Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers. They belong to Haim Saban and Shuki Levy. I do not wish to to make any type of profit from this story or the installments to follow this. If you wish to email me, my addy is letsrocket_1998@yahoo.com. Thanks!
Timeline: The timeline for this series is during the series of Power Rangers Zeo. This is set after the very last episode of Zeo and before the events of Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie. I hope you enjoy this.
Author's Note 1: The character of the Emperor, in my series, is the character of Skeletor from "Masters of the Universe" the movie. I'm sure there are people out there who have seen the movie. The character Evil Lynn is also from the movie. It starred Dolph Lundgren as He-Man and Frank Langella as Skeletor.
Author's Note 2: I also have Olympius from PR Lightspeed Rescue in this series. In this series, he is going to be Emperor Skeletor's young apprentice, his student. And his role will become evident as the series unfolds.
Author's Note 3: The appearance of the Power Chamber in the beginning of my series is that of the look that the Chamber had in Power Rangers Zeo. I'm gonna have a different name in mind for the Power Chamber appearance for Turbo.

As the Journey Continues. . .
A Friend in Need
by The Devious One

October 10
The sun was smiling brightly down through the, at the moment, peaceful city of Angel Grove, California. Birds of all types flew through the crystal blue skies as only a few columulous clouds filled the sky. Sunlight brightened the already bright city with it's rays.

One building on the north end of the city was bustling with activity. The Youth Center. For years, Angel Grove's Youth Center has been the center for the High School students to come and relax after a tough day at school. Each day, students would come and drink Smoothies made by the overweight owner of the Youth Center, Ernie. He was the nicest and gentlest person any of the students had ever met and he always leant a hand to those who needed it.

On the main activities floor, a dark red mat lie on the floor and two men stood in front of one another in karate motion. One was a muscular young man with short, dark hair. He wore a white karate suit with a black belt tied at the waist. The other was a slightly taller young man dressed in an orange tank top tucked into a pair of black karate pants with his black belt at the waist. In between the two was a short, thin man with a shirt with white and black vertical stripes. He raised his arms, each one in each man's direction. He looked at the muscular young man.

"Ready?" his voice carried through the Youth Center. All around the karate mat were students and adults alike, all watching the finals of the Angel Grove Karate Invitational.

"I'm ready." the young man replied.

The ref turned to the man to his left. "Ready?" he asked.

"I'm ready." the other man replied.

"Begin!" the ref called, stepping out from in between them.

The two men began moving among the mat, circling one another. The taller young man began the final match by using a combination right hand chop and leg swipe. The muscular man blocked the chop and somersaulted out of the leg swipe. After he landed on his feet, the taller man thrust his right leg out behind him, catching the surprised man in the chest and knocking him backwards. "Point!" the ref intervened to give one point to the tall gentleman. The dark haired man got back to his feet and the two resumed their standing positions. "Continue!" the ref called.

This time, the muscular man was more aware of his opponent's movements and rushed forward to make his mark. He threw out right hand shots, which were blocked, and tried a flurry of kicks against the taller man, which were also blocked. He back up a few steps to give the taller man a chance to move, and when he did, he struck. The muscular young man rushed forward with a left leg kick to the side of his opponent's head. As the taller man blocked it, the dark haired man thrust his right hand inside and got a shot at the taller man's midsection. He followed that up with a left leg swipe to take the opponent down. "Point!" the ref called, evening the match up.

The two men began the final part of their match, the winner of this point would win the match and the Invitational. The taller man opened up strongly with a flurry of action. Leg kicks, hand chops, all sorts of martial art movements were used by him to win the final point. Everything he attempted was blocked or hit nothing when the opponent would move out of harm's way. The muscular man blocked and parried with the taller man, meeting him move for move, waiting for him to make his mistake. And, he did. The taller man threw a right leg up for a kick to his face, but the muscular young man caught the offending leg and used his left leg to take the other leg out from under his opponent. The ref came in and seperated the two as the crowd around them cheered for the winner, who was smiling broadly through the sweat that tickled his face, making his skin glisten in the bright light that the lights provided.

At last, the ref stood, facing the team of three Judges that sat at a table on the second level of the floor. On his right was the muscular young man, and on his left, the taller man. Both of the ref's hands held each of the combatant's hands. As the speaker began to speak, the ref raised the hand of the man to his right.

"The winner of the Angel Grove Karate Invitational, Jason Lee Scott!!" the speaker yelled, causing the fans around to cheer upon hearing the familiar name. Jason stood in front of the Judges by himself now as he stood stock still, arms lying evenly at his sides. As was tradition, Jason bowed before the Judges as they extended to him, his Invitational Trophy.

"Jason Lee Scott. You have earned the Trophy of the Invitational. Congratulations." the Head of the Judges contragulated him, smiling.

"Thank you. It's an honor to accept this." Jason replied, smiling as he raised his newly won trophy to the onlookers around him.

The Judges stood and left, as did the crowd disperse and go back to their normal daily routine of activities. All that was left on the mat was Jason with his trophy, and five familiar faces smiled at him as they walked up.

"Hey guys." Jason smiled at his friends.

"Hey, congratulations man." Tommy greeted his friend.

"Yeah, you looked sharp out there." Rocky added.

"Thanks. I worked extra hard for this, that's for sure." Jason said. He walked over to the bench that held his bag and sat down. "So, what are you guys planning on doing?"

"Well, Kat and I um" Tommy sounded a bit sheepish as he flushed, "have a date." he mumbled.

"I just bet you do." Jason looked at him. Tommy kept his face covered by his hair.

"Anyways," Kat said to get the conversation wagon going again. "we came to see you compete and you won."

