"Thanks, Omicron," Katherine said. She picked up the two suitcases full of freshly synthesized clothing for the five Rangers.
"Glad I could help," Omicron said. "I made you some dress clothing too, in case you want to go to church tomorrow."
"Great," Katherine said. She took one last look around the Command Center and said, "Anything I can help you with?"
"You feel weird about leaving me here alone?" Omicron asked.
"A little," Katherine said. "I'm used to a face in a tube and a robot. Not a hologram who is seldom here or a flesh and blood human."
"I'll be fine," Omicron said. "I need to start tracking Nadia's moves, anyway."
"Okay," Katherine said. "If you need any help, just give me a call." Katherine pressed her thumb and middle finger together and disappeared in a streak of pink.
* * *
"How often are you attacked?" Billy asked, lounging back into the grass.
"Around once a week," I said. "Sometimes more, sometimes less. Of course, that was before and after Duran. When he was here, every few days." I shuddered at the memory. "Duran was really, really tough, and he's coming back."
"Does she attack like our bad guys attack?" Billy asked.
"Sort of," I said. "She sends the Naddies down here to shake us up, and then some sort of machine. Like a Zord, of sorts. That's when we call on our Assault Vehicles. We call them A.V.'s."
"What are they?" Billy asked.
"Our Power Source," I said. "The Brachiosaurus is the coolest, though. It's huge. Our Assault Vehicles do something that your Zords don't."
"What's that?" Kimberly asked, walking onto the front porch and sitting down on the steps.
"We have Dual Assault Vehicles," I said. "The Pterodactyl and Triceratops can form the Eagle A.V., the Tyrannosaurus and Mastodon can form the Bear A.V., and the Brachiosaurus and Saber-toothed Tiger form the Jaguar. And of course, we can bring all six together for the Mega Assault Vehicle." We were silent for a few moments.
"You can't see the sky this well at home," Billy said. "Even in Angel Grove, there's too much pollution to see it this clearly."
"The moon looks the same," Kimberly said thoughtfully.
"Where does Nadia stay?" Billy asked.
"On the moon," I answered. "Not very original, is it?" Rocky suddenly landed beside me. With a jerk of alarm, I sat up. "You scared me," I complained, laying back on the grass.
"That was my plan," he said. Katherine sat down beside Kimberly on the porch steps. "I wonder what's going on at home," Kat said.
"Do you realize that Aisha is getting as bad as Tommy?" Jason asked.
"Huh?" Rocky asked.
"Color-wise, I mean," Jason said.
"Some people call him Technicolor Tommy," I said.
"Aisha was yellow, then green, then white, and now pink," Kimberly said.
"Nadia probably won't do much until she's called Duran up," I said.
"Who is Duran?" Rocky asked.
"He's the most evil demon Sigma's ever had to deal with," I answered. "He looks very human. He has darkly tanned skin, short jet-black hair, and very dark eyes. He wears black jeans and a t-shirt, and carries this huge flaming Sword. He almost killed us all. He had almost destroyed the entire planet, when we finally managed to defeat him. It was just luck. Sigma used his Sword to wipe everybody's memories and replace them with an alternate series of events, so no one but us remembers it."
"I can't say enough how happy I am to be in one place," Kimberly sighed.
"I can't even imagine how scary it must be to travel the dimensions," I said.
"I didn't know if we'd ever get home, until we came here," Jason said. "They know exactly where we are, and we can just wait until they figure out a way to get here."
"What if they can't?" Rocky asked. "What if they can't figure out how to get here and then get us back home?"
"They will, Rocky," Kimberly said.
"We'll just stay here," Katherine said.
"What?" Billy asked in awe.
"If we don't get home, we'll just stay here," Katherine said. "I am, anyhow. I'm not going to risk my life if it's not for a sure thing. This world is remarkably similar to our world. I'm not going to go sliding again. I'm staying here, until someone finds a way to send me home. For sure."
"Wow," I said.
"I might even sort of have family here," Katherine said. "For all we know, there really is a Katherine Hillard on this world, only without the Ranger powers."
"It's possible," I said. "We have the same presidents and first families."
"And first cat," Kimberly said. Looking at Katherine, she said, "No pun intended."
"Socks," Rocky snorted.
* * *
"Is it just the three of us?" Katherine asked.
"I guess so," I answered.
"Jason and Billy are still asleep," Rocky answered with a yawn.
"So is Kim," Kat answered. We walked out onto the front porch, and Kat shut the door behind us.
"Don't guess you all have gotten much sleep lately, huh?" I asked as we walked out to my Dad's blazer. "Care to drive? I can't shift real well with my right hand right now?"
"Sure," Rocky said. I tossed him the keys.
"We haven't gotten much sleep lately," Katherine said. "Not a real good night's sleep since the Personality Conflicts Universe."
"What denomination are you?" Rocky asked as he started the blazer and shifted into reverse.
"Methodist," I answered. "You all are both Catholic, right?"
"Right," Katherine answered. "Methodist is pretty close."
"How far is it?" Rocky asked as he pulled out of our driveway.
"Not far," I answered. "About three miles. Now this is a very small country church. We might have twenty people there today."
* * *
"If you are ever attacked at church," I said, "and it has happened, never ever take the fight into the cemetery. They'll try to force you to, but if you do, you'll be trapped in Nadia's version of limbo for forty-eight hours."
"What?" Rocky and Katherine asked in unison.
"Have you ever heard that nothing evil can set foot on hallowed ground?" I asked. "Well, Nadia's henchmen and fighters are evil. If you are led into the cemetery with them, they'll be sent to Nadia's limbo, as automatic punishment. It happens instantaneously. If you're with them, you get sucked in. It always takes Omicron at least forty-eight hours to break in and get us out."
"So don't fight on hallowed ground?" Rocky clarified.
"Right," I said. I closed the church door and locked it behind me. "Now, let's go home, get some lunch, and go to Glasgow to watch Turbo."
* * *
"I see you finally woke up," Katherine said with a smile at Kimberly.
"Uhn huh," Kimberly moaned. "Finally. I think I'm almost caught up."
"Where are Jason and Billy?" Rocky asked.
"Lifting," Kimberly answered. She ran her fingers through her wet hair, indicating she had just come from the shower. "Oh. Before I forget. Some lady came by hear earlier asking if you were home."
"Really?" I asked. "Did she leave a name?"
"Yeah," Kimberly answered. "Sheila. She left you a note, too."
"Sheila?" I asked. "Oh no."
"Who's Sheila?" Katherine asked.
"Was she an attractive black woman with long braids?" I asked.
"Friend of yours?" Rocky asked.
"Hardly," I said, opening the note.
By the light of the moon,
In the dark of night,
He's coming for you,
He'll fill you with fright.
Not like before,
This time much worse,
Don't even try to fight,
Succumb to his curse.
"What does it mean? Who is she?" Katherine asked.
"Sheila is one of Nadia's henchmen," I answered. "She communicates mainly through questions and riddles. Or rhyme. She must mean Duran."
"This time much worse? Succumb to his curse?" Kimberly asked.
"He's going to be stronger than ever," I said. "Oh man."
"Is he that strong?" Rocky asked.
"He's horrible," I said. "He makes Nadia look like a girl scout. Let me just say this. When I thought Jenga was just fiction, well, I based her on a toned-down version of Duran."
"And this time he's stronger?" Katherine asked.
"Apparently," I sighed, sitting down with a thump in the chair.
"Apparently what?" Billy asked, stepping into the kitchen. He and Jason were clothed in tank tops and drenched in sweat.
"Duran's coming back and he's going to kick our butts all over the galaxy," I complained. "Man, the entire world is in danger and only eleven people here know it. And five people aren't even from here."
"You have more people here this time to beat him than you did last time," Jason said. "And you've got more Ranger experience, right?"
"Good point," I said. "Now come on. Take a shower, and we'll go see your movie. Everybody's in it but Billy." I was desperate for anything to get my mind off of Duran.
* * *
We really lucked out at the movies. We were the only people in the theater to see Turbo. Of course, it had been running for nearly three months. The most awkward part was when I tried to buy the tickets. The girl at the ticket counter was familiar with Power Rangers, and asked for autographs, thinking they were the actors. However, a little magic from Sigma's Sword, and she forgot all about them.
