See chapter 1 for Story notes. Thanks for the reviews! Please consider leaving feedback. It really helps and is much appreciated. Here is individual responses to reviews:
fallingstar22: Yep, it was a hell of fight! This one may be over, but yes, it will stay very interesting. Glad you're enjoying it!
Thunderstruck
Chapter 25: Picking Up the Pieces
The ground around where the abyss had been opened and closed, was charred from battle and smoke drifted into the air around the razed ground. The acrid smell of smoke and burned monster flesh was pungent and would be nauseating to most. But not one such as Lokar, one of the most ancient and evil beings of the old world.
"Fools…" Lokar hissed. He had joined the battle, but once it started to turn with the arrival of the fully powered elemental Ninja team, Lokar knew evil would lose the day again. For thousands of years, he had been locked away in other dimensions, only briefly summoned and banished quickly again. That fool Goldar had the audacity to even absorb him, once again reducing his true power from what it could be. This time though, Lokar refused to be exiled again and now he was free in the dimension of the living once again, with no one the wiser to his presence. Thankfully, the Master of the dark ninja arts was also a master shapeshifter.
"Time to blend in," he hissed, as he disappeared…
Jared swirled the wine in his glass, as he sat at his desk, examining the information in front of him and watching the footage of the battle that had just taken place. None of the news teams had been able to get ground coverage and their aerial shots were blurry at best. But his personal scientist managed to capture it all with his sophisticated equipment from a safe distance. He watched the ninjas in particular with fascination, especially the amethyst power. He glanced down at the photo of his grown son and his friends.
"You've become quite the warrior, son," he stated.
"You look more like your mother than I expected, but that's probably in your favor too," he mused.
"Quality work as usual, Mr. Finn," he complimented his scientist. The small, skinny bespectacled man nodded gratefully.
"Thank you sir. And congratulations on getting your revenge on Omino," Finn said. Zale smirked and sipped at his wine.
"Yes...things are falling into place, though I have to say the level of element mastery these six possess is unprecedented. Even without the prisms, they are the embodiment of their elements in human form. No one in the history of either Academy has ever obtained such skill with their element. Still...I am up for the challenge," Jared stated, as he drained his glass.
"I was cast out like garbage, while they continued their secret little operation. That may eventually get more difficult," he said.
"Forgive me for saying this sir, but your son doesn't trust you now. Doing what you have planned assures that he will never join you," Finn replied.
"He wouldn't anyway. He was raised to be too damn good and noble. He's powerful, but soft, like his mother was. He will have other things to worry about. Eventually...he may finally see me as an ally and a way to protect the people he loves," Jared stated.
"Lothor is a loose canon. Shall I keep monitoring his activity?" Finn asked.
"Yes and keep me updated. He may look for other avenues to rebuild his army, but he'll eventually come crawling back to me. That prism will only get him so far, especially against my son and his team," Zale replied. Finn nodded and quietly left the office, as Jared continued to look over the information.
"Well Sarah, our son has grown up to be exactly what you always hoped and your perfect brother would be happy to know that he'll probably never willingly have anything to do with me. But I won't give up. He'll see that I'm not the real enemy...someday," Jared said with determination.
Hunter stared at the screen in disbelief. His head was swimming with questions, but his hurt and anger drowned them out.
"If he killed Sensei...then why hasn't he been arrested!" Hunter exclaimed.
"Believe me, nothing would give us greater pleasure. But if we do, then we have to expose the Academies. You'll have the FBI, CIA, Homeland, and every other government agency crawling all over those woods," Jason stated.
"Not to mention that they'll be angry when it goes public that the government didn't know about any of it. They get pissed when they look bad to the public," Billy added.
"They might even try to detain anyone involved," Rocky mentioned.
"You mean prison?" Dustin asked, horrified. Rocky nodded.
"Technically speaking, the government sees what the Academy does as illegal, simply because they're not involved. The rangers too for that matter. They've mostly left us alone though since we've collectively saved the planet thousands of times over," Jason replied.
"But guys like that go free," Blake stated bitterly.
"And our powers would land us in some lab like rats," Shane added.
"It's not fair, we know," Adam added.
"I...he's really my father? Hunter asked.
"No...the man he once was died the moment he succumbed to the temptation of the dark powers," Kanoi said adamantly.
"Yeah, he's no more your father than Lothor is my Uncle," Cam added.
"They're right," Tori whispered, as she hugged him.
"You're mine first anyway. And you're nothing like him, so don't even think about it," she said. He nodded gratefully, hugging her tightly. He knew he couldn't get through this without her love and thankfully, he didn't have to.
