The Phantom Princess
A Power Rangers In Space Fic
By: Malaizjan P.J. Shultz
***Since I normally write Batman Beyond and Young Justice fics, I had this fic collecting dust in a notebook. When my fellow DC co-author Reina Grayson decided to re-write her PR fic, I decided to take a break as well and get my own PR fic out. And she has helped me improve a few parts so it's way better than what I wrote WAAAAAAYYY back in 2000... I don't own Power Rangers or any of its seasons because if I did…it would have had at least a PG13 and above rating…As such, my fic is rated teen. ***
Chapter 8
20 yrs in the future...on planet Eltar...
Queen Cerina ran down the hall of her war-torn palace, dodging the chunks of wall that had fallen over the last decade or so ago. Her long blue-blonde hair fell in a gentle wave behind her.
She burst into the Infirmary, and she saw Justin, her captain of the guard, unconscious on the only working bed, doctors scurrying around to stabilize the youngest ranger...period.
She looked to the far wall, Trent Mercer and Kira Ford, the White and Yellow Dino Thunder Rangers stand over the last medi-bed, the Black Dino Thunder Ranger laying upon it.
"Queen Cerina," came Dr. Xiog's gentle voice as he came to her. "Dr. Oliver and the remaining Dino Thunder Rangers were able to rescue the Blue Turbo Ranger...but at a horrible cost. There's nothing we can do."
"I understand." Cerina made her way over to the other remaining rangers.
Dr. Tommy Oliver, the Black Dino Thunder Ranger, was burned on one side of his body, and he had his helmet torn open so he could breathe.
Cerina stood on the empty side of the medi-bed. "Tommy," she whispered sadly.
"Don't ...be sad for me. I knew saving Justin would be the end...of me."
"Just rest now...ok?" Cerina encouraged quietly.
"Trent...Kira...you two need to listen to...Cerina...now. She's in charge..."
"Dr. O." Kira said; a sadness present in her voice.
"It's ok...Kira..."
"We're the only ones left...but at least the dino gems' power transferred." Trent remarked.
"That's right..." Tommy's eyes started to close.
"Tommy…thank you for serving under my father for all those years. Your legend will live on," Cerina said. She took a breath and let it out softly. "I'll take care of them, Tommy...promise..." Cerina whispered as Tommy closed his eyes...and took his last breath.
"Where's Cam?" Cerina asked, holding herself together and taking charge.
"Trying to fix Cyber Cam," Trent answered as he held Kira.
"Thanks." Cerina pulled the sheet up over Tommy's body and went to the castle's lab to see the Green Samurai Ranger.
Eltar Science Labs
Cam, the Green Samurai ranger from the Ninja Storm era, was the last survivor of his group, but he was also super smart and Queen Cerina was happy to have him around. He was working on Cyber Cam, who seems to have been loaded down with multiple data destroying viruses.
There came a knock on the door to the lab and Queen Cerina came in. "Cam." She started. "...Tommy didn't make it."
Cam sighed. He had met the great Tommy Oliver when his now deceased teammates Shane, Tori and Dustin were turned evil by his own uncle, Luthor. "I'm sure Trent and Kira aren't taking it well."
"No. They're not. But now all of the unbound dino gems are locked up with the Wind and Thunder morphers." Cerina wanted to cry. This war with Gasket and the Machine Empire was never ending and death-rittled.
"We'll find a way...do you know if your message ever reached Justin in the past?" Cam asked.
"I hope it did. Our time grows short. But at least the Quasar Sabers are all in one place too. I may need to launch and all-out final fight with Gasket."
"You know that if we lose you, then it's over."
"I know." Cerina then thought about something. "How's Cyber Cam?"
"Whatever Gasket did to him...it's destroying his very programming and ALL the data that he has gained over the years. There's nothing more I can do."
"Crap...Cam, I am going into this last fight with ALL of our available zords. Can we do it?"
