"Stop right there!"
The sudden shout made Zayne and his team halt mid-step. Their heads turned sharply toward the source in near-perfect sync, as if guided by a single command.
Then they saw them.
Rangers.
Not just any rangers—SPD.
"Hmm… SPD Rangers," Zayne murmured inwardly. "Isn't it too early for them to possess the 'S.W.A.T' form?"
His gaze lingered on their upgraded gear. He distinctly remembered that the SPD Rangers weren't supposed to have access to S.W.A.T Mode this early—unless they had already existed before his transmigration into this world.
But that wasn't possible.
Zayne had infiltrated every major organization on the planet. Their past, present—even fragments of their future—were crystal clear to him.
He rubbed the chin of his helmet thoughtfully before concluding, "If these aren't the protagonists… then they must be the infamous Squad A."
Red, noticing he was being silently evaluated instead of acknowledged, grew irritated.
"Hey!" he snapped. "This is an SPD operation site. You have no right to be here. All of you—leave."
Under their masks, Zayne's team frowned.
Arrogant.
Even Zayne, who usually maintained composure no matter the situation, felt his expression harden.
The SPD Rangers clearly saw that the individuals before them were also Rangers. Yet there was no courtesy. No mutual recognition. It was as if their existence meant nothing.
They had bled for this city.
They had nearly died for it.
Even if they didn't receive medals or public recognition, the least they deserved was respect.
"What do you mean leave?" Gwen shot back first, her voice sharp. "We're heroes too. It's our duty to stop whatever chaos is happening here."
"Hmph." Blue snorted. "Duty? From you guys? You're still wet behind the ears. Go deal with street-level crime or something more suited to your experience."
That did it.
Connor, who had remained silent until now, exploded.
"Shut the hell up, you wannabe super-cops," he growled. "We've handled more serious missions than you and your future generations could ever imagine."
And he wasn't exaggerating.
Since Zayne became involved in their lives, they had faced threats they never would've dared approach before—especially the Trent incident. They had nearly died. New York itself had nearly been wiped off the map.
Now for Rangers from another city to claim ownership over a mission already handled? It was beyond insulting.
The SPD Rangers weren't backing down either. They knew antagonizing local heroes wasn't ideal—but they didn't care. This mission was everything to them. Their promotion. Their ambition. Their future.
They needed this.
Curses began flying from both sides.
It was no longer professional.
It was personal.
Zayne, who had been silently observing, finally lost his patience.
"Enough!"
His voice cut through the argument like a blade.
Both teams fell silent instantly.
Squad A tried to maintain their aggression, but when Zayne's visor locked onto them—cold and unyielding—they instinctively quieted.
It wasn't a conscious decision.
It was instinct.
Their bodies reacted before their pride could.
Only Red managed to hold his composure. To his credit, he wasn't weak.
Zayne exhaled slowly before speaking in a controlled tone.
"I don't know what mission SPD was planning to conduct here. But if it involves an alien life-form… then I'm sorry. You're late. My team and I already handled it."
The words struck Squad A like a hammer.
"What?!" Red's mind reeled.
The mission he had pinned his entire future on… completed?
By someone else?
The rest of his squad looked equally shaken. Shocked murmurs escaped them. They had seen the other Rangers unleash powerful attacks earlier—but they never once considered that it could have been directed at their primary target.
After all, an alien as tricky as that shouldn't have been neutralized so easily.
What they didn't know was that Zayne had already uncovered its weakness through his Morpher and reduced its power output by over seventy percent before engaging. Without that intervention, the Idolon could have rampaged through the city unchecked.
It might have triggered a battle on the scale of those infamous New York disasters from the comics.
Red's grip tightened around his weapon as he stared directly at Zayne, silently wishing he had misheard.
He stepped forward.
One.
Two.
Three.
In a flash, he stood directly before Zayne.
Zayne didn't move.
Didn't flinch.
He had expected this reaction.
"I'm going inside to verify," Red said coldly. "If I find out you're lying… I won't hesitate to lock up a Ranger in a cell."
Zayne merely smirked beneath his helmet.
"And if it's true?"
Red let out a short chuckle.
"If it's true…" he said lightly, though something dark lingered beneath the tone, "that would be very disappointing."
He leaned closer, lowering his voice so only Zayne could hear.
"But even worse for you," Red's tone was like a sharp blade slicing through the air, cutting the atmosphere into an eerie tranquility.
This intimidation might have worked on any other hero—but not Zayne. All he felt was secondhand embarrassment.
What kind of reasonably strong man tries to assert dominance over someone whose strength he knows nothing about? It was reckless. Foolish.
Zayne watched Squad A coldly as they strode arrogantly into the museum to inspect the situation. In his mind, their fate was already sealed.
