DISCLAIMER: I do not own Power Rangers or Super Sentai. They are respectively owned by Saban Brands and Toei Company. I do not profit from this story in any way, shape, or form.

"Hey, um, about that Ebony Venom?" Nikki inquired, spotting an empty vial on the ground at Walker's feet. "Doesn't this look just like one of the vials that contains it?"

Just as those words left Nikki's mouth, before anyone could react in any conceivable way, Walker's eyes suddenly widened as he threw both arms out, knocking the Rangers across the table. Drayden quickly got back up, Dragon Buster in hand, and brought it down on the Shadowmancer, only for it to be blocked by some sort of invisible forcefield, leaving him stuck and forced to watch as Walker's eyes glowed an eggplant colour.

"Y-You took it, didn't you?!" Drayden demanded, trying to get free.

"I am a living weapon, forged by my mother for the one true Emperor of this world," Walker declared as his body began to reshape itself, transforming into a Wyvern Lightless. "And I am ready to destroy, as any weapon should."

Drayden's eyes narrowed, looking through the darkness of Walker's new form to see his true self inside, along with the Dark Staff of the Wyvern and a matching Wyvern Lightless figure. "The staff and the figure...They were always meant to work like this, weren't they?!"

"Add in a little Ebony Venom for flavour, and it makes for an interesting combo!" Walker yelled, shoving Drayden back into the other Rangers. "Now, GET OUT!"

Spreading his wings, Walker unleashed a massive black energy blast at the team from them. It pounded them all the way out the front wall of the Dark Chamber and to the outside, while also blowing apart the rest of the wall. The Rangers all tumbled across the ground, demorphing from the insane attack as their comrades formed up around them.

"Guardians, what happened?!" Infernios demanded.

"Walker...!" Nikki groaned, the team getting back to their feet as the Wyvern Lightless stepped over the ruined wall of his hideout.

"THAT'S Walker?!" Faye inquired, her skin growing slightly pale. "What did he do to himself?!"

"He's transformed himself into a Lightless!" Drayden explained, sword still drawn. "And I'm pretty sure he's more powerful than all of the other ones we've seen so far!"

Walker scoffed, looking over the united army standing before him as the fog grew denser and darker in his presence. "So, all this standing before me represents the group that's stood in my way all this time! Well, save for 'dear old Dad', anyway! Allow me to show you my appreciation for that!"

Drayden's eyes widened in terror as Walker's wings spread out, pulling all the energy from them into the palm of his hand. "Everyone, get back!"

With a loud roar, Walker focused all of his power into a sphere of energy, clutched in his hand. Curling it back, he swung and hurled it at the group, only for the six Guardians to unleash attacks from their Crystal Blast Morphers and the Dragon Buster at it, setting off a massive explosion. Walker stood unflinching as flame and smoke spread out before him, unaffected by the wave of heat that blew against his body. After a few seconds, he merely flapped his wings, blowing the flames away, only to find that the large group that was once standing before him had vanished.

"Tch, you think you can hide from ME?!" Walker shouted, his voice getting deeper as it echoed through the dark lands. "This is MY domain, and I'm going to personally make it your Hell!"

Charles looked over the Viewing Globe, almost breaking into hysterics as he tried to find some sort of manual controls for the thing. For the past few moments, the already staticy transmission from the Dark Zone had gone completely black, forcing it to zoom out. To the Professor's horror, the entire area was covered in blackness from the globe's perspective.

"Why now, why now, WHY NOW?!" Charles demanded, trying and failing to remain calm.

"What's...going on?" a weak-sounding voice asked, Professor Snyder turning to see Jowar slowly making his way over, leaning heavily on his staff.

"Jowar, something's gone wrong!" Charles explained. "Just a minute after the Rangers entered the Dark Chamber, the picture went out for everything in the Dark Zone!"

Jowar looked over the Viewing Globe, quickly assessing the problem. "Oh dear...That could only mean that a far more massive dark power has awakened there, and it's blocking us out...!"

Charles cocked an eyebrow, seeing the sweat roll down Jowar's face. "...Are you alright? You don't seem well."

"My body is having to make adjustments," the old wizard explained, beginning to regain normal breathing. "All of the energy kept locked away below the Ancient Library was difficult to take in, and, as it turns out, even harder to cut off once I had what I needed. It's going to take a while to get used to."

Snyder nodded. "But it DID work?"

Jowar stroked his beard as he thought it over. "Yes, with the energy I've absorbed, I should be able to maintain my Morphed form outside of this region...although, I don't know how long this will last."

"Alright, but what about the situation in the Dark Zone?" Charles asked. "Isn't there someway we can help Drayden and the others?"

"At this point, it seems our only option is Operation Lighthouse," Jowar answered. "Let's just hope they're ready for it on their end..."

Nikki scrambled behind a large rock formation, finding herself sharing cover with the other Guardians and what looked to be most of their forces, who also had Darkea in chains. "Is this everyone?"

Faye shook her head. "We're missing a number of Dwarves and Magma Nagas. We need to find them ri-"

"Easy, Faye," Patrick advised. "With Walker out there on the prowl, we can't just search willy-nilly."

