Dino Thunder: Return of the Eclipse: Chapter 17: Lost and Found in Translation
Disclaimer: Saban owns all Power Ranger lines.
Copyright: All unrecognizable parts and characters are under December's Phoenix's copyright.
Summary: TV shows can be accurate.
It was a late night for the Rangers. They had a social studies paper due in a few days, and they all agreed to meet at the library to finish their papers together. Only… Ethan didn't show up. Instead, they tracked his morpher to Hayley's. When they arrived and slipped in, they heard different cartoonish sounds from the large TV in front of the red couches. "What's going on?" Conner asked the two girls quietly.
"No clue," Kira answered, earning a head shake from Lucy. The three made their way through the tables, chairs stacked on table tops. Rounding the TV, the three saw Ethan lounging on the couch, a bucket of popcorn on his chest. He held a remote in his hand, continuously flipping through channels, laughing.
"Dude, what are you doing?" Conner asked. "We were supposed to meet at the library."
Ethan changed the channel again. "Hayley got a new satellite dish. Nine hundred and thirty-seven channels of paradise."
"Nine hundred channels?" Lucy asked, glancing at the TV and then at Ethan, smirking. "There's nothing on, is there?"
"Are you kidding me? This is amazing." Ethan told the team, holding the remote up. "Foreign language soap operas, sumo wrestling, junior girls high school synchronized swimming. I may never leave this room again!"
"You sounded too enthusiastic on that last one," Lucy commented, fully rounding the table to sit next to Ethan, dropping her backpack by her feet for her to kick under the coffee table. "Also, you might have to leave at some point. Stinky people aren't allowed." She told him, snagging some of his popcorn. She protested with Ethan when Conner turned the TV off.
"Hey!" Ethan flicked the TV on again. "I was watching that."
"What about your social studies assignment about comparing two countries?" Conner asked, watching Kira move to the couch to sit beside Lucy.
"I'm almost done," Ethan answered.
Kira smiled. "Me too."
"I finished mine last week," Lucy answered, shifting around until she pulled her feet under her and had Kira hand her a blanket. "I'm cold, don't laugh." She muttered to the Yellow Ranger, settling back into the couch with her blanket over her lap.
"Well, I haven't started. I'll see you guys later." Conner pointed to Lucy. "Let me know when I need to come to pick you up."
"You got it, babe."
Ethan flipped to another channel, immediately rising to sit up. "No way." He breathed, and Kira and Lucy gasped. "Conner, you gotta see this."
"What?" Conner asked, moving back into the living room area to see what the fuss was about. On the screen was a TV show…about Power Rangers.
"Whoa, it's us." Kira breathed.
"Not exactly." Conner hummed, sitting down between Lucy and Kira. He dropped his backpack on the floor between him and his girlfriend.
Ethan scrambled for the guide. "According to the satellite guide, it's a Japanese show about the world-famous Power Rangers. They even dubbed it in English!"
"We're a TV show in Japan?" Kira asked, excitement dripping in her voice. "I've gotta see this."
Lucy pointed to the screen, popping another piece of popcorn into her mouth. "Look, there's Dr. O." She laughed. The morph sequence of the Black Ranger appeared on the screen.
"Maybe not," Ethan added.
"Looks whack," Conner noted.
"How do you know it's whack?" The Blue Ranger fired back. "You're even giving it a chance."
"It wasn't even made here." Conner protested, leaning back against the couch. "What would they know about Power Rangers in Japan?"
"There's only one way to find out," Lucy told him, glancing at him for a second. "I'd like to know what they think about us."
She couldn't believe the fresh fruit and vegetables in front of her. Everything from ripe apples to heads of lettuce to peppers to spices was scattered across the table. Standing at the end was a girl dressed in a silver jacket, fitted black pants, and sneakers. An identical girl stood beside her in a gold jacket instead of a silver one. Standing at the stove, scooping food into a fish-shaped bowl, was a girl dressed in a yellow jacket and shorts. Around her was a girl in an orange and red sweater. Standing on the stool was a boy in a red coat.
