Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.
Chapter 38 – Shift into Turbo
"Looks like our peace is over guys. It's back to action." Kim heard Tommy say and promptly relayed the news to Jason. They then heard Divatox begin to speak of her plan and Jason hoisted Kim up to better hear her.
"Ok." She said when she had heard enough and Jason let her down. "She's still planning to feed us to Maligore."
"So an evil being wanting to kill us. Nothing we can't handle." He said, trying to lighten the mood.
"I'm sorry about all this, Jase. You know this was meant to make you feel better and for us to spend time together just the two of us, which we haven't done in forever, and now we're snack food for a monster with the munchies."
"Munchies?" Bulk questioned and not for the first time did Jason and Kim wonder what had happened to him and Skull.
-T/K-
"Level stabilizers off 8.40." Tommy instructed back at the Power Chamber as he and the others were hard at work on a solution to their problem. "Full throttle power output."
"Ok, all systems go here." Said Trini.
"THE ZORDS THAT YOU ARE NOW CREATING WILL POSSESS THE POWER TO CARRY YOU SAFELY ON YOUR QUEST THROUGH THE NEMESIS TRIANGLE, TO RESUCE LERIGOT, HIS FAMILY, AND OURS. BEHOLD YOUR NEW TURBO ZORDS."
"They're just ordinary cars." Said Tanya as the door to the Zord Bay opened and they went through to see their new Zords.
"NO TANYA. THEY ARE EXTRAORDINARY CARS. VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE POWER AND VELOCITY OF TURBO TECHNOLOGY. INDIVIDUALLY, THEY ARE FORMIDABLE FIGHTING MACHINES, BUT WHEN MERGED TOGETHER, THEY FORM THE TURBO MEGAZORD, THE MOST POWERFUL EXTERNALLY POWERED MEGAZORD EVER CREATED." It was a nod to the Original Rangers' Ninja Megazord, powered not by an external force, but by their Animal Spirits, and their own power. The Zeo and Turbo powers were strong, but they had boundaries and limitations that The Great Power did not have. "DESERT THUNDER SHALL BELONG TO THE GREEN RANGER, WIND CHASER TO THE PINK RANGER, DUNE STAR TO THE YELLOW RANGER, MOUNTAIN BLASTER IS THE BLUE RANGER'S, AND RED LIGHTING BELONGS TO THE RED RANGER. YOU MUST NOW DECIDE HOW YOU WISH TO PROCEED." They knew he meant who was going to be which Ranger, as they were currently down two.
"Tommy and Adam keep their colours." Zack said, making the first decision.
"We'll get Kim back long before we ever have to form any Megazord." Tommy added.
"Then I suppose blue and yellow belong to Zack and I." Trini said.
"Um…what about me?" Tanya asked.
"We know you'd make a great Ranger, Tanya." Trini said, turning to face her. "Aisha would never have chosen you if that wasn't true. But you have no idea what you're getting into."
"Exactly, she chose me. And after today I think I have a pretty good idea of what I'm getting into. Look, I get I'm new and if you don't trust me, that's one thing, but-"
"We trust you, Tanya." Tommy asserted. "It's not that at all. It's just what we can't force this on you, we won't."
"When we first found out, when Trini, Zack and Jason wanted to pass on their powers to us, we thought we knew what we were getting into just from watching battles on TV and having met Zordon, but we didn't." Adam added, trying to placate her. "They insisted we didn't know and insisted we watch and learn, and participate where possible, for two whole weeks before we made our decision. And we're glad they did, cause we really didn't have a clue how hard the life of a Power Ranger is."
"Look, I'm not you." Tanya said. "I may be new, and I may not know what being a Ranger is really about, but I know myself. I've spent my life having to make snap decisions and living with the ones other people made. Living in a remote village in Africa, alone, while my parents went off on research, learning new customs and a new way of life with no warning, it was tough. And I know it's not on the same level as being a Power Ranger, but the principle is the same. I want to do this. Aisha thinks I have what it takes, and if you do too, then don't stop me."
"But-" Tommy started.
"TANYA IS RIGHT." Zordon interrupted. "SHE MAY NOT HAVE HAD THE TIME TO THINK OVER HER DECISION AS AISHA, ADAM AND ROCKY DID, BUT SHE HAS A CHOICE, WHERE YOU, ZACK, TRINI AND THE OTHERS DID NOT. THIS IS HER DECISION." Tommy stared Tanya down for a few moments, looking to see if she was being completely serious. When he saw she was, he caved.
