MMPR Revisited

Day of the Dumpster, Part 2

Death. When it happened so suddenly, there were no goodbyes. It was a tough lesson for anyone in any part of his or her life. The normal process involved grieving and then, somehow, moving on – Right then, Jason had been robbed of that opportunity. His student, Jackson, had been murdered in cold blood. And at that moment, all Jason could do was push through the pain and utilize it for the battle ahead.

Goldar had still been gawking atop a building at the humans being attacked by the ruthless Puttie patrol. That had been their destination – the top of the building.

"Rangers!" Zordon's voice had come in loud and clear through their helmets. "Goldar has a group of hostages with him; surely he means to execute them for Rita. You must stop him. Stop him, and Rita's army will surely retreat for now."

"Let's move!" Jason had instructed as he went into a full sprint ahead into Angel Grove's Central Square. The others followed in line immediately. When they had gotten through to the square, there had been so much chaos that none of them had known where to start, except Jason. His eyes had focused on a school bus full of young kids being targeted by about a dozen Puttie Patrol, trying to turn the bus over. "Guys, the kids!" Jason had pointed out.

"Jason, what about all of them?" Billy had pointed to all the civilians, some of them being beaten up, some being chased – there had been no way to just focus on one part of the chaos.

"Spread out, we need to contain the square!" Jason had instructed. As he had run towards the school bus, the others had looked at each other briefly and then had taken off in separate directions.

Trini had run towards the northmost part of the square, where the local market could be found. She had seen several civilians hiding under booths and behind kiosks, trying to avoid being seen. A Putty had grabbed an older woman and had been about to slug her in the face when Trini had stopped it.

"No, no. That's not very nice!" she had taunted. The older woman had still screamed, not sure what to make of Trini's Yellow Ranger appearance. Trini had thrown her right knee into the side of the Puttie, knocking it back and delivering five quick jabs into its chest before delivering a finishing blow with her fist, sending it spiraling into a wall. Trini had turned to the older woman, "You're safe now, please go hide!" she had instructed.

"Who are you? What are these things?" The old woman had been inconsolable, and Trini had struggled to figure out what to say. Her and the rest of the team had never really discussed what they would say to people.

"A friend," she had said. "Now, there is no time to explain, there are a lot of other people that need help. Go hide and stay safe, okay?" Trini had offered the most reassuring tone she could muster, to which the lady had responded with a smile and quickly gone to hide with some other people behind a kiosk. Trini had turned around and leaped back into the fray, keeping putties back one by one from entering the market area.

Zack had been thriving on his own against the attackers. By combining his personal dance style, as well as moves that he had learned exclusively from Jason, Zack had definitely been a formidable fighter. And his new powers had only added to his skill to dominate his opponents. His fighting style had heavily relied on his lower body – his constant kicks and spins had kept the putties at bay and unable to predict his next movement.

As a Puttie had approached him from behind, Zack had thrown his arms to the ground and had suspended his legs in the air, just in time to kick the creature directly in the face before completing a front hand-spring. Zack's attention had been drawn toward a Puttie harassing a girl that he had recognized as Denise, his high school crush. He had punched the Puttie in front of him in the neck, rendering it helpless and out of the way to get to her.

"Get off me, freak!" Denise had yelled to no avail. Zack then entered by jumping in the air and delivering a powerful kick to the Puttie's face, sending it through an abandoned car's windshield. "Who are you?" Denise had asked, completely short of breath.

"Your knight in shining armor, baby," Zack had mused. Denise had smiled and then screamed abruptly when another Puttie had come up behind Zack. He had grabbed the Putty's arm, leaned forward, and flipped the Puttie over him and to the ground. Once there, he had kicked right under the Puttie's chin, the force of which had decapitated the creature, sending its stone-like head into another Puttie, knocking it over. The headless creature had then crumbled into dirt.

"So, they are made of dirt. Or something," Zack had said. "Listen, Denise," he had turned towards her, "Get out of here, don't stop for anyone, just get home. It's not safe here and won't be for a while."

"Hey, wait. Do I know you?" Denise had inquired. Zack had gotten nervous and had shaken his head in response.