"You have the strength to control Dragonzord. Trent and Kira can handle the Dino Thunder zords. My programming skills are already set to help me with the wind ranger and thunder ranger zords. You can handle the Delta Megazord. Yes; it's possible...but I don't know the complete outcome"
"I only want us to try. The remaining Eltarian fleet will join us. And I have Auric's Key...thanks to Tanya, the Zeo Yellow Ranger..." Cerina looked out of the boarded up window, watching the red sky...
"We'll fight to our last strength, your majesty."
"Cam...last time, it's Cerina. You can call me Cerina. There are no titles among rangers..." Cerina recited absently.
"Alright."
Cerina then smacked her own head. "I forgot about the Turbo Mega Zord! Hopefully Justin's up to it."
"I'm sure he is. Justin's strong willed, not to mention stubborn. He'll fight in this battle with you."
"I still can't believe Jason would betray us like this." Cerina said, thinking about who was using the gold ranger powers for evil.
"If we can destroy Gasket and his family, then Jason will be free." Cam reminded her.
Cerina nodded...she missed Zhane, her husband. She needed him. "I already know that he's going to die too. Jason's too far gone now." Just then, something flashed into her mind...Jason didn't know he was evil, something had happened to him when he and Tommy were Zeo rangers.
"Cerina?"
"He didn't know...not at first. But now…The Jason Scott the rangers once knew is gone…I have to end him. At least, I might be willing to try. But I won't hold my breath. Be ready in 12 hours." Cerina then left the lab, wanting to see her husband.
In the Past, morning on planet Kilos
Justin woke up feeling quite sore and rested.
He sat up, rubbing his eyes to get the sleep out of them.
He looked around for Cerina. And he quickly panicked.
Cerina wasn't there.
He ran his hand through his hair and pushed his feet into his shoes and ran to the mouth of the cave-
Only to see Cerina cooking over an open small fire. The skinned animal-or was it alien animal?- was nearly cooked.
Cerina's long hair brushed the ground unbounded and in the sunlight of the morning-the sky had one normal sun and one red sun- her hair looked glacial blue, through and through.
She smiled at Justin. "Morning! Breakfast will be ready soon."
"You scared me."
"Well, you were so tired, and I woke up when the suns rose into the sky. I didn't go far."
"What IS that?" Justin asked of the cooking animal.
"It's called a M'fusok. Tastes like Earth's horse meat."
"Um...we don't eat horse."
"Trini said that in some cultures they do. And that in your 1800's, it was considered a delicacy."
"Oh."
"Go straighten out your hair. It's ...all over the place." Cerina then let out a giggle.
Justin ran his fingers through it again and Cerina saw that it did little to help the hair. She laughed.
"Your hair is sweeping the ground," Justin countered.
"I plan to shower after breakfast. You're welcomed to join me."
Justin heavily blushed.
"I won't be naked silly! I have a bathing suit."
"Oh."
"It's done." Cerina then took the stick off of the fire and carried it back inside. She then spiked it into the ground and came out to put out the fire.
Justin stood there.
"Go on and eat. It tasted really good. Then we can go to the falls."
Cerina took down her cooking fire in just a few moments and she hid all the parts under a rock. She saw Justin sigh in contentment. "Full, Justin?"
"Yeah..." Justin enjoyed breakfast even though he ate an animal he didn't know.
Cerina stood up and went back into the cave to get her small carrier bag. She came back out. "Time for the falls."
"Are we climbing again?" Justin whined.
"No silly. We take the path." Cerina headed to a small, narrow walkway at the other end of the ledge. "Follow me."
Cerina was careful as her and Justin made their way to the falls. It was only 200 feet away and it was a lush alcove of beauty with pinkish-clear water falling from above.
Cerina placed her bag next to some rocks next to the falls themselves. After pulling out a small circular item, she pulled off her space jacket and boots.
Justin examined a slate grey leafy plant before he saw Cerina bend over and pull off her skirt. He shut his eyes right away.
Now in her bathing suit, she looked over at Justin and she chuckled. She then undid her braid and her light blue hair flowed free down her back. "Ok Justin. I'm good."
