Power Rangers: Dragon Night (Legend of Spyro/Power Rangers)

Chapter 11: Crushing the Dragon Air

The apes lead them to a passage heading upwards to the mountain. Their trek began with long stone steps. On the sides of the steps, there were statues of dragons with large wings frozen in poses of taking off into the sky.
“I’ve never seen those kinds of dragons depicted in the temple”, Helena muttered under her breath.
“They are all that is left of the Wind Dragons. They used to leave here along with my ancestors-but they haven’t been seen in centuries”, Kane hissed.
“And the Dragonair Gem? There are Pokémon here?” Butch asked.

“I know not what of this poke man you speak of. But the Dragon Air Gem contains the essence of Wind Dragons. It’s what keeps the islands afloat.” The ground suddenly shook that forced everyone to the jagged steps. Then as quickly as it had come, the ground quieted. There were noticeable new cracks in the stone as the apes forced them back to their feet.
“What the…” Helena winced as she spat out some dirt.
“It is our patron guardian god, Crusher. He has not been given tribute in months and he is taking it out on the Dragon Air Gem’s protective barrier”, Kane explained.
“You speak as if this Crusher has done this before”, Kirby mused. The Atwala tiled his head down.

“Yes…but Crusher has protected us for generations. We owed it to the god.” A soldier jabbed him with their spear and chirped them to keep moving.
The shaman had led them a square shaped passage carved in the face of a marble slab. Though largely hidden by overgrowth-there were still traces of carvings of wind dragons and Atwala. The passage was dark and reeked of mildew. The shaman lit a single torch and ordered them inside. The walls appeared to have been treated roughly recently. Stone carvings were defaced and pieces were littered all over the floor. Buckets of tools strewn all about their feet suggested just what happened to them. The passage snaked tightly around pillars that made everything disorienting in the dark. At last, they were shoved into a large domed room. In the middle was a rectangular altar with a large statue of a humanoid golem in the center. Lining the edges of the room were eight doors. The shaman had to stop and look at a piece of crumpled paper he pulled from the pouch on his leg. Helena happened to glance at their feet. All of them, including the apes, were standing in a shallow pool of water. It was only about three or four inches at best. Aside from the doors there were no other visible means of ventilation. And the room was roughly twenty feet in diameter. She looked at Kane who’s seemed to be shifting to the third door on the right. Butch had been ties behind her. “Psst, hey hot head. We need cover.” Butch tilted his head. “Ugh, make some steam you dumb ape!” An ape got into her face and held the tip of its spear close to her face.

“What did you call me, you blue salamander?”
“Ya heard her. Why don’t you make a demand to be top ape? Why is that guy the leader?” Cassidy trilled. The ape scratched its head and then its chin as it put its own thoughts together. “No no, this guy is better qualified to be the leader”, Elijah quipped as he nudged his shoulder towards the one next to him. “Don’t be silly. My jailor appears to be the toughest one of the squad”, Kirby huffed. The apes started to argue with each other and their voices filled the chamber. The shaman was trying to read the map and roared that he couldn’t concentrate. Helena glared at Butch, hoping to get the hint. He seemed to understand-or he made up his own mind. He sent a little bit of flame to the ground, creating puffs of thick steam. Between the arguing and the fog, the apes lost track of their quarry. Helena whispered to the group to follow her.
“How did you find me here?!” Kane had taken advantage of the chaos caused by the knights to slip away. He was now pressed inside an empty alcove and was using his teeth to try and break the chain on his manacles. “I saw you glancing at this hallway. And if it weren’t for us, you’d not be currently trying to break your chains without a spear in your back. You’re welcome”, Helena scoffed.

“And without them I couldn’t swipe this”, Sparx chimed in as he twirled a key around his arm. Kane grumbled as Sparx unlocked his shackles and then went to assist the team.
“I…suppose I owe you some form of minor gratitude. That does not mean I owe you my entire respect.” The ground began to quake again and the ceiling formed cracks above. Only the vines kept them back from falling right on the team’s heads.
“We have to appease Crusher quickly. I…I know of a shortcut but it is dangerous. Are you best prepared for battle?” Butch tapped the handle of his lance on the floor and made it spark. “Bring it on!” Kane pressed his cloven tipped hands against several runes in the alcove before shoving the right edge of the back wall to make it turn. A brush of chilly wind graced their faces as the door creaked open. Kane told them to hurry before the apes figured out their location.

Sun dripped between gaps in dense foliage above their heads. Pillars in the form of dragons and Atwala were dotted through the mossy stone hallway. A sweet smell graced their noses from the massive plumage of flowers around them.
“Wow, this is kinda pretty”, Cassidy commented. “Do not be fooled. This place was sealed off because…” Kane’s words were cut off by the sound of grinding stones and snapping plants. Piles of stone that had previously appeared to be just fallen debris began to rumble and rise. The stones took on a blocky humanoid appearance. Crystals grafted themselves to the golems in the forms of claws, clubs, and blades. Dark flames burst from what appeared to be eye sockets as they focused on the intruding party.
Six of them had surrounded the knights and stood about two feet taller than them. Kirby gripped his axe. “I see your point, Kane.” The ground shook again though the golems didn’t appear to be affected.

“We don’t have time to play Minecraft with these jerks! Kirby, do you think you can make an opening?” Butch barked. Kirby’s axe glowed with Earthy power and he slammed it into the ground creating a shockwave in front of them. The forefront golem’s leg crumbled and it staggered into another making that topple. “I’ll keep them busy. Looks like this is my turf. You guys go ahead!” Kirby yelled at them. The team hesitated on his words. A golem lurched forward and slammed its crystal club where they stood. The ground bounced under the strike and lurched the party upwards. Kirby had thrust the edge of his axe just in time. A golem from behind lashed out their claws in the air and caught Elijah and Cassidy in its grip. The golem raised its fist and slammed them into the ground and kept them pinned. A green sphere of earthen energy slammed into its arm and shattered it. Elijah and Cassidy braced themselves as the golem fell forward under its own weight. The impact didn’t come. Kirby was standing before them with his hands slammed against the golem’s shoulders. His forearms were glowing with green crackling earth energy as he gripped the beast and hurled it high above his head sending it back towards the previously broken one. Kirby wrenched the broken hand open and plucked up the two like kittens.
“We don’t have time to be messing around. I’ll catch up later, I promise. Now go!”
The sounds of Kirby’s battle echoed behind them as they pressed further forward into the garden. As they ran more of the golems began to rise from the grassy floor. Helena iced any of them she happened to see twitching. The garden’s exit ended at another jetty. A long rope bridge suspended from there they stood and reached out to another floating island. The island was lined with a high stone wall and twisted trees. A faint purple light could be seen from their position.

“Crusher’s shrine is ahead. I suggest we approach this with utmost respect.” Another quake rattled the bridge. “Right…Elijah you’ve got this”, Butch chuckled nervously.
The wind pressed and bounced against the bridge as the party slowly crept across the chasm towards the central shrine. The further they traversed the wilder and colder the winds became. Kane was clutching the satchel strapped to his back tightly and muttering soft prayers during the trek. Ice began to form along their visors as they stepped onto the frosted grass. Butch fell to his knees and gripped the ground. He was never happy to be on solid turf. Kane walked past him without so much as looking down. “The Dragon Air Gem will be past this barricade. We must hurry. Leave it to me to placate our guardian. I don’t want your reckless behaviors to make things worse.”
Butch stood up with lance in hand. “Yeah, I’m still holding on to this just in case. Personally, this Crusher sounds more like a bully than an actual guardian.”

“Indeed. You’d think a protector would be kicking those apes out by now”, Cassidy joined in. Kane waved his hands in protest.
“No no you are mistaken! He is a great god I can assure you.”
Past the stony barricade was a large convex pit. Surrounding the bit were stone benches and more statues of the wind dragons and Atwala-or what the group could determine from the bits of broken legs left. On the far end of the pit was the object of their search. The Dragon Air Gem was a massive grey colored spherical stone covered in intricate runes and held together with five gold bands. A spiral of wind was holding the gem ten feet off the ground. Beneath the statue with their arms outstretched was a wind dragon and an atwala carved far more intricately than the others they had seen. Surrounding the statues and the gem was a circular wall embedded in the ground. From this short wall a mystical barrier that encompassed both the gem and statues.
Behind the gem hanging from a crude cage was an icy blue dragon. His purple wings flopped through the gaps in the cage and swung to and fro in the frigid wind. Chains had been fastened around its neck and had been fastened to a plate five feet below.
Crusher stood at the same height with the gem. He was a humanoid golem with a smooth bald granite head and wide square chin. Metal bracelets were fastened to his thick arms and roughly shewn plated armor covered his massive chest. Its cold blue eyes were transfixed on the gem it was trying to get to by swinging its large rocky hammer. Kane ran to the center of the stadium and fell to his knees.

“Oh, great Crusher! Please accept this offering and spare your wrath upon us!” He placed the sack before him and opened it up. Inside were scraps of dragon crystal and gold that shone on the icy glade. The giant stopped and stomped over to Kane. His heavy footsteps left deep squarish indentations in the earth. He leaned over and pushed the trinkets with a think stumpy finger. A crooked smile materialized on their jagged face. Then Crusher raised his mallet and slammed it onto the trinkets.
“THIS IS NO TREASURE. CRUSHER WANT TREASURE! DRAGON MEANS TREASURE! AND CRUSHER…WANTS GEM! AND YOU NO GET GEM!” Crusher heaved up his hammer right over Kane’s head. A streak of flame graced across the grass just as the earth giant connected deep with the earth. Butch skirted across the stadium pit with Kane in his arms. Crusher coughed up black smoke and roared. “YOU DON’T GET AWAY FROM CRUSHER THAT EASILY!” He pointed his free arm at Butch and his hand shot from its wrist like a harpoon on a chain. The fist connected with the red knight in the stomach and sent him colliding with the wall just in front of the bleachers. A sinewy vine that had been connected reeled the hand back to Crusher’s arm. Butch clutched his abdomen as he peeled himself from the wall.

“Ow…I just got reminded why I quit football after the tryouts. You okay, Kane?” Kane was sitting there flabbergasted. The all too familiar howling bane of the apes rose among the din.
The shaman and their crew were making their way across the bridge as they crawled and grasped the ropes in a frantic race to reach the other side. Helena and Cassidy jumped to the side as the horde shoved through and swarmed into the area. “As if things could not get any worse and what are we going to do about Mister Hammer?” Helena cried out.
“I’ll try to keep Crusher distracted. You might want to scrape Butch off the floor.” Elijah offered before jumping into the stadium. He picked up a piece of broken rock at his feet and chucked at the golem. “Hey! Big guy! Over here!” Crusher looked over his shoulder. “You’re not as tough as you pretend if you can’t fight a bunch of stupid monkeys!” “WHAT DID YOU SAY YOU LITTLE SHRIMPY VIOLET?!”