"So what now?" Blake asked.
"As long as Lothor is out there, you guys are active again. We'll provide back up when we can now that our powers are restored, but it's your powers that will be needed to defeat him," Jason said. Blake clenched his teeth.
"So that's it, Lothor's back, so my career is over," he spat. He was trying not to be angry, but he loved racing professionally.
"Leann could take over for you," Hunter stated, as all eyes were on him. As much as he wanted Blake fighting beside him, he wasn't going to let Lothor ruin everything he had worked for.
"Me?" she asked in disbelief.
"You're a navy thunder ninja and an excellent fighter. If Blake happens to be in town, he can join a few battles, but if he's halfway across the country, you can use the navy prism," Hunter suggested. Cam couldn't disagree.
"You'd make a great ranger," he told her with a smile.
"Not to mention that you've been dealt a personal blow in all this. You want justice for your father, the same as I do," Hunter added.
"I don't know what to say," she said.
"Say yes. This is a fight you deserve to be a part of," Blake stated, as he held the navy prism before her. She stared at it and slowly took it in her hand. It sparked for a moment and then accepted its new bearer.
"Finally, another girl on the team," Tori said, as she hugged her.
"Andrew invited us to stay the night, but I'm kind of anxious to get home," Shane mentioned.
"Us too. We've been off the grid long enough," Billy added.
"Let's go say goodbye to the rookies then. With Thrax and the rest of them gone, except Moltor, I think they can handle things," Jason said. There were handshakes and goodbyes, with promise of a reunion soon, before they all left the Hartford mansion to return to their lives.
Blue Bay Harbor
Later that evening
Tori inhaled the salty sea air, as she and Hunter strolled along the beach, hand in hand.
"It's good to be home," she said.
"It is, though for me, home is wherever you are," Hunter replied. She smiled, as they stopped before the lapping waves. The sun was setting in the background and provided the perfect backdrop, as he leaned in and kissed her passionately.
"It's so beautiful here at sunset. I've always loved it," she mentioned.
"I know and that's why I think we should get married in this spot at sunset," Hunter suggested. She smiled.
"I love it. It's the perfect place for us," she replied, as she kissed him again.
"Come on, let's go home," she said sultrily.
"I like that idea even better," he replied. As they approached Hunter's motorcycle, they found a most unwelcome person waiting for them. Tori gasped and their defenses immediately went up, as they both sunk into fighting stances.
"I mean you no harm," Jared insisted.
"Right, like we're supposed to believe that," Hunter growled.
"I've wanted to meet you for a very long time, son. You can't imagine what it's like to know you have a son you can't see," Jared added.
"Why would I want anything to do with you?! You killed my mother! You murdered Sensei Omino!" Hunter cried.
"Hunter...you don't know the whole story!" he pleaded.
"I know enough," he spat in return.
"It's true, your mother and I were arguing that night. She wouldn't listen to me explain my side and she wouldn't let me see you," Jared tried to explain.
"So you killed her," Hunter hissed.
"No...I was angry and I pushed her, which was wrong. But I didn't know she was going to fall and hit her head. That part was an accident and I tried to save her. But she hit the corner of the dresser just right and died almost instantly. It was an accident," Jared pleaded.
"Even if that's true, it wouldn't have happened if you hadn't been practicing dark ninja magic!" Hunter growled.
"The dark powers aren't as evil as they'll have you believe," Jared tried to reason.
"The hole in Sensei Omino's chest says otherwise!" Hunter roared.
"He deserved it! He took you away! He stole my life away! He and the others never wanted me with your mother, but I did love her. Her sainted brother hated my guts from day one, long before I ever touched the darker powers," Jared growled.
"James and Elizabeth Bradley couldn't have children, so when you were born, they pressured Sarah fiercely to keep you away from me. We fought about their interference constantly and it tore us apart...literally," he tried to explain and then sighed.
"Look, I don't expect you to understand or even forgive me. I just wanted you to hear my side. I know you aren't ready to have anything to do with me, if you ever will. But...you are my son and my door, so to speak, will always be open for you," he said, as he spared a glance at Tori.
"Hold onto her. Don't ever let go or let anyone come between you," he said, as he started to retreat, but turned back for a moment.
"One more thing. Lothor will stop at nothing to get revenge on the two of you. Be careful. The longer he refrains from attacking, the larger and more sinister his plot will be," Jared warned, before getting in his limo.
"Are you okay?" Tori asked. He nodded.
"As long as I don't have to see him," he replied.
"Do you want to go talk to Sensei? He should probably know," she suggested.
