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Chapter Four: The Second Earth Crystal
"Thanks for letting us stay here, Mr. Cranston," Tommy said.
"Sure," Billy's father replied. "Now what is it, exactly, that happened?"
Katherine sat beside Tommy on the couch that seemed more like a water bed than a couch. "Well, this lady named Jenga attacked Aquitar, and when we came here to help, Billy went to Earth to help Alpha," Kat explained.
"But it turns out that was just a tactic to have the Earth unprotected," Tanya explained. "And then a force field was put up around our Solar System, and we're stuck here until Jenga is defeated."
"Unfortunately, without Zeo Rangers to protect Earth," Adam said, "I don't hardly see how Jenga is going to be defeated."
Billy's mother walked in from the back of the house. "Hey, you guys," she said, "there's a message here from Alpha Five on the HoloScreen."
"Maybe Alpha's found a way to teleport us home!" Rocky cried. The five teens ran to the HoloScreen.
~*~
"We are standing in a place that no human has ever been to," Trini said, her voice filled with awe. "Cool."
"We need some light," Jason said.
Trini and Aisha said, perfectly in sync, "Power Beams!"
Immediately, the Green Dragon and the Saber-Tooth Tiger rose up from the helmets. Their eyes opened wide, and bright halogen lights shone out. "Now this is awesome," Trini said.
"Now how are we supposed to find the Crystal?" Kimberly asked. "The Tengas broke Alpha's scanner."
"Me and Billy got it taken care of," Jason said. "Ready man?"
"You know it," Billy said.
"POWER SCAN!" both men shouted in unison. Immediately, the black visor on both helmets was covered with a sheet of silver, split horizontally in the middle. A small red light moved back and forth across the split. Their vision was also altered. An X-Y Coordinate grid, which kept track of the Rangers locations, was in their lower left visual field. "Scanning for the Earth Crystal," Billy said.
"Now all we have to do is wait for the results to come in," Jason said.
~*~
Billy's mother, Rebecca, stepped behind the HoloScreen and checked all of the connections. "The Audio Cable is secure," she said. "It must be a result of the force field around the Solar System."
"He seems hyper," Rocky said, looking at the red and blue robot bouncing all over the screen.
"I wonder if that's hyper good or hyper bad," Adam said.
"I know," Kat said. "If he was a human we could at least read his facial features."
"I'll try and screen out the disturbance," Rebecca Cranston said, "but I'm not making any promises."
"Can I help?" Adam asked.
"Sure," she said. "Let's go to my lab and we'll try and get a lock on the audio disturbance."
~*~
"Sixty two feet, and three inches, down and to the right, forty-two degrees," Billy said.
"Okay," Zack said. "Now, how do we go through solid rock?"
Jason and Billy looked at each other. "We'll have to go the long way around, I guess," Jason said.
"I'll take up the lead," Billy said.
"And I've got the rear," Jason finished. "We're bound to get there eventually."
~*~
"What is it now?" Jenga asked, lounging in Zedd's throne.
"They're about to find the Second Earth Crystal!" she screeched. "NO!"
"Well, they certainly are persistent. You have to give them that much," Jenga said.
"I'll let you kill Goldar if you kill the Rangers right now," Rita said.
"Hey!" Goldar growled.
"I may kill Goldar later," Jenga said, "just for fun, but I'd rather play with the Rangers before I destroy them. I think I'll go introduce myself. Gold Monkey Boy, Rito, wanna come?"
"You bet!" Rito shouted. His head leaped off of his shoulders, did a loop in the air, and then landed back on his neck.
"And please stop doing that," Jenga said.
"Yeah Monkey Boy," Rito said. "Learn to breathe through your nose."
"She was talking to YOU!" Goldar growled..
"Aaaarggggh." Jenga rolled her eyes. The three of them disappeared in black flames.
~*~
"You got it, Billy," she said. She turned her head in the direction he pointed.
"There's a crevice there, Billy," Kimberly said.
"None of us will fit," Jason said, reading the information filling up his vision via the Power Scanner.
"I bet I could," Jenga said.
"Hey!" Zack cried. All six Rangers spun around and took a defensive stance.
"My God you're gorgeous," Jason said before he could stop himself.
Jenga smiled and leaned to the right, showing off her gorgeous curves.
"Goldar," Trini growled.
"And Rito," Aisha said sarcastically.
"You must be Jenga," Kimberly snarled.
"The one and only," Jenga said with a smile.
"Wow," Jason said.
"Snap out of it, dude," Zack said.
"I've always known I had a hypnotic power over men," Jenga said. "Come to me, Red Ranger."
"Yes ma'am," Jason said.
"Jason!" Trini cried.
He silently walked over to Jenga and stood beside her. Although the rangers couldn't tell because of his helmet, he had a blank face and glowing blue eyes. "We're going to take this little stud-puppy here back to the moon," Jenga said, smiling. "I'm going to figure out what his Power Scan says, find the Second Earth Crystal first, and maybe have my way with him, and then return him to you, brain washed and willing to serve my every command. Rito, Goldar, you can do with the others what you like." Jenga leaped up into Jason's arms. He caught her with the greatest of ease. She wrapped an arm around his shoulders and leaned back, her red and blue hair cascading over his arms. "Catch ya' on the flip side!" She and Jason disappeared in a red flash of light.
"Jason!" Aisha cried.
"Wulf Warriors!" Goldar shouted. "ATTACK!"
"Ciao!" Rito said. "Pasta la Pizza!"
As Goldar and Rito disappeared, dozens of Wulf Warriors appeared. "I've got an idea," Zack whispered, loud enough to be picked up by the radio in the Rangers helmets but not loud enough for the Wulf Warriors to here. "Kim, let's use the Power Scream. There is some kind of hole behind them."
"Got it," Kimberly said. "Guys, cover your ears. I think this is going to be loud."
"POWER SCREAM!" Kimberly and Zack shouted.
