Phantom Two
by Jeremy Ray Logsdon

Diva Tox and King Mondo, unfortunately for them, were not at her level. They were both evil, but they received their evil magic from varying demons, not the supreme evil. That always left room for someone more powerful.

"Who's there?" Jenga asked as she stepped into the main palatial room.

A woman in black and silver armor was standing in the center of the room. Her hair was long, purple, and curly, and she wore a silver headband. Silver trinkets hang from silver strings on the left side of her headband. Her face was the epitome of innocence, and her body was a temple of beauty. "Hello, sister dear," the woman said, smiling sweetly.

"Sister," Jenga said with a smile. "Well, if it isn't dear little sister Ronnie."

"You know I hated being called Ronnie, it was Veronica," the woman countered, "and now, I go by Astronema."

"I haven't seen you in...."

"Last February," Astronema said. "Remember when you summoned all evil for your destruction of the Power Rangers?"

"You may have been here, but I never saw you," Jenga remarked, thinking. "I guess..."

"We haven't seen each other since... I guess since I moved out of the house," Astronema said. "Boy, that has been a long while."

"Ranking?" Jenga asked.

"Twenty-eight," Astronema said. "And moving up."

"Good job, little sis," Jenga smiled. "Oh, let me introduce you to two of my friends..."

"I already know of them," Astronema smiled. "Diva Tox and King Mondo. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise, I'm sure," Diva Tox said. "I'm going back to bed. Good night all." "Is this a social visit, or... what?" Jenga asked.

"Actually, I'm kind of here to get your... approval, to move up on the list," Astronema said.

"What have you done recently?" Jenga asked. Astronema smiled as she began to tell her tale.

~*~

Their civilization was thriving. The Darians had long since united under a single world power, and their people spoke only one language. They had mastered space travel, and as such, they were target for an alien invasion.

Helena, the master crystal carver from the planet Eltare, presented the Royal Throne of Daria with five powerful crystals. The Sol Crystals, as they were called, were designed to draw power from the blue star that Daria circled. Five members of the throne were given the powers, and they became the Power Rangers of Daria. When Eltare was destroyed, the Darian Rangers attempted to help. However, helping was futile. Catalina ordered the Darian Rangers to return to their own planet, as they had just made several dangerous enemies in attempting to save Eltare.

However, the evil didn't come. The five Darian Rangers, red, blue, yellow, pink, and black, passed their powers down from grandparent to grandchild for generations. Then, sixty years ago, a source of evil known as Dark Spectre attacked Daria. He only wanted to claim the Sol Crystals, as any crystals carved by Helena were truly powerful. Fortunately, the five Rangers were able to defeat the dark lord of evil. The five teenagers had families, and grew old.

Two weeks ago, Astronema began to plan her attack. The powers were currently held by old men and women. She killed their grandchildren so that the powers could not be easily passed on. Then, she attacked. The elderly Rangers fought valiantly, but they weren't the same team that had defeated Dark Spectre. They were old, and they were tired. Astronema's Quantrons killed the Royal Court, and then they began to kill the population.

The Pink Daria Ranger then found her youngest grandson. He had somehow escaped death. She used her powers to heal him, but by that time, the entire planet was dying. The Black Daria Ranger was the first to fall. Red and Yellow Daria Rangers were next. The Blue and Pink Daria Rangers knew that the end was near. They placed Pink Daria Ranger's grandson in a space pod with the five Sol Crystals. The space pod was fired into space with a magical spell on it that would prevent evil from ever claiming it. Then, Astronema sacrificed her own forces to destroy their sun. Daria ended up tumbling through the cold vastness of space, where her remaining inhabitants died. Pink Daria Ranger's grandson was the sole survivor of the Darian race. He, along with five crystals which are now worthless as their sun had exploded, is currently spinning through space, waiting to be found and pulled from his suspended animation.

~*~

"Well, there's still one Darian left," Astronema said with a shrug.

"I'm impressed. I'm very impressed," Jenga admitted. "I've only destroyed eight teams of Rangers myself. My little sister has done good."

"So... you'll give me a good word before the Alliance?" Astronema asked hopefully.

"I'll do you one better," Jenga told her. "Would you like to join the Dynasty of the Apocalypse?"

"Are... are you serious?" Astronema asked. Jenga smiled and nodded. "I would love to!" Astronema squealed.

"Anything interesting you have to bring?" Jenga asked.

Astronema clapped her hands, and a multitude of pinpoints of light appeared in the room. The lights expanded, producing black and silver fighters. "Organic machines," Astronema explained. "I call them Quantrons." All wore an appropriately colored helmet and chest armor, and more than half carried a giant semi-circular weapon.

"Oooh," Jenga purred, moving toward the fighters to expect them. "Hmm... Impressive, but not as strong as our super-charged Tengas or Wulves. Mind if I make an adjustment?"

"Be my guest," Astronema said. Jenga pulled her seldom-seen dark blue scepter from the air. The sapphire flickered brightly, and blue light began to shine around each fighter. When the glow died down, they were as strong as any of the fighters from the Dynasty.

"I have an idea," Jenga said. "Mondo? Do you have the time?"

"It's two thirty a.m.," King Mondo told them.

"Feel like a little exercise?" Astronema asked, anticipating her older sister's plan.

"One thing I need to do first, though," Jenga said. "You go ahead." Astronema's body was overcome with a purple glimmer, and when it faded, she had disappeared with it. Her Quantrons disappeared in much the manner they had appeared.

A blue pedestal rose from the ground on which rested an old-fashioned telephone. She picked it up and dialed a quick seven digit phone number.

"Ungh," the voice on the phone said in way of a reply.

"Phantom," Jenga said simply before she hung up the phone.

A few moments later, a pillar of black fire appeared before Jenga. "I report for duty, my Queen," Phantom Ranger said obediently.

"Let's go, Phantom."

~*~

"Rangers," Alpha said, "an unknown villain is attacking in the park with a new group of fighters! We need you to get out there asap!"

"Should we morph, or... what?" Zack asked groggily through the open airwaves.

"You better Ninja Morph," Catalina said calmly. "We don't know what these new guys are capable of."

Adam released the button and put his green communicator on. He then quickly found a pair of jeans, and soon after that, he located a black tank top. While demorphing by accident was extremely rare, it had happened before, and he had no desire to demorph in the middle of park in nothing but his Budweiser Frog Boxers. Just as he was about to whisper his morphin call, the phone rang. It wasn't much of a surprise; the police force was often notified when there was an attack. "Zeo Ranger IV, Green —- Frog," Adam said simply. Green light flashed around him, and he morphed into his powerful armor. His hands immediately moved to his belt buckle/morpher, and he teleported away in a green streak of light.

~*~

"Astronema," she said, planting a long staff with a gargantuan diamond on one end into the ground. "And you?"

"Green Ranger," he answered. "Who are these shiny guys behind you?" Black and gold light streaked through the sky and landed beside Adam, forming Bulk already in his Gold Ranger armor. "Gold Ranger, meet Astronema. Astronema, Gold Ranger."

"Do you need more sleep?" Bulk asked.

"Meet my Quantrons," she said. The silver and gold fighters slowly moved around here to stand between her and the two Rangers. "Quantrons... attack!"

"Let's go!" Adam shouted as he and Bulk hit forearms. The Quantrons were immediately upon them, fighting as fiercely as the Tengas but much more effectively. They didn't have the bulky aviary body to deal with. Before Bulk could even get a single strike, the sharp edge of one of the Quantron's blades struck him full across the chest.

Bulk found himself on his back with several Quantrons swarming above him. He lashed up with both feet, knocking one aside. He braced himself for the sharp point of a blade that he knew was going to really hurt. Then, white flashed above him, and he saw Sabba between him and the blade. "Back off!" Aisha cried, high kicking the Quantron attacking Bulk away. Adam made quick work of the rest surrounding him, enabling their large friend to stand up.

"Thanks guys," Bulk sighed with relief. "You too, Sabba."

"Not a problem, Gold Ranger," the enchanted saber replied.

"Hi-yaah!" Zack cried as he leapt into the battle, taking out a silver Quantron. Before he could make another move, Astronema came after him with her staff. She slammed the broad end into his stomach and knocked him to his back. As Aisha ran to help him, she spun the staff and slammed it into her chest.

"Where's Tanya?" Adam asked, fighting an entire crowd of Quantrons which seemed to have a personal vendetta against him.

"Ki-yaah!" Tanya shouted dramatically as she entered the fight.

"Took you long enough!" Aisha criticized. Her lapse in concentration gave a Quantron the opportunity to knock her to the ground.

"Dulcea!" Bulk shouted into his wrist. "We need your help!"

"I'll be there as soon as I can," Dulcea answered. Bulk only had time to look up before Phantom Ranger shoved a powerful fist into his stomach; the sudden assault was finished with a spinning heel kick which knocked the larger Ranger flat on his back.

"Leave him alone!" Zack shouted, firing a shot from his Power Blaster. The black beam of energy struck Phantom Ranger, but it only knocked it back a step. Phantom Ranger paused, and then it flicked its wrist, summoning a long, black broad sword. Phantom Ranger let loose with an angry bellow as it ran for the other Black Ranger.

~*~

"Astronema," Dulcea growled. "I know of her. She isn't much in and of herself, but she rides on the hamstrings of someone very powerful."

"Coattails," Catalina corrected.

"Pardon?"

"She rides on the coattails of someone very powerful," Catalina said. "Where the sam hill did you get hamstrings?"

"This person is Jenga," Zordon said solemnly.

"Exactly," Dulcea answered. To Catalina, she asked, "Are you sure it isn't hamstrings?"

"Very sure."

"Ladies," Zordon chided.

"How does she know Jenga?" Alpha asked, pointing to the frozen image in the viewing globe.

"She's her little sister," Dulcea explained.

"And not by a demon bond. By blood," Catalina continued.

"Dulcea, you really should join the fight if you can," Zordon said as politely as he could.

"Phantom Ranger is giving our Rangers a serious beating!" Alpha added.

"I'm going," Dulcea said. "The Snow Owl!"

~*~

"Very powerful. Ninja Ranger," Jenga said. "Got the power for him when one of the Rangers I have this freaky weird bond with tapped the Great Power on Phaedos. Channeled the energy into a ruby, it got thrown to Earth, some ordinary mortal picked it up, and became Phantom Ranger whenever I give the secret code word."