"Alright, fine. Welcome to the team." Tanya smiled and silently thanked them for trusting her. "Now lets get going."
"Remember Rangers." Said Alpha "Once inside the Nemesis Triangle, communications with the Power Chamber will be impossible." He pressed a button on the control panel, making a colour coded table appear.
"BEFORE YOU ARE YOUR NEW TURBO MORPHERS. FIVE KEYS SIMILAR TO LERIGOT'S GOLDEN KEY." Trini hung back as the other five approached the table, standing in front of the panel with their Ranger colour. "INDIVIDUALLY, THEY WILL POWER UP YOUR VEHICLES AND GIVE YOU ACCESS TO YOUR MORPHING POWERS, BUT TOGETHER, AND ONLY TOGETHER, WILL THEY BE POWERFUL ENOUGH TO SEE YOU SAFELY THROUGH YOUR MISSION. NOW, REACH OUT RANGERS, AND ACCEPT YOUR DESTINY."
"Wait!" a voice called before they could do as instructed. Everyone whipped around to face the newcomer, wondering how the hell anyone got inside the Power Chamber.
"Justin?" Tanya asked. "What are you doing here?"
"Rocky sent me, since he couldn't come."
"Rocky sent you?" Tommy asked. "What do you mean? How did you even get in here?" Justin held up his wrist where Rocky's communicator sat, indicating how he got in.
"Guys, I'm the new Blue Ranger!" he said excitedly. Shock rippled through them. Rocky sent a kid to be replace him?
"No, no." Tommy said. "I can't believe Rocky would send a kid to be a Ranger. It's too dangerous."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Justin said sarcastically.
"Look, it's not that I don't think you're a skilled fighter, or wouldn't be able to handle The Power. But you're just a kid, and this is too dangerous."
"Come on, Justin, let's go talk in the other room." Said Trini knowing Tommy needed to talk to Rocky.
"Aisha come in." he said once Justin was out of earshot. He didn't call Rocky's name as he didn't want to open the communication on Rocky's communicator as Justin currently had it.
"I thought we'd be hearing from you, Tommy." She replied.
"Justin made it ok?" came Rocky's voice.
"What in the hell were you thinking?" he hissed. "Sending a kid to replace you? Do you want him to be in the danger we face and quite possibly die?"
"Of course not. He has what it takes to be a Ranger."
"He's a kid!"
"TOMMY, DO NOT FALL INTO THE TRAP HUMANITY HAS SET ITSELF BY THINKING A CHILD CANNOT SHOULDER THIS KIND OF RESPONSIBILITY." Cautioned Zordon. "REMEMBER OUR TALK FROM TWO YEARS AGO: IT IS NOT A PERSON'S PHYSICAL AGE THAT MAKES THEM WORTHY OF THE POWER, OR ABLE TO HANDLE GREAT RESPONSIBILITY, IT IS THE PERSON WITHIN." Tommy sighed; he did remember their talk, he also remembered hoping against hope Kira would not face the kind of power and responsibility Justin was currently looking at while still so young.
"Look Tommy, Aisha and I thought long and hard about this, and we talked to him extensively. Why do you think he's just showing up now and not five hours ago? We didn't just say 'oh, you found out we're the Power Rangers? Why don't you go be one?' It wasn't like that."
"What Rocky's trying to say is that we prepared him as much as we could…and he needs this Tommy. He just lost his mom and in his grief his dad practically dumped him at the orphanage to take a job out east. He has no one here, no friends except for Rocky…he's eleven, Tommy, and he feels abandoned and depressed, and like he has nothing left to live for without family or friends, or the love every child needs. Sometimes it isn't The Power that needs us, sometimes we need The Power. And right now, he needs to be needed and loved; he needs the Power Ranger Family."
'Tommy…' Kim called through the bond and he could tell she had heard every word and was no doubt crying. 'Aisha's right, he needs us. We're a family, we don't let one of our own fall through the cracks, we don't abandon them, hell we don't even let you escape even is that's what you want. You can stop being an active Ranger, but once a Ranger, you're always a part of our family. Do you know what that would mean to him?'