“You heard the knight! All that power and you let a bunch of flea bags run all over the place. That’s why the Atwala don’t give you tribute. Because you suck!” Sparx joined in. “NO ONE IS STRONGER THAN CRUSHER! NO ONE! NO OOOOOOONE!”
With a mighty swing of his hammer, the giant knocked five ape soldiers out in one blow. Another who had tried to get their paws on the Dragon Air Gem was grasped by the vines in his fist and was crushed. The rest of the apes scampered away and ducked out into the brush. “HA HA HA WHO IS WEAK NOW?!” A black shard appeared from nowhere and embedded itself into Crusher’s head. Crusher’s hands went down to his side and he stared blank eyed into space. The shaman jumped on to the giant’s back and seated himself on the creature’s shoulders.
“Humph, not exactly what I had planned but one should never pass an opportunity. Now then-let’s just see what is so special about this so-called guardian. Crusher swung his hammer at Elijah as he caught him by the handle and dragged him along the dirt. His leg moved to crush the boy and got caught in a block of ice. Cassidy grabbed Elijah as Crusher tugged and grasped at the icy manacle to break free. Butch came from behind and slashed his fire lance against Crusher’s back. The flames died on contact against the giant’s rocky skin. The hammer swing down again but only hit the cinders of a drying flame trail as Butch strafed left. Cassidy was moving upwards into the bleachers.

She tried to reach for an overhanging tree but the bark was slick and the nearest branch was too high. Kane was still sitting there.
“Kane! Hey snap out of it!”
“Why…after everything we gave…why would Crusher…” Cassidy grasped the atwala by his shoulders and shook him.
“Hey, Kuzco wannabe! You need to get your people together and get out of here! You said you were the king, right? Time to act like it.” Kane blinked and hung his head before uneasily nodding.
“Nice to see you back in the game. Um…before you go, can you um…help me get in this tree, please?”

Crusher shrugged off the ice and fire strikes like mere mosquitos. Butch hurled his fire dripped lance at Crusher’s chest just as Helena shot ice at it drenching it in a gush of water. All it really did was temporarily daze the shaman and made Crusher wet. The giant snarled as he pulled the lance from his chest and tossed it back at Butch. The lance graced his helmet and cracked one of the horns. The shaman wagged its finger at the two knights calling them pathetic. He had failed to notice an electrically charged arrow striking the wet rock on its perch. As the arrow graced the puddle, electric energy spiraled up and shocked the gaudy ape. He staggered back and fell from his roost. Elijah tried to grab the shaman in a stranglehold trying to keep it from grabbing its staff. His small frame could barely hold on to the beast and the shaman flung him off. The ape wrapped its fingers around its staff and shook the topper making the bones rattle. Crusher lumped toward the boy and began to reach for Elijah.
Stone hands grasped Crusher’s hands and jerked him back. The golems they had encountered previously and then others were piling into the stadium and were pinning Crusher down. Kirby stood in the archway and brandished his axe towards the giant. “Hold him down boys! Cassidy! I take it that black thing is bad right?”

“Its about time you showed up, ya lunk!” Cassidy teased as she prepared a large charged arrow and struck true to the shard stuck in the giant. The giant groaned even as he struggled by the barrage of his former minions. The shaman gulped and ran over the wall. Crusher shuddered and looked bewildered.
“YOU NOW FOLLOW GREEN MAN? WHY?” One of the golems hefted Kirby on to their shoulder. This particular one showed fresh wounds on their face and arms.
“Dragon Knight of Earth is stronger than all of us. But he does not destroy us. Earth Knight nice leader.” Crusher snarled as he glared at Kirby. “NO CRUSHER IS STRONGER! CRUSHER IS BETTER LEADER!” He smacked the smaller golems aside and charged at Kirby.

“Leave him alone you big bully!” Elijah’s fist connected with Crusher’s hammer flinging it from his grip and colliding with the side of the stadium. Kirby and Crusher dove for the hammer. Helena iced the grass at the golem’s feet and he slid off to the side. Kirby’s arms glowed crackling green as his hands grasped the hammer’s handle and heaved it up with ease despite it being twice his height. Crusher got up rubbing his sore hand seeing he was outnumbered. “CRUSHER WON’T FORGET THIS, DRAGON KNIGHT.” He heaved himself over the garden wall and leapt into the thick clouds down below.
The group were surrounded by Atwala who were bowing before the dragon knights. The ice dragon, Cyril, had been freed and fed once the group had descended lower to a mountain below the shrine.
“It appears my people have chosen a new god to worship Earth Knight”, Kane surmised. “Worship? I like that. You know, I have never gotten the respect I deserve and…oh…you mean the green guy with the hammer. Speaking of which, what are you going to do with that thing?” Sparx chided. Kirby shrugged and handed it over to one of the golems. “It’s too big for me anyway and we need to get back to the temple. Bash I am counting on you and your crew to protect these people while we find a way to stop the Phantom Knight for good.” The golem nodded and kneeled before Kirby.

“We shall do as you will great earth knight.” The ice dragon rolled his eyes.
“Yes, yes old boy. We’d like nothing more than to stay and be a part of your…eh…primitive, barbaric society but a dragon’s duty is always utmost important.”
Kane shook his head. “If you must, you must. But know that it seems I was wrong about you Knights. Perhaps it did take you a long time to finally help us but you came and pulled through. You are part of he Atlawa tribe no matter where the winds take you.”
“Thanks Kane. We will do everything we can.” Elijah responded. Butch patted him on the back.
“Well guess we’re back on the purple express again. Let’s head home. Ugh…I’m going to feel this bruising in my ribs for a week.”

Chapter 12: Below the Surface

“Yes, yes, Volteer, I see that months of tortured captivity has done nothing to slow that electric tongue of yours from incessantly wagging”, Cyril groaned as the dragons gathered in the forum.
“It’s just that it’s all so exciting, exhilarating, enchanting, enthralling, and…” Volteer chattered.
“How boy, no more thesaurus for you pal”, Sparx chided. Ignitus slammed his fist on the edge of the vision pool.
“Will both of you please be silent! It is encouraging that the young knights were able to free the two of you for this reunion, but are we not forgetting someone?” Cyril cleared his throat.
“Yes, of course. Terrador. And since this stoutly chap here has shown traces of earthly might in the battle with that loathsome golem, it would do us best he learns from the master of earth. In the meantime, I shall impart my graceful wisdom to the ice knight here. Wisdom passed down from my glorious ancestors and with the knowledge I shall impart, rescuing Terrador will be a breeze.” Both Sparx and Volteer rolled their eyes. Ignitus pretended to be focused on the vision pool.

“Your pomposity, arrogance, and pretentiousness is as odious to the extreme as always.” Cyril just grinned and took the hesitant Helena under his wing and dragged her to the dojo. Ignitus turned to the rest of the group.
“While Cyril is…training your friend, why don’t you have a good meal and rest. I will search the aether for Terrador’s whereabouts. Everyone left for the dining hall except Elijah who seemed a bit planted in his spot.
“Is something wrong young Elijah?” Ignitus inquired.
“Well it’s just…it looks like everyone has a mentor to train them in new skills and all that. But well…there hasn’t been any mention of a guardian mentor for…my color.” Ignitus looked down at the pool and sighed.
“Purple dragons are extremely rare. They say one is born only every ten generations. If there are any out there-I know nothing of them. But, once Terrador has been brought back to the temple I will spend my energy to search for that teacher. In the meantime, I am afraid your power you will have to learn on your own. I’m sorry I could not be of much help.”
“No…it’s fine. I appreciate you trying. Really.”
“Hey Elijah! Hurry up! We’re starving over here!” Butch yelled from down the hall.
****

“As you can see, ice is more than just making things cold. It is an element requiring a cool composition and a sense or artistry. It is not as wild as fire, erratic as electricity, or rough as earth. And thus, our minds must be sharpened far more than the other Knights. Ice is more than an attack. It is a utility. Observe.” Cyril’s tail shuttered as ice formed about it and formed into a blade. He swung his tail and the blade effortlessly sliced the quartet of dummies clean in two and sent the upper halves flying in the air. In the air he coughed up snowballs that encased the dummies in snow and rolled them around until the snow piled up and held the dummies in place.
“Of course…as you don’t have a…er…tail-we will have to work around that.” An hour passed and Helena was chilled to the bone and exhausted.
“No no-you are thinking too rigidly again. Never mind, it is clear you are clearly not in the right mental state to partake in my essential knowledge.” Helena tossed her firearm aside and de-morphed.
“Well, whatever. I’m tired, I’m cold, and hungry. I am going out to the dining hall.” Helena started to storm out when Cyril moved his body into the doorway and blocked her passage.
“No so fast. I am not saying this purely for my own pride. There is something weighing on your mind. The Cynder Knight will take advantage of that distraction and use it against you. And a trouble shared….” Helena sat back on the edge of the central dragon statue. She informed Cyril about the vision the previous Ice Knight had given her.

“I don’t know if it’s just coincidence that Elijah’s morphed form resembles that shadow. I don’t believe in coincidences-it’s illogical. I know Elijah isn’t a bad guy even if I’ve only known him for a few weeks, but Kirby trusts him and I know the lug isn’t dumb on such things. Still, I cannot shake the feeling that…” Cyril tapped his chin. “Interesting. I am not one to put much stock in archaic ideologies of visions and prophecies and all that. However, you may want to make a clean breast of this worry to your teammates. As inexperienced as you are-you have somehow managed to make several successes. I am sure your team will work this out.”
“So basically, you’re saying I need to trust in my team. Not what I was entirely hoping for as an answer but I suppose it is what it is.” Boomer burst in to the dojo. “Greetings non-Arkedian lifeform known as Helena!”
“What is it now you walking bag of bolts?” Cyril huffed. Boomer ignored him and moved towards Helena. In his hands was her laptop. The outer casing had been changed to a plated bronze shell.
“I have two messages to impart to you. First off, I managed to finish these finally!” Boomer held out a tray with five mechanical wristbands. “I have finished the communicators and with help of the chatting yellow dragon life form, boosted their range so we can chat to you no matter where you go. Plus, this button here calls your Zords to your location. Also, I have repaired your portable terminal device. Forgive me that I did not ask permission, but I saw the device in your sleeping location and I could not resist. I upgraded it too.” Helena opened the laptop and giggled at the familiar chime of it powering on. Her white fox wallpaper popped up and she saw a new icon on her dashboard. It was a blue wyvern icon. “What is this?” Boomer pressed the touch screen and a program opened up.

“This is an old piece of arkadian tech we used to access what we used to call the Morphing Grid. It is what gives your powers and powers up the zords. See here? This is the locator function. And here is where we can find anomalies in the grid. And there are a few other functions I could love to teach you. But I suppose your lifeforms require sustenance.” Cyril huffed.
“A bunch of complicated junk if you ask me but whatever gives us a needed edge in this fight I suppose. Come on. Hopefully the food is a greater improvement than what I have had to suffer through.”
****
“So, what are you saying Ignitus?” Cyril questioned.
“Yes, your hypothesis is an intriguing one but is perplexing to the extreme”, Volteer added.
“What are you three talking about”, Cassidy asked as the knights filed in to the Chamber of Awakening after dinner. Ignitus closed his eyes and crossed his arms.

