I love magic," he said. "I'm Preston." He introduced, holding out his hand.

"Aidan, this is Nym."

Preston smiled. "Nym, that's different," he said.

Nym nodded. "Are you new here?" she asked.

"Nope. Been at Summer Cove all my life," said Preston. "You're new, though, right?"

Aidan nodded. "We've been home schooled for the last few years," he said. "We come from Briarwood. Well, she does. I'm originally from here."

"Really? How come I don't recognise you?"

"Because I left when I was eleven."

Preston stared at Aidan. "You look familiar," he said.

"Don't know how," said Aidan. "Like I said, I left when I was eleven. I wasn't in school then, either. My dad home schooled me."

Preston continued to stare. He then shrugged and indicated to the flyers in his hands. "I'm going to go pass these out," he said. "Hope to see you later. Bye."

He scurried off leaving Aidan and Nym alone in the hallway.

"That was fun," said Aidan.

Nym rolled her eyes.

Turning away, Nym cast a glance around her again. She could remember Kali's talks about always knowing where you are, how many exits there are, how many people. If something were to happen right now then it would be up to her and Aidan to get everyone to safety. Yes, Veronica was on hand to lend support, but as young Mystic Defenders in training, they were responsible for holding the down the fort until backup arrived.

"Hi," said a gawky kid with glasses. He had made a beeline towards Nym and Aidan, hand outstretched.

"Uh, hi," said Nym, awkwardly.

Before she had a chance to offer her hand in return, the gawky kid seized it and shook. "I'm Monty," he said.

"Ny -" Nym broke off as a much taller boy with short brown hair shoved him aside. He reminded Nym of the boys at the academy. The ones who were self-proclaimed 'nice guys' but still picked on anyone they felt were inferior to them.

"Quit pestering the girl, Monty," the guy said. He smiled, flirtingly at Nym. "Is my homework done?"

Monty jumped as the other boy slapped him on the back. He nodded and handed over a folder of information. Without even looking at it, the second boy shoved it back into Monty's hands and returned his attention to Nym.

"I am Victor Vincent," he introduced, emphasising his words with his hands.

"Um, hi?" Nym asked. It was more a question than a statement. She was confused on the dynamic between Monty and Victor, they seemed like friends, but friends didn't treat one another the way Victor treated Monty. Not to mention they were complete opposites.

It was obvious that Monty was what Aidan would call a 'geek,' but Victor was nothing of the sort. Monty looked intelligent while Victor looked more robust and hands on. How on Earth did they work?

"I'm -"

Victor interrupted Nym's introduction by catching her arm, folding it through his, and leading her away from Aidan. She glanced back, pleadingly, and he hurried to catch up. He caught her other arm, pulling her back to his side, much to Victor's irritation.

"Excuse me," Victor said, glaring down at Aidan. He was at least a foot taller than him. "Can't you see we're busy?"

"Can't you see she's nervous?" Aidan retorted. "You ask before you do anything. She's not property."

Victor scoffed. "What are you her boyfriend?" he asked.

"Maybe," said Aidan. He shoved Nym behind him and drew himself up. Victor still towered over him, but the look of cockiness was gone. He swallowed and nodded, glancing at Nym. While he didn't apologise, per sae, the look on his face told her that he wouldn't do it again.

Glancing at Monty, Victor pushed back his jacket and stood with his hands on his hips. "What I was going to say was, you may recognise my name as class president," he said.

"Ooh. Sorry, but we're new here," said Nym. "It's our first day."

"First day?" Victor asked. He turned to Monty, irritated that the new students weren't fully informed of him.

Monty shrugged.

"Well, you know my name now," said Victor. He reached for Nym again, stopping at the look on Aidan's face. Victor sighed. "I just want to show her the trophy case. It's right there." He nodded to the wall near the staircase.

Aidan held his hand out to Nym. "Do you want to see the trophy case?" he asked.

"Blending in, right?" Nym asked.

Aidan sighed. Now she wanted to focus on her assignment. He shot her a look, and then shrugged. "Fine," he agreed.

Victor and Monty frowned at one another.

"You can show me the trophy case," Nym told Victor. "But I can walk by myself."

Victor shrugged and led her away. Aidan and Monty following close behind.

"If you ever forget my name," Victor said, leaning against the glass cabinet. "Just look at these trophies. It's on every single one."

Nym cocked her head as one trophy caught her gaze. "Dane Romero?" she questioned. "Aidan, isn't that your dad?"

