TW: TT-01 Spirits of Yin and Yang

[Lord Pouchlaw]

When an ancient crystal sitting in the local museum suddenly ruptures, all manner of chaos and evil is unleashed. The only apparent solution to the catastrophic problem is a phrase inscribed on an old stone hieroglyph which sits in an archaeologist's home... "When Andrakkan releases the elements and brings the Spirits of Yin and Yang together, the Trigram shall bind the forces of evil." And when a high school field trip to the archaeologist's home goes horribly wrong, Andrakkan is summoned and the chosen few become Power Rangers and they embark on a fantastic journey!

Coming up next on Power Rangers Tao: Trigram Crystal Saga!

Power Rangers Trigram Tao
Episode One: Spirits of Yin and Yang
By Darrel James Vanwinkle
February 5th, 2008

Starring:
Ren Rainger, Red Tao Phoenix Ranger
Orion Spencer, Yellow Tao Sphinx Ranger
Janet Renton, Blue Tao Seahorse Ranger
Varvara Najeeb, Green Tao Griffin Ranger
Rickward Brooklyn, Black Tao Dragon Ranger

"Rocket" (Razylymiirgolos Andrakkan, the Armored Winged Sentinel of the Greater Assassins

Allies:
Wallace Blayze
Mike Bowler
"Jack Set"
Timothy McGraw
Brittney Parker

Guest Starring:
Chester Kincaid, Bronze Trigram I-Ching Ranger
Megan Harley, Pink Trigram I-Ching Ranger
Darek Leo, Prism Trigram I-Ching Ranger

Villains:

Lei No Kung
General 1: Raconuki
General 2: Scar Wratheratt
General 3: Kon Darnage
General 4: King Falthezar
General 5: Amazon Queen Driada
~~Varied Minions
"Swamp Mush"

Chapter 01

Translated from the ancient Chinese

/"My temple is such a mess,/" the divinely powerful dragon god, Razylymiirgolos Andrakkan, the Armored Winged Sentinel of the Greater Assassins surveyed the appearance of his lair. /"This is the last time I allow Shang-Ti and Amatersu Omikami to hold a court session and a dinner party in my personal quarters. I hate cleaning."/

As he was doing inventory on his shelf of captive evil super powers, he noted that something seemed amiss. /"The Trigram Crystal that held Lei No Kung is missing. Where can it be? The party in my lair wasn't that destructive... was it?"/

Rainger Research Team, Planet Verminoi

"Professor Rainger! We found another sealed crypt!"

Professor Anarus Rainger glanced over at the man making the announcement at the same time that his twenty one year old son did. "I'll be right over there! Don't break the seal yet!" He then turned to his son and said, "Still think this is a boring trip, Reinard? How often do you get to help your old man at an archaeological dig on another planet?"

"Dad... I told you to call me Ren," his son said. "Reinard makes me sound... stuffy, like those skeptics who told you that this planet was already looted of all of it's wealth. Just Ren. Please."

Anarus smiled. "Okay, Ren. But your name literally means the vigilant guardian fox. It's quite the honor. It's a lot better than that other name that your mother wanted to rename you as. I need to head over here and see what they found. Why don't you head back to the tents and see about getting us both something prepared for eating."

Ren smiled. "Right, dad. I'll do that. Don't get cursed!" And he turned and headed off in the direction of the tents.

Anarus chuckled, as he began toward the sealed crypt. "Cursed. Where does he get these ideas?"

Ren, who had sandy brown hair, muscular tanned skin, and blue eyes, continued through the mounds of boulders and into the nearby woods on the other side. The camp wasn't too far beyond that and the woods were cool and comfortable at night. As he arrived on the edge of the camp, he noted tall skinny black clad locals wearing masks and muzzle guards rummaging through the archaeologist's equipment. And he just as quickly gave off a shout.

"Hey! What are you doing?!"

And immediately, they dropped everything they were holding and bolted off into the woods!

And Ren quickly gave chase! They had been led to believe that the Planet Verminoi no longer had anyone living there. Yet now, Ren was chasing these two humanoids who both appeared to have rat tails. After a short chase, however, Ren emerged from the woods in the ruins of what appeared to be an ancient temple.

"Oh man... what is this place?" Ren breathlessly exclaimed. "Dad should see this place later." And he slowly walked into the ruins, glancing around for the two he had chased to this location. As he carefully picked his way into the ruins, he made a slight miscalculation in stepping, and what he thought was solid ground just ahead suddenly gave way and he fell with a brief shout down into the darkness below.