"I'll tell him in the morning. Right now, I just want to go home," he said. She hugged him and felt his strong arms tighten around her.
"I just want to go home and hold you," he whispered.
"Lucky me. Let's go, thunder boy," she said, as they put their helmets on and sped away on his bike.
The next morning
Ninja Ops
"So he was right? You can't pick up on the dark prism energy anywhere on Earth?" Shane asked. They had all arrived for their morning duties as usual that morning and Hunter promptly informed Sensei Watanabe about his and Tori's encounter with Zale the night before. This resulted in a ranger meeting, including Billy and Jason on a secure video conference.
"The dark prism gives off a very distinct signature. Lothor knows that with the energy scanner Billy helped me build that we could find his base if he built one on Earth," Cam said.
"So he's got another spaceship then," Dustin guessed.
"Probably, but I used the deep space sonar scanner that I brought back from Aquitar and he's not in the milky way galaxy at all right now," Billy said.
"Well...then he left, right?" Blake asked hopefully.
"It seems so, which eventually could be very bad. He's in possession of a very powerful and dangerous artifact. He's not done," Billy explained.
"But...then why would he leave?" Dustin asked.
"He was defeated and most of his Generals are dead. A bunch of dark ninjas aren't enough to stand against us," Cam reasoned.
"So he's gone to hire a new army?" Leann asked.
"He would if he had money, but more than likely, he's going to find beings that hate rangers as much as he does. I've seen this before on Aquitar. The Hydro contaminators were funded by other factions that hated the Aquitian rangers as much as they did. He could return in the future with some powerful allies," Billy warned.
"Then his warning was justified," Hunter said.
"Maybe, but I'm sure he still has his own agenda in all this," Jason added from behind Billy.
"Jason is right. Be very leery of him. The dark powers are seductive," Kanoi warned.
"I will Sensei," Hunter promised.
"So what now?" Dustin asked.
"We return to our normal lives, but we remain vigilant. We will train our students for the coming and very real threat there will be. We safeguard the prisms and you all must train hard yourselves. Lothor will return and his hunger for vengeance will be ravenous," Kanoi warned. They nodded in understanding, as they ended the communication with Billy and Jason, before they each headed off to teach their classes.
"Mr. Zale...three people are headed for your office! I told them they couldn't go in without an appointment. But they wouldn't listen!" his assistant cried frantically.
"Relax Gloria, it's fine. Feel free to take your lunch," Jared stated. And Gloria had been working for him long enough to know that it wasn't a request. Two males and one female waltzed into his office. Scorpina's human disguise hadn't changed much, though she was wearing her hair shorter. Goldar had adopted a much younger appearance, medium build and jet black hair. Rito's appearance was that of an attractive male with large muscles, beach blonde hair, and a California tan.
"He definitely looks the part. He'll blend in nicely with all the surfer idiots," Jared commented, referring to Rito, as he raised Scorpina's hand and kissed it.
"And thankfully you chose some nicer skin. That other guy you used to walk around as was ugly as hell," Jared remarked to Goldar. It was only to blend in, of course. His true alien form had been restored during his time in the abyss, but he was willing to don human appearance again for revenge.
Jared remembered his first encounter with the man he knew as Victor Goldman back then. He had been working for the Vasquez family. He had met Palo's father in prison and Orlando Vasquez had taken notice of his strange powers with interest. Together, they plotted and five years after he had been incarcerated, he used his dark powers to start a fire that spread unnaturally fast. They had thought they had stripped him of his powers, but they were unsuccessful. Many lives were lost that night and Logan Zimmer had been included in those casualty numbers. But it had never actually been confirmed. They might not have been so lucky, but the investigation was put on hold, because as fate would have it, the year was 1993 and Rita Repulsa attacked the Earth just days after the fire. Things had never been the same since.
Life outside Earth had been confirmed and her initial attacks had actually been quite devastating. Most government agencies had all employees and agents working on all aspects of the first few attacks.
Once the power rangers started getting a true handle on things, the death toll of each attack became less and less. By then, the investigators still had more pressing matters. No one cared about identifying the bodies of hardened criminals or murderers. No one missed them and all unaccounted for were declared dead. That allowed him a clean slate and for years, he worked for the drug ring, using his skills and powers to get his boss what he wanted. He eventually eliminated Palo's father and took over, grooming Palo to work for him and run the Mexico operation. When he met Victor Goldman, he had been skeptical of his story at first. But in exchange for his financial support, Goldman had forced Finn to work for him. The once alien scientist was now an equally timid human. But he had been responsible for many of Rita Repulsa's monsters, so Jared put his skills to use and Gridiron Industries and all its innovations was born, skyrocketing him to the life of a billionaire.
