RWBY Rangers: Remnants of the Grid

by DareDreamer

The Earth is under attack once again: this time from creatures that almost brought another world to its knees! Just when they thought their fight was over, Ruby and her friends must morph into action against a Grimm invasion that threatens to overwhelm Earth! With many more Power Rangers standing by their side, they must unlock hidden powers to defeat this threat... and another.

6. Ascended and Evolved

"Darkness draws near…"

"Really?"

"Sorry, I just… thought it'd be cool to say."

Weiss, standing beside Madison, sighed under her breath and swore that Ruby was accompanying her instead. She knew the woman meant well, but she pondered if it was too late to accompany Nick. He and his father had ventured to one portion of the woods to see if the empowered Grimm had wandered onward. Meanwhile, Weiss and Madison were tasked with scouring the area where they were last seen.

Empowered Grimm: these were no longer ordinary Grimm. They had absorbed the Morphin Grid's energy, an awe-inspiring and terrifying transformation. The very thought sent a shiver down Weiss' spine, a chilling reminder of their imminent danger. She couldn't help but feel a heart-wrenching worry that she was responsible for their transformation. It was her morpher that had been damaged, and her energies had leaked into them. However, the logical half of her mind quickly put those fears to rest. Even Huntresses could get caught off-guard at times… especially her, no matter how much she was trained to be flawless and perfect.

It didn't matter if she made this mess or not. What mattered was that she needed to clean it up. Weiss was determined, her resolve shining through the uncertainty. No matter what it took, she would fix this and not let Udonna's gift go to waste.

"Do you see any sign of them, Madison?" Weiss asked, her voice tinged with urgency as her eyes scanned the surroundings.

"Not yet…" the woman muttered. "Wait, what about this?" She cleared her throat and straightened herself out before taking a deep breath… and dropping into a cowering stance. "Oh, no! I'm lost and alone in this dark, dangerous forest! Look at me; I'm so helpless and frightened!"

Weiss balked at Madison's stance, sheer disbelief on her face as she watched the woman pause, glance at her surroundings, and frown in disappointment. "We're doomed, Weiss! We'll never find our way out of this cursed place! If I spend another second here, I could scream! My heart rate is already through the roof!"

She paused again… and was met with the eerie silence of the woods. "Seriously?! That couldn't be more convincing!"

"Madison, what in the name of Remnant are you doing?!"

The older woman stared at Weiss with puzzled eyes. "What? I thought those things were attracted to fear!"

Weiss groaned. "They are! But not to fake fear! They're drawn to genuine emotions, not some stupid acting!" The blue-clad woman rolled her eyes with a groan. "Well, unless you could do better…"

Weiss humphed and glanced away while crossing her arms. "Absolutely not."

"Come on; you have to admit that was worth a try!" Madison objected. "I mean, I know that my acting isn't the best, but…" Her eyes suddenly perked up. "Hold on… what's that?" Weiss turned over her shoulder and noticed Madison looking at one of the trees behind her. Unlike the surrounding trees, this one had a large gash cut into the bark, oozing a thick, black substance. The woman stepped forward to investigate, her boots crunching on the fallen leaves, the only sound in the otherwise eerie silence of the forest…

…and upon feeling something squish under her boot, immediately wished she hadn't.

"Ew, ew, EW!" Madison yelped, kicking her foot wildly while hopping back. "Gah, slime! I hate slime!" Leaving her to scrape her foot against the ground, Weiss moved closer to the tree and knelt. Right before the slashed tree was a small black puddle that wreaked havoc on Weiss' nostrils, its pungent odor filling the air. Even from this tiny sludge puddle, the pure hatred and malice she felt was unmistakable. "Liquid Grimm…"

"Ugh! Is it blood?!" Madison asked. "It better not be blood! Wait, do they even bleed at all?" She moved to join Weiss, cautioning not to step into it again while the heiress looked closer. It was just as thick and slimy as she remembered from Angel Grove… but there was something different this time. Instead of just dark, murky black, there was a hint of something swirling around in the sludge: a purple coloration accompanied by tiny violet sparks. The crackle made both women go still.

"Morphin Grid energy…" Madison breathed. "And it looks… unstable?"

"I'm no expert," Weiss added as she watched the purple colors crackle and convulse. "But that looks volatile to me. And if this is fresh, then-"

A bone-chilling howl cut her off, echoing deeper into the woods. Weiss turned towards the sound… where she saw several more slashed trees and disturbed earth. A frown crossed her face, and she raced off with her morpher already in hand while Madison trailed behind her.

"Alright, how do you want to do this?" Madison asked, pulling out a phone-like device as she ran. "Didn't Udonna say that they're tougher now?" Weiss nodded without breaking her pace. "Yeah! Which means we need to slow them down or weaken them! What kind of powers do you have?"

"Well, I can command water…"

Weiss smirked. "Perfect."

The two women sprinted through the forest, their footsteps pounding against the ground, and followed a trail of destruction that led to a clearing. A pack of Grimm rested within, already wreaking havoc in their supercharged states. Eyes that once burned red now glowed a violent violet and the beasts lashed out in an uncontrollable frenzy. A massive Ursa cleaved a tree in half with a single swipe of its paw, a Centinel covered in additional spiked armor plating and purple markings winded through the underbrush at surprising speeds, and a Beowolf bursting at the seams with raw, volatile power blasted out a concentrated beam of energy that scorched and singed everything it touched throughout its wild and frantic movements.

Madison had to duck to keep the beam from slicing off her head. "Oh, no no no, this is bad! They could bring the whole forest down! While they don't know what they're doing!"

"But we know what we're doing," Weiss countered as she readied her morpher and opened her mouth…

"WAIT!"

Weiss looked at Madison with a look of disbelief. "What now?!"

The other woman blinked. "You're not going to say it?"

"Say what?"

"You know…" Madison gestured at her own morpher with a knowing look… and Weiss realized what she meant. "Seriously?! Is it a rule or something?!"

"I mean, not really," Madison said. "But most of us tend to say it a lot to kick things off, so…"

Weiss rolled her eyes and groaned before stepping out into the open. "Ugh, fine… IT'S MORPHIN' TIME!"

The Grimm spun around simultaneously, dozens of purple eyes focused on Weiss as she thrust her morpher outward. "BLIZZARD OWL!" A blinding white light burst from the open device, causing the Grimm to cringe and wince in discomfort. The girl took a moment to admire her new look- Udonna's gift to ensure she could still fight- before the newly-morphed White Ranger struck a graceful stance, her snowy uniform sparkling while her mid-length cape fluttered in the breeze.

"MAGICAL SOURCE, MYSTIC FORCE!" Blue lightning shot into the sky and summoned a mystical circle with a fish-like tail. A mermaid-like figure flew out and surrounded Madison, who shot into the sky and passed through the circle…

GALWIT MYSTO RANGER!

She landed beside Weiss in a blue suit, a longer cape moving like an ocean wave draped over her shoulders. Madison twirled in place before spreading her arms, water blasting off her form. "FLUID AS THE SEA, BLUE MYSTIC RANGER!"

The girl wasted no time charging the supercharged beasts, who now directed their new energies at them. Weiss leaned away from a Beowolf's slash- its claws now going purple- and grabbed it by the throat, pouring as much power as she could into her hand. The monster's head was quickly encased in ice and Weiss threw the beast to the ground, shattering its frozen head and leaving the rest to disintegrate.

Madison weaved and slipped through slashes and bites like river water around rocks, flinging her cape at the monsters' faces to distract them. A high kick nearly knocked a Beowolf's jaw aside and she cartwheeled away from a Creep that charged right into a tree, knocking it over. While the Blue Ranger proved a fast and elusive target, Weiss met the Grimm with swift fists and feet. Her blows weren't enough to cause significant damage like they once did, but they were enough to disrupt the beasts' next move and keep them from landing a solid hit on her. She felt invigorated as she sailed through the air with every leap, floating gracefully as an angel and striking with the force of thick ice.

But when the time for her to go on the defensive arrived, Weiss conjured an icy trail under her feet and speedily skated away, lobbing freezing balls from her hands. While usual Grimm would be instantly frozen upon contact, these enhanced horrors could resist some of her effects, leaving only a tiny patch of skin iced up or a limb dangling limply by their side. The Grimm she struck fought off the most significant case of frostbite they had experienced, but Weiss counted herself lucky: she'd be having a worse time if these Grimm hailed from Solitas.

Weiss created an icy lance at the end of her path and hurled it into the Ursa before leaping atop it with her saber drawn and cleanly slicing its head off. Flipping off before its dissipating body hit the ground, she slashed at incoming Beowolves and flung freezing arcs of white energy at enemies out of her reach. One of her attacks managed to slow down a Beowolf that was closing in on Madison…

"MAGI STAFF!" The Blue Ranger summoned a massive wave that swept it and its brethren away. Weiss thought fast and blasted the water with both palms, instantly trapping the Grimm in an icy prison. Those that weren't wholly solidified or were struggling to break free were quickly finished off as she skated around the sculpture and slashed them.

"Nice thinking, Frosty!" Madison cheered, giving the White Ranger a high-five before the girls returned to the leftovers. The Centinel was skittering past its brethren and reared its ugly body high, a demonic hiss emanating from its mandibles. Both girls stood fast with their weapons drawn. "What do you say we squash this bug?"

"It looks too big to immobilize completely," Weiss told her. "Aim for one of the middle segments and I'll handle the rest!"

"On it! Wait… what's it doing?" The colossal insect was rearing back, a purple liquid bubbling in its mouth. Thankfully, the girls broke away just in time as an amethyst fluid spewed from the Centinel's maw, dissolving the ground with a corrosive and volatile acid. "Ugh! Could it always do that, or is it a nasty side effect?!"

"Just spray it!" Weiss shouted back, cartwheeling and flipping away from several more blasts that disintegrated the grass and dirt beneath her. The insectoid Grimm moved freakishly fast despite its size, forcing the girls to avoid its spinning and rotating body while Madison blasted water streams at the creature. Weiss blasted freezing beams from her free palm, aiming at the Centinel's legs to slow it down. She only managed to freeze three of its legs to the ground before the giant Grimm shattered its bonds, but this pause was more than enough for Madison, who landed a solid hit on one of the creature's segments.

"Tell our good friend to chill out, Weiss!"

If it weren't for the heat of the moment, Weiss would have reprimanded her partner for the pun and say she had enough of those in her life. The White Ranger shoved those remarks down and fired freezing energy at the soaked segment, instantly freezing the water into thick ice that threatened to puncture the hissing Centinel's body. Weiss didn't wait for the Grimm's reaction and launched herself at the segment, twirling in midair and aiming a white boot at her target…

KRRRSSSHH! The White Ranger's flying kick shattered the segment and split the Centinel in half, earning an ear-piercing screech from the bisected Grimm as both acid-bleeding halves collapsed to the forest floor. Weiss kept the Centinel's upper body from crawling away by burying her Snow Saber through its head, ending it without a second thought as both halves were reduced to ash.

"Precise and punctual," Weiss summarized. "Just how I prefer it."

"Let's save the pats on the back for later, yeah?" Madison reminded her. "The forest could still be infested with those things. I'll find Nick and-"

"MADISON!"

The Blue Ranger spun around to see two red figures- one in a cape and another in armor- sprinting their way. "Oh, never mind! Nick, what's the-"

"GET DOWN, NOW!"

KRABOOM! BLAM! BRAKOOM! Explosions suddenly rocked the ground before Weiss or Madison could react, rocking the girls to their cores and sending sparks everywhere. Orange and red blasts flung the Rangers skyward as fireballs smashed into the earth, prompting Nick to run for cover while Koragg raised his shield. Weiss hit the dirt tumbling and Madison collapsed beside her, the White Ranger groaning from the impact.

