Ranger Ranger walked down a damp and dingy alley, the scent of mould filled the air.

Ghost's voice chimed through Ranger Ranger's mind.

"Heya Ranger Ranger, thanks for taking this mission, I know it's your day off but we're kinda short staffed at the moment, Regent Squadron is busy with the search for Claude, apparently he's more important than we expected, Mr Draven himself said we should prioritise finding him, but we can't just let these villains get away either."

Ghost sighed "We just don't have enough heroes anymore."

Ranger Ranger nodded "Don't worry Ghost, a hero's duty is to the people, I'd never neglect people's safety for a day off, I'll stop these villains, like a true ranger should!"

Ghost chuckled. "Thanks Ranger Ranger, if only some of the other heroes had your mentality... anyway, mission briefing, okay so, after the bank heist last week, several prominent members of Pale Raven, the gang who orchestrated the attack, have been seen in the area, you gotta intercept their meeting at the end of this alley and gather whatever info you can, then comes the usual drill, apprehend the suspects once you have sufficient information, good luck Ranger Ranger, 'kay bye!" Ghost's voice faded and disappeared.

Ranger Ranger heard voices on the other side of the alley, he moved quietly and hid in a small alcove that sat close to the exit of the alley.

He overheard three men speaking beyond the alley's exit.

Ranger Ranger eavesdropped quietly to gather information.

Two of the men were holding automatic weapons.

One of the men had finished answering a phone call, he spoke to the other two men near him casually.

"Right lads, boss says he's gonna lay low for a while, we gotta step in while he's occupied. Orders are to continue our benefactor's request, continue our prep for the agreed upon day, I don't know the details, but we gotta prep to make good on our side of the deal before the end of the year."

The other two men nodded and the three opened a car door and dragged a large box out into the open, they opened the latches on the box with a loud click which echoed through the alley.

The box opened and the men gasped, the man spoke again.

"These are experimental prototypes, we got enough firepower here to destroy a city block, our benefactor promised to restore Pale Raven to it's former glory, all we gotta do is make good on our end, this is only a small amount of our benefactor's power. Let's get to work!"

He snapped the box shut and turned towards the alley with the other men.

Ranger Ranger prepared to step out and intercept them.

Suddenly an arrow whizzed through the air and landed itself firmly in one of the men's arms, he immediately turned around and grabbed the arrow, trying to pull it out, just then an electrical shock burst from the arrow, it shocked him and he fell to the ground unresponsive, dropping his weapon in the process.

Another arrow whizzed by and the second guy met the same fate.

"What the hell is this? Dammit, we've been compromised!"

The final man took off running down the alley, he bumped into Ranger Ranger with a thud, the man looked at Ranger Ranger and slowly backed away.

"Oh shit, Ranger Ranger! You'll never know anything, even if you arrest me, I won't talk!"

Ranger Ranger grabbed the man's arm and looked at him, his red and gold helmet shone a little as the dim light filtered into the alley.

"Loyalty, a noble and admirable trait, its unfortunate that you chose this path, in the name of Arhke's Hero Organisation and in accordance with the Arhke Council's laws for this city, I, Ranger Ranger, am arresting you, if you resist I shall have no choice but to use force. I do not wish to harm you, so come quietly."

As Ranger Ranger was about to escort the man, another arrow darted through the air, it landed in the man's back, shocking him and making him fall to the ground.

Ranger Ranger sighed and reached down to check the man's pulse.

"He's just unconscious, good... whoever did this is skilled, I need to investigate."

Ranger Ranger walked to where the other men were lying on the ground, he checked both of their pulses to confirm they were all still alive.

Ranger Ranger plucked one of the arrows and raised it to inspect it, he traced a gloved finger over the tip of the arrow.

"Nothing indicates a shock device of any kind, no way to generate electricity, this is strange."

Suddenly Ranger Ranger jolted his head upwards towards the rooftop.

"I know somebody's there, come down and tell me why you're here."

A figure dressed in a dark cloak and holding a bow with an arrow quiver on their back jumped down from the rooftop and landed in front of him.

They nodded and faced him, they wore a hood and a mask which covered their face.

