A Gold Power

By StraightedgeEpyon

Summary: Darkness comes over Tokyo-3 as the battle against The Angels continues. But one boy finds a golden light to cut through the darkness as he becomes the new Gold Ranger

Beta read ToAT

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Chapter 15

(NERV HQ)

Gendo Ikari was staring expectantly at the prototype Dummy Plug System hanging above Unit-01, ready to be inserted, though his attention was mostly focused on the lifeless Evangelion Unit-01, which was still undergoing repairs from the last battle.

'Soon, very soon,' he thought.

Operations, around the underground complex were running as expected, very smoothly. Machines, where running at peak efficiency, the lower level personnel although useless in his mind, were performing their assigned duties normally. The phone is his front pocket rang.

"This had better be important. I have no time for-"

("You better make the time, because we've got business to settle,") the Gold Ranger's voice said, shocking Gendo.

The line hung up before Gendo could form a response.

'It's much too early, and the specimen is still in the developmental phase. It isn't ready to for- ' Gendo thought until he heard the sounds of pained grunts.

The grim commander peered over to the other side to the lower level and saw some of his security detail, and Section Two agents, literally getting kicked and tossed around by a black and gold figure.

"You should have stood aside, boys," said the Gold Ranger to the groaning men before glancing over to the personnel in the area.

"I'm not here to cause any trouble. I just have a bone to pick with your boss. So if you can point me-"

Shinji stopped mid-sentence as the workers present all literally pointed to where the commander was, up in the higher level cage, in front of Unit-01.

"Thank you," he said before speeding up to the top.

Quick as lightning, Shinji appeared, face-to-face with his father, in front of the lifeless Unit-01. Everyone in NERV HQ stopped what they were doing, whether it was on the monitors, in the break room or the command bridge, all the personnel were watching the face-off between NERV's grim commander and the golden hero.

"Speaking for myself and my friend, you not liking us, getting your purple-haired errand girl to try to recruit us are things we can deal with to various degrees, but to have us attacked by your personal goon squad, while putting innocent people in danger…is something we cannot and will not tolerate," stated the black and gold figure to Gendo.

"In case your personnel watching us are not aware, your commander has had us attacked by his own personal goon squads, and probably who-knows-what else in this city."

The personnel at large began to murmur in shock amongst one another at this information.

"As I said before when we last met, beings of your power could be quite useful to us," Gendo stated, not even bothering to defend himself from these accusations.

Shinji, through his link with Trey, could literally feel the evil intent radiating off of his father.

"So, what, when recruitment fails, you try to capture us and force us to fight for you?"

Gendo didn't respond.

"Under certain circumstances, I would offer to work with you, the keyword 'with', not for you, but I don't think you have the best intentions," he stated.

"We have the same goals, Gold Ranger. I would have thought you'd understood," Gendo reasoned.

"Do we?" asked the Gold Ranger, stepping closer. "Do we really? Because I'm beginning to think it's something else entirely now; otherwise, you wouldn't be going through this much trouble."

Gendo peered into his visor, attempting look into the face behind it, but it was much too dark to see. Both individuals not backing down from this stare down.

"You claim that we have the same goals, and perhaps we do. But tell me, why should I trust a man who willingly abandons his own son?" Shinji asked, bitterly seeing Gendo tense a bit, but kept his composure.

This all caused more murmurs among those who were watching, some of them wondered how this ranger got that information. Of course, it could have come from a few sources within NERV, even the Third Child himself.

"What's wrong? Didn't think I'd know? There's a lot about you that I've found most unsettling."

"That is irrelevant to this juncture," the commander stated coldly.

Shinji couldn't help but scoff. It seemed like much of anything seemed irrelevant to his old man.

"The smallest details can sometimes have the most significant of impacts, and the fact that you're not denying it shows me who you really are," the Gold Ranger stated.

He then stepped away from the commander and put his hands on his buckle.

"Take this as a warning. Whatever you think you're doing, stop…or I'll stop you." he warned him emphatically.