* * *
"That would not happen," Billy complained.
"Get over it, Billy," Kimberly whispered.
"The morphing process is instantaneous," he said. "And it would not have made her stop morphing when she hit the water."
"What really happened?" I asked.
"I fell off of the cliff, but I didn't catch the second Zeonizer," Kat said. She was more than a little bit shaken up to relieve the memory of both the snake and falling into the river. "And I forgot about my Ninja Morpher. So I just smacked into the water."
"Did Lerigot fix your leg?" I asked.
"Yeah, that happened, although it wasn't cut," Katherine said. "It was broken. Do you even put splints on cut legs?"
"If it's cut deep enough," I said. "Into the muscle, but that would be so deep you'd probably need to put a tourniquet on it."
"Would you all be quiet?" Jason asked. "I'm trying to watch the movie."
* * *
"I need to go to Wal-Mart," I said. "Anybody care?"
"Fine with me," Kimberly said.
"Want me to drive?" Jason asked.
I responded by tossing him the keys. "I have one question," I said as I climbed into the backseat with Billy and Katherine. "Two questions, actually. Is it Diva Tox or Divatox? Because here it's Divatox, but for some reason...."
"It's Diva Tox, on our world," Rocky answered. "Diva Tox, the Toxic Diva."
"Okay, my other questions," I said, satisfied with the first answer. "Why was Justin picked?"
"Well, Bulk and Skull were kidnapped first thing," Billy said. "And they had their brains scrambled by Elgar, making them useless to Diva Tox. Jenga was there every step of the way, if you were wondering."
"And then me and Jason were kidnapped," Kimberly said. "For Maligore's sacrifices."
"Okay," I said. "That takes care of all of the Angel Grove Rangers. But why weren't the powers temporarily given to Aisha, Trini, Zack, or Billy?"
"Jenga found some way to temporarily block the teleportation system," Billy said. "There was no way. That's why they had to take the Ghost Galleon to the Nemesis Triangle, which was located in a minor pocket dimension in the Pacific Ocean."
"Okay. Why Justin?" I asked. "Why was a kid picked instead of one of your teenage friends? I mean, I personally think Justin is a very cool kid, what I've seen of him, but it doesn't really make sense."
"I think we should let Rocky handle that one," Katherine said with a sly smile.
"Aw geez," Rocky said. "It's not my fault I was all hopped up on painkillers! Plus, plus... he already had parents that knew about the Rangers, he does have a black belt, he is very, very smart and trustworthy, and he goes to the High School. I think I made a good decision. And after I saw him in action, I just couldn't bring myself to take the powers away from him."
"That's really nice," I said. "Turn left at the next red light," I instructed.
"I mean, I already had the Ninja Power," Rocky said.
"Another question," I said. "On the television series, Ninja was stronger than the first powers, Zeo was stronger than Ninja, and Turbo was stronger than Zeo. Is that how it works?"
"No," Billy said firmly. "Ninja was the strongest. We took the Zeo Power because there was no other alternative. I did get the Zeo powers pretty close by altering them into the Turbo powers. Turbo is about as close to Ninja as you're gonna get."
"I wonder where we fit into the scale," I pondered. "These are the only powers we've ever had."
"How long?" Jason asked.
"Almost two years," I answered. "Since the start of our Senior year of High School, and we're about to go into our Sophomore year of college."
"Here we are," Jason said as he pulled into Wal-Mart's parking lot.
"I just need to get some necessities," I told them. "Shouldn't take long."
* * *
"I hate waiting," Omicron said. "I wish Nadia would just pull her trick and get this over with!"
"Calm down, Omicron," Sigma said, materializing beside the Sword. "You're going to have a coronary."
"Ha ha," she said bitterly.
A shrieking alarm suddenly sounded. "Looks like you got your wish," Sigma said wryly.
"Maybe it's just a little ordinary attack," Omicron said hopefully. She looked at the console before her. "Uh oh."
* * *
"What's up with that?" Jason asked as the store lights flickered.
Rocky put five sticks of deodorant in the cart. "Probably nothing important," he said.
"I guess not," Jason said, getting a ten-pack of disposable razors. Suddenly, a loud boom of thunder filled the air, temporarily deafening everyone in the store.
* * *
"What was that?" Katherine asked, unconsciously ducking as the thunder rumbled into silence.
"Must be gonna storm," Billy said. "Let's get what we need, find the others, and get back to the house." The lights suddenly flickered once, and went out.
* * *
"Jeremy?" Kimberly asked.
Without answering her, I brought my thumb up to my mouth and said, "Sigma, teleport everyone out of Glasgow. I think he's on his way."
"We're on it," Omicron answered.
"Duran?" Kimberly asked.
"Yeah," I answered. The store was suddenly lit up with dozens of white teleport streams.
"What was that?" Kimberly asked.
"Sigma's teleporting everyone out of Glasgow," I said.
"Where to?"
"He keeps them in his Sword until the attack is over, then he sends them back and gives them a false memory of what would have happened if nothing had ever happened," I answered. "Come on, let's find the others. We're about to have a major attack."
The lights flickered back on. "Well, that's good at least," Kimberly said thoughtfully. "What do we do?"
"When Duran first arrived, we were in an Assembly Program in High School, and a bunch of Naddies were waiting for us in the parking lot," I said.
"Should I go check?" Kimberly asked.
"That might not be a bad idea," I told her.
"Okay," she said, heading toward the doors. "As soon as you find them, though, get out here with me!"
* * *
Kimberly ran out into the parking lot. The late afternoon sky was decorated with the standard pinks and purples of sunset. The parking lot was filled with cars, although there was no traffic. Glasgow, Kentucky, was essentially a Ghost Town. A very strong wind suddenly picked up, producing a small cry of alarm from her. She started to turn and go back into the store when she saw a brief movement at the far end of the parking lot. She began to cautiously move toward it.
* * *
"Hey you guys!" I shouted, running into the clothing department. The lights once again flickered outs. "Oh great," I muttered. Putting my hands out in front of me, I attempted to make my way through the semi-darkness. Suddenly, a shriek came from behind me. I spun around just in time to see a clothing rack fall over. "Who's there?" I demanded. Nothing.
"Nadia?" I asked cautiously. "Duran?" The silence was my only reply.
* * *
"Come on," Billy coaxed. He crept through the hardware aisles with Katherine close behind him. A soft sound, eerily reminiscent of nails on a chalkboard, sounded behind them. The two Rangers spun around, although the darkness still prevented them from seeing anything.
"Billy," Katherine said. "Hold on a sec." She reached over to the shelf, fumbled about in the darkness for a moment, and then produced a flashlight. "I thought I saw one."
"Great," Billy said, taking it from her. She got another flashlight, and they began to walk through the store. An unearthly scream came from directly behind them. With a scream of her own, Katherine spun around, pointing the flashlight as though it were a weapon. "What was that?!" she shouted forcefully.
"Let's go out of he-," Billy began, but stopped when his flashlight splayed across the scene before him. A dark liquid formed a huge pool in the aisle before him. "Kat, take a look at this." The flashlight didn't shine on it. It just seemed to disappear upon contact.
"Billy," Katherine said warily. She pressed her back against his forcefully. A similar puddle of dark liquid was slowly inching its way toward her.
"What do you think it is?" Billy asked.
"It's eating the tiles," she said.
Billy pointed his flashlight at the shelf. "Let's climb up and over," he said.
Kat eagerly agreed. Treating the shelves like a ladder, they began to climb to the top. Suddenly, an angry bellow came from a few rows over. Billy stood up on top of the shelf and flashed his light in that direction. "What do you want?" Billy asked. With the sound of screeching metal, a shelf three aisles away began to topple over. It smashed into the shelf next to it.
"Go!" Kat shouted, more to herself than to Billy. She jumped over to the top of the next shelf. "Come on, Billy!" He took a wide step across the aisle, landing safely beside her.
Pausing for only a moment, they jumped to the next shelf. With a thunderous cacophony of scraping metal and clattering steel, the shelves began to fall over like dominoes. "Jump," Billy urged as they leapt to the next shelf. The falling line of shelves were getting closer. The two Rangers jumped to the next shelf and were suddenly faced with a twenty foot expanse to the next shelf, this one filled with the dark mysterious acidic liquid. "Go to the end," Billy said, tugging on her arm.