'Yeah, Beautiful, I do. And you're right.' Tommy sighed. "You guys are right. Justin!" Upon hearing his name he ran back into the room, closely followed by Trini, a hopeful look on his face.
"Welcome to the Power Ranger Family." Tommy said and watched as Justin's entire face brightened. He had purposefully used the word family instead of team, as if needing that final bit of proof that this was the right thing to do. Zack stepped back with a smile and gestured for Justin to take his place in front of the Blue Ranger's Morpher. Tanya, Adam and Tommy stepped back in front of their own Morphers, leaving only the pink one empty. Raising their arms, the four put their hands over the power sphere, activating it, before grabbing on to their respective keys. The experience was new to all of them, as new powers always were, and they came out of it fully morphed, and ready for action.
"Woah." Tanya mumbled.
"This is awesome!" Justin shouted, looking down; he was no longer in the body of a child, but one of an adult. "But why…?"
"You may have what it takes to be a Ranger inside, but a part of being a Ranger is physical strength, which you just don't have as a kid." Zack explained. "But because you do have what it takes to be a Ranger, The Power is helping you out with the physical strength part."
"Cool!"
"Alright guys, lets go to work." Tommy said once that was finished. He grabbed Kim's Morpher and led the way out of the Zord Bay.
"All systems check out." Alpha said as the Rangers came back into the main room. "Your Zords are powered and ready to go."
"TAKE YOUR ZORDS ACROSS THE GREAT DESERT TO THE SEA. THERE YOU WILL FIND THE GHOST GALLEON, A PHANTOM SHIP WHICH WILL TAKE YOU, AND THE ZORDS, THROUGH THE NEMESIS TRIANGLE."
"You must merge the power of your keys the moment you cross into the triangle." Instructed Alpha.
"THE COMBINED POWER OF YOUR KEYS AND THE GALLEON WILL SEE YOU THROUGH SAFELY. NEITHER THE SHIP, NOR YOUR ZORDS, WILL BE DETECTABLE BY DIVATOX."
"Aye yai yai! Good luck Rangers!"
"Thanks Alpha."
"Take care of my daughter?" Tommy asked Zack and Trini.
"You're still asking that question after all this time?" Zack chided.
"Of course we'll take care of her, Tommy."
"GOOD LUCK, RANGERS, AND MAY THE POWER PROTECT YOU."
"Alright Rangers, power up!"
"Right!"
The Rangers got in their Zords and moved out. Thankfully, the Zords really were extraordinary cars; Wind Chaser followed behind without a driver, and Justin could not even reach the pedals, let alone drive, and yet Mountain Blaster not only kept up with the others, but drove in a straight line and made turns with no problems. It was nightfall before they arrived at the Ghost Galleon, and ghost was certainly the right term to use. It was an old style ship that looked like it hadn't been used in centuries. A box was found on board containing five keyholes. As their Turbo keys were made for this exact purpose, they fit inside and when turned seemed to unlock the ship which got ready and set sail on its own. They traveled for an entire day and well into the night before seeing any sign of trouble. Justin had been up on deck, thinking about everything that had happened over the last forty-eight hours when Tommy came to find him.
"Hey, why don't you come below with us?" he asked.
"I just needed time to think." He answered. "If my dad only knew. Man, he'd be so proud of me. And all the other kids at the shelter."
"Justin-" he started, ready to explain exactly why he couldn't tell.
"Don't worry I won't tell. But can you really tell me that you didn't wish people knew?"
"Actually, all the people I care about do know." Tommy admitted. "Our parents found out when we were forced to reveal our identities to protect them. Aisha, Rocky and Adam were going to just tell their parents, with Zordon's blessing, but they too were forced to reveal them."
"So does that mean…?"
"Zordon would never begrudge you telling your father, if, and only if, you really believe he could handle it, and keep the secret. It's important the general public doesn't find out. Our job is hard enough without adding anything else to it. But if you believe your dad can know, then tell him."
"How do I know if he can?"
"You gotta trust yourself on that one. It's like with Rocky, his mom knows, but his brother and sister don't."
"Maybe I'll tell him when he returns…if he returns." He amended sadly. "You know, he had to close down the martial arts studio when my mom passed away."
"Why?"
"He just…he just couldn't focus anymore. It was like something was missing inside him."
"He'll find it again." Tommy tried to assure the younger man. "He just needs a little time, that's all."
