Category: TV Show » Power Rangers

Author: Twix3780

Language: English

Rated: Fiction T

Genre: Fantasy/Family

Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.

Author's Note: Hello! How is everyone? I hope you're all staying safe. To keep you from boredom, here is the second instalment in the Kali Briar series. I have decided to warp the chronological timeline of Powers Rangers around to fit my ideas, which is why Ninja Storm is coming after Mystic Force as opposed to before it.

There are several other changes I have made and am making to the timeline, also. Within this first chapter alone, there are five Easter Eggs for you to find. Each one is linked back to a different Ranger season. Can you find them all?

Leave your answers and reviews in the comments section, and I'll send you a PM in order for you to claim your prize. (Only applies to signed in reviews.)

"Hey, have you seen this?"

Kali jumped as a newspaper was dropped in front of her. She had been studying more magical history while on her break at the Rock Porium. Looking up, Kali scowled at Xander as he sat on the stool beside her. "It's not like I'm busy or anything," she muttered.

"Sorry. But look, there's new Rangers," said Xander, poking the front page of the paper. "Overdrive Rangers in San Angeles."

"Okay, and I care why?" Kali asked. She picked the paper up and read the small inscription beneath the image. The Overdrive Rangers had just been seen saving the San Angeles city from weird lizard-like creatures.

Xander shrugged. "Don't you normally sense when evil is around?" he asked.

"This is in another state," said Kali. "My abilities don't extend that far."

"As far as you know."

Kali rolled her eyes and shoved the newspaper into his chest.

Xander chuckled. "You're the Hellhound," he said. "You have dominion over the whole spirit world. Surely you can sense a shift in the darkness. You were able to sense when darkness was approaching when we were Rangers."

"I could sense dark magic approaching," said Kali. "The Overdrive Rangers don't look to be using magic to me."

"True. But the creatures they're fighting look like they belong in the Mystic Realm."

Kali shook her head and turned back to her book. "Well, if they do, it's in a place where the Hellhound can't reach," she said.

"How was it meeting your grandparents for the first time?" Xander asked, changing the topic. He folded the paper and pushed it against the wall.

Kali huffed in response.

"That bad, huh?"

Kali's scowl hardened as she glared at her book.

"That bad," Xander confirmed. "What happened?"

"Nothing."

"So something did happen?"

Kali turned her fierce glare onto her friend. "I swear if you keep talking I'm going to use my Hellhound abilities against you," she warned.

Xander whistled and held up his hands. "Definitely bad," he said.

Kali grit her teeth and grabbed her book.

"Where are you going?" Xander asked.

"Somewhere you aren't," said Kali, sliding from her chair and walking away. She crossed the store and headed outside, finding Matoombo and Vida sitting on the steps. The pair looked up as Kali approached, Vida's pink hair glinting in the afternoon sunlight.

Vida smiled. "Xander bugging you?" she asked.

"How'd you guess?" Kali sighed.

Vida smiled. "We were all curious how your gathering went this morning, but he was the only one foolish enough to ask you about it," she said.

Kali run a hand through her hair. "If he wasn't so... Xander, I would tell him it was a disaster," she said. "To be honest, I half expected you to be interrogating me about it. I mean, you didn't hold back during the whole triangle fiasco."

Vida grinned. "True. But you didn't look happy when you arrived to work," she admitted. "We've all pretty much learned to give you a wide berth until you've calmed down."

"Xander seems to need a refresher course," Kali said.

Vida laughed and nodded in agreement.

"Anyway, enough about me," said Kali, shaking her head. "How are you two doing?"

Vida shrugged. "Can't complain," she said.

"You spoke to Maddie?"

Vida nodded. "She calls every morning to check-in," she said.

"I don't see why you didn't go with them."

Vida shrugged. "We all had the chance," she said. "Maddie and Chip seemed to be the only ones interested."

"Fair point."

A month after their time as Mystic Rangers had come to an end, the team had been offered chances to train with Masters of their respective elements; the friends had asked for time to think about it and had been given a week to decide, but only Maddie and Chip had seemed excited by the idea. So, at the end of the week, the duo had been whisked off to the training school to continue their education.

"How about you, Matoombo?" Kali asked. She hadn't seen much of the cotton ball in the last few months. If she wasn't working at the Rock Porium then she was taking additional sessions at Root core with Eithne, or meeting her extended family - the royal woodland elves. Sometimes, she was in the Underworld with Necrolai, LeeLee, and Itassis. Just because it was once a place of great evil, didn't mean that it couldn't now be used for the greater good.

Matoombo shrugged. "Happy," he replied, his voice booming as usual.

Kali smiled. "I'm glad you're here," she said. "It was uplifting to see you in the Spirit World, and even more so when Nikki said she had enough power left to bring you back."

"I can't thank you enough," said Matoombo.

"No thanks needed, big guy," said Kali, shaking her head. "It's not family without the whole group."

Matoombo smiled and nodded.