Suddenly, the Pterodactyl stood off of the helmet. Kimberly's helmet was white with a pink plastic Pterodactyl standing just above her visor. Zack's Mastodon's trunk lifted off of the visor. The Mastodon's head rose up from the helmet, and the trunk pointed straight forward. The Pterodactyl's beak flew open. An ear shattering screech blasted from it's mouth. Billy, Trini, and Aisha quickly put their hands to their ears, although it did little good. A tremendous trumpeting burst from Zack's helmet. The screech and the trumpet combined into a blast of sound that measured 200 decibels, according to Billy's Scanner. The Wulf Warriors, clutching their ears in pain, flew backwards and into the pit. "Power down!" Kimberly and Zack cried. The Pterodactyl and Mastodon returned to their helmet position. The Power Screams continued to echo about the cave.
"I think I'm deaf!" Billy shouted.
Trini shook her head, trying desperately to get the ringing out of her ears. "We have to get Jason back before she figures out how to use the Power Scan for herself," Trini said.
"Or else get the crystal for ourselves, first," Aisha said.
"I've got an idea," Zack said. "Billy, you stay here and get the crystal. Aisha can stay with you to provide light. Trini, you come back to the Power Chamber with Kim and me and we'll see if we can find Jase."
"Sounds like a plan," Billy said. Aisha nodded in agreement.
"We're out of here," Kimberly said. Pink, yellow, and black light temporarily flashed in the cave, leaving Aisha and Billy alone.
"Let's hurry and find the Crystal," Aisha said. "I'm sure they could use your brains in the Power Chamber."
"Right," Billy said, not really taking time for her compliment to sink in. "We're pretty close as it is. Let's just hope that hole is so deep the Wulf Warriors can't climb out."
~*~
"Relax, Zedd," Jenga said. Jason carried her through the open room and stopped before Lord Zedd.
"Did you put a spell on him?" Rita asked.
"Of sorts," Jenga said. "I just turned on my feminine charm, and altered the hormones in his body, so now he has a crush on me like you would not believe!"
"Ahh," Lord Zedd said. "To be seventeen again. All hormones, not a brain cell in your skull."
"What was your excuse?" Rita asked smartly.
"Put me down, honey," Jenga said. Jason carefully set her down. "Okay," she said. "Now, well, I guess business before pleasure. Tell me exactly where the Earth Crystal is located."
~*~
Zack and Kimberly's helmets sat beside hers, shining just as brightly. They were trying their best to help, but Trini was working just as fast as she could think, and they stopped trying to help because it was just slowing her down. The Power Ranger team had been through a great many changes in just the last three years. He had seen a grand total of seventeen Rangers since Rita Repulsa was set free. Jason, Zack, Trini, Kimberly, Billy, Tommy, Adam, Rocky, Aisha, Katherine, Delphine, Cestro, Aurico, Tideus, Corcus, Tanya, and Trey. Of course, the Aquitian Rangers and Trey did not have Earth based Ranger Powers, but they were Power Rangers he had dealt with in the past three years none-the-less.
"Yo! Zordon!" Zack cried.
"I'm sorry Zachary," Zordon said. "My mind was elsewhere."
"We can't get a lock on Jason!" Trini cried. "I've tried everything I know to do, but I'm not familiar with these new controls. It's a two man job, and I'm afraid I'm no substitute for Billy."
"It's okay, Trini," Alpha said woefully. "We'll just have to keep trying and hope Billy gets back soon."
~*~
"Right," Aisha said. She pointed her gaze in the direction he pointed, shining her bright lights on a small crevice.
Billy crawled over to the crevice and lowered himself down into it. He hung onto the edge of the crevice with one hand. The last thing he needed was to drop into a five hundred foot deep pit. Despite the darkness, his Power Scanner still worked. He saw that the floor was just eighteen feet below him, so he let go. Aisha followed close behind him. As soon as he reached the floor, he saw the light from the Crystal. The Crystal was hidden behind a huge stalagmite. Aisha silently commanded her Power Beams to turn off. Billy hurried to the stalagmite and picked up the spherical Crystal. It was roughly the size of the bowling ball, and completely smooth. The Crystal did not contain a single blemish.
"We're out of here," Aisha said with her usual bubbliness. The two rangers teleported out in blue and green teleportation streams.
~*~
Jason, still in Ranger suit but without his helmet, stood on one foot. His face was completely void of emotion, and he didn't blink more than once every two or three minutes.
"Simon says," Goldar began.
"Quack like a duck!" Rito shouted. Jason began to quack like a duck. "Sorry," Rito said. "I couldn't resist."
"Shut up!" Goldar shouted at Jason. The quacking continued. "Oh great," Goldar growled. "You broke him."
"No I didn't," Rito said. "You didn't say Simon Says. HA!"
"Simon Says Shut Up!"
Jason promptly shut up. Goldar growled. He smacked Rito on the back of his head. Jenga sat before a large, silver table with Finster. She had taken the helmet apart and was trying to get the Power Scan to work. "I can't get this stupid thing to work," she griped softly.
"It doesn't matter anymore, anyway," Rita said woefully. "That blue Power Brat just found the Second Earth Crystal!"
"Well, if we can get this thing to work, we can still find the Third Earth Crystal," Jenga said.
Rita stopped griping, and took a deep breath. "I guess that could work," she muttered. "Simon Says Dance with Me!"
Jason moved over to Rita, took her in his arms, and the two of them began an elaborate ball-room type dance. Goldar growled and walked away.
~*~
"Have you found Jason yet?" Billy asked. He handed the sphere to Alpha, who disappeared with it into one of the Power Chambers' rooms.
"We can't get a lock on him," Trini said.
"It's probably the electrical interference surrounding Zedd's palace," Billy said. "There's only one way to get Jason back."
"What's that?" Zack asked.
"We're gonna have to fly there and get him. I'll take Tommy's Phoenix," Billy said. "Right Zordon?"
"Well, now that we have the original Power Coins and two Earth Crystals, we can probably recreate the DinoZords. That way, Kimberly can accompany you in her Pterodactyl Zord."
"I'll download the blueprint for the DinoZords from our old archives right away," Alpha said. "They should be ready in just a few minutes. We still have the old parts, they just aren't in working order. It shouldn't take any time at all till they are back in tip-top shape."
"You saved the ThunderZords?" Billy asked.
"Of course," Zordon said. "We never knew if an occasion like this should arise again. Until now, though, we didn't have the Earth Crystals to supply the needed power."
"The Pterodactyl is done," Alpha said, "and is in a brand-new hiding spot."
