WAR, PART 4.
13:30. Darkseid's planet.
As the Zone C Rangers were about to begin their battle to gouge out Darkseid's eyes, Commander Wayne had been held by Darkseid's creatures for about five minutes. After he had been caught, he was taken to one of the portals in the air.
Upon passing through said portal, he was taken to a planet that could be appeared to be dangerous just by looking at it. It was just like what J'onn had seen. It was a planet with a red surface and a few large holes that looked like giant craters across the planet's surface.
The commander could see how many people had been taken by Darkseid's creatures. There were people from all over the world, considering Darkseid and his monstrous army had invaded the whole world. The most amazing thing was the vast number of people.
There were thousands upon thousands who would surely have the same fate as many others who had already been turned into those monstrous creatures. They would have no will of their own and a sole purpose to serve Darkseid.
He covered several more meters until he had to be carried down a fairly long corridor. He began to see many capsules. It was posible they were from people who had already been turned or simply from the other alien civilizations that were not yet under the league's protection or within his reach.
He knew that this had to be the moment, so he pulled his boomerang from his belt and stabbed at the creature, causing it to drop and roll to the ground. He pulled the Morpher out immediately after this.
"Justice League, activate!" he said, transforming back into the Dark Ranger.
The creatures noticed his presence, immediately going after him.
"Dark Sword," he said, pulling the sword out again.
He spent a few minutes fighting the creatures. He had to dodge blows that could have seriously hurt him, in addition to the deadly fire that kept spitting out of his mouth.
After eliminating all the creatures in the area, he continued running down the long corridor until he reached the bottom where there was an automatic door that split open in purple. The door opened and he found a gray cloak on a tech console that wrapped around him in a circle.
It was all very surprising, but he had to stop it. He was undergoing the horrible and painful transformation process with Kal who was starting to get infected by a blue liquid that was clinging to his body even trying to get into his eyes.
"On Earth we didn't have the necessary equipment to turn you into one of them, but in my lab it's another story. You are the next generation for Darkseid. The Kryptonians are long gone. We needed one of your kind to create the ultimate Parademons who will defeat all Power Rangers on planet Earth and every other planet that comes after. Everyone praise Darkseid. Yes, I know the metamorphosis is painful, but soon you won't feel anything again," the hooded man said all while Kal kept screaming and writhing.
The Dark Ranger ran up to him, jumping over the console and kicking the hooded man. He smashed him into his console before grabbing him and hauling him to his feet. He flipped him over, revealing his terrible appeance.
The hooded man had completely white skin. He was already thin which gave him the appearance of a skinned skeleton. In addition, he had rather dull eyes with small black pupils with wrinkles under them as well as a scar running across his mouth on the left side.
"Stop the procedure!" the Dark Ranger ordered, placing his sword near his neck.
"I am Desaad, the great scientist of Darkseid. I do not obey any order that is not his or his lieutenants, and you are in the wrong place human," the pale man who called himself Desaad said.
A second later more of the creatures Desaad seemed to have called Parademons had entered the room. The Dark Ranger kicked Desaad in the head so he wouldn't move as he smashed the Parademons to pieces again.
Next, he grabbed Desaad again who had pulled out a knife he had tucked up his sleeve and tried to attack him, but the Dark Ranger easily wrested it from him. He struck Desaad on the nose before throwing it aside.
"I admire your perseverance, Earthling, but once the metamorphic process begins, nothing can stop it. Your Ranger no longer exists. He will help us soon and your planet will become another one that has fallen into the hands of Darkseid," Desaad said with a smile.
In response, the Dark Ranger once again put his sword to his neck, but this time closer to him.
"What if you never get it done?" Asked the Dark Ranger.
This did make Desaad look at him fearfully.
"You wouldn't," Desaad said, still nervous.
"Wouldn't you?" The Dark Ranger asked.
Fortunately for Desaad, another of the 'parademons' had crept up to protect him. Unfortunately, he couldn't anticipate the Dark Ranger who always knew that these situations had a surprise or two. He ducked the two of them and threw one of his explosive boomerangs at the Parademon, making it explode.
"You're not good at combat," he said before hitting him on the head with his Dark Sword.
With Desaad knocked out, the Dark Ranger knew that he had to shut down the machine. He couldn't let the process continue. Once he did, he would do everything to bring Kal to his senses in order to take him back to Earth to defeat Darkseid.
