Z sat in the back seat of the flying green Land Rover Nimbus P9000 she and the others had adopted as their own personal vehicle. Technically, it belonged to Fae. Or, at least, as far as Z knew it did. Who actually owned the thing never actually came up. Of course, they had bigger things to worry about than who a car belonged to. Maybe it was just the Space Patrol Delta in her worried about little legal things like that. SPD: the galaxy's premier law enforcement agency.

Speaking of legality, the existence of flying vehicles opened up a whole can of worms in that regard. For instance, the fjords Flynn currently took her and Tommy over had no visible roads, nor signs of civilization at all. Yet, clearly someone owned it, even if that was the local governing body. That in mind, what were the laws about flying your vehicle over the land? The last thing they needed was to get pulled over. How could they even begin to explain what they were doing? If the police officers all worked for Avanth, then even the merest hint of Power Rangers might see them incarcerated.

Maybe she was just worrying too much. She couldn't help it. These current situations had so many unfamiliar things to be wary of. Even though it was only a few hundred years in the future, 2600 was so very different from her own time. The technology and architecture were so foreign, it felt like an alien planet. Speaking of which, what happened to the aliens? They hadn't seen any yet. Had Avanth scared them off, or had a much worse fate befallen them? Z hoped it was not the latter.

At least the scenery was interesting. Having spent most of her time in large cities and otherwise populous areas, Z had never seen a place like this before. It was largely devoid of trees and mostly flat, pockmarked by little shallow holes and ditches filled with water. Spindly grasses stuck up from inside the water. Flynn had called this a swamp, but it looked far too clean for that. The swamps Z was familiar with were brown and grimy, not oddly beautiful

"How's it going, you three?" Called the disembodied and electronically distorted voice of Fae Lockart. Z startled, despite herself, and snapped her attention to Tommy Oliver in the passenger's seat.

Tommy held his Morpher up to his mouth. "We're just fine, no problems yet."

"Let's hope it stays this way," said Fae.

"You surprised me for a second, Fae. I wasn't expecting to hear your voice," Z said.

"Sorry," apologized Fae.

"Nah, don't worry about her. She was just zoning out back there," Flynn said.

"Hey!" chastised Z. She didn't pursue that thought, though, because Flynn was right.

"Don't feel too bad, Z. I used to do the same thing on long road trips," Fae said.

"Road trip," Flynn scoffed. "There's no road involved."

"You're really taken by the whole flying car thing, aren't you, Flynn?" Fae teased.

Z piled on. "It's all he's been talking about since we left. It's kind of a adorable, actually."

"That's not even close to being true," Flynn said. "Tommy, tell 'em."

"About what, they flying car? Isn't that your area of expertise," Tommy said. Z and Fae giggled at his bad joke.

"You know, I'm really glad you tapped into Tommy's Morpher communicator, Fae. Truly an invaluable asset." Flynn let sarcasm drip from his voice.

"Don't mention it," Fae said. "Honestly, I'm shocked it was so easy. It uses the same resonant frequency as my own Morpher."

"Well, they both use the Morphin' Grid. I'm sure they have to be somewhat similar on the inside," Tommy suggested.

"I know, I thought about that. I just never considered it before," Fae said.

"Something tells me we'll all encounter a lot of new things pretty soon," Z said.

"Yeah, you're probably right," agreed Fae.

Conversation dried up after that. Though, they wouldn't have had much time to talk anyway. There was a copse of trees right up ahead. From what Z could tell, the map indicated this little forested patch. While the holographic map did a great job with cityscapes and streets, it wasn't so great in the wilderness. That made sense, though. There were no roads that Z could see out in these wetlands. Why would anyone need to navigate through it?

Flynn took them over the trees, and almost immediately found a clearing in the center of their formation. He didn't need to be told to drop down into it. From overhead, Z took the lay of the land. The clearing played host to some random ruins. On the left side were a series of stone pillars that had long since fallen over and given way to moss. Some more rocks in the middle of them were probably whatever they had once been holding up. To the right of these, more in the middle, was a square construction with a gap in the middle that quite obviously used to contain a door.