"We can't just leave them!" Faye insisted in a hushed tone.

"We won't, trust us," Layla replied, holding her girlfriend's hand. "But we need a plan."

Nikki nodded, looking over to Darkea. "...Don't suppose you're feeling talkative?"

Darkea scoffed, looking away. "Please. Like you'd believe me even if I DID have something useful to say."

"Darkea, PLEASE," Patrick urged. "Your brother's turned into a rampaging monster, and he'll destroy you too if he catches up to us."

"You think I don't know that?!" Darkea demanded, looking furious. "This is your fault! He's doing this because he's terrified of what my father will do to him for failing to stop you!"

"Oh, that's a load of bull!" Dirk growled. "You and your brother were terrorizing innocent people!"

"YOU try living everyday with a man that's constantly out to rule the world and crush anyone who would stand against him!" Darkea argued, getting nose to nose with Dirk. "You try standing up to your father when he's an all-powerful Emperor of evil! Think YOU could do that, 'Family man'?!"

Dirk's teeth clenched hard at this as he curled his fist, only for Nikki to grab it before he could try anything. "Enough! This is getting us nowhere."

Drayden nodded, stepping in. "...Darkea, tell us how to stop your brother, and I promise, we can protect you."

"...Okay, this is probably the part where I'm gonna look like the pot calling the kettle black, but are you NUTS?" Madilyn asked.

Infernios huffed, smoke rolling from his nostrils. "For once, I'm in agreement with the Guardian of Lightning. This is insane."

"No, it's not," Patrick argued, taking Drayden's side. "Look, the fact is, maybe Darkea and Walker ARE acting out of fear of Dradarius, and the only way to end this is to take that fear away."

Darkea rolled her eyes. "Please, like you could protect me from my brother, or from my father for that matter."

"Maybe not, but have you got a better choice right now?" Patrick noted, causing Darkea to growl as she realized just how rhetorical that question was. "So? What's it gonna be?"

"...Argh, FINE," Darkea moaned. "The answer you're looking for is in the Ebony Venom formula. I ASSUME Miss Info-Junkie took them?"

Layla's eyes widened, pulling out the sheets of paper she'd grabbed. "Yeah, but what's that got to do with Walker's Lightless form?"

"He would've needed to down some to get enough darkness circulating in his body for the transformation to work," Darkea explained, "except that, while it DOES make him way more powerful than if he'd, say, absorbed a few dozen Blots or so, it comes packed with a flaw that he figured out while testing it."

"...She's right!" Layla said, looking over the notes scribbled alongside the formula. "Ebony Venom burns itself out pretty quick when exposed to light, meaning that, while it gives a huge power advantage against anything else, it pretty much doubles a Lightless' vulnerability to light elemental attacks!"

"So, if we hit him with enough...?" Nikki asked.

"It'll cancel out his transformation," Layla finished. "The only problem is, in his current form, he's blocking out so much light that we might not be able to channel enough to stop him."

"Then it looks like our best shot is Mineral Mode," Nikki surmised. "Okay, here's the plan: Infernios, you lead a detachment to find the lost and wounded. Drayden, you stick with the main group. The rest of us will handle Walker, keep him distracted while the detachment is out. Once Infernios and the others get back, Drayden, you join up with us."

Drayden nodded hesitantly. "...Okay. Be careful out there, you guys."

"How will we know when to move out?" Infernios asked.

Madilyn grinned. "My guess? Lots of explosions and yelling."

Infernios' eyes narrowed. "...Right. And suddenly, I find you quite mad again."

"That's my name, don't wear it out," Mad replied with a wink as the primary five Rangers rushed off.

"COME OUT!" Walker roared, slamming apart a boulder. "Make this easy on yourselves!"

"Right here, Walker!" the Wyvern Lightless heard Nikki shout, peering through the fog to see her, Layla, Patrick, Madilyn, and Dirk marching toward him, blasters ready. The two sides squared off, neither side backing down an inch.

"...Tch, so you decided to come alone?" Walker inquired. "Even left the Guardian of Darkness to protect your forces. Not that it matters, I'll deal with them later anyway."

"You gotta go through us first, pal," Dirk noted.

Walker sneered, licking his fangs. "Oh, but that's the fun part. And frankly, I've been looking forward to this since the day you five first set foot on this world."

"And I've been looking forward to sewing your mouth shut so I never have to hear you 'tch' again," Madilyn replied.

"Not to mention shutting down your operations for good," Layla added.

"You think that even IF you could defeat me, it would make any difference?" Walker demanded. "At best, all it will succeed in doing is drawing Dradarius out to eliminate you personally!"

"Good!" Patrick yelled. "I've heard more than enough about that jerk to wanna get into the mix with him and kick him off whatever throne he's got set up for himself!"

"You won't even be able to get past me, let alone set one finger on the Emperor," Walker insisted, flexing his wings.

"Well then, let's put that theory to the test!" Nikki shouted, pulling her crystal from its chain. "It's Morphin Time!"