"Hello Ranger Ranger, I apologise for overstepping, I didn't realise this was your mission."

Ranger Ranger looked at them. "You're skilled, who are you?"

They bowed towards Ranger Ranger "Midnight Sniper, Independent Hero."

Ranger Ranger nodded. "You're a vigilante, you do know they're illegal yes?"

Midnight Sniper sighed, "Look, I want to help people, but I don't have a power, just leave me be Ranger Ranger, the Organisation won't let me in, I've tried before."

Ranger Ranger nodded. "A hero isn't defined by their power, it's what's in your heart that matters, your dedication is admirable, and you don't kill your foes, you'd make an excellent hero."

Ranger Ranger paused and looked at the bow that Midnight Sniper was holding. It was dark green and metallic, with a blueish hue running through it, almost pulsing.

Midnight Sniper looked at Ranger Ranger.

"I had a feeling you'd know about something like this, you've done your research, not a lot of heroes these days can identify one of the Protector's Artifacts. This one channels lightning and stores it away within the bow, one spark is all it takes, the arrows I use are conductive, they shock whoever they're fired at, but it's not enough to kill, just enough to immobilise or knock unconscious."

Ranger Ranger looked at the bow. "How did it end up in your possession? The protector family it belonged to was wiped out a century ago."

Midnight Sniper shrugged "Would you believe me if I said I found it in my grandfather's shed?"

Ranger Ranger shook his head. "Just who is your grandfather? This Protector Artifact was lost after the family it belonged to fell, none knew where it went, what's more, only a person chosen by the artifact itself can use it's power, for you to be able to wield that power, you must be the artifact's chosen wielder. If you have one of the artifacts and are able to use it's power, this is no longer a matter of legality, you need to join the Hero Organisation, it's vital that you lend us your power. Please consider it."

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Ranger Ranger extended a hand. "join me, I'll convince the Organisation to make you an official hero."

Midnight Sniper sighed and shook Ranger Ranger's hand. "Very well, I've wanted this opportunity for a long time, I won't let it go to waste."

Ranger Ranger nodded. "Okay, now I have some important questions to ask you, please answer honestly. The first one is, who are you?"

Midnight Sniper nodded. "I suppose there's no point in hiding my identity from you if we're going to be colleagues"

Midnight Sniper removed the mask, and pulled the hood down, a young woman with short brown hair shook her head around. "Whew, that mask was a pain, my name is Amelia Clark, pleasure to properly meet you Ranger Ranger, you probably don't remember me but we've met before... you saved me during the Arhke Academy Tragedy, I was a student there, so I've wanted to thank you properly for a while now."

Ranger Ranger shook his head "You don't need to thank me, that day was tragic for us all, I did all I could, as a true ranger should!"

Amelia nodded, "Thank you all the same, you saved me, and now I want to help you and the Organisation, so, you said you had multiple questions for me?"

Ranger Ranger nodded "Yes, this is the last question, please answer honestly, it's important... what's your favourite colour?"

Amelia looked at Ranger Ranger with a confused expression on her face. "Uhm... green I guess, Why?"

Fifteen minutes later Ranger Ranger walked out of the alley, behind him was Amelia, dressed in a similar outfit to Ranger Ranger, except it was green and silver in colour instead. "That outfit suits you, you look like a true ranger now!"

Amelia chuckled awkwardly "Why do you have different ranger uniforms in various colours with you?"

Ranger Ranger nodded. "I was given authorisation to form my own squadron, so I prepared in advance, like a true ranger should!"

Amelia sighed. "Alright then, I guess I'm a ranger now, this is certainly not how I expected a hero career to begin."

Ranger Ranger pointed to the street corner. "We should begin moving, I'll take you to HQ, let's go Ranged Ranger!"

Amelia looked at Ranger Ranger. "Ranged Ranger? What do you mean?" Ranger Ranger nodded "It's your ranger name, because you're an archer, so Ranged Ranger."

Ranger Ranger started walking. "Let's go, we must get to HQ so you can be properly registered as a hero."

Ranger Ranger tapped the side of his helmet quickly "Ghost, three targets are unconscious, two were armed, they have some heavy weapons in a box, also on site."