He ran to the end of the aisle, kicking various objects off of the shelf in the process. He reached the end of the shelf and jumped, landing painfully on the ground. His momentum kept him moving and he somersaulted into a bin of extension cords. Katherine landed close behind him as the final shelf hit the ground.
"That was easy enough," Kat sighed sarcastically.
"Was it?" a dark voice asked. She spun around to see the voice's source, but no one was there.
* * *
A cold hand clamped around my throat. I felt something very hard slam into my body and pick me off of the ground. I was hoisted above the ground and rushed backwards, the tips of my toes dragging the ground. I was slammed into the wall hard, and would have had my breath knocked out of me if the cold hand hadn't already cut off my air supply. I reached out in front of me, trying to hit my assailant. My hands passed in front of my body freely. A deep, evil laugh, reminding me of rolling waters, bubbled up from the air. My hands went to my throat, trying to feel the strong hand. Although no hand was there, I could still feel the death-grip on my windpipe.
"You struggle," the rolling-water voice said, "even though you know who will win." I turned my hand, producing my morpher in a small blue flash. The hand unclenched from my throat, dropping me to the ground. For a moment, I thought that my assailant was gone, but the hands suddenly returned. A strong force grabbed onto my morpher, trying desperately to yank it from my grip. "NO!" I shouted. "TRICERATOPS!" In a much brighter blue flash, my blue armor was fitted over my body. "Why don't you fight me now, you coward?" I asked the air.
It was still incredibly dark, although the helmet enhanced my vision, enabling me to see the vague outline of the objects before me. "It's so dark," I muttered. I brought my hand up to my mouth and said, "Allison? We've got some problems here. Can you lend a hand?"
"Morphed?" she asked.
"Yeah," I said. "I'm in Wal-Mart and it's pitch black."
A few seconds later, a sparkling column of purple light landed beside me. "It is dark in here," she said. "MASTODON POWER BEAMS!" The purple Mastodon on her helmet slowly began to rise up. It reached a height of six inches, and its eyes opened wide. Bright white halogen lights shone from the eyes. "Much better," she said. "Is anybody else in here?"
"There's some kind of beast in here," I said, "but you can't feel it. Billy, Kat, Rocky, and Jason are in here, too. Ladies first?"
"Always the gentlemen," she muttered, walking through the aisles. Her Power Beams cut through the darkness, enabling us both to see what, if anything, was before us. Suddenly, a loud crash came from the back of the store.
* * *
In simultaneous flashes of pink and blue, Katherine and Billy morphed. A screech of pain followed. "POWER SCAN!" Billy shouted. With a metallic whoosh, his black visor was replaced with a silver scanner. A line of red lights split it horizontally.
"What was it, Billy?" Kat asked.
"I don't know," he said. "It's already gone." Rather than try to find the source of the evil voice, he walked over to the dark acidic puddle. Information on the liquid scrolled across his vision. "Extremely acidic, supernatural in origin. Doesn't reflect or absorb light of any type."
"Is that possible?" Kat asked. "Doesn't it have to do one or the other?"
"Not if it's supernatural," Billy answered. "It's basically liquid darkness."
"Were you two attacked?" I asked, eyeing the fallen shelves.
"It's the Dark," Allison said in horror.
"Huh?" Billy asked.
"The puddle," I said. "It's Duran's signature. The Dark."
"Anywhere there is darkness," Allison said, "Duran's flunkies can attack. This puddle is sort of like their... ecto-plasm, for lack of a better word. This is what's produced when several of them come out of the darkness."
"This sounds like something from Ghostbusters," Kat said, trying to add an ounce of humor to the morbid situation.
"That's what attacked me," I said. "You can't touch them but they can certainly touch you. Allison, you stay here with them. If there is light, they can't get you. I'm going to go find Jason and Rocky."
"Take this," Billy said, handing me a flashlight.
"That's okay," I said, "I've got a few tricks up my sleeve."
* * *
"Ow!" Rocky shouted. "Jason, that hurt!"
"It wasn't me," Jason said from a few aisles over.
Rocky's eyes widened in shock. "Well, who was it?" he asked. He suddenly felt a foot connect solidly with his stomach. With a grunt, he stumbled backwards, knocking a shopping cart over in the process. "ZEO RANGER III, BLUE - APE!" Rocky shouted, holding his morpher above his body. With a bright blue flash, he morphed into a Power Ranger, simultaneously destroying the Dark attacking him. "Jason, watch out! There's something weird in here!"
"TYRANNOSAURUS - COUGAR!" Jason morphed, just in case.
"Two little Rangers, sitting in the night," a sing-song female voice said from above them. "Fighting against an evil, with all of your might."
"Who is that?" Rocky asked, looking up into the near-darkness above him.
"Sheila!" I shouted, jumping to the top of a nearby shelf. With a cat-like growl, she spun around. "Blue Ranger," she growled.
"Do you really think this is fair?" I asked. I could just barely make out her outline as she jumped from the top of one shelf to another. I jumped as well, wanting to keep as much distance between us as possible.
"Is it fair? Do I care?"
"TRICERATOPS WHIP!" I shouted.
"Isn't that a nifty show? By the way, he's here, ya know."
A heavy club suddenly landed across my back. With a bellow of pain and surprise, I fell from my shelf. "Draanov!" I shouted.
"The one and only," he growled. Draanov is Nadia's only henchman who doesn't look human. He wears tight-fitting black metal body armor. He has a gray rodent-like face, and fights with a club. He often leads Naddies into battle.
"Shouldn't you be somewhere welcoming Duran?" I asked, running to the end of the aisle. I wished desperately for lights. I hated not knowing just where the next attack would come from.
* * *
"We need to get the lights back on," Allison said, running through the store. "One of Nadia's goons probably got to the switch box. Billy, can you fix it?"
"If it's mechanical, I can fix it," he answered.
"If we get the lights back on, they can't attack. Right?" Katherine asked.
"Right," Allison answered.
The three Rangers ran through the darkened store, protected from the Dark only by Allison's Power Beams.
* * *
Jason and Rocky suddenly landed beside me. "What's up with these goons?" Rocky asked.
"They're cocky because Duran's here," I answered.
"Our power's increased, you'll soon be deceased," Sheila said.
"Hey!" Rocky shouted, punching the air. "What was that?!"
"The Dark," I said, horrified.
Jason suddenly emitted a strangled gasp. "TRICERATOPS FREEZE LIGHTS!" I shouted. Immediately, a pale blue light flashed from the Triceratops' eyes on my helmet. The Dark screamed, and immediately solidified. A pale blue light hung in the air. Sheila, Draanov, and the black outline of the Dark were temporarily frozen in space and time.
"What did you do?" Jason asked.
"My helmet device," I answered. "We use it in battle if we're surprise attacked by the Naddies. It freezes them in place for fifteen seconds. I've never used it on the Dark before, though." A slender humanoid shape, completely black, floated in the air. "Let's get out of here. They'll wake up in a few seconds, really mad. And it only works once, so that's it."
Suddenly, lights flooded the store. Numerous screams rose up from around the store as the Darks were obliterated. "Let's get out of here before the lights go back off," Rocky said.
Jason and I eagerly agreed.
* * *
Kimberly reached the far end of the parking lot. "I would have sworn I saw something here," she said.
There was nothing. She looked up just in time to see a sparkling purple teleport stream inside Wal-Mart's lobby. Turning to go back into the store, she didn't see the being that appeared just a few feet behind her.
* * *
"It's locked," I said, jangling the door handle. "Oh well." I drew my arm back and punched the glass. A white burst of light flowed out from the impact point. The glass didn't shatter.
"Nadia," Allison muttered. "Let me try to teleport."
"What's the deal?" Katherine asked.
Allison placed her hands on her belt buckle/morpher and melted into a stream of purple light. She rose up to the ceiling and slammed into it with a white flash of light. She immediately resumed her normal form and fell back to the floor. "Nadia has us blocked," I complained.
"Duran has made her stronger," Allison said. "I hope she doesn't start carving crystals again."
"Hey, I see Kim," Rocky said. "Kimberly!"
She was walking toward the store. It was then that I saw the shape behind her. "KIMBERLY!" I shouted, beating on the glass with both hands.