A thought began to haunt his mind. Desaad had attacked him with his right hand which he was right-handed, so the off button must be on the same side. He pressed a yellow button on the right side that was on top of several other red buttons.
He seemed to have succeeded as the place Kal was in had gone dark, and Kal had fallen. The calm did not last long, though as another group of parademons entered the room, ready to eliminate the Dark Ranger.
The Dark Ranger drew his sword again to fight them, although it was not necessary. Before he had a chance to fight, Kal had jumped in front of the Parademons and hit them with all his might, sending some crashing into the wall. Though they were already dead from Kal piercing their chests with his blows while others had been shot by his heat vision.
This behavior worried the Dark Ranger. This was not typical behavior for Kal. And how right he was because Kal immediately began to attack him, throwing his strongest blows at him and firing his heat vision at him. Kal's eyes no longer had pupils. Instead, they were only bright blue like the other cables attached to his body.
"Cadet El, stop!" The Dark Ranger said, trying to reason with the Kal who had already been infected by Desaad's science.
It was all in vain since Kal kept attacking him. "Cadet, it's me. Your commander. Have you forgotten?" He asked with the same purpose of stopping him, but with the same result. "Cadet, Darkseid is invading and attacking our planet. You're the Red Ranger. You have to go there."
The Dark Ranger had to dodge other blows, even jumping quite a bit to evade Kal who would not listen to reason, but he knew he couldn't hold out for long. Kal would hit him sooner or later. This made him think of using another strategy, and that was to tell him what he never wanted to tell him, something that he always kept not only from him but from the other Rangers.
"Cadet" he began trying to calm him down. " You are my Red Ranger," he said before dodging another blow. "You are the one I chose as the Red Ranger of Zone C, because I knew you were the one."
This did stop Kal for a moment, but he started to attack him again. The Dark Ranger knew that this worked, so he continued. "Cadet, I didn't choose you as the Red Ranger because you're the strongest, or because you're the toughest, or the smartest, or the most powerful. I chose you because ever since you told me that answer about everyone deserves a chance to be the team leader, I knew you were the best leader for them. You have something in you that encourages others to be better, but by a completely opposite method."
Kal continued to attack, but slower. He had to keep talking.
"Despite the many times you have frustrated and angered me, I have great respect for you, Cadet. I've always had to be tougher and colder with others because it always gets immediate results that way, but when you're at your best, you encourage others in a better way and the missions have gone better than I had anticipated. And now, we need that version of you to defend Zone C and save your friends as well as the entire planet. Diana, John, Barry, Shayera, and Lois, they need you there, and I need you."
Kal was about to shoot heat vision at him, but then he put his hands to his head and began to scream. It was painful, but it seemed that he was getting rid of the technology that had infected his brain and his body. He watch as the blue wires began detaching and falling to the ground. He continued like this for a few minutes until he fell to his knees with his hands resting on the ground.
Kal opened his eyes, they were no longer bright blue, but they were his normal eyes. Then, he raised his head and saw the Dark Ranger approaching him, offering his hand. Kal took it, of course.
"Was what you said true, Wayne?" Kal asked.
This made the Dark Ranger sigh in frustration, but internally. He hoped that he hadn't heard that, but, he knew he had no escape now.
"What I said was true, Cadet. That's why I chose you as the Red Ranger and now we need you there to help Zone C," he replied.
"Thank you, Commander," Kal said. "That procedure was painful, and it would have been terrible if it had hurt others. I'm also sorry I attacked you."
"The important thing is that you're okay now and we can go back if there's a portal open," the Dark Ranger said before giving his Morpher to Kal. "By the way, just because we're on another planet doesn't mean you can stop calling me Commander."
Kal followed him. He hoped there was a portal they could jump into to get back to Earth.
XXX
Zone C. 14:00.
The Rangers were still fighting with Darkseid, but this time they could stand up to him. Without his eyes, his power had waned, but he was still very strong. It seemed that he could see everything even if he had been stabbed in the eyes.
Obviously, Diana was the only one who could stand up to Darkseid, apart from Kal, but she still hadn't returned. Barry, John, and Shayera were still throwing short attacks at him, but they knew it was better not to repeat them, because Darkseid could still hit them hard.
"Whenever you want, J'onn," Shayera said on the air, knowing he could see them on security cameras as he kept shooting at Darkseid and the parademons.
