Shane braced himself as the dark ninja approached. This man just tore through his friends like they were rag dolls, so Shane knew it was going to take more then his fighting skills if he was going to stand a chance of beating him. Closing his eyes, he concentrated, trying to call forth the power Skyla had given him.

His friends were counting on him.

He was all that was standing between this man and the destruction of Blue Bay Harbor.

If there was ever a time he needed this power, this was it.

With a howl of rage, Shane’s eyes flew open. Thrusting his arm forward, the Air Ninja fired a steady stream of flames at his opponent.

“Interesting.” the dark ninja commented. “The others command only one element, yet you appear to have mastered two.” To Shane’s shock, the figure held out his hands and appeared to be actually catching the fire. “A pity that it won’t make any difference.”

Stopping his attack, Shane watched as the dark ninja used the flames to form a fireball in each hand. To Shane’s horror, he then proceeded to fling both fireballs towards his friends. Hunter managed to pull a semi-conscious Blake out of harm’s way, while Dustin and Tori both barely managed to avoid a fiery impact.

A short distance away, atop the roof of a nearby building, a familiar enemy looked down upon the battle scene in amusement.

“It would appear the Red Ninja has learned a few tricks along the way.” Vexacus watched with renewed interest after witnessing Shane’s surprising attack. “His abilities have grown stronger. He’s learning to properly control them. Those powers should have been mine. No matter. They soon will be. Once Lauthore destroys this pathetic place, I’ll no longer need him and the Karmanian powers will be mine.”

Vexacus smiled as Lauthore continued his onslaught against the Rangers. “Seems I made a good decision in joining with Lauthore. He just might be able to succeed where so many others have failed. All that matters is that I get what I want; the rest is none of my concern. I’ll take back what was stolen from me. It’s only a matter of time.”

Growling in frustration, Shane knew he had to change tactics. Thrusting his arms down to his sides, fire engulfed Shane’s fists. This guy had to be stopped and he had to be stopped now! Rushing forward, Shane attacked with a flurry of punches and kicks, his opponent blocking every single attack with complete ease. Desperate, Shane lunged forward but, to his astonishment, the dark ninja grabbed Shane’s fist in his hand. Squeezing, the flames extinguished, sending a shockwave of pain down Shane’s arm. With a look of disgust in his eyes, the figure flung Shane aside, sending the Air Ninja crashing through a nearby phone booth.

Fighting the urge to pass out, Shane pulled himself out of the twisted remains of metal and broken glass. “There has to be some way to beat this guy.” He stated, trying to hide his uncertainty.

Recovering himself, Cam looked up at the black clad ninja.

“Ha! So this is what is left of the legacy of the Ninja and Samurai. A pathetic showing by mere children. It seems you still have much to learn and I shall be the one to teach you.”

The dark ninja, crossing his arms across his chest, lowered his head as if in concentration. The next thing the ex-Rangers realized was that he was steadily getting larger.

“Why am I not surprised?” Dustin commented.

The figure had grown to an enormous size and now towered above the city menacingly. “Now young warriors, show me what else you have in your arsenal. Perhaps I simply judged you too soon.”

“We’re going to need the Samurai Star.” Cam said.

“But will the Samurai Star even be able to stand up to him without the amulet?” Hunter questioned.

“Hopefully it’ll be enough. I have to at least try.”

“Gotta tell you man, I’m not loving the idea of you going in there with half power.” Shane argued.

“I have to do this. It’s the only Zord we have left. With or without the amulet, I’m going in there and stopping this guy. He can’t be allowed to terrorize the city. You’ve seen what he can do.”

“I agree with Shane. But if you’re gonna do this, be careful up there.” Hunter said.

“I will. Promise.” Activating his communicator, Cam called back to Ninja Ops. “Cyber Cam, send out the Samurai Star Megazord.” In an instant, the Megazord arrived, already in Megazord mode. Cam was teleported into the cockpit of the Megazord, readying himself at the controls. Alright, let’s show this guy what a Samurai can really do.

“Ah, the Samurai. This should be an interesting encounter. Show me what you can do.”

Cam took the controls of the Samurai Star and maneuvered around the black clad ninja, being sure to keep his guard up. The figure made the first move, striking out with a back fist. Cam was able to easily block his simple attack. The dark ninja countered with a strike to the Zord’s left side, followed up by a palm strike to the zord’s midsection. The Samurai Star was sent staggering back, but Cam was able to regain control quickly enough.

“Come now, this is not the type of skill I would expect from a Samurai.”

“You want to see the skills of a Samurai, huh? Alright then.” Cam went on the offensive this time, striking first with a right. The evil ninja blocked the strike, but Cam, expecting that exact move, countered with a leg sweep. The figure caught the Zord’s leg and turned, flipping the zord and sending it crashing to the ground.

“This guy is way too fast. He knew that was coming.”