"Ready Kimberly?" Billy asked.
She picked up her helmet and moved over to him. "As always," she said. "BACK TO ACTION!" Billy shouted.
Chapter Five: One Step Closer
Kimberly and Billy teleported to the Zeo Zord holding bay. Kimberly half expected to see her old teammate, the pink and silver Pterodactyl, waiting for her. Sadly, it wasn't there. Just all of the Zords that she had seen in the news but had never had the chance to pilot.
"Alpha," Billy said to his wrist, "have you reprogrammed the Phoenix to recognize my genetic markers?"
"Affirmative, Billy," Alpha said.
"Good luck, Rangers," Zordon said.
"Do you know what to do, Kimberly?" Billy asked.
"I think so," she said. "I'm gonna go outside to call on her though. Don't leave without me, okay?"
"You got it," Billy said. Kimberly teleported away in a pink flash of light. Billy looked up at the shiny red and black Phoenix. "All right girl," he said to the mighty Zord. "You know me. I've worked on you before. I'm gonna need you to help me out, okay? ZEO ZORD V! POWER UP!"
The Phoenix's eyes immediately sparked to life. Billy leapt into the air, and was overcome with a shimmering blue light. He found himself in the cockpit of the Phoenix Zord, decorated entirely in red. He looked at the flashing panel before him, and placed his hand on the control lever. "Launching sequence initiated." The cannon slowly extended from the mountain. With a surprisingly loud boom, the Phoenix was catapaulted into the air. Billy immediately took control.
~*~
"I need Dinozord Power now!" Kimberly cried. The coin in her Power Morpher Belt Buckle and the coin replica on her chest began glowing a bright white. _This isn't how we used to call the Zords,_ she thought to herself, _But, a lot of things have changed._ She released herself to the information the Pink Power was telling her and refused to be blinded by the procedure of the past. Her hand went to her belt and removed her Power Morpher. She held the Morpher up to the sky and bellowed, "PTERODACTYL DINOZORD!"
A white beam of light shot from her Power Coin and straight up into the sky. She quickly put the Power Morpher back down to her belt where it immediately bonded into place. Kimberly looked up into the sky, and had to hold her breath to keep the tears from flowing freely. "She's back," Kimberly said. The Pterodactyl flew across the sky with the greatest of ease. "POWER UP!" Kimberly shouted.
She took a brief defensive stance, and then thrust her left arm into the sky triumphantly. A pink cast of energy began to run it's course over her body. Her feet slowly left the ground, and she flew up to the Zord. A pink flash overwhelmed her, and she found herself in a pink leather chair, moving quickly down a darkened tunnel. The tunnel immediately opened up, and she was placed before the Pterodactyl Control Panel. A door shut behind her, sealing herself off in a small, closet-sized cockpit. "Nice stereo," she said, reliving the past. She placed her hands on the white and pink central Control Lever. "Okay Billy. Let's go get Jason back."
"Right!" Billy shouted. The two zords moved close to each other and flew up and out of the Earth's atmosphere.
~*~
"There has to be something we can do," Aisha said.
"If we can locate the Third Earth Crystal," Alpha thought aloud, "then the three of you can go get the Crystal."
"We'll be one step closer," Zack said.
"I'll help you scan," Trini volunteered.
~*~
"I know," Jenga said, walking up to her. "I can't get Jason out of that Red Suit either."
Rita stared at her mother-in-law woodenly for a moment. "Not that!" she snapped, resisting the urge to smack her mother-in-law with her wand. "Billy and Kimberly are on their way up here to get Jason back!"
"Over my dead body!" Jenga cried. She looked down at Earth. Two beams of blue light shone from each of her eyes.
"So that's where Zedd gets that from," Rita thought outloud.
"Is that a Pterodactyl?" Jenga asked. "That thing sure is wide enough. I took a vacation on Earth during the Jurassic period, and Pterodactyls do not look like that."
"You don't seem to get angry very easy," Rita observed.
"Why should I?" Jenga said. "You have no idea what I have hidden up my sleeve. If those Rangers knew what I was about to do, they would be handing over their Zeo Crystals, Power Coins, and keys to their Zords and pleading with me to spare their lives."
"I'm certainly intrigued," Rita said. "Tell me more."
"Sorry," Jenga said. She sat on the balcony overlooking the moon and swung her legs over the side. "I'm not telling anyone. At least not until a few old friends arrive."
~*~
"This can't be right," Alpha said. "It's in downtown Sydney."
"Underground, maybe?" Aisha asked.
"No," Trini said, looking at the computer printout in her hands. "It's not."
"Well, that makes our trek a little bit simpler then, doesn't it?" Zack mused.
"The Second Earth Crystal has boosted our teleportation system," Alpha said. "I think we can narrow the Crystal's Range down to about half a mile!"
"We've almost got it," Trini said.
Aisha strode over to the helmets and picked up Trini's helmet. "We're ready to roll!" she said.
Zack hurried over to her and whispered, "Wrong helmet."
Aisha quickly put the yellow helmet down and snatched up the green one. "Force of habit," she whispered to Zack. She hoped Trini didn't notice.
"We got it," Trini said. She moved toward Zack and Aisha. "I don't know how much good we can do without any type of Scanner, but we certainly won't do any good here."
"Let's do it to it," Aisha said with a smile. "BACK TO ACTION!" Zack cried.
~*~
"Fraid not," he said. "Maybe Cestro can help."
"It's worth a shot," Rebecca said. "Hey hon! David!"
Billy's father came into her lab. "What?" he asked. "You got it figured out yet?"
"No," he said. "Can you contact Cestro for us?"
"I'll do my best," he said.
~*~
"I can't explain the whole thing," Billy said, "in case you-know-who is listening. But if you can just keep open fire on the palace, I can do my part."
"You got it," Kimberly said.
~*~
"Old news," Rita said. "I'm gonna go see if Zedd is having any luck with those Tengas."
"But Jenga," Finster said, stepping aside as Rita rushed past him, "Kimberly is about to open fire on the palace, and I haven't had time to reactivate our shield!"