Gendo just glared at the figure, unafraid of him.

An electrical field formed around the figure and teleported him out of headquarters, much to the shock of everyone watching.

"If you will not join us, then I will have to eliminate you," Gendo muttered before leaving the cage.

(Two days later Shinji and Rei's apartment in the morning)

Shinji was suddenly awoken by a knock on the front door. Groggily getting up outta bed, he walked out of his room and to the front door of his apartment, opening it to reveal his sensei, Kenshin.

He informed his student that they would be going to see a friend of his who lives in Kyoto.

Whilst on the way to the train station, Kenshin, told Shinji of an interesting sidebar conversation he had with his female roommate before they left, in which he was surprised that his student was shacking up with all alone.

They talked about her actually joining the dojo alongside Shinji, much to his surprise. When Shinji asked the reason, Kenshin replied that Rei mentioned something about a near-altercation with another girl with red hair.

Shinji didn't have to guess who that was.

So now the two were riding towards Kyoto, by train in relative, comfortable silence.

"So, why are we going to see your friend, sensei?" Shinji asked.

"We're upping our game for the tournament, Shinji. We're gonna be facing a lot of stiff competition. My friend is an expert of a style of Kung Fu called Hei-Hu-Quan, AKA, the Black Tiger Fist." Kenshin explained. "He and I trained together under the same sensei."

"Your sensei? You never talked much about your sensei."

"It's a subject I'd rather not to talk about," Kenshin sighed.

The two continued to ride until the train stopped at their destination. They disembarked and proceeded to a temple in the northwest.

Shinji, having never been to Kyoto, was enamored with the sights of the few temples from the ancient feudal era that survived Second Impact's effects. After another hour of walking, they came across a temple on a high hilltop. The temple itself had a long stairway, and in between the top were a weather-worn ancient Chinese tiger and a Japanese dragon statue.

"We're here," said Kenshin, looking at the temple.

Sensei and student walked up the long stairway. They opened the door to find not just some the traditional findings of a temple, like miniature waterfalls and statues, but a wide, spacious area with some monk-style training equipment, and modern-style equipment on the other end.

"Jian!" called out Kenshin. "Jian!"

They both walked deeper into the temple. Unbeknownst to them, they were being watched from above by someone.

"He should be here," said Kenshin, looking around.

The sound of pebbles falling to the ground caught Shinji's attention, albeit briefly.

"Kenshin," a voice responded.

Looking up at the roof, Kenshin smiled. There, sitting on the roof, was man around his age. He had short, black, spiked hair, brown eyes, a scar across his right cheek, a lean, muscular build and was wearing an all-red Kung Fu outfit, with the shape of a claw on the right side. He leapt skillfully off the roof in front of his two guests. Most of all, he seemed to be a mix of Chinese and American.

"Still the show-off, eh, Jian?" Kenshin chuckled.

"And I see you're still the same talker as always, Kenshin," replied Jian. "Oh, and who is this?"

"Jian, this is my student, Shinji Ikari," Kenshin introduced while Shinji bowed respectfully, surprising Kenshin. "Shinji, this is my friend, Jian Rhodes."

"Please to meet you, sir," said Shinji.

"So, you actually did it. You brought back the White Tiger." Jian remarked.

"Yeah, well…"

"And this is your first student?" Jian asked and his friend nodded.

Jian inspected Shinji very closely, circling around him, like a tiger preparing to pounce on his prey.

"To be honest, I've seen better," he said.

"Hey, hey, my boy picks up fast," Kenshin quickly defended.

"Take it easy. I've seen a lot worse, too." Jian said.

"Jian, we're preparing for the upcoming tournament. We've been training hard, but now it's time we step it up."

"And you're gonna enter the tournament, too? After what happened years ago?" Jian questioned.

Shinji looked at the two men in confusion.

"Shinji, why don't you explore the temple for a bit? I need to discuss some things with Jian." his sensei said.

"Alright," Shinji nodded, feeling there was something he was being kept out of.

