Staying Alive

Summary: Rachel the red ranger lives to protect the helpless. Rachel the assassin kills to stay alive. Two different worlds, same person. When the hero gone missing, the killer was summoned to her world by accident. What will she do? Why was she here? What joke was fate playing on her this time?

Disclaimer: I do not own the concept of Power Rangers, but the characters and story are mine. :D

Prologue – Gate

The metal claw crashed down and Rachel brought up her blade to meet it. Metals clashed and sparks flew. With a grunt, she forced it back and slashed the gray monster across its chest. She turned just in time and kicked another one on her right.

"Red, you okay there?" The Silver 'Knight' called from somewhere behind her. Rachel slammed her fist into another foot soldier.

"I'm fine!" And I can take care of myself, she thought grumpily.

"But they just keep coming!" Kendra, the pink ranger shouted from her right, "Any ideas?"

"It's the Gate!" Luc, the blue ranger, yelled from the other corner of the square, "The Gate of Scath! We have to shut it down!"

Ian, the black ranger, took down two foot soldiers with a swift kick. "Then do it!"

"We can't!" Erika, the yellow ranger, replied before Luc could. "It's too dangerous! The Gate's pure magic, and only-" A grunt. "-only magic can shut it down! And I don't have that kind of power!"

Coming from the resident sorceress, Rachel didn't doubt her. "Then think of something else! We can't hold them back forever!"

"I don't know 'something else'!"

"Erika-" Rachel growled.

"Now is not the time for this you guys!" Ian interrupted with a irritated growl. For two colors that look good together, Rachel and Erika often didn't get along well.

"How about the trigger?" Luc suggested, "There must be something that triggered all this! If one of us-"

"No!" Erika shouted somewhere from her left, taking care of the creatures trying to escape from the entrance to the square. "That's even worse! Do that and you could be blown into pieces from the explosion! Or go through the other side of the Gate!"

"Where is it?" Rachel demanded, landing a roundhouse kick on one of them.

"Rachel!" Kendra's surprised shout earned her a groan as she was distracted from the battle. "You wouldn't!"

Rachel gritted her teeth. They'd been fighting for one hour straight, some of the foot soldiers already got loose - "Just tell me!"

"Red!"

"You idiot!" Erika spat angrily, "You're doing this on purpose isn't it!"

She scowled and forced her irritation down. They were just tired... they were just tired... "Unless you can think of another way in two minutes, don't stop me! I have the Battle Armor! I'll be fine!"

"But-"

With her free hand, she shut down the open channel and opened communications to only one of them. "Erika, listen-"

"Don't give me-"

"LISTEN! Everyone's getting tired and more vulnerable, the foot soldiers are getting loose, people are getting hurt – we have to stop it! We're rangers!"

"But you don't have to-"

"I have to," she interrupted, gently but firmly, "I'm the only one with the battle armor, I can survive that explosion and I'll be fine! Now tell me where the trigger is."

She might have imagined it, but she thought she heard a sniffle on the other end. A quick glance told her the yellow ranger was still fighting, but the punches were more forceful and thoughtless. "You don't know the things I do, Rae! The explosion-"

"Will be nothing," she told her softly. She had always known why they didn't get along. And she had always known that Erika never meant anything bad. "You're a great friend, Erika, and a great ranger. I'm sorry about the bad things I said to you before, I'm sorry that I hurt you. But you have to let me do what I have to."

"You idiot."

"I know."

For a few moments, all she heard were grunts and punches. "It's the amulet in the middle of the Gate. Just destroy it – you won't have to go near it." Erika finished lamely.

"I know." she replied lightly, knowing that the other girl knew she would have to go there anyway, or else the explosion would get to everyone. "Thank you. Love ya. In a friend sort of way, 'kay?" she added quickly, realizing how it might have sound like.

"Just shut up."

Rachel smiled. She activated the open channel again.

"Red! What were you-"

"Rae!"

"Rachel!"

"What did you-"

"Wish me luck, guys!" she shouted over the noise and pushed forward with renewed strength.

"What do you mean-"

"Rachel!"

"Red! Rachel!"

She halted at the voice. She punched a foot soldier in the eye and risked a backward glance, the knight drowning out all her other friends' voices.

"Rachel! Don't. Please."

"You finally know my name, huh?" She turned back to her battle and fought, now with a smile on her face. He would never know how long she'd waited for him to say that. Maybe he did care after all.

The others were trying to get to her now. She had to move fast. "Battle Armor online!" The crimson armor materialized, covering her chest, shoulders, waist and thighs with the hardest but lightest metal known to men. She shifted her grip and her blade transformed, turning bigger and heavier.

"Rachel!" Several of them yelled in unison.

I love you guys, she thought as loud as she could to Kendra, knowing the telepath would pass it on.

With a war cry, she leaped and flipped, slashing the few minions that dared to get in her way. A huge vortex that glowed with infernal flame loomed overhead, endless foot soldiers coming out of it. A saucer-sized amulet hung in the middle of it all, just a few inches above her head.

Always at the middle, she thought, how cliché.

And with one last cry, she jumped and crush it.