Author's Note: I haven't had much time for writing lately, so this took longer than expected to put out, but I do plan on continuing this story. Please read and review. I hope you enjoy.
Chapter 2: Drain the Dragon
The 5 teenagers stare at their friend Billy. They are silent for a few moments, and then finally Tommy speaks. "5 morphs?" Tommy asks. "Are you serious right now?"
"I'm afraid so, Tommy." Billy says.
"Man, when I asked you to look into my powers, I figured even if there was something wrong, they'd just be weaker, not gone all together."
"I've scheduled us a meeting with D.E.T.A. Commander Jones was nice enough to get us in with the scientists over there as soon as possible." Billy explains.
"That's good, Billy." Jason says. "If anyone will know how to fix Tommy's powers, it will be them."
"Man, things just go from bad to worse for us. First those new putties show up, now we might down a ranger." Zack says. Zordon perks up at Zack's mention of new putties.
"New Putties?" Zordon asks. "I was not aware of any new threat. What new putties are you referring to?"
"I don't know how to explain it, but they were stronger than usual." Zack says.
Kim chimes in as well. "Yeah, and they looked a little different, too."
"They were a different shade of grey, and had a big Z on their chest ." Trini adds.
"Z-Putties?" Zordon says, alarmed. "Alpha, is it possible that your examination of Tommy's powers could have interfered with our scanners."
"It's possible, Zordon." Alpha responds. "The examination did require a lot of power."
"What's going on, Zordon?" Jason asks. "What are Z-Putties?"
"I have been worried this day would come from the moment Rita escaped. Rita is part of a much larger group of evil beings. She is far from the worst threat this planet could face, and one of the greater threats may be here now. The Z-Putties are the foot soldiers of an evil warlord known as Lord Zedd. If he has come to Earth, then he has found Rita to have failed her mission to take over this planet."
"Lord Zedd?" Trini asks. "How come you never mentioned this before."
"I was hoping the day of his arrival would never come." Zordon says.
Alpha, who has been working on the Command Center's computers, chimed back in. "You were right Zordon. Our scanners were being interrupted by the work Billy and I were doing. They are back online now."
The alarm begins to sound and Zordon's face becomes more troubled. "It is as I have feared. Lord Zedd is here. Beware, Power Rangers, this threat is nothing like Rita. Rita's monsters were strong and powerful, but they will not seem like it compared to the power that is Lord Zedd."
"So, let me get this straight. There is someone out there worse than Rita?" Kim says.
"I'm afraid so Rangers." Zordon responds.
"Lord Zedd's Power is unmatched by anything we've seen thus far." Alpha says.
"Well, then we'll just have to work harder to defeat him." Tommy says. "We have to say."
"Tommy, while I appreciate your enthusiasm, hard work may not be enough. Lord Zedd is incredibly dangerous and with your powers failing, you are by far the most vulnerable of the rangers."
"Zordon, Rita was able to give Tommy extra power using the sword of Darkness. Don't we have anything, maybe a Sword of Light or a Sword of Power or something like that, that could give boost his powers?" Billy asks, hopefully.
"I'm afraid not." Zordon responds. "I have already given you all the weapons at our disposal. If we had any such weapon, I would have always granted it to you to help defeat Rita. What kind of mentor would I be if I withheld weapons and/or information that could aid you in your battle?"
"I guess you're right, I was just being optimistic." Billy says.
"What about not mentioning this larger group of evil beings until now? Wasn't that withholding information?" Trini asks.
"What benefit would that have given you in your fight against Rita? If anything, it would have hurt your spirit knowing that defeating Rita may not have been enough." Zordon says.
"I suppose that's true…" Trini says, clearly annoyed that this is the first she is hearing of this new threat.
"With Lord Zedd now in the fold, it is imperative for you rangers to always be at the ready." Zordon explains. "An Ancient Prophecy foretold of his coming to Earth. It was stated all six rangers would need to fully work together as one in order to defeat him."
"At this time, the best thing you can do is to rest. We need you to be fresh for the next time he chooses to attack." The rangers all nod in agreement. Billy looks up at Zordon.
"Tommy and I need to head to our meeting with D.E.T.A. about his powers, but the rest of you should head home. We'll be sure to let you know as soon as we know anything."
"Good Luck Rangers, and may the power protect you." Zordon says.
Tommy and Billy teleport and land outside of the D.E.T.A. facility. The building is being guarded by several heavily armed guards. There are extra video monitors everywhere. The two rangers walk up to the main gate. As they approach the guards all quickly turn and point their weapons at the two teens. "Stay where you are!" One of the guards shouts. "Make a move and we shoot."