"Urgh… what in-"

GRRRROOOOAAAAAARRRR!

Weiss's blood turned as cold as the ice she commanded. Her helmet flashed from her shocked face, struck by a realization: she'd heard that sound before. She turned onto her back and cast her sapphire orbs skyward… where darkness blanketed the entire forest. Madison was just as stunned and stepped backward, the glow of her Mystic Wand nothing but a speck to the ominous clouds above her. Neither of the girls could do a thing but watch as the black curtain rolled over them.

Ominous trails of smoke wafted from the trees, something Weiss recognized as the Grimm dissolving and being absorbed into the cloud. The last time this happened, the Grimm were normal… but now, they were-

"No…" she squeaked in horror. "No no no no no…"

The whole cloud shuddered and rumbled as the supercharged Grimm essence made contact with it, causing the sky and the ground to tremble and quake. A terrible storm surged within the cloud that flashed with violet lightning, its rumbling threatening to split the sky with its malevolent aura. Koragg stood protectively before his son, whose wand had now reconfigured into a sword. All four Rangers trained their eyes on the cloud…

GRRREEEOOOAAARRRGGHH! The dark cloud's thunderous rumbling gave way to a devastating roar of untold fury and dissipated to reveal an enormous dragon of darkness. Violet lightning coursed through its body and bright eyes burned an ominous purple, the terrifying sight making Koragg slightly falter.

"Gods preserve us…"

BRRRAAAARRRGH! The monster roared into the sky as its massive form cast a dark shadow on the Rangers. Purple lightning shot from its wings, the corrupted bolts sending everyone scattering for cover while the dragon soared overhead. The beast's bellows rattled Weiss' ears, almost deafening her until she heard Madison's cry.

"It's headed for the city!"

"A giant Grimm dragon souped up on Morphin Grid energy?!" Nick yelled. "The others won't stand a chance! Come on!" He, Madison, and Koragg hurried off in pursuit of the beast, with Weiss moving to join them.

"No, Miss Schnee!" Koragg shouted. "You must warn your friends and the other Rangers! Make haste!" Weiss had no room to argue about that: the sight of this dragon was enough to fill her with fear. Taking it on right now would mean her doom…

Hoping that the Mystic Rangers could at least drive the Grimm dragon away from Briarwood- especially in such a state- Weiss set the coordinates to the Command Center and teleported away in a pillar of white light.

…

"They'll be here any moment," Blake reported. The men and women before her nodded and stood in a defensive line, but one pair of eyes never left her: eyes from a man in his early forties with windswept hair and a red jacket over a shirt with torn sleeves. Given the current predicament, the introductions had been swift, but Blake remembered his name.

"The Animarium is a sacred place," spoke Cole Evans. "These creatures mimic the animals that reside here but are not those animals. Are you ready?"

Blake nodded at the veteran Red Ranger, a fierce look in her amber eyes.

"Good," he answered, patting her on the shoulder. "If what I heard about you is true… then show me the wild side of you that I know is still there." The Yellow and Blue Rangers- whose names Blake recalled were Taylor Earhardt and Max Cooper- met Blake with expectant and encouraging expressions. Alyssa and Danny silently gave Blake confidence, but one group member had his eyes trained on the horizon. Blake didn't know if she was supposed to be uneasy at seeing the wolf on his jacket, but she figured it was one advantage of being human.

Taylor turned to the man. "Merrick?"

"They're here."

Right on cue, a pack of Grimm crested over the hill and stampeded into the valley. Blake immediately picked out Beowolves, Boarbatusks, and Sabyrs charging at full speed while Goliaths, Ursai, and Beringels loomed over their brethren with beastly bellows. A swarm of Lancers and a flock of Nevermores buzzed through the sky; the raven-haired girl was relieved to see no giant bird among the masses. She did, however, spy the chilling stinger of a Death Stalker poised to strike.

Blake watched Cole scowl ferociously at the blighted horde, holding a small flip phone. "Ready?!"

"READY!" His teammates hollered, whipping out similar devices. They all moved as one, pressing down on the phones before holding them to their ears and shooting their arms outward. "WILD ACCESS! HA!"

Each phone shifted into the shape of the Rangers' respective animal, followed by humanoid robot modes that vanished into the Rangers' bodies, donning them in their signature colored suits and bestial helmets. They struck savage stances and predatorial poses, tiny claws on their gloves glinting in the sunlight.

"BLAZING LION!"

"SOARING EAGLE!"

"SURGING SHARK!"

"IRON BISON!"

"NOBLE TIGER!"

"HOWLING WOLF!"

"Guardians of the Earth, UNITED WE ROAR! POWER RANGERS WILD FORCE!" The six animal-themed Rangers stood ready for action and Blake turned away, facing down the monstrous horde that continued to barrel towards them. Her amber eyes glared at the pack and she felt her fists clench. Something deep inside her was boiling; if she had to guess, hatred for the Grimm who had desecrated such a lush and tranquil environment. The dark-haired girl bared her teeth and thrust her morpher outward, presenting the snarling great cat's face at the black pack.

"OBSIDIAN PANTHER!" Purple energy flowed from the coin and enveloped Blake's body, manifesting into her Black Ranger suit with her panther-themed helmet and prominent dark cat ears. Violet claws shot out from her fingertips and she adopted an agile hunter's stance, a snarl escaping her lips that nearly matched the Grimm's ferocity. She was also quick to match their speed, the girl charging at the horde at a pace impossible for an average human.

Blake leaped at a pouncing Beowolf, tackling the wolf-like creature from the air and pinning it to the ground before slashing repeatedly at its face. Her multicolored allies sprinted past her, engaging the Grimm with animalistic strength. Cole charged at a Sabyr and knocked it to the ground, Taylor went high to engage some Nevermores, and Max went low to slice at several exposed underbellies. Alyssa landed a quick kick at a Sabyr about to land on Blake, and Danny smashed his shoulder into a rampaging Boarbatusk before seizing it by the tusks and smashing it into the ground. Merrick moved fast, cutting and kicking at a few Beowolves that converged on his position.

Blake never stayed stationary either, vaulting and leaping over incoming Grimm while sliding under those who lunged at her recklessly. She grabbed a Beowolf's leg and swung upward, sending the beast flying until it fell on its face. The Black Ranger redirected a Boarbatusk's momentum, grabbing its tusks and throwing it into another batch of Grimm to knock them all over. Two Beowolves charged at her and she spun into the air, bashing them with whirling kicks before landing smoothly.

She was off again, weaving between stinger blasts from Lancers and retaliating with violet blaster shots. She briefly caught glimpses of Cole and Merrick launching themselves at the insects to bring them down, but Blake paid them no mind as she sprinted for another Beowolf. She leaped high over a swipe and grabbed its head with her claws, digging in deep before sharply twisting her arms, breaking the Grimm's neck with a quick snap. She hit the ground rolling and resumed her sprint, leaving the monster to vanish into dust and black ichor.

Blake felt like a true predator as she cut down Grimm after Grimm, her claws tearing out chunks of black flesh and slicing off entire limbs. A swipe at a Boarbatusk's leg was enough to topple it, leaving it wide open for a swift disembowelment. She pounced at a swooping Nevermore and brought it crashing to the ground, ceasing its flapping and flailing by plunging her claws into its skull. Blake was barely thinking as she fought through the horde, acting on nothing but sheer, natural instinct…

…until an incoming Boarbatusk bashed her off her feet, smashing the Black Ranger against a rock. Stunned by the blow, Blake groaned and shook the dizziness from her head just in time to hear a loud trumpet and see a shadow fall over her. The girl could only yelp in alarm and hold up her arms as the Goliath's massive foreleg came crashing down.

Fortunately, her fellow Black Ranger darted in and caught the leg with immense strength, saving Blake from being smashed into a black puddle. Needing no further encouragement, Blake darted back into the fray while Danny gave the leg a hard shove, making the Goliath wail in surprise before its huge body smashed against the ground. Leaving the bison-themed Ranger to deal with the larger threat, Blake dashed for a white shape holding her own against a pack of Sabyrs. She summoned multiple shadows of herself and unleashed them on the pack, taking them by surprise as she reached Alyssa's side.

The black and white cat-themed Rangers stood back-to-back with claws ready, the Sabyrs circling them hungrily. It wasn't long until they lunged at frightening speeds and the girls reacted just as quickly. Alyssa threw Blake over her shoulder and the Black Ranger kicked a Sabyr in the face while Alyssa grabbed another Sabyr by the neck and tore out its throat. Blake smashed another Sabyr's face into the earth and sliced open another's belly as she ducked underneath it. Alyssa lopped off the last one's leg and sliced its jaw clean off, allowing the two to have a quick breather.

"They don't play around, huh?"

"No," Blake answered. "They don't." A glance to the sky assured her worries of any aerial ambushes. Taylor was gliding through the air with eagle-like wings under her arms, shooting yellow darts at Lancers and weaving around dive-bombing Nevermores. A short yellow sword made itself known as the airborne Yellow Ranger quickly used it to cut off wings and decapitate raven heads. Upon seeing the weapon and the abundance of Grimm still present, Alyssa steadied herself.

"Let's up the ante a little!" She called, donning a white baton and bashing a Beowolf across the face with it, allowing a pinned Merrick the opportunity to kick it away. The lone wolf equipped a long saber, and he immediately cut down more attackers before converting it into a sniper rifle and downing several more Grimm with precise shots. Following her friend's lead, Blake unsheathed her twin Midnight Blades and sprinted at the next Grimm she saw.

Purple energy flashed from her swords as Blake became a deadly whirlwind, slicing up Beowolves and depriving an Ursa of its legs while stabbing Boarbatusks through their skulls. A dozen monsters fell to her frenzy, and all those that dared approach her were cut to ribbons. After slicing a Beowolf's throat, her attention turned to a bellowing and chest-beating Beringel that was attempting to smash Danny into the dirt. Rolling away from pulverizing fists, Danny vaulted over an arm and slammed a foot into the Beringel's face to stun the beast. He then slammed its head into the ground and bombarded it with solid punches, kneeing it in the chin to make it reel back in pain.

The monster tried fighting back with a double-fisted slam, but Danny shot high into the air and smashed his fists on top of the Beringel's head with a roar of rage. The mighty blow caved the Grimm's head in and Danny rolled his head over his shoulders before another howl alerted him to more attackers. The Black Ranger drew a small handaxe and charged, colliding with a Beowolf horns-first before chopping the monsters up with a bull's unbridled anger.

Seeing how the bulky Black Ranger could hold his own as he effortlessly choke-slammed a Beowolf with his free hand, Blake rushed past him and ran up an Ursa's back, slashing her blades across its nape and leaping off as it collapsed. She was met by Cole and Max, the former bombarding another Ursa's midsection with red lion gauntlets before delivering a bone-crunching uppercut to its jaw that would have made Yang proud. The Blue Ranger expertly wielded a pair of dagger-like tonfas that cut through Grimm, one of which he hurled at a nearby Nevermore to down the flying beast before rushing over to finish it off and retrieve it.

"Cole! Do we know how much of the Animarium has been affected?!" He shouted, kicking down a Sabyr and slashing it in half.

"They've been slaughtering animals and poisoned the sacred waters!" Cole answered with fury in his tone. "We won't let them do any more damage! Not here, and not to the Earth!" He swept out a Beowolf's legs and crushed its skull with his gauntlet before a deep bellow drew his attention to a Beringel. The massive gorilla Grimm pounded his chest and roared hard enough to shake Cole's soul, but the Red Ranger remained firm.