His team stood behind him, silent and composed, eyes tracking the advancing SPD rangers. Their thoughts mirrored their leader's. They knew exactly how monstrous Zayne was. If it came down to it, they could probably handle Squad A themselves—with effort. It just wouldn't be as fast. Or as clean.
More than thirty minutes passed.
By then, every civilian who had been inside the museum had fled home. Even the students from Midtown High didn't bother returning to school—they scattered the moment things escalated. The only people left were museum staff and management, gathered at a distance, too anxious to leave but too afraid to approach.
Even Natasha had retreated to a safe location, planning to report everything to Fury before disappearing from the scene.
She wasn't the Black Widow of the Avengers yet. That level of confidence, that fearlessness—it hadn't solidified in her bones.
Zayne and his team waited patiently for Squad A to complete their "extensive" search.
Thankfully, they didn't have to wait much longer.
When Squad A finally emerged from the museum, they looked nothing like before. Their earlier arrogance had evaporated. Gone was the swagger. In its place—disbelief.
Their shoulders were slightly hunched. Their steps heavier.
They had accepted it.
Especially Red.
He walked like a man who had just watched his future collapse. His voice was low, broken, almost unhinged.
"My promotion… my money…"
He kept mumbling about losses, like a businessman who had just watched billions vanish overnight. And honestly, he wasn't far off.
This mission had been a test—from that person.
Failing meant no promotion. No advancement. Worse, it might mean elimination.
Normally, he wouldn't care about losing a position he could reapply for. But this wasn't normal.
This had been his last chance.
His last chance to save his sister.
Now it was gone.
And not only was saving her impossible—he might not even be able to save himself.
Then Red's eyes locked onto Zayne.
Hatred ignited.
He gritted his teeth and spat, "It was you! You made me lose everything. I'm going to kill you!"
He charged forward, Delta Enforcer raised.
He threw caution to the wind and attacked.
Both his team and Zayne's were shocked.
Was failing a mission really this serious?
Zayne's eyes narrowed slightly. He hadn't expected such a direct assault—but he didn't relax either. Red was still a veteran ranger. Maybe not on Zayne's level, but veterans always had hidden tricks.
Zayne was still new to this world. The only reason his combat ability was this refined was because of the training from his past life layered over his current one.
Red closed the distance in a flash, weapon aimed point-blank.
He wanted to take Zayne down with him.
If he was going to fall, he wouldn't fall alone.
Ziing—
The Delta Enforcer fired. A concentrated laser tore through the air at near sonic speed.
Behind his helmet, Red smiled, already imagining Zayne reduced to ash.
Suddenly—
Bang!
"What?!" Red shouted.
Zayne had blocked it.
With his palm.
He had deflected the blast in a domineering, almost insulting manner.
Refusing to accept it, Red fired again.
Ziing! Ziing! Ziing! Ziing!
Six rapid shots streaked forward, faster, more aggressive.
Slap. Slap. Slap.
Zayne stood unmoved, casually swatting each laser aside with his right hand as if brushing dust from his shoulder.
What?
Even Squad A froze.
Was this real?
Were they hallucinating?
Attacks that had ended missions before—reduced to nothing by a single hand.
Zayne's team were equally stunned, though for a different reason. They weren't shocked by Zayne's strength—they were used to it.
They were shocked by Red's ruthlessness.
Was a failed mission really enough to justify attempted murder?
Still, they said nothing. They trusted their leader completely.
Red's eyes tightened behind his visor as another blast he had perfected over years of combat training was dismissed like a child's tantrum.
"This ranger isn't easy," he admitted internally. "But I've cracked harder nuts."
His decision was instant.
"Squad A—attack formation!"
The team snapped into position without hesitation, surrounding Zayne from multiple angles. Weapons raised. Lines tightened.
They would overwhelm him.
According to Red's philosophy: if one bee can't kill a lion—bring a swarm.
Exhaust him. Pressure him. Break him.
Eventually, even monsters fall.
"Leader," Kira called out calmly, "do you need help?"
Zayne shook his head.
"Nah. I'll handle this. You guys can just watch me beat the living shit out of them."
A few chuckles came from behind him.
They knew he wasn't joking.
So they stepped back, giving him space. They wouldn't be harmed by any residual shockwaves anyway—Skill: Innocence was still active.
Red noticed them retreating and felt a flicker of satisfaction.
"Heh… even better," he thought. "With him alone, we can take him down."
If both teams clashed fully, it would drag out. Headquarters might notice the delay. And if Doggy Cruger started digging, secrets would surface.
Red couldn't allow that.
"SPD!" he barked. "Attack! Use everything you have. Make sure he's neutralized!"
His squad complied instantly, unleashing a barrage of coordinated firepower toward Zayne.
Victory or failure would determine their life and death.