"Oh my God," Katherine said, catching sight of the beast as well.
I brought my hand to my mouth and shouted, "Kimberly! Behind you!" Kimberly must have heard me, for she spun around.
* * *
"Kimberly! Behind you!"
Every nerve in her body was on edge as she spun around. A giant red and black dragon stood behind her. He towered over her at ten feet. His skin was black and shiny, with a dark red underbelly. He wasn't an ordinary dragon, for he stood on two legs. He had a pair of human-like arms, only covered in black scales. His head was box-like and tapered somewhat down his muzzle. Several sharp amber teeth jutted out of his mouth. Twin horns stuck out above his ears at crude angles. "Ahhh," the dragon growled. "Delicious."
With a scream of terror, Kimberly ran off. She darted into the maze of cars and headed for the building. The dragon picked up cars in his hands and tossed them aside. "Don't run, human!" he bellowed. "It will make your flesh stringy!" With an evil laugh, he was close behind her.
"It's Morphin Time!" Kimberly shouted. Just as her morpher appeared in her hands, Nadia was before her. She slammed into the blue-clad demon and hit the ground.
"Sorry," Nadia said, dropping a jagged pink crystal on the ground. "Can't morph today." Laughing hysterically, she disappeared in a flash of blue.
"PTERODACTYL - CRANE!" Kimberly frantically screamed anyway, and discovered she was right. A car landed just a few feet from her, sending a shower of broken glass over her. She crawled to her feet and ran away again.
"RUNNING IS USELESS!" the dragon shouted. Powerful red wings unfurled from his back. They stretched twenty feet, tip to tip, and were reminiscent of bat wings. The late afternoon sun shone through them, casting an eerie red glow behind him. Laughing, he began to run toward her, flapping his wings and lifting off of the ground. His body leveled out at a height of four feet. He slammed into Kimberly, wrapping his arms around her. Screaming at the top of her lungs, she was lifted off of the pavement. Her arms were bound to her body, so she tried to kick him with her legs, although his skin was so tough he didn't notice. Still beating his powerful wings, he lifted into the sky.
* * *
"Billy," I said, noticing his Power Scan was still running, "can you tell us how large the crystal's energy diameter is?" He glanced out into the parking lot and answered, somewhat frantically, "Fifty feet."
"It's safe," Allison said. Squeezing her thumb and forefinger, she said, "Tara, morph and get your butt down here ASAP."
"I'm on my way," Tara answered a few seconds later.
"Teleport close to the building," I said. "Nadia has a fifty foot anti-morph zone."
"We had better call the others," Allison said. "I'm not sure who that thing was, but he's trouble." A yellow flash of light came from the other side of the door. "Can't get out?" she asked.
"We're stuck," Rocky answered.
"SABER-TOOTHED TIGER REALITY ALTERER!" Tara shouted. The Saber-Toothed Tiger rose off of her helmet, simultaneously opening its eyes wide. White light shone from the eye sockets, forming a perfect circle of light on the doors. "What's she doing?" Jason asked.
"Altering reality," Allison said with a sly smile beneath her helmet. A yellow line of electricity outlined the circle of light on our side of the wall.
"Okay," I said, stepping through the wall.
"You have got to be kidding me," Billy said.
"It only lasts for a few seconds," Allison said, guiding Billy to the double doors that still looked solid. They passed through it, however, as though it were just a hologram. Kat, Jason, and Rocky were close behind.
Sheila and Draanov, along with several Naddies, appeared in a several flashes of black fire in the parking lot. "Oh boy," Rocky said.
"I'm goin' after Kim," I said. "But whatever you do, don't step within fifty feet of that crystal. It will make you de-morph."
"Right," the four new Rangers agreed.
"POWER BOARD!" I shouted. Executing a quick martial arts move, mainly for show, my Power Board appeared in a glimmering flash of blue light. The Power Board looks like a skateboard, only it has no wheels. It was floating about two feet about the ground before me. I jumped atop it and felt it lock onto my boots. I flew straight up into the air and darted off in the direction I had last seen the dragon.
"I have got to get me one of those!" Rocky shouted.
* * *
Kimberly continued to scream as the dragon carried her over the city of Glasgow. "Stop fighting, human," the dragon growled. "You'll wear yourself out."
"Who are you?!" Kimberly shrieked.
"My friends, if I had any, would call me Duran," he chuckled.
"NO!" Kimberly screamed. She began to thrash in his arms.
"Would you really like me to let you go?" Duran asked. Kimberly looked down and realized they were several hundred feet above the ground.
* * *
Flying on the Power Boards is one of the most fun parts of being a Power Ranger. Actually, it's the only fun part. Unfortunately, when we're on them, we're usually fighting Naddies who are on their own Power Boards. There are a lot of wipe outs, so we always take the battle high into the air so if we do fall, there's plenty of time to be rescued before we hit the ground. Even though our armor would protect us from any fall, it still isn't a very fun experience to smash into the ground from several miles up. We also try to avoid air battles without another Ranger as a back-up. If you should get wiped out, it's impossible to call on the Power Board while hurtling toward the ground. Another Ranger is necessary to stop the fall and give a solid surface to stand on to call the Power Board back.
"Allison, as soon as the others get here, send somebody up here to help me," I said.
"Right," Allison agreed.
I soared high above the city, looking for the dragon with Kimberly in his grip. I contemplated contacting her via our communication systems, but I was afraid the dragon might kill her if she knew she could morph. Luck was with me, as I soon saw the black and red beast leisurely flying from the city. A plan immediately clicked in my brain. Lightning quick, I accelerated and flew at the dragon. With a bright blue flash, my Power Board collided with the dragon's back. It gave a bellow of pain, Kimberly screamed in fear as the dragon dropped her, and the Power Board disappeared immediately upon contact. "MORPH KIMBERLY!" I shouted. Even though I couldn't call on my Power Board, I was able to control myself and flew, straight as an arrow, at the YMCA's sunroof. If memory served, an eighteen foot deep pool would be waiting beneath me to gentle my fall.
"PTERODACTYL - CRANE!" Kimberly shouted. In a pink flash of light, she morphed into the Pink Ranger.
I crashed into the skylight, completely obliterating it. It did little to stop my fall. I slammed into the water so hard my vision flashed white and pain coursed through my body. Fortunately, the Power took over and removed the pain. I hit the bottom of the pool, pushed off, and swam to the surface just as Kimberly dropped in through the roof. "You okay?" I asked as she re-surfaced.
"I think so," she stammered. "I thought you said Duran was human."
"He was, last time," I said. "Why?"
"That dragon told me his name was Duran," Kimberly said.
"He's probably going to fight the others. Let's go."
"Right," Kimberly agreed before we teleported away in twin streaks of blue and pink.
* * *
"Tara!" Omicron shouted over our communication systems. "I've temporarily altered the energy signature of your arrows. Hit the anti-morph crystal while you can! The arrow will obliterate it!"
"You got it," Tara said, summoning her Power Bow. She took aim, pulled back on the string, and let an energy arrow fly. It struck the crystal dead on, destroying its evil power. She immediately turned her attention back to the enraged Naddies.
"Hey little Rangers," Duran growled, slowly dropping down to the Earth. His wings were unfurled and carried him down slowly. "Remember me?"
"Duran?" Allison asked.
"Back and better than ever," he chuckled. Lightning suddenly came down from the sky and struck him. He immediately transformed from a solid beast into the 3-D outline of one. The outline immediately broke apart into seven dragons, each taking a different form, and upon becoming a solid entities, a different color.
The first beast stood on two legs, although it was much thinner than Duran's original form. It carried no wings and was suited for ground combat, complete with strong black scales that were no doubt as tough as armor. Long arms, tipped with hideous black claws, hung from its shoulders. Its head was box-like and crowned with two very sharp black horns. "I am Envy, Dragon of Malice."
The second beast was shaped like a teardrop. It had no legs or arms, but hovered perfectly still on a pair of feathery wings. Its underbelly was cream colored, the wings were white, and the rest of it was pale blue. "I am Sloth, Dragon of Apathy."
The third dragon had a horse's body. A long, pronged tail curved around its body threateningly. The head was that of a stereotypical dragon. The dragon was a vibrant shade of green. Green hair covered the body, while green scales adorned the head and tail. "I am Greed, Dragon of Avarice."
