Hi guys, I'm so excited about this next chapter I just know you're going to love it. Things are finally starting to get really interesting and I'm dying to know what you all think. I also can't begin to say how much I've appreciated all of the reviews. Just when I think you guys can'tget any better you all go and leave another bunch of motivational and insightful reviews! Enough praise I can notgive. I know I thank you all the time and it gets repetative but that's only because they really do mean a lot to me. Now, I've had a few requests for a small recap, so TrueRomantic this is for you. Okay...Tommy went on vacation to his uncle's cabin at the lake where he meets Heather Thompson, the snowboard champion from "There's No Business Like Snow Business," and they start a little 'thing'. Meanwhile there's a new villain who has yet to be revealedbut isout to settle the score with the former Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (that's why Tonya won't be in this one, sorry) so he sends his henchman Velmore to capture the rangers. Jason is first to be captured, followed by Rocky, then Billy who's visiting Trini for the week. Next on the list is Zack and Aisha who are dating, then Katherine, and you'll have to keep reading to find out who's next! Enjoy and please, by all means review!
"Hello?" said Kimberly Hart into the small gray cell phone, her heart pumping fiercely as she waited in anticipation, eager to know the identity of the caller on the other line. She hadn't recognized the California number from the caller ID.
"Kim? Oh, thank God," said Adam with an intense sigh of relief.
"Yeah," replied Kimberly, somewhat confused and half-alarmed, "um, who's this?"
"Sorry," apologized Adam quickly, realizing that for all Kim new he was some weirdo with a phone book and nothing to do in the middle of the day, "it's Adam, please tell me that you're okay?"
Kimberly was speechless for a moment as her worse fears were realized, "Adam, yes I'm okay or at least I think I am, I…I just don't really know what I am right now. I'm scared Adam…" she trailed off.
Adam had already prepared himself for what he knew the former pink ranger was about to say, "Kim, tell me what's wrong," he ordered.
"Well I, um, I…" Kimberly became flustered, she could feel the tears welling up in the back of her throat and she just hated that feeling. "I'm in my rental car on my way to Angel Grove, where's Jason! Why haven't you been answering you phone!" Kimberly sounded hysterical but she wouldn't let Adam get a word in to give her answers. "Oh Adam, I just came from Seattle early this morning. I came out to surprise Trini and Billy for the week but I think I was the one that got the surprise. When I got to Trini's house no one was home so I used my spare key to let myself inside." Kimberly spoke faster and faster as each word left her mouth. "There was this disgusting, smelly, dried up flaky stuff on the floor and I don't think it was anything that we have on Earth, Adam. But Billy and Trini were gone, their stuff was there, there were even full coffee cups and cookies still on the kitchen table. So, I waited for them to come home, but Adam, they never did! I just knew something was wrong," Kimberly let the lump in her throat pass and soon tears rolled down her cheeks, drizzling down in the groove where her cell phone met her ear. "But that's not the worst part, the worst part is," she choked up once more, "the worst part is that I called every single last one of you guys, right down to Katherine in London, for crying out loud, and none of you have answered your phones, or reported to work, or told anyone where in the hell you are! Why!"
Adam felt terrible that Kimberly had to discover the misfortunate events the same way he had, by not finding anyone at all. "Kim, Kim listen to me," he began, trying not to sound as irate as her but was having much difficulty with it. "I know already, I've been on the same endless hunt as you have the last few days. Jason disappeared on Friday night. Rocky never reported to work, Aisha never reported to work, Zack never reported to work, and for all I know Tommy's took a vacation to the moon!" Adam's frustration got the best of him as he erupted just as Kimberly had. "But Kim, everyone but Tommy had that dried up flaky substance in the entry way of their front doors and I have absolutely no idea where in the hell they are!"
Kimberly hit the brakes hard and jerked forward violently. Adam heard the screech on the other end of the line and became immediately panicked but before he had a chance to react Kimberly was already yelling.
"What! You mean you've been to everyone's houses and called every contact everyone has and still you haven't found anyone? What in the hell is going on Adam? This isn't right, something's wrong, something's terribly wrong…" Kimberly rested her head on the steering wheel, willing the pounding headache to go away.
"You got that right Kim," replied Adam, taking a calmer tone. "I think they've been abducted or something. I'd say that judging by what I've seen that whatever it was, it was definitely done against their will. Well, to everyone but Tommy, his house seemed untouched."