"Which is?"

"Phantom," Jenga said. "It doesn't have to be original. Only my voice triggers the switch to evil."

"Switch?" Astronema asked.

"Phantom Ranger is good unless morphed," Jenga explained. "Oh! I forgot to tell you my favorite part! Phantom Ranger can produce absolute any weapon. An infinite weapons arsenal. Just one of the little perks of serving the side of evil."

"Why did you call him Phantom Ranger?" Astronema asked. "Doesn't he have a name?"

"Not my concern," Jenga answered with a shrug. "I could care less about Phantom Ranger's personal life. Phantom Ranger is mine when morphed; otherwise, not my concern. Hey, look at that." A silver trail of sparkling light was streaking across the dark sky. "That's Dulcea."

"Dulcea," Astronema said thoughtfully. "I know of a Dulcea."

"Master Warrior of Phaedos," Jenga continued.

"What's she doing here?"

"They stole my Crystal of Time and she's uses it to keep herself from dying of old age," Jenga explained.

"Why don't we steal it and kill the old bat?"

"Tried, can't," Jenga said. "She keeps it in a private pocket dimension."

The silver teleport stream landed in the middle of the fight and coalesced into the warrior, clad in a Silver Ninjetti Suit. "They're determined, if nothing else," Astronema sighed.

"You know, watching a fight is nothing compared to fighting in a fight," Jenga said with a smile. She summoned her silver dagger, which slowly lengthened into a silver sword.

Astronema's eyes widened with delight. "Let's!" she laughed wickedly, spinning her staff in her arms. The two sisters spared one last glance before they ran into the fight.

4:18 a.m.
Adam trudged to the bathroom. The fight had just recently ended, two hours after it had started. They ended up having to fight against a monster courtesy of the Machine Empire. The Turbo MegaZord defeated the beast, fortunately, and they had even managed to keep the fight out of the city so the residents didn't have to be awakened to go to the Monster Shelters.

"What are you doing up so early?" his father asked from behind him.

"Dad," Adam exhaled in a sharp breath. "I, uh, I got up to use the bathroom. What are you doing up so early?"

"There was a monster attack this morning," he said. "They called us in, in case we had to get the whole town in the Shelters at a moment's notice. I don't know about you, but I'm going to try and get a few hours sleep before I have to wake up again."

"G'night," Adam mumbled as his dad returned to his bedroom. Adam couldn't help but wonder if what his father remembered was what his father actually did during the night. He remembered the repeated blows delivered to him by Phantom Ranger. The thought that the person behind the twisted black armor could have been his father made goosebumps rise all over his body. _It can't be him. It just can't be..._

~*~

"You think she'll like it?" Adam asked hopefully.

"You're honestly going to give Tanya a promise ring?" Bulk asked again.

Adam slowly nodded as Bulk continued his close scrutiny of the ring. The ring itself was ten karat gold, while the yellow and green gems set in it were synthetic. Adam just couldn't afford a one hundred percent real ring, no matter how hard he tried.

"Yeah," Adam said bashfully. "I mean, I really care about her. I love her."

"Wow," Bulk sighed. "What does this mean, exactly?"

"It's sort of like a pre-engagement ring," Adam admitted.

"If you don't mind my asking, how far have you two... gone?" Bulk asked awkwardly.

"Not far," Adam admitted. With a true Adam smile, he added, "Nothing involving nudity." He paused, and then asked, "Have you and Dulcea?"

"Nothing more than a kiss," Bulk admitted.

"We haven't even been able to have an uninterrupted date in no telling how long. Every time the two of us try to go out, Phantom Ranger shows up," Adam sighed.

"When are you going to give it to her?"

"Tonight on our date."

~*~

"Come on over here," Aisha told her. "I'm the only one home."

Before Tanya could reply, yellow light flashed in Aisha's room. "I've got a bit of a problem," Tanya sighed as she crossed the room to sit on Aisha's bed.

"What kind of a problem?" Aisha asked.

"Well, I don't really know how to say this, because your best friend is the person I'm having the problem with," Tanya admitted.

"You and Adam?" Aisha asked in disbelief.

Tanya nodded her head. "It's..."

"Do you not like him anymore?" Aisha asked.

"He's a great guy," Tanya said sincerely. "I love him as a friend, I honestly do. But..."

"That's it," Aisha said dejectedly.

"That's it. I just... when he kisses me, I don't feel anything anymore. Nothing. I've fallen out of love with him."

Aisha frowned unhappily and slumped back against the pillows on her bed. "So... what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to tell him obviously," Tanya said. "I just don't know how to tell him. How has Adam handled break-ups in the past?"

"It's funny you should ask that," Aisha said delicately. "Well, Adam's never had a break-up... before."

"What?" Tanya asked. "I'm his first girlfriend?"

Aisha nodded. "That kiss in the Power Chamber, back during that alternate time fiasco. Well, that was his first kiss," Aisha said.

"Oh my God," Tanya moaned, burying her face in his hands. "What am I gonna do?"

"You're gonna have to tell him soon," Aisha informed her. "Don't stretch this thing out. The longer you take, the more it's going to hurt when you tell him. Tell him as soon as you can. And alone."

"I guess I'll tell him tonight," Tanya sighed. "On our date."

~*~

"Wow," Astronema said, walking into the stone cold room. Large windows were on two of the walls which provided a huge view of the moon and later on, the rising Earth. "Corner room?"

"Yep," Jenga said. "Nice view, ain't it?"

"Oh, I forgot about one thing," Astronema said. "My henchman. I have a henchman. Can he stay here too?"

"Absolutely," Jenga replied. "Do I know him?"

"Mordant?"

"Pig?"

"Yeah, that's him."

"I know of him," Jenga answered. That wasn't much of a surprise to Astronema; Jenga knew of practically everyone on the side of evil. "When he will arrive?"

"He's currently chasing that Orb around space," Astronema answered. "You know, the one from Daria."

"They've probably put a protection spell on it," Jenga told her. "Well, I'm gonna go find Diva and see if she wants to go to Earth. Wanna come with?"

"Nah, I'm gonna get myself set up here," Astronema said with a smile. Jenga turned and left the room, leaving Astronema alone. "I think I'm going to like this place," Astronema all but purred as she reexamined her room. "I wonder if there are any cute guys around here?"

~*~

"I know something you don't know," Zack taunted as he hurried to catch up with her.

"Oh?" Aisha asked.

"About Adam and Tanya," Zack said.

"Oh," Aisha said with a nod, turning around to slowly roll backwards so she could face Zack. "I know about that, too. Although I can't figure out why you're happy about it."

"Huh?" Zack asked. "Why wouldn't I be happy?"

"Because they're our friends!" Aisha protested, slapping him on the arm.

"We must be talking about two different things," Zack said warily. "What are you talking about?"

"Tanya is going to dump Adam!" Aisha shouted. "You better be talking about something different!"

"Hold up," Zack said. "She's dumping him? Why?!"

"She fell out of love with him," Aisha explained sadly. "What were you going to say?"

"Oh this is not gonna be good," Zack complained. "Adam called me and asked my advice on how he should pop a big question to Tanya."

"Big question?"

"He's going to give her a promise ring tonight and declare his love for her!" Zack shouted. "Aw man!"

"Well we have to stop him!" Aisha cried.

"We can't do anything," Zack said with an emphatic nod of his head. "Adam's gonna have to find out some way, and the only way we could warn him not to give Tanya the ring is to flat out tell him, and that's not our job."

"Adam is going to declare his love for Tanya, and Tanya's going to tell him she doesn't love him anymore," Aisha whined. "Why do men have to be so blind?!" she snapped, hitting Zack on the shoulder.

"It's not my fault!" Zack said, hitting her back although not nearly as hard. The two were still slowly skating down the incline of Zack's street. "Aisha, watch out!"

Before Aisha could react, the sidewalk ended. She tried to turn face forward, but she only got about halfway around. The sidewalk ended in three steps which were necessary because of the uneven layout of the ground. Aisha's right shin slammed into the edge of one of the steps before she sprawled out on her back at the bottom.

"Aisha!" Zack cried, hopping the three steps to kneel by her side. "Are you okay?"

"I think so," Aisha grunted, sitting up. However, as soon as she moved, pain shot through her right leg. "Ow! No. No, I'm not. Look at my leg. Is it broken?"

The skin was split wide open and a considerable amount of blood was flowing from the wound. However, what bothered Zack wasn't the blood. The fact that her leg was wider than it had been before was what bothered him. "I... I think so," he stammered. "Come on, we gotta get you to the emergency room. Wrap your left arm around my neck and put all of your weight on me."

Aisha did as she was told. She touched the steps with her right hand, and as Zack stood up, she pushed with her right hand and left leg as hard as she could. A few seconds later, she was standing up with all of her weight on him. "It's really starting to hurt now," she grunted through clenched teeth. "I can't believe I did something that stupid."

"I should have seen the steps behind you," Zack chided himself. He glanced up and down the four darkened streets they could be seen from, and then said, "I'm gonna teleport us into a dark corner of the hospital parking lot. I figure I can roll you in on one foot." Before Aisha could agree or disagree, he hit his communicator, and the two of them disappeared in a mingled streak of black and white.

~*~

Adam touched the black box in his pocket. _Not just yet._ "No reason," he said. "You can come closer." They were sitting within an arm's distance of each other.

"Adam," Tanya began nervously. "We need to talk."

"What about?" Adam asked.

"Us," Tanya said simply. She felt horribly sick to her stomach, but she took a deep breath and waited for Adam's reaction. When none came, she continued, "You know I really care about you, right?"

"Oh God," Adam groaned to himself, sensing what the topic of their conversation was going to be.

"No Adam, it's not like that," Tanya said hurriedly. "I promise I haven't met anybody else. I'm not cheating on you; I haven't even kissed a guy since we've been dating, I promise. And I wouldn't lie to you."

"I know," Adam said woodenly. "Then...?"

"It's just... I can't really explain what I feel Adam, but..."

"Tanya, please, you're scaring me."

"I just don't... love you, anymore," she said sadly.

"What?" Adam asked, rising to his feet. Tanya followed his suit, startled at the tone his voice had just taken. "You don't love me anymore?"

"I can't explain it, Adam," Tanya said softly.

