The city of Angel Grove, in beautiful southern California, was a diverse metropolis in every aspect from business, to population, to geography, and even had a rich past dating back to before the Gold Rush in early American History. Located in Harwood County, about two hours south of Los Angeles, the area was just far enough removed from the bigger city to be a quiet, quaint place to live but not so small that it precluded a thriving industry in many areas of business.
Downtown Angel Grove was the official city center where a handful of skyscrapers towered over several smaller buildings that housed a plethora of national and international businesses. Many of the nation's top brands held offices here, as well as various startup tech companies, all taking advantage of the thriving local economy and lower tax rates than any other part of the state. Due to such a flourishing economic standing, Angel Grove also boasted the lowest unemployment rates in the state along with the lowest homeless population due to many philanthropic programs setup to help the less fortunate.
The suburbs surrounding the city ran the typical socio-economic gamut from upper class to lower middle class. The posh Silver Hills in the northwest part of the county was full of exquisite mansions and condos over-looking the Pacific Ocean and sported its own private seashore named Amber Beach. Further south was the larger, public beaches of Summer Cove and Ocean Bluff, the latter of which connected to Mariner Bay that housed a large seaport. Many of the oldest businesses in Angel Grove started in this seaport or heavily relied upon the shipping industry thus making use of the large natural bay. Here, a wide variety of ships from ocean liners to fishing boats constantly navigated the blue waters. With such a large fishing industry at its disposal, the town of Reefside grew to house the many fishermen and their families that called Angel Grove home. Like the other suburbs it had its own school district and township.
Continuing around to the southeast, the town of Briarwood lay amid the forested region of the county housing many of the middle-class families and most of the public schools. To the north of Briarwood was the smaller suburb, Boulder Cliff, that overlooked the desert to the east. Between the city center and Briarwood sat the county's largest high school, Angel Grove High, where all the students from Briarwood, Boulder Cliff, and the downtown area attended, thus making it the largest and most diverse of the schools in the area. Today was the last day before summer break at Angel Grove High School and the students were all bristling with excitement for the long break ahead.
Billy Cranston switched out textbooks in his locker before the next period, his last class as a junior in high school despite being two years younger than his fellow classmates. His academic advancement was due to him being nothing short of a genius. In fact, Billy had tested out of high school altogether in several scholastic assessments and was already enrolled in and had completed multiple collegiate courses having earned several Bachelor's degrees and a handful of Master's. There were only two reasons that prevented him from graduating early, with the first being a deep need of social interaction with others closer to his own age. Billy suffered from a debilitating social anxiety and general awkwardness, a condition that stemmed from being diagnosed on the Autism Spectrum. While his intellect was astronomical, he struggled to fit in socially with his peers often missing important social cues or saying awkward things unknowingly. Because of this, Billy needed to be around other high school kids instead of being thrust solely amongst the young adults at a college campus. His parents understood this and only allowed Billy to skip two grades and share classes with the few older kids he had befriended. The school board happily accepted this compromise since the Cranstons had a solid case to advance Billy out of public school altogether and the board wanted to keep such a stellar student in the school system for as long as they could.
The second reason was simply that Billy hid how smart his really was, a decision he made directly due to his social anxiety. Many of the other kids had called him a freak, or worse, for most of his life and Billy had started to believe them. He was constantly picked on at school and it weighed heavily on him, but Billy was quiet and kept mostly to himself so even his parents didn't know the full extent of it. The bullying did become less as he got older, but it was still a problem for him. Two individuals in particular liked giving Billy a hard time and the last day of school would be no exception. As Billy reached for the book he needed from his locker the metal door slammed shut suddenly, almost closing his fingers in it. Billy didn't look over at who shut his locker; he didn't have to. It was the same two kids that always bothered him, Bulk and Skull.
"Hi-ya, Billy boy," blurted Bulk. He was the ring leader of the two, an older boy, but still in the same grade as Billy, having failed a couple times. He was on the larger side in stature and wore his hair long, often in a pony tail.
"Yeah, Billy boy," echoed Skull in his comical voice as he fell against the locker on the opposite side pinning Billy between them. "Hi-ya." Skull was the lackey. He was tall and lanky, the antithesis of Bulk, and gave off the impression of an imbecile, though he was actually smarter than he acted. They both dressed the same, in clothes that were decades out of style and fashioned after a biker gang but from a Saturday morning kid's show.
"Farkas, Eugene" Billy said acknowledging Bulk and Skull by their given names.
"Billy, Billy, Billy," Bulk mocked. "I thought we covered what happens when you call us that?" Bulk said in fake disappointment and quickly slapped him on the back causing Billy to ram his forehead into his locker.
Skull laughed in his ridiculous cartoon manner. "Yeah Billy boy. Thought you would have learned by now."
"Maybe he ain't as smart as he thinks he is Skull," continued Bulk. "Or maybe all these head injuries he keeps having are bruising his brain." Bulk hit Billy again causing his head to hit the locker a second time. "You should really get these spasms checked out, Bill," Bulk laughed but Skull winced slightly. The heckling and intimidation were one thing but, he didn't care much for the physical abuse, despite his act. At least not against Billy, but he quickly repeated his comical laughter so no one would notice.
"HEY!" shouted a strong voice from behind them. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size, Bulk?" It was Jason Scott, all-star quarterback and Angel Grove's sweetheart, as well as several other titles, including one of Billy's only real friends.
"Oh look!" Bulk mocked as he faced Jason. "It's the pretty boy. Shouldn't you be practicing your ballet kicks somewhere?"
"Yeah, pretty boy!" Skull parroted as he stepped forward.
Bulk was referring to Jason's martial arts training. Jason was a second-degree black belt in karate and had belts in several other fighting styles as well. He led the school in the number of trophies for martial arts competitions locally and nationally. Often Jason could be found practicing or teaching classes at the Angel Grove Youth Center after school and on the weekends.
Jason stepped uncomfortably close to Bulk and stared him directly in the face. He was lean and muscular, and tall enough that he could look the usually imposing bully straight in the eyes. Jason was one of the only students that wasn't intimidated by the duo, knowing first hand that they were all talk and only had the nerve to pick on the weaker students. "Why don't I practice on you?" he threatened getting in Bulk's face initiating the standoff between two of the school's strongest students, but neither had a chance to react to the other.
"Boys!" came a voice from behind them. It was Principal Caplan. When Jason shouted earlier, everyone in the area immediately formed a circle around the four students expecting a fight. This quickly caught the attention of other teachers and Mr. Caplan who was walking the halls nearby. "I had best be witnessing an impromptu study session here and not a fight about to break out." Caplan was a tall, imposing man with a thick mustache and thinning salt and pepper hair. He usually dressed in a suit and tie with today being no exception despite it being the last day.
"Yes, sir, Mr. Caplan, sir," Bulk said jovially. "We were just discussing Billy here getting headaches from all that studying."
Skull cracked a smile but stifled a laugh. Jason backed away and faced Mr. Caplan. Billy just looked uncomfortably at the floor and adjusted his glasses.
"Seems like a rather heated discussion." Caplan continued. Then to Bulk and Skull, "you two, off to class before I decide that I need to have a discussion with you as well…but in my office."
"Yes, sir," Bulk replied and gave a mocking salute. He shot a mean look at Jason then pushed Skull off down the hallway. "See ya, Billy boy," he called over his shoulder and was immediately echoed by Skull.
"Are you alright, Mr. Cranston?" Caplan asked.
"Yes…yes, sir," he replied sheepishly and fidgeted with his glasses again.
Caplan continued, "Just because it's the last day of the school year doesn't mean I'm not giving out detention. If those two were bullying you just say so and I will take care of it."
