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:
Ghostwriter: Thanks, glad you're enjoying it!
MMPRFansince93: Thanks, glad you like the SPD introduction. I never finished RPM so I'm not sure they'll come into play, but never say never. Glad you're enjoying!
Fallingstar22: Glad you like the sweet moments of Hunter and Tori as parents. Yep, there's a lot of trouble to come and surprises. Glad you're enjoying!
Harry2: Yep, SPD versus the other ranger teams will be interesting. Glad you're enjoying!
Thunderstruck
Chapter 27: Captured
The California Desert
Twenty miles outside Angel Grove
"So this is Earth," Krell said, with an unimpressed tone. He had been informed that this desert was a good place to set his ship down. It was a little further away from the town where his targets lived, but since Earth now had an SPA presence, he had to keep a low profile. He cloaked his ship and checked his chrono device. As expected, his contact rolled up in some sort of earthling vehicle. He was a long time acquaintance of Krell's that had recently relocated to Earth for a promising business venture. He hailed from the same quadrant as Krell and had leathery brown skin, being that he came from a very harsh volcanic planet where some of the hardest and most valuable diamonds were mined. It was also where a very potent and illegal spice known as Irishium was grown, or simply Rishi as it was known on the streets of many worlds. Earth's new acceptance of off world settlers meant a whole new species to expose the drug to and it promised to be lucrative. He got in the vehicle.
"Earth is still using wheels?" he asked his friend, who shrugged.
"Yes, but they are far more advanced than you might think. And I like the climate much better than home," Zaa'tar replied.
"It's just a few hours to Blue Bay Harbor. I'd keep a low profile though. I hear that town is well protected," he warned. Krell nodded.
"So I've been informed. No matter, I can handle a ninja or two. I'll make sure my targets are separated before I choose and make my move," Krell responded, as he drove back toward the highway.
Angel Grove Police Department
Squad Room
"Yeah, let me know when the autopsies are complete," Rocky said, as he slammed the phone down.
"That doesn't sound good," Skull said from his desk.
"Two more dead from an apparent overdose, but the medical examiner is confused by the tox screens," Rocky replied.
"Confused as in she doesn't know or confused as in she doesn't recognize the drug?" Jason asked, as he sipped at his coffee.
"The latter," Rocky replied.
"We expected this. The influx of aliens is bringing new substances to Earth for the first time, offering new and exciting ways for teenagers to get high," Billy stated.
"If SPA gets wind of this, they'll take over our investigation," Skull warned.
"Not if I can help it," Billy said, as he stood up and grabbed his blazer, concealing the gun and badge on his hip.
"Where are you going?" Jack asked.
"I lifted a couple samples off the latest two victims. I'm going to my basement lab to send them and the tox screen to Cestro. He might know what and where this new drug is coming from," Billy replied.
"Good idea. We've got dead kids and I'd like to keep the Space police out of it," Jason said.
"Like hunting drug dealers wasn't hard enough without factoring in alien drug dealers," Alana mentioned.
"I miss 1993 when all the aliens were bad. Sure made the line easier to see," Skull quipped.
"Let's canvas the neighborhood again and get some people to talk. Someone saw something," Jason said, as they dispersed. It was probably going to be another long night
"This is very disturbing, Billy," Cestro said from the comm screen in Billy's basement lab.
"Then you've seen this stuff before?" Billy asked. The Aquitian nodded.
"It is a very deadly substance known as Rishi, found on a volcanic planet in the Bakura sector, in the M51 galaxy," Cestro said.
"M51…nothing but trouble comes from there," Billy lamented.
"I'm afraid so. Most planets in that sector are a haven for illegal dealings and wrought with criminals and mercenaries. Rishi is a very potent hallucinogen and very deadly. I'm not surprised that it has made its way to Earth already," Cestro said. Billy sighed.
"I wanted to keep SPA out of this, but I'm not seeing how that's going to be possible," he replied.
"Perhaps not and while I agree there are many I would not trust within the top branches, Delphine has a very good opinion and friendship with Commander Cruger of your Earth division," Cestro said. Billy smirked.
"Yeah, but do you think Jason and I could get a one on one with him?" he asked. Cestro smiled.
"I'll have Delphine arrange it herself," Cestro replied.
"Thanks Cestro. We've got five dead kids already and we need to get a handle on this now," Billy said, as his phone chimed. He frowned.
"Make that seven dead kids," he said, as he read the text from Rocky. They had two more bodies.
"I'll speak to Delphine immediately," Cestro said.
"Thanks Cestro, talk to you soon. May the power protect you," Billy said.