"Did I do something wrong?" he asked in a voice so sad it nearly broke Tanya's heart.

"No," she insisted, reaching out to touch his arm. "No, you were wonderful. A girl couldn't ask for a better boyfriend."

"If you're dumping me, then that's obviously what you want," Adam said, turning his back to her so she couldn't see the tears that were starting to gather at the corners of his eyes.

"Adam, please," Tanya said, absently wiping at a tear that stained its way down her cheek.

"I'm listening," he said in a horribly detached voice.

"I just... I don't feel with you what a girlfriend should feel with her boyfriend," Tanya started. "It's not that you haven't been nothing but perfect to me. It's just that... the spark isn't there anymore. I still love you Adam, honestly, I do. Just... not like a boyfriend. Please understand. I don't want to lose you as my friend."

Adam was silent for a moment. He finally answered, "You won't." Rather then let her see him cry, he touched his communicator and teleported away in green light.

Tanya wrapped her arms around herself as tears spilled down her cheeks. Adam's green teleport stream streaked across the sky, providing a beautiful contrast against the inky blackness of the universe. "I'm sorry," she sighed.

Beep beep beepbeep beep beep.

"What?" Tanya asked into her communicator.

"Tanya, uhm, we've had a little bit of trouble here."

"Fight?" she asked, furiously wiping at her cheeks.

"No, nothing like that. Aisha broke her leg. She's asking for you."

"Is she all right?" Tanya asked, the sadness immediately torn from her voice. "What happened?"

"She's fine, and she's a little bit too happy right now," Zack said. "Can you come?"

"Yeah, I'll be there in a minute." Tanya lifted her shirt up enough to wipe her face off. "I'll stop and get sunglasses," she said before her vision dissolved into yellow.

~*~

"I'm sorry," she said sincerely. "I don't know what's come over me." They had given Aisha some pretty powerful drugs for the pain, and as a result, she had been talking about things that should only have been talked about in private. Zack had spent a full five minutes listening to her explain why when they were morphed, her teleport was pink, but when unmorphed, it was white. She still knew better than to talk around doctors or nurses, but he wasn't comfortable with her talking Ranger business in any type of public place.

"How are you feeling, Aisha?" her nurse asked as she entered the room to check on her.

"Slow night?" Aisha asked.

"You're the most exciting thing that's happened her tonight, truthfully," she said. "Well, that wasn't planned. Or pregnant."

"So why hasn't my leg been fixed?"

"The doctor is in surgery, now."

"Oh my God, what happened to him?"

"Aisha," Zack began delicately, "the doctor is performing surgery. Do the drugs usually make people this loopy?"

"I've always been especially sensitive to melidication, you're welcome very much," Aisha drawled.

"Some people get like this," the nurse said.

"I'm doped up, not deaf," Aisha protested.

"Aisha?" Tanya asked, poking her head in the door. Seeing the nurse, she asked, "Can I come in?"

"Probably not, but what they don't know won't hurt 'em," the nurse said with a smile, patting Tanya on the arm as she left the room.

"What happened?" Tanya asked.

"Roller blading," Zack answered for her.

"I fell," Aisha contributed.

"Yeah, I kinda guessed," Tanya said. "You really are doped up, huh?"

"Just a little," Aisha said with a smile. "Hey, how did your date go?"

"Aisha," Zack said sternly.

"Not well," Tanya answered. "I think Adam is mad at me."

"I wanna see Adam," Aisha announced. "I wanna see Adam."

"You have to kind of excuse her," Zack said warily. "She must be really sensitive to medication."

"Call Adam, Zack," Aisha insisted.

"I'll be in the Waiting Room if you all need me," Tanya said, smiling as best she could.

~*~

"Dulcea," Tanya said, hurrying over to her. "She's fine, a simple fracture. They're going to put her in a walking cast for about eight weeks."

"Can I go see her?" Dulcea asked, tucking her hat under her arm.

"Well, Adam is in there now," Tanya said.

"One visitor at a time?"

"Something like that."

~*~

Adam couldn't help but smile at his friend's medication-induced behavior. "I feel kind of stupid that I bought this ring now," he said, taking it out of his box to stare at.

"You bought me a ring?" Aisha asked, yanking the box away.

"No, I bought it for Tanya."

"Oh. Can I have it?"

"No, I'm gonna take it back and get a refund," Adam announced, taking the box back.

"Ms. Campbell?" a man asked.

"That's me," she said.

"Hi. I'm Dr. Hathaway, and I'll be setting your leg tonight," he said. "In much pain?"

"Nope nope nope," Aisha chirped. "Those pills you all gave me were something else, lemme tell you whut."

"She's sensitive to medication," Adam told the doctor.

"I kind of suspected as much," Dr. Hathaway said. "Well, Ms. Campbell."

"Don't call me Ms. Campbell. That's my mom. Call me Aisha."

"Certainly, Aisha. This is my assistant, Raquel. She'll be helping us tonight."

"Do you want me to go get Zack?" Adam asked.

"No," Aisha said firmly. "I'd rather Dr. Hathaway and Raquel set my leg."

~*~

"We're clear to go," Zack announced as he returned to Aisha's side with some crutches. The fracture was simple and clean, so they were able to put her in a walking cast. However, the crutches were still going to be needed for the time being.

"Tanya and Adam are both really upset, huh?" Aisha asked as Dulcea and Zack helped her out of the hospital.

"Tanya feels guilty and Adam feels hurt," Dulcea announced. "It's just going to take them some time to get through this." She glanced around the parking lot and then said, "I'm gonna go catch up with Bulk. He's covering for me." She then teleported away in a streak of sparkling silver.

The pair had made it to the parking lot when numerous flashes of light appeared all around them. The purple-haired villain and her black and silver fighters landed on the pavement. "Quantrons!" she shouted. "Attack!"

"Uh oh," Aisha whined. One of the Quantrons' blades knocked one of her crutches away, and she fell to the ground. She twisted, and landed on her backside rather than hurt her leg.

"Morph Aisha!" Zack cried, knocking the Quantrons attacking her away.

She twisted both wrists, summoning her Turbo Morpher and Key. Rather than waste time with the specialized movements, she thrust the key into the slot. The Turbo Power was unleashed within the center of her body. In a hurry, she cried out, "Wind Chaser Turbo Power!" Her words gave her the concentration necessary to morph, and with a pink flash of light, the Pink Turbo Armor appeared on her body. She leapt to her feet, as she was no longer encumbered with either a broken leg or the cast on it.

"They're headed for the hospital!" Zack shouted, running after the Quantrons.

"Guys, we need help!" Aisha cried into her communicator.

~*~

"Hand to hand fights have been at an all time high, Aisha," Alpha informed her.

"I was able to morph in time," she said.

"Yeah, after you had been knocked down," Zack rebutted. "You were lucky this time, but you won't be lucky every time."

"We need to find a new Pink Turbo Ranger," Tanya agreed, nodding slowly. Bulk, the only other Ranger present, nodded in agreement.

"Look, there's more to it than me just finding a new teenager to take the morpher," Aisha said. "These powers aren't mine. I'm just a temp. They belong to Katherine."

The four teens were silent at that point. "Rangers," Catalina said softly, "will you let Aisha and me talk in private, please?"

Zack, Tanya, and Bulk shared a glance before they teleported away in silence.

"What are you going to tell me, Catalina?" Aisha asked nervously.

"I know this isn't a possibility you want to consider, but we have to face facts. It is entirely possible that no one will be coming home. It's been nearly a month since the last four left, and we haven't heard a thing from them, neither here or there. Katherine might never set foot in this dimension again," Catalina said.

"You can still go to that dimension, right?" Aisha asked. Catalina nodded, so Aisha continued. "Well, would you go ask her for me? Ask her what she thinks of the idea, and if she says yes, ask if she has any preferences."

"Certainly, Aisha," Catalina said. "Why don't you go home and get some rest? I'll let you know first thing in the morning."

"Let me know as soon as you get back, no matter what time it is. Okay?" Aisha asked.

"Of course," Catalina relented. "I'll go now."

In a different dimension, 10:12 p.m.
Pink light flared up inside the large white cubbyhole of the Power Core before Katherine Hillard materialized out of thin air. "Sigma?" she asked, stepping out of the teleportation booth. "Did you need to see me?" He and Nadia were standing by the triplet Swords. He motioned to the lower level.

"Katherine," Catalina smiled from the lower level.

"Catalina!" Katherine cried happily, running down the lighted stairwell. "What are you doing here?!" Katherine reached the bottom level and stood beside her holographic friend. It was remarkably odd to be so happy to see someone, but then to not be able to touch them in any way at all.

"Pink Ranger business," Catalina said.

"Is there a problem?" Omicron asked.

"Sort of," Catalina said. "Aisha broke her leg tonight."

"Oh!" Katherine cried. "Is she okay?"

"Yes, she's fine. It'll heal clean. But... well, there's a bit of a problem. There have been a lot of unmorphed fights, and Aisha can't fight. So we need to get a new Pink Ranger, and Aisha doesn't feel right choosing the person who will be your replacement."

"I see," Katherine said.

"She feels like she is just holding the Powers until you get back, and she really doesn't think that she should be allowed to select the person that you would have selected," Catalina informed her.

"Tell Aisha that she has my blessing to select a person who would be honorable and trustworthy to be the Pink Turbo Ranger," Catherine said.

"Good," Catalina said. She was starting to flicker as she was already spending too much time in an alternate dimension. "Uhm, before I go, any suggestions on who it should be?"

"Before all this happened, we were going to choose people who would be freshmen or sophomore this next school year," Katherine said. "Give our love to everybody, Catalina." Catalina waved goodbye as she transferred herself to her home dimension.

The "Home" dimension, later that night
"Here's my yearbook, and Franklin's middle school yearbook," Adam said, placing them on Aisha's bed. "In case you want to pick someone who'll be a freshman this fall."

"You know, I've really enjoyed being on active duty again," Aisha admitted.

"Well, in all truthfulness, now that I know I'll always be a Ranger in the literal sense, I'm ready to retire," Adam admitted.

"You got any ideas for a good replacement?"

"I've just been looking for myself."

Aisha paused, and then said, "Adam, if you want to talk about anything... you just let me know, okay?"

"Do you know why Tanya dumped me?" he asked bluntly, taking Aisha completely by surprise.

