Nearly a week had passed since the fire at Jazz and Ricky's student house. The University were struggling to find alternative accommodation for the pair as everywhere on campus was occupied. Until a property was vacated, the pair were essentially homeless.
Taylor managed to secure a couple of rooms in the Air Base's barracks, they were basic and not very convenient for classes but is was a place to sleep. Fortunately, it was nearly the end of the semester and the school year. With hundreds of students returning home, it would increase their chances of finding somewhere more suitable.
Their new found proximity to the Base allowed Ricky to work on a project for the Rangers. He was keeping his designs close to his chest but he promised that it would be a great asset to their arsenal. It also allowed Taylor to keep a close eye on Jazz, her physical recovery was progressing but healing her psychological wounds would take some time.
Taylor was quietly working in the control room, keeping half an eye on Ricky's project. He roped in Stevie to help today, as she was graduating in a few days she didn't have any classes and was at a loose end, "Not there," Ricky grumbled to the blue ranger, "you've soldered the wrong components together."
"Well gimme clearer instructions then," Stevie shot back, pointing a burning hot soldering iron at the yellow ranger.
"I did, I said solder the blue capacitor," Ricky shook his head.
"They're all blue," Stevie picked the chip up and waived it in Ricky's face.
"Now children, play nice," Taylor called to the pair without looking away from her screen, "otherwise you'll both get a timeout." Moments later, a loud alarm blared through the room, "Never thought I'd be pleased to hear that," Major Earhardt sighed and began locating the source of the disturbance.
"Me too," Stevie added, "I could do with punching out my frustrations on something," Ricky shook his head and rolled his eyes. The city's surveillance cameras eventually focused on a group of Gougers surrounding a couple of familiar figures, "Hey it's those two," Stevie pointed at the screen, "from that abandoned factory, remember I told you about them."
Taylor nodded slowly, recalling Stevie's report from nearly a week ago, "Maybe they didn't just encounter the Gougers by accident," she thought out loud, "I wonder why the Vyglass would be interested by them.
She got her answer moments later, the male grabbed a discarded piece of wood, ran his hand along the surface and it instantly turned into a broadsword, "Did you see that?" Ricky exclaimed, "he basically created that sword out of nothing."
The female of the mysterious strangers did something similar, turning discarded debris into a pair of laser blasters, "I can see why the Vyglass are so interested in them," Taylor sighed, "bring them in, peacefully if you can."
"And if they won't come willingly?" Stevie asked.
"We'll cross that bridge if we have to," Taylor replied, "but we can't have them falling into the hands of the Vyglass." Stevie and Ricky nodded and jogged out the room, leaving Taylor to frown at the screen.
It wasn't just Major Earhardt observing the fight, on the Vyglass ship Count Trivium watched the battle with interest. He was so focused on the images that he didn't hear Lena approaching from behind, "What's got you so engrossed," she looked over his shoulder, "weapon transfiguration," she whistled, "a worth prize for our cause."
"You would think," Trivium said shortly, "they are more troublesome than the Power Rangers."
Lena frowned, "You know who they are?" Trivium glanced at the Princess quickly before looking away, "They're a couple of your failed experiments aren't they?" she added with a chuckled, "Wait until Reise hears about this."
"No," Trivium snapped and grabbed Lena's arm firmly. The Princess snarled, grabbing Trivium with her free arm and twisting his sharply and painfully, "You forget your place, Princess," he hissed through the pain.
Lena twisted his arm tightly one more time before begrudging releasing him, "So which dimension are they from and how did they end up here?"
"I suspect they are from Earth-1991," Trivium rubbed his sore arm, "we easily subjugated that world but we soon encountered resistance. We attempted to turn a group into sleeper agents, gifting them powers to use to our advantage."
"Let me guess, it didn't work," Lena scoffed, "it seems like you make a habit of underestimating the human spirit."
"Stomp on a cockroach enough and it will eventually die," Trivium snapped in response, "the Empress recalled us before we could get a chance to crush their resistance and now, they've found their way here."