"And you, my good friend," Cestro replied, as they signed off. Billy hurried upstairs to kiss Kat and the girls, before rushing out the door.
"You've got to be kidding," Krell said with an eye roll. His friend smirked.
"The supposedly tough ninjas that killed Heliya live in this sleepy little speck of a town?" he asked. His friend nodded.
"It's true, though don't let the looks of it fool you. It supposedly sits right on top of the gates of Gehenna and the ones you're after are the two that closed those gates," his friend reminded.
All that power and they waste it in a place like this," Krell said, shaking his head in disbelief.
"My contacts say they frequent the beach a lot and a little place called Storm Chargers," the other alien said, as Krell got out of the car. It was still just before dawn and the streets were still mostly deserted.
"I hope I get a good fight out of this," he said, as he cracked his knuckles and slipped into town using stealth to conceal his presence.
Years of early training made it easy to rise at dawn, which was good since their tiny daughter usually chose that as her time to wake. He had finished cleaning up first and changed Sarah, before taking her to the kitchen and mixing her baby cereal. That's how Tori found them when she came into the kitchen to pour a cup of coffee, ready for the day in her ninja uniform. Hunter was in his street clothes, because he didn't have any classes until after lunch.
Tori kissed their daughter's head and sat down at the table.
"Kelly called while you were in the shower," he said. She smirked.
"Let me guess…her mechanic called in sick again," Tori replied. He smiled.
"Former mechanic, she just fired him. I told her I'd come help for a couple hours this morning," Hunter said.
"Too bad she can't find a permanent mechanic as good as you," Tori replied.
"I'm not that good," he said.
"Yes you are. Everyone else forgets that it was you that had to do the Zord maintenance on the thunder Zords before you guys joined us," she reminded. He smirked.
"How do you know that Blake didn't make repairs?" he asked playfully.
"Cause the one time my van got a flat when he was with me, I fixed the tire while he watched. It gave me a pretty good idea that he wasn't the mechanical type. He can ride the bikes, but we both know he doesn't fix them," she replied, as she kissed him.
Skull partitioned the area off with crime scene tape and ignored the flash bulbs of the reporters trying to get as close as they could to the scene.
"Detective, can you tell us anything at this time?" one reporter asked.
"We'll release our report once our investigation is completed," Skull said vaguely, as he joined his team. Billy flashed his badge to the uniformed officers and slipped under the crime scene tape to join them.
"Did Cestro have any information?" Jason asked. Billy nodded.
"Yeah and it's bigger than we thought," Billy replied. Not willing to say anything else within earshot of the reporters, they quickly had the crime scene team move in and bag the bodies for the medical examiner and they headed back to the van.
"Cestro says it's a very potent drug with a street name of Rishi. It's a big problem on all major systems, including Earth now," Billy explained.
"Do they know where it comes from?" Jason asked.
"M51 of course," Billy answered.
"Is that bad?" Alana asked.
"It's a haven for crime and is run entirely by crime families. Master Vile's family ruled it for centuries. When he was turned to dust, the next family in line took over and continued business as usual," Billy replied.
"And SPA does nothing about it?" Jack asked.
"They consider it out of their jurisdiction," Jason said with a huff.
"I thought the entire universe was their jurisdiction," Jack replied.
"It should be, but any SPA agents that go in don't come out alive, so it's been ruled as hostile territory," Jason explained.
"How are we going to keep the Space police out of this if this stuff is alien?" Skull asked.
"That was my question," Rocky added.
"We can't, but Delphine is good friends with Cruger. She's going to get us a one on one with him," Billy said.
"Just him? No other SPA bureaucrats?" Jason asked. Billy nodded.
"Off the grid again?" Alana asked. He nodded.
"It will have to be, but it's a start," Jason said.
"We can't let this stuff keep killing kids," Rocky replied. They all nodded in agreement, before Jason started the engine and they drove off, back in the direction of the precinct.
Hunter finished washing his hands and dried them off on a towel.
"Thanks again for helping out," Kelly said gratefully. He smiled.
"No problem, you know I don't mind," he replied, as they suddenly heard screams and commotion coming from outside the store. Hunter saw an alien being striding toward the shop and stalled Kelly from going out.
"Stay here," he said in a tone that left no room for argument and ran outside.
"Who are you?" he demanded.
"Hunter Bradley, I presume. You're a wanted man, you know," the being said.
"Let me guess, Lothor's hired another mercenary to try and take us down," Hunter replied.
"Oh…you're going to wish it was just Lothor that is after you soon," the mercenary goaded.
"If not Lothor, then who?" Hunter asked.