"Who wants to try some of my curry?" Yellow Ranger smiled, turning around to face the four around her. A fish-shaped bowl in her hands was full of rice and curry.
The girl in orange—Emiri—sniffed the air. "Smells delicious. Just like mom used to make."
"Sure looks good." Red Ranger spoke.
"Thanks," Yellow Ranger smiled.
At that moment, a boy in a blue jacket moved through the curtain, separating the back of the house from the kitchen. He held a newspaper in his hands. "Hey, how's it going?"
"Hey." The five chorused.
Blue Ranger sat down, opening the newspaper to read the headlines. "Whacker Wilson is coming in Japan. Those American baseball players are always so greedy." He sighed.
His triceratops-headed morpher opened its mouth, a voice floating from the morpher. "How do you know? Have you met them all?"
"Who asked you?" The boy returned.
"Ah, too spicy!" Red Ranger cried out.
"Toughen up," Yellow Ranger snarked.
"That's how my mom makes it," Emiri spoke.
"A little spicy is good." Gold Ranger told the Red Ranger, patting him on the shoulder.
"You guys should taste my curry." Blue Ranger announced to the team, rising from his seat and abandoning his newspaper.
"I can't taste anything anymore." Red Ranger answered.
"I'll make some." Blue Ranger said, lifting a pineapple and tossing it in the air with a smirk. "You'll love it."
Three of the four Rangers protested loudly when Conner flicked the TV off. They turned to him, seeing him lean back in his spot, a hand resting on Lucy's thigh. "We were watching that." The ninja told her boyfriend.
"This is weird." Conner glanced at his team. "They've got it all wrong."
"Hello, secret identities," Ethan stated as if it was the easiest thing to understand. "How are they supposed to know what we're like?"
Conner sat up, nudging Lucy's arm just a bit. "Yeah, but did you see the red guy? I mean, he's nothing like me."
Kira leaned behind Conner to exchange eye rolls with Lucy. "Just because something is different doesn't mean it's bad." She tried.
"I'm nothing like the blue guy," Ethan stated around a mouthful of popcorn. "But I, for one, what to know what kind of curry he's making."
"Graceful," Lucy muttered. "And, can we get back to this? I wanna know what happens." She turned, her eyes registering what was on the screen. "Oh, look, the evil villains' lair." She smiled, leaning back against Conner's side, his arm around her shoulders.
"I hate the Power Rangers." A woman, dressed from head to toe in red, spoke, snarling in the corner of the lair. "But the Black Ranger I hate most of all!" She stood from her kneeling position, ripping out a red-hilted katana, and swung while snarling.
A little girl, no older than twelve, rose from the steps of a pod a few feet away. She wore all white, the dress flowing in the breeze she created, stomping to the older woman. "Hey, here's a thought. Instead of mumbling to yourself, why don't you finally do something about it?" She snarked.
"Great idea, boss," Monster number 1 spoke, giggling into his hands.
"I love it. No wonder you're in charge." Monster number 2 added.
The girl in white whirled on them, her eyes glowing green. "That's right; I am in charge, don't forget it." She threw her hands out, sending bolts of green lightning at the two as a warning. Then, she whirled back around on the woman in red. "As for you, Missy, I know you borrowed my hairspray without asking. take that!" She flung her hands out again, shocking the woman in red for a second.
"Hairspray." Monster number 2 muttered, rubbing his prominent chin. "That gives me an idea. Nothing is more frightening than a bad haircut. Ah, the mushroom, so yesterday. So evil." He murmured, flipping through a book with bad haircuts and adding powers.
"That's their evil plan?" Conner asked slowly and softly. "Bad hair days."
"Hey, I've seen you have some pretty bad hair days. It's scary." Kira told him, returning to the show.
Lucy patted Conner on the leg, chuckling, giving him moral support. "Shh." She commented to Kira, flicking a piece of popcorn at her and hitting the Yellow Ranger in the cheek.
The door swung open, causing all the Rangers to jump and whip around to the new figure. "Hey, dingus." Crystal's voice called. All the Rangers on the couch sighed in relief as the figure of the Gold Ranger appeared in the dim light. She placed her hands on her hips and quirked an eyebrow. "You were supposed to call me when you got home."
