The Spoke

Gao Red and Abbadon dashed around one another. The Red Ranger lashed out with his Gao Dagger in one hand and Lion Fang over the other. His weapons clashed against Abbadon’s claws, sparking on impact and flashing with bursts of light.

Abaddon circled behind Gao Red like a shark. The Red Ranger snapped around and swung his dagger at the villain’s head. But Abbadon parried and bashed an elbow upside the Ranger’s head, whipping him backward.

Gao Red crashed and tumbled across the floor. The impact knocked Simon from his armor with a flash of red light.

Slowly, the teen pushed himself to his feet. He breathed heavily, his Gao Dagger still in hand.

Abbadon lunged and clawed, striking past Simon’s defense. Simon staggered and nearly collapsed.

The villain tilted his head. “You thought your own skills were on par with mine? You might have raw energy, but that means nothing if you can’t focus it.”

Simon narrowed his eyes. His heart pounded in his chest.

“Shut up!” He charged with an overhead slash of his dagger. Abbadon blocked and side-kicked Simon, knocking him backward.

Before the teen could recover his balance, Abbadon lunged, swinging his claws through powerful strikes that forced Simon backward. Simon barely managed to block and parry, each blow nearly knocking the weapon from his hand.

Angel Grove/Demon City

Silver Guardians, Hayate Way and Ikkazuchi Way ninja, Knights of the True Cross, and Night Troops formed a perimeter around the battle to keep it from spreading. They failed.

Zergs fired bursts of energy that tore through Silver Guardian SUVs, spreading shrapnel and flames across the streets.

Hayate Way and Ikkazuchi Way ninja dashed through the explosions and attacked. They had basic Ki abilities, channeling The Power for slightly enhanced speed, agility, and strength– enough to fight X-Borgs and Zergs, but not enough to face White Jokers.

White Jokers tore through the ninja, ripping them apart limb-from-limb.

X-Borgs, Zergs and White Jokers spread into Stone Canyon, Crossworld City, Leawood, Silver Hills, and Urbana City.

The Command Chamber

After the “Band-Aide Timeline” ripped off, Earth’s champions found themselves disoriented. Everything that had happened in the patch timeline, happened. Everything that had happened in the prime timeline, happened. The champions had two different sets of memories from the past 13 years.

Ashley stood at the Command Chamber’s forward console and tried to make sense of everything.

Meanwhile, Alpha waddled across the Command Chamber floor. “Oh, worry, worry, worry, worry…”

“Calm down, Alpha,” Ashley said. “There has to be something we can do…”

She took a deep breath. She’d battled the Machine Empire and Astronema. Jakanja, Gedoushuu, and seemingly countless others. She loved Tommy. She missed Tommy. But she wasn’t simply one half of the “Tommy and Ashley” equation. She was strong. And she had supported Tommy just as much as he had supported her, if not more so. Actually…Ashley thought with a smile. Definitely more…

“OK Alpha, first thing’s first,” Ashley said. “What’s the situation in Angel Grove?”

“Teleportation into Angel Grove is impossible!” Alpha practically shouted as he manned a side console. “All of Angel Grove is operating on a different vibrational frequency, preventing any travel in or out.”

Ashley nodded as she looked at the readings. “It’s like all of reality is vibrating, about to shatter. There are pockets of different vibrational frequencies all over Earth. And the galaxy.”

“What will we do?!” Alpha asked.

“We need to regroup. We’ll use the Command Chamber as our operating base and bring everyone here.”

Ashley looked at the projection that took up most of the Command Chamber’s forward wall. The projection showed the headshots of all the virtual heroes, Riders, Rangers and champions of Earth– the “Prime” versions of the present. Most headshots had KIA or MIA listed, except for:

Herself and Chris Harris; Shirogane, Ryan, Eiji, Samuel and Zadie; Tommy, Rocky, Zack, and Jason, although they were trapped in Angel Grove/Demon City; Nat and Kruger; Nick, Xander, Daggeron and Maddie; Teddy, Bradin, Ryan Phillips, and Kirsten; Kou, Hunter, Blake, Justin Stewart, and Rachel; Ken and Zayden; Austin and Leo; Casey and RJ; Koda, Ivan and Shelby; and Connor, Kira and Trent.

“Contact them and tell them to meet here,” Ashley said.

“Right away, Ashley!”

“I’ll try to communicate with these past versions of ourselves in Angel Grove, see if I can help coordinate.”

Her data showed haphazard efforts in the city, at beast. The champions seemed focused on two main objectives: closing the Armada’s main fissure to cut off the endless supply of X-Borgs and Zergs, and protecting the Dark One’s portal so no one could interfere with Tommy’s battle against the Dark One. Also, a past version of Simon Kaden seemed focus on stopping his older self from breaking the Wheel of Time itself.

One thing at a time…

“Looks like some of the virtual heroes are closest to the main fissure…”

Angel Grove/Demon City

A group of virtual heroes advanced within a few blocks of the main Armada fissure. Ahead of them, X-Borgs and Zergs stood shoulder-to-shoulder, taking a defensive formation as several hundreds grunts constructed a command spire.

White Jokers continued to fall from the sky, blocking the path to the Armada’s main foothold.

The Space Sheriffs Gavan, Sharivan and Shaider charged towards a group of White Jokers. The Jokers armed their bucklers and transformed into monsters from SPD’s rogue’s gallery, including Sinuku, Tomars, Devastation, Algolian Volka, Algolian Whinsky, Bon-Goblin Hells, Mirloc, Agent X, Thresher, Stench, and Algolian Giin.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/Alienizers.jpg

Gavan, Sharivan and Shaider armed their sabers and shot towards the monsters.

“Gavan Dynamic!”

“Sharivan Crash!”

“Blue Flash!”

Their swords ignited with light. They slashed through streaks of power, tearing through villains with bursts of spark and flame.

From behind the heroes, Cybertron leapt into the air.

“Lightning Hand Command, Now!”

His hand crackled with lightning and electricity. He landed with a knife-hand chop through a villain, hopped forward, and knife-hand-chopped another monster to the ground.

Nearby, Nova Black armed his staff.

“Laser Lance Command, Now!”

His staff ignited with blue light, extended, and speared through a monster.

Nova White moved by his side, launching a volley of kicks and knife-hand strikes.

Algolian Giin snapped a pair of scorpion whips that wrapped around the White Trooper’s throat and arm. The monster tried to pull the Trooper off her feet. But Nova White stood her ground and grabbed onto the whips

Shaider hopped to her aid and chopped the monster backward, blade sparking on impact.

On the other side of the Armada’s foothold, Kamen Rider Ryuki found himself cut off from his allies. White Jokers surrounded him within a plaza area.

The Jokers transformed into villains from the Overdrive Rangers’ past: Ryuon, Volcan, Scaletex, Bullox, Ragi and Magmador.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/Bouken1.jpg

Ryuon and Ryuki clashed swords. The villain’s chops and swings carried more power and strength than the Rider’s blows. But the Rider had more agility. Ryuki parried and spin-kicked Ryuon, sending him staggering aside.

Magmador leapt towards Ryuki to attack.

Ryuki armed his dragon-shaped fist weapon. Magmador used the tendrils of his right arm to form a copy of the weapon. The villain blasted Ryuki with an energy burst that knocked him off his feet.

The Rider tumbled and rolled back to his feet, just as Magmador landed with a slash, striking Ryuki with bursts of spark.

The monsters regrouped and charged towards the sole Rider.

Ryuki shifted into an offensive stance, prepared to go down fighting. Grandfather…I am sorry. I may die, but my death will help to save the people of Earth and Edenoi. I hope that I have made you proud.

Suddenly, a motorcycle throttled into the plaza. The cycle, Blue Spader, belonged to Kamen Rider Blade. He swiped a card through the rouzer slit on his vehicle, which spoke the command: “THUNDER”

The cycle ignited with blue lightning and smashed through the monsters, tossing them aside.

Blade slid his cycle to a halt and hopped off.

“You must be Dex,” he said. “Ken. Nice to meet you. Thought you could use some back-up.”

The Lightspeed Rescue Rangers leapt to the scene. They split up and attacked the monsters before they could regroup.

Rescue Blue and Rescue Green charged at Volcan.

“V-Lancers!” they shouted, arming their lancers and chopping the villain before he could attack.

Nearby, Rescue Pink and Rescue Yellow pulled out their sidearms.

“Rescue Blasters!”

Rescue Pink fired beams of red energy that stabbed Scaletex with bursts of spark. The blasts knocked the monster off balance. Rescue Yellow switched his blaster to baton mode and charged, slashing the villain with bursts of spark.

“Fuck off.” He snapped a side-kick that bashed Scaletex off his feet.

Kamen Rider Ryuki and Rescue Red took on Ryuon.

Rescue Red armed his V-Lancer, and Ryuki armed his saber. They somersaulted through the air and landed while chopping the monster with massive bursts of spark.

Elsewhere, three Jungle Fury Rangers– Red Tiger, Blue Jaguar, and Yellow Cheetah– regrouped on the ruined rooftops near the portal to the Dark One. The sounds of battle raged around them. The earth shook, and the sky trembled with thunder.

A group of White Jokers transformed into the feline Ashu monsters: Gai, Rei, Hyouga, Ouga, Quester Gai, and Quester Rei.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/Ashu1.jpg

Quester Gai and Quester Rei dashed back and forth, slashing the Rangers with bursts of spark. Ouga lifted his staff and fired bursts of energy, blasting the Rangers off their feet.

Gai, Rei, and Hyouga pounced to attack.

A Rider leapt to the Rangers’ defense: Kamen Rider Beast. The Rider kicked Gai upside the head, spin-kicked Rei, and launched a volley of punches that bashed Hyouga.

“Cat fight!” Beast shouted.

“Geki Waza! Da Da Dan!” Yellow Cheetah swung a volley of punches that Rei blocked.

The monster swung his fist claws, slashing the Ranger with a burst of spark.

Yellow Cheetah staggered backward and slapped her right fist against her left palm.

“Geki Waza! Shun Shun Dan!” She thrust her palms and fired a wave of energy shaped like her animal spirit, the cheetah.

The cheetah wave pounced like a beast, tackled Rei, and clawed into the monster.

Blue Jaguar launched at Gai with a combo of elegant palm-heel strikes and kicks. Each blow bashed the monster and forced him several steps backward.

The Blue Ranger placed his right fist against his left palm.

“Geki Waza! Jaguar Spirit!” He thrust his fist and fired a wave of blue energy shaped like a jaguar.

The animal spirit somersaulted through the air and blasted Gai with massive bursts of spark that hurled him backward.

The Blue Ranger leapt forward to press the attack.

“Geki Waza! Chuu Chuu Zan!” He landed while knife-hand chopping Gai’s shoulder. But Gai grabbed the Ranger by the wrist and hurled him aside.

Black Lion leapt onto the ruined rooftops to join the Red Jungle Fury Ranger and Kamen Rider Beast in facing off against the armored, cat-like Questers.

“Jarrod…” Red Tiger said to his sometimes-teammate, mostly enemy.

“Casey.” Black Lion had no warmth in his voice.

The three warriors charged to attack, with Red Tiger in the center, Black Lion to his right, and Kamen Rider Beast to his left.

The Red Ranger slapped his right fist against his left palm.

“Geki Waza! Tiger Spirit!” He thrust his fist and fired a wave of red energy shaped like a tiger. The animal spirit pounced and slashed its claws, swatting the Questers, strikes sparking on impact.

Black Lion and Kamen Rider Beast moved in.

Black Lion ignited with purple-and-black Ki.

“Ringi. Gōyū Shōda.” He bashed his fist through Quester Gai’s faceplate and followed with a reverse side-kick that slammed the monster backward.

Kamen Rider Beast twirled his saber, which powered up and spoke the command: “SABER STRIKE”

He swung his blade through a streak of golden energy that slashed through Quester Rei, blade sparking on impact and ripping the monster in half.

The White Rhino Ranger and Violet Wolf Ranger ran to aid their Jungle Fury teammates. But a group of X-Borgs stood in their way.

White Rhino and Violet Wolf bashed through the grunts. The Violet Wolf Ranger launched spinning kicks, knee-blows, and elbow-strikes. And the White Rhino Ranger moved through volleys of knife-hand chops and side-kicks.

They smashed through the X-Borgs and launched towards the Ashu.

Without warning, Green Chameleon blurred into view and joined them.

“Ringi! Karen Toppa!” Green Chameleon armed her twin sai, jumped, and started to spin. She shot through Hyouga, puncturing his body with massive bursts of spark.

Red Tiger, Blue Jaguar, and Yellow Cheetah regrouped to face the remaining Ashu.

“Claw Cannon!” they shouted as they summoned their weapon. They poured their Geki into the bazooka.

“Geki Waza!” they shouted. “Geki Geki Hou!”

The cannon fired a twirling pulse of orange-tinted energy that blasted the Ashu with massive shock waves of energy and flame, vaporizing them into ash.

Miles away, the battle forced Ryuki and Blade away from the Rescue Rangers. A group of White Jokers surrounded the two Riders.

The Jokers took the form of evil Riders from the past: Wing Knight, Kamen Rider Incisor, Kamen Rider Torque, Kamen Rider Sting, Kamen Rider Thrust, Kamen Rider Strike, Kamen Rider Odin, Kamen Rider Tiger and Kamen Rider Spear.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/EvilRiders.bmp

Wing Knight lunged at Blade with sword swinging. Kamen Rider Blade parried and blocked, weapon clanging against weapon. The two opponents wielded their swords with skill and precision. But Blade had an advantage; he wasn’t a carbon copy created by a White Joker.

