Hi. All right, time for some more establishing of the plot. I promise it'll pick up plot-wise after chapter 10. Also happy Thanksgiving.

I don't own anything you recognize. Reviews would be nice (best cute face).


Chapter Seven: The Council

"All right, let's face it. The world is in danger again."

"Like it is every year," Zack noted. Jason gave Zack a Gibbs-slap, which was easy to do since Zack was sitting to his left. Zack gave Tommy a dour look. "You're been letting him watch NCIS again, haven't you?"

But Tommy was too dazedly blissful over being Kat's boyfriend again to care, so Zack had to settle for glowering at Jason and muttering under his breath. Jason rolled his eyes and resumed his talk. "But this time is different. Ivan Ooze has escaped, and he's brought back a lot of bad guys; near as we can gauge one notable villain from each team as well as a way of making the minions from all the teams."

"He's made his base at the moon fortress," Adam noted. Andros asked, "So why can't we do what we did last time someone tried to revive the moon fortress as a place for evil? Rally a group of Rangers and battle them."

Jason shook his head. "Last time was a small group of Machine Empire generals with some minions trying to dig up Lord Zedd's Zord, Andros. This time it is a former evil emperor-cum-sorcerer who wants to take over and/or destroy the world, who has amassed a fairly large group of second-in-commands along with a veritable army of minions."

"Ivan Ooze… I think I've come across that name in my research," Justin commented. Billy nodded. "So have I but I'd like to get your thoughts on the subject."

"Well…" Justin began. "From what I've read he had a sizable empire in this galaxy roughly seven thousand years ago. Then he tried to conquer Earth… a sage (we can all guess who) rallied a team of teenagers who managed to seal him away in a metallic egg."

"But due to construction that egg surfaced and Ivan escaped," Adam brought Ivan's escapades up to date. Justin nodded, "From what I read he was a master shape-shifter and was a fairly powerful sorcerer in other areas as well. He isn't much for one-on-one combat but can rally up monsters and minions to fight for him."

"Like he did," Billy noted. "A wide range of monsters and minions that are already attacking the cities formerly defended by Power Rangers, and they will only keep coming."

There was a lull while everyone thought this over. TJ frowned, "What about Terra Venture? I know they're almost on the other side of the galaxy but will Ivan go after them as well?"

Billy shook his head. "Negative; he's focusing on Earth like most villains. Earth is 'the one that got away' to him; he wants to get it this time around."

"Uh-oh," murmured Carlos. Rocky noted, "So that means Angel Grove, Mariner Bay, Silver Hills, Turtle Cove, Blue Bay Harbor, Reefside, possibly Newtech City, Briarwood, San Angeles, Ocean Bluff, and maybe that out-there new city are all under attack."

"Not Newtech City and the city of the previous team," Billy refuted. "Ivan will want to stick to conquering the Earth of this dimension."

"At least until he conquers this Earth," Andros observed soberly. "There are just eighteen of us… and easily just as many main underlings under Ivan Ooze. Add the minions to the mix and we have a recipe to match the destruction that almost ended the world in 1998."

The six Space Rangers exchanged troubled, uneasy looks as this revelation sunk in. Tommy argued, "But we're not alone."

"Right," Adam backed up his friend. "I know for a fact that Ninja Storm through Operation Overdrive would leap at the chance to help."

Jason, TJ, Tommy, and Andros thought back on Leo, Carter, Wes, Eric, and Cole. Surely their fellow Reds could rally their teams in preparation for the greatest battle the Power had seen since the end of the Dark Days. Jason exhaled, "All right; so on next Saturday we'll rally together all the Power Rangers and get them in on the act. We'll need their help."

"They'll probably want to help," Trini observed. "Besides, Earth is under their protection as well as ours."

"It's just that they're also under our protection since we're the most senior Rangers," Tanya noted. Trini conceded, "The first six of us especially… we're the first."

"Affirmative," Billy nodded, leaning forward slightly. "So I should wrap up that program so that all the morphers can access the morphing grid?"