"I know. And when he does, we can be a family again. That's important."
"Yeah it is. But you have to remember that we're your family now too. Power Rangers stick together, and not just because we're the Power Rangers, but because we really care for each other. And we care for you too, Justin. We may come together because we're Rangers, but we stay together because we're family. Never forget that."
"Thanks, Tommy." Justin said after a minute as he flung his arms around him. Tommy reciprocated the hug, more sure now then before that the others had been right, and thankful he had listened to them.
"Ok, now don't stay out here too long." He instructed. "Even Power Rangers need their sleep."
"Ok." It was a few minutes after Tommy returned below deck that he was called back upstairs by a weird sound. He arrived in time to see Justin kick a monster into the bell, and to dodge a second one.
"Guys it's time to rumble!" he called down. The others rushed upstairs and came to their aid, Tanya teaming up with Adam for her first battle. Eventually, they were able to defeat the monsters, knocking them overboard.
"This sure ain't the love boat." Tanya quipped earning an amused laugh from her boyfriend.
"What's the love boat?" Just asked. The three adults shared a look before shaking their heads and heading back down below, this time with Justin. "Guys, what's the love boat?"
-T/K-
"Hey Kim." Jason called from his spot looking at what could be a hatch. "See the water dripping in?" he asked once she'd come over. "It's gotta be a hatch of some kind. I think we should be trying to pry it off."
"Ok, yeah, wouldn't that mean all the water would come in?" She asked condescendingly.
"Yes. Right now my dive meter says we're at 435 feet. The closer we get to Muiranthias, the more the sub is gonna climb. Once we get to 100 feet we pop this thing off the wall and we're out of here."
"And make it up in one breath?" she asked sceptically.
"It's our only chance, unless you wanna try and fight our way out once we get on land." Kim let out a breath, weighing her options.
"Ok. But we break Bulk and Skull out first. We can't leave them here." Jason agreed and the two got to work. Turned out there wasn't much breaking out to do, more just unlocking the door when the lock was on their side. They then got to work on the panel, loosening the bolts and beginning to pry it off. Water began to rush in and all four had to push on it to stop it from coming off too fast.
"We have to wait till we pass through the Nemesis Triangle." Jason said.
"We better pass through quickly." Kim groaned. Eventually, when the room was over half full with water, Jason's dive meter said 105 feet and so he and Kim fully pried the panel off. They got Bulk and Skull out, and Kim nearly got out when her shirt got caught. Jason helped her get untangled and out the hatch at the cost of his own escape.
-T/K-
"There it is, the Nemesis Triangle." Tommy said, looking off the bow of the ship. What stood ahead of them looked to be a tidal wave and hurricane combined. The clouds were pitch black, lightning struck every five seconds, and the huge wave turned into a wall of water.
"Nemesis Triangle…" Tanya muttered. "They sure got that right."
"And whatever's steering the ship sure knows where to go." Said Justin.
"Yeah, right into the heart of it." Adam added.
"Come on, we better get our keys." Tommy said. The rangers raced back to the box where their keys still sat, removing them and waiting until the second the bow touched the wall of water before bringing them together. The Power surged around them, opening the gateway and allowing them to pass through. What was on the other side was not at all what they expected. Instead of the hurricane, the water was calm and the sky clear.
"Guess it's just a barrier." Said Adam.
"Or what lies ahead if you can't open the gateway." Tommy went with the more likely scenario. About another half hour into their journey, Tommy got another message from Kim, this one making him smile.
"They've escaped." He told the others happily. "Bulk and Skull too, they've all escaped."
"Who's escaped?" Justin asked, having missed that bit earlier on.
"Kimberly." Tommy explained. "It's a long story, but suffice it to say we share a bond that let's us communicate telepathically." Tommy watched through Kim's eyes as she made it to the surface, gulping in air, though she became exceedingly light headed.
'Easy, Kim. Slow deep breaths. Head towards shore, you don't want to collapse while still in the water.' Kim merely nodded and began swimming, possessing enough adrenaline to make it to shore before she passed out.
"She made it to the beach." Tommy informed their friends as they got their first glimpse of Muiranthias off in the distance. "She's unconscious, but she's safe on land."
"What about Jason and Bulk and Skull?" Tanya asked. Tommy shook his head.
"I don't know. Bulk and Skull got out before Kim, and Jason was behind her. She didn't see any of them, and now with her passed out, I can't see anything either."