At this order, the rest of the group all pulled their crystals from their chains. The team then drew their Crystal Blast Morphers and inserted the crystals inside. As Walker spread his wyvern wings apart, the team raised their blasters forward, pulling the triggers and yelling, "Guardians of Gaia, AWAKEN!" The multicoloured blasts shot out as Walker beat his wings to send out dark waves of energy, the two attacks colliding hard in a rainbow-coloured explosion. Walker growled, charging up a sphere of black energy as the Rangers leaped through the colourful blaze, their suits materializing.

"MINERAL MODE!" the five Rangers called, bringing forth their Crystal Gauntlets and inserting the crystals into them. Each crystal shimmered in light before expanding to fit the larger compartment in their respective gauntlet, and were emblazoned with the image of their matching Gaia Zord. The team then threw their fists forward as Walker hurled his black sphere at them, golden light knocking it away before coating the Rangers. The silver on their belts and Gaia Sabers were turned to gold, golden trim was added to the tops of their boots, and gold armbands wrapped around their biceps. Finally, each of their suits' main colours were changed to a shinier, more metallic colour.

"Ruby Ranger!" Nikki yelled, ruby flames erupting around her.

"Emerald Ranger!" Patrick shouted as an emerald tornado whipped up.

"Sapphire Ranger!" Layla cried as sapphire bubbles circled around her.

"Amber Ranger!" Dirk roared as amber pulses shot out through the ground around him, shaking the earth.

"Amethyst Ranger!" Madilyn called as amethyst lightning cracked across the sky.

The five Rangers struck a pose together, just as a large golden flash of light erupted all around them, followed by a gigantic, rainbow coloured explosion behind them. "Power Rangers, Guardians of Gaia!"

Walker roared, beating his wings hard as he sprung at the Rangers. He swiped his claws hard at the team as they rushed him, knocking them all aside as he flew by. Swooping up into the air, he then opened his jaws wide, unleashing black flames at the Rangers, scorching their armour and sending sparks flying off their suits.

"You're all powerless against the ultimate living weapon!" Walker shouted, swooping down for another attack.

"Dirk, alley-oop!" Nikki shouted, getting a nod from the Amber Ranger. Dirk then stomped the ground hard, causing Patrick and Madilyn to spring upward, Gaia Sabers ready. While Walker managed to swat them both away, they still managed to nick his wings, knocking him slightly off course.

"Layla!" Nikki ordered as she and the Sapphire Ranger both slammed their palms to the ground. A split second later, Walker was hit hard from below by a massive geyser of boiling hot water. The Wyvern Lightless spun out of control, managing to land on his feet, but with a force so hard he was sure he'd have broken his legs in his former body. Just as he did, though, he quickly saw Dirk charging him with his Quake Ax. While he managed to knock him down with a pair of blasts from his wings, Walker instead found himself slashed hard from behind by Patrick's Storm Lance and Madilyn's Lightning Daggers. Then, just for good measure, Dirk managed to roll forward, swing, and smack the Shadowmancer across the face with the blunt side of his ax.

"ENOUGH!" Walker screamed, holding up a hand and launching black lightning bolts from it, hitting the three Rangers closest to him and sending them tumbling aside. "I am the ultimate weapon, the most powerful form of darkness you could ever hope to see, and you will not live to see anything beyond me!"

"Flood Launcher!" Layla called, pulling out her cannon and firing wave after wave of watery blasts at Walker, who merely knocked them aside with his wings. "Nikki, go!"

Suddenly, the Ruby Ranger shot up like a blazing rocket over Layla, launching herself feet first at Walker. The Shadowmancer tried to block, but soon found himself kicked hard in the chin, then pummeled across his chest by charging bicycle kicks. Finally, Nikki hit a double stomp to Walker's chest as he crashed back-first into a rock formation, leaving the emblem of the phoenix burning on his skin before engulfing him in an explosion big enough to send the rocks tumbling down onto him.

"Think that did it?!" Madilyn asked as the team regrouped, just as the rocks were knocked aside with ease by a very angry-looking Walker.

"That answer your question?!" Patrick inquired, right before the team was blasted by combined assaults of black lightning and fire, sending them crashing back to the ground.

"Gah!" Dirk groaned, getting to a knee. "Well, do or die time, Nikki!"

"Got it!" Nikki yelled, the team getting back to their feet as their gauntlets glowed brightly.

"Ultra Ray!" the Rangers shouted together as they all threw their gauntleted fists forward, releasing streams of elemental light from each of their crystals. The five beams crossed together, forming a sphere of white light that engulfed Walker. The Wyvern Lightless roared in pain as the light reacted violently to the Ebony Venom in his body. Despite the pain ripping through him, though, he slowly began to step toward the team, forcing himself forward.

"It's no good!" Layla cried. "He's got too much in his system!"

"Make a note to never let athletes take that stuff!" Dirk replied, trying to push Walker back.

"No kidding!" Mad responded. "We could really use some help right about now!"

"Hang on, guys!" the team heard an all-too-familiar voice shout, glancing back to see Drayden, placing his crystal in his Morpher as he charged toward them. "It's Morphin Time! Indigo Power!"

