Disclaimer:The Power Rangers are the property of Disney and I lay no claim to them. MackenzieDekalb belongs to Karilee. Cassandra Jensen belongs to Helen. S Club 7 is licensed by 19 Entertainment and Rachel Stevens appears courtesy of Adam Pearlman's fic work.. Shadow is a take on the character Billy brought to life by David Knight. The name McAllister-Keller is taken from the series called "'The Master'. Anything else not mentioned is not mine either except for Jeffrey Kincaid and the Night Rangers.

After the Siege Part 21 – Homecoming
By: John Chubb

The Kincaid family home had been quiet for a while. No pregnant wife. No dutiful husband.

Cassandra Jensen had no knowledge of the wife's disappearance as she made her way up the steps to the Kincaid family home hoping to check in on the pregnant Mackenzie Dekalb. It had been 8 months since Kincaid first left for his interdimensional jaunt, and four since he dropped in with an alternate version of the child his girlfriend was carrying.

"I'm starting to wonder if Jeff isn't turning into a deadbeat dad." Cassandra said as she made her way into the house. "Mackenzie?" she called out. But no answer came forth.

"Mackenzie? You here?" Cassandra asked. Still no answer. And now Cassandra was getting worried. _She made no plans to go anywhere._ she thought as she looked around the house turning up nothing.

Cassandra then went upstairs looking in all the rooms until she came to the bedroom. Mackenzie was gone. No trace of her was in the home. Cassandra felt her fear rise up as she realized something terrible must have happened to her friend.

She made her way to the phone when something flashed in the driveway. A motorcade of ten motorcycles. On them were the Night Rangers...and Mackenzie.

"What is happening here?" Cassandra asked.

* * *

Immediately Cassandra raced out of the house and raced up to where the Night Rangers and Mackenzie had ridden up. "Cassandra!" Mackenzie shouted as she got off Kincaid's Harley.

"Mackenzie!" Cassandra said rushing to her friend's side. "What happened. Where did you go? When did the Night Rangers get back?"

"Just now." Mackenzie said. "In fact I was with them for a time." Cassandra looked curious and asked. "What?"

"Long story." Cassandra said. "But apparently an immortal version of Billy needed my help to get Jeff back under control." Cassandra looked in Kincaid's direction as he got off along with the Night Rangers. He went to Cassandra's side and said "Hello Cassandra." in a deadpan voice. A voice eerily reminiscent of the Kincaid of old.

"Is Kincaid okay?" Cassandra asked. Mackenzie sighed and said "Not really."

"What happened?" Cassandra asked. Sarah stepped forward and said "Harper happened."

Cassandra listened to the story and was stunned by what she had heard. "I think I need to make some calls."

* * *

At the new Power Chamber the New Turbo Rangers were assembled. The computer version of Zordon appearing before all of them.

"Congratulations Rangers." Zordon said to the five teens assembled: Ivana, Sylvie Larson, Marco Ramonos, Tom Li. "I am pleased to see the Turbo Rangers being rebuilt in the manner they are presented. However the final rebuilding of the team is not yet complete."

"Not yet complete?" Sylvie asked. "What more do we have to do?" Zordon was about to explain when a call came in through the comm line. It was Cassandra.

"Justin. I need you to come to the Kincaid house as quickly as possible." Cassandra said. "It's important.

"Cassandra. We're kind of busy here." Justin said in the comm line. "We're trying to put together the rest of the Turbo team. Cassandra sighed in understanding but she needed Justin and who he had present.

"Justin whatever it is you're doing drop it." Cassandra said. "Kincaid and the Night Rangers have returned." This got Justin's attention as Cassandra added "And there's something wrong with him."

"What?" Justin asked.

"I don't know." Cassandra said. "I just don't know."

The message signed off and the new Turbos turned to Zordon. "Zordon. Something must be wrong."

"I agree with your assessment Justin." Zordon said. "The final element can wait for another time." The Turbos nodded and with that made for their Turbo Vehicles to head back to the Kincaid house.

* * *

Mobile Safehouse
Planet Hades

Andros was sitting in the computer room looking through files while Ashley came walking in. "Keeping busy?" she asked.

"Yeah." Andros said. "I've been monitoring some tears in the fabric of reality. Like someone has been crossing over from one world to another." Ashley then asked "You think it's Karone?"

"I don't know." Andros said. "If it was I think she'd be in contact with me." Just then, as if on cue Karone's image appeared on the screen. "Hey big brother." Karone said.