"Well, we'll be there soon." Muiranthias came upon them faster than they thought, for which they were all extremely glad about.
"Zordon said Maligore's volcano is inside the Serpent's Temple." Said Adam. "That's gotta be where they're going."
"Then that's where we're going too. After we pick up Kimberly." Tommy had been away from her long enough, there was no way he wasn't going to get to her first this time.
"Desert Thunder is up first. I'll drive her up the cliff and see what I can see." Adam said.
"Good, keep in contact." The Rangers waited, wanting to know what Adam saw before doing anything, but when they detected something coming their way, and fast, they knew it was time to get out of there. Running down below into the Turbo Vehicles, the Rangers were just able to escape before Divatox succeeded in blowing up the Ghost Galleon. They met up with Adam half way up the cliff to prepare a game plan.
"We're heading straight to Maligore's temple." Tommy said. "Kim got captured again. This time by some tiki warrior dudes who joined with Divatox. They're heading to the temple." With no more than a nod, that's where the Rangers headed. It was when their scanners indicated they were getting close that Tommy felt Kim's fear spike.
"Shit." He muttered.
"What is it?" Justin asked.
"Divatox is about to sacrifice Kim and Jason. They're hanging over his lava pit."
"Then it's time to take things up a notch." Said Adam.
"Couldn't agree more. Take out your Morphers guys, it's time to kick into action. Shift into Turbo!" Waving their arms in their most complicated morph yet, the Rangers called on their new Turbo powers.
"Mountain Blaster Turbo Power!"
"Dune Star Turbo Power!"
"Desert Thunder Turbo Power!"
"Red Lightning Turbo Power!"
The Rangers began to run, tapping further into their Turbo powers to give them extra speed. They made it the rest of the way within thirty seconds, coming upon the entrance to the temple and rushing in, scaring the tiki warrior dudes away.
"Did we miss the party?" Tommy gibed, though his attention was fully on Kimberly as he looked her over for injuries. Seeing none, he turned his attention back to Divatox.
"Who invited you?" she snarled.
"We did!" called Kim. "Rangers, this is Divatox. Divatox, this is your worst nightmare." The evil villainess had to laugh at that, not believing the Rangers would actually be a threat.
"Lower them into the volcano." She commanded and Elgar was quick to follow her orders. The Rangers launched on the attack and were met by Divatox's minions. Adam and Tanya moved towards Lerigot and his family, getting them to relative safety while Tommy and Justin went to rescue Kim and Jason. They were too late, however, and with an agonized cry from Tommy, Kim and Jason fell into the pit.
"You're too late, Ranger." Divatox cackled. "Even now they are becoming his spawns of evil." Tommy, who had been seconds away from disintegrating Divatox, froze at her words, though in all truthfulness they made him happy. The lava wasn't going to kill her, it was going to turn her evil. While not a desirable circumstance, evil he could work with, dead he could not. A fireball escaped the pit, dissipating to reveal Kim and Jason who were crouched along the side of the pit. When they stood, the red eyes and arrogant smirks gave them away.
"Maligore's children! Destroy those who threaten the flames of unity!" Divatox commanded. The two jumped off the pit, going on the attack. Tommy was quick to tell the other three to hold Jason off while he dealt with Kim. Putting himself directly in her way saw her giving him her full attention. She hesitated upon seeing him, something inside her telling her she knew this man, but all she saw was a Power Ranger, one she had to destroy. Tommy knew exactly what was going on through her head, not because of the bond, which was currently closed off on her end while evil coursed through her, but because he had been there, more than once. Removing his helmet, Tommy stared right into her eyes, searching of the brown he loved in the sea of red. This time Kimberly didn't just hesitate, she stopped in her tracks; she definitely knew this man.
"That's right, Kim. It's me. It's Tommy." She cautiously approached him, not knowing exactly what was going on, but knowing she knew him, and he wasn't her enemy. Tommy could have continued to plead with Kim, and maybe he'd eventually be able to break through with naught but his words, but the choice was taken away from him when a hand landed on his shoulder and flung him backwards away from Kim. With the man she knew gone, Kim went on the attack against the other Rangers, leaving Tommy to Jason as the later tried to push the former into the pit. Tommy landed a kick and their positions switched, though instead of letting Jason fall, Tommy held onto his friend and tried to ensure he didn't end up in the pit. Eventually he succeeded in pulling Jason out of danger and was then helped out by Lerigot and Yara who used their combined magic and brought Jason back to the side of good.
