//------------------------------// // Breaking the sun // Story: Legends of the past: A Power Rangers Story // by TheHardie-Boy //------------------------------// “Mr. Oliver?” said Vice-Principal Luna, waking Tommy from his daydream. He looked over to her and saw her motions for him to join her. “I-I’ll be right back, class. Keep working,” Tommy instructed. Tommy walked out of his classroom as he and Luna began making their way to Principal Celestia’s office. “So, what’s this about exactly?” asked Tommy. “Don’t worry. There’s just something my sister and I thought you would get a kick out of,” Luna responded. Tommy continued to walk with her, but he suddenly felt extremely drowsy. He stumbled a bit and struggled to keep his eyes open. “Are you okay, Mr. Oliver?” Luna asked, sounding concerned. “Yeah, I-I’m fine, just a little short on sleep is all,” Tommy responded, rubbing his eyes. “That makes sense.” “What’s that mean?” “You’ll see,” Luna said playfully. “This oughta be good,” said Tommy. The two of them finally got to Principal Celestia’s office and stepped in. Principal Celestia had a mischievous look on her face, and there was a television on her desk. “Mr. Oliver, nice to see you. Please, take a seat,” Celestia said, gesturing to the chair on the other side of her desk. Tommy sat down, and Luna stepped in as well with a similar grin on her face. “Principal Celestia, can I ask what this is about?” Tommy said, hoping to find out what was going on. “Well, you see, my sister and I checked the footage on the security cameras that cover the front of the school, and we found some very interesting things,” said Celestia, turning on the television. Tommy looked at the footage and saw Sunset waiting by the statue as Twilight approached her. He looked at the date and dipped his head. This was when he had to defend Sunset and Twilight from those puttycogs on his second day working here. Sure enough, he entered the picture, unseen by the girls, who were suddenly under attack. Tommy watched as he pulled out his activator key and morphed into the Black Dino Ranger. “As we said before, Mr. Oliver, we’ve seen some strange things here at CHS, but this tops them all,” said Celestia, giggling in the process. Tommy sighed. He couldn’t believe he was so stupid as to morph on camera. “Let me guess, I’m fired. I get it, but I’m gonna have to ask for that footage,” he said, standing up. “Oh no,” said Luna. “You’re not fired. We were just shocked is all. You can keep your job here, so long as none of the students are in danger.” “Really?” Tommy asked in shock. “Of course. Remember, two of our students turned into demons. We’ve even had a visit from a princess from another dimension,” Celestia added. “Alright then. I can’t guarantee the students are out of harm’s way, but I can guarantee that I will do all I can to protect them if they are,” Tommy said. “Sounds good. And do not worry, we’ll keep this meeting between us,” Celestia said. “I would like to ask, however, why exactly did you come here?” Luna asked. Tommy rubbed the back of his head. “I’ve, uh, got my reasons. I really just wanted to get away from all the rangers stuff, yet here we are,” he joked, making the sisters giggle. Meanwhile “So, Goldar, what’s this plan of yours?” Gasket asked sarcastically. “Simple. Tommy’s energy is draining, so we don’t have to worry about him. That means all we have to do is take down these ‘Harmony Rangers’. I’ve done a little digging, and found some things that could really get under their skin. Specifically, the Red Ranger,” Goldar explained. “So? We’ve already tried that before with Tommy remember?” Sprocket joked. “You fool, don’t you see? I’m gonna engage in battle with her and get into her head. She’s gonna crumble like a cookie,” Goldar retorted. “Don’t call my brother a fool! And what makes you so sure that she’ll fall? She has her friends with her remember? And how do you know they won’t beat you?” Gasket snarled back. Goldar laughed in response. “Oh please, you know as well as I do that those rangers don’t stand a chance fighting me. Or anyone here for that matter, except for Squatt and Baboo. As for her friends, I have a little distraction for them.” “Fine, but remember our deal,” Gasket said, pointing his mechanical finger at Goldar. “Of course. I simply absorb their power, revive Zedd and Rita, go to Equestria, and leave you to take Earth,” said Goldar. With that, he flew away. “I’m still not sure we can trust him, brother,” said Sprocket. “Yes, dear. How do we know that he’ll hold good on his end of our agreement?” asked Archerina. “I don’t know for sure, but I have a feeling we can. After all, if he does in fact hold good on his promise, we’ll be able to take Earth no problem,” Gasket relayed back. Meanwhile The bell finally rang, signaling the end of class. Tommy took a long and deserved sigh. Sunset walked up to him. “So, what was that all about?” Sunset asked. “It’s fine. I’ll explain later. Anyhow, tell the others to