"RRRAAAAAAHH!" He roared back and lunged at the Beringel, evading its blows while landing solid blows with his gauntlets. One hit was enough to knock a tooth loose and he smashed its knee to make the beast buckle. The demon staggered and collapsed to the ground, its burning red eyes locked on Cole… who now held up a crimson blaster.

"LION BLASTER: CANNON MODE!" He mercilessly shoved the firearm down the Beringel's open maw as deep as he could get it and pulled the trigger, overloading the monster with bright red energy. A powerful blast of crimson light reduced the Beringel to nothingness, leaving Cole huffing as he turned back to the battlefield.

Much to his frustration- a frustration Blake shared- there were still too many Grimm to count and the Death Stalker was looming closer with snapping pincers. "Is it just me, or does it feel like every single monster from your world was brought here?"

"For all of our sakes…" Blake answered. "Let's not go that far."

"Agreed. I have a hunch the Animarium would not hold them all, anyway…"

SCRRAAAW!

Blake turned her head skyward and her eyes widened beneath her helmet. "Um… I don't think space will be a problem for them."

In the cloudless skies above, a massive Nevermore swooped over the Animarium and cast a dark shadow over the valley, causing the Ranger to pause at the behemoth-like bird. Blake felt dread creep up her spine: they were far too outmatched to deal with an enemy like this. Even the airborne Taylor looked like a bug in comparison, the massive beak ready to swallow her whole. The Nevermore spread its wings and dove for Blake with outstretched talons…

SKKRREEEEE! Something as big as the Nevermore collided with the raven at full speed, leaving it fighting to stay in the air. It tangled with its unknown assailant before breaking off with several beats of its wings, screeching at its attacker…

…and a yellow mechanical eagle shrieked back, lunging at the Nevermore and locking talons with the giant Grimm. Wings thrashed and beaks snapped at each other as the big birds battled for aerial dominance. The Nevermore broke free from the beast's grasp and flew off with the yellow bird of prey in hot pursuit.

Blake heard Alyssa gasp. "The Eagle Wildzord!"

"The Eagle what?!"

"One of the Animarium's ancient guardians!" Taylor answered as she touched down. "I knew they wouldn't sit idly by if their home was under attack!" Blake was relieved to have some extra help, but even a giant robotic bird could only do so-

Hold on… did Taylor say "they"?

ROOOOAAAAAARRRR!

A deep, commanding bellow made every Grimm halt and turn to the valley's far edge, where Blake saw a majestic creature signaling its arrival: a giant red lion that appeared furious at the presence of such unnatural and chaotic excuses for animals in its home. It barreled down the hill at full speed, coming to a sliding stop behind the Wild Force Rangers while growling deeply at the Grimm.

A cacophony of roars, growls, bellows, and snarls accompanied the lion as Blake witnessed a menagerie of machines. A blue shark breached the surface of a lake and gnashed its teeth at the Grimm, the yellow eagle hovered gracefully in the air with a piercing screech, a black bison thundered into formation with sheer rage in its eyes and a snarling white tiger sprinted onto the scene. Blake almost dropped her weapons as she took in the tremendous scale and power radiating from the so-called guardians of Animaria… until the red lion glanced over its shoulder and roared another call.

The call was answered by a unified roar that shook the Animarium: a roar belonging to a massive herd of animal-based Zords that moved to join the pack. Blake was overwhelmed by the sight of them all as each ferociously roared at the unholy invaders. A blue elephant trumpeted in warning, a yellow giraffe swung its neck to intimidate its enemies, a pair of black and white bears anxiously swiped their claws at a pack of Ursai, and a green gorilla beat its chest while a Beringel roared in rage at the sight of a challenger.

A Zord trio consisting of a gray wolf, a purple hammerhead shark, and a green alligator stood at the ready, gnashing their teeth at the black beasts. A blue rhino dragged its front hoof across the ground with a snort, a light-purple armadillo stood in a defensive pose, a green deer loomed proudly while staring down the horde with stern eyes, and a red condor flew into formation next to the eagle. Blake also spied the visages of a stingray, a rat, a zebra, and a peacock ready for action while a quintet of a black lion, a blue condor, a crimson sawshark, a brown buffalo, and a yellow jaguar growled and roared at the massive Grimm horde.

Blake could barely speak while the Wild Force Rangers cheered and laughed beside her, amazed at the sight of so many Wildzords willing to defend their home. The sight of so many animals- even if it were mechs that merely resembled them- resonated deep within her soul. It touched a part of her that didn't exist in this world, something that still lurked below the surface. Blake was still and silent, with only shaky breaths leaving her as she felt her body surging with something that began manifesting in a faint purple shimmer around her body…

Deet deet deet-deet deet-deet! A sharp gasp jolted her out of her trance, the purple light blinking out of view while Blake turned her attention to her flashing communicator. The snarling and growling beasts were keeping the idle horde at bay, but Blake didn't know for how long. She opened the communication channel and held her wrist close to her head, allowing a distant voice to reach her ears.

"Black Ranger, come in! Black Ranger, are you receiving this?"

"Uh, yeah, hi! I-I read you!" Blake hurriedly answered. "Now's not the best time for-"

"My systems are detecting hundreds of those monstrosities on that landmass. You need to teleport out of there now!"

Hundreds?! A glance at the horde showed Blake that the Grimm's numbers stretched to the horizon, a sight that would've made even the most fearless Huntsmen back home hesitate. They resembled an army of darkness, but the growls and roars from behind Blake reminded the dark-haired girl that she had an army of her own.

"No," she sternly told the voice on the other end. "I'm not running from this. Are you familiar with the Wildzords? Well, they're all here… and they're not happy with this many uninvited guests."

"Black Ranger, repeat your last. You said all the Wildzords?"

Blake saw the Wild Force Rangers turning to her, motivating her to stand her ground. "Yes. All of them."

"Ben! Betty! Run another scan immediately!" There was a short silence from her communicator… followed by a faint pair of voices Blake couldn't make out. "Unbelievable… that solves the matter of the larger threats I'm picking up. Can you and the Wild Force Rangers handle the others?"

"Um…" She could hear the dozens of Beowolves, Lancers, and Boarbatusks from here, the monsters showing no signs of backing down as they roared at the Wildzords. "I think they could be a problem if they overwhelm one of us."

"Roger that. Stand by for transport."

"Wait!" Blake shouted. "Who are you?"

"This is General Shaw of Grid Battleforce. Reinforcements are inbound to your position: ETA five seconds."

"Reinforcements? Of what kind?"

"Of the beastly kind. May the Power protect you, Black Ranger." Her communicator switched off immediately afterward, leaving Blake confused. She turned to the other Rangers, about to ask them their opinions on the matter…

…when two portals snapped into existence from behind them. A startled Blake jolted back, her body tensed and ready to strike. She quickly lowered her stance, recognizing the swirling gateways similar to the one Jen used in their first encounter. Five people emerged from one of the rifts while the other deposited another quintet significantly older than them, both groups hurrying to take positions alongside the Wild Force Rangers. Their helmets flashed away- with Blake's joining them- as they took in the sight of the newcomers.

"Cole?" Taylor muttered, her eyes locked on a short-haired man in red who met her leader with a steadfast glare. "Are these… who I think they are?" The man gave Cole a determined nod while the other red figure- a brown-skinned young adult with dark hair- locked eyes with Blake. "What's up, black cat?"

She blinked. "Um… hi?"

"Been a long time since we faced numbers like these together," the other man told Cole reminiscently, unfazed by the amount of Grimm before him. "What do you say, Cole? The Zords can tackle the bigger threats while we handle the rest?"

"Those have got to be the ugliest animals I've ever seen," the dark-skinned man gagged. "Who wants to put 'em down?" A boy in blue and a girl in yellow nodded behind him, flanked by two more boys in gold and silver colors. "I gotta say…" the girl spoke up. "It's a nice change of pace to beat up anything that isn't digital."

"Casey… Devon…" Cole announced, his steely gaze focused on the Grimm. "Everyone on your teams should be honored. All of you are guardians of the Earth today, representing animals everywhere. So… let's make those things an endangered species."

"With pleasure," Casey and two of his teammates- another pair of a blue-clad man and a yellow-clad woman- retrieved colored sunglasses from their jackets, slipped them onto their faces and pressed a button on the left-hand side. A man in purple followed their lead, accessing a wolf-shaped device on his wrist while a short-haired man in white pressed down on his bracelet.

"RHINO MORPHER, INITIATE!" A white-red blade materialized in his hand and all five Rangers moved in perfect sync, pushing their hands outward.

"JUNGLE BEAST, SPIRIT UNLEASHED!"

Colored energy flowed from their arms and Blake swore she heard something growling and roaring from within them before light flashed around them, leaving the quintet donned in savage Ranger suits. The Red, Blue, and Yellow Rangers were feline-themed like her while the Purple and White Rangers resembled a wolf and a rhinoceros.

Emboldened by this effort, the Wild Force Rangers re-equipped their helmets while the third team readied themselves. The quintet tapped their communicators, summoning wrist morphers onto their arms before producing a glowing green key and crossing them together.

"ACTIVATE BEAST POWER!"

They inserted their keys, unfolding visors on their morphers and causing colored tornadoes to swirl around them. Blake saw the roaring visages of a cheetah, a gorilla, a rabbit, a mantis, and a beetle before the tornadoes dissipated, revealing a type of Ranger suit that looked vaguely different from the ones Blake had previously seen. The visors detached from the morphers and transformed before attaching to the suits' faces.

"UNLEASH THE BEAST!"

Blake smiled at the sight, a glint in her golden eyes as she looked upon the three animal-themed teams.

"BLAZING LION!"

"SOARING EAGLE!"

"SURGING SHARK!"

"IRON BISON!"

"NOBLE TIGER!"

"HOWLING WOLF!"

"GUARDIANS OF THE EARTH, UNITED WE ROAR! POWER RANGERS WILD FORCE!" The Wildzords roared in unison as the Wild Force Rangers took a dominating stance.

"WITH THE STRENGTH OF A TIGER!"

"WITH THE SPEED OF A CHEETAH!"

"WITH THE STEALTH OF A JAGUAR!"

"WITH THE COURAGE OF A WOLF!"

"WITH THE POWER OF A RHINO!"

"WE SUMMON THE ANIMAL SPIRITS FROM WITHIN! SPIRITS OF THE JUNGLE! POWER RANGERS JUNGLE FURY!" This quintet struck a savage stance, their bodies alive with energy.

"CHEETAH BEAST POWER!"

"GORILLA BEAST POWER!"

"JACKRABBIT BEAST POWER!"

"MANTIS BEAST POWER!"

"SCARAB BEAST POWER!"

"UNLEASH THE BEAST! POWER RANGERS BEAST MORPHERS!" The leather-clad Rangers quickly snapped into battle poses.

Blake moved to join the fray, re-donning her helmet and flexing her violet claws. A snarl erupted from her throat before she crouched into a hunting stance. "FEAR THE DARKNESS OF THE PANTHER!" The ex-Faunus quickly glanced around the pack and was met several approving nods from her fellow feline-based Rangers… although the gorilla-based Blue Ranger hummed in thought. "Not bad, but… feels like it could use a few tweaks."

"Sorry," Blake whispered to him. "I'm not really the battle cry type…"

Cole, Casey, and Devon brought their fists together before every Ranger did their best pose. "FOR THE EARTH AND FOR LIFE! ANIMAL MIGHT, RANGERS UNITE!"

KRABOOOM! An enormous cloud of multi-colored smoke gave the Rangers a heroic background, fueled further by the roaring Wildzords. The hellish howls from the Grimm horde were nothing in comparison, and a mighty roar from the Rangers answered their brutal charge as they and the Wildzords rushed to meet them. Both sides rushed across the Animarium's plains like two stampeding herds until they collided, the Rangers throwing themselves at Grimm that tried to lunge at them while the Wildzords met with the giant Grimm in sky-shattering slams.

