The night sky was still heavy. Lightning bolts and thunder echoed in the silent canyon. Only the sounds of battle could be differentiated from the loud rumbling above.
Tony and Rogers, meters away from the battle, struggled to comprehend what they had just witnessed.
A so-called 'god' being tossed around like a rag dog wasn't on their schedule for the day. It was so absurd that they might never forget this moment.
Boom!
A tall figure hurled towards a wide-open space, hitting and pulverizing trees in his path. With a loud thud, the armored figure made a dent in the ground, and the hammer in his hand landed elsewhere. A ragged body lay almost unconscious at the center of the destruction.
Thor, the victim of the chaos, had disbelief and despair written over his bloodied face. He couldn't believe what had just happened. He, the conqueror of realms and victor in wars, had been beaten to this state. Even his face was almost black and blue.
He possessed invincible strength that overcame Titans, monsters, and even other gods, but that strength was currently useless before the Midgardian in red.
"Am I dreaming?" This thought couldn't help but flash through Thor's mind, but it dispersed as soon as it formed. If he were truly dreaming, the pain wouldn't have been so obvious. His entire bone and organs seemed to be falling.
Before he could continue despairing, a figure abruptly appeared before him. The figure appeared so fast; Thor thought he had teleported. He knew he was done for; there was no hope for escape.
Surprisingly enough, the expected hopelessness did not appear in the god of thunder's face. Instead, it was decisiveness. Decisiveness forged by endless war.
"Are you going to end me now?" Thor spoke, his tone appearing indifferent. He used his remaining willpower to lift half of his body and stared directly at the red figure.
There was no more pride in him at this moment, as it only contained acceptance. To Thor, his life was going to end anyway, so there was no need to despair or beg for mercy. Dying with honor was the only thing he could afford to do now.
"Eh, what the hell are you saying?" Zayne's bewildered voice snapped Thor away from his 'journey' to Valhalla.
Thor, though wounded, managed to ask with confusion on his face. "Aren't you going to kill me? Isn't that your goal?"
"Uh….no." This reply echoed like a thunderclap in Thor's mind. His Asgardian genes rejected such a reply, but his experience in Midgard countered.
As a normal Asgardian in war, when two warriors battle as enemies, one must lose their life. It was the iron rule in almost all of the Nine Realms. Even more as a prince of Asgard, this law had been deeply ingrained in his soul by Odin since he picked up weapons of war.
Now, this red….no 'demon in red' was sparing him.
"Absurd, utterly absurd," Thor murmured repeatedly
Zayne watched in silence as Thor's expression transitioned from hopelessness to confusion, then shock. Zayne partially understood what was going on, but he had no time to waste brain cells over it.
"Yo, god of hammers, snap out of it," Zayne spoke as he amplified his voice with mental energy, which struck at Thor's consciousness with little force.
Snap~
The daze in Thor's mind cleared, and his gaze focused back on Zayne. This time, the title 'god of hammers' did not anger him at all. Thor couldn't afford to, for he knew Zayne was right.
Without the Mjolnir, he was no different from an ordinary Asgardian soldier. Even with the blessing of his hereditary and superior physique, he still lost. He was truly nothing to the one before him.
"Who are you?" This question subconsciously left Thor's lips.
Zayne, although surprised by the question, still replied with a smile unseen. "I am the omni-ranger, protector of Earth, or rather, as Asgardians would prefer to say, Protector of Midgard".
As soon as those words fell, Thor's eyes widened, and his formerly suppressed emotions surged. He lost the natural arrogance of an Asgardian; what remained was a bewildered individual. His silent mind was instantly filled with myriad thoughts.
"Omni-ranger.... A ranger. Is it the ranger I know? The legendary Power Rangers?"
As a prince of Asgard and one who had followed Odin on several missions, Thor knew a lot about the vast universe and the nine realms. In this myriad of known things, the Power Rangers were one of the most important.
According to his father, during his early years, he was a god who conquered worlds. He had crossed paths with this team of heroes, known as the Power Rangers, on more than one occasion. Each was more powerful than the next.
Even to the All-Father, they were incredibly strong and wielded strange powers superior to Asgardian magic or technology.
The only reason he could stand toe to toe with them was entirely because of his divine status. Thor still remembered when Odin spoke of the strongest he had fought.