"It's okay, Mr. Caplan," Billy assured him. "It won't make much of a difference."
"Alright then. Just know that you can come to me anytime," Caplan encouraged then followed with. "Go on to class and tell Ms. Appleby that Mr. Scott and I are having a chat."
"But Mr. Caplan…" Billy started but Caplan raised his hand to stop him.
"He's not in trouble," Caplan assured Billy.
"Yes, sir," Billy said sheepishly once again. He grabbed the book he needed and went to class.
"Walk with me, Jason," Caplan said in a more relaxed tone and led them outside to one of the shaded picnic tables where he sat down and motioned for Jason to join him, "Have a seat."
Jason sat across from him and folded his arms. "Am I in trouble, sir?"
"No, no," Caplan said, "but I do want to talk about this incident…and a few others that have a common theme."
"Billy won't stand up for himself, Mr. Caplan," Jason defended. "He's too non-confrontational, but it's not good for him to just take the abuse like that."
"And you feel it is your responsibility to do so for him?"
"Yes, sir," he replied.
"And why is that?" Caplan inquired folding his hands. "Aside from the fact that you are friends."
Jason paused for a moment to collect his thoughts before beginning his story. "When I was nine, I went to camp over the summer. There was a bully there that liked to pick on all the smaller kids. One in particular. That kid was a little different, so this bully and his friends often singled him out. Well, one day the bullying escalated and the boy got hurt, more than just his feelings."
"So ever since," Caplan interjected. "You've felt the need to stand up to bullies because you were bullied at Summer Camp?"
"No sir," Jason said rather shamefully. "I was the bully in that story."
"I see," Caplan acknowledge.
"I've always been bigger and stronger than others my age," Jason continued. "I realized early on that I could take advantage of that. I never intended to actually hurt anyone though and when I saw that kid sitting in the mud that I had pushed him in, crying from the split lip I gave him, I realized that I'd gone too far, that I let myself get out of control. I vowed then and there to not let that happen again; from me or anyone else."
"So all of the training, the way you push yourself at everything you do, is all for atonement?" Caplan asked.
"Yes," Jason replied bluntly. "That and to be ready when the time comes."
"Ready for what, exactly?"
"Anything," Jason said darkly.
"I see," Caplan was frankly amazed. There was a lot of heart and dedication in Jason Lee Scott. "Do you ever talk to the boy you pushed at Summer Camp? Just out of curiosity."
"Yes sir," Jason said with a smile. "Billy became one of my closest friends. He has an enormous capacity to forgive."
"That he does," Caplan said with a smile. "Which leads me back to what I wanted to talk with you about. Jason, you are, in a manner of speaking, the champion for the weak here at Angel Grove and while that is indeed commendable, I think you may be going about it the wrong way."
"How so?" Jason asked.
"Well," Caplan continued. "Being imposing and using your physical prowess to effectually scare the other bullies into submission is honestly still bullying in its own way."
"So, all I am doing is bullying the bullies?" Jason asked.
"As noble as it seems, yes. Your tactic may be effective, but I think there are more diplomatic approaches that you could take."
"I've found that most bullies only listen to their own tactics," Jason said dryly. "If asking them politely to stop picking on others worked then there wouldn't be as many tormenters."
"I am not so naïve to think that every person in this world can be reasoned with peacefully." Caplan explained. "There are evils that will only respond to violence. However, Farkas Bulkmeier and Eugene Skullovitch are not among them."
"What would you suggest?" Jason sincerely asked.
"Without me giving out personal details," said Caplan. "consider why they act out. Could it stem from a less than desirable home life or some experience that has left an impression on them? Perhaps something happened to them that was similar to the incident that you described that changed your convictions, only in a less positive way."
"I've actually known Bulk for a long time," said Jason. "He was one of the other bullies at camp. We were never extremely close but I do know that his dad is a jerk."
"Mr. Bulkmeier has not had a long list of positive role models in his life," Caplan lamented.
"I'll change my approach," Jason said. "Everyone deserves a second chance."
"That's the spirit," Caplan encouraged. He then took out a small sheet of paper and a pen, signed it, and handed it to Jason. "Here is a hall pass. I'm sure Ms. Appleby has one of her fun, quirky assignments planned out for the last day. You'd better get to class."
"Thanks, Mr. Caplan," Jason said and headed to the classroom.
After class, Jason walked with Billy back to the lockers. "Did you get in trouble?" Billy asked.
"The opposite actually," Jason reassured him. "Caplan thinks that Bulk and Skull are acting out due to trouble at home or emotional distress. He thinks that they aren't really mean at heart; just misguided, and would like me to try to empathize with them instead of fight against them."
Billy thought on that for a moment before responding. "I believe it. Eugene and I used to be best friends. We drifted apart as we got older. So how can we help them?"
Jason laughed, "Your endless compassion will never cease to amaze me Billy."
"I just believe that we can be more than the sum of out experiences," Billy offered. "So how do we reach them?"
"I don't know," Jason admitted. "But I have no doubt that between us we will figure something out. So, what have you got planned for the first weekend of summer vacation?"
"I'm going camping with my dad out past Boulder Cliff," Billy replied nonchalantly. "My uncle has a cabin out there."
Jason was surprised. "You? Camping?"
Billy laughed. "Yeah, it's a compromise. Dad really wants to get away from the city for a weekend and I want to setup some new equipment I built to study the Nemesis planet. It's trajectory should make for optimal viewing over the next few days. It's our way of spending quality time together."
"Okay that sounds more like you, but doesn't the government have a whole division setup for studying the Nemesis? You know, NASA?" Jason joked.
"NASADA, actually," Billy corrected, "They are a private company created by the techie thinktank Prometheus. They've partnered with NASA to study the planet but they aren't very forth coming with their research and Mom said that I couldn't hack the NASA servers anymore after that Federal agent showed up at our house."
Jason laughed again.
"Do you want to come with us?" Billy asked. "I'm sure Dad won't mind."
"Thanks," Jason politely declined, "but I think I will avoid that awkwardness if you don't mind. Anyway, I told the new kid that I would spar with him some. It has to be tough transferring in the last semester of the year. I don't think he's made any friends yet."
"You mean Tommy Oliver," Billy said. "His foster sister and I are in most of the same classes. She asked me if I could help him catch up on his studies. He actually offered to train me in martial arts as compensation so I mentioned to him you two should get together."
"He mentioned that," Jason confirmed. "He told me he was really into fighting disciplines so I told him we should train together some. He may even have more belts than I do."
Just then a young woman forcefully ran into Jason. She had an athletic build with amber skin and short black hair cropped close to her head in a pixie cut. "Excuse you!" she blurted out in fake rudeness.
Jason had to regain his balance before chuckling and putting his arm around her shoulders. She laughed too.
"Hi Audri!" Billy said.
Audri Kwan was one of their classmates and more interestingly, was in a pretty serious relationship with Jason. She put her arm around Jason's waist and matched his walking pace. "So what are you boys up to?"
"Discussing weekend plans," Jason said. "Billy is going camping with his dad."
"Billy is going camping?!" Audri gasped in disbelief.
"I'm actually going to set up some equipment to study the Nemesis planet. There is too much light pollution in Briarwood," Billy explained.
"Still," she said. "Camping. Well I am heading to the Youth Center to meet Trini. Anyone want to join?"
"Cool," Jason said. "I can drop you off at your house afterwards if you want to come along, Billy."
"Indubitably!" Billy exclaimed.