"Oh Count," Lena laughed, "I always knew your experiments would come back to haunt you." She pulled her weapon from her belt, "I suppose you want me to clean up your mess."
Trivium thought for a moment, "No," he said begrudgingly, "I don't want to admit it but this is my mistake and I will fix it." She swept towards the door, "Do not tell Prince Reise about this," he added firmly, leaving a smirking Lena on the bridge.
At the battle site, the two hooded strangers battled valiantly against the Gougers but the sheer numbers of foot soldiers was beginning to take its toll, "Damn it," the male swore. His created sword had suddenly turned back into a lump of rotting wood, "I'm beginning to run low on energy," he added, "guess I'll have to do this the old fashioned way," he smashed the wood over the head of a Gouger and the rotten beam shattered on impact.
"Me too," the female wheezed slightly through her respirator, "I think we need to get outta here." Suddenly the Gougers surrounding them were knocked over by two flying objects, the blue and yellow Jet Force Rangers, "I didn't realise it was Halloween," she mocked the pair of Rangers.
Stevie landed gracefully next to the female, "Is that the thanks we get for saving you?"
Underneath her hood, the female's eyes widened, she grabbed a broken wooden pallet and with a flash, turned it into a solid shield. She pushed Stevie aside just as a Gouger's axe buried itself in the shield, "Not much of a rescue," she scoffed. She pulled the axe out of the shield, forcing the handle and blade grow, "We were handling this just fine without you."
"Easy AJ," the male called, "you can't have much left yourself.
"No point holding back Viper," AJ shouted back, "this ends today."
"Oh I couldn't agree more," Count Trivium suddenly announced his presence, "so, you're the two pests who escaped, how did you get to this dimension?"
"None of your business Trivium," Viper cracked his knuckles, he turned more discarded wood into two short swords, "you'll pay for what you did to our world."
"You two," Trivium snorted derisively, "please, you're nothing but pathetic ants." He called on his sword and jumped into battle with the two strangers.
As the sound of clashing metal echoed through the industrial district, Ricky and Stevie watched on in confusion, "I'm feeling a little left out," Stevie pouted underneath her helmet, "I thought we were his mortal enemies."
"Apparently not," Ricky shrugged. He watched AJ block the Count's attack with her broad axe, rolling away only to kick out at Trivium in one fluid motion. Trivium didn't have a moment to regroup as Viper lashed out with his blades that Trivium barely managed to avoid, "They're pretty good," the yellow ranger had to admit.
Stevie was about to agree but Trivium's sword cut AJ's axe handle in half, reverting it back to a standard Gouger weapon. She froze momentarily as Trivium blasted her with an electrical charge from his gauntlet. The attack threw her into the side of a nearby dumpster, "No!" Viper cried and lashed out against the Count.
"Jet Blaster," Ricky unleashed a volley of laser round at the Count but he effortlessly deflected them away. Another burst from his gauntlet threw the two Rangers back where they crashed into a wall.
Viper ferociously attacked the Count but each blow became more laboured, "Such anger," Trivium smirked, "I wonder if I could put that to better use." With a dismissive swipe of his blade, he knocked Viper's weapons away and grabbed him around the throat, lifting him effortlessly into the air, "Yes, this give me an idea," he cackled before they both disappeared into a portal.
"Well, that sucked," Stevie groggily got to her feet, she suddenly remembered about AJ and sprinted across the alley. She crouched down over the female, "Are you alright?"
The blonde pulled her hood down, revealing the dazzling blue eyes that captivated Stevie before. She pulled off her respirator and dropped it to the ground, "This is broken," she said between laboured breaths, "I have to get after Viper," she tried to stand but fell back to the ground.
"I don't think you're going anywhere," Stevie said, "come back to our base, we can patch you up."
AJ snorted, "I don't think you can," she wheezed, "plus, how do I know I can trust you?"