Blade swung an overhead slash followed by an upward slash, striking the sword from the evil Rider’s hand. Kamen Rider Blade snapped a side-kick that bashed Wing Knight backward.

Blade pressed forward. But Wing Knight armed his lance, twirled, and swatted the Rider aside.

Kamen Rider Blade rolled into a crouch. He flipped open his sword fan, pulled out two cards, and slid them one by one through his hilt’s rouzer. “SLASH; THUNDER”

Two cards of energy projected from his sword and splashed across his armor. His sword ignited with crackling strands of blue lightning.

He slashed, shattering Wing Knight’s lance with massive bursts of spark.

Blade slid another card through his sword. “BEAT”

The Rider lunged and swung a punch that energized with blue power. The punch bashed Wing Knight and shot him backward. The evil Rider crashed and tumbled aside.

Ryuki kicked Kamen Rider Spear upside the head and punched Kamen Rider Odin. But Odin grabbed Ryuki’s arm, uppercut-punched the Rider’s side, and tossed him aside.

Ryuki crashed and tumbled across the ground. He rolled to his feet, and when he looked up, he saw something promising: back-up.

On their motorcycles, Kamen Rider Garren, Kamen Rider Drake, Kamen Rider Delta, Kamen Rider Kabuto, and Kamen Rider Faiz sped to the scene.

Kamen Rider Torque opened fire with rapid bursts of his blaster.

Kamen Rider Garren, Kamen Rider Drake, and Kamen Rider Delta scattered, armed their own blasters, and returned fire. Their blasts struck TorQue with bursts of spark. But the blasts barely moved the heavily armored Rider.

Torque shifted his stance and armed a massive, two-handed cannon.

Drake took a step back. “He has a freaking bazooka?!” He sighed. “Of course he has a bazooka.”

Torque opened fire, and the Riders dove aside.

Garren rolled into a crouch, flipped open a fan of cards on his blaster, and pulled out three cards. He slid the cards one-by-one through his blaster. “DROP; FIRE; GEMINI.”

The Rider aimed his blaster and fired at Torque. His bullets sparked against the evil Rider, keeping him back, as three cards of energy projected from Garren’s blaster and splashed across his armor.

Garren sprang through the air, somersaulted forward, and extended both legs as his feet radiated with fiery energy. He split in two, creating an energy duplicate of himself. The two Garrens drop-kicked Torque with massive bursts of spark that hurled him off his feet.

The Rider turned to face the next wave of monsters. He attached his Rouse Absorber to his gauntlet, inserted the Queen of Diamonds, and swiped the King of Diamonds: “ABSORB QUEEN; EVOLUTION KING.”

Energy flashed around him as he shifted into his King Form.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/GarrenKing.bmp

Kamen Rider Strike, Kamen Rider Sting, and Kamen Rider Spear charged towards Garren.

Garren wielded the blade on his blaster like a sword. Empowered by his Category King card, he easily blocked, parried, and dodged their attacks. His blade flashed with power, striking the three evil Riders one-by-one.

Garren hopped backward and aimed his blaster towards the three Riders. He slid five cards into the weapon: “DIAMOND TEN, JACK, QUEEN, KING, ACE — ROYAL STRAIGHT FLUSH.”

Five fields of energy ignited in front of the Rider. He triggered a burst of golden energy. The blast tore through the cards one-by-one, growing in size, and blasted the three Riders. Explosions sparked on impact and hurled them off their feet.

But the blast didn’t kill them.

Kamen Rider Thrust charged at Kamen Rider Kabuto. Kabuto shifted into a defensive stance and slapped the side of his belt, which spoke the command: “CLOCK UP”

Time slowed around Kabuto. He dashed aside and attacked with a round-kick and spin-kick, bashing the evil Rider aside.

Kamen Rider Blade and Kamen Rider Ryuki flipped through the air and landed in front of Kamen Rider Odin.

Odin thrust his staff and fired golden energy feathers that fluttered around the Riders, striking their armor like daggers.

The Riders dove and rolled aside.

Ryuki rolled into a crouch. “Can you move in close?”

Blade shifted his sword to a reverse grip. “I can try.”

“Good,” Ryuki said. “Keep him off balance while I prepare to strike.”

Blade nodded. He charged and slashed his sword. Odin parried and blocked as the Rider circled around him.

Kamen Rider Ryuki armed a dragon-headed gauntlet and thrust the weapon at his opponent.

“Rider Flare!” He fired a stream of flame.

Blade slashed upward, striking Odin with a burst of spark and sending him stumbling. Ryuki’s flare speared through the evil Rider with massive bursts of spark that threw him into the air.

Incisor, Sting, and Strike charged at Kamen Rider Faiz. They lashed out with kicks and punches that battered the Rider before he could defend himself.

Faiz cursed beneath his breath.

Sting swung his fist weapon. Faiz grabbed the Rider by the arm, side-kicked Strike in the faceplate, and flipped Sting off his feet.

Incisor lunged and swung his clawed fist weapon, slashing Faiz with a burst of spark that whipped him off his feet.

Kamen Rider Faiz tumbled and rolled to his feet. He powered up his sword, which spoke the command: “EXCEED CHARGE”

He slashed through a streak of power that struck Incisor with bursts of spark, knocking him back-first to the ground.

Wing Knight regrouped with Kamen Rider Tiger and Kamen Rider Spear.

Kamen Rider Ryuki regrouped with Blade and Faiz; they faced the three evil Riders and shifted into fighting stances.

Tiger armed clawed gauntlets and pounced. He slashed wide at the three Riders, but they dove aside. Ryuki rolled to his feet and lunged with a volley of punches and kicks that battered Kamen Rider Tiger.

Tiger slashed high. Ryuki blocked and snapped a round-kick/side-kick combo that bashed Tiger backward.

Wing Knight moved in with his sword, and Kamen Rider Spear armed a twin-drill fist weapon.

Spear stabbed his weapon towards Faiz. Faiz caught the drills, kicked Spear’s side, and kicked him upside the head. The evil Rider staggered backward; Faiz snapped a spin kick that bashed the villain off his feet.

Wing Knight slashed towards Faiz. But Blade stepped between them. The Rider blocked and side-kicked Wing Knight, knocking him several steps backward.

Blade flipped open a fan of cards on his sword hilt and pulled two cards from the deck. He slid the cards one by one through a slot on his sword, and with each swipe, the sword spoke a command: "KICK; THUNDER."

The Rider crouched and held his weapon in front of him. Two cards of energy projected from the hilt of his sword and splashed across his armor.

“Ha!” Blade leapt into the air, somersaulted forward, and aimed a flying sidekick that crackled with lightning.

The kick bashed Wing Knight with a thundering boom that knocked the villain off his feet and sent him rolling across the ground. Body smoking from the wound, the villain thrashed with pain.

Kamen Rider Ryuki leapt through the air.

“Rider Kick!” He launched a flying kick that ignited with flames and shot towards the villains like a comet. The kick smashed Kamen Rider Tiger and hurled him backward.

Kamen Rider Faiz crouched and powered up his next attack. His belt spoke the command: “EXCEED CHARGE”

"Ha!" The Rider somersaulted through the air and aimed a flying kick at Spear. The kick projected a cone of energy and shot through the Rider with massive bursts of spark.

The Spoke

Abbadon clawed and slashed. Simon blocked and dodged, each blow nearly knocking him off his feet. But each of his counterattacks rang with increased power.

Abbadon slid aside. “I can see the threads of the Pattern around you, in this unique place, the Spoke of the Wheel of Time itself,” he said. “It seems as if you’re drawing on the strength of your past and future, growing more powerful with each strike.”

“Good,” Simon said. “Sounds like I’ll catch up to you in no time.”

“Catch up to me? You’re an optimistic fool. You have no idea how wrong you are.” He dashed and clawed. Simon blocked; blade pressed against claw. “No matter how strong you get or what skills you draw on, you have no chance of winning.”

Simon strained against the pressure of his block. He looked into the eyes of his future self, and chills crept down his spine. The teen’s empathy kicked in. He felt the pain, sorrow and anguish of the villain now known as Abbadon. He witnessed his older self rise as a Ranger, and then fall, die, banished into Hell, where he fought to the core of his soul to escape. So that’s it? That’s how his life ended? I don’t pity him…I don’t pity him…I don’t pity him…Still, if this is really the path I’m heading down, my heart’s going to shatter. Everything you believed in, what you still believe in, I see for myself now, how all of these are nothing but a dream covered in lies. I…

Abbadon slashed the blade from Simon’s hand. The impact slammed the teen off his feet; he crashed and tumbled across the floor.

Abbadon stalked towards the fallen hero. “Feeling ill? Judging by the expression on your face, I’d guess you’re about to vomit. You felt it, didn’t you? Felt what happened to me? That simplifies things. Everything you felt is true. That’s what 'catching up to me’ means.”

Abbadon stepped forward and extended his hand. “You should see it for yourself. The world of my existence…”

His hand flashed with dark energy that warped the landscape of the Spoke, creating a barren field of dirt, with crimson skies and black clouds above. Massive gears, as large as planets, turned slowly in the distant horizon. Burned bodies and shattered weapons littered the ground.

“Welcome to the future of your soul.”

Angel Grove/Demon City

Kamen Rider Chalice throttled his cycle through the streets and joined Kamen Rider Blade, Kamen Rider Faiz, and Kamen Rider Kabuto.

A group of White Jokers transformed into Gene-Beasts from the Astro Rangers’ past, including Stingray Gene-Beast, Rhino Gene-Beast, Chameleon Gene-Beast, Wasp Gene-Beast, Scorpion Gene-Beast, Crocodile Gene-Beasts, Buffalo Gene-Beasts and Termite Gene-Beast.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/genebeast.bmp

A second group of Jokers transformed into Psycho-Gene Beasts, including Mantis Psycho-Gene Beast, Lizard Psycho-Gene Beast, Crab Psycho-Gene Beast, Thorn Psycho-Gene Beast and Hell Psycho-Gene Beast.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/PsychoGeneBeasts.bmp

Kamen Rider Kabuto slapped the side of his belt, which spoke the command: “CLOCK UP”

Time slowed around him, so that he appeared to move at hyperspeed, dashing through the monsters with punches and kicks.

Blade and Faiz moved in behind Kabuto. They struck before the monsters could regroup. Blade twirled his sword through diagonal slashes and overhead chops. Faiz snapped spin kicks, punches, and side-kicks.

Faiz slid his Faiz Caller into his Faiz Blaster Casing, which spoke the command: “STANDING BY” He input the code 5-5-5: “AWAKENING”

The Blaster Casing flashed; energy flooded his armor, powering him up into Blaster Form.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/FaizBlaster.bmp

Kamen Rider Blade powered up next. He attached his Rouze Absorber to his gauntlet. He slid the Queen of Spade into the device: “ABSORB QUEEN.” He swiped the King of Spades. “EVOLUTION KING”

His 13 cards flashed with energy, circled around him, and splashed against his armor one-by-one, from head-to-toe, powering him up into King Mode.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/BladeKing.bmp

Kamen Rider Blade leapt upward, several stories high, and hovered in midair. He slid five cards into his sword: “SPADE TEN, JACK, QUEEN, KING, ACE — ROYAL STRAIGHT FLUSH”

Five fields of energy ignited in front of the Rider. They looked like giant cards and glowed with golden light.

Kamen Rider Faiz flipped open his casing, which extended into a massive blade that spoke the command: “BLADE MODE” He input a code into the casing, which spoke the command: “FAIZ BLASTER – TAKE OFF”

He blasted into the air, hovered next to Kamen Rider Blade, and input another code into his weapon. The sword extended with a massive blade of crimson energy, several feet long. The weapon spoke the command: “EXCEED CHARGE”

Kamen Rider Faiz dashed downward, slashing through a streak of energy.

Kamen Rider Blade shot through his energy fields one-by-one as they splashed across his armor and energized his sword. He aimed his descent towards the monsters.

Faiz and Blade’s slashes tore through monsters with massive bursts of spark and flame that scorched the streets.

A group of monsters tried to run from Faiz and Blade. But Kabuto and Chalice knocked them back with punches and spin kicks. Faiz faced the fleeing monsters and input another code into his casing, which spoke the command: “FAIZ BLASTER DISCHARGE”

He armed a pair of shoulder cannons. The cannons opened fire with darts of crimson energy, stabbing through monsters with bursts of spark.

Meanwhile, Kamen Rider Kabuto armed his Hyper Zector with a burst of golden light. He snapped the zector onto his belt.

“Hyper Cast Off.” He flipped the zector’s switch; it spoke the command: “HYPER CAST OFF” His armor flared with energy and powered up; the zector spoke the command: “CHANGE HYPER BEETLE”

He morphed into his Hyper Form.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/KabutoHyper.bmp

Kabuto stepped back and placed a hand over his buckler. He faced the Rhino Gene-Beast, who charged with his massive drill nose aimed forward.

“Hyper Kick.” Kabuto activated his zector, which spoke the command: “MAXIMUM RIDER POWER – HYPER KICK”

He spun, his kick crackling with lightning. The blow smashed the monster’s drill nose into pieces.

Meanwhile, fresh waves of X-Borgs and Zergs charged towards the Riders. But a wave of Rangers — the Bio Beast Rangers — flanked the grunts.

The Bio-Beast Rangers charged through the ranks of X-Borgs.

Green Rhino jumped with a flying head-but that bashed an X-Borg. He landed, grabbed two grunts, and smashed them together.

Black Bison moved alongside his teammate. He grabbed an X-Borg in a headlock, spun forward, and elbowed a grunt in the faceplate.

Red Falcon leapt over his teammates and landed in between Faiz and Kabuto.