The red lion barreled into the horde, snarling at the monsters while its massive paws sent dozens of Grimm flying with a single swipe. Its jaws quickly sank into an Ursa and tore the beast in two while the yellow eagle locked talons with the giant Nevermore again. The crimson falcon and blue condor flew into formation, engaging smaller Nevermores and keeping them off the eagle's back. The blue shark swam through the skies and took bites out of the Grimm while the white tiger struck hard and fast. It darted at great speed while the black bison bulldozed through a chunk of the horde, skewering Grimm with its horns and staining them in black blood.

The Elephant Wildzord locked tusks with a Goliath, pushing and shoving against its dark double while the twin bears tag-teamed an Ursa Major. The deer crushed lesser Grimm under its hooves while swinging its antlers at larger foes, the giraffe doing the same with its head as it kicked at Grimm with its long legs. The green gorilla charged at a Beringel and swung its arms wildly, beating into the beast while taking the abyssal ape's blows. It grabbed the Beringel's forelimb and threw it into the ground, smashing the Grimm with a primal fury.

The hammerhead shark and the alligator had one of the Death Stalker's claws in their mouths, allowing the wolf to leap onto the scorpion Grimm's head and dig in with fangs and claws. The armadillo ignored the bites and scratched against its protective shell, trudging onward while the rhino was an unstoppable force that crushed, pulverized, and trampled every Grimm in its path.

The black lion and the dark bison unleashed their savage might at the largest Grimm they could see while the jaguar sprinted across the plains, tackling an Ursa to the ground before sinking its teeth into the Grimm's neck. The sawshark swam through the dark sea of Grimm, its serrated nose shearing through dozens of monsters while its jaws chomped up any stragglers that dared to get close to it.

The Wildzords were decimating the horde, but not all were foolish enough to pursue the beasts. Several dozen of the Grimm had chosen something they believed were more straightforward victims. Blake was once again caught in a skirmish, clawing and slashing at every Grimm approaching her. Her mind and body were acting on autopilot again thanks to her powers, allowing Blake to relish in the cat-like agility and reflexes she naturally possessed on Remnant. She could hear and smell the Grimm coming at her even if she wasn't looking at them. That wasn't all Blake was picking up: she heard names and commands reach her ears, which provided swift introductions to the new Rangers without pausing for a formal meet-up.

Blake vaulted over a charging Beowolf and sunk her claws into its shoulders, bringing it down onto her knee before she tore out its throat. She glanced over to Casey and his fellow cat-themed teammates, whose names Blake picked up were Theo and Lily. The trio moved swiftly, bounding with superhuman agility that matched Blake's stamina and acting more animal than human. Theo slid under swipes and somersaulted over lunges, and Lily gracefully twirled through the air while Casey changed targets on a whim, all three striking with black-orange gauntlets sporting tiny orange claws. A single electric-charged blow from Casey was enough to knock an Ursa off its feet, but more Grimm rushed forward to take its place.

"Wow!" Theo chuckled. "Stubborn, aren't they?"

"Yeah! And it's their mistake!" Lily weaved away from another Ursa's claws and deflected a blow before rapidly bombarding its chest with a series of lightning-fast punches. Her final touch was a spinning kick that shattered its ribcage and she struck a stance. "Anyone else?!"

Her enthusiasm was something Blake shared as she slashed and cut down Grimm, alternating between claws and blades. She swapped places with her shadow selves whenever a Grimm moved to ambush her and viciously struck it down before leaping high, twirling in midair to sink her twin swords into an Ursa's skull. Blake then hurried off, knowing she could only do so much against the Grimm alone despite her prowess. The Black Ranger moved to join a small group of Rangers holding their own against the Grimm, the Wildzords preventing more from overwhelming the Rangers.

"Getting a little crowded in here!" Blake heard Casey call out. "RJ! Dominic! Let 'em have it!"

Blake spun on a small back of Beowolves backed by several Ursai and a Beringel, where Danny and Merrick hacked and blasted at the black beasts. Blake swiftly slashed at two Beowolves that failed to notice her in time and was ready to engage the rest… when purple energy blasts and explosive shots rattled the pack. All three Rangers turned to see two new arrivals leaping through the explosive cloud: the Purple and White Rangers. The former landed a flying kick on a Beowolf about to strike Merrick while the latter buried his blade in an Ursa's chest and bisected the bear in one move.

"RHINO MORPHER STAMPEDE!" Dominic turned the weapon on the horde and unleashed another barrage, consuming the Grimm in devastating missile blasts that rattled Blake to her core. Smaller Grimm charged through the gaps only to be sliced to pieces with every swing of his blade. A Beowolf almost pinned him down, but Dominic shoved his blade into its chest and pulled the trigger, blasting it open and leaving the Grimm to perish.

Everyone made short work of the remaining Grimm, with Dominic and Danny taking down the Beringel and Blake's shadows overwhelming the Ursai while she slew the last one herself. Merrick and RJ overpowered the pack of Beowolves, the two wolf-themed Rangers picking them off with lance strikes and fluid martial arts moves. RJ's elbows and kneecaps glowed with purple energy, delivering more force into his blows that shattered bony masks and armor. Not even an Alpha Beowolf could handle his power, as he dispatched it with a spinning wheel of violet energy. The Grimm's dying howls faded into the wind as the man pumped his fist in victory… before his eyes landed on Blake and he chuckled.

"As if there weren't enough cat-based Rangers already… how're you holding up, Black?"

"Honestly…" Blake answered. "This situation feels overwhelming, but I haven't even broken a sweat! I could take on every Grimm here if I wanted to!"

"I wouldn't get too carried away if I were you," Danny told her. "Besides, our big friends are handling the hard part for us." Right on cue, Blake heard the telltale screeches of the Eagle Wildzord and the Giant Nevermore as they flew over the battlefield. The Black Ranger could easily make out the rest of the Wildzords tearing through the horde and converging on more significant threats like Death Stalkers and herds of Goliaths. "We're just here to mop up any stragglers!"

"Speaking of stragglers…" Merrick spoke up, aiming his sniper rifle at an incoming wave. "I hope you're all ready for more."

"Oh, always!" RJ called, blasting purple beams from his wrist while Merrick opened fire, their lasers hitting true and striking down some of the charging Grimm. "How do you like that?! Two wolves with the strength of a pack!"

"We got this, Blake!" Danny called out, striking down a Beowolf with his ax while Dominic moved to assist Alyssa with a pack of Sabyrs. Blake nodded in understanding and hurried off, her amber eyes already locked on another batch of targets that glared at her with burning red eyes. Beowolves, Sabyrs, and a Beringel charged at the Black Ranger, but a swarm of Lancers reached her first and immediately opened fire with their stingers. Blake cartwheeled and flipped away, her flexible body maneuvering away from the beams like a thief in a trap-filled corridor. The wicked harpoons came dangerously close to grazing her suit, which left Blake with no opening to close the distance…

WHAM! A flailing Boarbatusk smashed into one of the Lancers before high-powered blaster shots disintegrated the rest. Blake crouched into a recovery stance and whirled around, where the gorilla-themed Blue Ranger was pridefully dusting off his palms. The insect-themed Gold and Silver Rangers held their blasters high, their barrels smoking. Blake was about to express thanks when a sharp blur shot past the trio. The crimson streak emanated a trail of what looked like computer code, circling a protective barrier around Blake before stopping.

"Sweet reflexes back there!" the Red Ranger exclaimed as he turned around. "Man… I knew I had to meet you when I heard you were half-cat! I'm Devon. Nice to meet a fellow feline." Blake took his hand and was hoisted to her feet. "Um… thanks. I wasn't expecting this much dedication to the whole animal theme…"

"Kinda hard not to," Devon told her. "When your whole squad is juiced up with animal DNA in the bloodstream."

Blake's voice caught in her throat. "Wait, you have-?!"

"Story for later, though!" He quickly interrupted her before focusing on the incoming Grimm and another swarm of Lancers. "Zoey! Clear the skies!"

"Sure thing, Commander!" cried the Yellow Ranger, who launched into the sky in an enormous leap and stabbed a Lancer in the abdomen with a giant combat knife. She bounded from bug to bug, slicing off wings and kicking Lancers down. She hopped atop one Lancer and grabbed it by its antenna, forcing it to direct its stinger shots at fellow Lancers and some Grimm down below.

How she moved reminded Blake of another rabbit girl she just happened to know…

"Ravi, the big one's yours! Nate, Steel, take out as many as you can!"

The Gold Ranger turned his blaster back to the sky while the Silver Ranger drew his blade and charged into the fray. "Lemme help with those bugs, Zoey! STRIKER BEAST BLAST!" He fired into the swarm and downed several in a flurry of yellow shots while the Silver Ranger slashed the Grimm with his blade, which glowed bright green with each strike.

"You may look scary and strong, but I bet you're not stronger than Steel!" he cried, thrusting the knife through a Sabyr's jaw before laughing. "Ha! See what I did there?"

Blake suppressed a groan at the terrible joke. It was like Yang all over again… she wondered what she was up to. The Black Ranger shook her head to dispel the thought just in time to cut down an incoming Sabyr. Devon kicked another one away while the Blue Ranger charged past them, barreling towards the roaring Beringel.

"You're mine, ape!" Ravi shot up and landed a solid uppercut to the monster's jaw before smashing its head to the ground. The Beringel howled in pain and threw a wild haymaker at the blue boy…

…who caught it with his bare hand as digital code surrounded his surging arms. The Blue Ranger stared the beast in the face and shook his head mockingly. "Hmph. That's cute." His response was a mighty smash that knocked the Beringel backward, angering the beast. Ravi replied with a roar and charged for the gorilla-based Grimm, leaving Devon and Blake to stand off against a Beowolf pack.

"I… take it you're not a dog person, either?" Devon asked her.

"Not really…" Her swords vanished from her grip and violet claws shot from her fingertips. "And I'm certainly not a fan of these dogs."

"Just glad there's not much of a resemblance, or else I'd be screwed," Devon muttered to himself. "But let's show 'em how unlucky they just made themselves! TRANSPORT CHEETAH CLAWS!" He tapped a symbol on his shoulder strap and two red gauntlets materialized into his hands, their sharp tips glinting as he struck a ready stance. Blake took her own pose and venomously hissed at the Beowolves, who unleashed a hellish howl and lunged at the two Rangers.

Blake and Devon snapped into action and moved faster than the Grimm could react, smoothly dodging swipes and retaliating with their claws. Blake gouged out an eye and marked her targets with deep purple marks while Devon diced his attackers to pieces. He stabbed a Beowolf through the skull and ripped apart another before charging up his claws with red energy.

"CHEETAH SLASH!" A powerful cross-slash decimated his next attacker into nothing, but Blake paid no mind to her teammate. Savage snarls and huffs left her throat and her helmet flashed away in the blink of an eye, revealing Blake's bared teeth and fury in her amber eyes…

…her pupils now in slits.

She leaped atop a Beowolf and slashed relentlessly, digging into the downed Grimm and staining her hands with black blood before another Beowolf viciously tackled her to the ground. Its packmates joined in and ganged up on Blake, pinning the Black Ranger in a literal dogpile as they bit, clawed, and scratched at the ebony-haired girl. Usually, Blake would've been screaming in pain and trying desperately to find a way out, but her instincts were on overdrive. Every bit of pain she felt- every claw and fang sinking into her suit and sending sparks everywhere- went from agony to something else: something feral, something savage, and something building up deep inside Blake. A purple light surrounded her being, getting brighter and brighter as the Grimm kept trying to tear the girl apart. Voices- frightened voices crying for her- reached the edge of her hearing, but Blake shut them out…

…and listened to whatever it was inside her, opening her mouth to release a scream of pure, raw, animalistic rage. Her voice erupted in a savage shriek with all the power of her body as the purple light reached its apex… but something else joined in with her.