The fourth dragon was covered in bright pink scales. It sported a very feminine body and stood with her right hip thrust out. Her general facial features were much more similar to that of a cat than a dragon. Black hair hung down to her shoulders, although her most distinguishing feature were her piercing yellow catlike eyes. "I am Lust, Dragon of Affinity."
Dragon number five was shaped like a true dragon. All four legs were double jointed, and despite their extreme length and flexibility, the belly hung low to the ground. A long, curved neck undulated around the body. A box-like dragon head was at the end. The beast was covered with royal purple scales, and a series of lighter purple nubs ran from the back of its head to the tip of its tail. "I am Pride, Dragon of Conceit."
The sixth dragon was had the body of a very wide snake. Its skin was shiny and yellow, and the light seemed to shine from it. It had the head of a cobra, complete with the hood. A pair of small wings were below the hood. "I am Gluttony, Dragon of Voracity."
The seventh dragon was shaped just like Duran's original form, although there was no black. His underbelly was a burnished bronze, while the rest of the body was bright, vibrant red. "And I am Anger, Dragon of Rage."
In perfect unison in seven different voices, all of which were throaty and evil, they said, "We are all Duran, and we are all the dark side you refuse to acknowledge." Gluttony, Greed, Pride, and Sloth all looked up at the sky. Lightning struck them, and they immediately shot up, hundreds of feet tall. Anger, Lust, and Envy remained normal size, no doubt to fight the other five Rangers. The three smaller Dragons formed a circle, presumably deciding the best fighting tactic.
"Where are Crystal and Beth?!" Tara shouted. "We'll need to form the Mega Assault Vehicle!"
"We'll have to take the Personal A.V.'s into battle and hope they get here soon," Dana said.
"She's right," I agreed. "Let's do it, guys!"
"Right!" the others agreed, as we formed a quick circle.
"TRICERATOPS PERSONAL ASSAULT VEHICLE!"
"MASTODON PERSONAL ASSAULT VEHICLE!"
"BRACHIOSAURUS PERSONAL ASSAULT VEHICLE!"
"SABER-TOOTHED TIGER ASSAULT VEHICLE!"
We quickly pulled the Morphers from our belts, slammed all four of them together, and then pointed them triumphantly to the sky. A single shot of color burst from each one. "You guys keep them occupied," Tara said. "We'll deal with Duran."
Magically, our Personal A.V.'s appeared in the sky above us. Swooping and flying about, they waited for us to pilot them.
"PERSONAL ASSAULT VEHICLES, POWER UP!" We all completely surrendered ourselves to the power. Our color of light began to emanate from our bodies. We drew our right arm back and thrust it towards the sky. The power completely overwhelmed us and we lifted off of the ground. We flew up into the air and separated, flying true as an arrow to our A.V.'s. The Triceratops A.V. flew near me. I suddenly found myself seated in a gray and blue chair and was being whisked down a dark tunnel. A door opened before me, and I slid into the cockpit. "Triceratops on line."
"Mastodon ready to kick it!"
"Brachiosaurus here to stomp some butt."
"Saber-Toothed Tiger, armed and anxious!"
* * *
Anger, Lust, and Envy stared at the five Rangers. "Five extra Rangers, huh?" Envy growled.
"I want the blue ones," Lust droned. "Just like M&M's. Yum."
"Then the Red One is mine!" Anger bellowed. He flapped his powerful wings once and jumped off of the ground.
"POWER SWORD!" Jason shouted, dropping into a roll to miss the dragon.
Lust laughed happily and rushed Billy and Rocky.
"POWER LANCES!"
"ZEO III ARM BLADES!"
Lust opened her mouth to hiss. A bright pink forked tongue shot out and wrapped around Billy's neck. With a chortled cry, he wrapped his hands around the tongue and tried to pry it from his throat.
"Not today, dragon!" Rocky shouted. He crossed his arms and brought the blue triangular blades down across the stretched tongue. Black blood spurted from the wound as the extra length of tongue fell limp. The rest of her tongue flew back into her mouth, although she didn't look too concerned about it. The tongue fell onto the ground and lay limp. However, it suddenly sprang to life. The tongue immediately turned into a pink cobra. It began to grow large and change shape. It were almost as if there was something inside of the skin, growing larger and using the skin merely as a suit. A pair of arms poked out of the sides, and the skin promptly fitted onto the muscle beneath. In a matter of seconds, the snake had stretched out and formed a second Lust.
"Twice as much to go around," both Lusts growled. They each turned to face a Blue Ranger. With a snake-like hiss, they high-kicked the two Blue Rangers in perfect unison, knocking both Rangers to the ground.
Kimberly ducked Envy's scissor-kick. Katherine summoned her Power Shield and attempted to slash it across Envy's upper body. He blocked the Shield, although she countered his move by grabbing his arm and pinning it behind his body.
"POWER BOW!" Kimberly shouted. She twirled the pink and white bow in the air and prepared to fire an arrow into Envy's body at short range, although he surprised both Pink Rangers by flipping Katherine over his head and using her as a weapon. Katherine hit the ground and lashed out with the sharp edge of her shield, trying to slice the front of his ankles. Envy hopped over the pink weapon and side-kicked Kimberly. Kimberly rolled away, holding the Power Bow tight against her body. She raised into a kneeling position and held the Bow out before her. Pulling back on the string, a shimmering arrow of pink energy appeared. "Hey Envy!" Kimberly shouted. The black dragon turned to look at her. She let the arrow fly.
* * *
I flew Triceratops from the sky to the ground. It landed on Happy Valley Road where Greed was stationed. "You sure are big," I muttered. Triceratops A.V. was easily forty feet tall and well over one hundred feet tall, although Greed was more than twice my size.
The green pronged tail suddenly plunged into the street right in front of me. "I'm mean, too," Greed growled with laughter.
"Electric shock!" I shouted. I slammed my spread palm on a large red button to my right. The two main horns on my A.V. flew off, attached by a strong blue chain. They wrapped around Greed's front legs. "Now!" Blue electricity flowed down them, effectively shocking the green dragon.
"DIRTY FIGHTER!" Greed bellowed angrily. He reared up on his hind legs and jerked his front legs up into the air. Triceratops was easily yanked off of the ground, which really startled me since my A.V. is extremely heavy. The horns retracted, snapping back into place, as my blue and silver Assault Vehicle flew over Greed's body.
* * *
Brachiosaurus landed on a back street and immediately began stomping down it, causing windows to shatter all around. "Go go go!" Dana urged herself.
Pride was close behind her. He was perfectly sized for the gigantic vehicle, standing at almost two hundred feet tall. Dana wasn't used to fighting anything the same size as her Brachiosaurus A.V. Her cockpit was in the Brachiosaurus' head, and despite having two years fighting experience, she was still always overwhelmed at being so high in the air and at such a precarious position. She made the neck turn slightly so as to point the cockpit backwards. Pride was quickly gaining on her. The perfect move suddenly came to her. The Brachiosaurus came to a screeching halt, although its momentum carried it forward a few more dozen feet. Pride was still barreling down at her.
"Just go with me, girl," Dana coaxed the gargantuan machine. It leaned forward on its front legs and lifted the hind legs off. The legs bent toward the body, perfectly on cue, and then snapped back out, immediately slamming into Pride, who had planned to ambush the A.V. With a whimper not unlike that of a hurt dog, the purple dragon rolled backwards, trying to avoid another beating. "You're not getting away that easily, Duran, Pride, whoever you are," Dana growled.
The Brachiosaurus curved its neck around to the back. Green lasers began to fire from the A.V.'s eyes. Pride gave an angry roar and retreated, barely missing the green lasers which rained down on the asphalt all around him.
* * *
Allison shot a purple missile at Sloth. Despite his name, he was extremely fast, and avoided the collision. The heatseeker on the missile started, and buzzed after Sloth. The flying dragon flew into the upper levels of the atmosphere, the missile close behind.
"He's gone for a while," Allison mused.
"Allison!" Tara shouted. "WATCH OUT!"
Gluttony suddenly struck the purple Mastodon A.V. Its snake-like body coiled around Mastodon's legs, sending the gargantuan machine crashing to the ground. "Hey!" Allison shouted. The Mastodon's trunk extended and pressed against Gluttony's body. Purple electricity flowed down the trunk and entered the dragon's body.