End of Chapter 01

[Lord Pouchlaw]

Chapter 02

Rainger Estate on Mt. Hood, Oregon

It had been six months since that fateful day on Planet Verminoi, but Ren had come out of the ordeal with perhaps the most important find of the expedition: a stone tablet that told of an ancient battle that resulted in the destruction of the once highly advanced civilization of Verminoi, which was, not surprisingly, populated by rodent people. As for the two figures that Ren had chased that day, he never saw them again. But he often sensed that they were still keeping an eye on him.

Today, however, he and his father were back on Earth at their Oregon home hosting a local high school field trip. Ren wasn't too thrilled over having all of these strangers in their home. But Professor Rainger was all too pleased to show the students around his archeology exhibits from China, which is, of course, the only reason all of these students were there.

Ren could easily overhear a selection of the students who had gotten off by themselves.

"I am telling you, Varvara," a male voice remarked. "We just can't take Janet anywhere."

Varvara replied, "I know, Orion. I don't see how Rikki puts up with being the target of two separate girls."

A female's voice said, "Rikki isn't a target. He's the prize. Besides, everyone knows that Janet is too temperamental, like my grandmother, to actually win this contest. I simply have all the right moves."

Rikki growled, "And they are all skanky moves, too, Brittney! Don't listen to that bitch, Janet! You don't have to prove a thing!"

Janet placed her hands on her hips and replied, "At least I don't spend 40 years powdering my nose in the girl's bathroom!"

Brittney grinned. "No, you simply go down both legs."

Mike whispered to Wallace, "Aren't you going to step in and make them stop, Wally?"

Wally grinned, as he quietly replied, "No. I only get involved with cute Australians. You know me."

Timmy chuckled over on the side, careful not to laugh openly toward the girls.

SLAP! Janet slapped Brittney's face audibly. The teachers at the school were used to Janet's and Brittney's tirades and were wisely ignoring the two.

"OW!" Brittney whined. "I'll get you for that, you Tom Boy!"

Rikki turned and said to Orion, "It's times like this when I would wish to be with my 4th cousin in Briarwood. It just HAS to be quieter down there."

Orion chuckled a little. "Shall we try to move the group onward and try to find the professor?"

Janet grinned. "In your dreams, Brittney! All you have to do is hit me back hard enough to mean it and I'd never argue with you again! But you would never do that because you are too WIMPY to have any real BALLS! And THAT is the main reason Rikki likes me better than you and that's because I can hold my own against him!"

End of Chapter 02

[Lord Pouchlaw]

Chapter 03

Ren was happy when the mouthy teenagers finally got a move on and rejoined his father, the professor, in one of the display chambers. But as luck would have it, the teenagers had mistimed themselves and had missed the bus returning to their school. As Orion and Varvara were on the phones calling their parents, Janet was looking at an ancient stone fragment on a pedestal. She carefully picked up the heavy stone and was looking at the carvings when Brittney walked over and rudely tried to grab the stone out of Janet's hands.

And in the next split instant, everything seemed to happen at once.

A deafening explosion went off where the stone had struck the floor, causing everyone in the chamber to hit the floor. In the midst of the explosion's smoke was a massive dragon and he looked completely irate.

Ren quickly grabbed one of his father's spears off of the wall and planted himself between the others and the dragon. "Return to whence you came, dragon! Begone!" He pointed the spear at the dragon, as the others were regaining their standing positions.

The dragon, who hadn't a clue as to what Ren had said, replied in Ancient Chinese, /"Who broke my tablet?"/

Anarus said to the others, "He's speaking in Ancient Chinese. I will speak to him. Ren, stay at the ready." And then he exclaimed to the dragon, /"None of the rest of these humans speak your language, great dragon. I am Professor Anarus Rainger. This is my son Ren. You are within our home in North America far across the sea from China."/

The great divinely powerful dragon god replied, /"I am Razylymiirgolos Andrakkan, the Armored Winged Sentinel of the Greater Assassins. But I do not think you should tell these children and your son that. Tell them that I am called Rocket. That should suffice. An enemy of mine has escaped from his imprisonment and is likely loose once again in your world. I am forbidden to fight against Lei No Kung myself, but I am allowed to choose champions to challenge him in my stead, and these champions would further use the powers that I would give them to defend mankind versus other evils, as well."/

Anarus arched an eye. /"You're talking about Power Rangers! My son would make a fine defender against evil, for his very name means Vigilant Guardian Fox, though he prefers the shortened name of Ren."/

Rocket hummed, as he looked Ren over with a quick cursory inspection. /"Yes, he is built for the task at hand. But this is not a task he could do alone. Let me choose a few of the others and your son can lead them."/ And with that, he turned his gaze to the others one at a time.