Cam continued the offensive. “Ram Hammer! Locked and dropped!” Dropping the Power Disc, Cam called out the hammer. With his new weapon, the Samurai Star swung and connected. The strike did nothing to effect the massive dark ninja. The evil ninja grabbed the hammer from the Samurai Star’s grasp. Before Cam could react, his opponent struck with the hammer, sending sparks flying throughout the Samurai Star’s cockpit. To add insult to injury, the black clad ninja grabbed the hammer at both ends, snapping it in two and throwing the shattered weapon aside.

“You must learn to do better than that if you want any hope of surviving. You are far from worthy of holding the title of a Samurai. You and the so-called Ninjas are a pathetic joke, not fit to even be part of this world.”

“You sure love to talk a lot.” Cam pressed forward, charging the dark ninja. Cam’s plan was to charge forward and at the last minute, dodge to the side and attack Lauthore from behind. That plan never came to fruition. As the Samurai Star raced forward, so did the dark ninja. Before Cam could react, the evil ninja lowered his outstretched palm towards the Zord’s midsection. In an instant, the Samurai Star was thrown backwards . The force of the dark ninja’s force blast sent the Zord crashing into a hillside, causing more damage and chaos inside the cockpit.

“This is no good. He’s going to total the Zord and I haven’t even laid a single hit on him yet. I’ve got to try something different.” Cam began pressing a sequence of buttons, causing the Samurai Star to take flight, out of the evil ninja’s grasp. Once in range, the Samurai Star fired its array of lasers, making a direct hit on the black clad ninja. Cam landed the Samurai Star a safe distance away to survey the damage. As the smoke cleared, the Rangers stood in anticipation to see what had become of their opponent. The smoke gone, the figure stood unscathed and very much angry.

“Is this the best this pathetic world has to offer me now? Children with toys? I’m through playing games.” With that, the ninja once again crossed his arms across his chest. This time his arms transformed into long, sickled blades. The figure stood, his now bladed arms outstretched and waiting. Without warning, the evil ninja took off at incredible speed, straight for the Samurai Star. Cam had very little time to react. He quickly tried to block the attack he knew was coming. The attacker closed the gap between them instantly, running the Samurai Star Megazord through with his bladed right arm. The dark ninja stood there, savoring the enjoyment of defeating his enemy.

As the Samurai Star stood helpless, Cam noticed a sharp drop in the power readings of the zord. He knew that taking such a massive hit would deplete much of the Zord’s energy, but power was being siphoned away at an amazing rate. Cam knew what was happening. The dark ninja was draining the Samurai Star of its power. He tried to break free of the attacker’s hold, but there was no way to free himself with the severe drop in power and massive damage done to the Zord’s internal systems.

The evil ninja knew he had won. There was no way for these children to defeat him. Knowing that made the kill so much more enjoyable. With almost an air of extreme pleasure, he deftly thrust his left blade into the Samurai Star, draining even more energy. Inside the cockpit, alarms and alerts were going off like crazy. There was nothing Cam could do. The Zord was damaged beyond repair and the energy readings were getting dangerously into the red zone. Cam knew what would happen, but could not allow himself to admit it. As Lauthore maintained his hold on the Zord, the energy readings finally dropped down to zero. The Samurai Star was dead. All of its power drained and no way to defend itself. The dark ninja withdrew his blades slightly almost as if to allow the Samurai Star to die in peace, but just as quickly, he thrust both blades back into the Zord, and with a forceful, cruel outward movement ripped upwards through the Zord.

Cam knew there was nothing he could do now. The Samurai Star was lost and now he had to get out of there before the entire Zord blew up with him in it.

“Cyber Cam, teleport me out of here! Now!” he yelled into his communicator over the sounds of explosions. A moment later, the light of teleportation took over his vision. A second later, the Samurai Star Megazord exploded in a brilliant flash of light and fire.

“Cam!” Hunter yelled, watching in horror as their last remaining Zord went up in flames, and potentially taking along their friend. Another explosion rocked the battlefield as the Zord’s internal components exploded. The Rangers shielded their eyes and braced themselves as the tremors subsided. A moment later, the Rangers witnessed a flash of light land off to their right. Racing over, the Rangers saw that it was Cam. Cyber Cam had managed to teleport him out just in time.

Hunter raced to Cam’s side, checking the young man’s vitals and trying to bring the unconscious man around. “Cam! Are you okay, man? C’mon, talk to me here.” Cam slowly began to stir, the fog beginning to clear as he remembered where he was and what had just happened. As the fire and smoke died down, the Rangers looked up to see the dark ninja still standing, the massive explosion of the Samurai Star silhouetting him against the darkening sky.

“Just as I thought. This world is weak. Easily attainable. A once proud legacy reduced to child’s play. If the ancients could see what all their hard work and devotion resulted in. Their powers left in the hands of weaklings and incompetents who have no idea what they possess. This world shall fall and there is no one to stand in my way.”

With the ex-Rangers forgotten and certain victory within his grasp, the evil ninja teleported out leaving the battered and bloodied ex-Rangers standing there, lost and devoid of hope.