Gluttony screamed in agony. He flared his hood and hissed. "You're gonna pay bitterly for that," he snarled.
Suddenly, a flash of yellow streaked past them. Tara's A.V.'s mouth clamped down on Gluttony's head. With a bellow of pain, the yellow snake was wrenched away from Mastodon. "Just hang on, Tara!" Allison shouted. "I've got an idea!"
Allison redirected her A.V. to its feet. She ran down the street and screeched to a halt, turning 180 degrees in the process. "Launching tusks!" Allison shouted. The silver Mastodon tusks flew from their place and wrapped around Gluttony's tail. "You know what to do?" Allison asked.
Saber-Toothed Tiger A.V. sat down on its haunches and locked into position. "I'm locked!"
"See ya, Gluttony," Allison said. She immediately began to draw the tusks back to her.
"NO!" Gluttony screeched. His body lifted off of the ground as he was stretched between the two Assault Vehicles. His body become taut, and suddenly exploded in black light.
Both Mastodon and Saber-Toothed Tiger were thrown backwards. "We got one of 'em!" Tara shouted happily.
* * *
Beth growled in disgust and pressed her thumb and forefinger together. "Omicron, if I'm needed that badly, you'll have to take care of it," Beth said. She adjusted the heavy pack on her back and continued running up the hill.
"When will you be done?" he asked.
"I've only got about another hour," she said. "Do you need me to call off early? I can't sneak out."
"Duran is back," Sigma said.
"Okay, go ahead and do it," Beth said. She glanced around her and said, "I'm clear now." She pressed her thumb and middle finger together and disappeared in a sparkling column of pink light. A very realistic solid hologram of Beth Berry appeared in her place, complete with full gear. The hologram immediately took Beth's place and jogged after her troop.
* * *
Beth teleported in front of Wal-Mart. Several dragons were fighting the other Rangers. She shrugged her heavy backpack off and shouted, "It's Morphin Time! PTERODACTYL!" In a brilliant pink flash, she morphed into Pink Ranger. "Where am I needed?" she shouted.
"Everywhere!" Jason answered, throwing a hard punch at Anger. Anger caught Jason's hand and forced him into a kneeling position.
"PTERODACTYL BALL AND CHAIN!" Beth shouted. Her weapon appeared in her grip and she ran at Anger. With a grunt, Beth swung the spiked ball at Anger. It struck him square in the chest, causing him to lose his grip on Jason. "Are you okay?" Beth asked, helping him to his feet.
"I am now," he said.
"Beth, we need you here pronto!" Dana shouted.
"I've got a better idea," Beth said. "Kat! Come here!" Katherine flipped over Envy and hurried to the other Pink Ranger. "You take my A.V. into battle," Beth instructed. Beth crossed her arms in front of her chest and placed her hands in front of the golden coin, emblazoned with the Pterodactyl, on her chest. Beth immediately opened up her stance and thrust her arms out. She held her hands together by the balls of her palm and pointed them at Katherine. A pink line of light shot from her coin, channeled through her hands, and struck the smaller coin on Kat's chest. Katherine was immediately instilled with the knowledge of how to drive Beth's A.V. "I'm used to fighting these guys on the ground," Beth said. "You take the air."
"Right!" Katherine agreed as Beth flipped into battle to help Kimberly.
"PTERODACTYL ASSAULT VEHICLE!" Kat pulled her morpher from her belt and pointed it at the sky, sending a pink beam of energy straight up. With a powerful flash of light, the pink and silver Pterodactyl A.V. appeared in the sky. "PERSONAL ASSAULT VEHICLE, POWER UP!" Kat bellowed. She begin to glow pink and thrust her fist at the sky. She lifted off of the ground and darted at the A.V.
Seconds later, Kat was seated at the cockpit. Beth's Pterodactyl was drastically different from Kimberly's. It was actually shaped like a Pterodactyl. The body was narrow and it had gargantuan wings that it glided on, even though they were capable of flapping. Sloth suddenly dropped from the heavens and spit a fireball at her. "All right, dragon," Kat growled, rolling away. A pink laser fired from Pterodactyl's crest, although Sloth dodged it. He hovered high above the ground, looking for the A.V.'s weakness.
"Katherine!" I shouted, rumbling across town. "Let's bring 'em together!"
The power immediately took over, telling her what to do. "Right!" she agreed. In perfect unison, we shouted, "EAGLE ASSAULT VEHICLE, POWER UP!"
My A.V. lifted off of the ground and immediately began to shift shape. Entire sections of metal folded up and withdrew into the body. I slid out of my cockpit as the Triceratops head collapsed in on itself and was pulled into the body. Pterodactyl was undergoing a similar metamorphosis. Both vehicles hung perfectly still in the air as they changed shape. After just a few seconds, the two machines snapped together, locking connector joints together and merging into one. We were both whisked through tunnels that led to our joined cockpit. My chair rose up out of the floor as Kat appeared to my right.
"Wow," Katherine said. "That was amazing."
"The Power working?" I asked.
She responded by grabbing her control lever. "Let's rock," she said. She pulled back on the lever and the blue, pink, and silver Assault Vehicle flew straight up into the air. Sloth took one look at us and flew away. "He's getting away!" Kat shouted. "Should we let him go?"
"No way," I answered. "He's probably just going to attack elsewhere. ACTIVATING THRUSTERS!" I slammed my hand on a large blue button in the center of cockpit. A low humming began to emanate from the center of the Assault Vehicle, waiting for our next command.
"Monitor shows he's leaving the atmosphere," Kat said.
"Then we are too," I replied. I wrapped my left hand around a silver handle and pulled back on it. Eagle darted out of the atmosphere in a blue and pink streak.
* * *
Beth and Kimberly were both knocked backwards as Envy simultaneously side-kicked both of them. "What are with these things!"
"Gee, Beth," Envy growled. His voice immediately changed to a very human-like voice. "You act as if we haven't met."
"Duran!" she cried.
Envy chuckled deep in his throat. He suddenly lurched at Beth, grabbing her around the throat. He lifted her off of the ground, holding her at eye-level. "You shouldn't have banished me last time," he said in his throaty growl, "cause now I'm pissed."
* * *
Omicron looked up as Crystal teleported into the Command Center. "It's about time," Omicron said. "Where have you been?" Omicron then realized that she was morphed into the Red Ranger.
"Fighting Naddies in the Court House yard," Crystal said, removing her helmet. "You're gonna have a lot of memories to wipe because half the town saw it. The sensors didn't pick up on it?"
"They're overloaded because Duran is back in seven bodies," Omicron said.
"Well, six now. Three are A.V. size, and the other three are fighting hand-to-hand."
"Where am I needed most?" Crystal asked.
"Everywhere," Omicron said.
"Screen on ground situation," Crystal ordered. A section of the wall opened, revealing a large video screen. It immediately showed the Rangers and dragons battling in the parking lot. "I've got an idea," she said.
"Good luck, Crystal," Sigma said, suddenly materializing beside his Sword.
"Thanks," she said. She put her helmet in the crook of her arm and shouted, "BACK TO ACTION!"
* * *
Pride suddenly leapt at Saber-Toothed Tiger. Tara gave a cry of alarm as Pride wrapped his legs and tail around her A.V. and sent it tumbling to through AutoZone, demolishing the building. Yellow lasers fired from the A.V.'s eyes, piercing Pride's purple skin. With a bellow of rage, he shrugged the Assault Vehicle aside and fired his own purple lasers. "Somebody help me!" Tara cried as she struggled to get the Saber-Toothed Tiger to her feet.
"I'm kind of tied up right now!" Allison shouted over the communication systems. Suddenly, the Earth shook as Dana landed beside Pride. Brachiosaurus suddenly turned, lashing its massive tail out. It struck Pride and sent him flying, quite literally. "We need the Jaguar!" Tara shouted.
"Right!" Dana greed.
"JAGUAR ASSAULT VEHICLE!" the two ladies shouted. "POWER UP!"
