BRADLEY

The phone call had come as a shock. The hospital had called to tell him he urgently needed to come because his sister was in bad shape. When he arrived, the doctor looked at him sympathetically. "Nancy has had an... Episode," he explained.

"What happened?" Bradley asked.

"She slipped into a dissociative state, almost like a trance, and began scribbling the same sentence over and over on paper in the art room, then on the table when she ran out of paper, then on the walls... 'Open the box.' Just those three words, again and again. We stopped her and took her back to her room at that point. I don't know how she did it, but she cut herself and we found her writing it on the walls of her room in blood. We sedated her, of course, and thankfully the wound wasn't serious. Every time she wakes up, she starts moving her hand like she's trying to write again. We were hoping a visit from you might snap her out of it. I'm sorry, but we've had to keep her restrained for her own safety."

Bradley braced himself to see that, knowing it would break his heart. "I understand," he said. "Please take me to her."

The doctor led him to the room. "Nancy, you have a visitor," he said pleasantly.

Even with her arms restrained, Nancy was tracing letters in the air with her index finger. She stopped when she saw Bradley and began sobbing. "Bradley!" She cried out.

"That's the first thing she's said since this began," the doctor said in surprise.

Bradley sat by his sister's bed. "It's alright, Nancy. I'm here," he told her in a soothing tone.

"Bradley, you have to open the box!" Nancy said urgently.

"What do you mean, Nancy?" He asked.

"Open the box. Please, Bradley. It's the only way to stop them! "

"To stop who, honey?"

"The aliens. You have to open the box! You have to save the children! Promise me, Bradley! Promise!"

He was thoroughly confused, but he supposed this was the only way to calm her down. "Okay, Nancy," he replied.

"Say it! Say the words, Bradley. I can't rest until you promise... You have to save the children. Please say it." She was becoming hysterical again.

"Shhhh, honey... I promise, okay? I promise I'll open the box."

Nancy sighed with relief. "Thank you..." She whispered. She looked as though he'd freed her from a great burden she'd been carrying.

"I love you, Nancy," he said, stroking her head soothingly. "Everything will be alright now."

She nodded before drifting off to sleep. Bradley followed the doctor out of the room. "Do you have any idea what she meant?" The doctor asked.

"No... But it seems she needed to hear me promise to do what she asked. Do you believe she'll be alright now?" Bradley asked.

"We'll monitor her closely, but as long as she remains calm and does not show an intention to harm herself or others, we'll release her from the restraints in a day or so."

Bradley nodded. "Thank you," he said. "Please keep me informed."

"Of course."

Bradley shook the doctor's hand and left. He tried not to focus on how unsettled he was by his sister's behavior. Something had terrified her, and delusion or not, it had sent chills down his spine as she begged him to open whatever box she'd seen. He shook his head, refusing to let his sister's words scare him. She was sick. He needed to remember that, no matter how convinced of the "alien" threat she was. After all, aliens did not exist. One of them needed to remain grounded in reality.

You've been attacked by strange creatures recently, his mind pointed out. Those monsters weren't human.

Aliens aren't real. Nancy has hallucinations, he stubbornly reminded himself. There must be some other explanation. He pushed her cryptic warning to the back of his mind, knowing he needed to be calm and focused when he got home to his nieces. The last thing they needed was for him to go crazy, too.

ONE WEEK LATER.

DIVATOX

She had been given very few instructions from Zell, but two things had been specified other than what time she was meant to flee to. One was that she needed to stop a prophecy from coming true by putting an end to a man named Bradley Drew. The other was that she needed to imprison her sister. Divatox was rather enjoying that part. She'd always despised Dimitria.

She wrapped her hands around the charm she still wore around her neck and felt Dimitria protest weakly from inside. "Sorry, Sis... It's not time to let you out yet," Divatox said with a laugh. Just for fun, she poked her finger at the charm harshly, knowing things like that hurt anyone trapped inside this sort of charm. Divatox remembered that one of the Power Brats... The replacement Yellow one... Had done things like that to the necklace where Katherine's soul had been trapped, just to shut her up when she started acting up. She wondered if Zell had ever figured out how to free his daughter from that trap.

Divatox shook her head to clear it as she studied the calendar in front of her. "Today is the day," she realized. The most important part of the plan needed to be executed today, or it might all be for nothing.

She pulled out her communication stone and tapped it twice before saying, "Jaybert!"

He answered a moment later. "What is it?" He snapped at her. "I am busy."

"Well, excuse me, but I have urgent business to discuss," Divatox replied.

"Get on with it."

"Today is the day the prophecy begins," Divatox explained. "He finds the crystal today, while he is on a field trip with his students. I need your people to attack so we can ensure this does not happen. I will provide as many monsters as possible."

"Very well. Meet us at the Base in an hour. We shall proceed from here." Jaybert ended the call without waiting for a response.

"Rude much?" Divatox asked in annoyance. She couldn't dwell on that, however. She needed to gather her monsters before going to the Base. She also knew she'd need to activate her spy. Having someone on the inside was vital, and she wasn't sure she could count on B'Danna, Draze, and Tiffani to get the job done. The former two were loyal to Jaybert, and Tiffani was his daughter.. Divatox wanted at least one person on their side who was loyal to her, and Ronnie was certainly that.

"It's almost time, Veronica," she said, knowing Ronnie awaited her command.

CASSIE

She hadn't expected to get roped into chaperoning a school trip, but Cassie didn't really mind. At least it meant she wasn't stuck in the school all day. Her Rangers were all going on the trip to the historical restoration village, too, so at least she'd be able to keep an eye on them.

As soon as they arrived, Cassie spotted something unexpected. It was a tube with a blinking light, just barely visible in the bushes. "No way..." She mumbled. She picked it up and knew she'd just stumbled across another one of the Phantom Ranger's clues. While everyone was settling in with their tour guide in the building called the main hall, Cassie slipped away and played the message.

"Hello, Cassie," the Phantom Ranger's hologram greeted her. "I'm so glad you are here... This land holds one of the most important pieces of the puzzle. According to the prophecy, a sacred crystal is buried here. It is absolutely vital that this crystal fall into the right hands. You must protect it at all costs. Much like the Zeo Crystal, this crystal holds enormous power to protect all that is pure and good. Powerful magic can be cast here because this is sacred land, and I'm afraid the people who I am hiding from use the land for their own devices. That is how I found out they were here... Please, Cassie, be careful. I fear they will try to prevent the crystal from finding its way into the right hands. Be prepared for anything. Good luck."

