Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers, Haim Saban and Shuki Levy does. All rights belong to them. If you have any messages or comments or criticisms, send them to me: letsrocket_1998@yahoo.com. P.S. If your criticism is about my view on the Homosexuality issue, don't bother sending it, because it will just go into the trash box.
Author's Note: The monster Skelecron is from the episode Destined for Greatness from Power Rangers Lost Galaxy. For my story, he was a monster of Diabolico and not Trakeena or Scorpious.
Author's Note 2: I hope those of you who read this like my idea of having Diabolico in charge of battling the Zeo Rangers instead of Zedd and Rita or the Machine Empire. I'm trying all sorts of wild ideas with this series.

As the Journey Continues...
Part Three - The Survival of the Rangers
by The Devious One

Early November

"Come in." Jesse Parker called after she heard a knock sound at her office door. She was behind her desk at the Angel Grove District Attorney's Offices. Jesse was dressed in a dark navy blue suit. A dress jacket over a while silk blouse with business pants on. She had her ankles crossed as she was going over one of the cases she was to be in court for. A smile lit her face when she saw her girlfriend/lover Torrey Hunter enter the office dressed in her Hostess' uniform.

"Hey Jess." Torrey Parker said, smiling as she entered the Assistant DA's office.

"After such a hectic day, it's good to see you." Jesse replied as she walked over to Torrey. She looked around for a moment and was relieved when no one was around. Positive they were alone, Jesse and Torrey met in a tender yet lingering kiss that lasted for long moments.

"I'm glad I made it." Torrey whispered, pulling back.

"I'm glad you made it, too. I was just thinking about you." Jesse said, returning to her desk work.

"Mm, how much longer do you think you'll be?" Torrey asked.

"Probably three and half hours. I've got to present the closing arguments for the McGregor case and I'll be done. And, all this," Jesse indicated her desk, "is for that. So, just three hours. Why?"

"The guys want to meet at the Park for a little get together." Torrey informed.

"Ahh, ok. Do you want to go?" Jesse asked.

"Um," Torrey thought about it, "only if you do."

"Ok, I'll have to go home and change and then, we can head over there together." Jesse squeezed Torrey's hand.

Torrey smiled back. Life had been getting into a regular rhythm for Jesse and Torrey. The night after they had spoken with Zordon about their real relationship, the two had discussed the issue of telling their new friends extensively. The went over the pros and cons of the situation. They debated telling them and possibly alienating them from the rangers and they discussed continuing to keep it hidden from them and deal with any situation that may rise. In the end, though, the two lovers decided to go with Zordon's knowledge of the rangers and tell them.

So, two days after that, on November 2, they had gathered everyone at the City Park and had told them about the true nature of their relationship. As the silence in the Assistant DA's office continued, both the Latino American and Torrey reflected on that day.

Tommy and Katherine were leaning back against a large oak tree. Rocky and Kimiko were sitting on the grass next to them with Kimiko leaning back against Rocky's back. On the other side of Tommy and Kat were Adam and Tanya, with Tanya leaning back against Adam. Trey and Jordan were sitting on the park bench directly behind everyone. There was a stone picnic table in front of them and that was where Torrey and Jesse were. Jesse was standing while Torrey was sitting on the table part, leaning on her knees.

"Um, guys." Jesse started, "Torrey and I have something to tell you."

"What is it?" Kat had asked, watching them.

"First of all, we kind of knew each other before we arrived in Angel Grove." Jesse said.

"Ok." most of them mumbled.

Torrey stood up and took Jesse's hand and squeezed it as she had revealed their secret. "Jess and I met at the University of California at Los Angelos. As the days passed by, we fell in love and we are life partners, like a man and woman would." then, she had taken a breath. "We're lesbians."

Jesse had expected them to start getting up or even to start mouthing extremities, but, neither happened. "We never told anyone because we left LA to get away from all the hatred they were spewing. We thought you should know since we see a lot of each other." Jesse had taken a deep breath. "We understand if you don't want to be our friends anymore. It won't be the last time."

"You think we don't want to be your friends, anymore?" Katherine and Tanya had both said as they rose to stand up.

"Well, it has been our experience that people normally either run away, can't talk to us because of the gay issue, or become paranoid thinking we're making passes at women. All that adds up to is not having friends." Jesse said back.

"We are sorry for what has happened to you in the past." Tommy had said, "But, we're not like that. Everyone has a different attitude about things and everybody's different in one way or another. It's what makes us significant in the scheme of things. You two don't have to worry, you're our friends no matter what."

The day had gone a lot better than Jesse thought, but one thing was proven that day. Zordon was right, the rangers were true friends, to the end. Jesse and Torrey, now, felt a lot better when they were around them. There was very little awkwardness now. It took a little bit of talking because they knew that Kat and Tanya often thought about the gay issue and they had cleared the air with the two girls. The guys weren't a problem at all. Jesse even spent a time or two playing pool with them.

All in all, things were going well for the two Zeo Rangers.

November 5

The day was warm and sunny, the temperature a nice 85 degrees. Kids and families were out on the beach, enjoying the day's rays and birds were chirping, happy with the day's atmosphere.

A round red frisbee was caught in slender hands as Katherine landed on her feet from a jump to retrieve the frisbee. She was standing in an all pink bathing suit that showed a nice view of her cleavage. She wore a pair of loose fitting shorts at the waist. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a tight braid.

Across the sandy beach from her was her boyfriend and close friend, Tommy Oliver. Tommy wore a single pair of red swimming trunks and his hair was tied back behind his neck as he watched his girlfriend throw the frisbee back.

During the last few days, the final month of their fall semester at Angel Grove High School was finally starting. All the rangers, as well as the other students, were elated that their final year of High School was passing by them quickly.

At the moment, Tommy and Kat were spending the time throwing the frisbee back and forth as they waited for the other rangers to arrive. Since the day was Saturday, the rangers had decided to have a large picnic get together in the park. Tommy and Kat were the first ones to arrive and they already had the area picked out and were now waiting for their friends to arrive.

The Lunar Palace on the Earth's Moon, hours earlier, was the same as it had always been. It was quiet and as peaceful as the moon could be. But, that was hours ago. Now, the Earth's Moon was full of hectic activity. Just hours before, the Xianth Emperor's Chief General Officer as well as his current pupil, arrived with Skeletor's powerful army. The Emperor was now spending his time preparing his first attempt to take over Earth.

The main throne room, at the moment, were comprised with Lord Zedd standing in front of his throne with Rita and Rito around him. Goldar and Finster were near as well. In front of them and close to the balcony, two figures stood. The first, Zedd knew from experience, was the Chief General Officer. His body was a complete golden color, like Goldar. But, this being had a set of horns at the top of his head and had teeth that were more like fangs. His eyes were a dark crimson color and dark wings adorned his shoulders. Just below his neckline was a red star that signified his position within Emperor Skeletor's Empire. The being, to all the lesser ranked soldiers, was called General Diabolico. He carried his golden sceptor.

The being that stood with him was as greatly important as Diabolico was. Unlike the Xianth Empire's General, this being was red and gold in color and also adorned a red star just under his neckline. Silver horns pointed outwards from the top of his red scaled head. Bright green eyes glinted darkly as he surveyed the room. As Emperor Skeletor's star pupil, young Olympius was given as much authority as Diabolico has within the Xianth Empire. All soldiers knew to obey them both or suffer the Emperor's wrath.

On the balcony was the Emperor's robed form. Next to him was his battle Commander, Evil Lynn. Evil Lynn completed the triumvirate that led his forces into battle. Diabolico sent the troops in, Olympius maintained the troops' numbers, and Evil Lynn led the troops in conquests. Skeletor had been waiting patiently for his troops to arrive and he was smiling as he envisioned the conquest of Earth.