"You need a bell to tell me when you...um...undress?" he said, ending on a squeak when he saw her.
Cerina shook her head. "I refuse to wear a bell."
Justin gawked at her.
Her bathing suit was very revealing...and he was trying to not notice anything about her.
Her suit was a lilac glittery color with the sides all exposed. It was also a halter-top style, being held in place by a thin string. The middle of her suit was split, revealing the sides of her chest and her naval. And the back of the suit was very open, only two strings holding it to her body as the back of her suit started at her waist. She slowly made her way into the water, clueless as to how she was affecting him. So he checked out all of the plants to distract himself.
Cerina then began to hum, and her voice got Justin's attention.
He looked back at her and she splashed the water around her, as if playing. Justin wondered when was the last time Cerina got to relax and be a kid?
Justin made his way to the edge of the falls, and he watched Cerina enjoy herself.
But a flower-like plant caught his eyes and he went to it.
Cerina turned around to check on Justin when she saw him reach for the Z'noch. "Justin! Pull your hand back! Now!" she cried, getting out of the water as fast as she could.
"Why?" Justin asked as he did as he was told instantly. He then noticed small teeth outlined the petals.
Cerina ran over to him. "Because that plant will try to eat your hand!" Dripping wet, she put her hands on his shoulders and turned him away. "The Z'noch plant will digest blood from anything crazy enough to touch its petals. It's similar to a plant on Earth...Trini told me the name...hm...a Flytrap?"
"Venus Flytrap?"
"Yeah! That's it!"
"Thanks for the tip."
"No prob." Cerina then saw how he was blushing. "Justin?"
"Um...that's really...showing ...stuff..."
Cerina looked down at her bathing suit. "Are boys on Earth prunes?!"
"Uh, I think the word is prudes and no. It's just that you're so...beautiful. Zhane's lucky." Justin remarked, his blush going an even deeper shade of red.
"Oh..."
"If you were on Earth; you'd be beating guys away from you."
"Really?" Cerina teased. To her, it sounded like the boys on Justin's planets would have lost control of their hearts and die if they saw her.
"Yea, they would all want to date you, but you're not just only committed to someone else, but you can read people really well, and most of them would only want you for...well I'm not old enough to understand fully."
Cerina then turned red herself. "Justin...Let me finish up then I'll cover up."
"Okay; I'll just try to tell the difference between the plants and the flytraps."
She shook her head. "I wish all guys were as careful as you, little brother." Cerina kissed his forehead and went back to the water to finish bathing.
About ten minutes later, she climbed out and pulled out two towel-like cloths; one that she wrapped around her waist and one to dry off her long hair.
"I shouldn't take long...but don't look okay?" Justin said. He needed to wash his hair as best he could so he could get it to stay down.
Cerina closed her eyes for him. "On Eltar, this wouldn't be an issue."
"Why not?" he asked as he tore off his shirt.
"Because you'd be waited on. It can be...annoying at times," she admitted.
"Why would I be waited on?"
Cerina merely chuckled. "You'll see when we get to Eltar."
"Wait-you're going home?!"
"Yes. I need to get the piece of the sword of power that's there. So it can be reformed."
"The piece? I thought the sword was there?" Justin stripped down to his boxers and jumped into the water.
"The sword is in pieces...for protection." Cerina added evasively as she threw her soap at Justin, who caught it. "You can use it."
"Um...thanks..." He sniffed it so it didn't have a flowery scent. Which it didn't.
Cerina dried her hair but watched Justin from time to time.
"Hey Cerina, why did you call me little brother?" Justin asked, his curiosity finally getting the best of him.
"Because...you remind me of me when I was your age...before I left my life behind." Cerina reached for her brush and started to work on her hair.
"You regret doing it...don't you?"
"I was just trying to save them...the Mercerites almost killed them...and all they did was try and protect me."
"It's what rangers do; you know that better than anyone else."
"Yeah," she said absently, brushing her hair into a braid.