Throwing his fist up, a dark light burst out from the Morpher, forming an energy field before him. Jumping through it, the indigo energy coated his body as his Ranger suit materialized onto him.

"Drayden, bring 'em together!" Nikki shouted, the team kicking their weapons toward the Indigo Ranger, who proceeded to grab and assemble them as he passed by them.

"Gaia Blaster!" Drayden roared, leaping over his friends and aiming their combined weapons at Walker. "FIRE!"

Pulling the trigger, Drayden unleashed a barrage of multicoloured blasts to join the rest of the team's. Finally, they overwhelmed Walker in a flash of light, sending him sailing back several yards from the massive blast of energy and into the side of a mountain . The Rangers slumped a little, feeling exhausted from putting their all into their last attack.

Rising up into the Magna Buster control room, Jowar looked over to the central charging station powering it. Surrounding it were the Turtle, Kitsune, Unicorn, Wolf, and Lion Crystals, all glowing brilliantly as their power mixed together and built up more strongly.

"Won't be long now," Jowar declared over the comm to Professor Snyder.

"Then it might be a good time for you to get started," Charles recommended.

"Right," Jowar replied, pulling out the Light Crystal. "It's Morphin Time!"

Twisting the unicorn horn on his staff back, Jowar placed the Light Crystal inside the hidden compartment and shut it closed. He then raised his staff and called out, "Guardians of Gaia, AWAKEN!" as a series of yellow rays shot out from the horn, coating Jowar in its light. His robes were discarded, leaving him in his Ranger suit. However, for a brief moment, the yellow on his costume glittered brightly, looking golden before returning to normal.

"Incredible," Jowar observed. "I already feel so much stronger. With this kind of power, this shouldn't take long at all."

"Then let's hurry," Snyder advised. "I can't shake the feeling like things are getting worse over there."

"Of course!" Jowar responded, plugging the Light Crystal into the charging station. "Magna Buster, power up!"

The Magna Buster roared to life, the main console coming online and the charging station glowing brightly with the crystals around it. Jowar inserted his staff into the control panel, gripping it tightly as he focused what energy he had with that of the six crystals behind him, building power higher and higher with each passing moment.

Alright, now it's up to the Rangers to hold on until I'm ready, Jowar thought. I just hope they're doing better on their end...

"Nice timing, Dray," Dirk said between pants, fist-bumping Drayden.

"Thanks, but you should thank Infernios," the Indigo Ranger replied. "He managed to round up the wounded pretty quick...So, how much do you figure that last hit did?"

Before anyone could comment, a loud roar echoed throughout the area, waves of heat being released from where Walker had crashed. Within moments, an explosion of black flame blew the mountain apart, and in its place was a giant Wyvern Lightless, towering over the black stone grounds of the Dark Zone and howling into the sky as his wings stretched out wide.

"...We shouldn't ask questions like that anymore," Patrick noted.

"This is it, guys," Nikki announced. "You ready?"

The team all nodded in affirmation. Inserting his Dragon Crystal into the Dragon Buster, Drayden raised it skyward, as the others did with their Crystal Gauntlets, the Rangers calling out "We need Gaia Zord power, NOW!"

"Red Phoenix Gaia Zord, power up!" Nikki yelled, her gauntlet sending out a ruby stream of light into a nearby mountain, the Phoenix Zord taking off from it with flames trailing off of its wings.

"Green Hippogriff Gaia Zord, power up!" Patrick called, an emerald beam firing from his gauntlet into a cluster of clouds, bringing out the Hippogriff Zord as it barrel rolled through the sky.

"Blue Leviathan Gaia Zord, power up!" Layla shouted, her gauntlet releasing a sapphire blast into the lake, the Leviathan Zord lifting its neck out the water with a roar.

"Orange Behemoth Gaia Zord, power up!" Dirk exclaimed, his gauntlet sending out an amber beam into the woods, the Behemoth Zord stomping through it on all fours.

"Violet Thunderbird Gaia Zord, power up!" Madilyn cried, sending an amethyst stream of light up out of her gauntlet to create a thundercloud in the sky, the Thunderbird Zord sailing out of it.

"Indigo Dragon Gaia Zord, power up!" Drayden summoned as his sword sent out a brilliant indigo beam that summoned the Dragon Gaia Zord out of a dark cloud.

Once all six of their Gaia Zords were called out, the Gaia Rangers immediately leaped up, were caught in beams of light from the Zords, and pulled into the Gaia Zord cockpits. Plugging their weapons into the control slots, they steered toward Walker. Nikki was first to attack, the Phoenix Zord surrounding itself in flames as it did an aileron roll, crashing into Walker hard before being knocked back by dark bursts from his wings.

"FIRE!" Madilyn and Drayden cried, unleashing lightning bolt feathers and dark flames from the Thunderbird and Dragon Zords. While Walker winced in pain from the attacks, they did little to slow him, as he reached out and unleashed black lightning on the two, forcing them to back off.

"Let's blow this guy away!" Patrick yelled, flying the Hippogriff Zord into an aileron roll, creating a mini-tornado that spun directly into Walker, only to be effortlessly swatted away. "Okay, bad idea!"