"Yeah, and we were wondering if you would like to go to the park with us." Tanya said.

"We're having a picnic. It should be fun." Adam added.

"Sure. Let me go change and I'll meet you back here. Alright?" Jason replied as they nodded. After grabbing his clothing and a clean, crisp towel, Jason headed to the showers.

The planet Edenoi was very distant from the Earth. Ship wise, it would take almost a year of space travel before Edenoi could even be seen. Edenoi was one of the only planets in the known universe whose planetary materials could enhance an evil monarch's power. And that was precisely why Count Dregon had wanted the planet so badly. Dregon had been attacking the planet for years, trying to reduce the planet to nothing and in his quest, destroy his brother Lexian and everything Lexian had spent his entire lifetime creating on the planet. Edenoi, at one time, had been a flourishing planet with a huge population of citizens. Count Dregon had changed that when the chance was given to him.

Dregon had destroyed every major city on the surface and forced the survivors, Lexian among them, to retreat underground. The survivors formed a resistance. But, day by day, inch by inch, Dregon had begun to reduce the resistance to little than nothing. But, then, the day the resistance had been hoping for finally came. Count Dregon, although he had gone to Earth in hopes of capturing his nephew, Dex, and master the Masked Rider powers for himself, his forces had stayed behind to finish what the Count had started. Then, suddenly, the attacks stopped and the forces of Count Dregon had all but disappeared. The survivors were going to begin repopulating the surface, but, then, the attacks rebegan, only, it wasn't Count Dregon who was attacking them this time. Something stronger and more powerful was attacking Edenoi and King Lexian knew the resistance couldn't hold out for much longer.

Underneath the surface, down a rocky cavern, and up a natural stone stair formation, to which there was a system of many tunnels. Down one of the tunnels, and through a smaller tunnel, which housed a wooden bolted door, was the musty quarters of King Lexian. Dirt and dust fell from the ceiling as yet another attack was begun on the surface. King Lexian looked up as more dirt began to fall and he knew he didn't have much time left before the ceiling would collapse on them, or they would be discovered. He only hoped his message could get through.

In front of him, Donaius shook his head as he cleared the dirt. "Your majesty, we don't have much time."

"I know Donaius. Inform everyone that we need to move the resistance headquarters further up the caves. I will try to get the transmission across." King Lexian informed.

"Yes, your majesty." Donaius left the room.

Alone in the room, King Lexian brought out the transmission device he used and layed it down. It was a flat platform in circular form. And it resembled the prism that Billy had built in High School. King Lexian placed the platform down as he made the transmission. He only hoped the message would reach his friends in time.

The picnic was held in the park at the location that was just in view of the Angel Grove Lake. Jason, Tommy, Kat, Rocky, Adam, and Tanya were relaxing after having a good lunch that Tanya and Kat had made for everyone. There was fruit punch for everyone's thirst and Rocky enjoyed it all with a burp here and there, at which he apologized profusely.

"It's a nice day, today." Tanya mentioned.

"Yes it is. Sun's out and shining. Things couldn't get any better." Rocky added, smiling.

The six enjoyed the sunlight that bathed their skin for a few minutes more before that six tone beep that they knew all too well interrupted their enjoyment of the day.

"Oh by." Rocky grumbled.

"Yes, Zordon." Tommy answered the message.

"Rangers, report to the Power Chamber immediately." Zordon's voice was heard.

"We're on our way." Tommy answered.

"Guess you guys should go ahead and head out." Jason said, looking down. He felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Why don't you come with us?" Kat offered. The others nodded.

"You sure?" Jason said.

"Let's go." Tommy smiled. The six teleported out of the park in six streams of colored energy.

The halfway darkened Power Chamber lightened as six streams of teleportation energy landed swiftly in the center of the Power Chamber. Alpha was at the center of the main console as they arrived. Adam stood in the center of the group with behind him to the left and Tanya at his right, behind him. Next to Tanya was Tommy and next to Kat was Rocky. They looked up as Zordon spoke.

"Rangers," Zordon began, "I have just recieved a stressing message from Edenoi."

"King Lexian's people?" Tommy asked.

Zordon nodded, "Yes. Please observe the viewing screen."

The rangers turned and watched as the transmission played for the rangers. On the screen was King Lexian and he looked older than he had before, but not by much. Perhaps two years. The rangers grew concerned as he spoke.

"I hope this message gets to you safely, my friend. Edenoi is in need of your assistance, Zordon. As I'm sure you are currently aware, Count Dregon's forces have continued to plague us. Recently, however, Count Dregon's forces have disappeared. We didn't know what to make of it and we began to think that the danger was over and we could populate the surface again.

"But, the attacks suddenly restarted on the surface, but these attacks were worse. More powerful. And, our scouts have discovered that the attacks are not coming from Count Dregon. No, the attacks are coming from the forces that belong to the Emperor of the Amkron Xianth Galaxy. We don't know how or even why, but he has come to add Edenoi to his collected of dominated planets. Please, we need your help.

"By the time this transmission gets to you, myself and the resistance will have moved further into the system of caves we have had our headquarters. Good luck, my friend."

The message ended and black and white static filled the screen as Alpha ended it. The rangers were silent for a few moments afterward.

"I have feared this." Zordon told them, solemnly.

"Who is the Emperor?" Jason asked.

"Rangers, the Emperor of the Amkron Xianth Galaxy is the only other sage with the same level of power of myself. A very long time ago, during the Great War, he and myself were alligned with each other and others. Lexian, myself, the Emperor, Ninjor, Dulcea, a dear friend of mine, Dimitria, and the Lord of Triforia at the time, Trekan were known as the Circle of the Ancient Order. We fought a great evil that, up until the Great War, was thought to be undestructable. But, we were able to destroy that great evil. The war we had with them also had a high cost. The Emperor, his name was Skeltane at the time, was captured by the enemy. We tried to find him for years.