A familiar jingle sounded from Kali's pocket and she removed her old Morpher with a frown. The only time the team used them were in cases of dire emergencies. Regardless of there being harmony between both the Mystic Realm and the Human one, there was still the odd trouble maker that tried to start up the old wars, but the team, despite being two members down, were still there to stop them.

"Surprisingly, I don't miss that sound as much as I thought I would," said Vida, chuckling.

Kali nodded and snapped the Morpher open. "What's up, Nick?" she asked.

"Kali, you and the others better get back here, now."

"Why, what's wrong?" Kali asked, sensing the urgency in his voice. She cast a look at Vida.

"Trust me when I say you're better hearing this for yourselves."

"I'll get Xander," Vida said, disappearing into the store.

"We'll be there in a few," Kali told Nick. She snapped her Morpher closed and turned to Matoombo.

"That didn't sound good."

"It never is," Kali muttered. "Are you coming with us?"

Matoombo shook his head. "I'll wait for Vida in the Mystic Realm. See you soon, Kali." He stood and walked across the road, disappearing into the trees.

Once Vida had returned with Xander, the trio raced across the road and disappeared through the tree opposite.

~X~

Root core was deadly silent when Xander, Vida, and Kali arrived. They found Nick in the main room with Eithne, Leanbow, Daggeron, and Udonna, while Claire was nowhere to be found. The group looked around as the door opened, dispelling the three teens inside.

"What's going on?" Kali asked, eyeing the group with keen interest. It looked like they had called a meeting, and the last time they had called a meeting three out of five of them ended up dead.

Eithne turned to her daughter. "An old friend has paid us a visit," she said. "I'm afraid she has some grave news."

"Is this about them freaky lizard things in San Angeles?" Xander asked. "They're all over the newspapers. The media hasn't had this much of a field day since we were Rangers."

Eithne cocked her head to the side.

"What freaky lizard things?" Leanbow asked.

Xander headed for the nearest computer and started a global search. He quickly found what he was looking for and showed the news footage to the adults.

"Lava Lizards?" Udonna gasped.

"Lava what now?" Vida asked.

"Lava Lizards," Daggeron repeated. "They're the foot soldiers of a creature known as Moltor."

Eithne strode to the bookcase and took down a book from the top shelf. She leafed through it and then set it down on the table. Nick, Kali, Vida, and Xander crowded around.

"It's a story," said Kali. "The Corona Aurora."

"The Corona Aurora is no mere story," said Udonna. "According to the legend, the crown has power, not just over this planet but the Universe. Millennia ago, in a galaxy on the other side of the universe, there were two brothers - Moltor and Flurious. They tried to steal the Corona Aurora. But the crown was so powerful it cursed them, changed their appearances, and sent them off to distant planets. Imprisoning them in their own elements."

Kali shared a look with Nick. "It still sounds like a story," she said.

"There's more," said Eithne. "To stop anyone from getting the power again, or attempting to get it, the guardian took the five jewels from the crown and scattered them on a distant, uninhabited planet."

"Let me guess, that planet was Earth," said Vida.

Eithne nodded. "Back when the planet was first born," she confirmed. "It would seem that someone has freed Moltor and Flurious from their imprisonment. And now, thanks to them, they and who knows how many other power-crazed beasts are here - or soon will be - looking for the crown."

"We don't even know where the crown is," said Xander.

"I'm guessing that's why there are Power Rangers in San Angeles," said Kali. "Is that why you've called us here? They need help or something?"

Daggeron shook his head. "We had no idea that Moltor and Flurious had been released until you told us," he said. "The reason we called you here is for another matter."

"Then what is it?" Vida asked. "Nick sounded urgent when he called, and you all looked scared when we arrived."

Kali and Xander nodded.

"Does the name Rune Tessler mean anything to either of you?" Eithne asked.

"Rune Tessler?" Kali repeated.

Eithne nodded.

"Wasn't she the Water Mystic before Maddie?" Vida asked.

Again, Eithne nodded.

"She's here," said Kali, spying Udonna and Leanbow's grave faces. "Rune is here at Root core. She's the old friend that you mentioned."

Leanbow bowed his head. "Rune has been residing at a place called the Wind Ninja Academy in Blue Bay Harbour. She teaches water-bending there to their students."

"Is that where Maddie is?" Vid asked.

"Maddie is safe," Daggeron said, reassuringly.

Kali cocked her head to the side. "Why would you assume that we're asking about her safety?" she asked.

Daggeron hesitated.

"Oh god... what happened? Where's my sister?" Vida asked, panicking.

Kali placed a hand on Vida's shoulder as she looked to the adults. "Tell us what happened," she said.

"The Wind Ninja Academy was attacked yesterday," said Leanbow. "Its students were captured and the grounds destroyed. Rune managed to escape."

"And Maddie?" Xander asked.

"She wasn't at the Academy when the attack occurred," Udonna said. "She's advancing in her studies rather quickly and has already progressed to a higher level. She's taking lessons at another academy in Summer Cove, as is Chip."

Vida relaxed.

"Back to the Wind Ninja Academy," said Kali, reassured that her friends were safe. "Not to sound insensitive or anything, but what have they got to do with us?"