Faiz switched his Blaster Casing to gun mode: “BLASTER MODE.” He input a code: “EXCEED CHARGE”

He aimed the blaster like a shotgun and fired a burst of energy. The blast smashed Gene-Beast monsters with bursts of spark.

The Red Bio-Beast Ranger armed his sword.

“Falcon Sword!” Red Falcon shouted. “Falcon Break!”

He energized his blade and hopped forward with an overhead swing, chopping through the monster, blade sparking on impact.

Black Bison faced off with the Chameleon Gene-Beast, and Green Rhino battled the Wasp Gene-Beast.

“Bison Rod!” The Black Ranger armed his staff and whacked the chameleon monster upside the head.

The chameleon staggered backward and vanished from sight. The monster reappeared and lashed out his tongue from behind the Black Ranger. The tongue wrapped around Black Bison’s neck and whipped him through the air.

Chalice leapt to the Ranger’s aide, slashed through the tongue, and side-kicked the monster.

Meanwhile, Green Rhino leapt through the air towards the Wasp Gene-Beast.

“Rhino-Rangs!” He snapped a pair of bladed boomerangs that slashed the monster with bursts of spark.

The monster countered with a blast from its gauntlet. The weapon fired a swarm of robotic wasps that stabbed the Green Ranger with stingers, sparking with each stab.

Chalice jumped to the Ranger’s aide; The Rider chopped the arm from the wasp monster and side-kicked the villain.

Kamen Rider Kabuto and Kamen Rider Gattack launched flurries of kicks and punches, bashing the Termite Gene-Beast and Crocodile Gene-Beast.

The croc monster duplicated; one croc wrapped its tail around Gattack’s neck, and the other croc bit the Rider’s arm.

Blue Dolphin jumped through the air.

“Dolphin Bow!” She fired arrows that blasted through the crocodile’s tail, freeing Gattack.

Gattack slashed the other croc monster to the ground.

Nearby, Yellow Lion faced the Termite Gene-Beast.

“Lion Gauntlet!” He armed his fist weapon and jumped through the air. “Lion Punch!”

He landed with a powerful punch that slammed the Termite Gene-Beast, sparking on impact and hurling the monster backward.

Kamen Rider Chalice slashed through the ranks of Gene-Beasts, blade sparking on impact. He hopped at Buffalo Gene-Beast with an overhead swing. But the monster projected a shield of jade energy that blocked the blow and knocked Chalice backward.

Chalice crashed, tumbled, and rolled to his feet.

He swiped the King of Hearts card through his buckler, triggering the command: “EVOLUTION”

His 13 cards shot from his belt, formed a straight line in mid-air, and glowed with power. One-by-one, the cards shot at Chalice and splashed across his armor, powering him up into Wild Mode.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/ChaliceWild.bmp

Chalice triggered a burst of energy that tore through the Buffalo Gene-Beast, and then he turned his attention towards the group of Psycho Gene-Beasts.

Chalice pounced and kicked the Mantis Psycho Gene-Beast upside the head.

The Porcupine Psycho Gene-Beast moved in from behind.

Chalice spun and swung his blades, slashing the Porcupine Beast with bursts of spark.

The Rider hopped backward and combined his blades into a bow. He slid his Wild Card through the weapon: “WILD”

The Rider triggered a massive energy burst that stabbed through the two Psycho Gene-Beasts with massive bursts of spark, ripping them apart.

Red Falcon regrouped with his teammates, along with Blade, Faiz, Kabuto and Chalice.

“Okay,” he said. “A couple things.”

He pointed at Kabuto. “You, you suck. Stop quoting your grandma. No one cares.” He pointed at Faiz. “You, you suck. And your sword’s too big. Overcompensate much?”

Red Falcon pointed at Chalice. “You…” the Ranger hesitated. “You, I like.” He patted the Rider on the shoulder. “Way to not suck.”

The Spoke

Abbadon appeared in his Shaded form within the soulscape– chalk white skin and hair, and solid black eyes except for red irises. He carried a katana of black steel, and he wore a light suit of black leather armor.

Young Simon remained crouched with his Gao Dagger in hand. He felt worn and out of breath as the creature of his future looked down upon him.

“A fool who knows his dreams are unattainable but comes anyway. A fraud, without a will of his own, who’s wasted his life on a ridiculous ideal. Can you finally admit that’s who you truly are? Saving people just because you want to is both selfish and misguided. You’re a defect of humanity. You should never have existed in the first place. There’s no point in a life like yours. You know that I’m your ideal. And you should know now that your dream never comes true.”

Young Simon narrowed his eyes. He felt the heart of the lion pound in his chest.

The teen screamed and charged with an overhead slash. Abbadon blocked with ease. Simon pressed his dagger against his opponent’s blade, but the black sword didn’t budge.

“I see,” Abbadon said. “I suppose it’s only natural for you to deny me. As the ideal of Simon Kaden, I’m the only person you can never bring yourself to accept.”

Abbadon swatted Simon’s dagger, knocking him off balance. Simon quickly recovered and slashed at Abbadon. But Abbadon stepped back and grabbed the teen by the wrist.

“Now tell me, knowing what you know now…” Abbadon said. “Do you honestly want to be a hero of justice?”

Simon cursed beneath his breath. “I’ve already told you that. It isn’t that I want to become one. It’s that I will become one! No matter what!”

Simon pulled his wrist free and stabbed at Abbadon’s chest. The villain side-stepped and grabbed Simon in an arm-lock.

“You’re right…” Abbadon said. “You must become one. No matter what. You are Simon Kaden, and it’s the only thing you’ve ever been passionate about, even though you know, that the heart of a hero of justice simply isn’t in you.”

Simon said nothing.

“There, you see? Your reaction tells me that you’ve always suspected it yourself,” Abbadon continued. “It happened so long ago, but I remember. I remember what it felt like, the first time I laid eyes on one of Bandora’s monsters. And when that monster trapped me and my sister and its pocket dimension. I remember being freed, and looking at the Rangers for the first time upon my rescue. That is where your dream began. You adored them, that’s all. And because of them, because you saw how happy they were when they saved you, you began to think you could have the same thing.

“You inherited their curse,” Abbadon said. “You looked up to them. Looked up to Tommy. Leaving you no choice but to be a hero. The ideals you cling to are second-hand. Ideals that Tommy failed to live up to. In the end, all you’re doing is imitating what he believed was right.”

“You’re…wrong…” Simon whispered, his confidence waivering.

“Hero of justice…” Abbadon said. “Don’t make me laugh. Just because the idea consumes you, it doesn’t mean helping others is something you truly want. It’s nothing but a borrowed dream. Someone like you thinking you can be a force for good. It is the height of hubris.”

The villain kicked the side of Simon’s knee and threw him to the ground. Simon screamed; pain shot down his leg.

“That’s right,” Abbadon said. “You couldn’t help but admire the beauty in Tommy’s dream of helping others, of redeeming himself. That’s why you never developed any real passions of your own! If that isn’t hypocrisy, then what is?!” He shouted as he continued his attack, the clang of steel against steel punctuating his every word. “You’re driven by this ridiculous obsession with sacrificing yourself for the sake of others. Blind to your own arrogance!”

Abbadon lunged and swung his sword. Simon dodged, barely, scattering backward on all fours and climbing to his feet. He limped, his knee injured, but managed to shift into a defensive stance.

Abbadon advanced with a flurry of quick and powerful sword swings, pouring his strength into every blow. Simon blocked and parried; each blow forced him backward, nearly toppling him, as the force of the blocks strained his wrists and arms.

The villain pressed forward. “But in the end, you’re a fraud!”

His blade slipped past Simon’s guard and stabbed through the teen’s side. Simon gasped with pain and collapsed to his knees, blood spewing from the wound.

Abaddon narrowed his eyes. “Your hypocrisy can’t save anyone. How could you when you never knew who you should save to begin with? And look. This is the result. You could never be a savior. You never had anything to save. You became the embodiment of justice, and justice, can be cruel!”

The villain pulled his sword free and kicked Simon backward. “Your ideals are falling apart. Maybe other people aren’t more important than you are. It’s dawning on you that a world where everyone is happy is just a fairy tale. And if you can’t live without that dream, let it drag you down and drown you!

Simon rolled onto his back, his open wound soaking the ground with blood. It’s…true. What he said was mostly right. But…there’s something he missed.

The day of Bandora’s first attack, Simon saw his first glimpse of hell. Battle. Death. Destruction. Despair. I saw the hell that would someday be mine. Only 9-years-old, he felt it all. You were right. At least, I think you were. I saw the hell that led to all the others. What was the point…What was the point of me surviving that hell? Why was I spared?

He remembered the embrace of his sister after the battle. The smiles of Jason Scott and the others. Their laughter. Their bond. And he remembered Tommy, broken and looking for redemption. In need of a friend. A family. An orphan in search of a home.

Simon felt his spirit stir at the memories. He grabbed onto those fragments of his past, the brightness before a sea of dark, and he drew strength.

Simon staggered to his feet, leg broken, side pierced. His chest burned and tightened with each painful breath.

“This is the one thing you’ve forgotten. At first, it was just admiration. But it was admiration built on a dream. The dream of friendship and love. Family.”

“Is that the life you want?” Abbadon asked. “Even if that life leads to suffering?”

“Yeah, it is,” Simon said. “Even if it’s a life dripping with hypocrisy.” His Ki ignited with red energy. “I’ll try, to be the hero of justice the world needs!”

Energy flared within Simon’s body and knitted his wounds back together, bringing breath back into his spirit. He snapped out his arms. Fiery energy flashed within his palms and formed a pair of shortswords; one had a pommel engraved with the head of the lion, and the other had a pommel engraved with the head of the hawk.

“I’m not afraid of losing,” Simon said. “But there’s no way I’m going to lose to myself!”

“So…” Abaddon said. “You’re finally standing on the threshold. But what good will it do you? I’m certain you’ve noticed by now, your skill and mine are worlds apart.”

“My belief may have been defeated. But my arms and legs still work,” Simon said. “I honestly believed you were right. But now I know that isn’t true.”

“What…?”

“I see that being right is the only thing you actually care about,” Simon said. “Well none of that matters to me.”

He lifted his right sword at the villain. “I will become a hero of justice! And just as you can’t accept me, I’ll use every ounce of my strength to defeat the part of me that’s you!”

Angel Grove/Demon City

The Galaxy Rangers and Seraph Rangers regrouped on a broken bridge above a dry canal in the city.

A wave of White Jokers transformed into monsters from Bandora’s demon deck of cards, including: Pineoctopus, Madame Woe, Dora Ninja, Rockstar, Weaveworm, Goatan, Polluticorn, Spit Flower, Dora Sphinx, Dora Minotaur, Eye Guy and Dora Knight.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/Bandora1.jpg

Dora Knight shield-bashed Black Knight, sending him staggering backward. The evil knight lifted his sword and chopped. Black Knight parried, slashed Dora Knight with a burst of spark, and swung his sword wide, slashing the shield from the monster’s hand.

Black Knight somersaulted through the air and chopped his blade through a streak of black energy.

“Black Slash!” He landed with a powerful strike that tore through Dora Knight with massive bursts of spark.

Dora Minotaur charged and swung his club towards the Black Knight. But Seraph Knight dashed in front of the blow, blocked, and side-kicked the monster.

The Seraph Knight energized his blade with power.

“Knight Dynamic!” He slashed through a streak of energy that shattered the monster’s club.

The Spit Flower spat waves of piranha flowers at the Pink Galaxy Ranger, Black Seraph Ranger, and Yellow Seraph Ranger.

The Pink Galaxy Ranger thrust her hands. “Claws of Flowers!”

She fired waves of pink energy pedals that blasted through the piranha flowers, destroying the attack.

The Black Seraph Ranger and Yellow Seraph Ranger somersaulted across the ground, rolled into crouched stances, and loaded attack cards into their morphers, which spoke the command: “TENSOU!”

“Rock Rush!” the Black Ranger shouted.

The spell lifted rocks and shot them like missiles at Spit Flower. The rocks blasted the monster, sparking on impact, and hurling him backward.

“Spark Quake!” the Yellow Ranger shouted, facing the next waves of monsters.

Vibrations shook beneath the monsters and sparked blasts of electricity, thrashing the villains.

The Yellow Galaxy Ranger leapt through the air and lent his power to the attack.

“Howl of Lightning!”

He thrust his hand and fired blasts of lightning, striking the monsters as they staggered from the Yellow Seraph Ranger’s attack.

Galaxy Blue and Seraph Blue faced Goatan and Rockstar.

The Blue Galaxy Rangers thrust his hands. “Pulse of the Stream!”

Geysers of water erupted around the monsters, sending them staggering.

The Blue Seraph Ranger pressed forward to attack. He loaded a card into his morpher, which spoke the command: “SUMMON BATTLE GEAR!”

“Shark Bowgun!” He armed his bow and fired arrows of blue energy that stabbed through the monsters with bursts of spark.

Dora Sphinx lifted his staff and fired bursts of energy at Seraph Red, Seraph Pink, and Galaxy Green. The blasts smashed them with bursts of spark, whipping them off their feet.

The three Rangers rolled into crouched stances, but Madame Woe dashed past them, clawing their armor. Eye Guy struck next, forming orbs of energy that fired darts of power, blasting the three Rangers.

The Sphinx flapped his wings, sending gusts of air at the three Rangers. The waves of wind nearly swooped the Rangers off the ground. But they fought back.

Galaxy Green thrust his hands. “Fluttering of Storms!”

He fired a whirling blast of green wind that smashed Sphinx’s gust with a thundering boom, overpowered it, and bashed the monster with bursts of spark.