Tommy and Billy freeze in place. "Whoa, hold on a minute!" Billy shouts.
"We're here for a meeting with Commander Jones." Tommy says. He leans in to Billy. "I thought you said they knew we were coming." he whispers
"They were supposed to." Billy says nervously. "I set everything up with Jones."
Suddenly the door to the facility opens. "Agents, stand down." A large man says walking through the door. The man is wearing a uniform with D.E.T.A.'s symbol on it, though the uniform is very form fitting on the man's muscular body. The guards all lower their weapons. "Mr. Oliver, Mr. Cranston." He says walking over and shaking their hands. "I'm Agent Phillip Mack, new director of Security here at D.E.T.A."
"You mind telling us why your agents pointed their guns at us?" Tommy asks. "I was seriously scared for my life there for a minute."
"Sorry about that," Mack says, "but you can never be too careful with our organization security. After all, it wasn't all that long ago a couple of teenagers infiltrated our facility without much difficulty."
"You heard about that, huh?" Billy asks, almost smiling.
"Just because I wasn't with the organization doesn't mean I don't know about the security snafus that went on before I gotseries of hallways to what appears to be blank, brick wall. The guard presses firmly on here." Mack says. "Believe me, things are done a little bit different now."
He turns and opens a pinpad on the side of the door. Tommy and Billy watch as he enters a long series of numbers, at least 15 by Billy's estimation. The pinpad then slides up and reveals a key slot. Agent Mack enters his badge into the slot and finally the door opens. He walks slowly through the opening. "Follow me." He says, not turning back to look at the two teenagers. Tommy turns and looks at Billy, who nods and follows the man.
The guard leads them down a one of the bricks about halfway down. "Welcome, Agent Mack." A computerized female voice says. "Two authorized visitors, Thomas Oliver and William Cranston." the guard says. "Voice recognition complete. Welcome Agent Mack and authorized guests." The wall then slides to the side revealing a hidden elevator. Agent Mack walks up to the elevator, where there is no up or down button. Instead, another pinpad, in which the large man enters a series of numbers and the elevator opens.
"Yeah, I'd say things are a little different." Billy says. "Don't you think this is a little bit of overkill?"
"Maybe, but like I said before, you can never be too careful when it comes to our security." The 3 of them step onto the elevator and begin to go down. Way down, very quickly."
"Where are we going?" Tommy asks.
"To meet with the director." Mack says. "And I'm sure he'd appreciate it if you didn't ask so many questions. He's doing you a favor by meeting with you."
The two rangers stand in an awkward silence as the elevator continues to plunge deeper and deeper underground. Finally, after a few minutes, the elevator screeches to a stop. Agent Mack and the two rangers exit the elevator into a large conference room. There is an oval shaped table in the middle. Sitting in the room is Commander Jones along with a man and a woman that Billy doesn't recognize. Commander Jones stands up upon seeing the two teenagers.
"Welcome." He says. "It's good to see you again. I just wish it was under better circumstances. Take a seat." He gestures towards the table. Billy and Tommy both grab a seat. "Thank you, Agent Mack. That will be all for now."
"Yes sir." Agent Mack says. "I'll be in my office if you need anything else." He turns and steps back into the elevator. The door closes and Jones turns back to the table.
"What was that all about?" Billy asks.
"Standard security operations under Agent Mack." Jones replies. "He's a good man, who's really good at his job. Our organization came under a lot of scrutiny recently, what with our last Commander being arrested for murder, our inadvertent aiding of a hostile alien threat, and having several members of our team killed by said alien threat. We didn't exactly have a line of people looking to come work for us. When you get somebody as good as Phil, you take him. Sure, he's a little over bearing at times, but I'd rather have security too tight than too loose."
"Does he know…" Tommy begins to ask, but looks at the other two people in room. He remembers Zordon's rule about not revealing their powers unless they have to.
"That you're rangers?" Jones finishes for him. "Yes. Mack is about one the few people with that knowledge. I know you don't want that information to be public knowledge, and I kept it as much of a secret as I could, but there are certain individuals within the organization that needed to know. Obviously Agents Eagan and McHale have that knowledge as well." He says gesturing the other agents in the room.
"I take it these are Agents Eagan and McHale, then." Billy says.
"Patrick McHale." The young man in the room says, eagerly. He rushes and shakes Billy's hand. "I'm a huge fan of you guys."
"Melissa Eagan." The girl says. She simply waves while Patrick rushes over to Tommy and begins shaking his hand firmly. Tommy shoots Billy a look who shrugs.
