"I,Ranger" chapter FOUR, a novel starring Tommy Oliver

[Ryuranger]

---“I, Ranger,” -Chapter Four: Ghosts of Eltar, part one

I stepped from the portal and found myself in the middle of a battleground that stretched for as far as my eyes could see over vast hills and plains of blood-stained grass. I noticed two moons creeping up the blue sky off in the horizon, giving me the first indication I wasn’t on Earth any longer.

Reptilian creatures with brown and green scaled covering their slimy flesh, armed themselves with jagged rusty blades and suits of chain mail as they pressed forward against a formation of men who appeared as human as I did. They were dressed in white body suits with brown or black leathery armor covering their bodies. They carried slim swords similar to katana blades, as well as bo-staffs and spears.

The flash of gold light from my appearance startled the reptilian warrior in front of me. He stepped back for a brief moment in shock, then rebounded towards me while swinging his rusted ax through the air.

Reflexes I hadn’t used in years came to life as I brought up my left leg and hook kicked the ax out of the reptile’s hand. I re-chambered my leg and snapped out a sidekick that slammed against the soldier’s chest. He was forced a few steps back as I closed in and roundhoused the creature across the head, cracking its jaw and bruising its temple.

A trio of soldiers charged towards me from my right. I looked off to my left where a fallen human lied with his sword still in hand. I rolled over the fallen warrior and grabbed his sword as I rose to my knees and turned to face the three reptiles closing in on me.

I glared at the three soldiers, my hazel eyes like daggers. “You fellas picked the wrong guy to mess with.”

The soldiers each wailed screams at the top of their lungs that put Miss Applebee to shame. I parried a blow from one soldier, then swept my blade around through the creature’s neck as I twirled behind his fallen form to drive my blade like a spear through the next soldier’s chest, breaking through his ribs and piercing his organs.

The third reptile tried to sneak up behind me with his blade held high, but I tore my sword from the creature’s chest in front of me and slammed the handle of the weapon against the soldier’s face behind me. I then leapt around and drove my blade through the soldier’s right collarbone and down to his left waist, tearing open his chest.

The battle continued to rage around me, and it was one of the most brutal things I had ever seen in my life. The men around me and the reptiles threw themselves at each other without mercy while shouting war cries that filled the air around me.

I felt out completely out of place, but knew I had little choice but to fight. For a moment I considered morphing, but then decided against it. The reptilians were no stronger than well-trained athletes. Using my powers would have been overkill.

I threw myself against the reptilian soldiers’ lines, my sword was a blur of motion in front of me as I cut down soldier after soldier. After spending more than five years of my life facing Putties, Tengas, Cogs and other grunts, fighting multiple enemies was nothing new to me at all.

In the distance, I noticed a dark figure walking among the reptilian lines. His amphibious body was covered in dark scales. His ears folded back like fins over the sides of his face, and his blood-red eyes rested above a mouth full of multiple rows of razor sharp teeth. He was dressed in dark armor plating, and hurling spheres of black fire against the men, incinerating them upon impact.

I chose him as my target and ran through the lines of reptilian soldiers as fast as I could. I flipped them over my shoulder, tackled them to the ground, and cut through them with my blade which was covered in green ichor.

I was close enough to the amphibious creature, who stood a foot taller than me, that I was able to leap off the shoulders of a soldier and execute a flying sidekick towards the amphibian’s chest.

My foot bounced harmlessly off of the creature as I flipped backwards and landed on my feet.

“Alright, ugly,” I said to the creature. “Looks like it’s time to take it up a notch.”

“Mortal…” the amphibian hissed.

“You’re pretty observant,” I said as I reached down for the power inside me. “But how many mortals do you know that can do this…Red Dragon Power!”

Crimson energy circled around me as I transformed into my armor. The energy even danced across my blade, transforming it into a golden handled weapon with the head of a dragon carved on its end. The slender blade reflected the sunlight, casting a golden hue across my visor. Inscriptions ran along the side of the blade in a language I did not recognize.

The creature took a step back in fear as it mumbled under its breath. “Reija…” He formed a sphere of onyx flame in his hand and hurled it at me.

I let the fire coursing through my veins empower me as I shot into the air, flipping over the fire blast and towards amphibian while bringing my blade down diagonally towards the right side of the creature’s neck.

My sword snapped through the creature’s collarbone as I forced the blade down further, cutting through his chest down towards his left waist.

The amphibian howled in pain as he reached out with his hand and swatted me from the air like a bug. Few had ever hit me as hard. I rolled with my landed before rising back to my feet and turning to face the creature. I held my sword out in an en-guard position as the amphibian charged towards me as the wounds I inflicted healed.