"But, we failed each time." Zordon paused for a moment. "It took us five Earth years to get any trace, but, we did find him. We discovered that his life signature was detected on a planet called Zoraine. The planet was currently in war with the rulers of the Amkron Xianth Galaxy. When we arrived, we were shoked at what we discovered. Skeltane had been transformed into a blood thirsty conqueror who was named Emperor Skeletor, the Ruler of the Xianth Empire. We fought him to the ends of the planet, finally succeeding at defeating him. He had no memories of us, just that he was Xianth Empire's Emperor and that he would rule the universe before he was through.

"We drove him back and eventually, he retreated to his home Galaxy, Amkron Xianth. He had never left, until now. But, the Emperor has created a name for himself among the Creators Council."

"The Creators Council?" Kat said.

"Yes, the Creators' Council are a society of the universe's strongest beings that run the ongoings of the universe. They have a set of laws and codes that all of the universe has to live by, including myself. The Emperor, we learned later, was accepted by the Council as a trainer of monarchs, given the right to train young pupils to conquer planets. And, rangers, he is the one who trained Lord Zedd and Rita Repulsa."

The rangers were silent for a minute.

"He trained Zedd and Rita!?" Rocky said in disbelief.

Zordon nodded.

"What happens now?" Tanya asked.

"Since Skeletor has left his home Galaxy, it means he's after something."

"The Masked Rider powers?" Tommy offered.

"No, the Masked Rider powers would do very little for his empire. Whatever he's come for, it has to be of great importance for him to use his army to destroy Count Dregon's forces. You must go to Edonoi and help King Lexian. Will you go?"

"You know we will Zordon." Tommy answered for the group.

"Thank you. Good luck rangers. Morph and Alpha will teleport you." Zordon said.

"Aye yi yi, be well rangers." Alpha cried.

"Good luck." Jason added.

"We will. It's Morphin Time!" Tommy said the morphin call.

"Zeo Ranger I, Pink!" Katherine called.

"Zeo Ranger II, Yellow!" Tanya called.

"Zeo Ranger III, Blue!" Rocky called.

"Zeo Ranger IV, Green!" Adam called.

"Zeo Ranger V, Red!" Tommy called.

The five streams of energy left Earth's atmosphere as they tredded their way through space, on their way to the planet Edonoi. Back in the Power Chamber, Zordon had a concerned look on his face.

"Do you think they'll be ok, Zordon?" Jason asked to his mentor.

"I don't know, Jason. I don't know." Zordon said back after a moment. I have a bad feeling about this. Zordon thought but didn't say. He knew if he did, there would be concern radiating from Jason.

The Emperor of the Amkron Xianth Galaxy sat in his royal throne, on board his personal spaceship, The Dark Destroyer, and grinned as he watched the screen in front of him. On the surface of Edenoi, fires were erupting all over the place. His ships had begun blasting everywhere the scanners had detected a living being. The Emperor knew that the King of the planet was somewhere in those caves, he just didn't know which one. And the Emperor was not going to waste his troops by going into the caves. That could take days, as many caves as there were. No, instead, he knew that if blasted the surface with enough force, the caves would eventually collapse on the resistance, and the King would be gone.

Skeletor had a black, thick folder in his lap, which was opened. The pages within was a list of the members that, at one time, served with him in the Circle of the Ancient Order. After years of ruling his Empire, parts of his memory with the Circle had begun to return to him, and to his disgust, he had found that he had fought as a justice crusader for much of his younger life. When he learned that, he made a personal vow to himself and his Empire of destruction and chaos. No matter what it took, he would wipe out the members of the Circle. And he smiled as he knew what would happen. As was one of the codes of the Creators Council, when a group of powerful sages, whether they were good or evil, came together to form a Circle, it was allowed that any member could destroy the remaining members of said Circle and would inherit their power. As long as the Council was informed ahead of time. Skeletor had informed the Council of his wishes to eradicate the retired members of the Circle of the Ancient Order and, surprising to him, they had granted him his wish. Just as long as did it within the rules of the Council. After that, he merely had prepared his army for the attack and arrived here.

He knew that Trekan had already died, so he didn't have to go to Triforia. The members of the Circle left after Lexian were Dulcea, Ninjor, Dimitria, and Zordon. The Emperor's eyes darkened as he thought of the Eltaran. He hated Zordon's self sacrificing attitude. Upon leaving his Galaxy, he had learned of the legend that Zordon became. He had learned of everything Zordon had achieved since the Great War had ended. And it enraged him incredibly. He promised himself, that of the remaining members, Zordon's death would be the slowest and most painful. Of the other Circle members, the two that concerned Skeletor the most were Dulcea and Ninjor. He had also learned of their achievements. As long as he fought Dulcea within Phaedos, he knew it would be difficult to defeat her. But, what he had planned would limit her incredible abilities and he was confident that his plan would work perfectly.

Skeletor's face looked like that of a living, animated, human skull. The features were exactly alike. The dark eyes he had held a tint of darkness and rage that no other ruler in the universe possessed. A dark hood covered his head that connected with the dark robes he wore. The armor that protected his chest and legs were that of a hard plaster that was damn near unbreakable. Many had tried to break it, but they were unsuccessful. He carried a staff-sceptor, which at the head of the top held a human ram's face. It concentrated his power.

The Emperor turned his attention back to the present as a light flickered on the screen before him. His dark eyes narrowed as he watched five streams of colored energy pass through the atmosphere of the planet before they were out of his view. He knew those colors. They were the exact same type of colored light that the Circle of the Ancient Order used when traveling.

