A/N: Whelp, I may have to revise the required reading for this story just a tad.

Chapter 2: Burning Destiny

"I know your face, human."

Dimly aware of Bri screaming at him to get back inside and scrambling for the work phone, Weihan stared dumbly at the monster, still trying to wrap his brain around the situation. A creature he had dreamt up to put in a long-forgotten fanfic was in front of him, in all its glory. Every last detail, from the Greco-Roman inspired etchings along the breastplate, to the minute creaks of leather as its four arms flexed, even the unearthly light coming from its helmet – all details he hadn't written down but saw vividly in his mind's eye. And, by some quirk of fate, it said that it knew him? Well, that wasn't good by any stretch of the imagination.

He was going to die. Full stop. There was nothing anyone could do for him, but, maybe, he could make things easier on Bri. Yes, if he could spare her the sight of being messily killed, he would do just that. An image flashed in his head for the barest of seconds, two brightly coloured figures facing down a monster on a destroyed street, before a spike of pain through his head galvanised him to action. Around them, the park was rapidly emptying as people finally realised, no, this wasn't a publicity stunt. Soon, it was just the two of them and the monster.

"Briana," he began slowly, glancing at the now empty path in front of the ute "get out of here. I'll do…something. Just go. Live."

"I can't let you do that!" Bri shook her head in denial. "No, come on, Wei, let's just go together and-"

He shut the door, fully facing the monster. Bri could open her door, knock him out with the shovel, and bundle him into the ute; however, she wasn't doing that. Instead, she was pleading with him, her tear-filled blue eyes imploring him to come back to safety and sanity. He hated to see her cry but she needed to live. Maybe it was cruel of him, forcing AJ's sister to experience a world-destroying event like this but, well, he had made his peace with everything a long while ago. As long as he never saw the blonde ex-reporter again, he would keep his equilibrium. And, seeing as though his life would be measured in minutes…well, that was a moot point anyway.

Not for the first time in his life, he wished for the ability to fling fire from his hands. He also wished for the ability to morph into an armoured suit but, no, that was something relegated to the realm of fantasy. A bitter chuckle escaped his lips as he forced himself to take a few steps away from the ute. It seemed as though he would be getting first-hand experience of a painfully short battle; the creator surely had a sick sense of humour. Lifting up his right hand, palm facing outward, he imagined flinging a white-hot fireball – knowing such a thing was…

"You…you're not supposed to be able to do that!"

Wait. What had just happened? Weihan brought his hand down to stare at it, as the monster frantically tried to beat out the flames crackling on its body. No, this wasn't at all possible. Whirling back to the ute, his eyes locked with Bri's shocked stare, the work phone slipping from her fingers. The Army wasn't able to be mobilised that quickly and, surely, the people fleeing the scene wouldn't have thrown Molotov cocktails at the inhuman beast, right? Shakily lifting his left hand, he imagined a blue-hot fireball hovering above his palm; his mind screaming at him that such a thing was impossible. This wasn't any sort to television show and that wouldn't…

Slowly, a sphere of blue coalesced into being above his palm. He was hyperventilating, having a panic attack, or, most likely, in a fit of delusional fantasy as he bled out. Hurling the blue sphere at the Greek themed monster, he watched in stunned fascination as it exploded against its metal breastplate. In a millisecond, the pained shouts raised in both pitch and intensity. Blood rushed in his ears as he lifted up both hands, palms facing the beast. What was he doing? He had written down words similar to this, sure, but that was fiction! He wasn't a cocky young kid anymore, he had bigger things to worry about other than homework, detentions, and annoying parents. There was absolutely no way a concentrated stream of blue plasma would burst from…

"No! The Master checked!" Was it just him or were the shrieks weakening? "No human on this planet should be able to do this! The Power does not exist on this world!"

Huh. That was interesting to know, but wholly expected. Stepping closer to Apollonia, Weihan saw a strange haze cloud his vision as painless images filled his mind. He saw himself and Bree talking to Elizabeth Martin and Emma Chou in front of the hotel management school, saw another creature that defied all expectation burst out of a parked paddy wagon, and…so that wasn't a fever dream after all. Not that he thought he dreamt it, just that the memories had faded soon after the incident, save for a few flashes accompanied by painful headaches. One of these days, he would have to contact Liz and Emma to ascertain what, if anything, they had seen on the 'other side'. He wasn't looking forward to that, but it had to be done.