XXX
Base of Zone C.
J'onn had spoken to Zone B commander Roy Harper, asking him to send the tech Ranger to Zone C. At first, Harper had argued with him, because he needed his entire squad to keep saving lives. But, J'onn told him that he was the key to being able to stop the invasion for good. This convinced Harper to contact his Ranger, but he told him that it might take a while because of the situation.
Unfortunately, it had taken more than ten minutes. It was dangerous not only for the other Power Rangers squadrons but also for Commander Wayne and Kal who would most likely need a portal to return.
"Come on, we need you here," J'onn said. For the first time, he was getting desperate.
At that moment, a portal opened, but it wasn't like Darkseid's. It was seen to be from Zone B, which had difficulties with the hundreds of Parademons that kept attacking.
"You needed me?" asked Víctor Stone, The Blue Ranger from Zone B.
"Yes, I need you to connect to this box. This was brought by one of those creatures you've been fighting," J'onn told him.
"Wow. I had never seen such technology before. I don't know if I can connect to it," Victor said. He hated this. For the first time, he had come across technology that he might not be able to make work to his advantage.
"We need you on this, Ranger Stone. You're the only one who can do it, and this might be our only chance to stop the invasion. You have to do this," J'onn told him desperately.
These words gave Victor encouragement, but he knew there was no guarantee. "I will do my best for everyone, J'onn, but I can't guarantee if I can make it work," said Víctor.
"Just do your best," J'onn said.
Victor pulled a cable from his left hand and connected it to the box. At first, the box refused Victor's connection. It seemed to have a firewall every time he tried to give it an order. He went on like this for several minutes, but it wasn't bad.
Even if he didn't make the box work in his favor, he was getting all the information on Darkseid, his planet, and everything on it.
J'onn was getting more and more desperate, his Rangers were holding out, but just barely. They needed that help as soon as possible. "Victor, I don't want to rush you, but you've been sitting still too long."
"Don't push, J'onn. I have absorbed all the information from the Box. They call themselves Mother Boxes, and although it did not allow me to give it an order at this time, the information helped me understand that I have to speak their language. Once this is done, it is simple," said Víctor.
Seconds later, some cables came out of the red circle of the Mother Box and connected to the red dot that Victor had between his two eyes. J'onn noticed this, but he didn't know if that was good or bad.
"Victor, are you okay?" J'onn asked.
"Yes. He only connected with me to establish a connection. I finally got past his defenses," Victor replied.
"Network connected," the robotic voice from the Mother Box said to Victor, but J'onn couldn't hear it.
"I have it. Time to send these vermin home," Victor said smiling.
xxx
The Rangers were still fighting Darkseid, but Barry had to team up with Shayera to stop the Parademons. There were already too many, overwhelming them. Diana and John kept Darkseid busy.
To everyone's surprise, including Darkseid's, a horseshoe-shaped light lit up on the chest of all the Parademons. They tried to attack more people and the Rangers, but they began to get sucked into the many portals that were still there.
Barry was going to hit one, but it started to get pulled into the portal just like one that almost attacked Shayera. The best thing was when the horseshoe light began to illuminate on Darkseid's black belt. A portal opened up next to him. He began to be attracted to it even despite the strong force.
The Rangers knew that this was the opportunity to attack without ceasing.
"Get him in that portal!" Diana yelled.
"You said it," Barry said before attacking with two blows to the chest, but was stopped again by the hand of Darkseid, who knocked him to the ground.
He was about to crush Barry, but John hit him on the head with a created anvil through his mind. Diana kicked him in the face which Barry used to get to safety.
"How dare you? I am Darkseid!" Darkseid yelled, throwing punches at Diana.
To her surprise, and to the others, Kal stepped out of that great portal and punched him in the back.
"Are you Darkseid? Guess what? that doesn't matter here. You're on planet Earth which is protected by the Power Rangers," Kal said before running to attack him.
Diana, John, Shayera and Barry were happy that Kal was back. Commander Wayne must have done quite a bit to get him back. This made Diana wonder if he was coming back too.
Kal was going to hit him, but Darkseid intercepted the blow he wanted to throw at him with his hand. The villain would have hit him if not for a small explosive aimed at his face, causing him to drop Kal.
"You already messed with my cadets once, Darkseid, you won't do it again," said the Dark Ranger who had come out of the portal ready to attack.
