Episode 9
One Heart, One Voice, One Purpose
By David Anderson and Derek Pryor
Nema sat looking out her window at the moon. She found the pale light of this planet’s moon indescribably beautiful. The ghostly light spilling in through her window and onto her floor made her feel as if she wasn’t at home waiting for her lover to return, but as if she were riding those beams of moonlight through space, to the planet below. It was a peaceful feeling. If the rest of what Earth had to offer was anything like this, she completely understood why the Emperor wanted to retake this planet so badly. So badly, the other ladies in waiting told her, that his desire to reclaim Earth alone had kept him and Devora alive all those thousands of years Garganstah had been away.
She heard the door open and shut, and footsteps approached where she sat. “Welcome home, Lurian.”
“Hello, Nema,” her visitor said, leaning in and kissing her, “what are you doing up?”
“Waiting for you to get back, and you know that. They keep you ‘til some odd hours.”
“I’m sorry, they wanted Sharaki’s warrior to be rejuvenated and upgraded as soon as possible. But I do a very important job, and you know that. Imagine if we didn’t have Animated Warriors. I’d probably die as a soldier during one of Brannoch’s conquests, and where would that leave you?”
“Oh Lurian…I’m not complaining about the Animated Warriors and Silicons. I’m complaining about how long they keep you. I’m going to be a lonely bride soon if that doesn’t change.”
“It will, I promise,” Lurian said, seizing her up in his arms, “We’re going to settle on this planet, Nema. Brannoch himself has said so. We won’t need Animated Warriors so much after that.”
“I’m looking forward to that,” she smiled, then kissed before leaving the room to prepare for bed.
But Lurian sat down in contemplative silence as she did. He knew he was providing a valuable service to his Emperor, creating artificial soldiers so that their own people could be spared the dangers of war. But…why did they have to make war anyway? Just once, couldn’t Brannoch try negotiating or attempting peaceful coexistence? Certainly Garganstah had the forces to come out swinging if that didn’t work. He helped to create their soldiers, after all. Wouldn’t he know?
Well, at least he could take comfort in what he had told Nema. Earth would Garganstah’s home from now on. No more planetary invasions after this. Perhaps then he could stop bothering his conscience about what the Animated Warriors were used for.
All such thoughts vanished from his mind as Nema reentered the room. She was dressed for bed, and at ease as she was she looked more beautiful than she would’ve if she was on the way to a ball. Lurian came to appreciate the moonlight too as it caught on her blue face. He felt the luckiest man in Garganstah to be engaged to Nema. And he knew, just by looking at her, that somehow everything would turn out all right.
The Proving Grounds were an alien place, and so it had taken him a long time to get to sleep with his troubled mind and doubts about the abilities of this allies, but Ryuji had a strange dream as he slept that night. He stood in a field of tall yellow grass, with majestic purple-hued mountains in the distance. The only sound to be heard was the rustling of the wind. Ryuji whirled around, trying to figure out what was going on, but stopped as he felt a hand drop onto his shoulder. He turned, and found himself face to face with a young man.
He was young indeed, no more than fifteen to look at him. He wore a lot of gold, Ryuji noticed. Headband, boots, breastplate and bracelets over black. Ryuji was sure he had never seen this boy before, and yet there was something very, very familiar about him, and in his eyes was a look of dedication that went beyond his apparent years, the somewhat bitter acknowledgement that his entire life had been given over to one purpose.
“Konichiwa, Fireguard-san,” the boy said.
“Konichiwa…whoever you are,” Ryuji said back.
“You’re facing a crisis with your team,” the boy went on, “You aren’t sure if you’ll be able to get them to fight hard enough to stop your new enemies.”
Ryuji nodded. “How do you know that?”
“There’s a sort of balancing force in the universe, Fireguard-san. When a powerful menace arises that humanity is incapable of dealing with, heroes arise as well to set things right. It creates us and binds all like us together, whether most of us realize it or not. That is how I know your name and your problem. I may have been the first, but you’ve probably seen this force at work more than I have.”
Suddenly, recognition dawned on him. Ryuji did know who this was, even if he had never actually seen his face.
“...Riki. That’s your name.” Ryuji felt like he was being disrespectful all of a sudden. Somehow he knew that he was in the presence of not only the first Ranger ever, but of Earth’s very first superhero. Calling this an honor would be underselling it.
The boy nodded and smiled at the recognition, but then became serious again. “That’s right, I was the first to be blessed and burdened with the powers you, your teammates, and all the sentai in your era have relied on to battle your enemies. Your team was bested in battle, and you’re in the Proving Grounds hoping to find a way to prevent it from happening again.”
“But we’ll fail again unless we all work together. And I don’t know how likely that is after what happened last time,” Ryuji interjected.
“Which brings me to why I’m paying you a visit. Not everyone can embrace such a role readily and completely as quickly as you learned to. To you, being a Guardranger is just as much of job to do as running your restaurant, and you probably think that as the leader, you bear the responsibility for your team’s performance. That, however, is not necessarily true. You can be the greatest leader who ever lived, but that doesn’t mean a thing if your teammates can’t motivate themselves, do their own thinking and work together in deadly circumstances. You can only do so much. I’m sure you’ve heard the analogy about the chain.”
“Yes, I have. But I guess what you’re saying is they have to see how important the job is and commit to it and follow through on the commitment by themselves. Like I did…and not count on me to do it for them.”
“Exactly. Remember, you must do your duty, but they must do theirs as well,” Riki said, his image beginning to fade from sight.
“I’ll try, Kingranger,” Ryuji replied as Riki’s image vanished completely.
Ryuji woke up a minute later to find the campfire they’d made smoldering. It was still the middle of the night, but Miaka and Naoko were sitting around the firepit talking. They noticed him waking up and beckoned him over. In a hushed voice to allow Jason and Tochiro their sleep, Naoko said, “Sorry if we woke you up.”
“I don’t think it was you,” Ryuji replied, “I just had this weird dream…”
“What about?” Miaka asked.
“Kingranger appeared to me,” Ryuji said softly.
“Nani?! Kingranger???” Miaka almost shouted, her mouth dropping open.
“Good grief...what did he say to you?” Naoko asked, intrigued.
“He said that no matter how much I want to kick any of you in the butt about living up to our responsibilities, it’s up to you guys to decide to commit and live up to our responsibilities.”
“Must’ve been some dream,” Miaka said evenly, but Ryuji was pretty sure she was jealous that it hadn’t been her.
“I don’t think it was just a dream,” Ryuji replied, “He said there’s some kind of force that creates heroes when they’re needed, and that was what let him come and talk to me. I guess that makes sense. Why else would we be reborn in time to be old enough to be Guardrangers just when we need to be?”
“Well, I’m glad someone decided to do something for us. We’ll probably need all the help we can get come morning,” Naoko replied.
As she said that, Ryuji’s gaze shifted to his Guardbrace. The dull but comforting red glow of the stone set into it had gone out. Until all five Guardrangers gave their hearts over completely to their fight to protect the people of Earth, it wouldn’t work here. And for a moment, Ryuji felt very, very human. During all the battles and times when he put his life on the line, he could take comfort in the fact that superhuman power was only two words away. Not now.
“What are you thinking about, Ryuji?” Naoko asked, “Kingranger’s message?”
“Not really, Naoko. I was thinking about how we’re supposed to survive this place. We can’t even change here until all of us are totally committed to the cause.”
