Author's Notes: Hi, readers. Here's chapter seven of "Rising Above." I changed my mind about taking a big break from writing. I will release chapters for various stories from time to time instead. This chapter has some Tommy/Kim and Jason/Trini. The next one will feature the original six's first Putty fight and morph. Stay tuned for chapter eight.
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Chapter 7: Discussion
Tommy, Jason, Billy, Trini, Zack, and Kim reached the bottom of the hill ten minutes later. They picked up their pace a little bit as they came together. Suddenly, a roadrunner ran out in front of them. This forced them to come to a halt. They watched it go toward a bush. It went inside with a small chirp. It popped its head out and looked around. It ducked back inside. They shook their heads in disbelief. Tommy ran his hand over his hair three times before blowing in a hard way.
"Roadrunners," Tommy grumbled in some annoyance. "You can't live with them. You can't live without them."
"Wile E. Coyote tried many methods to catch the Roadrunner. They always failed," Zack said as he and the others resumed walking.
"One example was when Wile rigged a piano to explode while playing a certain piano note on Believe Me If Those Endearing Young Charms," Billy said and cleared his throat. "The Roadrunner played it wrong on purpose to get Wile to trigger his own trap. Bugs Bunny did the same in regards to Yosemite Sam when the latter rigged another piano." He gave a shrug.
"Let's not forget Bugs Bunny doing that to Daffy. Unlike the other two, the rigged instrument was a xylophone," Kim pointed out matter-of-factly.
"It was always funny how Looney Tunes characters avoided traps set by others," Trini said stroked her chin. "Either that or they tricked them into falling for the traps."
"According to cartoon logic, any character doesn't realize it is running on air until after a few minutes. It looks down and falls. It crashes into the ground in a puff of smoke or dust," Jason explained.
"Falling from air happened lots of time with Wile. It was usually when he walked off a cliff," Tommy commented honestly.
"You always heard the whistling sound as the character fell until the plop came with a puff of smoke or dust," Trini added.
The teens picked up their pace somewhat. They observed another roadrunner running not far from them. It flapped its wings and took flight. It headed higher into the air. It disappeared behind a rock formation. Its chirps echoed on the wind.
"Guys, I don't think we should have left," Jason said seriously.
"What do you mean, Jason?" Kim asked with a scoff.
Jason chuckled in a soft way. "Well, I mean, Zordon chose us to save the world. I say we do it."
"Do you really think we can?" Trini responded in some uncertainty.
"I think we can," Tommy insisted in a low but firm voice. "We are already great fighters with the exception of Billy. He will get better as time goes on."
Zack shook his head in disbelief. "Hey, Tommy, Jason. I mean, you two don't even know what the hell you are talking about. We were talking to a giant floating head."
"Zordon isn't a giant floating head, Zack. He is a real person. He had a physical form before Rita trapped him in that time warp," Jason pointed out truthfully.
"What happened to his physical form? Where did it go?" Kim wondered in much curiosity.
"I have no idea," Jason admitted.
Tommy rubbed his nose. "Jason and I believe Rita tried to conquer Earth before, but Zordon stopped her. He was backed up by a huge army."
"We are very sure that army had magical warriors in it just like Rita's did," Jason added.
Kim huffed annoyingly. "It doesn't make sense that an alien would appear out of the blue, Tommy, Jason."
"Kim's right," Zack agreed. "Humans have been looking for alien life for decades. They have never found any trace of it."
"It is obvious they have been looking in the wrong places," Tommy responded honestly.
Trini emitted a soft sigh. "Ditto."
"If Rita is as powerful as Zordon said she is, then why would he choose teenagers to fight her?" Kim said, coming to her boyfriend's side. "You would think he would choose older experienced fighters to be his 'Power Rangers.' That sounds like a strange name for a team of warriors."
"It sounds like something out of a bad superhero movie," Zack suggested with a shrug.
Billy adjusted his glasses. "It sure does."
Tommy, Kim, Jason, Trini, Billy, and Zack stopped when another roadrunner ran out in front of them. It flapped its wings repeatedly before taking flight. It vanished behind a group of cacti. They listened to its chirping until it faded to nothing. They continued on their walk.
"Let me ask this question. What made Rita want to conquer Earth in the first place?" Kim asked very curiously.
"I think she had a master who assigned her to conquer Earth," Jason replied matter-of-factly. He stroked his chin. "There is no doubt he would've been stronger than she was."
"Most fictional mentors and leaders are. Magneto was leader of the Brotherhood of Mutants in the X-Men comics and animated series. He was the master of magnetism. He was classified as a Class 4 mutant. He could manipulate any metal, no matter how large it was," Billy explained.
Trini shuddered in a bit of fear. "Talk about being very dangerous."
"That means he could lift the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco," Kim said in much awe.
"That's right," Billy responded.
Zack let out a long yawn. "Where is Zordon from? How did Rita trap him in that 'time warp'?"
"What about Alpha? Who built him? Why does he have a five in front of his name?" Kim added.
"I have no idea. I do see Alpha as being like a little kid made of gears," Tommy murmured.
Kim snickered. "That's what Zack and I think."
Tommy took his girlfriend's hand into his. Jason mimicked his best friend's action with Trini. They, Billy, and Zack looked toward the sky to see a Cooper's hawk flying overhead. They listened to its screeches. It landed on top of a cactus a short distance away from them. It watched them carefully as they passed it.
"Being a superhero is nice, but it is very dangerous. Teenagers aren't known for being in control of their emotions. We do lose control of them from time to time. This is especially true when our hormones are raging," Trini said in much seriousness.
"That is true, Trini. Teenagers do think about the opposite sex and sexual activity a lot," Jason responded in much gentleness.
"Some people think having sexual thoughts is wrong and that they should be suppressed," Tommy grumbled with a roll of his eyes. "It is impossible to force people to stop thinking about sex completely. It is a part of human nature."
"Oh, yes," Kim agreed. "Of course, it doesn't stop people from trying to force others to stop thinking sexually."
"Anyway, I have no idea if I could be an effective superhero. I don't have any fighting skills at all. My first karate lesson was just this afternoon," Billy mumbled uncertainly.
"Don't worry, Billy. Tommy and I will work with you to get you into fighting shape. So will the others," Jason assured in much warmth. "It will take a while, but it will happen. The most important thing you need to do is practice. You can't get good at something without practicing."
"The second most important thing is that you never underestimate your opponent. You can never be sure what they are capable of. You shouldn't overestimate your opponent either. Their overconfidence can give you an advantage," Tommy added sternly.
"I can see what you two are saying, but I am still uncertain about reaching my potential," Billy said, swallowing hard.
"It is understandable, Billy. Jason and I were uncertain about reaching our potential too. After years of practice, we reached it," Tommy commented, smiling.
"Zordon mentioned you were an exceptional fighter, Tommy. Something tells me your powers are stronger than ours are. He needed someone of your skill to handle them," Trini pointed out.
"I would say so myself. I honestly believe the Dragonzord is very powerful. Unlike the other zords, it has to be summoned with the Dragon Dagger," Tommy explained and rubbed his nose.
"That is a weird name for a weapon," Kim replied in disbelief.
"I think it sounds cool," Tommy whispered, giving her hand a gentle squeeze.
"I think so too," Jason agreed as he squeezed Trini's hand. He proceeded to talk about the other zords.