Nine days before Invasion Day
Boulder Cliff was a small-town community to the north of Briarwood in the rocky hill section of Harwood County. Its namesake was derived from the presence of a large boulder that sat on the windward side of the largest cliff in the area. The rock's immediate surroundings were zoned a State Park named the Erutan Nature Preserve and the hillside up to the top of the cliff was designated for camping. The crest of the hill overlooked the desert on the leeward side and was dotted with private and public cabins. Billy's uncle owned a couple of these chalets that he rented out to the public and sometimes used himself as a summer home or as with this weekend, let his brother and nephew get away for a couple of days.
"This is rather nice," Mr. Cranston commented as he swayed slightly from the gentle breeze in the hammock that hung on the front porch of the cabin. His job as an engineer was quite stressful so getting away from the hustle and bustle of the city was a good way for him to recharge. He felt himself drifting off to sleep though in the relative peacefulness and decided to get up and see what his son was up to.
A few feet away, Billy had setup a makeshift workshop for viewing the Nemesis. He had a laptop and an impressive looking telescope which were the only two normal apparatus that he had. Connected to the computer via cables were two other pieces of equipment mounted on tripods. The larger one was similar to the telescope but boxier and had several other devices stuck onto it. The second looked like a space age laser rifle without a handle or trigger.
"So what are you analyzing over there?" Mr. Cranston called to his son from the hammock.
Without taking his eye from the viewport of the telescope, Billy replied," I am trying to get a general composition of the roaming planet."
"With a telescope and a high-powered laser pointer?" His father chided.
"Oh no," Billy answered plainly. "The telescope is just for aiming the laser system. I've used it to create a spectral grid over the visible portion of the planet and bounce LiDAR pulses off the surface. I wrote a program that will analyze the responses and compare the pulse data against every known substance that has a calculable spectral resonance."
"You wrote a computer program to do that?" Mr. Cranston said astonished. "How can your laptop process that much data with any efficiency?"
"Oh that's simple," Billy continued. "I scripted out all of the recurring archetypes into bit patterns. Doing so greatly reduced the amount of data the program has to evaluate against."
"You're kidding!" Mr. Cranston was nearly in shock at what his son was saying. He got up from his hammock and walked closer to inspect the setup.
Billy looked up from the telescope, "Why would I joke about that?" He said plainly.
Mr. Cranston just shook his head. "You never cease to amaze me, Son. You do realize that if your results are even remotely correct NASA would kill to have equipment like this? They have telescope arrays the size of football fields that can't levy this type of data."
"NASA doesn't want to share with me so I am not inclined to share with them," Billy replied grimly.
Mr. Cranston chuckled. "I almost forgot about that. I wonder how many 10-year-olds have been investigated by the FBI for hacking into NASA? So what does the other device do? Are you targeting sonar?"
"That wouldn't be very efficient," Billy said. "I'm measuring the radiation signatures that the planet is giving off. I can get an idea of what the core looks like by measuring the patterns of any concentrations of radiation."
"You can do that?" Mr. Cranston asked no less amazed.
"In theory," Billy said. He walked over to his computer and read the latest results. His father stood eagerly behind him. "That can't be right," he though aloud.
"What have you discovered?" His father eagerly asked.
"Well, these readings are all over the place," Billy said a little perplexed. "If my equations are correct then the planet doesn't have a typical core." He then opened a new window on his laptop and started plotting coordinates into a graphing program.
"Do you mean that the core isn't solid?" Mr. Cranston asked. "That is not too atypical."
"It's…serpentine," Billy said in surprise.
"Okay, that is indeed unusual."
"And somewhat impossible," Billy stated. "An anfractuous core means that it didn't form like most celestial bodies via accretion, rotating and pulling particles to itself. It's somehow generating gravity causing the accretion of items in its vicinity." Then after a pause. "I need to rerun these numbers."
"I will leave you to it then," Mr. Cranston concluded. "My quantum calculus is a little rusty. Plus this weekend is to get me away from all the mathematics."
Billy laughed, "Thanks, Dad."
Some time later, Mr. Cranston had fallen asleep in the hammock and Billy was still going over his data. It was a quiet night and the sparse cloud cover allowed for mostly uninhibited study of the Nemesis. It was a new moon that night so the only light to be had was what the sun reflected off the once roaming planet but due to its smaller size it did not illuminate the landscape as a full moon would have. Due to this relative darkness, and his focus on the computer screen, Billy failed to notice what was happening on the horizon out in the desert.
Five individually colored streaks of light arced over the vista from the deep desert barreling toward Angel Grove like comets with long tails. The red, yellow, blue, pink, and, impossible to describe, black lights raced inches above the sand. When Billy finally noticed the phenomenon, the streaks were nearly at the bottom of the cliff face below him. He stood in astonishment at what he saw and walked over to the railing to get a better look. Four of the lights dashed past the cliff base and out of sight but the blue light bolted up the face straight toward Billy. He staggered backward as it crested the top and shot up into the air a foot or so over his head. It hung there for a moment like a spinning star and he could faintly see a glimmer of a golden object in its center. Then, without warning, the light shot directly towards him at blinding speed and before he could react struck him in the chest. There was a flash of bright bluish light, and Billy was gone.
The Angel Grove Youth Center was a public, after school hangout accessible to teens all over Harwood County. A school ID was required to enter and it was staffed with volunteers of both teachers and students. The facility was run by a stout, charismatic fellow named Ernie, who could often be found running the Juice Bar, dressed in one of his many loud colored Hawaiian button down shirts. Security for the Youth Center was governed by retired Lieutenant Jerome Stone, a very serious man who was a stickler for following the rules to the letter. He was tall with broad shoulders and walked with an odd gait that he described as being caused by an injury during active duty, though would not go into detail.
The Youth Center was filled with a plethora of activities and events hosted by volunteers and was sectioned off into separate areas and rooms each serving their own function. There was a gym with well-maintained equipment, a gymnastics area, a training dojo for the many martial arts classes offered, as well as study rooms, game rooms, and a dining area next to the Juice Bar which served wholesome smoothies, juices, and healthy snacks.
The Center was open everyday after school, and all day on the weekends, during school breaks, and the duration of the Summer. Funding for the Youth Center was mostly collected through charitable donations, but a large portion of the operating budget was supplied from one unnamed benefactor that remained a mystery. Regardless of where the backing came from though, the building and all of its equipment were well maintained and the Center was always hosting events to keep the teens engaged in after school activities in an effort to keep them safe and out of trouble.
Tonight was a typical night at the Angel Grove Youth Center. Ernie was busy behind the counter of the Juice Bar dancing away to the latest in popular music that he played over the radio while concocting new and unique smoothies by request. Lt. Stone alternated between watching the live video stream of the cameras that he had in every room, save the bathrooms of course, from the control center in his office to walking the halls with his odd, robotic gait eyeballing the students to make sure they knew he was always watching.
"Here we are," said Ernie in his jovial voice as he sat two cups on the counter. "Two Ernie Specials for two of my favorite customers." Tonight's island apparel was a chartreuse green button down with little white palm trees and just a smattering of light-orange from the pineapple-orange smoothies he just made.
"You say that about all of your smoothies, Ernie." Trini giggled.
"Hey," Ernie laughed. "If I make them, then they are an Ernie special," he said and went back to his fanciful drink mixing.
Audri and Trini Kwan enjoyed their smoothies after an intense study session in one of the quiet rooms of the Youth Center. The sisters were both in advanced classes and just because Summer break had started, that didn't mean that either planned on getting behind in their studies. The girls were fraternal twins and though similar in may ways they each had their own uniqueness. Audri was taller with a sportier build and short, cropped hair. Trini was more petite and wore her hair long. Both girls were incredibly smart, excelling in advanced classes, though Trini tended to have the edge over her sister, while Audri was more athletic. She even taught a Kungfu class for the Youth Center which is where she met Jason who was also teaching a different martial art at the same time.