"She told me that she fell out of love with you," Aisha said softly.

"Why?" Adam asked. "Is there something wrong with me?"

"Adam," Aisha said sternly.

"No, I'm serious," Adam insisted. "Am I ugly? Do I have a bad personality? Am I irritating?"

"No, you aren't ugly," Aisha said. "You have a smile that could melt any girl's heart, and you're really lean and muscular, with no abnormal back hair or anything like that. As for your personality, I can't think of anyone with a better personality. You're warm, caring, and very friendly to everyone you meet. And you certainly aren't irritating."

"Then why did Tanya dump me?" He didn't look upset or mad; he just looked determined to find out the answers. "I know she fell out of love with me, but why? Did I do something wrong?"

"Not that I know of," Aisha said. Before Adam could say anything else, Aisha tried, "Look at it like this. I'm a woman, right?"

"Last time I checked," Adam said, immediately blushing at the unintended implication. Aisha, however, paid it no heed.

"And you're a man, right?" Without waiting for an answer, she continued, "Can you picture the two of us married? Having kids?"

"Of course not," Adam snapped, obviously disturbed at the very thought.

"And why is that?"

"Because you're Aisha," Adam said.

"Remember in fifth grade when Rocky decided he had a crush on me?"

"I remember you laid him out when he tried to kiss you," Adam said, smiling at the memory. "He told everybody I gave him the black eye so they wouldn't know a girl did it."

"Well, we have a pretty close relationship, wouldn't you think?"

"Of course."

"But we haven't always had this relationship. Remember when we became best friends?"

"Third grade," Adam said thoughtfully.

"But we met in kindergarten. Our relationship changed from just being kids in a class to being best friends."

"That's different," Adam insisted. "Our relationship got better, not worse."

"Adam, the point I'm trying to make is that people change and no one can understand why," Aisha said. "Tanya obviously just isn't the woman you are meant to be with for the rest of your life."

"I guess," Adam relented, shrugging. "I still don't like it. What's even worse is that I used to be able to tell Tanya anything. I don't even know if I'll be able to look at her, now."

"I don't know what to tell you about that," Aisha said. "It'll just take time."

"Aisha," her mother called as she knocked on the door.

Aisha waved goodbye to Adam as he teleported away in a green flash. "Come on in, Mom," Aisha called, pulling a thin sheet up over her leg in an attempt to hide the yearbooks.

"Aren't you up kind of late, hon?" Lucy asked.

"What time is it?" Aisha asked, glancing at her alarm clock. "It's just after eleven."

"You can't sleep?"

"My leg still feels too weird," Aisha said, "and my toes are asleep."

"Anything I can do for you?" Lucy asked.

"Well, I am incredibly hungry," Aisha admitted.

"I can warm you up a plate of roast beef, gravy, and mashed potatoes >from supper," Lucy offered.

"Oh, that would be heavenly," Aisha sighed. "Please?"

"To drink?"

"Diet 7-Up?"

"You got it." Once her mother left the room, Aisha began to flip through the closest yearbook, looking for girls who took an interest in activities such as school government, Honor Society, and other clubs that typically indicated the necessary attitude to be a Power Ranger.

~*~

Excepting to use the bathroom, she stayed in her bed and communicated with the outside world only via communicator or telephone. She ended up falling asleep well after midnight with newspapers and yearbooks scattered all around her.

July 17
Marge Lubbock, genius of a stature only rivaled by one other Angel Grove resident that she had, in fact, dated at one point, was doing a very normal activity. She was shopping at the mall. Her best friend Emily, girlfriend to Jason Scott, had to work at the Youth Center that afternoon, but rather than stay-cooped up on such a beautiful day, Marge opted to take her nine-year old sister Denise to the mall.

"Look Marge!" Denise cried happily. "They're little rabbits!"

"They certainly are adorable, aren't they?"

"Marge?"

The teen looked up to see Rosa DeSantos standing behind her. "Hey Rosa," Marge smiled.

"I really, really, really hate to impose, but can I ask a humongous, really big favor?" Rosa begged.

"What is it?"

"I need to go do something, by myself," she said, looking at her little brother, "and I need somebody to watch Alex."

"I don't need to be watched," Alex complained.

"Can he, Marge?!" Denise asked hopefully. Denise and Alex were in the same class and had developed a pretty tight friendship. They often spent the night at each other's house.

"Yeah, absolutely," Marge said. "Have fun."

"Thanks," Rosa said, shoving Alex off onto Marge. She smiled her gratitude again as she darted out of the pet store.

"Let's go home and play Super Nintendo!" Denise shouted.

"Yeah!" Alex agreed.

"All right, rug rats," Marge smiled. "Let's go."

~*~

Then, the very fabric of reality itself ripped open. Astronema's eyes widened as the spatial anomaly occurred before her. Then, the white cloud of light exploded, and a silver oval-shaped orb burst from the anomaly. The anomaly closed up, and the orb started its rapid journey toward Earth. "Daria," Astronema sighed to herself. She watched the orb as it curved around the planet, no doubt drawn like a magnet to the powerful source of crystals located in the Command Center. "JENGA!" She darted from her room and ran for her older sister.

"Boring, boring, boring, boring, boring," Jenga complained, looking at the Earth through two twin beams of blue light. Blinking, the lights disappeared from her eyes. "Nothing is going on down ther-... What's that?" She watched the silver orb as it slowly disappeared around the curve of the planet.

"Jenga!" Astronema cried as she ran up to her. "Did you see that orb?!"

"What was it?" Jenga asked. "I could feel energy coming off of it."

"It's the Orb from Daria!" Astronema shouted happily. "That's why I couldn't track it! They sent it through hyperspace and it just now came out!"

"All right, people!" Jenga yelled. "All members of the Dynasty, front and center! NOW!" Once she had called forth those on the moon, she stretched her right arm out. The stone by her feet began to ripple like liquid, and a tall pedestal table rose, composed of the liquid stone. A stone phone was on the table as well. She picked up the receiver and dialed a quick number.

"What are you doing?" Astronema asked.

"Calling someone," Jenga answered.

"Hi-," Phantom Ranger began before Jenga interrupted.

"Phantom," she said, triggering the evil Phantom personality. "I need you on the moon right now. Morph and get your butt up here."

"Of course," Phantom Ranger answered.

"Thank you, dear," Jenga smiled. She hung up the phone and the table immediately sank bank into the stone floor. "I love being in charge," Jenga smiled, shivering in mock anticipation.

~*~

"Can I borrow a quarter?" Alex asked.

"Yeah, knock yourself out," Marge smiled as she handed Alex money for a video game.

"Hey Marge," Emily acknowledged from behind the counter.

"Hey Em. Up to much?"

"Not really," Emily said. "I'm just working my butt off. It is always so hectic in here on Friday afternoons."

"Emily!" Ernie called from the back. "Can you come here and help me with this?"

"Sure thing," Emily answered as she hurried to the back room. Marge took a seat at the bar to wait for the two kids to come back.

"Hi Marge," David Trueheart said with a smile as he sat down beside her.

"How are you doing, David?" Marge asked cheerfully.

"I'm going pretty good," he said. "You?"

"Can't complain," she replied, just as the phone rang.

"Can one of you two get that?!" Ernie shouted.

"I got it, Ernie!" David volunteered. He stretched across the counter and snatched the phone from the receiver. "Hi-." He paused and then said, "Of course." He paused again, and then hung up the phone.

"Who was it?" Marge asked, perplexed at his short conversation.

"It was Dad," David told him. "He doesn't like using phones much. He doesn't even say goodbye. He just hangs up when he's done talking. Ernie! The call was for me. It was my dad!"

"Oh yeah," the portly bartender said as he walked out to the bar with a large box in his arms. "He was looking for you earlier."

"Speaking of which, I gotta go," David said. He waved with a chop of his hand and darted out, passing Det. Park on the way out.

"Ernie!" the muscular detective called as he ran up to the bar. "I'm looking for Lt. Stone. I heard he was here."

"I saw him and Dulcea around here someplace," Ernie told him. "Emily?"

"No, sorry," she said with a shrug.

"Would you deliver a message next time you see him?" Det. Park asked. Just then, his beeper went off. He pulled it from his waist and asked, "Care if I use the phone? That's probably him now."

"Knock yourself out," Ernie told him, picking up the phone from the behind the counter and handing it to the detective.

"Thanks," he said with a smile. He quickly dialed the number while Marge turned her attention away from his direction to give him some privacy.

"Hey, you wanna go to the movies tonight?" Emily asked Marge. "I still haven't dragged you to see 'Men in Black.' It's a good movie."

"I can't go to the seven o'clock show," Marge sighed. "Maybe the nine?"

"Yeah, that works good for me, too," Emily said. "I don't get out of here until eight."

"So, what say I meet you here?"

"Perfect," Emily smiled sweetly.

"Of course," Det. Park finished the conversation. He hung up the phone and said, "Forget the message. That was him. I gotta run though. Thanks Ernie."

"Not a prob, Detective," Ernie called as the man ran out of the Youth Center.

"Well, you guys got any idea on how to pry those two out of here?" Marge asked, motioning to Denise and Alex who were currently pried to an arcade game.

"If you want, I can keep my free eye on them," Ernie volunteered.

"Are you sure?" Marge asked. "That'd be really great if you could, because I had planned to take the Jazzercise class that's starting here in about ten minutes."

"Absolutely," Ernie said.

"You can borrow some clothes from my locker," Emily told her.

Marge smiled her thanks and ran over to the locker room. She quickly found the locker, but there was nothing in it but Emily's keys and purse. She obviously hadn't brought anything in because she hadn't had a break long enough to take any of the classes offered. Rather than be deterred, however, Marge lifted the keys from their hook and dashed out to Emily's car to get them herself.

As soon as she opened Emily's trunk, movement caught itself in the corner of her eye. She turned her head just in time to see a figure dart around the long rectangular reflecting pool just below the Youth Center. Ordinarily, she would have dismissed such an action, but seldom did someone run unless there was a monster alarm. Marge wasn't sure who the person was, but she decided she was going to find out. Slamming the trunk shut, she ran down the concrete steps leading to the long walkway that led to nowhere with the reflecting pool in the center. Ernie had had it installed several years prior for skateborders and roller bladers.