"So," the Emperor's dark voice was heard in his private room. He set his folder aside and stood up. Walking over to the screen, he spoke, "Zordon has sent his mortal pupils to help." he said as he chuckled. "This is going to be interesting." the Emperor decided as he continued to watch the planet.

The five Zeo Rangers landed softly on the surface of the planet of Edenoi and looked around. Around them was the same surface that had met them not three years ago, when they had helped Lexian before.

"Where do we go from here?" Pink Zeo asked, gazing around at the landscape of the red rocks and stones around them.

"I guess we go look for some of the scouts. They're our contacts with Lexian." Red Zeo replied.

"What if they're being attacked?" Green Zeo looked at their leader.

Tommy grinned inside his helmet. "We help."

"You're just looking for the chance to fight." Blue Zeo joked.

"Come on." Red Zeo said and they started moving forward. In front of them was a small rocky hill. As the five rangers walked to the top, they stopped dead in their tracks. Down the other side of the hill were a small group of the Emperor's troops with blasters strapped to their shoulders looking around.

"Well, no scouts, but we found troops." Blue Zeo said.

"I guess it's better than nothing." Red Zeo said. "Ready."

"Let's go." Green Zeo said as they brought out their Zeo Laser Pistols and ran down the small hill.

The Emperor's troops were soldiers wearing black armer and hand pistols attached to holsters at the belt. On their chest, on the right side, was the Emperor's signia-a snake curled around a dagger. The signia was in gold color. On the right side was the rank of the officer. These soldiers had three green rectangle marks diagonally on their left chest, which signified them as Cadet Troopers. The Emperor's signia was also a transmission device.

The Cadet Troopers looked up as they saw five Power Rangers heading their way. "Open Fire!" their leader called out to them. There was a group of eight Cadet Troopers present and they all opened fire on the interlopers. The rangers dodged and scattered out of the way as the blasts hit the ground near them. They responded by using their Zeo Laser Pistols and blasting back at the Troopers. Where the Troopers' blasts were only near their targets, the rangers' were directly on target, each blast hitting a Trooper in the chest, knocking them down. The rangers put their Laser Pistols away as they walked to the now deceased Troopers.

Red Zeo kneeled down over one of the Troopers and lifted up one of the visors. Underneath the visor was a green scaly face of a creature with blue eyes. Red Zeo stood again as he joined the others.

"These must be the Emperor's goons." Green Zeo noted.

"Well, we need to find the scouts or the entrance to the caves if we're gonna help here." Red Zeo stated.

"What do we do now, then?" Pink Zeo asked.

"Don't move!!" a voice came from behind them. Instantly, their hands neared their Laser Pistols, but they didn't pull them out. Instead, they slowly turned around and sighed in relief when they saw two humanoid figures wearing brown robes and oxygen masks over their faces. "Who are you?" the same voice ordered.

"We're the Zeo Rangers from Earth." Red Zeo replied, not backing down. "Zordon of Eltare sent us to help King Lexian with the Emperor."

"Oh really," the voice, which was so familiar to Tommy, "prove it."

"Ok, well, with the exception of Tanya," Red Zeo indicated the Yellow Ranger, "we were here a couple years ago to help you with Count Dregon. I wasn't wearing red, I was the White Ranger then. Rocky here was Red Ranger and Adam was Black Ranger. Does that prove it to you?"

"Tommy?" the voice now recognized them.

"Yeah. Sorry for the misunderstanding. But, Zordon recieved a message from King Lexian about the Emperor's arrival here. We knew we were needed and if you would, we would like to see King Lexian."

"Thank Gozen you arrived in one peace. We had to move the headquarters to the deepest part of the caves. It will provide enough safety and security to last a while. We were beginning to think our message didn't get through. Come on, let's get in the caves before more Troopers show up." Donauis said, leading them towards the caves.

The five followed quietly. They went through many corridors of caves and caverns, taking rights and lefts as they got deeper into the system of caves. It took a good fifteen minutes before they arrived at the cave that the resistance moved their headquarters to. By this time, it was safe for them to remove their helmets and they had. The members looked at the rangers impassively, not knowing if they could help their cause any or not.

"You stay here, I'll go tell King Lexian you're here." Donauis said as he disappeared behind a dark curtain.

The rangers looked around them with sad eyes. They imagined having to live underground because the surface was too polluted to live and the fear that an evil was attacking you at every second of every day. It could be exhausting to have to live a life like that. The rangers knew now that they would do whatever they could to ensure that this life didn't continue for the Edenites.

Donauis returned. "King Lexian is ready to see you now. Follow me."

The rangers followed Donauis down a stone made stair formation that went down for twenty steps before they came to another curtain. Donauis opened the curtain and they stepped inside. The small area inside was not that big at all. In front of them was a rectangular shaped room. A stone and rock formed table sat in front of them with a map of the surface lying on it. On the map was markings in different colored ink. Just beyond the table was the back wall, which held up a painting of King Lexian and his deceased wife, Queen Ilana of Orora. Lexian stood to the side of the painting and smiled at the rangers.

"Thank you for coming." King Lexian said.

"It was no trouble at all. You needed help, enough said." Adam replied.

"What is this map?" Rocky pointed at the table.

"Oh yes. This is the map for the damage already suffered. The red marks were the locations of the surface that Dregon had taken control of. The blue marks were of the locations we had defeated Dregon to take control of. And, the green marks are the locations that the Emperor took when he first arrived." Lexian told them.

The amount of green marks on the map were uncanny. They were all over the map, including every spot that Dregon had and every location that the resistance had fought to regain. In short, it could be said that the Emperor had complete control of Edenoi, only, the resistance still remained.