Even though Brachiosaurus was three times as tall and much heavier than Saber-Toothed Tiger, the two still fit together perfectly. Just a few seconds later, a green and yellow Jaguar was standing in the remains of the demolished AutoZone. It was much larger than the Saber-Toothed Tiger, yet smaller than the Brachiosaurus. It was also incredibly heavy, as the majority of the Brachiosaurus' exoskeleton was contained within the body. "Let's rock!" Dana shouted.
Tara responded by slapping her forearm against Dana's, producing that cool Power Ranger "whoosh."
* * *
Billy and Rocky simultaneously hurricane-kicked their Lust, sending the two pink dragons into each other. With a flash of black light, they merged back into one. Suddenly, red light streaked past them. Lust screamed in agony as four slash marks were suddenly apparent across her chest. Black light shone from the lacerations before she exploded.
"All right!" Rocky shouted, he and Billy exchanging a high-five.
Anger looked up as a red object slammed into him, sending him sprawling to the pavement. Jason held his Sword out before him, unsure of just what the red flash of light was. Envy was suddenly impaled on the red light. The red light immediately disappeared, although the damage was done. Kimberly held her Power Bow out before her and fired a final energy arrow at the dragon, pushing it over the edge to destruction.
Crystal finally screeched to a halt. She pressed one end of her Power Board to the pavement, riding it like a surfboard. "I take it you all needed help?" she asked, spinning her Tyrannosaurus Talons deftly.
"Crystal!" Beth cried happily. "You couldn't have picked a better time!"
"What did you just do?" Rocky asked.
Crystal's Power Board disappeared in a glimmer of red. "I just flew in on my Board and used the element of surprise," Crystal said. "Not bad if I say so myself."
"Perhaps," Anger said, cautiously approaching the group of Rangers. "But try me now!" Lightning struck him, and he became massive.
"You all go back to the Command Center," Crystal said. "I'm gonna take this beast in my A.V."
"Right," Beth agreed. The five Rangers teleported.
"TYRANNOSAURUS ASSAULT VEHICLE!" Crystal shouted. "POWER UP!" Seconds later, her Tyrannosaurus landed on the ground and she was seated at the controls. "Let's do this."
* * *
"Wow," Katherine said as she caught a glimpse of the Earth. "It's beautiful."
"Sloth is heading for the moon," I said, trying to stay as close to the pale blue dragon as possible.
"How fast are we going?" Katherine asked.
"Seventy-six percent of light speed," I answered. Sloth glanced over his shoulder and spit a fireball at us. Katherine jerked the control lever to the right, barely avoiding the collision. "Take the controls for a sec," I said. "I'm gonna prep the missile cannon."
"Right," Katherine agreed.
Sloth zoomed toward the moon, flying just a few feet above the surface. Eagle was close behind. A stone palace suddenly appeared on the horizon. "That must be Nadia's palace," Katherine said to herself. Sloth arched to the right to avoid colliding with it, which the Eagle mirrored. Sloth soared away from the moon. "Jeremy, he's heading farther out into space!" Katherine cried.
"Then so are we," I instructed. "Just keep us right behind him."
"Right," she agreed. The sudden blackness before her was more than a little staggering, but she kept after the dragon.
"Heatseekers are ready," I said. I turned my attention back to the front. The Earth and moon were already tiny dots behind us, and all we could see was Sloth and billions of stars.
"Have you done this before?" Katherine asked.
"A couple times," I said, "although I've never gone past Jupiter."
"If Sloth doesn't slow down, looks like you're going to today," Kat said. "I can't even track him anymore."
"He's straight ahead," I told her, motioning to the monitor set between us. "Let's up the speed a little." I pulled back on the silver handle to my right, pushing the Eagle past the speed of light.
"You know," Kat said nervously, "my physics teacher told me that anything going faster than the speed of light would turn into pure energy."
"They say that here too," I said. Eagle was getting us ever closer to Sloth. "Science doesn't know as much as they'd like to think they do. Of course, Sigma's magic helps."
"We're approaching Mars," Katherine informed us. "Why are we chasing this thing? He's obviously running scared."
"Duran doesn't get scared," I answered. "We've got the upper hand, sort of, and I intend to keep it."
"If you know what you're doing," Kat said. She studied the monitor intently and announced, "He's on Mars. You had better slow down! Impact in 2.3 seconds."
"WHOA!" I shouted, shoving the control lever to the left. Eagle skimmed the planet, barely avoiding collision. "Reducing speed ninety percent," I said. Going at 186,000 miles per second is a bit too fast when you're chasing a dragon around a planet.
"He's at the North Pole," Katherine said, "but he's moving fast!" I circled above the planet and darted toward the north. "There he is!" Kat shouted, pointing straight ahead. "Four hundred and six point eight miles in front of us."
"That's way too far for the heatseekers," I said.
"He's heading for the mountains!" Kat shouted. "All right," I said. Eagle zoomed after him. Mountains were suddenly all around us. Eagle darted in and out of valleys. "We're not close enough for the heat seekers," Kat said, "but we can use the lasers."
"Right," I agreed. "Can you do it?"
"Already on it," Katherine promised. "Just keep us on a straight course."
Eagle's wings pulled inward and the entire A.V. leaned back. It was, after all, based on the FalconZord from the movie. "Firing now!" Katherine cried. Blue and pink lasers were fired from the wingtips, striking the mountains all around Sloth. "We're still going too fast to aim!" Kat cried.
Sloth flew from the mountain range and across the South Pole. "I'm gonna try and get us close enough to use our heat-seeker," I said, while Katherine continued to fire lasers.
"All right," Katherine said, commanding the Eagle's wings to fold back out to the sides.
"Hang on!" I shouted, urging the A.V. to increase speed by five percent. The change was too drastic, however, and we flipped out of the planet's pink atmosphere. We both grabbed our control levers and struggled to bring the spinning Assault Vehicle under control. After a few seconds of frantic tumbling, we were still.
"Where's Sloth?" Katherine asked.
Suddenly, Eagle was tumbled again. Sloth was clamped onto the A.V. "I think we just found him," I said. "Loading heat seekers!" A panel Eagle's belly opened, and the shiny blue tip of a heat seeker emerged. Sloth saw it and darted off again. "Shoot!"
"He's going twenty-one percent over the speed of light," Katherine said.
"Then so are we," I said. We took off from a dead stop, and if it weren't for the magical powers of the Assault Vehicle, we probably would have been smeared on the back wall.
"You never realize how boring outer space is until you're out here," Katherine said, "do you?"
"There isn't much to see," I agreed, "although we'll be coming up on Jupiter here in just a few minutes."
Katherine looked at the monitor. "If we increase our speed by forty percent, we'll intercept Sloth by the time we've reached Titan."
"Saturn," I muttered under my breath. "Hoo-boy. Well, here goes nothing." Eagle slowly accelerated.
* * *
Tyrannosaurus ducked as Anger threw a hard punch. Red lasers shot from Tyrannosaurus' eyes, striking Anger in the stomach. He doubled over in pain, giving the red A.V. a perfect opportunity to execute a side kick. "You aren't so tough!" Crystal laughed.
Four feet suddenly connected with Tyrannosaurus' back, knocking her to the ground. The ground shook as the enormous vehicle crashed.
"Crystal!" Dana cried. The green and yellow Jaguar suddenly ran to her aid and jumped at Greed.
"I'm okay!" Crystal shouted back.
"We need to make the MegaZord!" Allison cried. "They're too strong for us!"
"Jeremy and Katherine aren't back yet," Tara said. "They're dealing with Sloth right now."
"Let's just try to hold these guys off," Crystal said, "and hope they get back soon."
* * *
"He's slowing down," I said.
"Sloth is obviously planning to take us on another suicide trip across one of Saturn's moons," Katherine thought outloud. I glanced at the monitor and decelerated in an attempt to intercept the blue dragon. "Are the heatseekers ready?" Kat asked.
"Affirmative." Sloth flew across the surface of Titan, one of Saturn's iciest moons. "We have to be within two hundred miles for our heatseekers to work at this speed," I said.
"Can you get us that close?" Katherine asked.
"I think so, but if Sloth is on a kamikaze...." I said. I shuddered at the possibilities. I would hate to have an Assault Vehicle wreck millions of miles from Earth.
"Let's just hope that doesn't happen," Katherine said. She took the controls and pushed us ever closer to the dragon. "He's headed for the rings!"