The flying car—Z still couldn't get over that—landed at the far edge of the clearing, away from any of the ruined structures. The Rangers exited the vehicle. Z felt her heart flutter as she closed her door. This was the location of the second Mythos Morpher. How could she help but be excited? Sure, it kinda sucked to be stuck in the future, but all of this discovery, and all of it for the greater good, filled her with a sort of electric charge she couldn't really explain. Adventure and good deeds were the essence of being a Power Ranger. What more could she ask for?

"You're bringing the map?" Tommy asked of Flynn as they began away from the car. The latter had the holographic map in his right hand.

"Sure. There's no telling what's through that door. I'd bet Fae's car it's a labyrinth down there," Flynn said.

"I'll take that bet," Z jumped in.

"Alright," Flynn nodded. "What are you putting up?"

"Fae's car."

"I don't... think that's how it works."

That matter settled, they moved on straight for the open passageway. Z assumed it went down, considering there weren't any more stones visible beyond the housing for the door. That, and its roof clearly sloped downward into the ground. That meant it had probably been discovered before. Something like this would never go untouched for so many years, especially in a history-rich place like Scotland. They were probably on government-owned property, which likely meant it was Avanth-owned. That didn't make her feel better.

"Stop right there!" As if her thoughts could summon trouble, a female voice shouted at them.

A mob of people sprinted at them from the left. There were the normal goblins, identical to the ones they had encountered at the Tower of London. The fiend with them had the hairless body of a shirtless, well-built man, but the head of a savage grey wolf. He wore ragged tan trousers and carried a long winged spear.

Most curiously, though, was the other person with them. Person, because that's what she was, a pretty African-American girl with long hair, somewhat chubby cheeks, a pink hoodie, and blue jeans. She had clearly been the one to call out to them. That she ran along with the monsters meant she was on their side. Did Avanth have human servants?

The big group of obvious enemies stopped several feet away from Z's party.

"So, you're the ones my master told me about," said the woman, and then locked eyes with Tommy. "Of course you're here. How predictable."

"I'm sorry, do I know you?" Tommy asked. A ridiculous question, given the timeline.

"No, but I know you, Tommy Oliver. Can't say I recognize you two, though," the woman pointed at each of his companions in turn.

"Well, stranger, you give me your name and I'll give you mine," Flynn said. He put away the map.

She smirked. "Shelby Watkins, in the flesh. Nice to meet you."

"Shelby Watkins," Z repeated. "You were a Power Ranger, right? I think I learned about you in school." Both Tommy and Flynn shot surprised glances at her.

"Not bad, not bad," mocked Shelby. "You know your stuff. I guess that makes my job easier."

"Wait a minute," Flynn said. "Yu're a Power Ranger from the past, right?" He looked at Z, who nodded. "And you're here in the future, then you must've come through the portal with us!"

"You guys really are a sharp bunch," Shelby said.

"Okay, next question," Tommy said. "What are you doing with them?" He pointed to the goblins.

"Oh, you mean my friends, here? They're an escort provided by my master, Avanth, just in case I happened to run across you three."

Z felt her heart sink. Even though she had been expecting this, it still rocked her. A million thoughts ran through her head, but the most important one was that she used the word master. The implications of that were very bad indeed.

"Avanth?" Tommy repeated. "You serve the enemy."

"He may be your enemy, but not mine," Shelby corrected. "I don't know what nonsense the rebellion fed you, but it's wrong. Master Avanth is a peaceful man. It's your side who wants to hurt people."

"Shelby, come on," Z began. "You're a Ranger, right? I'm sure you've seen how Avanth treats the citizens. You have to know that isn't right. He isn't a good man, he's a villain."

"Oh, stop. You can't convince me. I know the truth. So step aside and let me get the Morpher," Shelby said.

"Not gonna happen," Tommy said.

"I had a feeling you would say that. Oh well, I kinda wanted to fight, anyway. Get 'em, boys!"

With a great shout, the goblins and the fiend charged at them. Shelby, however, elected to walk at a normal pace. The three Rangers assumed fighting stances.