He had a very special plan in mind for Earth. Now that his two most valueble minions of the Xianth had arrived, he could continue his search and destruction of the existing minions of the Circle of the Ancient Order. After having much time to think about things, he realized that he needed more power than he currently had if he wanted to destroy Zordon and inherit his power. That meant he had to go after the second strongest living member of the Circle. And, after realizing that, he now knew he had to go after Dulcea and Ninjor. Both beings were the second strongest, both being ancient Ninja and Ninjetti trainers. That is what the Emperor was going to do now. He wanted his Chief General Officer to arrive before he went ahead with the announcement. He knew his announcement would change things considerably here and that's exactly what he wanted to do. He would leave Diabolico in charge of the attacks against the Zeo Rangers and he would leave to search out Ninjor and Dulcea. In addition, he would take Lord Zedd, Rita Repulsa, Rito Revolto, Finster, and Goldar with him.

The Emperor would put Zedd, Rita, Rito, and Goldar through the Xianth training system until he was positive they were once again the rulers that they once were. He was not satisfied with what they had become since fighting rangers and he would wipe that problem out once and for all. With Diabolico, Skeletor would leave Diabolico's legion of his scientific mind Jinxer. Also, Diabolico's fighting minions Vipra and Loki. He knew that Diabolico was a ruthless destroyer and wouldn't rest until the Zeo Rangers were no longer a threat to the Emperor's cause. A smirk formed on Skeletor's face as he envisioned Zordon's expression when he realized who would be in charge of the mission now.

The Emperor slowly turned around to greet his minions. "Everyone, listen up. As of right now, things are changing."

"How, Emperor?" Lord Zedd asked.

"When I originally came here, I had every intention of attacking Earth and bringing Zordon's reign of justice to an end. But, it has been discovered to me that I am not yet powerful enough to defeat him. I am going to search out and destroy Dulcea of Phaedos and Ninjor of the Desert of Despair in order to gain their powers and I will then return for Zordon." Skeletor informed, "That means I am leaving. I have decided that changes must be made as far as the mission of destroying the Power Rangers. Zedd, Rita, Rito, Goldar, and Finster, the five of you are coming with me. I am going to put you through the Xianth extensive training system until I am perfectly satisfied that you are, once again, the vicious and ruthless icons of evil you once were. Any questions?"

None were spoken.

"Good. I am leaving my Chief General Officer Diabolico in charge of the mission. Diabolico's Legion of Darkness, Vipra, Loki, Jinxer, his Batlings, and all his forces will be led by him in destroying the Zeo Rangers. Diabolico, I trust you won't disappoint me." the Emperor stared right through him.

"The rangers will soon be destroyed." Diabolico promised.

"Good. I would hate to have to remove your star power and enhance one of my other warriors. Do not fail me Diabolico, or that will happen. Evil Lynn?"

"Yes, Skeletor?" Evil Lynn's female voice answered from the back of the room. No one knew she was there, except Skeletor of course.

"Prepare our ships for takeoff. We leave for Phaedos immediately."

"Yes, sire." Evil Lynn vanished to prepare for their departure.

The Emperor of the Xianth turned back to Diabolico. "Diabolico, I should be returning here in two months at the least, six in the most. You can," he indicated the surroundings, "change the appearance of this place to fit your needs if you so desire."

"Thank you, Emperor." the Chief General Officer said.

"Let's go." the Emperor ordered as he headed out of the throne room. His current pupil Olympius, Zedd, Rita, Rito, Finster, and Goldar followed silently.

The beach at the park was mostly empty now, except for the ten rangers who were enjoying themselves immensely. They all sat in a circle with the picnic food in the middle. They were chatting back and forth about many things. Small conversations were struck between two or three of them. Tommy was chatting with Adam while Katherine chatted with Tanya and Jordan. Rocky and Kimiko were talking to Torrey and Jesse while Trey just listened to everyone with his enhanced hearing ability that all Triforians had. He was awed at the interaction between these nine people. Back home, there hadn't been much socializing for him, he wasn't allowed much by his father. Although he was the Lord of Triforia, he could not disobey his father, it would be bad for his people to see him show disrespect for a parental figure.

On Triforia, Trey's father, Tralen, only allowed him to socialize with people of royal class and never the people that Trey governs over. That, among other things, was why Trey was glad to be here. His future was already chosen for him. When he became the proper age, he would be wed to the crowned princess of Triforia's neighbor planet, Nesta. The Nestian Princess, Syllia, Trey acknowledged, was indeed a very beautiful human, but Trey did not love her and Trey had told his father on numerous occasions that he would not wed a woman he did not love. That infuriated his proud father and they had had an intense argument that led Trey to his decision of living with the Earth Rangers for a while. It would also give his mother, Tranya, some time to talk to Tralen and help him see to reason as far as Trey's happiness is concerned.

Trey was seated next to Rocky and he listened carefully as Rocky and Kimiko spoke to Torrey and Jesse about their alternate lifestyle. To Trey, same sex relationships weren't really alternative because it was acknowledged and accepted on many other planets in the universe, including Triforia and Nesta. It's probably one of the reasons Earth is often called a backwater planet. Trey thought to himself.

"So Torrey, Jesse?" Rocky began, hoping not to offend with his question, "I was just wondering, how did you know you were, you know, gay?"

Torrey and Jesse looked at each other and smiled. "Well, for me," Torrey answered, "it was back in High School, about four years ago I think when my Junior Prom was going on. I started spending more time watching the prettiest girls of the school more than the guys in the tuxes. After that, I did some research about a woman's sexuality and I realized I was gay a few months later."

"For me, it was when I was in ninth grade. School had just finished and my brother was taking me home. I had to go back inside and get my bags and, when I got to my last class to get my bags, I saw my English teacher Ms. Simmons and the school nurse kissing. And I mean, deep mouthed, tongue and tongue kissing. I was transfixed on the spot, getting aroused just watching them. I left and I ended up having my first sexual encounter with a girl a few weeks later." Jesse admitted, smiling for Torrey. Torrey had already known about that incident, having shared a laugh with Jesse about it.

Rocky and Kimiko nodded with a smile. They really didn't know what else to say. Having Jesse and Torrey being the only lesbians any of the rangers had ever met, it was a little awkward. Luckily, Tommy rose at that moment.

"Alright guys, let's get the food passed around and begin our feast, shall we?" Tommy laughed at Rocky's delighted expression of the mention of food. The picnic feast began as the rangers relaxed and enjoyed the day, none of them aware of the coming Armageddon that was only moments away.

The distant planet of Phaedos, as was normal, was missing of life. Mystic creatures guarded the Temple of the Great Power and Phaedos' flying animals soared through the sky, some seeking food, others seeking a place to sleep for the day and night. The stone structure of the Sacred Grounds was an eery quiet among the other sounds around it. In the center of the Sacred Grounds was a large fire that showed views of places throughout the Galaxy. The scene that had just ended in the flames showed the current goings on of the moon of the Earth.

Standing in front of the blue dancing flames was a female form inside dark green robes. The hood of the robe was pulled back to show a young face with curly brown hair. Her expressionless face showed nothing to any watchers. Dulcea of Phaedos was not surprised to see that the Emperor was now heading in her direction. Of the living members of the Circle of the Ancient Order, Zordon was the most powerful, mainly because of his training in learning to maintain and master his abilities. Ninjor and Dulcea's combined energy matched Zordon's, but if they were destroyed and their power was added to the Emperor's, Dulcea knew the old sage would stand no chance against him.

Dulcea looked up into the blue skies of Phaedos as she considered what had to be done. If Zordon was destroyed, the entire universe would be either destroyed or conquered by the Xianth Empire. And if that happened, there would be no one to stand in their way for eons to come. Dulcea knew that for the Emperor to be destroyed, the other members of the Ancient Order would have to unite against him. And time was running out for them all.