“I fear that the Cynder Knight is harnessing our power in order to open a portal that must never be opened.”
“Why? What’s on the other side?” Elijah asked. Volteer opened his mouth to speak but Cyril used his ice breath to muzzle his mouth shut.
“To put it as concisely as possible, I am certain you have heard at least rumors of the Dark Master?”
“Yeah, Ignitus and Ayrp mentioned it a couple times”, Kirby answered.
“While the Dark Master’s reign of terror was stopped by the previous Dragon Knights, his evil was too powerful to be completely destroyed. In their last act of desperation, the Knights used up their lives and the power of the Zords to seal away his Essence and his Soul in two prisons. One of them lies in a place known as Convexity”, Ignitus explained. Helena looked at Boomer.

“What is Convexity exactly?” Boomer’s eyes flickered before answering.
“There is not much in my records. My Arkedian records inform me that this is a realm between realms; a barrier between this world and the shadow lands. According to my information, ancient Arkedians attempted to map this area but data has been…insufficient.” Ignitus nodded in conjunction.
“Indeed. Even our ancestors know little of this place. But if the Cynder Knight knows a way to reach Convexity, she could very well set in motion the freedom of her master.”
“So we go to this place and take down the portal. Easy peasy.” Butch said excitedly.
“That is an unwise action. Your skills are not up to the task I am afraid. Besides, your job is to retrieve Terrador”, Cyril spat.
“Indeed. Freeing Terrador before the Cynder Knight can create another crystal from his power is your greater priority. I have been able to perceive where to go next. Terrador is in Munitions Forge”, the fire dragon finished.
“You must hurry though before the volcano blows it’s—” Volteer started but Ignitus shushed him saying they have enough time.
“Plenty of time? What we need to have more time to have horrible things happen to us”. Butch commented.
****

The Wyvernzord landed on the edge of a black sanded island. Volcanic rock jutted out in odd shapes and intertwined with broken metal. In the distance they could see a massive volcano. Small bursts of flame and smoke coughed up from the opening.
“Munitions Force is an island dominated by Boyzitbig; an unstable volcano that makes life on the surface very dicey. The locals who lived there have been forced underground to mine the metals that the apes use in their weaponry”, Ignitus had told them. Along the flight Helena toyed with her upgraded laptop.
“So according to the information Boomer downloaded into my computer, the main local tribe there are a race of mole folks known as the Manweersmalls. If what the big fire guy says it’s true, Kirby’s mentor should be somewhere in the deeper recesses of the mines. Looks like we’re on our own from here.”
Everyone piled out onto the sandy shore and coughed as ash touched their mouths. The sky burned red as Boyzitbig roared and belched more lava. The beach was marred by heavy machinery and flumes of lava that were being fed into pits down below. Apes dressed in heavy plated armor were marching along the parameter. A group of small green goblin-like creatures were scurrying along behind them carrying all manner of boxes and buckets to and from the mine. From their position the group saw what appeared to be a large ship with a crude jolly roger for a flag. These goblin creepers were loading some of the boxes on to the ship while others were carried to a fortified warehouse nearby.

“According to Volteer, in his roundabout way, Sargent Byrd had gone ahead of us to scout out the area though where we can find him, I don’t know”, Helena informed everyone. The lava rivers bubbled as the volcano shook once more. Butch asked the Wyvernzord to give him a boost. Perched up top the Zord’s head he scanned the area though his spyglass.
“I can see an entrance to the left over there past that drilling arm thingy. There’s a set of rails leading inside. But, there like give big guards over there. We could use this big guy here to blast them.”
“And let the entire bloody army know we’re here?! That is one of the dumbest ideas you’ve had, Butch. And you have had a LOT of dumb ideas.” Cassidy chided. Butch just shrugged and asked of they had any better ideas.
“I’d hate to say it, but Butch has a point. We don’t have a lot of time and I really don’t like that volcano”, Eljah commented. Helena went inside the cockpit of her Zord. The icy engines started to rev up.

“I will create a distraction while you guys get inside.” She let them know over their communicators.
The goblin creatures had just loaded the last piece of shipment when a massive snowball smashed into the deck. The occupants on the ship ran up topside to see how did ice just form on the side of their ship. A large mechanical wyvern rose from a wall of volcanic rock, snow dripping from its’ massive maw. Its mouth snapped open and a stream of ice burst forth-striking the ground and creating a barrier of curved ice. The badger-faced sailors of the ship wagged their tongues and clanked their swords in alarm as the moved toward their canons. Apes down below saw the beast and ran an alarm to their own crew.
The pirates loaded their canons as a bulky creature at the helm commanded them to fire. The Zord slapped their wings before them as the artillery bounced harmlessly against their icy armor. Helena heard an alarm inside her cockpit informing her of an assault from behind. Apes from watchtowers aimed their harpoons and hooks latched onto the Zord. A cannonball struck the Zord in the eye and the beast jerked to the fight. Helena scraped herself off the ground as she crawled back to the console.
“Okay, that was careless of me. Come on buddy, we have to give them some time. But that does not mean we can’t have a little fun, eh?” Her Zord almost seemed to smile. The rockets on its wings fired up and lurched the beast up into the sky. The cables that had been attached ripped from their bases and pulled out chunks of wood along with it. “Let it snow…...oh god I have been hanging around Butch for too long.”
****

The rest of the group had waited as six more apes ran out of the entrance to the mine to deal with the Wyvernzord. There was an empty cart by the base of the rails. Kirby had them get inside while he shoved them in. The interior was cooler inside but not by much. The cart bounced against a barrier as it led them into what appeared to be a central chamber. From the looks of things, all worthy metal had been stripped clean. There were numerous holes leading to who knows where.
“Where on earth could that darn penguin be?” Cassidy sighed.
“Wherever he is, I wish I was inside the Zord”, Sparx whined. A round of crumbling stone could be heard from a tunnel ahead of them.
“Well about time you got here, you knights.” Sargent Byrd was covered in suit and looked a bit worse for wear. Byrd was not alone. Walking beside him was a small mole-like creature even smaller than Byrd. Much of his wizened face was concealed by a large wide brimmed hat with a candle fused on to the top. His gnarled fingers graced his long whiskers as he sniffed the air.

“What’s that?! Whose there?” the manweesmall croaked.
“Woah! It’s just us! The Dragon Knights”, Butch responded.
“And former god of the Tall Plains, Sparx.”
“Technically Kirby is considered the god there, chatter bug.” Sparx stuck his tongue out at Elijah and whined he thought they were bros.
The manweesmall tapped his cane on the ground and thumbed his nose again. “You do not carry the stench of the Cynder Knight’s beasts so you must be friends like this fishy-breathed fellow here. I am Mole-Yair, leader of the Manweersmalls. Though I suppose former would be more appropriate. Those who are not forced to work in the mines by those Apes and Scavenger Pirates are holed up in the dark crevices scared out of their little minds, while waiting for Boyzitbig to blow.” The ground shook to prove their point.

“I told Mole-Yair about our missing dragon friend. Looks like Terrador is being held near a labor camp deeper into the mines”. Informed Byrd.
“Yes, yes, where my brother Exhumor is being held toiling away. Tell you what, if you can free my people so we can escape, I will lead you to the fastest way there. Deal?”
“We’re trusting this guy to lead? Talk about the blind being the blind”, scoffed Sparx. A small rock bounced against his head.
“I am blind. Not deaf. And I know these tunnels like I know every whisker on beard and you don’t. So, what do you say?” The team looked at each other.
“He’s right unfortunately and we don’t have a lot of time”, Cassidy huffed.
“If we split up into pairs and keep in contact with each other we should be able to cover more ground. Butch; you and Elijah make one pair. Cassidy will be with me. Let’s let Helena know the plan and go from there.”

“Yeah, I hear you. Luckily for you, me and the Wyvernzord seem to be drawing more of the enemy outside to deal with us. We’ll keep drawing their fire. But you guys better not slack off. I just did some readings and that volcano is getting dangerously close to exploding. I have you maybe an hour and that is me being generous.”
“Got it Helena. Okay team. Let’s break some chains!”

Chapter 13: Cracks in the Darkness

Elijah had to practically run just to keep up with Butch. They chose to take the northern tunnel. According to Mole-Yair this was where the apes were having the Manweersmalls harvest the steel for weaponry. Crude lanterns hung over their heads though they casted very little light. Their horns barely added much more in the way of illumination.
“So, uh…you and Kirby seem to know each other.” Elijah was a little caught off guard with the statement. “Yeah, we used to be best friends since kindergarten, why?”
“I dunno. Just talking, I guess. This tunnel is scarily quiet. I hate it when things are quiet-it freaks me out. I mean, you’re obviously not the most athletic or the smartest. And we don’t even know what exactly you can do. And Helena keeps looking at you funny…”

“Huh? I thought that was her normal face”, Sparx joked.
“Ya don’t know her like I do. You see- “Elijah shoved Butch to the side behind crates and told him to be quiet.
The Manweersmalls were lined up against the walls with heavy tools in hand as ape wardens marched back and forth with whips in hand. A larger guards stood before purple orbs that were fastened to the ground with iron cages. Tethers of magical energy emitted from the orbs and were fastened to jeweled collars around the slave’s necks. Hanging from the central point of the ceiling was a large white gem. The purple knight could count about five ape guards in total. A pair of them for each orb in the ground and one what was marching along the rails keeping an eye on both the workers and the cart behind him. More of the goblin creatures were pushing the cart on rails and dumping the ore inside.

“You stay back here behind this rock. I’ll handle this.” Butch said as he shoved Elijah down to a seating position. The purple knight flicked Butch’s hands from his shoulders. “I can handle myself, thank you”, Elijah hissed back. Butch’s hands clenched and unclenched uneasily. “Look it’s…safer here. And you’re not exactly armed and you are already out of breath.”
“Why is this now an issue? Look we don’t have time to be arguing about this. The volcano is going to blow any minute and not even you are fireproof.”
“Ugh why was I paired with you? As least Cassidy and Kirby…” The tunnel began to rumble even worse this time. The lanterns began to sway and creak against their fastenings. One above of the Manweesmall that was close to the hidden pair snapped and plummeted to the unsuspecting creature.

The lamp crashed onto the ground and oil and embers spilled out on impact. Butch ran up to where Elijah and the Manweesmall he had rescued and covered them with his shield just as an ape swung his whip down upon them. “Heh so much for the subtle approach. Actually, this is more my style! Come on, ya posers! I’m the Red Ranger, and you are fired!” Butch slammed into the largest ape and shoved them against one of the orbs. The cage cracked and the magic holding the slaves flickered.
“I think his puns are getting worse”, sighed Sparx.
“Yeah, I have to agree. Come on. Help me find a hammer or something.”
****

Kirby, Cassidy, Mole-Yair, and Sargent Byrd had taken the southern passage to where the ore was being refined and shaped into more weapons. Cassidy held her hands on her bow as she nervously plucked the string. “Kirby, are you sure it was a good plan to leave the kid with Butch? I mean, you know how Butch can get carried away when he is in the zone.”
“Well we’re kind of short on brains with Helena drawing fire outside and he is the next best thing. Besides, I know Elijah will keep the tough guy in check.”
Forges coughed smoke and cinders as more of the pig faced goblinoids slammed hammers on anvils as they shaped the metal into crude pieces of armor and swords. Manweersmalls were stationed near the forces and were being forced to throw coal into the furnaces and fire up the bellows. “Zee kreebals are dumb but they are effective when given motivation. The apes use them for labor since we Manweermsalls aren’t as strong in the heavy lifting department”, Mole-Yair explained. Kirby huffed as he looked around.