Seraph Red and Seraph Pink loaded cards into their morphers: “TENSOU!”

“Twist Tornado!” Seraph Red shouted.

“Compress Thunder!” Seraph Pink shouted.

The Red Ranger fired a cyclone of red wind, and the Pink Ranger fired a stormcloud that lashed out with bolts of lightning. The attacks combined and blasted through the Sphinx, Eye Guy and Madame Woe.

Suddenly, Dora Ninja dashed through the air and swung his blades towards Seraph Red’s head. Galaxy Red dashed in front of the attack, blocked, and struck the monster with an overhead slash.

Weaveworm fired strands of silk at the Red Galaxy Ranger.

The Red Seraph Ranger stepped in front of the attack. He loaded a card into his morpher: “TENSOU!”

“Defense Storm!”

A wave of wind energy blew through the air and formed a wall, deflecting the Weaveworm’s attack. Galaxy Red jumped over the barrier, extended his hand, and ignited his Aasu.

“Mane of Flame!”

He fired a stream of fire that vaporized the monster.

A fresh wave of White Jokers dropped from the skies, surrounding the Seraph Rangers and Galaxy Rangers. The White Jokers took the form of Saima monsters, including: Torendeus, Raima, Fireor, Infinitor, Mantevil, Smogger, Golomois, Treevil, Spartan and Hirugemuuja.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/Saima1.jpg

Seraph Red shifted into a defensive stance. He loaded a card into his morpher: “SUMMON BATTLE GEAR”

Kamen Rider Cross leapt to the scene, along with Kamen Rider Agito and Kamen Rider Kuuga, as well as the Battle Task Force Power Rangers.

Tyranno Ranger armed his Tyranno Sword, Seraph Red twirled his Dragon Sword, and Galaxy Red unsheathed his Seijuuken. They slashed at Fireor and Infinitor, blades clashing and sparking on impact.

Kamen Rider Kuuga joined them, bashing through Saima with punches and kicks. He somersaulted through the air and aimed a flying kick at Infinitor.

“Rider Kick!” His energized kick shot at Infinitor.

Infinitor lifted his shield, and the kick shattered it to pieces.

Tyranno Ranger and Galaxy Ranger dashed at the monster and slashed one-by-one.

Seraph Red moved in and powered up his weapon.

“Sky Strike!” He slashed through Infinitor, blade sparking on impact.

Smogger hurled a bomb that exploded, bashing Mammoth Ranger, Seraph Black, and Galaxy Green. The three Rangers rolled into crouched stances and climbed to their feet. But Spartan charged and tackled them.

Kamen Rider Agito leapt to their aide with a flying sidekick. The kick bashed the monster backward. Spartan lunged at the Rider, but Agito kicked him upside the head.

The three Rangers shot to their feet and attacked. Mammoth Ranger and Seraph Black slammed against the monsters with powerful punches and kicks, fierce and strong moves, deadly and powerful.

Galaxy Green somersaulted through the air, his agility on full display, and bashed the monsters with flying kicks.

Treevil snapped whips of bark that wrapped around Tricera Ranger, Seraph Blue, and Galaxy Blue. Mantevil swung his scythe, firing a blade of energy that struck the three Rangers with bursts of spark.

Kamen Rider Cross armed his Cross Calibur and slashed the three Rangers free.

“Demons!” He shouted. “I! Sir Arthur Angel! Knight of the True Cross! Will you banish you back to hell!”

Kamen Rider Cross snapped open his buckler and shifted to Burst Mode with a wave of energy.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/IXAPowerup.bmp

He lunged at Mantevil with an overhead slash. The monster blocked, scythe and blade clashing.

Tricera Ranger armed his Blade Blaster in blade mode and slashed Matevil from the side.

Galaxy Blue armed his Kiba Dagger.

“Kiba Claw!” He swung the claw through a streak of blue energy, striking the monsters with bursts of spark.

Tiger Ranger, Seraph Yellow, and Galaxy Yellow charged at Raima and Hirugemuuja.

Raima lifted his staff and fired bursts of lightning. Galaxy Yellow charged through the electric storm. The Yellow Ranger used his Aasu to fire bolts of yellow lightning, deflecting the monster’s blasts.

He leapt through the air, armed his sword, and aimed his descent towards the monster. But Hirugemuuja thwipped strands of webbing that wrapped around the Yellow Galaxy Ranger and whipped him aside.

Tiger Ranger hurled her daggers at the two monsters. One struck Raima, and one struck Hirugemuuja.

Torendeus and Golomois circled around Ptera Ranger, Galaxy Pink, and Seraph Pink.

“Kiba Arrow!” Galaxy Pink shifted her Kiba Claw into a shortbow.

“Ptera Bow!” Ptera Ranger armed her bow-and-arrow.

“Phoenix Shot!” Seraph Pink armed her fist-weapon blaster.

The Pink Rangers opened fire, blasting the two monsters before they could strike.

The Galaxy Rangers regrouped, poured energy into their blades and called on their power.

Red. “Flame Flash!”

Green. “Hurricane Gust!”

Yellow. “Thunder Sweep!”

Pink. “Flower Heart!”

Blue. “Rapids Strike!”

Their blades streaked with energy and slashed through Saima monsters with massive bursts of spark, sending them staggering.

Another group of White Jokers dropped from the skies. Then another. And another. They transformed into Saima monsters.

Kamen Rider Cross, Kamen Rider Kuuga, and Kamen Rider Agito regrouped.

Agito placed his hand over his buckler, which glowed with energy. “Awaken!”

He shifted into his Shining Form.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/AgitoShining.bmp

Kuuga placed his hand over his buckler, which glowed with energy. “Awaken!”

He shifted into his Ultimate Rising Form.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/KuugaRisingUltimate.bmp

Kamen Rider Cross flipped open his buckler and input a code: “RISING”

Energy flashed around him as he powered up into Rising Form.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/IXARising.bmp

The three Riders leapt through the air and attacked.

“Ultimate Rising Kick!” Kuuga shouted.

“Shining Rider Kick!” Agito shouted.

“Cross Judgement!” Cross shouted as he powered up his sword.

Kuuga and Agito’s kicks smashed monsters with massive bursts of spark, hurling them through the air. Cross dashed through the flailing villains, swinging his sword through streaks of power that ripped through their bodies.

The Galaxy Rangers lifted their hands towards the skies.

“Shine! Lights of Orion!” Golden energy flashed around them as they morphed into their Lights of Orion battle gear.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/LightsofOrion.bmp

The Seraph Rangers loaded cards into their morphers: “SUMMON ULTRA MODE!”

Their Ultra Totems flashed through the air, circled around them and morphed into their Ultra Mode armor.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/GoseiMiracle.bmp

The Galaxy Rangers leaned down and charged, like animals on the hunt.

“Power-up Mode!” they shouted. They transformed into bursts of golden energy that shot like comets, combining into a single burst of golden power that flared like a sun.

The Seraph Rangers thrust their staffs. “Ultra Power! Dynamic Strike!”

They fired beams of golden energy that combined into a single blast of golden power.

The Seraph blast and Galaxy blast combined into a single comet of energy that tore through the Saima with massive bursts of spark, scattering them into ash.

Seraph Black lifted his axe and stood in a defensive stance. White Jokers surrounded him and transformed into snake-themed monsters, including Snizard, Armor Snake, Cyber Serpent, Naja, Freezard and Snake Grongi.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/STheme.jpg

The Black Ranger scoffed. “Oh sure. Let the snake-themed Ranger fight all the snake-themed monsters. That’s fair.”

Snizard spat a volley of snakes that wrapped around the Black Ranger and pinned his arms to his sides. The pressure nearly crushed him, and he fell to the ground.

Armor Snake pounced to attack the fallen Ranger. But a sword slashed the monster aside. The sword belonged to Red Falcon of the Bio-Beast Rangers.

“I swear to god, I’m the only Ranger who doesn’t suck.” He twirled his blade, slashing the snake monsters with bursts of spark.

Ptera Ranger and Blue Dolphin leapt through the air with their bows and triggered volleys of arrows. The arrows punctured Snizard’s head with bursts of spark, releasing the grasp of the snakes around the Black Seraph Ranger.

Slowly, Seraph Black stumbled to his feet, just as a monster pounced at him. But an axe hacked the monster aside. The Black Seraph Ranger looked to see the Black Mammoth Ranger with his axe, the Mammoth Breaker, in hand.

“Sweet.” Seraph Black lifted his axe. “Axe team-up?”

“You know it,” Mammoth Ranger said.

The Black Rangers swung their heavy axes, chopping and hacking through monsters with bursts of spark.

The Spoke

Simon charged and swung his blades. Abbadon blocked; Simon dashed aside with the impact.

Abbadon scowled. “Pathetic,” he said. “Pathetic, pathetic, pathetic! I can’t even stand to look at you! Do you realize how stupid this is?! Do you?! You, a hero of justice? That’s really what you want? You know how absurd that is, so why can’t you admit you’re wrong?! True justice is the result of order. Salvation for all is totally different from your own salvation. Not only that, they’re completely incompatible! The more you strive for the total salvation of all, the more you’ll be consumed by your own contradiction. You’ll end up…a killer. In a cruel and pointless world. If you can’t see that, then die. Be crushed alongside your precious ideals! Burnt out, without ever achieving them!”

Simon regained his footing and charged to attack.

Abbadon lashed out with his black blade. Simon flipped over the villain and struck; Abbadon blocked. Simon slashed again before landing, but Abbadon blocked, snapped around, and swung his blade at the ranger.

Simon side-stepped and slashed his swords. Abbadon blocked. They danced around one another, blades lashing and deflecting. Simon poured his Ki into every blow and strike. Abbadon…called on something darker. The True Power of the Dark One.

Simon jumped and chopped. Simon lifted hi sblade; weapons clanged, metal against metal. Abbadon narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth, taken aback by the strength of his younger self.

“Son of a bitch!” Why am I bothering with a fair fight…? the villain asked himself. I know I could finish him easily. But if I do that…I sense that I will have been defeated in something crucial, and I can’t accept that!

Abbadon parried and lunged with a sword strike. No…I’ll finish this!

The villain lashed out with a kick that struck Simon’s head. The impact hurled the teen off his feet.

He’s already dead on his feet, Abbadon thought. This is the final…

Simon climbed back to his feet, and Abbadon cursed beneath his breath. How could I be so foolish? How many times do I have to see it end like this? He’ll never give up. He’ll never reach his limit. In fact, he’s long since surpassed it. He’s completely obsessed with taking down his opponent. But it’s not me that he’s trying to kill anymore.

Abbadon stared at his younger self, fierce determination in youthful eyes not yet clouded by darkness. I know it. I know that ragged look of his. It’s all too familiar. I recognize the boy as well. One whose spirit has never been broken. Who’s never been beaten and never succumbed. Although the weight of it threatened to crush him, he never lost his dream of saving everyone, and insisted on carrying the burden alone. I know this boy.

If only there was a way. If only he could save everyone who suffered, he thought. He might find a purpose for his miserable existence.

He knows he can’t win. He knows this fight is meaningless. Yet he remains defiant. The very mistake I once made myself. Still he fights. Why?

“No,” Abbadon said as he lifted his black sword. “In the end it doesn’t matter. Your hope will someday betray you. As mine did.”

He swung his sword; the blade pulsed with black energy and fired a sickle of power, black tinted crimson.

Simon crossed his swords and summoned his Ki. The villain’s blast splashed across the invisible barrier, crackling and blazing with discharges of dark power. The impact ignited with a final burst of energy that knocked Simon off of his feet.

Abbadon lifted his sword for another attack. “Your battle ends here.”

Simon sat up on the ground. He breathed heavily, staring defiantly at his older self. “Yeah, I get it, you’re right. I understand…what you’ve been trying to say…for the many to live, the few have to die. For the many to be happy, the few have to give into sorrow. You can’t save everyone because you can’t save anyone without hurting someone. Mind blown. Got it. My wish really is fake. But…there’s something beautiful about it anyway. Putting others before myself is hypocritical. I understand that. Still. I couldn’t help but admire the idea. I thought how great it would be if I could live like that. Even if my life was a sham. There was still beauty in that wish, in doing whatever I could to make others happy.”

Simon climbed to his feet. He tightened his grip on his weapons. “I won’t let that wish go. Even if it is foolish, I won’t give it up. I don’t care what you say. I don’t care if I’m a fraud or a hypocrite. Because I know my dream isn’t a mistake!”

The sky lightened above Simon, swelling outward with white clouds against a backdrop of blue, pushing out against the dark horizon of Abbadon’s soulscape.

Simon charged towards his older self. Each footfall ebbed with light that shimmered within the soulscape, unraveling the fabric of their surroundings.

Abbadon cursed. “Go to hell!”

The villain swung his sword and fired blades of energy that shot towards Simon.

Simon slashed past the blades, one-by-one, as he ran towards his future. It’s not! He struck through an energy blade. It’s not! He blocked another barrage of energy blasts. My dream is not a mistake!

He shot forward; time seemed to slow, inch-by-inch. The teen’s blades ignited with red light. Wisps of power flickered along his entire body.

Abbadon stepped back. This is cruel. Forcing me to look into an old mirror. But…there really was such a boy once, wasn’t there?

Simon struck with a burst of light that peeled back Abbadon’s soulscape, blinding with colors and radiance.

They found themselves in The Spoke once again, that place that was not a place. And Simon breathed a sigh of relief, and sadness, his blade in Abbadon’s gut. The wound sizzled with energy, strands of power that snaked throughout Abbadon’s body, devouring him from the inside.