“I hadn’t even noticed until that last fight that it was just the two of us,” Miaka said to her leader. It had been no small surprise to anyone that Miaka of all them had fully given herself over to being a superhero. Naoko made a noise that sounded like she wasn’t pleased to be counted out like that, even if it was the truth.
“None of us did, Miaka,” Ryuji said gently, trying to keep things from getting nasty between his teammates. “But that’s the problem we’re here to fix,” he went on, “or die trying…”
“Come on, Ryuji. We didn’t survive this long just by relying our powers. We must be part-way there already,” Naoko said with a quiet confidence to her words.
“She’s right, Ryuji. Just relax. I don’t plan on letting us become the first sentai who let down the human race. It’d ruin our reputation,” Miaka added cheerfully. Ryuji smiled. At least he knew he could count on them in a pinch. And they were right. Somehow they could…would find a way to pass the trials posed to them and return to Earth with even greater powers. He had to believe it. The idea of being here on a fool’s errand did not appeal to him…
Sharaki went through some basic fencing moves in his private training room. It was late, but Sharaki needed almost no sleep. He waited silently, patiently for the command to resume the attack. He had since the day before when his warrior overcame the dreaded Guardrangers. They had not lived up to their reputation at all, he had thought. Rodim was one of the least of his men, had been chosen only as a scout. And yet he had defeated them.
Such a disappointment, too. He had been hoping for a last, epic battle to cement his place in Garganstah history before his days as a conquering hero ended with their settling on Earth. There appeared to be very little glory available from the Guardrangers.
He would go and ask Brannoch when they were to resume the attack, he decided. Standing around waiting would only drive him crazy, and his exercises weren’t doing anything to calm his restless mind. Sharaki sheathed his prized warblade in its indestructible scabbard and left his quarters.
Sharaki checked in at the Emperor’s throne room, but Brannoch was not there. According to the guards he was on the top level of the ship having a midnight get-together with some of the other nobles in the aristocrats’ gallery. Sharaki hopped the first elevator to the dome.
The aristocrats’ gallery was a special place on the Garganstah ship. Only the highest officials were allowed inside it, to discuss their business in peace and quiet and with the serene view of the cosmos through the dome covering the gallery. As Sharaki arrived, Brannoch was talking with a group of other noblemen Sharaki didn’t know. One of them made a joke and they all laughed, even Brannoch. Amid the laughter Brannoch caught sight of Sharaki standing at the edge of the dome, excused himself and went to have a word with the Baron.
“Growing impatient, Sharaki?” Brannoch said as if reading his Baron’s mind. And maybe he was. No one denied that he had many mysterious powers.
“Somewhat, milord,” Sharaki replied.
“I’m surprised. Such a reaction is hardly something I would expect from you of all people,” he said, in a voice that sounded a bit like he suspected Sharaki was up to something. Sharaki wondered for a second what Brannoch might do if he really ever thought that about any of his subordinates. “You should know for yourself that crushing a hated enemy isn’t a job that can be done in a mad rush.”
“Of course, sire, but a warrior must know when to move swiftly as well, and I thought you wanted the Guardrangers disposed of as soon as possible,” Sharaki replied.
“That I do, but four thousand years of waiting for the chance has taught me patience, Sharaki. I admit I got somewhat caught up in the moment when you battled them before, but haste leads to rash and foolhardy action. I’m sure that was one of the first things you were taught,” Brannoch said.
“Naturally, sire.”
“So have patience. The fact that I want the Guardrangers dead is exactly why you must remain calm and focused while waiting for them. You defeated them before, but they will not be beaten so easily again, that I guarantee you. So calm your spirit and ready yourself for when the time comes.”
“When will the time come, sire?” Sharaki asked. “I have delivered many victories unto you, my Emperor. My entire life has been given over to overcoming enemies in your name. And how many more conquests can I expect once the Guardrangers are out of the way? What is to become of me then?”
Brannoch’s good eye narrowed, and mighty Sharaki shrunk back a step. “Sharaki,” Brannoch said slowly, “I am the ruler of an entire Empire, am I not? An Empire that has hundreds of planets under its control?”
“Yes, sire,” Sharaki said, but with confidence in his voice, “and it was my blade that delivered many of those into your control. Andreines, Phorae, Misa-Bal…”
“Yes, Sharaki. You led the armies that conquered those worlds for us and so many more. I am indeed grateful to you for that. And now you’re worried that once Earth is conquered, I’ll have no further use for you and your talents,” Brannoch said, sharply but without malice.
“How did you know??” Sharaki asked in disbelief.
“Maybe I read your mind. Maybe I just take care to know about my most valuable subordinates. I don’t know what to tell you, Sharaki. I suppose what you do after you make your final conquest is up to you. I’d be lying if I said I would need my military as much after Earth is occupied, but don’t fear the future so much. You will find a purpose, and my people and I are still counting on you to bring our home back to us. You are forgiven as long as you remember that.”
“Yes, sire. Thank you for pardoning my impatience. I…overreacted,” Sharaki said.
“Go and calm your spirit, Sharaki. You will be notified when any trace is found of the Guardrangers. Now if you’ll excuse me, the others are beginning to look worried,” Brannoch replied as he walked back to the table with the officials, where the lively discussion resumed. Sharaki turned and left the dome.
Yes, Sharaki would be ready. He would go prepare and stand vigil right this minute. As Garganstah’s finest swordsmaster, he would not--could not--do less.
Jason woke up groaning as he tried to work out the sleep kinks in his back. He wasn’t used to sleeping on hard ground. Sleeping in four-star hotels half the year around had made him soft, he thought to himself. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he glanced around at his immediate surroundings. Ryuji was stretched out next to him, lying on his stomach. The others were resting around the remains of the campfire, still asleep. Whoever was on watch must’ve drifted off too, but it seemed like nothing had come along to disturb their slumber anyway.
He sat up slowly, letting the others sleep for a while yet. He had never been in a lush forest like this, and found it hard to believe that they’d come here to prove what heroes they really were. What kind of tests could possibly await them here? He quavered a little thinking about it, as he realized how quiet everything was. There were no sounds to be heard but the breathing of his slumbering teammates. Until...
“Jase?” Jason looked down to see Ryuji blinking up at him sleepily.
“Oh, sorry, bro,” Jason said sheepishly. “Didn’t mean to wake you up.”
“No sweat. I was going in and out anyways. Are you okay?”
Jason sighed heavily. “I blew it, Ryu. I let you down.”
“Nani?” Ryuji pushed himself up on one elbow. “Jase, don’t...”
“Don't what? Tell the truth? This whole Guardranger thing, man... I mean, here I am getting on your back to take it seriously, and when you finally do, I can’t deliver on my end.” Jason pulled his knees up to his chest and pushed a hand through his hair, unable to meet his best friend's eyes. “I’m sorry, dude. I screwed up.”
“Seems like there’s a lot of that feeling going around.”
Jason and Ryuji both looked up to find Tochiro sitting cross-legged in the grass in front of them. “Jason, I’m a lot more guilty of this than you are. You didn’t freeze in the middle of that fight with Sharaki’s guy. You’re not the one who almost cost us all our lives back there. It was me. I did that.” Shame was a painted portrait over Tochiro’s face.