"What do you mean?" asked Kimberly, exhausted from her emotions even though she was dying to know if Tommy was all right. Actually, as strange as it seemed, about half of her worry was due to the absence of Tommy. She had been so terrified that she even attempted to contact him, but not having his number she was forced to call his parents. Their answering machine claimed that they too were on vacation for the rest of the month.
"I went to Tommy's place in Reefside yesterday," began Adam, "but it was all locked up and secure, as if he had been the one who left it like that. There was no sign of that weird stuff in his entryway and his car was gone. I can only hope that it or they haven't gotten to him yet." Adam shook his head in disgust.
"Adam," whispered Kimberly somberly into the phone, "what are we going to do? Which one of us is next?"
Adam froze in eerie surprise, he had spent so much time worrying about everyone else that he never stopped to think that maybe he was a target as well. At first he was sure that he would be able to hold his own against who or whatever was thrown at him but then he realized that if no one else had been able to avoid it then most likely he wouldn't be able to either. And what about Kim, would he ever see her again?
"Kimberly, where are you," asked Adam urgently, finally noticing that it was actually dark outside.
"About a hundred and fifty miles out of Angel Grove, but with this rain I shouldn't be there until about midnight. Why?" asked Kimberly curiously.
Adam's first instinct was to tell her that he would be there to rescue her as soon as possible and to just stay put. But logically he knew it was stupid to have both of them out on the open highway alone, so he did what he knew was best.
"Kim, how are you on gas? Do you have enough to make into town?"
"Yes," answered Kimberly seriously, "I have a little less than three quarters of a tank."
"Good," said Adam with relief, "I want you to keep driving until you get here, don't stop for anyone or for anything. We'll meet up at my house; I live on Lockwood lane, the third house on the left when you enter from Main street. Understand?"
"Yes," replied Kimberly, revving up her engine once again.
"Alright, and please be careful."
"You too Adam. I'll see you soon."
"I can guarantee it, Kim."
The disfigured, silver plated green monster known as Velmore walked stiffly up the driveway, his trio of thugs hid behind several stray trees, the less visible they were the easier it was to attack the former white ranger in the secluded location. Velmore reached the porch and scaled the three porch steps silently; very optimistic that he would soon redeem himself after his last failed mission.
His master had not been happy when he had been unsuccessful in tracking down the former pink ranger, Kimberly Hart. He thought for sure she would be one of the easiest feats because she was so tiny and well frankly, she was a girl. If only he had been able to use his full powers he would have a perfect track record by now, but since his master feared that the use of too much power would only alert the enemy to their existence he was forced to do it the old fashioned way.
Velmore had been given photographs and names of his targets from which to track them down. Then, disguised in human form he researched and gathered information on every last ranger whom had been responsible for sparking his master's grudge. Up until this morning he had been very successful in his mission but that wretched little Kimberly slipped through his fingers and according to her mother she had returned to Angel Grove, but he was unable to find her down their either. It was no matter though, because once he had the leader, Tommy Oliver in custody then he would be able to use his full power to take the humans down and Kimberly Hart wouldn't stand a chance.
Velmore had originally pondered the idea of capturing Tommy first but he figured it would be a more interesting challenge to gather the rangers one by one and up until now it had been quite enjoyable. The girls were surprisingly much more difficult to abduct because they were so damn feisty but the men had been a disappointing challenge. They were all so taken by surprise, having not had any excitement in their lives for nearly a decade that they were pathetic. Taking over the world was going to be a sinch.
Knocking on the wooden door Velmore finally clued in that the science teacher's car was missing from the driveway and although there were a few lights on in the windows, there seemed to be no stir inside the house. Once again he knocked, harder this time, attempting to stun the man inside, but there was no sign of him. Finally Velmore was forced to face the facts; Dr. Oliver was simply not home.
He pondered the possibilities of where the nuisance of a man might be at this hour of the night, perhaps at a girlfriend's house? But there was just one problem, Tommy didn't have a girlfriend and Velmore knew this for a fact. In all fairness though, it had been nearly a week since he had researched the man and it was entirely possible that he had met and become cozy with a girl since then.
Velmore waved in his men with one flick of his hand and the small army emerged from the shrubbery.
"It appears that our friend Dr. Oliver is not home, so we will wait for him."