"We've met before," Stevie tapped her wrist and powered down, "from the warehouse a few days ago." The blonde nodded in recognition, "I'm making a habit of saving you," she added with a smile.
"Smooth," Ricky coughed from behind the blue ranger.
AJ looked reluctantly but slowly offered her hand to Stevie, "Doesn't look like I have a choice," she said, returning Stevie smile with one of her own.
They stayed like this for several moments until Ricky finally spoke, "I guess I'll call my Zord and transport you back to base." Neither female spoke in response to the yellow ranger, "Yup, definitely going to be a third wheel on this journey," he added with a sigh.
An hour or so later, Stevie slipped into the medical bay where AJ was laying in a bed. Her dusty hoodie was slung over a chair, leaving the dimensional traveller in just a vest top, showing off her wiry yet muscular arms. An oxygen mask was covering her nose and mouth, her chest rising slowly and steadily.
The blue ranger inched a little closer, AJ appeared to be sleeping and she didn't want to disturb her rest. Her gaze lingered on the blonde for several moments with only the rhythmic beeping of a machine for company. Stevie was about to leave when AJ mumbled, "Leaving so soon," her voice muffled behind the oxygen mask.
"I'm sorry," Stevie stammered, her cheeks flushing, "I did mean to disturb you."
AJ slowly removed her mask, "I couldn't sleep, this bed is far too comfortable."
"Must be terrible where you're from then," Stevie attempted to joke but immediately regretted it, "I'm sorry that came out wrong."
To her surprise AJ chuckled softly, "Probably sounded better in your head but no offense taken." She slowly rose to a seated position, "Have you found Viper yet?"
Stevie shook her head, "Not yet, our best woman is working on it."
"Isn't that you?" AJ replied with a smirk.
"Hacking into Vyglass systems isn't my specialty, I'm more of an ass kicker," Stevie shrugged, "so you and Viper, is he your boyfriend?" AJ's face froze before she spluttered and burst out laughing, "did I say something funny?"
"Viper's not my boyfriend," the blonde managed to say between giggles, "that knucklehead's my brother."
"Oh," Stevie visibly deflated, the redness in her cheeks practically glowing. Embarrassment soon turned to annoyance, "It's not that funny, how was I meant to know?" she grumbled, "if you're gonna keep laughing, I'm leaving."
As she turned to walk away, a firm hand grasped her arm, "No, don't," Stevie looked into AJ's pleading blue eyes, "I'm sorry that was out of line." When she pulled her hand away, Stevie quickly grasped her fingers. The pair briefly held hands until the blue ranger reluctantly let go, "Viper and I only have each other," AJ continued, slightly flustered, "been like that for the last few years."
"What happened?" Stevie asked.
"We're not from this Earth," AJ began, "we come from a parallel universe." Stevie nodded slowly but said nothing, "You don't seem surprised by that," she added.
"Once you fight monsters with giant robots whilst wearing spandex, nothing surprises you," Stevie shrugged, "Major Earhardt also told us she's worked with Ranger team from other dimensions."
AJ nodded, "It's a shame Power Rangers didn't exist in our dimension, you seem to be holding the Vyglass at bay," she paused briefly, "we weren't so lucky, they overran our defences in a matter of days."
"That quickly?" Stevie frowned, "did no one fight back?"
"The Vyglass overwhelmed us with Gougers and bug like monsters," AJ sighed.
"Vampire Bugs?" Stevie asked and AJ nodded in response, "they tried the same here but we kicked their asses, that was the team's first battle," she shook the memory from her head, "sorry, continue."
"The various governments of Earth couldn't agree on how to respond, if a country was attacked it was tough luck and they had to deal with it on their own," AJ said bitterly, "they soon cried for help when they came under attack though."
"Sounds about right," Stevie mumbled.
"The human population was decimated by the time we counter attacked," AJ continued, "we threw everything at the Vyglass, conventional weapons, biological weapons," she paused again, "even nuclear weapons but all that did was slow them down briefly."