Ryuji took in the sight of his friends and teammates, both of them fighting their guilt and losing. He’d been somewhat short with Tochiro over the whole thing, but he’d never intended to be deliberately harsh. But he’d been convinced recently that they had to carry their own weight, and so he didn’t feel like he could be too forgiving about what had happened.
Ryuji stood up. “Guys, listen…I‘m not the one should be making your apologies to. I know this is tough, but you’re the ones who have to find it in yourselves to do what we have to do.”
“Who told you that?” Tochiro asked.
“Kingranger did,” Ryuji replied matter-of-factly.
“Nani?” Tochiro blurted.
“Ryu, I…” Jason began, but Ryuji cut him off.
“Jase, save it, okay?” Ryuji put a hand on his friend’s shoulder to keep the words from stinging too deeply. “We don’t need words, we need proof that we’re all up to being the Guardrangers. So let’s go prove it, huh?”
Ryuji woke up the girls, then the five of them headed off down the only path leading from the clearing, figuring it was as good a way to start their journey through the Proving Grounds as any.
Soon, the cover of trees broke and the Rangers found themselves in a scenic valley. It seemed just as unlikely to present them with life-threatening danger as the forest had. Still, the Guardrangers were now alert, feeling their humanity keenly now that they were cut off from their powers for the first time. Shadows seemed to dart into hiding at the edges of everyone’s vision, and the quiet all around them seemed to scream a warning that something evil was lying in ambush. They continued on, wary of the smallest sound. It was more than a little unnerving.
They were all wondering the same thing, but it was Naoko who broke the silence. “This is strange, don’t you think? I thought this place was supposed to test us, but nothing’s happening.”
“Yeah, it’s too freakin’ quiet,” Jason muttered. “I mean, no birds singing, the wind’s died down...it’s like waiting for the other shoe to drop.”
“Yeah, that‘s the same feeling I‘ve got. Keep your eyes open, guys. Look for anything around here that’s unusual,” Ryuji replied.
“Like that?” Tochiro asked, pointing ahead. They followed his finger, and noticed what appeared to be a large statue in the near distance.
“Think it’s a clue or something?” Jason queried.
“We won't find out standing here,” Naoko answered, and strode purposefully over to it. Ryuji was about to call out for her to stop, to stick with the rest of them, but saw there was no point. He just jogged after her and quickly motioned for the others to do the same.
The statue set on the edge of a large expanse of sand. The Rangers couldn’t see the other edge of it. But for the moment their attention was focused was on the strange monument before them. On a large block of tan stone stood five statues of warriors cast from the same material, all brandishing outlandish weapons and standing in martial arts poses.
What struck the Rangers, though, was the fact that they recognized these warriors.
“Okay, Miaka…” Jason piped up. “Wanna give me a roll call?”
“I thought you‘d never ask,” Miaka replied with enthusiasm, and instantly got to work identifying them out loud, even though most of her teammates already knew who the statues depicted. “The first one here on the left is TimeRed,” she gestured to the statue of the Timeranger's defacto leader, who was holding his Assault Vector.
“This is NinjaWhite, the first woman to lead a sentai. She wasn’t much older than I am at the time.” Her statue stood to Time Red’s immediate right, her right hand wrapped around the hilt of her KakureMaru, the other just behind her back beneath its sheath. “That’s Mega Black,” she continued, pointing to his statue, Mega Rod in hand. “This is Burai, the Dragon Ranger. He was the first sixth Ranger. The short sword he's holding’s the Zyusoken. He used that to summon his Shogozyu, Dragon Caesar.”
Jason let out a breath, trying to be impressed even though the names meant nothing to him. “Whoa.”
“Now this last one--” Miaka stopped short when she reached the female figure on the far end. “Umm…”
“What’s wrong?” Jason asked.
Miaka looked abashed. “I have NO idea who this is…” she replied, pointing at the feminine figure.
“Yellow Four,” Naoko said. “Of the Biomen.” Everyone turned to look at her in surprise. “Please, as if Miaka’s the only one allowed to know anything about other sentai?”
“Well, no, of course not. But...are you sure?” Tochiro asked.
“I'm positive. She was strong, dedicated…everything I believed a hero should strive to be.”
“It shows,” Jason drawled.
“Nani?” Naoko glared Superman heat-vision at Jason.
“Come on, guys. We didn’t come here to kill each other,” Ryuji said, trying to keep this from getting out of hand. “Look at this.”
They did. Carved into the block of stone the statues stood on was an ancient message. It read,
Hearts United As One,
All Giving All For All
“ ‘All giving all for all’? What the heck does that mean?” Jason asked. Ryuji had an idea, but a strange feeling told him to be quiet about it.
“You have no idea?” Naoko asked.
“Hey, I’m just a little out of my depth here,” Jason came back. “It’s not like I know anything about sentai.”
“You’re kidding.” Miaka looked surprised by this.
“Nope. Every year, an alien invasion or an uprising of demons or something crazy like that happens, but it only affects Japan. A team like ours shows up, fights them, beats them and then goes away. Eventually the rest of the world stopped paying attention to us guys.”
“Jase, that’s not funny,” Ryuji cut in.
“I never said it was, dude, but it’s true. After a couple years of non-stop sentai vs. monster stuff, well, we stopped hearing worried news reports about which country was next. At least that’s what my dad said…but I never heard about guys like us on the news unless I was in Japan.”
“People, can we worry about where in the world we’re going to be on the news later? We’re on the clock here,” Naoko said, interrupting the debate.
“Yeah, I know we are. I’m just telling everybody that’s why I seem so clueless about all the stuff you guys, who see these sentai all the time, take for granted,” Jason replied, shrugging his shoulders. “We just don’t have superheroes where I grew up, and the built-in knowledge we have only goes so far.”
“C’mon, Jase. Remember that time I was staying at your dad’s place and you took me to that huge comic book shop? I mean, America’s probably got the biggest variety of superheroes and I’ve ever seen, man. Didn’t that give you some kind of idea of what all this might have been like?” Ryuji said, still a little incredulous.
“It’s not the same thing as being able to see real-life costumed good guys and watching how they do it, bro,” Jason said with a surprising seriousness from him. “Anyway, the Gargs probably aren’t gonna wait for long. Let’s get going, huh?”
The Rangers set off behind the monument. Almost at once, though the skies began to darken as a wave of heavy clouds cover overtook the sun, throwing them into momentary darkness. The Guardrangers continued on undaunted, but they hadn't gone more than twenty feet before a rolling wall of fog appeared and swallowed the group whole. The Rangers tried to stick close together, but the fog became so thick that almost at once they lost sight of each other.
“Ryuji? Miaka? Tochiro? Where are you guys?” Jason called out. No reply came.
“Well I don’t know about them, but I’m right here. And as far as your concern for my welfare goes--arigato gozimasu,” Naoko said dryly.
“That's not funny,” Jason said, noting the trace of sarcasm in Naoko’s tone, but ignoring it all the same. He was getting worried. “Where is everybody?”
Miaka hung tightly onto Tochiro’s hand so as not to lose track of him in this thick fog. “Jason?! Naoko?” he called vainly.
“Kami-sama...what happened? How could they all just up and vanish like that?” Miaka asked worriedly.
Tochiro sighed, “I don’t know. I can’t see an inch in front of my face in this fog, but I don’t understand why they can’t hear us, we weren’t that far apart when the fog set in.” Holding hands tightly, Tochiro led the way into the mists as they began the search for the others.