I grasped onto the power within me and felt it boil as a fiery rage pumped through my veins. Flames danced across my visor as every cell in my body felt as if it were on fire.

The dragon had told me not to push aside my anger and to use it as a tool, but at that moment my rage was using me.

The amphibian lunged towards me with his massive claws outstretched to strike me down. I ran towards the monster and twirled by sword in a circular motion using the blade to chop off the creature’s forearms. While continuing my charge, I leapt up towards the creature’s head and ran my blade through his neck, inflicting a wound no regeneration could heal. The monster’s severed head fell to the ground mere feet away from his fallen body.

Whining war cries from dozens of reptilian soldiers came from behind me as I turned to face them. Fiery adrenaline was still pumping through my veins as I held my sword out and crimson energy started to dance across its blade.

I swung my weapon through the air as it created a massive energy blast that tore through the air like a wave of ruby-colored waters. The wave slammed against the soldiers and tore through their bodies before incinerating them.

A feral grin spread across my face I had not worn since my days as the Green Ranger as I dashed forward and threw myself into the formation of reptilian soldiers.

I can’t recount every strike or blow. I remember acting on primal instinct alone. I was not in control. I was a weapon of mass destruction ripping the reptilian life forms to shred without thoughts or hesitation.

Sweat dripped down my forehead beneath my helmet and my muscles and joints burnt from overexertion, but I ignored the sensations to let nothing stand in the way of my victory.

I remember the final soldier coming in towards me while holding his jagged blade up high. I remember the cold and feral grin spread across my face as I moved forward and struck my sword against his, shattering his weapon to pieces. I twisted by wrist and brought my blade back towards the soldier’s body as I angled upwards and cut through his skull.

I surveyed the battle ground around me as the cloud of rage cleared from my mind and reality set in.

Good lord…I thought to myself as I saw the ground littered with piles of corpses that had died by my hand. The army of men stood back while looking at me with fear in their eyes, their weapons held high.

I looked over my blood-stained blade and shook my head. I didn’t care if my actions were good or evil. I didn’t care if nothing was wrong with anger or rage. All I knew was that I had lost control of my own actions, and I didn’t care for that at all.

I powered down my armor and tied my sword around my belt as I held my hands up in a non-threatening matter.

“Identify yourself!” one of the soldiers shouted as he pointed a slender blade in my direction. He had sharp hawk-like features and dark brown eyes. His short sandy blonde hair was ruffled across the top of his head.

“My name’s Tommy,” I called to the man. “I’m a Power Ranger. From Earth.”

The man wrinkled his brow. “One of Zordon’s elk…ha! Seize him!”

I let the guards surround me and bind my wrists with rope. I knew if I needed to, I could morph and snap out of the rope at any time. I needed to find out what exactly I was thrown into the middle of, and those men held my answers.

[Ryuranger]

***

The city streets the soldiers led me down were by far the most magnificent sights I had ever laid eyes upon.

The ground was paved with what appeared to be white marvel. The tall, sand colored buildings that lined the streets resembled stylings of the Greco-Roman period on Earth centuries ago. Tall buildings stretched into the sky, supported by ornate columns that lined elevated walkways.

Ahead of us was a triangular shaped building almost a block wide, with staircases running several stories upwards on each side of the triangle’s base. On top of the stairwells were massive statues of different warriors, staring out over the city as if to watch over it.

On top of the triangular platform sat what I assumed to be the city hall. It was a palace, lined with columns and gemstones of various colors. The palace seemed familiar, but it took me a few moments to figure out where.

“The Zolthan Palace…” Tommy said quietly to himself. “We’re on Eltar…”

“Of course we are, you fool,” the lead guard said as he turned to face me. It was the same guard who had referred to me as Zordon’s Elk. “Now stay quiet.”

“Yes, sir,” I said mockingly as I bowed my head.

The guard turned up his nose and faced forward once more as we started walking up the wide staircase. I recognized some of the statues from tales Zordon used to tell us in our first years as Rangers.

The dominant statue stood in front of the palace with his head pointed upwards to the stars. His name was Jestin, and he was the first Ranger. He had been a slave serving under the iron fist of Eltar’s dictator at the time, Lord Naothor. Naothor was merely a pawn in the vast empire of darkness ruled over by an evil being known as Salamon.

After escaping his slave pins, Jestin came upon a great sage known as Ninjor. Ninjor instructed Jestin about the great Power, and how to use it. After gathering a small team of four, including the princess of Eltar who became his lover, Jestin defeated Naothor.