"What time is it?" Lucy asked, rubbing her eyes.
"Nearly midnight," Crystal answered, checking the small wristwatch on her right wrist. "Mom nearly had a heart attack when you didn't call and demanded that I come get you, except you weren't at the library like I thought." She wore what Lucy considered her pjs—an old t-shirt of Dad's and sleep shorts with her sneakers hastily put on, one tied and the other lazily knotted.
"Oh, sorry." The Silver Ranger winced. "Ethan's been scrolling through the new channels Hayley got."
Crystal walked further into the room, stopping behind the couch to view the screen. "What is it?" She asked, blinking and leaning over the back of the sofa, over her sister, to see the TV. "Is that supposed to be us?"
Ethan nodded enthusiastically. "It's a Japanese version of the Power Ranger."
"Huh, who knew." Crystal smiled. "Can I join?"
"Sure, but I don't think you'll fit on the couch." Kira stated.
"That's fine." Crystal moved around, plopping down on the loveseat near Kira. "I'll stretch out."
"What is it?" Red Ranger asked.
"Curry fruit surprise. Try it." Blue Ranger answered. The five glanced at each other and then began to take off. The boy in blue stepped forward. "Guys?"
The five turned in on each other. "I can't eat it; I'll hurl," Yellow Ranger answered.
"I have acid reflux," Emiri added.
"Someone has to eat it." Silver Ranger whispered harshly.
Gold Ranger sighed. "Then who?"
The bell rang, and an older gentleman rushed into the room. "Top of the morning." He spoke with an Irish accent on his words.
"Mr. O'Shaughnessy!" The five breathed sighs of relief. Yellow Ranger smiled brightly.
"Have we got something for you?" Red Ranger told him.
The older man tried to rush out of the room, but the gaggle of teenagers stopped him. "Wait, I hope you're hungry," Gold Ranger spoke, helping Red Ranger take Mr. O'Shaughnessy to a seat. "Here, have a seat."
"We have a big surprise for you." Yellow Ranger smiled. She turned to Emiri. "Got get it."
"Here it is." Emiri grinned brightly, lifting the decorative plate of food from the counter and missing the shocked expression from the blue boy. "Yummy, yummy."
"It smells funny," Mr. O'Shaughnessy noted, holding the plate before him.
"Just one bite." Red Ranger encouraged.
"Yeah," Emiri nodded. She rose when she spotted someone going towards them. A boy in a matching jacket to the other boys, only this one was back. "Hey, Mikey, what are you doing here?"
Mikey moved his hand to his stomach. "I'm starving. You got anything to eat around?" He asked, glancing at his team, smiling.
Mr. O'Shaughnessy quickly rose to his feet. "Here, this is your lucky day."
"It's free?" Mikey asked, already digging into the plate.
"I'll even pay you for it." Mr. O'Shaughnessy nodded.
Everyone watched him in disgust. Mikey continued to eat it. The only person remotely happy about it was the boy in blue. "He likes it. He likes it." Blue Ranger spoke.
"So it seems." Gold Ranger commented.
Mikey placed the rest of the food back on the tray. Suddenly, he turned around, slapping his hand to his mouth and making a mad dash for the bathroom. "Where's the bathroom?" He frantically scrambled for the door.
"Mikey!" Emiri called after him, running to check on him, but the door slammed closed fast.
"Everyone's a critic." Blue Ranger muttered.
Silver Ranger perked up when she heard the emergency sound ringing. "Guys looks like we have an emergency."
Gold and Yellow Ranger started to motion Mr. O'Shaughnessy out of the restaurant. "I'll show you out, Mr. O'Shaughnessy. You can take that to go." The two closed the door on him, smiling brightly at the older man.
"Alien life forms detected downtown." Blue Ranger reported sitting at the computer in the restaurant's kitchen.
"Right." Red Ranger nodded. He turned to the girl sitting on the floor in front of the bathroom. "How's he doing in there?"