Ryuji, meanwhile, stumbled through the fog alone, calling out to his teammates every few steps. He had the same luck as the others, though--as in none at all.
He stumbled as his foot caught into a pothole and cursed. Pulling himself up again, Ryuji was surprised to see the fog beginning to clear ahead of him. As it did, he could make out a humanoid figure, and started to run forward, thinking he had found one of the other Rangers. A few seconds later, the fog cleared enough to show him that he was mistaken. The figure was no one he knew. He was a tall, imposing being wearing dark robes and a tattered crimson cape. His complexion was pale blue and his long gold hair was carried off to the side by the gentle breeze blowing around them. The person, whoever it was, extended a hand and beckoned him.
“Who are you?” Ryuji asked suspiciously.
“Your host, you might say. I am the taskmaster of the Proving Grounds. You are quite privileged, my friend.”
“Oh, yeah?” Ryuji drawled. “Why’s that?”
“You’re the first visitor I’ve had in six hundred years, that’s why. I intend to put your friends through some tests to gauge for myself if they truly possess the inner strength required to bear the name Guardranger.”
“Okay...here's another question for you--why do you make it sound like I’m not going to try to help them?” Ryuji said.
“The fact that I'll not allow you to do otherwise, for one thing,” the strange man replied benevolently. “Nothing transpires here in the Proving Grounds unless I permit it, and as such, your friends must conquer their own demons with the aid for their leader.”
With that he threw his arms out to his sides, a howling surge of wind swirled to life around them, and everything went black.
So it was with the other Guardrangers as well, wandering through the fog in search of their allies. Suddenly the wind picked up, and then darkness prevailed. After a moment of that, torches suddenly lit themselves, and the two pairs of Rangers found themselves in what looked like the inside of a pyramid, but isolated from each other.
“All right, I'm getting creeped now...where are we?” Miaka asked, trying not to let it show that she was a little scared by all this.
“I don’t know, but it doesn’t look like we found the others,” Tochiro replied. “Naoko? Ryuji? Jason?” he shouted, but got no response. “Come on, Miaka. Let’s try to find a way out.”
“Right behind you,” she said, and followed him through an ancient doorway and into the heart of this strange tomb, or whatever it was. Jason and Naoko, likewise in a strange room in this tomb or pyramid or whatever it was with no sign of their comrades, set out together to find them.
Hmmm...an interesting group, to be sure. This could prove to be most interesting, the taskmaster said to himself. He and Ryuji stood in a room like the rest of the Rangers had appeared in, except there were no doors or windows, no way out. By means of a glass screen set into one wall, he watched Tochiro and Miaka thread their way through the corridors of the maze, then snapped his fingers and saw Jason and Naoko also trying to find their way out.
Ryuji wasn’t paying much attention. He was struggling with the manacles the taskmaster had put around his wrists and ankles to keep him from causing trouble, though what he was supposed to do to foul up the taskmaster’s plans when he couldn’t even see a way out of the room, he didn’t know.
“Why are you doing this?” Ryuji demanded.
“Why? Do you truly need the answer to such a question, young man? Did you and your comrades come here not knowing you’d be tested? Everyone who’s come to the Proving Grounds over the course of time knows that. I cannot be expected to simply hand over the secrets I’ve been charged to protect to just anyone who comes along looking for them, can I? I must test their mettle on a number of levels--physical, mental, even spiritual. Besides...I haven’t even gotten started yet. Better to ask me that question again when this truly begins.”
Ryuji fumed. He hadn’t thought someone would be actively working against them. But the taskmaster was right, they had come knowing they’d be tested. He had thought they would all be tested together, though.
“Now then…” the taskmaster trailed off, “let us see just what kinds of demons are roaming unchecked through your friends psyches.”
“Ryuji?!” Jason called out, but the only reply was his own echo. “C'mon, dude, answer me!”
“This is getting pointless. They could be anywhere,” Naoko said. “and Kami only knows why we’re here and the others aren’t. What are we supposed to do?”
The taskmaster smiled in the distance as he heard this. This was exactly the problem that had kept her from reaching full potential. But no, she could wait. It was the one who radiated the blue aura that he wished to vex first.
“Man, I wish Ryuji was here. He’d know what the heck we should be doing to get our butts in gear,” Jason muttered. Almost at once a block in the wall in front of him lit up with writing in letters of the brightest gold.
To have such faith in your friend is admirable. But you would be better served by having faith in yourself.
Jason was taken aback. “What the--” he began, but before he could get any further the writing began to swirl and change into something else. Into a scene Jason was trying hard to forget. It was him as Waterguard, battling futilely against a group of Silicons. He looked as if he didn’t really know what the hell he was doing out there, engaged in mortal combat with creatures of metal who had been created only to crush Garganstah’s enemies.
His image fought and fell. He was saved only when Fireguard and Airguard, the only members of the team who had already found their purpose and dedication, had come to the rescue of the others.
The images vanished, and more golden letters scrawled themselves across the block. Poor Ranger. He can barely fathom the depths of all this. But then...he's hardly the only one floundering at the moment...The writing faded as soon as they had finished reading it, and another image began to appear. Sharaki formed from the miasma of light, and then Earthguard, fighting bravely but uselessly against him. And then she let herself be distracted in mid-blow by an observer to the battle.
Again the visions vanished and words crawled across the stone. Two who profess to defend the defenseless, one who comprehends not what is asked of him, one who cannot lead herself to face it. Until their minds change, their fate remains the same.
Jason and Naoko stood in silence for a long moment as the writing vanished, nothing taking its place this time, but they could swear they heard a sadistic cackle coming from somewhere in the distance. They had both been through some rough scrapes since becoming Guardrangers, but having the exact identity of the problems they were facing wrenched from the depths of their minds and thrust in their faces was harsh and jarring.
“Whoa...Deja vu all over again. Somebody knows us pretty well, huh?” Jason whispered, more to himself than to Naoko.
“Clearly. But don’t be too surprised. It’s the reason we all had to come here, after all,” Naoko answered, though Jason could tell she’d been shaken up by it too.
“So... what now?” he asked.
“We might want to consider running,” Naoko replied, no emotion at all in her voice.
Jason spun half-around to see what she was talking about, and saw three pairs of nasty-looking green eyes appear in the doorway behind them. They were attached to three towering troll-like creatures with grayish-green mottled skin. Each carried a studded club that looked like a human skull wouldn’t be much of an obstacle to it.
“Oh, yeah...running. Awesome concept. Tremendous idea,” he blurted, ducking into the nearest doorway away from them. Naoko was right behind him. With the howls of a creature attacking a helpless foe, the monsters charged after them.
Tochiro led the way through the maze, not sure at all where he was going. But when he suddenly heard shouts and growls coming from straight ahead, he knew better than to be in the way of whatever was coming toward him.
He grabbed Miaka by the shoulders and hurried her into an adjacent doorway and pulled both of them out of sight.
“What are you doing?” she protested, “That could be the others.”
“No way. I’ve never heard anything human make a sound like that, and we can’t take the chance that it might be something else,” Tochiro replied, wishing he could still call on his powers. True, they hadn’t served him that well in his last battle, but anything was better than the feeling of abject vulnerability that crept over him as the sounds drew closer. And closer. Then they were in the next room, and Tochiro and Miaka held their breath for a tense moment until the sounds began to fade into the distance.
“That was close,” Tochiro said, letting out his breath.