After the tyrant’s demise, Salamon traveled to Eltar, fearful of Jestin’s power. Salamon offered Jestin a place at his side, but the ranger refused and banished Jestin at the cost of his life. In the moments before his death, he charged his four teammates with the task of spreading light across the universe. Thus, a vast order of Rangers and Masters was established throughout the galaxy.

After what seemed like a lifetime, we made it to the top of the stairs and entered the palace through gigantic metal doors. We walked down a gold trimmed red carpet towards a throne of gold lined with crimson rubies. The sides of the palace walls were lined with statues of former Eltarian leaders, warriors and councilmen.

The woman who sat in the throne was strikingly beautiful, and I felt guilty for noticing. Her long red hair flowed down over her bare shoulders. She wore a red and gold gown body suit that highlighted her curvaceous form as she sat on the throne. Her eyes were bright green, and her lips were slender and shaded a delicate pink.

“Empress,” the lead guard said as he kneeled before her throne. “This one claims to be a Ranger. He did exhibit powers similar to their kind, but…”

“Bring him here,” she said in a voice that was both gentle and powerful at the same time.

Two soldiers led me closer to the empress as she descended the stairs with perfect posture. She ran her soft hands across my cheek as I felt electricity dance across my face. She smiled at me, making me weak at the knees. Immediately my thoughts turned to Kathrine, not wanting to betray my wife even by a thought.

“You claim membership to an archaic order that is now feared and hated throughout the cosmos,” she said. “You are either very brave or very foolish.”

I wrinkled my brow making no effort to hide my displeasure. “Why would rangers be hated?”

Her smile grew as she shook her head. “Foolish it is, then. Would you care to join me for dinner? I am anxious to hear your story.”

“Madam…” the lead guard started to object, but she cut him off.

“Enough, Mordont,” she said. “He has done nothing wrong.”

Mordont glared at me. “Yes, empress. As you wish.”

I told myself then and there to watch my back whenever Mordont was around.

***

The setting sun cast a dim golden hue across the banquet hall as I sat at the broadside of a long rectangular table across from the Empress. The table was made of a kind of smooth, glossy red wood.

I felt completely out of place, sitting there in my khaki slacks and black undershirt with an unbuttoned red shirt draped over it.

The meal laid out before us consisted of exotic dishes made from various vegetables, fruits, and grains. A goblet of wine sat in the center of the table, and each of us had crystal glasses half-full.

I found no reason to hide the truth from the Empress since I knew very little about what my mission entailed. I only knew that I was on a quest against the ultimate evil, and Eltar was my first stop for some reason. Our conversation focused more on my time as a Ranger on earth and our battles against Rita, Zedd, Vile, the Machines, and Divatox.

I eventually got around to asking her the question that had been nagging at the back of my mind the whole evening.

“Why are Rangers hated?” I asked bluntly.

She leaned back in her chair and looked amused by my lack of knowledge on the subject. “What do you know of Zedd’s rise to power?”

I shook my head. “Not a whole lot…why?”

A sly grin spread across her face. “I’ll tell you…”

---to be continued in part 2. this thread. watch for it...

----for back chapters, visit: www.angelfire.com/extreme3/p_rangersx/IRanger.html

[Qi]

Great!

I think this is improving with each section. I can't wait for the next section.

Qi

[Imperialwar]

Curse you Ryu!

[Ryuranger]

...for what?

[Imperialwar]

For cutting the story at the point! It was really getting interesting too!:(

[Qi]

Well, that's just the art of story telling.... leaving you wanting more....

[Ryuranger]

There's more, man. It will be here soon. No worries. :cool:

[Imperialwar]

Originally posted by Ryuranger
There's more, man. It will be here soon. No worries. :cool:

Their better be or so help me I'll hunt you down!:D

[Lord ZEDD]

Damn this is awsome lots of shocks and surprises I wonder what Lord Zedd has to do with the Rangers being hated I thought Zordon and his "elk" would be like gods on eltar. Keep up the great story I cant wait to read more.

[Panty Strangled]

LORD ZEDD'S ORIGIN IN CHAPTER FIVE?!!!!

GO FOR IT, GO FOR IT

(good chapter)

[Ryuranger]

technically, it will be part two of this chapter. ;)

Again, thanks for the feedback, everyone.

[Ryuranger]

I leaned forward and listened intently as she started speaking.

“A thousand years before your Zordon was even born,” the Empress started to explain, “Zedd was a young prince on the planet Zaria.”