"It won't be like all those years ago, man, I'm not Acha." Kenshin stated strongly.

Jian looked at Kenshin's student, who clearly didn't know of the previous history of the White Tiger dojo.

"Your student doesn't know about your past, specifically our past with White Tiger, does he?" Jian whispered.

"No, I thought it best to keep it hidden, since I'm not proud of it," answered Kenshin while Jian put a hand on his shoulder and they began walking.

"Neither am I, but the past has a way of rearing its ugly head when you least expect it."

"Yeah, thing is, I'm afraid of how Shinji's going to take it. He's got a lot potential to be better than I was at his age."

"Indeed, but that should be up to him to decide. Besides, he seems like an understanding boy."

"Yeah, he is."

"And what do you know about him?" Jian asked.

"I know a lot about his past, only he doesn't know that I know, and let me tell you, poor kid has been through Hell and more."

Jian remained silent, urging Kenshin to continue.

"But beyond that, I know there's an inner strength that he has buried within him, that of Eye the Tiger." Kenshin stated.

"So you see it, too, huh? Good, then, there might be hope for this kid yet." Jian said.

"So, does that mean you'll help?" Kenshin asked, getting a nod.

"But under one condition: You have to tell him about what happened all those years ago," Jian stated. "The relationship between master and student must be built and maintained on a strong foundation of trust."

"Alright," Kenshin relented.

(With Delphine in city )

Delphine was secretly investigating the area where the mysterious ranger was first sighted; the owners of the stands had already finished cleaning and resetting their stands, so they resumed their business, as if nothing happened. She waved her hand as if trying to feel for something, but only getting trace amounts of the power trail.

"The power of this ranger is unlike anything I've ever felt before," said Delphine as she continued walking along the path.

"Looking for someone?" a voice asks, catching Delphine's attention.

Looking to her left, the Aquitian saw a man, chopping fish, addressing her.

"You…can say that," Delphine answered, almost hesitantly.

The man continued to chop fish heads and lay them properly on the table.

"Most people go through their entire lives searching for something or someone, never realizing that it might be right in front of them," the man said sagely.

"It's not so simple," replied the disguised Aquitain.

"Life rarely is simple. Life works in many ways, most in which you will never see coming," explained the man to her.

"Hmm…tell me, did you happen to see what happened the other day?" Delphine asked, hearing the man chuckle.

"See it? I was there when those thugs attacked us, and when that mysterious, sliver individual defeated them and saved us. I've never seen such an individual with such grace, poise and power before. Not since those two other rangers showed up."

Delphine remained silent.

"But is all well and good, those rangers have given the people something believe in. For the first time in decades, people are starting to hope again."

"Yes, it is good to have hope. Hope is one of the best of things in the universe." she stated.

"And it's that hope, and a little patience, that will allow you to find what you are searching for, or rather, what you're searching for may find you."

"I…I understand. Thank you for your wisdom." Delphine praised him, bowing before departing the market place while the man continued chopping fish

(In space)

In the far reaches of space, a mantis-like ship came out of a wormhole, in its view was the displaced planet called Earth. Inside the ship, in the darkness, a lone occupant sat in the cockpit.

"Navigation, are you certain this is the right planet?" the figure spoke.

"Affirmative," a computerize voice said. "Sensors detect that the trail left by the White Aquitian Power Ranger ceases here."

"So she is here. That is excellent. What can you detect from the planet?" the figure asked.

"The planet itself is off its proper axis, yet it is still teeming with intelligent life, although there is a surprisingly-low number of the population of its dominant species." the voiced reported.

"Of roughly how many in total?"

"Roughly around fifty percent of its total, dominant population."

"Hmm…this may make my job easier or harder in the long run. Run a scan on the entire planet's surface. I want to know if there are any energy sources or fluctuations generated by Grid energy."

"Scanning, processing."

The pilot sat quietly, while the Navigation computer was running its program. Looking the blue, displaced marble with a passive look, wondering if the target was on the planet and how best to proceed.

"Energy signal detected, the energy leads to a small country called Japan, on the underside," the computer voice said.