Miaka looked at him wordlessly. While she had been gathered protectively in his arms a minute ago, she had felt a strange sensation. Miaka had wondered about Tochiro for a while, about what kind of person he really was and what kind relationship she might have with him outside of them being Guardrangers.
He was usually so serene, as if unaware of how dangerous things usually were for them. And yet there was a very heroic part of him too. An unusual combination, but one she found herself drawn to. How, though, she wondered. Was it a crush, or a brotherly thing? Noticing the look on his face, she decided to worry about it later. A look of unpleasant surprise had swept over his features, and she followed his gaze to see what the surprise was.
It was small tendrils of golden light snaking into strange shapes on the wall in front of him. After a second she began to recognize words in the golden scrawl. You defend, but you cannot attack. You flock beneath the banner of those who fight for your people, and yet you fail to raise your sword for its cause.
“Nani? What’s all that supposed to be about?” Miaka asked, but Tochiro said nothing. The words began to disintegrate, as if being blown away by the wind, but nothing replaced them. Nothing had to, Tochiro knew exactly what it meant.
He walked out of the room not paying attention to where he was going. Miaka called out to him, then dashed after him when he didn’t answer, but he paid her no mind. He was too busy thinking about what the writing on the wall had said.
Tochiro had never, ever been the violent sort, and now it seemed strange that he had so readily accepted it when two strangers had come up and asked him to join their team to protect the world. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t known what these kinds of people were expected to do. Who couldn’t? Jason had been right, every year a new sentai and a new menace for them to fight popped up. But he had still accepted the opportunity. Why, he still wasn’t sure. Maybe in the back of his mind he had been afraid that if he passed up a chance like that he’d never get another one, and deep down he really did want to be a hero. Maybe it had been some kind of force beyond his control. He was certainly willing to believe in such things now.
But he had choked during that last battle, both when fighting the Garganstah warriors head-to-head and within his Guard Beast. He had never been comfortable with the job of fighting super-powered enemies, despite always answering the call, and it was because of his reluctance that the Guardrangers had lost.
Failure…not a fighter, a voice seemed to say in his head. Failure, failure…
“Failure…”
“Tochiro, what’s wrong?” Miaka asked in alarm.
“I…failed. If I hadn’t frozen up we would have won that battle. I’m just not cut out for being a warrior…”
Miaka paused. Tochiro had never seemed like the warrior type to her, either, but that wasn’t to say he brought nothing to the team.
“Okay, maybe you’re not a fighter the way Ryuji or Naoko are. That doesn’t mean you’re not an important part of the group. We never would’ve won the battle in Izumo if you hadn’t come up with that medicine to stop the germ Armag was spreading.”
“That was different. He was just one guy with a few monsters, how am I supposed to deal with a whole empire?” Images of feeling like he was about to puke while the others were either helpless or waiting for him to attack their enemy, and the feeling of being overwhelmed prevented him from doing anything at all.
“Tochiro, look at me,” Miaka said. She grabbed his head and forced him to look her in the eye. “You wouldn’t have taken the offer if you weren’t up to it.”
“Then why did we lose if I’m so up to it?”
“You just have more to learn than the rest of us do. Look, a sentai is just like any other kind of team. Everybody has to make a contribution, but not everybody’s contribution has to be the same,” Miaka said gently, and her words began to break down the darkness tormenting Tochiro’s mind. It hurt her to see him like this, but she seemed to be getting through.
“Do you really know so much you can say that?” Tochiro asked.
“Yes. Everyone’s good at something different in a team. You’re sensitive to nature and good at solving problems with your mind instead of brute force. That’s a big help right there.”
Tochiro looked deep into Miaka’s eyes. In his mind he still saw himself hesitating, unable to deliver the blow to Rodim, but in front of him he saw Miaka, willing to forgive him and give him a chance to redeem himself. So young, so vital, so much more knowledgeable than he was in these matters.
“Maybe you’re right,” Tochiro whispered, then stood up. “Let’s go.”
Miaka smiled. “That’s more like it.”
“Like you said, I may not be a fighter like the others, but I don’t want to blow this twice.”
The two of them set off into the labyrinth again. Tochiro looked over at Miaka for a second, and determined that for her sake, her confidence in him, he would not let the team down again. She was counting on him now, and he was going to be worthy of that confidence.
“Ah, such entertainment!” the taskmaster cheered. “I haven't had such an interesting go of it in ages.”
Ryuji regarded him coolly, wordlessly. He and the taskmaster had just watched Miaka give Tochiro her little pep talk, and watched them now as they wandered the maze trying to find their friends and the way out.
“You’ve been silent for some time now, Fireguard. Contemplating escape?” the taskmaster said suddenly.
“If I could walk through walls or get out of these handcuffs, I might,” Ryuji replied, hopping over to the taskmaster’s side with the chains of the manacles around his legs jangling noisily as he did.
“This is hardly a personal vendetta, you understand,” the taskmaster said. “Your friends are consenting adults--well, most of them are. You must realize they have to prove they can rise above any crisis if they desire the power I keep.”
“And I suppose choking you with these chains wouldn’t help any.”
The taskmaster laughed. “No, it would only make things worse. But I’m impressed you still have your sense of humor.”
“If you can’t laugh, what have you got left?” Ryuji said conversationally, wondering what the hell he was doing. This guy had just sent a group of killer, smelly monsters after Naoko and his best friend, and Kami only knew what else he had planned. Why was Ryuji talking to him with this kind of ease and relaxation?
“Yes, I suppose so. But that isn’t going to see your friends through what I have in mind,” the taskmaster said, becoming serious. “I've shown them the door. It is all up to them to conquer what waits on the other side." He snapped his fingers, and for the Guardrangers, reality suddenly took a turn for the worst.
Jason’s legs felt like cement and his lungs were so hot inside that he felt he had swallowed a bucket full of burning embers. But the overpowering stink of the troll-creatures was still strong behind them, so he and Naoko couldn’t stop running yet.
But then there was the sound of rock grating on rock, and something heavy falling. He didn’t care, he kept running. Something else looking to end his life in this crazy place, no doubt. There was a thundering crash, and suddenly the growling of the monsters that had been chasing them couldn’t be heard anymore. Even the stink that had been threatening to overwhelm him was somewhat muffled. Jason brought himself to a gasping halt, then slowly turned around to see that a stone door had dropped from the ceiling and blocked the way behind them.
““Well...there's luck for you,” Naoko panted.
“I’m not sure it was luck,” Jason replied. Suddenly there was another rumbling, a sound of stone against stone, this time beneath their feet. A slab in the floor slid away, revealing a flare of blinding gold. Jason shielded his eyes and tried to see where it was coming from, saw the light coming from a stairway descending into the depths of this strange building. Jason began down the steps.
“Wait! Who knows what’s down there?” Naoko said.
“Hey, at this point, it's a helluva lot safer than staying here! C'mon!” Indeed, that corridor sealed off by the stone door had been the only way out of this room. It was a dead end. Jason's sneakers crunched against the ancient stone of the stairs as he started to go down.
“Well...when in Rome, or...something...” Naoko sighed. She hurried down after him, covering her eyes against the harsh golden glow. As the two of them descended the steps, the light began to soften until they could stop shielding their eyes. Soon the bottom of the stairway came into sight, and beyond it another doorway. But above it was a strange sign, written in those gold letters that had taunted them before.
The final test lies beyond. Through here you will find if you truly are heroes, or simply ones who are waiting to die. There is no escaping destiny.