"But you're still here," Stevie interjected, "they can't have completely destroyed your Earth."
"They didn't need to, our own weapons did that for us," AJ shook her head, "they eventually withdrew, probably decided it would be more entertaining to watch the survivors slowly die I guess." The blonde shifted uncomfortably on the bed, "Each month we lose more survivors thanks to our poisoned planet, won't be long until no one's left. Sometimes I wonder if those who went first were the lucky ones."
"Hey," Stevie grasped AJ's hand again, "don't talk like that, you fought back and survived that's all that matters."
AJ smiled but it didn't quite reach her eyes, "You're sweet," she said whilst rubbing her thumb over the back of Stevie's hand, "I wish I had your optimism."
"Normally I'm the sarcastic, negative one so I'll take that," Stevie shrugged, "can I ask you something personal?" she asked hesitantly, realising she still had hold of AJ's hand.
"Stevie, you can ask me anything you want," AJ replied with a small grin.
The blue ranger's mouth opened then quickly closed, it took her a few seconds to fully regain her composure, much to AJ's satisfaction, "How did you get your powers?" she finally blurted out.
A frown quickly flashed over AJ's face, "Count Trivium likes to use humans for his personal experiments," she hissed dismissively, "he took a dozen of us from a camp one day, Viper and I were the only two who survived. I have no idea what he did, maybe that's for the best."
Suddenly AJ broke out in a violent coughing fit, she snatched her hand away quickly to cover her mouth, "Shall I get the doctor?" Stevie asked, AJ shook her head whilst still coughing, "that doesn't sound good," she added.
"Had it a while," AJ managed to say between rasping breathes, "rest normally helps."
Stevie nodded, reaching over and handing the oxygen mask back to AJ, "We'll find Viper for you, I promise," she said with a smile which AJ struggled to return. When the blue ranger had left the room, AJ opened her hand and found it cover in drops of blood. She scrunched her eyes together tightly, letting her head drop to the pillow with a heavy thud.
On the other side of the door, Stevie stepped into the middle of a conversation between Major Earhardt and the base doctor, "Honestly, I've only ever seen a chest x-ray like this in a-" the doctor was saying.
"Stevie," Major Earhardt interrupted the doctor, "how is she?"
"Awake," the blue ranger replied, "she has a terrible cough, had it for a while apparently," Taylor and the base doctor looked knowingly at each other, "any luck finding Viper?" she asked.
"Still working on it," Taylor said, "why don't you see how Jazz is getting on." Stevie nodded and began to walk away, "Don't get too attached Stevie," the Major added cautiously, "she might not be around much longer."
"I know," Stevie replied, "she has to return to her home dimension at some point," with that last comment she walked away, leaving the doctor and Major Earhardt looking grimly at each other.
In an unknown location, a groggy Viper slowly came to his senses. Immediately, he felt something wrapped around his wrists. He tugged against his bonds but they were secured tightly. Glancing down, he noticed the same shackles wrapped tightly around his ankles. Slowly the lights came on, temporarily blinding the young man, "Now this seems familiar," Trivium's voice cackled through a speaker.
"Trivium," Viper hissed, "where are you, show yourself," a small window opened just in front of Viper. He spat in the direction of the Count, only for the fluid to get intercepted by a Perspex screen, "Still a coward," he snorted.
"A realist," Trivium shrugged nonchalantly, "I see your powers have grown," he continued, "you and your sister could be a great asset to our army."
"We'll never join you," Viper pulled violently against his shackles.
Trivium smirked coldly, "Powers like yours, they must put a great strain on your fragile human body," Viper said nothing but glared at the Count, "I could cure that you know, both of you could live forever."
"Whilst serving the likes of you," Viper replied defiantly, "I'd rather die."
Trivium sighed dramatically, "Why must you humans always do things the hard way?"
"You mock us but look at you," Viper began, "you must've been human at some point."
Trivium slammed his hand hard against the screen, "How dare you?" he snapped, "I have nothing in common with you filthy apes."