"Yes, lock on and follow." The figure ordered.

The ship set course and blasted to the other side of the planet.

"I'm coming for you, White Aquitar Ranger, and the Gold Ranger powers, too." the figure mused.

(Back at NERV)

Gendo entered the lab to check the progress of the specimen, and to his shock, not only did the specimen triple in size, but began to sprout limbs inside the liquefied tube. With each passing second, it began to grow a little more and take shape. It was then that Ritsuko came in, wheeling in barrels and large tubes of bronze-colored materials, metal parts and wires included.

"Here are the materials you requested from the one of the few active chemical plants in Fukushima, commander," the doctor reported.

"Good, hurry and infuse them into the specimen," he said.

The doctor nodded and began the necessary connections, hooking up each of the barrels to the tube and began the infusion process. Ritsuko went over to the nearby console and began to power it on.

The tube began to fill with waves of electricity, causing the specimen inside to grow and change. It soon began to change its shape; it began to absorb the metal parts into itself. After a few moments, it began to take form, partly metallic and mostly organic.

"You know, there is a chance we won't be able to control it completely. This is made partly from the Angels, so there is-"

"I am aware, doctor, it's a risk we're going to have to take," Gendo stated.

'The problem is that you take too many risks, and for what? Your own, foolish pride, and for those you can't control!' thought Ritsuko.

The specimen began to triple in size, this time to human size; first its torso becoming grey, bronze and armored, then its legs began to take shape, then the arms with armored, bladed gauntlets to their surprise. Next came the head, its face formed into a pointed visor with a mask, while the rest of the head was that of a helmet (A/N: if anything, you think of this as a version of a Psycho Ranger).

Gendo could only smile at what he was seeing.

'You will soon you meet your match, Gold Ranger,' he thought.

(With Shinji and Kenshin)

Later on during the day, Shinji was being shown how to use a Wing Chun and learning how to strike much different than what Kenshin had taught him. As he was striking, his mind drifted to the earlier conversation he had with his sensei.

(Earlier on)

'Shinji, there's something I need to tell you about the White Tiger Dojo,' said Kenshin to him. 'The White Tiger dojo wasn't always mine.'

'What do you mean? There was another one?' Shinji asked.

'Yeah, it was run by me and Jian's sensei. His name was Chozen Acha. He was strong, tough and merciless. He was the one who started the White Tiger Dojo with the intent turning his students into cold-blooded soldiers like he was. Acha was proficient in hand-to-hand combat. He taught me and Jian a lot, but he was aggressive and ruthless. Over time, I thought I could be the same way, but it wasn't in me.'

'So, you were an aggressive kid?'

'I was. His style changed me. For a time, I was an angry and violent kid, and deep down, I hated myself for it.'

Shinji kept quiet wondering where his sensei was going with this.

'Anyway, during a tournament twelve years ago, Jian and I both saw what kind of man he really was. I was a little older than you are now, I was in the finals in the tournament, my last opponent was an American by the name of Jason Parker , before that Acha instructed another student to put him "out of commission". He did, but at a cost; he ended up being disqualified as a result.'

'So what happened after that?'

'The dojo was gonna be awarded the championship by default. Frankly, it was a hollow victory because it wasn't earned. But Parker came back to finish the tournament, despite his injury. So we fought, back and forth, until we tied, and Sensei instructed me to break his leg. I wanted to object, I really did, but I couldn't find the strength to. So I did, but I didn't feel good about it. stood back up, ready to fight, before the ref could signal the fight, he got into a stance I had never seen before, a cobra-like stance. The ref signaled and I rushed in and he twisted around and landed a kick to my face and won the fight.' finished Kenshin.

'I got second place, but Acha didn't like it and kicked me off the team. We argued, he broke my trophy, showing what a sore loser he was. Because of that every one of us walked out, and went our separate paths. The dojo eventually closed down, and I haven't seen Acha since. He's probably dead."

'Why are you telling me all this, sensei?'