RRRRROOOOOAAAAAAARRRRR!

A purple blast of light sent the Beowolves flying everywhere, drawing the attention of Grimm and Rangers alike. Alyssa gasped in horror and hurried over, shielding her face from the light while Devon, Cole, Casey, Lily, and Theo rushed to the scene.

"Blake! BLAKE!" Alyssa shouted. "Are you okay?! Say some… thing…" The White Ranger trailed off as the purple light around the Black Ranger faded away…

GRRRRAAAAARRR! ROOOOWWWRR! HWWAAAARRRGH! A purple construct of a great panther- shimmering with a dark, spectral aura- growled and snarled, swiping at the Beowolves and forcing them to back off while it stood protectively over the dazed and woozy Blake. The Black Ranger moaned, fighting against her ringing ears and blurry vision. She was so close to backing out… but when she saw the great cat looming above her, she gasped in alarm and backed away.

The purple panther turned around to meet Blake with an affectionate croon and gave the stunned girl a lick on the cheek, the ex-Faunus blinking in sheer shock. It was like seeing the Aurazords all over again and her jaw hit the ground as she watched the great panther snarl at the Grimm and stand before Blake as if she was its kitten.

Blake finally tore her gaze away from the construct and noticed everyone else was having similar reactions… except for Casey's team, who stared at the construct with prideful looks and warm smiles while the helmetless Red Ranger gave Blake an appreciative and impressed grin.

"If only my masters could've seen this… an individual harnessing one without formal Pai Zhuq training… it's incredible."

Blake was still stunned. "Training? What… I… wh-what is that thing?"

"That," Casey told her as the purple panther continued to snarl and growl at the Grimm, refusing to allow any of them near Blake. "...is your Animal Spirit, Blake."

"Animal Spirit?" echoed Taylor. "But… But I thought only the Jungle Fury Rangers had those!"

"No," Lily corrected her. "Everybody has one, Ranger or not, but it takes immense training to harness and conjure them. But to see one manifest in somebody who hasn't trained with the Order of the Claw…"

"Order of the Claw?" Blake repeated, stunned.

"A secret martial arts academy that trained the Jungle Fury Rangers," Theo told her. "Our masters see not only who you are… but also what you have inside." His words struck a chord within Blake, causing her to think back. Ever since she arrived on Earth, she had been depressed over her sudden transformation into a human, fearing she had lost what had made her unique.

"And as masters ourselves…" Lily said to Blake. "We can see what you have inside you, too."

"Uh…" Blake awkwardly clenched her arm and tried to avoid their gaze. "Y-you can't know that, you don't even know much about me…"

"Maybe not everything," Casey whispered. "But we know enough, Blake. Back in your world, you're part of a union. A union between human and animal that brings out the best in both worlds. I won't go into too much detail over Billy's thoughts on this, but when you came here… you thought that was gone for good."

"Well… yeah," Blake agreed. "Faunus don't exist here. I lost my ears and my senses because of that."

"No, Blake…" Casey objected. "You didn't lose them at all. They didn't vanish… they were suppressed. Deep in here." He pointed at Blake's chest, making something stir in Blake's mind. Now that he mentioned it, Blake recalled feeling something inside her since she first morphed. It was a feeling she could never fully explain, a feeling she didn't know how to cope with and instead tried to close off.

"From what I know of the Faunus," Casey continued. "They despise being compared to animals because of what humans did to them. They see the word as derogatory… but it should mean more than just an insult. Like real animals, they trust and control their instincts and use them only for survival, never for aggression. And I believe their animal parts can say a lot about them."

"Like… what?"

"Blake… I need you to tell me something," Casey continued. "Are you proud of who you are back home?"

"O-of course!" she answered without hesitation. "I-I could never hate being a Faunus! No matter what humans said about me. And I could never hate my own people; I'd do anything to give them a brighter future!"

"There it is."

"Uh..." Casey stopped her from going any further, a bright smile on his face. "Strong and brave… fearless and protective… and proud of yourself, both the good parts and the bad." That part gave Blake pause, unpleasant memories swirling around before they gave way to the Red Ranger's voice. "Going to great lengths to achieve what they desire and refusing to let harm come to those they care for."

He took her hand in his and looked deep into her golden eyes. "Blake Belladonna… you have the spirit of a panther." The great cat continued to growl at the horde, but Blake was too entranced by Casey's words to glance back. "But… but you said your order never trained me."

"You didn't need to be," Casey explained. "Because you were born with it. You shouldn't be told how to do it; you already know. You've known how to wield it all your life and it's not something you can ignore or drive away. It will always be a part of you…"

Blake's eyes twinkled with realization and her voice dropped to a whisper as she saw her life flash before her eyes. "We're… not talking about the spirit… are we?"

Casey gave her a knowing look. "What do you think?"

Blake slowly stepped back with a solemn look in her eyes, her black helmet materializing into her hands. Her golden eyes gazed at the helmet's cat ears… which were positioned atop her reflection's head. The image caused a smile to split Blake's face and she finally turned back to the purple panther, whose protective yet calm gaze reminded Blake of her gentle giant of a father…

Blake smiled back and placed her helmet over her head before releasing her violet claws, taking a firm and agile stance as she embraced her inner instincts. The panther roared in response and both Ranger and spirit lunged at the Grimm. The panther swatted away Beowolves and shook one between its jaws while Blake dove in a slashing and swiping frenzy mixed with speed and agility, a high kick knocking a black beast back.

Devon smirked at Lily. "Guess I know what Animal Spirits my team have, huh?" The older Yellow Ranger just shook her head with a smile. "You have animal DNA in your system. I doubt that's the same thing."

"I don't know about you, Case…" Theo began. "But she looks all alone out there."

"I was just thinking that," Casey replied. "Who wants to introduce her to some littermates, huh?" His teammates quickly agreed and Cole's helmet reappeared. "Rangers! Let's get WILD!" He and his friends charged back into the fray while Devon led his own squad alongside them. Casey, Lily, and Theo started waving their arms, spiritual energy flowing from them as RJ and Dominic stood beside the trio.

"CALL TO THE BEAST INSIDE!" Casey roared, his energy glowing at full power. "FREE THE TIGER!"

"CALL TO THE BEAST INSIDE!" Theo howled. "UNLEASH THE JAGUAR!"

"CALL TO THE BEAST INSIDE!" Lily screamed. "BRING OUT THE CHEETAH!"

Three constructs of the predatorial cats burst from the Rangers in a snarling frenzy, charging at the Grimm as a purple wolf construct and a white rhino construct joined in their rampage. "ANIMAL SPIRITS, FULL FURY!"

The Animal Spirits reinforced the Wildzords' efforts: the Red Tiger tackled an Ursa Major and closed its jaws over its head, the Blue Jaguar tucked into a ball and spun through dozens of Grimm, and the Yellow Cheetah blitzed through the horde in bright, speedy flashes.

The White Rhino charged alongside its Wildzord counterpart and the Purple Wolf assisted the Wolf Wildzord and the Predazords against the Death Stalker, tearing off the beast's stinger. Casey, Theo, and Lily watched Blake dance around her enemies and slice them up while her Animal Spirit shielded her from harm with deadly swipes… until Lily turned to her friends.
"Now seems like a good time to make this a real party, don't you think?"

"Yeah…" Casey began before he crossed his arms. "SPIRIT OF THE SHARK!"

"SPIRIT OF THE BAT!" called Theo.

"SPIRIT OF THE ELEPHANT!" Lily finished, the Rangers summoning a trio of Blue, Black, and Green Rangers standing proudly by their side. "Time to show these unnatural freaks the Animarium is not for the taking!"

Blake backflipped away from a lunging Sabyr and flipped onto a Beowolf's shoulders, snapping its neck with a sharp twist of her body. She realized she was proud to be among these teams that shared their own union between humans and animals, all of them working together to defend the Animarium- to protect life on this planet- against a force that sought to destroy it no matter what. She engaged the next group of Grimm with a strengthened soul and a wild roar, backed up by Danny and the Bat Spirit Ranger. The creatures of darkness fell prey to a set of violet claws while others were smashed and stomped by rampaging fury or sliced to pieces by twin fans. Danny launched Blake skyward and she spun in midair, shredding Lancers to bits while the Spirit Ranger's fans cut through other airborne foes. All three Black Rangers worked in harmony against the Grimm, knowing they were far from the only ones.

Cole, Casey, and Devon unleashed the might of the great cats they were based on, bashing the Grimm with a gauntlet and a pair of red nunchucks while twin claws quickly cut them down. Casey vaulted over a charging Boarbatusk and brought his nunchucks down on a Bewolf, saving Alyssa from a surprise attack before both tigers stood back-to-back.

Devon whirled around to face down a pack of sprinting Sabyrs… who were ambushed by a yowling yellow blur. Lily's bo swiftly beat down the ones that managed to escape the spirit's strikes and the two cheetah-themed Rangers faced down the next wave together.

Merrick and RJ answered Beowolves' howls with lane strikes and fluid martial arts blows while Ravi drop-kicked a Beringel, leaving it wide open for Dominic to plunge his blade into its torso. Zoey bounded through the air and aided Taylor in cutting down Lancers and Nevermores, the Eagle Wildzord pinning the Giant Nevermore to the ground and sinking its beak into its neck. "TRANSPORT BEAST-X SPIN SABER!" Zoey called forth a medium-length sword and struck down multiple Nevermore with its twirling blade before tossing it outward, where it sliced through several Lancers before returning to her grip like a boomerang. Down below, Max and the Shark Spirit Ranger struck with sharp fins and twin blades, displaying the ferocity of the ocean's most dangerous predator to the Grimm.

Nearby, the Elephant Spirit Ranger swung a massive meteor hammer that bashed and battered the Grimm to a black pulp, pulverizing skulls and shattering limbs. The Elephant Wildzord toppled over a Goliath and skewered the beast with its tusks, trumpeting victoriously while the Green Ranger landed a massive shockwave punch to an Alpha Beowolf's chest.

Nate and Steel sliced through the Grimm until several beasts met them at once, but this didn't faze the brothers as they nodded to each other and readied their weapons. "STRIKER BEAST SLASH!" The boys slashed symbols of a mantis and a scarab, creating a double line of energy that detonated against the Grimm and eliminated the group instantly. The brothers high-fived each other and rushed off while an Ursa Major crashed onto the ground. The bear-like beast grumbled as it staggered back to its feet, releasing a deep bellow at its foe…

"BEAST-X CANNON BLAST!"

A gaping hole was blasted into its chest and the gurgling beast collapsed. Ravi separated his blade and blaster, the Blue Ranger's eyes scanning the remaining Grimm. "Man… it's like they don't know they're losing!"

Blake growled in irritation. "Then let's make that message clear!" Her spiritual companion snarled in agreement, snatching up a Sabyr and ripping it in half with its teeth. Cole stoically clenched his fist and reached down to his belt buckle, detaching it and holding it outward. "I got just the thing for that! ANIMARIUM ARMOR!"

The buckle opened up and called forth the red Falconzord, which attached itself to Cole's body and equipped him with winged armor. "RED SAVAGE WARRIOR, POWER UP!" He wasted no time charging at the Grimm before taking flight, striking at the beasts with his armor's wings. "FALCON BLAST!" The Red Ranger swooped high and fired a barrage of red energy blasts, blasting the Grimm to dust as they were utterly helpless against the bombardment.