“So much for the fuggin’ red carpet,” Jason muttered.
Naoko ignored Jason’s flippant remark for once. She was too worried about this “final test” they had just been warned about. She saw the instant where she had been locked in battle and then let her attention wander to someone on the sidelines. A mistake that would have left her dead against anyone but Sharaki. What if that happened again? What if she couldn’t focus in battle, when she already wasn’t fighting with her whole heart? Before this was over, she was sure she’d get to find out.
Silently, they walked down the rest of the stairs and through the doorway.
“Do you have any idea where we’re going?” Miaka asked, though she knew the answer as well as he did.
“I wish I could say yes...” Tochiro replied. There were no clues to follow in this maze, no sounds of living things. No one answered their calls. One room in this maze looked just like all the others.
Suddenly, there was a burst of golden light on one wall. Instead of writing, though, it was an arrow pointing to the doorway next to it. Curious, the Rangers stepped through it into the next room, and another arrow appeared next to another doorway. They walked through this one as well, then another arrow appeared in the next room beside yet another doorway. They followed the arrows hurriedly through a series of rooms, not sure what they could expect to find, but feeling anything would be better than more aimless wandering.
Soon they stood in a room with no doors but the one they’d used to enter, as featureless as all the others in this labyrinth. Suddenly, more of the gold writing they had seen before scrawled itself out on the wall in front of them.
Time grows short. Evil will rise soon and good must rise higher to overcome it. Come now, heroes, face your fate and prove your ability to rise.
“What does that--” Tochiro began to ask, as the floor collapsed beneath them. Miaka shrieked in surprise all the way down, until they splashed into a fast-flowing river full of freezing cold water far below the labyrinth. It carried them through caves at a startling pace, before starting to slow down and shallow out, finally depositing them in a torch lit cavern with a doorway in the far wall.
“You all right?” Tochiro asked, pulling himself out of the water.
“Kami-sama...I swear, another landing like that and I'll be crippled.” Miaka replied.
“From that message it seemed like we must be getting close to the end. Can’t let the threat of wheelchairs stop us now.” Tochiro said, trying to smile at his wisecrack as he helped Miaka up. He was wondering what could be waiting for them ahead. But he would face them bravely. Miaka was counting on him.
Miaka was wondering what Tochiro was thinking. In addition to his serene manner, being hard to read had always been one of the big things about his personality. But now she sensed a confidence about him she hadn’t before. Had she really gotten through to him that well? There wasn’t a trace of the doubt or fear that had lost them the battle before.
Together they passed through the doorway.
The taskmaster silently watched the two pairs of Rangers travel into the very heart of the labyrinth. He concentrated on what he had seen in them, what problems he had unearthed when he peered into their minds, quickly but expertly forming constructs born of those fears and insecurities, which would probably scare the Guardrangers out of their wits, but it had to be done. Just as he had been doing it for other adventurers throughout the ages.
As the Guardrangers entered the depths of the strange structure, they noticed nothing odd happening. They wouldn’t find out what he was up to until he let it happen. But he would. He had already stoked the fire, now it was time to fan it.
Tochiro and Miaka walked cautiously down a long hallway, but all of a sudden Tochiro felt as if he was in a daze, barely noticing the all-encompassing blackness that sprang up around them as the walls and floor melted away. Miaka was wafted away from Tochiro by some unseen force, and suddenly unearthly voices began to chant around him.
Tochiro? Tochiro, are you there? A soft, musical voice whispered out of the dark. The blackness rippled and shifted, taking on a slender feminine form, its arms reaching out toward him. It was Saori Matsunaga, the charming young biologist he had known for all of two or three hours before parting company before. What was she doing here?
Tochiro...thank Kami-sama I found you in time. Come with me,” she said, taking his hand. Come with me...away from all this fighting and turmoil. You don’t have to be a part of this any longer. At her spoken words, a lush forest full of every form of natural beauty he could imagine come to life around her, filled with untouched sylvan beauty. His head felt numb, and he was only barely aware of his surroundings. But he could feel a wave of peace washing over him as Saori pulled him toward the woodlands behind her, and did not resist.
Such was not the same for his teammate, though. No...No! What is he doing???
Miaka was still there. She tried to rush over and grab Tochiro, to save him from whatever kind of trap he was being dragged into, but something held her back. This test wasn’t for her, after all, but she would play a part in it all the same when the taskmaster was ready to use her.
Miaka wanted to cry out, to call him back somehow. She didn’t know how she really felt about Tochiro, but she could feel something menacing about all this, and tried to find her voice to warn him, but no words came. None of her own, anyway. Miaka heard herself say, “Tochiro! What about the Earth? What about all the people we have to protect?? We can't stop Garganstah without you!”
She became aware of a mob of people around her all of a sudden. A disheveled sea of lost souls, some of them with dirt and blood smudged across their faces like ghastly war paint. Some of them looked to be in terrible pain; others glared at Tochiro with anger and contempt. But most of them held an unbearable look of sadness. As if someone or something had shattered whatever hope they had left into a thousand pieces. He was supposed to be a hero, he was supposed to be protecting them from evil beyond their own ability to cope with. What was he doing letting himself be dragged off to some utopia while they suffered in his absence?
And Tochiro’s thoughts slowly began to focus as he realized what he was seeing. Two worlds, one of controversy and confusion, but one that counted on people like him to rise to its defense, to protect it despite its faults. It was the world where he had been born and raised.
Tochiro...don't look back. Don't let them bring you into this chaos...it's not your concern. Come with me...come with me where you can be safe and free of all this...” Saori said, and before Tochiro the calm, natural world beckoned again. He tried to remember, where he was, what he was doing here, why all those people were looking at him like that.
Once again words came from Miaka’s mouth, once again she knew she had not issued them, though they echoed her own thoughts. “Tochiro! Don't you see what's happening?? If one Guardranger gives up we’ve already lost!” The people behind her looked at him expectantly, but it wasn’t a case of “Where the hell are you going and leaving us stranded like this?” this time. Instead, they had looks of desperation. Their only hope for salvation was walking out on them, unaffected by their righteous indignation at it.
But it wasn’t that Tochiro was turning his back on mankind. It was just that his thoughts began to clear and questions of morals began to dance through them. He had never agreed with violence and never wanted any part of fighting, there was no doubt about that. But…but he had been one to leave people to miserable fates either. It just wasn’t in him. But Tochiro had never expected to have the fate of the world dropped onto his shoulders…
It was a struggle, Saori pulling him one way, Miaka’s words and the looks of the people pulling him the other.
Freedom...peace...serenity...a life free of conflict...all of that and more can be yours if you leave this madness behind, Tochiro...Saori's voice resonated with that slightly musical tone he'd fallen in love with, further numbing his will to resist it.
.
“If you do, it's over!” Miaka shouted in outrage and desperation, again with the words of another. “For the people, all the places and things you loved about it--for the entire world! Is THAT what you want?!”
“I didn’t say I’d go,” Tochiro managed to croak, feeling like these contradictory forces were about to pull him apart. He didn’t know what to think. Being able to leave fighting behind definitely appealed to his core beliefs, but…all those people were counting on him.