"That bounty hunter you killed two years ago has a very powerful father. The King of Drakon has invited you to be a part of his annual Krato Agon tournament…as the prey of course. I'm just here to deliver you," Krell stated.
"I'm not going anywhere with you and Heliya caused her own demise by coming here to do Lothor's bidding," Hunter spat, as his morpher appeared on his wrist. He looked around to make sure no one was around and made his customary hand motions.
"Thunder Storm, Ranger Form!" he called, as his crimson armor molded around his body. Krell drew his sword and engaged the ranger in battle.
The alien's sword slammed down on Hunter's thunder staff and it crackled and sizzled with crimson lightning, as Hunter struggled to keep from being overpowered. He ninja streaked away, leaving his foe shadowboxing. But Krell countered with blaster fire, leaving Hunter dodging wildly. He stopped and used his thunder shield to absorb more blasts and conserve energy, for ninja streaking expended too much energy too quickly. Krell quickly grew tired of that and attached a larger barrel to his blaster.
"Block this!" he yelled, as he fired a large blast. Hunter dodged it, but the impact threw him back several feet and sent him rolling away. He chuckled.
"I said I wanted a good fight and you're good, I'll give you that. But I don't need your friends interfering," Krell said.
Krell knew he had mere moments before the others showed up and tossed a circular device into the air. Hunter dodged it, but didn't expect the device to open into a net, which quickly encased him inside. He found the substance to be sticky and his attempt to use thunder ineffective. It was resistant to electricity. Someone had planned this well. The bounty hunter reached into the net and confiscated his morpher.
"NO!" Hunter protested.
"Now for the prism…" he said, as he reached for the trinket around Hunter's neck. It sparked violently with crimson energy and he recoiled his hand in pain.
"No matter how much you want it…you can't touch it," Hunter said smugly, as he struggled with his bonds.
"Hmm…well that's the King's problem to deal with. I'll still hold up my end," Krell replied, as he struck Hunter in the back of the head with the butt of his blaster, knocking him unconscious. His ship arrived above him, having been programmed to fly to that location on auto pilot and he quickly boarded with his prisoner, absconding with him and leaving the planet behind…
The three Winds, plus Leann hurried into Ninja Ops. Cam had put out an alert so they had left their classes with their top students in charge.
"What's going on?" Tori asked.
"Lothor hired another goon, right?" Shane asked.
"I'm afraid it's way worse than that. I'm sorry, but this is just the footage of what happened. By the time I got the alert from Hunter, he was gone," Cam said regrettably.
"Cam...what are you saying?" Tori asked, dread in her voice.
"Just watch," Cam instructed, as he played the battle that had taken place just moments ago, ending with Hunter's abduction and the knowledge that he was being taken lightyears away to a hostile planet that wanted him to pay for the death of one of their mercenaries, who also happened to be a royal.
"Dude...where are we going to get a spaceship fast enough to go after that poser?" Dustin asked.
"As much as we hate it, we need to go to SPA. They've got ships," Shane said, as Leann put her arm around a strangely silent Tori.
"I'm afraid SPA will not help you," a female voice said from the screen, which was now a split screen between Billy and an Aquitian female.
"I already sent the footage to Billy," Cam informed them.
"And I called Delphine," Billy replied.
"What do you mean they won't help us?" Shane demanded to know.
"Drakon, like most of the planets in the M51 galaxy, is considered hostile territory. SPA won't send anything or anyone in there. I've already contacted Andros and he should be getting back to us soon," Billy replied.
"You must understand that no one that has ever been uninvited has made it off Drakon alive. They kill all intruders," Delphine warned.
"He's my husband...I won't just give up and let them kill him!" Tori exclaimed. Delphine's gaze was one of sympathy.
"I'm sorry, I wish there was more I could do," she apologized, as the comm beeped.
"That will be Andros," Billy said. Cam accepted the transmission and Andros took Delphine's place on the screen. He didn't look like he had good news.
"Andros…can you help us with a ship?" Shane said.
"Yes, though I'm worried that by the time I come get all of you and attempt to touch down on Drakon, the Krato Agon tournament may have run its course," Andros replied.
"What exactly is this Krato Agon tournament?" Leann asked. Andros sighed.
"It is a celebrated tournament of sport. The most skilled Drakonians win the chance to compete, a total of twelve players. Worthy candidates are then collected and put into an arena, which is usually held in the vast Pandresia forest in the southern hemisphere of the planet. Twenty-five beings from various worlds then fight to survive and evade the players, as they are hunted as prey. The player with the most kills wins and it is considered the highest honor on the planet. It means instant wealth and prestige in their society," Andros explained.