"That could be a problem," Jenga said. "And my space fleet is in orbit around Saturn, mining the ring system for Quadrithian Crystals, so it's doubtful they'll get here in time. I guess I'll just put up a force field myself." She stuck her hand out, and magically, blue tendrils of light began to center around her palm. With a burst of blue magic energy, her blue scepter appeared in her palm.
"HEY!" Zedd cried from a back room, his mother's scepter having suddenly left his possession.
"Way to go, Zedd," Rita said sarcastically. "She's gonna have your butt on a platter."
Jenga ignored their banter and pointed the scepter out of the palace. A gigantic blue lightning bolt shot from the sapphire at its point, and an invisible shield was set in place.
"Ah, excellent," Finster said.
"Thank you," Jenga said. She walked away from the balcony to return the scepter to her son.
~*~
"We're just looking for something."
"You guys?" Aisha said, pointing across the street. "Do you think?"
They all stared at the magnicent building before them. Sydney's Museum of Natural Science. "Let's go check," Zack said. The three Rangers teleported over to the building, rather than risk running through traffic, and entered the building.
~*~
"Here I come!" Kimberly shouted. She had the palace in her sights, and started her attack. Lasers shot from from Pterodactyl's eyes, the crest atop its head, and wing tips. The pink lasers streaked through the vacuum of space. The lasers suddenly struck an invisible target and exploded, sending pink particles rippling over the invisible shield. "A force field! Man!" She flew closer to the castle and launched a missile at it. The missile exploded on contact with the force field. "I can't do damage," she said, "but I'll still rock your world! FULL FIRE!"
~*~
He whispered the command for the helmet device, just loud enough to activate the Power Scan. The walls immediately melted away. He saw the red outlines of Finster and Jenga in the main palacial room, and Rita and Zedd in a back room. He was briefly sickened by the image of Rita and Zedd, alone, in their bedroom. Shaking that thought from his mind, he continued searching for Jason. _There's Goldar,_ he thought. _And Rito. And JASON!_ The three of them were standing in the back of the main throne room, playing some type of game. Jason was definitely under a spell.
~*~
"HEY!" Billy bellowed, leaping out of the shadows. "Give him back!"
"A Blue Ranger?" Jenga asked. "Do something you gold monkey!"
"Of course!" Goldar growled. His Sword appeared in his hands in a burst of fire. "Prepare to die, Billy."
Billy flipped out of Goldar's way and touched Jason's arm. "I don't think so," he said. "Teleporting now." He touched his belt buckle, and the two of them teleported away in a blue and red stream of light.
~*~
"It's about time!" Kimberly shouted. "I'm not doing a bit of good out here!" Suddenly, a beam of blue light shot from the balcony. The Pterodactyl rolled out of the way, barely missing Jenga's attack. "She's firing at us!" Kimberly shouted.
"We've got what we came for," Billy said. "Let's go home."
~*~
"The pink one gets under my skin," Rita said. "I wasn't real fond of the freak with the long hair either."
"Trini? Aisha?" Jenga asked.
"No," Rita said. "Tommy. The original Green Ranger. Brat betrayed me."
"I don't guess I've met him yet," Jenga said. "Zeo Ranger?"
"Consider yourself lucky," Rita muttered.
~*~
"I think it's a foot bath," Rocky said.
Rebecca walked into the living room, stretching. "Actually," she said, "it's a rehydration pool. The Aquitians stand in it every so often to recharge themselves. We don't have a use for it though."
The front door suddenly opened. David Cranston and Cestro entered. Cestro and David were both wet up to their knees but otherwise dry. It took the Zeo Rangers a moment to recognize David, for he was wearing a purple device over his head, making him look exactly like an Aquitian. "What is that for?" Katherine asked.
David carefully lifted it off of his head and ran his fingers through his hair. "It lets us go without breathing underwater," he explained. "I know. I thought it was part of their anatomy too, but it's not."
"Aquitians wear these nearly continually, although we do not have to," Cestro said. "Without them, though, breathing air is very difficult. Genetically, we were designed to breathe water. However, when we developed as a civilization, we discovered that it was actually easier to move about and converse with one another in a dry environment, but it was very difficult to breathe the dry air. Fortunately, a few millenia ago, one of our greatest minds developed these devices which allow us to breathe oxygen much easier than it is for us to even breathe water."
Rocky nodded slowly, trying to give it time to sink in. "You don't have to have 'em, but since they help so much, you wear all the time, right?" he asked.
"Correct," Cestro said.
"That was a nice little lesson," Rebecca said, "but we need help. Can you help Adam and me in our lab?"
"Certainly," Cestro said.
"How about that?" Tanya mused. "All this time, it's basically just a hat."
"I wondered why you could see their hair underneath the edge of it," Katherine thought aloud.
"While you all are just sitting here doing nothing," David said, moving toward a closet, "would you like to go exploring Aquitar?" He removed four of the purple helmets.
"I sure do," Rocky said. He leapt to his feet, grabbed one of the helmets, and carefully slipped it on. Immediately, the small round stone just above the bridge of his nose pressed some type of hidden pressure point.
"Shouldn't the pressure crush us?" Tanya asked. "I mean, aren't we under a few miles of water?"
"Oh no," David said. "Well, we are, but we're inside a huge pod that makes up this city. The water is about knee deep, but the air is so damp, it's kind of hard to breathe. But, with the helmet on, it's just as comfortable as good ole Earth air."
Tommy pulled his pony-tail out of the top of his helmet. Katherine and Tanya gave him a strange luck, so he quickly said, "This is how Delphine does it."
"I think I'll just keep my hair underneath," Tanya said.
"Enough talking you guys," Rocky said. "Let's go. Oh, and Mr. Cranston, are there any good restaurants around here?"
"Call me David," Billy's father said. "And as for food, well, don't ever order seafood."
~*~
"Let's hope so," Zack said. "I'll go look in precious metals and gemstones."
"I'll check Natural History," Aisha said.
"I'm going to go ask that lady at the desk over there," Trini said.
"Oh yeah," Aisha chimed in. Zack and Aisha followed Trini to the Service Desk.
The lady at the service desk whined nervously. "Can I help you?" she stammered in her thick Australian accent.
"Yeah," Zack said. "We're the Power Rangers, and we're looking for a special crystal."
"We're the Power Rangers," Trini mocked. "Who else would we be genius?"