“I’ve won, Abbadon,” he said.

“Yes…” Abbadon said. “And I’ve lost.”

Simon pulled his blade free and collapsed.

—To be continued…

Author’s note: These three “Warzone” chapters didn’t fit into the main story, but I wanted to post them anyway. Think of them as tie-in issues to a comic book event, but even less important to the overall story. They don’t advance the plot. They don’t have a compelling narrative. They feature shameless slugfests written by my inner 8-year-old.

Angel Grove/Demon City Versus

Fissures split from the main Armada conduit and spat hundreds more X-Borgs and Zergs into the city.

The Titanium Ranger smashed through the grunts. He fought with an advanced morpher that downloaded battle data directly into his brain. He analyzed fighting tactics and calculated countermoves faster than the human mind could typically process.

He charged, flipped over an X-Borg, and kicked a Zerg while landing. He ducked beneath a staff swing, round-kicked an X-Borg, and jump-kicked a Zerg upside the head. He moved with speed and precision, able to anticipate and counter every grunt’s attack.

The Quantum Ranger– Time Fire– moved alongside him, fists and kicks smashing armor.

“DV-Defender! Blade Mode!” He armed his blaster and switched the weapon to blade mode.

Time Fire spun forward while slashing open an X-Borg’s chest. The Ranger twisted his wrist and swung his weapon through another arc with a streak of energy, slashing through an X-Borg’s head.

The Quantum Ranger dashed forward, a blur of motion as his blade slashed through armor and circuitry like a heated knife through butter. The blazing sword slashed soldiers left and right before they could even attack, each strike sparking on impact, reducing the X-Borgs to scrap metal.

Titanium Ranger armed his Titanium Laser in axe-mode. He dashed past three X-Borgs while swinging his axe through powerful arcs, each blow tearing through grunts. The Titanium Ranger spun through a group of five grunts, ripping through their chests with horizontal strikes and cleaving through their bodies with diagonal blows.

Time Fire snapped a spin kick that smashed a soldier’s head. The Quantum Ranger swung a backhand slash to rip open that X-Borg’s chest.

The Titanium Ranger side-kicked a soldier to his right and looked back to his left while using his axe to decapitate an X-Borg. The Titanium Ranger kicked the headless grunt with enough force to hurl him across the street.

Nearby, Gao Silver rode to the scene on his Wolf Roader. The cycle plowed through X-Borgs and Zergs, smashing the grunts out of the Ranger’s way.

He skid his cycle to a halt and hopped off the bike.

“Lunar Cue!” He armed his saber and struck with the speed and agility of a wolf.

The Silver Overdrive Ranger and Red Python moved in alongside the Silver Gao Ranger. Overdrive Silver swung his Drive Detector, slashing through X-Borgs with bursts of spark. And Red Python twirled her daggers, stabbing through X-Borg armor.

Kamen Rider Faiz joined them. He leapt through the air with a flying sidekick that bashed a Zerg’s chest.

Meanwhile, Gao Silver moved alongside Hurricane Green, who had leapt to the scene.

Gao Silver tossed his three Animal Crystals into the air and armed his Lunar Cue in Breaker Mode, like a pool cue.

“Lunar Break!”

The crystals energized and dropped; Gao Silver used his cue to strike the crystals, and they shot towards the grunts like energized bullets.

Hurricane Green pulled a sphere from behind his back.

“Sonic Style! Spinning Barrage Jutsu!”

He tossed the ball upward as he would a baseball; the ball created dozens of sonic echoes that dropped in front of the Green Ranger. The Ranger spun like a tornado and swung his sheathed sword like a bat to knock the spheres towards the X-Borgs.

Hurricane Green and Gao Silver’s attacks combined into a volley of energized bolts. The bolts punctured through X-Borgs and Zergs, blasting through armor and circuits.

The scattered grunts tried to regroup. But before they could, Dino Slayer dashed back and forth through blurs of motion, swinging his Drago Sword, slashing the grunts with bursts of spark.

Nearby, the battle was joined by the Dino Thunder Black Ranger, his Red Rangers at his side: Hurricane Red, Samurai Red, Jungle Fury Red, Mystic Red, Dino Red, and Seraph Red.

A group of White Jokers charged towards them. Most of the creatures transformed into monsters from the Warstar army, including Malkor, Creepox, Yuffo, Dizchord, Virox, Dragonflay, Abauta, Beezara, Powereddark, and Targate.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Warstar.bmp

Others transformed into the Sanbashu Army of the Balban, including Sanbashu, Rigurou, Dreddredder, and Quake Maker.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Sanbashu.bmp

The Dino Thunder Black Ranger lifted his Brachio Staff into a fighting stance.

“It’s time to take care of business!”

Hurricane Red and Dino Red charged at Malkor. The Red Hurricane Ranger unsheathed his sword, and the Dino Thunder Red Ranger switched his blaster to blade mode.

“Double Break!” they shouted together.

Hurricane Red struck high, and Dino Red struck low. Their blades flashed with red energy and slashed through the monster, sparking on impact.

Dino Black chopped Creepox, blade sparking. He stepped back and extended his arms.

Crimson Thunder and Navy Thunder jumped onto the Black Ranger’s shoulders, hopped off, and lifted their Thunder Staffs.

“Shadow Style! Shadow Slash!” Crimson Thunder ignited his staff with tendrils of shadow.

“Lightning Style! Lightning Slash!” Navy Thunder energized his staff with tendrils of lightning.

They landed and slashed through the monster with bursts of spark.

DECA Red wielded his D-Magnums as an expert of “Gun-Fu”, bashing X-Borgs in the head, spinning, firing at close range, and flipping over grunts.

Dino Red moved alongside him, wielding his own blaster, firing darts of energy that punctured through X-Borgs.

The Dino Thunder Black Ranger leapt through the air and landed between the two Red Rangers. They looked ahead, towards a fresh wave of X-Borgs and Zergs.

The Black Ranger stabbed his Brachio Staff into the ground.

“Flame Strike!”

Fire erupted through the streets, tossing the grunts into the air, as DECA Red and Dino Red opened fire, blasting the soldiers.

Nearby, DECA Shadow whirled his D-Sword Vega, blade slashing through enemy armor. Dino Black moved alongside him; the two Rangers whirled their blades through quick and powerful strikes, slashing X-Borgs, blades sparking on impact.

Laser arrows shot through the air and stabbed through X-Borgs. The arrows came from Dino Slayer, who moved alongside DECA Break. The two White Rangers joined the Dino Thunder Black Ranger and DECA Shadow.

DECA Break shifted the throttle on his bracer.

“Scorching Fist!” He swung his fist with a fireball that bashed through X-Borgs with massive bursts of spark.

Nearby, DECA Pink charged towards a group of X-Borgs, with Dino Yellow to her left and DECA Yellow to her right. They armed their blasters and fired lances of energy that tore through grunts with bursts of spark.

DECA Pink and DECA Yellow split off and grouped up with Mystic Blue and Mystic Pink. The Pink Mystic Ranger and Blue Mystic Ranger crouched and linked their staffs; DECA Pink and DECA Yellow rested their D-Shots on the staffs and aimed forward.

“Magical D-Shot!” they shouted. “Miracle Twister!”

Technology and magick combined, firing lances of energy that swirled with power, thrashing through monsters with massive bursts of spark.

DECA Red, Dino Red, Mystic Red and Hurricane Red regrouped.

Mystic Red took the lead. “Looks like it’s time for some Battleizer action!”

The four Red Rangers armed their morphers.

“Battleizer Mode!” Hurricane Red shouted. “Engage!”

“Triassic Morpher!” Dino Red shouted. “Battleizer! Power-up!”

“SPD!” DECA Red shouted. “Battleizer!”

“Battleizer!” Mystic Red shouted. “Red Dragon Fire Ranger!”

Energy flared around them as they powered up into their suits of Battleizer armor, trembling the streets.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Battleizers.JPG

Hurricane Red shot into the air. His armor sizzled with heat.

“Ultra Laser!” he shouted. “Fire!”

His armor fired twin beams of twirling energy that lashed with tendrils of flame and wind.

Dino Red leapt into the air alongside the Red Hurricane Ranger.

“Cannons!” He aimed his shoulder cannons downward. “Battle Blast!”

He fired twin beams of twirling red energy, tinted with streams of white.

Dino Red and Hurricane Red’s beams of energy combined into a single beam of power that twirled and lashed with energy, tearing through the streets, vaporizing dozens of monsters and tossing hundreds of creatures and grunts into the air.

DECA Red charged towards the staggered enemies left in the wake of the attack.

“Battleizer!” he shouted. “Full Power!”

He fired blades of red energy that ripped and slashed through monsters and X-Borgs, scattering them along the war-torn streets.

Mystic Red snapped his armored wings and shot into the air.

“Red Dragon Dive!”

He shot downward and threw his blades like boomerangs. They twirled with tendrils of fire and light that tore through monsters and X-Borgs, striking with bursts of spark and flame.

Angel Grove/Demon City The Lion Battle

Bear Lake dried years ago, overgrown with beds of dead weeds and seaweed, surrounded by dead trees with black bark.

Within the dead park, Gao Red pounced like a lion and slammed an X-Borg to the ground. He clawed the grunt, slashing through armor with bursts of spark.

The Red Ranger rolled to the side and stood, landing next to the Green Lion Ranger. They found themselves separated from their teammates by waves of monsters.

Suddenly, back-up smashed through the monsters. Galaxy Red and Seraph Knight swung their swords, blades slashing through monsters and sparking on impact. Hurricane Yellow and Yellow Lion swung kicks and punches that battered monsters out of their way. And Black Lion and Kamen Rider Beast moved alongside each other while snapping agile spin-kicks and powerful punches.

White Jokers regrouped and shifted into monsters from the Gao Rangers’ past, including Onikage, Zen-Aku, Charcoal Org, Wire Org, Turbine Org, Plug Org and Samurai Org.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/Org.jpg

Wire Org snapped tendrils of barbed wire at Gao Red and Galaxy Red. The two Red Rangers dove aside and rolled into crouched positions. The Red Galaxy Ranger armed his Seijuken, and Gao Red armed his Gao Dagger.

The two Red Rangers leapt to attack, somersaulted through the air, and landed while slashing Wire Org. Blades sparked on impact and hurled the monster backward.

Onikage and Hurricane Yellow dashed through blurs of motion, clashing with one another as they shot back and forth across the streets. Sword clanged against sword, sparking on impact.

They landed with blades locked.

Onikage chopped the Yellow Ranger to the ground. The monster swung an overhead slash to finish off the fallen Ranger. But Yellow Lion dashed to the scene, crouched low, and used his Lion Gauntlet to block the blow.

Yellow Lion kicked Onikage backward. The Ranger reached back with his gauntlet and energized the weapon with power.

“Lion Punch!” He smashed his gauntlet through Onikage’s chest.

Kamen Rider Beast and Black Lion charged towards Plug Org.

The monster fired blasts of electricity, but Black Lion and Beast leapt over the blasts.

“Ringi!” Black Lion shouted. “Goyu Koha!”

His Ki ignited with energy shaped like a black lion, outlined with gold. The beast lunged and tackled Plug Org with a shockwave of power.

Beast energized his saber and dashed towards the staggered monster. The Rider’s weapon spoke the command: “SABER STRIKE”

He slashed through a streak of golden energy, tearing the monster in two.

Seraph Knight whirled his sword at Charcoal Org. The blade sparked on impact, forcing the monster backward with each blow.

The Green Lion Ranger moved in. He armed his Thunder Staff and swung the weapon, battering Charcoal Org, keeping the monster off balance.

Seraph Knight stepped back and charged his weapon.

“Knight Dynamic!” He slashed through a streak of light that ripped through the monster.

Lion Ranger reached back with his fist, which pulsed with pale-green light.

“Hand of Fate!” He punched a beam of energy that punctured through Charcoal Org.

The monster collapsed; secondary explosions scattered the creature into ash.

Zen-Aku faced the Red Gao Ranger and Red Galaxy Ranger.

“Crescent Blade! Crescent Wave!” Zen-Aku swung his weapon, firing blades of moonlight.

Galaxy Red and Gao Red leapt over the blades.

Galaxy Red poured energy into his sword. “Flame Flash!”

Gao Red energized his Lion Fang. “Blazing Fire!”

They landed while chopping through the monster, tearing through his armor and flesh. Zen-Aku staggered backward. Secondary explosions tore through his body, just before he exploded into ash.

—to be continued

Author’s note: These “Warzone” chapters didn’t fit into the main story, but I wanted to post them anyway. Think of them as tie-in issues to a comic book event, but even less important to the overall story. They don’t advance the plot. They don’t have a compelling narrative. They feature shameless slugfests written by my inner 8-year-old. And I am perfectly OK with that.

Angel Grove/Demon City Virtual Heroes

Cybertron, Nova Black, and Nova White leapt through the air to attack a group of X-Borgs. They landed and fought as one, punches and kicks denting enemy armor.

Shaider joined them, spinning his Laser Saber through powerful slashes and cuts. Red Python moved in at his side, twirling her daggers, stabbing and slashing through enemy grunts.

Ahead, a group of White Jokers transformed into VaGlass monsters, including: Shovelroid, Burnerroid, Cutterroid, Tireroid, Sprayroid, Drillroid, Daganroid, Fanroid, Domeroid, Kentateroid, Filmroid, and Forkroid.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/Vaglass.jpg

Nova Black and Nova White teamed up with SHOC in his Samurized battle armor.

The Black Nova Trooper slashed his blade, tearing through VaGlass armor. Nova White fired her blaster; beams of energy stabbed through monsters with bursts of spark. And SHOC pounded the monsters with simple but powerful punches and kicks.