"Karone?" Andros asked. "You made it back?"

"Pretty much, but there's a lot I need to talk to you about. Look we're all meeting at the Kincaid house and we're then heading to the Mobile safehouse. You going to be there when we show up?"

"Of course." Andros said. "But what happened?"

"Not over the comm line Andros. Please, wait until we arrive." Andros nodded and said that he would. In the meantime he was looking through some historical files.

Night Ranger historical files.

* * *

Sure enough when everyone arrived at the Kincaid home, everyone made tracks for the Mobile Safehouse. Once in the main meeting room Kincaid took the center to give as much of an explanation as he could.

"A lot happened to us. I don't know where to begin. We revived some Rangers that were killed before, some were counterparts to friends we had here. Tommy, Jason, Kim. They were bonded toTransformers like you saw in the cartoons. And we all had to gather together to find these Matrixes in order to stop an ultimate weapon that would have destroyed countless realities."

"That sounds a little over the top Jeff." Bruce said. Kincaid couldn't help but agree. "I know. We seemed so out of place, but there we were. Crossing realities, acquiring these Matrixes until Harper came."

"What did he do?" Carter asked.

Kyle then spoke as Kincaid had a hard time finding the words. "Two girls named Katie Star and Jessie belle saw Harper duck behind a crevice. They went after him only for Harper to get the jump on them. He brought them to the top of a rock face and...." Kyle broke off as Sorrero spoke completing the sentence Kyle had trouble finishing.

"He snapped their necks, and let them fall to the ground dead." Everyone was stunned to hear that.

"Oh my god." Cassandra said. "He just…killed them…for no reason?"

"Oh there was a reason." Kincaid said. "He wanted their deaths on my head, just because I wouldn't stoke his ego and say that I was beneath him."

"That's not a good reason." Dana said. "That's sick. And pathetic."

"Jeff thought so to." Karone said. "That was why he fought Harper until he was dangling over some flaming pit. When Harper tried to drag Jeff down he....sent Harper falling in."

"So Harper's burning in Hell?" Kelsey asked. "Sounds appropriate."

"Maybe." Kincaid said. "But I don't know."

"Jeff it wasn't your fault." Kathy said. "How many times do we have to say that?" Kincaid didn't answer as he was trying to answer the question himself. "I just need a moment alone. Figure things out."

"Come on guys." Alison said. "There must be some trouble we can get into." Everyone then left leaving Kincaid alone.

* * *

After everyone left Kincaid sat alone pondering everything that had happened to him, and the world he had come back to.

He thought Justin rebuilding the Turbo Rangers was a good thing. It never hurt to have more Rangers on hand if the need arised. However when he read reports of other ranger teams rising up he wondered if he shouldn't have had second thoughts to the Turbos reassembling. He looked through the files on Time Force and was surprised to see the sight of the Pink Time Force Ranger, as she looked exactly like the Grey Witch Karla from the I.D. War. _Something to look into I guess._ he thought. In the town of Turtle Cove there was a team fighting creatures named Orgs with living beasts. They seemed to be having trouble with a Duke Org named Zen-Aku. Kincaid made a mental note to visit the Cove and have a _chat_ with Zen-Aku. He also heard of two ninja academies looking to develop their own separate Ranger programs, not to mention the chat he had with Tommy-who was looking to develop his own program with gems he had found and technology he picked up from Anton Mercer industries.

Did the world need the Night Rangers anymore? Did the world need Power Rangers anymore?

"Maybe not this one, but others do."

Kincaid turned around and saw Shadow standing behind him. "Well, kind of interesting that you can sneakup behind me like that."

"I've practiced at it." Shadow said with a smirk beneath his mask. "Have you thought about what I said?"

"What, going interdimensional? I'm not sure." Shadow asked "Why not?"

"I can't keep doing missions, or other Ranger business." Kincaid said. "There are reasons Rangers retire, as they have their own lives to live." Kincaid thought of Mackenzie as he said that. But Shadow was still persistent.

"There are others with lives too." Shadow then placed a holo globe on Kincaid's desk. Soon images appeared on Kincaid's desktop. Images of despair, pain, suffering, worlds oppressed. Shadow looked at Kincaid and added "All this could be prevented if the Night Rangers helped out."

"You really want these powers don't you?" Kincaid asked.