"Anymore at least," Viper added with a smirk, "do you even remember which Earth you came from?"
For a moment, Trivium glared at the young man until, to the surprise of Viper, began to laugh, "I see what you're doing, trying to goad me into making a mistake or divulging my evil plot." He chuckled and waived a finger at Viper, "I didn't think you had it in you,"
"Full of surprises me," Viper sneered.
"Tell you what, I'll let you know what I have planned for you," Trivium flicked a button, opening a door inside Viper's holding cell, "no matter the dimension, Earth always has some amazing treasures." A light came on over the newly opened door, revealing a scaly green suit of armour, "This little gem came from your home dimension, looted from an ancient burial ground in Japan. Supposedly, this suit belonged to a warrior who used it to terrorise his people. It was fuelled by feelings of anger, jealousy and other petty human emotions."
"You don't strike me as someone who believes in myths," Viper said.
"True, I am a man of science," Trivium continued, "but every legend has a basis in fact." He flicked a switch and pieces of the suit's' leg armour flew across the room and attached themselves to Viper. The dimensional traveller gritted his teeth, glaring hatefully at Trivium, "Interesting, your adrenaline is spiking," Trivium said gleefully, "maybe a few more pieces just to be sure."
The remaining leg armour attached itself to Viper, "I'll kill you," he grunted, his eyes flashing red for a moment.
"Oh I doubt that," Trivium sneered, "once the suit is complete, you'll be nothing but a mindless drone. All I have to do it point you in the direction of the Power Rangers and watch you destroy each other." He paused and leaned closer to the dividing screen, "After all, they do currently have your dear sister locked inside their base." Trivium watched with fascination and almost uncontained glee as the suit continued to attach itself to Viper.
At the Air Base, Jazz was monitoring her screens when something grabbed her attention, "That's weird," she began, "I'm getting a massive energy reading from the hills not too far from here."
"The Vyglass?" Mark asked, moving closer to look over Jazz's shoulder.
"Hard to tell but its probably worth investigating," the Scot answered, "I'll run some numbers, see if I can give you anything useful."
The red ranger nodded, "Tell Stevie where we're going and get her to meet us there," he said to Jazz before turning to Ricky, Rachel and Harley, "let's move out." They made it as far as the door when it suddenly opened, "Ah Stevie you're here," Mark began, "there's possible Vyglass activity near the base, we're going to check it out."
"Aww come on," the blue ranger complained, "I haven't had lunch yet."
"The forces of evil rarely follow a timetable," Ricky attempted to joke with the teen, earning him a slap on the arm, "just trying to lighten the mood," he grumbled.
"I'm tired and hangry, not a good combination," Stevie snapped, "well, let's make this quick before all the good stuff goes from the cafeteria."
As the Rangers left, Jazz had a quiet snigger to herself, "Never get in the way of Stevie and food, good thing she's not around to hear that."
"I heard it," startled Jazz turned around quickly, her fingers crackling with energy, "I see you have powers too," AJ commented defensively.
"I do, still working on control," Jazz said to the blonde.
"Is that a warning or a threat?" AJ replied, clenching her hands into fists.
"Bit of both," Jazz said cautiously, "but the Major would be pretty pissed if we got in a fight inside the base so let's both chill for a minute."
AJ was silent for a couple of moments but slowly began to relax. She looked around the room and frowned, "Where is everyone?"
"Out checking out a possible Vyglass attack," Jazz looked the blonde over, "shouldn't you be in bed, you're looking a little pale."
"The consequence of nuclear winter," AJ frowned at the reading on Jazz's screen, "is that what they're investigating?" she asked.
Jazz nodded and turned around, "Yeah, it's weird it doesn't match regular Vyglass signatures but also doesn't register as from our Earth. Do you have any ideas?" she said whilst turning around, only to find that AJ had gone, "and I'm talking to myself, fantastic," she shook her head and returned to her screens.