The three mutants nodded their heads, accepting the order and returned to their sheltered hiding places on the property. Velmore himself ascended onto the roof of the small house, where he was sure to see the return of the black jeep almost immediately with Tommy Oliver in tow. He hoped he wouldn't have to wait too long, but he most certainly was not about to return home empty handed, failure was not an option.
Kimberly pulled up to Adam's one story house, the third house on the left-hand side of Lockwood lane. She was so relieved to be somewhere safe that she never hesitated to exit the car and the moment her feet hit the pavement she took off in a swift jog up the walk way. It was still pouring like crazy out and the lightning and thunder only made her yearn for the cozy interior of her friend's home all the more. But as Kimberly approached the front door she was stopped dead in her tracks.
"Oh Adam, no," she said out loud as if she were speaking to her friend face to face, "not you too, please not you too."
Tears fell from her eyes, mixing with the raindrops, which streaked her face constantly; she was soaked. Bending down to the concrete Kimberly reached for the green glowing gel substance which spotted the ground; a great deal of it had washed away already from the rain, but for the most part it was still quite visible. The substance felt no different from jello but the color was alarming and very much disturbing simply because it was so foreign to her. Wiping her hands on her old tattered blue jeans with a disgusted look across her face, Kimberly rose from the ground and continued on her way to the front door.
She turned the doorknob slowly, in no rush to enter what she knew would be an empty house, but the door was in fact locked. Peeking in the window, Kimberly could see that all of the lights were on and there was some jello on the floor in the entryway, which meant that whatever took Adam, took him from inside the house. Then why in the hell was the door locked if he had been dragged outside? Clearly, whoever or whatever it was didn't want to make it look like fowl play was involved and that Adam exited the home himself, careful to lock the door behind him.
"This is just great!" she screamed, her shouts camouflaged by the steady downpour. "Now what," she whined to herself once more tugging at the silver doorknob. Then she thought for a moment, maybe Adam had a hidden spare key.
She recalled one time back in high school when Tommy and she had walked Adam home after a grueling history study session at the youth center. Once they reached Adam's house he realized that he had forgotten his keys inside and was stranded. This was very unlike Adam to be so forgetful, but Tommy, being Tommy had a simple solution to prevent the incident from ever happening again. He told Adam it would be smart to hide a spare key somewhere near the front door, he'd done it ever since he was in middle school and it never failed him once. At the time Kimberly found it quite cute and endearing whenever her boyfriend made desperate efforts not to be a victim of himself, but now it was just plain helpful.
First, Kimberly lifted the doormat, thoroughly examining the empty space beneath it. Next she hopped up and down, attempting to search the light fixture and the doorframe, but nothing. This was not good news because Adams porch was quite empty, there was really no effort made to decorate it, which was expected since he was a guy and all. But, Kimberly needed to find a way in. Finally she turned around, deciding it wasn't safe for her to be out in the open and headed back to her car when she nearly stumbled over a sprinkler head, which was intrusively sticking out of the ground and overlapping into the sidewalk. Kimberly smiled to herself as she unrooted the mobile sprinkler head, successful in finding the spare key buried just beside the gardening mechanism.
Once inside the house Kimberly took every precaution immediately. First she checked and then double-checked every door and every window to make sure that it was securely locked. Then, she turned off all of the lights, not wanting to draw any attention to the only house on the block with its lights still on at this late hour. Once she was finished, a wave of exhaustion overcame her and before she could let her mind wonder into all of the possible scenarios about the fate of her friends and most likely herself, Kimberly crashed out on the living room couch.
When she awoke it was by the sound of Adam's clock radio, which echoed throughout the tiny house. Kimberly didn't recognize the song but she didn't much care for it and was therefore forced awake, if nothing else then to shut the damn thing off.
It was still dark outside and at first it didn't register to Kimberly where she was and what had occurred just hours before. But now, remembering her friends and the unknown terror, which was undoubtedly out to get her, Kimberly was wide-awake.
Terrible thoughts immediately swarmed her head as she desperately tried to fight them off and although that was impossible she still stayed strong and absolutely refused to let herself cry. There had to be something she could do, not just to stay safe, but also to help her friends. Unfortunately she had no idea where to start. She had always been the cute ranger, the pretty ranger, the positive ranger, and not once was she the smart, intelligent, inventive ranger. No, that had been Billy, Jason, and Tommy, and well anybody but her!