Dulcea raised her head and gazed at the night sky over Phaedos. How many nights had she spent gazing at the stars like this. She couldn't remember, she only knew if the Xianth Empire wasn't stopped, she wouldn't be able to do this again. So, breathing a deep breath, Dulcea stood and turned, knowing now what must be done.

Back on the Earth's Moon, things were very different. The Lunar Palace was no longer there. Instead, the interior and the exterior was forever changed. A large temple with a large stone Skull on the top of it stood in it's place. Flourescent lights and colors danced throughout the area around the temple. The Skull Palace now stood in the Lunar Palace's place.

Inside, the appearance was different as well. Inside was nothing but darkness. Large stone pillars stood at different interval locations throughout. At the head of the dark room, where Zedd's throne normally would have been, was a stone structure. The structure looked to be of some creature with it's huge mouth opened greatly. Blue light was in that mouth as smoke floated throughout the floor and the opened mouth of the Gargoyle like structure.

Jinxer, Loki, and Vipra, all with happy smiles on faces, watched as Diabolico surveyed the surroundings he had made for their base of operations. The Chief General Officer turned to his Legion of Darkness.

"Now, this is more like it." Diabolico said, satisfied.

"Yeah. This looks just like home." Loki agreed.

"Now that we have our base set, we can proceed with the destruction of the rangers." Vipra smiled.

"Not so fast. The Emperor gave me full control of this mission. And I don't plan to waste this trust. I want to test the rangers' strengths first. Jinxer?"

"Yes, Diabolico?" Jinxer bowed before him.

"I want a strong enough monster." Diabolico said simply.

"Ooh, I have just the one for you." Jinxer said as he left into the darkness. He returned a moment later with a gold and black plated monster card. "Skelecron is very powerful."

"Excellent." Diabolico said as he held the monster card for Skelecron. He turned to the Gargoyle structure and tossed it inside the mouth. He also dispatched a group of Batlings with Skelecron. This way, Diabolico would know what the rangers' weaknesses and strongpoints were.

The ten Zeo Rangers were just finishing packing their things back in their vehicles, after a great day of being together as they always did, when the six tone beep of the communicator hit their ears. They all gathered near as Jesse answered.

"This is Jesse."

"Rangers, report to the Power Chamber." they heard Zordon's voice say.

They looked at each other for a moment before they teleported. There was something in Zordon's voice that told them to act quickly. The did arrive in the Power Chamber a moment later and they looked up at their mentor.

"Rangers," Zordon began, "I'm afraid I have bad news."

"What is it?" Tommy asked.

"The Emperor?" Jordan asked.

"Is he launching an attack?" Torrey asked also.

"Rangers, the Emperor has left with Zedd and his gang, but, the bad news is that he has left his Chief General Officer in charge of destroying you." Zordon said.

"Who's he left?" Tanya asked.

Zordon looked into Trey's eyes as he answered. He knew Trey had heard of him before. "Diabolico and his Legion of Darkness."

"Oh no." Trey sighed, looking down.

"What?" Katherine said in question.

They all turned to look at Trey, as he had suddenly gone pale. "Guys," Trey started, "Diabolico is the most ruthless and vicious member of the Xianth Empire. When he conquers a planet, he not only conquers it, he annialates the inhabitants, he forces some to serve in his slave camps he has positioned throughout the Xianth territory. He even takes some people and tortures them. Not for information, just because he enjoys it. My father once went to war against him."

"What happened?" asked Rocky.

"It was called the War of Dilos. Triforia's population was ten times that of what Earth currently is. When Triforia went to war with the Legion of Darkness, Triforia's population was reduced by four times. Some were enslaved, others were tortured until they died. But, Diabolico only stopped attacking when he was given new orders. Diabolico is....."

"Is he invincible?" Adam asked quietly.

"No. He's very powerful, yes. But not invincible. He will be very difficult to stop. We will have to be at our best when fighting him and his monsters." Trey said at last.

Just then, the alarms went off and the rangers watched as Alpha brought a view of about twelve Batlings and a monster they had never seen before.

"Rangers, this is Skelecron. I believe this is Diabolico's way of testing your strength, to find out how strong you are." Zordon advised.

"Well, let's show him, then." Tommy said before calling out. "It's Morphin Time!"

"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.

"Zeo Ranger VI, White!" Torrey called.

"Zeo Ranger VII, Black!" Jesse called.

"Zeo Ranger VIII, Silver!" Kimiko called.

"Midnight Zeo!" Jordan called.

"Gold Ranger Power!" Trey finished the morphing sequence.

Skelecron walked through the grassy plains of the area outside Angel Grove as he, with the Batlings, awaited the rangers. He knew what his mission was. Lure the rangers out so that Diabolico could learn their weaknesses and strengths. Skelecron was always a loyal servent to the Legion's cause and now would be no different.

He didn't need to wait much longer as suddenly, ten Zeo Power Rangers stood in front of him, armed and ready. Red, Yellow, Blue, Pink, and Green Zeo had their Zeo Laser Pistols in blade mode in their hands while Gold Zeo held his Power Staff in a defense posture. White Zeo held her Zeo Katana Staff in a defense posture while Black Zeo had her Zeo Whip. The whip had three large black balls at the end that caused the pain in it's enemy. Silver Zeo had her weapon out and ready. She didn't have the pack on her back because of the mobility problem but she did have the two blasters ready. And, Midnight Zeo had her Midnight Sais in her hand, ready for battle.

"Welcome to the party, rangers." Skelecron welcomed.

"There's no party. All we see is a sorry excuse for a bag of bones." Blue Zeo said loud.

Skelecron's head tilted to one side. "Very well. Batlings, attack!"

The ten rangers decided to split in groups of two and take the Batlings. Red and Green Zeo were first confronted by three Batlings. Green Zeo sliced through one Batling with a clean swipe of his blade while Red Zeo kicked another down and struck the other attacking Batling with his blade.

Yellow and Pink Zeo, as usual, worked together against two Batlings. Yellow Zeo led hers off to a side, where a large tree was located. She jumped at it, her feet climbing the tree until she was able to vault up and over the Batling. Landing on her feet, she delivered a vicious thrust of her Zeo blade that took the Batling down. Pink Zeo had just as easy a time with her Batling. After blocking a blade parry with it, she kicked it in the gut and as it staggered, she thrust a clean thrust upward, catching the Batling just under the neck. It fell.

Blue Zeo and Silver Zeo fought four Batlings, each ranger taking two on. While Blue Zeo sliced and parried with his two Batlings, Silver Zeo expertly used her blasters with perfect precision. One Batling fell after a series of blasts to it's chest while she blasted the legs of the other. On the way down of the second Batling, Silver Zeo blasted it again in the chest for good measure. With those Batlings down, the two Zeo Rangers watched the others.

Gold Ranger and Midnight Zeo took on three Batlings. Gold Ranger took on two of them while Midnight Zeo parried with the third. Gold Ranger used his Gold Rush function of his Power Staff to take out his two Batlings. Midnight Zeo struck her Batling numerous times with both Sais, ranging from a strike on the shoulders, to thrusts on the chest. She finished the Batling with a strike to the legs and ended it with a final stab strike to it's heart.

The final two rangers, White Zeo and Black Zeo, fought very well against the last two Batlings. As one of the Batlings advanced on Black Zeo, White Zeo used her staff with expert precision. She whipped the Batling in the chest, hitting it in the side next, and then swept the legs out from under it. After it fell, she hit it again hard in the head. Black Zeo flicked her whip in a perfect circle, wrapping the whip around herself as the Batling advanced. She disappeared quickly and the Batling looked around quickly before it felt thundering pain as Black Zeo appeared behind it. She had then whipped the end at it.

The ten Zeo Rangers then came back together to face Skelecron.

"Zeo Blaster!" Red Zeo called as they united their power weapons together to form the Blaster. The five main rangers stood together as they sent a powerful blast of painful energy towards Skelecron. With no time to react, Skelecron braced himself for the blast. It came with thundering force as an explosion engulfed Skelecron.