The hologram vanished. Cassie sighed, placing the tube in her pocket. She'd found a couple of other messages from the Phantom Ranger, but they'd been vague and hadn't told her much. This time, it felt different. Softly, Cassie spoke into her communicator, saying, "Keep your eyes open, Kids... Something's coming." She knew her Rangers received her message as they each seemed to tense slightly.

"Come along, Everyone," Principal Drew said. "There will be a presentation in the main field shortly."

"So, what's the point of this trip, anyway?" Cassie asked him as they walked toward the field.

"Every two years, the freshmen and sophomore classes come here to learn about what life was like in 1873, when this town was founded. It's an important part of our history," the principal explained.

"What's the big class trip for the other years?" Cassie asked curiously.

"We bring the students to a Native American Reservation. It's on the other side of this land. In fact, this land used to be part of it until the settlers founded our town."

That explains why the Phantom Ranger called it sacred land, Cassie thought. It also explained why a powerful crystal was buried there.

Cassie shifted her focus to the students. She spotted Lee with Ronnie. Hannah stood with Roxy, who Cassie had in one of her classes. She noticed the two of them subtly holding hands and smiled. Right on, she thought. It looked like Hannah and Roxy might be more than friends, at least to her. Serena stood off by herself, paying close attention as the presentation began. Kaylen looked bored as she rolled her eyes at the theatrics. Cassie was glad to see her looking more like herself after the attack. She watched in surprise as Kaylen made her way closer to someone. The cowboy hat was impossible to miss in the crowd of students. Cassie noticed Kaylen making her presence known to Austin and saw him smile brightly back at her.

Hmmm... Is something going on there? Cassie wondered. Austin was majorly cute, but he didn't seem like Kaylen's type. Still, they seemed to like sticking close to one another now. You need to stop treating the kids' lives like your own personal soap opera, Cassie scolded herself with a slight laugh.

"This is totally lame..." A student whined from nearby.

"It's not so bad," a boy replied. Cassie recognized Dave from detention. He stood with the girl who'd complained several feet away from everyone else. They weren't right on top of her, but Cassie could still make out what they were saying. She suspected they didn't realize how good her hearing was.

"It's not even historically accurate," his female companion complained.

"How do you know? It's not like we were there, Bea."

"I know because that equipment she's using was invented in 1903, and we were there for that."

Cassie's eyes widened. Had this girl just claimed to have been around in 1903? She listened more carefully, trying not to make it obvious that she was paying close attention to their conversation.

"Bea, you shouldn't say things like that around here," Dave cautioned her.

"Please, like anyone would believe it if they overheard us. Besides, Draze, no one pays any attention to us unless they're looking for freaks and weirdos to make fun of."

Draze... Not Dave, Cassie thought. She made a mental note of that. Who were these kids? "Dave" had seemed quiet but nice enough in detention... But what if he wasn't who he appeared to be? Had Zell sent more than one bad guy through time in case Divatox screwed things up?

"Is everything alright, Cassie?" Serena asked from beside her.

Cassie jumped. "I didn't see you come over," she said.

"You seem... Focused," Serena said. "And not on the presentation."

"Serena, do you know those two kids over there?" She subtly motioned toward Draze and Bea.

"Dave and Beatrice Donna? Sure. They keep to themselves mostly. They are bigger social outcasts than I am."

"I think there's a reason for that... The girl was talking about having been around in 1903... Either the two of then traveled through time, or they're immortal or something."

Serena raised an eyebrow at that. "Immortality seems unlikely."

"But time travel doesn't?"

"Time is a human concept. I believe it is scientifically possible to manipulate it, as proven by you, Lucas, and Divatox being here. I struggle to believe in immortality, although I suppose with the right cell replacement process, it might be possible... "

"Well, whatever's going on, those are no ordinary students... I'll try to look into it further. Maybe Lucas can get some information from the future."

Suddenly, there was a scene which demanded Cassie's attention as a faculty member. "Principal Drew... I don't feel so well," one of the freshmen said before dramatically collapsing onto the grass.

"Tiffani!" Ronnie cried, running toward her.

"Everyone, move back," the principal said urgently. He knelt beside the girl and checked her pulse. "Hmmm... She seems to be alright... She's probably just dehydrated."

"I'll bring her to the picnic area and get her some water," Ronnie offered quickly.

"Do you want me to help you carry her?" Lee asked.

"I'll do it," an unexpected voice said. It was Bea.

"You?" Principal Drew asked in obvious surprise. Then, he paused. "That's generous of you, Miss Elton. Thank you."

"Anything to get out of watching this crap," Bea replied with a smirk. She stood beside Ronnie and helped Tiffani to her feet. "Come on, Cheerleader. This way."

There was nothing glaringly wrong with the situation... Bea was bored. It made sense she'd want to get away from the performance... But something didn't feel right.

"Be on alert," Cassie said to Serena. "I don't trust this."

Serena nodded. "I'll get word to the others," she said, moving through the crowd toward Austin and Kaylen, since they were the closest.

Cassie suddenly wished Lucas was with them, but he was at work. There was no way to get him there without it looking suspicious, and she didn't even know for certain that anything was wrong. She took a deep breath and tried not to worry too much before she had a genuine reason to.

TIFFANI

As soon as they'd made it away from their classmates, Tiffani began walking on her own. "Fainting? Really?" B'Danna asked, rolling her eyes.

"My father said to cause a scene so we could all slip away without being questioned," Tiffani replied with a shrug. "Where's Draze?"

"He'll meet us in a couple of minutes. People hardly pay attention to him anyway, so he'll be able to sneak off. So, where are we meeting everyone?"

"This way. My father, Laby, Amareese, and Flekt are already here."

"And Divatox?"

"Should be with them." Tiffani crinkled up her nose in disgust as she sniffed the air. "Yeah, she's here. I can smell her disgusting fish monsters."

"Pirahnatrons," Ronnie provided.