Just outside the base, the Rangers were walking across the desert floor. Off to one side was a collection of small hills lined with rocky ledges, "The signal came from around here," Mark said to the others, "stay focused, we have no idea what we're dealing with."
A few loose stones tumbled down the hill, immediately drawing the Ranger's attention, "Anyone there?" Rachel called out.
"Great idea, draw it's attention to us," Harley snorted, he was interrupted by a scuttling sound from over their shoulders. The black ranger spun around but crashed into the back of Ricky, "Hey watch out," he grumbled.
"You turned into me," the yellow ranger shook his head, "you're the one jumping at shadows."
"Something's here," Harley quickly scanned the hills, "can't see it but I can sense it," he looked over at Mark who nodded in agreement.
"If it doesn't show itself in the next ten seconds, I'm going back inside," Stevie grumbled, "its far too hot to be strolling around the desert." She looked at her watch and impatiently counted down the seconds, "There we go nothing here, let's go."
Suddenly Mark spotted a change in Stevie's shadow, something was flying in her direction. He grabbed the blue ranger and pulled her out the way just as something green and scaly crashed in the middle of the Rangers.
Everyone stepped back as a green armoured shape slowly rose to its full height. A metallic snakes head eyed the Rangers suspiciously, it's red eyes glowing angrily. On top of it's head sat a tuft of yellow spikes, giving the impression of a crown, "That's different," Ricky frowned, "I take it you're not on our side," a sword appeared in its hand, pointed directly at the Rangers, "I hate it when I'm right," Ricky sighed.
"Fancy armour, let's show you ours," Mark summoned his morpher and the other Rangers did the same, "Jet Force, Take Flight," he called and the team morphed into their suits. The armoured snake hissed and spat something at the feet of the Rangers, they jumped out the way just in time as the liquid sizzled on the desert floor, "Acid venom, better keep our distance," Mark said to his team.
"Ain't gotta tell me twice," Harley called on his Jet Blaster, firing a volley of shots at the snake. To his horror, they bounced harmlessly off its scaly armour, "I don't think our ranged weapons are going to work," the black ranger added.
"Good, I prefer to get up close and personal," Stevie summoned her Jet Gauntlet. The snake acknowledged his new challenger, zipping across the desert with its blade at the ready. It swung at Stevie but the blue ranger dodged, countering with a blow to the creatures chest.
It staggered for a moment but recovered enough to spit more acid at the blue ranger, "Holy crap," she swore and raised her Jet Gauntlet defensively. The liquid splashed on the weapon and it sparked and began to melt. Stevie shook it off her hand, dropping the broken, dissolving gauntlet to the ground, "Jazz is not going to like that," she sighed.
"Bigger things to worry about," Ricky jumped in next to Stevie but the pair were met with a sword across their chest, sending them scattering across the desert floor.
The eyes on the snake armour brightened and with a thrust of its arms, send a energy blast at the Rangers, throwing them into the air, "This thing is tougher than the usual Vyglass monsters," Rachel grunted whilst slowly getting to her feet, "if we can't overpower it, maybe we should try some speed."
"Worth a shot," Mark nodded, "wings engage," the Ranger spread their arms and their wings extended. They shot into the air, leaving a confused armoured snake behind. A black and white streak hit the armour from behind, temporarily staggering the hulking attacker. It was ready for the other three Rangers though, blasting them out the air with it's snake eye beam.
Mark, Stevie and Ricky crash landed at the feet of Harley and Rachel, smoke pouring off their suits, "That's gonna leave a mark," the blue ranger grumbled.
"I think it's time to call on the big guns," Harley activated his communicator, "Jazz, send the Jet Bazooka now."
There was a pause before jazz replied, "On its way but I think there's something you should know-"
"No time, we're gettin' our butts kicked," Harley interrupted the Scot. An engines roar announced the arrival of the Jet Bazooka in its car form. It shot down a hill and got some air over a small ridge, kicking up dust when its wheel hit the desert floor.