“I count about fifteen apes and who knows how many of those kreebal creeps. I wouldn’t be against a good rumble if we weren’t against the clock.” Cassidy tapped his shoulder and pointed to a crate marked explosives that was sitting near an ore pile.
“I think I can make it go boom with a good charged shot. But I don’t know after that.” Byrd stepped up onto a nearby crate.
“Well obviously I’ll help with the distraction. It looks like those orbs are what’s keeping the Manweersmalls from escaping. The big guy can smash them.”
“Exactly. The mystic chains are what keeps us from just burrowing away to freedom. I only got lucky because an earthquake had broken the crystal powering mine”, Mole-Yair added in.

“Let’s go team!”
A Manweersmall had collapsed from exhaustion after shoveling the twentieth pass of coal into the furnace in the past hour. An ape grabbed them by their nose and heaved them off the ground. They were about to the thrown into the open oven until an axe struck him hard against the head. The ape dropped the slave and shook their focus back in order. “Who’s dumb enough to…the Green Knight!” An explosion occurred by the ore pile that erupted into flames. A series of electricity charged arrows fell from a watchtower on the far side. “The Knights have gotten inside! Alert everyone to get to the forges! We’ll smash these losers before the Cynder Knight shows up.”
****

An alarm gone blared just as Elijah and Butch had smashed the last of the holding orbs. The Manweersmalls gave them a quick thank you before burrowing into the earth before the humans could even blink. “I take it that noise is a bad thing.” Sparx commented.
“Mole-Yair said Kirby and Cassidy were going to free the prisoners by the forges. Maybe they got spotted?” Elijah mused.
“Yeah, being quiet isn’t exactly their thing”, Butch sighed.
“Heh, some things never change. Come on, Mole-Yair said this tunnel were would take us to the forge. We can use the cart.”
The cart screeched and groaned as it struggled on the rails. The ground was shaking even further now. Their ride bounced and could barely stay upright. “Woah get down!” Butch yelled as a piece of the rock wall gave way and a blob of lava burst out above their heads. Lava struck the Fire Ranger in the shoulder and it sizzled against his armor. Butch winced as he tried to flick the hardening magma off of him.

“Butch!”
“I’m…fine. Just feels like one of those thorny round plant things sticking to my back.”
“Those are called burs.”
“Whatever, they suck!” “Hey guys! We’re running out of track!” Sparx cried out. Elijah felt fear and a protective orb surrounded themselves before the cart smashed into the stop and they collided into the chamber.
“Well, hello there. What took you so long?” Cassidy joked. The party was surrounded by the broken bodies of apes and a lot of shattered gems.

“At least my uniform still looks better than yours”, Butch joked as he let Cassidy help him back up and pointed to the left broken horn on her helmet.
“Some jerk got in a lucky shot. I take it you guys were successful?”
“You did it! The legends of the Dragon Knight of Earth were no exaggeration!” Mole-Yair praised them much to Butch’s annoyance. “Now I will hold my end of the bargain. Your dragon friend is being held in the center of the volcano where we once had a shrine to the Fire Dragons. It’s just past the labor camp. As we are close on time, I know of a shortcut to get there. However, there is one little catch. You’ll have to watch out for the lava worms.”
“The what-worms?” Sparx exclaimed. Mole-Yair did not seem to hear the dragonfly and moved toward one of the walls on the side of the chamber. “It should be right about…here!” He traced a claw along the wall and a small opening crumbled away. It was small opening that forced the party to crawl though their hands and knees. It was strange-the further they went in, the colder it seemed to get.

“Uh…KKKRRZZTT…black…CRACK…here…SHHHHHHKKKK” Kirby tried to move his arm upwards to speak into the communicator. “Helena? Helena we’re heading to the center of the volcano. Helena? Helena!” The passage dropped into a small dark cavern down below. Pools of magma flowed alongside a crooked rocky bridge.
“Best keep your senses up here. Like us, Magma worms sense vibrations. Just try to not make too much noise when you are walking”, Mole-Yair informed them. The volcano rumbled over their heads, sending dust and shards of rock to bounce off their heads. “I don’t think that’s going to be an issue”, Sparx coughed as he dusted his shoulders off of volcanic dust.

A lava worm slithered along the surface of the magma. It’s long ribbon-like body shimmered against the heat of the magma ever closer to the pathway they were walking on. The rocks that made up the bridge were jagged plates that just barely held together with friction. Small pockets of magma bubbled between the cracks and splashed against their ankles. Their footsteps made the platforms sway lightly and dip towards the lava. Butch held out his lance for everyone to grab on trying to keep everyone together as they carefully and slowly moved their way to the other side. The volcano’s patience was wearing thin as a bubble of magma burst in front of them and shattered a large section of the bridge. The team had to jump back to keep themselves from falling.
“Sweet ancestors. Boyzitbig is getting close to exploding! We don’t have as much time as I thought!” Mole-Yair exclaimed. “Then we will just have to make a run for it! Come on guys!” Butch put away his lance and took a running leap across the gap. As he landed, he let out a whoop of triumph.

“Um…weren’t we supposed to be quiet?” Elijah asked. The reply came as the lava behind Butch bubbled up as a magma worm rose from the depths. Its round mouth clacked as its throat began to expand. The worm’s throat contracted and belched lava at the Fire Ranger. Butch just barely put up his shield as magma splattered around him.
“I’ve got this, guys! Hurry! Yikes!” Butch ran further down the passage with the worm swimming alongside him and coughing more flame. Cassidy made her leap to the other side and drew her bow. She struck the sides of the walls making loud pining sounds. Thinking it was an easier meal, the worm turned its head away from Butch and began to spit at the walls. Kirby picked up Elijah before making his own run. Byrd carried Mole-Yair. “Run rangers, run!” Byrd yelled.

A large sweeping pit opened before them. The red smoke choked sky could be seen above their heads. At the far edge of the pit was a large green dragon lying prone inside a cage. The cage was suspended over a glowing symbol and held in place with heavy chains and magical tethers. At the top of the cage a large black lantern hung suspended. Wisps of green magic were trickling from the dragon’s body and into the lantern’s core.
“Is that Terrador?” Elijah asked. Sparx glanced between the green dragon and Kirby and then at the dragon.
“Big dragon held prisoner in the middle of an exploding volcano? Yeah, I think so.” Kirby gripped his axe.
“Be careful team. This feels too easy.”
“After the last two times, you are not getting an argument from me”, Butch agreed as he pulled out his lance.
“If you guys don’t mind, I will be making my escape with my people. I suggest you folks hurry”, Mole-Yair told them before digging into the earth himself and disappearing.

A massive white and blue object crashed on to the surface in front of them. Lying on a crumpled and scratched up heap was the Wyvernzord. “Helena!” the team yelled out. A shadow cast over them as the smoke parted from the Black Dragonzord. This was the first time they had seen it up close. The Zord had a long sleek black body with a serpentine neck and head. Silverly cuffs with spines graced its long limbs. Its angular face glared at them as it stood up on its haunches. A purple flash before the Zord materialized the Cynder Ranger herself. Her costume was similar to their own. Slick black in color with long silver spines gracing their helmet. A long red cape flowed in the heated wind. In her hands was the prone de-morphed body of Helena. The Cynder Ranger tossed Helena at their feet. Butch placed his hand on her to check for signs of life. She was just alive though barely.

“So you are the Dragon Knights I have been hearing about? It seems they were exaggerated.” Embers flared from Butch’s lance. Flames erupted as he charged forth and struck his lance towards her head. Cynder melted into shadow just in time with his swung and reappeared behind him. Her silvery claws flashed and she chuckled, “You call that fire? Pathetic.” A burst of deep red flames burst from her palm as she struck his back and shoved him five feet away from her. Kirby struck the ground at her feet making the unsteady surface ripple upwards and bounced her in the air. The Cynder caught herself easily in the air. Her cape morphed into the shape of wings and she flew forward-the heel of her boots connecting with Kirby in the head and striking him down.
Cassidy yelled for Elijah to get Terrador’s cage unlocked while they kept her distracted. She and Byrd shot arrows and projectiles from their respective weapons while the Purple Knight ran. Elijah struggled with the lock as his hands shook. The greater rumbling of the surface was not helping either. Terrador managed to raise up his head. “A Purple Dragon Knight? I never thought I’d live to see the day.”

“Not a very good one I’m afraid. There! Hurry!” The earth guardian stumbled out and collapsed back again. Elijah asked if he was alright. “I’m fine. I just need a moment to catch—Dragon Knight! Behind you!” Cynder had flown behind the boy and she struck him across the back of his helmet. Elijah had just rolled on to his back when Cynder slammed her boot on his stomach.
“You are hardly worth killing. But I will be merciful and end your life first.” Upon facing the Cynder, Elijah wasn’t sure what he was sensing. Many of the enemies they had faced before he could feel some kind of emotion. But the Cynder-he couldn’t sense anything. No, that wasn’t it. He could sense malice, determination, and obsession but they didn’t feel real.
“Wait!” he yelled out. Time seemed to slow down in the moment. His horns flashed purple and blinded the dark ranger making her stagger back holding her head in her hands. He then felt it. A singular genuine emotion. It was fear. A fear that was once again buried under the mask. The Cynder grabbed him by his collar and slammed him against a piece of jutting stone.

“You…what did you do to me?!” That voice…he heard that voice somewhere before.
A lightning bolt struck behind her, sending rock and magma against the Cynder. She was caught off guard as the shrapnel cut her shoulder. The Salazord hissed as it revealed itself over the crest of the volcano. The other Zords were right behind it.

“Humph, so she really did call for backup.” The Zords warped their respective pilots to their cockpits. Butch staggered back to his feet as he used the console to stand. His unform was torn in several places and part of his visor had been cracked open. “Thanks buddy. I’m not a fan of overkill but this time I am making an exception!” The Charizord roared as it belched fire at the Black Dragonzord. Even without its commander at the helm, the dark Zord reacted on its own by flying up high into the sky. Its hands grasped the lantern and summoned the Cynder. Boyzitbig was shaking uncontrollably now. A pity, the Cynder thought, but I have my mission to fulfill. The volcano can do the rest. They moved to fly away until ice struck their wings. The Wyvernzord and Terrador blocked her path.
“So, you still have some fight in you. Pests.” Terrador’s body spin into a rocky top as he tried to slam into the Black Dragonzord. The Zord’s maw smacked open and a sizzling green substance sprayed on to Terrador and the Wyvernzord. Acid began to eat into their skin and they collapsed from the air. Butch and Kirby maneuvered their Zords to catch them.