Emiri started to slam on the door. "Black Ranger, we need you!"
They heard soft moans from the bathroom. Red Ranger made a decision. "We don't have time." He turned to Emiri. "Hey, clean up after him, okay?"
On the other side of the city, near the harbor, a man in a red tracksuit with a black and white leather jacket walked around with a duffle back and a slim tube over his shoulders. He breathed deeply, glancing around with his sunglasses and hood over his face. "I've always wanted to see Japan." He murmured, taking in the city. He stopped when he heard screaming and saw people scrambling to escape a monster. "What is that?"
"Oh, come one, that is a guy in a rubber suit." Conner pointed out, sighing.
"No one said this was a documentary." Ethan snipped around another mouthful of popcorn. "Use your imagination."
"Like anyone's going to believe a combination bear, mushroom, ATM monster." Conner listed out.
"Is it any stranger than anything we've been fighting?" Kira asked.
Lucy nodded. "You have to admit; we've fought some weird monsters." She reached for another handful of popcorn from Ethan's large bucket.
Crystal snorted. "We've seen weirder." She commented, tugging a blanket from the back of the couch and slung it over her body.
"My name is Ka-Ching, a monster who feeds on greed. With my magic wigs," Ka-Ching held a pale pink mushroom. "I will soon control the world." He threw the first mushroom at a man, causing him to form a short, pink bob wig. "Pink hair, quite a scare." He threw another mushroom, this time at an older woman. "Hi, Granny; time for a makeover."
Whacker stayed in his spot, watching everyone run for their lives. Then, he turned around to see the monster closer to him. "What the?"
"Lookie here, an American tourist. You look like you're ready for a new do!"
"Hey, bear monster thing!"
"What?" KaChing turned around, finding the five Rangers standing behind him. "Wait your turn!"
"Let's do it." Red Rangers announced, lifting his morpher, with the rest of the team following his lead.
Dino Thunder, Power Up!
Eclipse Ranger, Dino Power!
After intently watching their morphing sequence, all the Rangers glanced around. "I didn't tell anyone," Ethan stated, glancing at his team. "You guys?"
Kira had a slightly panicked look on her face. "Not me. Lucy? Crystal?"
"You think I'd rat people out?" Lucy asked, leaning her head on Conner's shoulder.
Crystal snorted. "Nice try, Kira."
"Hey, at least we're getting some action," Conner told the team.
"Ready, guys?" Red Ranger asked. "Tyranno power, Red Ranger."
"Tricera power, Blue Ranger."
"Ptera power, Yellow Ranger."
"Guardian of the Sun, Gold Ranger."
"Guardian of the Moon, Silver Ranger."
"Dino Rangers!" The five called.
Crystal shot up, her eyes finding her sister doubled over, coughing violently. She leaped from her spot, vaulting over the bar to grab a glass for her sister. Once the glass filled with water, Crystal turned to find Kira waiting for the cup.
Lucy continued to cough roughly, Conner and Ethan patting her back to help clear her throat. She accepts the cup, coughing before she downed nearly the entire mug. Once she could breathe properly, she glanced around her. "I'm good." She croaked, sucking in another breath. She glanced at her sister, the blonde with an eyebrow quirked. "Don't start."
"Start what?" Crystal challenged, smiling at her coughing sister. "Start what, huh? Tease you about choking on popcorn. The mighty Lunar Guardian taken down by cooked corn kernels?"
"It wasn't intentional; you know that, right?" Lucy shot back, coughing a few more times after. She winced when Conner smacked her back. "Easy, I'm fragile. You know this." She gulped down a few breaths.
Kira turned to Crystal. "How did you slide across the bar like that?" She asked, referring to Crystal practically hurdling over the bar. "That was awesome."
Crystal smiled bashfully, scratching the back of her head. "Ninja training." She stated, still smiling. "I didn't even know I could do it until I did if I'm being sincere." She laughed, sitting back on her claimed loveseat and pulling the blanket over her bare legs. "Man, I didn't think they would put us in there." She shook her head. "Okay, now that my sister isn't dying, can we get back? I wanna know what the bear does."