"Welcome back...how was hell?" Jared quipped.
"About like you'd imagine. I'm sure you'll find out someday, but at least we got our true forms and managed to absorb some power from that evil pit in the process," Goldar responded.
"Like it matters. Those bastard rangers are more powerful than ever," Scorpina growled.
"Yeah, tell me why we're staying on this mud ball? You know we could easily overthrow whatever crime family has taken up residence on M51 and rule," Rito reminded them. But he was ignored.
"Maybe, but a unique opportunity has presented itself," Jared stated, as he tossed a folder of information on his desk in front of them.
"You can't be serious," Goldar refuted.
"So S.P.A. has finally made its way here," Rito said.
"With your fighting skills, getting accepted to the Academy shouldn't be a problem," Jared stated.
"This could work," Scorpina said.
"It might be years before any plot can come to fruition!" Goldar exclaimed.
"Maybe, but if you face them now, it's a one way ticket back to the abyss of evil," Jared reminded.
"Commander Birdie Fowler has a lot of skeletons in his closet. Get accepted and I'll make a call telling him that you three are to climb the ranks quite swiftly," Jared suggested.
"You're already blackmailing him," Goldar said knowingly. Jared smirked.
"He got his entire team killed due to his own arrogance when he was a field agent and covered it up, among many other blunders. S.P.A. Earth also needs my funding. He has his job because of me, so he will do our bidding," Jared replied.
"Fine, but if I have to put on spandex, I quit," Goldar spat. Jared chuckled.
"The morphing grid would out you for what you really are. No, your positions will be within S.P.A. command rather and not the field. Your skills will be undeniably useful in training future ranger wannabes," Jared stated.
"And corrupting as many as we can along the way," Rito said with a smirk.
"What do you have on Birdie?" Goldar asked. Jared smirked.
"A great many things," Jared replied cryptically.
"Well, I guess we're off to...New Tech City?" Rito asked.
"It's not far from Briarwood. It's the only place alien immigrants are allowed to settle right now and the future home of S.P.A. headquarters," Jared replied.
Planet Drakon
That's impossible!" the blue skinned alien roared. He belonged to the same race as Heliya and was in fact her father and King of the Planet Drakon. They were a race of warriors and many often became mercenaries. They also enjoyed the sport of Krato Agon, which in their native language literally meant hunting for sport.
And their prey was any worthy being they found on other worlds. Strong, skilled individuals were put into an arena each year and challenged to survive a hunt by five of their chosen warriors that managed to beat out all the other candidates. Not only did the "contestants" have to survive against their hunters, but each other as well.
Food and water were limited and weapons reduced only to survival items. Needless to say, no one had ever survived. It was not just a sport on their planet. It was a way of life and consumed every native being on the planet during the five day competition. The player with the most kills out of the twenty-five beings in the arena was the winner and was rewarded with immediate wealth and status. It was barbaric, but once they had their captives on their own planet, there was little anyone could do. They were not a world open to visitors and inclined to shoot infiltrators on site.
The King's two tentacles twitched angrily and one wrapped around the poor olive skinned servant, snapping his neck, even though he had only been the messenger.
"There is no way my daughter could have been killed by two rangers...Earthlings no less!" he roared.
"I wish it was not so, Your Highness, but my sources say this pair is unusually powerful, particularly together," an opal skinned male stated, a top adviser to the King.
"I want to know everything about them, Siphon. We must make them pay for Heliya's death," he growled.
"Of course my King. I will begin my travels immediately," Siphon replied.
"No one crosses the Drakonians," the King hissed.
The ground of the old Thunder Ninja Academy was peppered with Japanese cherry blossom petals and the mood was somber. All Senseis, including the rangers, were dressed in their long, formal dark robes, the piping of their elemental study being the only color. Eight Thunder ninja students carried the casket to the burial site nearby, where many ninjas that had passed before rested. Cam held Leann and tears slipped down her cheeks, the casket was lowered into the ground.
"Goodbye Daddy," she sniffed. Blake and Hunter both cried freely, as they said goodbye to the man that had taken them in like his own and changed their lives forever.
"Goodbye Sensei. You took us in when we were lost and scared," Blake whispered.
"I will make him pay for this, Sensei. Thank you for everything you did for me and Blake," Hunter added, as Tori hugged him close and cried with him. They each tossed cherry blossom petals on the casket, before quietly trekking back to the Academy. The future was uncertain, but they had vowed they would endure whatever came together.