The white witch.
This ranger was so strong that Odin was forced to flee. Now years had passed, and Thor was not sure who was stronger, her or his father, since Odin was now many times more powerful than in his younger years.
Thor's deep eyes stared at Zayne, his lips moving once more. "So, you are a Power Ranger?"
"Yes, you hit the nail on the head. I am indeed a Power Ranger." Zayne replied almost sarcastically.
Relief seemed to wash over Thor. His body slumped back on the crack he sat on, and his breath steadied by several degrees. It was like he no longer saw Zayne as a threat. Not that Zayne wasn't stronger than him, but he knew rangers don't kill innocents. At most, they discipline those who deserve it, just like Udonna did to his father.
"Oh.... quite relaxed, I see," Zayne probed teasingly, trying to figure out Thor's sudden reaction.
One moment, he was ready to give up; now, he looked relieved. Even with Zayne's perception, he couldn't figure out the reason.
"I know you won't kill me. Rangers don't kill wantonly," Thor spoke calmly, but his gaze was locked on the once brewing sky.
"Well, I did tell you I wasn't going to." Zayne clearly remembered his reply to Thor's mumbling a few seconds ago, so the reply was quite repetitive.
"Did I beat him too hard? Did it fuck up his mind?" Zayne thought to himself, instantly using his mental energy to scan Thor's brain, but after some seconds of checking, he found nothing. It was still normal.
Thor seemed to sense Zayne's confusion and replied. "In Asgard, there are legends about heroes like you. My father, All-Father, had clashed with a very powerful ranger once. She was extremely powerful, forcing even my father, a terrifyingly strong God-king, into a dire situation. In the end, he had to flee. From the strength displayed, you are definitely one of the stronger ones. So, losing to you was expected. I accept my defeat."
There was no pride in his tone, only acceptance and a little battle intent. As a god in the making, a single defeat from a new opponent would not make him easily give up. If a chance appeared to fight again, he would take it, but that's after training and becoming stronger. His current self would just be tossed around like a rag doll, just like before.
It was too humiliating.
"Oh….so Odin met a ranger, and it's a female Power Ranger," Zayne thought. "The only female ranger I currently know that is strong is Udonna, even though her strength is currently sealed; she must have been on Odin's level before, but then, it still might be another. The universe is vast after all, and rangers are in multitude in this merged reality".
Shaking off his thoughts, he looked at Thor and asked. "You didn't even ask why I attacked you? Yet a god like you is willing to bow and accept defeat".
"Yes, I am, in Asgard, knowing when to advance and retreat is of great importance. Only death awaits a fool who acts arrogantly before one who is stronger than him. Moreover, you attacked because I arrogantly thought my brother, who had committed countless atrocities in Midgard, could be taken away without punishment. Midgard has its laws, and what I did violated those laws. I deserve the beating," Thors replied calmly.
"Good, it seems I wouldn't have to trouble myself explaining," Zayne spoke, quite pleased by Thor's open mind. Not many gods can reign in their arrogance.
In fact, Thor was also like that before. If it weren't for Odin sending him to temper himself in Midgard, he might have been unable to accept his defeat. He was Asgardian after all, a god race amongst many and supreme to most. He had that luxury and status.
Thor's gaze turned towards the unconscious Loki nearby and asked. "What are you going to do about him?"
Zayne followed his gaze and replied. "Hmm.... you can take him away, I'll explain to the authorities here. It's impossible to restrain your brother in Midgard; Asgard is a better place."
"Good, I'll be taking him." Thor also understood Zayne's reasoning. He also understood his brother's cunning and abilities well; no cell could probably hold him here. He would inevitably escape later on. The only place that could safely secure Loki was Asgard.
"Hold on, let me heal you. You've learnt your lesson, so these injuries should also go." Zayne spoke like a father who had just beaten his child and was ready to tend to the scars of the rod used, but the weird thing was that Thor was many times older than him. The only reason he could talk on superior terms with Thor was his strength.
Power conquers most things after all.
"Innocence," Zayne muttered with hands outstretched towards Thor.
Humm~
A power visible only to Zayne spread out, healing Thor in a flash, but the force did not stop, instead it continued, covering the entire forest. The surrounding destruction disappeared, restored to its original state.