"We think it's in the shape of a pyramid," Aisha said, ignoring Trini and Zack's play fighting. "It's about six inches tall."
"The Pyramid Crystal?" the lady asked. "Why do you need it?"
"Earth is under major attack right now," Trini explained.
"And that Crystal is the only thing that can stop it," Zack said.
"Well, I suppose if it's Power Rangers business," the lady said. "Come with me." The three Rangers followed her into a back room. "Wait here," she said. She hurried over to an older man in a business suit. They talked for a few brief seconds before he walked over to the Power Rangers.
"Good evening," he said, extending his hand. Zack returned his hand shake. "You barely caught us before we closed. I understand you need one of our exhibits."
"Yes," Aisha said. "A Crystal."
"We have it on display because it looks like it's been cut, but it was found in a cave two hundred years ago," he said.
"It was cut, actually," Trini said, "but by a league of wizards on the Power of Good." She winced at her awkward description, but she didn't know how else to describe Zordon, Ninjor, Auric, and all of their other acquaintances.
"Will it be returned?" he asked.
"We can't promise you that," Zack said.
"We're asking because we don't want to be rude," Trini said, "but that Crystal is very, very, very important. If we don't get it, the world is doomed. If you don't give it to us, we'll have to take it."
"Of course," the man said. "I understand. Follow me."
~*~
"He's under some kind of spell," Billy said. "He does whatever you tell him to do. Rito and Goldar were having him do the Hokey Pokey."
"Where's his helmet?" Alpha asked.
"I think Finster has it," Kimberly said.
"When he demoprhs, it should disappear into the morphing grid with the rest of his suit," Billy said. "You'll have to force de-morph him, Alpha."
"Right," the automaton said. He punched a few buttons on the control panel, and Jason's red suit disappeared off of him in red sparkles of light.
~*~
"You don't know how much you've helped us," Trini said. "The world is in your debt."
"Teleporting out," Aisha said. The Rangers bodies were overcome with a bright light and they teleported out of the museum in three streaks of color.
~*~
"Excuse me?" Kimberly asked. "Hormones?"
"Yeah," Billy said, already starting to blush from the conversation he knew was inevitable. "Testosterone, the male sex hormone as I'm sure you know, is the specific hormone. Jenga altered it when she saw that Jason was overly attracted to her. The alterations made him willing to obey her every command. It will be simple enough to alter the hormones' source, but there is already so much in his body that's been altered. It's going to be pretty tough to get his body cleansed."
"Fortunately," Alpha said, "we have recently devised a full body medical tent. We can place Jason in it for a few hours, and he should be back to normal. Billy, will you help me get Jason in it."
"Sure," Billy said. He took Jason by the shoulders and turned him around. Alpha found a pair of scissors from somewhere and handed them to Billy.
"What are those for?" Kimberly asked.
"You'll have to cut his clothing off with the scissors," Alpha said, "unless you would rather undress him yourself."
"Eeengh," Kimberly grunted.
"I'll take the scissors, thanks," Billy said, turning even darker red.
"The tent is already set up in the Medical Chamber," Alpha said. "Teleporting out." The three of them teleported from the main Chamber to the Medical Chamber in twin flashes of red and blue.
Kimberly looked down at the ground and couldn't help but laugh at the predicament Billy was in. She certainly wouldn't have wanted to cut the clothes off of Trini or Aisha. Suddenly, green, yellow, and black light temporarily lit up the Power Chamber. "We got the Crystal," Zack shouted. A white streak of light landed right before him.
"I'll take care of the third Earth Crystal," Alpha said. "You go to the Medical Chamber and help Billy take care of Jason."
"Right," Zack said. "Black Ranger, Power Down!" The black armor fell off of his body in glossy black sparkles. He reached for his wrist, but realized he didn't have a communicator.
"I'll get it," Kimberly said. She hurried over to the Teleportation Panel, touched the infra-red figure that represented Zack on the small monitor and then hit TELEPORT. In a black flash of light, he teleported away.
"Yellow Ranger, Power Down!" Trini cried. She instantly demorphed.
"Yellow Ranger, Power Down!" Aisha shouted.
"You're green now," Kimberly said with a smile.
"Oh yeah," Aisha said. "Green Ranger, Power Down!"
"You aren't mad," Trini stammered to Aisha, "are you?"
"Mad?" Aisha asked, very surprised. "Why would I be mad? If anything, I should be thanking you. If you hadn't trusted me, I wouldn't be any type of Ranger right now, green or otherwise. After all, yellow is just a color."
"I just thought," Trini said, "that, I don't know, maybe, aw geez. I just wanted to make sure."
Aisha moved over to Trini and gave her fellow Ranger a big bear hug. "Trini, I know I don't really know you all that well, but I'd really like to change that. And the Yellow Ranger armor certainly isn't going to come between us." Trini smiled a huge smile and hugged Aisha back.
Zack's voice suddenly echoed throughout the Power Chamber. "What's he doing naked?!"
Trini, Kimberly, and Aisha burst into maniacal laughter.
~*~
Aisha laughed even harder and collapsed against a Control Panel. Trini and Kimberly finally succumbed and continued laughing as well.
"Women," Billy muttered.
~*~
"We're closer," Adam said. "I've at least managed to make the video even more crystal clear."
"I believe I know how to solve our problem," Cestro said. "Rather than search blindly for the answer, we should send a message to Earth and have it bounce back here. We will then know how to remove the disturbance from this video."
"Right," Rebecca said. "The message will pass through the force field, and since we'll know what the original message was, we can figure out what Alpha's message is."
"Will it matter that our message will pass through the force field twice?" Adam asked.
"Negative," Cestro said. "The return trip will not be affected at all, because the first trip through the force field will have modified the signal to such an extent that the return trip will have absolutely no effect."
Adam rolled his head around, trying to work the stiffness out of his shoulders. "I'm gonna take a break," he said.
"Why don't you go out and catch your friends and David?" Rebecca said. "You've worked long enough."
"That sounds like a good idea," he said.
"Come on Adam," Rebecca said. "I'll show you how the helmets work."
"Helmets?" Adam asked.
