Streaks of Purple Saga/Spectrum Force - Heather Ray (best beach reads txt) 📗

/> Matt's assessing gaze took in the darkened stains covering much of the Red Enforcer's torso. "Your covered in blood yourself, Keith."

"That's not mine; that's Celea's."

That comment stimulated Matt's memory. He tensed, and his aura began to glow. "Where is that witch, anyway?" he demanded. "Is she awake? Can she talk yet?"

Keith fought a wince. "We'll… talk about that later." He took a breath to calm his anxiety, and reached to offer his friend a hand. "Matt, slow down. Take a breather. Look around you; the others have this under control."

Green accepted the assistance, painfully rising to his feet. Breathing heavily, he forced his knees to lock, keeping him upright as sharp green eyes surveyed the battle.

As Keith had said, the fight was nearly over. Rachel quickly dispatched a Chaotic, joining Tamara to pulverize the one that had nearly bereft the team of a Green Enforcer. Craig then finished off his own opponent with a loud, concussive wave of power.

Then, an oddly peaceful silence fell as everyone searched for any lingering targets, all vaguely awed that the long, difficult battle was over.

The silence was, not surprisingly, shattered by Craig. "Oh yeah! We smoked 'em!" he cheered, darting to the ground to join his roommates. He then got a good look at Matthew, and gasped audibly.

"It's not as bad as it looks," Matt insisted irritably.

"Oh, Matt," Tamara sighed, kneeling by his wound. "Come on; I'll patch it for you on the ship. Spectra showed me the regenerator-"

"No!" he barked. He winced at the startled stares his teammates hammered him with. "Listen, guys, I'm okay. This isn't life-threatening! Now, our priority is Jocelyn!"

"He's right," Rachel commented from the air. "If he can tolerate the pain for now, let's try and get our plan of action worked out." She hovered with her arms crossed, her eyes following a bright white glow that rapidly approached from the horizon.

Seconds later, Spectra landed at the mouth of the cave, setting the team's inter-dimensional visitor on her feet.

Spectra quickly appraised her team, pride stretching her smile. Despite scratches and scrapes, they all stood upright, ready for the next phase of battle. They were all focused, determined to protect their world, and their comrade, from danger.

"You've all done well," she said softly. "Never before have I seen creatures such as these. They reek of death and destruction, yet you did not let them overwhelm you."

The five heroes stood a little taller at her praise.

"So what's the next step?" Craig asked. "Did you guys figure out how to switch Jocelyn and Kimberly again?"

"Yes; although it will not be an easy feat," Spectra admitted, turning into the cave. "Let us join the High Father inside. He will be able to explain better than I."

Rachel stared at Spectra incredulously. "The High Father? He's here, on Earth?"

The group entered the shallow cave, and the Force gawked at the aged man standing beside the flashing portal.

Spectra turned to her team, smiling with pride. "Let me introduce you all to Luminus, the High Father of the Resistance. He is the one that assembled the organized opposition to the Denebian crown."

The Force turned their startled gazes to the legend himself. Then, after a long silence, Rachel stepped forward. "It's an honor to meet you, Sir."

He smiled at the young warrior. "No need for formality, Child. I am just as honored to meet you all."

The group of youths beamed at the compliment.

Luminus then turned to the Power Ranger among them. "Kimberly, I have discovered that the portal that brought you here was altered since your arrival."

Matt shrugged. "That's a safe bet: the portal didn't spit out bloodthirsty monsters yesterday

."

Kim's confused gaze slid from the white-haired sage to the redheaded teen. "Wait a minute. You're saying that the Chaotics are coming out of my portal?"

"Yes." Luminus confirmed.

Keith gasped with inspiration. "So that's

what Celea was doing down here earlier! She was screwing with the portal!"

"You are correct, Keith. However, she did not simply re-create the portal to Chaos. Instead, she altered the portal she had already created. As a result, she wove the portal to Kimberly's reality with a portal to Chaos, creating a three-pronged inter-dimensional window."

Luminus' gaze was uncharacteristically grim. "Essentially, Celea has unwittingly created a far more complicated problem. The portal she mistakenly created linked Kimberly's world to ours. And now, thanks to her most recent spell, the existence of the Bridge now connects both

our world and Kimberly's to Chaos. The doorway to Chaos is open on both sides; which explains the shifting Matthew has witnessed in this portal."

That announcement made Kimberly gasp. "You mean…those things

are in my world too??"

Luminus nodded sharply. "Unfortunately, the existence of the Bridge leaves your home open to Chaos as well."

The stricken expression on the Pink Ranger's face was disturbing. "Then we have to do

something! I have to get home, pronto! Without me there's no Megazord, no Tiger Megazord, no combined weapons…"

Keith frowned at the incomprehensible rambling. "Slow down, Kim," he urged, "take a deep breath. Spectra called us here because she and Luminus have figured out how to fix all this." His gaze slid to the two aliens among them. "So, how to do we untangle this mess?"