"You know, Tommy was about to be destroyed by Divatox, and TJ and Cassie were there to save him. They didn't care what was going on, but they couldn't just leave him in her clutches." Justin said, remembering the events of when the old turbo rangers had to transfer their powers. "Sacrifice is part of the job."
Cerina focused on her braiding, ignoring her own tears.
"Listen, once we stop Gasket, the Mercerites will deactivate, and you can return to your old life."
"I know..." Cerina then wrapped her braid up into a quick bun and held it down with a few metal sticks.
It was just then that Justin finished up and was putting his shirt back on. "So did you remember the canteens for the water?"
"Yeah. Better fill them up." Cerina wiped at her eyes before pulling out four canteens. She pulled them open so they went from flat to bottles in seconds.
Justin took one from the pile and got to the water's edge...but there was a problem, as he stepped on a moss like covered rock and fell right into the pool. Cerina was quick to pull him out but she could tell that he was hurt.
"Oh man...what was that stuff." Justin said, and pain was lacing his voice.
She sprang into action, using her medi-kit to wrap Justin's cut up foot. "Ikzan. Similar to moss from Earth."
"Seems to be slicker than moss." Justin said.
She then filled the remaining canteens put everything back into her bag and secured her bag. She then lifted Justin into her arms. "It is. It also cuts skin like paper when touched."
"Whoa! You're...going to carry me?!"
"You can't walk on that foot."
"This is embarrassing..." he whispered.
"At least no one can see you." Cerina made her way back up to the cave, carrying Justin bridal style, his right foot wrapped. She never got winded while carrying him and her smile hid poorly the fact that she was enjoying this a bit too much.
Justin was still NOT happy, and his body being tense told Cerina that as she was carrying him.
"I should have warned you about the Ikzan." she remarked. Once she got them to the cave, she walked Justin over to his sleeping bag and sat him on it. She reached over to the med kit to clean the deep gash from knee to ankle.
Justin tried moving his foot and hissed as a fresh surge of pain hit him. Cerina then grabbed the cleaning cloth and dabbed the gash with the greatest of care.
"It really hurts." he told her.
"I'll try to be..." Cerina then stopped. She felt her heart sank.
"What's wrong?" Justin asked after Cerina removed the rest of the bandages.
"The Ikzan cut all the way to your bones. It's rare but it can happen. Ikzan can be found on over 40 planets…"
"Any way to fix it?" Justin questioned.
"I can do something better than just patching it up. I need to concentrate." Cerina held his leg with great care and closed her eyes.
Justin was nervous. "Um...Cerina?"
She never responded as she glowed a stark white-yellow, her light growing brighter to the point that Justin had to close his eyes.
His foot was engulfed in this light.
Cerina focused her energy on mending the muscles along with the skin and easing the Earth Ranger's pain.
Justin felt sleepy and he lay back, his eyes drifting close as he no longer felt any pain.
Cerina waited until the deep cuts were completely sealed before she opened her eyes and Justin was asleep.
His foot was no longer cut up and bleeding, but it still needed to be protected for a while. She wrapped his foot with clean bandages and then covered him with a thermal blanket. After making sure he was sound asleep, she stood up.
She felt her vision gray. But she blinked and it was gone.
Cerina then tapped her morpher to test its weight. She then went outside to see how much time she had.
The sun was high in the sky and slightly over the north side of the planet.
Her decision made, Cerina took off, looking to see if she could get back to her ship and find Beta.
In the Future…
Queen Cerina guided the Delta Megazord toward KO-35. She knew that even with all of the Megazords present and the remaining 40,000 Eltarian Fleet ships, it wasn't going to be enough.
Justin was seated behind her, and was unusually quiet. She knew it was nerves. They were going to get into a fight none may survive.
As Cerina mentally prepared herself to fight Gasket and his family, Justin slowly stood up from his seat. His eyes flashed red for a moment. His mission was at hand.
Cerina felt something was up. She slowly pulled her blaster from her holster...
Justin saw the smallest of movements from her and sat back down quietly.
His timing wasn't right.