Commander Jones shakes his head. "Believe it or not, these two are some of the brightest young minds D.E.T.A. has to offer. Now, unfortunately most of the scientists who worked on the Green Ranger powers now longer are with the organization for one reason or another, but I've had these two look into the situation with the powers. They've been going over every file and record we had the on the project since you contacted me this morning."
"Did you find out anything about my powers?" Tommy asks anxiously.
"Nothing good." Agent Eagan says. "First of all, the original team that designed the powers did do a great job of maximizing the Power levels that the user could reach. Unfortunatley they didn't take into effect how much energy would be needed to sustain these powers for the long term."
"Think of the Green Ranger powers like a battery on a computer." McHale says. "When fully charged the computer runs great. But the more applications or programs you're running, the quicker the battery drains. And when the battery is lower, sometimes the computer behaves in way it usually doesn't. Sometimes things will freeze or the computer will crash, and it keeps behaving that way until you can either recharge it or it dies."
"So what you're saying is Tommy's powers need to be recharged like the battery on a laptop?" Billy asks. "That doesn't sound so bad."
"It wouldn't be if recharging the powers didn't use so many of our resources." Eagan responds. "First off, the cost of recharging the powers would be astronomical. It would cost virtually the same as if we started over and built new powers. Second of all, some of the resources used in building the powers, and that would be needed in order to recharge them, are no longer in D.E.T.A.'s possession. Whether they were used up or destroyed, the point is that we don't have access to them and they are really hard to obtain."
"Are you telling me that my powers can't be fixed?" Tommy asks. "My team needs my help. We've got a new threat to deal with and we need all 6 of us to beat him."
"I understand you're frustrated," McHale says "but there isn't an easy fix. We don't have any magical way to enhance your powers. The one solution that we've come up with is far from ideal, but could, theoretically, enhance your powers at least for the short term."
"What's that?" Billy asks, intrigued.
"We drain the power from the Dragonzord and feed it directly into the Green Ranger power coin. The Dragonzord's power is tied directly to the Green Ranger coin, but it uses a different energy source. Your power coin serves as a key for the zord; without it, the zord can't be used. Though it does make it so the Dragonzord is no longer useable, it can boost your powers, at least temporarily, until we come up with a more permanent solution."
"No way." Tommy says. "There has to be another way."
"They make a good point, Tommy." Billy says. "If we don't drain the power from the Dragonzord, you can't use either your powers or your zord. If we use their plan, you can at least still use your powers, just you'll have to leave the Giant battles to us in our zords."
"And what happens if the Megazord doesn't have enough power or the zords are damaged and need repairs. Then, when a giant battle comes, we're just out luck."
"Sounds to me like you'd be out of luck either way." Jones interrupts. "Tommy, we know this is far from an ideal scenario, but if these two say that it's the best solution at this time, then it's the best solution at this time."
"We can do the transfer of power today, if you'd like." Agent Eagan says.
"Billy said this morning I have about 5 more morphs until I'm completely out of Power. Until that point, I'm keeping the Dragonzord active."
"If you wait until your powers are completely drained, we may not be able to complete the transfer as we won't be able to use the Dragonzord." McHale interrupts. "You can't jump a car with another car that isn't running. We need your powers to still be active in order to have access to the power we're talking about draining."
"Plus while Billy's analysis was very well done, kudos by the Billy." Eagan says. Billy smiles. McHale mockingly repeats the phrase under his breath. Eagan ignores her colleague's muttering and continues. "It is far from an exact science. You could have 5 morphs or you could have 3. We know we have enough power to recharge your now. We can't guarantee that will be the case if we wait a few more battles."
"I just don't like idea of completely giving up on the Dragonzord. That thing has so much power and it's only been used a few times."
"Every time you do use it, though, it costs D.E.T.A. tons of money in repairs." Jones says. "Money that could be used elsewhere to aid you in your fight if we scrap the Dragonzord."
"Just out of curiosity, would we be able to recharge the Dragonzord should we find a more permanent solution to Tommy's power crisis?" Billy asks.
"Not likely." McHale says. "That battery is a one of a kind. If we drain it, it's unlikely it would ever be the same and it's not like we can run down to the store and pick up a new one. Maybe we could get the Dragonzord operation again, but it wouldn't be at the same power level as it is currently."
"So, hypothetically, let's say I go ahead and do this. How much energy are we talking about here? 2 morphs? 20? 100?" Tommy says.
"We can't say for certain. It depends on how much energy you use during each fight. But if we estimate that each morphing sequence would last, on average, 30 minutes, then I would say around 10 morphs."
"10 morphs? That's it? That all we get for completely scrapping the Dragonzord?"