But they were all gone, Billy had been with Trini when they were abducted, Jason had been gone since Friday night. Zack and Aisha hadn't been seen in a few days, Rocky was in the same boat. Katherine wouldn't answer her phone or her messages but it was pretty obvious what had happened to her, and Tommy…well now no one was quite sure what exactly happened to Tommy, and this gave Kimberly and idea.
If Adam had already investigated Tommy's home in Reefside and had most likely consulted all of the possibilities and still no Tommy, then there was only one logical explanation left. But, that explanation was an awful long drive and luckily Kimberly was very much willing to make it.
Tommy exited the front door of his Uncle's secluded cabin on the lakeshore with a towel flung over his shoulder and the excitement of new love and a perfect day ahead of him. Heather had already entered the clear, sparkling water and once again she never failed to impress Tommy with her extensive and alluring collection of bikinis. Today, it was the white one with a cinched band top and a tiny side tie bottom. Tommy wondered just how much better it would look when it was completely wet; he knew it wouldn't be long before he found out.
The couple had made it sort of a morning ritual the past couple of days to meet at the lake bright and early and then swim until they were too hungry to tread anymore water. Both of them would have preferred to nix the whole meeting thing and just stay together all of the time but neither of them would verbalize it. Heather tried her best to respect Tommy's wishes and not entice him, well at least not too much. While Tommy tried his best to respect Heather and their relationship altogether and not succumb to Heather's, and to be honest his desires, but it hand not been easy and as the days passed it became more and more difficult. The more Tommy thought about it, the more he was beginning to think that maybe it was time. After all, they were both mature adults and were fully educated on the benefits and the dangers of a physical relationship.
Eventually, Heather was the first to tire out and by then it was late morning, nearing noon. Tommy had had the hardest time keeping his hands off of Heather that morning because she was just so beautiful and he found himself daydreaming the most intense fantasies. Calling it quits should have relieved him of the frustration but it only encouraged it as Heather emerged from the water with Tommy trailing at a short distance behind her. She turned and flashed him a smile.
"I call dibs on the shower!" she yelled, finally facing him completely.
Tommy had been right; the swimsuit did look quite stunning when drenched in water. "Not if I get there first," he yelled back not bothering to avert his eyes from her chest.
Once inside the cabin, Heather ran straight for the bedroom and she most definitely would have beat Tommy to the shower if it hadn't been for his sneakers, which were carelessly left directly in the middle of the doorway to his bedroom. Without any warning Heather tripped over them, falling easily onto the soft white comforter with a bounce. Consequently though, Tommy had not been able to avoid the obstacle either and ended up on top of Heather.
The couple laughed hysterically for a few moments, "Ouch," screamed Heather in between giggles, "my side hurts from laughing!"
Tommy only encouraged the pain as he immediately began poking at her sides, provoking more laughter from the gorgeous blond goddess. "That's what you get for making my bed smell like the lake!" he teased as he too was in hysterics.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she pleaded, trying to capture his hands but wasn't very good at it.
Finally Tommy decided to take mercy on the woman and pinned her arms down over her head; suddenly things became very serious. Heather gazed into Tommy's eyes with great intensity, trying to figure out exactly what Tommy had in store for her today, maybe today was the day. But Tommy, rationalizing the situation decided once again to take the high road and released Heather. He stood up urgently, appearing upset.
"Is everything alright?" asked Heather softly. She didn't know if it was a good idea to pry or not but she just couldn't help herself.
Tommy turned around and walked towards the open doorway, "Take your shower and we'll talk about it after," he said over his shoulder.
Heather felt it best not to persist and followed his instruction without question. In the meantime, Tommy took the time to cool off and have a bowl of cereal. He had to figure things out and fast because he couldn't fight off Heather forever. If only she wasn't so damn attractive, who would have ever thought that it would be almost unfortunate to be with such a perfect woman? There were thousands of guys who would love to be in his position right now, but he just couldn't help the fact that he was such a gentleman.
Finally, Heather emerged from the bathroom dressed in a pink cotton camisole and designer jeans. As usual she looked amazing and the pink wasn't helping either. Without a word Tommy passed by her in the living room, entered the bathroom, and closed the door.
