Rocky DeSantos

Riddle me this.

You're in a house.

There are two other people in the house.

One is your lover.

The other is your best friend.

Your lover is critically injured and has collapsed to the burning ground.

Your best friend is crying in pain and agony, and is gripping on to the wall for dear life.

The house is on fire.

You have all the power.

Whose life do you save, and who do you leave to die?

You have five seconds.

Now make your choice...

I dropped my weapon, turned around, and took off my helmet.

"Zordon, end the simulation."

The house disappeared, the fire was extinguished, and the people vanished. I held my helmet in my hands, and looked up to consult my mentor.

"What concerns you, Rocky?"

"I can't lead this team," I admitted, "Jason, he-"

"I understand that you were thrusted into this position of leadership rather suddenly," said Zordon, in comprehension, "But with Jason gone, and Tommy unable to fight, it is up to you to lead the Power Rangers in this battle."

"Why me?" I asked, "Why not Aisha, or Adam, or someone, anyone, besides me?"

Zordon took a deep breath, "When Zack left the team, he passed the Black Ranger powers onto Adam, when Trini left, she passed the Yellow Ranger powers on to Aisha," he said, "Jason passed on the Red Ranger powers to you. He saw something in you, Rocky."

I looked down at my helmet. Through the opaque red coloring and black visor, I saw a reflection of my face.

"Jason saw that you have the potential to become a great leader," said Zordon, "It's up to you to fulfill that position."

I nodded, and put my helmet back on. Although it was a simulation, I still had a mission to complete.

"Back to action."

...

Kimberly Ann Hart

The sun was shining, the vast blue sky looked gorgeous, and the breeze felt absolutely amazing. It was an average day at school. Friends, tests, and teachers who really just didn't seem to give a damn. That day, I had spent most of time with the other girls in my grade. I completely ditched my other friends, but it's not like I had that much of a choice.

"So, uhm, I was wondering if you wanted to catch a movie tonight."

"Huh?"

I looked up. I had forgotten that Tommy was standing next to me.

Tommy Oliver was my best friend. His mocha colored eyes were warm and inviting. His long, brown hair rested just upon his shoulders. He had a muscular build, and wore a green hoodie with the sleeves cut off, as well as a black pair of sweats.

"Oh, I was just wondering if you wanted to catch a flick tonight."

I sighed. I could I tell I had already upset him earlier, and as much I hated to do it, I had to turn him down again.

"I'm sorry, Tommy," I said, "I have a party to go to tonight."

Tommy looked at me, apprehension in his eyes, "You have to go tonight?"

"It's not really my choice," I said, "The girls hooked me up with a blind date, and I don't wanna let the guy down."

Tommy put his hands in pockets and turned away from me slightly, "Ah. I see."

I moved closer to him, "What?"

"It's just that, you go to these parties, like, every weekend," he said, "I've seen those girls. They're doing a lot of crazy shit there. Getting drunk, high, worse..."

He played with his hair, "I'm gonna be honest with you. I'm worried. Can't you just, like, tell them you can't go?"

"I can't get out of it," I said, "And besides, they're tired of me bitching about it, so there's no way I'm getting out of this."

"They're in control of your life."

"No," I said, "But, I love the attention. The popularity. The recognition..."

Tommy put his hand on my shoulder. I flinched in surprise of his action. He let go, nervous of my actions.

"How important is any of that, really?"

I sighed, "I really don't have time for this right now..."

"I'm coming." said Tommy.

I widened my eyes, "Tommy, no," I said, "Your powers aren't one hundred percent right now. It's not safe."

"A lot of things aren't safe, Kim," he said, "But you've gotta let me do this."

"Ok, but be careful."

I pulled out a silver device from my pocket. I put a golden coin into a hatch on the front, and swung the device in front of me. This was my Morpher. I stood my ground, and made the call.

"It's Morphin' Time!"

My suit latched itself onto my skin. It was tight and pink, with a skirt attached to the bottom and with white rhombuses across the chest. I had white gloves and boots with similar pink rhombuses layered across them. My helmet was a bright pink with a white bottom, and resembled that of a pterodactyl. Tommy's suit was similar to mine, but it was green and resembled that of a dragon. He wore a golden shield over his chest.

Tommy and I vanished as pink and green lights formed around us and warped us to the battlefield.

...

Once we arrived at the scene, our friends, Rocky, Adam, Billy, and Aisha were already there fighting off the goons that were harassing the citizens. The Putties were a gang of servants to our enemy. They were made of clay and stone, and were a pain in the ass to deal with.

"Glad you guys finally decided to show up!" Yelled Aisha happily, "Now could ya' give us a hand?"

I nodded, "Right!"

Tommy gave me a boost, and threw me into the air. I swung my legs forward, and kicked one of the foot soldiers in the face. I hit the ground gracefully, and dusted the dirt off the skirt of my costume.

"Nice combo." I said.

Tommy gave me a thumbs up, and ran off to fight more of the Putties, his Dragon Dagger in hand.

Aisha grabbed one of the Putties by the ankles and flipped it over onto it's back, and then punched it in the chest. Our friend Billy, the Blue Ranger, kicked one of the soldiers in the stomach before taking a blow to the head by one of them. He exchanged punches with the Putty until it eventually was destroyed.

Tommy took a kick to the ankle and fell over, gripping his chest. I noticed that his suit was glowing brightly. His powers were starting to fade again.

"Tommy!" I yelled, before getting knocked back by one of the monsters.

A Putty walked up to my fallen friend and kicked him in the chest. Tommy's helmet disappeared, and he coughed up blood, staining the grass a dark red. The rest of his costume dissipated into thin air. I pushed away the monsters, and ran over to Tommy.

"Can you guys handle the Putties?"

Adam grunted as he elbowed one of the foot soldiers, "Yeah, we've got em!"

"Go get Tommy to safety! Take him to the Command Center!" Yelled Aisha.

I nodded. I grabbed Tommy's wrist and pressed a button on my Communicator. Pink and green lights surrounded us again, and we teleported back to our headquarters.

I hoped that my dragon hadn't fallen...