"Tommy," Z cautioned.

"On it. Mythos Rangers!" He shouted, and then lifted the Morpher over his head, covering the ruby, before lowering it t point at the fiend. "All for one!" Tommy declared. He moved his left hand down so the ruby was finally exposed. The gem glowed bright red, a light that engulfed him entirely, and in a fiery burst and the cry of a phoenix, the transformed into the Red Mythos Power Ranger. He did not have his weapons out yet.

This transformation came not a moment too soon, because the second he did, the enemies were upon them. Three goblins came at Z. She hit the middle one with a stiff-shouldered jab to stun it. The other two tried to punch her at the same time, but she blocked each with a forearm and then gave the one on her left a liver punch. The middle goblin went for a jab and Z blocked. The rightmost goblin threw an outside crescent kick. Z was forced to disengage and take a duck. She spun while rising up to hit with a spinning backfist which crashed through the righthand goblin and continued on to the middle. While the right one fell, Z finished the middle goblin with a push kick.

More goblins came up behind her. She gave a back kick to one and spun around for a hook kick to another, but this second target blocked. Z placed a duo of quick punches into the face of a third goblin that came at her, and then blocked and countered a fist from a forth. The one that ducked straightened with an uppercut, which Z faded back from. She gave it a kick to the kidney, shuffled forward, and finished it with three lightning quick low punches.

To her left, Flynn faced of with yet more goblins. He punched one in the face, kicked another in the chest, and then grabbed one in each hand to smash their heads together. One of them threw a punch at him. He grabbed the incoming wrist and spun, tossing the enemy out behind. Flynn completed his spin to crescent kick another in its helmet.

A goblin tried to grab him, but he was faster. He tucked low beneath the opponent's arms and lifted it by placing one hand on its chest while the other grabbed between its legs. Flynn stood to heave this goblin up over his head. He began to spin, using his captive like a lawnmower blade to knock away goblins that tried to attack him. After scoring several hits like this, he tossed this goblin-turned-weapon into the same pile behind him where the foe he'd thrown by the wrist ended up in.

The fiend made a b-line for Tommy, an obvious ploy to tie up the most dangerous fighter. He jabbed his spear several times at the Red Ranger. Tommy ducked low beneath the first thrust. The fiend adjusted his aim, but Tommy weaved around it. Standing straight avoided another stab, while a quarter turn defeated the fourth. The fiend changed tracks to go for one of Tommy's vulnerable arms. The ranger stepped back and spun. The fiend attacked the other limb. Tommy began wheeling his arms around in wide circles as he continued to spin. They danced together like this for a few repetitions.

Eventually, Tommy managed to pass a thumb over the ruby on his morpher. Red orbs streamed into either hand, where they formed into his weapons. When the fiend thrust yet again, his attack met with Tommy's heater shield. The Ranger slashed downward with his arming sword. The fiend dodged. Tommy tried another vertical over the opposite shoulder, and this time was blocked. He retracted his blade and then pushed it forward in a thrust. The enemy deflected it to one side and then stepped forward twice, spinning his spear to strike once with the butt end and once with the point. Tommy let both bounce off his shield before leveling a sidekick to the stomach and then a cut across the snout. The kick connected, but the monster faded away from the slash to avoid it by millimeters.

Shelby rushed up to Z. Before the latter could react, the former placed a flying kick into her chest. Z went with the impact, allowing it to push her back a few steps. She did her best to stumble into a fighting stance. Shelby met her eyes and smirked before rushing in.

She went for a right hook punch. Z blocked it and countered with a quick flurry of her own fists, several straights at all different levels. Shelby kept up with the pace, blocking each in turn. Shelby then threw a jab, which she comboed into a spinning heel kick. Z stopped the punch and used that block as leverage to duck underneath the kick. She came rose with an uppercut, which Shelby deflected early. Z threw a duo of straight punches toward her face, and Shelby faded back. This put her in the perfect range for a sidekick. It was her turn to stumble as Z's foot pushed her back.