"Let's see how you like my deep freeze!" Layla shouted, the Leviathan Zord rearing its head back and letting loose a blast of ice, freezing Walker's wings solid. However, he quickly breathed out dark flames that thawed them out, and then launched said flames at the serpentine Gaia Zord.

"Hang on, Layla!" Nikki exclaimed, landing the Phoenix Zord in front of the Leviathan Zord and cancelling out the dark flames with its own to the best of its ability. "Hit him, boys!"

"You got it!" Dirk yelled, the Behemoth Zord charging forward and ramming into Walker's gut while the Dragon Zord flew in and skull-bashed him. To their amazement, though, the Wyvern Lightless actually grabbed the Behemoth Zord by the horns and lifted him up, slamming him into the Dragon Zord's underside before dropping it.

"I've been hit hard!" Drayden announced. "I need time to recover!"

"Got it!" Nikki responded as the Dragon Zord backed off. "Okay guys, power up your Unity Crystals!"

"Right!" the others shouted, the five primary Gaia Rangers inserting their Unity Crystals in their Gaia Sabers and calling out "Gaia Zords, combine!". Their Zords sprung up and shifted their bodies around, combining into a giant robot as the team's cockpits came together in the head, the robot landing on its feet.

"Gaia Megazord, power up!" the team called as the Megazord came to life.

"Why, thank you!" Walker exclaimed, squaring off with the giant robot. "I've been wanting to tear your Megazord apart, piece by piece, since the first time I saw it!"

The two giants faced off, locking hands as they engaged in a test of strength. However, Walker was quick to cheat, slamming his skull into the Megazord's head, knocking it back. However, the Shadowmancer soon found himself getting a backhand to the chest from the robot, followed by a roundhouse kick to the face, sending him tumbling across the ground.

Walker growled, getting back up and stretching his wings out. "I've had enough of these games! It's time I put you away for good!"

Before the Rangers could react, dark energy shimmered across the wings before unleashing a massive barrage of thin energy blasts. They smacked all across the Megazord's body, sparks flying off it as it fell to the ground, badly damaged.

"Dangit, he's still too strong!" Dirk growled. "Layla, can you get a fix on how much Ebony Venom he's still got in him?!"

"We've definitely depleted a lot of it, but there's still too much to bring down by ourselves!" Layla announced, looking over the readout on her screen.

"That means it's up to Jowar and Operation Lighthouse!" Nikki replied. "We just need to give him enough time, and be ready when he is!"

"Look out!" Madilyn shouted, the Megazord rolling out of the way just as Walker fired black lightning across the land. Before he could attack again, Dragon Zord swooped by, raking its claws across the Wyvern Lightless' wings and causing him to howl in pain.

"Dragon Zord, back in action!" Drayden announced. "Let's show Walker what we're REALLY made of!"

"Super Unity Crystals!" the six shouted, hitting their buckles to bring forth the crystals and inserting them into their swords. "Gaia Zords, combine!"

The Gaia Megazord's head folded back as the Dragon Zord's body split, spreading out to its sides as it landed on and combined with the Gaia Megazord. Drayden's cockpit then slid down to join the others', the six joined together in the robot's new head.

"Dragonforce Megazord, power up!" the six Rangers called. Walker instantly fired black lightning at the massive Megazord, but it simply walked through the electrical assault before punching the Shadowmancer hard, one fist after the other. Walker stumbled backward, groaning in pain, before gathering a dark orb in his hand and hurling it at the Dragonforce Megazord, shoving it back hard.

"Okay, let him have it!" Patrick yelled, the Dragonforce Megazord suddenly leaping up and soaring through the sky. It swooped down at Walker, the gauntlets over its fists spinning as they charged up with power from all six Zords.

"Super Storm Punch!" all six Rangers shouted as the Dragonforce Megazord threw a flying double punch of fire and lightning into Walker's chest, sending him sailing before crashing into the mountain that housed the Dark Chamber.

"Stay down, Walker!" Nikki exclaimed, the Megazord landing on its feet. "For your own good, don't push this any further!"

Walker's eyes twitched as they glowed blood red, digging his claws into the remains of his headquarters. "You...You don't know ANYTHING about what's for my own good!"

Immediately getting back to his feet, Walker launched a barrage of black beams from his wings, blasting the Dragonforce Megazord. He then rushed forward, ducked, and slid around the giant robot. Then, wrapping his arms around its waist, he actually threw himself backward and suplexed the Megazord into the black stone ground.

"...D-Did he just German Suplex us?!" Dirk demanded in shock that quickly turned to anger. "You don't suplex THIS Power Ranger, HE suplexes YOU!"

Getting back up, the Dragonforce Megazord grabbed Walker in a tight gut-wrench. While the Shadowmancer shocked the robot hard with black lightning, it powered through, throwing Walker up and over itself, sending him sprawling out across the ground. Walker groaned, fighting to get back up as both combatants were now tiring more and more with each move.

"FINE!" Walker screamed, throwing both hands up. "I'll blow you all to pieces, along with this entire zone!"

