"Not another one," he muttered.
He looked at the clock on his bedside table. Two-fifty. Another three hours before he had to get up and get ready for school. Would he be able to get back asleep after this latest nightmare? He didn't think he could. This one was really, REALLY, scary this time. The last one was almost the same except for the Rangers. The OmegaPutties overwhelmed him and he was nearly defeated. The one before that was too freaky beyond description. Each one...the same, yet totally different.
The Black Power Ranger walked over to his closet and pulled on a jet black housecoat over his black pinstriped pajamas. He grabbed his communicator and put it on. Activating the teleport button, he dematerialized from his room.
Sitting upon his silver throne, Lord Zedd sat, tirely watching the Earth. On a night like this, he would normally be asleep, dreaming dreams of conquest and plots to destroy the Power Rangers.
Not tonight though. Something had dragged him out of bed. An evil force was unleashed on the planet and it was powerful enough to be noticed by the senses of the master of evil.
Zedd walked over to his master computer, Mistress MonsterMaker and placed his hand on the crystal half-orb that was a viewscreen.
"Awaken, Mistress MonsterMaker."
Swirls of colorful mists played about in the globe. It coalesced into a face. A beautiful face with electric blue eyes and fiery red hair. She smiled when she saw Zedd. "My master, what would you have me do for you on this early morn?"
"Scan the Morphing Grid for any anomalous reading."
"Scanning."
A series of clicks and whirrs from MonsterMaker and the scan was underway. It was a few minutes before she gave her report to Zedd.
"There is an unusally high amount of negative energy within the grid, my master. I have pinpointed its source."
"Yes?"
"It is coming from Adam Park, the Black Ranger."
"Hmm," Zedd murmured, scratching his chin with his silver claws. "What would a Power Ranger have to do with negative energy? It would effectively render him powerless."
"Indeed, master. Maybe he is unaware of it."
A thought popped into his head. "MonsterMaker, is the negative energy enough to render the defenses of the Command Center nonoperational?"
"The negative energy charge is rising at a rate of twenty-eight kilorods per minute. In a few hours, master, it will affect the Command Center."
Zedd looked at the Earth with a renewed vigor. "I need a monster. We cannot let this advantage slip through our fingers. Command: Search. Parameters: usage of negative energy and stealth."
"Searching," the computer responded. In a matter of a seconds, she had found an approapriate monster. "Found. Activating holographic representation."
Lord Zedd's silver throne split in half. From a hidden compartment below it, a large crystalline globe ascended. It sparked with a blue energy and shot a bolt near the area where Zedd was standing. A hologram slowly shimmered into view.
"Name: Negator. Height: seven feet. Can grow to a height of three hundred feet. Weight: Variable. Special Abilities: ability to use negative energy as a power source for his special Nega-Sword. Also uses negative energy to power a cloaking device of his own."
At first glance, Negator looked a lot like Ninjor, but with a red body instead of blue. Lord Zedd nodded approvingly and turned back to MonsterMaker.
"Command: Create."
Without warning, the hologram became solid matter. Negator looked around his surroundings and stopped his gaze on Lord Zedd. He bowed deeply to the Master of Maliciousness.
"I live to serve you, Lord Zedd. Shall I carry out the orders, Mistress MonsterMaker programmed into me?" he said in a low, growling voice.
"You may. Serve me well, Negator, and I shall free you forever of Mistress MonsterMaker to do as you see fit. Do not fail me like Bombardier and Firebrand!"
Negator bowed again and disappeared in a shifting of light.
"He shall be victorious, my master. I have every confidence in him," MonsterMaker said.
Zedd turned to her and growled, "See that he does not fail me, MonsterMaker. I grow weary of failure."
Lord Zedd walked towards his open portal that granted him a full view of the planet Earth. He used his long range sight to watch Negator land on a rocky plain near the Command Center. Suddenly, Negator disappeared, wrapped in the cloaking effect that he possessed.
"Pray that he does not fail me, MonsterMaker," Zedd said quietly.
He took one step forward and suddenly the alarms in the Command Center blared to life. The lights immediately brightened, followed by the high pitched alarms of Alpha-5.
"Ay-yi-yi-yi-yii!" Alpha screamed. "Intruder alert! Zordon, intruder alert!"
"Alpha, wait it's me, Adam!" the Black Ranger tried to explain.
Zordon awoke and floated about in his tube. "Adam," he spoke in that strange deep voice, "What is the meaning of this?"
"Adam!" Alpha echoed. "Ay-yi-yi! How could you set off the alarms?"
"I don't know, Alpha. I only came here to ask you about my nightmares I've been having."
"Alpha, run a full scan on Adam," Zordon said.
"Right away, Zordon," and the tiny android complied by bringing out a small black metallic device and running across Adam's body.
"Ay-yi-yi, Zordon! He's covered with negative energy particles!" Alpha let out excitedly.
"Which would explain the recent increase that I have been sensing. Adam, these nightmares that you speak of...Have they been getting stranger and stranger since you've had them?"
"Well, yeah! I really don't know what the cause of it is," Adam wearily replied.
"Negative particles can have a strange affect on the human brain, causing hallucinations and bad dreams," Zordon explained.
"How could this have happened?" Adam asked. "How did I get negative particles on me?"
"We don't know," Alpha said.
From behind Adam, six teleportation beams coalesced into the remaining team of Power Rangers. They were all dressed in night clothes and appeared to have not fully awoken except for Aisha and Sean.
Adam suppressed a shiver when he looked at them. They had betrayed him in his nightmare. They turned their backs on him and tried to kill him.
But he was awake now. He shouldn't feel any sort of anger at them since it was a dream, yet he did feel it. It was different now. He wanted to...to...He didn't know what he wanted to do or why, but he knew he had to do something.