"Oh man. Tommy I'm so sorry." He said.
"Not your fault, bro." The two turned back to the battle and quickly saw that the others were taking a beating from Kimberly.
"You didn't free her first?" Jason asked, remembering he had been evil and tried to kill his friends, but the exact details were hazy.
"I tried, but you got in the way."
"Oh. Sorry man. Well, no time like the present." The two of them then jumped back into the fray, Jason keeping some of Divatox's minions away from the Liarians and Bulk and Skull while Tommy made a beeline for Kim.
"Kim!" he cried trying to gain her attention and have her hesitate once again as she concentrated on him. It didn't work, however, as Kim was fully involved in her battle against Tanya and Adam, who would have left Kim to Tommy had Kim given them the chance to escape. Suddenly, a loud explosion rang out and another ball of fire exploded from the pit as the ground began to shake, signalling Maligore's awakening.
"Tommy hurry!" Adam shouted. "There isn't much time!"
"I know that! Kim, Kim, Beautiful look at me!" Kim faltered in her step, Tommy's voice reaching her on some level, but the evil within her belonged to a powerful ancient being and was gaining in strength the closer Maligore came to fully awakening; it seemed to know that if Kim concentrated on Tommy, she'd be lost to it and so the evil prevented her from truly hearing him.
"Tommy, what's going on?" Jason called as he ran over, having safely seen Bulk, Skull and the Liarians outside.
"I don't know, it's like she can't hear me." As if the situation didn't seem urgent enough, another ball of fire erupted from the pit.
"Well you gotta do something!" Jason ground out. "There isn't much time!"
"Yeah, I've been told." Tommy muttered, wracking his brain for a solution. As Kim continued to ignore him, the only solution Tommy saw was one he didn't like, but one he quickly realized he'd have to use.
"Kim…stop." He ordered, tapping into the magic that bound her to him. It was the only thing he could think of, at least with the ticking clock they were working against. The spell he had cast on her all those years ago was meant to supersede anything else, the original thinking of those who had created the curse being that the master's commands should be top priority to their slave, no matter what else stood in the way. Tommy's command breached the evil and stopped Kim in her tracks, though as the evil still fought for control, she made to attack again, enacting the counter measure, the mark on her back flaring to life. Tommy caught her as she fell, having expected this to happen, and immediately brought her hands to his face, giving the skin-to-skin contact needed. Kim gasped for breath and looked up at him with red eyes filled with pain.
"I'm so sorry Beautiful." He murmured, his own eyes mirroring her pain, though for different reasons. Then he called on his Falcon spirit; what had started three years ago as an unknown force that helped break through Rita's spell, had turned into their go-to tactic whenever one of them was evil; or rather whenever Tommy had been turned evil, or snapped and allowed Tom out, for this was the first time their positions were reversed. The Falcon flew around the room, calling out to its mate, and showering the Crane's partner in his bright white light. It wasn't long before the Crane's cry was heard and she burst forth from Kim, joining the Falcon in its flight, and lending her own power. Pink and white merged as they had many times before, working together to bring Kim back.
"Come back to me Beautiful." Tommy murmured, reaching out and cupping her cheek. He suddenly had a thought: skin-to-skin contact always made things better, whether it was soothing the magic that bound Kim to him, or simply feeling more energized after a good night's sleep where there had been no barriers between them. Knowing that the only part of him that was uncovered was his head, Tommy brought his lips down onto Kim's. He felt her gasp beneath him as his idea worked, the evil leaving her fully, as she brought her arms around him and kissed him back. They allowed themselves no more than a moment, knowing they were in the middle of a battle, but that moment made all the difference.
"Hi Handsome." Kim breathed when they pulled apart. Tommy smiled and held her to him for a moment longer as the Crane and Falcon re-joined with them, before he took one more moment for just them.
"Kim…I'm so sorry." He all but breathed, and Kim saw through their newly re-opened bond the guilt he felt over having to use that power.