The Rangers looked on in horror as Walker began to form a massive sphere of black energy in the air above him, clearly intending to blow them all off the face of Gaia. The Behemoth Zord's jaws opened on the chest of the Megazord, firing orange and black orbs of power at the Wyvern Lightless, but they did nothing to stop him, as he gathered more energy into his attack.

"It's no good, he's just taking them!" Patrick yelled.

"Oh man, this is it!" Madilyn cried.

Nikki's eyes widened in terror as the sphere grew larger each second, before shaking it off. "...Guys, hang tough! Patch in all the energy you've got! If we're going down, we're going down fighting!"

"RIGHT!" the team replied, the six gripping their swords as they channeled as much energy as they could into the Megazord.

Jowar's eyes shot open, feeling the warm hum from the crystals of the Auxiliary Zords reach their peak. "That's it! It's ready!"

Focusing his mind, Jowar aimed the Magna Buster toward the Dark Zone. Using the mass amount of light being harnessed in the weapon, he was able to pierce the darkness, getting the image of the Dragonforce Megazord. Standing before it was a giant Wyvern-like monster gathering energy for a single attack, but even in that form, Jowar could sense their true self, albeit one that was being buried in dark and evil power.

"Walker..." Jowar muttered before gripping his staff. "...Forgive me. Magna Buster, Corona Burst!"

At this order, the Magna Buster unleashed a massive blast of gold, aquamarine, pink, silver, black, and white energy. It tore through the skies of Gaia, sailing toward the Dark Zone fast enough to shatter the sound barrier, almost knocking over trees on the ground below.

Layla's heart nearly skipped a beat as she heard a beeping from the controls, seeing the image of an incoming energy blast approaching from behind. "Guys, it's Jowar!"

"Oh man, way to save our butts at the last minute!" Dirk cheered.

Walker blinked as he saw a massive beam of light pierce through the dark fog, rushing toward the Megazord. "W-What is THAT?!"

Before he could get an answer, the beam made contact with the Dragonforce Megazord. Its body shimmered in golden light, while a rainbow aura surrounded its edges and peeled away the darkness around it. Within moments, the sun managed to pierce through, and the sky returned to its ordinary blue. Blots ran for cover all across the Dark Zone as the light burned at their bodies, desperate to find cover.

"YOU!" Walker roared, hurling the massive sphere of darkness at the Dragonforce Megazord. However, to his utter shock, it merely threw a fist out, creating a force field that was made up of effigies of all eleven Gaia Zords. The sphere hit the shield hard, but was blown apart harmlessly.

"W-WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" Walker demanded.

"You're about to find out!" Nikki replied with grin. "Drayden, now!"

Drayden nodded. He pulled his Super Unity Crystal from his sword as his cockpit was pulled free from the others' and back into the Dragon Zord, which disengaged from the others and went airborne while the Gaia Megazord was reformed.

"Gaia Zords, combine!" Drayden yelled, hitting his buckle to call forth the Lion and Wolf Crystals. He then inserted them into his Dragon Buster, summoning the two Gaia Zords from the remains of the dark, his three Zords twisting about and combining into a giant robot. "Dragoon Megazord, power up!"

"Auxiliary Zords, combine!" the others called as Nikki, Layla, and Patrick called out the Kitsune, Turtle, and Unicorn Zords. The three Gaia Zords twisted their bodies around to form a large staff with a silver drill, which the Megazord caught. "Gaia Megazord, Gaiamax Staff!"

"How is this possible?!" Walker screamed. "You shouldn't have been able to call on the other Zords!"

"Normally, you're right!" Layla replied. "Which is why Jowar used their crystals to super-charge the Magna Buster!"

"More than enough to pierce even the thickest darkness on Gaia!" Madilyn added.

"Giving us the chance to call on the Zords and finish this fight!" Patrick exclaimed.

"The Gaian Crystals, their powers combined, could even light this place?!" Walker inquired, his mind in complete shock.

"Walker!" Drayden called. "You've been so blinded by Dradarius' evil that you can't even see any possibilities beyond what he thinks exist!"

"But that's where you've both got it wrong!" Dirk yelled. "You never learned about miracles, because he didn't believe in them!"

"And as long as miracles exist, there's no set amount of possibilities!" Nikki finished. "And because we believe in ourselves, each other, and in miracles, we'll ALWAYS find a way!"

Walker grit his teeth hard, spreading his wings. "Tch, 'miracles', is it?! Let's see how powerful your miracle is!"

"Alright, let him have it!" Nikki ordered.

"Black Light Burst!" Drayden shouted, the Dragoon Megazord releasing a trio of indigo, white, and black energy orbs. They combined into one massive sphere and flew straight at Walker as he fired a barrage of black beams, ploughing straight through them and hitting him hard, stunning his body. "NOW!"

"Gaiamax Finish!" the other Rangers called, throwing their fists forward as the Gaia Megazord thrust the drill of the Gaiamax Staff straight through Walker's torso, silver light from the drill causing eggplant-coloured mist to pour out of his body. The Megazord pulled the weapon back out as Walker's Lightless body evaporated into thin air. This left only Walker's original self down on the ground, who collapsed in exhaustion, and the Dark Staff of the Wyvern floating in the sky before cracking apart and disintegrating into nothingness.