The figure darted around a corner that was completely hidden from trees. Marge, however, was not deterred. She crept into the pathway that led to the roofless gazebo, surrounded by trees and shrubs. As soon as she saw the person, Marge dropped into a kneeling position. She couldn't figure out why the secrecy. But then, her eyes opened painfully wide and in one of the most frightening moments of her life, she understood perfectly.

The person thrust both arms forward, crossed them quickly, and then black light flowed down both arms. By the time the arms were uncrossed, a walnut-sized ruby had appeared in the right hand. The person kept the left arm forward and thrust the ruby into the sky. "Phantom Ranger Power!" was shouted loud enough to frighten Marge, but not so loud as to attract anyone's attention. Black flames burst from the ruby, swirling in an angry vortex that had centered itself in the person's body. When the black flames died down, Phantom Ranger, altered in height from unmorphed, was standing there. Both arms were thrust into the sky, and the black flames returned. They burned around Phantom Ranger's body, and a few seconds later when they subsided, Marge was alone.

Her breath was caught in her throat, but she managed to scramble backwards. Emily's keys tumbled from her hand, but she paid them no heed. Marge's face was twisted in a horrified grimace of terror as she backed away from the now empty hiding spot. Suddenly, the ground gave way beneath her, and she plunged backwards into the reflecting pool. She smacked hard into the bottom, disturbing a literal treasure of pennies and other coins. She climbed from the three-foot deep pool, ignoring the laughter of the few who had seen her. The cool water was successful in shocking sense back into her. "Denise!" she screamed, running up the wide expanse of stairs that led to the Youth Center.

She was dripping wet as she darted into the Youth Center, oblivious to the stares from those around her. "Denise!" she screeched. "Alex!" She ran up to their video game and yanked them away. "We gotta get the hell out of here!" Denise started to protest, but as soon as she saw the look of fear in her older sister's face, she didn't bother to put up a struggle.

"She said a cuss word!" Alex loudly whispered to Denise before they both burst into giggles.

~*~

Aisha scratched a black line through yet another name on her list. "Down to two," she muttered. She tore the page from the notebook and got her crutches from beside the bed. After some slow maneuvering, she had made it to her feet. Pressing the teleport button on her communicator, she teleported away in a column of white.

~*~

"Yes ma'am!" Prince Sprocket cried happily.

"Astronema, Goldar, Elgar, Rito, Rygog, Scorpina, and Phantom Ranger," Jenga began, "you will go after the Orb.

"The rest of you, make yourselves useful. Is that understood?"

"Yes ma'am, Miss Jenga, ma'am!" Rito shouted, saluting her.

"We will find those power manipulators and have an entire team of evil Rangers," Jenga said thoughtfully to herself. "Porto, Finster, start looking for a power source."

"Yes ma'am," the two said in unison.

Diva Tox walked up to Jenga and Astronema, her red cape swinging behind her. "The Rangers are looking for it now," Diva Tox announced. "Four of them are headed for Arizona, but they're in their Zords. I suspect that they have a general location, but no exact coordinates."

"Or reality has folded in on itself," Astronema mused.

"Pardon?" Diva Tox asked.

Jenga raised her eyebrows as a thought processed. "Mondo, scan Arizona for spatial anomalies."

"Yes ma'am," he obeyed.

"Excellent deduction, ladies," Jenga approved with a smile.

~*~

"Regardless of where it is from," Catalina said, "we must get it before Jenga can. Power is emanating from that Orb."

"I have pinpointed its location to a section of isolated desert in Arizona," Alpha spoke up. "However, the impact from the crash and the protection spell placed on the Orb before it was launched has created a dimpling of reality. A pocket dimension with an elaborate interior has created itself around the sphere. Fortunately, it works on the same principle as the Island of Muranthias, and any source of concentrated energy will let you enter. Your Turbo Keys will permit your passage into the dimension."

"That means we can't enter morphed," Tanya said fretfully.

"Yes," Zordon agreed. "Aisha, you must select your replacement at once."

"I haven't decided yet!" Aisha cried. "I don't know who to pick! I've got it down to two people, and they would both make wonderful Power Rangers!"

"Who are they?" Zack asked.

"Paige Fox and Cassie Chan," Aisha sighed. "Any suggestions?"

"I've seen Cassie at the Youth Center," Zack spoke up. "She's an excellent martial artist. But I don't really know her."

"I know Paige," Adam said. "She's really a good person, and very trustworthy. She'd make a good Power Ranger."

"Zordon," Alpha said, "the Dynasty of the Apocalypse has not come to Earth yet, but we are detecting high levels of activity in the Lunar Palace."

"You must go now," Catalina said.

"You can take your TurboZords through the desert," Alpha said. "Direct teleportation will not work as the power influx could damage the entrance into the dimension. I will give you the coordinates from inside the Zords."

"Let's go, then," Zack affirmed.

"May the Power protect you," Zordon said solemnly as the doors slid open.

Tanya, Adam, Zack, and Bulk all traded a glance, and then headed for the doors. They turned right and the doors leading to the Command Center slid shut. They walked down the hallway that lead to the Zord Holding Bay, taking giant strides. Not a single Ranger said a word as they stepped onto the balcony which overlooked the entire bay. Zords of all sizes, shapes, and colors stretched out before them.

"Let's do it," Tanya said firmly. They all headed for a different staircase which led them to the lower level, immediately increasing their speed.

"Who leads the way?!" Bulk shouted as he ran for Mountain Blaster. The 4x4 immediately purred to life as the Blue Ranger, though unmorphed, approached it. He opened the door and climbed inside the cockpit, situating him in the very middle of the black windshield. He picked up his headset and quickly slipped it on.

"I'll do it," Adam volunteered. Desert Thunder drove toward the Bay Doors which slowly rumbled open. Red Lightning pulled out behind him, and Dune Star and Mountain Blaster were close after. Only Wind Chaser remained behind.

~*~

"Flip a coin," Catalina suggested.

"You have to be kidding me."

"Fate will decide which of the two teenage girls should be a Power Ranger," Zordon boomed. "By turning the decision over to the natural ways of goodness and random chance, the best person will be selected. While flipping a coin is rather an odd way to make such a heavy decision, it is not fundamentally different than the way I selected the first five Power Rangers."

Aisha nodded slowly and twisted her left wrist. Her White Ninja Morpher appeared in a white glimmer of life. She removed the Bear Power Coin from it. As soon as it cleared the morpher, she saw something she had never seen before. One side was emblazoned with the Bear, while the back side of the coin still carried the symbol of the White Tiger, a series of stripes. "White Tiger, I pick Paige. Bear, I pick Cassie," she said. She balanced the coin on her thumb for a second before she flipped it. It sailed up in the air, glistening brightly. She then caught it and smacked it onto her forearm. Her hand remained clamped over it. "This is it," she said to herself as she pulled her hand away.

~*~

A few moments later, a servant opened the door. "May I help you?" he asked.

"Uhm, yeah," Aisha said, still shaking her head in disbelief. "I'm here to see Cassie Chan."

"Please come in," the butler smiled. He walked over to a black console set into the wall. Pressing one of the buttons, he said, "Cassie. There is someone here to see you."

"Who is it?" she asked after a moment.

"Aisha Campbell," Aisha answered. The butler repeated the name, and Aisha was afraid that Cassie wouldn't let her come up since she didn't know her.

"Send her on up, I guess," Cassie said warily. Inside, Aisha let out a jubilant whoop.

"Would you rather take the elevator?" the butler asked.

"You must be kidding me," Aisha said in disbelief. "This place has an elevator? Yeah, better than hobbling up however many flights of stairs I would have to."

"Follow me, madam," the butler said properly.

As they slowly made their way down a side hallway, Aisha asked, "What's your name?"

"Cadbury, madam," he answered with a touch of an English accent. "Here we are." He escorted Aisha into a small but elaborate elevator. She glimpsed at the control panel, and was astonished by two facts. One, it was accented with real gold and silver, and the buttons looked to be made of crystal. Two, in addition to the ground floor and three stories on top of it, there were two basements.

A few moments later, the elevator stopped on the third floor. Cadbury said nothing as he led Aisha the rest of the way to Cassie's room. Cadbury knocked once on her door, and Cassie shouted, "Come on in!"

"Thanks Cadbury," Aisha smiled as she let herself in. As soon as she cleared the door, her mouth dropped open again. Cassie's room was larger than Aisha's entire house.

"So, did you come here to gape at my room, or did you want something?" Cassie asked.

Aisha turned her attention to the attractive Korean teen. "Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something," Aisha said.

"Please, sit down," Cassie offered, motioning to a couch set against a nearby wall.

"No, that's okay. What I have to say shouldn't take long," Aisha told her. "There just isn't an easy way to say this, so I'll just come right out and say it. Uhm, first off, though, no one can hear us in here, can they?"

"No," Cassie said warily. The girl was starting to get a little nervous.

"Well, let's see. How should I start?" Aisha asked herself. "Have you ever heard of the Power Rangers?"

"Yeah," Cassie answered, still not sure.

"Well, it's like this," Aisha began. In a hurry, she said, "I'm the Pink Turbo Ranger but I broke my leg so I have to go off of active duty and I need a replacement, and I picked you. So would you please be the new Pink Power Ranger?"

Cassie stood stock still, not moving or saying anything. Finally, she broke the silence with a disbelieving, "Huh?"

"All right," Aisha said. "We'll do it the other way." She walked up to Cassie, touched her, and then activated her communicator. The pair melted away in a pair of white columns of light. Aisha felt Cassie tense up just before the teleportation was in full swing. The twin trails of light rose out of the house and immediately set out for the Command Center. Just a few seconds later, the two girls rematerialized in the center of the large, impressive room.

"Oh my God," Cassie sighed in disbelief.

"It's okay," Aisha assured her. "You'll be all right."

"What... where?"

"Welcome to the Command Center, Cassie," Alpha Five announced as he hobbled up to them.

"You know me?" Cassie squeaked.

"My name is Alpha Five," the automaton answered.

"I can't believe this is happening," Cassie sighed, leaning against a console for support. "I mean, you really want me to be a Power Ranger? This has to be some kind of joke."

The sound of electricity crackling sounded behind her, and she spun around in time to see Zordon appear in his tube. "Welcome Cassie," Zordon said.