"No, but I'll be around for a while, so maybe one day." Denise had smiled and then taken off running towards a group of civilians who were also fleeing the scene.

Billy had watched those same group of people leave, having assisted some of them from being trapped under debris or stuck in their cars. Most of them had been just hiding and too afraid to look out. Being the weakest link when it came to fighting, Billy had known he would be more helpful not participating in physical conflict and just getting people to safety. However, it had been only a matter of time before Putties had begun to approach him. There had been three of them standing side by side, slowly beginning to surround him.

"Oh, damn," he had muttered to himself. Putting his hands up in front of him, he hadn't really been sure what else to do. He had felt weird, he hadn't felt helpless like he normally would in this kind of situation. His armor had made him feel powerful, but he hadn't been sure what to do with it. "Okay, so this is just like a video game…" he had told himself, "just play around, let's see what happens."

He had run full speed towards the Puttie in front of him and had tackled it back into a pillar. Billy had backed up and had begun punching it over and over again. He had turned his head to see a Puttie swing its large fist at him. Instinct had told Billy to duck, and his reflexes had reacted accordingly. He had kicked the Puttie in the gut and then turned to hit it across the face with his fist.

Billy couldn't help but laugh. He had stopped himself after because it had felt slightly inappropriate, but he couldn't believe he was fighting back and winning. This joyous feeling had been fleeting as more and more Putties had appeared before him. On the side of his belt had been a holster for what appeared to be a gun of some kind. Grabbing the handle and pulling it out, he had held it in front of him, aiming directly at a Puttie.

"Let's see what this can do!" He had pulled the trigger, and a crimson beam of light had blasted directly out of it, causing the Puttie to crumble to dirt. "Oh, so it's a laser gun!" Billy had said with enthusiasm. He had charged forward, blasting Puttie after Puttie until nothing remained but piles of dirt in their place.

"So that's what that does," Kimberly had said to herself. She had caught sight of Billy's discovery in passing, heading towards the shopping district. She had set her sights on a group of the golem-like creatures surrounding a group of teenage girls. Struck with horror, she had found that her favorite store, Forever 21, had been completely trashed. "Oh hell no!" she had muttered. Kimberly had run towards them, jumped onto a table behind them, and then leaped into the air, rounding off and landing right in front of the Putties.

"Which one of you ass-holes did it?" Kim had grabbed one of their arms and had delivered three quick kicks to its stomach, chest, and face with a shove to the ground following. When she had kicked another Puttie, it had responded by catching her foot and making a taunting sound. She had smirked. She had thrown her other leg up, kicking under its chin and backflipping in the process. Kimberly had then ducked low and used her leg to sweep another Puttie to the ground, in which she had proceeded to pull out her blaster and finish it with a shot to the head.

"There are no more sales here today, girls. Get out of here, it's not safe!" None of the girls had needed to hear anything more before taking off. "Alright, this area looks clear." She had placed her hand on her helmet, which allowed communication to her teammates, "Guys, shopping district, perimeter cleared."

"Market cleared," Trini had responded.

"Central Outlets cleared," Zack had said.

"Main roads are clear, too," Billy had said. "Let's go help Jason!"

Jason had been by far having the hardest of times at that point. With children screaming, terrified of the situation, and Putties coming each and every direction not letting up, Jason hadn't been able to do anything but fight.

"It's alright, kids!" he called out for what felt like the eighth or so time by now. As much as he wanted to reassure the kids, he was unable to. The bus driver was a little battered up from trying to fend off the creatures, and with all the debris around the tires, they were sitting ducks. Jason punched one golem and then kicked another away, "I'm going to get this stuff out of the way, and then you just need to drive. You understand?" Jason yelled to the bus driver, who nodded in understanding.

Sirens were sounding off behind him as Angel Grove Police began to finally make an appearance, in large part due to his teammates securing the outer areas he was sure.

"Angel Grove Police, freeze!" One of them yelled behind him. Jason's eyes rolled to the back of his head as he continued to knock away some Putties. He looked up and saw a Puttie trying to get inside the bus from the emergency exit hatch on top. He jumped on the hood of the bus and leaped again to get to the roof of it.

"Stay the hell away from them!" Jason cursed and performed a roundhouse kick, sending the creature off the bus and to the ground below.