"What's up, Zordon?" asked a sleep filled Rocky.
"Apparently, Adam has stumbled into some pocket of negative energy. The alarms are designed to alert Alpha, myself, and you Rangers should an increase be detected within the confines of the Command Center," Zordon explained.
"So what does that mean exactly?" Kimberly asked in her typical "Valley Girl" voice. Adam always hated her voice. It irritated him. Why though?
"There are two kinds of energy: positive and negative, which help make the Morphing Grid," Billy began to explain in his nerdy way. Why did Adam even bother to team up with this group? They're nothing but a bunch of losers.
"Zordon and the Command Center are the positive aspect of that energy. Zedd and his palace are the opposite. Their energy is negative. Both energies are used to maintain the integrity of the Morphing Grid. If there is a sudden increase in that energy, one side gains the advantage and the other side is weakened until a counter balance..." He yawned. "Excuse me. As I was saying one side gains the advantage while the other side is weakened until a counterbalance can be found. For example, when Mistress MonsterMaker was activated, a surge of negative energy occurred. When Sean became the Gold Ranger, the surge was negated."
"Ah..." Kimberly said. "But if negative energy and positive energy cancel each other out, shouldn't Adam's powers be cancelled as well?"
"Indeed, Kimberly," Zordon confirmed. "That is why we will prepare the Ergotronic Chamber to clean off Adam."
"The Ergotronic Chamber is a sort of energy shower which harnesses a direct flow of positive energy from the Morphing Grid. It should be operational by tomorrow," Alpha said.
Sean placed a hand on Adam's shoulder. "Adam? Are you all right, man?"
Adam snatched his shoulder away from Sean's hand. "I'm fine. A little shaken up from my nightmare."
"I'm sorry, Adam," Aisha said, "Wish we could help you with it."
"Yeah, I bet you do," Adam mumbled.
"What?" she asked.
"Nothing. Just tired that's all."
"I think you should all return back to your homes," Zordon said. "We will contact you when all is ready."
"Right," Tommy said and stepped back.
"If you don't mind Zordon, I think I'll go burn off some of this adrenaline. I don't think I can get any sleep," Adam said.
Sean looked into the eyes of Adam and frowned slightly. His senses detected something, but he couldn't exactly tell what it was. There was a noticable difference in Adam's demeanor. His concentration on Adam was broken by the slight nudging on his right arm. He looked down into the face of the Yellow Ranger, Aisha.
"Hey, I know that look," she said softly. "What's wrong?"
He shook his head. "I don't know. I'm not sure exactly. It's..." He paused when Adam looked in his direction. "...nothing."
Aisha caught the glance and slightly smiled at Adam. He didn't return it. She took Sean's hand and squeezed it.
Zordon's voice broke the silence. "If you so desire, Adam. You all have a big day tomorrow, do you not? Final exams for this year?"
"Awww, man," Rocky complained. "Did you have to say the 'E' word, Zordon? I was just beginning to forget about it. Now I'll have nightmares."
"Return home, Rangers," Zordon said without pause.
Tommy looked at Adam. "Get some rest, man."
"Right," Adam said almost disinterestedly.
Five of the Rangers teleported off leaving only Sean and Adam. Alpha was busy preparing the Ergotronic Chamber. Zordon's attention was diverted elsewhere. Adam looked at Sean with a face of disdain.
"Is there something the matter, Sean?" Adam asked, his words slightly fringed with ice.
If Sean heard it, he didn't show it. He just shook his head slightly and pressed the teleport button on his communicator. In a flurry of gold light, he dematerialized.
Adam turned back to the control panels, brightly flashing with lights. He found the appropriate panel and keyed in the exercise program for the gymnasium. A door of light opened up and he walked into it. Instantaneously, he was teleported to another portion of the Command Center. A large room, the size of the auditorium at school, loomed before him. In it, several pieces of weightlifting, aerobic, and exercise equipment stood silently.
He walked towards the punching bad hanging from a metallic framework and started to hit it. As he did, his mind filled with images of his nightmares. Frightening - Fearful - Terrifying. His friends - betrayers. All of them. Even Aisha, who he had more feelings for than he cared to admit. They killed him.
_Kill_.
He had to kill them.
Adam shook his head to clear his thoughts. He couldn't kill his friends.
_They will kill you if you do not act first._
He blinked frantically trying to discern whether that was him speaking. The voice was cold, menacing. His friends were his friends. They had never did anything to harm him before.
_They will kill you._
"No..."
_They will..._
"No!" Adam screamed softly.
_...kill..._
"No!"
_Kill!_
"No!"
The voice filled his mind, rising to a crescendo. It deafened him, screaming into his soul until he realized it was him screaming.
_KILL! KILL THEM ALL!_
His body collapsed into the hard mats, his heart racing. His eyes blanked as he went into a violent convulsion. A few seconds later, he lay still. Deathly still.
A dry wind blew through the land, howling out into the night. He was free from Mistress MonsterMaker and he was going to make sure that he didn't go back. Destroying the Power Rangers was just part of a plan he had begun to formulate. He needed to tap into Zedd's negative energy to overthrow Zedd. But first, he had to be find a way to convert the positive energy of the Command Center into negative.
Negator saw the large structure atop a sheer outcropping of rock, its brown hued walls sparsely decorated with pictures and letters of Eltarian origin. A good climb for any normal individual.
But Negator was far from "normal". He leapt into the air, making sure to keep beneath the sensor sweep of the Command Center as he did when he approached it earlier. Latching on to some of the rock, he began to climb at an astounding rate. To his left, he passed a drainage tunnel, unprotected and inviting.
With supernatural effort, he ripped the metal grating from its hinges and entered.