"That's Zordon," Aisha said. "He's our mentor."

"This is just too much to take all at once," Cassie complained. "Sensory overload or something."

"Well, I'll introduce myself and then we'll let you catch up," Catalina said as she appeared beside the teen. "My name is Catalina." Cassie only nodded and mouthed the word 'hi.'

"Cassie, we know this is a lot to absorb, but we don't have a lot of time," Aisha told her. "We need the Pink Ranger in a hurry."

"You really want me to be a Power Ranger?" Cassie asked, still disbelieving.

"I hand-picked you myself," Aisha smiled.

"Cassie, will you accept this great responsibility and honor?" Zordon asked.

"What does being a Power Ranger entail?"

"You'll fight various fighters. Right now, we're fighting Quantrons most of the time. Whenever the Dynasty of the Apocalypse sends down a monster, you'll morph and with the other five Rangers, you'll go into battle. And you'll pilot the Wind Chaser TurboZord," Aisha said.

"The Power will be yours until you choose to pass it on," Zordon explained.

"It's a lot of work," Catalina told her, "but you'll like it. Everyone does."

"Pink, huh?" Cassie asked. "I'm honored you chose me. I'll be glad to do it."

"Before we can transfer the power," Zordon said, "there are three things you must promise. One, you must never use the Power for your own personal gain. Two, you must keep your identity a secret. And three, you must never escalate a battle. Remember, you are a defender, not an attacker. Do you accept these three promises?"

"Yes, I do," Cassie promised, smiling broadly.

"Alpha," Catalina said.

"Already on it." A few moments later, golden light coalesced in Alpha's hands, producing a golden Sword adorned with jewels.

"The Sword of Light," Aisha smiled, remembering the first time she had seen it.

"What's that?" Cassie asked.

"It's the Sword of Light," Zordon answered. "It is necessary to transfer the Power into those who have never held it. Aisha, proceed."

Aisha twisted both wrists, summoning her Turbo Morpher and Key. She handed Cassie the key and then proceeded to unstrap her Morpher. "From this moment on, Cassie," Aisha began proudly, "you are a Power Ranger." She strapped the morpher onto Cassie's wrist, where it promptly disappeared with a pink glimmer of light.

"I feel something," Cassie said happily. "It's like... in my... nerves, or something. Is that it?"

"That's the power," Aisha told her. "Now let me show you how to morph, and then you have to hit the road."

"Where am I going?" Cassie asked.

"A little adventure in the desert," Aisha explained. "We'll show you how to do the fancy moves later, but for now, just twist both wrists and concentrate on your Turbo Morpher and Key. As Cassie did as she was told, a pink light centered in her chest and then flowed down her arms. The light quickly formed her Morpher and Key. "Now you stick the key in the slot and turn it," Aisha finished.

Cassie looked at the pink and silver key in her right hand for a moment. Then, holding her left wrist at chest level, she jammed the key in the slot. Instantly, a bubble of power welled up inside her, and she was unable to suppress the cry of alarm that followed. "What do I do now?!" she cried nervously.

"Shout 'Wind Chaser Turbo Power' to channel the energy out," Aisha explained calmly.

"WIND CHASER TURBO POWER!" Cassie shouted in a panic. Pink light exploded around her, and when it subsided a split second later, she was morphed into the Pink Turbo Armor. Cassie sucked in a breath as she examined the armor on her body. "This is amazing," she said, letting her fingers trail across the shiny, gleaming, hard armor.

"Think you can handle morphing now?" Aisha asked.

"Yeah," Cassie breathed excitedly. "Oh man, this is just too cool to be true!"

"Okay, look," Aisha started. "We're going to need you to drive, unmorphed, in Wind Chaser across the desert. Can you drive?"

"I don't have a driver's license," Cassie admitted, "but I can drive."

"That's good enough," Aisha said. "Okay, if you hurry, you can catch them before they go into where they're going. If not, we'll stay in touch with you via communicator and tell you what to do. Alpha?"

"I'm making one right now," he answered.

"You demorph by saying 'Turbo Down.' Now demorph," Aisha instructed.

"Turbo Down!" Cassie said forcefully. Her armor fell away in pink sparks of light. "This is amazing!"

"When you meet up with the other four Rangers, they'll tell you what to do," Aisha explained. "If you all should have to morph, the Red Turbo Ranger will say, 'Shift into Turbo.' When that happens, your Morpher and Key will probably appear on their own. The others will do some fancy movements, but you don't have to yet. Just stick the key in the slot and say-"

"Wind Chaser Turbo Power."

"Right," Aisha said with a nod. "You can fight unmorphed if you have to?" Cassie nodded her answer. "Then I think you're set," Aisha finished. "After you get back, I'll answer any questions you have. But for now, you've gotta get out to the desert."

"Here is your communicator," Alpha said, hurrying up to her with the pink watch-like device. Cassie removed her watch, handing it to Aisha, and placed the heavy communicator on her wrist. It was obvious from watching her actions that she was thrilled beyond all means.

"I'll lead her to the Zord," Catalina offered. "Come on, Cassie." The blue-haired hologram left to lead Cassie to the Zord Holding Bay.

"Are you doing okay, Aisha?" Zordon asked.

"Yeah," she said with a nod. "I'm doing okay. I think she'll make a good Ranger."

"I'm sure she will," Zordon agreed.

~*~

"Looks like this is the place," Tanya remarked. There was a serious distortion of reality before them. There seemed to be a giant bubble floating in mid-air. However, it wasn't physical. It looked as thought something had taken reality and twisted it, creating a sphere of distortion. At the outer perimeter of the sphere, the view was curled as though one were actually looking through a giant bead of water.

"Wonder what's inside?" Bulk asked.

"Wait a minute," Adam hushed them. "Listen." The distant sound of an engine was slowly approaching them.

"It must be the new Pink Ranger," Zack commented, turning to look over the horizon.

"I see her headlights," Tanya said, pointing to a pair of headlights far off.

"She's coming up fast," Bulk added. "We should wait for her."

The Rangers didn't have to wait more than a few minutes before Wind Chaser slowed to a halt by the other parked cars. "I wonder who she chose," Tanya mused.

The door whirred open and the four Rangers watched as their newest addition climbed out. "Hey," Cassie said with a smile. "My name is Cassie. I assume you guys are..."

"Yeah, we're the Power Rangers," Zack chuckled. "My name is Zack, and these people are Tanya, Adam, and Bulk. Wish we could talk longer, but we gotta get inside and find that Orb."

"Do you know what we're doing here?" Tanya asked as the five teens formed a circle around the distortion.

Cassie nodded as she summoned her Turbo Key. "On three," Zack said. "One... two... three!" In perfect unison, all five Rangers thrust their key into the bubble of reality. Instantly, the five Turbo colors began to bleed across its surface. The colors began to spin and swirl together, creating the illusion of movement.

"What do we do now?" Cassie asked.

"We jump in," Adam said. "You guys ready?"

"Let's go!" Tanya cried. They all leapt forward, but instead of colliding, they disappeared.

Light flashed before them, and they all slammed together. Oomphing, grunting, and complaining, they fell backwards, sprawled out in painful heaps.

"That was ridiculous," Tanya complained, trying to retain her dignity as she recollected herself.

"Look at this place," Cassie sighed in disbelief. They were currently in the middle of a city street. A multitude of beautiful, pristine buildings were all about them. Green, lush hills could be seen on the horizon, but for all practical intents, the pocket dimension was just the deserted city they were in. The sky above them was pitch black with a multitude of vastly different colored stars, ranging from normal colors to the farthest end of believability in shades of green and pink.

"It's beautiful," Adam murmured to himself.

"It's empty," Bulk added.

"Well, we have to figure out where the Orb is located," Tanya announced. "Should we split up, or what?"

"I don't think we need to," Cassie told them. She pointed ahead, and the other four Rangers turned to see a crystal skyscraper that stretched high above all of the other buildings in the city.

"I think you're right," Zack agreed. "Well, let's hurry before the bad guys show up." As the group began to walk toward what they hoped would be the Orb, the more experienced Rangers began to tell Cassie about the bizarre new turn her life had just taken.

~*~

"Get the orb and get out," Phantom Ranger said firmly.

"Exactly," Jenga agreed. She pulled her staff out of the air and placed the sapphire tip into the distortion bubble. It immediately began to glow blue, and she said, "Get the lead out, people. We've got an Orb to find. I'll be waiting here to bring you out when you find it."

Astronema stood beside her sister as a Platoon of Quantrons leapt into the large blue bubble. "We'll do you proud, big sis," Astronema promised.

A pair of mirrored sunglasses appeared on Jenga's face as she leaned against Red Lightning. "Just do your best," she said coolly. "Or rather, do my best." Astronema said nothing as the last of the Quantrons entered the pocket dimension.

"Let's do this, guys," Astronema said. Rygog, Elgar, Goldar, Scorpina, Rito, and Phantom Ranger entered the portal, disappearing. "See ya, sis."

"Take care," Jenga smiled, crooking her mouth into a mischievous smile.

~*~

"When I woke up this morning, I never expected to finish my day exploring a crystal skyscraper," Cassie mumbled to herself.

"Here's an elevator," Tanya announced, pushing the UP button. "You guys wanna check out the roof."

"Even if it isn't on the roof, this building looked to be the highest in the whole place," Zack said. "Maybe we can see the Orb from up here."

"Should we all go in the elevator at once?" Adam asked. "What if it's a trap?"

"You're right," Zack agreed. "Okay, uhm, Cassie, Tanya, and I will go the roof. You and Bulk can stay here in the lobby. Is that okay?"

"Sounds like a plan to me," Bulk said noncommittally. He was still trying to take in the extreme beauty of their surroundings.

"Let's go, ladies," Zack said as he entered the elevator. Cassie and Tanya shot each other a glance as they joined him.

~*~

"We need to look for the Orb," Zack reminded her.

"Hmm?" Cassie asked as she approached the ledge of the roof. "Oh, yeah. How high do you think we are?"

"We came up three hundred stories," Tanya said. "At least three thousand feet. Right?"

Before Cassie or Zack could answer, a splintering spider-web crack surrounded the glass beneath Cassie's feet. "Uh oh," Cassie mumbled, stepping back. However, it was too late. A giant chunk of the roof broke away, sending a giant chunk of glass and Cassie tumbling into mid-air.