"Alright, Cole!" cheered Alyssa, the White Ranger pumping a fist before whacking a Sabyr over the head with her baton. Blake could only smirk under her helmet as she dislocated a Beowolf's jaw with a spinning kick. After a claw swipe to the throat finished it off, she saw Casey, Theo, and Lily nod to each other and take new stances…

"CLAW BOOSTER! JUNGLE MASTER MODE!"

Claw gauntlets appeared in their hands and power surged from them, donning the three Rangers into white-dominant uniforms. The trio literally blasted into action and rocketed toward the Grimm as jet boosters propelled them at incredible speeds, making them more than a match for the Grimm. The propulsion systems allowed the three to maneuver and flank the Grimm quickly, slashing and impaling the beasts with their new gauntlets. Lily rolled over a Beringel's punch and sunk her claws into its head while Theo charged at an Ursa and thrust his claws deep into its chest. Lastly, Casey propelled away from diving Beowolves and sliced some Nevermore out of the sky before coming back down in a powerful slam that sent the Beowolves sailing.

Blake's admiration of these new abilities left her wide open to a pouncing Beowolf… or so it thought since its jaws only closed on shadowy smoke. The monster snorted in surprise, wondering where its prey had gone. Blake made herself known by skewering her claws through the beast's back and pulling hard, tearing the Beowolf apart easily. Summoning forth more shadow selves, Blake synchronized with them to overpower more Sabyrs and an Ursa, confronting the latter in person and charging up her claws with violet energy.

"SHADOW SLASH!" She roared, swinging her arms wildly and striking the Ursa with crescent energy beams. Once it was staggered, she drew her Midnight Blades and sprinted for the weakened Grimm, leaping high as her swords flashed with purple light. The black bear brought up its forelimbs to block the strike…

…but Blake swapped places with a shadow self that had snuck up behind the Ursa, allowing the shadow to dissipate against the limbs while she fatally stabbed it in the back. A sharp outward slice overloaded the Grimm, exploding in a violet energy cloud. Blake exhaled a calm breath and swapped her blades out for claws, watching her panther spirit shake attackers off its limbs and strike back with furious swipes.

"TRANSPORT BEAST-X VISOR!"

The shout drew Blake's attention to Devon's team, who now sported red devices on their morphers while Nate and Steel provided cover fire with their blasters. Devon, Ravi, and Zoey inserted green keys into the devices. "BEAST-X VISOR, LINKED! ACTIVATE BEAST-X MODE!" Armor pieces were summoned from the devices and attached to the Rangers, donning them in protective gear. "BEAST-X MODE, READY!"

Beowolves quickly surrounded Devon and moved to attack the surrounded Red Ranger, but Devon met them with a flurry of swift blows and sharp kicks that kept the Grimm from landing a tooth or claw on him. He knocked them to the ground with a spinning sweep and left the Grimm staggered… before he noticed a Beringel lifting a massive boulder and glaring at him with burning red eyes.

"Uh oh!" He was gone in a red puff just as the boulder smashed the spot where he would have been. The gorilla-like Grimm made a noise of surprise and quickly looked around the place, searching for any sign of the Red Ranger before he suddenly appeared to its right and punched it in the thigh. The Beringel moved to bash him with a fist, but Devon was already gone again.

"Nope! Nuh-uh! Swing and a miss!" He laughed as he teleported away from the Grimm's furious swings, striking at exposed spots and whacking the Beringel from multiple angles. The gorilla-like Grimm eventually bellowed in frustration… but a thrown boulder to the face quickly silenced it.

"You know…" Ravi said with another boulder casually slung over his shoulder. "I would've been a killer at dodgeball!" He hurled the heavy stone at the Beringel, where it smashed to pebbles upon contact. The Beringel roared in a furious rage and charged at the Blue Ranger, who rolled beneath the beast and placed his hands on the ground. Green data streams flowed from his arms, allowing Ravi to generate a heavy stone slab from the ground and wield it like a hammer. The Blue Ranger used this improvised weapon to bash the Beringel's knee and smash it over the head, but the beast responded with a mighty uppercut that knocked Ravi into the air.

Ravi recovered in midair and charged himself up, generating a big blue gauntlet around his fist as he shot back down. "GORILLA SLAM!" he roared, punching the ground with tremendous force to send the Beringel skyward. Zoey took her cue and propelled herself off of Ravi's crouched form, soaring after the airborne Grimm and twirling in place like a drill…

"JACKRABBIT SPIN STRIKE!" The Yellow Ranger drove her foot into the Beringel's chest, finally causing the black beast to explode midair while she fell back down. Zoey slowed her descent by hopping on thin air, landing gracefully on her feet. "Ta-da!"

Another unified howl alerted Devon to a bunch of charging Beowolves led by an Alpha… and he knew just how to deal with them. The Red Ranger projected a golden vortex around him and took a runner's stance as the monsters drew closer…

"BEAST-X CHEETAH CHARGE!"

…and sprinted right through it, morphing him into a cheetah energy construct that barreled through the pack at insane speeds. The construct was on the Alpha Beowolf in seconds. The monster could only respond with wide eyes before the crimson cheetah plowed into it like an arrow hitting a bullseye, overloading the Alpha Beowolf in crimson lightning and destroying it in an explosive blast. Devon braked to a screeching halt behind it just as it went up in flames.

"Ha!" Theo laughed, playfully slapping Lily on the arm. "I guess he does have an Animal Spirit after all!" The Yellow Ranger just rolled her eyes in response while a delighted laugh escaped Blake's throat. She was starting to see how Rangers respected one another like Huntsmen did. And they were just as efficient in killing monsters, too. Well… them and their giant robot friends.

The giant Nevermore, the Goliaths, and the Death Stalkers were all gone, courtesy of the roaring Wildzords and Animal Spirits whose calls and bellows were starting to demoralize the remaining Grimm. But if Blake knew them well, they'd try to go out fighting. She joined up with all three teams of animal-based Rangers, glaring at the horde with a predatory gaze. "Let's end this! For animals everywhere!"

"WEAPONS COMBINE!" The Wild Force Rangers brought their weapons together to form a vast blade, which served as the basis for a tri-colored cat-themed cannon courtesy of the Jungle Fury Rangers. Finally, Devon's Cheetah Claws, Zoey's Spin Saber, and Ravi's blaster attached to the sides while Nate's blaster and Steel's blade locked into position.

"ANIMAL ANNIHILATOR, READY!"

"Alright, guys!" Cole called. "Give this baby everything you got!"

The Wild Force Rangers inserted their Animal Crystals, each colored orb shining brightly. The Jungle Fury Rangers and Blake concentrated intensely, transferring the power of their Animal Spirits into the weapon and fueling it even further. Finally, the Beast Morphers laid their hands on the weapon and allowed their animal-laced DNA to fill the weapon's capacity to the brink. The weapon began to glow and charged up with a bright light dangerously, everyone holding on as the Grimm horde descended upon them.

"THIS IS FOR THE EARTH! AND EVERY LIVING CREATURE UPON IT!" Cole roared with all his might before everyone's voices rang out as one. "POWER RANGERS, FIRE!"

SHA-KA-BLAAAAAAM! A devastating blast of energy ripped through the Grimm and consumed the Animarium in its light. Dying shrieks and howls reached Blake's ears… and when she opened her eyes, no trace of the Grimm remained on the Animarium.

"WOO!" cheered Dominic. "Eat THAT, freaks! Every last one of you is gonna wish you never left that planet!"

"Scourge eliminated," Devon declared. "For now…"

"Excellent work… all of you," Taylor congratulated. "The Animarium is safe… and the princess would be so proud of you all."

"But this isn't over," Blake reminded them. "The rest of your world is still in danger. The only way to end this for good is to learn where the Grimm are coming from and take it out. With any luck, my friends are one step closer to figuring that out."

"Good thing we've got certified Grimm experts on our side!" Danny spoke up. "I mean, the higher-ups do say you're our best bet to getting through this…"

"Uh… I wouldn't say experts…" Blake countered. "I mean, we are still students…"

"But you still know more about the Grimm than any of us," Theo explained, resting an arm on Ravi's shoulder. "Which means you-"

BAM! Ravi suddenly whirled around and punched Theo right in the face, sending his fellow Blue Ranger flying before he flipped in midair and landed on his feet. Everyone jolted back in shock as all eyes turned to Ravi… who was now breathing heavily as steam rose from his body and his visor turned a dark red.

"DUDE! What the heck?!"

"RRRAAAAAGH!" Ravi lunged forward but didn't go very far. Danny and Dominic grabbed his arms and held him back, struggling to keep the Blue Ranger in place as he thrashed against the duo. "LEMME GO! I'LL DESTROY ALL OF YOU!"

"Ravi, stop! That's enough, man!" Danny turned to Dominic. "What's wrong with him?!"

"How am I supposed to know?!" The White Ranger yelled back before hissing in pain. "OW! He's burning up!" Blake was about to rush in and help when she heard somebody sigh behind her.

"Oh no…" Blake turned to see a helmetless Zoey resting a hand on her forehead. "Boys? We got another Code Blue."

"Aw, I was afraid this would happen!" Nate moaned. "This fight went way too long!"

"GRRRRAAAGH!" Ravi struggled against Danny and Dom, the Black and White Rangers holding firm as steam poured off his body. Blake turned to the Yellow Ranger and deactivated her helmet, staring at the other girl with confusion. "What's going on? Do you know what this is?"

"Unfortunately, yeah," Zoey sighed. "It's a… side effect of the gorilla DNA in his system. If Ravi uses his powers too long, he goes completely berserk and overheats, lashing out at friends and foes alike."

"We speak from experience," added Devon. "It's not pretty."

"Well, how do we get him to… I don't know, underheat?!" Dom shouted while Danny wrapped an arm around Ravi's neck to keep him restrained. "Hrrrgh! You guys must know of some way to calm him down!"

"Well… we don't," Nate said.

"WHAT?!"

"GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME!"

"We usually just wait him out until he cools off!" the Gold Ranger hurriedly explained before concern covered Alyssa's face. "Well, can you get him to demorph?!"

"That… doesn't help," Steel shot her idea down. "And what's worse is that Ravi's strength gets a boost when he's like this."

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" Danny groaned over Ravi's enraged roaring. "Ravi, if you don't calm down right now…"

"AAAAARRRGGGHHHH!" Ravi poured all his strength into his arms and threw Danny and Dom aside as if they were nothing, charging directly for Blake like a freight train. The girl's golden eyes widened and her heart rate spiked, fight-or-flight instincts shooting into high gear…

GRRROOOOWWWRRR!

The glowing Panther Animal Spirit erupted from her body and pinned Ravi to the ground, roaring in the Blue Ranger's face with all its fury. In that instant, Ravi immediately froze up, and the steam stopped hissing. His breathing slowly became slow and shaky as the purple beast brought its fangs dangerously close to his face.

"Uh… n-n-nice kitty…"
Blake walked over to Ravi and looked down at him with her hands on her hips. "I already have one aggressive hothead in my life who recklessly throws herself at whatever makes her mad. I don't have the time or patience for another."

"O…okay," Ravi croaked, the panther's paw pressing down on his chest. "My bad. Sorry, guys… can you please call it off now?"

Blake stroked a hand across the panther's chin, feeling its warm purr rumbling against her touch. "Good girl, Nightshade…" The Animal Spirit slowly dissolved into purple energy that retreated into Blake's body, allowing the shaken Ravi to stand and dust himself off. Theo, however, turned to his teammates as everyone's helmets flashed away.