After the smoke from the explosion cleared, the ten rangers saw the remains of the monster. They began to cheer, but they stopped when they saw a creature step towards the rubble.

"Skelecron, the Legion's discouraged, rise and fight some more!" Jinxer crooned as he tossed a growing card on the rubble. The rubble began to rebuild itself before Skelecron was rebuilt and at zord battling size.

"Guys, head back to the Power Chamber, we'll deal with him from here." Red Zeo said to the others. They nodded silently and teleported out. "Alright, ready guys."

"Let's do it." Green Zeo said.

"Right!"

"Super Zeo Zords, Power Up!" the five called.

The five Super Zeo Zords came soaring through the skies as they were called. The Zeo Rangers teleported themselves into the cockpits of their individual zord, ready for battle.

"Alright, Super Zeo Megazord initiate!" Red Zeo called out to his teammates. The five zords soared upward into the high blue sky and each individual zord realligned itself as it locked together to form the Super Zeo Megazord.

"Come on then!" Skelecron snarled, not impressed by their zord.

"Super Zeo Zord twin Sabres!" Red Zeo exclaimed. The two Sabres formed in each of Super Zeo Megazord's hands before, in bright shines of light, the two hands moved closer together, forming a powerful blade as it sliced through the monster of the Legion of Darkness.

"Alright, way to go guys. We faced our first test and survived." Red Zeo cheered.

"Take that Diabolico!" Blue Zeo cheered as well.

"Let's get back to the Power Chamber." their leader said, ending their cheer as they agreed.

Tommy, Rocky, Adam, Tanya, and Katherine walked through the steel double doors of the main chamber. Already there was Kimiko, Jordan, Torrey, and Jesse. They smiled at the rangers as they entered.

"Good work rangers. All of you. Your first battle with Diabolico's power and you won. Although things will no doubt be more difficult as time passes, this victory was important in establishing your stand against him." Zordon told the ten of them.

"Well, we did win that first battle. Thank god." Tommy let out a deep breath.

"So, what happens now?" Jordan asked.

"Rangers, after your defeat, Diabolico will know that you are going to be a formidable foe. I believe Diabolico will strike soon, but til then, there isn't much any of you can do."

"Guess we can head back home and get ready for school Monday." Rocky mentioned. The others liked that idea.

The nine rangers teleported out of the Power Chamber a few moments later while Trey stayed behind.

"Did you need anything Trey?" Zordon asked, curiously.

"Zordon, it isn't going to be easy. This is only the beginning. Diabolico won't stop." Trey sighed heavily.

"I know Trey. I don't know if you're father told you, but, I have fought Diabolico before as well as him. Diabolico will be the toughest threat the rangers have ever faced, but I have faith that we can defeat him." Zordon replied.

Trey nodded, slowly. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he opened his eyes. "I hope so." he whispered before leaving.

November 8

Three days passed by since the first battle with Diabolico and the Legion of Darkness. Newscasts all over the world showed the battle between the ten Zeo Rangers and the monster Skelecron. Though the footage showed that the rangers were victorious, it also showed two other things. One, the monster was of a type not ever seen before on Earth, and two, the monster was much more powerful than any of the Machine Empire's had been.

There had been no attacks since that first attack and the rangers went back to their normal routine, going to school, staying on guard, relaxing in the Youth Center every once and a while. The one thing that the rangers had learned that had upsetted them greatly was that they had recently learned of the disappearance of Jason. They had spoken with Ernie and he had told them that he had headed to the locker room to change and didn't come out. His stuff was still in the back, but he wasn't. After speaking with Zordon, they were assured that Diabolico or even the Emperor had nothing to do with Jason's disappearance. As it was, they could only hope that Jason was ok and that he'd show up soon.

At the current moment, though, it was morning. Nothing out of the ordinary was going on. It was before school was to start and all students were still at home, sleeping. Dawn was almost on the horizon as well.

In the Oliver household, all were asleep except for Michael Oliver, Tommy's dad. Michael was already up and dressed for his day. He was set to leave soon and he was making sure everything was in his briefcase. Upstairs and down the short hallway, Tommy Oliver slept. He wished it was peacefully, but it wasn't. Trickles of sweat covered Tommy's face and his hair was damp, making his skin glisten in the still dark embers of the night sky.

In Tommy's dream, Tommy Oliver stood on the edge of the cliff outside the city. He was wearing a dark red t-shirt with his flannel jacket over it. An old pair of blue jeans had the shirt tucked into it. He was looking around desperately, trying to find someone, anyone, to explain why he always ended up here when he went to sleep.

For three weeks now, when he would sleep, he would be here, calling for anyone to help him. Every night, none would answer. Small particles of dirt would rise off the ground when the wind blowed around. Tommy looked in front of him and behind him, hoping against hope that this dream would be different in some way.

"Is anyone there!?!" Tommy shouted like many times before. The silence was deafening.

"Tommy." there was an echo that spoke his name softly. So softly Tommy almost didn't hear it. He looked around frantically for the voice, but to no avail. The voice was never heard again from Tommy. Then, Tommy felt more than heard a presence behind him. He turned around to face a familiar figure. There dressed in a red flannel shirt with a black vest and brown pants stood Sam Trueheart, the spirit that helped reunite Tommy with his long lost brother David Trueheart.

Tommy watched the spirit of Sam Trueheart as he walked slowly towards the Zeo Leader.

"What's going on with my dreams?" Tommy needed to know. "Have you been doing this?"

"No, Tommy. I am not responcible for your trauma. I am in your dreams tonight because you need to understand your journey." Sam Trueheart said.

"My journey?"

"Yes, Tommy, you do not completely understand your place yet. When the evil one spoke to you about your heritage, he was not completely blind." Sam said.

"You mean, I'm not human." Tommy whispered.

"Not, that's not what I mean. Tommy, the journey you are on is a very long and complex one. If you are to survive it, you must have your friends and family to support you. Your destiny is greater than you realize. Remember this, family is the only element that will stand between you and your damnation." Sam finished before he felt the precense of the being that was responcible for Tommy's dreams.

As Sam Trueheart was fading away and Tommy was reaching for him, a powerful entity, who's precense was pure darkness surged fast and impacted Tommy's chest with incredible force, sending him over the cliff and parraling to the hard ground below. The rocks and stones of the ground came zooming by, faster and faster until, like a thunderbolt, it was over.

"NOOOOOO!!!!" Tommy sat straight up in his bed quickly, his eyes wide open as he looked around his bedroom frantically, trying to maintain the composure of knowing where he was and where he wasn't. A low moan reached his lips as he held his sweat covered face in his hands.

Michael Oliver and his wife, Margaret Oliver, burst into Tommy's room after hearing his scream. "Tommy, what's wrong?" Margaret asked her son, wiping the hair out of his face with her fingertips.

"It's....it's okay. Just a dream mom." Tommy replied, taking a deep breath.

"The same dream?" Michael asked.

Tommy merely nodded.

"Tommy, you've been having that same dream for the past three weeks. Maybe we need to take you to the hospital." Margaret said, Michael nodded with her.

"No, I'm fine. I'll be fine." Tommy assured them. "Just need to relax. You know, all the stress and stuff."

"Tommy, if you have the dream one more time, we're taking you to the doctor's." Michael vowed as he and his wife left Tommy's bedroom. After they were gone, Tommy looked at his clock. 5:55 AM. Well, Tommy thought, time to get up anyway. Tommy shook his head as he got out of bed and headed to his bathroom to shower.

Outside the Earth in the Skull Palace on the Moon, the Legion weren't doing much. Since the first battle, Diabolico had left in the darkness to plan out a strategy for his next attack against the rangers. He had told them that he was going to go through all of his most powerful creations and find the ones that he knew could do the job.