"How is your Mantis style coming along?" Audri asked her sister as they took their drinks.
"It's a lot more difficult than I thought it would be," Trini answered, "but Uncle Howard is a great teacher, so I know I'll get it down."
"Yes, he is." Audri agreed. "Do you want to go over tothe sparring area? Jason is supposed to be practicing with the new kid."
"Tommy, right?" Trini asked. "I heard he has more belts than Jason does, if that's even possible. Watching them two fight should be a treat."
With that the girls took their drinks and headed for the martial arts section of the YC. The way the building was shaped, the quickest route from the Juice Bar was to go outside through the quad that was setup like a small park between the two wings. There was a grassy area with park benches, some small trees for shade, and a few picnic tables scattered about. The area was lighted in the evenings with soft lights and hanging lanterns to give kind of a peaceful atmosphere for students to study or hangout. The girls didn't get very far outside the doors however, when Trini noticed a yellow streak of light camber around the corner. "Is that some kind of firefly?" She asked aloud and pointed.
"That's no insect," Audri replied with concern as she discerned the trajectory of the object was set on Trini. "Look out!" She yelled.
Trini screamed and threw up her hands as the light raced toward her; Audri dove in the path of the glow and her sister. There was a bright flash of blinding yellow, and when it had subsided, Audri was nowhere to be seen.
In the front of the YC was also a grassy area running the length of the right wall opposite the parking lot and continuing out to a small field where sports like touch football or soccer could be played. The area closest to the building was a little knoll and like the quad, it was decorated similar to a park. Zachary Taylor led a dance class here to help boost the self-esteem of some of the younger kids that frequented the youth center. He had just finished a class before sunset and thought he would take the opportunity of a few moments spare time to work on some of his own dance moves along with a new fighting style that he was creating that merged dancing with martial arts. With his headphones in, Zack was deep into his craft with slick moves and dodges intermingled with surprisingly strong punches and kicks, so much so that he completely missed the red streak of light that rocketed over the top of the park area and only saw the black, purplish light for a fraction of a second before it struck him in the stomach and, he too, vanished on the spot.
On the opposite side of the youth center, in the gymnastics area, Kimberly Ann Heart readied herself on the balance beam to run through her new routine. During football season Kim was the head of the school's cheerleading squad but once football was over for the year, she turned her sights to gymnastics. Kim was an extremely talented gymnast who had already won several awards including a few World Championships and had even applied to be on the US Olympics Gymnastics team. The gym was unusually empty on this night and a little eerie in its quietness. Normally the high ceiling room was filled with the squeaks of wrapped feet on gym mats, the rattling of equipment, and the cheers or cries of successful and unsuccessful moves. With so few people in the area no one noticed when a pinkish streak of light spiraled through an open window and struck Kimberly in the side amidst one of her flips.
The martial arts area of the sports wing was in the same auditorium as the gymnastics section but was separated by a movable curtain that was currently pulled to place. The students often referred to this section as the dojo since it was filled with punching bags, floor mats, and padded weapons of all kinds so that several instructors of differing martial arts could come and offer lessons to the students. Here, Jason and Tommy had already squared off a couple of times and were starting to get a real feel for each other's fighting styles.
"You're good," Jason complimented between breathes. "It's nice to have someone on my level to train against."
"You're not bad yourself," Tommy said with hands on his knees. "I haven't had a decent workout like this in a while."
"Decent?" Jason quipped with an inflection of fake offense. "Oh it's time to step this up then."
Tommy straightened and took up his fighting stance. "I was wondering when you were going to stop playing around," he smiled but before either of them could make a move, the red light spiraled into the room. It darted back and forth between the two fighters like it was having difficulty deciding on its target. It shuttered then shot towards Tommy only to stop inches before it struck him, change direction, and fly at Jason. Seeing its trajectory, Jason had more time to react and dodged at the last second to allow the orb to shoot past him but with unnatural speed, the orb changed direction instantaneously and struck Jason in the side anyway. There was a blinding flash of scarlet light and Jason was gone leaving Tommy alone in the youth center trying to figure out what just happened.
An Alien Space
Billy landed on his feet but since he had been retreating when the light struck him, he fell backwards. Audri landed on top of him in the same diving position that she was in when she had leapt in front of Trini. Kimberly, being in the middle of a flip, landed upside-down on her hands but gracefully walked back up to her feet before clumsily crashing into Zack who suddenly appeared in her path. Jason landed still in fighting position and when he opened his eyes everything was blurry, his ears were ringing, and he was dizzy and just a little nauseated, as were the rest of them. When his eyes started to focus, he could definitely tell that he was no longer in the youth center but where he was he had no idea. Looking around the dimly-lit room he could only see metallic and smooth surfaces. He had never seen any place like this before.
"Jason?" asked Zack as his eyes also started to focus. "Is that you?"
"Zack?!" Jason exclaimed. "How did we get here? Where is here?"
"I want to know that too," Kim said as Zack helped her gain her balance. "and why do I suddenly feel so sick?"
Walking over to where they were standing Jason could now better see the others. "Audri!" he exclaimed and helped his girlfriend to her feet. "Billy?" he said now noticing his friend under her. He reached out his hand and helped him up. "Do you know what is going on here?"
"I'm not exactly sure," Billy said pushing the glasses up on his nose. "We definitely got here through some sort of instant transmission, like teleportation, but where here is, is mysteriously fascinating."
The five teenagers grouped together and began taking in the situation. They all recognized each other from school though they shared differing levels of acquaintance. Jason and Zack had taken some martial arts classes together but were also both on the football team. Zack had doubled as a running back and a linesman. They both knew Kimberly as she was on the cheer squad but none of them hung out much outside of school or the football season.
"Any guesses?" Audri asked looking around.
"There is not much to go on," Billy explained as he examined the nearest pillar, "but these metallic surfaces don't look man-made nor does the metal that they're made from look like any element I've ever seen. Logic would deduce that we are on some sort of extraterrestrial craft."
Zack rolled his eyes, "That seems a little extreme…"
"We are on an alien spaceship?!" Kimberly interrupted him with a yell.
"That is precisely correct." Came a somewhat robotic yet jovial voice from the shadows. "Oh my! My deepest apologies! I completely forgot to turn the lights on. We haven't been in this part of the ship in sometime." They turned to look at the voice and to the dismay of the five teenagers it did not come from a person nor from what they thought an alien would look like. Instead it belonged to a small, five-foot-tall robot. The little android shuffled into the room and the lights came on as it did. It was very humanoid in appearance with feet, arms, and legs all where they should be, and a body that looked to belong to a large child. It wore what appeared to be an armored vest with a lightning bolt on the front that pulsed in a steady pattern growing up from the bottom. At first glance, it could have easily just been a little man in a suit as humanoid as it appeared. Only its head was inhuman looking. The saucer like disk that sat on its neck had a thick brim with a little red light that moved back and forth across the front, presumably as an ocular device for whichever direction that the robot was looking. It seemed to be a track that could go all the way around the edge allowing it to see in any direction without actually turning its head. There was a dome in the center of the saucer that acted as the crown of its cranium. "My name is Alpha 5," the little robot quipped, "and I am sure all of you are very curious why you are here, woah!" The android's introduction was interrupted as it tripped and fell sprawled out on the floor. "Oh dear!" It exclaimed.