"She named it? Nobody told me we could name them…"

"You know what we need?" Steel asked Nate. "An ice weapon. Or a water weapon. Of any kind."

His golden-clad brother just shrugged. "If you weren't where you are now, I would've shot that down…"

Casey gave Blake a proud smile. "See? You're a natural."

She smiled back. "Thanks…"

"So, what's next for you?" Alyssa asked her. "You probably need to check back with your team, right?" Blake nodded in agreement. "Yeah. They should probably be done with everything they need to do. We've won here… but we're not done yet."

"Which means we all need to get back out there," RJ agreed. "Wild Force, think you can do a quick sweep of the Animarium and make sure it's all a-okay?"

"Leave that to me," Taylor offered. "Everyone else should get back on Grimm patrol duty." She turned to Blake as the ravenette powered down in a shimmer of violet light. "And as for you, we'll see you back out there."

"Yeah, good luck out-"

Deet deet deet-deet deet-deet!

The girl's golden eyes narrowed and she lifted her wrist. "Blake here."

"Hey, Blake! It's me!" Ruby's cheerful voice reached her ears. "Yang and I are back at the Command Center with… oh."

"Ruby? What is it?"

"Uh… w-we'll explain when you get back. It's… uh… a lot. Hey, are you sure you… really? O-okay…" She sounded nervous. Blake couldn't find the reason but decided not to dwell on it. "I'm heading back now. The Animarium is clear; it took me and three teams to eliminate them all."

"That many?" she heard Yang exclaim. "Wow… you got lucky, Blake."

"Excuse me? Lucky?" That was not how she would describe the most giant Grimm swarm she had seen yet. The Power Rangers would need everything but luck to get through, and given their teamwork and expertise, Blake would say they had a surplus. "Alright, I'm on my way now. See you in…" She trailed off in realization. "In… just a few seconds. Gods, I'm never gonna get used to this…" Blake switched off the communicator and inputted the coordinates, everything around her fading into a violet light…

Once that light faded, Blake found herself back in the Command Center. Ruby and Yang were already there, greeting her with warm smiles while Alpha had just turned away from the console with a friendly wave. But with her teammates was a girl that Blake didn't recognize.

She was dressed in yellow… and something about her looked vaguely familiar.

"Blake Belladonna, right?" she asked. "Nice name, by the way. Rolls off the tongue."

"Uh… thanks?" Blake uttered. "Do… do I know you?"

"Well… sorta," the girl said with a shrug and a solemn voice. "I'm Minh. Minh Kwan."

Blake was taken aback. "Kwan? Like… Trini Kwan?"

The girl nodded. "She's my mom." Shock crossed Blake's face, and she opened her mouth. The girl was one step ahead of her. "But she… didn't pass on her Yellow Ranger powers to me."

"Huh? What do you…"

"Ai-yi-yi…" groaned Alpha, a hand on his dome in what Blake believed was sorrow. "There never is an easy way to say this, Blake… but Trini is now one with the Morphin Grid."

Blake's shock was amplified tenfold, and all her breath left her throat. Ruby and Yang were just as grief-stricken, the sisters staring at Blake with pity and sadness in their lilac and silver eyes.

"Trini's… dead?" It was no louder than a whisper and Blake's words were becoming shaky. "But… I-I remember… sh-she was…"

"I know…" Yang said sorrowfully. "I… I have a hard time believing it myself."

"H… how?"

"Trini gave her life to save Billy over a year ago," Alpha explained. "And sacrifices are never simple to move on from, no matter how long they take. May the Power protect her, always…"

"I know she wouldn't want me- wouldn't want us- to mope around like this," Minh explained. Blake knew there was truth to the girl's words and quickly collected herself. She knew the dangers of being a Huntress and had heard of them firsthand when Yang explained what had happened to her mother, but Minh had a point. Ruby and Yang were devastated over their loss but chose to become Huntresses just like her to keep her legacy alive. "Alpha? Where do you need us now?"

A worried moan came from the robot. "Oh boy… well, while you were away, I've been keeping tabs on that freaky Grimm cloud you saw back in Angel Grove. And I've made a startling discovery: that cloud is actually a Grimm never before encountered in your world! And what's worse is that-"

KRASHOOM! A beam of blinding light struck the Command Center, making everybody yelp and shield their eyes from its brightness. Ruby, Yang, and Blake didn't have time to identify the color since they were too busy shaking the haze from their eyes. When their vision focused on the beam's source, they saw an unexpected figure sprawled breathlessly on their hands and knees.

A costumed figure with a medium-length cape sporting a shiny snowflake, a sleek skirt, and an owl-themed helmet… all with the color of freshly fallen snow.

"R… Ruby…" wheezed the figure. "N-need to… warn you… dragon… Grimm… power…" The silver-eyed girl cautiously stepped forward, observing the figure who reached down to their belt and yanked the Power Coin off with an exhausted grunt. The same bright light from before flashed over their body…

…and when it faded, a pair of icy blue eyes shot alight when they looked in the girl's direction. "RUBY!"

The brunette gasped in alarm. "W-Weiss?! What happened?! You're not-?! Y-You're white?! Why are you-?!"

"NO TIME!" the heiress snapped. "Jen told you things would go from bad to worse, right?! Well, it did! Things have gotten a whole lot worse!"

"Wha- I- Weiss, slow down!" Ruby pleaded. "What are you talking about?!"

"And how come you're no longer blue?" Yang added. "I mean, white's always been your color…"

"The cloud! It's a dragon! Not a Wyvern, but something else! AND IT HAS POWERS! FROM THE GRID!" Weiss was speaking so fast Ruby was having difficulty keeping up with her, but the sheer panic in her eyes and her voice told Ruby that this was big… but it didn't help ease her confusion. "Wh-what? A Grimm with… Weiss, I don't-"

"And it's all my fault!" Weiss stammered frantically. "I was fighting the Grimm and they got the jump on me and they broke my morpher which released all of its energy and they got into-"

"Ay-yi-yi-yi! Weiss, please calm down!" Alpha interjected, hurrying over and touching the girl's trembling body. "Yes, that all sounds so horrible and I am just as alarmed as you are! But this isn't the time to panic, and not because the Grimm are drawn to it! There's a lot about that creature that we don't understand yet, so we need a proper plan to dispose of it!"

"Okay, what in the name of Remnant is going on here?!" Yang snapped. "What's all this about a dragon and Morphin Grid energy?!"

"Terrible news, that's what it is!" Alpha answered. "I promise I'll explain everything in just a moment, but only after we-" A quick beeping noise from the terminals drew his attention. "Oop! Stand back, everyone! More morph signatures incoming!"

KRASHOOM! Right on cue, several light beams zapped their way into the Command Center. The girls quickly identified two pink beams, one green streak, and two additional rays of… what looked like gray and a dark yellow? The beams were gone before they could get a good look at those two, and one of the Pink Rangers was already removing her helmet.

"Alpha, any updates on the-" The woman paused when she noticed everyone else. "Good. You're all here." Her eyes turned to the girl in yellow and she greeted her with a warm smile. "Minh."

"Hey, Kat," she answered with a short wave while Nora and Ren powered down, the younger Pink Ranger cocking her head in bewilderment. "Uh, who's this?" The veteran held out a hand. "This is Trini's kid. I'll… fill you in on the details later."

Ren's magenta eyes widened. "Her… her daughter? First, we find out Tommy has you for a wife, and now-"

"Like I said, later. We have more pressing matters to attend to."

"OOH! You're right!" Nora piped up, quickly brushing the startled woman aside and clearing her throat before greeting Team RWBY with her trademark bright grin. "Oh, guuyyysss… look who we found!" She slid over to the side and spread her arms in a displaying manner… at two figures currently looking around the Command Center. "Ta-daaaaa!"

Her cry snapped them out of their observations, and the strangers froze upon seeing Team RWBY. They were two armored warriors donned in shiny silver and glimmering gold, but these Rangers were different in more than just appearances. Instead of on their belts, their Power Coins were inscribed into their gauntlets. The silver-clad one slowly approached the girls, their helmet never breaking eye contact with Ruby.

"Ruby?" The voice was slightly distorted, but there was a familiar tone Ruby couldn't place. She lifted her brow curiously. "Y…yes? Should I…"

"Huh? Can't you tell? It's-" The silver stranger waved his arm before the girl but stopped upon seeing its armored surface. "Oh! Right! Sorry, um…" The warrior glanced at his Power Coin and tapped on it with his knuckle while the gold one just placed their hands on their hips. "Okay, I got the hang of powering up, but… how the heck am I supposed to power down?"

FWASH! One flash of bright light later, the silver knight was gone… and in its place was a dumbstruck blonde young man wearing a gray unzipped hoodie over a black shirt depicting a cartoon-styled laidback gray rabbit with a half-eaten carrot in a gloved hand. A pair of gray jeans held by a black leather belt led down to silver sneakers.

"Hold on, that's it? Do I need to say it? That's a stupid way to-"

"JAUNE!" Ruby threw herself into his arms with a huge smile and excited laughter, almost knocking him to the ground while he yelped in surprise. "GYAH! I-it's nice to see you too, Ruby! Can… can you please let me go now?"

The Gold Ranger chuckled and turned to the others as Ruby voiced her pleasure at reuniting. "Power down." Golden light flashed around them until the armor was no more, revealing a red-haired girl in a red-orange jacket depicting five colored interlocking rings on the black, a midriff-baring gold top, and black tights underneath a maroon skirt that trailed down red white-laced athletic shoes while yellow fingerless gloves rested on her hands. "I hope you didn't miss us too badly."

"Pyrrha!" Yang laughed, firmly clasping the redhead's hand in her own. "How's our favorite champion?!"

"Never been better. With so much Grimm here, it's like we never left Remnant. And I never thought I'd wear something gold besides a medal."

"We got them from a weird blue robot guy called Ninjor," Jaune explained. "Long story… hey, who's the domehead over there?"

"I have decided I am not going to take that personally."

"Also a long story," Ruby interjected. "His name's Alpha Fi- uh, Alpha Nine, and he's a good friend to all Rangers everywhere."

Pyrrha released a breath. "I still can't believe there are more of them…"

"There's a lot of things we still can't believe either…" Blake sheepishly added, her eyes darting to Minh. "B-but something's come up."

"Yes," Kat said firmly while she glared at Jaune and Pyrrha. "As I said earlier, there are more pressing matters we need to attend to."

Jaune shrugged. "I dunno, I think reunions are a pretty big deal…"

"I wholeheartedly agree, Jaune Arc!" Alpha cheerfully added before his tone dropped to a severe degree. "But Katherine is right! I've discovered something disturbing you'll all want to know about…"

"This 'dragon' thing…" Yang recalled. "I'm gonna go ahead and say mine is far better."

Alpha turned back to the consoles and flew his fingers over some buttons. "Some civilian camera footage in Briarwood is going viral as we speak! I'm accessing the live feed now. Standby…" He pressed a final button to switch on one of the primary monitors, bringing it to life…

GRRROOOOOAAAAARRRRHHH! Everybody jolted back as shaky camera footage depicted a massive dragon-like Grimm taking up an entire intersection with size alone, bellowing deeply as its eyes glowed a bright purple. Five caped Rangers and two knights donned in red and gold colors had the monster surrounded, striking and blasting at it while sinister snarls and guttural growls erupted from its being. The Rangers rolled away from swiping claws that smashed up asphalt, giant jaws that almost snapped shut around them, and a long, thick tail that easily bashed away vehicles.

The Remnantians watched the fight with horror and shock in their eyes before Blake spoke up. "What… is… that?"