"Tommy, I believe that the scientists are presenting us with a real way to have you continue to serve as a Ranger in the short term." Billy says. "Sure it's only 10 morphs, but it's 10 more that we had before. It at least buys us some time."
"Fine." Tommy says, finally caving into the pressure from the others. "I'm not thrilled about it, but Zordon did say we need all 6 of us to beat Lord Zedd. Let's get this over with." Tommy stands up and begins to head back towards the elevator. Billy sits there for a second, starring blankly ahead at the wall. Suddenly, Billy's eyes light up, and he turns to Tommy.
"Wait!" he shouts, as he rises to his feet. "Zordon did say that didn't he."
"Yeah, so?" Tommy asks, confused by his friends reaction.
"Hold off on draining the Dragonzord just yet." Billy shouts, excited. "That's an option we will have if I'm wrong, but I think we need to have another discussion with Zordon and Alpha before we make any decisions."
"What was so weird about it?" Tommy asks. "What just dawned on you?"
"The prophecy Zordon talked about mentioned six rangers." Billy says.
Goldar walks slowly into Lord Zedd's chamber in the moon base. "You asked to see me, my Lord?" Goldar says, visibly shaking.
"You took my putties to attack the rangers without my permission, and then retreated!?" Lord Zedd shouts. "You imbecile! I ought to have you thrown in the dungeon with that Witch you used to call your queen! Explain yourself!"
"Master, I saw the Green Ranger running by himself in the park. A quick examination showed that he didn't have his power coin with him. I thought we could test out the new putties and destroy one of the rangers in the process. I had no idea that the other rangers would show up so quickly. I pulled out to not reveal too much of the plan. I'm so sorry, Lord Zedd. Please forgive me!" The golden monkey is almost crying at this point.
"Fortunately for you, I'm in a giving mood today. While you may have inadvertently revealed my presence to the Rangers, they did not yet discover the only weak spot my minions have." Zedd says. "I know that the Green Ranger destroyed Scorpina and the two of you were close. Don't let your personal feelings of hatred toward the Green Ranger cloud your judgement. If you screw up again, I will not be so forgiving."
"Yes Master. Have we devised a new plan to take on the Rangers yet?" Goldar asks.
"It's all coming in to shape." Zedd says. "It's not completely finished, but I'm almost finished. You have to see every possible move your opponent can make, and have a counter for each one. That's when the plan is perfect. It's close, but there are still a few wild cards in the picture, but I will sort it out. Until then, leave my presence! I will summon you when I need you, and if I so much as hear that you thought about going to Earth without my permission, I will personally see to it that you will suffer the same fate as your former friend, Scorpina. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes my Lord." Goldar says and rushes out of the chamber.
Billy and Tommy teleport back into the Command Center. "Welcome back, Rangers." Zordon says. "How did your meeting with D.E.T.A. go?"
"They don't have a way to permanently boost Tommy's powers, but they had a suggestion on how to temporarily do it. Of course, it would put the Dragonzord out of commission, so it's far from perfect." Billy explains.
"If it can boost Tommy's powers, what choice do we have?" Alpha asks. "We need all 6 of you to defeat Lord Zedd."
"Funny you should mention that." Tommy says. Suddenly the other 4 rangers teleport in as well.
"What's going on?" Zack asks.
"What was so important you guys had to call us back?" Trini says. "Did Zedd launch an attack?"
"Not quite, I just wanted you all here for this." Billy says. "Zordon, you said earlier that if there was something that could us or that we needed to know to protect the Earth, you would tell us."
"That is correct, Billy." Zordon responds.
"You also mentioned an ancient prophecy that told of all 6 rangers being needed to protect the Earth from Zedd."
"Billy, where are you going with this?" Jason asks.
"Just wait." Tommy says. "I didn't catch it at first, either."
"Why didn't you tell us there's a 6th Power Coin out there?" Billy asks. The others, besides Tommy stare at him blankly.
"What are you talking about?" Kim says.
"We have 6 power coins." Zack continues. "Or did you all of a sudden forget how to count to six?"
"Tommy's power coin is manmade, and something that an ancient prophecy would have had no way of knowing about."
"It's an ancient prophecy designed to predict the future." Trini says. "Why is it hard to believe that it would know about this?"
Billy ignores the others and turns to Zordon. "Am I wrong about this?" He asks, then turning to Alpha asks again. "Am I?"
"Zordon, I think they deserve to know." Alpha says.
"You're right Alpha. Billy, you're not wrong." Zordon explains. "It's time I told you the truth. The truth about the White Ranger."
END CHAPTER 2