A fist collided with the back of Shelby's head. She assumed this was one of the Rangers who'd managed to get behind her. So, imagine her surprised when she turned to look upon Z standing there. But, that was impossible. No one was that fast. She looked back in the other direction and Z was there as well. Shelby looked between them. There were two Z Delgado's. Both of these women cocked their head to one side before engaging.

Shelby went on an immediate defensive. She blocked a high punch from the original Z, and then a low kick from the clone, who then used the same foot to kick high while the original went for a pair of body punches. Shelby's arms were a whirlwind to defend these attacks. She took a few big steps back to put them both in front of her. This didn't help, however. She lost track of which was the original as they punched and kicked at her. Shelby failed to get an attack in edgewise. It was all she could do to defend herself as these two slowly walked her back.

Eventually, on of her opponents landed a push kick with spun her a half-turn around, and right into the waiting fist of a Z Delgado behind her. Shelby took more wide steps away. When she beheld the situation, she couldn't believe what she saw. There were now three of them, three identical women, all raring for a fight.

They immediately surrounded her. Shelby spun in a slow circle to block the triplet of attacks, which worked for exactly one rotation. By the time she came back around, the newest clone had already placed a punch into her stomach. She fell back upon a Z, who pushed her upright and into the waiting kick from the third clone. This Z then teamed up with one of herselves to launch simultaneous punches. Shelby ducked beneath them and shuffled, managing to bypass the encirclement and end up just behind these two attackers. Shelby used both hands to shove them both by a shoulder. The trio of Zs came together in a brief tangle of arms and legs.

Shelby wanted to push her advantage while the clones untied themselves, but a commotion sprang up from behind her. She whipped around to see Flynn had managed to break away from the goblins attacking him and sprint for the ruin leading underground. All thoughts of combat fled her mind as she took off after him.

"Keep her off of me!" Shelby ordered of the goblins before plunging into the depths.

Light from outside didn't penetrate far through the door, so it wasn't long before darkness consumed her. She couldn't see her own hand in front of her face. Instinct was the only thing that kept her upright on the steadily sloping floor. It must've stretched on for a few hundred feet, carrying her ever downward into the earth.

As she ventured further, she saw a faint blue glow rise into view. This must have been the bottom of the ramp, and that light matched the map the Scottish guy had been holding. Shelby set a burst of speed into her pace, sprinting fast as she could downhill.

The slope terminated immediately into a left turn. This was where the blue glow came from. Shelby grabbed the corner to help herself cut around the curve. Once inside, she saw the Scottish man standing at the end of a short hallway, back to her. He had the map on the floor next to his feet.

"Hey!" She shouted out. The man turned to her, and she stopped in her tracks. On his right wrist was strapped a steel dagger in a bronze sheath engraved with leaves blowing in swirls of wind. In the crossguard of this dagger was inset a flawless emerald.

"You're too late, I'm afraid," he said. "Mythos Rangers! All for one!"

He went through the same motions Tommy had, holding the dagger low, lifting it high, and then pointing it at her before exposing the emerald. A green light consumed him, so brilliant in this dim corridor Shelby could hardly bear to look at it. A great cry of a horse resonated off the stone walls. A gust expelled the light. When it did, Flynn had transformed.

The helmet had the shape of a horse's face molded slightly over the visor, while details like the wisps of its mane wrapped around the sides. It had no mouthpiece. Green rectangles colored his chest in the upper right and lower left corners, while the remaining were white. A golden unicorn rearing up was embossed overtop this pattern. Green trousers fed into black boots, while grey lamellar transitioned into dark gauntlets.

"Power of the Unicorn, Mythos Ranger Green!" He declared. "You should run, while you have the chance."

"What, you think I'm impressed? Morph all you want, you don't stand a chance," Shelby said.

"Alright, have it your way," he shrugged.

The new Green Ranger struck a pose, and then charged. He threw a pair of punches at her face. Shelby blocked, but more through instinct than skill. He was so fast, she barely saw his attacks. The Ranger grabbed her wrists out of her block and threw her against the wall. The moment she made impact, the Ranger threw a push kick to pin her there. She rolled out of the way from a blow that cracked the rock where it hit. Shelby had never fought against a morphed Ranger. Was this the difference the power of the Grid made?