"YES!" Dirk yelled at the top of his lungs. "We did it!"

"It's not over yet, you guys!" Nikki said. "C'mon, let's get down there!"

Getting nods from the team, they all leaped down from the cockpits, landing near Walker as the primary five Rangers powered down from Mineral Mode to their usual Ranger suits. Drayden was first to Walker's side, turning him onto his back and resting the side of his head to the Shadowmancer's chest.

"WALKER!" the team heard a voice scream, looking over to see Darkea racing toward them, the bindings on her hands dangling, and being chased by Faye. "Is he...?!"

"He's alive," Drayden announced, pulling his head back. "He'll wake up with one heck of a headache, but he'll be okay."

"Oh!" Darkea moaned, falling to her knees and holding her brother close. "Walker, you stupid...!"

Faye smiled, albeit somewhat tiredly. "...Well, I guess this is over, huh?"

Nikki nodded. "For now. Let's get back to the library and-"

Before Nikki could finish, the ground started to shake hard, and the darkness returned to the area, thicker than ever. The Megazords suddenly fell apart into their individual Zords, and then disappeared back into the Gaian Crystals. As the Rangers looked around, feeling fear seep into their minds, the sky was filled with a long, deep sound, almost sounding like the call of a whale.

"What the...?" Dirk asked, just as Patrick fell to a knee, clutching his head. "Pat! You okay?!"

"Something's wrong," Patrick moaned. "I can't get any images. Something's blocking my wind reading."

As the sound echoed through the air again, Walker's eyes fluttered open, and he began to pant a bit, looking terrified. "...He's here...!"

Suddenly, the fog began to roll back slightly as, in the skies above them, a massive whale-like creature pulled up directly over them. Its crystalline-looking body looked completely dull in colour and shape. Its call echoed throughout the area, causing the ground to shake beneath it. From its underside, a black light shined down on the ground not far from the Rangers, and a single figure floated down through it.

"What are we dealing with?" Layla asked Darkea.

Darkea gulped hard as the figure came into view. At first, from far off, he almost resembled a more muscular version of Walker, having molded the latter into taking on a look similar to the former. However, as he got closer, they could see his hairline was receding a bit more, he had longer hair in the back that reached past his shoulders, his face had more than a few wrinkles, his nose and ears had a sharpness to them, and he was wearing black and grey armour, almost like Darkea's, only more menacing looking.

"...My father," Darkea answered. "The Emperor of the Dark. Dradarius."

Finally, after a few moments, Dradarius touched down on the ground softly, looking over the group before him. The Rangers quickly formed up in front of Faye, Walker, and Darkea, forming a defensive stance. Dradarius' lips curled into a smirk, clearly amused by this gesture.

"...Well now, isn't this interesting?" Dradarius asked, holding his hands together behind his back. "My Shadowmancers, one my daughter, and one my adopted son, protected by their sworn enemies against their own father? Why would this be?"

"Father, please!" Darkea begged, helping Walker up to his feet. "We did everything we could to stop them! They were too strong!"

Dradarius sighed, practically looking straight through the Rangers as if they weren't there. "Oh, my dear daughter, you needn't convince me of that. I believe you, of course."

Suddenly, before anyone could follow his movements, Dradarius seemingly disappeared, only to reappear behind Walker and Darkea, looking away from them so they couldn't see his expression. "...It's just, I never imagined that with all the stock I put in you, your best was still so...pathetic."

Darkea's eyes widened in horror, but before she could grab Walker and run, Dradarius had swung around and kicked Walker hard in his side, sending the two tumbling across the ground. Walker cried out in horrible pain, feeling the Emperor's kick wound him heavily, just before Dradarius then tossed a small ball of black light at then, blowing apart the ground in front of them and knocking them off a nearby cliff.

Nikki gasped in shock, but quickly clenched her fists hard, drawing her Gaia Saber. "How could you?!"

Dradarius merely scoffed, seeming to show little to no emotion as the other Rangers drew their Gaia Sabers and the Dragon Buster, Faye getting behind Layla. "Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot you were still here for a moment. Was there something I could help you with?"

"Sextuple-mental Slash!" the Rangers roared, bringing their swords down hard on Dradarius, who didn't even try to block the attack, instead letting them hit his armour with six elemental slashes. He then looked at the point on the armour they were all aiming for, spotting a six-pointed star-like scratch in it.

"...Oh, look at that," Dradarius observed, dusting himself off. "You scratched it. Impressive."

Dradarius then threw out a hand, sending out a dark gust of wind that knocked the team and Faye away with ease. They all tumbled across the ground, save for Drayden, who managed to keep his feet down and dig in with his Dragon Buster. Once the dark wind ceased, he pulled it out, inserting the Wolf and Lion Crystals into his sword. It charged up with indigo, white, and black energy as he held it up, Dradarius looking on intently.

"Eat this!" Drayden shouted, raising his blade and grabbing hold of it with both hands as he ran at Dradarius. "Shadow Break!"