"The Academy falls under the Mystic Realms purview of protectors."

"You're saying they're guardians, too?" Vida asked.

Udonna nodded. "Just as the Mystic Realm protects the Human Realm from the forces of the Underworld, the Wind Ninja Academy protects another gateway, a gateway that hasn't been opened in over a century, and houses all the Evil of ages gone by. The Abyss of Evil," she explained.

"So it's part of the Underworld?" Nick asked.

"Yes and no," Eithne answered. "It's a dreaded realm of darkness between dimensions. In ancient Ninja folklore, it is represented as the negative afterlife."

Kali paused, her brow furrowing. "Wait, I've read about this place before," she said. She retrieved the book she had been reading at the Rock Porium from her backpack and skimmed a few pages near the front. "Here. There are believed to be three different realms of darkness, each one different to the last and specific to a certain type of evil. The Abyss of Evil is said to house the evils of anyone with a Ninja or Magical background, while the Shadow Land holds the spirits of evil-doers. The last and less recorded of the dark realms is the Nighlok Heaven."

"They make it sound so quaint," said Xander, sarcastically. "Nighlok Heaven."

"Hey, one man's heaven is another man's hell," said Kali, closing the book and tossing it onto the table.

Xander relented. "I still don't understand what any of this has to do with us," he said, looking back at the adults.

"With only three students from the Wind Ninja Academy remaining, they require assistance in protecting the Abyss of Evil from any further attacks."

"You never said who took them," said Nick.

Leanbow approached the table and waved his hand at the Crystal ball. An image of a man appeared. He was decked in a full leather outfit, complete with a face mask and a long ponytail sticking out of the top. His cold, evil and beady eyes stared back and a cruel smirk edged its way onto his lips.

"This is Lothor," said Leanbow. "He was once a great Ninja. He was banished from the Earth when his hunger for power turned him to the dark side. Now he has returned and brought an army that will do anything to take our planet for their own unless they are stopped!"

Kali leaned against the edge of the table, staring intently into the crystal ball as she watched the destruction take place in what she could only guess was the Wind Ninja Academy grounds. She watched as students were sucked into large bubbles and shot into the sky, disappearing until no one was left.

"So, you think that to take control of our world, Lothor is going to open the Abyss?" Kali asked.

Leanbow nodded. "Fortunately for us, the Abyss can only be opened when it's filled to capacity, and only then it can be opened with a mighty force."

Kali met Leanbow's gaze and found him staring, unnervingly back. "You mean me," she said.

"Yes."

Kali lowered her gaze back to the Crystal Ball. "So, let me get this straight," she said, taking a deep breath. "You want to send me - the Hellhound - to Blue Bay Harbour, to take on the responsibility of a being a Power Ranger, again, and to stop this lunatic from opening a secret realm of Darkness?"

"Yes, but there is a catch," said Eithne.

"Isn't there always?"

Eithne took a deep breath. "The only way to stop Lothor is to seal him inside the Abyss," she said. "But the only way you can do that is if it is opened first."

Kali shared a confused look with Xander, Nick, and Vida.

"Wait, you want Kali to open it?" Nick asked, confused.

"Isn't that something we shouldn't be doing?" Xander asked.

"Yeah," said Vida.

Kali straightened up and folded her arms. "Something tells me there is more to it than that," she said.

"Sharp as always," Daggeron chuckled. "Over time, the Abyss has filled up with more and more evil energy. It's almost full and fit to burst open. Once that has happened, all that energy will settle down again and the Abyss will return to normal."

"Like a pressure cooker," said Kali. "It needs to become unstable before it can simmer down. The only way to do that is by removing the lid."

Daggeron nodded.

Kali grinned. "So, you want to send me to Blue Bay Harbour has a bait. To tempt Lothor into capturing me, letting him think he has won, and then to turn on him and send him back where he belongs?" she asked.

"Essentially, yes," Eithne said.

Kali took a deep breath. "When do I leave?" she asked.

"Sensei Watanabe is expecting you tomorrow, at the latest," Eithne answered. "He's agreed to let you stay at their base of operations for the duration of the assignment, unless, of course, you wish to commute every day from here."

"It would be easier if I stayed there," said Kali. "At least then I'm on the frontline and available without hesitation. Just one problem," she added, heaving a sigh. "I'm not a Ninja."

Eithne chuckled. "You weren't a Mystic until a few months ago," she said. "You learned how to become one relatively quick. While you stay with Sensei Watanabe, he has agreed to teach you the Way of the Ninja alongside being a Power Ranger. The three surviving students are still undergoing training, so you'll be joining them."

"Great," Kali muttered. "I been out of school for nearly three years, and now I get to go back."

"At least this time it's a Ninja school," said Nick.

"Yeah, it's probably more fun than High School," Vida chirped.

Xander nodded.

Kali rolled her eyes but couldn't help the smile and crept onto her face. "I guess I'll go home and pack," she said.

"I'll see to Rune," said Eithne. "She should be fit enough to travel by the time you return."

Kali nodded and left Root core with the others.

Thoughts? Leave a review, and don't forget your answers.

~Twix