"It's ok." She said, seeing through his mind that he truly had had no other choice, or at least had fully believed he had had no other choice. "We'll talk after." Tommy nodded and stood up, pulling Kim with him. They turned to their friends and both were glad for Jason, as they instantly knew from the lack of questions that he'd given an abbreviated version of what had happened to Tanya and Justin, Adam having already known from when Gasket had captured Tommy. Sending him a small smile in thanks the two turned their attention to Divatox, though not before Kim spotted something vital on the ground.
"Here." Kim said, handing Tommy his helmet. "I think you're gonna need this."
"And I know you're gonna need this." He pulled out Kim's Turbo Morpher and gave it to her. Having seen the others morph through Tommy, Kim didn't hesitate in putting the Morpher on his wrist and calling it.
"Shift into Turbo! Wind Chaser Turbo Power!"
"Alright, we're back to action!"
"I'll start getting Bulk, Skull and the Liarians out of here. We'll head towards the Turbo Vehicles." Said Jason, who had heard all about the new powers from Kim.
"You're gonna need this to locate them." Adam handed over his Turbo Navigator and Jason nodded his thanks before running off.
"Let's finish this!"
"Right!" With the added power of a fifth Ranger, and the knowledge that their friends were safe, the Rangers fought harder, and took down more of Divatox's minions. At least, until Maligore, fully awoke and emerged from the pit. He probably had to be one of the ugliest monsters to date, certainly within the top twenty, out of the hundreds they'd fought. He climbed out of the lava pit, causing everyone but the Rangers and Divatox to flee.
"Get ready to take this beast." Ordered Tommy as they waited to see what Maligore would do first.
"She wants to marry him?" Kim asked, disgust evident in her voice.
"I think it's time to break out the hardware." Said Justin, as Maligore began to move menacingly in their direction.
"Good call Justin. Let's do it! Turbo Lightning Sword!"
"Turbo Hand Blaster!
"Turbo Star Chargers!"
"Turbo Thunder Cannon!"
"Turbo Wind Fire!"
"Fire!" The Rangers sent all the power of their new weapons at Maligore, but it wasn't enough.
"What now? That didn't even phase him!" said Adam.
"We gotta lure brimstone breath outside. It's time to put those Zords to use."
"Alright!" Justin cried. "I was hoping you'd say that."
"Let's go!" The Rangers ran out the way they came, Maligore hot on their heels. Using their Turbo speed, they were able to make it back to the Turbo Vehicles far ahead of Maligore. Waving to their friends who stood nearby, they entered their vehicles and drove off in the direction of a clearing, which happened to be where Maligore decided to grow big.
"Let's see what these baby's can do. Get ready to bring them together."
"Ready!"
"Punch it!" Pulling on a lever off to the left on their control panels, the Rangers felt The Power course through their Zords, making them grow to standard Zord size. "Turbo Megazord sequencing is online." That was all the Rangers needed to hear before initiating their individual docking sequences, the result being the Turbo Megazord. The battle with Maligore was not a long one by any standards, nor was it even particularly hard. It seemed that although Maligore was powerful, he wasn't all-powerful, and the Rangers new Zords, combined with the fact that their enemy had only recently been reborn, saw his destruction be brought around by one hit with the Turbo Megazord Sabre.
"Hey guys, how about a lift?" Tommy asked their friends who waved from below them. With the Turbo Megazord, returning home took a lot less time than getting to Muiranthias did and they were met by a surprise upon entering the Power Chamber, in the form of Billy and Kat.
"You're back!" Kim cried, rushing forwards and pulling them both into a hug. "I thought you weren't back till Sunday."
"It's Tuesday, Kim." Billy said, earning looks of utter shock. "You were on that mission for nearly four days."
"T-Tuesday?" Tommy stuttered. "The competition."
"The start of finals."
"Don't worry." Kat said. "We worked everything out. Our parents called in citing a family emergency and got the competition pushed back a week, as well as exams. We're going to have to go into school the week after we're technically supposed to be finished, but we'll still get to write the exams."
"Remind me to really thank our parents." Kim muttered collapsing back into Tommy in relief.
"Yeah all of us have a lot of ass kissing to do." Tanya said. "They really came through for us."
"They're our parents, of course they did." Billy said, before turning to the only one he hadn't met. Billy and Kat had, of course, been informed of the two newest Rangers and so knew Tanya had become a Ranger, but as they'd been on Aquitar when Justin had come to the shelter, they'd never met him before.
"Hello Justin, I'm Billy, the Original Blue Ranger."