Cutterroid slashed at SHOC. The hero blocked and launched a front-kick, reverse side-kick combo that bashed the monster backward.

Forkroid stabbed the hero’s back with a burst of spark, sending him stumbling forward.

SHOC snapped around and lifted his left arm.

“Hyper Shock!” His forearm fired a beam of energy that stabbed through Forkroid with bursts of spark, blowing the monster to pieces.

Angel Grove/Demon City Beetle Battle

The Beetle Borgs grouped up with the Beetle Borgs Metallix. Kamen Rider Kabuto and Kamen Rider Gattack joined them, as did Crimson Thunder and Navy Thunder of the Hurricane Power Rangers, and Digi Gold and Digi Silver of the Digi Rangers.

They faced an army of White Jokers that transformed into beetle-themes monsters including Beetle Undead, Giraffa Undead, Stag Beetle, Beetle Grongi, Kuwagataloid, Stag Mutant, Beetle Mutant, Snipster, Tagredor and Torbador, and Death Stag.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/Beetles.jpg

The Beetle Borgs stepped forward.

“Beetle Battlers!” Blue Stinger shouted.

The three Borgs reached behind their backs; their weapons wrapped around their forearms with flashes of light.

“Stinger Blade!” Blue Stinger energized his weapon and slashed through a streak of blue energy.

“Hunter Claw!” Green Hunter swung his claw wide through a streak of green power.

“Striker Blaster!” Red Striker fired twirling beams of jagged, ruby energy.

The four members of Beetle Borgs Metallix followed, arming their weapons in the same fashion.

“Metallix Lancer!” Chromium Gold armed his lancer-tipped staff.

“Metallix Grappler!” Titanium Silver grabbed onto a staff tipped with a grappler.

“Metallix Baton!” Platinum Purple armed her bo staff.

“Metallix Saber!” Electric Bronze grabbed onto his broad short sword.

Chromium Gold and Digi Gold leapt through the air, side-by-side, and angled their descent towards Snipster. The Gold Beetle Borg landed with a slash of his lancer, and the Gold Digi Ranger landed with a blow from his Striker Saber.

The Stag Beetle leaned forward and fired jagged beams of energy from its horns. The blast struck Chromium Gold and Digi Gold with bursts of spark, whipping them backward.

Kamen Rider Gattack side-kicked the Stag Beetle. The Rider followed with a swing of both sabers in an x-formation, slashing the monster, blades sparking on impact.

Navy Thunder moved in alongside Gattack, armed his Thunder Staff, and slashed the monster, blade sparking on impact.

Titanium Silver and Digi Silver surrounded the Kuwagataloid. The Ranger and Borg struck as one– Titanium Silver swung his Metallix Grappler, and Digi Silver swung his Striker Saber. The blows struck hard, blades sparking on impact and staggering the monster.

Kamen Rider Kabuto and the Beetle Grongi exchanged powerful volleys of punches and kicks, blows slamming against blows as the opponents blocked each others’ attacks.

The Giraffa Undead and Beetle Undead moved in to support the Beetle Grongi. The monsters struck with their blades, slashing Kabuto with bursts of spark that whipped him off his feet.

The Crimson Thunder Ranger leapt through the air from behind Kabuto. He landed with a chop of his Thunder Staff, striking the two undead with a single, wide sweep.

The Blue Stinger Beetle Borg stepped behind the Crimson Thunder Ranger. They stood back-to-back; Blue Stinger lifted his Stinger Blade and faced a rush of several beetle monsters.

“Stinger Blade!” he shouted. “Beetle Break!”

He slashed through a streak of blue energy that tore through monsters, sparking on impact.

The Electric Bronze Beetle Borg and White Blaster Beetle Borg charged at Beetle Mutant. White Blaster launched a double-flying punch that bashed the monster, and Electric Bronze dashed forward with a slash, striking the monster with a burst of spark.

Tagredor and Torbador stomped towards the two Borgs. But Platinum Purple and Red Striker stepped in front of the creatures.

Platinum Purple swung her weapon, slashing the monster with bursts of spark. The creature staggered, and Red Striker opened fire.

“Striker Blaster! Striker Spark!” She fired twirling beams of red energy that blasted the monsters with bursts of spark.

The Green Hunter Beetle Borg charged in to finish off the duo.

“Hunter Claw!” he shouted. “Hunter Slash!”

He swung wide through a streak of green energy that tore through the monsters, ripping them apart.

Angel Grove/Demon City The Guyver

The Guyver joined Kamen Rider Agito and Kamen Rider Kuuga in a ruined plaza of desolated fountains.

White Jokers took the form of monsters from the Gorgom Syndicate, including: Leopard Mutant, Silkworm Mutant, Rhino Mutant, Cicada Mutant, Lizard Mutant, Rat Mutant, Porcupine Mutant, Mantis Mutant, Buffalo Mutant, and Black Cat Mutant.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/Gorgom1.jpg

The Buffalo mutant charged at the Guyver. The Guyver grabbed the monster’s horns, kneed the creature upside the head, and elbow-bashed the back of its neck, dropping the monster to the ground.

Leopard Mutant pounced at the Guyver. But the Guyver spun around with a swing of his arm blades, slicing the creature in half.

Rhino Mutant charged, aiming his horn towards the Guyver’s gut.

The Guyver stabbed his blades through the creature’s shoulders and kicked it upside the head, sending it staggering backward.

Agito and Kuuga leapt towards the injured monster with flying kicks.

“Rider Kick!” they shouted.

Their energized kicks bashed Rhino Mutant and hurled him backward; secondary explosions tore through his body.

The two Riders landed; Black Cat Mutant and Rat Mutant pounced at them the second their feet touched the street. Agito and Kuuga split up and attacked, their kicks and punches landing hard.

The Guyver faced the remaining monsters. The hero opened his chest armor, revealing two cannons that glowed with white-hot energy.

“Mega Smasher!”

His chest cannons fired twin, thick beams of energy that surged like liquid fire. The beams splashed through the monsters, tearing them apart with massive explosions that shook the streets.

Angel Grove/Demon City Wolf Battle

Gao Silver faced a group of White Jokers that took the form of the Jakanja General Chubo and his monsters, including Kekkaibo, Hanasakkadoushi, Futabutabou, and Toxipod.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/ChuboArmy.bmp

They faced off in the middle of what used to be an outdoor shopping area, reduced to mostly rubble and debris.

Futabutabou opened portals that hurled comets at the Silver Ranger. Gao Silver dove and rolled aside as explosions erupted around him, tearing through the plaza.

The Silver Ranger rolled into a crouched position. Monsters surrounded him.

Help came from above. The Violet Wolf Ranger somersaulted through the air.

“Geki Waza! Ban Shuu!” The Wolf Ranger leapt onto a monster’s back and elbowed the creature’s head, dropping him to the ground.

Kekkaibo snapped a volley of paper bombs at the Wolf Ranger. But the Ranger dodged and leapt through the air.

“Geki Waza! Rou Shuu!” He launched a spin kick that bashed Kekkaibo’s head, knocking him backward.

Hanasakkadoushi snapped vines at the Violet Wolf Ranger. But the Yellow Galaxy Ranger leapt to the scene and chopped through the vines.

The Yellow Ranger thrust his palm at the monster.

“Howl of Lightning!” He fired bursts of lightning that blasted the monster, hurling her backward.

The Yellow Galaxy Ranger, Silver Gao Ranger, and Violet Wolf Ranger regrouped. The three Rangers leapt through the air towards Chubo. But explosions smashed their armor and hurled them across the street.

Another wave of White Jokers poured onto the scene. Before they could transform into monsters from the Rangers’ past, a burst of golden light shot through their ranks, ripping them apart and scattering their pieces into the air, a flare of power.

The Golden Knight Garo skid to a halt. The Stronghold Knight Gaia and Shadow Cutter Knight Zoro joined him. They armed their swords, which sizzled with heat and power, and struck as one, forming an unstoppable wave of blade and armor that ripped through White Jokers like insects.

Angel Grove/Demon City Assault from the rooftops

Gavan, Shaider, Sharivan, Cybertron, and the Nova Troopers moved down a ruined street surrounded by gutted skyscrapers. Suddenly, explosions tore through the rubble around them.

They looked up to see villains firing from the rooftops. The monsters were White Jokers taking the form of Grimlord’s Armament Army, including Cannon Nose, Fighterbot, Air Stryker, Torpedobot, Ballistix, Tankatron, and Blue Boar.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/cybetronarmament.bmp

Gavan, Shaider, Sharivan, Cybertron, Nova Black and Nova White leapt onto the rooftops. They bashed through the Armament Army, fists and kicks denting armor.

Tankatron and Cannon Nose opened fire. Bullets sparked against the heroes. They dove aside and rolled into crouched positions.

Ballistix fired a salvo of heavy missiles.

As if from nowhere, the Beetle Borgs and Beetle Borgs Metallix dropped in front of the attack, their backs facing the missiles. The missiles exploded against their armor with massive bursts of spark and flame, driving them to their knees.

Electric Bronze groaned as he stood. “We probably should have given this some more thought.”

“Can’t take it, Josh?” Chromium Gold asked.

“Drew, don’t be a jerk,” chided his sister, Platinum Purple.

The four Beetle Borgs Metallix charged and powered up their weapons to attack.

“Metallix Lancer! Spear Strike!”

“Metallix Grappler! Claw Strike!”

“Metallix Baton! Breaker Strike!”

“Metallix Saber! Sword Strike!”

Their weapons energized and tore through the Armament Army, clearing the roof with explosions of flame and shrapnel.

The other Beetle Borgs, and the virtual heroes, joined.

The Blue Stinger Beetle Borg, Chromium Gold Beetle Borg, and Shaider kicked and slashed through monsters. Shaider swung his saber, Blue Stinger slashed his Stinger Blade, and Chromium Gold twirled his lancer.

Titanium Silver, Gavan, and Cybertron bashed through monsters with kicks and punches. Red Striker, Platinum Purple, and Nova White mopped up behind them, denting armor with each blow, favoring knife-hand strikes and kicks.

After they cleared the roof, the Borgs and virtual heroes turned their attention to the streets.

Below, the Zeo Rangers faced White Jokers that took the form of Grimlord’s Robotic Warrior Army, including Zeltron, Chrome Dome, Minotaurbot, Cannonbot, Polarbot, Renegade, and Graybot.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/cybertronrobots.bmp

Another group formed the Monster Army, including Toxoid, Venombot, Bugbot, Spitbot, and Wolfbot.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/cybertronmutants.bmp

And a third group formed the Armored Army, including Decimator, Fistbot, Combax, Horrorbot, Chainbot, the Swordbot Brothers, and Slashbot.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/cybertronarmored.bmp

The Swordbot Brothers attacked Zeo Red from both sides. Slice slashed with his katana, and Dice swung his naginata. Zeo Red parried and blocked, wielding his Star Rider with mastery and skill that far surpassed the bots.

The Red Zeo Ranger slashed Dice with a burst of spark and side-kicked Slice, knocking the bot backward.

From behind the Red Zeo Ranger, Slashbot charged with a wide swing of his samurai sword.

The Blue Stinger Beetle Borg stepped in front of the blow, grabbed the sword, and kicked the bot backward.

Blue Stinger and Zeo Red stood back-to-back.

The Blue Beetle Borg tightened his hands into fists. “Time to go Mega.”

He armed his rifle. “Thunder Stinger! Mega Blast!”

Energy surged from his armor; his shell opened into armor wings, and he transformed into Mega Blue.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/MegaBlue.bmp

“Mega Blue Beetle Borg!” He aimed his rifle. “Fire!”

He fired a massive pulse of energy that tore through monsters with bursts of spark.

Zeo Green and Fistbot charged at one another. They launched volleys of punches– uppercuts, cross punches, jabs– bashing each other with powerful blows.

From behind, Chainbot snapped his chained mace at the Green Zeo Ranger.

The Green Hunter Beetle Borg dashed in front of the blow, grabbed the chain, and pulled out his sidearm.

“Beetle Magnum!” He triggered energy bursts that blasted Chainbot with bursts of spark.

Zeo Green pressed his attack against Fistbot.

“Zeo Power Punch!” Zeo Green energized his fists with jade power. He swung flurries of punches that bashed Fistbot with massive bursts of spark.

Zeo Blue and Shaider leapt towards Venombot and Bugbot with flying kicks. The kicks bashed the monsters, hurling them backward.

Several more villains charged at the heroes. But the Blue Zeo Ranger turned to face them.

“Zeo Power Spin!” Zeo Blue leapt upward and started spinning backward, forming a sphere of blue energy that shot towards the monsters.

Zeo Gold and Cybtertron stood back-to-back.

“It’s time for a Gold Rush!” Zeo Gold shouted. “Victory Flash!”

He swung his staff and fired bolts of golden energy, ripping through monsters with bursts of spark, sending them staggering.

Cybertron leapt through the air towards the staggered monsters.

“Lightning Hand Command, now!” He landed with a lightning-charged-knife-hand chop that tore through a monster with massive bursts of spark.

Wolfbot and Spitbot pounced at the Titanium Silver Beetle Borg and Yellow Zeo Ranger.

Titanium Silver reached out with his grappler, grabbed Wolfbot while in midair, and tossed the monster overhead.

Zeo Yellow dodged a spit attack from Spitbot, and then countered as soon as the monster landed on its feet.

“Zeo Power Kick!” Zeo Yellow launched a flurry of energized kicks that streaked with yellow power.

The kicks battered Spitbot and knocked him backward.