I arced my eyebrow in disbelief. “Zedd was a prince?”

The Empress smiled and nodded. “His royal blood line extended back for near countless generations. Although he was the king’s second born, Zedd was next in line to the throne. His older brother pursued a different path. The path of a Ranger.

“Zedd’s brother Gedrin was the leader of Zaria’s Ranger team. Gedrin’s Master, Mathius, also instructed Zedd in the art of The Power. In many ways, Mathius was more a parent to Zedd and Gedrin than their own father. Both Zedd’s father and Mathius, however, were members of a secret universal society known as the Order of the Prophets.

“Several such secret societies existed across the cosmos. They charged themselves with maintaining political stability and peace, each using different means to do so.

“The Order of the Prophets took it upon themselves to map out the balance between what they considered good and evil through to the very end of time. They predicted a powerful conflict that would cause shock waves across the stars. They could see nothing past this conflict, leading them to believe all of reality would be destroyed as a result of this battle.

“The findings of The Prophets were recorded on a large stone tablet known as the Tablet of Chakra. Zedd’s father was charged with keeping the tablet safe, but rumors of its existence were not well hidden.

“Word of the tablet reached the High Council of Masters on Eltar. The Council ruled over all masters and their teams of Rangers throughout the known universe. They were by far the most powerful entity in all existence.

“The Masters were not pleased with the news of the tablet. They viewed its predictions as a threat to their power and to universal stability. The Masters ordered a Ranger team to accompany a mage to Zaria and destroy the tablet while the mage tore the secrets of the Prophets from the mind of Zedd’s father.

“A Ranger team attacked Zaria without mercy. Gedrin and his team was slaughtered. Mathius was butchered. Zedd’s father was rendered brain dead as a result of the mage who succeeded in tearing the secrets of the Prophets from his head. The tablet however, was sent to safety before the Ranger team’s attack. To this day no one knows where it is or even if it still exists.

“Zedd returned to the palace after the attack. He had been away on a hunting trip. Only 18 of your years at the time, his entire world came crashing down on him when he saw the fallen form of his father. His brother gone. Mathius killed. Zedd swore revenge.

“When Zedd tried to make a plea to the Council, they turned a deaf ear. Zedd took matters into his own hands. He took the sword of his fallen brother and led the royal guard on a campaign against the Rangers who had murdered his loved ones.

“The Council responded by dispatching a Ranger team against Zedd and his band of warriors. This began one of the largest scale conflicts in all of recorded time.

“Members of the secret societies made themselves public for the first time in ages and rallied around Lord Zedd to oppose the Council of Masters. Those Masters and Rangers who were not members of the secret societies stayed aligned with the council to oppose Zedd’s forces.

“The war between Zedd and the Masters nearly consumed the known universe. Countless lives were lost, entire governments and kingdoms were wiped out of existence.

“The turning point in the war came with the destruction of Zedd’s entire planet. Everything he ever knew and cared about destroyed, Zedd gave his soul to the power of a demi-god known as Lothar to gain the power to vanquish his enemies.

“His new found might having deformed his entire body, Zedd wiped out the Masters and the Rangers loyal to them. Zedd’s campaign, however, did not end with the Council’s demise.

“Zedd decided the best way to prevent further tragedies like the one that destroyed his homeworld from happening was to rule over the universe with an iron hand and restore order. His forces began carving a vast empire…one that would thrive for centuries…”

We sat in silence for a few moments as I let what the Empress told me sink in. I had difficulty picturing Zedd as anything but a monster. Envisioning him as a grief-stricken noble fighting to avenge the death of his family was nearly impossible for me.

“So…” I said, breaking the silence, “that war is why Rangers are hated?”

The Empress nodded. “Partially. Zedd’s reign brought harsh time to the universe not see since the times of Salamon. The people blamed the Masters and rangers for Zedd’s creation, as well as failing in their mandate to bind the galaxy together in peace.

“During Zedd’s rule, tales were developed and songs were sung that depicted the Rangers as heartless and power hungry monsters,” she added.

I shook my head. “What about Zordon? How did he fit in?”

The Empress smiled. “Zordon was a grand warrior in the Eltarian army, which ultimately answered to the call of Zedd. His last mission under the army was to hunt down and eliminate an underground resistance cell. He could not complete the mission.”

“Why?” I asked with growing interest.

“The leader of the resistance cell was the princess of Eltar, a woman Zordon had grown quite fond of,” the Empress answered. “She tried to convince Zordon to defect…but ultimately, it was her murder that led to Zordon’s desertion from Zedd’s armies. Murder from the hands of her own father, the king.