“Thank you, Dragon Knights. But we now need to run! I will open up a way!” Terrador’s tail glowed green and he smashed a large opening in the side of the volcano. “No way, we outnumber that chick. We’ve got this!” Butch exclaimed. The Charizord coughed up massive balls of flame at the Black Zord as it dove from the sky-easily outmaneuvering the strike and returning fire with its own dark flames. One of them struck the Charizord in the leg and Butch could hear the gears snap. The dark Zord circled upward as the Salazord and Giazord attempted to shoot it down with lightning and shards of stone. The electricity and earth hit each other and caused a small explosion in the volcano. More lava spewed forth and began to cover the battle ground. “Argh, I think we need to combine if we’re going to have a chance”, Cassidy grumbled. “And how are we supposed to do that? I’ve looked all over and I can’t find a lever or button or command”, Helena coughed. “Blast it. They made this look so easy on TV. Ack!” The dark zord raked its claws across the Charizord’s jaw, nearly breaking it off. Terrador slammed his tail, making the magma shatter into a wall of molten earth temporarily separating them with the team. “Go! Now!” he ordered. The team led their Zords though the new pathway with the Mothzord in the rear. Elijah felt something grab him from behind and be chucked into the air. The Black Dragonzord had their sights on the Mothzord and the beast towered over the little moth. But the advantage of him being smaller was that he was a little harder to catch.

The Mothzord dove down close to the surface of the pit. Instead of taking the same path the rest of the team had, he veered the Zord to the left where a passage opened in the quake. There were a long to narrow pillars in the passage and the magma rivers were boiling upwards. He felt a bit of a panic thinking this was a dumb idea. The Mothzord trilled reassuringly and folded its wings to speed deeper into the earth. The Black Dragonzord folded its own wings close to its body and small thrusters along its back kept it aloft. Acid and dark flame burst from its mouth as it attempted to shoot the violet moth down. The moth used its small size to its advantage by circling around rocky pillars and leading the hunter through narrow gaps where it would get momentarily stuck. They had finally escaped to beach just as the volcano exploded. Showers of broken rock and lava sprayed out and choked the air with heavy smoke and ask. Elijah could just barely see the rest of the Zords and Terrador walking into the shallow waters away from the eruption. The black zord used this distraction to duck under the Mothzord and circle up in front of it.

Their claws reached for the moth when a large orange red figure slammed into it. Ignitus grasped the dark Zord by the shoulders and sunk his teeth into the Zord’s neck. The zord reared back its head and, thanks the length of its neck, clamped its own jaws onto Ignitus’ windpipe and squeezed. Ignitus’ grip let go as he tried to gasp for air. The Dragonzord let go and its tail struck the fire guardian on the back of the head. Then they grabbed him and they plunged into the volcano’s smoke below.
Elijah tried to steep the zord after them but Terrador flew in front of him. “What are you doing?! We have to save him!”
“Your team is wounded, Purple Knight. And you will never find them in all this mess.” The sides of the volcano began to crack as more magma leaked out. “We have to leave. And it is clear you are not ready to face the Cynder Knight yet. Come!” The Zords traversed across the ocean as Boyzitbig exploded and collapsed unto itself.

Chapter 14: Shadows in the Electric Sky

“It’s all my fault. If I hadn’t gotten caught by the Dragonzord, Ignitus wouldn’t have…” The group had gathered in the Zord chamber as the machines limped to their respective alcoves and powered down. Elijah was sitting on a bench with his hands buried in his face and sobbing. His speech was choked by hyperventilating gasps and the boy grasping his chest. Kirby put his hand on Elijah’s shoulder’ gripping slightly.
“Easy there, deep breaths. Nice and slow.” Cyril came back into the chamber.
“I put Helena in the dormitories. Some of the dragonflies decided to pay their long overdue gratitude and have made up home here. They will see to my protégé’s wounds. But what on earth happened out there at

Boyzitbig? And where is Ignitus?” Cassidy relayed everything that occurred while the dragons listened in quiet panic.
“That certainly explains Ignitus’ expeditious exiting of the temple. He was trying to locate the Black Dragonzord’s base and then flew out of here like a grimwing out of the shadowlands”, Volteer commented. Boomer was looking over the Zords. “And you’re saying ONE Zord did all this damage? I didn’t think a singular Zord could take on all of these guys at once.”
“If we could have formed the Megazord, maybe we could have had a chance”, Butch said glumly.
“What is this Megazord you are speaking of? I do not have any such mention in my records.”
“It is when all the Zords combine together into one awesome super form that really kicks butt”, Butch said with forced excitement.
“They can do that? What an exciting, exhilarating, and profoundly interesting concept. If such a miracle could be performed, I would be happily to be there to witness such an occasion”, the electric guardian chirped.
“IGNITUS WAS WHAT?!” Ayrp had stormed into the chamber. “You fools! How could you allow something like this to happen?!” Terrador stood between the caped hunter and the rangers. “It was not entirely their fault.

Boyzitbig was erupting and we all underestimated the strength of—” Fire erupted from Ayrp’s mouth making the earth dragon step back. Ayrp stood over Elijah and japed a clawed finger at him. “And you! What good do you provide to anyone here? You can’t fight! You don’t offer anything! Why are you even here? You’re the weak link that drags everyone down!” Butch shoved Ayrp back.
“Hey! Don’t you dare talk to the kid like that! No one puts down anyone on my team!”
“Yeah, jerk face!” Sparx added. Ayrp laughed at Butch’s singed and scratched up face.
“Oh really? You’re supposed to be the leader, right? I’ve been watching you guys. Seems to me Helena and Kirby have been carrying the team because of your reckless stupidity! You’re not worthy of being the Fire Knight!” Butch swung an uppercut at Ayrp’s face but the masked hunter caught his fist effortlessly. The boy then slammed onto the floor by his back as the hunter kicked his legs underneath him.
“Pathetic. I’ll save Ignitus on my own while you children can lick your wounds and pretend to be heroes.”
Cassidy and Kirby helped the boy on to his feet. Butch rubbed his aching wounds.
“And I thought Sparx was a jerk.”

“Oh thank you for—hey!” Terrador approached the team.
“Arguing about our failures will not resolve the issue. All warriors feel fear and face failure at one time or another. There is no shame in that. All hope is not lost. I know where the Cynder Knight has set up base. It is very likely she took him there.”
“And how did those earth clogged ears of your learned that?” Cyril chuffed. Terrador rolled his eyes.
“The apes, not too unlike you, like to boast. The Cynder has taken over the Temple of Lightning in Concurrent Skies.”
“Oh of course! It makes profound and logical sense she would make her lair there”, Volteer chirped.
“Why? What is Concurrent Skies?” Kirby asked.

“So, make it short. Concurrent Skies was once the main home of the dragons of the lightning element. The constant storms there allowed them to learn and harness the power of electricity. It used to be a lot more habitable but without the lightning dragons to regularly harvest the lightning the skies have run wild. Such a place is near impossible to assault”, Cyril sighed.
“Perhaps, but with my small contribution we can get the Knights to the underground crystal caverns”, said Volteer. “I will take you there, but I am afraid that will be the best I can do. Cynder’s crystal has drained a lot of my power and my combative days are behind me.”
“Yes, yes, I suppose that will have to do. Tend to your wounds and let us know when you are ready to fight. By the way, where did the small crying one go?”

It was just now that everyone in the room had noticed that Elijah was no longer in the chamber. Sparx fluttered in a bit out of breath.
“Sparx, where did Elijah go?” Kirby asked.
“The guy is punching trees in the garden. He’s going to hurt himself unless he’s already done so.”
“He should be inside the temple. Night is falling and it is dangerous to be out during this time. Kirby, might I have a private word with you in the training room?” said Terrador.
****

Elijah grasped his wrist as he felt a sharp pain like a knife to his skin. He used his sprained hand to wipe away tears and snot from his face.
“You are going to break your wrist with that technique”, Butch sighed. Butch stood behind the boy and then shifted his left leg back. “The main core of our punch is from the legs, not the arm. Secondly, you’re not locking your wrist when you throw your punch. Here, I’ll show you.” He struck the side of the tree and as he drew his hand back there was a small divot in the park. Elijah sniffed and wiped away more tears.
“Ayrp is right. It was my fault. I’m so useless…”
“Hey forget that jerk. If I cried every time I lost a basketball game, I would be waterlogged. Ha ha ha!” Elijah blinked slowly at the guffawing boy. Butch’s laughter was clearly fake and forced. “Don’t worry we’ll save

Ignitus! Ha ha!” Sparx leaned to Elijah’s ear.
“I think this guy is bluffing.”
“I am not bluffing! Okay granted, Helena is usually the brains of our team, but as the Red Ranger, I am the leader. Right?”
“Um…sure. Hey, can I say something strange?”
“Strange? How?”

“Yeah, define strange,” said Sparx.
“I’ve been…having visions. I think the Cynder Ranger is like us-a human.”
“Yeah? You think so?”
“Yeah but…something feels off. I can’t explain it, but maybe…maybe they need our help. I don’t know what is this feeling. You know what? Never mind. Its stupid.” “Yeah, it does sound kind of dumb. From what we saw of that crazy chick, being nice to her is like the worst idea ever”, Sparx jibbed. Butch scratched the back of his head uneasily.
“We should…go back inside before it gets dark. Come on guys.”
****

“What are you saying, Butch? I know you are the king of not thinking things all the way through, but that is the most insane piece of logic you’ve come up with.” Cassidy baulked. Kirby folded his arms across his chest and nodded. “Butch, what you are proposing is not a good plan, even if you make a good argument.” Butch, Cassidy, and Kirby were together in the dojo with the three dragon guardians. Butch sighed and shook his head.
“I know, I know. But we all know we’re fighting against the clock here. You guys have been on my team in school long enough to know what that means. And Helena is still unconscious from her injuries. And Elijah…look we’ve known each other for years. I know the three of us can handle it.”
The Ice Guardian hummed and tapped his chin.

“True, expediency is in order. Still, with the Zords out of order, are you sure of this course of action?”
The three teens looked uneasily at each other.
“I don’t like this, but the meathead makes a point. Kirby?”
“Butch, is this about what Ayrp said?” Butch snapped his face towards Volteer?
“Are you ready to take us there?”
“I suppose I am strong enough to get you to the island in relatively one piece. But are you absolutely, positively, assumingly sure?”

“Can we go or not?”, Butch snapped.
“Very well. Meet me at the landing.”
The sky changed from a deep streaked blue to a cold matte black the closer they got to Concurrent Skies. Growing storm clouds swallowed the moon and stars until the only light they could see were from the flashes of lighting around them. They could feel the hair on their heads underneath their helmets prickle up and it made them shudder. Volteer requested that Cassidy climb up to the top of his head. “I am going to need you to perform as a second pair of eyes, Knight of Electricity. It is in the nature of your element to be impulsive and erratic, but as master you can feel the currents themselves and learn to ride with them. Trust your instincts and guide us though this storm!” A bolt of lightning nearly struck them; jerking the guardian back. The team barely managed to hold on Volteer’s frills as the Lightning Dragon dove towards the ocean as they avoided another strike. “Perhaps we should keep lower to the surface for a pleasant safer trip.” “Or not!” Kirby yelled out as he pointed ahead of them.
The water began to rise in a lumpy bubble. Three pairs of glowing yellow eyes materialized from blobby forms as they rose higher over the surface of the torrent water. Electric current swirled inside their gelatinous aqua bodies as they lashed out their tendrils towards the group.