Without a thought, Billy stepped forward to help and grabbed Alpha under the arm. Jason, seeing his friend nonchalantly and unawares enter a potentially dangerous situation, leapt to the other side of the robot, giving Billy a 'what are you thinking?' look, but helping him none the less.
"Wow!" Billy exclaimed as he righted the little, metal humanoid. "A fully sentient, multi-functioning, automaton!"
"Thank you, human," Alpha said as it brushed itself off. Its movements were remarkably fluid, despite being a robot, as were its mannerisms. "The sickness that you may be experiencing was caused by the stress of your first-time teleporting. It will pass soon and become less prominent each time you do it."
"The technology here is amazing!" Billy continued. "How did you get us here? What sort of teleportation mechanism did you use? Quantum entanglement?"
"You can't just go around abducting people dude," Zack interrupted. "That's not cool at all."
"Are… Are you an alien?" Kimberly asked somewhat sheepishly while peering from behind Zack.
"You aren't probing or experimenting on any of us without a fight!" Audrey challenged and raised her fists.
"Guys!" Jason intervened. "Let's all calm down. I don't think he wants to hurt us. Besides, "he said looking around, "I don't think there's much we could do to stop him even if we wanted to."
"Actually," came a deep, ominous voice. "Alpha is programmed with the behaviorisms that humans would consider more feminine." As the voice spoke, lights began to flicker on in a once darkened part of the room. From the shadows, the kids could now see a circular platform lined with computer terminals and panels, though no screens were present. Alpha began shuffling toward the platform and beckoned the teens to follow; trading glances, they reluctantly did. Once inside the circle, Alpha clicked a few buttons and four strings of white light spiraled up from the floor, each at four points outside the circle. The teens could now see that the lights were strung around four pillars that made a square about the platform.
"Welcome to the Command Center," the voice boomed again. This time it was coming from the far wall to the north of the stage where a large, clear tube rose from a sci-fi looking contraption, complete with hoses and hissing steam, all the way to the ceiling, or what could be seen of the ceiling. The tube gave off a bluish glow and was filled with a churning mist. From the caerulean miasma could now be seen a large face, mostly human in appearance but with pale blue skin and odd ridges that enhanced its features. It shifted as it spoke to face each teen in turn in a somewhat dramatic fashion but as the space around its eyes were shadowed, this may have been the only way to show where its gaze was being directed. "My name is Zordon of Eltar, and you have already met my friend and assistant, Alpha Five."
"Is…is everybody seeing the floating, talking head?" Kimberly asked in disbelief.
"Seeing, yes," Zack said surprised, "believing, not so much."
"That doesn't tell us much," Jason said drumming up his courage and stepping forward to face the face. "I'm assuming Eltar is your home world? What are your intentions for Earth?"
"You can relax, Jason." Zordon chuckled. "We have no intentions of harming you or this planet. We are actually here to protect it."
"How do you know my name?"
"I know all of your names,' Zordon continued, "Zachary Taylor, Kimberly Ann Hart, William Cranston, Etheldred Kwan, and Jason Lee Scott" as he nodded to each.
"Well that's not creepy or anything," Zack remarked sarcastically. "Wait…your name is Etheldred?" he chuckled.
"Not if you want to live," Audri snapped back. Zack held up his hands and mouthed, 'my bad'.
"Okay," said Jason. "Then what are you doing here?"
"Millennia ago," Zordon explained, "Eltar was my home. I was of a peaceful race that spread out across the galaxy bringing technology to many peoples on many planets. I came to this world during the time of the creatures you now call dinosaurs. This has been my home ever since."
"That would make you millions of years old." Billy stated.
"The passage of time has little effect on the Eltar," Zordon said. "Our lifespans are not based on the same restrictions as many of the other corporeal beings in existence, nor are our lives exactly linear."
"This is too much," Kimberly exclaimed. "A floating, alien face and a robot with a flying saucer for a head have abducted us and none of you are freaking out!" Her voice got louder as she spoke and she threw up her hands.
"Chill out, Barbie," Audri said impatiently. "Hysterics are not going to help anything."
Kimberly shot Audri a dirty look but before she could retort, Billy addressed Zordon. "Zordon, why did speak of Eltar in the past tense?"
Zordon's face grew visibly dim. "More than ten thousand of your years ago my home planet was destroyed by an evil sorcerous named Rita Repulsa."
"Destroyed?" Zack asked. "As in made uninhabitable destroyed or as in Alderaan destroyed?"
Billy slowly turned his head to face Zack bearing a surprised, wide-eyed expression.
"What?" Zack said. "I play football so I can't like Star Wars?"
Audri quickly changed the subject, "I'm sorry for your loss, and I don't mean to sound harsh, but what does that have to do with us?"
"Ten thousand years ago," Zordon began, "Rita and I were locked in an arresting battle on this world. I was able to seal her in her ship and, disabling it, jettison her into space, but it was only a matter of time before she returned, and now that she has, your world is in grave danger."
"The Nemesis planet!" Billy blurted out. "That must be her ship."
"Her space ship is a whole planet?" Audri asked in disbelief.
"No," Zordon explained. "Her ship is IN the planet. The substrate encases it like a tomb and prevents Rita from restoring it to full power."
"Okay," Jason said trying to make sense of it all. "That still doesn't tell us what WE are doing here."
Alpha blurted out unable to contain her excitement, "You five have been chosen to be the new Power Rangers!"
"The what now?" Kim asked.
"An elite, intergalactic team of paladins tasked with defeating evil in all forms," Zordon elucidated. "You will be given access to the unlimited powers contained in the Morphing Grid and have at your disposal an arsenal of weapons, armor, vehicles, and special abilities like this world has not witnessed in some time."
"Wait," Jason said suddenly trying to keep the excitement out of his voice. "You are going to make us superheroes?"
"In a manner of speaking," Zordon confirmed.
"Sweet!" Zack didn't hide his excitement like Jason did.
"Hold on," Audri spoke up. "Let's say we even believe you. That still doesn't explain why we are here. We're just teenagers. If you have some sort of futuristic technology to fight evil space witches then why aren't you giving it to the military? Those people are trained for this kind of thing."
"No one on your planet is trained to handle a Bandora like Rita," Zordon said. "I do, however, see your point and I empathize with your reluctance. There are others on Earth who are better fighters, maybe better strategists, but the Power chose you, and not them. Within each of you is something that makes you the perfect pilots for the Power Armor that you will operate; something that you will discover on your journey ahead. But, in order to take the first step, you will need these. Hold out your hands and I will show you."
Each of the five traded hesitant looks then slowly extended their hands as to receive a gift. Zordon spoke to each of them in turn and as he did as small light, matching the color of the light that brought them there, flashed in each of their palms. As it receded, in its place was a brass-colored coin, about the size of a silver dollar but nearly a half inch in thickness. Etched in each was the likeness of a prehistoric beast. Zordon continued:
"Zachary, clever and brave, you will claim the power of the Mastodon and wield the Black Power Armor.
Kimberly, graceful and smart, you will command the power of the Pterodactyl and the Pink Power Armor.
Billy, patient and wise, you will control the power of the Triceratops and the Blue Power Armor. Audri, fearless and agile, you will claim the power of the Saber-tooth Tiger and the Yellow Power Armor.
Jason, bold and powerful, you will control the power of the Tyrannosaurus and the Red Power Armor, and as the Red Ranger, will be the leader of this team.
Together you will be the first Power Rangers of Earth."
The teens examined their coins and stole skeptical glances at each other.
"So are these like keys or something?" Kimberly asked.
"Or is this power armor pay-per-use?" quipped Zack.
"The Power Coins are your access to the Morphing Grid," Zordon explained. "Alpha, would you please summon the Dino Bucklers?"