While her brain struggled to think of a way out of this mess, the Green Ranger kicked her in the stomach. He followed up with a duo of big haymakers to the face. She flailed in a desperate plea to defend herself. The Ranger grabbed her wrist and spun to whip her around. He kept his grip tight, however, so when she reached the end of her arm's reach, she was ripped off the ground. Only then did the Ranger let her fall to the ground.

The Green Ranger held his elbow high, gave it a double-tap, crossed his ankles, and then leaned far forward. He toppled, dropping his elbow straight toward her. Shelby rolled over a complete rotation to avoid the attack. She used the second where he was on the ground to scramble to her feet. Frightened legs began to sprint up and back out of the hole before she had the chance to decide for herself. She was smart enough to realize she had no chance against an opponent so much stronger and faster than herself. The Green Ranger was right. She should've run earlier.

…

Flynn bolted up the ramp, eyes fixed on the sunlight ahead. He could see Shelby running before him, but catching her was not his concern. She couldn't pose a threat to him or his friends, considering they now had two Rangers. No, his objective was to rejoin the fight with Tommy and Z so they could get away with the Green Mythos Morpher.

Shelby exited the ruin and turned right, which would take her back the way she entered the scene from. Flynn stopped when he himself made it out to glance after her. The sight of her hoodie flapping in the wind as she fled the scene confirmed that she was, indeed, running away from the fight. Her spirit had been broken. She would not be a problem. With her out of the way, Flynn could focus on his friends.

The first thing he saw was a trio of Zs facing off with what remained of the goblins. They seemed to all act independently, with their own minds and goals. He would have to ask her about that later. Next, Flynn observed Tommy fighting against the fiend who had accompanied Shelby. Whereas the first fiend fell quite easily to Tommy's assault, this one seemed to be holding its own much better. That observation made up Flynn's mind for him. The squad of Zs could handle the goblins. Tommy, however, might have needed a hand.

Flynn charged straight at the fiend, a warcry on his breath. He passed a thumb over the emerald on his morpher as he went. A light zoomed from the gem and into his open right hand, where it formed into the shape of an axe. It materialized for Flynn to grab its long haft in both hands. The single bit of the head sloped down to a long curved beard at the bottom, a classic dannox.

Flynn jumped up into the air at the fiend to drop down a savage blow. The wolfman fiend gave a frightened whine and took a big step back. Flynn sailed past, hitting nothing but air with his axe. He stood and slashed up, but the fiend blocked and countered with a downward hack. Flynn deflected it to the side and twirled his axe three times, a trio of quick attacks. The fiend stepped back from all three, and then jabbed twice, attempts that Flynn blocked.

Tommy jumped in to cut the fiend across the bicep. In a shower of sparks, the fiend stepped back. The Rangers surged in. Flynn cut down, and then Tommy. The fiend blocked both and continued to step back. It stabbed at Flynn, who parried by dragging his axe across the fiend's spear. The spear slid beneath the beard of his axe, which dragged it off to one side. Tommy used this opportunity to place three quick slashes on the enemy.

The Fined stumbled back and swept his spear in a wide arc to keep the Rangers away. They both took a small step to dodge the attack. As the one with the longer weapon, Flynn was able to reenter engagement range first. He held his axe all the way at the butt end of the haft and swung down into the fiend's chest. Tommy followed by stabbing with his sword. The fiend managed to catch his blade beneath an arm. He attempted to disarm the Red Ranger, but Green had his back. Flynn struck up with the butt end of his axe haft. The impact dislodged the fiend's grip. Flynn then cut diagonally downward right and then left.

Tommy bashed the fiend with his shield, and then sliced across his middle. Flynn hooked his axe around the fiend's knee and pulled, unbalancing him. Tommy slashed across his chest. Flynn whipped his axe around and did something similar. The Rangers then traded blows, two attacks each for a total of four on the fiend. This finally unseated the monster, who flew back to tumble across the ground.