Ghost spoke up "Understood, notifying the police now, you can have the rest of the day off, thanks for that, Ghost out!"

As the two walked, they turned a corner and a few meters away a young woman with short dark purple hair was spray painting a wall, she created a large mural which had a picture of a purple crown, below the crown were the words "Liberation is coming!" She saw Ranger Ranger and dropped her spray can, she took off running.

Ranger Ranger saw her and called out "Stop there citizen, you're defacing public property!" The woman turned the corner and disappeared into a crowd.

Suddenly, a huge rumble shook the ground, a loud bang echoed through the city.

Ghost's voice suddenly chimed in. "Sorry to bother you again, but we have a situation, Regent Squadron has already been dispatched, but backup would be appreciated, can you make your way over to the industrial district?"

Ranger Ranger nodded. "What's the situation Ghost?"

Ghost sighed "I'm... not entirely sure, a large crater seems to have appeared and the ground sunk in all of a sudden, luckily the site was an abandoned warehouse, so nobody was hurt, Arhke Police are on the scene, it's been cordoned off, Regent Squadron need help investigating the area."

Amelia spoke up "Ranger Ranger? Who are you talking to?"

Ghost chimed in. "Who's that Ranger Ranger?"

Ranger Ranger sighed "Ghost, that's Ranged Ranger, my new teammate, and Ranged Ranger, that's Ghost, who you can't hear, she's the navigator."

Ghost connected to Amelia, a small static sound played in her mind.

Ranger Ranger nodded "Tap your earlobe with your finger, it'll connect you to Ghost."

Amelia took off her helmet and tapped her earlobe with her index finger, Ghost's voice echoed in her mind.

"Heya, I'm Ghost, mission commander, navigator, hacker, archivist and much more, I'm with the Hero Organisation... sorry about Ranger Ranger, he's got a habit of jumping the gun a lot, for now just go with Ranger Ranger, he means well, though I suppose he kinda roped you into this. We'll get everything sorted out with you later."

Amelia nodded. "Thanks Ghost, I appreciate your acceptance of me being a hero."

Ghost chuckled "Ranger Ranger may be hasty in decisions sometimes, but he's got good instincts, if he trusts you then I have no reason to doubt it... okay you two, get going, we'll talk properly once the mission is complete, alright, Ghost out!" Ghost's voice faded into a whisper and disappeared.

Ranger Ranger and Amelia arrived on scene a short while later, Arhke Police had the area cordoned off, the officer in charge saluted and stepped aside as Ranger Ranger approached the scene.

The area was surrounded by debris and rubble, a large crater sat in the middle, Claire and Michael were looking around the perimeter as Ranger Ranger arrived.

Michael approached Ranger Ranger and Amelia.

"Good day Ranger Ranger, I take it you're our support? We were in the vicinity searching for Claude, when this warehouse fell into the ground, Ghost told us to secure the area, the police arrived a short while later, now we're searching for clues as to what caused this mess. Feel free to look around, and perhaps enter the crater, I must assist Miss Regent with her incident report."

Michael bowed and walked away. Ranger Ranger and Amelia continued towards the crater, not far away Mei was crouched next to a pile of rubble, absently poking it with a stick she was holding.

She turned to look at Ranger Ranger as he approached, she nodded lazily. "What are you up to Mei?" Ranger Ranger approached her. "Working..." Mei yawned. "Working? Really? Are you sure Mei?" Ranger Ranger looked at her. Mei nodded sleepily, she then glanced at Amelia. "Who's that?..." Mei pointed lazily at Amelia.

Ranger Ranger looked at Amelia. "This is Ranged Ranger, my new teammate. Ranged Ranger, this is Mei, she's one of my colleagues, and yours now too." Amelia nodded towards Mei.

Mei turned to face her. "Ranger Ranger has a new friend?... That's good..." Mei yawned and went back to prodding the pile of rubble with a stick.

Ranger Ranger approached the edge of the crater. "There's something down there."

He pointed to what looked like a series of metal corridors, now blasted wide open, sunlight leaking into the shadowy halls.