meet at the base for some training,” Tommy responded. “Sure thing, Mr. Oliver,” Sunset said, giving a playful salute and leaving the classroom. Tommy sat down at his desk. Suddenly, he felt very drowsy once again. He didn’t fall asleep, but he knew that if his will weren’t so strong, he would have. Tommy stood back up and teleported to the base. He took to his computer and began to work on contact with the Thunderzords. It wasn’t any more than a few minutes until the girls teleported there as well. “Alright, girls. You’ve already been victorious against one of the Machine Empire’s warriors, but I can assure you that there will be much more to come. Also, there will be times when you cannot morph, due to public presence. That being said, you will need to learn how to fight, unmorphed,” Tommy told them. Fluttershy gasped. “I’m sorry, but I have absolutely no fighting experience at all.” “That’s alright, Fluttershy. It gets easier with time,” Tommy responded, smiling. “Quick question,” Twilight said, raising her hand. “What do you mean ‘the Machine Empire’?” “Oh right. I should tell you that the Machine Empire attacked Earth in the year 1996. During this time, I led the Zeo Rangers as Zeo Ranger 5. The Machine Empire is run by King Mondo, Queen Machina, and their son Prince Sprocket. They’re ruthless, and they take no prisoners. So we have to be stronger than them. Hence, the reason we are here,” Tommy explained. Twilight and the others went wide-eyed. Tommy surmised they had never heard this level of evil, but he was more than sure they could handle it. “So, start by trying to spar without morphing. I’d join you, but I’m really tired, and I still gotta get those zords ready for battle,” Tommy said. With that, the girls entered the dojo, and Tommy sat back down at his computer. He rubbed his head again, feeling even more tired. In the dojo, the girls paired off into groups: Twilight and Sunset would spar in one, Applejack and Rainbow Dash in another, and Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Rarity in the third. “Here, I think we’ll need these,” said Sunset, offering Twilight some boxing gloves. Twilight took and put them on. “Thanks. I’ll try not to use my power too much. Other than that fight the other day, I’ve never fought physically in my life.” “Don’t worry. I have a little experience. I’ll give you some pointers,” Sunset responded. She and Twilight began to lightly spar, while Applejack and Rainbow were already going at it. Luckily the two weren’t arguing like they usually did. “So, you’ve got the trained moves, I’ve got the instinctive ones,” said Rainbow. “Sure, like your ‘instinctive moves’ are gonna be better than mine,” Applejack countered. Rainbow rolled her eyes and threw a punch, which Applejack dodged. Applejack then grabbed onto Rainbow’s arm and flipped Rainbow over her back. “Told ya,” Applejack smirked. Rainbow responded by quickly turning and sending a kick into Applejack’s gut. “You were saying?” Rainbow smirked back. Meanwhile, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie were trying to figure out what to do. “Maybe we could use this,” said Pinkie, holding up a cushioned sparring mat. “What do you mean, Pinkie?” asked Rarity. “Simple, I hold this up, and you two punch it,” Pinkie responded with a smile. “Oh, I’m not sure about that, Pinkie. What if I hurt you?” Fluttershy said. “Oh I’ll be fine. What’s The worst that could happen?” “Pinkie’s right, dear. Just take a shot,” Rarity offered. Fluttershy took a deep breath and gave the mat an ever so soft touch with her barely clenched fist. She shrieked and quickly backed away. “Fluttershy, it’s alright. Pinkie’s not gonna get mad and hit back or anything,” Rarity said. She then looked at Pinkie. “Right?” Pinkie shook her head profusely, causing some sort of rattling noise to emanate from her head. Rarity tilted her head in confusion at the act, but she then turned to Fluttershy. “See, darling? Here, watch this,” said Rarity, lining up. She punched at the mat as hard as she could, making Pinkie stumble a bit. “Woah, that was a nice shot. How did you do that?” Pinkie asked. “Like I said, it’s simple. Why don’t you give it another go, Fluttershy? Only, a little harder this time,” Rarity offered. “If you insist,” responded Fluttershy. She stepped up to Pinkie, clenched her fist, and punched. Pinkie actually fell back due to how much harder Fluttershy punched than she had expected. “Oh, are you alright? I’m so sorry,” said Fluttershy, extending her hand. “Are you kidding? That was great. I just didn’t think I’d need to push back that much,” Pinkie responded, making Fluttershy blush. Meanwhile, Tommy was nearly finished making contact with the Thunderzords. All he needed to do now was revive his White Tigerzord. Unfortunately, the alarm went off, signaling that there was another attack. The girls ran into the room, and Tommy pulled up the transmission. “That’s right outside the mall. Come on, let’s go get ‘em,” said Sunset. The