DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN POWER RANGERS

Chapter 17: Only Human

"This job never gets any easier, does it?" Adam sighed and stretched back in his comfortable chair, lazily watching as Hayley turned the sign on the Cyberspace door from 'Open' to 'Closed'.

"I'll agree with that one," Tommy replied with a small laugh whilst he sipped at a steaming mug of coffee. It was going on 7pm and the sun had just set on the horizon, basking the Cyberspace in a comforting orange glow as the full Ranger team lazed around, taking full advantage of knowing that the place was now officially closed to the public.

"I know, but seriously, Osirico's thrown some real badass monsters at us recently and they'd better not get any worse or we're gonna need a bigger arsenal." Adam added.

"Well…" Hayley took a seat on the arm of Tommy's chair. "…Who said that work wasn't already in progress?"

Osirico paced the dark corridors of his lair, the evil Lord's mind working furiously as Ammix followed dutifully behind him, Raptir also not far behind.

"I think we should try new tactics, my Lord." The serpentine Commander suggested nervously, not entirely confident in interrupting Osirico's thoughts so abruptly.

"Oh really?" The Warlord stopped and turned to face his subordinate, with a look on his face that clearly said 'this had better be good'.

"Yes…attacking the Rangers directly hasn't worked the last few times, so I propose that we try an alternative method." Ammix explained, "At least until we have a better way to combat their new weaponry," he added quickly. "I have also acquired a new 'contact' amongst the humans."

Osirico whirled around, his eyes blazing, "A human?"

Ammix took a wary step backwards as he felt the energy that pulsed from the constant personal forcefield that surrounded Osirico, "I assure you that he is reliable, my Lord."

Osirico was silent for a tense moment before giving a satisfied nod. "Very well," he flicked his hand and gestured for Ammix to leave, "Do what you must, either you will succeed…or you will learn a valuable lesson."

"Yes, my Lord." Ammix bowed deeply and strode away, Raptir following; determined to do Osirico's bidding and prove his worth.

"So what's this new weapon then?" Xander questioned eagerly as the Rangers followed Hayley down to the basement of Tommy's house.

"Well it's not a new weapon as such…it's more of an improvement," she explained as she brought up the relevant data files on the computer system. The Rangers stared at the mixture of text and numbers with blank expressions on their faces, the 'computer-talk' as Tommy affectionately called it; not making any logical sense. "It makes me feel a bit stupid for not thinking of it earlier really…" Hayley carried on her reasoning and opened up an image of a fully-morphed and powered-up Conner from the days of Dino Thunder.

"Now that looks cool." Xander uncrossed his arms, evidently approving of the Red Dino Ranger's arsenal.

"I'm sure that Kira remembers the Triassic Powers that I developed for Conner a few years ago…" Hayley glanced at the Yellow Ranger, who nodded in response. "Well, this worked primarily on the foundations of combining the powers of the three Dino Gems into one individual and as you can see…" she pointed at the image, "The result of this was that Conner was able to make use of what was essentially three times the normal power. He gained better weaponry, armor, strength…you name it."

The Rangers all nodded to show that they were following and Adam asked, "So, you're saying that you're gonna use the same idea with our powers?"

Hayley smiled, pleased that Adam had seen where she was going, "Yes, but there's still a bit of a problem; the same one I always had with the Dino Gems, in fact – For the moment, only one of you will be able to utilize it at any one time. The rest of you will have to 'lend' some of your powers for it to work."

"Will we demorph? Like what happened with Conner at first?" Kira asked curiously.

"No, as there are four of you this time, there's more power to go around and there shouldn't be a problem with that." Hayley pressed a key and got rid of the picture of Conner. "This is still a work in progress, so eventually, you will all be able to power-up simultaneously, with no ill effects."

"Good work Hails," Tommy smiled, just as Alpha appeared, having just finished his work in the Zord bay. "You too Alpha."

"Thankyou Tommy." The robot inclined his head as he shuffled over to the Rangers. "The upgrades should work perfectly…Aye-ai-ai-ai-ai!" Alpha pointed his finger at the screen behind Hayley. "There's a monster attacking!"