Beside them was a deeper hole, the depths impossible to make out, the pitch black air shrouded what lay beneath.

Amelia spoke up. "Seems like there's two routes, I'll take the metal corridors, you go further down, don't worry about me, I can handle myself, and if I wanna be a hero, I need to prove that."

Ranger Ranger nodded. "Understood, good luck."

Ranger Ranger and Amelia leapt into the crater. Amelia landed and rolled into the metal corridor, she stood up and walked into the darkness.

Ranger Ranger jumped into the hole that lead even deeper.

At the bottom of the hole was a small body of water, which Ranger Ranger landed in with a splash.

He swam to a small shoreline, he shook the water off himself and began walking, the echo of loose stones and debris moving underfoot.

He reached a smaller room, the dim light of a fiery torch sat in the centre of the room, it flickered gently against the darkness.

The walls were a soft beige colour, the walls were smooth and free of imperfections, aside from a few small indents.

An altar sat at the back of the room, a strange figure of sorts adorned it, it looked like a clay figure which vaguely resembled a human head, except all noticeable features were smoothed away.

Ranger Ranger approached the strange figure, as he did, with a crack it detached from the altar, sliding off and onto the floor.

The strange figure tilted and spun for a second, before it faced upwards towards Ranger Ranger. "What are you? I've never seen anything like this before?" Ranger Ranger tried to pick it up, yet his hands simply slid right off it, the figure was entirely smooth, impossible to touch by any normal means, yet it seemed to be observing Ranger Ranger, almost as if it was conscious.

Ranger Ranger tapped the side of his helmet "Ghost, I've discovered some manner of strange creature here, can you identify it?"

Ghost responded "Sure, just gimme a sec, I gotta patch into your visor so I can see... okie dokes, all done..."

Ghost let out a surprised sigh. "It's... it's a living creature by all accounts, it has a soul, yet it's neither human nor monster, I can't identify it, but it doesn't seem hostile at least, you should be able to just ignore it, I doubt it's going anywhere since it can't jump like you can to get out of this pit."

Ranger Ranger nodded. "Understood, I shall continue to look around." Ranger Ranger turned and faced the walls.

Along the walls were a series of very feint symbols, they looked as though they had been forcibly scrubbed smooth.

Ghost chimed in. "Wait a sec Ranger Ranger, lemme see that part of the wall again."

Ranger Ranger moved closer to the wall, allowing Ghost a better view. "Okie dokes, one sec... and... screenshotted, I can make out one of the runes, I'll need time to decipher the others. The one I can make out is the Regent family crest... these ruins look ancient though, nobody has been here in centuries at least... that's odd... I'm gonna look into this, your friend has already contacted me on her end too, you can return to the surface, she found nothing of note, though it looked like a lab that had been very quickly abandoned along with the removal of all the equipment... alright, Ghost out!"

Ranger Ranger returned to the surface of the crater, as he was walking, he felt a small tug on his sleeve.

He looked down to see Mei. "Ranger Ranger... I need your help..." Mei walked over to the now significantly smaller pile of rubble she was messing with before.

She crouched down and traced the ground near a large piece of debris with her finger. "Here... I saw a red wire... so I followed it... under here..." Mei looked at Ranger Ranger expectantly.

Ranger Ranger nodded "Stand back Mei, I'll lift this out of the way for you."

Ranger Ranger lifted the piece of debris and placed it down a few meters away.

Mei began to dig through smaller pieces of debris beneath it. She found a small red wire, Mei tugged on the wire gently, she followed it deeper into the debris.

Ranger Ranger assisted her in digging.

Eventually something came into view, a human figure. "Claude!..." Mei extended a hand to try and check his vitals, she felt a small static shock and withdrew her hand quickly. "I can't reach him... he was like this before too..." Mei sat down on the ground next to Claude.

Ranger Ranger tapped the side of his helmet. "Ghost, we've located Claude. He's unconscious and his condition is unknown, we can't touch him."

Ghost responded almost immediately "Understood, I'm sending paramedics your way, I've also notified the other members of Regent Squadron, we'll take Claude back with us, somehow."