Bringing his sword down hard, Drayden released an indigo, white, and black slash of dark energy straight down on the Usurper of the Dark Throne, intending to cut straight through his armour. However, before he could make contact, Dradarius actually reached up and caught the blade, stopping the attack that had thus far been his sure-fire finisher with ease.

"...Oh, you must be the Guardian of Darkness I've heard so much about," Dradarius realized, Drayden trying to pull his sword free. "Don't you know that darkness is MY element, that I command the greatest darkness of all, and that your puny amount is no match for it?"

Gripping the blade tighter, Dradarius sent out black lightning through it, shocking Drayden hard and causing him to demorph. The others quickly ran in, looking to strike again, but the Emperor merely dodged around their attacks and leveled them with backhands so hard that they all demorphed, falling to the ground.

"Layla!" Faye cried, a few feet away from the team.

"You managed to undo a lot of the work I've put into the past thousand years," Dradarius said calmly. "Now I suppose I have to start all over again...Though, I think to save time, perhaps I'll add my own personal touch to matters. Relying on weak fools like those two made conquering this world FAR too long, and I have a whole other planet to take over when that's done."

Nikki winced as she dragged herself back up. "...What?! You mean, you know about-?!"

"The parallel world called 'Earth'," Dradarius cut Nikki off. "Yes, I'm well aware of its existence. And trust me, its domination is on my list of future accomplishments."

Raising a hand up, Dradarius suddenly created a black circle of energy around the Rangers. "I DO apologize for this, but you see, I really can't let you slow my progress any further. You have to be...removed."

Realizing what he likely meant, the team's eyes widened in terror. Just as Madilyn reached down for her blaster, Dradarius threw his hand downward, creating a black flash of dark light that enveloped the Rangers and the space around them. When it was over, they were gone. Dradarius scoffed, looking over to where the Dryad was, only to find that she was no longer present either.

"Oh, did I get her, too?" the Emperor wondered aloud. "Or did she simply flee? Oh well, it doesn't matter. I was hoping to let a witness of all this tell the rest of the world what transpired, but I suppose I'll just have to let my actions speak for me..."

Looking back up at the whale-like creature hanging in the air above, Dradarius felt himself be pulled back up, setting his mind on his next course of action. However, as he did, Infernios slithered out from behind a nearby rock formation, his mind gripped in terror.

"...No," Infernios muttered. "The Guardians...They were our last chance...!"

Feeling herself start to come to, Nikki's eyes twitched as they opened slowly. A breeze blew past as she felt grass against her, and the sun glazed over her dark skin, and she couldn't help but let her eyes slowly close, nearly drifting off to sleep...until they snapped back open, Nikki remembering the last thing that happened before she lost consciousness.

Sitting up, Nikki looked around at the other Rangers, who were starting to come to. "Guys! Everybody okay?!"

"Ugh, my head's aching like something fierce, but I'm alright," Madilyn answered.

"I still can't seem to use my wind reading," Patrick announced. "Can anyone tell me where the heck we are?"

Dirk groaned, getting to his feet and looking down the hill, his jaw dropping. "...Pat, I'd tell ya, but I don't think you'd believe it...!"

Drayden's eyes snapped wide open as he looked where Dirk was looking. "...No way!"

"It can't be!" Layla exclaimed in shock.

At this point, the whole team, save for Patrick, were staring at what was down the grassy hill from them: Tall buildings of stone, steel, and glass. Concrete streets with cars on them. Humans walking on the sidewalks. The one thing they'd wanted to see again in so long, but now, was the last place they ever wanted to be: It was a city, a human city on Earth.

"...We're home," Nikki stated.

TO BE CONTINUED IN 2015

POWER RANGERS GUARDIANS OF GAIA
SEASON 2

AUTHOR'S NOTES: ...Man, I wish it were possible to include music in fanfics, because right there, I'd TOTALLY play the music from the end of Star Trek TNG's Best of Both Worlds Part 1.

Now, before you all tell me how much you hate me, let's be clear that this won't be too long a wait. There's a couple of DC Comics-related stories that I wanna write before getting to 'Season 2', but once they're done, I plan to get back to work on Guardians of Gaia. Also, it will be worth the wait, believe me. There will be new weapons and abilities, new Zords, and possibly even one or two new Rangers. And no, I refuse to call it 'Super Guardians of Gaia'. lol

So yeah, the big bad is finally unveiled: Dradarius, Usurper of the Dark Throne, and Emperor of the Dark. Basically, I wanted to create a villain who is menacing, has power that even his subjects are terrified of, but is subdued in speaking, as opposed to your usual over-the-top raging bad guy. More will be revealed about his back-story, where he gets his power, and what that whale is that he rides in next year. Just trust me when I say that next year will have a pretty different feel to it, as well as different themes.

Next time on Power Rangers Guardians of Gaia, the Rangers are stuck back on Earth with no means of getting back to Gaia, but the war there is having an influence on Earth that has not gone unnoticed. Is there anyone that can help them return to Gaia and stop Dradarius? And is there anyone on Gaia that can stand up to the Emperor's forces long enough for them to return? Ja né!