Author's Notes: Hi, readers. Here's chapter four of "If Only." I can't believe I've already gotten over twenty-five reviews. I want to thank everyone who has reviewed so far. A special shoutout goes to Tasha Hill, Alex B Goode, SpecialK92, brankel1, Boris Yeltsin, TommyandKimberlyOliverFan4Ever, PinkPrincessMom13, and netcy25 for being continuous reviewers. Your support means the world to me. As for other readers, please don't hesitate to review. I'd love to hear what you'd like to see in this fic. I don't mind that at all. If you really like it, put it in your author alert and favorites lists. You'll be able to keep track of it better. Anyway, this chapter features the first appearances of Jason, Trini, Zack, Billy, and Dulcea. There is some Tommy/Kim and Jason/Trini. The next one will feature Ranger action. My version of Dulcea's backstory will be revealed soon. Stay tuned for chapter five.

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Chapter 4: Informing/Arrival on Phaedos

Tommy and Kim were putting on their t-shirts while standing next to his bed in his room at the Oliver residence. They rubbed the fronts of them in which they rid them of wrinkles. They ran their fingers through their hair to straighten it. He grabbed a ponytail holder off the nightstand and pulled his hair back. He put it over three times. They held hands, smiling at each other.

"It was great to make love five times this morning," she said in much warmth.

"It sure was," he agreed. "I can't help but wonder if Zedd has seen any of us go at it."

"He probably has," Tommy muttered, shuddering in disgust. "If he has, that makes him a pervert."

"Perverts are just—" Kim started.

The communicators beeped loudly. Tommy released his hold on his girlfriend. He went to the window and looked out it. He saw the coast was clear and returned to her. He brought his communicator up to his face. His breathing was soft and steady.

"We read you, Zordon," Tommy said.

"Tommy, you and Kimberly need to teleport to the Command Center immediately. The others are already here," Zordon responded.

Tommy nodded. "We're on our way."

Tommy and Kim teleported to the Command Center. They landed in the main room beside Jason. Zack, Trini, and Billy were near him. Alpha came to the front of the team.

"Oh, thank goodness all of you are here!" Alpha blurted out in relief.

"Zordon, what's going on?" Jason wondered.

"Alpha and I have some good news for Tommy concerning his powers," Zordon replied warmly.

"Really?" Trini yelled in much surprise.

Alpha chuckled excitedly. "Zordon and I found a power source that can restore them permanently. It is located on the distant planet of Phaedos."

"That's great!" Tommy yelled and laughed in much happiness.

"I told you, Tommy. They would not give up," Kim said, turning to him.

Tommy took her hand into hers. "I didn't want to get my hopes up about this. I knew my powers weren't going to last much longer."

"That is very understandable, Tommy. Alpha and I have been carrying on this search for two weeks. We didn't tell you because we didn't want Lord Zedd to find out," Zordon explained.

"Who could blame you? Lord Zedd is so much like Rita. He keeps track of our movements very well," Jason said as he crossed his arms.

Billy put his hands on his side. "He's been after Tommy ever since he got here. He is determined to drain him of every last bit of his powers."

Zack shook his head. "It's not going to happen now. A power source has been found."

Tommy let out a long exhale. He was so glad a weight had finally been lifted off his shoulders. He lived day to day wondering when his last fight would be. He felt grateful to have a chance to get his powers back.

"Tommy, you must go to Phaedos and seek out Dulcea. She is the Master Warrior and guards the planet with her life. She is the guardian of the Great Power," Zordon said.

"Great Power?" Jason asked in confusion.

"It is the greatest power source in the universe. Rita sought it out in hopes of making her army unstoppable. Dulcea sealed it away. Rita bound her to Phaedos permanently in revenge. Dulcea cannot step beyond the plateau containing the destroyed Ninjetti Temple, or she will age rapidly and die," Zordon commented sadly.

"That stinks," Zack mumbled, swallowing hard.