"Right away, Zordon." Alpha chirped and pressed a sequence of keys on the control panel. As she did a small pedestal rose from the floor in the center of the platform. "Gather around please," she instructed and the teens reluctantly encircled the little post. The sides near the top then opened revealing a lighted chamber inside. "These are your Dino Bucklers," Alpha said of the objects inside. "They will allow you to morph into your Power Suits." They each slowly reached in the nearest opening and removed what appeared to be a large belt buckle. The face was silver with black lightning bolts adorning each corner and there was a hole in the center that matched the size and shape of the coins that they were given moments before. The back had a golden square with an ornate letter Z raised on the surface and a handle that, pulled down from the top, was connected at the sides.
"Place your Power Coins in the slot on the Morphers," Zordon instructed and the teens did so one by one. Instantly, they felt a surge of energy run through them like the sensation of a limb falling asleep except through the whole body. They shuddered and looked at each other.
"Woah," Zack uttered and placed a hand on his head. "Anyone else feel that?"
"The sudden wave of energy accompanied by moderate dizziness?" Billy expounded. "Indisputably."
"Is that why my face and fingers are prickly?" Kim added.
"What you are feeling is the Power of the Morphing Grid surge through you. Should you accept the responsibilities of being a Ranger, the Coins will alter your DNA allowing you full access to its power."
"Hold up," Audri spoke out. "Alter our DNA? Are you making us into aliens or something?"
"By no means," Zordon assured her. "The Morphing Grid technology operates in a manner unlike any technology that you have experienced. The altering is merely bonding the Power to you in a pure, symbiotic relationship."
"You mentioned our personality traits," Jason questioned, "but what is with the dinosaurs? And you keep talking about this Morphing Grid like we are supposed to know what that means."
"The Morphing Grid is a semi-sentient power source that exits in a pocket dimension fueled by the extragalactic accumulator known as the Zeo Crystal. It is the source of all Power Ranger abilities." Zordon answered cryptically.
"Well that just clears it right up, thanks," Audri said sarcastically.
"He means," Billy clarified, "that this Zeo Crystal is from another galaxy and it is used like a battery to charge the Power Armor and all of the abilities that come with it. By semi-sentient, one would assume that it has a limited consciousness of sorts. It can think and possibly even feel, but whether or not it is technically 'alive' would be up to debate."
"Thanks, Billy," Jason said.
"The pre-historic beasts," Zordon continued, "are the avatars chosen to represent the powers given to each Ranger in turn. I chose them out of a fondness for each of the creatures and the traits that each seemed to represent, and the Grid accepted them as symbols. To call your armor, simply hold the Morphers out in front of you and call on the name of your beast."
"So what do we do now?" Jason asked.
"You decide," Zordon replied. "The Power chose you, but it will not force you to be a Ranger, nor will I. This is something that you must choose yourself. It will be difficult, and dangerous, and will require a commitment greater than any you have accepted in your lives thus far. Accepting this will be accepting the fate of your world and everything in it as you will be required to make sacrifices and give everything you have to protecting Earth and defeating Rita Repulsa."
The kids looked the Dino Bucklers over in their hands and at each other. The silence that followed seemed endless. None of them wanted to speak first and none of them were absolutely sure that they could accept such a responsibility.
"I can't," Audri was the first to speak up. "I can't even believe this let alone accept such a responsibility. I'm only seventeen; I'm not a hero."
"I don't know either," Zack agreed. "This seems like too big a thing for us. It sounds exciting but, fighting aliens? Futuristic technology? This stuff is cool in movies but I don't know about living it."
"That's a no from me too," Kim chimed in. "With everything my family is going through, and I just overcame being the social outcast in a new city. Blowing off my mom and friends to 'save the world', I just don't think I can." She crossed her arms at this and hung her head.
"I'm in!" Billy said a little too loudly.
"Really?" Jason asked surprised.
"I know I'm not a fighter," Billy explained, "but I can't pass up the chance to work with genuine alien technology. Think of all I could learn!"
Jason looked hard at his friend then at each of the others. "Me too, then."
"Jason, no." Audri said barely above a whisper.
"I can't let you do this by yourself, man." He put a hand on Billy's shoulder earning a smile from him. "Besides," he continued now turning to Zordon, "my entire life has been about atonement and helping people. If I turned down an opportunity like this then all of my accomplishments are for nothing."
"What do we do then?" Audri asked of Zordon, but mostly she was asking Jason. Could their relationship continue if he accepted this burden?
"For now," Zordon said, "you are free to leave. The time for action will come very soon, but I suspect that each of you need to process what has occurred here."
"You got that right," Zack said. "I guess you want these back?" He asked holding up the Morpher.
"Keep them," Zordon said. "You may find use for them after all, but if not, then they will return to me on their own." With that the Morphers flashed with a bright light and were gone. "Should you need them, merely think of them appearing in your hand and appear they will. Alpha, please guide them through the chamber to the door."
"Yes, sir," Alpha responded almost dejectedly. "Please follow me," and she led them from the platform to a previously unseen doorway. Once they were out of the room, Zordon sighed to himself, "Teenagers," he shook his head, "with attitude."
Alpha led them through a short hall to what appeared to be a dead-end but when she approached the wall a door sized panel immediately slid away letting bright sunlight illuminate the hallway. "Right this way," she chirped and motioned them through. "Thank you for coming."
The teens were pretty confused but reluctantly exited the Command Center into the sunlit desert scape. Once outside, the door slammed behind them, locking them out.
"Rude!" Kimberly screamed at the now blank wall.
"Yeah," Zack agreed. "He can teleport us here but not back? Are we supposed to wander the desert in search of civilization now? What am I, a black Moses?" He shouted up to the tower that formed the center of the Command Center.
Billy intensely took in his surroundings then quizzically looked at his watch. "Jason," Billy whispered as to not alarm anyone. "Something is wrong here."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, barring some kind of temporal anomaly," Billy explained. "it should be dark out. We were abducted in the evening and unless the spaceship rendered my watch inert, we've only been gone approximately 5 minutes."
"Well," Jason thought as the others gathered around now, "we don't actually know how this teleportation works. We could be on the other side of the world or even another planet."
"Unlikely based on the sun," Billy disagreed pointing. "The closest yellow star is lightyears away and if Zordon could teleport that far wouldn't that negate the need for a spaceship in the first place?"
"Okay, so logically speaking," Audri chimed in, "we are still on Earth, but we could still be on the other side of the planet."
"Also, unlikely," Billy continued. "The cactus like trees on the cliff there are Yucca brevifolia."
"Meaning?" asked Zack.
"He means that Joshua trees only grow in the western United States," Kimberly informed them causing everyone to turn and look at her puzzled. "What? I like plants, okay?" she huffed and crossed her arms.
"So you are saying that it should be dark out?" Zack asked.
"And a lot hotter now that I think about it," Jason interjected. "The sun is almost directly overhead and should be beating down on us, yet I'm not even mildly uncomfortable for being in the desert."
"This is too weird," Kimberly remarked. "Jason, what do we do?"
"I don't know," Jason started, "but I know we aren't going to wander around the desert without any supplies."
"Hold up," Zack interrupted. "Just because some floating alien head said you were the leader doesn't make it so."
"Well," Jason answered the challenge. "What do you suggest?"
"I suggest we get as far away from this creepy building as quickly as possible." Zack answered him. "Who knows how long it will be before more creepy stuff goes down."
"I'd say not long at all," came a scratchy female voice from a ledge behind them. They turned to see a pale woman in a brown dress and armored corset. Her white hair was fashioned into twin horns on her head and she held a golden staff with a large crescent moon at the top. "Why such the rush, kiddies?" she cackled. "Let's have some fun first."