"Whatever, they reek. Anyway, come on. They're around the next corner." Tiffani led the way.

"Finally," her father snapped upon seeing them. "Where is Draze?"

"On his way," B'Danna replied.

"Change into your uniforms. Hurry. There is little time to waste. Get Veronica suited up as well. We must conceal her true identity."

Tiffani sighed as she activated the armor the members of the Rebellion wore. The black suits covered every inch of flesh and the blue masks concealed their faces. The material moved well and offered a protective barrier between the soldiers of the Rebellion and the people they were fighting. It was supposed to represent their cause and their freedom, but to Tiffani, it felt like a prison jumpsuit. It served only to remind her of the double life she'd been sentenced to simply for being born.

"Hey, Tiff," Laby greeted her with a warm smile as she finished transforming. She appreciated that he knew who she was even in the uniform.

"Hi, Laby," she replied sweetly.

Laby rarely bothered with the uniform. As a shapeshifter, he could conceal his identity without it, and he was too much of a free spirit to wear it by choice. On occasion, he wore it for various reasons, but most days, he didn't. He looked like himself currently, with his natural messy brown hair and mischievous green eyes. The yellow spirals that danced inside of his pupils were hypnotic, and Tiffani loved looking at them. He had told her once that he'd been born with the spiral labyrinths in his eyes, and that was why his parents had chosen his name. They hadn't known at the time that the boy could create actual labyrinths, or that he'd be able to cause madness with the power of those eyes. Luckily, Laby rarely used his powers for evil, and Tiffani knew he'd never use them against her. It was safe for her to stare into his eyes.

"Labyrinth, you need to shift now," Tiffani's father said.

"Right. How's this?" Laby asked. He transformed into an attractive woman with red hair, tight clothes, and noticeable curves. Tiffani had to stifle a laugh. The impressive thing was that Laby was no less confident in this form.

"I fail to see how that form will aid you in battle," her father said with a frown. She noticed how closely he looked over every inch of Laby's body.

Okay, creepy, she thought. I think my dad's crushing on Laby as much as I do right now.

Laby winked at Tiffani before saying, "I just thought I'd spice things up. Is this better?" He shifted again, this time turning himself into an exact clone of her father.

"Labyrinth!" Her father snapped in annoyance.

"Or this?" Laby asked, shifting into Divatox.

"Oh my... That's not a bad likeness," Divatox said as she examined him closely. She frowned after a minute and said, "Hmmm... I really need to trim those split ends..."

"Laby-" Tiffani's father began again.

"Jeez, Jay, chill out and laugh once in a while," Laby said. He shifted again, this time turning into an overly muscular, scary-looking American soldier, complete with guns. Laby was fairly muscular on his own, but this form looked like he swallowed a bottle of steroids for breakfast every day.

"I like this one," Flekt said with approval. "And that is an excellent choice of weapon. Powerful without being too bulky to carry."

"That will do, Laby," Tiffani's father said. He still sounded annoyed, but she could tell he was relieved Laby had stopped goofing around.

Draze arrived and everyone was distracted, so Laby leaned toward Tiffani, flexing his muscles. "What do you think, Tiff?" He asked. "Am I sexy?"

Tiffani laughed. "Honestly, I think you look better as yourself," she said sweetly.

A huge smile lit up Laby's face. "Thanks, Gorgeous." He kissed the top of her head. Even through the uniform, his touch made Tiffani melt.

"What is our plan?" B'Danna asked.

"We move in quickly, before they can see us coming. Me, Jaybert, Laby, and B'Danna are Alpha, Amareese, Draze, Ronnie, and Tiffani are Beta. Team Beta will distract them from the right while Team Alpha goes in for the kill, flanking them from the left," Flekt explained. "The Pirahnatrons and other monsters will cause chaos from all sides to keep them from getting their bearings. Divatox will focus on Target X. It is our job to ensure she finds her mark."

"Can you, like, speak English for ten seconds?" Tiffani asked. "What's Target X?"

"Bradley Drew," Divatox explained.

Tiffani was startled. "Our principal?"

"Yes. He must be prevented from acquiring the crystal by any means necessary. That's what I came back in time to do."

"Cool with me. He's annoying and has a stick up his ass," B'Danna said.

"He's a good man, B'Danna," Draze said gently. "I take no pleasure in the necessity of this act."

B'Danna sighed. "Look, I'm not out to hurt him... But we may have to."

"Can't we just get the crystal ourselves and leave him alone?" Tiffani asked.

"That would be ideal," her father agreed. "That crystal would be quite useful to us if we could gain control over it."

"It won't be easy," Amareese said. "Magic has a way of doing whatever it wants to. The crystal is meant to be a force of pure good, and it may deem us evil."

"We are not evil. We are simply soldiers," Flekt said.

"Yes, my love, but the crystal may not see it that way," Amareese replied kindly.

"We can figure out how to control the crystal later," Divatox said. "What matters currently is keeping it out of Bradley Drew's hands."

"Let us begin!" Tiffani's father said, leading the way. The others followed, but Tiffani hung back.

"Is everything okay, Tiff?" Laby asked.

"Principal Drew is a really nice guy," Tiffani said. "I just... I hate that he's in the middle of this."

"I'll do everything I can to try to pull this off without him getting hurt," Laby promised, squeezing her hand. "Come on, before they notice we fell behind."

Tiffani allowed him to lead her to where everyone else already was before she stood with Team Beta. She hoped this would end quickly with as few people getting injured as possible. These were her teachers, her principal, and her friends. She didn't want to do this at all, but there was no refusing her father. Her only choice was to participate and hope for the best.

LEE

Everyone was walking toward the next stop on the tour when he smelled them... "Pirahnatrons..." He said softly. He hoped that, wherever Ronnie had vanished to, she was safe. Why didn't you go with her? He scolded himself. The idea of Ronnie being in danger when he wasn't with her to protect her scared him more than anything else.

The attack came on suddenly. A bunch of Pirahnatrons ran through the crowd of students. There were other monsters with them, and those were what Lee was more concerned about. He desperately wanted to morph, but there was no way to do it with all of his classmates around. Everyone began to panic and scream. Lee saw Serena pull out her earplugs and headphones and was grateful she'd brought them with her.