Ethan and Kira nodded, reclining back.
"Very impressive." Ka-Ching clapped. "But I bought some special guest stars, Triptoids!" A group of triptoids rushed passed Whacker Wilson, leaving him confused. They charged the Rangers. The five fell into their pods of monsters, fighting them. "Smash and bash, and I'll pay you cash," Ka-Ching spoke. "Wait until I unleash my mushrooms on the Rangers."
The Red Ranger appeared with a brown wig attached to his helmet. "Red Ranger." A series of horse sounds appeared with him.
"Blue Ranger." He had a light brown wig attached to his helmet and cat resounds.
"Yellow Ranger." She had a purple wig on, followed by birds chirping.
"Gold Ranger." A vibrant green wig sprang from her helmet before a dog barked.
"Silver Ranger." A pale yellow wig was attached to her helmet, a goat bleating right after she spoke.
"Wiggy Rangers!" A montage of Dinozords with wigs on appeared, each wig matching their Ranger's wig.
The Red Ranger flicked strands of his hair away from his visor. "And my hair has bounce."
Conner scoffed. "Oh, that's it. I mean, they're making fun of us." He sat up carefully. "I'm out of here."
"Conner, wait," Lucy called, making the Ranger turn to face her. "So this isn't accurate of what we do as Rangers. So what? It's not like it's supposed to tell the story of the Dino Rangers."
"I think it's kind of fun," Crystal added, tucking the blanket under her chin as she curled on the loveseat. "A fresh take on fighting evil."
"You haven't even given it a chance; don't you want to see how it ends?" Kira asked.
"It ends with me heading out that door to the library and finishing my report. I'll see you guys later." Conner walked out of the cafe.
"He'll be back." Lucy sighed, wiggling around to get comfortable between Kira and Ethan.
"How do you know?" Ethan asked.
"He forgot this." The Silver Ranger lifted his backpack from the ground.
"Plus before I showed up, he was taking her home." Crystal butted in. "Mom banned her from ninja streaking at night after she ran into a tree and gave herself a concussion."
Lucy grunted when Kira and Ethan laughed. "Don't make fun of me."
"You were feet from home." Crystal added, causing more laughter.
"Shall we?" Ethan smiled at the two ladies, laughing when Crystal climbed from her spot, smushing herself between the Yellow and Silver Rangers, laughing while wrapping them up in her blanket.
"This is gonna be hilarious." Ka-Ching grinned, pulling another mushroom from himself. He threw it at Whacker, making all the Rangers stop fighting to see what was happening.
Instead of running, he pulled a wooden baseball bat from the slim dude around his shoulders and swung as hard as possible. The mushroom flew back towards Ka-Ching, hitting him squarely in the chest. A bright teal and dark blue wig appeared in seconds, making everyone in the battle laugh. "Hey! It's only funny when I do it!" He disappeared in seconds, the poofing wig seconds later. The triptoids followed him.
The Rangers stopped in front of the hooded baseball player. "Who are you?" Silver Ranger asked, stepping forward.
Whacker Wilson removed his hood and sunglasses. The Blue Ranger stepped forward, relinquishing his morph. "It's Whacker Wilson, the greedy American baseball player." The rest of the Rangers stepped forward in shock.
Whacker shouldered his bags. "You guys are good fighters. See you again." He started to take off.
"Wait! What are you doing here?" Red Ranger asked, making Wilson stop.
Whacker turned around, dropping everything. "Oh, my back is killing me." He moved quickly to the Rangers. "I heard the world's best chiropractor lives here."
Gold Ranger nodded. "You're right."
"He does," Silver Ranger added.
"You're not here to play baseball?" Blue Ranger asked, tilting his head.
"How can I play baseball when I can hardly move?" Whacker asked, motioning to his back. "I have to find this chiropractor. His name is Kenny Yukito."
"Huh?" All four surprised Rangers asked. Then, they pointed to the Blue Ranger. "That's him!"