The other Rangers were happy even more so now that both their commander and Kal were back here.
Kal seized this opportunity and started hitting him in the face and chest over and over again. Darkseid was being pummeled, but not by much. He got up again and started throwing punches at him, punches that Kal dodged. He used one to pull him to the ground.
Kal punched Darkseid in the face again so he wouldn't interrupt him anymore, and now he was returning the favor of the laser eyes as he shot his heat vision straight into his eyes. Darkseid could only scream in pain as he received all this heat vision from the Red Ranger. Darkseid managed to slam him away with his forearm and get to his feet.
He may have attacked again, but Barry hit him, John threw another jet at him, Diana kicked him in the face once more, and Shayera got behind him again to shock him.
The Dark Ranger knew they were close to sending him home, so he grabbed another device from another compartment on his belt. He ran over to Darkseid, jumped, and strapped it to his chest before turning it on.
The device turned out to be a very powerful thruster that began to take him closer and closer to the portal. It would have sent it back, but Darkseid clung to the edges of the portal.
"Let's attack together, Diana," Kal said.
Diana just nodded, the two of them running towards Darkseid and jumping to hit him. A single punch didn't help, so they kept hitting him over and over in the torso. Darkseid seemed to start to relent, but it wasn't going to be enough.
xxx
At the base, J'onn saw that the Rangers almost sent Darkseid back home, but they needed more energy.
"Victor, power up that portal. We almost sent Darkseid back where he belongs," J'onn ordered Victor.
"Understood," said Víctor, who immediately gave the order to the Mother Box. However, the result was not optimal.
"Error," the robotic voice from the Mother Box told him. Seconds later, there was a small shock that caused the command to cease.
"This is not good," Victor said.
xxx
With the Mother Box command nullified, and with the thruster depleted, Darkseid was free again. He tried to attack the Dark Ranger. Besides that he attacked Kal and Diana with his hands, sending them flying a few meters away.
"And now What? Why can't he just go?" Barry asked.
"Something must have gone wrong, Barry," John said.
"It doesn't matter, Cadets. We have to get rid of him," said the Dark Ranger.
The Rangers knew they had to keep fighting for a little while longer. J'onn had sent all the other Paradedemons back to his planet, but Darkseid needed a little more work.
Barry ran up to Darkseid and punched him in the face, John hit him with an armored ship, one that Darkseid couldn't stop instantly. He did manage to slow it down and send it back to John, but he turned it into a missile that flew away.
He sent it back to Darkseid, causing it to explode. Diana swung at him with her sword, Kal fired more heat vision at him followed by a blow to the chest. Shayera threw another grenade at him, and the Dark Ranger threw another small explosive.
XXX
"Come on, I know it works, stupid machine," Victor said. "It's been three minutes now and I can't get it to work."
J'onn was thinking of telling him something, but he knew that Victor was the most capable person to do this, so he left him to continue.
"System connected," said the voice from the Mother Box.
"Great," Victor said.
"Insufficient power," said the voice from the Mother Box.
"Oh no. I need a power source. And I can't use the city's power," Victor said.
"Did you say energy?" J'onn asked. He knew what he was going to do.
xxx
The battle was still hard, and they didn't need an interruption like a call to the Morpher from him.
"This is not a good time, J'onn," the Dark Ranger said.
"Don't interrupt, Commander. Ranger Stone can send Darkseid back home, but he needs a lot of energy. Send Ranger Hol," J'onn said, yelling at him. This was not the time to be calm.
"Cadet Hol, go to the base. We need you to power up the box," the Dark Ranger said.
"I can't go fast enough in the patrol car," Shayera said as she fired non-stop at Darkseid.
Hearing that, Barry froze for a second. He knew what he had to do.
"You'll hate me, but I swear you'll forgive me for this, Shay," Barry said to Shayera before running up to her and carrying her back to the base with all the speed he had.
He told her this because she really hated being carried around in his arms. She had always hated it, but the situation called for it. Luckily for him, the trip only took ten seconds, and that included getting into the base. Luckily J'onn had opened the doors because he knew Barry would need that.
"Here she is, J'onn. I have to go back," Barry said leaving Shayera in the lab before heading out again.
"Shayera, I need you to give me all the energy you have to feed the box. Thus, we will be able to send Darkseid back to his planet," Victor said.