'Because I don't want you to think I'm like him or your father, Gendo Ikari.' Kenshin stated, shocking his student.

"Y-You know?!"

'About your backstory, you mean? How you were abandoned? Yes, I do. Remember, I'm a member of the police force and a city official. I can get all sorts of info on anyone. I also know of your status as a pilot for those robots.'

'So you know about that, too? Then you should know it wasn't by choice; I was blackmailed into getting into the Eva. The people that made it, NERV, forced me into it. The people, they're they're- ' his student tried to get out.

'Not so good people, I figured as much. You don't look like you'd be suited for the military lifestyle. It's not for everyone.'

'That much I agree.' Shinji said.

'Point is there's no such thing as a bad student, only a bad teacher. I'm gonna try my best to teach you, so you can be your better self. You have that "Eye of the Tiger" in you, something I don't have.'

'I understand, but please, don't try, sensei.' Shinji said, confusing the man for a brief moment.

'He's right, because if all you ever do is try to succeed, you won't know if you can succeed,' Jian said coming up from behind.

Kenshin smirked.

'That was wise. Who'd you learn that from?'

'Call it an inner sense.' said Shinji, mentally thanking Trey for feeding him that.

Now Shinji was training with the Wing Chun dummy, adapting to the style of Chinese striking. He continued this for an hour. Then, under Jian, he began his kicking strikes with a heavy bag. Shinji had taken to it pretty well.

"Shinji, let's knock off for today. The sun's going to go down when we reach the city." said Kenshin to him.

"Alright, but will we come back tomorrow to train?" Shinji asked, wiping the sweat off his forehead.

"I don't know I'm supposed heading to Odiaba tomorrow my captain has yet to let me know ," answered Kenshin.

"If he is unable to train you, then I might be able to come to help you." said Jian.

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Thanks, buddy." said Kenshin.

"That's two you owe me, Ken." said Jian, putting up two fingers for emphasis.

"Hey, what happened in Shinjuku wasn't my fault." Kenshin defended.

"Sure it wasn't."

With that, master and student had departed the temple and headed back to the train station going back to Tokyo-3.

(At night Back at Tokyo-3)

An all-black SUV was seen speeding down the street, with a couple of police cars chasing it down. It ran red light after red light, causing any cars on the road to move to the side.

It kept going and going, until a lone figure, clad in blue and silver, stood in the middle of the road. Upon a closer look, it was the other ranger.

She took out her trident, aimed it directly at the under carriage of the car and fired a blast of energy that flipped the SUV upside-down, landed on its rooftop, skidding near the Silver Ranger.

The police cars arrived on the scene while the Sliver Ranger walked away from the scene and jumped high onto the nearest building.

"All too easy," she spoke, looking down below.

"I knew if I waited long enough, I'd eventually find you," said a watery voice, catching her attention.

Appearing from another rooftop across from her stood the White Aquitian Ranger. The Silver Ranger put her hand on her weapon, readying herself for a fight if need be.

"So, we meet at last, fellow ranger." she said.

End Chapter

End Notes: I wanna wish you all a happy 2020 first off, and You all wanted it, Shinji's new enemy will make his presence felt in the next chapter think of him like one the Psycho Rangers if anybody watch Power Rangers In Space you know it was pretty dark there. And he's not the only one, Delphine will be getting one too from deep space. Could this be a he or a she? Yes Shinji and Rei will be training together but he won't know her secret yet, heck even she doesn't know yet. And because I'm nearing 100 reviews on my first single Eva story I just want thank my boys TOAT and the phenomenal Gunman, GK and all of you for making this possible. R.I.P to the voice of Lord Zedd Robert Axleford.. Next Shinji meets NERV's creation (I haven't come up with a name for him so let know if anyone thinks of a name), and might get into ranger-esq fight. Also new poll on my profile check it out. Here's what might happen:

"Gold Ranger, I have been sent to destroy you!"

"They've helped me a lot more than you have Misato."

"No, not you!"

"I will not Commander."

"This could work to our advantage."