"It's not a matter of want, it's a matter of need." Shadow said. "And after everything that you've seen there, those Marauders and what they did to those people, don't you think they deserve Night Ranger punishment?"

Kincaid sighed as he thought of the images presented to him. An organizing of people looking to shoot for the stars. Then when they were approaching their dream it was taken away by another. When the people spoke out their organization was ruthlessly crushed by clone soldiers. And if that wasn't enough their leader seemed to join the new government and served as a right hand to the corrupt ruler.

And what was the message to the losers? 'deal with it'.

To Kincaid, what was seen was evil. Taking the poor, downtrodden and disenfranchised and leading them over a cliff for one's own gain and in the end told to 'deal with it'. And there was no one to avenge it. Or to fight for the justice the victims deserved.

"I don't have a lot of missions left." Kincaid said. "And I have Mickey and the baby to consider."

"You don't have to go right away." Shadow said. "It'll be there when you need it." Kincaid nodded. He had responsibilities to his new family to consider first.

But he would visit that world at some point, and he would see that justice was done.

* * *

At the beach in Port Clinton the other nine Night Rangers sat trying to enjoy the sun and the water. However they quickly realized that an Ohio beach was nothing like a California beach. For one thing there was a nip in the air that brought about a chill.

Kathy wondered if the chill in the air however wasn't a precursor of things to come.

"Oh man." David said as he came in out of the waves. The sunlight reflecting off his silver trunks. "The water's colder than the air."

"Yeah well I see some things that are definitely hot to me." Sorrero said as he looked over in Sarah's direction. Sarah was wearing a golden bikini that had sunlight reflect off of it. Several boys were surrounding her fawning over her attention. David was about to go over to her side but Alison interrupted.

"Save it ninja boy." Alison said. "There may be no bar window but there is someplace they can throw you if you know what I mean." Alison then went over to where Sarah stood and started flirting herself.

"That girl sure knows how to live." Kathy said. Jessica sat next to her saying "Or tempt fate."

Karone then came over to sit next to her teammates, later to be joined by Ken and Kyle. "Wow, Karone. I thought you'd be fighting off boys with a stick." Kathy said.

"Don't think I wasn't." Karone said. "I just said I had a boyfriend and pointed towards Kyle." Kyle looked wide eyed as Karone said "Don't worry. It's just for show."

"No prob." Kyle said. "I'd date you in a second." He then sighed as he thought of the question on everyone's mind. "What do we do now?"

"Go back to our lives I guess." Jessica said. Kathy then added "Some of us just have to figure out what those lives are though."

"Oh yeah. Forgot." Jessica added. "You were reborn and thrust into a war situation. Haven't figured out what to do with your life yet."

"I guess the answer will come to me." Kathy said. She then turned to Kyle and said "You two going back to Lightspeed?"

"Yeah. We still have our judicial stay to handle." He said referring to himself and Sorerro. "We'll still do some rangering though."

"I think all of us will." Karone said. "Meanwhile I think Zhane is waiting for me. I really should put his mind at ease. Not to mention Andros's."

"And somebody should tell Alison to contact her sister." David added as Alison and Sarah continued to flirt. But when one decided to make a pass at them Alison and Sarah both kicked the guys' butts sending the others running. Alison and Sarah rejoined their party and Alison said "No one likes a strong woman. Go figure."

"I think they like strong women Ali." Ken said. "Just not women that can kill in many different ways." Everyone chuckled at that. David then mentioned that everyone was talking about what was going to happen next.

"Well Kane's probably back on the hunt for us." Sarah said. "We'll have to be on guard for him." David nodded. "Ken, what about you?"

Ken sighed as he tried to find his answer. "I am troubled. The war has brought me a state of peace that was all too fleeting. I need to find that peace again. Only without drugs."

With that Kathy pulled out nine drinks. One for each Ranger. "A toast then. May we all find what we're looking for."

"Here hear." All the Night Rangers said enjoying the rest of their day at the beach, before going their separate ways, for the time being.

For while one evil was vanquished. Another was ready to rise in its place.

* * *

Iocaste

Inside a run down castle Michelle Caris looked out among the ruined landscape of Iocaste. It sickened her to see a ruined, run down planet every time she looked outside. She needed to get off world and get off quickly.

It hadn't been long since her last encounter with Kincaid and the Nightfighters. Only a few months. But for much of that time they had been wandering aimlessly. Wanting revenge for their defeat. That was when HE appeared before them. HE who made an offer to her and Thandros.