"Cassie!" Tanya screamed.

"MORPH!" Zack bellowed.

Cassie screamed as the ground disappeared beneath her feet. Wind rushed up past her, and while she was terrified, the sensation of free-falling was so delicious that she was temporarily overcome. However, the thought occurred to her that if she didn't morph, then she was going to splatter herself all over the sidewalk. With that thought in mind, she simultaneously twisted both wrists. Her right hand darted to the Morpher on her left wrist in an attempt to insert the Key in the slot. Unfortunately, the Key missed its intended target and it tumbled up and out of her hand. "NO!" she screeched, reaching up to grab the key. It must have been made of a light-weight material, as it didn't fall as fast as she was and in a matter of seconds, it was out of sight.

_So this is how it ends,_ Cassie thought to herself. _Some Power Ranger I turned out to be._ Despite the proximity of death, she was remarkably calm. But before she could think much more about it, the color red flashed in her peripheral vision. She turned her head in that direction, and much to her surprise, she saw a red Sports Car flying for her.

It swooped beneath her, and with a painful thump, Cassie found herself sprawled out across the passenger seat and door. "What the-?" she asked in disbelief. The car continued its flight to the ground, and a few scarce seconds later, the flying red car landed beside a flabbergasted Adam and Bulk.

"What happened?" Bulk asked as he helped her out of the car.

"The roof just broke," Cassie stammered. Now that she was safe, the nervousness caught up with her. "This car... caught me."

Red and yellow teleport streams materialized on the street, forming Zack and Tanya. "Are you okay?" Tanya asked as she hurried over to Cassie and pulled the trembling teen into a tight hug.

"I'm okay," Cassie insisted, although her knees felt weak and she was literally leaning against the older Ranger.

The car's headlights blinked twice, and it moved toward Zack. The right bumper gently nudged his leg. "Remote controlled?" Bulk asked. The car honked its horn angrily.

"Sentient?" Adam tried. The car responded by blinking its headlights again.

"What's your name, girl?" Zack asked, unsure of what else to say to it. That only prompted an angry horn honk. "Boy?" Flashing headlights proved that the sentient car thought of itself as male.

"It's here on the dashboard," Tanya answered. "See, right here." She let her fingers trail across two words written on the red leather dashboard in gold. "Lightning Cruiser."

Lightning Cruiser's engine purred happily as he flashed his lights. "A sentient car," Cassie laughed. "How cool is this?! Thank you, Lightning Cruiser, for saving me."

"Oh, that reminds me," Tanya said. "If you should ever lose your morpher, just twist your hand again to get it back." To emphasize her point, Tanya summoned her Turbo Key only to toss it over her shoulder. She twisted her wrist again, and the Key disappeared from mid-air with a yellow sparkle and promptly rematerialized in her grip.

Suddenly, Lightning Cruiser began to honk his horn and flash his lights. He didn't, however, sound threatened or upset. It was almost like he was calling someone.

A horn honked directly behind Bulk. He spun around in shock and found himself face-to-face, in a manner of speaking, with a blue, open-roofed jeep. "Hey... buddy," Bulk acknowledged. An angry horn honk made him correct himself. "Girl?" Flashing headlights was his answer.

"They're coming out of everywhere," Tanya sighed. She turned around to see a yellow blazer slowly rolling toward her. She walked up to it, and it flashed its headlights happily. "Honk if you are a boy, flash if you are a girl," she said to it. Flashing lights identified it as female.

More vehicles slowly made their way to the congregated Rangers. "Adam, look," Cassie said, pointing behind him. He turned around to see a dark green '57 Chevrolet Bel-Air standing directly behind him.

"Well, weren't you going to say anything to me, girl?" Adam asked. "Are you a girl?" She flashed her headlights, and the driver side door swung open.

"These windows aren't tinted like the others," Cassie said, referring to the TurboZords' pitch black windows. The sentient vehicles had windows that were perfectly clear.

"Storm Blaster," Bulk announced from the jeep. "This girl is named Storm Blaster!"

"Star Blazer!" Tanya cried happily from the blazer. "This is too cool!"

"Would you look at this beauty?!" Adam cried happily.

Cassie was suddenly knocked several steps forward. "Hey," she protested. She turned around to find herself staring a pink pick-up truck, similar in style to an S-10 or Sonoma. "You sure are pretty," she said, only to earn a very angry horn honk. "Handsome? Are you a guy?" He flashed his headlights for her. She walked over to the side of the truck to find white stylized flames all along the sides. The window rolled down for her, and she leaned into the truck. The interior was all pink leather. "Wind Chariot," she read. "Is that your name?"

"This pretty lady here is named Thunder Runner," Adam announced, smiling proudly.

Lastly, a black motorcycle rolled up to them. "Aw, you don't have a Ranger, do you?" Tanya asked. The motorcycle stopped next to Star Runner and flashed his single headlight sadly. "We'll still take care of you, boy." He honked a low-pitched horn once. "His name is Midnight Racer," she read.

Suddenly, all six sentient vehicles began to shine their headlights on bright. "What are you guys doing?" Zack asked, shielding his eyes.

The six beams of light landed on one spot in the center of the street. A moment later, glimpses of pink began to flicker. A few seconds after that, a hologram of a Pink Power Ranger appeared. However, the Power Ranger was unlike any they had seen. There was a strip of white across her chest with five blocks of color in it: red, blue, yellow, pink, and black. Her mouthplate was smooth, and her visor was a rectangle with rounded ends. White also lined the visor, and a large black circle was positioned on the top of the helmet. The Power Ranger removed her helmet, and long hair, silvered from age, tumbled out. When the helmet cleared her face, the Turbo Rangers saw that her face was lined with wrinkles. She was an old woman, yet she still looked proud and strong.

"Rangers," the hologram said, "my name is Liria. I am the Pink Ranger of the planet Daria. If you are viewing this pre-recorded message, then the planet of Daria has been destroyed. Provided everything went as I planned, you should now be surrounded by six sentient entities. They are in the form of vehicles, because I sent them to Zordon of Eltare, and it is my understanding that he is currently mentoring a team of Rangers with Turbo Powers.

"You are most likely here because you are searching for an Orb. It had a powerful protection spell placed on it, ensuring that Zordon's team of Rangers would be the first to enter the pocket dimension created by the Orb. I stationed these six vehicles to guard the Orb for us until you could claim it."

Star Blazer honked her horn. The back windshield opened, and Tanya hurried to peer inside. "It's here!" she cried happily. A large silver capsule was resting in the back floorboard.

"I would like to apologize to whoever of you was forced to undergo a test of virtue," Liria continued. "We had to ensure that the RescueZords would accept you."

"Is that what you guys are?" Bulk asked. "RescueZords?" Storm Blaster flickered her lights.

"They can combine to form the RescueMegaZord," Liria explained. A holographic image of the RescueMegaZord appeared beside her. "Midnight Racer forms the optional Artillery Mode." Giant, black machine guns appeared on the Zord's shoulders. "While their primary function in this pocket dimension is to guard the Orb, I do ask that you give them a good home." The holographic image immediately flickered away.

"Do you guys want to come with us?" Cassie asked.

"Or perhaps us?" Astronema asked from close by. With a gasp, Cassie spun around to see the evil army standing in the center of the street.

"You're not getting the Orb, Astronema," Adam told her.

"Yeah, so you and your cronies should just go ahead and leave," Bulk agreed. Star Blazer slowly backed away, and Wind Chariot and Thunder Runner positioned themselves before her defensively. Midnight Racer peered around Wind Chariot. If one could say that the motorcycle possessed a gaze, then it would have been locked on Phantom Ranger.

The warriors flanked Astronema, ready to fight on a moment's notice. At least fifty Quantrons were behind her, all standing at attention with their semi-circular blades.

"There are two ways we can do this," Astronema continued. "The easy way: you give us the Orb and we leave. Or the hard way. You don't give us the Orb, and we're forced to kick your butts."

"Do we really need to answer?" Tanya asked, leaning against Star Blazer.

"I suspected as much," Astronema answered, folding her arms across her chest. "Warriors... ATTACK!"

"What do we do?!" Cassie cried.

"We fight!" Adam answered.

A pair of Quantrons ran up to Cassie. She side-kicked the closest, knocking it away long enough to turn on the other with earnest. Before she could strike it, the Quantron swung its blade at her. She flipped backwards, causing the blade to only slice through the air. Planting herself firmly on her left foot, she lashed out with her right. The first Quantron had by that time recovered, and it was running for her. Much to her surprise, Wind Chariot darted toward it, knocking the Quantron back several feet. "Thanks buddy!"

Bulk leapt into the back of Storm Blaster. Bracing himself on the roll-over bar, he put all of his weight into kicking two Quantrons that had attempted to climb into the vehicle. They topped backwards, but two more were trying to come up on each side. Bulk knocked both aside and shouted, "Go go go!" Storm Blaster took off, leaving several Quantrons tumbling around in his wake.

Midnight Racer slowly rolled up to Phantom Ranger. The evil Ranger stopped and looked at the medium-sized motorcycle. "What do you want?" Phantom Ranger sneered. Midnight Racer honked and nudged Phantom Ranger's leg. Suddenly, Phantom Ranger kicked the motorcycle as hard as it could, sending the sentient vehicle tumbling down the street. It quickly righted itself and rolled behind Wind Chariot. Wind Chariot honked once, and Midnight Racer peered around the bumper. Phantom Ranger extended its hand, producing a long, black blade. With a whimpering honk, Midnight Racer darted back behind the larger, pink pick-up.

"Whoa!" Zack cried, rolling across the hood of Lightning Cruiser as Scorpina swung her scepter over him. "We gotta morph, guys!"

Tanya dropped to the ground and rolled away, narrowly missing a painful double assault by Rygog and Goldar. "Shift into Turbo!" she cried, still on the ground. Yellow light flashed on both wrists, and a moment later, she cried, "Dune Star Turbo Power!"

"Red Lightning Turbo Power!" Zack shouted, leaping to his feet. He summoned his Lightning Sword as he leapt over the sentient vehicle to go back after Scorpina.

Cassie grunted in pain as she was kicked backwards by a Quantron. Kneeling on the ground, she twisted both wrists and promptly inserted the Key in the Morpher. "WIND CHASER TURBO POWER!" she screeched, morphing. She leapt to her feet and glanced down at her shiny, armor-clad body. "I can't believe I'm the Pink Ranger!"