The snake armour looked shocked as the Jet Bazooka sped toward him, staying rooted to the spot as it drove straight through him. The armoured suit flew into the air, crashing to the ground just as the Jet Bazooka skidded to a stop right next to the Rangers, "Why don't we do that to more Vyglass monsters," Stevie chuckled to herself.
"Everyone in position," Mark called to the Rangers, who promptly took up their positions around the now-converted blaster, "target locked," the red ranger added, setting the computer to lock onto the suit of armour, "ready to fire."
His finger had just begun to tighten on the trigger when someone jumped in front of Jet Bazooka, "Stop, you can't destroy him," AJ pleaded with the Rangers.
"Why the hell not," Ricky countered, "it tried to melt us with acid, I dunno how it works in your dimension but when monsters do that here, we tend to blow them."
"You're not blow him up," AJ stepped towards Jet Bazooka and pulled off a long metal bar from the barrel. In a flash of light, the bar turned into an oversized mallet, "this is a family matter."
"Hey, you gonna pay for the damage lady," Harley sniped at the retreating dimensional traveller, "what's gotten into ya girlfriend," he nudged Stevie on the shoulder.
"She's not my girlfriend," Stevie replied defensively.
"You look at her like a hungry man looks as a fillet steak," Harley said dryly, "and she's hardly discouraging you."
"He might be crude but he's right," Rachel added, "you know her best Stevie, any reason she'd protect a Vyglass monster?"
The blue ranger sighed and watched AJ and the snake armour scuffle. Despite wielding a comically large hammer AJ was surprisingly defensive, barely attacking the snake. Instead she preferred to deflect the sword attacks but that was pushing her back towards a rocky cliff face. Suddenly something dawned on the blue ranger, "Family," she muttered, "oh no," she cried and sprinted towards the battling pair, leaving four confused Rangers behind.
AJ lifted her weapon to block yet another attack, her arms buckled under the force of the blow, "Please Viper, I know you're in there somewhere," she pleaded with the person inside the suit, "this is all Trivium and his sick sense of humour."
If her words reached her brother, it didn't stop the armour's attack. It grabbed the hammer and wrenched it from AJ's grasp, tossing it to one side. A punch to the blonde's mid-section doubled her over, a cough erupting from deep within her lungs. A strong hand wrapped around her throat and lifted her a few inches off the ground, "Please," she managed to gurgle, a dribble of blood coming from the corner of her mouth.
Suddenly the glow from the suit's eyes began to dim and it realised AJ from its grasp. She hit the ground with an heavy thud, rolling over onto her side. A groan of pain emanated from her lips as the suit stood motionless.
The eyes began to glow again, the armour's head tilting towards the fallen blonde, "Hey," Stevie cried, drawing its attention towards the blue ranger. It barely had time to register Stevie moving towards him at full speed with AJ's discarded hammer in her hand, "Sorry about this," she said and swung the giant hammer upward directly into the armour's chest and head.
The force of the blow rocketed the armour skywards, crashing over the top of a ridge and out of sight. Once she was satisfied the suit wasn't going coming back any time soon, she dropped the hammer and knelt down next to AJ, "I'm not complaining but I'd like an explanation," Mark said to the blue ranger when the others caught up.
"That was Viper in the suit, he's her brother," Stevie explained whilst cradling AJ's head in her lap.
"Wow, he takes his nickname seriously," Harley deadpanned, earning him a slap on the arm from Rachel, "what?"
"Too soon honey," Rachel shook her head before turning to Stevie, "how is she?"
Stevie was about to respond when a barely conscious AJ rolled to one side and coughed violently a few times, spraying the ground with blood, "I'm not a doctor but that's not good, right?"
Mark shook his head, "We'd better get her back to the hospital bay." He reached down to pick AJ up but Stevie shook her head. She lifted the blonde up bridal style and led the Rangers back towards the Base. Unseen by the Rangers, a pile of rocks were pushed out the way. The suit of armour containing Viper slowly stood up, tracking the Rangers all the way.