Aidan perked up and leaned closer. "Yeah," he said. "The dates match with when he went to school here." He stared at the figure on the top of the trophy but couldn't quite make out what it was supposed to be for.

Victor turned, wide-eyed to Monty. "Why is there an alumni trophy in my cabinet?" he hissed.

"Your cabinet?" Nym asked.

"Well, I mean, I'm the only one whoever wins trophies around here," said Victor.

"Even those shields?" Nym asked, nodding at a crest on the bottom shelf. It had twelve mini shields circling a large one in the centre. "You're name can't be on every one of those."

"Yeah, it looks like a team shield," said Aidan.

Victor stammered.

"Well, Victor is great at working as a team," said Monty. "He carries a lot of the school teams, you know. The Captain is always the best, and that's Victor."

Nym nodded, although the amusement she felt at Victor and Monty's distress almost made her laugh out loud.

Even more so when Aidan glanced her way.

A light jingle echoed from Aidan's pocket. Nym turned to him as he removed a cellphone from his jacket. It wasn't like a normal cellphone, this one was infused with magic, and the only contact it had was directly to Rootcore.

"Sorry, guys, but we have to take this," said Aidan. He took Nym by the hand and walked her away. Once they were a fair distance from Victor and Monty, Aidan snapped open the phone and held it up between him and Nym. "Mum?"

Kali's voice echoed over the line. "Aidan?" she asked. "Can you hear me?"

"Yeah, are you still having issues with the signal back there?" Aidan asked.

"We're working on it."

Aidan and Nym shared a look. Ever since they had started to mess with the detection systems at Rootcore, everything had been disconnecting at random parts of the day. It especially wasn't helpful when trying to direct patrols throughout the city.

"Is everything okay, Kali?" Nym asked. Despite acting like her mother, Nym had never been able to call Kali anything other than her name. Calling her 'mum' felt like an insult to Nym's own mother, a young female dragon that had been killed by poachers - poachers that Kali had taken care of rather efficiently.

"We just wanted to let you know that there is a disturbance in Summer Cove," said Kali.

"Do you want us to investigate?"

"The Elemental Academy has already sent out a patrol," said Kali. "Maddie is amongst them. She'll report back if they find something. Just… be careful, okay? You're both high valuable targets. If the threat becomes more dangerous, I'll send defenders."

"We'll be fine, Mum," said Aidan.

"I know. But you're my son, Aidan," said Kali. "The dark side will do anything to get to me, even going as far as to go after you and Nym. I won't let that happen. I can'tlet that happen."

Aidan sighed and Nym squeezed his shoulder. "Let us know if anything changes," she said.

"I will. I love you."

"We love you, too."

Aidan closed the phone and squeezed his eyes shut. He opened them and met Nym's gaze as she rested her head on his shoulder. "What do you want to do now?" he asked, kissing her forehead.

Nym shrugged and reached into her pocket. She pulled out the flyer that Preston had given them. "We could check this out," she said.

Aidan chuckled. "Okay. Come on," he took her hand and led her out of the school. They past Victor and Monty on the way, avoiding their gazes as they headed outside.

"Oh, by the way," said Nym, linking her arm with his. "Boyfriend?"

"Shut up," Aidan muttered, a blush rising in his cheeks.

~X~

Preston smiled as he saw Aidan and Nym join the crowd. He had hoped they would come to see his show, why he wasn't so sure, but there was something about them that seemed friendly enough. They didn't roll their eyes when he had told them about magic, like most people did, and they genuinely seemed interested in seeing what he could do.

Not to mention they were from Briarwood. Everyone knew that Briarwood was a magical place, the Mystic Force rangers derived from there and so did a manner of magical creatures. He had wanted to visit for so long, but his father was dead set against him ever stepping foot there. According to him, Briarwood was a weird place before the Rangers turned up, and it was an even weirder place now. But then, his father didn't seem interested in any place he couldn't make money.

"And now, I, Presto-Change-o, will turn into a dragon," said Preston, causing a card to magically appear between his fingers. From the corner of his eye he saw Nym share a look with Aidan, and part of him could only wonder why. She looked concerned, afraid even. Did she understand the meaning of magic?

Aidan whispered something and squeezed her arm reassuringly.

There was an explosion, and the crowd disappeared. When it cleared Preston could see and hear everyone clapping politely. He beamed behind his mask. It had taken him forever to create the dragon costume, all the fabric he had used before would leave him feeling itchy, but now he was using a fabric that was one hundred percent breathable and cotton based. Anything polyester, it seemed, he was allergic, too.