"What can we do to help you?" Tommy asked.

"Destroy the Emperor for starters." the King said, "no, there's not much we can do from inside these caves. You see this mark." he indicated a blue mark.

"Yes." Tommy nodded.

"That is the Dune of Neuphesus. Inside the Dune, all of our weapons lie. If we can retake the Dune of Neuphesus, we can defend the entire cave system without difficulty. Without it, it's only a matter of time before we die." King Lexian said, sadly.

"King Lexian," Tommy looked at him, "you tell us everything you know about the entrances, the exits, and any secret passage ways into it, and we'll get cracking at retaking the Dune for you. Show us the weak points of the Dune and the strong points, and I promise you, it will be in your control before we leave." Tommy promised.

King Lexian nodded as he began explaining the Dune of Neuphesus to the rangers.

Back at the Power Chamber on Earth, a transmission signal was just recieved. Alpha and Jason went to intercept it and Zordon paled as he realized that the Emperor was the contactor.

"Do you want to answer it, Zordon?" Jason asked, concerned.

"Yes, we must see what he wants." Zordon replied, steadying himself.

The viewing screen came on and Emperor Skeletor was in the center of it. He sat on his royal throne with his legs crossed and his sceptor lay across the arms of the throne. His right hand was lying on a long, circular device of somekind. It was covered in steel buttons and arced metal points lie at the top. His fingers were lightly crossing over the points and it was attached to his waist, but lying on his lap.

"Emperor of the Amkron Xianth Empire." Zordon acknowledged.

"Zordon," Skeletor's voice mocked him, "is that anyway to treat an old friend?"

Zordon's face showed no expression. "My friend died during the Great War. You may look the same, but my friend died."

Skeletor chuckled, "Very well. I know you sent your puny rangers to assist Lexian. It doesn't matter Zordon. I will have what I am after and nothing will change that."

"And what are you after, you big bully!" Alpha snapped.

"Smart ass robot you got there." the Emperor chuckled again, "Better watch it's manners. And as for what I'm after, I think Provision Rule #10854B should give you a clue, Eltaran."

Zordon's silence hinted to Jason that he knew of the rule. "Zordon?" Jason said, looking up.

"Jason, the rule he refers to is the Right that any member among a given Circle can choose to eliminate the other Circle members and inherit their power." Zordon said.

"WHAT!" Jason bellowed.

"It truly is something, isn't it." Skeletor's laughter was heard. "I went to the Council and asked for the right and it was granted. I have to follow their silly rules, but, either way, you will die soon Zordon. As soon as I finish Lexian, I'll be heading to Phaedos, then Inquirus, and the Desert of Despair, and finishing with Earth. Nothing can stop me. Not even your precious Zeo Power Rangers. So, I'll see you soon, Zordon." Skeletor declared, his message clearing out.

Zordon waited a moment, then looked at Alpha. "Alpha, I need a direct link with Inquirus, Phaedos, and the Desert of Despair."

"Right away, Zordon." Alpha replied.

"What are you gonna do?" Jason asked.

"The only thing I can do given these circumstances. Call a meeting of the Circle." Zordon stated.

Three hours had passed since the Zeo Rangers had studied everything Lexian had on the Dune of Neuphesus. The rangers had their game plan already planned out. When the Edenoian Sun brought it's rays to the surface of the planet the next day, precisely at dawn, the rangers would leave the system of caves and head out to where the Dune was located. Once there, they would destroy the Troopers that the Emperor already had occupied there and would retake it for the resistance. With the Dune back in King Lexian's control, the resistance would finally stand a real chance against the Emperor's forces.

At the moment, the rangers were asleep, having been at the plan for most of the night. Rocky was asleep in King Lexian's quarters, on the opposite side. Tommy and Kat were asleep in each other's arms in the main room, in one of the corners. Adam and Tanya were sleeping next to each other in a different corner. Most of the resistance members were asleep, but this time, with happy dreams. After being told that the rangers would retake the Dune of Neuphesus for them, the resistance members were giddy with joy.

The Dune of Neuphesus was like a canyon. Inside the Dune was a secret chamber that held a fleet of Edenoian Space Runners, the fleet of their assault defense. Also within the Dune was an array of powerful lasers and blaster packs that would assist them greatly. But, most importantly, there was a control room inside the Dune's secret chamber that was like the Power Chamber, it gave them access to teleport anyone anywhere in the universe and in return, they could teleport anything in. The Emperor had no idea about the Dune as well.

So, still the rangers slept. In a few short hours, the retaking of the Dune of Neuphesus would commence.

Outside Edenoi's atmosphere, and inside the private chambers of Skeletor, the Emperor stood at his window, watching the planet below. Ever since the rangers had teleported into the planet's atmosphere, he had been feeling strange. He didn't quite understand it, but, he felt as though one of the rangers was special. In fact, he was almost sure of it. He just kept trying to figure out who. He had ordered every piece of information on Earth's Rangers brought to him at once and he had been studying it intently, and now, he had a pretty good idea which one of the rangers was special and why. He wondered if Zordon knew how special that one Zeo Ranger was.

The intercom at his door beeped. "Who is it?" the Emperor asked, returning to his seat.

"It is I, my lord." a female voice answered.

"Come." Skeletor allowed entrance.

A women wearing blue leotard material that went form just under the knees to the neck entered. Her short dark hair was held under a blue and silver armored cap of some sort. And, over her chest and abdomen was silver armor. Her eyes were clear as crystal, which were mesmerizing to the lower races on different planets.

Skeletor's eye brow lifted, although it couldn't be seen. "What is it, Evil Lynn?"