Everyone else in the room whirled simultaneously to look at the image and sure enough, as was now usual, there was quite a large disturbance in the center of Reefside. Adam nodded at the other Rangers, "Let's go!"

"IT'S MORPHIN' TIME!"

"NINJA STORM, RANGER FORM! HA!"

"MAGICAL SOURCE, MYSTIC FORCE!"

"DINO THUNDER, POWER UP! HA!"

The Rangers sped onto the scene on their various modes of transport, only to find the area almost devoid of people, except for the small convoy of police cars that had rolled up outside a five-storey office block. The four continued onwards, already having guessed that the commotion lay inside the building.

"I'm gonna have to hold you right there." One of the cops, who was obviously the officer in charge held his hand up firmly as the Rangers approached.

"What do you mean? We have to get in there," Tori pointed towards the building, quite annoyed by the man's interruption.

"Not today people." The officer was being stubborn, "We have a hostage situation here – one of our guys is already up there dealing with proceedings."

"Dealing with proceedings? Is that what-…" Xander's furious remark was abruptly cut off by a shrill scream…one filled with utmost terror…and it belonged to someone up in the building…"

Not a second later, a voice came through on the radio of the police chief, "Sir, we…lost one of the hostages. I repeat, we are one hostage down."

Each Ranger simultaneously rounded on the cop, their postures conveying more than words could in the present situation. "I think we'll take it from here," Adam stated darkly, the man not daring to argue. "I'm going in."

"So are we." Kira added.

"No, you guys stay here…we can't have this monster running for it."

"Adam's right," Tori interjected before anyone could argue. "We'll get the Megazord so we can see right in the window. That thing won't get out alive."

The Black Ranger nodded and began to run towards the building's nearest entrance. "Adam!" Kira called after him and he twisted his head to look at her. "At least let us give you a present to go in with…" and with that, she twisted her hands in front of her chest, drawing a glowing yellow power inbetween them which she unleashed in Adam's direction.

The energy flowed straight through the Black Ranger's suit and he felt it infuse with his own power. Adam gasped at the sudden energy increase and let out a long breath. "Whoa…"

"And we're not even finished," Tori and Xander copied Kira's motions and produced exactly the same effect. Adam could only watch, wide-eyed as his suit transformed before his eyes. Almost the entire Ranger suit that covered him bulged outwards and began to warp and morph into solid, reinforced metal armor plating that wrapped itself securely around the vital parts of his body. A matching, detachable sword and shield combo also materialized that Hayley had obviously designed from the Triassic Ranger arsenal, with the obvious similarities. Breathing hard from the transfer, Adam stood impressed for a second before shaking himself back to the present and continuing his sprint into the building.

As promised, the three remaining Rangers remained fully morphed and feeling only slightly drained. "OK…" Tori set back on the task ahead and spoke into her morpher, "Hayley, send the Zords."

"On their way. I've got the Shogun on manual override, so leave that part to me."

"Got it." The Blue Ranger nodded to Xander and he began his transformation, pulling out his Mystic Morpher.

"Galwit Mysto Prifior!"

"Let's get up there," Kira motioned skywards as she leapt into the cockpit of the Pterodactyl.

"Right behind you," Tori mimicked her actions towards the Dolphin and with a little help from Hayley, the four Zords combined into the Megazord. "How's it going Adam?" The Blue Ninja spoke into her morpher.

Inside the office block, Adam carefully stalked his way up to the top floor where all the noise appeared to be coming from, checking each room along the way for signs of anything suspicious. "Nothing yet…but i'm not far away-…"

"Wait…I see someone!" Xander interrupted as the Megazord peered through the top floor windows. Closer inspection revealed that there were about twenty people all knelt on the floor, their hands behind their heads and in varying states of mind. Many were visibly shaking and a couple had silent tears rolling down their cheeks and they kept their eyes glued on someone near the far wall, despite the obvious presence of the huge Megazord. "Top floor, Adam."