That was three days ago and Vipra, Loki, and Jinxer were beginning to wonder if he would ever come out of the darkness again. They all looked up as finally, after days of disappearance, Diabolico walked towards them.

"Diabolico?" Vipra said, slowly. She didn't know what to expect from the Chief General Officer.

"Do not worry. I have spent my time in the darkness, formulating a plan of action against the rangers. I underestimated them greatly, thinking they were pushovers. Now that I know exactly what we're up against, I am ready for them." Diabolico told his minions.

"What are we going to do?" Loki asked, walking forward.

In his left hand, Diabolico held a monster card and in his right, his golden Sceptor. He tossed the monster card up into the air and they all watched as a monster appeared from it. A brown and gold colored monster with spikes all over his form kneeled before Diabolico.

"Rise, Strikning." Diabolico said. Strikning rose and stood next to the ruler. "Watch." Diabolico ordered his troops. He raised his power staff and sent a charge of energy into a spot on the floor a few feet away. As they watched, a second being, this one in nothing but a grey form with an expressionless face.

"What is it?" Loki asked.

"This is Shiftox." Diabolico replied, "He is how we will defeat the rangers."

Vipra approached the figure, who stood unmoved. She touched it's shoulder with her blade and noticed that the metal went through the skin to the other end without so much as a gasp from the being. With the blade through the creature, she moved it to the side rather than backwards. She pulled the blade out of it as the grey form's skin repaired itself from the pierce of Vipra's blade.

"What is it?" Vipra asked, intrigued.

"This is a shape shifter that the Emperor commonly uses to infiltrate his enemies. We will use him to help bring the downfall of the rangers." Diabolico told them.

Vipra still watched the form as it started to change it's shape. When it's changing was done, it was a complete double for Vipra. Shiftox Vipra and Vipra walked around each other for a moment before Shiftox returned to it's normal form. As Vipra stepped away from the strange form, she uttered one singletary word. "Incredible." Vipra breathed, watching the shift shaper.

"Shiftox," Diabolico ordered, "go to Earth. Choose one of the rangers and double it's form. We will take it from there."

Shiftox nodded, acknowledging the order and vanished in colors of light.

The city park of Angel Grove, as usual, was the medium of quiet and noise. There were people walking by, children playing around, and other people just relaxing after a tough day of school or work. Rocky DeSantos walked through the largest part of the park, the location of the swings and the slides. The Jungle Gym was also nearby as he passed by that. He walked around the corner where a set of bushes were and stopped.

There in front of him was a strange form about his height and, as he stared at the emotionless face, it began to change form after laying eyes on him. Small volts of energy were visible as waves that surged throughout the form's exterior. And, so intrigued and shocked at what he was witnessing, he failed to notice the three Batlings that suddenly appeared behind him.

Rocky watched as, after the form completely changed, he was looking at a version of himself. Dressed exactly like he was, his eyes the same, even the hair style was exactly the same. But, when Shiftox Rocky smiled, it left the knowledge of his mission clear in Rocky's mind. Unfortunately, it was too late. He felt the Batlings arms grab his before he felt himself being teleported away. Eyes wide from shock, he could do no more than watch as his double continued the walk through the park he had begun.

Kimiko Linkov rubbed her dark eye brows as she looked up from her school work to take a sip of her Smoothie. School for Kimiko had ended a half hour earlier and she came to the Youth Center to finish her school work before the guys arrived.

She looked up towards the doorway when she saw a familiar and very welcome sight enter her eyesight. "Rocky!" she called over her boyfriend.

Shiftox Rocky's eyes narrowed as he approached the ranger. Taking slow, deliberate steps towards her, he put the first stage of Diabolico's master plan into action. "Hey Kimiko." he smiled.

Kimiko watched her boyfriend as he greeted her and instantly, she knew something was not right. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but, she knew something wasn't right about him.

"Rocky, wanna help me with this?" she indicated her work.

Shiftox Rocky looked at her work before placing his gaze back on her face. "Sorry, but," he spoke slowly, "there's an emergency."

Kimiko's head snapped up at that. "Emergency? What is it?"

"I recieved a message from above," he indicated with his finger pointed upward, "there's gonna be an attack outside the city. At the northern mountains. You need to get a hold of the guys. I'll meet you all there."

Kimiko was going to reply, but it died as she watched in confusion as Rocky turned and left without a second glance. She packed her things up quickly and headed out to find the others. She knew where Tommy, Adam, Kat, and Tanya would be. The city park as they always were at this time. She would contact Torrey through the communicator as would she with Jordan. Getting ahold of Jordan would get Trey as well, seeing as how they spent most of their time together recently.

With all that in mind, Kimiko left the Youth Center, a knowing Ernie nodding slowly.

Less than an hour later, Tommy, Katherine, Adam, Tanya, Kimiko, Jordan, Trey, Jesse, and Torrey were walking on the rough gravel that covered the ground on the mountain valleys in the northern mountains, outside Angel Grove. Rocky was there, standing there with his face watching them as they approached.

"Alright, Rock. What's this about?" Tommy asked his friend.

A devilish smirk crossed Shiftox Rocky's face as he raised his right hand and a beam of energy appeared. He shot the beam upwards and they all watched, in horror, as a perfectly shaped half circle energy shield was placed over the entire Northern Mountain. As their eyes turned back to Rocky, they're shocked eyes watched as his left arm raised above his head for a moment and lowered, crossing in front of his face and chest. Energy permeated throughout his form as he changed from Rocky DeSantos to his true form, Shiftox.

"What are you!!" Adam demanded.

"What's happened to Rocky!!!" added Kimiko.

The expressionless face watched them with interest. "Your friend will never see you nor you him ever again." Shiftox stated.

Before anyone could say anything else, the winds around them picked up incredibly and lightning flashed, causing large sounds to erupt the ground. As the dust flew up into the air, the rangers had to cover their eyes as they recieved visitors. When they could see through the dust that was falling back onto the ground with slow movements, they could see a large figure gold in color, with two figures behind him. Shiftox stood to the side, obediently.

"So, I finally meet the Power Rangers." Diabolico sneered, gazing at them with grudging respect.

"I take it, you're Diabolico." Tommy stated. He nodded.

"Yes, I am the Emperor's Chief General Officer. I have crushed planets much more powerful than this backwater planet. You are the only objects that stand in my way. You won't leave this mountain alive." Diabolico promised.

"What have you done with Rocky?!!" Tanya ordered.

"You are in no position to order anything of me, little children." Diabolico laughed at their stern faces. "Nice to see you again, Triforian."

"Can't say it's likewise." Trey snapped back.

Chuckling, Diabolico prepared for his leave. "This is the end rangers." Diabolico laughed before he, and Vipra and Loki disappeared. In their place were a horde of Batlings and four monsters. The monsters were Strikning, a three headed monster that breathes fire named Trifire, a monster that absorbs energy named Shockatron, and Shiftox. Shiftox's appearance was changed somewhat. His body was still the same grey color, with the expressionless and faceless face, but, he wore battle armor. The armor he wore resembled ancient Samuari warriors. He held a long katana blade in his right hand.

"Uh oh. We're in trouble." Tommy muttered as he examined the scene before them.

Inside the confines of the Power Chamber, the alarms went off, alerting Zordon and Alpha's attention to the Northern Mountains. "Aye yi yi!!" Alpha cried, "Zordon, the rangers are trapped!!"

"Yes, Alpha. Diabolico has a force field created over the mountains. There's no way in or out." Zordon commented, his attention caught. Zordon knew the geography of the entire area surrounding Angel Grove and he knew that there was no way to get through the force field. Their on their own. Zordon thought sadly as he tried to think of any way to help his rangers.

"What are we gonna do Zordon?" Alpha looked up, hopeful.