Lee didn't have time to do much as he heard a desperate cry of, "Help!" He turned toward the sound. "Kaylen! Kay, help!" Claire screamed as two monsters grabbed her by the arms and started playing tug -of-war. Lee spotted Kaylen with Austin several feet away. He was closer.

"I've got you, Kid," Lee said quickly, running to Claire's side. He kicked one of the monsters straight in the chest, causing it to release Claire. Another kick connected, this time to its head, and it went down. Lee focused on the second monster, leaping through the air and kicking it in the head as well. The creature's head snapped back so hard, Lee thought it might pop off, but it didn't. Still, the monster released Claire. Lee used a football tackle to knock the monster onto the ground.

"Are you okay, Claire?" Lee asked, moving her to a slightly safer spot.

"Lee! Oh my gosh, how did you land that kick?" Claire asked in wonder.

He shrugged, trying to come up with a logical explanation for his gravity-defying kick. "I've got a black belt in Martial Arts," he said casually. That was true, but his kick hadn't exactly been part of traditional training.

Claire didn't question him further. Instead, she screamed, "Watch out!"

Lee spun around to see three more monsters. "Stay behind me, Claire!" He told her. He looked at the monsters and asked, "Which one of you wants their ass handed to them first?" Then, he was back in action, trying to fight them off and still defend Claire.

AUSTIN

He couldn't figure out where the Pirahnatrons kept coming from. Every time he and Kaylen got a group down, more appeared. Finally, some of the bigger monsters came toward them.

"I've got the six on the left," Kaylen told him. She pulled out her baseball bat and began swinging at them.

Austin looked at the six monsters on the right. "Well alright, boys!" He said. "Let's dance!" He started throwing kicks and punches, landing each one harder than the last. They might not be able to morph, but they were hardly helpless. He focused on the monsters, knowing it was more important now than ever not to fail. Whatever had prompted this attack, it was big.

"Unhand me!" Someone cried out. Austin realized someone had grabbed Principal Drew. It was Divatox.

"Kaylen!" Austin called. She looked at him and he motioned toward her uncle.

"Shit... Not again," Kaylen said with a frown. She took down the last of her monsters before racing toward him. Austin was still battling against a couple of his monsters. Lee was with Claire, trying to protect her. Serena was systematically taking down as many monsters as she could. Austin could see the wheels turning in her mind as she calculated every move she made. Hannah was trying to hold off a group of Pirahnatrons with Roxy. Cassie was defending a group of freshmen from a particularly nasty, large monster who seemed to randomly breathe fire. Austin hoped Kaylen would be alright on her own, because it seemed like everyone was occupied with other issues at the moment.

KAYLEN

She had to run to chase down Divatox and her uncle. Divatox had gotten him pretty far when Kaylen reached them. "Let him go, Bitch!" Kaylen shouted at Divatox.

"What a foul mouth!" Divatox replied.

"Damn right. I said let go of him. Now."

"Are you going to make me, Little Girl?"

"Who the fuck are you calling little girl?" Kaylen swung her bat at Divatox's head.

Divatox let out a cry of shock. "How barbaric! Get away from me with that... Stick."

"It's called a baseball bat, you bloated bitch."

"Bloated? I am not bloated! Ugh! I'll destroy you, you foul brat!"

"Kaylen, go! Get out of here. Run to safety with the others," her uncle begged her. Divatox wrapped her fingers around his throat. He began to make choking sounds.

"Sorry, Uncle Bradley... I can't do that," Kaylen replied. She kicked Divatox in the side of her gut, causing her to release Kaylen's uncle with a cry of pain.

"Stupid girl!" Divatox screamed. She shoved Kaylen's uncle to the ground, zeroing in on Kaylen instead. Their one-on-one battle truly began then. Kaylen welcomed the fight.

SERENA

She was finally free from the monsters, and she'd gotten several students herded into a safe zone. Now, Serena raced to Kaylen's side. "How can I help?" She asked.

"Get him out of here," Kaylen said.

"Of course. Come on, Principal Drew," Serena said.

He stared at her in confusion. Serena shook her head. "We don't have time for you to go into shock. The students need you. Come with me," she said firmly.

He nodded, seeming to understand then. Reluctantly, he walked away from Kaylen. "Uncle Bradley!" Claire cried as Serena and the principal reached the crowd of students. She flung herself into his arms, trembling.

Lee joined Serena. "What the hell do you think is going on?" He asked.

"I'm not entirely certain... But Divatox went straight for Principal Drew," Serena said. "Kaylen's with her now."

"We should go help her."

"You would do better to round up the students."

"What? Serena, we have to fight-"

"Everyone here is in danger right now, Lee. You are a natural leader. People flock to you... They'll listen to you. Keep them as calm as you can, and I'll help you keep the monsters from hurting anyone."

Lee sighed. "You're right. We need to keep everyone safe."

Suddenly, members of the militant group who'd stormed the movie theater appeared on either side of them. "Shit... Seriously, who are these assholes?" Lee demanded.

"Lee... I think we're in trouble," Serena said. This group was much more organized than Divatox and her monsters. While chaos had erupted from the arrival of the first group of bad guys, Serena suspected this new group would be attacking in a much more calculated manner. That made them a thousand times more dangerous.

"Guys, the freaks from the movie theater are back," Lee said into his communicator.

"Hold them off if you can," Cassie replied. "I'll have Alpha find a way to get Lucas here."

"Have him morph before he shows up, preferably, so at least one of us in at full power," Serena suggested.

"That's a good idea," Cassie replied.

As one of the masked soldiers began firing shots into the air, the students clustered together in a panic. "Everyone, get to the main hall!" Lee shouted over the hysterical students. "Follow me!"

Serena took up the back end of the crowd, trying to keep as many students out of the line of fire as possible. She was grateful her ears were protected. She was able to focus instead of getting overwhelmed. She kind of liked being able to feel useful in a battle for once. She hoped that the rest of the team was safe as she and Lee worked to move the majority of the students to what was hopefully a safer location.

HANNAH

A lot of the students and faculty members had run to one area. Hannah was relieved to see Serena and Lee protecting them. She was about to grab Roxy and join them when they walked straight into one of the uniformed soldiers.