A gunshot sounded off. A sharp pain hit Jason's right arm, and he noticed sparks going off on his suit. He grabbed his arm and fell off the bus, landing in some of the debris. He looked over and saw that same police officer standing with his gun aiming straight toward him.

"Did he really just shoot me? I'm the freaking good guy!" Jason got up and had to kick a Puttie down before him!

"Oh my god, are you okay?" Kimberly's voice came from behind him. Another blast was heard, and the police officer cursed. Jason and Kim looked over and saw Billy standing across from the officer with his blaster pointed at where the officer's gun was, which was now on the ground.

"You just opened fire on a police officer—" The officer began,

"You're firing at the wrong people. We're here to help. Now either help us or stay out of the way!" Billy interrupted the officer. "We've created safe vantage points for civilians to escape; focus on getting people out, we'll handle these monsters. There are also hostages on top of that building; we're heading up there. Make sure your team is ready to deliver them to safety."

"Did Billy just shoot at a cop?" Jason asked.

"It has to be the adrenaline. He's gonna be sick about it later, I can tell," Kimberly responded. "Are you okay?" Kimberly examined his arm.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It doesn't hurt; it was just shocking, I think," Jason said. "We have to move this debris away from the bus so they can escape." Zack and Trini finally arrived, and Billy rejoined the group. Billy and Zack helped Jason move the rocks and other things out from under the tires while Kim and Trini covered them. Both of them blasted away Putties as they approached.

Finally, the rubble was all cleared, and the bus was free to resume on the clear roads.

"Go on, get out of here!" Jason yelled. Not a second later, the bus started up and took off. "Alright. Good job, Rangers." Jason said, "But now we have to get to Goldar. How are we gonna get up there?"

"We can teleport?" Billy suggested.

"Good idea, Billy," Jason responded. "Remember guys, this is Rita's second in command. He's probably much stronger than these Putties. Stay focused. We can't let these civilians get hurt." He placed his hand on his helmet to make communication with Zordon, "Zordon, Alpha, come in."

"We read you, Jason," Zordon responded.

"Can you teleport us to the building where Goldar is? The perimeter is clear."

"Yes. Alpha is doing it now."

"Thanks," Jason said. And just like that, the Rangers were enveloped in light and transported to the top of the central building. When the light faded, they saw Goldar standing over a group of individuals.

"You will all be fine sacrifices for my Queen!" Goldar growled.

"Not gonna happen, Goldar!" Jason yelled as he pulled out his blaster and opened fire on him. Goldar turned just in time to deflect the blasts with his sword. Goldar's crimson eyes glared at Jason, and he began to grin lecherously.

"Oh god, he's hideous!" Kim said.

"Now's not the time to piss it off more, Kim," Zack said.

"Rangers, blasters ready!" Jason commanded, and the others pulled out their blasters and readied fire, "Fire!" A flurry of crimson beams fired towards Goldar, who decided to rush through them with his sword deflecting them, getting closer and closer.

"It's not working!" Trini called out.

"Rangers, get ready for a fight!" Jason said, placing his blaster back into its holster and throwing his fists in front of him. Goldar came in close, and Jason swung his fist at him. Goldar evaded and cut Jason with his sword and knocked him over.

"Jason!" Zack cried. He ran after Goldar next, with Billy close behind. Zack jumped up to kick him, and Billy rushed forward in a tackle. Goldar responded by grabbing Zack's leg and throwing him into Billy. Kim and Trini charged towards him but were easily knocked away. The Rangers regrouped around Jason.

"Man, this guy's unreal!" Jason said in between catching his breath.

"Rangers, use your blaster-blades!" Zordon's voice came through loud and clear. Jason grabbed his blaster, pushed down the back of it, and it transformed into a short sword.

"Guys, check it out!" Jason marveled; the others followed his example. "Alright, we gotta be smart here. Zack, Trini, you're with me. We're gonna take him down. Kimberly, Billy, you two get the civilians out of here, then come back and join us. I'm sure we'll need the help."

"Right, Let's go, Billy!" Kim responded. Both of them rushed off towards the hostages that were tied up in chains. Using their newfound blades, they easily cut through the restraints. Billy kicked open the rooftop door that led to the building stairs.