"That's not all. Everyone who has tried to obtain the Great Power has perished," Alpha pointed out.

"Oh, shit," Jason mumbled, his body shaking somewhat.

"What about the rest of us?" Kim wondered.

"I am afraid along with the good news comes bad news," Zordon replied in a grave voice. "Behold the Viewing Globe."

Jason, Trini, Tommy, Kim, Billy, and Zack turned around to face the Viewing Globe. They moved closer to it. They observed Tigton throwing a seat from a picnic table at three fleeing young women. The women dove for the ground, barely avoiding it. They stood up and ran for their lives. They were screaming and crying.

The Rangers cringed as three Putties beat on three boys with their fists. The boys shoved them away with their feet and ran for their lives. The Putties raced over to a knocked-over trashcan. They grabbed cups and proceeded to throw them at the trio. The boys ducked, causing the cups to miss. They resumed running away. The Putties chased after them with excited garbles and gibbers.

"This is Tigton. He is Lord Zedd's newest monster. He is highly powerful and aggressive," Zordon said seriously.

"Damn," Zack said, shuddering badly.

"With aggression comes added strength," Kim added while letting go of Tommy.

Trini winced. "The majority of Zedd's monsters have been really dangerous. There were times when I thought we would not come out of the battles alive."

Jason touched her shoulder and squeezed it gently. "You're not the only who has felt like that, Trini."

The Rangers swallowed hard as Tigton fired his eye beams at a young woman. She ducked and ran away. She screamed, tears streaming down her face. They turned around and faced Zordon.

"Rangers, you must go and fight Tigton now. Tommy needs to begin his journey," Zordon said. "May the power protect you."

"It's Morphin Time!" Jason shouted.

"Mastodon!" Zack called.

"Pterodactyl!" Kim summoned.

"Triceratops!" Billy said.

"Saber-toothed tiger!" Trini cried.

"Tyrannosaurus!" Jason yelled.

Tommy breathed deeply as his friends and girlfriend teleported out of the Command Center. Alpha went behind the Viewing Globe. Tommy shifted his attention to Zordon.

"Are you ready to begin your journey, Tommy?" Zordon asked.

"I am more than ready," Tommy said excitedly.

Alpha walked up to him with a backpack. "Here, Tommy. Zordon and I prepared this for you. It has food and drink for your journey." He went over to the console before the plasma tube.

"Thank you," Tommy said gratefully and took it. He put it on his back and grabbed the straps. "Let's get this show on the road."

Zordon nodded at him. "I will send a message to Dulcea that you are coming, Tommy."

"Good luck, Tommy," Alpha said warmly. "Here we go."

Alpha pressed two buttons. Tommy closed his eyes while teleporting out of the Command Center. Alpha glanced toward Zordon, who blinked three times. He sighed in a soft way.

"Oh, I hope Tommy is successful in restoring his powers permanently," Alpha commented.

"Try not to worry, Alpha. Tommy is resourceful and clever," Zordon responded. "Now, I must contact Dulcea."

Zordon closed his eyes and put in deep concentration. Alpha approached the Viewing Globe. He spotted Tigton chasing three teen girls. He listened to their screaming and crying.

00000

The midmorning sun shined down on a rocky beach in Phaedos's northern hemisphere. The planet was covered with rainforest and beaches there. Its southern hemisphere contained temperate forest and islands. The north and south poles were frigid. Their landscapes consisted of mostly tundra. Ice flows filled the northern and southernmost parts.

A white-spotted seal moved along the shoreline. Waves crashed onto the beach, but it ignored them. It was quite large and happened to be dark gray. White spots could be seen on every inch of its body. Some merged with each other. The end of nose could puff up as if it were a balloon. It decided to head for a mound of rocks. It climbed up them. It let out a loud bark once it reached the top. It bobbed its head three times.