Toxoid fired needles from his fingertips. The needles stabbed Zeo Pink, Platinum Purple, and Red Striker with bursts of spark.

Slashbot and Decimater unsheathed their swords and slashed the three heroes, whipping them backward.

Zeo Pink rolled across the street, climbed to her feet, and shifted into an offensive stance.

“Zeo Power Cloud!” Zeo Pink formed a cloud of pink energy that she condensed in her palms and shot forward.

The blast slammed Decimater and Slashbot with bursts of spark, hurling them across the street.

Platinum Purple and Red Striker moved in on Toxoid. They launched knife-hand chops and round-kicks, battering the villain.

The Chromium Gold Beetle Borg moved alongside the Gold Zeo Ranger. Zeo Gold swung his short staff, battering monsters, denting their armor with each blow. Chromium Gold twirled his lancer, striking monsters with bursts of spark.

The Gold Beetle Borg hopped backward to gain distance.

“Time for some back-up,” he said. “Summon Astral Borgs!”

The four Astral Borgs appeared with flashes of light: Dragonborg, Fireborg, Ladyborg, and Lightningborg.

“Dragonfly Bow-gun!” Dragonborg fired bursts of energy that ripped through Chrome Dome and Graybot with bursts of spark.

Polarbot opened fire with his shoulder-mounted cannons. But Lightningborg charged at the monster.

“Astral Sabers!” He armed his twin swords and slashed the monster, chopping and hacking, blades sparking on impact.

Lightningborg chopped off the monster’s cannons and grabbed the creature in an armlock.

“Now!” he shouted to his teammates.

Fireborg and Ladyborg moved in.

“Astral Launcher!” Fireborg armed his arm cannon and fired a cannonball of fiery energy.

“Astral Bazooka!” Ladyborg armed her bazooka and fired a pulse of power.

Lightningborg kicked Polarbot backward; the combined attacks from Ladyborg and Fireborg punctured through the creature with bursts of spark that ripped him to pieces.

Angel Grove/Demon City The Machines

The Zeo Rangers pressed forward.

A group of White Jokers surrounded them and took the form of monsters from the Machine Empire and the Machine Remnant, including Machine Cactus, Machine Silo, Machine Boxer, Wolfbane, Defector, Incinerator, Dowser Bot, Machine Pipe, Machine Magnet, Machine Generator, and Venjix.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/MachineyMachineremnant.bmp

“Oh great,” Zeo Blue said. “Deja vu.”

The sound of engines throttled from across the street. The RPM Rangers dashed to the scene at mach speed, slashing through the monsters with bursts of spark.

“Weapons, guys!” Zeo Red shouted. He placed his hand over his visor; a sword flashed into his grip with a burst of red light. “Star Riser!”

“Square Crushers!” Zeo Green armed his short axes.

“Delta Tonfa!” Zeo Blue summoned his arm blades.

“Twin Batons!” Zeo Yellow twirled her twin nunchaku.

“Circle Defenser!” Zeo Pink armed her shield.

Zeo Red twirled his sword and charged the blade with red energy.

“Star Riser! Ignite!” He slashed through a streak of red power that tore through the monsters with massive bursts of spark.

“Zeo Power Charge!” The Blue Zeo Ranger dove forward with his tonfa extended. The weapons charged with blue energy and punctured through several monsters, ripping them to pieces with massive bursts of spark.

“Zeo Breaker!” Zeo Green charged his twin axes with jade energy, lunged forward, and swung the blades through an x-shaped pattern. The blades chopped through the monsters with massive bursts of spark, sending them staggering backward.

“Zeo Power Thrasher!” Zeo Yellow started spinning through the monsters while twirling her nunchaku through streaks of yellow energy. The weapons bashed through monsters with massive bursts of spark, denting and tearing through their bodies.

“Bring 'em together, guys!” Zeo Red shouted.

The Rangers combined their weapons into a single blaster and aimed forward.

“Ultra Blaster!” they shouted. “Fire!”

They fired a twirling pulse of energy that punctured through monsters with massive bursts of spark, clearing a path in front of them.

Angel Grove/Demon City Zeo and Turbo

The Turbo Rangers sped to the scene and joined the Zeo Rangers, just as a fresh wave of White Jokers charged towards them.

Four White Jokers took the form of the Mantrons– Scorpix, Centipix, Mantix and Hornix– enemies of the Beetle Borg Metallix.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Mantrons.bmp

And a fifth White Joker took the form of Shadow Borg, an enemy of the original Beetle Borgs.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Shadowborg.jpg

Zeo Pink and Pink Racer moved in on Mantix.

The villain shifted into a defensive stance.

“Mantis Claws!” Mantix armed two sickles attached to his arms.

The villain lunged and chopped. Zeo Pink lifted her shield and blocked; Pink Racer unsheathed her sword and slashed the villain with bursts of spark, sending him staggering.

Zeo Pink lunged and shield-bashed the Mantron, knocking him backward.

Hornix faced the Yellow Turbo Ranger and Yellow Zeo Ranger.

“Stinger Blaster!” He fired bursts of yellow energy from his right arm cannon.

The two Yellow Rangers dove aside; explosions sparked around them.

Yellow Racer rolled to her feet and leapt through the air with a flying knife-hand chop. Zeo Yellow rolled to her feet and leapt through the air with a flying kick.

The blows smashed Hornix with bursts of spark, sending him stumbling.

“Slaughter Scissors!” Scorpix activated a claw attachment on his left forearm.

He lunged at Zeo Green and Green Racer with a wide slash. The weapon struck the Rangers with bursts of spark, whipping them off their feet.

The two Green Rangers tumbled, rolled to their feet, and charged to attack. They pommeled Scorpix with volleys of punches, bashing the villain with bursts of spark.

Zeo Green and Green Racer swung uppercuts, knocking the villain upside the head and whipping him off his feet.

“Hundred-Leg Lancer!” Centipix armed his trident. He stepped into a defensive stance as Zeo Blue and Blue Racer charged towards him.

The two Blue Rangers launched at Centipix with kick combos, striking the villain and forcing him backward step-by-step.

The monster staggered backward. But instead of falling, he opened his chest armor.

“Centipede Bomber!” Centipix armed a cannon embedded in his body. The cannon fired a massive burst of energy that smashed the two Blue Rangers with enough force to hurl them across the street.

Zeo Red and Red Racer teamed up against Shadow Borg. The villain reached behind his back and summoned his weapon.

“Shadow Claw!” A black claw wrapped around his forearm with a flash of dark light.

He fired the claw, attached to a grappling line, which wrapped around Red Racer. Shadow Borg snapped his arm, whipping the Red Turbo Ranger off his feet.

Zeo Red lunged with a high slash. The villain dodged and round-kicked the Red Zeo Ranger’s side.

Red Racer unsheathed his sword, “ViBlade!” and slashed free from the grappling line.

He charged and slashed at Shadow Borg.

Shadow Borg retracted his claw and used the weapon to parry. Zeo Red and Red Racer pressed their attack, blades flashing and clanging, bursting with spark on impact.

Zeo Red slashed high, and Red Racer slashed low; their blades slashed Shadow Borg with bursts of spark, sending him staggering backward.

Cybertron jumped onto the two Red Rangers’ shoulders, pushed off, and leapt towards Shadow Borg.

“Lightning Blade Command, now!” His hand flashed with blue lightning that formed a blade along his forearm.

The virtual hero landed and chopped through Shadow Borg with massive bursts of spark. Secondary explosions erupted from the wound as Shadow Borg collapsed and exploded into pieces.

Angel Grove/Demon City Cars!

The Turbo Rangers split off from the battle and joined with the RPM Rangers, as well as the Nitro Rangers and Kamen Rider Drive.

A group of White Jokers took the form of monsters from the Beetle Borgs’ rogue gallery, including Skullhead, Dicehead, Sword Warrior, Mutant and Mums.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/bbbbads1.bmp

Additional White Jokers transformed, also into Beetle Borg baddies, including Cyber-Serpent, Garganturat, Cataclaws, Graxxis, and Unctuos.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/bbbbads2.bmp

Red Racer, RPM Red, Nitro Red, and Kamen Rider Drive shot towards the monsters at hyper-speed. They armed their weapons.

“Turbo Fender Sword!” Red Racer activated his saber.

“Street Saber!” RPM Red activated his broadsword.

“GT Sword!” Nitro Red armed his slender blade.

“Steering Sword!” Drive unsheathed his sword, with a hilt that resembled a steering wheel.

They sped and slashed through the monsters, blades tearing through armor and flesh with bursts of spark. The Rangers moved faster than the monsters could counter, blades a blur.

The three Red Rangers and Kamen Rider Drive skid to a halt as monsters exploded behind them.

“Turbo Engine Cannon!” Green Racer armed his cannon and fired bursts of jade energy that tore through monsters with massive bursts of spark.

The monsters staggered. RPM Green leapt at them with his axe held high.

“Turbo Axe!” He landed with an energized chop that tore through the street with a shockwave, knocking monsters into the air.

Nitro Black armed his weapon, “T-Hammer!” and bashed the monsters from the air with bursts of spark, hurling them across the block.

“Turbo Muffler Blasters!” Blue Racer armed his two massive cannons and fired bursts of blue energy. The blasts tore through monsters with massive bursts of spark, sending them staggering off-balance.

Nitro Blue and RPM Blue dashed at the monsters and struck hard and fast, kicking and punching the creatures.

Skullhead and Sword Master unsheathed their blades, charged, and slashed Nitro Blue and RPM Blue. The blows sparked on impact and whipped them off their feet.

Quickly, the two Blue Rangers rolled into crouched positions.

“Turbo Cannon!” RPM Blue armed his cannon.

“J Gun!” Nitro Blue armed his blaster.

They opened fire, blasting through Sword Master and Skullhead.

Nitro Yellow and Pink Racer leapt through the air and armed their weapons.

“Turbo Bumper Bow!” Pink Racer shouted as she armed her bow.

“B Bowgun!” Nitro Yellow shouted as he armed his crossbow.

They fired down on the monsters, arrows of energy spearing through flesh and armor, sparking on impact.

RPM Black and RPM Yellow moved in with their weapons.

“Rocket Blaster!” RPM Black fired his mini bazooka, which exploded through the monsters.

“Zip Charger!” RPM Yellow triggered her remote weapons, which zipped back and forth, striking monsters that tried to regroup.

Garganturat, Cataclaws, Graxxis, and Unctuos scurried away from the attacks. But Nitro Pink and Yellow Racer bashed through them.

“Turbo Side Knuckles!” Yellow Racer armed her fist weapons.

“W Stick!” Nitro Pink armed her baton.

The Pink Nitro Ranger swung her baton through quick and powerful arcs, thrashing monsters, sparking on impact and staggering them. Yellow Racer moved in with cross punches and uppercuts, using her fist weapons to batter the creatures.

—to be continued

Author’s note:These “Warzone” chapters didn’t fit into the main story, but I wanted to post them anyway. Think of them as tie-in issues to a comic book event, but even less important to the overall story. They don’t advance the plot. They don’t have a compelling narrative. They feature shameless slugfests written by my inner 8-year-old. And I am perfectly OK with that.

Angel Grove/Demon City Versus

Dust covered streets like sand, giving the appearance of a skeletal city ruin stabbing upward from the desert, with toppled cars left half-buried, mounds of soot wrapped around building foundations and walkways covered with dried, cracked dirt.

On one such street, White Jokers took the form of the Jakanja Mecha Corps., including Zergain, Jishakkumo, Mogudrago, Unadaigo, and Fushokuruga.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/ZergainArmy.bmp

The Overdrive Rangers and Jungle Fury Rangers charged through the dust-covered streets to attack.

X-Borgs poured through fissures that ran through alleyways.

Overdrive Silver moved in with White Rhino at his left and Violet Wolf at his right. The two Jungle Fury Rangers leapt to attack.

“Geki Waza! Ban Ban Chū!” Violet Wolf landed with an elbow drop.

“Geki Waza! Ei Ei Tō!” White Rhino landed with a chop of his blade.

The Silver Overdrive Ranger swung his Drive Detector in lancer mode.

“Silver Slash!” He fired a blade of silver energy that ripped through X-Borgs with massive bursts of spark.

X-Borgs and Zergs swarmed around the Red Jungle Fury Ranger and Red Overdrive Ranger.

“Shark Sabers!” Red Tiger armed his fin-shaped sabers.

“Drive Defender!” Overdrive Red switched his blaster to sword mode.

The two Red Rangers slashed through the X-Borgs, blades whirling and striking through armor. Red Tiger moved with the graceful and agile movements of the Shark-Fist Sword Style. And Overdrive Red moved with the precision of a swordsman, with quick and efficient strikes.

Suddenly, Mogudrago burst from the ground beneath them, tossing the two Red Rangers into the air.

Red Tiger managed to flip and land on his feet.

“Claw Booster!” He armed his fist weapon and snapped its claw open. “Jungle Master mode!”

His KaGeki flared with orange light as he morphed into Jungle Master Mode.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/JungleMasterRed.bmp

The Red Overdrive Ranger landed next to him.

“Defender Armor!” He activated his armored chest plate with a burst of light.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/OverdriveVest.bmp

“Red Zone Crash! Tiger Geki!” they shouted together.

Overdrive Red held his lancer back and throttled towards the monster. Jungle Fury Red ignited his KaGeki and blasted alongside the Red Overdrive Ranger. They slashed through streaks of energy, tearing through the monster with massive bursts of spark.

Nearby, Yellow Cheetah shifted into Jungle Master Mode, ignited her KaGeki, and blasted towards the X-Borgs while lifting Overdrive Yellow and Overdrive Pink

“Aqua Shot!” Overdrive Pink fired bursts of pink aqua energy.