"Alright, guys, move it, c'mon!" Billy instructed the civilians one by one.

"Billy, look out!" Kim cried as a Puttie appeared out of nowhere. Kim jumped forward and blocked its attack for Billy and then began a series of high kicks to its chest before delivering a finishing blow, sending it flying off the building. More Putties began to appear. "Terrific. Who invited you?" Kim scoffed. "Billy, lead them to safety, I got your back here. Just hurry!"

Billy followed the last civilian into the building and kept urging those in front of him to "Hurry" and that "You guys are doing great, you're almost to safety!" An overwhelming sense of guilt flooded Billy at this time. Leaving Kimberly behind really bothered him; in hindsight, he knew she was the more skilled fighter and more adept at handling herself. He just knew he was going to have to get better for the future.

Using her blaster-blade, Kim was able to cut through the Putties more efficiently, but the rising numbers of them so quickly were staggering. She'd need Billy's help before too long.

Now that the Rangers had sword-like weapons, Goldar's attacks were more easily managed. Jason jumped up and swung his blade down at Goldar, who blocked it with his sword. Trini and Zack then rushed him, stabbing their blades into his gut, causing him to fall over. Jason kicked away Goldar's sword long enough to make a slash across his chest.

"So, I see Zordon has found another impressionable group of slaves to do his bidding. How quaint," Goldar began, "Just surrender, and I promise your destruction will be quick!"

"Never. You picked a fight with the wrong people!" Trini responded.

"Humans are weak!" Goldar retorted.

"Well, some humans are kicking your ass, so I like our odds," Zack said.

"You should never have come here; you're going to wish you hadn't!" Jason yelled and then charged towards Goldar again.

On the other side of the building, the Putties kept coming and coming – Kim kept slicing through them, but they managed to overwhelm her. Two Putties grabbed each of her arms, and another one began punching her in the gut.

"Son of a bit-" she began before getting punched again, leaving her out of breath.

"Get off her!" Billy yelled; he readied his blaster and opened fire, reducing them all to dust. He ran to help Kimberly up, "Are you okay?"

"I've been better, but yeah, I'm fine," she said. "C'mon, let's go help the others." When they got there, they saw Jason locking blades with Goldar while Trini and Zack stabbed his sides. Kimberly and Billy readied their blasters and then fired at him, making Goldar fly back and crash into a wall, where he then fell to the ground.

"Enough!" a loud, wicked voice filled the sky, stopping the Rangers in their tracks. Rita's face appeared in the sky. "Goldar, return to me. That is enough for now." A golden light surrounded Goldar's body, and then he vanished. "So, Zordon is alive. I'm surprised. You think you can stop me, do you?"

"I think we're off to a good start!" Jason yelled out. Rita then laughed, causing the ground to quake and thunder to roar in the sky.

"You may have repelled my forces today, but you haven't won anything. I will be back, and you won't be able to stop me," she continued to laugh.

"Bring it on, Rita. You'll never take Earth. Not as long as we're here. You'll have to answer to the Power Rangers!" Jason replied.

"Don't worry, Power Rangers, your end will come!" With another wicked laugh, her face disappeared from the sky. The Rangers ran towards the edge of the building and were relieved to see no further signs of struggle or Putties.

"Is it over?" Kim asked as she fell to her knees, exhaustion taking over her.

"For now. It's over; she'll be back," Jason answered.

It wasn't too much longer before the Rangers were beckoned back via teleportation to the Power Chamber, where a proud Alpha 5 and Zordon awaited them. Once the Rangers arrived, they de-transformed back into their normal states. Alpha began to observe them for any long-lasting physical injuries.

"I forgot how powerful that armor was. Not a scratch," Alpha mused.

"Don't feel like it. I'm sore all over," Trini admitted.

"It'll take a while to get used to that," Zordon began. "Congratulations on a job well done. Now that you have become Power Rangers, you must follow three basic rules or lose the protection of the power. First, never use your power for personal gain. Second, never escalate a battle unless Rita forces you. And finally, keep your identities secret; no one may know you are a Power Ranger."