"My lord," Evil Lynn's deep voice responded, "I wish to know what do you plan to do about those rangers."

The Emperor thought about it for a moment. "I believe Lexian will most likely send the rangers to reclaim the Dune of Neuphesus. The sensors on my ship indicate that there is something powerful within it's rocky landscape. I also know that if we fail to hold it, the Edenites can keep fighting my forces for years to come. And I won't ever get close to Lexian. And, I'm not about to let those Earthlings take my chance at revenge from me!" the Emperor snapped.

"I understand that, Emperor." Evil Lynn said, "Would you like me to lead the defense against these rangers?"

Skeletor's eyes narrowed, "No. Evil Lynn, dispatch fifty soldiers with blasters. I have heard incredible things about these Earth Rangers. I want to see how much of a threat they really are."

"As you wish." Evil Lynn bowed.

"Lexian will fall." the Emperor vowed, "I will have my revenge. Soon."

Just outside the system of caves and caverns, Tommy, Adam, Rocky, Kat, and Tanya were dressed in brown robes and had oxygen masks on that King Lexian was generous enough to provide them. In front of them was Donauis.

"Good luck rangers." Donauis shaked their hands.

"Thanks, remember. Tell everyone to always be ready for teleportation. Because once we have the Dune back in control, we're teleporting you all there." Tommy smiled at his friend. "Alright, let's get going."

Tommy, Rocky, Katherine, Adam, and Tanya headed out. The objective was a five hours journey away. The landscape ahead of them was like that of a desert on Earth. Nothing but clear red sand and rocks. They walked around the larger stones and just moved smaller ones away.

They would occasionally take breaks when they had traveled a great distance and rest for a few minutes. But, they knew they couldn't rest for long because they had a mission that they couldn't fail. Failure meant death for the Edenites and the rangers were not about to let their alien friends down. Not here.

"You know," Rocky started, after over an hour of silence between them, "this place sort of looks like the surface of Mars."

Chuckles answered him. "Sure does." Adam agreed.

"It didn't always look like this, you know." Tommy said.

"Well, you have Count Dregon to thank for that." Tanya remarked.

"How much farther do we have before we reach the Dune?" Rocky asked, breathing a deep breath.

"We still have another two hours before we reach it." Tommy informed him.

"You guys," Kat said to get their attention. "I may be just paranoid, but do you think maybe the Emperor knows we're coming."

They thought about it for a moment.

"He probably does. I mean if they have all those weapons inside, the scanners must detect it. I don't know if they know what's there, but, I'm pretty sure they know we're aiming for it. We'll just have to be ready." Tommy answered.

The five Zeo Rangers continued their trek quietly, each knowin in their minds that a battle was brewing and it would escalate when they reached the Dune of Neuphesus.

October 11

On Earth, a new day started and Jason had dressed in a pair blue jeans and a black pull over shirt with the collar of the shirt in grey color. Jason was in the Power Chamber and looked over at Alpha as the adroid pressed a few more keys. On the viewing screen, it was divided to show three different locations at the same time. The top half showed the view of a lovely dark haired woman with a white sash that adorned her beautiful face and an angelic white gown covered her body. The bottom half was split into two. On the left was an image of the Ninja Temple and Ninjor stood facing them. On the right side was a picture of Dulcea, in her dark green, thick robe with the hood down to show her auburd curled locks of hair. All three waited as Zordon began to explain the resoning behind his summoning them.

"My friends," Zordon said, "I have summoned this meeting for an important reason. It has been revealed to me that the Emperor of the Amkron Xianth Empire has left his home Galaxy."

They nodded on the screen. "Yes, I have sensed his presence recently." Dulcea said.

"He will most likely target us." Ninjor noted.

Zordon nodded, "Skeletor has initiated the Provision Rule #10854B and the Council has granted it to him. He is currently trying to destroy Lexian. I have sent the rangers to Edenoi to assist him."

"Difficult to destroy the Emperor, will it not be?" Dimitria asked in her normal style.

"Indeed." Ninjor acknowledged. "Zordon, what exactly to you hope your rangers can achieve with this?"

"I have studied the maps of the surface area of Edenoi and I have realized something. The Dune of Neuphesus is a combat fort. The Dune could give the Edenites enough ammunition and technology to keep Lexian safe for years to come. Skeletor has his best chance at even getting close to Lexian with the current situation. Unless I've missed something, I believe the rangers will attempt to retake the Dune for the Edenites." Zordon told his teammates.

"Then, the Emperor will do whatever he can to stop them from succeeding." Dulcea said.

"Yes,." Zordon nodded, "he will. We can only hope the rangers are ready."

Tommy, Katherine, Rocky, Tanya, and Adam walked through the redened landscape along the Dune of Neuphesus with quiet stealth. They had found the Dune just moments before and were now carefully walking through, trying to find the entrance to the secret chamber while keeping an eye out for the Emperor's forces.

"Where's the entrance?" Rocky whispered.

"I don't know. We have to keep looking." Tommy answered.

They kept walking forward. Up ahead, on two sides, was a rocky walls that turned into a curve to the right. As the rangers turned into the curve, they came face to face with a group of at least fifty Xianth Soldiers. The soldiers had their blasters aimed directly at the five rangers.

"Uh oh." Kat mumbled.

"Ready, guys." Tommy looked at them.

"Let's do it, Tommy." Adam remarked.

"It's Morphin Time!" Tommy declared.

"Zeo Ranger I, Pink!" Kat called.

"Zeo Ranger II, Yellow!" Tanya called.

"Zeo Ranger III, Blue!" Rocky called.

"Zeo Ranger IV, Green!" Adam called.

"Zeo Ranger V, Red!" Tommy called.