When Tommy exited the bathroom he appeared relaxed and a tad bit rugged in a plain white undershirt and a worn out pair of Levi's. Heather lit up at the sight of him; she had been somewhat depressed as she poked at the half-eaten bowl of Cheerios.
"Do you feel better?" she asked casually, pretending like he had simply had a headache.
"I'd say so," he replied with a pearly white smile as he held out his hand to his girlfriend. Heather took his hand gently and followed him back into the bedroom.
Tommy had done some heavy duty thinking in the short time he had had alone in the shower and reached the conclusion that what Heather and he had could only get better from here. There were no obstacles or possible threats on their relationship like King Mondo or even Mesogo because that chapter of his life was over and it was time for a new chapter to begin. Heather didn't start pre-season training until the fall and Tommy's options were open for job relocation near her, which meant that if he chose to he could very easily fall in love with Heather Thompson. But then he realized that he already had.
"So, care to share what's with the grin?" asked Heather lightly, referring to the permanent smile plastered across Tommy's face. The couple took a seat on the still damp comforter.
"Yeah," he replied, "but I have to warn you it's contagious."
"Is that so, doctor?" she asked playfully as Tommy wrapped his muscular arms around her and enveloped her in a passionate kiss, Heather could get used to this side of Tommy. "I see what you mean," she responded once he released her lips from his. Her smile was just as big as his was, "Does this mean what I think it means?" she asked, so close to him that her words were spoken into his mouth.
Tommy gently nudged the pink camisole up over Heather's head with his strong, tan hands. He didn't have to say a word, Heather knew the answer to her question and without hesitation she returned the favor and removed his white T-shirt in the same fashion. Lying down on the soft welcoming bed, the couple took it slow and savored in each other's touch and finally Tommy was ready to take the next step.
"Are you sure you're ready," he asked Heather in between kisses before moving on to the woman's sweet tasting collarbone.
"Yes," responded Heather simply with great urgency.
Just as Tommy was about to make good on his promise, the couple was so rudely interrupted by an annoying thud on the front door. Tommy paused, looking up from Heather and into the living room towards the front door. The thump came again, only faster and harder.
"Who and the hell could that be," sighed Tommy with great annoyance, searching the floor with his eyes for his jeans.
"Oh don't answer it Tommy, just forget it, they'll go away," pleaded Heather guiding Tommy's face back down to her lips with her hands. "You've waited long enough, and so have I. I can't take it much longer…" she captured him in a hypnotizing kiss once again.
But the knocking persisted and Tommy was once again distracted. "I better answer it," he said, painfully breaking away from Heather's lips. He could never resist helping a person in need; maybe it was the power ranger in him that forced him to be such a boy scout. Heather appeared beyond annoyed and Tommy knew it. "What?" he asked, not wanting her to be upset with him. "What if it's someone who's lost or something? Hiker's stray from the group and end up a mountain lion's dinner around here all the time. It'll just take a second, I promise," he assured Heather searching her eyes for permission, but she wouldn't grant it.
Tommy disregarded her disapproval with great difficulty and reached for his jeans on the wooden floor, scooping them up quickly. He stumbled into them clumsily as he crossed the living room, relieved that the curtains were closed. The knocking continued and now Tommy was starting to get irritated by the mystery intruder but figured it must have been important. Zipping up his fly, he reached for the doorknob and swung the large wooden door open. Before he had a chance to process who the stranger was he was immediately captured in a tight and quite frankly stunning hug as the small woman in his arms shook with relief.
"Oh Tommy, thank God they didn't get you too," she said, muffled by his bare chest.
Tommy was frozen, making no effort to return the familiar woman's embrace. He couldn't believe it, he was speechless but it didn't matter because Heather had enough to say for the both of them without really having to say much at all.
"Ahhhemmm," interrupted Heather loudly, clearing her throat as she stood in the bedroom doorway, wearing nothing but Tommy's oversized T-shirt.
The uninvited guest immediately released Tommy, looking him up and down she realized he was wearing nothing but a pair of old dirty jeans. Then her eyes shifted to blonde woman at the other end of the room, she was wearing nothing but what was clearly Tommy's old T-shirt.The petite guest'seyes shot wide open as everything registered and suddenly she felt nausea taking over. Tommy's expression was just as animated as hers ashe realized that his perfect life was about to get a lot more complicated with Kimberly Hart once again making her grand debut.