Without warning, Tommy teleported into the scene in which it caused the seal to look up. The seal barked frightfully and went down the rocks. It flopped away as fast as it could. He heard its barking, but he decided to ignore it. He looked around, his heart beating quite fast. A large wave crashed onto the shore nearby. It sent water high into the air.

"Wow. This place is beautiful," Tommy said as he started walking. "The one cool thing about teleporting is that it doesn't take very long to reach most destinations."

Tommy stopped when he came upon a skeleton. It looked humanoid and had what appeared to be a goat's head. It looked like it had been very tall from the length of its body when it was alive. It wore a headset. He cupped his chin in his hand. He wondered how this individual died here. He shook his head rapidly.

"I can't stand around staring at this skeleton all day," Tommy said with a sharp exhale. "I have a job to do."

Tommy resumed walking. He looked toward the water, seeing a black seal swim through the surf. The seal was very large. It was completely black with the exception of the edges of its flippers being white. The tip of its nose resembled an elephant's trunk, except it was much smaller than that of the elephant seal. He shifted his attention to the rock path. He released his hold on the straps of his backpack.

Tommy bit his lip. He hoped he would meet Dulcea soon. He wondered what she looked like. He had a feeling her people lived for centuries. He remembered when Zordon told him that Eltarians aged at the same rate as humans did, but they stopped aging at eighteen and maintained their youthful looks until illness or infected wounds made them age rapidly.

Unbeknownst to the Green Ranger, a woman covered in a green cloak watched him from a cliff. She resembled a human and appeared to be eighteen years old. She was tall and had long light brown hair that was curly. Her skin was quite light. She was lean, though she had some muscle. Her eyes were brown. She held a staff. She wrapped the cloak tighter around her body.

At the woman's side was a tiger. He was larger than the ones on Earth. He was medium orange and contained dark gray stripes. The tips of his ears were light gray with white mixed in. A tiny knick was in his left one. Scars could be seen underneath his golden yellow eyes. His tail had a slight kink in the middle of it. He swung it from side to side.

"That must be Tommy," the woman whispered.

"He is quite a handsome fellow, Dulcea," the tiger answered.

"He sure is, Julius," Dulcea agreed. "The last time I saw an Earthling was ten thousand years ago when I fought alongside Zordon in his war against Rita Repulsa."

"Curse that bitch for bounding you to this world permanently," Julius growled angrily and snorted loudly.

"Lord Zedd is the danger to the universe right now, not her," Dulcea pointed out matter-of-factly. "That's not to say Rita won't return at some point. If she does, it is likely she will go looking for revenge. It has always been her way when she does not get what she wants or believes she has been wronged."

He licked his lips. "You were alone for centuries until I came into your life."

"Your mother was killed by that poacher who was seeking the Great Power. I saw my chance to have a companion, so I cast a spell on you to make you immortal. If we ever step beyond that plateau, we will age and die together," Dulcea explained.

"Friendship is a wonderful thing, no matter what the species," Julius commented.

She petted him on top of his head. "Yes, it is."

Dulcea and Julius continued watching Tommy. They saw him put his arms out a little bit to balance himself as he went across a path of rocks. He tilted his head slightly, a curious growl coming from him.

"I wish we could go greet him," Julius said, his tail going up and down.

"I do too, but Zordon said he should seek me out," Dulcea answered in seriousness. "Besides, we do not want to frighten him, do we?"

"Of course not," Julius admitted. "Then again, he might get freaked out by the fact I can talk."

"I couldn't bear to not have someone to talk to, so I granted you the ability to speak," Dulcea said while scratching his ear.

"Talking is nice, but it can also be a curse. Sometimes, my speech sounds more like growls than it does words," Julius murmured with a nervous chuckle.

"That is understandable," Dulcea said as she took her hand away from him. She waved her hand toward herself. "Come. We can't stand around for much longer."

Julius nodded in agreement. He and Dulcea began walking away from the cliff. He emitted a soft growl while swinging his tail from side to side. The sun went behind a large cloud.