A/N I don't own the Power rangers, characters or plot but anything that is unrecognisable does belong to me. And credit for the monster goes out to my beta reader Michelle the Editor.
Copyright goes to Saban.
Power Ranger: Shift in Time
Chapter 5 - Missing Goodbye
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It was very early in the morning when Kendrix and Maya's communicator watches went off for the first time. They were already up, and they quickly teleported into the Power Chamber. Adam and Rocky were already there, along with Dimitria and Alpha 6.
"A monster?" Kendrix asked. Both she and Maya looked apprehensive, yet excited. The new Yellow Ranger looked at the viewscreen on the far wall. This thing didn't look too different from the monsters they'd fought.
"You guys ready to suit up?" Adam asked. The girls nodded, and fell in their new morphing stances.
"Shift into Turbo!" Rocky shouted. The two girls imitated his and Adam's gestures.
"Dune Star Turbo Power!"
"Wind Chaser Turbo Power!"
They teleported out, materializing in front of an abandoned warehouse. A seven-foot marionette with a bulbous white face and garishly colored clothes stood there, shooting strings from his hands and laughing as he pulled down chunks of buildings. The Rangers charged into battle, only for a horde of Piranhatrons to join in.
"Auto Blaster!" Kendrix shouted, drawing the red handgun and firing at the Piranhatrons. Three fell back, armor sparking, and the Pink Ranger dove through them. Seizing another by the collar, Maya charged at a crouch, plowing through the horde and throwing it at the monster. Cords shot from its hands, seizing the foot soldier and throwing it into a wall.
"Man, I sure hope Tommy shows up soon," said Adam, slamming two Piranhatrons' heads together. Then he jolted, as if something had hit him in the back. The last of the Piranhatrons fled, and Rocky came up beside the Green Ranger.
"Something wrong?" Without turning, Adam backhanded Rocky across the face, and Rocky stumbled back. "Oh great."
"What's wrong with him?" Maya called, standing up. Then something hit her in the side, and she clutched at her ribs with a sudden yelp of pain. Then her thoughts slipped away, and she felt nothing.
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It was very early in the morning when Tommy's alarm woke him. He rubbed his eyes, hit the off button, and glanced over at the time. The clock read 5:00 am. He stretched, got up, and began to pull on the clothes he had laid out the night before—he was going to Kat's house to see her off. He had just climbed into his car, when his communicator sounded. He sighed, and hoped it was just Alpha telling him to say goodbye to Kat for him, but he had no such luck.
"Tommy, Divatox has sent a monster called the Puppet Master down to the abandoned warehouses, and the others need your help!" Tommy hesitated.
"Okay Alpha, I'm on my way," he answered.
Getting out of his car, he teleported, and was met by the Puppet Master. For some reason, only Rocky was still trying to attack it—the others just stood in a line between him and the creature.
"Guys, get out of the way!" Tommy yelled.
"Tommy, he's controlling them—" Rocky shouted, turning around. Then the monster raised a hand, and Rocky jerked as if he'd been hit in the back. He stumbled forward a step, then straightened and stepped into line with the others.
"Guys, snap out of it!" Tommy shouted. They didn't move or speak. The monster laughed.
"My puppets, attack the Red Ranger!" Puppet Master called. Now they charged.
Rocky came at him first, and tried to punch him in the stomach, but Tommy blocked the blow. Then his feet were kicked out from under him, and he fell flat on his back. Maya tried to pin him to the ground, and Kendrix punched him in the chest. Twisting free from Maya's grasp, Tommy sprang up, jumping over Adam's sweep kick. Looking up, Tommy caught sight of a fine, barely visible string leading from Adam's back to the monster's hand.
"So that's how you're controlling them," he said, and charged at the monster. "Turbo Lightning Sword!" With a shout, he leaped forward and cut through the invisible strings. There was a burst of energy, and the others crumpled.
The other Rangers shook their heads as the spell over them broke, and getting back up, they fell into line with Tommy.
"Sorry about that," Adam said.
"Not your fault," Tommy replied quickly, than he turned to Maya and Kendrix.
"Turbo Ram Cannon!" shouted Tommy, and the weapon appeared in their grasp. They aimed at the Puppet Master, fired, and hit him directly in the stomach. With a wail, the Puppet Master exploded.
"We need Turbo Megazord power, now!" Tommy called. The five cars arrived in no time, and the Rangers linked them up to form their Megazord. They began to battle the monster, but as they lumbered forward, and the monster shot strings from his hands, entangling the Megazord.
"I can't control this thing!" Maya cried, as the Puppet Master threw them into a skyscraper. The machine Zord began to spark as Puppet Master slammed them around.
"Power Sword!" Tommy shouted, and sliced through the cords with a few quick sweeps. The power came back, and the Megazord stood up. "I have had enough of this creep. Spin Attack!"
"Wait," cried Puppet Master. "I was only playing—"
The Turbo Megazord spun and ripped through Puppet Master. He exploded into thousands of tiny pieces, scattering over the city. As the Megazord began disassembling, Tommy looked at his watch.
"Shoot, I hope I'm not too late," he muttered, teleporting out. He decided to skip the car ride and go straight to Kat's house, but when he arrived, the car was already gone. Tommy just stood on the empty driveway for a few minutes. Then, slowly, he turned and started walking away.
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Maya stopped her Jet Jammer far enough from the wormhole to be safe, and began scanning the area for any traces of energy. She was still pumped from the fight, and realized with a start that even though she had only been a Ranger again for one day, it was going to be hard to give it up to someone else. Still, she couldn't keep the powers for long.