"Roxy!" Hannah cried as the soldier immediately attacked Roxy. She guessed from the curves on the soldier's body that she was a female, but Hannah suspected that didn't make her any less of a threat.

Roxy tried to fight back, and she was doing great at first, until the soldier kicked her in the base of her spine. Roxy let out a cry of pain and hit the ground. Hannah didn't stop to think... She ran toward the soldier, jumping into a kick that connected with the soldier's head. This not only knocked her away from Roxy, but caused her to clutch her head in agony.

It took the soldier a minute to recover. When she did, she ran straight at Hannah, who'd stopped to try to check on Roxy. "Hannah!" Roxy cried in horror before Hannah could actually reach her.

Hannah used a tumbling pass to put distance between herself and her attacker. The soldier stunned her by copying the motion and executing it perfectly. Seeing her coming, Hannah did a somersault through the air before landing on the soldier. Using the momentum, Hannah knocked the soldier onto the ground. As the soldier struggled, Hannah punched her squarely in the jaw. The soldier lay there, apparently stunned. Hannah got off of her and ran toward Roxy.

"Are you okay?" Hannah asked.

Roxy stared at her in wonder. She didn't speak, but she nodded slowly. Hannah helped her get back on her feet. When she turned around, the soldier had vanished. There were no monsters or soldiers in the immediate area. "Come on," Hannah said. "Let's get to the others."

Roxy took a deep breath as they began to try to find the other students. "Sorry for being useless," she said. "When I was ten, I fell off of a skateboard doing a really risky move and I took some serious damage to my back. Somehow, that bitch knew exactly where to hit me."

"I'm just glad you were able to get back up," Hannah said.

"Hannah..." Roxy paused. "I want you to be honest with me, okay?"

"Of course. About what?"

"Today isn't the first time I've been attacked by these freaks. These people in suits keep showing up and saving the day..."

"I was with you one of those times," Hannah said quickly.

"Right... The time the one in pink didn't show up... Hannah, you're one of them, aren't you? You're the Pink one."

Hannah didn't know what to say. Finally, she settled on, "We have to find our classmates, Roxy. It's not safe out here."

Roxy smirked at her. "You didn't deny it, so thanks for not lying. Okay, Hannah, we'll go find them... But we're going to discuss this later." She took Hannah's arm and led her to the main hall.

LUCAS

The call had come at a good time. Lucas slipped away while his partner did some paperwork. He arrived at the restoration village already morphed and found Cassie near the back of a crowd. He grabbed her from behind, covering her mouth so she wouldn't scream, and pulled her out of the sight of everyone else.

Cassie let out a muffled cry against his hand and kicked him hard in the shin. Lucas cried out in pain and released her. She was about to swing at him when she stopped. "Lucas?" She demanded. "Don't scare me like that!"

"I figured you might want to morph," Lucas said, rubbing his shin.

"Good idea. Shift into Turbo!" Cassie morphed. "That's much better."

"You're welcome. What the hell is going on?"

"I'm not totally sure. Divatox and her goons attacked. She went for Principal Drew directly... Whatever this is, he's at the center of it. And I found a message from the Phantom Ranger. This land has a sacred crystal on it-"

"Oh shit..."

"Should that reaction worry me?"

"I know what this is about, Cassie. We have to find Bradley Drew."

"He was with Lee, Serena, and a ton of students the last I saw him."

"Lead the way." He followed her until they reached a large building. Lee and Serena were holding the doors open and trying to get everyone inside.

Lucas was about to run toward them when an explosion went off. Several of the uniformed soldiers from the movie theater were coming toward them. They had guns and other weapons aimed at the hall.

Lucas quickly scanned them with a device. "I'll get the image to my team later... We need to know who these guys are," he explained to Cassie.

"Get ready to fire!" The clear leader of the group shouted.

"Fire? But, Jay, they're just kids," a man who looked like an American soldier protested.

"They're standing in our way."

"You're not thinking straight. We're not shooting a bunch of kids for absolutely no reason," the American soldier said firmly. "Flekt, tell everyone to stand down."

"You are not in charge here, Labyrinth!" The leader said harshly.

"I don't give a damn about the hierarchy, Jaybert. This is the wrong call, and it's not one you'd make in your right mind."

"Almost all of the kids are inside," Cassie said to Lucas. "What do we do now? Should we take them out while they're busy arguing?"

He shifted his focus back to her. "Not yet... The fact that they're divided might work in our favor. Just stand guard over the kids."

Cassie nodded. "I'm on it," she promised.

Lucas spotted Hannah and Roxy arriving. "Get inside, Girls," Cassie said, not trying to disguise her voice. Lucas shook his head. Apparently, she'd forgotten Roxy was one of her students.

"Wait a second... Cassie?" Roxy asked.

"Huh? I don't know who that is," Cassie said quickly, doing an awful job of disguising her voice.

Roxy looked at Hannah and shook her head. "Later," Hannah said. "Okay?"

"Okay," Roxy said. They walked into the main hall.

"Whoo! That was a heck of a dance... Well, at least the monsters seem to finally be gone," Austin said as he arrived. "Miss Cassie... Lucas..." He tipped his hat to each of them.

"Go on inside, Austin," Lucas said. "Try to keep the students as calm as possible."

"Yes, Sir," Austin said. He headed inside.

"Is that everyone? Where's Kaylen?" Bradley Drew asked Lee and Serena, sticking his head out of the hall a minute later. He noticed Cassie and Lucas, but didn't say anything to them.

"She's not here," Serena admitted.

"I have to go back for her."

Lucas knew he couldn't stop him, or he'd risk screwing up the future. "I've got him," he promised Lee and Serena as Bradley took off. Cassie moved to go after him. "Stay with the kids. They need you," Lucas reminded her.

He raced after Bradley, knowing it was vital he keep him safe while still allowing him to follow his path. The future depended on the outcome of this day.

BRADLEY

He raced back toward where Kaylen had been. The woman who'd attacked him was very dangerous and he couldn't just leave his niece there defenseless. Not that Kaylen couldn't defend herself, but this wasn't just some bully... It was a deranged woman with monster-like creatures and an army of some sort of terrorists. He had to protect her, and the rest of the children.

Save the children... Nancy's cryptic warning came back to him.

