Chirping birds were the first sounds to reach the ears of the teenager lying flat on his back in the middle of a small forest clearing. Bits of sunlight filtered down through the branches and leaves that formed the canopy above him. The teenager groaned, and sat up, leaning back on one hand, while the other rubbed against his left temple, both of his legs splayed out in front of him. "Did anyone get the name of that truck," he muttered.
"No," was the response. The first teenager cracked his eyes open slowly. Adjusting to the light, the second teenager who'd spoken came into focus. He studied the other boy's face, arms and legs. The skin exposed by his blue t-shirt and black gym shorts showed slight signs of bruising. "Connor, you look like hell," the second teen told the first. He was laying flat on his back, head turned toward the teenager clad in a red and white checkered button down, and cargo shorts.
"Speak for yourself," was the reply, as Connor tried to push himself to his feet. It took him longer than he expected, each of his muscles crying out in pain. He reached down to his teammate, offering to help him to his feet.
"Connor, Ethan, shut up," mumbled a third prone figure. The teen in the grey t-shirt, and silver and white gym shorts was face down in the grass, having apparently landed on his stomach. Trent slowly pushed himself up onto his knees, slowly opening his eyes to look around. "Where are Kira and Dr. O?"
"No idea," Connor told him, after Ethan was vertical again. He was scanning the area, but aside from the three of them, it was deserted. "Not completely sure where we are either," he added for good measure.
"That must have been some blast," Ethan chimed in, trying to stretch out his aching muscles. "It knocked us clear into the woods, and out of morph." Trent and Connor nodded agreement, still looking around and trying to get their bearings.
"How long do you think we were out?" Trent asked. Ethan looked at his watch. The digital screen was cracked and nothing showed on the display. He looked up at the sky, but with all the trees in the way, he couldn't get a good look at the sun's position. He looked back at his teammate who was now in a sitting position, knees pulled up towards his chest, with his feet flat on the floor. He was twisting his torso back and forth. Ethan shrugged in response, and was about to say something else when a series of tones radiated from Connor's wrist.
"Dr. O?" Connor asked, pulling the morpher to his mouth. Trent finally stood up as he and Ethan got closer to their leader to hear.
"Nope," came the voice on the other end. "You guys alright?"
"Haley," Connor sighed, nodding. "We're alive."
"Barely," Ethan interjected, and Trent laughed slightly.
"Who's we and where are you guys?" Haley asked via the communicator, though her voice was definitely not coming through as clearly as it should have been. Static had started to overtake the link.
"Ethan and Trent are with me. As for where we are, not sure," Connor told her. "That mutant still attacking the park?"
"No," Haley replied. Connor nodded. Haley usually headed to their command post in Tommy's basement whenever she got the signal that the team had morphed, whether they called her or not. She must have been watching their battle on the video feed. "He disappeared with you all in that blast. Connor, I think I'm losing you. Bad connection," she told him.
"Haley?" Connor spoke into the communicator. The static on her last response had almost fully drowned out her words, but the teens had at least been able to get the gist of what she'd said. There was no response this time. "Haley you there?" Static was the only sound that reached them.
"Well, at least we know Chronosaurus isn't rampaging around Reefside," Ethan told them. His teammates nodded.
"Come on," Trent told them. "Let's head back to the command post. Dr. O and Kira will go there." He began to walk toward what he hoped was the playground and back to civilization, Connor and Trent following behind him.
Unfortunately, it seemed the blast had pushed them further into the woods than they thought. Without a watch, or the ability to clearly see the sun, they couldn't been sure how long they'd been walking, but Ethan was sure it had to be at least close to an hour, and there was no evidence that they were anywhere near exiting the thick trees.
"We must have been miles into the woods," he remarked. "Anything look familiar?" Connor and Trent shook their heads. "What about calling the raptor riders?"
"Worth a shot," Connor stated, and attempted to do so. Nothing happened. "Must be too far."
"Connor, why don't you go on ahead? See if you can figure out where we are?" Trent suggested. Ethan nodded agreement. Connor sighed, and gave a quick nod of his head.
"I won't be long," he stated. Ethan and Trent sank to the ground, the moment he was gone. Neither would admit to exhaustion. They'd worked out with Tommy all morning, been blown into the air by an explosion, and based on their pace, had just walked about three and a half miles. Ethan shot Trent a hesitant smile.
"How long do you think it'll be before he gets back?" Ethan asked.