When Brittney was looked at, she not only wet herself, but she fainted.

Janet quietly chuckled. "The pot calls the kettle black. One look from a dragon and she goes down both legs." Then Rocket eyed Janet and got an eye right back.

When Rocket turned to look at Mike and Timmy, Wally stepped deliberately into the line of sight, saying, "No. You leave them be. You will not be eating my friends today."

Rocket then turned to Anarus once again and said, /"Send the others home and keep the ones known as Orion, Janet, Varvara, Rikki, and Wallace here in your home. Along with your son, they are my choices for Earth's newest Power Rangers."/ And with that, he sat back and smiled a little, while gazing out a nearby window.

End of Chapter 03

[Lord Pouchlaw]

Chapter 04

After the other students were placed in a private car and chauffeured off of the mountain where the Rainger Estate sat, the remaining teenagers and Ren stood in the back yard all lined up as Anarus and Rocket conversed quietly. Finally, however, Rocket placed his claw gently upon Anarus' neck and chanted a spell. There was a glow that was brief, then Rocket turned once again to face the others and said... in English...

"Am I correct in assuming that this is your language?"

Orion exclaimed, "Hey! He speaks Terran!" Then he quickly shut up.

Anarus said, "Rocket was learning my collection of languages just now. I am very glad he used that one just now and not some of the others. In my line of work, it is important to know a LOT of languages."

Janet smirked, then said, "I owe you, Professor, for getting rid of my arch rival a little earlier. So what does this dragon want with us?"

Rocket said, "I won't trouble you with my Chinese name, therefore all I will tell you is that I am called Rocket. As for what I want, an enemy of mine has escaped imprisonment and has come to your country. He intends to conquer your homeland." He eyed Orion at that point for a moment before continuing. "I am not allowed to fight him myself as long as he is here on Earth. But I am allowed to choose champions to fight against him for me. And I have chosen Ren and the rest of you. You will become Earth's newest Power Rangers."

Rikki glanced to all of the others, then at Rocket again. "US? You have got to be joking! Did you hit your head or something? No one in their right mind would choose US! They might choose Ren, I must admit... but there is no way in Hell, Hades, or the Abyss that anyone in their right mind would choose the rest of us!"

Rocket grinned. "All the more reason to choose you. If no one else would suspect you of being Power Rangers, then your enemies would not suspect it either."

Rikki fell silent at that logic.

Janet whispered, "Oooh, Rikki is silent. Watch out, guys."

Rocket then said, "Ren will lead the rest of you. Not because he is older, but because I feel that you can learn from him. And... he can learn from you. A leader who thinks that he knows everything, knows nothing in depth. Therefore, Ren will be your leader. And now... I must give forth your powers. And explain how they work. And..."

Wallace then interrupted Rocket. "Um, sorry to butt in, Mr. Rocket, sir, but I don't want to be a Power Ranger." He sighed. "There are... circumstances... which would prevent my helping... um... yeah..."

Anarus arched an eye, then said, "Rocket, you focus on empowering the others. Wallace, please come and step into my office with me. I want to talk to you in private."

Wallace gulped quietly, but did as he was asked, and followed Professor Rainger into the estate mansion.

Rocket then said, "It's all very easy. First, I give you your morpher bracelets, then I teach you the words of power."

End of Chapter 04

[Lord Pouchlaw]

Chapter 05

Rocket handed out the bracers to each person. "The words are, Spirits of Yin, you then push the white button. Then, Spirits of Yang, and you push the black button. And then you shout out your elemental Tao power. Each of your bracers are of an elemental color. Blue is water. Green is wind. Please give it a try."

Ren struck his battle pose as he raised his morpher bracelet over his chest. "Spirits of Yin!" He pressed the white Yin button. "Spirits of Yang!" He pressed the black Yang button. "Tao Power! Fire!" Suddenly, a huge rotating Yin and Yang symbol appeared above him as he leaped upwards and through the revolving symbol. His surroundings became that of a torii gateway in Japan, as the sun, the moon, the stars, and the flames of his freedom all exploded into the brightest inferno ever created. As the fires dimmed, he was wearing his Tao Ranger uniform of red, silver, and chrome, with his shining silver gloves and glittering silver boots. A belt with the Yin and Yang symbol appeared around his waist. Then his helmet formed over his head, as an army of red phoenix soldiers wearing shogun armor appeared just behind him. Then the whole scene exploded in a blast of flames as he was once again with the others. "Red Phoenix Ranger! Tao Fire!"