Lucy glanced up from the TV to hear footsteps against the wooden floor. Conner came back into view. He rounded the couch, stopping right behind where she sat. She wiped off the popcorn accumulated on his backpack, lifting it slightly for him. "Come on, Con, take a seat. Enjoy the show." She told him.
Conner took the backpack from her, setting it behind the couch and leaning down near her head. "Is it that good?" He asked her quietly.
Lucy turned, her eyes focusing on him for a second before she blinked, her brown eyes looking even lighter in the light of the TV. "You never know unless you watch for yourself."
"Hey!" Crystal turned her head to the couple. "Shut up. I'm trying to watch TV here."
The Guardian threw popcorn at Crystal. "Don't shh me. I'm bestowing wisdom."
"Okay, just relax," Kenny spoke from the table in an arena.
The rest of the Rangers sat at the top, Red Ranger holding a bag of popcorn for him and the three girls to share. "I read that Whacker Wilson makes five million a year." Gold Ranger spoke from where she sat before the Red and Yellow Rangers. Silver Ranger sat next to her, happily munching on popcorn.
"Five million?" Red Ranger asked with disbelief in his voice.
"Yeah." Gold Ranger nodded.
"Do you guys think Kenny's right?" Silver Ranger asked. "That Whacker's only in it for the money?"
They turned around to face the two when Kenny started his walk up the stairs, morphed. "Good to meet you, Whacker Wilson. Enjoy your stay in Japan."
"I'm starting to see the moral here," Kira said, glancing at the team.
"What? That Power Rangers are doofuses?" Conner shot back.
"No, that money isn't everything," Kira answered. She then swatted Conner's arm. "Have you not been paying attention?"
Conner sighed, reaching down to grab some of the popcorn that Ethan munched on. The Blue Ranger smacked his hand, earning a grunt from Conner. "Hey, share."
"I can enjoy my time here in Japan," Whacker muttered. "It's beautiful." He turned when he felt a pat on his shoulder. "Yeah?" His smile turned to shock to see the monster standing there.
"Don't be scared. I want your autograph, Mr famous baseball star." Ka-Ching answered, holding out a large pad of paper and a pen. He then lifted his paw, exposing a mushroom. "Have a mushroom!" He shoved it into Whacker's face. "American sports heroes are so gullible. That's what you get for having such a huge ego. Time to get wiggy with it!"
Crystal groaned when Conner slid in front of the TV, his arms holding his flannel to cover the screen. "Conner!" She grumbled, throwing a pillow at him.
"Okay, it's bad enough that they made us look like fools, but to make fun of our sports heroes? Where is your pride? I will not sit here and let them get away with this." Conner explained.
"Hon, don't you think you're overreacting just a little?" Lucy asked.
Kira groaned. "It's a TV show."
"Yeah, but don't you see what this represents?" The Red Ranger asked. "This is what they think of us in Japan!"
"How can you say that this is one episode of one TV show!" Crystal pointed out, sitting up rather quickly. "An, mind you, it's not even the entire episode!"
Ethan held out his hands. "Look, I suggest you sit down and watch the rest. You can write the TV station if you don't like what you saw. The congressman. The president, whatever. Right now, I want to see the Power Rangers can help Whacker Wilson learn the error of his ways." He pointedly told him. "Move."
Conner didn't enjoy it but violently closed his flannel, moving away from the screen. The four Rangers sighed. "Finally," Kira muttered. "Thank you."
"Okay, I'll give it another chance," Conner muttered. "Move over." He motioned to Kira, who did move over while Crystal rolled her eyes, rising and limping back to the loveseat and plopping down while the Red Ranger took her spot. He leaned back, wrapping an arm around the Silver Ranger and vaguely feeling her legs over his as she continued to munch on popcorn.
Kenny stood by himself at the harbor. "I was right about Whacker; he'll never change." He thought to himself, leaning on the railing.
"Hey, back cracker!" Whacker came jogging over to him, hood over his head. He had large bags with dollar signs on them in his hands. "Look at what I got!"
"What?"
"Big bulging bags of bucks."
Kenny started to walk away. "I told you that doesn't impress me."