The five Zeo Rangers stood in their defense stances as they faced off with the Xianth Soldiers.

"Freeze!" the lead soldier ordered. "You are commanded by the Emperor to surrender!"

"I don't think so." Red Zeo declared back to him as the rangers brought out their Zeo Laser Pistols. "Ready, guys."

"Ready!" the four rangers replied.

"Let's do it!" Red Zeo said as they opened fire on the Xianth Soldiers. The soldiers returned fire on the rangers as the battle began. Red Zeo lowered himself to one knee and blasted three soldiers before he moved his pistol to the right and blasted five more. Blue Zeo was taking a more direct approach and was surrounded by soldiers. He side kicked one soldier while blasting three others. He then blasted the soldier he kicked.

Pink and Yellow Zeo were fighting together. They blasted every soldier they could and used their martial arts skills like masters and knocking them down and blasting on more of them. Green Zeo was using his Zeo Laser Piston in Blade mode and was slicing through more soldiers with expert ease.

Two soldiers remained with their blasters. The five rangers stood at the ready, waiting to see what would happen now. Then, the two soldiers dropped their blasters and they began to change shape. The Zeo Rangers placed their pistols back into their holsters as they watched two monsters form from where the remaining soldiers had stood.

The first monster, the one on the left, was a green scaled one eyed cyclops type monster with identical blades as his hands. His teeth extended from his top lip as he growled. The second monster wore skin tight black onyx leather. Although it was a monster, it resembled a human form. It appeared like a ninja of Earth. The eyes were dark and that was all you could see of it's face, as it was covered by the black mask.

"Zeo Power Weapons!" Red Zeo called.

The Zeo Rangers charged the two Xianth monsters with a renewed intensity. The block and parried with the monsters, all the while recieving shots from the green scaled monster's blades. The ninja, which was called Ninchon engaged Red Zeo in a fierce battle of blades while Armcutter, the green scaled monster, engaged the other four rangers.

After a quick dodge and blow, Ninchon spoke in a clean and clear voice. "You fight well, Red Ranger."

"Nice to be complimented." Red Zeo said back, exchanging another shot with the monster.

"The Emperor could use someone like you within his service. Think of it," Ninchon stopped fighting with Red Zeo and stood before him, "you could have immortality and be part of the Empire that soon, will rule this universe. You could be unstoppable."

Red Zeo pretended to think about it. "I've learned something over the years. Being evil robs you of what being human is all about. And as for your offer, tempting, but no. I don't thrive on power or control as much as I used to. I don't need it to live."

"Very well." Ninchon renewed his attack.

Soon, the two monsters were being forced back by the combined efforts of the Zeo Rangers. "Alright, let's end this. Zeo Blaster!" Red Zeo called as the rangers combined their weapons together to form the power weapon.

"Zeo Blaster, Fire!" the Zeo Rangers called, sending the powerful surge through the two monsters. A large explosion signaled the monsters defeat.

On the Dark Destroyer, the Emperor was watching the battle unfold with quiet intensity. He figured Zordon's rangers could cause a problem, he just wasn't sure how much. Now, he was beginning to wonder why he underestimated them so much.

Skeletor pressed a button the arm of his throne.

"Yes, Emperor?" a voice answered.

"Fire the Gamma Ray." the Emperor ordered.

"As you wish, Emperor." the obedient soldier did as told and a powerful beam of blue energy ripped through the atmosphere and touched down on the monsters. The defeated monsters stood once more in front of the rangers, only this time they stood over the rangers and city destruction size.

"Looks like the Emperor is upping the anty!" Blue Zeo said to his teammates.

"Then, let's do the same." Red Zeo replied.

"We need Zeo Zord Power, Now!" the Zeo team called. Although on Earth, their Zeo Zords appeared on Edenoi and the rangers were immediately materialized in the cockpits.

"Zeo Megazord, Power Up!" Red Zeo called. The five Zeo Zords came together to form the Zeo Megazord.

Ninchon and Armcutter stood facing the Zeo Megazord as the zord readied itself. The two monsters charged the Megazord. Ninchon delivered a side kick that staggered the Megazord while Armcutter struck the Megazord with his arm blades. Sparks erupted off the the Megazord as the massive zord fell back several feet.

"We're losing power!" Blue Zeo yelled from the cockpit.

"Adam, pull reserves!" Red Zeo called. After Green Zeo did as informed, the Zeo Megazord was back at it's feet. "Megazord Sabre!" the Zeo team called together.

In a flash, the Zeo Megazord produced the Megazord Sabre. The Megazord reelled back as energy flowed into the blade and thrust the Sabre down powerfully, striking the two monsters at once. A powerful eruption signaled the monsters destruction. After defeating the monsters, the Zeo Rangers returned to the ground and went on their search for the entrance.

Back at the system of caves where the resistance was situated, things were not going as the rangers had hoped. Just moments before, a platoon of Xianth Troops had invaded their sanctuary and had instantly surrounded the resistance members. All had been locked in hand cuffs and were being prepared to be teleported to the Dark Destroyer's cells. At the back wall was King Lexian, who had two troopers aiming their blasters on him with the Emperor walking towards him.

"Well, well." the Emperor smiled, "if it isn't my old friend, Lexian."

"We were never friends Skeletor. My friend died." Lexian replied.

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" Skeletor wondered aloud. "It doesn't matter. You're about to die anyway."

"I may die today, but the other members of the Circle will avenge me. It is far from over." Lexian vowed.

Skeletor took a step closer. "Oh, you can be certain that it's far from over. It won't be over until I have obliterated you all. The universe will be mine. Once I have inherited all your power and that of the other Circle members, I will be unstoppable." the Emperor declared.