Orion struck his battle pose as he raised his morpher bracelet over his chest. "Spirits of Yin!" He pressed the white Yin button. "Spirits of Yang!" He pressed the black Yang button. "Tao Power! Earth!" Suddenly, a huge rotating Yin and Yang symbol appeared above him as he leaped upwards and through the revolving symbol. His surroundings became that of a torii gateway in Japan, as the sun, the moon, the stars, and the mountains of his resolve all erupted into the rockiest quake ever created. As the earthquake subsided, he was wearing his Tao Ranger uniform of yellow, silver, and chrome, with his shining silver gloves and glittering silver boots. A belt with the Yin and Yang symbol appeared around his waist. Then his helmet formed over his head, as an army of yellow sphinx soldiers wearing shogun armor appeared just behind him. Then the whole scene exploded in an eruption of boulders as he was once again with the others. "Yellow Sphinx Ranger! Tao Earth!"

Janet struck her battle pose as she raised her morpher bracelet over her chest. "Spirits of Yin!" She pressed the white Yin button. "Spirits of Yang!" She pressed the black Yang button. "Tao Power! Water!" Suddenly, a huge rotating Yin and Yang symbol appeared above her as she leaped upwards and through the revolving symbol. Her surroundings became that of a torii gateway in Japan, as the sun, the moon, the stars, and the waters of her soul all exploded into the brightest light ever created. As the light dimmed, she was wearing her Tao Ranger uniform of light blue, silver, and chrome, with her shining silver gloves and glittering silver boots. A belt with the Yin and Yang symbol appeared around her waist. Then her helmet formed over her head, as a navy of blue seahorse soldiers wearing shogun armor appeared just behind her. Then the whole scene flared brightly as she was once again with the others. "Blue Seahorse Ranger! Tao Water!"

Varvara struck her battle pose as she raised her morpher bracelet over her chest. "Spirits of Yin!" She pressed the white Yin button. "Spirits of Yang!" She pressed the black Yang button. "Tao Power! Water!" Suddenly, a huge rotating Yin and Yang symbol appeared above her as she leaped upwards and through the revolving symbol. Her surroundings became that of a torii gateway in Japan, as the sun, the moon, the stars, and the winds of her nobility all exploded into the most powerful wind ever created. As the wind subsided, she was wearing her Tao Ranger uniform of light green, silver, and chrome, with her shining silver gloves and glittering silver boots. A belt with the Yin and Yang symbol appeared around her waist. Then her helmet formed over her head, as a flight of green griffin soldiers wearing shogun armor appeared just behind her. Then the whole scene exploded in a burst of feathers and fur as she was once again with the others. "Green Griffin Ranger! Tao Wind!"

Rikki struck his battle pose as he raised his morpher bracelet over his chest. "Spirits of Yin!" He pressed the white Yin button. "Spirits of Yang!" He pressed the black Yang button. "Tao Power! Shadow!" Suddenly, a huge rotating Yin and Yang symbol appeared above him as he leaped upwards and through the revolving symbol. His surroundings became that of a torii gateway in Japan, as the sun, the moon, the stars, and the shadows of his soul all exploded into the inkiest darkness ever created. As the darkness diminished, he was wearing his Tao Ranger uniform of black, silver, and chrome, with his shining silver gloves and glittering silver boots. A belt with the Yin and Yang symbol appeared around his waist. Then his helmet formed over his head, as an army of black dragon soldiers wearing shogun armor appeared just behind him. Then the whole scene exploded in dark smoke as he was once again with the others. "Black Dragon Ranger! Tao Shadow!"

Then they all shouted, "Power Rangers Tao!"

End of Chapter 05

[Lord Pouchlaw]

Chapter 06

Meanwhile, back inside the mansion, Wallace was seated in a chair facing across the office desk of Anarus Rainger. The professor was seated on the other side.

"Would you mind explaining to me why you cannot become a Power Ranger, Wallace?"

Wallace sighed, figiting nervously in his chair. "Because... because..." he paused blushing deeply and frowning. "...because I am... gay," he whispered.

Anarus arched an eye. "I don't understand how that would prevent you from becoming a Power Ranger, Wallace. How long have you been... in the closet, so to speak?"

Wallace sighed, a few tears developing in his eyes. "Since just after a trip to my cousins ranch in Texas last year. I met a boy down there and... we hit it off pretty well. We went swimming at a private swimming hole, rode horseback at night in the nude, and... we had sex... it was my first time. And he's good, too. Not long after that, dad's company called saying that they needed him back up here as soon as possible, and we were all rushed back to Oregon. I didn't even get to say goodbye to the boy I met. He probably thinks that I am upset with him. But I'm not. I really like him. Afterward, however... I found that I wasn't interested in girls anymore. I didn't think playing around one time would change the way I was, Mr. Rainger. But it had changed me. And I quickly had to pretend to be normal in front of all of the others. Except I am not normal. I'll never be normal again. And because I am gay and because I don't want you suspecting me of trying to have sex with Ren, I cannot become a Power Ranger. I'm sorry." He was quietly sobbing after that.