Whacker dropped the bags onto the ground, riffling through them. "But I wanna pay you for fixing my back. How much do you want?"
"No, please," Kenny tried.
Whacker looked up, his hood falling to reveal a bright blue wig on his head. "How about ten thousand dollars?"
"Where'd you get that?" Kenny motioned to the wig.
"Here." Whacker started to shovel stacks of money into Kenny's hands. "In the Home Run Derby, I cheated like crazy. Now I'm loaded. I bribed the opposing pitcher, and he tossed me big fat marshmallows. I hit them right out of the park and collected the big cash prize."
"Keep your money!" Kenny stated. "You're worse than I thought."
"No, take it, I insist." Whacker continued to shovel money into Kenny's arms. "Money is the only thing that makes you happy take it! Take it all."
"I don't want money!" Kenny finally had enough and threw the bag to the side.
"Oh, my money. Money. Money!" Whacker tried to pick up his money.
A cartoon seagull with a pink wig flew down and landed on Kenny's head, a stack of cash in his mouth. "What? This is crazy; even the birds are obsessed with money. they must be those bad wigs, my money." Kenny turned to Whacker. "Whacker, you gotta snap out of it! Whacker!" He turned when someone tapped his shoulder.
The monster stood behind him. "Hey, butt out! Time for a change!" He pressed the lever on his stomach, spitting out coin after coin from the ATM that his belly made up. Finally, it piled up, locking Kenny in a pile of cash. "Ha! There's nothing you can do to stop me. Soon, the whole world will be controlled by greed!"
The rest of the Rangers rounded Kenny. "Back off." They told him.
Red Ranger turned to Kenny. "Are you okay? And what are you doing in a pile of coins?"
"I think I got it." Yellow Ranger spoke. Yeah. Whacker Wilson must have done it.
"And he's right there!" The four pointed to the man on the floor.
"Money!" Whacker screamed.
"It wasn't Whacker, genius," Kenny announced. "It was the monster. we've gotta stop him." He morphed, bursting out of the pile of coins.
"Listen, Rangers; I've had enough of all your screaming and morphing hooey. Once and for all, I'm going to destroy you!" He fired off coins once more. The Rangers tried to defend, but the coins were too much, ending up with them being used back. "Fight with me, Rangers, and I'll make you rich! Rich! Rich!"
"Huh?" Gold Ranger asked. "Can you believe this guy?"
"Yeah, he thinks he can buy us off," Silver added.
"How much money are we talking about?" Red Ranger asked, rising from his stance.
All the Rangers looked at him. "Huh?"
"I mean, never!" Red Ranger yelled.
"You had us worried," Kenny commented.
Red folded his arms over his chest. "Well, it doesn't hurt to ask. Had you going though, didn't I?" He laughed.
"There you are!" Mikey announced, coming in on his raptor with a cart attached. "I've been looking for you. Oh boy. Hey guys, I think I have something that might help. grab one!"
"It's the Black Ranger!" Red pointed out.
"He's done ralphing," Yellow commented.
Each Ranger grabbed one of the coin containers from the back. "Let's get this loser!" Silver commented.
"So you brought some money bags, huh?" Ka-Ching noticed. "Well, let me help you fill them."
"Try to catch the money!" Red ordered.
"It's working!" Yellow smiled under her helmet, catching more and more coins hurling toward them. "Mine getting full!"
"So is mine!" Silver added. The pots were so full that the next round hit the Rangers, sending them flying back.
"Now, what are we going to do?" Red Ranger asked.
Whacker came around the corner, his money bags still in hand. "Hey, look at all the money Ka-Ching got me!"
Kenny stood up. "Whacker," He softly muttered. "If he does love baseball more than money, maybe we can save him. Now batting, number one, Whacker Wilson!" He lifted his coin container over his head, seeing Whacker stop to process Kenny's words. He threw it to Whacker. "Come on, Whacker!"
In a second, Whacker had pulled his bat out and swung a home run, having the coin container hit Ka-Ching square in the chest. It caused him to get knocked cold with asleep. Seconds later, the monster was up, confused and angry. He charged the Rangers, knocking them to the ground multiple times before they had to regroup.