Trent shrugged in response from his position against the base of a tree. "Fifteen minute or so. Whether or not he finds civilization, I'm not sure." Suddenly, the leaves rustled and a red blur shot by.
"So by fifteen minutes, you were being hopeful," Ethan laughed and groaned, knowing that with Connor back, they'd have to get moving again.
"You thought I'd be gone fifteen minutes? Am I getting rusty?" Connor laughed, bracing himself on his knees as he caught his breath. His speed was super human, but that didn't mean his lungs always were.
"So how far?" Trent asked him.
"Only about a mile," Connor replied, "but it's nowhere I've ever been."
"Thought you grew up in Reefside," Trent asked him.
"I did. But still, it's not familiar. I don't think we're in Reefside anymore," Connor replied, reaching a hand down to once again pull the exhausted blue ranger off the ground. Trent was already standing and ready to move again. "This way," Connor told them, nodding toward the direction he'd run off in only a minute or so before.
Trent and Ethan frowned, but followed. About twenty minutes or so later, the teenagers found themselves standing on the edge of a park. But it certainly wasn't Reefside Park.
"This is different," Ethan stated the obvious. But he wasn't just referring to their location. All around him were people, from elderly to children. At first glance, there was nothing odd about it, but the differences were in the details. Not a single individual was using a cell phone. Little boys and girls alike wore shorts that ended well above their knees. Most of the older individuals wore faded colored, straight legged jeans, with loose fitting brightly colored shirts.
"Definitely not Reefside," Trent added.
"Told you," Connor replied, pulling out his own cell phone and dialing Kira's number. The phone wouldn't connect. Connor pulled it away from his ear, staring at the screen. The phone showed no service. He snapped it shut and slide it back into his pocket. "No service," he explained to the two guys on either side of him. He brought his communicator out and pressed the buttons that would connect him to Kira and Tommy. No response came. Trent tried his, with the same result. "Come on, let's see if we can't figure out where we are. Ethan, any guesses as to the time?" Conner said, his cell phone was failing on that end as well.
"Judging from the position of the sun, around three pm." Connor nodded and began walking into the park. Trent and Ethan followed once again.
Slowly, the environment became less rural and more urban as they moved into the city or town proper. They saw fewer trees and more concrete. As they neared the roads, Ethan noticed there was something off about the vehicles driving on them. They seemed more box-ish, and less curved than the cars that they normally encounter in Reefside. He kept his observation to himself, however, as he brought up the rear. Every so often, he'd notice someone staring at them, and he was slowly starting to feel more and more out of place.
"Hey guys, this place is weird. Why don't we find someplace to try and figure out where we are?" Ethan suggested.
Connor nodded, and pointed up ahead at a building labeled 'Youth Center'. "Let's go in there," he offered. The other two shrugged, and followed. Inside, the hallway was crowded with teenagers. The clock on the wall showed it was about half past three. "School must be out," he stated.
"Isn't it Saturday?" Trent asked him with a grin. Connor grinned back and shrugged his shoulders as the three teenagers entered the main area of the youth center, finding a table with a few chairs that wasn't occupied. Falling into the chairs, they started to take in their surroundings. Off to one side were rows of grey metal lockers. There was also a counter, with several smoothie and drink machines behind it, so it was evident that the place sold refreshments. The main room was split level. The upper level supported the smoothie counter and the tables and chairs. The lower level was mostly filled with gym equipment. Weight machines, karate mats, and even some gymnastics equipment off on one side. Behind them to the other side were some vintage arcade games. A few teenagers surrounded the counters and the arcade games, but it was clear that the primary source of entertainment were the work out areas.
"Anyone else get the feeling this place is more than a little odd?" Ethan asked his friends, watching a group of teenagers having what he felt was way too much fun at an old Streetfighter arcade machine. "The owner must take great care of that," he added, indicating the condition of the machine.
"I dunno," Connor replied. "It's a little weird, but maybe it's just the culture here. The kids like to stay in shape," he said, indicating a group of four down at the mats. One of the guys had dark blond hair, wore a pair of blue jeans, a blue t-shirt, sleeveless white colored shirt that was unbuttoned, and a navy blue sleeveless vest, also open, over that. A pair of round, wire glasses adorned his face. He seemed to be refereeing the match. The other two teenage boys in the group were sparing with each other. One appeared of Asian descent. He wore a black tank top, and loose fitting light grey sweat pants. There was a cloth black belt tied around his waist. His opponent, was a slightly taller, Hispanic youth, wearing a dark, muted red t-shirt. His sweat pants were a dark chocolate brown color, but he wore a similar black cloth belt around his waist. Connor was pretty sure some of the moves they were using were from an advanced kata, known as Seisan that Tommy had been teaching them a few weeks before. The final individual at the mats was a girl with light brown skin. She wore a yellow t-shirt, with a pair of blue jean, bib overall, shorts over it. Her long black hair was pulled back in a multitude of braids, and she was cheering both of the guys on the mats on.