"Understood," Shayera said. She ran to Victor, placing her hands on the box and beginning to transfer the electrical energy that she could emanate to the Box.
xxx
With Shayera's energy, Darkseid was drawn back into the portal that would send him back to his planet.
Kal tried to land another blow to make Darkseid's return to his planet, but he somehow managed to stop it with his hand despite losing his sight. He held him against his body with both of his hands.
"You will come with me," Darkseid said to Kal. He knew he couldn't stay on the planet, so he would take Kal as a consolation prize.
"I've already been once. You won't take me again," Kal said before butting his head. Darkseid couldn't resist and was once again close to entering the portal.
xxx
Victor was succeeding, but the energy Shayera was giving him wasn't enough. Darkseid could still hold his own.
"Shayera, you're giving me the energy of a Christmas tree I need the energy of a power tower," Victor said.
Shayera complied and began to emanate much more energy.
XXX
Darkseid had already entered the portal, but he refused to let it close.
Seeing this, Kal shot Darkseid again with heat vision. John fired another missile at him, Diana thrust her sword at him, and the Dark Ranger threw another explosive at him. Barry began to swirl the air by moving his arms in a circle at full speed. This managed to push Darkseid further back. The portal was already a small circle away from closing.
"We can't bring the Super Cannon with Shayera out," John said.
"Leave it to me," Kal said, running towards Darkseid again, but this time he drew his Morpher and drew a sword before jumping.
"Red Ranger Slash," he said while in midair before launching the slash at Darkseid.
Upon receiving the cut, Darkseid could no longer resist and let go for a second. That second served so that the portal could be closed definitively.
The Rangers had their adrenaline through the roof, so it took them a few seconds to react to what they had just done.
"We won?" Barry asked.
"We did it?" John asked.
"Apparently, we did win," the Dark Ranger said.
"Yes!" Barry yelled before throwing himself to the ground.
"Barry, are you okay?" Kal said going to him.
"Yeah, I'm just resting," Barry said. "I haven't needed a break in a long time. This was exhausting."
After listening the Barry's answer, he and Diana sat on the ground. Kal had fought very hard for the first time. No villain they had faced before had challenged him to this level. Even though an Amazon, Diana wanted this break, even if it was short. Meanwhile, John rubbed his broken arm before sitting up a bit. Despite his cast, his arm still ached.
The Dark Ranger just stayed on his feet. Finally, his squad of Power Rangers had defeated the great threat that he had thought would come at some point. He knew he was going to have to tell them what they had always expected to hear, but they needed this break before they did.
Without them being able to anticipate, another portal opened.
"Oh, not again," Barry said.
The Rangers got into fighting stance again, but it wasn't Darkseid coming out. It was all the people who had been kidnapped by the Parademons. They were running with all their might. They didn't want the portal to close and stay in that horrible place.
"This is Stone's work, right, J'onn?" the Dark Ranger asked, taking the Morpher out to call the scientist from him.
"Good thinking, Commander," J'onn replied. "But it's not just here. He opened portals all over the world for people to return home."
Seeing that the Power Rangers were close to them, people began to thank them by shouting, because there were many and they couldn't thank them face to face. Even other people from the city went to that area and also applauded the Power Rangers. They had managed to stop the invasion and brought back the kidnapped people.
Even the mom with the girl that Kal had saved had come to the area to thank them, but especially the Little girl, who ran to Kal and hugged him around his leg.
"Thank you, Red Ranger, for saving me and my mother," the little girl said with her tender voice.
Kal hugged her back, pulling her away a bit so he could bend down from her and hug her.
"It was nothing. It was nothing," Kal said as a thought entered his mind. He was flattered by this.
"I guess I can get used to this," Barry said. He liked being applauded and he liked seeing Kal hugging that girl.
"By the way, Commander, how did you know to come back through this portal?" Diana asked the Dark Ranger.
"Simple, Cadet Prince, many portals were opened, but they were at a high altitude and many of those things passed through them. It was not the best to use them. It wasn't until a very large one opened up close to us and we heard Darkseid's voice. It wasn't hard to know what it was," the Dark Ranger explained.
XXX
Zone C Base. 17:00
Everything had calmed down some time later. The League used several of their ships to send people who had returned to the Earth, but to the wrong country or state. It would be a long haul for the ship pilots, but it was necessary after an invasion that nearly destroyed the planet.