"Activating shields, now!" I shouted, pushing the necessary sequence of buttons. Sloth darted into the rock fields that circled Saturn.
"Just a little bit closer," Katherine said as we entered the heaviest of Saturn's rings. Rock after rock bounced off of us, each hit weakening our shield.
"As soon as we're out of this ring," I said, "we can fire the missile and get out of here."
"Just a few more seconds," Katherine said, trying to get the Eagle through the labyrinth of floating rocks as painlessly as possible. We suddenly emerged through the other side.
"FIRING NOW!" I shouted, hitting the button with my open palm. A section opened on Eagle's chest and the blue heatseeker fired.
"Pulling out," Katherine said as the heatseeker flew after Sloth. A few seconds later, it hit him, exploding in a giant cloud of white.
"Let's go home," I said as Kat turned the Eagle around. We flew off in a streak of blue and pink.
* * *
Greed looked up just in time to get pummeled with a yellow missile. The missile was just enough to finish his destruction, causing him to explode. Pride lined Jaguar up in his field of vision. Just as he was about leap, blue and pink lasers rained down around him. Bellowing in anger, he glanced up just in time to see two missiles coming at him. He exploded in a brilliant display of light. "All right!"
Katherine cried. Eagle gently touched down on the street.
"It's about time you got back!" Allison shouted.
"We need to go for the Mega A.V.!" Tara cried.
"Beth, you want to take this one?" Katherine asked.
"I'm on my way," Beth said.
Katherine teleported out of her seat a split second before Beth arrived. "All right, guys," Beth said. "Let's do it!"
"Right!" we all agreed. "MEGA ASSAULT VEHICLE!"
The Eagle and Jaguar separated back into the Triceratops, Pterodactyl, Brachiosaurus, and Saber-Toothed Tiger in a matter of seconds. The Mega Assault Vehicle Assembly immediately engaged. Tyrannosaurus and Saber-Toothed Tiger lifted into the air. Legs and arms folded into their bodies, and the heads dislocated and flipped upside down, forming feet. Mastodon quickly shifted shape, forming the lower torso. Brachiosaurus latched onto Mastodon and produced the upper torso and arms. Tyrannosaurus and Saber-Toothed Tiger attached to Mastodon as the legs. Triceratops collapsed in on itself and drastically changed shape, forming the head, which locked onto the top of the chest. Pterodactyl flew to the back, locked on, and folded its wings in, giving the Mega Assault Vehicle flight capabilities.
We emerged seconds later in the cockpit. I sat in the center of the top level with Crystal to my right and Dana to my left, while Beth sat directly below me in the center of the bottom level, Allison to her right and Tara to her left. "POWER UP!" we all cried, finishing the procedure.
A Sword of fire appeared in the Mega A.V.'s hands. An identical Sword suddenly appeared in Anger's grasp. He raised it above his head and attempted to bring it down on top of us, but Dana took the controls and blocked with our Sword. Mega A.V.'s leg lashed out and kicked Anger in the stomach, giving us time to spin away to take a better fighting stance.
"Dana, can you find Anger's weak point?" Allison asked.
"I'll give it a shot," Dana said, turning to the side.
"Here he comes!" Crystal shouted. "Brace yourselves!"
Anger suddenly grabbed the Assault Vehicle by the throat and picked it off of the ground. "WHO'S THE STRONGER ONE NOW?!" he bellowed.
Mega Assault Vehicle's arm drew back and punched Anger in the chest. He forcefully exhaled all of his air, simultaneously dropping us to the ground. Mega A.V. high kicked Anger and knocked him to the ground, sending his Sword clattering across the Wal-Mart parking lot. "His neck!" Dana cried. "The only way to kill this guy is to chop his head off."
"Eew," Allison said. "That's cruel."
"He'd do the same to us," Beth said. "Let's do it."
"Right," I agreed.
Anger suddenly pointed his arms to the sky. Light descended upon him, completely obstructing our view of him. When the light disappeared, he was drastically changed. He looked like his original form of Duran, although his head was red. Six snake-like appendages framed his face, each of which carried the head of his six other sins.
"Well, which head do we chop off now?" Beth asked, disappointed.
"I am Duran," all seven heads and voices said in perfect unison. "Do you truly believe by chopping off my heads, you can defeat me?" All seven heads laughed, still in perfect unison. With a snake-like hiss, he scissor-kicked us, knocking us backwards into Wal-Mart.
The crash was deafening, but we wasted no time in getting back to our feet. We brought our Sword down in a wide slash at Duran, but he blocked it with his own Sword which he had retrieved.
White lasers fired from Mega A.V.'s eyes, striking Duran on his Envy and Lust faces. All seven screamed in pain.
"We almost got 'em!" Allison shouted.
"Not quite," Duran growled. He thrust his Sword at us, but Mega A.V. backflipped away. Duran ran after us, swinging his Sword dangerously close with each step. Mega A.V. suddenly bumped into something. We spun away and saw that Nadia was standing beside us, giant-sized. A white glow shone down on her from above, almost making her look angelic, even though she was anything but.
"By the light of the moon,
"In the dark of night,
"He's coming for you,
"He'll fill you with fright," she whispered, repeating Sheila's rhyme about Duran.
She looked up at the moon, a small crescent in the sky. "It's only the first quarter. You have another week left to live. Come, Duran. Let's go."
Duran snarled at Nadia, but he knew better than to argue with her. Even though he was much stronger than her, she was still his superior, and to challenge her meant sure death. "I'll be back," he said. He glanced at Nadia, turned to leave, and then spun back around and high-kicked us. His move so took us by surprise we didn't have time to retaliate, and we crashed to the ground.
"They're gone you guys," Omicron said. "Come on back to the Command Center."
"Right," we agreed. Mega Assault Vehicle disappeared as we teleported away.
* * *
"I thought you said Duran was human," Rocky said.
"He was, last time," Omicron answered. "Screen on."
"He has no doubt increased in strength since he was last here," Sigma said. The screen showed Duran in his newest form, a body with six extra heads. "He's symbolic of the seven sins now, the worst of human-kind." Sigma sighed and looked at the screen. "I'll fix Glasgow, and Mars, and return everybody to where they should be now. Jeremy, since it's past dark and you would be home by now had it not been for the attack, I'll teleport your blazer home as well."
"Thanks Sigma," I said. "C'mon guys, let's go home." We all said our goodbyes and teleported out in eleven streams of color.
* * *
"This next week is going to be hell," I said. "Duran is attacking now."
"Does he always fight in person?" Billy asked.
"No, he usually just makes really strong monsters," I answered. "Worse than anything Nadia has ever come up with. But I think we can do it. I hope."
"I'm sure we can," Kimberly agreed.
3 a.m., early Monday morning....
I pulled a t-shirt on and crept through the living room cautiously. "Anything but Duran," I whispered to myself. I know I had heard something just pass by. When I got to the front door, I realized who it was. Opening the front door, I walked out onto the porch steps and sat down. Jason jerked and looked at me, and then settled back down. "You okay?" I asked.
"Couldn't sleep," he said.
"Worried about home?"
After a lengthy pause, he choked out, "Yeah." We sat in silence for a while, just looking up at the night sky. "I can't even imagine being that far from home."
"I've never been so scared," Jason said. "Sometimes, I wonder if we'll ever get back."
"You will," I said.
"You don't know that anymore than I do," he said.
"No, I don't," I agreed.
"I miss Emily so much," Jason sighed.
"At least you have someone to miss," I muttered, suddenly feeling sorry for myself.
"True enough, I guess," Jason succumbed. "But I still wish I was home with her."
After an hour, Jason finally went back to bed. I stayed outside a while longer, laying on my back in the grass. The stars spread out towards infinity above me. I had never felt so small in my entire life. Five of my friends and I were battling for all of it, against a force that was virtually unstoppable. A brief yet horrific nightmarish vision flashed through my head.
"Home no more," I whispered. "It can't come to pass."
I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I knew the black sky above me was a vibrant shade of pink and purple and the day was breaking on the horizon. As the warm sunlight flooded my little corner of the world, my home, I realized how precious our world is - how precious life is, and yet we all take it for granted. I sat up and looked at my hands. Even with five other pairs helping, they weren't big enough to hold the whole world.
The End for now....