"The world is mine!" Ka-Ching yelled. "No one can stop me!"
"I think it's time we trash the cash monster." Gold Ranger spoke, shouldering her blade.
Kenny curled his hand into a fist. "Okay, it's on."
"Z-Rex blaster!" The three primary Rangers called out, forming their large blaster. The Rangers aimed it and fired, sending a powerful blast at Ka-Ching, sending him to pieces.
"Yes!" Conner yelled, whooping loudly from where he stood on the couch. Ethan, Kira, Crystal, and Lucy glanced up at him, and the Red Ranger seemed to understand that they were all smirking at him. Conner composed himself. "I mean…it was kinda cool."
"See, we're not so different," Kira told him.
"It's just a slightly different interpretation," Crystal added.
"Ain't you glad you stayed?" Ethan asked.
Conner nodded. "Yeah, guess I did."
Lucy waved at Hayley the following morning when she and Conner passed her at the cafe bar. "Hey, Hayley, we're gonna borrow your terminal," Conner called, already moving to the couches, his hand in Lucy's.
"Help yourself," Hayley called.
The two sat on the couch they claimed last night, Conner pulling his laptop out of his backpack while Lucy tugged a blanket over her lap. Conner turned the TV on, flicking through the channels until he found the one with the Power Rangers show on. Lucy lay down, her head on the outer side of his thigh, her eyes on the TV as she curled under the blanket.
Minutes passed, and Conner watched Lucy fight to keep her eyes open, eventually falling asleep and letting her head hit the couch cushion, the back of her neck against his leg. Leaning over, Conner tugged her blanket over her shoulders before he began on his paper. After an hour or so, he stopped typing when he heard footsteps.
"You liked it so much; you had to catch the reruns?" Ethan asked, moving to the couch with Kira and Crystal, the older girl standing between the two.
Conner looked up, his laptop on the table, and tilted his head. He turned the TV off. "Sort of." He answered.
Kira leaned over, reading over his shoulder. "'Japanese vs. American Cultures: Closer Than We Think.'" She seemed pleased with the title.
Crystal glanced down, spotting the sleeping ninja, part of the blanket tucked under her face as she slept. "Man, how long has she been asleep?"
"Not long. We were hanging out, but I had to finish my report," Conner answered, motioning to the Silver Ranger beside him. "She'll be up in a second."
"It's oddly comforting that you know that," Lucy murmured, stretching her arms before her. "A bit creepy." She glanced up at the two Rangers staring down at her. "Hi." She smiled up at Crystal.
"I'm impressed you slept through the shows," Ethan snorted.
"It's not that hard. Only when Conner tried to talk to me about it while I drifted off." Lucy answered, smiling. Conner pulled her up into a seated position. "Other than that, the loud noises don't bother me anymore."
"But that show gave me an idea for the social studies assignment," Conner spoke. "I've compared how they see us to how we see ourselves."
"Without getting too specific," Crystal eyed him. "I hope."
"Please." Conner closed the lid of his laptop. "I admit, I was a bit skeptical at first, but then I got into it."
"See, not everyone's interpretation of Power Rangers is the same," Lucy noted, untangling herself from the blanket.
"Apart from one thing. Not enough Red Ranger." Conner laughed, rising from the couch and helping his girlfriend to her feet. He shoved his laptop in his bag before he grabbed both of their bags.
"You're just jealous that Blue Ranger saved the day." Ethan rounded the couch with Kira and Crystal behind him
"What?" Kira asked. "Without Yellow Ranger?"
"Hey! What about the Gold and Silver Rangers?" Crystal shot back, bumping shoulders with her sister, causing the two to laugh.
"Without them, that furry-faced freak never stood a chance." Lucy reached up, ruffling Conner's hair, laughing. Kira and Ethan joined in, laughing seconds later.
"Oh, come on," Conner told her, pushing Lucy forward. The team of Rangers made their way to a table, leaving the couch for another group of teens to enjoy.
Next Episode: It's a Mad, Mad Mackerel