"There is nothing we can do until that force field is removed. We can only hope the rangers can survive this situation until we can find a way to get through the force field." Zordon told his robotic friend sadly, knowing that, for the first time in the rangers' lives, they were indeed, truly alone.

Blinking eyes slowly opened and surveyed the surroundings. A room about the size of a small cell was his answer. Rocky slowly and carefully got to his feet and walked to the front of his dungeon cell. Long round bars that went from the top to the bottom was in front of him, locking him in. Guess cells are the same everywhere. Rocky chuckled despite the situation.

Placing his hands around the bars, Rocky DeSantos let the extremity of his situation hit him fully. He was taken by Diabolico's forces and replaced with a double. He dimly reflected that this was like what Rita and Zedd attempted with Tommy. Not only was an imposter living his life, but he also had no idea how he was going to get out of this mess that he found himself in. He gingerly pressed his forehead to the cold metal, making a loud thump sound as the result. I'm in trouble.

"What's your name?" a voice rung in Rocky's ears. His head snapped up after he heard it.

"Who's there?" Rocky's throaty voice was able to answer in question.

"I'm called Blue Senturion. I'm an Intergalactic Police unit. Who are you? I saw Loki bring you here." the voice responded.

"I'm Rocky, a Power Ranger of Earth." Rocky said.

A small moment of silence passed.

"I'm glad to meet at least one of you." the Blue Senturion said.

"What are you talking about?" Rocky asked.

"I was sent to Earth with a message for Zordon of Eltare."

Rocky didn't know what to think about that, so the Senturion continued, "My ship was intercepted by Xianth Cruisers and I was taken. Luckily, my cargo was not touched."

"How do you know?" Rocky rested his head against the bars again.

"Because I carry them in a pocket dimension and only I have the code to open it. I don't think the Emperor or Diabolico knows about my cargo."

"Can you tell me what it is?" Rocky asked, looking over.

"I'm afraid not. My message and delivery is for Zordon only." Blue Senturion responded.

"How long have you been here?" Rocky wanted to know.

"Less than a week. After it was discovered that the Emperor has returned, I was sent with this delivery to, perhaps, help Zordon with his war against him."

"Well, let's make a deal." Rocky suggested, "let's find a way to get out of here together, then I'll get you to Zordon."

"Deal."

"It's Morphin Time!" was the morphing call from Tommy as the Batlings and monsters began to close in on them. They knew the only chance they had of at least surviving was to have their powers.

"Zeo Ranger I, Pink!"

"Zeo Ranger II, Yellow!"

"Zeo Ranger IV, Green!"

"Zeo Ranger V, Red!"

"Zeo Ranger VI, White!"

"Zeo Ranger VII, Black!"

"Zeo Ranger VIII, Silver!"

"Midnight Zeo!"

"Gold Ranger Power!"

The nine Zeo Rangers split up as the Batlings and the monsters began to attack them in earnst. Trifire and some of the Batlings engaged White, Yellow, and Pink Zeo immediately while Shockatron and other Batlings engaged Midnight, Silver, and Green Zeo. Strikening and Shiftox began to battle Gold and Red Zeo.

In the dungeons of the Skull Cavern, Rocky and the Blue Senturion were waiting for the right moment to make their move for escape. Together, the two of them had already come up with a possible solution for escaping the dungeons. Although Rocky still had his morphers in their pocket dimensions, waiting to be called upon, he couldn't use them inside the dungeon, he had already attempted to do so. But, Rocky hoped that his powers would work once they got outside the Cavern.

When he did get his powers activated, the Power Chamber should have no trouble locating him and he'd be able to get himself and Blue Senturion there with no trouble. They just needed to get out of the dungeons first.

The sounds of footsteps drew his attention to the dungeon's cave doors as they opened. He couldn't see who entered, he only knew it was trouble.

"Get ready." Rocky muttered loud enough for Blue Senturion to hear.

"Well," a voice said, "look who we have here."

"Who are you?" Rocky asked.

"My name's Vipra. And you're my slave." she said, extending her blade towards Rocky in an intimidating gesture.

"First of all, batty," Rocky snarled, "I'm nobody's slave. And second, I don't think you're strong enough to make me obey you." Defiant, he knew, would tick the enemy off.

And it worked. Vipra lunged at the bars suddenly, grabbing the back of his neck and forcing his face close to hers. "I'd watch what I say, human." Vipra hissed, smiling. "There's no telling what could happen to you."

Over in the next cell, Blue Senturion looked at her waist, where the cell keys were dangling on her belt. Carefully, he reached his robotic hand out and grab them.

"Life's a gamble, Vipra." Rocky told her, "who's to say what'll happen to me today, or tomorrow. And frankly, I'd rather eat fish hooks than be your slave." Rocky finished as he made his move, getting a rough grab of her arms and pulling hard, forcing Vipra's upper body to crash into the bars which made a loud yelp of surprise out of her.

And just as he grabbed her, the Blue Senturion was able to yank the keys from around Vipra's waist and used them to unlock himself. As he walked out of the dungeon, Vipra swung away from Rocky and faced him.

"You'll pay for that!" Vipra snarled, drawing her blade against the Senturion.

"We will see criminal." Blue Senturion replied as he suddenly delivered a swift kick to her gut, forcing her down to one knee. Blue Senturion took advantage of the opportunity and raised his knee up quickly and with force, compacting Vipra's skull with shocking force, knocking her back. "We must hurry."

Blue Senturion unlocked Rocky's cell as the Blue Ranger got out. "How'd you learn all that?" Rocky asked.

"Justice Academy." Blue Senturion stated as they started heading out of the dungeons, freedom on their minds.

Red Zeo dodged an attempted strike at his visor and delivered a swift kick to Shiftox's chest, knocking him back. As Shiftox fell, Strikening stalked forward with a vicious thrust of his right arm at Red Zeo's chest, causing sparks to erupt from Red Zeo's suit.

"Oh man!" Red Zeo grunted, dropping to one knee.

Shiftox and Strikening each now stood one one side of Red Zeo. The leader of the rangers knew he was running out of options, so, he made his move. "Zeo Sword!" he called. In a charge of red energy, his Zeo weapon appeared in his hands just as the two monsters charged him.

A swift kick caught Strikening in the gut as Red Zeo caught the edge of his blade along the chest of Shiftox, causing a painful splice along it's skin. Both, Strikening and Shiftox, howled in pain and moved away from the leader of the Zeo Rangers. But, Red Zeo didn't let them get away. He suddenly charged and caught them both with swift kicks in the chest, knocking them down before landing on his feet.

A few feet away, White, Pink, and Yellow Zeo were engaged in battle by Batlings and the monster known as Trifire, a triple headed monster red in color that breathed fire. Five Batlings circled Yellow Zeo while four Batlings circled Pink Zeo. It was White Zeo that faced off against Trifire.

"Give up, ranger!" Trifire ordered of the ranger.

"Never!" she shot back.

Trifire launched himself forward, hitting White Zeo in the arm with a sharp claw, that drew a yelp of pain from the ranger. She quickly recovered and charged ahead to Trifire, hitting him with a kick that leveled him all the way to the ground.

Pink and Yellow Zeo used their abilities of the martial arts to discard Batling after Batling that came after them, helping each other when the opportunity came. Yellow Zeo turned from dumping one Batling and noticed that there was a Batling about to attack her friend in the back and she immediately reacted. She dove into the air and delivered a swift roundhouse kick to the small of the back of the Batling, the impact knocking it down.

Around the battlefied, much of the same was taking place. The combined skills of the nine Zeo Rangers were proving to be enough to handle all the Batlings and the four monsters. Not that it was an easy task, defeating them, but they were gaining the advantage over the monsters and Batlings, they just didn't know how much longer they would be able to hold out.