“Zordon took leadership of a small band of rebels and killed the king in retaliation, liberating Eltar from Zedd’s empire. He left his homeworld, and began a quest to end Zedd’s rule.

“He gained allies…Dimitria of Inquirus, Prince Lexian of Edenoi, Dulcea of Phaedos, and Kirokishi, the first Magna Defender. All skilled in the ways of The Power, they called themselves Rangers…the first the universe had seen in centuries.

“During an epic campaign, Zordon and his band manage to reduce half of Zedd’s forces. Zedd became desperate and sent his servant Rita to a small, insignificant world to capture the Zeo Crystal. Zordon followed Rita to Earth, and would have been defeated if not for the appearance of six Power Coins. Zordon selected six ancient humanoids to bear the power of the coins.

“During their final battle with Rita, the green Dragon Ranger defected from Zordon. Rita gained the sixth Power Coin, tipping the odds in her favor. She defeated Zordon’s forces and trapped him inside a time warp.

“In one last desperate attempt, Zordon managed to imprison Rita on the Earth’s moon. He chose to stay on the backwater planet and watch over Rita, as well as the five Power Coins. His team left to continue their struggle against Zedd, but not before establishing a Command Center for Zordon, as well as a robotic assistant.”

I smiled at the mention of him. “Alpha…”

The Empress nodded.

“I still don’t understand,” I told her as I leaned forward. “It sounds like Zordon did a lot of good…”

“Many believed so,” the Empress said, “but opinions do change over the course of 10,000 years.

“The ruling body established on Eltar shunned Zordon for his decision to stay on Earth. Many rumors circulated among political circles. Some viewed Zordon a coward in hiding, others accused him of building an army in secret, none approved of his tainting the evolution of Earth with his mere presence and by involving proto-humans in his conflict against Rita. Zordon was branded a traitor,” she said.

Tommy shook his brow as his face tinged red with frustration. “That makes no sense. Zordon wasn’t a traitor…he sacrificed his life to defeat Dark Specter’s forces.”

The Empress nodded. “I was getting to that. Many blame Zordon and his Rangers for the war you all fought against Dark Specter…a war that nearly consumed the known universe. A war that centered around Earth, a planet made significant only by Zordon’s presence.”

Tommy sighed. “That’s crazy.”

“It is the way of things,” the Empress said. “Tales of a planet known as Mirinoi also serve to tarnish your reputation. A Ranger team apparently settled on their world and interfered with their way of life, poisoning their natural lands with their technology.”

Tommy wrinkled his brow. “That’s not how it happened…” He had met Leo and knew the Galaxy Rangers had saved the people of Mirinoi.”

“Regardless…” the Empress continued, “Every major conflict that has brought harm into people’s lives have centered around artifacts of The Power and their Rangers.”

The Empress lifted her hand before Tommy could protest. “You have no need to argue on behalf of Zordon to me. I am merely sharing the views of others, not my own.”

“So what are your views?” I asked.

Before the Empress answered, Mordont barged into the chambers and kneeled before his leader.

“My Lady,” he said as he tilted his head down, “the Drikeshi have retaliated because of their latest defeat. They have captured a group of children from the outer city. They say they will return the children in exchange for one thing…”

“What?” the Empress asked.

Mordont looked to me, making no effort to hide the cold smile on his face. “They want the Ranger.”

--to be continued in Chapter Five...

[Crimson Avenger]

Well done, well done can't wait til chapter five, nope can't wait at all.

[Ryuranger]

Thanks. Chapter Five will be up in a week at the most. Also, be sure to check out Thunderstrike for updates soon.

[Imperialwar]

Cool as always Ryu:D

[ZyuGreen]

Awesome Ryu- This Explains alot about Zordon & Zedds Heritage.

Great Job

[Lord ZEDD]

Great origin of Zedd and Zordon but now I wonder what will happen to Tommy now and what are they going to do to him.

[Qi]

Nice job. Good to see the history. I can't wait for Chapter 5.

[Ryuranger]

Thanks for the feedback. I'm glad you all liked the chapter. If you can't tell, this "novel" is going to have an epic/fantasy feel to it. It will get more interesting as the story unfolds, and Tommy will run into characters both old and new...as well as learn far more about himself as a Ranger and as a person. Stay tuned...

[ZyuGreen]

Great Job! Where is Chapter 5 btw

[Ryuranger]

Thanks.

Chapter Five is coming along rather slowly. I hope to have it up by next week sometime.