"How the hell is that legal?!" Shane asked angrily.
"No outsiders are allowed. Mercenaries are hired to abduct the targets and gone before they can be stopped. Their King is corrupt as they come. He is notorious for abducting those he believes have wronged him and he puts them in the arena to be killed," Andros replied.
"That's whack, dude," Dustin said angrily. There was another chime on the comm and Cam accepted it. They were shocked to see Jared Zale on the other end.
"How did you get on this frequency?" Cam spat.
"Never mind that. I saw what happened to my son and I'm offering my help," Jared replied.
"And how can you help?" Shane asked.
"I can get us a ship fast enough to get us there in under forty-eight hours," Jesse stated.
"Why would you help us?" Billy asked skeptically.
"Do you really think I wanted my son to be murdered?" Jared asked, silencing them.
"How soon can we leave?" Tori asked.
"My technician can have it ready by tonight. Have your rescue team meet at Gridiron at seven," Jared told her. She nodded.
"We'll be there," Tori decided.
"Who is going? We probably shouldn't leave Blue Bay unprotected," Dustin asked.
"Any that each team is willing to send, We've already called for other teams to help. Jason and I are going," Billy said. Tori smiled tearfully.
"Thank you," she sniffed.
"You better get Blake back here," Leann suggested to her husband, as he put out the call.
Tori kissed her daughter's head, as she prepared to give her to her mother.
"Everything will be fine, baby. Mommy is going to bring Daddy home. I promise," Tori whispered. Alana smiled and stroked her hair.
"Promise you'll be careful?" Alana requested. Tori nodded and they hugged.
"Sweetheart, are you sure you're okay? You're freezing," Alana said in concern. Tori shrugged.
"I don't feel cold," she replied. She turned away and touched the prism around her neck. It glowed a faint blue and was cold as ice. But for now, she pushed her concern aside and finished packing her bag.
"I wish you'd let me come help," Jack lamented.
"It's nothing against you, but we have morphers and I think this one is going to get rough," Jason replied.
"I know...I'm just hoping that you make it in time. I've come to love Hunter as a son and I don't think I could bear seeing my little girl's heart broken," Jack replied.
"We'll bring him back. I don't care if SPA is too scared to go in, cause we're not. We'd never leave one of our own to that fate," Jason said.
"We need to get on the road," Billy said. Tori hugged her parents and kissed her daughter again, before they headed out.
Gridiron Industries
The gathering in the empty lot might have attracted unwanted attention, but Jared had made sure the public was kept out of this evening. In addition to Shane and Blake, Jason, Tommy, Billy, and Adam were accompanying them. Andros and Ashley were also meeting them there on the Astro Megaship. But Tori was blown away by the support of other teams, each one sending representation.
She recognized T.J. and Justin right away.
"I thought we'd come help a fellow blue," Justin said.
"Thank you both," she replied.
"I contacted Leo and Andros is picking him up on the way," T.J. said.
She recognized most of the others and was taken aback that so many were willing to help. Carter and Dana from Lightspeed. Wes and Jen from Time Force. Cole and Alyssa from Wild Force. Conner and Kira from Dino Thunder, though she wasn't surprised by them, as they were close friends to her and Hunter.
Nick and Madison were there to represent Mystic Force. And Mack had come as a representation from Overdrive. Two people she didn't recognize approached.
"You don't know us, but we're from the newest team. I'm Lily," the woman in yellow said.
And I'm RJ When we heard a fellow ranger was in trouble, we wanted to help," RJ added.
"You're from Pai Zhua...I recognize your insignia," Tori said. They nodded.
"Thank you for coming. I'm so humbled that you...all of you have come to help me," Tori sniffed.
"It's going to be okay," Lily said, as she hugged her.
"You're freezing...are you okay?" she asked in concern.
"She's been like that since it happened," Shane mentioned.
"I honestly don't feel cold. I'm fine," she insisted. Lily noticed RJ's pensive look, just as Jared Zale approached.
"What is it RJ?" Lily asked.
"I'm not sure…maybe nothing," he replied.
"Thank you all for coming. If you'll follow me into the hangar, we'll board the ship and be on our way," Jared stated.
"We?" Jason asked.
"Yes, I'm going after my son with you and my pilot will be coming, of course," Jared replied.
"I'd like to co-pilot," Billy said. Jared nodded.
"Of course," he replied, as they boarded the massive space cruiser.
"This thing is huge. Are you sure it's going to be fast enough?" Billy asked.
"Don't let her size fool you. She's as fast as they come," Jared replied. They wasted no more time and were soon leaving the Earth's atmosphere.