Cerina was going to keep an eye on Justin, but she heard commotion coming over the comm.
"Cam, are you sure about this?" Trent asked.
"It's our only chance to end this war." Cam said.
"Isn't Cerina the one leading this mission?" Kira asked.
"I am; but Cam is the strategist."
"Cerina suggested we bring all the zords in this fight as a show of strength."
"Justin, time for you to get to Turbo Megazord," Cerina told him, a hitch in her voice.
"Right." Justin stood up and paused. "You sure you want an all-out fight with Gasket?"
"It's time to end this."
"Ok. See you soon!" Justin then headed over to the Turbo Megazord.
"Cam...it's your party," Cerina told him.
"I wish it wasn't..." Cam said.
"You know I believe in you."
"Of course, Prin-uh...Cerina..."
"Just follow the plan, and we'll do just fine," Cerina said.
"I can't wait to end this whole thing!" Trent said happily.
"Let's make Dr. O and ALL the fallen rangers proud." Kira said, her ptera zord screeching in unison with her wishes.
Back in the past…
The large group of rangers arrived at the downed ship, and they were starting to worry, but none more so that Trey, Zhane, Andros and Shadow. Seeing as Cerina had grown up with them, they couldn't help but want to rush into the ship.
"Alright, let's find this gold ranger and make him pay." Zhane said with a take charge tone in his voice.
"Relax Zhane, let's find Justin and Cerina first." Shadow remarked, keeping a level head.
Zhane charged on ahead. He got to the open hatched door, turns on his light stick and plunged inside. Consequences be damned.
"Zhane!" Andros ran after him and so did Trey and Shadow.
"Does he always show this much spirit?" Trini questioned.
"Yeah," came Shadow's answer, being the last one in to chase Zhane.
Zhane stood there, midway down the hall, looking at the panels that had fallen off, the hanging wires from everywhere, the comp systems malfunctioning.
Andros stood next to Zhane. "This place is a mess."
"Was it fighting that did all of this damage, or the crash?" Trey asked, not really knowing much about Omega.
"The crash..." Andros starts to say but he saw blaster marks on a fallen panel. He examined it. "And the fighting."
"We should try to find them," Shadow said.
"Split up...teams of two." Tommy said, his leadership qualities coming back to the surface.
Trini went to the storage room right away; she knew the ship better than most of the former rangers, which was located just off the hatch door and she saw that the camping gear was gone. "No need. They aren't on the ship!"
"TOMMY!" Billy yelled from outside.
Everyone went back outside. Billy was kneeled down to the sand and saw that there were two sets of tracks. "Looks like they left the ship on their own."
"Teams of two, just like Tommy suggested." TJ said.
"Oh yea, you guys were red Rangers." Shadow remarked.
Tommy nodded. "Billy and Trini. Jason and Trey. Zack and Kimberly. Shadow and Cassie. Zhane and me. Andros and TJ. Carlos and Ashley. Keep the comms open."
Back in the future…
Gasket's main two ships got into position, as the Delta Megazord approached with all of the other Megazords following...
Gasket smiled as he hailed the Delta Megazord. He laughed before saying, "You must think I'm naive."
"Not even," Cerina said tensely.
"Were you truly thinking you could land on KO-35, besiege my castle and attack my armies?! You have been a thorn that must be eliminated."
"I've been proud to be that thorn, you will NOT keep my mother's planet." Cerina hollared.
"I have kept her planet, the Earth, you name it, I have it!"
"This ends now, I'm taking back one of my homes and the homes of my knights."
"Go ahead. I'll enjoy the slaughter..."
Gasket's flanking ship fired on the Delta Megaship.
Cerina took the hit and returned fire.
"So how does it feel to be a widow soon."
"Archerina..." Cerina whispered. "How will you feel to be widowed... permanently?" Cerina fired again, damaging Archerina's ship.
The Delta Megazord headed for KO-35.
"Good luck stopping me." Cerina stated over the comm connection.
"You will die then, Queen Cerina! All ships! OPEN FIRE!" cried Gasket.