Suddenly, Bradley saw something peaking out of the ground nearby. He was drawn to it, so he walked closer and discovered a silver box. It was sealed shut.

"Open the box..." He whispered, remembering his sister's plea. Was it possible she'd been talking about this? How could she have known? It didn't make any sense. Still, he slipped the box into his pocket, feeling like he was meant to hold onto it for reasons he didn't understand.

He continued toward Kaylen. What he found was the strange woman and a person in a yellow suit. There was no sign of his niece. He frantically scanned the area for her as the one in yellow battled the evil woman. It wasn't until he saw the one in yellow swing a bat at the evil one that Bradley understood.

"You!" The evil one shouted as she spotted him.

"Watch out!" The one in yellow... Who he was positive was somehow Kaylen... shouted. She dove between him and the evil one. "Back off, Divatox!" She shouted.

"Make me, Power Brat!" Divatox replied.

Kaylen proceeded to fight back harder than before. Bradley was very concerned, but suddenly, another suited person arrived. His uniform was different than Kaylen's, but he was clearly on her side as he helped her hold off Divatox. Bradley realized it was the same man he'd seen outside of the Main Hall.

"Stay behind us, Bradley," the man said.

Bradley didn't try to argue. "Ugh! Enough of this!" Divatox cried out. She tossed some sort of device at them before running away.

"Bomb!" Kaylen shouted.

The man approached it, carefully picking it up and looking at the timer. "Thirty minutes... We're fine," he said. "Let's go."

"Wait just a minute!" Bradley objected. "I demand to know what is going on!"

"Sir, you're safe for the moment," the man said. "Your students, however, may not be. We have to get back to them."

"Kaylen, tell me the truth. Right now," Bradley said firmly.

Kaylen sighed. "Don't," the man cautioned her.

"He already knows, Dude," Kaylen pointed out. Suddenly, her suit vanished.

Bradley stared at her. "Unbelievable... How did you...?" He asked.

"There's not any time to explain, Uncle Bradley," Kaylen said. "Everyone's still in danger. But I'm okay... I promise."

"Who is that woman, Divatox? Why is she doing this? Did she hurt you, Kaylen?"

"Not seriously. I'm totally fine, I swear. But my classmates won't be if we don't help them."

Bradley nodded. "The children... Yes, there is no time to waste." He touched the box in his pocket. It felt warm. "Let's go."

They raced back toward the others. That was when he saw something truly terrifying. The terrorists surrounded the main hall. His students were trapped inside, and the terrorists had some sort of hand-held cannon or something.

"Flekt, fire!" A man shouted.

One of the terrorists fired the weapon at the main door, which was sealed shut. The woman in the pink suit who'd been protecting the children earlier stood directly in its path. She took the hit. Suddenly, all Bradley could see were flames blocking the door.

"No!" Kaylen screamed.

The man with them tensed in horror. "Oh God..." He whispered. "Stay with your uncle," he told Kaylen before running toward the flames.

"Fire again!" The leader instructed. "Block the back exit, too."

The one he'd called Flekt did as he was told. "We enter through the sides, and if they do not surrender, we roast them alive!" The leader declared.

"Jaybert, no," the only one not in a matching uniform said in horror.

"These children are Prisoners of War now, Labyrinth, and there will be casualties if necessary!"

"Casualties..." Bradley repeated in horror. Open the box! Promise me! Nancy's voice echoed in his mind. He touched the box and again, it felt hot in his hands. He pulled it out.

"Open the box..." He repeated aloud.

"What?" Kaylen asked.

Bradley took a deep breath. As crazy as it seemed, he had to try. The children were in mortal danger. "Kaylen... No matter what happens, I love you, Claire, and your mother very much," he told her.

"Uncle Bradley, what are you-?"

Before she could finish her question, Bradley ran toward the side door the terrorists were targeting. He could hear Kaylen screaming after him, but he couldn't stop now. He reached the door and pulled out the box. "Please work," he whispered before focusing on how much he wanted to protect his students. That was all that mattered. Suddenly, the box unsealed and opened in his hands. A crystal sat inside. Puzzled, Bradley took the crystal out of the box. As he held it in his hands, the terrorists and that Divatox woman reached him. So did Kaylen.

"No!" Divatox screamed. "Stop him!"

"Flekt, fire!" Jaybert shouted.

Flekt nodded and tried to fire his weapon. Instead of feeling flames on his flesh, Bradley was nearly blinded as light surrounded him and Kaylen, creating some sort of shield. It wrapped around the building, putting out the fires at the main and back doors and protecting all of the students trapped inside. The crystal vanished, and Bradley felt like the light was now coming directly from inside of him. He was confused, but had no time to process it. The flaming cannonball bounced off of the shield and flew back at the terrorists. They screamed as the blast knocked them back. Bradley didn't fully understand it, but he knew he'd done it. The children were going to be okay. Nothing these monsters did could hurt them now. They would be forced to retreat. His students and faculty were finally safe.

LABY

There was smoke everywhere. Laby coughed, choking a bit. He looked around him to see if the others were alright.

Flekt was the first to move. He reached Amareese and pulled her into his arms and away from the flames. She was coughing, but alive. "Are you guys okay?" Laby asked.

Flekt nodded. "No serious injuries here," he confirmed.

"Amareese?" Laby asked. His use of her full name betrayed how worried he actually was.

"I'm fine, Laby," she promised. "Just a couple of scratches."

Laby nodded. He moved on, finding B'Danna and Draze clinging to each other nearby, just beyond the worst of the flames. "Are you hurt?" Laby asked.

"My leg's got a nasty gash, but I'll be fine," B'Danna said.

"I have a pretty bad burn on my arm," Draze added. "I'll need Amareese to heal it so no one gets suspicious."

"Flekt and Mama Ama are safe," Laby promised. "They're over there. Get to them. We'll get out of here as soon as I find Jay and Tiff."

He kept searching through the damaged area. "Jaybert! Where are you?" He called.

He heard a groan of pain. Laby raced toward it and found Jaybert pinned beneath a tree. "Jay... Shit," he said. He lifted the tree off of Jaybert with some serious effort. "Can you move?" He asked him.