Nym giggled and Preston felt his heart swell at the sound. It didn't sound like the type of laugh someone did at someone else, but rather the type where someone laughed with someone else. Her smile was also very pretty, Preston thought. He shook his head, clearing any other thoughts from his mind. She was new, for crying out loud, and he had no idea how to talk to someone as pretty as her, so why bother?

Another bell rang across the Quad and the crowd started to disperse. Preston thanked people as they passed him and set about cleaning up his things.

"That was great," said Nym. "You've really got a knack for magic."

Preston smiled as he looked up. "Thanks. I've always loved magic. One day, I'm hoping to be the best magician of all time."

"Where we come from," said Nym. "We call magic users sorcerers and sorceress. Magician sounds fun, though."

"You said you're from Briarwood, right?"

Nym nodded.

"What's that like?" Preston asked. "I heard about all the things that happened there. The Power Rangers, the Mystic Forest, the creatures that live there. Is it all true?"

"Yep."

Preston beamed. "And you chose to come to Summer Cove for school?" he asked. He didn't understand why someone would want to leave a place like Briarwood. If he came from there, he would never leave.

Nym shrugged and glanced at Aidan. "It's complicated," she said. "I wish I could tell you."

"It's okay," said Preston. "Are you looking forward to going to school here at least?"

"I wasn't at first," said Nym. "Never actually stepped foot in a school before, you know. But now? It's growing on me. There are some people who are weird, but I expect that from the human race."

Preston frowned at her choice of words, but before he could ask her what she meant, a far-off explosion caught their attention.

Nym, Aidan, and Preston jumped up, each searching for the source of the noise.

"There," said Aidan, pointing at smoke rising from the forest. Just like Briarwood, Summer Cove was surrounded by woods, which wasn't a surprise, given Summer Cove was part of the Mystic Realm. "We have to check it out."

"Kali said to stay put!" Nym said, shaking her head. She knew better than to disregard a Hellhound order. "Besides, a patrol has been dispatched. If they see us, if Maddie sees us, we'll be in big trouble."

"What if there are people involved?" Aidan said. "Or creatures? We can help diffuse the situation by getting people to safety. We're defenders, Nym, this is what we're trained for."

"You're also the Hellhound's son. If there are creatures involved, and they see you, and recognise you? You heard what Kali said on the phone. What she has drilled into us. It's too dangerous, Aidan!"

Preston frowned between them as they fought. Hellhound and creatures? He had heard stories of the Hellhound, of course, but he never thought about it having a family. And Aidan was family to her? What the hell was happening?

"Fine. You stay here," said Aidan. "But I'm going to help. Mum can rip me a new one if she finds out, which she won't."

He took off before Nym could stop him.

Nym screamed in frustration. "That idiot!" she growled. She paused, realising that Preston was still beside her, and probably heard the whole conversation. Forcing a smile she turned to him. "Um, about what you just heard -"

"I won't say anything," Preston said, shaking his head. "Who would believe me, anyway?"

He had a point.

"What you going to do about Aidan?" Preston asked.

"I have to go after him," said Nym, shaking her head. She didn't want to be caught breaking anymore rules, especially not on her first day of a new school and a new assignment. She met Preston's gaze. "You wanna come? I mean, you shouldn't, but it could be your chance to meet an actual Mystic."

Preston's eyes widened. "Um, well, I…" he hesitated. He really wanted to go, but fighting? Not his forte.

"You don't have too. You can stay here, and I'll come -"

"Yes," Preston interrupted. He sounded just as surprised as Nym felt.

"Yes?" Nym asked.

"I'll go with you," said Preston. "Besides, I can be a witness for you if you get in trouble with the Hellhound."

Nym smiled and shook her head. "You don't have too, but thanks." She held out her hand.

"Uh…" Preston hesitated again.

"Don't worry. You'll be safe."

Warmth rising in his face, Preston took her hand. He let out a shout of surprise as Nym started to glow; then, as if being sucked into a whirlpool, the pair disappeared.

~X~

"Surprise!" a cat-like monster hissed, breaking through a barrier in between the trees, and pouncing on a young lad in the middle of the forest. "Did you really think you could steal the Nexus Prism? This belongs to Galvanax!" He shoved himself off the kid and turned to the star wedged into the ground.

Coughing and spluttering, the kid started to rise. "No. You can't!" he said, reaching for the star. He managed to get to his feet and lunged forward, punching the cat in the shoulder. It did very little damage, and the cat only laughed as he turned.

"Was that supposed to hurt?" he taunted. He caught the lads arm, twisted it, and kneed him in the bottom of the spine.