"Who are you?" Jason asked, half knowing the answer.
"And what are you wearing?" Kim asked with disgust in her voice.
"Really?" Audri addressed Kim who just shrugged.
The woman on the cliff smiled a smile that spread too far across her face in a Cheshire grin revealing her pointed teeth. "That fool Zodon didn't warn you of who I am?" she cackled "The great Bandora, Rita Repulsa?"
"So is bandora like a space witch or something?" Zack asked Billy.
"I would a assume so from context clues," Billy guessed. "That's a new one on me though."
"FOOLS!" Rita screamed and raised her staff, the green gem flickering to life. "I will not be flouted! Listen to me when I speak to you, you insolent filth!" With that the ground around the teens began to buckle and crack upwards. Twisting masses of rock and sand rose up around them molding into deformed human shapes with eyeless sockets and gaping maws. "Arise my Putties and teach these children a lesson."
"What is happening?" Kim screamed.
"Zack, Audri, circle up!" Jason yelled as the creatures shambled forward. "Kim, Billy, get in between us." Zack, Audri, and Jason made a loose circle facing outward surrounding Kim and Billy, and ready themselves in fighting position. The Putties, like muddy zombies, lumbered toward the teens. Once in striking distance Jason swiftly kicked one square in the chest. The thing crumbled as it flew backwards landing as a cloud of dust on the ground. "They aren't very stable!" he cried out and the three began to shatter the creatures as they continued to advance.
To their horror though, the soldiers were forming faster than they could combat them forcing them back against the cliff face. Rita sat on the ledge cackling maniacally as the Putties were quickly overtaking the teenagers.
"Jason, they have us trapped," Billy exclaimed as he was pushed up against the rock wall.
"Now what?" Audri inquired.
Jason thought for a moment, then, holding up his fist, thought hard about what Zordon had told them. In a flash of red light, the Morpher appeared in his hand. "Now," he said with confidence. "It's Morphin' Time!"
Audri stared at him quizzically. "Really? Is that what you're going with?"
Jason rolled his eyes. "Just do it. This might be our only chance."
"Let's see how legit this is then," Zack said as his Morpher appeared.
"Why not," Audri gave in.
"This armor better not mess up my hair," Kimberly warned.
"Fascinating!" exclaimed Billy as the buckle appeared in his hand.
Then they held the Dino Bucklers in front of them and all called out the avatars like Zordon instructed.
"Mastodon!"
"Pterodactyl!"
"Triceratops!"
"Saber-toothed Tiger!"
"Tyrannosaurus!"
At their cries the Morphers cracked open and an immense light erupted from the fissure. The Morphers then dissipated and the light, coded to their established colors, began to crawl up their arms. Its wake formed the Power Armor as it went and continued over their entire persons.
The armor was like a second skin over their bodies seemingly skin-tight with augmented armor plating in specific areas like the arms, legs, chest, and shoulders. Each one was color coded to the light that engulfed them: black for Zack, pink for Kim, blue for Billy, yellow for Audri, and red for Jason. These were the primary colors of each suit. The boots and gauntlets were white with a diamond pattern of the primary color at the tops while a white diamond adorned the chest of each. Their heads were shielded with a helmet that was molded to look like the ancient beast that represented them with the visor set in the beast's the mouth. Below this sat a silver mouth piece with molded lips. The Morphers now reappeared attached to a white belt around their waists on which hung a laser blaster in its holster.
The entire transformation happened in a split second and once complete, Rita ceased her mephistophelian laughter. The Putties froze mid-step, unsure as how to proceed. Jason looked at the gauntlets covering his hands then the armor over his body. He also looked at the others who were doing the same. He could feel the raw power pulsing through him as he made a fist and locked his body into a fighting stance. The armor itself was astonishingly light, almost like he wasn't wearing it at all, but the power surging through him told him otherwise and somehow he could sense that this shielding, though thin and weightless, was incredibly durable. "All right guys, he said, "I think this more than levels the playing field. Let's take these things out."
"Right!" the other four said in unison.
Jason sprang forward, fist raised to take out the creature in front of him but he grossly underestimated his new strength and speed and plowed right through two monsters like they were made of fog, shattering them to dust where they stood. "Whoa," he said looking back at the sheer distance he had inadvertently traveled. "Be careful everyone and check your movements. We seem to be much faster and stronger." The other four jumped into action as well. Rocks were flying everywhere as they destroyed the monsters without breaking a sweat.
Rita jumped up and down stomping her feet while shaking her fists as the Power Rangers made short work of her Putty Patrollers. "NO, NO, NO!" she screamed. "AAAHH!" more screaming. "Your suits may have made short work of dirt men but let's see how well you make out against my entire army!" With that she renewed her cackling as a plethora of vile and malformed creatures crested the hill behind her. Standing at her side were dozens of immense, demonic creatures with dripping fangs and razor claws. Some were mutilated as if one or more creatures had been forced together, some were fused with inanimate objects, and others wore demonic armor, but they all stood upright, hominin in appearance.
"Now," Rita began with her Cheshire smile, "let's see how you fair against my generals." At her command the monsters rushed over the side of the cliff and sprang toward the Rangers. Overwhelmed and outnumbered the inexperienced teenagers should have fled for their lives screaming at the monstrosities hurdling after them, but instead they stood their ground. "Tighten up!" Jason shouted like they were on the football field. "We're stronger together.
The foremost beast leapt at Jason who prepared to strike the creature, but before it could reach him a deafening voice boomed out over the landscape, "ENOUGH!" It was Zordon and with his command everything froze in place. The monsters and Rita were motionless where they stood and the pouncing brute hung fixed in the air.
"End simulation." Zordon commanded. As he did, the world around them melted away, monsters and all, revealing an empty void of blackness all around them save for a grid of bright blue lines above and below them.
"What is happening?" Audri asked.
"Please excuse my ruse, Rangers," said the disembodied voice of Zordon, "but I wanted you to not only hear what would befall your world but experience it at well. Helmets off." When he said this, the helmets of all five Rangers dematerialized from them leaving their heads exposed.
"Is this like some other dimension?" Zack asked after he realized he could still breathe in the space.
"In a manner of speaking," Zordon acknowledge. "You are standing in a four-dimensional continuum that I have full control over. I can create objects," as he said this a table and a chair for each teen appeared in front of them. "I can create landscapes," Zordon continued and the visible space was suddenly flooded with lush plants of an alien nature and massive trees that formed a canopy above them. "And, I can create the likeness of any creature that I am familiar with or can imagine." With that a person stepped out from the flora. He was massively tall, approaching seven feet, but proportional and human looking except for the pale blue skin over his entire body. He wore a long, flowing white rob with a matching pellegrina over his shoulders, like a bishop at the Vatican, and a circlet of white on his brow like a crown. In his right hand he carried a long staff that wound into a spiral with protrusions on the outside, like a cross-section of a whelk shell.
"Zordon?" Jason asked of the being.
"Yes. This is was my appearance when I still had a tangible body."
"Remarkable!" Billy said enthusiastically. "It's like the holo-deck from Star-Trek."
"So this was all fake?" Audri asked angrily.
"Not entirely," Zordon answered. "What you saw was a candid representation of not only what Rita Repulsa looks like, but of her mannerisms as well. The soldiers and her monstrous generals are all creatures that I have personally faced before she destroyed my physical being."
"And the suits?" Jason asked.
"Those are real," said Zordon. "I wanted to put you in a situation that would require you to either flee or stand and fight. I ventured that if you chose to stand your ground, you would be forced to use the Armor, and in doing so, experience what I am offering to you."