Connor and and Trent watched the match intently, while Ethan went to the counter and asked for three cups of water. He and Trent had left their wallets at Tommy's and Connor was broke. Both teens at the mats were using short range punches and low kicks, trying to unbalance each other. The match ended about fifteen minutes later with the teen in black on his back, his friend laughing and reaching a hand down to help him up, before the four made their way to a table not far from Connor and his teammates.
"There's something familiar about them," Ethan whispered, frowning. Trent heard him, but he was pretty sure Connor wasn't paying attention.
"That was awesome," Connor stated, louder than he originally intended. His statement caught the attention of the teenagers. The one in red smiled, as the group approached.
"Thanks man," he said, extending his hand to Connor. "Don't think I've seen you guys in Angel Grove before," he added. Ethan, who'd been taking a drink off his water, gasped, causing the water to slide down his trachea, resulting in a coughing fit. "Whoa, he alright?" The teen asked, as his friend in blue started patting Ethan on the back.
Trent did his best to compose his face after the revelation that they were in Angel Grove, while it didn't seem like Connor had even grasped the severity of the disclosure. "Yeah, he's fine," Trent said, more pointedly at Ethan. For his part, Ethan understood the hidden meaning of "compose yourself", and nodded, waving the blue clad teen off.
Connor took the extended hand. "I'm Connor McKnight. We're from Reefside," he stated, indicating himself, Trent and Ethan. "This is Trent Mercer and Ethan James."
"Reefside, huh?" The teen asked. "Never met anyone from there before. I'm Rocky DeSantos. This is Adam Park," he stated, indicating the boy in black, "Billy Cranston," he nodded toward the youth who'd gone to Ethan's aide, "and Aisha Campbell". Billy and Adam nodded in greeting, while Aisha added in that it was nice to meet them.
"You too," Ethan muttered, able to breathe again. Red flags and alarms were sounding in his head, but he couldn't place where the alarms were coming from, aside from the fact that the blast had definitely knocked them further than they thought possible.
"You just move here?" Adam asked the trio, as both groups pulled chairs up to a common table.
"No," Trent answered. "We're here on a field trip," he lied. "With our science teacher."
"Science teacher?" Billy asked, looking around.
"We got separated," Connor continued the cover story. Billy nodded.
"What are you studying?"
"Um…." Connor paused to think. "Rocks," he stated finally. The group of four gave him an odd look.
"He means fossils," Ethan interjected, "out in the desert. We're done for the day and we decided to…" Ethan's explanation was interrupted by characteristic tones sounding from Connor's wrist again.
"What was that?" Rocky asked the trio, who'd jumped at the sound. He wore a look of shock and surprise, similar to that of Adam, Aisha, and Billy.
"Alarm," Trent answered. Sighing. If they continued the one word answer thing, they were going to expose themselves. "Letting us know it's time to meet up with our teacher. We gotta go. It was nice meeting you." Connor and Ethan nodded, as the three of them, pushed away from the table, and dashed off in search of someplace secluded.
"That was strange," Ethan heard Aisha tell her friends as the three teens departed. He suspected they were nodding in agreement. He would have too. Their behavior was strange. The whole situation was strange. And there was something he should have noticed, but he couldn't pin point what it was.
"Everything hurts," a teenage girl muttered, slowly pushing herself from a reclined position into a seated one, as she leaned back on her elbows. She glanced around at her surroundings, trying to place them, but the sun was too bright, and it was hitting her square in the face. She blinked repeatedly, sitting up straighter and trying to shield her eyes with her hand. It took a few minutes for the white spots dancing in her vision to clear. Her black yoga pants and yellow tank top hadn't protected her body that much from the blast, and as a result, she had multiple scrapes and bruises. She studied these, noticing that they weren't bleeding, for a few moments before attempting once again to figure out where she was. Now that she could see, she examined the landscape, which consisted of a few scattered trees, but mostly lots of hard rock and sand. No wonder she had gotten banged up. To her right was an older man, with a black bandana on his head, wearing a black tank top and grey sweat shorts, lying face down on his stomach, covered in scratches and bruises. The girl watched him for a moment, noticing he was breathing, just unconscious.