"Wait a second," Zack interjected.

"Yes, Zachary?" Zordon responded.

"I'm not sure we're all up for this. We got lucky this time," Zack said doubtfully.

"Luck had nothing to do with it. The five of you have come together to form as fine a group of superheroes as there has ever been. You've been through an amazing experience together. You need each other now. The world needs you now."

"You can count on me, Zordon. I'm in," Jason said. "Guys, we can really do this. No one else can. It's up to us. I mean, I know this is a big deal, you guys. But I mean, Power Rangers? Come on, guys, this is too awesome at the same time."

"Yeah, you're right. I'm in!" Zack agreed.

"You can count on me, too!" Trini added.

"Affirmative," Billy chimed in.

"Yeah, I don't know," Kimberly said, shocking all of them. "I mean, the outfits are really cool and everything. But my hair gets all tangled up inside the helmets. I don't think I can do it."

"Kim, are you serious?" Trini pressed.

"Jay-kay, guys. Just kidding. I'm in, too. But this is insane. I'm just glad that I have my friends to do this with."

"Definitely," Zack agreed.

"Very good. Thank you, Power Rangers. You may now return to your families, friends, loved ones – make sure they are okay. But be prepared, at any minute Rita may attack," Zordon warned.

"Oh right. I hope it's never during one of Ms. Applebee's tests," Billy said, prompting them all to laugh.

When they returned home, they all decided it would be best to check out the Youth Center, pick up the things they each left there, and also to see if Ernie needed help cleaning up the place. They were especially surprised to see how crowded it was.

"Hey, Ernie!" Jason greeted as they walked through. Ernie waved towards them as they approached. "What's with all the people here?"

"This is just sort of a safe zone now, while clean-up crews are working," Ernie explained. "Did you guys hear, though?" Ernie whispered.

"Hear what?" Trini matched his tone.

"The monster attacks. Some sort of alien race of monsters caused the attacks. And get this, there were some heroes that showed up out of nowhere and they call themselves the Power Rangers," Ernie said, getting into the gossip, which made each of them laugh and smile.

"Really? That's amazing. I hope they stick around," Zack said.

"You're not kidding!" Ernie replied. "Oh, there they are now!" Ernie pointed to the TV and then grabbed the remote to turn it up. The noisy Youth Center became quiet, all anxious to hear about these surprise heroes.

"This is Cindy V. reporting live for Channel 5 news. I'm in downtown Angel Grove where one of the strangest attacks the world has ever seen took place. Alien creatures began attacking out of nowhere around 4:00 PM today, leaving many dead…" Jason then thought about Jackson and his death. He looked across the room and saw Jackson's mother in tears, being comforted by others. He would be over there soon to offer his condolences, "The Angel Grove Police Department refuses to comment on the source of these attacks or any future plans. Sheriff Mitchell did have this to say about the alleged heroes, the Power Rangers," a clip then showed an earlier interview taken with the sheriff:

"Yes, they certainly did help. But at the end of the day, the Power Rangers only just got in the way. A group of vigilantes aren't heroes, and we need to remember that. So I will say this, Power Rangers, thank you for your assistance. But you also did cause damage to buildings and opened fire against a Police Officer. If we see you again, we'll have to bring you in." Once he finished, the frame of the screen froze and then returned to Cindy V.

"I don't know if we all agree, I know I don't. I want to say thank you to the Power Rangers. My son was on a school bus that they managed to get to safety, so if you're out there: Thank you." Billy tapped each of them, and they huddled together.

"Great, so now we're on Angel Grove's most-wanted list," Billy said.

"That's major b.s.," Zack said, "This is what we get for helping people. Damn cops."

"Look, guys, it's alright. We just need to keep a low profile. We have a job to do, and so do they. They'll come around," Jason said. They all nodded, and a sense of unity washed over them. "Let's get some rest. I'll see you all tomorrow."

Jason headed over to offer his condolences to Jackson's mother, while the rest of them dispersed to locate their friends and families. They had survived today, and that was a victory.

As they went their separate ways, a shadow of unease lingered in their minds. This battle had been won, but each of the Rangers couldn't help but fear that tomorrow might bring a new and even more challenging story.