Saori pulled on his arm again, her features taking a suddenly malevolent cast. Remain here, and death and misery will be the only reality you ever experience again, Tochiro. Only I can save you from this terrible fate. Come with me...Come with me…
With a sudden twist and jerk, Tochiro pulled himself free from her grip. He would’ve liked to have had the promise of peace for the rest of his days, but how could he live with himself knowing he’d abandoned everyone to find it? Besides, he’d promised Miaka he wouldn’t wimp out of his duty anymore.
“Gomenesai, Saori-chan. Maybe next time.” He walked toward Miaka, and the relieved smiles of the people behind her, and as he did the two scenarios began to fade until they were completely gone, and Tochiro and Miaka stood alone, back in the depths of the maze.
“What just happened?” Miaka asked.
“I think,” Tochiro said slowly, “that it was one of the big tests we came for.”
“Did we pass it?”
“I don’t think you have anything to worry about…but I sure hope I did.”
At that moment, one of the many strange powers at work in the Proving Grounds washed over them, and they disappeared in a haze of light.
At the same time, Jason and Naoko were also in the maze’s lower level, trying to find their friends, or a way out, or anything besides another empty room.
“This is bonkers. We’ve been walking through this hall for ten minutes. Where the heck’s the end of it?” Jason asked.
“I’m as lost as you are,” Naoko replied, trying to calm herself despite all the weird things that had happened since they got here. Was she truly that afraid, though? This place was a lot more boring than frightening, with just one room made out of stone after another. It seemed like any other nasty creatures that might be after them had been left in the level above.
No, it wasn’t the dangers of the maze, whatever they might be. She was thinking the same thing Jason had just said, about how long this hallway went on. Could it really go on forever? The Proving Grounds were nothing like the world where she lived. How could she be sure that they weren’t being sent back to the beginning of this hallway whenever they walked through a certain number of rooms? Had they walked into some kind of monotonous trap?
Naoko stopped walking, listening for the slightest sound that might them if there was anyone else around. The blank walls of stone and the silence apart from their own footsteps were starting to get to her a little. She began to realize that she felt alone, despite Jason being right there. She just didn’t know what to do. Naoko wished Ryuji was there with her, he’d be able to get them through this.
Jason was thinking the same thing. He was starting to feel like he was in way over his head. Before the Rangers had always faced whatever came their way as a united front, and usually with firm but supportive leadership from Ryuji, and he’d come to take it for granted. It was just him and Naoko now, without Ryuji or anyone else around to guide them.
Suddenly, that spidery gold writing began to appear on the wall beside them again, spelling out another message. This one didn’t seem intended to taunt them, however.
Heroes must fly on their own wings.
Then blackness engulfed them.
“What the---HEY!!!” Jason yelled, but just as he did the darkness that had been enveloping him a moment ago was receding. He was suddenly aware that he was in his Waterguard uniform, and was standing in downtown Tokyo. But there was something wrong--terribly wrong. The normally bustling city was empty; devoid of all life. No lights lit the streets and a thick fog rolled between the dark alleys. What was going on?
“Daydreaming in battle, Guardranger? Fatal error, to be sure."
Waterguard swerved around in response to the grating voice in his ears. Standing before him was a werewolf-like beast, covered from snout to foot in silver-gray fur, wearing a somewhat archaic-looking chest plate and black gauntlets on his forearms. He opened his mouth to chuckle again, showing rows of wicked-looking teeth within. But that wasn't the sight that unnerved Waterguard.
The other Guardrangers were there, in fighting stances, weapons drawn. But they weren't moving. They were stone still; as if they'd been removed from the flow of time itself. Except for one--Fireguard, who was lying facedown, still and lifeless at the werewolf's feet, thin wisps of smoke trailing out from under his stomach.
Waterguard felt rage swell up from the pit of his gut. “You--”
“Calm down, boy. He’s not dead yet. I just thought I’d do you the courtesy of letting you watch him die before I started on the rest of you,” the monster said, then suddenly charged, slavering jaws opened wide. In an instant the Orca Brand was in Waterguard’s hand, but before he could even think about using it, the monster was right on top of him!
“Jason? Are you there? Hello?” Naoko called out. Everything around her was a expanse of pitch black, but it was clearing quickly. She found herself on a windswept cliff, with a sea of gray cloud cover surging along below. The air seemed slightly thin. Jason vanished from sight as her surroundings took shape. She turned around slowly, taking a moment to collect herself and apply some logic to the situation she’d just been thrown into. But then, being instantaneously transported to some strange place from another place that was already strange enough on its own didn’t exactly adhere to what was logical and what wasn’t.
“Naoko…help me…” a faint voice cracked. She turned toward where it had come from, and there was Ryuji, battered, bruised and bound by a dozen chains to a triangular rock. Blood flowed freely from a dozen slashes across his face and his shirt was a tattered ruin of fabric and wet crimson.
“Kami-sama...Ryuji!” she called over the rushing wind, but Ryuji only groaned. He looked barely conscious. She started toward him, then stopped short.
Between the two of them was a deep and wide crevasse, too wide for her to even think about jumping. Clouds rolled within it so that Naoko couldn’t see the bottom, even with the fierce winds blowing around them. Small pebbles were blown into the depths of the crevasse by the winds. But suddenly they began to pick up, and the wind howled past her ears like some angry demon, blasting through her thin black slacks and against her ears.
But it also began to push the rock Ryuji was tied to toward the crevasse. It was too heavy to roll or fall over even because of that kind of wind, but not big enough where it would stop from moving at all. Ryuji said something, and although Naoko could barely hear him over the wind, she was pretty sure that it had been “help.”
Waterguard cried out as the monster’s jaws closed like a tooth-covered vice around his torso. He tried to turn a blind eye to the pain and switch to the Orca Brand’s trident mode, but the monster swung its jaws and let go, sending him flying down the street where he skidded to a agonizing, spark-filled halt.
“Pitiful,” the creature snorted with derision. “All that’s standing between your friends and the grave is you, and you’re barely even trying.”
Waterguard pulled himself up with effort. Just as he did, the monster reared back and pounced, nearly crushing his ribs. He coughed violently, as if his lungs had just been shoved through a grain thresher. The thing was strong--unbelievably so. And it wasn’t helping his peace of mind that he was up against it all by himself, but with a heroic effort he smashed his Shock Knuckles into the side of the monster. The beast shrieked in outrage and scrambled off Waterguard in a hurry.
The effort, however, proved to be fruitless, because in a heartbeat the monster was back on his feet, and chortled with spite. As Waterguard watched in horror, the gaping wound in the beast's side sealed itself and disappeared, as if it had never been there.
“Absolutely pitiful. You could have the power to bring the entire ocean down on my head, but it means nothing if you’ve haven't the inner strength to use it. And it’s painfully clear that you’re still floundering in your own doubts.”
Waterguard’s gaze drifted to his teammates, still frozen to the spot except Fireguard, who was still lying as if dead in the middle of the city street. Desperation was starting to tug at his thoughts. What am I gonna do???
Ironically enough, that same question was on Naoko's mind as well.
She was nothing less than amazed that somehow she hadn't been blasted off the cliff like a scrap of paper in the maelstrom that roared and shrieked around her and was threatening to send her leader plunging into the great beyond.
But she couldn’t wonder about that now, she had to think of what to do to save him! But she couldn’t jump the gap, and she couldn’t do anything about the wind, especially as a mere mortal like she was. There was no sign of the others, so it was entirely up to her.