"So this was a test?" Kimberly asked. "Did we pass?"
"Very much so," Zordon said gladly. "You stood your ground when faced with overwhelming odds and naturally predicated toward teamwork instead of individualism. All of these are qualities that make a Power Ranger."
"You gambled with our lives!" Audri practically screamed at the sage. "What if we hadn't morphed? One of those things could have severely injured or even killed one of us!"
"I assure you that none of you were in any real danger," Zordon attempted to assuage her. "While the holograms appear and even feel real, they are completely harmless at this level. No tangible impairment could have befallen you no matter how realistic the holo-forms seem."
"I still feel played," Audri retorted.
"I sincerely apologize for misleading you, Audri," Zordon repented. "An analysis in this environment was more desirable than to have you caught unawares at Rita's disposal. In addition, I can also show you things in this environment that mere words cannot express."
"Like what?" asked Kim.
"Like Eltar," Zordon waived his staff and the little pocket of vegetation opened up to a wondrous landscape unlike any the five Earthlings had seen before. The sky was of a blue so light that it was almost white in color and dotted with semi-transparent blue clouds. The grass in the immediate vicinity was a blushed purple and faded into a mute orange in the distance as it grew taller and more wild. The trees around them had off-white trunks with grayish knots and markings and sprouted leaves of thrilling shades of red, purple, and orange.
In the distance, purple mountains rose from the plains and nestled in between two peaks was an enormous futuristic city with green and silver buildings reaching to impossible heights straight from a science fiction writer's dream.
Kimberly was practically stunned. "It's beautiful."
"Indeed," Zordon agreed sadly, "it truly was…until Rita came."
Suddenly the forest surroundings were engulfed in a backdraft of flame. The Rangers instinctively ducked or covered their faces before realizing they were still in the simulation and the flames couldn't hurt them. The explosion cleared and through the burning flora they could see the fields of grass in flames. The sky was littered with what must have been spaceships raining laser blasts down on the city.
"What's happening?" Kimberly found herself shouting.
"Rita carried a personal vengeance for the Eltar and me especially," Zordon explained. "We had fought for eons but after her partner suffered what should have been a fatal incident, she went mad with rage and levied her entire army against the Eltar and our planet intending to erase us from existence."
"And what happened?" Jason asked.
"She succeeded," Zordon said darkly.
Billy had been studying the ships since they first appeared, taking in the entire scene with empathetic though curious macabre. One in particular held his attention. The largest of the ships was serpentine in shape, its structure twisting in upon itself forming a loose figure eight but with a forward portion separate from the main body and what appeared to be a tail in the rear. The main section of the lemniscate ship seemed to be undulating but the fore and aft sections remained impossibly fixed. "Zordon?" Billy asked almost interrupting. "What is that ship there?"
"The flagship of the fleet and the most powerful weapon at Rita's disposal," Zordon answered.
"I've seen that ship before," Billy said.
"How?" Audri asked skeptically.
"I've been studying the Nemesis since it's been close enough to detect," Billy expounded. "Since it's been trapped in Earth's orbit, I've been able to gather very precise data on it and I was gathering more while camping in Erutan Park with my dad before we were teleported here. Some of the thermal scans that I took shows the planet has a core that is shaped almost identical to that ship."
"So your saying," Zack tried to make sense of Billy's rambling, "that's ship that's in the little planet circling Earth right now?"
"It looks like a Chinese dragon," Audri commented as she examined it closer.
"You are correct, Billy," Zordon noted. "When I defeated Rita here on Earth, that is the very craft I trapped her in; the one that currently lies dormant within the Nemesis."
"So what happened to Eltar?" Kimberly apprehensively asked.
Zordon's gaze shifted to the dragonesque craft. "I was on Earth during the attack. Once I got word what was happening, Alpha and I immediately rushed to the aid of my people, but we were too late. Once Rita discovered that I was not on the planet…she had no more use for it." Zordon averted his gaze with tears in his eyes. The great, flying serpent straightened out as it descended and landed near the city on two enormous hind legs. Its form towered over the very mountains and arched into the shape of an 'S' leaning back on its tail as two large sections fanned out above its forelegs like shoulders. The great, horned head tilted downward and its fearsome maw opened toward the city. The Rangers watched in horror as an intense light flashed in its muzzle before leaping out and vaporizing the city before it. The beam, however, did not stop at the towers and pummeled the ground beneath it, burning through the surface and into the planet's core. When the beam finally ceased, the dragon tilted its face skyward and spiraled up from the ground and into space.
A moment later the entire planet broke apart in an indescribable explosion that engulfed everything in flame.
When the flash subsided, the Rangers found themselves standing on a bit of debris floating in space with the ruins of what remained of Eltar floating around them. Kimberly was crying, unable to hold back the emotion. Tears pooled in the corners of Billy and Audri's eyes. Jason hung his head and Zack spoke grimly as he stared into the wreckage, "Like Alderaan then."
Jason looked to Zordon, "If that ship is inside the Nemesis and Rita is in there, can she do that to Earth?"
"Not by herself, no," Zordon said. "I managed to disable most of the ship when I entombed her inside. She will not be able to get much more than the life support and basic functions of it operative without her partner, whom as far as anyone can discern, perished long ago." There was a brief flitting of pain in Zordon's voice and face as he mentioned the demise of this mysterious partner but only Jason noticed. "However, this does not make her any less threatening. Rita has conquered and enslaved countless planets without the use of Serpentera or her full army. The people of Earth are in grave danger at her awakening."
"And if you left?" Zack asked though he knew the answer. "Would she just follow you since she can't blow up the planet?"
"She knows my attachment to this plant is strong," answered Zordon, "as she knows that I cannot stand by as innocent life suffers. She would hold this planet hostage until I retuned and surrendered to her. Then she would destroy it anyway to watch me grieve."
"You are sure of this?" asked Audri.
Zordon hung his head, "In a time long past I naively believed that there was good in her. I surrendered to her hoping to spare the lives of an entire solar system that she was oppressing. She imprisoned me and forced me to watch as she burned planet after planet just to laugh at my pain. While my presence here makes Earth the latest target in this galactic war it also offers the only chance you have in defeating this tyrant."
"So," Jason asked, "what do we do?"
"Go back to your lives." Zordon said to their dismay. "This dimension is removed from the time stream and once Alpha teleports you back, only mere moments will have passed since you left. Tell no one of what you saw here or what is to come. Explain away your disappearance in any plausible way to keep those closest to you out of harm's way, should the knowing of my existence place them in danger."
"Wait," Jason interrupted. "I agreed to this. You can't expect me to lay this down just because I've seen how dangerous it could be. Seeing what Rita can do only reinforces my resolve to stop her."
"Now that you have seen and experienced what is to come, and what you can do to stop it," Zordon explained, "each of you must take this information and truly decide whether or not you want this responsibility. Even though you were the ones chosen, I will not force this on any of you. Taking up this yolk will change your lives. It will be dangerous and I cannot guarantee your safety or even your survival. You will have to keep your powers a secret as revealing them could put those close to you in grave danger, and that will alienate you from friends and family. Carefully consider all that you have witnessed and all that you have learned here, but time is of the essence. Rita is already preparing for her first attack and should you decide to take up this burden, you will need much more training before you are ready to face her. In one day's time, meet near the cabin where Billy will be returned to, at the cliff facing the desert. Those of you who accept will be teleported back here, and know this, there will be no ill feelings harbored for those who decline. I wish you nothing but the best."
Before any of them could object or question, the colored lights engulfed them once more and they were instantly transmitted from whence they came.