Maya checked the scanner, but found nothing. Sighing, she turned her Jet Jammer back around. She flew back down to the warehouse district, retrieved Kendrix's Jet Jammer, and headed to the Power Chamber. Kendrix was waiting for her.
"Did you find anything?" Asked Kendrix.
"No nothing," Maya said. She sighed and demorphed.
"Then I'm back at square one. Everything seems normal, but it can't be," Kendrix groaned. Maya walked over to Kendrix, and put her arm around her.
"Kendrix, relax, you'll figure this out, I know you will. It'll just take time."
"I know. Things would be easier if Alpha would let me near the computers," she answered, with a touch of bitterness. The two girls looked over at Alpha, who had been following them around. He'd actually been doing this since the power transfer.
"I don't think he trusts us yet," said Maya, shaking her head. With a sigh, Kendrix turned to one of the main computers, only for Alpha 6 to step in her way.
"Yo yo yo, I told you not to touch nothin!"
"Why not? Alpha, I need the computers to run scans, I can't do this by hand anymore!" Kendrix was nearly shouting. Maya caught her friend by the shoulder, startled by her fierceness.
"Kendrix, come on, you're working too hard, let's get out of here for a while." Alpha 6 folded his arms, and gave a curt nod. Quickly, Maya pulled on Kendrix's arm and teleported them out of the Power Chamber.
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"Hey Tanya, how's your radio show going?" Asked Rocky, as he and Adam reached the former Yellow Ranger. They were all in the park's picnic area, all but empty because it was a weekday.
"Pretty good. I'm hosting my own show from two to three pm every weekday. My boss told me if I keep doing a good job, he'll give me more airtime," she told them, grinning.
"Wow, Tanya, that's great!" Exclaimed Rocky. Glancing over at Adam, Tanya's smile faded a little. He hadn't said anything, and he had a thoughtful look on his face.
"Adam, you okay?" She asked, touching his arm. He jumped a little.
"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine. So, will we see you around Angel Grove, or will you be really busy with your show?" Asked Adam. Rocky's sharp ears picked up on the nervousness in Adam voice, and he chuckled a little.
"Hey, why so nervous, dude?" He elbowed Adam, only for the Green Ranger to give a very fake laugh and look down at the ground. Tanya gave him a 'soft' punch to shoulder, which almost knocked him off balance.
"Rocky, stop picking on him. Don't you guys worry, I'll still be around all the time," Tanya said. Adam looked up, and she gave him a knowing smile, earning one in return from him.
This was unseen by Rocky, as he had noticed Maya and Kendrix approaching them, and was waving madly at them to gain their attention. The two girls joined them, and they all greeted each other cheerfully. Kendrix's bad mood slipped away almost before anyone had time to notice.
"I heard about your fight with the Puppet Master; how did your first fight back in spandex go?" Tanya asked, turning to Maya and Kendrix.
"It was different, that's for sure. That was the first time I've ever been turned against my own team," Kendrix commented, with a wry smile.
"Yeah, it was definitely a new feeling," Maya said, shuddering. She shook her head. "I've never felt so empty before." Adam, Rocky, and Tanya looked at the girls in surprise.
"What? Never?" asked Rocky incredulously. "Man, I can't even count how many times one of us has been turned bad."
"First Tommy started as an evil Green Ranger," began Tanya.
"Then once a girl who fancied Billy made a statue of him in art class, and Rita brought it to life, but that's a clone, so I guess it doesn't really count," added Rocky. "But Zedd did it really to get the Power Coins and Dragon Dagger. Then there was the drug that turned him and Kim into punks, and Kat had to be an evil cat-girl-monster-thing for who knows how long."
"Oh, and then Jason and Kimberly got put under the control of a demon named Maligore, and we had to fight them—though that was after they retired…" Adam trailed off.
Yeah," said Tanya, "The worst one was when Prince Gasket captured Tommy and brainwashed him into thinking he was King of the Machine Empire. Kat did most of the work getting him back that time."
"At least no one from your team very got killed," Kendrix replied. Tanya sucked in a sharp breath, and the guys' eyes widened.
"Say what?" Asked Rocky. "You mean someone on your old team—" Maya looked suddenly tearful, and Kendrix put an arm around her.
"Me," Kendrix replied quietly.
"She was saving another Ranger's life, and Terra Venture," Maya added. Adam, Rocky and Tanya stared at Kendrix.
"After I—died, my spirit returned to Mirinoi, which is where we found our Sabers in the first place. When Maya and the others returned to Mirinoi and returned the Quasar Sabers to the stone, I was revived." Kendrix gave a little shrug, and everyone was silent for a few minutes.
Then, looking up, Tanya frowned at the high sun, and checked her watch.
"Shoot, I have to go I am on the air in five minutes. It was nice talking to you guys, but I have to run," she said, and ran off towards the radio station. The Rangers called goodbyes, and then Tanya was out of sight. The awkwardness left shortly after she did, though, but Maya kept the serious note.
"I don't know if you guys already know this or not, but Kendrix and I won't be keeping these powers for long. We don't know what damage it would do to the future, and we can't take any risks. Seeing as we don't know anyone in Angel Grove, we could really use your help to find two people to take over from us." Rocky and Adam exchanged a look.
"I understand that now, and sure, I'd be glad to help," Adam said.
"Count me in," Rocky added. "I like you ladies, but…yeah."
"Thanks, guys," said Maya gratefully.
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