Ryuji called out, barely audible over the rushing wind. How she could hear him at all she wasn’t sure either, but now was not the time for such questions. “Naoko... please...you’ve gotta hurry... I can’t feel anything…”
“Kami-sama, you certainly don't ask for much, do you? I can’t even think about jumping across, and I'm powerless on top of it! What am I supposed to do?!”
“What good are your powers anyway if you don’t have the courage and the focus to handle things by yourself when you get in trouble?” Ryuji called back, a sharpness to his voice she hadn’t heard since they stopped arguing.
For a moment that seemed to stretch into an eternity, Naoko hesitated. What he just said had been a bit harsh, but wasn’t it true? No matter how tough she talked, no matter how many times she said they had to be serious about being Guardrangers, there had to be genuine conviction and self-confidence behind those words. She could have all the power in the universe at her command, and what good would it do her if she couldn’t concentrate and make the most effective use of it on her own? They were a team for many reasons, but they had to be brave and able to stand on their own, too.
And unless she managed to develop those traits in the next couple of seconds, Ryuji wouldn’t live long enough to see that moment come to pass.
The taskmaster gazed intently at the screen in the wall. It was split down the middle, showing Waterguard struggling against the wolf monster on the right, with Naoko standing on a cliff while Ryuji was about to be pushed to his doom by maelstrom winds on the left.
Or a reasonable facsimile of Ryuji, anyway. Because there he was, next to the taskmaster watching the dual spectacles unfold. He wanted to find some way to help his teammates, to deliver them from the mental tortures the taskmaster was subjecting them to, but something stopped him.
As if reading Ryuji’s mind, the taskmaster said, “Something bothering you, honored guest?”
“I want to help them, but--”
“But you can’t,” the taskmaster finished for him, “Even if you could, you’d only be stunting their growth.”
“I know. They have to be able to take care of themselves and not just depend on me the whole time. Somebody told me that recently…”
“I make a point of it because it’s a lesson you should learn as well, Fireguard. Do not let your friends depend on you too deeply, but at the same time do not underestimate their need for their leader and for support when they require it,” the taskmaster said casually but firmly. “Your friends aren’t the only ones with something to learn here.” And with that they watched the events unfold…
I don't fuggin' believe this!
Waterguard was fighting on--or at least trying to. But unfortunately, it wasn't going the way it should. And, naturally, getting schooled and lectured by a monster who was trying to kill him wasn't helping, either. He jabbed and swung again and again at the thing with his Orca Brand, but even when he connected, the wounds just closed up in the blink of an eye. How could anyone possibly beat such an enemy?
How could he beat it? That was the million dollar question, all right. After all, it was all up to him. In his mind he could almost hear the screams and smell the fear of people fleeing some kind of inhuman horror that only the Guardrangers could stop. Probably the very monster trying to tear him apart now.
“Still distracted, are you? Can’t keep your mind on the fight?” the beast goaded, mocking Waterguard’s blows as if they were no more threatening than the sting of a gnat, as well as his distracted behavior. Fighting and thinking at the same time were tough, especially for someone unsure of his role like Waterguard.
Waterguard flipped acrobatically away from one of the monster’s flailing claws and landed atop a nearby wall. He had to get himself together and face this thing, he was the only one left to fight it! But how could he, when he couldn’t find the resolve to bring his full power to bear? This was all much heavier than he’d expected when he agreed to slap on the bracelet.
“Perhaps THIS will give you some solid motivation!” the monster called all of a sudden. Waterguard looked down, and saw that in one paw, the thing has snatched Fireguard’s motionless body up off of the street, the long claws of its other extending fully, the tips gliding just a half-inch away from his best friend's heart. “You’ve ten seconds to get down here and save your friend...otherwise I’m going to feast on his raw, beating heart, and then deal with the others while you watch…”
It was now or never. Maybe it was because of his desperation to save his comrades, perhaps it was the fact that the death and destruction the Guardrangers were dedicated to preventing was threatening to strike so close to home that made him realize how large his part was in this. Or maybe it was just the sight of his best friend inches away from death--he didn't know, really. Maybe it was all of those reasons put together. But whatever it was, Waterguard stood up proud and strong. Lives were in his hands. Not just the other Guardrangers, but everyone on Earth. He wouldn’t let them down.
He jumped high into the air and, yelling at the top of his lungs, plummeted toward the monster with the Orca Brand pointed at the monster’s heart like an avenging arrow.
Naoko tried to steel herself as the wind seemed to whirl past even faster. Ryuji and the rock he was bound to inched toward the crevasse slowly but frighteningly.
Naoko...do something! she cursed herself as she tried to think of what to do. He'll die in a minute without your help!
An onslaught of thoughts thundered through her mind. Was she so worried about Ryuji because if she didn’t act the team would lose their leader, or was it something else? How exactly had her perception of him changed since they stopped fighting with each other? How had his perception of her changed since they stopped fighting with each other? So many question, but no answers. One thing was clear, and that was his fate was in her hands. This was no time to be afraid or weak-willed. Ryuji had saved them before, Now she had to return the favor.
Naoko shoved everything else away, and called out, “Ryuji, stay calm! I'm coming over there!” even though she had no idea why he should be calm, seeing as how he was on an inexorable slide towards certain doom. But suddenly she felt a strange feeling coming over her, a power rising within. She could do it, and she would.
The rock crept closer to the edge, but now she had the courage to save her leader…
The wolf-monster stared in wordless shock at the sight before his inhuman eyes. The change in the Ranger in blue’s demeanor had completely changed in the blink of an eye, and he was nowhere near prepared for it. His grip on his captive loosened as Waterguard screamed down like a meteor and drove the Orca Brand into the monster’s chest. Before the thing could even think about retaliation, Waterguard squeezed the button that sent a shockwave of neon-blue electricity into his foe and launched him into the side of a parked car, caving in the side of it.
The beast's wounds were already closing up as Waterguard charged forward to press the attack.
“Just wanted to say, thanks for the little speeches, Wolfenstien. Did me a world of good,” Waterguard drawled, his humor beginning to resurface. Before the wolfman could do anything to retaliate, Waterguard did the unexpected and sent the Orca Brand back to its resting place in a swirl of sapphire light, and began concentrating, his hands beginning to fill with water vapor. An aura of blue surrounded his body, droplets of water gathering around his clenched fists. A whole new hero was facing this monster now. A point proven further when Waterguard beckoned to the beast, issuing a silent dare to attack now.
The wolfman growled deep in its throat and sprang toward Waterguard, its powerful back legs propelling it toward him, but the hero aimed his open hands downward, a waterspout erupted beneath him that launched him into the air and out of its reach. Mustering his power again, the waterspout spread and widened into a tidal wave that he rode down, washing the monster off his feet.
Before the monster could recover, Waterguard raised his hands over his head, a blinding white sphere igniting to life in palms and his voice took on an unearthly tone and rang out down the length of the street.
"ABSOULUTE ZERO!" Waterguard fired the sphere of white out of his hands and it slammed into the water the beast was still flailing in, the freezing effect practically instantaneous. The monster’s body was already saturated with the water from the last attack and the frigid blast was rapidly covering him in a sheath of ice, rendering him completely immobile.
“RRRRAAAAAAARRRGHH! Damn you, Ranger!” The wolfman roared in outrage.
“Funny, thought you wanted me to get my head together and fight back,” Waterguard said, but the only reply the monster could manage was a infuriated sputter. “Well, I’m not done yet. Here comes the finish, Dog-boy!”