"The key is to undo the Bridge; the first link, connecting our two Realms," Luminus revealed. "That is the most difficult step, because we must restore balance between the two universes. Kimberly, you are personally tethered to this portal, as is Jocelyn in the other Realm. The only way for you two to return to your Realms of origin is to re-activate the Bridge. Then, the link between the two Realms will finally break completely."

He paused, letting the Pink Ranger process all the information given. She stared wide-eyed into the portal, marveling at the shimmering lens distorting the red-tinged view.

"What is this?" she inquired, waving at the lens.

"It is a sealing spell. It holds back the Chaotics, and removes all possibility of you somehow being swept into that dark realm. The path between this world and your own is open. However, just as before, it can only be activated by you and your counterpart. And only once the Bridge is severed permanently can we safely close the portal to Chaos, stopping the invasion of evil on both Earths."

"So really, we're almost there!" Tamara contributed. "If I'm following all this, Kim's already got one foot in the door. Matt saw Jocelyn through the portal earlier. She's probably waiting for us! All we have to do is sit tight for the Bridge to align our two Earths again, and problem solved."

"Not exactly," Spectra pointed out, gesturing to the window Luminus kept closed. "Even if Jocelyn understands that she needs to jump through the portal, there's no safeguard on the other end. Luminus has sealed Chaos on our

end." She turned to Luminus. "If Jocelyn tried to come home, could she be diverted to Chaos?"

"Unfortunately, I cannot answer that. I've never seen this amalgam of portals before. I cannot safely predict how it will behave. Perhaps if Jocelyn attempts to pass through at the wrong time, she might be diverted to Chaos. Though, life as we understand it cannot exist in that realm. She would die before she even enters the other end."

The Force froze with tension at the thought of the horrible death potentially facing their friend.

"But we can address this danger," Luminus assured the team. "Spectra, you and your entire Force we will travel to the Realm of the Power Rangers."

Craig frowned. "How does that help anything?"

"Spectra shall erect a shield in the other portal, sealing off Chaos and allowing safe transit for both Kimberly and Jocelyn. And the rest of you will assist the Power Rangers in destroying the remaining Chaotics expediently, making the area save for inter-dimensional transfer."

Spectra felt her stomach knot. "I can't cast that spell! I know nothing

about alternate realms! I-"

"Follow the steps I demonstrated, Spectra. You aren't making a portal appear. You are merely casting a force field into one vein of a portal. This is not beyond your skill, or I would not ask you to do it."

Spectra almost protested again, but bit her lip.

Tamara stared at the portal. "What will happen to Jocelyn when she passes back through the portal? When Kim fell through, she was out cold! Jocelyn could freeze to death in the time it takes us to get back!"

Luminus turned to the Green Enforcer, who stood stock-still amongst his team, his eyes never wandering from the red-tinged portal. "Matthew, perhaps you can stay behind."

He blinked, turning to the wise sage that addressed him. "Huh?"

"That way you can attend Jocelyn as soon as she emerges," he explained. "And should anything unexpected pass through the portal in the meantime, you can assist me in handling it."

"And once Jocelyn is safe, make sure to take care of that leg," Rachel said sternly. "You're the pre-med student here; you know better than we do that your risking infection, major blood loss, and scarring."

Matthew winced. "Okay, okay…" he sighed.

"So what happens then?" Keith inquired. "How do we ultimately break Celea's spell?"

"Once the two displaced individuals return through the portal, all tethers holding the Bridge open will disappear," Luminus explained. "Then I shall wipe clean Celea's spell, closing the portal in both Realms, and then care for your teammate."

The Force continued to hesitate, each one considering the details given and trying to understand the situation the best they could. One thing was certain: they were dealing with mystical forces far

beyond their comprehension. And the stakes were higher than they'd ever been.

"The seal is really just a temporary fix," Keith pointed out. "If this Bridge isn't undone, then eventually the Chaotics will break through. The only way to permanently erase these portals and save our planet is for Jocelyn and Kim to pass through the Bridge."

Rachel nodded, folding her arms. "If that means we have to go into the other Realm and get Jocelyn to pass through, then so be it."

Tamara had come to a similar conclusion. "But how will we get there without creating even more 'tethers' keeping our dimensions connected?"

Luminus smirked. "The princess is not very skilled at creating inter-dimensional links. I, on the other hand, know how to create clean doorways into other realities. I already opened one on the ship."

"Please," Kimberly murmured. She turned toward the Spectrum Force, her eyes pleading. "We have

to act now. Every minute we stand here and talk is a minute my friends are fighting without me!"

"Then let's move out!" Keith declared, pumping his fist. "Looks like we're heading on an inter-dimensional field trip."

Craig grinned. "And to think, before I joined the Force I'd never left the continental U.S.!"

Chapter Fifty-Three