"I thought so…" he replied as he opened the door to the stairwell, silently creeping upwards. The powered-up Black Ranger exited into the top floor corridor that was now only powered by emergency lighting, but something up ahead froze him in his tracks…

…It was a man, a young man by the look of him, except that his youth had evidently been short-lived as he lay sprawled face-down in the carpet, a steady red trickle issuing from somewhere beneath him. Adam bowed his head and looked away. After all his time spent as a Ranger, this man was the first human casualty he had come across and the Black Ranger let out a long, drawn-out breath that he hadn't realized he was holding in.

Seconds later, Adam was forced to dive for cover as loud, scraping footsteps approached. Peeking out from the doorway he was in, he watched as a large, scruffy-looking guy dragged another guy wearing a suit down the opposite corridor and threw him into one of the adjoining rooms. Adam was slightly confused until he saw the loose earpiece that swung on its wire around the captured man's neck. "Not today people." The officer was being stubborn, "We have a hostage situation here – one of our guys is already up there dealing with proceedings."

"I'll deal with you later!" the scruffy man growled before slamming the door and retracing his steps back and out of sight once more. The Black Ranger raised a surprised eyebrow beneath his visor. Was this man working for Osirico? The answer must have been 'yes', otherwise the alarms back at Tommy's house wouldn't have been triggered…therefore, there were evil forces somewhere in this building.

Adam took a last lingering look at the dead man on the floor beside him and said a silent mental prayer before moving towards the room that contained the police officer. With a quick look about him, he roughly forced the locked door open to reveal the guy stood right in front of him, a twisted paperclip in hand, evidently trying to pick the lock.

The Black Ranger wasted no time with the usual pleasantries as he shut the door behind him. "OK, what's going on in here?"

The cop shrugged and threw the paperclip onto the work desk behind him. "I don't know…the guy doesn't appear to want anything – money, power, a friend released from jail…nothing."

Adam frowned. What was Osirico up to?

"I'll tell you what I do know though," the cop began, "That guy is number one on the whole of California's 'most wanted' list. Convicted of several murders a few years back, sentenced to life behind bars but someone broke him out last week."

"I guess that explains his treacherous connections then - he's got nothing to lose." Adam commented, more to himself than anyone. "Still, I need to get moving. You stay here," he motioned to the cop.

"But-…"

"Stay here." Adam reiterated firmly as he exited the room and quickly walked down the corridor, in the direction that he had seen the convicted man go earlier.

"Adam, where are you?" Tori hissed frustratedly down her morpher, "You need to get these people out…and fast!"

"I'm on my way," the Black Ranger replied as he reached the door to the room in question. "I'm ju-…"

Tori frowned to herself as his sentence cut off halfway, "Adam?"

"…"

"Adam?" She repeated his name again, a little more urgently and when he didn't reply a second time, the alarms bells started to ring inside her head. "Damn!"

"Tor? I don't think he's gonna answer…" Xander pointed out of the Megazord cockpit towards the room they were guarding to see the gunman with his weapon jammed into the side of one man's head, as Adam stood near the door, feverishly debating his options.

"Great…do you reckon we can hit him from here?" Kira nodded at the armed man.

"I wouldn't want to risk it…not even just using my blaster." Tori sighed, but glanced up again as the gunman put his forefinger to his ear, as if listening to something. "He's talking to him…" she muttered, "Osirico or one of his freaks is talking to him right now…he's got an earpiece!"

"We need to get in there!"

Meanwhile, inside the building, Adam stood only a few meters from the captor after having been unluckily scoped out during his brief transmission with the other Rangers.

"So…we finally have a Power Ranger!" The man laughed insanely and Adam finally recognized his face from the newspapers – he was the escaped convict. "It's quite ironic…even if you win this, you still didn't save them all," he laughed again, referring to the dead man outside in the corridor as his gun still pressed firmly into the head of the quivering next victim.

Adam gritted his teeth as he fought back a retort and forced himself to remain silent until the man revealed his plans. "So you don't want to talk?" the man asked snidely. "Of course, you're free to leave at any time…if you don't mind what happens to this bunch." He jerked his head at the other hostages in the room and they turned their fearful, pleading gazes upon Adam.