The Zone C Rangers, Commander Wayne, and J'onn thanked Ranger Stone for helping them with the Mother Box. They would not have sent Darkseid and his creatures back to their planet without him.
Ranger Stone told them that later he would send them the information he had acquired from the Mother Box so that the entire League on the planet would be fully informed about Darkseid and his entire army. They would be waiting for that information.
Once Kal returned to the base, he gave Lois a big kiss when he saw her. Well, he had been close to ceasing to exist and becoming a Parademon. He told her how scared he had been of never seeing her or his friends again. Lois was obviously scared to learn that he had been kidnapped, but she was beyond relieved and happy that he was home.
John also took the opportunity to call his wife, Mari, to see if she was okay too. It turns out that, like Lois, she had used her right as an ex-Ranger to enter the base along with her son in Zone A. Luckily, they had been let in where she was safe during the invasion.
John told her that his arm had been broken, but that he was fine, and she wouldn't have to worry too much about him. He would tell her the whole story later as well as the big fight against Darkseid. He could even hear his son Rex trying to tell him something, but he still couldn't speak. John told him that he loved him very much, just like his mother.
In the conference room, Commander Wayne looked more relaxed and calm, but they couldn't see that he was hiding his true feelings.
"Cadets, you did a great job keeping Darkseid busy while I went back to get Cadet El. And even though we won, the city and many others will need time to rebuild after the damage from the creatures that Darkseid calls Parademons, and Darkseid himself created," Commander Wayne said.
"Thank you Commander," the five Rangers said in unison.
"Great, I think we need a big celebration after beating a mastodon like Darkseid. I propose a party inside the base," Barry said, raising his hand. Curiously enough, the others thought it was a good idea.
"We didn't beat Darkseid," the commander said, bowing his head a little.
"What did you say, Commander?" Kal asked. The other Rangers were waiting for what he would say.
"I said we didn't beat anyone. Yes, we sent Darkseid back to his planet along with his entire army, but only that. He isn't being held at any League base or prison planet to keep an eye on him. We could only send him back, which means that they can return at any moment. He could return, much more prepared and stronger to continue with his goal of conquering the planet," Commander Wayne said with the most serious voice that he could use. "That means that, until we finally stop him, this is going to be a war, a long war," he finished.
"So we will have to fight a big war for a long time?" Barry asked. Commander Wayne turned to them.
"You won't have to fight it," the commander said.
The Rangers again said nothing. They had heard it again, but they were wondering what he was going to say.
"Well, we sent him back to his planet, so if you want to resign from the League or go to another area to continue as Rangers or as a soldier, then the time is right for that," Commander Wayne said.
Kal was undecided. Commander Wayne was doing what Dick had suggested he do with them to get him to let them go. Finally, he had what he wanted since he had arrived, but what he had lived through today had changed him. Kal stepped forward.
"Can I say something, Commander?" Kal asked.
The commander just nodded his head. He had caught his attention in what he was going to say.
"First, I want to apologize to all of you for making the pact with Barry and keeping it a secret from all of you, and for being a complete hypocrite to you, Diana. I shouldn't have kept that from you, and it was selfish of me to do that too. The most curious thing is that I wanted to leave zone C since I arrived, but now…"
He took a minute to continue. He didn't think he would say this. "… but now I don't want to do it anymore. That girl I saved made me realize how important we are to Zone C, and how important the other squads are to the rest of the world. We're needed here. We could go to other bases and zones, but here, we are essential to make the zone safe. We can do much more, be the Power Rangers, and uphold the ideals that the League defends, peace and justice.
"What we did today is unparalleled, and it would be irresponsible to stop right now. So, despite what I did before with that pact, I implore you all to stay as a true team, and defeat Darkseid for good," Kal finished putting his hand in front of everyone, waiting for everyone to put theirs on top of him.
The four of them were thoughtful, at first. Barry didn't know if he should leave or not, but now he knew that this was also his place, not only because of others but because he also wanted to maintain the ideal that he had long forgotten about.
Besides that, he wasn't going to let Darkseid back into Zone C without him being there to stop him. Diana was a bit wary of Kal at first, but hearing him speak, she knew he had been telling the truth. Shayera was still annoyed with him, but it was the first time she had seen him speak in such a kind tone as a true leader. It was impressive. John also saw that Kal was no longer the same as he had said that he wanted to leave Zone C out of pure disgust.