'Join him or die' was the offer. Simple and plain as day. Caris and Thandros readily accepted. Both were intrigued by the offer. Especially the "'unexpected dividends'.

One such "'dividend' she looked in on right now as she strolled the halls of the prison level and came to one cell.

Caris looked in the cell to see her "'toy' sobbing in the corner. She studied the figure and sneered at how she had fallen in life. From pop star sensation to dungeon prisoner. Caris looked at the figure studying everything about her.

Golden brown hair was now full of dirt and streaks. Her clothes, made by designers were now torn and dirty. Her shoes destroyed leaving her with bare feet and calluses. Her sense of hope dashed as she now started to believe no one would be coming for her. It didn't seen so long ago that she defiantly said that her boyfriend would be there for her. Now she doubted he ever would.

"When will the scientist want to begin his experiment?" Caris asked.

"Twelve hours from now." the aid said.

"Open the door." Caris said as she reached up to grab a whip from the wall. The door opened and the young woman in the cell looked up.

"Hello Rachel. Enjoying your stay?" Caris said with a sneer.

Rachel Stevens looked up at the figure before her. If there was one face that could allow her to set aside her fear and sorrow, it was the face before her as it put her through so much torment. When Rachel saw the face of Caris the first emotion through her mind was hatred. Hatred for all the torment that she was put through by the hands of Caris.

"Trying to fry my head?" Caris laughed. "You can't you know. The drugs forbid that."

Rachel just stared at Caris digesting what she had said. Rachel had no idea how long she had been a prisoner. wherever she was. The only scenery she saw was ruins across a bleak landscape. The sky as dark as night. Then her pain began.

She could hardly remember everything that happened to her. So much a blur. She remembered screaming, needles entering her skin causing her convulsions. Then someone advancing on her…and just as that someone advanced it screamed and was sent to the ground convulsing. Soon everyone rallied around her trying to figure out what happened. In the background she heard a voice.

"Confirmed. She has latent telepathic ability."

"Due to my treatments?" the scientist asked.

"Negative. She's always had the gene. Somehow it jumpstarted." The scientist then turned and smiled. This meant that other experiments could be….conducted. And conducted they were.

Rachel lost track of all that was done. Sometimes she felt her body being torn inside out. Molded and shaped. Sometimes she felt her mind being heavy as if trapped in a realm of blackness. She later found out that she was put through a matter transformer and turned into a statue. She was changed back, ut not before pictures were taken of the various statues she was turned into. Then other tortures were devised. Tortures Caris enjoyed.

Throughout it all Rachel saw Caris's face. A face she had come to hate. Even more than the scientist using her as a guinea pig.

'So what next?" Rachel said through clenched teeth. "You going to turn me into a she-wolf or something?"

"Now there's an idea." Caris said. "I'll plan that for next week." Rachel then fell silent as if not wanting to give Caris anymore ideas for experiments and tortures.

"My friends will come." Rachel said clinging to hope as best she could. "Adam will come."

"I doubt that.' Caris said. "Even if they knew you were gone, they don't know where to look for you. You are so far gone they can't even begin to fathom where you are. Which leaves you all to ourselves." Rachel felt a gulp of fear, but tried to hold it back. She was not going to give Caris the satisfaction of seeing her scared.

"It could be worse you know. This could happen to you." Caris brought forth a video image of a girl strapped to a bed. He was wearing a pink skimpy number as she looked around in fear. Suddenly the door opened and a monster walked in. The look in his eyes was one of hunger.

Unfortunately for the girl it was not a hunger associated with food, but a different kind of hunger.

"Hello Dana." the monster said as it looked at the image of Dana Mitchell. Caris looked at Michelle and smiled. "You know who that is? That's your boyfriend's sister. A sister he's only now finding out he had." Rachel looked at the image and couldn't help but ask "What are you going to do with her?" even though she knew the answer.

On the viewer the straps holding Dana were loosened and she tried to escape. Quickly she jumped off the bed and ran for the door only to be stopped by the strong arms of the monster. Caris laughed as she saw the monster manhandle Dana back to the bed as she screamed "NO! LET ME GO!!!" She tried to maneuver for a kick to the groin but a hard slap to the face knocked her back down. In the dungeon Caris laughed amused by what she saw. Rachel was sickened.

"How can you find this funny?" Rachel screamed. "That monster is going to rape her."