Rocky and the Blue Senturion crept along the stone walls of the lower level of the Skull Cavern. The lower levels of the Cavern were a topsitervy of walls going one way and another, designed for only those who dwell in the Cavern to know how to get through them. The two of them had been walking through the walls for the past fifteen minutes and they hadn't had much luck finding a way out of the Cavern.

"What are we gonna do?" Rocky asked.

"It is most logical that we won't find out how to get out of here before they find us, so, I suggest we blast our way out." Blue Senturion advised.

"Just one problem with that," Rocky returned, "I can't morph until we're out of the Cavern."

"That's no problem, I have a blaster." Blue Senturion reached down as his right leg opened up on the side to reveal a hidden Senturion Blaster safed away. He drew his weapon out and aimed it to a wall.

"Wait a minute," Rocky said, holding up his hands, "if you've had that all this time, why haven't you used it yet?"

"I had to wait for the right opportunity to use it. I'm glad I waited because I needed to get to Zordon and you were captured, it worked out." Blue Senturion saw the logic.

Alright, I guess. Rocky thought. Then, he sighed. "Right, well....let's get oughta here."

"Right with you." the Senturion replied as he began blasting at the walls of the Cavern. Small explosions erupted as shards and chunks of stone were exploded outward. After a few moments of blasting, the Blue Senturion stepped back and waited for the smoke to clear.

Silence reigned.

Rocky used his left hand to steady himself on one side of the hole caused by the blast and peered out and down. They were on the very outside of the Skull Cavern and the blast knocked out part of the wall and he could clearly see that they were at least two hundred feet above the ground that the Cavern was grounded to.

"How we gonna get down?" Rocky turned to his robotic companion.

Blue Senturion looked at the ground then at Rocky and, decision made quickly, grabbed Rocky by the collar of his shirt and hoisted him onto his back and jumped off.

Running footsteps drew the attention of the Chief General Officer of the Xianth Empire, Diabolico, as he turned from his vantage point of watching the battle on the Angle Grove Mountain. He had been watching with Loki through the transmission link he had with Earth and now he turned as his Leutenient Vipra came running into the main chamber of the Skull Cavern.

"What is the problem, Vipra?" Diabolico asked impatiently.

"Diabolico," Vipra gasped, out of breathe, "the captives, they're gone!"

"What!" Diabolico roared.

"The ranger and the robot, they got out of the dungeons, I tried to stop 'em, but I couldn't." Vipra told them.

"Jinxer!" Diabolico called.

"Yes, Diabolico?" Jinxer, the head monster maker for the Chief General Officer, said, kneeling before him.

"I want every available Batling and monster on guard throughout the lower levels of the Cavern, searching for the captives. I will not allow them to escape me."

"Um," Jinxer began.

"Is there a problem with my orders?"

"It's just that..."

"Spit it out Jinxer." Diabolico urged.

"I felt a blast on the lower east side of the Cavern just a few moments ago." Jinxer told him carefully.

"That's about where the dungeons are." Vipra said.

"Vipra, take as many Batlings as it calls for, but bring them back. The robot has information that could be of use to the Emperor." Diabolico ordered.

"Yes, my liege."

"Aughhhhh!!!!!!" Rocky yelled as he felt himself latching onto Blue Senturion's back with abandon. When he had asked the Senturion about how they were going to get down, this was the last thing on his mind. Now, he only wanted to get to the bottom.

It felt as if all the air in the world was whirling around him, his hair whipping in the air as the Senturion soared through the air. Rocky had his arms around the Senturion's neck, holding on tightly.

It seemed like they were falling for hours, but, in reality, it was only a few moments before Blue Senturion's body hit the ground, feet first, with vicious impact. The impact forced Rocky to fall off the Senturion's back and he crashed on his back, causing an audible "oomph" out of him.

"Well," he managed, "at least we're down."

"Yes, now we must leave before they learn of our whereabouts." Blue Senturion told him.

"Right." Rocky was about to say something else, but a motion caught his eye. He turned, as did the Senturion, to see Vipra and a group of armed Batlings headed their way.

"Get them!!" Vipra roared, causing the Batlings to pick up their pace.

"It's Morphin Time!!" Rocky called, "Zeo Ranger III, Blue!"

The Blue Senturion and Blue Zeo turned and, in a defensive position, prepared to meet their advasaries, hoping against hope, that they would find a way home.

The Power Chamber's morphing lights started to flicker, the only motion that had been in the main chamber since this day started. Alpha, having only been a few feet away, was the first to notice it.

"Zordon, Aye yi yi!!" Alpha screeched, seeing the perimeter readings. "It's Rocky!"

"Yes, Rocky has morphed. That means he is in the process of escaping his prison. Track the signal Alpha, perhaps we can teleport him here." Zordon advised.

"Right away." Alpha said, punching buttons on the top panel.

"We can't," Midnight Zeo breathed, "keep this up much longer."

"I know, but we have to keep fighting." Red Zeo called from his spot near her.

Indeed, the nine of them had been fighting valiantly, but they were losing energy, even the recuperative powers of the morphing suits were being stretched to their limits and none of the rangers knew how much more of the battle with the monsters they could handle.

The four monsters were losing some energy as well, but they were still able to fight and they had blasted the rangers with repeated energy blasts and it was the blasts that were weakening the rangers the most.

Shiftox decided to take up the brunt of the attack as he charged the nine rangers with his Katana blade held high. He tried an overhead slice, but missed the contact of Green Zeo's face plate. Instead, he recieved a double kick, simultanous from Yellow and Pink Zeo, which sent him flying back, hitting the ground with a loud thump.

"Zeo Cannon!" the five main rangers called. The Zeo Cannon appeared in their hands in a flash of bright light. After placing the five energy charges into the positioned slots, the five rangers fired the Zeo Cannon at Shiftox and they all watched as Shiftox exploded in a powerful eruption that rocked the ground of the battlefied they were at with amazing pressure.

The smoke between them and the three monsters cleared and they watched as Shiftox was no more. Only Trifire, Shockatron, and Strikening remained, their stance meaning only one thing.

"They're gonna grow." Green Zeo muttered to them. And, indeed, the three monsters did reach for the reserves and powered themselves with enough energy to make themselves the size of their zords, city destroying size and looking down at them with savage intent.

"Oh boy." Midnight Zeo breathed, looking up.

"Hiya!!" Blue Zeo dodged another Batling strike and delivered one of his own, knocking the Batling back. Blue Zeo then started stepping backwards, aware that Blue Senturion was blasting the Batlings with his Blaster.

"Take them! Diabolico demands it." Vipra ordered heading towards them.

Blue Senturion and Blue Zeo found themselves surrounded by the Batlings as they circled them and waited. "What are we going to do now?" Blue Zeo asked.

"I do not know." replied the Senturion.

"Give up ranger. You're outnumbered." Vipra pointed out the obvious.

"Never!" Blue Zeo snapped back.

"Fine, get them!"

Just as the Batlings were moving in to take their captives, blue spectrals of light emanated where Blue Senturion and Blue Zeo were standing and then, they were replaced by two beams of blue teleportation energy as the ranger and the robot were teleported out of the lair that held the Skull Cavern.

"NOOOO!" Vipra yelled as she ran at the light just as it left.

The Batlings didn't know what to do now, so they slowly started scrambling around as Vipra could only watch in dismay as her captives disappeared and she had to report to Diabolico about how she failed.

It was the Power Chamber that the two beams of blue energy ended up being taken too as Rocky, his helmet off but still morphed, and the Blue Senturion appeared in the Power Chamber.

"Rocky, Aye yi yi!!" Alpha cried, hugging Rocky. "I'm so glad you're ok."

"Me too, Alpha. Zordon, I'd like to introduce you to the.."

"Blue Senturion." Zordon finished for him.

"Zordon of Eltare, it truly is a pleasure to finally meet you." Blue Senturion said.

"Rocky, there is an emergency that needs to be paid attention to. The rangers, all of them, are trapped on the mountain, fighting monsters. Diabolico has placed a powerful forcefield around the mountain and we haven't been able to break it yet." Zordon finished.