seven girls lined up and exchanged determined nods. “It’s Morphin’ Time!” The seven girls morphed into the Power Rangers Harmony League just as they had done before. “Good luck, girls,” said Tommy. “Aren’t ya’ comin’, Mr. Oliver?” asked Applejack. “Not this time. I gotta stay here and get the zords online. Besides, I’m still a little short on sleep,” Tommy responded. “Alright,” said Applejack. With that, the seven girls teleported out of the base and to the scene of action. “Remember, protecting the innocent comes first,” reminded Sunset as they drew their weapons. “Right, we’ll be careful,” responded Twilight. The seven girls met the puttycogs in battle. Unknown to them, Goldar took a place on the roof of the mall and waited for the right time to strike. Fluttershy did her best to take out as many puttycogs as she could with her shield. She regretted not asking for a try holding up the mat from earlier. Luckily, the puttycogs were pretty clumsy. She hit one with her shield and ducked under another one’s punch. She then took that one out as well. Sunset took one down with her sword, and Rainbow took down a few with her blasters. “I wonder if whoever sent these is gonna show their face,” shouted Rainbow. “You never know. Be on your guard,” responded Sunset. Twilight used her wand to put up a shield around herself and did a neat spin move, taking out several puttycogs at once. A few tried to blast her all at once, but she deflected their attacks back at them. “Don’t get the wrong idea. I really have no idea how to actually fight. This is all the suit,” Twilight shouted mid fight. “Take some of the credit. After all, what good is a nice dress if there’s no one to wear it?” Rarity said, slicing through a few puttycogs with her daggers. “Hey, I wonder if we can still use our geodes while we’re morphed?” Rainbow asked, blasting an attacking puttycog. “Who knows? Maybe we can,” responded Pinkie, jabbing threw a puttycog and tripping another with her staff. As if in response, Applejack forced at least twenty puttycogs in her direction and then sliced them all down with her axe. “Guess that answers my question,” said Rainbow. She then used her super speed to dodge an attack and take down another puttycog. “Yeah, but it’s not like reading these things’ minds is gonna do us any good,” joked Sunset. “Don’t sell yourself short. You’re the leader after all,” said Twilight. “Yeah. And you’ve got the best weapon out of-WATCH OUT!” Rainbow yelled. Sunset quickly turned and was scooped up in the arms of what looked like a monkey with wings and golden armor. “Let me go!” Sunset shouted. “That’s not happening,” the monkey replied in a dark, gravely voice, making Sunset grimace under her helmet. The monkey flew back towards the mall, dodging a few blasts from Rainbow and Twilight. Eventually, he dropped Sunset into a small pit. Sunset tried to teleport away, but it wouldn’t work. “Your teleportation has no power here, Sunset Shimmer,” the monkey said. “Who are you? And how do you know who I am?” Sunset demanded, drawing her sword. “I have been watching you for a long time. I must say, you are a huge disappointment. As for me, I am Goldar, destroyer of anyone foolish enough to challenge me,” Goldar answered. “What do you want with me?” “I have a reputation for challenging red rangers. You have no chance of defeating me, but I figured I’d give you a chance,” Goldman responded, unsheathing his sword. Sunset pulled her own sword and charged Goldar. She tried to hit him, but he blocked her sword with his own and kicked her back. He then charged back and swung his sword down upon her. Sunset dodged, but Goldar was quick to attack again. He slashed Sunset, causing sparks to erupt from her suit. She attacked with her sword again, but Goldar ducked under the attack and sent his own, pushing Sunset back again. She tried to get above him and attack from there, but Goldar spread his wings and knocked her down again. “No more messing around. Sun Saber! Final Slash!” Sunset yelled, firing her blade at Goldar again. But Goldar simply took a deep breath and shot scorching flames from his mouth, incinerating the attack and demorphing Sunset. Sunset fell to her knees and hit the ground. “How pathetic. And to think Tommy Oliver thought you would be strong enough to stop me,” Goldman said, approaching Sunset, who was trying to get back up. “I haven’t been beat yet. Not while I’m still breathing,” Sunset said, hoping Goldar would back off. “You’re such a joke. You think you can beat me now? You think you can beat me ever? How can you when you’re all alone?” Goldar taunted. “I am never alone. My friends will always be there when I fall,” Sunset responded, starting to get up. “Friends? What friends? If you’re referring to the other rangers, they can’t possibly be your friends. After all, they only accepted you to follow orders,” Goldar responded, laughing maniacally. “What are you talking about? They’re my best friends,” Sunset said, her voice growing