"Even if you left, I was going to stay, Kal, no Amazon runs from war. I said that I would not obey your orders again, but hearing what you have said, I am willing to continue with you as the Red Ranger," Diana said placing her hand on his.
"I'd give you another electric shock, but I'm more than willing to continue as long as you don't do the same thing again from a secret pact, Kal," Shayera said, also placing her hand.
"Well, you are my friends, but I'm not staying just for you. The Zone needs me. Besides I won't even dream of letting you fight Darkseid alone," Barry said, also putting his hand.
John was the only one who didn't want to put his hand in, although it was because Kal wanted to stay, and he would no longer be the Red Ranger. He had done a good job keeping Darkseid busy, and now he would not be promoted again. The duty of being a Power Ranger, and Kal willing to be a leader in Zone C made him accept.
"I'm in too, of course. Just don't do that again or you'll pay like you can't imagine," John said, placing his hand on top of the others. Although his voice was a bit harsh, it was clear that he was accepting a bit grudgingly. Kal turned towards the commander and J'onn around.
"Commander, J'onn, put your hands up too," Kal said.
"No, cadet," the commander said, as J'onn quickly placed his hand over the other Rangers.
"You said we are a team, Commander. We need your hand with ours," Kal said.
"How do you want us to be a team if you don't want to be a part of it?" Diana asked.
"Don't be bitter, Commander," Barry said.
"Bitter," Shayera said
This caused Commander Wayne to rise with a sigh. He walked over to them, and placed his hand over theirs.
"We're a team then, Cadets and J'onn," the commander said.
It seemed that this was the team that the commander was sure they could become if he got along with them. The commander felt immensely proud. It seemed like he had succeeded in making Kal the best Red Ranger.
"And break up now!" Barry yelled making his hands jump up.
"I won't do that again," Commander Wayne said before walking back to his chair.
"Great, Barry, you ruined the moment again," Kal said before giving Barry a little punch as the others did too.
"Sorry, but that's what has to be done," Barry said.
"Well, then you will now be the Power Rangers of Zone C indefinitely. I only inform you that the training will intensify, and the weaponry will have to improve, but as of today, you have earned this break. You can go, cadets" Commander Wayne said before turning around and continuing to watch.
"I think a frozen mocha would do us a lot of good right now," Diana said.
"I support that idea," Barry said.
The five Rangers ran off, but this time happier and seemed closer than before.
"Well done, Commander. Finally, they are a team," J'onn told him.
"Yes, but now they are in a war that will start shortly. I can't stop thinking that I'm putting them in more danger than ever before," Commander Wayne said without turning around. He was unsure if they could now survive a war against someone like Darkseid, who was far worse than Ra's Al Ghul. This was much riskier than before.
"They agreed to continue with this, Commander. And, as it looks like they are a real team now, I think it will be difficult for them to lose. Plus, if anyone can keep them safe from the worst possible situations, it's you. Well, I'm leaving now, Commander. I have to start modifying the weaponry," J'onn said.
The commander was still nervous about this situation. J'onn's words had not calmed him down. His Rangers were now in this war that they couldn't walk away from. They were already committed to this, but at far greater risk. The only thing he was sure of was that he would do everything to keep them safe. They were still his priority. They and the misión would always be his priority.
But, for the moment, they could only be prepared for Darkseid's return. Once he returned, everything would get intense, and the only thing they could do was to try to stop him.
At least, they would have time to rest from this, but the next threat to attack Zone C would not be Darkseid. It would be something or someone that would require additional help.
Well, here's the end to this arc. Did you like it? Do you think I did well with Kal and the others?
As a curious fact, I thought about adding two more chapters, but I feel that was not the right thing to do, since I would have had to lengthen the plot too much unnecessarily for this chapter, so I'm sure that with four it looks good.
Don't forget that this is just the start of the second half, which I hope will take less time to finish.
Changing the subject, thank you very much to the readers who decided to follow my fics and those who have left their comments, they help me a lot.
Special thanks to Lotslover, my beta, for continuing to edit the chapters and for the advice on the right directions to go for the series and my other fics, and I hope to continue counting on you for much longer; and to DCosloff, I really appreciate your suggestions and your support, I hope to continue counting on you for much longer.
Merry delayed Christmas and Happy New Year to all. I hope everyone keeps reading my fics for much longer, especially if I have a one-shot I'm interested in doing. Until next time.
NEXT: JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK, PART 1.