The force also healed Tony and mended his armor. Rogers was not excluded, and even the unconscious Loki was healed. But he stayed unconscious by Zayne's will.
"By Odin's beard. What is this strange power?" Thor shook his head in shock. "Now, wonder father said rangers had bizarre and powerful abilities. This is more powerful than Mother's healing magic."
"Alright, that's about done", Zayne looked at Thor. "You should take your brother and leave immediately. Make sure he doesn't come and cause trouble in Midgard anymore. Next time he does, I will end his life".
"Understood, Ranger. I will make sure he doesn't take a single step out of his cell". Thor hoisted his brother on his shoulders, propelled his hammer, and flew away, not looking back.
Honestly, Thor feared Zayne would change his mind and hold him down. Odin had told him Rangers had strange temperaments. Some were benevolent and others ruthless towards enemies, and from the previous occurrence, Zayne was definitely the latter.
Swoosh~
As Thor stood midair, he roared to the sky. "Heimdall!"
Following his command, a rainbow light appeared, covering Thor and his brother in seconds. The rainbow pillar came and went as fast. It didn't even take a second. Although Zayne could react, it was still unknown whether he could disrupt the transmission.
The aftermath of the transmission left only an after-print on the ground, which looked quite archaic. This intrigued Zayne, so he scanned and stored it in his morpher's database.
Then, he activated his innocence skill and cleared the burnt spot. His OCD wouldn't let him leave it that way. It would make him uncomfortable later on if he didn't.
The previous chaos had subsided, and the once thunderous sky had cleared. The rumbling sky existed no more; only the bright moon lit the night sky. The occasional sounds of crickets also echoed in the canyon, making the forest look very empty, almost as if the previous destruction never occurred.
In fact, if one did not witness the battle, they could never know what went on in this forest. The innocence skill, still at B tier, was incredibly powerful.
"Now let's settle the avengers, shall we?" Zayne strolled towards Tony and Rogers, ready to explain what went on between him and Thor.
Although he was more powerful than they, an explanation was still necessary. If he acted wantonly and ignored them, he might never have the chance to bring them into his team in the future. Moreover, it was also a form of human decency, and Zayne adhered to it with importance.
...
The night in New York City was more vibrant and alive than the deep forest. Cars and pedestrians moved about, with most making their way home. Several roads were filled with cars trapped in traffic.
It was chaotic, yet normal in the city.
On one of the many storied buildings, Peter, in the custom spider suit, sat leisurely, legs swinging occasionally, and in his hands was a half-eaten burger. Although he seemed to be enjoying the view and food, his mind was currently not present.
Ever since Zayne had spoken to him about his no-kill rule, a knot had formed in his heart. The feeling was almost as severe as breaking up with a loved one, perhaps even worse.
Imagine you had a principle you followed your entire life, one deeply ingrained in your very being. Then, an important decision appeared, needing you to change that principle. This decision was even more important than your personal principle. What would one choose? It was hard, extremely so. It was like you had to shed your former self to become something new, and what humans fear the most is change.
Peter was also the same. He was scared. Fearing that if he killed, he might lose himself and turn evil. His mind was firm when he adhered to this principle, but surprisingly brittle and resistant to change.
"What should I do?" Peter subconsciously put the burger down and stared at the sky. His mind was in utter chaos.
After some time, he forcibly suppressed his inner turmoil. "Heh, who am I kidding? I'm not made for this. I'm a coward who couldn't even stop his own parents from their deaths, how could I be worthy of saving the world?
Maybe…. Hmm?"
His thoughts stopped abruptly, and his gaze went downward at the building where he currently sat.
"Stop right there!"
"Ahhh! Help!!!"
His newly improved spider sense tingled.
"Danger!" The threat was not directed at him, but at the owner of the terrified scream. Peter didn't have this ability before; it was only after Zayne's meticulous training that he could project his spider sense to sense threats directed at others. It was much like Zayne's mental energy, but of a much lower grade.
Stick~, Whoosh!
Peter instantly released his webs and swung downward to the source of the voice. It only took him a few seconds to get there, but as soon as he arrived, his eyes instantly constricted.
He saw something that would forever change the direction of his life.
--- ✦ ---
This is the next chapter. Peter is going to change in the next chapter, but for the better.
Power Stones guys, please!!!