“By the ancestors that is a lot of Puddle Volters! Don’t let them touch you!” A tendril lashed over Volteer’s head and smacked Kirby in the horn. Electrically charged water zapped though the Green Ranger. His element grounded some of the current, but he could still feel the current flow though his body like a hundred needles. Volteer yelled for them to hand on. Cassidy gripped the dragon’s horns as the lightning guardian skirted across the surface as more Puddle Volters emerged from the surface of the water to drag them down. “Watch out for them! Keep your eyes open!” The team’s hearing was deafened by the roar of thunder, the shrieking on the wind, and the buzzing of the elemental beasts chasing them down. Cassidy tried to focus but there was so much noise that she could not even think.
“Trust your instincts, yellow knight. You cannot fully control the lightning but you can guide it, feel it, predict its nature. You must focus the chaos and drown out the distractions.”
Cassidy could barely hear her mentor, but she knew her team was counting on her to get them through. But how was she supposed to do that with all this noise?

“Think of it like a basketball game or that pointy sword flighting thing you do”, Butch yelled. His advice wasn’t bad even if he got some of the facts wrong. Still, maybe that was what she needed to do. Something seemed to click in her mind or perhaps some divine force granted her a gift. She could feel the current around her. The aura of her teammates was different than the volters. Everything seemed to slow down. She could feel a strong surge of electricity coming towards them. “Volteer! Veer left!” Cassidy jerked his horns to the left just as a bolt of lightning struck the surface of the water. “That way! There’s a brief opening. If we time it, the storm will cut the volters off!”
“Excellent observation, yellow knight! Hold on!” The dragon flapped his wings with everything he had and they passed through a ring of clouds just as another lightning strike cut underneath them.
Volteer lead them back up to the skies and into a thick concealment of clouds. “Excellent work young knight. Your skills in your element are growing at a very encouraging rate. We are almost there.” The dragon moved along the clouds slowly.

“What were those things exactly?” Butch questioned.
“Those little pests are labeled Puddle Volters. Elementals made up of lightning and water energy. They have always lived along the surface of the water, but these controlled storms have doubled, no dare I say tripled in the last several years. A fitting deterrent for unwanted guests as if the storms were not enough.”
A black tower with twisted spines came into view. Volteer dove to the southern side of the island and dipped into a cove. The interior was covered in black and purple crystals-twisting their reflections as they stepped on to the glassy shore.

“I fear I’ve done all I can in the aid of your battle. Once I recover my breath, I will return to the temple posthaste. Should the Knights of Blue and Purple decide to join; they will need a guide.” The trio of knights nodded and thanked Volteer.
The crystals seemed to absorb the light emitting from their horns as they slowly crept though the cove’s path. The tunnel was silent that even their own footsteps could not be heard on the slick surface. The further they went; they could feel the clammy hands of dread grip about their shoulders and embrace them. Everyone gripped their weapons tightly and unconsciously moved closer together. Butch stepped on Cassidy’s heel and she fell forward against Kirby’s back. Aside from a short exhalation of air, there was no further sound.
The Cynder’s lair opened up before them. Against the thundering sky it was near impossible to tell how high or the exact shape the tower took. Surrounding the dark tower was a wall of crystal. Whenever lightning struck them, the crystal hummed a brief white color before becoming shine less black once more.

“Brr, and I thought Terrador saying this place where hope goes to die was an exaggeration”, Butch coughed. “And we are not the first visitors”, Kirby added. Laying before the iron gate were several bodies of apes flying prone on the ash swept ground. Some had been clearly burned while others had been viciously eviscerated. The heavy gate had been pried open.
“I take it Ayrp got here ahead of us. He hasn’t been wasting time. Still…I don’t like this. We should be extra careful. No doubt they sounded the alarm and will be expecting our visit.”
Cassidy pressed herself against the door and peeked around. The gate opened up to a courtyard. Four pairs of dragon statues stood around the edges of the courtyard in various poses of academic pursuit. Or at least what they could figure out from what was left. Many of the stone structures had been broken or splattered with paint. The only statue not touched was one of the largest one-a proud looking beast with three long horns crowing his face and spines lining down his shoulders. Kirby squinted his eyes as he looked hard at the face. He knew he had seen that face somewhere before.

A roar broke his thoughts. He turned to see Butch just hardly shielding himself from a pair of large dark colored hands. The hands belonged to a massive black ape-like creature with long spines and oversized teeth. Lighting flashed illuminating the twisted face of an enraged Bently.
“Cassidy, aim for the legs! We don’t want to kill him!”
“You don’t have to tell me twice, Butch!” Cassidy knocked her arrow and aimed for the knee closest to her position. The beast was not even looking at her but seemed to sense her intentions. He leapt up just in time as the arrow flew where he had stood. Bentley leapt over Butch and slid completely around on the slick ground to face the yellow ranger. He roared before charging on all fours towards her. Kirby tried to grab him and got his hands on fistfuls of black matted fur on Bentley’s back. The beast swerved and thrashed as it tried to reach the ranger on its back. Kirby apologized before bringing forth his earthy strength and snapped one of the spines from Bently’s back and then stabbed the creature in the shoulder. The yeti yowled and flung himself onto his side with Kirby pinned between him and the floor. Bently got to his feet and pounded his chest with pride before peeling Kirby from the floor with his good arm and waving him around like a dog with a toy. An arrow struck his heel and he dropped Kirby in surprise. A furious electric whirlwind flashed against his eyes before colliding against his chest.
Bently shrugged off their attack and roared. The team could hear the hollers of apes heading in their direction. Butch grabbed Kirby by the shoulder and pointed to an empty cage off to the side. “You got it. I’ll get the ape’s attention. You two boys be ready to get me out of there!” Cassidy whistled and fired an arrow above the yeti’s head. As his eyes locked on to her the yellow ranger ran towards the shadowed wall. Bently was fast and his teeth snapped at her heels. She ducked as Kirby grabbed her outstretched hand and jerked her to the side. Bently crashed inside the cage as Butch slammed the door shut. He used his fire to melt the lock in place before standing back. The yeti snarled and rammed his fists inside the confinement.

“Sorry big guy. Come on, you two. We’d better hurry!”
The group had finally reached the last mirrored door as they ran deeper into the keep. Cassidy kicked the last ape down the stairs as she removed her helmet and wiped the sweat from her brow.
“Just how many of these apes are there? It feels like we’ve been fighting an entire country’s worth of these creeps.” Butch followed suit by taking off his own helmet. His hair was pressed to his skull thanks to his own sweat and helmet-pressed hair.
“It looks like we’ve got the last of them. Looks like the only way is up in this lift.”
The lift was a closed off circular area with dark gray wells. Glassed openings provided flickering light as the group could hear the gears clicked outside. Kirby glanced at his two partners.
“Are we sure we can do this? The fact we haven’t seen the Cynder or her Zord at all so far worries me.”
“Yeah, she not dumb.” Cassidy shrugged.

“Probably doesn’t take us seriously. But we’re going to change that,” Butch said.
“Butch, this isn’t about proving anything. We’re here to save Ignitus. Nothing else.”
“Yeah…I know.” The doors slid open and creaked to a halt with a faint click.
A singular opening in the dome above let only a few paltry silvers of light inside the room. Torches casted pitiful light around the space just barely lighting up the three figures they could see. Ignitus was held aloft in the air, his arms and legs stretched apart from his body and held between two pillars by purple hued magical tethers. A lantern hung from a hook above his head that swayed faintly in the storm. Wisps of orange energy were being sponged from the fire guardian into the lantern’s core.
The Cynder flung Ayrp aside like a child with a mere toy. The group watched as the hunter’s body bounced and slid on the floor in squeaky sickening thuds.

“I let you run with your tail between your legs last time. I expected my toxin to have silenced your life by now, I am impressed. I will reward you with the quick merciful execution.” Cynder snapped her fingers and a whirlwind flicked Ayrp in the air and shoved him over to feet. She drew a thin saber from her hip-it’s blade seeming to shine in the dim light and held it over Ayrp’s neck.
An arrow knocked right into the inside of her arm and burst off electric energy coursed through her. Her sword clattered on the ground right by Ayrp’s hand. Cynder wrenched the arrow from the threads of her armor and carelessly chucked it aside.
“I thought you would have learned your lesson the first time. There is no active volcano to save you this time.” Ignitus struggled against his restraints.
“Children, run! Save yourselves!” Butch clashed his lance against his shield.

“No, we’re here to fight! And you’re right about one thing Cynder-there is no volcano to save you this time.”
Cynder pulled a whip from the opposite side of her scabbard and lashed it outwards towards Bruce. Acid flared against the flames of his shield as he pulled it up over his head. Cynder materialized behind him and slashed her claws at his back. Butch smirked as he cloaked himself in flames and charged forward out of her reach. Cynder gasped her hand as the passing flames burned her palm.
“That, lady, is real fire!” The dark ranger snarled and snapped her whip high above her head. A spiral of wind emerged over her head as she hurled it at the red ranger. The wind caught him in the heel and he fell face forward and lost grip on the lance. Cynder dove forward and grasped the lance and slashed it down on his head. The face of the lance’s handle smashed against a golden reinforced bow and stopped its strike. Cassidy was planted between the two of them and with a hard jerk shoved the length of her bow against the dark knight. The lance cracked against her helmet and left side of her visor cracked. She stopped for only a moment then a sphere of earthly energy collided against her and sent her colliding backwards into the ground.
A singular green eye against a pallid face glared at them.

“It is clear whom among your group is the greatest threat so my master. So let us eliminate that problem.” Black and purple energy began to surround Cynder and she began to rise slightly from the ground. Ignitus yelled for them to run. The collected energy busted forth from her being and bathed the area in blinding darkness. Cynder stepped back on to the ground and steadied herself. She could still sense the lantern filled with the element of Fire somewhere in the shadows. Good, it was a risk but a necessary one. The shadows melted away to reveal purple energy crackling in the room. Everyone was surrounded by a protective violet aura and in the center was the purple knight.

Chapter 15: United Under Violet

Elijah had been sitting alone on his bed with his eyes staring aimlessly out the window. He saw Volteer, Butch, Cassidy, and Kirby leave. So, they had left without him, but perhaps it was for the best. He would have only held them back. He was weak and he wasn’t smart. He just felt like he couldn’t do anything. And because of him Ignitus was now captured and who knows what torment he was going through. What if the others did not get to him in time? He hated this feeling of helplessness. It was just like when his father—
Helena groaned as she sat up from her bed. A crowd of dragonflies swooped in on her as they checked her pulse, eyes, and throat. She swatted them away. “Hey I’m not in invalid. Ugh…I could use a Red Bull and maybe an extra-large meat lover’s pizza followed by turning on Netflix…huh? Where are we?”
“You’re in the Dragon Temple. You were injured”, a dragonfly squeaked. Helena rubbed her head before her eyes made contact with Elijah. She asked him where everyone else was.