"Get this over with, then." King Lexian told him.

"Very well." the Emperor said as he raised his sceptor staff for the death blow. Just as he was going to rid himself of Lexian and inherit his energy, Lexian, as well as all the other members of the resistance vanished in white light. "NOOOO!" Skeletor growled. He raised his left wrist to his face. "What happened!" he demanded.

"Emperor, the Dune of Neuphesus was taken by the rangers." the soldier replied, hesitantly.

Silence flowed through the room.

A few hours later, safe in the comfines of the Dune of Neuphesus, the rangers were sitting in chairs in King Lexian's new quarters. When the Emperor had taken the system of caves, it was that same moment that the rangers had discovered the secret chamber and Adam had activated all the systems and, using the expertise that Billy had taught him, he was able to teleport everyone to safety very quickly. The resistance members were relieved when they were reunited with the old fort of weapons and supplies.

"Rangers, I would like to thank you for everything you have done. With the Dune in our control, we will be able to defend Edenoi for many years and maybe one day, our home will be free." King Lexian smiled at them.

"It was no problem, King Lexian. We were happy to be of service to you." Tommy said.

"Yeah, whenever you need us, we're there for you." Rocky added.

"I wonder what the Emperor will do now. Surely, he won't want to spend years fighting you to destroy you." Kat wondered.

"Rangers, it is possible you might see him again." the King said.

"What do you mean?" Tanya asked.

"Rangers, Skeletor has carried a hatred for me, Zordon, Ninjor, and Dulcea because we defeated him in battle. That was milleniums ago. Defeating him today has no doubt enraged him. I believe his plan was destroying the Circle members. After today, he most likely will target Earth. Not just to add Zordon's power to his own, but to revenge you as well." Lexian said.

"Well," Tommy sighed, "we'll just have to be ready."

"Guess it's time for us to head home." Adam remarked.

"Once again, thank you for your help." King Lexian smiled.

"Wasn't a problem." Tommy said as the rangers disappeared in five streaks of rainbow light, on their way home.

Lord Zedd was watching the Zeo Rangers' return to the Earth in front of him. Behind him, Goldar and Rito were arguing over something, but Zedd was not paying no heed. Rita was snoozing in his throne, but he didn't care about that either. He couldn't get over the feeling that something was coming. When he saw that the rangers had left Earth for Edenoi, he was going to launch an attack there, but decided to see why the rangers had left. He had paled when he realized that the Emperor of the Amkron Xianth Empire was so close. What was even worse was that Zedd knew he would pay him a visit very soon. He wasn't looking forward to it.

Zedd turned around and headed back towards his throne when Rito, Goldar, and even Rita, who jerked awake, stared wide eyed behind Zedd. Zedd took a deep breath to calm his wracking nerves. He didn't need to turn around to realize that the Emperor had shown up. But, Zedd did turn around.

"Hello, Zedd." the Emperor's ominous voice said.

Zedd bowed instantly, "Emperor, what a surprise? What are you doing here?"

"You're not really that dense, are you?" the Emperor told him.

Zedd was going to reply, but thought better of it. "You're here for Zordon."

"That, and I am going to seek revenge on the Power Rangers." Skeletor said.

"Really," Zedd said, surprised, "did they ruin your plans on Edenoi?"

"Of course they did. I had Lexian in my clutches and I was about to destroy him and get all his powers. They ruined my opportunity. And I will make them pay." Skeletor said.

"Hmph, you're gonna have your work cut out for you, Emperor." Rita said from her position a few feet away.

"Perhaps," the Emperor nodded, "but, I don't waste time chanting spells."

"Touche!" Rito and Goldar said.

Rita wanted to say something, but didn't.

"And the other problem you always have is that you don't strategize your plans. You attack, send a monster, make it grow and bam," the Emperor said, "they destroy it. Never works."

"What do you suggest?" Zedd asked his mentor.

"You want to destroy the rangers, you have to plan your moves out carefully and methodically. Otherwise, you will never win." Skeletor told them. "Now that I'm here, you'll see how easy it is."

October 13

Tommy and Katherine were walking, hand in hand, through the beach that shored the Angel Grove Lake on another peaceful day. The sun was shining above them, reflecting a beautiful day to the city.

It had been two days since they had returned from assisting King Lexian of Edenoi in his troubles with the Emperor of the Xianth Empire. They had arrived home to a relieved Zordon and an ecstatic Alpha. Since then, they had just been relaxing around. It was currently a Saturday and all was good and well for the rangers. Adam and Rocky were in the mountains on a moutain hike that they had been planning for over three months now. Tanya was starting a new job. She now worked at a radio station as a disk jockey at Angel Grove's most popular radio station-KAGS 17.

They stopped and faced the Lake as the serenity of the area dawned at them.

"It's so beautiful here." Kat whispered.

"Yes, you are." Tommy smiled at her. That earned him a smile in return, followed by a tender kiss. The kiss started out simple, but Kat's lips parted and Tommy gently probed his tongue outward to dance with his girlfriend's. After a few moments of the exotic dance, the kiss ended.

"Wow." Kat said.

"Yeah." Tommy replied, touching foreheads with his girlfriend.

"We'll survive him Tommy." Kat whispered, talking about the Emperor.

"Yes, we will." Tommy replied with a slight smile.

The two rangers kissed again under the sun's rays. Each ranger knew the dangers of the future would be testing on them. But, they were content on the moment, enjoying what the day brought before the war with the Xianth Empire began. And when that happened, there would be no rest. But for now, they just wanted to enjoy the feelings they were experiencing. The feeling of being totally, out of your mind, body, and soul, in love.

The End . . . For Now