“Shovel Punch!” Overdrive Yellow swung her fist weapons.

“Super Cheetah Strike!” Yellow Cheetah slashed through a streak of energy.

They plowed through X-Borgs, blows sparking on impact and tossing grunts left and right.

The Red Digi Ranger joined the battle and regrouped with Jungle Fury Red and Overdrive Red. The three Red Rangers faced the White Jokers in the form of Jakanja monsters.

The Red Overdrive Ranger took the center.

“Power-up modes.” He snapped. “Attack!”

“With the Strength of the Tiger! Strike Rider! Armor-up!” Red Tiger thrust his hands and fired a burst of red light, like fire, outlined with wisps of white. The light washed over his body and materialized into red armor that snapped into place.

The Red Digi Rager slid his Fury Cell into his wrist morpher.

“Activate! Red Fury Mode!” Red and white lines of digital code wrapped around his arms, legs, and chest, forming powerful armor that materialized with a pulse of red light.

The Red Overdrive Ranger armed his golden Sentinel Sword.

“Red Sentinel Ranger! Activate!” The sword flashed with power, expanded, and split apart, forming plates of armor that snapped into place around the Red Overdrive Ranger.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/ThreePowerUpsRed.bmp

Jishakkumon thrust his magnet-tipped staff towards the Rangers. The weapon fired pulses of electromagnetic energy.

Digi Red leaned forward, crossed his Cheetah Claws, and used the weapons to block the energy waves. Each pulse nearly knocked him off his feet, but he stood his ground, pressing back against the attack.

Overdrive Red and Jungle Fury Red leapt through the air from behind Digi Red.

“Sentinel Ranger!” Overdrive Red shouted. “Sword mode!”

He armed twin blades and swung his swords, chopping and slashing through the air– each swing fired a blade of golden power that shot towards the monsters.

The blades tore through the creatures, bursting with spark and flashes of golden light.

The Red Jungle Fury Ranger dove towards the scattered monsters from above, and Digi Red charged towards the monsters from below.

“Cheetah Claws!” Digi Red armed his fist weapons; they charged with strands of red code.

“Attack Mode!” Jungle Fury Red shouted. “Go!”

The Jungle Fury Red Ranger ignited like a comet and blasted through the monsters, scattering them through the air as secondary explosions ripped through their bodies. Digi Red dashed and swung his claws through streaks of red energy, dashing through the monsters with bursts of spark before they could even crash to the ground.

The Red Jungle Fury Ranger, Red Overdrive Ranger, and Red Digi Ranger skid to a halt and regrouped as the monsters exploded into flame and ash behind them.

Another wave of White Jokers took the form of Worms, including Coleoptera Worm, Sectio Worm, Brachypelma Worm, Geophilid Worm, Camponotus Worm, Subst Worm, Leptophyes Worm, Cammarus Worm, Culex Worm, Genomyus Worm, Viella Worm and Musca Worm.

The Worms faced the combined power of the Samurai and RPM teams.

Samurai Red tossed his Shark Saber to RPM Red.

“Know how to use that?” Samurai Red asked.

“No. But do I really need to?”

“Probably not.” He smirked beneath his helmet. “These things figure themselves out.”

Samurai Red attached his Samurai Seal to his Spin Sword.

“Super Samurai Mode!” Energy flashed around him as he morphed into an armored robe of white, trimmed with gold.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/SuperSamuraiMode.bmp

RPM Red lifted the Shark Sword. The weapon flashed with red light and shrank into an Engine Soul, which the Red Ranger slid into his morpher.

“Hyper Mode!” RPM Red morphed into Hyper Mode, a red robe trimmed with silver.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/HyperGoOnRed.bmp

The two Red Rangers charged to attack.

Samurai Red ignited his sword with fire. He slashed through streaks of flame, cutting down Worms left and right. The RPM Red Ranger moved at his side. RPM Red swung his Shark Saber, and the blade extended like a living tendril, snapping, whipping and slashing through monsters with bursts of spark.

Their attacks cut the Worms down until only one remained, the Musca Worm.

The RPM Rangers opened fire, blasting lances of energy that tore through the monster. The Samurai Rangers dashed at the monster one-by-one, slashing through streaks of energy. Gold. Pink. Yellow. Blue. Green.

Samurai Red and RPM Red dashed and swung their blades, slashing through streaks of energy that tore through the monster with massive bursts of spark.

---

Angel Grove/Demon City Generals vs. Sixth Rangers

Near the main network of Armada fissures, a group of White Jokers took the form of evil generals from the past, including Koragg, Zen-Aku, Zeltrax, Vexacus, Yaiba, Eclipter, and Fury.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/Generals.jpg

More White Jokers shifted into generals, including Doom Master, Nukus, Robogog, Bluefur and Highness Duke Org Shuten.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/Generals2.bmp

The Green Dragon Ranger hopped towards Zen-Aku with a high slash. The villain blocked and counter-slashed, but the Green Ranger dodged and jump-kicked the monster upside the head. Zen-Aku staggered but managed to swing his blade wide, slashing the Green Ranger with bursts of spark.

Nearby, Time Fire and Gao Silver slashed their blades at Eclipter. The villain blocked and slashed them aside one-by-one.

Meanwhile, Yaiba faced Hurricane Green and Kiba Ranger. The villain snapped volleys of throwing stars that struck their armor with bursts of spark.

Samurai Gold leapt towards the monster from above. He swiped his Symbol Disc.

“Flare and burst, Sakanamaru!” His blade fired a blinding flash of golden light. The light washed across the monster, and energy blades tore through the villain’s body.

---

General Ivar twirled his sword, hacking and slashing past Titanium Ranger and Phantom Ranger. His blade sparked on impact and whipped them off their feet.

The monster turned his attention to Seraph Knight.

The Knight lifted his sword and poured energy into the blade.

“Knight Dynamic!” His energized sword shattered Ivar’s blade and tore through the monster’s armor.

The Knight lunged to deliver the final blow. But Koragg dashed from the side and shield-bashed the Seraph Knight, knocking him off balance.

Zeo Gold leapt through the air with a flying side-kick. The kick bashed the shield from Koragg’s hand; the Gold Ranger landed with a chop of his staff, followed by a side-kick, bashing the monster backward.

---

Astro Silver charged at Nukus and Doom Master.

“Blazer Impact!” He fired golden darts of energy from his blaster. The bolts exploded against the monsters with showers of spark, taking them off guard, as the Silver Ranger closed in and switched his blaster to blade mode.

He hopped and swung his blade through streaks of golden energy, slashing through the monsters with massive bursts of spark.

Fury lunged and chopped the Ranger’s back from behind. The blow whipped the Silver Ranger around, and before he could defend himself, Fury struck again, slashing the Silver Ranger’s chest.

The Silver Overdrive Ranger bolted at Fury like a cannonball and slashed the monster; the impact sent the monster spinning. Dino Killer moved in with a flying knee strike upside the head, bashing the monster to the ground.

---

Mystic Gold fired his blaster at Vexacus. The blasts tore the sword from the villain’s hand.

RPM Gold and RPM Silver leapt at the villain from behind. They landed while chopping the monster, blades sparking on impact and whipping the creature off his feet.

Zeltrax and Eclipter lunged at the two RPM Rangers. Their swords hacked and slashed the Rangers’ armor, knocking them to the ground.

Mystic Gold ran to help them. But Eclipter fired red eye beams that blasted the Gold Mystic Ranger off his feet.

DECA Break somersaulted through the air, landed, and slapped his hand to the ground.

“Electric Fist!” He fired jagged tendrils of electricity that whipped Eclipter and Zeltrax, sparking through their armor.

The Dino Charge Gold Ranger charged at them and swung his sword wide, streaking through electric energy that ripped them in half.

---

Angel Grove/Demon City Dino Might

A group of White Jokers transformed into monsters from the Dino Charge Rangers’ past, including Iceage, Stingrage, Bones, Debo Ninja, Smokescreen and Doomwing.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/ChargeBads.jpg

The monsters faced the combined force of the Dino Thunder Rangers, Dino Charge Rangers, and Battle Task Force Power Rangers.

The earth shifted beneath their feet. Fissures tore through the streets, sprouting a wave of X-Borgs and Zergs.

---

Tyranno Ranger leapt through the air and landed with a chop. His powerful sword tore a Zerg in half.

The Red Ranger spread out his arms. “Do it, Connor!”

The Dino Thunder Red Ranger leapt onto Tyranno Ranger’s shoulders, jumped off, and landed with a slash of his Thundermax Saber. The two Red Rangers joined together, whirling and slashing their blades.

Dino Thunder Red side-kicked an X-Borg. The blow hurled the grunt backward, and Dino Charge Red chopped him down. The Red Dino Charge Ranger swung his Dino Saber through an x-shaped pattern, ripping through grunts.

The three Red Rangers regrouped, swords swinging.

---

Tiger Ranger and Dino Charge Green stood back-to-back. The Yellow Ranger wielded her Saber Daggers, and Dino Charge Green swung his Dino Saber in a reverse grip. The Green Ranger slashed through streaks of green power, and the Yellow Ranger twirled and slashed her daggers through streaks of yellow energy. Their strikes tore through X-Borgs, blades sparking on impact.

Nearby, the Pink Ptera Ranger and Dino Thunder Yellow Ranger charged towards X-Borgs. They armed their blasters and opened fire, triggering darts of energy that tore through X-Borgs and Zergs.

The Gold Dino Charge Ranger swooped through the air from behind them, dove, and slashed through X-Borgs with a wide swing of his sword.

---

Dino Slayer and the Graphite Ranger charged at Iceage.

The monster hurled bolts of ice that pulsed with blue energy. The White Dino Thunder Ranger and Graphite Dino Charge Ranger dove and rolled aside to dodge the blasts.

The Graphite Ranger rolled into a crouched stance.

“Shatter Fist!” He swung a punch that fired a chained mace, bashing the monster with the speed and force of a cannonball.

The White Dino Thunder Ranger pounced and swung his dagger upward, slashing the monster with a burst of spark that tossed him into the air.

---

The Dino Thunder Black Ranger and Dino Charge Silver Ranger leapt through the air, side-by-side. They landed and chopped towards Doomwing. But the monster blocked and hacked them aside, blade sparking on impact.

The Dino Charge Aqua, Violet, and Navy Rangers charged to attack the monster.

The Aqua Ranger lifted his fist.

“Spirit Hammer!” He formed a massive energy mace and swung the weapon downward.

Doomwing side-dashed to dodge, and the mace struck the ground, bashing through earth.

The Dino Charge Navy Ranger armed his weapon.

“Flute Buster! Boomerang Mode!” He snapped the weapon through the air, but Doomwing slashed the blade aside.

Dino Charge Silver rolled to his feet, and Dino Charge Violet joined him. They charged and reached back their fists.

“Silver Strike!” Dino Charge Silver swung a punch that energized with silver power.

“Plezeo Mach Punch!” Dino Charge Violet swung a punch that energized with amethyst power.

The punches smashed Doomwing with enough force to hurl him into the air; secondary explosions tore through his body.

---

Tricera Ranger swung his lance, bashing through a group of X-Borgs. Zergs swung their clubbed arms at the Ranger. But Dino Thunder Blue stepped in, used his shield to block, and shield-bashed the grunts backward.

Dino Charge Pink lunged from his side. She swung a ridge-hand strike that stabbed through an X-Borg. She lifted her arm, bringing the damaged grunt with, and smashed the soldier to the ground.

---

Dino Charge Black lifted an X-Borg by the neck. Mammoth Ranger lifted an X-Borg by the head. They bashed the X-Borgs together, smashing them to pieces.

The Dino Charge Blue Ranger moved at their side. He flipped a grunt overhead and stomped the fallen soldier’s chest.

---

Angel Grove/Demon City Spider, Spider

A group of White Jokers transformed into spider-themed monsters, including: Spiderus, Spider Grongi, Fang Spider, Arachnofiend, Hades Beast Spider, Machine Tarantula, Dora Tarantula and Spider Worm.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/Finale/Spiders.jpg

The villains faced Kamen Rider Leangle.

Leangle stabbed Hades Beast Spider, twirled his staff, and whacked Spider Worm’s head.

Spider Grongi lunged at Leangle. But the Rider snapped a spin kick that bashed the monster aside.

Kamen Rider Leangle hopped backward and swiped a card through his staff, which spoke the command: “BLIZZARD”

He thrust his staff and fired a stream of ice and snow at Dora Spider. The blast froze Dora Spider in a shell of ice. But the monster shattered through the ice and lunged at the Rider.

Leangle hopped backward and attached his Rouze Absorber to his gauntlet. He slid the Queen of Clubs into the Absorber: “ABSORB QUEEN.” He swiped the King of Clubs: “EVOLUTION KING”

Golden energy flashed around him as he bonded with the power of the Category King, transforming him into King Mode.

https://ryuranger.com/RangerBoard/LeangleKing.bmp

The Rider swung his massive, bladed mace, bashing monsters aside one-by-one. The blows cracked Machine Tarantula’s armor, smashed the head off Spider Grongi, shattered Fang Spider into shards of glass, and collapsed the chest of the Spider Worm.

Leangle turned his attention towards the remaining spider monsters. The Rider slid four cards into his weapon: “CLUB TEN, JACK, QUEEN, KING, ACE — ROYAL STRAIGHT FLUSH”

Five fields of golden energy, shaped like cards, projected in front of the Rider. Leangle leaned forward and charged through the fields; each splashed across his armor and energized his mace. He swung wide, through a streak of golden power, that bashed the remaining monsters into pieces.

—to be continued