"I'll do the honors," Flynn said. He brandished his axe. "Unicorn Charge!

A gust gathered beneath his feet as the fiend stood back up. Flynn put his head down and charged forward, carried by the wind faster than the eyes could see, falling leaves in his wake. He passed by the fiend, slashing as he went. He ended up behind the fiend, who gave a pained wolf's howl and fell over in a show of sparks. He exploded on contact with the ground. Flynn struck a pose just long enough for the fireball to dissipate. Tommy jogged to catch up with him.

"Good work." He and Flynn clasped hands in front of their faces for a second.

"Thanks. You, too," Flynn said as they let go. "Looks like Z is finished with the goblins as well.

Tommy followed his glance around over his shoulder just in time to watch to watch Z and one of her clones spin kick two goblins in unison. The enemies tumbled to the ground, where they ceased moving. Her clones vanished, leaving just the real Elizabeth behind. The moment they did, Z fell to one knee, breathing hard.

"Z!" Tommy shouted. Both of the Rangers ran over to her. "Are you alright?" He asked when they reached her.

Z took a deep breath. "I'll be fine, thanks."

Flynn placed a hand on her back. "You should've said something if you were having that much trouble."

"It's not that." Z shook her head. "It's... using my clones takes a lot out of me. Since they're technically still a part of me, they all draw from my stamina. It's like throwing three punches for every one."

"That's good to know," Tommy said. "Be careful, don't push yourself."

Z nodded, and then looked at Flynn. "Green Ranger, huh? That's pretty neat." She clearly didn't want to talk about her clones anymore. Flynn was more than happy to oblige.

"Yeah, you can say that again," he agreed. "I even got the Power of the Unicorn. I feel like a national icon, or something."

"How's it feel, changing colors," Z asked.

"It's weird, is how it feels," Flynn said. Z held up a hand to him and he helped her up. "I've been Blue for so long, it almost doesn't look like me when I look down and see Green."

"Imagine how I feel, looking at you," Tommy said.

"Oh yeah, that must be weird, seeing your color on someone else," Flynn concurred.

"Let's tell Fae," suggested Z. "I'm sure she'll be ecstatic."

"Alright." Tommy held his morpher to where his mouth would be beneath the helmet. "Fae, this is Tommy."

A pause, before she responded. "I hear you, go ahead."

"Mission successful. Flynn is the new Mythos Green Ranger," Tommy said, a sense of pride in his voice.

"Congratulations, Flynn!" Fae cried. "Good job out there, all of you."

"All in a day's work," Flynn said into his morpher.

"Oh, good, the communicator works. That was my next question." Fae sounded relieved.

"Unfortunately," Tommy brought the mood down, "it's not all good news."

"Oh no," Fae breathed. "Alright, hit me."

"Well, I'm not really sure what's going on, but it seems your dimensional portal grabbed more than just us. A woman named Shelby Watkins met us here, with an entourage of goblins and a fiend. She's working for Avanth," Tommy said.

"Oh," Fae said. "That is bad news. I honestly wasn't expecting that. Did... did she try to get the Morpher?"

"She did, but I stopped her," Flynn said.

Fae sighed. "This wasn't in the plan. I have a lot to think about."

"We're gonna make our way back," Tommy said. "We can talk about it when we get there."

"No!" Fae blurted. "Don't come back. If Avanth is after the Morphers, then you don't have that kind of time. Go straight for the one in Italy. The spare battery in the Land Rover should be enough to get you there."

"Are you sure?" Tommy asked.

"I'm sure. Stop wasting time and go!"

And so they did. Flynn and Tommy helped Z to her feet, and together they went back to the Land Rover. Flynn was excited to be the new Green Ranger, but it was a feeling spoiled by uncertainty. If Fae had meant to bring five people to her time, then that meant Shelby wasn't alone on the enemy team. There was another Ranger working against them. Depending on who it was, this could be very bad indeed. Speed, then, was paramount. Fae absolutely made the right call in telling them to go straight for Italy. They didn't have a single second to waste.