~*~
"Well, look at these Power Readings for the Power Chamber," he said, pointing at the monitor before him. "The Power is intensified by forty percent from the Earth Crystals. That means our teleportation and location beams are greatly enhanced."
"Yeah, it helps us locate the Crystals easier, right?"
"I'm thinking that it wouldn't be very hard at all to devise a device to scan for the Crystals, and teleport them here," Billy said. "The Third Crystal really helped us out, because know we have enough to figure out the energy patterns from all of the Crystals except the thirteenth."
"Of course," Trini said, a lightbulb turning on in her head. "We can set the computer to search for cubes, spheres, or pyramids, and if that's not how it works, we can extrapolate the energy readings for the next ten because we have the first three!"
"And then we can teleport them here," Billy added. "If we hurry, we can have all thirteen Crystals here in just a few hours!"
"Let's go back to your lab and get to work," Trini said.
"We can't," Billy said. "My lab is on Aquitar. I moved, remember?"
"Oh yeah," Trini said. "Well, the Command Center, er, I mean Power Chamber, should have the supplies. Let's get to work." Before either teen could react, the alarms suddenly went off.
~*~
A bulky, eight foot tall beast covered with green scales and a reptiles' head, complete with a gaping maw full of blood red teeth, appeared before them. "I am ready to serve your every command, mistress," Energizer said, bowing before Jenga.
"Go to Earth," she said, "and destroy the Power Rangers."
Chapter Six: Flashback
"Man!" Billy cried, pounding his fists against the control panel. "This is the last thing we need right now!"
"It's called the Energizer," Trini read off of the monitor before her. "It's capable of stealing energy from virtually any source and then firing it back."
"Can it steal energy from the Power Coins?" Zack asked.
"We do not know at this point in time," Alpha said. "Aye-yi-yi! Be careful Rangers!"
"What if we need to call our zords?" Kimberly asked.
"And we're still one man short," Aisha said. "Zordon? What are we gonna do?"
"There are still five of you," Zordon said. "In figurehead, Jason is the leader of the team. However, that leadership mainly applies just for your mental state. Physically and spiritually, you are equal, and are a team so long as there are at least two of you. As for your zords, I am sure Alpha will figure something out. Hopefully, you will not need to call on them too early in the battle."
"Right," Aisha said.
"IT'S MORPHIN TIME!" Billy shouted.
"DRAGONZORD!"
"MASTODON!"
"PTERODACTYL!"
"TRICERATOPS!"
"SABER-TOOTH TIGER!"
The five Rangers, minus Red, teleported out of the Power Chamber.
"Now, Alpha," Zordon said, "you must immediately get to work recreating the old Zords and powering up the dormant DragonZord."
"Right Zordon!" Alpha said. "I just hope that the other Zords are as easy to create as the Pterodactyl was. The only snag is that the Pterodactyl is the simplest Zord from a mechanical stand-point. It merely has to fly and fire weapons. The other Zords have to be able to move about on the ground and withstand major attacks!"
"Do not worry Alpha," Zordon said. "I have confidence in your abilities."
"Aye-yi-yi, Zordon," Alpha muttered. "I hope I don't let you and the Rangers down." As Alpha started to work on recreating the Zords from scrap metal and blueprints that dated back thousands of years, he suddenly had an idea that could buy everyone some time.
~*~
"What is it about this park?" Aisha asked, looking around at the familiar surroundings.
"Did I give you permission to speak?" Energizer growled. It pointed a clawed hand at Aisha. Green energy suddenly jumped the gap between them. Aisha grunted in pain. Her body was lifted off of the ground, her arms and legs dangling freely.
"Aisha!" Kimberly cried. She pulled her Power Blaster from her holster. "Let her go!" A pink burst of energy was fired from the white and pink gun.
"Power up guys!" Trini said.
"Right!" Zack and Billy shouted in unison. The Yellow, Black, and Blue Rangers withdrew their Power Blasters in unison and fired.
Energizer sent a powerful green blast at Aisha. Their connection was broken, and she was thrown backwards. "And now for the rest of you," he growled. The four streams of laser that were striking the beast from the Power Blasts suddenly back-fired. All four Power Blasters exploded in their hands, knocking them a few feet backwards.
"Are you okay Aisha?" Billy asked, hurrying over to his green-clad comrade.
"I think so," she moaned. "Just a little dizzy."
"Power Blasters are powered back up," Trini said, "but we've already established that they aren't gonna work."
"We can't make the combined Power Blaster without Jason," Kimberly cried. "What are we gonna do, Billy?"
He leapt to his feet and cried, "POWER LANCE!" The shimmering blue and silver lance appeared in his grip. "I suggest we fight with brute force."
"POWER AXE!" Zack cried. "Let's rock his world!"
~*~
"Is Jason back in action yet?" Rita asked.
"Negative," Jenga said. "I guess they haven't figured out how to break my spell yet."
"I've done it!" Lord Zedd suddenly shouted from the back of the palace. "I've done it!"
"Done what?" Jenga asked, raising her eyebrows.
"I've created Super Tengas!" he cried. "They have the size and agility of a Tenga but the brute strength and determination of your Wulves! Meet my new Tengas!" He pointed Jenga's staff at an invisible point in the air. A blue streak of electricity burst form the sapphire atop the scepter. With a crack of thunder, six Tengas appeared out of thin air and dropped to the ground.
"They look the same," Rita said.
"We'll give them a test," Jenga said. She took her staff back from her son, who promptly pulled his silver Z staff out of the air. "Let's make some Wulf Warriors." She waved the wand before her. Six black Wulves sparked into existence.
"Fight!" Rita cried.
The Wulves growled viciously as they ran toward the Tengas. The black birds began cawing and screeching and launced an attack the likes of which those in present had never before seen. In a matter of seconds, the Wulf Warriors had been ripped to shreds. "Good job, Zedd," Jenga complimented. She waved her wand over the pile of fur and bones, which promptly disappeared. "I am impressed."
"Way to go, Ed!" Rito shouted from the sidelines.
"It's ZEDD!" Lord Zedd bellowed.
"Right," Rito said. "Sorry Ed."