"Your friends and I encountered the Grimm cloud in Silver Hills," Kat explained. "And that thing came out of it." A green light from the Green Ranger's staff caused tree roots to erupt from the pavement, tying down the beast's legs and wings while thick roots wrapped around its mouth. Ruby caught notice of the creature's abnormality as it thrashed and struggled against its restraints. "Um… why are its eyes purple? They're supposed to be red, right?"

Weiss' face fell and she looked away from her leader in shame. "Hmm… that's a good question, Ruby! I'll see if I can run a scan on it." The robot set to work as Ruby's friends continued to watch the live feed. The Mystic Rangers surrounded the beast and threw everything they had at it… until the monster broke free of its bounds with a tremendous roar and blew everyone back with a single wingbeat. Its tail lashed like a whip, sending the Blue Ranger flying while the Yellow Ranger rolled underneath it. The Pink Ranger had sprouted pink butterfly wings and was shooting rapid gusts at the dragon, which barreled through the winds and tried clamping its jaws on her.

The red knight's shield met its jaws instead, the warrior swinging his sword at the dark dragon in a scene straight out of a fairy tale. He weaved away from snapping jaws and struck the Grimm's snout while the beast angled its horns to black the blade and swiped at the knight with its enormous claws. A sharp headbutt knocked the knight down, but an explosive fireball to its throat stopped the monster from landing a fatal strike, drawing the snarling beast and the camera to the caped Red Ranger as flames gathered in his palms.

"Something caught its attention in Silver Hills," Kat explained as the Red Ranger slid behind a parked car, a stream of violet flame hot on his heels. "And the purple eyes tell me it found what it sought in Briarwood. The question is… was it after magic or something else?"

"It…" Weiss croaked in a barely audible whisper. "It got something else…" Ruby noticed that the heiress couldn't bear to look her or anyone else in the eye. She slowly reached out a hand and opened her mouth…

"Oh… oh no… oh no, no, NO! AI-YI-YI-YI-YI, IT'S WORSE THAN I THOUGHT! It only absorbed a small fraction in the forest, but these readings are bigger than my previous calculations!"

"Absorbed?" Kat echoed. "What did that thing absorb, Alpha?!"

"Something even my logic processors struggle to compute, Katherine," Alpha dreadfully answered. "It… it should be impossible, but this Grimm… this Grimm has managed to absorb Morphin Grid energy!"

The Pink Ranger's eyes widened in horror. "How?!"

"I-I don't know! I need more data! No Grimm has ever been able to do that before!"

"But they did…" Weiss muttered. "Because of me…"

Ruby, Blake, and Yang turned to their teammate while Alpha fiddled with buttons and dials. "Weiss?" the brunette whispered in confusion. "What… what do you mean?"

"When I was fighting Grimm in the forest…" the heiress began softly. "They… they got the jump on me when I least expected it. They got ahold of my morpher and… and they broke it. Shattered it to pieces." She paused to take a deep breath. "The energy leaked out… and I couldn't do anything to stop it from getting into their systems. I was too weak… too powerless… just like when we got here…"

"Weiss…" a stunned Ruby breathed. "That- that wasn't your fault. You did nothing wrong." The pale-faced heiress wiped a finger under her eye with a sniffle. "I-I know, but… I thought that was it. I'd lost my Blue Ranger powers; I couldn't help you anymore… I was in a terrible spot."

"Weiss was blue?" echoed Pyrrha. "I'm… I'm not seeing it."

"The good news is a sorceress named Udonna gave her powers to me and fixed my coin," Weiss finished. "But the bad news is… she lost her own ability to morph in the process."

"Well, at least that explains the new getup," Yang commented before Kat pinched the bridge of her nose with a sigh. "Udonna… her sacrifice gave you another chance, Weiss. You should be proud of that."

She smiled at the older woman. "I am. But the worst news is that not long after I became a White Ranger, the Grimm Cloud appeared in the forest and absorbed all the empowered Grimm. And now…" Weiss gestured to the screen, where the camera struggled to track the dragon as it took to the air and settled down on top of a roof, its body heaving frantically.

"It's faster, stronger, more durable, and-"

Before Weiss could finish, the Grimm dragon violently upchucked a shower of dark muck from its maw, earning a racket of disgusted and nauseated noises from Minh and the Remnantians. Weiss couldn't help but grimace and gag at the sight. "And… do that… I guess…"

The Mystic Rangers and the recording civilian watched in shock as the black bile began to churn and crackle with purple lightning… before murky limbs pulled black bodies out from the abyssal fluid, eyes burning purple with raw power. The devastating roar of the dragon rang out one last time as its shadow passed over the street, prompting the Rangers to engage the amped-up atrocities and the civilian to make the smart move of turning and running away as fast as they could. The shaky camera footage paused before the monitor switched to charts and graphs highlighting the Grimm dragon's body.

"Well… I guess we found out what's keeping the Grimm coming," Blake summarized. "Is there anything else we need to know about this thing?"

"Like where to hit it?" Nora added.

"Er… Weiss…" Alpha spoke up. "You said the dragon achieved this state by absorbing the Grimm that had gotten supercharged from your Power Coin…"

The girl shuddered and swallowed nervously. "W-well… y-yes, but-"

"That's… not what these readings are telling me."

Minh narrowed her eyes. "Come again, Alpha?"

"There are traces of Morphin Grid energy within the dragon, but not just from recent exposure. Most of the readings I'm getting are… older."

Kat gave the data a suspicious glare. "How old?"

"According to my results… thirty years old."

Silence filled the Command Center as the news sunk in, disbelief on everyone's faces. Ren frowned with a glare in his eye. "That can't be right. We destroyed every Grimm in Angel Grove before Jen found us. Check again."

"I already have," Alpha replied. "I ran the scan three times, and they had the same results. We may have learned what the Grimm Cloud was and how the Grimm kept appearing… but now we have new questions. How did this Grimm manage to sustain itself over three decades? Why is it drawn to the Morphin Grid's energies? And the most frightening question of all…"

"It absorbed the energies from a Power Coin…" Kat finished for him. "So who's to say it can't absorb more? And what will happen when it does?"

"I have the feeling we're gonna find out whether we want to or not," Jaune muttered. "We need to find that thing and take it out!"

"Agreed, but throwing ourselves right at it isn't going to help," Kat told him. "You all saw how the Mystic Rangers fared against it, so we can't afford to rush at something we don't fully understand. And right now, we need to focus on the immediate threats."

Ruby knew what the woman meant. "The rest of the Grimm… Kat's right. We can't fully focus on this new Grimm while people are still in danger. But we can't just ignore the big dragon, too…"

"Don't worry, Ruby… we won't let that thing out of our sight," Kat promised. "Alpha, send a message to Tommy and the other veterans and bring them in. We need to discuss a course of action after we fill them in. In the meantime, what's the situation? Are there any other cities that are getting swarmed?"

"Hmm…" Alpha switched out the graphs and charts for a map of Earth's continents, red dots bountiful on all of them. "Well, Captain Mitchell's idea for a small strike force rather than full teams is paying off. The Grimm are being driven out of numerous locations and militaries are coordinating civilians to designated safe zones… wait!"

The robot zoomed in on a portion of the map filled with several dozen red dots, several blinking out while more closed in from afar. "There's a large incursion over in London… but this has to be a glitch! The systems are saying that there's only one Ranger over there!"

"Whoa, one?!" Yang echoed. "You sure, Al?"

"Ai-yi-yi, whoever it is won't hold out for long with more on the way! They're bound to be overrun!"

"Then it's up to us to go and help them!" Jaune declared. "Trust me, those Grimm won't stand a chance now that Team RWBY and Team JNPR are back together!"

"Nope."

"See? Even Ruby agrees with-"

The smirking brunette shook her head. "That's not who we are."

"Huh?" All of her friends turned to her with bewildered expressions and confused stares. Yang ran a hand through her locks in surprise. "Ruby, what are you… of course that's who we are!"

Ruby turned to her sister with a knowing glint in her eyes. "Yeah… back home. But here, we're something else. Something more than just students or two teams of Huntsmen trainees closely associated with each other. And remember, Huntsmen aren't a thing here, and neither are Team RWBY or Team JNPR."

Weiss and Blake immediately realized what their leader was up to, smiling at her appreciatively. Nora was still stunned and she cocked her head at Ruby. "Uh… where are you going with this?"

"No one knows the Grimm better than we do here," she explained. "We're Earth's best bet, and we can't win if we think we're who we are on Remnant. We're a part of something bigger, something that ties us all together in a way none of us imagined! We're no longer two teams; we're one! And just like our teachers and theirs would've wanted, we need to work as one to save this world! Are you all up for this, boys and girls?!"

"Yeah!" Jaune cried with the biggest smile Ruby had seen on him. Pyrrha nodded beside him while Nora excitedly bounced in place and Ren crossed his arms with a confident smirk. Blake shot Ruby a thumbs-up, Weiss gave her a proud smile, and Yang rested a hand on her shoulder. "Count us in, sis. All of us."

"Alright then…" The Remnantians all took up positions and placed their hands behind their backs while Jaune and Pyrrha held up their left wrists. "IT'S MORPHIN' TIME!"

"SILVER STALLION!" Jaune roared, pressing down on his Power Coin with his free hand and lighting it up with a bright glow.

"GOLDEN EAGLE!" Pyrrha echoed, doing the same to the Power Coin on her wrist.

"JADE SERPENT!"

"THUNDER PEGASUS!"

"BURNING DRAGON!"

"OBSIDIAN PANTHER!"

"BLIZZARD OWL!"

"CARMINE WOLF!"

SHRA-KOOM! A blinding flash of eight colors blurred together. Alpha, Kat, and Minh looked on as the light faded, revealing the Remnantians standing proudly in their uniforms.

"GO GO RWBY RANGERS!"

A chuckle escaped Pyrrha's throat. "Is that what we're calling ourselves? And after that speech, too?"

"Well… I think it rolls off the tongue better than 'Remnant Rangers' or 'Huntsmen Rangers'..." Ruby giggled. "Especially that last one because it makes no sense out of context."

"Beam us out already!" Nora yelled in excitement while Yang cracked her knuckles, her dragon-themed helmet matching her pent-up fury. "Yeah! We need some skulls to smash and black hearts to break!"

"Okay!" Alpha exclaimed as he prepared the coordinates. "Get ready to do what you all do best, Rangers! Transporting in three… two… one…"

The android pressed a button and colored light surrounded the eight young heroes, who raised their hands to the sky as prismatic pillars whisked them away faster than light. Knowing they would soon be back to slaying Grimm and keeping people safe from them- their sworn duty as Huntsman or Ranger- made each of them feel like they had never left their home. And at the same time, they'd be saving someone else's.

…

Chaos and destruction scoured the streets of London. Towers of smoke covered the skies and terrified screams pierced the air. City blocks lay in ruin, and several buildings were reduced to rubble, some of the debris being consumed by flames. Savage roars and growls echoed across the streets, black blood pooling over asphalt while dark dust rose into the air. The air shook with a massive blast, propelling a monstrous shape clean through a wall.

A claw gripped the gaping hole and a huffing Alpha Beowolf covered in scalding burns slowly pulled itself free from the rubble. The wails and cries of its comrades filled its ears and the scent of smoke assailed its nostrils. The creature crawled out onto the road with rage in its burning red eyes, a rage that intensified as it watched its burning and dissolving packmates flailing around. A deep guttural growl rumbled through its being and the Alpha Beowolf reared to its full height, roaring with all its might at the one responsible.

A red glove hung loosely with orange claw-tipped fingers spread out, smoke wafting from the digits. The Alpha Beowolf broke out in a heavy charge, cracking the pavement beneath it as it sprinted towards the figure with frightening speed. The stranger remained still as the black beast approached…

…and the clawed hand burst into flame when the monster lunged.