User blog:Thantosiet/Lost Ninjas Deleted Scenes: The Original Version



For a while now, I've been wanting to do something with all the good scenes I had to cut from my series, or find a way to tell the stories I left out. Because I've started uploading Power Rangers: Lost Ninjas here, and because it might just be a good way to attract readers from that series, I'm going to start posting those kinds of snippets here.



Scene
Panting, Diego leaped over a hurled fireball and skidded around a corner. A banner with the Season Ninja Academy’s sigil, a black circle with five smaller blue ones inside it, fell on his head, wrapping around him. Behind him, his pursuer let out a roar of laughter, and aimed another blast at him. Diego ripped the cloth apart, somersaulted beneath the fireball, and kept running. All around him, scrolls were knocked off the walls and paper screens ripped open. The air was full of yelling, roaring and explosions, as monsters and fellow ninja students dueled throughout the school.

Shoving open a door, Diego ran into an ornate room—probably Sensei O’Hara’s office—and glanced around rapidly. The bronze statue in the corner, a robed woman, stood out, and the Hispanic teen quickly darted behind it. He dragged a heavy vase over as well, and crouched down. Taking a moment, he shut his eyes, and slowed his breathing.

The door smashed open, and the monster entered. Diego got his first good look at the thing. Its thick, black armor glinted like coal, and rubbery red skin showed through the gaps. Its face was covered with a helmet, in the style of a medieval knight like the rest of its uniform. A red fireball burned in its left hand.

“Come out, come out, wherever you are,” it sang, its grating voice making Diego wince. He scanned the room a second time, and his dark eyes locked on the glaive hanging on the wall beside the door. Bracing, himself, Diego waited. At last, the monster turned its back to him, and Diego made his move.

Springing out of his hiding place, Diego bounced off the monster’s shoulder, snatched up the glaive, and whirled around. The blade clanged against the monster’s armor, slicing through it with white streaks of energy. With a howl of pain, the monster stumbled back. Grinning fiercely, Diego whirled the glaive and struck again, slashing them across the creature’s chest.

“How do you like that?”   He yelled, his normally hidden Spanish accent overpowering his New Zealand one. The monster fell down, and Diego somersaulted. “Or this?”   He stabbed the creature in the throat, and the creature exploded with a shriek.

The next thing Diego knew, he was lying on the floor of the burnt-out office, one hand loosely gripping the mangled glaive. The monster was gone, leaving a blackened hole in the middle of the room. Head pounding like a drum, Diego sat up, and laughed breathlessly.

“And they said I was a slow student!”   But just as Diego scrambled to his feet, there was an explosion just outside. The room shook, sending Diego to the floor again, and then someone smashed through the wall with a blinding orange flash. The person flew across the room into a desk, shattering it with the impact.

“What?”   Diego managed, looking around. The other ninja tried to get up, groaned and fell back, and Diego recognized her. His eyes widened. “Talia!”   Scrambling through the wreckage, Diego came up beside the other student, an Asian woman a bit older than him. Her silvery ninja uniform had the same orange tendril accents as his.

“Diego?”   She coughed, and tried to get up again. Blood was already matting her silky black braid of hair.

“Don’t, you’ll hurt yourself,” Diego replied, but Talia caught him by the shoulder. His eyes locked on the device strapped to her wrist. A morpher. A familiar pang of jealousy shot through him, and even through her pain, Talia recognized it.

“S-sorry. Wouldn’t let me tell you. Have to fight,” she wheezed. Diego shook his head, and took Talia by the arm. His hands were burnt and scraped up, making him clumsy.

“Don’t say anything, just try to rest.”   He undid the strap, and taking the morpher, slapped it on his own wrist.

“You can’t,” Talia protested. Diego stood up, pushing away her hands, and held up the morpher.

<p class="MsoNormal">“Autumn Storm, Ranger Form!”

<p class="MsoNormal">''Diego stands in the midst of a rumbling storm cloud. Around his feet swirl multicolored leaves, quickly rising up into a miniature tornado around him. It forms his suit feet-upwards. His helmet appears, and the visor snaps shut. The leaves blast away as he strikes a pose, left foot forward and clenched fists raised.''

<p class="MsoNormal">“Power of Autumn!”

<p class="MsoNormal">Then a monster looked through the gap. Its insect-like red eyes glinted, as did the gold crest across its brow. Already knowing what his new powers had given him, Diego charged.

<p class="MsoNormal">“Fox Axe!”   He roared, and the coppery-orange weapon materialized in his hands. Whirling it around his head, he lunged forward, and the monster whirled on him, red cape swirling as it did. An elegant curved sword rang from its sheath, and the creature caught Diego’s weapon on his own with a clang. They stared at each other for a long minute.

<p class="MsoNormal">Diego realized that what he’d thought was the monster’s face was actually a helmet, rigid and shiny. Twisting his axe away, he slashed the monster across the chest, drawing sparks from the green armor. The monster didn’t even flinch; he just caught Diego by the wrist and twisted his arm back. Diego lost his grip on the axe, which thumped to the ground.

<p class="MsoNormal">The monster’s gauntleted hand caught Diego by the throat, forcing him back and to his knees. Thinking fast, Diego dropped flat on his back, and the monster lost his grip. Kicking the creature in the shins, Diego flipped himself over and caught the axe again, spinning in time to catch the sword on its haft. The monster pushed, but Diego gritted his teeth and pushed back.

<p class="MsoNormal">That was when a collection of red insect-like female humanoids charged into the room, seizing Diego by the arms and legs and waist. The weapon lock broke, and the sword came down on Diego’s left hand. The axe dropped to the floor, and Diego screamed in pain, clutching his hand to his chest. He doubled over, his morph vanishing, and the foot soldiers shoved him to his knees. Gasping, Diego looked down at his bloody left hand, and choked. His ring and pinkie fingers were gone. With a deep breath, he turned back towards the monster. The creature was staring at him silently, sword raised.

<p class="MsoNormal">“Please don’t kill me,” the boy gasped, voice shaking with pain. The monster gestured, and the foot soldiers dragged Diego out of the room.