The kid hissed and stumbled forward, catching onto a tree for support.

"Just stay down!" the cat warned. "Or you'll perish a fate worse than death."

But the kid refused to back down. He pushed off from the tree and threw himself forward again, arm swinging and missing the cats head as he ducked.

"Pathetic!" the cat continued to taunt. He danced his way out of the lads reach multiple times, before raking his claws down his chest. He ripped his shirt and drew blood. "You are weak!"

Breathing laboured, the lad rolled onto his stomach, and gazed down at the device on his wrist. "Computer?" he asked. He wasn't sure what he expected to happen, but he definitely didn't think he would still be connected to the ships mainframe all the way on Earth.

The swoop of elation he felt when he realised he was, sent a wave of heat through his whole body.

"How do I beat this monster?" the kid asked.

"You cannot beat Korvaka alone," the computer replied.

The heat disappeared as fast as it appeared, leaving an empty and deflated feeling in its wake. He may not have been able to beat the monster alone, but he could at least try. The other option was letting him return the Nexus prism to Galvanax, and that wasn't a good option to consider. With the Nexus Prism on his side, Galvanax could destroy everything and anything he damn well pleased.

"It's the end for you," Korvaka said, raising his sword. It spiralled with luminous green energy, which he threw at the kid.

But he was knocked aside before the blast could hit. Instead, it struck the ground where he had once stood.

"Stay down," said a distinctively familiar voice. He looked up as the weight above him disappeared and saw an athletically built male teenager standing before him. There was something strangely familiar about him, but he wasn't entirely sure what it was.

"Annoying pest!" Korvaka growled, directing his sword at the newcomer.

"Come on!" Aidan said, clenching his fist. He could feel his fire magic burning beneath the skin. While he had an affinity for fire because of his father, he had also trained under Nick while at the Mystic Academy, making him one of the strongest fire defenders within the whole Mystical Realm.

Korvaka roared and swung his sword above his head. It sparked again with energy, and when he drew it down, tendrils of energy flailed behind him.

"Look out!"

Aidan ducked. As he hit the ground he could feel the beat of wings against the air fly over him, he glimpsed the scaly body of a beast, and feel the heat of energy burst from deep within her body.

Korvaka howled as the beam hit him, causing him to melt beneath the heat.

Aidan stood and looked down at the puddle of black goo left behind. The dragon landed beside him, and Preston slid down from her flank. "What the -?" Aidan asked, stunned to see him.

"That was… awesome!" Preston grinned. He turned to Nym as she transformed beside him. "You… you're…"

"A dragon?" Nym asked.

"A real dragon!"

Nym laughed. "Yeah. I'm what's called a Dragonborn," she said. "I'll explain more later." She turned to Aidan. "I told you that you'd get in trouble for coming here."

"Good thing I did," said Aidan. "I saved that kid." He pointed behind him.

Preston turned, eyes widening at the sight of the new new comer. He then turned to Nym. "Please tell me I'm not the only one seeing double?" he asked.

"No. I see it, too," said Nym shaking her head. She looked from the new kid to Aidan and back again. "It's like looking in a mirror."

Aidan furrowed his brow and turned around. He hadn't really got a good look at the kid he had saved, just saw him with his back against the wall and a monster about to attack. He had hesitated and just jumped straight into the fight.

"What are you talk -?" Aidan cut off as he finally faced the kid he had saved. It was like looking into a mirror. "Brody?"

The kid frowned at the mention of his name. "Yeah?" he asked.

"No way," Nym gasped. "Brody as in Brody Brody? Your brother?"

"Wait, brother?" Brody asked, staring at Aidan. It would explain the sense of familiarity he had. "Aidan, is that really you?"

Aidan nodded and stepped forward. "It's me," he confirmed. He reached for his younger brother, hands clasping his shoulders and squeezing, as if to make sure that what he was seeing was real.

A grin broke across Brody's face, and he launched himself forward. Tears leaked down his face as he hugged Aidan tightly.

Nym glanced at Preston as a smile came to her own face. Kali had always promised Aidan that they would find his brother, wherever he may have been. But as the years grew long, no one actually thought that would become a reality.

At the sound of footsteps, the two brothers separated and looked around. Aidan glanced over to where Nym and Preston stood, motioning for them to get closer. It sounded like whatever or whomever was coming, there was more than one.

"It could be the patrol," said Nym. "They were supposed to be here, after all."

"Patrol?" Brody asked.

Aidan shook his head. "It's a long story," he said. "There'll be time later. For now, just don't say anything. Trust me. It'll be easier that way."