~*~
Zack whirled the Axe in his hands, and then switched modes. He quickly slid the blade to the other end of the handle and pointed the barrel at the monster. "COSMIC CANNON!" he shouted. He fired six bursts of black energy at Energizer. Energizer was struck soundly by each energy blast. The beast stumbled backwards, not stopped but definitely injured.
~*~
"Take her back to the Power Chamber," Trini said.
"No," Aisha finally spat out. "Really. I'm okay." She slowly stood to her feet and pulled the Draggon Dagger from it's sheath. "Just a little disoriented."
"Forget this!" Energizer shouted. "You guys aren't any fun at all. I think I'm gonna go massive!" A blue wave of light passed over his body. In an explosive flash of blue, Energizer grew to city-wrecking proportions.
"Do we have our Zords yet Billy?" Zack asked.
"I don't know," Billy said. "Let's get back to the Power Chamber." Blue, black, green, yellow, and pink light teleported away from the Park.
~*~
"Thank you Akiko," he answered with a smile.
Tommy and Rocky carried the unique food plates. The six food containers, as was more correct a term than plates, were transparent glass boxes, about six inches square. Inside it were several round indentations which kept the food from mixing together. "This is interesting," Kat said, examining her meal. She picked up a small, bread-like blue bead.
"There isn't any meat in here, is there?" Adam asked.
"Aquitians don't eat meat," David explained. "The only type of meat on the entire planet is fish, and that's a cardinal sin here."
"Plants, huh?" Tanya asked. "Now, what exactly is this stuff?"
They each had three distinct types of food. The blue beads, a pile of greenish-yellow leaves, and lastly, red sticks. "The blue beads are algae," David said. "They're deep fried, sort of. They don't have oil because they don't eat animals, but it's the same principle. They cook the algae in some type of weird chemical, but it doesn't taste fried, just crunchy. And it's really, really good. The leaves are of a plant not found on Earth. I can't recall the exact name, but it tastes cinnamony. The red sticks are sort of like carrots, but they have more of a fruit taste to them."
Katherine sniffed the blue bead in her hand. "Here goes nothing," she said. Her friends, even Rocky, were waiting to make sure she didn't die from it before they started eating. David just looked on, amused. "Wow," Kat said, chewing up the bead. "Wow. That is really good. It tastes like, I don't know, lettuce and tomato mixed together. Wow. This is fabulous."
"Any dizziness?" Rocky asked. "Loss of vision?"
She jokingly punched him in the shoulder. "I'm not your guinea pig," she said, smiling.
"After we're through here," David said, "we'll go exploring the city. This planet is amazing."
"I'm already amazed," Rocky said. "This food is awesome."
"Good ole Rock," Tanya said. The five of them laughed at Rocky's expense and continued their meal.
~*~
"The DinoZords are not ready," Alpha said.
"Oh no," Kimberly said. "Maybe I can take him on by myself in the Pterodactyl."
"Actually, Rangers," Alpha said, "I have a better idea. Rather than begin the arduous task of recreating your Zords, I have reprogrammed the ZeoZords to recognize you. Billy, you will pilot the Phoenix. Aisha, you shall pilot Taurus. Zack, you will have temporary control of Sphinx. Trini, you control ZeoZord II, and Kimberly, you will pilot ZeoZord I. Trini and Kimberly, you must exercise extreme caution in your Zords. They each contain nearly half of the ZeoZord's total weapon aresenal."
"How's Jason doing?" Aisha asked.
"His condition is unknown at this time," Alpha said. "You five concentrate on getting rid of Energizer."
"Right," Billy said. "BACK TO ACTION!"
~*~
"Oooh," Rita said. "Good plan. But, one thing you have to remember, when they defeat your monster, all the damage he has done is going to be reversed."
"Except for death," Jenga said. "He can certainly kill a lot of people by knocking over a few skyscrapers, can't he."
"I like the way you think," Rito chimed in. "So much better than Ed."
"You know," Jenga said, deep in thought. "I think I like Ed better than Zedd myself."
"Lord Ed?" Rita asked critically. "That certainly commands respect."
~*~
"ZEOZORDS!" all five Rangers shouted in unison. "POWER UP!"
The ZeoZord's Holding Bay Door rumbled open. Taurus and Sphinx ran out, dragging ZeoZords I and II behind them. The Phoenix was launched from the cannon, and the five Zords quickly went into action. "They're amazing," Aisha said.
"Let's go guys!" Billy shouted.
"Right!" the other four cried. Perfectly in unison, all five Rangers thrust their hand into the air. They leapt from the ground and immediately line-of-sight-teleported into the Zords. "Whoa," Trini said as her seat moved up to the control panel. "This is hi-tech."
"Can these things move on their own?" Kimberly asked.
"The weapons cannon can move, but that's about it," Billy said. "I've got a lock on Energizer. Zack and Aisha, follow my lead."
"Right!" they shouted in unison.
Billy flew near the Energizer. "Firing Phoenix Missiles!" he ordered. Two bright red missiles launched from the Phoenix's underbelly. Energizer's eyes opened wide. Red light shone from them and landed on the missiles. The two missiles exploded in light, although no damage was done to the Phoenix or Energizer. The swath of light from his eyes intensified and returned to his body. "He absorbed the missiles!" Billy cried. "We're gonna have to hit him low so his eyes can't get the power from our attacks!"
Energizer turned to look at the Phoenix Zord. His eyes opened wide, and the red light, this time much brighter, shone onto Phoenix. The Phoenix was overwhelmed in an explosion of sparks and was thrown out of the atmosphere. "SYSTEM OVERLOAD!" Billy cried. "I'VE LOST CONT-..."
Radio static followed. "Billy!" Kimberly cried.
"Hey!" Zack yelled. "Nobody mistreats one of my friends and gets away with it! Let's go guys!"
Aisha charged for Energizer. "Get ready to open fire, Trini," Aisha said, lowering Taurus's head to ram the beast.
"I don't think so, Green Ranger," Energizer growled. Massive red fireballs launched from his eyes and blasted the Taurus.
The Taurus fell over, breaking the cables to ZeoZord II. Trini's Zord continued moving, skidding toward Energizer while simultaneously turning around backwards. "Aisha!" Trini cried. "Aisha! Answer me!" The Taurus lay on it's side, sparks shooting from various joints on the machine's body.