"Finish?" puzzled the seven most junior Rangers while the other nine of the first ten hid smiles and chuckles. Acting as an intermediary Tanya told them, "It's Billy. He was the to-go guy for technology and whatnot for the first four years of Power Rangers."

Billy refuted, "What? I made a simpler version to be used during your little adventure, Adam. That's how you, Tori, Kira, and Bridge could use your morphers all at once."

"What about Xander's?"

"Mystic Force's morphers are… unique. I keep trying to get Kim to introduce me to their mentors."

Kim rolled her eyes. "No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please?"

"He's using your old trick," Aisha noted. Kimberly glowered at her friend. "I noticed."

"So… is that a yes?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Stop it you two," Jason ordered the pair. "Let's focus and divide up the tasks. Billy, just do that morpher-calibrating thing you have to do. Tommy and Adam, alert the younger teams about the issue. TJ and Andros, you two can alert Lost Galaxy through Wild Force because I don't think Merrick has recovered yet from his surprise encounter with Princess Shayla."

"Huh?" Rocky puzzled. "What?"

"Merrick is in love with her but is in denial about it," Tommy gave Rocky the shortened and simplified version.

"Ah, okay."

Jason noted, "Maybe we should show a clip show of all the Ranger adventures thus far just so everyone doesn't have to recap everything to everyone else."

"That would be useful," Justin nodded. "I could do that."

"Great, thanks for volunteering."

Justin just grinned, looking forward to the project.

"But what can the rest of us do?" asked Cassie. Jason sighed, "Be on the look-out, I suppose, and be ready to be saying, 'hi, my name is' a lot on next Saturday."

"So…" Tommy looked around for a clock. "Are we done now?"

"I think so," Jason shrugged. "Why?"

Tommy looked over hopefully at Kat, who grinned at him. Next thing the other sixteen knew the pair was gone from Club Bulkmeier. Billy observed, "I should have lectured them a decade ago…"

"No kidding," Kimberly grinned lopsidedly. She tousled his hair. "Good going, Billy."

He smiled happily. Aisha leaned back in her chair. "So we just chill, and talk about the good old days, and eat lunch, and then go home to prep to save the world again?"

"Pretty much," Zhane nodded. "Ah, it's good to be back in action!"

"The world is in danger," Andros reminded his best friend. Zhane rolled his eyes. "The world is in a danger a lot, which is why we keep having to save it. Stop stressing out, Andros, we haven't failed before."

"We almost did once."

"Multiple times, really," Tanya recalled. Trini argued, "But each time we did manage to save the world, so stop worrying. Besides, there'll be a lot more of us this time around so we'll be able to put up a stronger fight than ever before."

"But that's only because Ivan will presumably give us the greatest challenge any Ranger has faced," Adam fretted. Rocky reminded his friend, "It'll be okay, we're the Power Rangers after all."

"I know but still…"

About one o'clock that afternoon Tommy's Jeep pulled into the driveway of his house just outside of the city of Reefside, Kat's pink car right behind him. Getting out of the Jeep, Tommy hoped that Kat would like his home. He liked his home but he didn't know if Kat would.

"Wow, this is a nice place, Tommy," Kat noted as she followed him up onto the front porch. Tommy smiled in happy relief as he got out the key to the front door but when he inserted the key he found the door already unlocked.

"Uh… that can't be good."
"Nope… my old students are here."

"Oh… the rest of Dino Thunder?"

"Yeah," Tommy exhaled as he opened the door. He called into the hallway, "Guys? It's me!"

"Dude, Dr. O.!" came a male voice. Tommy replied, "Conner, what have I told you about saying dude?"

"We said 'dude' when we were younger."

"Shush, don't tell Conner that."

"Die, goblins, die!" came a second male voice.

Kat's eyes grew wide so Tommy had to reassure her.

"That's just Ethan playing a computer game."

"Just playing a computer game?"

"It's Ethan."

Kat looked dubious so Tommy defended them, "They're good kids! Although it's a little weird… I think I'm their version of Zordon, which freaks me out to no end…"

"You're their Zordon?"