As Rocky watched, the viewing screen showed the monsters, in their extended growth state, trying to crush the rangers. "What can we do, Zordon?"

"There is nothing we can do. The force field is too strong." Zordon said, sadly.

A moment of silence occurred.

Blue Senturion stepped forward, holding something in his hand. "Zordon, take this key card."

"What's it for." Zordon asked.

"This is sort of like a skeleton key. It can deactivate anything, reverse anything used by magic and I believe you can break the force field with it."

Alpha took the key card and placed it in the proper slot and watched as the pollarities of the signals they had been using to try and weaken the force field change into a pollarity they had not yet tried or seen. "Here we go." Alpha said as he punched a series of buttons on the panels. The buttons he pressed caused a blast to be sent from the Power Chamber's laser at the top of the structure and they waited as the blast touched down on the force field that covered the entire length of the Angel Grove Mountain. It took only a matter of moments, but it worked, the force field suddenly was broken and the communications link with the rangers was immediately restored with the Power Chamber.

"It worked." Rocky said, smiling. "Guys, come in rangers."

"Rocky, is that you?" Tommy's voice could be heard from the other end.

"Yeah, listen, the force field is broken, let's call on the zords and toast these guys." Rocky's voice was filled with excitement.

"Let's do it. Super Zeo Zord Power Now!"

Rocky had his helmet back on as he appeared next to Red, Green, Yellow, and Pink Zeo on the top of the battlefield. The five of them immediately teleported themselves into the cockpits of their respected Super Zeo Zords as they prepared for battle against Trifire, Shockatron, and Strikening. Because the other rangers didn't yet have zords, they chose to return to the Power Chamber and watch from there.

"Let's do it." Red Zeo said, getting his controls ready.

"Right."

"Super Zeo Megazord, power up." the five Zeo Rangers called, setting into sequence the order of the zords to transform into the Megazord form.

As usual with their form, the Green Super Zeo Zord formed the lower legs of the Megazord, with the Pink Super Zeo Zord forming the feet that latched onto the Green. The Blue Super Zeo Zord transformed into the waist section of the Megazord with the Red Super Zeo Zord forming the chest area. That left the Yellow Super Zeo Zord to form the shoulders, head, and arms of the Megazord, completing the form of the Super Zeo Megazord.

Trifire and Shockatron stood on either side of the Megazord as Strikening stayed in front of it. All three were cautious with their approach of this powerful Megazord, knowing what it's capabilities were.

Trifire thrust his right arm out and powerful volts of power surged and impacted the Megazord, forcing it to step back. The rangers inside were trying to get a hold on their systems. The Super Zeo Megazord was able to recover and stepped up and charged Trifire and Shockatron next by jumping up into the air and realigned it's form into a double kick to Trifire and Shockatron's chest, knocking them down. The Super Zeo Megazord fell to the ground with a crash, causing sparks when it's leg was caught and it was sent back.

"Let's step up things." Red Zeo said, "Super Zeo Swords, now!!"

The two powerful blades appeared in the Super Zeo Megazord's arms with a brilliant flash of powerful light. The Megazord stepped forward as the three monsters, unwisely, started to stand closer to one another. With a quick thrust of the arms, the arms brought the two swords together to form one powerful blade. The blade began to shine a bright color and the Megazord extended it outwards, the sword coming down on top of the three monsters with surprising velocity and force, causing an eruption to eminate from within the monsters. Explosion after explosion erupted from one monster to another which shook the entire surface of the mountain and caused the rangers to shake within the Megazord's cockpit.

As the fire caused from the explosion began to die down and the smoke around the area began to clense out and away, the rangers breathed an audible sigh of relief upon seeing that the three monsters were no longer standing there and that they had been fortunate this day, had the rangers, that they were successfull in foiling the first of Diabolico's plans. This was a good day for the Zeo Rangers.

November 28

The Thanksgiving Dance was ready and prepared for the students of the Angel Grove High School. Being that this would be the last Thanksgiving Ball for the seniors of the High School, the School Board wanted to make this a Ball to remember for years to come. And, with the decorations and talented minds they had behind it, they were sure the seniors would love it.

It had been twenty long days since Tommy, Katherine, Adam, Tanya, Torrey, Jordan, Trey, Kimiko, and Jesse had been trapped on the Angel Grove Mountain to battle a horde of monsters and Batlings with no assistance from Zordon. It was a tough road for them all, but they were able to come out of it alive and on top and they all knew they were lucky to have survived the tramautic experience.

There had been no attacks since they had gotten through what they have come to call the day of the mountain. But, they knew that Diabolico and his forces were still there on the Skull Cavern up on the moon and it was only a matter of time before Diabolico launched his next attack against them. The knew they'd be better for him also.

The Principal of the High School, Mr. Chaplan, stood on the podium at the front of the Dancing Floor of the Ball. He was the appointed chaparone to watch over the students and make sure things happened as scheduled, and that they didn't get rowdy. As his eyes scanned through the dancing students, he noticed the couples.

Tommy and Katherine were dancing very closely together with their arms wrapped around each other. Behind them and a few feet away, Rocky and Kimiko Linkov were glued to each other, their attention solely on each other. Trey and Jordan were together, speaking in low tones while they swayed with the music. Adam and Tanya were a few feet from them, dancing closely and although the Principal didn't know much about Trey, he had been told that he was a visiting relative of Adam's, so he didn't worry much about that.

As the current song they were dancing to ended, Mr. Caplan spoke into the microphone so that he would be heard throughout the hall. "Alright, students. This is the last song of your Thanksgiving Ball, so enjoy it."

The last song of the night ended up being a slow song, as most of the songs of the night was. The students danced to it and celebrated the twenty days they had gone through without as much as a peep out of the Earth's newest threat, the Xianth Empire.

But, across town from the High School Dance, at the restaurant called Brangus' Family Steakhouse, two women were enjoying their dinner. Having their relationship slightly unorthodox in the eyes of the public, Jesse Parker and Torrey Hunter were seated at a table, waiting on their dinner. Jesse had ordered Brangus' Ultimate Bacon Cheeseburger with Cajun Fries with the Mozzerella Cheese Sticks as an Appetizer. She had already enjoyed the cheese sticks and was awaiting the burger. Torrey had ordered the same type burger and fries, but had ordered the Stuffed Peppers instead of the cheese sticks as her appetizer, which she was just completing.

Jesse and Torrey had debated on whether or not they should take up the offer by Tommy to go to the dance tonight, but, in the end, they had decided it would be easier and better if they just let them have their dance and they enjoyed a night out by themselves. So, here they were, enjoying a good dinner, before they were going to head out to the only Gay bar in Angel Grove for some dancing.

"So," Jesse said, sipping her soda, "decided on where you want to spend Christmas yet?"

"It's a little early to be thinking about that, isn't it?" Torrey responded, chewing the last of her peppers.

"Tor, Christmas is only a month away. We've got to be thinking ahead. Now, what do you want to do?"

"Well," Torrey considered, smothering a grin, "we could always spend the holidays with your folks."

"Puuuleeeeze!" Jesse drawled. The last meeting with Jesse's parents was the same one where they told them about their personal relationship and needless to say, it had not ended well.

"Yeah, I guess that's not such a hot idea."

"We could always spend it here." Jesse offered.

"With the guys." Torrey added.

"Yeah, they'll probably be having some kind of snazzy party. We can ask them when we see them tomorrow." Jesse said.

"We'll do that." Torrey smiled, squeezing her lover's hand.

The two ate their dinner in relative peace before they headed out towards the Night Club, knowing that this could be the last quiet night before Diabolico attacked again. All the rangers knew it was only a matter of time.

But, for now, they were going to enjoy the interlude. Have as much fun as they can.

The End . . . For Now