Jaybert sat up slowly. He tried and failed to stand. "It's okay, Jay. I've got you," Laby promised. He helped him to his feet, letting Jaybert put most of his weight on him as they headed to the others.

Amareese had already healed Draze's arm. She gasped at the sight of Jaybert. "Bring him here," she said urgently.

Laby sat Jaybert down beside Amareese. "Laby... Where is Tiffani?" He asked.

"I haven't found her yet," Laby said, trying to keep his fear out of his voice.

"Find her... And Veronica."

"Ronnie wasn't with us... She never made it back after she attacked her sister. We lost track of her. She's probably okay, but I'll find Tiffani, I promise." Laby hurried back toward the flames to search for Tiffani.

"Tiff! Tiffani, answer me honey! Where are you?" He called. His chest hurt. What if Tiffani was seriously hurt? What if she was dead? Stop it, Laby! He scolded himself. She's fine. She has to be.

"Help!" He heard her scream.

"Tiff! Tiff, I'm coming!" He raced toward the sound of her screams.

"Laby, hurry! I'm slipping!"

He discovered Tiffani dangling over the edge of a cliff that overlooked the start of the Reservation. She was clinging to the edge of the cliff for dear life, desperately trying not to fall onto the jagged rocks in the forest below.

"Hang on!" Laby cried.

"I can't!" Tiffani sobbed. "I'm scared, Laby!" She screamed as her hand slipped, and for a terrifying second, he thought he'd lost her, but she managed to grab onto a branch that was sticking out of the rocks a few feet down. It was going to be much harder to reach her now, but Laby had no intention of letting her fall any further.

"Don't be scared, Tiff. You're too beautiful to be scared," he said, keeping his voice calm even though he knew if she fell, she'd be dead.

"Are you seriously flirting with me at a time like this?"

"Are you saying there's ever a bad time to flirt?" He teased her. That's it, Laby... Distract her. Keep her calm. He climbed out onto the edge of the cliff, laying down on his stomach and reaching toward her. "Take my hand, Tiff!"

"I... I can't. I'm too scared to let go!"

"Tiffani... I need you to trust me."

"I do."

"Okay... So just keep looking into my eyes, alright? Don't look away, no matter what, and especially don't look down."

Tiffani looked into his eyes. Laby immediately used his powers to trick her mind into seeing something else. "You're perfectly safe, Tiffani. You're on the beach, watching the waves come in and go back out. It's almost as beautiful as you are." He kept speaking as he shifted into clothing better suited for rock climbing and began making his way down the cliff toward her. When he reached her, he knew he'd have to hurry because the branch was starting to break. He quickly grabbed her before jumping with her to safety.

He gasped for breath as they landed hard on one of the lower ledges. Tiffani snapped out of the illusion. "You saved me..." She whispered.

"Are you okay?" Laby asked.

Tiffani kissed his lips, stunning him. Laby relaxed as he realized how much he liked the kiss. When she finally broke away, he wrapped his arms around her. "That was a hell of a thank you," he teased her.

Tiffani smiled at him. "Is everyone else okay?"

"Everyone's accounted for except Divatox and Ronnie, but I think Ronnie was safe when it happened. Hopefully, Deevs blew up and we can be done with her."

Tiffani nodded. "I need to get back to the other kids before anyone gets suspicious," she said.

"Let's find Ronnie. We can send you guys and Bee Dee together, since you all left together. Draze can slip in on his own." He led Tiffani toward the others, unable to think about much except how relieved he was that she was safe.

LUCAS

He was still clinging to Cassie, trying to protect her from the flames when they'd gone out. Her morph had failed when she took the hit, and she was badly hurt. Now, Lucas held her head in his lap. He brushed the hair out of her face.

"Come on, Cassie... Wake up," he said urgently. When this didn't work, an unexpected sense of panic took control of Lucas. "Please be okay..." He whispered. Now that the immediate threat was gone, Lucas was terrified by the shape she was in. "Don't die, Cassie... Please..." He was still speaking quite softly. He was shaking as he gently stroked her hair, begging her to wake up. As his emotions overwhelmed him, his morph dropped.

Suddenly, Cassie began coughing. She opened her eyes and blinked up at him in confusion. "Lucas?" She asked. "Are you... Are you crying?"

"What? No! The smoke made my eyes tear," he said practically. He hadn't even realized he'd started to cry, and he was embarrassed. He quickly wiped away the evidence. "Are you okay, Cassie?" He helped her sit up slowly.

"I think so," she said. "It's been a long time since I took a hit like that... Or, actually, to be technical, I'll start taking them regularly in a couple of years." She laughed at her own joke.

Lucas shook his head. "Don't ever do anything that reckless again!" He shouted.

"Reckless? Someone had to protect the kids, Lucas! I'm pretty sure they weren't destined to get torched today!"

"Neither were you! You could have been killed, Cassie!"

"What, are you disappointed I'm alive or something? I did my job, Lucas!"

"Damnit, Cassie, if you die..." He sighed. Then, he stunned them both by pulling Cassie into a tight hug.

Cassie stopped talking and hugged him back. After a minute, she croaked out, "Lucas... Can't breathe..."

Lucas released her. "Sorry," he said softly.

"You weren't mad because I screwed up... You were worried about me," Cassie replied.

"Says who?" She frowned and gave him a sarcastic look. "Okay, fine. I was worried... A little... Just... Be more careful, alright? Think before you act."

"That's never been my style," she said with a laugh. "Come on. I need to get to the kids... They'll be looking for me."

He nodded, knowing she was right. He stood up, then helped her get to her feet. Together, they headed into the main hall as sirens began to blare. Emergency services were finally arriving.

The students looked mostly unharmed. None of the injuries he did see looked too serious, and no one appeared to be dead. "They're okay," Cassie said with a sigh of relief. Lucas knew exactly how she felt. He'd felt the same way when Cassie had regained consciousness.

You feel something for her, he realized. More than just a sense of responsibility... He shook his head. Cassie had become his friend. That was all this was... He'd been afraid for his friend.

It's deeper than that, his mind taunted him. He'd never reacted that strongly when Trip or Katie or Wes or even Jen had been in mortal danger. Sure, he cared about them, but his emotions had never sent him into a panic attack. He always kept a cool head.