"Dr. O?" she asked, not getting a response from the prone man. She pushed herself to her knees and leaned over him, shaking him. "Dr. O!" She called louder.
"Five more minutes," he muttered.
"Get up," the teenager replied, pushing herself to her feet. Once standing, she nudged him in the ribs with her foot. "This is your fault, you know."
For his part, Tommy slowly pulled himself to his knees, gently brushing gravel off the palms of his hands and the cheek that had been plastered to the ground. Blinking his eyes open, he turned his head to the left to peer at the teenager shooting him an icy glare. "How is it my fault, Kira? Chronosaurus did it. And the T-Rex blaster was Connor's idea."
"You helped create those things," she retorted, crossing her arms over her chest. "And Connor's not here."
"He's not?" Tommy asked, turning his head in multiple directions, attempting to locate the teenager. He couldn't argue with the other portion of Kira's statement.
"Nope. Neither are Ethan and Trent. We must have gotten separated in the blast." She was leaning against an outcropping of rocks, as Tommy pulled himself to his feet, and nodded. Standing, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He studied the screen for a minute, then held the phone out in front of him as far as he could, and began to spin in a circle, taking a few steps away every so often.
"No service," he finally called back to Kira. "Can't tell what time it is either," he added. Kira nodded, but she still kept glaring at him. "What's your watch say?"
Kira glanced down at the wrist watch she wore and frowned. The three useless hands were spinning in different directions. "Uh…." She said, tapping the screen. "I think the blast broke it." Tommy nodded again. "Any idea where we are?" she asked him.
"It looks familiar but I can't put my finger on it," he replied. "Probably the outskirts of town. Wow that blast was strong," he added, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand, and catching a glimpse of his communicator. "I'll try and contact Haley. Maybe she's heard from the guys." Kira nodded as her teacher, friend, mentor, teammate put his wrist in front of him and pressed a button. For a moment, it sounded like someone answered, and then static. Tommy frowned, and tried a second time. Same response. "Hello? Haley?" More static was the only response. "That's weird." He switched buttons, this time trying to contact Connor. A few moments passed without response, but this time it didn't sound like anyone answered. "Might as well start walking," he indicated to Kira. "I think town is this way."
Tommy started to walk, and Kira began to follow. They'd only walked a few feet when a voice radiated from Tommy's wrist. "Dr. O, is that you?"
"Connor," Tommy sighed with relief. "I was getting worried." He and Kira had both paused, and glanced around out of habit, despite the fact that they were definitely on their own.
"Sorry Dr. O," Connor's voice told them. "We weren't alone. Had to find a secluded spot."
"I understand. Trent and Ethan with you?"
"Hey Dr. O," both teens answered the question.
"Good," Tommy nodded. "Kira's with me, so we're all accounted for."
"Dr. O, we tried the communicator earlier, you didn't answer."
"Still unconscious," Kira answered. "We just came to. How long you guys been on your feet?"
"Not sure," was Ethan's response. "A few hours. Haley told us that Chronosaurus disappeared in the blast, so we haven't been too worried about the town."
"You spoke to Haley?" Tommy asked him.
"Yeah, but the connection was horrible, and we lost her after a minute," Ethan continued.
"All I got was static," Tommy replied. "But this connection is crystal clear. That's strange."
"You don't know the half of it," Trent snorted.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Tommy asked him.
"Gotta go Dr. O. There are people everywhere. We're at a place called the 'Youth Center'. Head there when you get into town, we'll meet you outside," Connor's words were rushed and suddenly the connection went dead. Judging by how quickly it had been cut, Tommy didn't dare try reaching the boys again. Instead he sighed and started walking again.
"At least they're alright," Kira told him, falling into step beside him. Tommy nodded. Lost in thought. Why did 'Youth Center' send chills running down his spine? There was no place that he knew of by that name in Reefside.
"You ever heard of a 'Youth Center?" Tommy questioned Kira. She shrugged and shook her head.
"Maybe he meant Cyberspace?" It was Tommy's turn to shrug in response. They spent the next twenty minutes or so walking in silence, before Tommy spoke up.
