Finally, huh? Don't ask me why, but I wanted to have a "male Tori" type character in this one… Not that he turned out that way. I don't think he did, really.

Back to Action!

Corey Hart wasn't your typical surfer dude. Despite the short, unruly blond hair, sparkling blue eyes, and the kind of tan only a beach bum could achieve, Kimberly's teenaged cousin wasn't all that he seemed. He didn't even really speak like a surfer. When he wasn't catching a wave or spending time with his friends, he usually had his nose in a book, sci-fi or fantasy more often than not.

His best friend, Garrett Wilson, was almost as big of a sci-fi fan as Corey was. In fact, when they walked out of the bookstore into the bright afternoon sunlight, Garrett was already thumbing through an inch-thick Akira manga. The dark-skinned boy's green eyes were alight with excitement as they scanned the pages. "Dude, this war between Akira and Tetsuro is getting crazy!"

"Cool, maybe I'll read it when you're done."

Though the two friends had similar tastes, the two friends differed greatly in appearance. Corey often dressed like a surfer – today's attire consisted of a black tank top, board shorts, and a pair of sandles. Garrett, on the other hand, had on a simple blue T-shirt with a black Japanese character over the left breast, a pair of denim blue jeans, and white low-top sneakers. The two of them walked along the sidewalk, talking and jostling each other, with Garrett occasionally pointing out a series of manga panels he thought was particularly cool or interesting.

There were quite a few people out at this time of day, and most were able to weave around the two teens without complaint. They decided to take a shortcut through the park, which added pretty girls to the list of distractions to keep them from paying attention to where they were going. Garrett was doubled over with laughter at a joke Corey had just told, and didn't see his friend stop short, though he felt the blond boy's fingers grasp his collar and yank him up straight.

Garrett couldn't believe his eyes. Barring their way was a row of grey figures, waving their arms and shifting their weight back and forth on the balls of their feet. They looked almost human, except for the cracked-clay appearance of their faces and hands, and the silver harnesses they wore over their chests, which were embossed with the letter Z. The sound they made was deafening, a strange gurgling that sounded like a cross between a ghostly moan and the babbling of a forest stream.

As the two friends watched, frozen in shock, the grey figures began to fan out, forming a circle so the boys wouldn't be able to escape. The Z-Putties then rushed forward to attack all at once. The teens would be overwhelmed in a matter of seconds if they didn't recover and fight back.

Suddenly a red-and-white streak flashed between the Z-Putties and their quarry. Sparks flew, and several of the Putties fell to the ground in fits of violent twitching, then burst into pieces and disappeared. The Red Power Ranger seemed to dance amongst those remaining, his sword slashing out, almost too fast for the naked eye. Several more Putties fell in his wake, and several of them turned away from Garrett and Corey to attack this new foe instead.

"Hit 'em in the Z!" the Red Ranger shouted, still pressing his attack. "It's the only way you'll be able to defeat them!"

The boys seemed a little dazed by what was happening, but Garrett was able to snap out of it with some effort. He was just in time, too, as a large clay fist swung towards his friend's face. He pushed Corey out of the way and ducked beneath the flailing arm, striking out with his own fist at the large Z on the Putty's chest. It fell to the ground, twitching and breaking apart just like the others had.

Corey had landed hard on his backside, and the impact seemed to have yanked him out of his haze. He jumped to his feet and took up a fighting stance. "Sorry man, I was out of it, there."

Garrett nodded, adopting a stance of his own. "It's all good. Now let's kick some butt!"

It so happened that both boys were promising martial artists, and they could hold their own pretty well against human opponents. The Z-Putties were just average fighters, but had superhuman strength and speed on their side, and could rely on strength in numbers if they had to. Quite a few went down under the teens' assault, but they were tireless enemies, and the two humans could only fight for so long, even with a Power Ranger to help.

Garrett took a club-like clay fist to the side of his head and went sprawling. Corey turned to check on his friend, only to receive a vicious kick to the back that knocked him to the ground as well. The Putties pressed their advantage. All at once the Red Ranger was standing over them, brandishing his sword menacingly to keep the foes at bay. He took a hand off the hilt of the Power Sword just long enough to unhook a pair of extra Power Morphers from his belt, handing one to each of the prone teenagers. They rose shakily to their feet, staring at the objects they now held.

"Is this what I think it is?" Corey asked, to which the Red Ranger only nodded, before continuing his attack.

The boys shared a look and a grin.

"This is gonna be so cool!" Garrett exclaimed. "It's Morphin' Time!"

"Mastodon!"

"Triceratops!"

There was a bright flash of light, and the Black Ranger and Blue Ranger stood now in Corey and Garrett's respective places. Summoning their Power Weapons, they jumped back into the fray, and in no time the three Rangers had made short work of the remaining Z-Putties. As the last remnants of their fallen foes disappeared, the two new Rangers approached the mysterious Red Ranger.

"That was amazing! I never thought I'd see these suits again, let alone be wearing one," said Corey.

Garrett nodded his agreement, then gestured toward the Red Ranger. "Yeah, but who are you?"

"I'm not supposed to tell you yet," the unknown Ranger replied. "Get to Corey's cousin's house as soon as possible, and you'll learn everything you need to know. My work's not done yet."

And before they could ask anymore questions, the Red Ranger touched both hands to his Morpher and teleported away. Garrett and Corey looked around, making sure they were alone, and then shed their Ranger guises.

"Dude," Garrett said, "are we Power Rangers now?"

"I think so, but who was that?" Corey asked again. "And what did he mean when he said his work wasn't finished?"

"I don't know, but I think we better get over to your cousin's house, like he said."

The two glanced at each other, nodded in unison, and headed off in the direction of Kim and Jason's.