"Mountain Blaster Turbo Power!" Bulk cried as he leapt off of Storm Blaster. By the time his feet touched the ground, he was morphed into the Blue Ranger. Rito Revolto was running for him, but Bulk executed a perfect spin kick which sent the skeleton stumbling backwards.

The driver side door swung open and Adam leapt into Thunder Runner. The door promptly slammed shut, keeping Phantom Ranger from following him. The evil Ranger instead jumped across the hood, ready to assault Adam when he tumbled out the passenger door. Instead, Phantom Ranger was astonished to receive a well-placed side kick from the morphed Green Turbo Ranger. Phantom Ranger flew off of its feet, landing on the ground and sliding back a few feet. "Good girl," Adam told Thunder Runner, who flashed her lights happily.

"Star Chargers!" Tanya shouted. Holding the twin weapons in her hands, she ran through the crowd of Quantrons, fatally shocking many of them. Upon reaching the end of the crowd, she darted for Astronema who had yet to move. Just as she was about to slam both electrodes into the villainess' chest, Astronema used her staff to sweep the Ranger off of her feet. She braced herself and raised the staff above her head to jam the diamond-shaped tip into Tanya's chest. However, Tanya kicked straight up with her right leg, knocking Astronema off of her feet as well. Both women rolled backwards slightly and then used their momentum to leap to their feet.

"Your move or mine?" Astronema asked, smiling an eerie smile and staring with piercing eyes.

"You had better not be my father!" Adam bellowed, battering Phantom Ranger down the street. Much to his horror, Phantom Ranger did nothing but accept the blows and laugh maniacally.

"You know, there's something very different about you, Katherine," Elgar mused as he swung his sword of cards over Cassie's head.

"You must be the stupid one," Cassie grunted as she slammed Wind Fire against his chest. Elgar stumbled backwards, and she promptly pulled the bow into its proper position. Pulling back on the string, a pink arrow materialized in the bow. "Can you catch?" she asked as she fired the arrow.

"Zack, let's get out of here!" Adam yelled just before Phantom Ranger sent him flying into a nearby building with a powerful side kick.

Honking his horn in a manner that sounded eerily like a dog whimpering, Midnight Racer nudged Cassie's leg. "Is there a problem boy?" she asked.

He honked his horn, and then jerked his handlebars in the direction of Wind Chariot. "I don't understand," Cassie told him. He honked a long, sighing honk, and then backed up. Before she could do anything, he darted backwards and between her legs, forcing her onto his back. "Hey!" Cassie cried. Midnight Racer paid her no mind as he darted to Wind Chariot. The truck's tail gate promptly lowered, and Midnight Racer's front wheel bounced from the ground onto the tailgate. "Oh!" Cassie cried in agreement as she leapt over the handlebars and into Wind Chariot's truckbed. She pulled Midnight Racer up with her, and the tailgate promptly shut.

Star Blazer drove down the center of the street with Wind Chariot and Thunder Runner on each side of her. "Come on, you guys!" Cassie cried. "They're ready to get out of here! I say we go with!"

"Comin' up!" Bulk shouted as he leapt into the back of Wind Chariot.

"Come on, Adam!" Zack insisted as he pulled his friend to his feet. Lightning Cruiser slammed on his brakes, stopping right beside them. The two Rangers jumped into the red convertible, and he promptly lifted off of the ground, flying above Star Blazer.

Storm Blaster tore out of a side street, coming so close to Astronema that she was forced to leap out of the way. "Good girl!" Tanya praised as she jumped into the back. As soon as she had her grip on the roll-over bar, Storm Blaster hurried to join the other five vehicles.

"You guys know how to get out of here?" Zack asked. After Lightning Cruiser answered with a horn honk, as the vehicle knew he wouldn't be able to see the lights, Zack said, "Then let's go!"

~*~

~*~

"You got it, Adam!" Alpha cried happily.

~*~

"We failed you, Jenga," Astronema said, lowering her head.

"Ask me if I'm surprised," Jenga said coolly.

"Are you sur-?" Rito began, but Goldar elbowed him in the ribs.

"You guys just go back to wherever it is you belong," Jenga said with a wave of her hand. She then looked at the small wooden figurine in her hand. She tossed it up in the air and then pulled her staff out and zapped it. Blue light surrounded the figure, and it immediately grew into a gigantic beast, covered with brown scales.

~*~

"Looks like a gift from Jenga," Tanya commented. The monster was fairly normal in appearance as monsters go, with his brown scales, sharp teeth, and pointed claws.

"Okay, at this point, I would take off running to the Monster Shelter with my friends," Cassie remarked. "But somehow, I'm guessing it's different on the inside."

"This is when we call our Zords!" Adam shouted.

"Let's try our new RescueZords out," Bulk suggested firmly.

"You guys up for it?" Zack asked. Red Lightning flickered his lights.

"Do you know what to do?" Tanya asked Cassie.

"Yeah, I think so," Cassie mumbled as the Power began to put the information into her immediate memory.

"We need RescueZord Power NOW!" the five Rangers shouted in unison. Five streaks of colored lightning shot down from the sky and hit the five sentient vehicles. Instantly, they changed form and size. The five RescueZords lifted into the air and quickly assembled a MegaZord that was not unlike the TurboMegaZord. "Let's go!" Zack cried as they leapt into the air and line-of-sight teleported into the cockpit.

"This is amazing!" Cassie cried after she rematerialized in her seat at the rear left of the cockpit.

"There's an empty seat," Tanya commented, motioning to the seat between herself and Cassie. While her own leather seat had yellow highlights, the empty seat had black.

"Must be for Midnight Racer's owner," Zack said. "Now, let's take this beast!"

"Rescue Saber, now!" they shouted in unison. The brown beast hit the RescueMegaZord hard, but the Rangers retaliated with a thrust from their Sword. In that manner they continued to fight for several minutes, neither side gaining or losing.

"We should try Artillery Power!" Cassie suggested. "That might give us the edge we need!"

"Let's do it!" Zack agreed.

"Midnight Racer Artillery Power, Now!" The small motorcycle melted into twin streaks of black and purple light. The light darted up to the RescueMegaZord's shoulders and formed two gigantic cannons. "FIRE!" A literal deluge of lasers and bullets burst from the twin cannons. The wooden beast screamed as he put his arms up before him protectively. The force pushed him backwards, and a few seconds later, several hundred tons of wood chips were raining down across the desert.

"We did it!" Cassie cried happily. She and Tanya exchanged a vigorous high-five.

"All right!" Bulk shouted. "Let's get back to the Command Center and see if Alpha can tell us anything more about the Orb!" The RescueMegaZord disappeared in a gigantic sparkling teleport stream composed of blue, green, red, yellow, pink, and black light.

~*~

"Hey Marge," David said as he came up behind her. She screamed and slammed herself into the door frame. "Are you okay?!" he asked nervously.

"I'm- forget this!" Marge cried, turning and running from the Youth Center. David watched her as she ran down the sidewalk and disappeared into the night. He shrugged and walked over to the bar.

"Hey Dave," Emily smiled from behind the counter. "Up to much?"

"Not really," he answered. "Pretty dull night."

~*~

"Alpha, do you know what the Orb is?" Adam asked.

"I'm afraid I do not," he answered. "There is a password protection feature keeping us from accessing it. I have set the computers to access all potential alphanumerical combinations, but that could take months."

"Rangers, you have done well," Zordon said. "Cassie, I am very proud of you. You held yourself very well in this first of your many battles. The five of you have also brought to use six new allies."

"Where are we keeping the vehicles?" Adam asked.

"They're in an empty sector of the Zord Holding Bay," Alpha answered. "I assured them that tomorrow we would liven the place up for them. I believe Midnight Racer expressed an interest in entertainment."

"We could always take them a television," Tanya joked.

"If it's okay with you all, I should probably be getting home," Cassie said as she demorphed. "Cadbury might have discovered I'm not there."

"Let me give you a quick crash course on the communicators, and then you'll be free to go," Alpha told her.

The other four Rangers teleported out as well, giving goodbyes that ranged from meeting Dulcea and Lt. Stone to telling Aisha of their new allies. Cassie was left alone in the Command Center with Alpha, Zordon, and Catalina, and she was quickly filled in on the remaining tenets of being a Power Ranger.

~*~

She quickly locked her door and pulled her curtains shut. Then, her arms whirled through a set of fancy movements that culminated with the insertion of the Turbo Key into the Turbo Morpher. "Wind Chaser Turbo Power," she said proudly. Pink light welled up all around her. When the glow subsided, she was standing in front of a mirror in her room as the Pink Turbo Ranger. "Coolness," Cassie sighed, running her fingers along the ridges in her armor.

Beep beep beepbeep beep beep. _Another emergency?_ Cassie asked herself hopefully. Raising her wrist to her mouth, she asked, "Alpha?"

"Uhm, Cassie... Well, the computers told us that you just morphed, and we were concerned that maybe something had happened to you," Alpha said. "Is everything okay?"

"Turbo down," Cassie said, making her armor fall of her body. "Sorry, Alpha. I was just looking at myself. I won't do it again."

"That's okay, Cassie," Alpha assured her. "Good night."

"Good night, Alpha." After closing the communications channel, she walked over to her bed. Lying back, she smiled and whispered to herself, "Cassandra Crimson Chan, Pink Turbo Ranger of the planet Earth." Then, as an afterthought, she said, "Cassie Chan, Pink Turbo Ranger of the planet Earth. What the heck was my mother drinking when she came up with the name Crimson?"

~*~

"Yes ma'am."

"Cash or store credit?"

"Cash, please," Adam said solemnly.

"Certainly," she said with a smile. A few moments later, she returned from the cash register. Adam extended his hand and she counted the money, two hundred, eighty-seven dollars, and odd change, into his hand.

"Thank you," Adam said, trying his best to smile. As he walked out of the store, he placed the money back into his wallet. Upon passing the large window, he saw the young woman's slender hand place the box, now open, back in the window. The gold, topaz, and emerald ring sat there, once again waiting for someone to buy it. Adam only hoped that the next owner could have a happier story to tell about the ring.

~*~

"Glad to be of service," Phantom Ranger said woodenly.

End... for now