"Listen Kira, I'm sorry I've been so tough on you guys lately."
"It's alright Dr. O," Kira replied, looking up at him. "I understand. It's so we can be ready for days like this."
"Yeah, but I could take it a bit easier on you. My mentor let us do what we wanted every now and then, and the aliens didn't conquer the world," Tommy laughed. "I promise, in the future, more days off."
"Thanks," Kira laughed. They'd both come to a stop at the bottom of a steep hill. "Race you to the top old man?" She laughed.
"You're on," Tommy retorted and took off running, Kira right on his feet. The hill was tough, and a few times each had to use their hands to help pull themselves up. Despite Kira's 'Old Man' comment, Tommy crested the hill a few feet ahead of his younger companion. "Oh… My… God…" Tommy breathed staring into the distance. He drew out the space between each word, his eyes going wide as he studied the view.
"What? What is it?" Kira asked, below him. Tommy didn't answer, just brought his hands to his eyes and rubbed them. The scenery in front of him didn't change. Kira finally reached the crest and stood next to him, taking in the sight. "That's not Reefside," she stated, matter of fact. Tommy shook his head. "Do you know where it is?" Tommy nodded. "Want to tell me?"
"A-a-angel Grove," Tommy choked out.
"Angel Grove?" Kira looked at him as if he'd sprouted an extra head. "THE Angel Grove." Tommy nodded again. "As in the home of the Power Rangers," she dropped her voice to a quiet hiss on the last two words.
"Well, technically Reefside is also home of the Power Rangers."
"You know what I mean."
"Yeah," Tommy affirmed. "Ok, so that blast was… well, I don't know what it was. But at least I know what Connor meant by youth center. Come on, it's not far."
"You know where to go?" Kira asked him, slightly skeptical. Tommy just gave her a questioning look. Kira sighed. "Alright, lead on." She followed him down the other side of the hill, out of the desert they'd landed in and into the paved city streets. They'd been walking for a few minutes, when Kira began to notice some things that were out of place. A lot of the population road bikes, or used skate boards. She even saw several groups of people on in-line skates. They passed several payphone booths along the way, and even a few of them were in use. "Dr. O?" she called, wanting to see if he noticed anything unusual.
"It's right here," Tommy replied, not quite paying attention. He came to a stop outside a white building with an orange roof. He immediately began scanning the area for the three missing teenagers.
"Dr. O!" Connor's voice reached him, and he and Kira turned to see the three jogging towards him from the bench they were seated on. "You found us."
"I have been here a time or two, Connor," Tommy told him, shaking his head and laughing. "I take it you guys know where you are."
"Yeah, but Dr. O," Ethan started, "something weird is going on."
Tommy just nodded, assuming the teen was referring to their random longitude and latitude change. "Is cell service any better here? We should try contacting Haley now that we're all together."
"Already tried while we waited on you," Trent told him. "None of us has reception."
"That is weird," Tommy stated, pulling out his own phone and checking for signal. Kira did as well. Satisfied that Trent was right, he thrust it back into his pocket. "Alright then, we might as well go inside and sit down while we discuss how to get back to Reefside." The teens nodded, and Connor lead his now regrouped team back into the youth center, and to the table the three had occupied earlier. The teens they'd been chatting with were no longer in view.
As they sat down at the table, Ethan noticed Tommy frowning, searching the place. "Something wrong Dr. O?"
"It hasn't changed," he muttered, more to himself, than to his teammates. The others had already sat down, but he was still standing, his eyes scanning every inch of the space inside.
"So, what? They haven't remodeled since you were a kid," Connor told him. "What's the big deal?"
"No," Tommy replied, a slight sigh in his voice, his face seeming to be stuck in a perpetual frown. He slowly sat down into a chair, slightly obscured from view by a column. "Absolutely nothing has changed. Everything is exactly the same."
"It can't be, Dr. O," Kira told him, laughing. "I'm sure they don't have ten year old toilet paper in the bathroom."
"Ha ha," he told her. "But I'm serious. Everything is in the exact same plac..."
"Connor!" A familiar voice cut him off, causing him to jerk his head in the direction it came from. The four teenagers turned as well. "Trent! Ethan! You came back." The red clad teenager and his friends from earlier were walking towards them. But instead of four, there were five of them. A new girl, clad in a white crop top, pink jean shorts, and white tennis shoes had joined them.
"Fuckin Hell," Tommy cursed, and suddenly he disappeared.