uncertain. “I know all about you and what happened at the Fall Formal. Do you think your so-called ‘friends’ would still be here if it weren’t for that princess, telling them to treat you as their friend?” Goldar asked. Sunset tried to find the confidence to respond, but Goldar didn’t let her. “The answer is no. If she would’ve done nothing, you would have become an outcast. But instead, she pathetically decided to trust you. Your ‘friends’ only call their friend because they dare not disobey a princess. But deep inside, they still think of you as the bully of CHS.” “N-No! You’re lying! You’re...You’re wrong!” Sunset shouted with tears forming in her eyes. “You can say that all you want, but you know I’m right,” Goldar responded. Sunset looked down at the ground as the tears in her eyes began to flow freely. Was her friendship really just a lie? A charade? Sunset couldn’t accept it, but she couldn’t think of anything to counter Goldar’s argument. She began to openly cry as Goldar approached her once again. “Now that I’ve exposed the truth, perhaps I should finish you off,” Goldar said, raising his sword. Sunset wanted to get out of the way of the attacking, but couldn’t even think of a reason to. She simply looked toward the ground, still crying, and prepared for the inevitable. “That’s not happening, Goldar,” said a new voice from outside the pit. Sunset looked up. It was Tommy, morphed and positively glowing. He leaped down into the pit, landing a kick on Goldar in the process. “So, the powerful Tommy Oliver thinks he can defeat me after twenty-five years. You’ve grown old and weak. You don’t stand a chance,” Goldar taunted. “Being older didn’t stop me from beating Rito,” Tommy responded. Tommy drew his staff and attacked Goldar. Goldar countered, and the two went at it, equally matched. Tommy managed to sweep Goldar off his feet, and putting him on the ground. Tommy turned his staff over and fired a few lasers from the base. Goldar fired a beam of his own, putting Tommy on his back. Tommy fired a few lasers above Goldar, creating a huge cloud of dust. Goldar spread his wings and flapped the dust away, but he found no trace of Tommy or Sunset. “You may have gotten away this time, but I swear I will get you!” Goldar shouted into the air, thinking they climbed out of the pit. He spread his wings again and flew away. Tommy and Sunset reappeared, Tommy having used his Dino Power to turn both himself and Sunset invisible. “Are you alright?” Tommy asked Sunset. All he got in response was a half-hearted nod. Tommy noticed Sunset was hiding her face from him. “Wow, Goldar must’ve really done a number on you. Don’t worry, he gets easier to fight the more you do it. The others finished off the puttycogs and are looking for you. I told them to get back to the base. Come on, let’s go join them,” said Tommy, extending his hand to Sunset. She took it, and the two climbed out of the pit and teleported to the base. “Oh my gosh! Sunset, are you okay?” Twilight practically screamed when she saw the state Sunset was in. Sunset wiped her face and said, “Yeah, I’m fine.” “A-Are you sure? You look really beat up,” said Rainbow. “I said I was fine. I just overdid it a little,” Sunset grunted. “We’re sorry we couldn’t help you. We tried to find you, but there were just puttycogs everywhere,” Rarity said. “It’s fine. I gotta go,” Sunset groaned, turning to leave. “Hold on. You’ve taken some serious damage. Goldar is really strong, and he might attack you again. I think you should stay here tonight and get some rest. Besides, it’s really late. The battle took a lot longer than I thought it would. Don’t worry, I’ll come up with an alibi to tell your family,” Tommy said before she left. Sunset hesitated a moment before answering. “Sure, thanks. I just really need to be alone right now.” “That’s fine. Go ahead and take that third room to the right,” Tommy said. Sunset nodded and walked away from the group. “What’s her problem?” Sunset could hear Rainbow say. “She took a few really huge hits. Some in different ways than others. She just needs some space, and we should give it to her,” Tommy responded. Sunset walked into the room Tommy was talking about and found a bedroom. She took off her jacket and laid down. The bed was somewhat comfortable. She couldn’t get Goldar’s words out of her head. Were her friendships really fake? Did her friends really just take her in because Twilight told them to? She pulled out her journal and thought about writing to Twilight, but she couldn’t find the words. She put the journal back and drifted off to sleep, tears still filling her eyes. Meanwhile “It seems your plan actually worked, Goldar. The red ranger’s down, and I doubt we’re gonna be seeing her again anytime soon,” Gasket congratulated. “I told you it would work. Now all we have to do is destroy the other rangers and get that Equestrian Magic and Morphing Energy,” Goldar responded. “At last, our victory, longed deserved, is at hand,” Gasket said.