"Because her rapist." Caris said with a sneer. "Is the man she loves." Rachel looked horrified as Caris explained. "The Emperor captured him and twisted him into the form he is now. In a sense that monster has been raped just as much as that girl will be now." Rachel then looked on in horror as the monster brought himself down onto Dana Ripping off her clothes and bringing himself on top of her. Forcing himself onto her. Into her.

Through it all Dana screamed. Sometimes she was slapped for her screams. A face that brought so much joy to the lives of friends was now tear streaked and full of pain. Through it all all Rachel could do was watch.

Finally, mercifully the monster was done and he walked off leaving Dana alone on the ground. What clothes she had were torn. Her figure ravaged, her face bruised. And through it all tears continued to fall down her face. "You know, it's a pity that we haven't gotten this far with you. That all we've been able to do on you is torture….and experiments."

"You already tried to rape me." Rachel said with a hint of a smile. "They all failed."

"And you fried the minds of everyone who tried." Caris said. "But don't worry, we'll find a way around your mental powers and get to your….goodies. then your real pain will begin." Caris then turned to leave as Rachel screamed "Why are you doing this?!"

Caris turned and looked Rachel in the eye before opening the door. The answer came forward with an evil smile on Caris's face. "Because it's fun. What more reason do I need?" After that Caris left the dungeon leaving Rachel alone with a new round of torturers.

Screams of pain and tears echoed throughout the hall from Rachel. Sounds of laughter echoed from Caris.

* * *

Planet Hades

As Mackenzie looked out at the night sky of Hades, she was surprised how short it seemed to get there now. Even without teleport it all seemed like a hop skip and a jump away as time went on.

She then turned and walked up to Kincaid as he kept staring out at the night sky of Hades. She wrapped her arms around him as if trying to offer him comfort. Kincaid brought his hand up to Mackenzie's and held it as he said his next sentence.

"Nothing's the same anymore."

"What do you mean?" Mackenzie asked. "I'm here. The rest of our friends are here."

"The world seems so different now." Kincaid responded. "I always figured I would retire when I rebuilt the Night Rangers, as well as help to reestablish a strong presence here. But now...."

"Is this because of Shadow?" Mackenzie asked. "Or Katie and Jessica?"

"I guess it's a lot of things." Kincaid said. "The world just seems so much darker now. As if the light of the universe was being stamped out. And Shadow's request that the powers be used to help other realities......"

"Jeff you can't save the world forever." Mackenzie said. "No matter how many missions you go on. You keep this up...."

"Ranger healing is keeping my heart going. And it will heal totally eventually." Kincaid said. "But it's not my heart physically that's the problem. It's my "'heart' that is the real problem."

Suddenly Mackenzie seemed to understand.

"So much darkness weighs on a soul." Kincaid said. "And I feel the darkness weighing in on mine. I can't let it be the be all and end all of my life. Not anymore."

"And yet you seem to be going back into that breach again." Mackenzie said. "Over and over again. And apparently in many other worlds." Kincaid sighed knowing how right his girlfriend sounded. And he found it strange as a smile crossed her face.

"Then I guess I'd better make sure you have something to come back to. But isn't it a tradition for the man to ask the question?" Kincaid nodded as he cracked a small smile knowing what Mackenzie was getting at. He then got down on one knee and asked the question that changes many lives.

"Mickey, will you marry me?"

Mackenzie smiled as she answered "Yes." Soon the two embraced when the communicator went off and Kincaid reluctantly answered. "Yeah, what is it?"

"Jeff we need you here." Karone said. "Home in on my signal." Kincaid sighed as he looked at his fiancée "Duty calls."

"I'll be here." Mackenzie said as Kincaid left to where his team was located. "What's going on?" he asked. Karone said "See for yourself."

Kincaid went over the rock face as he saw bodies laying in a crater. All knocked out and unconscious. Some even looked familiar as he noticed T.J. Kimberly, Kat, Karone, but one he didn't know. One that was stirring, but barely. Kincaid walked up to the young man in brown hair who seemed to look up, although the strain seemed to be enormous.

"Who the hell are you?" Kincaid asked before the young man collapsed. Kincaid then activated his comm. line and Kathy responded. "This is Kathy I read you."

"Kathy, I need a medivac. Home in on my co-ordinates." Kincaid then signed off as he looked down at the figures before him. He had some suspicions about who the young man was, and had the feeling his new adventures were just beginning.