"Well, I was their mentor…"

"I bet you did a great job."

Tommy shrugged uneasily. "Good enough…"

A woman's voice came from the kitchen. "Would you two stop this already!"

"Never!" both male voices responded. Tommy puzzled, "Huh, if Kira's here Trent ought to be here too but he's not."

"How can you tell he's not?"

"He wouldn't let Conner and Ethan mess with his girlfriend."

"Ah."

Tommy and Kat entered the kitchen. Ethan was in fact playing a computer game on his laptop, with Conner sitting next to him and watching on. But in the third chair at the kitchen table was Kira wrapped up in toilet paper. She looked like a mummy, with only her eyes and mouth visible. Tommy looked over at the guys.

"What in the name of the moon fortress happened?"

"Revenge for what the other Yellows did to us Reds during the pizza party."

"There was a pizza party?"

"You don't know everything that goes on the Power Rangers subculture, Dr. O.," Ethan retorted. Today he was wearing a blue T-shirt with Sonic the Hedgehog on it with his jeans. Conner was wearing a red golf shirt and jeans. Kira's outfit was hidden under layers of toilet paper.

Dr. O. groaned, "That is my toilet paper wrapped around Kira, isn't it?"

"Actually, for once, it's not," Conner beamed. "Nick gave it to us via magic. It's magically reinforced so Kira can't free herself."

Kira tried narrowed her eyes at Conner. "I am going to kill you when I'm free."

Conner and Ethan exchanged a look. "Nah."

"You three are crazy," Dr. O. sighed. "Come on, Kat, I'll show you the Dino Lair and get us away from these absurd teens."

"Hey!"

"You got yourself wrapped up in toilet paper, Kira. Right now you count as an absurd teen."

Hiding a laugh Kat followed Tommy through a door and down a flight of stairs into the tawny stone Dino Lair, which had high tech technology in the walls. Looking around she commented, "Wow, Tommy, this is a great headquarters."

"It did a good job," Tommy acknowledged. Sitting down at the computer consul Tommy asked, "So do you have anything particular you want to do?"

She smiled softly at him. "Just to get you all over again."

"Yeah, me too."

That afternoon, all of the remaining Angel Grove Rangers had left at last. Bulk and Skull were serving the new influx of customers. A head poked out of the bush that had sneezed earlier. He had leaves stuck in his dark afro, and he had bark-brown skin. He protested, "About time!"

"Yeah," concurred the other two voices as their speakers materialized. One was Rose, Mack's girlfriend, wearing a pink and black halter dress with combat boots. The other was a tawny-skinned man with fluffy black hair wearing a white T-shirt with black jeans.

"I'm Trent and this is Rose."

"And I'm Max. I saw Rose on TV three years ago, so I'm guessing you're both Rangers like me," the guy noted as he disentangled himself from the bush. Max wore a blue T-shirt under an orange turtleneck with off-white pants.

"Blue?" Trent hazarded. Max nodded as he brushed leaves off of his clothes, "Uh-huh. I'm guessing you're either Black or White while Rose is Pink."

"Yes, I'm Pink and he's White."

"Wild Force."

"Dino Thunder."

"Operation Overdrive."

"Want to get some smoothies and try to figure out the puzzle with what each of us know?" Max offered. Rose admitted, "That sounds like a good idea."

"Sure."

"But everyone is on their own as far as buying smoothies goes… writing adventure novellas like the Baron series do not pay as well as you think they might."

"You're the author of the Baron series? My boyfriend Mack, the Red Overdrive Ranger, loves those books!"

"Really? Huh," Max blushed slightly out of delight. "You'll have to introduce us next Saturday then."

"Right," Rose agreed. Trent noted, "Okay, we can trade personal information later. Right now I want to piece together the whole picture or at least as much of the whole picture that we know about to see what's what."

"Good idea," Max nodded.

So the trio headed over to the tiki bar to get some smoothies from Bulk and Skull.