Anarus said, "How old do you think Ren is, Wallace?"

Wallace sighed again. "Well, I figured he had private tutoring here at the estate. I'd never seen him in school, but he is really built. I was thinking that he was sixteen like I was."

Anarus actually chuckled. "That is the second time I have heard that age guess. Rocket thought Ren was sixteen, too. Ren is 21 years old, Wallace. He's an adult. He chooses to live with me and help me on my digs. If he wanted to play with you, my only thoughts on the matter would be that he got your permission first. But he doesn't think about boys or girls. I guess he's not to that stage yet."

Wallace said, "So you wouldn't mind my having sex with your son?"

Anarus replied, "As long as you got permission from Ren first, then I have no say so in what he does with his friends. He's old enough to make his own decisions, Wallace. Thing is, aside from me and a few of the other planetary dig team members, Ren has no Terran friends that I know of. He has three pet rats that he talks to, but aside from that..."

Wallace arched an eye now. "Pet rats? What are their names?"

Anarus smiled. "Maxter, Damon, and Dominik. Ren claims that he can actually speak 'to' them and they understand him and actually reply. I don't know if I believe that, but as long as Ren is happy, he can claim whatever he wants."

Wallace smiled, too. "It's nice to have pets. I wish I could meet the three rats."

Anarus stood up. "I will introduce you to them if you promise not to veto your ever being a Power Ranger. Someday, you may want to be one. And on that day, you can join the others."

Wallace nodded his head as he stood up and shook Anarus' hand. "I promise, sir. I won't veto the idea."

End of Chapter 06

[Lord Pouchlaw]

Chapter 07

Translated from the ancient Chinese

Lei No Kung was finishing the touches on his cloud palace, when something that sounded like a gong attracted his attention to an oval viewing globe. /"So, Razylymiirgolos Andrakkan has come after me. And he has given his power to a new breed of warriors. Then I must summon a group of warriors of my own."/

/"From the Pocket Dimension of Tazuka, the evil hybrid lord of oriental lore... Prince Raconuki."/

/"From the far away Rodent Galaxy, the villainous and powerful space pirate... Captain Scar Wratheratt."/

/"From the forbidden oceans of the Planet Aquitar... Amphibian Lord Kon Darnage."/

/"From the depths of the ever-flowing oozes of the Tartarus plane... the hideous King Falthezar."/

/"And from the heart of a lost Amazon empire in the center of the Earth... Amazon Queen Driada."/

Lei No Kung laughed out loud as he sent out the summons for his evil and villainous allies.

Moments later, the five treacherous villains were gathered before Lei No Kung.

Raconuki glanced at the others, then snubbed his nose as he turned to Lei No Kung. /"I can understand why you would summon me, old friend. But why do you need the rest of this riffraff?"/

Lei No Kung quietly replied, /"For entertainment value, of course. They all claim to be the best evils that the universe can produce. All I am proposing to them is a contest between them all. You don't have to compete with them, as you and I are fully well familiar with who is the best. But they... would have challenged us eventually, therefore... we keep them where we can see them and send them after my enemies."/

Raconuki slyly grinned. /"You are so clever, Lei No Kung. I like how you think."/

Lei No Kung then got everyone's attention. /"Attention my villainous allies! I brought all of you here for a contest! Each of you claim to be the BEST villain in the universe! The contest is simple! Each of you will be given a chance to take out my arch enemy's new team of warriors! They call themselves... the Tao Rangers!"/

Driada exclaimed, /"And what is in this for us if we win?"/

Lei No Kung replied with a smile, /"You will have the pleasure and the honor of wiping out your fellow opponents AND the added reward of your choice. We have to be fair, you know. The winner would obviously not wish to leave challengers in their wake who might seek revenge on your title of being the greatest villain in the universe. Who is in and who is too cowardly to prove that they are the best villain?"/

One at a time, each evil power accepted the challenge until all of them had agreed to join the contest. Then, Lei No Kung said, /"Each of you will be assigned to a Tao Ranger who you will go out of your way to humiliate in every battle. This shall make the contest a bit more interesting. And I will focus my energies upon Razylymiirgolos Andrakkan, for I know ways of slaying oriental dragons. And we certainly don't want him giving out more power to anyone else, do we?"/

End of Chapter 07