There were no Morphin or Ultra Grids on Earth. Power Rangers was just a cancelled TV show, though there were stirrings behind the scenes that Hasbro were thinking of rebooting it. Keeping up the pressure on the monster, he allowed for a weary sigh to escape his lips. A reboot…was this what today was shaping up to be? He had been ruminating on ways to reboot The Ultra Crystals a few weeks ago; now, it seemed he would be living the dream. Or this was completely different. Either way, he would be able to actually make something out of the dreary existence his life had become.

One thing nagged in the back of his mind. Where was this magical potential coming from? He recalled that the Weihan of his story hadn't managed to 'unlock' anything until after his first morph. The man shook his head. No, it wasn't worth worrying about something trivial. He would try to understand things after, though he had to ensure there was an after. As the fire stream died down, he squinted through the steam and smoke to see his handiwork…and immediately regretted it.

The monster was still standing, if just barely. Its breastplate had completely melted off, the metal pooling around its feet like a shed skin. One set of arms had been burnt down to the bone, any veins or arteries being flash-cauterised. Its other set was peppered with blisters, some weeping a purplish goo. Horrifyingly, its helmet had also melted to give him, its supposed creator, a good look at its face. Much like he had envisaged all those years ago, it looked similar to a squat-nosed golem, a thick (and white-hot) metal ring pierced through its septum. Twin eyes of solid crimson looked balefully at him, and, based on what he could see, its teeth were naturally jagged.

"Why?" It ground out, taking a wobbly step towards him. "Why are you able to do that? You should not have been able to do such things. The rules are set, they will allow-"

"The rules have changed." Why was he sounding so cocky? What was he, 17 again? "Your master will not be able to gain his foothold. Not here, not now, not ever."

Apollonia roared in pain and frustration, flexing its badly burnt arms in impotent rage. This was not the way things were supposed to have panned out. It had been sent ahead to cleanse the world, to make it more hospitable for his Master. And yet, this world, this supposedly Power deficient world, had thrown up several curveballs. One was the faint, barely there residue of powerful Morphin magic. Magic that, if everything they had researched was correct, was not supposed to ever have been present. Magic that was, at least to the newest member of the army, familiar. And the boy, man, in front of it – his presence was galling. However long ago, he had touched the Power and had allowed its corruption to spread through his body – no matter if the incident was forgotten.

Taking another swaying step, it bellowed again. Despite the information sheets provided, this iteration was different. He was extremely self-sacrificing, ruthless, and never stopped to consider any consequences for the world around him. And now this, the fire he was able to produce, it changed the whole plan completely! Suddenly, Apollonia stopped in its tracks. Maybe, just maybe, it would be able to flee the battle and send a message to the Master and allow the campaign to stop in its tracks. What was a few decades to a nigh-immortal being?

"I think it's time to end this farce."

Well, that was all well in theory, but Weihan had absolutely no idea how he was going to put it into practice. Here he was: a 39-year-old man, no morpher, no real skills, and a tendency to freak out easily vs a monster literally ripped straight from his mind. OK, he had brought it down to within an inch of its life but if it grew…well, no one was getting out alive. Closing his mind to force his mind to calm down, he wracked his brain for any strategy that could be used. He had written all sorts of crazy manoeuvres and moves but, ah, yes, that could possibly work. He just needed to get the timing down.

Pushing fire into his hands, he brought them down with the palms facing each other. Slowly, a disc of blue plasma spun into being and, inexplicably, Weihan felt something inside him unlock. Three more discs sprung into existence as he dimly heard Bri's door open. Moving them into a rough diamond shape, and trying not to think of how he was doing it, he ground his teeth together and chuckled in recognition at the next words from his lips.

"This is as far as you go, monster."

Without waiting for a reply, he launched the spinning discs at Apollonia, grimly smiling as the energy ripped through it. The fatally wounded monster only had enough time for a resigned nod before falling backward and exploding in a massive fireball. Weihan held his breath as he stared at the smouldering remains, barely aware of Bri coming up beside him.

"Wei," Gods, she sounded so scared, confused, and angry. "What was that and how…was that fire coming out of your hands? What the hell happened? Who are you?"

"Bri," he slowly began, unsure as to where he was going. "I…this is all…I mean, this…I'm me and -"

"The two of you are destined heroes"