Shut up, Brain, he told himself. He couldn't feel anything more than friendship for Cassie. He was still grieving his family far too deeply... He was just more worried about Cassie because she was such a huge pain in his butt. That's all it is, he told himself again... But he didn't believe it.

RONNIE

She was totally confused. Her head hurt, and her jaw was killing her, but she couldn't remember anything that had happened. Ronnie was sore everywhere. What was wrong with her?

"Ronnie! Oh my God, I was totally freaking out! Are you okay?" Tiffani asked.

"I... I don't know," Ronnie replied.

"Come on. You're hurt. Beatrice Donna and I will help you to the main hall. I think that's where everyone went."

Ronnie's head was too fuzzy for her to argue. She let the other girls lead her to their classmates. As soon as they walked in, Lee shouted, "Ronnie! Thank God," in relief. He immediately ran to her and wrapped her in his arms. Then, he got a look at her. "Who did it?!" He demanded.

"Huh?" Ronnie asked.

"Your jaw is bruised and the side of your mouth has blood on it. Was it one of the monsters?"

"Monsters?"

"We were attacked," Beatrice said quickly. "Tiffani and I ran, but when we looked back, Ronnie was gone. Someone knocked her unconscious. She must be concussed."

"I can't remember anything," Ronnie said, "but my head is totally going to explode."

"Shit, Ron, that looks bad," Roxy said as she joined them with Hannah by her side. They'd been across the room when Ronnie first arrived. "I think you need to see a doctor, especially if you got knocked out." She turned toward Beatrice. "Thanks for getting her back here, Bea."

"No problem," Beatrice replied. "I've had enough of cheerleaders, though. I'm going to go find Dave."

"Beatrice... Thank you," Ronnie said. Beatrice nodded before walking away.

"Come on, Sis," Roxy said. She looked at Hannah. "We'll talk later."

"Of course," Hannah said nervously. "Take care of your sister."

"I'm going with you," Lee said firmly.

"I'd appreciate that," Ronnie admitted. She allowed Lee and Roxy to guide her to the arriving paramedics. They put ice on her jaw. After asking her several questions and examining her, they finally gave her some answers.

"You're not concussed," one said.

"Thank God," Lee said in relief.

"You were knocked unconscious, though, so we'd like to take you to the hospital, just to be safe," the other added.

Ronnie sighed. "Okay," she agreed. "It's better safe than sorry." Ronnie had a feeling it was going to be a long night.

DIVATOX

She woke up alone and covered in dirt. "Damnit," she mumbled. "He got the crystal... And he used it. I've failed, and if I don't fix this soon, Zell's going to kill me."

Would it not be better to release me? If we work together, who knows what is possible? Dimitria thought especially loudly.

"Oh, shut up! No one asked you," Divatox snapped. She really despised her twin sister. In fact, her hatred of being a twin was the reason she'd instructed her pet to attack her own twin sister. Knowing Ronnie was destroying the bond she shared with her sister had been very satisfying to Divatox at the time. It had been a big risk, though... If the sister figured out she was battling her twin, the cat would have been out of the bag, and it was too early for that.

"Stop taking stupid risks, Divatox," she scolded herself. "You're screwing this all up." She couldn't afford to screw up this time... She wasn't working for space pirates or Dark Specter anymore... Zell was on a different level, and he would not hesitate to slaughter her the second he deemed her no longer useful. There were no second chances with Zell.

She wondered where the Rebellion members were. Had they been killed? That seemed unlikely, especially in Laby's case. If they were alive, they'd abandoned her here, leaving her for dead. Some allies, she thought bitterly.

Sister, please... I implore you to do the right thing and choose a different path here, Dimitria thought. Why do you not see that I am your only hope of surviving this now?

"I'd rather die a thousand times than owe you any favors, Dimitria," Divatox said stubbornly. She'd find a way out of this somehow... She just needed to get somewhere safe where she could clear her head first. She stood up, dusting some of the dirt off of her body, and began to head back to the place she currently called home.

KAYLEN

She was finally home. The injured students and Cassie had all been taken to the hospital. Everyone else had been interviewed by the police. Lucas had made a point of being the one to interview the Rangers. He'd also handled Kaylen's uncle. With the promise of follow-up interviews at home, the students had been allowed to leave.

Claire was exhausted from the trauma of the day. She'd collapsed into a deep sleep the moment her head hit her pillow. That left Kaylen sitting downstairs with her uncle in an awkward silence.

"Kaylen..." Her uncle said with a sigh. "Just tell me the truth. All of it."

Kaylen sighed, too. "Okay, so, the short version is that I'm something called a Power Ranger. We're not supposed to tell anyone our identities, especially since our battle includes people who traveled back in time."

"Time travel? Kaylen, that's-"

"The truth. Can you try to keep an open mind, Uncle Bradley?"

He nodded. "After all that's happened today, I suspect there is a lot I don't know. Go ahead, sweetheart."

Kaylen continued. "So, the woman who attacked you is Divatox. She's an evil space pirate from the future. Someone sent her back in time to screw up the past. Our mentors came back to stop her and protect the time line. I know it sounds crazy, but I promise it's real, and today proved that. Anyway, there are five Power Rangers on my team, plus our two mentors, and we've been battling Divatox and her Pirahnatrons since that day they attacked you at the school. The others..." She paused.

"The terrorists?"

"Yeah, the soldier guys... They showed up one other time, at the movie theater when they were running the Freddy double feature. We don't know who they are, but they're working with Divatox. They're more dangerous than her... And I don't know how you did what you did today, but if you hadn't, I'm pretty sure everyone would have died."

"I listened to your mother..." He sighed.

"What the hell does Mom have to do with any of this?" Kaylen asked in confusion.

"She said something to me last week when I went to see her... Kaylen, I think this is more complicated than either of us understands, but I intend to figure it out. Please introduce me to your mentors... Maybe they'll have some answers."

Kaylen hesitated. "I'll talk to them in the morning and see if I can convince them to sit down and talk to you," she finally said.

He nodded. "That's good enough for now... Come on, sweetheart. I think it's time both of us got some sleep."

Kaylen was too exhausted to argue. It had been a hell of a day. She suspected that now that her uncle knew the truth, the next day was going to be even harder.