Yes, finally! Now that they know it’s me, hopefully they can help.
I glared at the Red Ranger as the others showed up. “The Kali you knew is gone. I’m loyal to Master Evox now,” I said.
“This whole time…it was you?” Blue asked while clenching his fists. He then ran at me but Red immediately got in the way. “What are you doing, Devon!? Now’s our chance to stop her!” Blue protested.
“No…I refuse to believe it. This is not the Kali I know. My best friend is still there somewhere. She has to be, and I’m going to help her.”
“She works for Evox! She can’t be trusted. Plus, she still has Zoey!”
While they argued among themselves, I took that opportunity to teleport away. I got back and didn’t even bother trying to hide from Zoey. “Kali…you’re the Black Ranger?” she asked but I was in no mood to answer. I knew Evox was going to chew me out for failing and I silently prayed that that’s all he would do.
“You failed to kill the Rangers and now they know who you are!” Master Evox roared. I knelt down.
“Yes, but only because two other Ranger teams…”
“Silence! Blaze, take her to The Catalyst then go find some animal DNA. Roxy, go gather Morph X,” Evox ordered. As Blaze approached me to escort me to The Catalyst, I couldn't help but feel a mix of fear and anger. The Catalyst was Evox's secret laboratory, a place where he conducted twisted experiments to further his nefarious plans.
Uh oh…this can’t be good…I doubt I’m gonna be standing idly by and watching…
Blaze grabbed my wrists and cuffed them together. “Wait wait wait…Blaze, I have another idea,” I tried to protest as he dragged me along but every little resistance hurt thanks to the burns and scrapes.
“What sucks for you is that you’re human. Roxy and I, we’re just Avatars. We don’t get hurt or feel pain. You on the other hand…well, I’m just gonna take a wild guess and say those injuries of yours look very painful,” Blaze said nonchalantly as he shoved me onto a table and strapped me to it. I winced from the pain. “As you know, Master Evox doesn’t appreciate failures so Scrozzle should come by in a few and give you…an upgrade,” he then said as he left.
Upgrade…? That doesn’t sound like fun…
Meanwhile…
“We have to stop her, even if it means…”
“No! You guys don’t know her…the real Kali. She would never willingly join Evox. She would always talk about how she would love to be a Ranger one day. There must be something else going on," Devon argued, determined to find the truth about Kali's sudden change.
"But Devon, we can't just let her carry out Evox's orders," Ravi interjected, his concern evident in his voice. "If she's working for Evox, then she's a threat to Grid Battleforce and everyone we care about. She already captured Zoey." Devon gave Ravi an angry look. He knew his friend was right, but at the same time he refused to give up.
Back in the Cyber Dimension…
Scrozzle finished what he was doing for Evox then went to Kali and connected her to a complex contraption. Tubes filled with glowing Morph X were connected to her, and the energy flowing through her was being manipulated and altered. On top of that, Scrozzle was working on replacing the section of bone in her right arm between her hand and elbow with machinery in an attempt to make her stronger. He ignored her cries of pain and kept working, but there was one other who also heard her: Zoey.
Even though she didn’t know Kali like Devon did, she knew her well enough to recognize her voice. Zoey also didn’t know exactly what was happening, but she knew it wasn’t good.
Regardless if Kali chose to join Evox or was forced to, no one should have to suffer through whatever painful thing is being done to her, Zoey thought.
After a few minutes, there was silence and Zoey feared the worst.
Inside Kali’s mind…
I saw someone who looked like a Ranger sitting on a stone throne. His outfit was mostly white but he was wearing gold and green armor. He wore a menacing helmet that had a red visor and a dragon emblem on the forehead, along with three spikes sticking up past the top of the helmet. Then it quickly changed to a new scene, one that frightened me to the core. Rangers from many different dimensions and worlds laid on the ground below me. Some had pools of red under them. Others had their visors shattered and suits torn up. However, none of them were moving…
I gasped as my eyes shot open. “What the…that was weird,” I said to myself. I then remembered what had been happening before I must’ve passed out, and that’s when my brain registered the amount of pain I was still in. I looked around and Scrozzle was gone. I was also no longer strapped to the table. My right arm was wrapped in a bandage but it hurt like hell, even more than the burns. I sat up slowly with a groan. “I can’t show any weakness. I’m the strongest. Stronger than Roxy and Blaze,” I said to myself. I took a deep breath.
Even though my entire body hurts, I can’t stop thinking about what I saw. What was the meaning behind the vision, if it even was a vision? Who was the enigmatic Ranger on the stone throne? Was he a friend or a foe? What role did he play in this grand scheme of darkness and corruption? And most importantly, how can I save not only myself but also the countless other Rangers that might be in danger?
I stood up and walked out to where Master Evox and the others were. All eyes turned to me. “What? I’m fine. I feel even stronger now,” I said.
“Good, because it’s time for my next plan. Capture the scientist known as Nate at Grid Battleforce. He’s going to help whether he wants to or not. Use the Yellow Ranger if you have to, threaten to give her the DNA Blaze gathered to turn her evil too,” Evox explained.
I bowed. “As you command, Master.” With a determined look on my face, I concealed the turmoil within me. Deep down, I knew I couldn't let his darkness consume me entirely. As I made my way towards Grid Battleforce, I pondered the vision that had haunted my mind. It felt like a glimpse into a grim future, one where Rangers from various dimensions lay defeated.
I knew Nate held the key to my salvation and possibly the salvation of others under Evox's influence. But capturing him wouldn't be an easy task. I had to strategize, find the right moment to strike, and exploit any weaknesses within Grid Battleforce's defenses. “You’re uncharacteristically quiet,” Roxy commented.
“Yeah, something on your mind?” Blaze asked in an accusatory tone.
“I’m fine, just…still getting used to the new power,” I lied. He didn’t say anything else. I was unsure if he believed me or not but I didn’t really care. “Okay, distraction time,” I then said as I stopped and set Scrozzle’s robotron making equipment down next to a fire hydrant. I powered up the key with Morph X and stuck it into the red hydrant.
"Ignitron, ready to crash and burn! My flame-spewing gauntlet and molten weaponry can set fire to anything,” the new robotron said. His black and crimson armor glinted in the sunlight, and his eyes burned with an eerie red glow.
“Lure the Rangers out. Tell them if Nate doesn’t come to the warehouse address by himself by three o’clock today, Zoey will work for Evox,” I told Ignitron.
“As you command,” he replied and I nodded. Roxy, Blaze and I then teleported out.
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