“They’re going to rescue Ignitus”, Elijah said flatly. Helena nearly fell out of her bed on his comment.
“Are they seriously kidding me right now? Let me guess. It was Butch’s idea, wasn’t it? Does Ignitus know? He’s the only guy Butch seems to listen to.” Elijah buried his face in his knees as he curled up in his corner. He relayed to her about how the Black Dragonzord almost caught him and that Ignitus saved him only to be captured himself. Elijah rambled on how it was all his fault and that he was useless and unworthy of being a Dragon Knight. Helena rubbed her hands. She thought about that vision of that dark being and here was his boy lambasting himself until his throat had given out. Helena grabbed his shoulders and shook him a bit.
“Hey! Okay I am not exactly good at pep talks. But you are not useless. You’ve saved our hides with those shields and you punch really good when you get mad enough. Know what I do when I have to deal with Butch’s idiocies? I work with what I got; not what I don’t. We’ll figure this out.”
“Yeah, we will fight that crazy dragon lady on her turf. Wait. What am I saying?”, said Sparx. Helena’s communicator beeped.

“Helena. Your Zord is acting weird. Actually, all of the Zords are acting strange.” Boomer informed them. Helena grabbed Elijah by the collar and dragged him down to the chamber. As they descended down, they could hear the loud robotic clamor of their zords hissing and snarling in their alcoves. The dragons were trying to calm them down while Boomer and Byrd were panicking at the controls. The Zords had been strapped down with wires and robotic arms holding them in place.
“What the heck is going on?” Helena demanded. Boomer rolled over to her wide eyed.
“We’re not sure! We were running repairs and everything seemed fine. They just started acting like this.”
“The others are in great danger”, Elijah muttered. Everyone stared at him.
“You can understand what these erratic machines are jabbering on about? Not even Boomer was able to decipher their chattering”, Cyril gasped. Elijah kept staring at his feet.
“I…I can’t explain it. It’s like…I can feel what they’re thinking. Or maybe I’m crazy. Helena?”

“You’re not entirely insane. Sometimes I get weird inklings from the Wyvernzord. Boomer, what is the status on the repairs?” Boomer looked at the tablet in his hands.
“Um…90%. What are you planning?” Just then Volteer had stumbled into the chamber.
“Whew I am far too old to be galivanting around in storms like a young wyrmling. Oh? What is going on down here? Cyril, did you insult the Zords?”
“Preposterous. These newfangled machines just went berserk. The little one is blathering on about how the others are in danger or some nonsense.” Helena pressed some controls and released the Zords from their alcoves.
“Preposterous or not the team is going to need us. Come on Elijah!” Elijah paused in his step. He wasn’t sure what he could do. What if he made things worse? Terrador carefully placed a paw on his shoulder.

“Elijah, there is no shame if your fears and guilt. But you cannot let them control you. The loosing of one small stone can cause a mighty avalanche of destruction. Do not underestimate your worth.” Terrador’s last words faded into the background as Elijah’s vision became blurry. The Zord chamber morphed into a dark chamber. His body felt heavy and restricted. All his thoughts were dull save for a few scrambled emotions. A figure came closer to him. It was the one-eyed ape from before. “You have done well for your first outing. How did it feel? Did their screams of terror and the wails of death please you? You have taken well to your new powers. The Dark Master will be pleased.” Indeed, the feeling of power felt exhilarating. Liberating. And it was just the beginning. He could become stronger. Then something broke through. Guilt. The cries of fear, the reek of death…it was wrong. He had done something terrible. “No…it was…wrong…you…monster!”

The one-eyed ape seemed not entirely surprised. His placed a clammy hand under his chin and squeezed. “So, there seems to be a few threads of that pesky humanity left over. In time we will scrub those clean. The Dark Master is a patient one, but I think a little nudge is in order.” The chains tightened and Elijah felt a painful surge of dark power strike the very core of his being.
The Zord chamber came back into view as well as the muzzles of the three Guardians and Sparx.
“Hey! He’s back to life”, Sparx yelled out. Byrd and Boomer helped Elijah to his feet.
“What on earth happened, son? You suddenly passed out and started jabbering in your sleep”, questioned Byrd. Elijah wiped the sweat from his brow as he stood up and morphed into the Purple Knight.
“Helena, do you think we can get the Zords to Concurrent Skies?” Helena, who was already morphed was typing a few things into her laptop.
“Well look whose head is back in the game. While you were taking a nap, Volteer and I were mapping out the best route towards the island. Boomer says he can warp the Charizord, Turtlezord, and Salazord to the island, but you and I need to take the beacon to the island. Think you can handle it?” Elijah shook his head.
“I’m scared out of my mind. But our friends need us so let’s get flying!”
****

Cynder glared back at the group and then whistled. Her Zord plunged its head though the skylight and snapped at the Knights. As the group scattered, the dark knight teleported into the cockpit and steered her Zord towards Ignitus. Its claws breached through and gingerly plucked the lantern from its post before flying high up into the sky. Without the lantern to power them, the tethers fizzled and popped out of existence and the guardian collapsed onto the floor in a crumpled heap.
“Does she ever use doors?” Sparx quipped.
The party was helping Ayrp and Ignitus off the ground. The hunter smacked their hands away as he forced himself to his feet. His mask had been smashed showing his face in the dim illumination of the dome. His scaled face was marred by blackish stained burns that traveled down his neck and along his arm. He pulled his hood further down.
“I am glad you came to my rescue. But I fear it is too late. With my essence, Cynder has what she needs to open the portal in Convexity and release her master.” Butch shook his head.
“It’s not over yet. How do we get to Convexity?”

The sky ripped open in a flash of pastel colors and blinding smoke. The air began to feel thin and a chill of uneasiness settled over the knights. “I think that answers your question, oh cherry one”,
Sparx chipped. “Great, and how are we supposed to get up there? Come to think of it, how did you two get here.” Cassidy pointed at the Blue and Purple Knights. Helena snapped her fingers and pressed a few controls on a contraption on her wristband. From the frosted glass dome, they could see colored flashes of light appear on the shore. The Wyvernzord and Mothzord flew to the edges of the broken dome above.
“Boomer and I figured out one of the old functions of the Zords. A little teleportation to location feature if you will. Now get in the robots!”
Elijah’s Zord grabbed onto Cassidy’s transportation while Helena served as the wings for Kirby. Butch’s machine clumsily on to the highest tower. As they ascended towards the tear in the sky, they found things easier to maneuver. Helena’s voice came over the radio. “Get ready guys. Boomer and I couldn’t find a lot of information on this place. But I’ve got a couple tricks up my sleeve.” Everyone shielded their eyes as the light of the breach pulsed though their visors. A chorus of screams filled their ears as their Zords were pulled in and then tossed through the other side.

It was quiet. And endless of void of stars and mist surrounded them. A large while-like creature with tendrils twisting along its fins and trail slowly crept by and crooned in passing. The Wyvernzord wagged its tail as it landed on a reddish-brown plate of broken earth. The others swam towards its location and landed uneasily around it. They were surrounded by platforms of earth scattered about as another whale slid by. Pearl colored jellyfish bounced between the gaps as they sparked a little. The Zords seemed uneasy to be inside this place. Butch shuddered and rubbed his arms. There was no sign of Cynder from where they were standing.
“Where do we go from here? I can’t tell what’s up or down and no signs of angry black dragon machine,” Cassidy huffed.
“And that is why you don’t leave me behind. I told you Boomer and I worked out a few tricks. Cynder is technically a Ranger, right? So, like all Rangers, she’d give a signal in the Morphing Grid. And now I input a few commands in here and…locked on!” The tip of the Wyvernzord’s tail turned yellow and then turned towards the southeast.

“I’ve got her signal and….ohhhh.”
“What’s that oooh mean, Helena? It is a very bad thing whenever you say that.” Remarked Cassidy.
“There’s a huge distortion near her location-almost like a huge concentrated section of energy.”
“Got it. We be extra careful. Let’s move!” Kirby ordered.
Navigating the void proved to be a little tricker then they had first expected. The air pressed down on them keeping the two flying Zords from staying aloft for long periods of time. They were forced to jump and glide from space to space. The others had a bit more difficult of a trek. Their clunkier forms wobbled and flayed about as they stumbled between the spaces. A pillar of purple light soon came into view along the mists. The source of the light was a black column about half the height of the Charizord composed of ebony vines twisted into the form of a tormented dragon.

In its chest there was a large lit cavity. The Black Dragonzord was raising the lantern into the cavity. Wispy threads wrapped around the lantern and dragged it inside the lights.
“My master will soon be free. You are too late, Dragon Knaves. A pity you will not be witness his arrival.” The Black Dragonzord’s outline began to glow and the Zord stood erect on their hind legs. A jagged shadow began to stretch over the Zords as the Dragonzord began to tower over them. “I will not take the chance that your skills have improved since Boyzitbig. Prepare to face the true full might of the Terror of the Skies!”
An acid dripped lash swung across the landscape, swatting the now smaller Zords. The Black Megadragonzord’s lash-like arm coiled back to the mouth of the now dragon shaped hands of the Megazord. The dragon-shaped zord had taken on an armored humanoid form. The hands were shaped like the same face of the previous zord. Its wings were twice the size of its body and curled about like a menacing cape. A sword blade spat out its opposite arm and Cynder swung it downward on to the ground, lashing it against the Turtlezord’s shell.
“She gets to have a Megazord first? That is so not fair!” Butch whined.

“That is what you are worried about right now?! Yaahhh! You have got to get your priorities in order! Look out!” Cassidy barked as she was trying to avoid another lash from the poisonous whip. The Wyvernzord spat out ice at the megazord’s hands and feet but their power wasn’t enough against so large a form. The Turtlezord rose up from behind and smacked the Megazord from behind. Its own bulk was enough to make the Megazord stagger and fall to one knee. Cassidy launched the Salazord onto the Megadragonzord’s face and sent electrical charge against it. The Megadragonzord snarled and trashed their head to shake it off. It’s wings flapped furiously and it took to the air. Its wings stirred up a whirlwind that caught the Turtlezord and Salazord in its windy coils. The wind tossed the two zords into the Charizord and sent them crashing down to a platform at a lower level. The Wyvernzord flew up and ice flashed from its claws. The shards bounced off the Megazord as it stormed closer towards Helena. Its chest expanded as it absorbed the shadows around it. The dragon mouth on its’s chest opened up and it exhaled a burst of dark flames that encompassed the icy dragon and sent it crashing to another layer of rock. The megazord turned its eyes towards the Mothzord. Elijah tried to steer the zord out of the way as the megazord’s dragon toothed hands snapped and lashed at it. The small machine zipped and dipped around just barely escaping the terrible strikes from the angry zord. A whale passed across his path and the moth crashed against it. The jaws of the Megadragonzord enclosed on the little zord to crush the pair. The jaws had snapped around the Mothzord and Elijah waited for the end, but he felt a hard shove and then they spiraled up into the air. After he picked himself off the floor and the Zord had righted itself, he looked out the windshield.
The Charizord and the Turtlezord had dragged themselves up onto the plateau and slammed in tandem against the Megazord. It was clear they were in less than idea condition. The Black Megadragonzord slammed their foot on the ground and sent across a whirlwind against them to push them back. “Why? It is clear you cannot win against me! Why do you keep trying?” The

Charizord swung its tail and struck the wind with its own flame as the Wyvernzord flapped out another wave of frost.
“Because while our names are different, Power Rangers don’t quit! They’ve faced bigger and badder chicks than you!” Bruce laughed. Elijah flew down to their level.
“We may not all be the strongest or the smartest, but that won’t stop us from giving it everything we got to save this realm.” And save you, Elijah’s own thoughts uttered to himself. The Mothzord began to shimmer a bright purple. A similar aura surrounded all the Zords. Everyone could feel a strange surge of power as the Zords began to be drawn together. The Black Megadragonzord rose its arms as the purple light filled the platform momentarily. As it faded, Cyder was befuddled by what was standing before her.
The Shinedragonzord stood where the previously battered Zords had once been. It boasted the legs of the Charizord, the body of the Turtlezord, the Mothzord’s right arm, Salazord’s left arm, and the Wyvernzord’s wings. The head was a silver humanoid face bearing a purple helmet with long curled back golden horns and an orange frill.
“Heh, how the turns have tabled”, Butch chuckled.
“The expression is in reverse but your sentiment is accurate”, Helena sighed. Cynder lashed her whip in the air.