"Trini!" Zack cried. "Energizer is coming for you!"
"I can't get turned around!" she cried.
"Your weapons cannon!" Kimberly cried. "Just turn the cannon to fire backwards!"
"But I'll be firing blind!" Trini cried back.
"Use your monitor!" Kimberly cried.
"This isn't the Zord I'm used to, and the Power's not telling me what to do! Are you guys close enough to fire?!"
"We're hurrying!" Zack cried, "but it's harder to drag a Zord than you'd think!"
"Just fire blind then!" Kimberly pleaded. "You're not facing the city. The only thing behind you are some mountains and Power Lines. And hurry Trini! He's two hundred feet away and closing!"
"He's opening his eyes to attack!" Zack shouted. "TRINI! FIRE!"
ZeoZord II's cannon rotated one hundred and eighty degrees. "FIRING ALL WEAPONS!" Trini cried. Yellow lasers burst from the Zord's twin cannons.
"You're firing too high!" Kimberly shouted. "Aim lower!"
~*~
~*~
"And you're doing great!" Kimberly shouted. "He's stopped firing!"
"Aisha is still down," Trini said. "I think she's knocked out."
"... no...," Aisha's voice transmitted weakly. "I'm... okay."
"Teleport back to the Power Chamber," Zack said. "You're in no condition to fight."
"I'll just hang out on the sidelines," Aisha said, her strength slowly coming back. "You'll need me if we have to form the MegaZord."
"He's retreating!" Zack cried.
"And he's in my range now!" Kimberly cried. "ZeoZord I! Fire all weapons!" Pink lasers streaked past Sphinx and fired at Energizer's torso. Screaming in pain and anger, he ran away from the Zords.
~*~
~*~
"Run after him Zack," Kimberly said. "Between the two of us, we can finish him off!"
"Right," Zack said. He turned the Sphinx around and ran after Energizer.
"I'm back," Billy's voice suddenly transmitted.
"Billy!" Kimberly shouted. "What happened?!"
"He used my missiles against me," he said, "and blasted me to the asteroid belt. Phoenix is pretty damaged, but I'm back in the game." His Zord entered the atmosphere. He lined up Energizer in his sights and began firing lasers. Energizer doubled over in pain. The Sphinx fired from its single, smaller cannon on it's forehead, while ZeoZord I fired its main weapon. Jenga's beast gave one final scream and exploded.
~*~
"Coming Jason," Alpha said. He scurried over to the Medical Tent and looked at Jason through the glass. "How are you feeling?"
"All right," Jason answered. "What happened exactly?" He glanced down at his body, and then asked, "And where are my clothes and who put me here?"
"Jenga placed you under a spell in Mammoth Cave," Alpha answered. "Billy and Kimberly got you back, and to fix you, we had to remove the toxins from your bloodstream. Billy and Zack helped me get you here."
"Uuugh," Jason muttered, already embarressed. "Can you synthesize me some new clothes?"
"I already have," Alpha said. He pushed a button on the Medical Tent's Control Panel. It disintegrated, leaving Jason sitting on a normal table. Alpha left the clothes for him and returned to the Main Chamber.
~*~
"I'm okay," Aisha said. "Really. Green Ranger, power down." She instantly returned to her demorphed mode. "That's better," she said, her voice instantly having more life and energy. "Whew. That's a whole lot better."
Alpha teleported into the Main Chamber. "Rangers, I am glad you are back," he said. "You will be pleased to know that Jason is back to normal."
"Alpha," Trini said, "something is wrong with Aisha. During the last two battles, she's almost passed out on us."
"No, really," Aisha said, standing up. "I feel fine now."
"It's just when she's in morphed mode," Kimberly said, her voice saddened.
"Oh no," Zack said.
"Rangers," Zordon said. "Do not leap to conclusions. There is a justifiable cause for Aisha's weakness during battle. It may have absolutely nothing to do with her Green Powers."
"You haven't touched a green candle lately," Trini asked, "have you?"
Billy moved over to the Control Panel. "He really did a number on our Zords," Billy said. "ZeoZords III and I, zero percent damage. ZeoZord II, two percent damage to the base."
"That's when I skidded out of control," Trini said.
"ZeoZord V, forty-nine percent damage. ZeoZord IV, ninety-three percent damage," Billy said. "It might be unsavable. Only time will tell."
"I'm sorry guys," Aisha said.
"It's not your fault," Zack said. "Energizer came straight for you."
"Of course not," Billy agreed. "Besides, the Zeo Rangers still have their SuperZeo Zords. And even if it is that badly damaged, I can always start from scratch and build a new Zord. I'll dispatch the Zord droids to start repairs. But for now, I need to concentrate on building a device to locate the other Crystals. Trini?"
"I'll be glad to help," she said.
~*~
"How are you feeling Jason?" Kimberly asked.
"My pride is a little bit more bruised than my body," he said.
"Hey, I just helped," Zack said, looking up from the Control Panel. "Billy and Alpha did all of the cutting."
"Thanks anyway," Jason said. "At least I can't remember it."
Kimberly giggled at her two friends.
Blue and yellow light suddenly teleported into the Power Chamber. Trini and Billy were holding a small, crudely constructed scanner. "We've made a device that should work," Trini said.
"Alpha, help me hook this up to the computer system here," Billy said.
"How will this work?" Kimberly asked. "In English, if you can."
Billy smiled and said, "It's going to scan the entire planet for the energy readings from the Earth Crystals. If Trini and I have done it right, the scanner will locate the Crystals and teleport them here immediately."
"Hooked up," Alpha said.
"Everybody cross your fingers," Billy said.
~*~
"Well, at least we have twelve," Kimberly said. "That has to count for something."
"Where's Zordon?" Zack whispered to Jason. He motioned up to Zordon's tube, darkened and empty.
"I don't know," Jason whispered back.
"Alpha, set the computers to extrapolate the data on the first twelve Crystals to come up with every possible energy reading for the thirteenth Crystal," Billy said. "The scanner and program Trini and I made just isn't working."
"Right," Alpha said.
"Rangers," Zordon's voice said, indicating his return. "I have been in my Private Chambers, deep in thought. I have some very bad news which will affect all of you." The six Rangers looked up at their mentor and braced themselves for the worst.