"And I'm Kat, no Ranger colour. It's nice to meet you."
"You guys too!" he answered enthusiastically.
"WELCOME HOME, RANGERS. I AM THRILLED TO SEE YOU HAVE RETURNED SAFELY, AND THAT YOU HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFUL IN YOUR MISSION."
"Thank you for rescuing my friends." Alpha said as he ran some scans over the Liarians.
"Of course Alpha. We wouldn't let anything happen to them." Said Tommy.
"Alright, I'm exhausted, and it's apparently been four days since I've seen my daughter. Where is she?" Kim asked to the room in general.
"Right here." Trini called as she entered the main chamber. She had gone down to the Med Bay to change Kira, and wouldn't you know it, that is the exact time that they'd returned. She handed Kira off to her parents, all three happy to be together again, before she walked right into Jason's open arms, giving him a hug as fierce as the one he gave her.
"Welcome home." She murmured as she leaned up and gave him a kiss.
"Good to be back."
"So what happens now?" Justin asked when things got a bit too lovey dovey for him.
"Now, we go back to our normal lives." Said Tommy. "Prepare for the competition, you go to school while we study for exams."
"And, of course, deal with a new threat to Earth." Said Adam. "Divatox swore her revenge. She's not gonna leave us alone."
"Our peace is certainly over." Kim added. "It was a nice two weeks, but this is our normal."
"Yeah, but would you really want it to be different?" Tommy asked her.
"Not if I had to give any of you up, or if it meant we wouldn't be as close as we are. And certainly not if it meant we wouldn't gain new family." She answered, pulling Justin into a hug as she said that last bit. This would become a regular occurrence, the mother in Kim, and her innate caring nature, wanting her to take care of Justin. He would quickly find out exactly why Kim was the heart of the team, why they really were a family, but there would be no complaints coming from him; it was everything he wanted, and if it meant he had to fight evil beings to keep it, well then it was fair trade. They all thought so.
"Let's go home guys." Tommy said and with a farewell to Zordon, Alpha and the Liarians, they teleported home, Adam and Tanya taking Justin back to the shelter first. Upon reaching the Hart house, where they'd been staying before this whole thing started, Tommy and Kim were set upon by their parents who had been worried sick for four days. After convincing them that they were fine, the two escaped upstairs to put Kira to bed. Once she was asleep they returned to their room, Tommy resolved on clearing the air between them.
"There's no air to clear, Handsome." Said Kim, having seen his intention.
"How can you say that?" he asked as they shed their clothes, not bothering to put them away properly, and fell into bed.
"Because there isn't." She insisted. "Tommy, I know we're going to go through your guilt every time the magic binding me to you activates, but sometimes there isn't actually anything wrong with why it was activated. You didn't have a choice, Handsome. I wasn't hearing you, Maligore was almost free, and I was kicking our friends' asses, you did the only thing you could to get me to stop."
"What did I do to deserve you?" he asked, seeing through their bond that she fully meant what she said. She wasn't mad at him for using the power he had over her, not this time, she believed he was right that it was the only thing he could have done.
"Well now that's a hard one, but I think I'm gonna have to go with saving me from that bone head on Pheados."
"You know your answer to that question changes every time I ask it." He said with amusement.
"Maybe that's a clue that you should stop asking it then."
"I'll never stop asking that. Just as I know that, for whatever reason, you won't either."
"So we're gonna spend the rest of our lives wondering what we did to deserve each other?"
"Pretty much, yep."
"Well, as long as we're both asking it, I'm ok with that." She murmured groggily as she settled down fully into his embrace, as the two allowed sleep to claim them.
A/N - Yay for getting an assignment done early! Means I got this out a couple days earlier then I thought I would. Only a few more chapters to go till the end, next chapter starts the show meaning its graduation time!
The part with Tommy using the magic binding Kim to him to stop her from being evil was a last minute thought that came to me during a discussion with one dedicated reviewer. I wanted to explore that line of thinking and what would happen, so I changed quite a bit of the end around to accommodate that, but I'm not sure how happy I am with it. I don't dislike it, I wouldn't post the chapter if I was truly unhappy with it, but I get the feeling I could have done it better...I'm just not sure how. So please, feel free to message me with ideas or comments, even if its just to say 'you're a paranoid perfectionist, that part is good, leave it alone.'
And as always, review please!