The Black Ranger inwardly cursed his own carelessness, even as he stood there in his mightily powered-up suit; he was unable to help anyone. The gunman listened to the voice in his ear once more and flicked his eyes back to Adam, "Where are the rest of your friends?"

Adam almost grinned inanely at the question as he glanced pointedly at the Megazord that still towered outside the window. "Isn't it obvious?" The gunman had revealed his primary intentions without realizing it…Whoever was giving him his orders had clearly stated that all the Rangers should be present if possible and of course, with so many innocent people in the room, they had naturally assumed that all four of them would be there. They were wrong.

The man followed Adam's eyes hesitantly and the Black Ranger seized his chance, whipping up his new sword and lunging forwards so that it was now mere centimeters from the man's throat. The man's eyes widened as he realized what Adam was doing and instinctively raised his gun towards the Black Ranger, allowing his victim to dash to relative safety.

"OK everyone," Adam addressed the other hostages, "I want all of you to leave this room, there's a fire escape down the corridor for you to get outside. Go!"

One by one and without a word, people started to move slowly and then a lot more eagerly as they realized that they were indeed going to get away unharmed. Within seconds there were only two people left in the room.

"Checkmate." Adam said coolly.

"Do it!" The Black Ranger heard the shouted command from where he was standing and the man glanced at his earpiece out of the corner of his eye.

However, within a second, the gun had swiveled to train on an object in the far corner of the room…something that Adam hadn't seen. Something highly explosive.

The gunman fired.

The trio of Rangers in the Megazord had now abandoned the giant robot and were running to help Adam, but a deafening explosion rumbled outwards from the building, shaking the ground they were standing on.

"Whoa!" The ground shook violently once more and the Rangers fought to keep their balance, each of them glancing around for any sign of their Black comrade. "What the hell was-…" Another mighty roar drowned out the rest of Kira's sentence and the trio watched in horror as the tall building before them creaked and groaned until the supports of the structure finally gave way…

The building seemed to fall in slow motion, slowing sinking downwards at an obscure angle as Adam struggled to stay upright. He managed to kick himself away from the insane gunman, who still leered at him despite the impeding chaos, not showing a flicker of fear.

As chunks of plaster and various office items fell from the walls, the ceiling also began to cave in and Adam barreled towards the door the best he could, shielding his face from any stray debris…

"Adam! Please tell me that you're getting out of there?" Tori yelled into her morpher above the noise.

"I'-…-ay down…hu-…damn-…-ar…"

The reply was full of interference and nobody could offer any kind of translation for the Black Ranger's broken sentence.

"JUST GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE…AND FAST!" Tori shouted back and the Rangers were all forced to take a few rather large steps backwards as the building finally toppled with a definitive series of loud thuds, sending a huge cloud of dust into the air.

There was silence for a brief moment as the dust settled and the Rangers ran forwards, peering through the rubble for any sign of…

"ADAM!" Kira yelled out as the man in question slowly picked himself out of the debris, the rest of the team rushing forwards to help him.

"You OK, buddy?" Xander looked him up and down with a grimace, the new armor battered and scratched, but otherwise intact.

"Yeah…Yeah i'm good," Adam replied slowly, still breathing rather heavily from the exertion as he rummaged around for his sword and shield style weapon. Finding the object, he dusted it off and powered down back to normal Ranger form.

"Will somebody please answer their calls?" A stressed-sounding Tommy Oliver sounded out through the morphers.

"Relax man," Adam replied, "We're all good here."

"Yeah, it was kinda noisy, we probably couldn't hear you," Xander added.

"Yeah, well…it's nice to see that you've all become accomplished demolition experts," Tommy replied with a joke.

"Oh please! We did that a while ago."

Tommy laughed, "I'll agree with that. Well, get back here and we can take a look at some kind of battle analysis, meet us at-…"

"Let me guess…The Cyberspace?"

Tommy laughed again. "The Cyberspace."

Chapter 17, complete!

The next chapter will start building towards one of the main arcs in the story, so pay attention to details *hint hint* ;)

Thanks to everyone for still reading!