“Combined form or not, you are nothing against my dark powers! Nothing!” The Shinedragonzord’s wings flapped at the same time the Charizord’s legs had jumped back. The combined strength made them jump too far back and they overshot a platform behind them. They would have fallen into the void if Cassidy and Elijah grabbed the very edge.
“Ugh, they make this so much easier on tv”, Butch coughed.
“We have to work together guys. Think of it like one of our school games”, Kirby barked. The Black Megadragonzord was floating from rock to rock in their direction. Elijah pointed that there was a whale just about to pass underneath them. Cassidy nodded and told him to wait for her signal. Cynder’s black sword slashed against their hands and got the blade stuck in the rock. From her visor she had seen her enemy fall and she smiled at her apparent victory. The whale hardly even flinched as the Shrinedragonzord was struggling to free itself from the gilly tendrils they had grabbed on to. Cassidy apologized as she used the Salazord’s blade to cut away the flesh holding them back. The grabbed a passing by jellyfish and pulled itself on top before bouncing on to the other ledge.

The mouth on the Black Megadragonzord snapped open and black fire belched out in five concussive bursts. The eyes of the Mothzord on the Shrinedragonzord flashed as a shield of aether energy took shape and took the brunt of the hits. One of the spheres of dark flame struck the megazord in their right leg. The flames ate away at the outer casing and the leg bucked under its own weight. The Salazord’s mouth opened up and popped out its own tongue to create a staff.
The black pillar began to shake and a pulse of magic erupted from the opening sending both Megazords flying to the void. Both flapped their wings frantically as they spun in the air and grasped at any platform nearby. Cynder surrounded her Zord with a pulse of wind from below and let herself be tossed upwards in the draft. Helena yelled for Elijah and Cassidy to push off the ledge they had grasped and dove their own Megazord into the funnel. The Shinedragonzord tossed and tumbled as Helena had the Zord curl their wings and spin the tail attempted to steady themselves. The titans staggered as they worked on to steady themselves.
“I don’t like what that portal is doing. We’ve got to get out of here”, Cassidy hissed.
“Yeah, as if Cynder is going to let us”, remarked Helena. Kirby glanced over to Elijah who seemed to be oddly focused on his section of the control console.

“You okay there buddy?”
“I think…I can stop Cynder’s attack on us. But I need to get closer because the Mothzord has only one charge left.” Butch slapped him on the back.
“You’ve got it buddy! Helena, keep us steady! Cassidy take out any projectiles. Kirby, watch my back.”
The Black Megadragonzord had righted itself just as it saw the Shinedragonzord charging towards them. They weren’t actually serious right? Were they actually running right at her? She steered her titan towards them; sword drawn and her left arm spitting acid in a volley in front of her. Even with their injury Butch steered and danced around the acid as Helena twisted and turned the wings to keep it upright. A task not easy with the bulky form of the Megazord and Butch’s own roughshod movements. “Ugh, you really need dancing lessons, Butch…” Cassidy just shrugged as she swung her baton and swept away an acid strike that nearly got them in the leg.

The Salazord’s electric blade retracted into its mouth and a thin cannon took its place. Frost formed around the middle as Cassidy blasted ice first the Megablackdragonzord’s knees and then it’s feet. Even Helena was surprised their Zord could even do that. They were ten feet apart now.
“Whatever you’re going to do, kid, you better do it now!” Cassidy barked. Elijah didn’t quite hear her. He was focused on the black monster before them. The mouth on the Megazord’s chest was snapping and snarling as another swirl of fire was forming-a larger flame set to destroy them. He was not sure what was compelling his hand here. He aimed the Mothzord’s canon right at the snarling jaws. A blast of purple light discharged from the Moth’s eyes.
The light formed into featureless dragons that twisted and spiraled around the evil Megazord. Cynder thrashed and twisted trying to escape the encompassing magic. With each strike of a dragon head, the Megazord’s form began to shrink and shatter. Cynder screeched and screamed for her master to help her. The Zord’s form cracked and fell apart. As its pieces dissolved into shadow, Elijah could see a figure falling below. He teleported from the cockpit and used his body to shield her from ramming directly on to the ground. The gang peered through the visor so see the DE morphed form of the dark Ranger.

“Hey! I know her”, Cassidy balked.
“Huh, isn’t she the gal who keeps kicking your ass in the fencing club. Cree, right?” Cassidy smacked Butch upside the head for his remark.
There was a loud rush of gale as the portal flashed again. The surrounding energy began to be suck into the pillar and it was taking Elijah and Cree along with it. Elijah gripped Cree as tightly as he could under his arm as the claws of his uniform scratched along the surface of the ground.
“Let her go, bro! She’s the one who’s been trying to kill us this whole time!”
“It wasn’t her fault! She was being used by the Dark Master.” Elijah lost his grip on the earth and he and Cree plunged into the depths of the portal. A hand grabbed his and jerked him out of the light.
“Not so fast, El! We’re all leaving together!” Kirby had all three held tight in his arms as a tether from the Megazord pulled them back up into the cockpit.

“If we’re done playing hero, let’s get the heck out of here!” Helena snapped as she activated the thrusters at full strength. “For once you and I are in agreement”, bounced back Sparx.
Light whizzed past them as the Megazord struggled and staggered in its escape out of Convexity. The opening was shrinking and their Zords were doing their best to not fall apart. The normal sky of day came into their view just in time before the gate closed behind them. A series of warning alarms blared in their ears as they fell from the sky towards what appeared to be giant mushrooms. Then a loud thundercrack rung out as the Shinedragonzord flashed and then shattered back into the individual zords before plummeting headlong into the swamps.

Chapter 16: A New Beginning

“Elijah…. Elijah…” A dark growling voice rung in his ears. The portal in Convexity stood before him; beckoning him to come closer. “Elijah! Hey, Elijah!” The beige ceiling of the temple melted away the darkness of the void. Sparx was waving his hands in the boy’s face. “Wakey! Wakey! Come on little bro! Wake up!” Elijah’s whole body ached as he struggled to sit up. He was in his bed; part of his chest and face bandaged and smelling strongly of herbs.
“I was starting to think you weren’t going to wake up.”

“Ow…. did anyone get the license plate of the truck that hit me?” Butch groaned.
“Oh, I guess everyone else is awake too”, Sparx said in a deadpan tone.
The Guardians walked into the room.
“It is good to see you all awake, young knights. We must thank the ancestors the dragonflies found you”, Ignitus sighed with relief.
“Humph, about time these glow bugs actually held up to their end of the pact”, huffed Cyril. Terrador rolled his eyes and shoved the Ice Guardian aside.
“Ignore him. Are you well enough to tell us what happened? The dragonfly has told us…quite a yarn but we would like to hear it directly from you.”
The Guardians listened intently to their tale as dragonflies came in with food and fresh bandages for the knights. Cree was quiet the entire time until they had finished.

“This is all my fault. I’ve done so many terrible things. For a whole year I…”
“Wait! A year! But you were only reported to be missing for a week back…home”, Helena exclaimed before deflating. A silence fell over the group.
“I understand. Being away from home must be difficult for all of you”, Ignitus said sincerely.
“Fear not Ignitus. While these knights were facing dire peril, Boomer and I have been looking though the archives so see a possibly way to send them home or at least give out communication. However, this new information of a possible time displacement between our world and their world is fascinating, intriguing and…”
“Anyway. All of you have done exceptionally well. For reuniting us Guardians and awakening the Zords from their slumber. Well done young knights”, Ignitus complemented them.

“Their success? What about me? Just because I don’t turn into some armored weirdo with magic powers doesn’t mean I didn’t help you know. You know what? I don’t need this. I could have stayed with the llama people where I was appreciated and they knew a good thing and…”
“Goodness. And I thought Volteer chatted a lot”, Ignitus groaned.
****

Cree was sitting alone out on the balcony. Elijah came by to sit with her with two mugs in his hands. He had not noticed before, but he saw that her appearance was different than when he had first met her at school. Her hair had turned jet black and her skin was more pallid than before. Even the green in her eyes shone brighter. He handed her the mug and she took it wordlessly.
“Thank you. You don’t have to be nice to me, you know. I am aware I don’t deserve it.”
“Hey, it wasn’t your fault. The Dark Master made you do those things. Besides, I know deep down you’re a good person. I just…feel it.”
“Maybe….” They turned their eyes to the sky. The night seemed to feel a tad darker and there were less stars shining that night.

“I have a bad feeling something about all this. They didn’t find Bently where they had trapped him and Ayrp seems to have disappeared too.”
“I agree. I can sense the darkness a little heavier too.” From her pocket she pulled out her Dragon Egg. It was a black egg with silver horns along the length of the form and a counter clockwise spiral on the front. She rose her hand over her head and pulled back to throw it. The black egg was hurled over the edge where is vanished into the shrooms below.
“I don’t want to see that thing ever again.” Elijah watched the egg disappear.
“I understand. I promise, I will get you home. We’ll all get home.” Butch walked on to the balcony running a sore spot on his head, followed by Cassidy and Kirby.
“Hey you two lovebirds. Enjoying the night air? Ow! What was that for Cass?”
“You are as dense as the brick we’re walking on. Still, what you two doing out here?” Kirby glanced upward. “Dark night. Anyone else getting a creepy feeling?”

“We were just talking about that. Where’s Helena?” Elijah commented.
“She and Boomer are doing some fancy tech geek talking. I got out of there as soon as I could”, Butch shrugged. He patted the back of Elijah and Cree.
“Hey, whatever happens now, we’re going to kick butt! We’re the Dragon Knights and that means you too, Cree.” Cree was not prepared for the sudden single arm hug. “What…what are you doing? How can you be so nonchalant about what I’ve done?!” Cassidy shrugged her shoulders.
“I don’t trust you, but you might as well get used to this moron’s overwhelming positivity.” Butch squeezed on both Elijah and Cree before pumping his fist in the air.

“Go, go, Power Rangers!”