Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers. Only my OCs.
Chapter 3: Wave Goodbye
"Stop laughing. It's not funny." Andy looked over and waved at Kira and Conner as they walked over, looking at the sign above the door, "Raina, I swear to Zordon, that if you do not stop laughing at me, I'm going to tell Sensei who recorded over his Kung Fu marathon." He paused, "You know, the one with nothing but Dustin in the footage?"
His new friends smiled, curious to know who he was talking to, "I mean every word." He nodded, "Yeah, well, keep it up. Zoey and Jenna aren't the only ones who know how to blackmail. You forget who knows you best. Alright, I'll talk to you later. Try not to kill your mom and tell Rocky I said hi. Give my brother hell. I know you can. Bye."
"Hey guys." He hung up and looked at his friends, "What are you doing here?"
"Ethan didn't call you?" Conner asked, confused.
"No. Why, was he supposed to?"
"He called and asked us to meet him here." Kira gestured up, "What's a Cyberspace?"
"Heaven." He chuckled, "Come on. I'll show you around."
They walked in to see that the place was lined with computers and arcade machines. There was a bar on one side and sofas in the corner. A stage sat at the back of the room with tables in the center.
"Wow. You think he lives here?" Conner asked, looking around.
"I think he wishes he lived here." Kira commented, making them laugh.
"There they are," They turned to see Ethan walk over to "my brothers and sister in crime, or at least crime-fighting." He said, lowering his voice. "Welcome to my world. What do you think?" He asked as they started to walk around.
"Yeah, uh," Conner shrugged, "I guess it's kind of cool in a techno retro dorky sort of way."
"You can do anything here." Ethan explained, "Game, chat online, listen to music, eat, drink." He gestured to different spots in the café. He turned to Andy, "I tried calling you, but the line was busy."
"Catching up with my best friend who moved back to Angel Grove." He shrugged, "Sorry."
"Who came up with the idea for this place?" Kira asked curiously.
"That would be Hayley." Andy turned and pointed to a red-head at the bar.
"She's a techno legend." Ethan explained, "MIT grad, programming genius. Got tired of working for big time technology and decided to open up this place."
Kira smirked, "Good thing for you."
"No lie." He smiled before turning to Andy, "How do you know about this place? I've never seen you in here."
"Hayley's a friend. Part of the agreement about me moving down here with Tommy and the girls was that I had to work. So, Hayley agreed to hire me."
"Alright, so, what's so important?" Conner asked, patting Ethan on the shoulder.
"I just figured, hey, if we're gonna be saving the world together, I wanted you guys to see what I'm about." Ethan shrugged, looking a little nervous.
Conner chuckled, "Ok, whatever, dude."
"Hey guys, what can I get you?" Hayley asked, walking over to them.
"I'll just have an apple juice." Kira said with a shrug.
"Oh, that's easy." She smiled and took them over to the bar. "Kira, right?"
"Yeah, how'd you know?" The girl asked, curious.
"Oh, I'm all about information. It's my business. Now, you sing, don't you?"
"Yeah, I do."
"Great, how about this Friday, you and your band play here? We'll call it an audition." She suggested, making the new Yellow Ranger smile.
"Well, yeah! I mean, that would be great." Kira nodded, excited.
"Great, see you then." Hayley said, walking off.
"Okay, I love her."
"That's Hayley." Ethan was leaning against the counter. "There's not one kid in here she hasn't helped out somehow."
"Hasn't helped me." Conner leaned back, looking bored.
"Conner McKnight." Hayley said, bringing over Kira's apple juice, "The soccer player. I'm surprised you're not at the open try outs for the Reefside Wave."
"Open tryouts?" Conner stared at her.
"Yeah, at their practice field right now." Hayley smiled.
"You're kidding, right?"
"No." She shook her head.
"You were saying?" Andy asked, standing behind Hayley. Conner looked over at him, then back at Hayley, before running off. "Good luck bro!"
"Come on, Andy. Time to put you to work." Hayley grabbed the Green Ranger by the arm and dragged him to the back.
"I gotta go, too. I need to put a set-list together and restring my guitar." Kira stood up and handed her drink to Ethan, "Here. Bye."
"Nothing like spreading the love." Ethan smiled as he started to walk back to his game. Before he could get very far, his morphers beeped. Going to the computer he was using, he sat the drink down so he could answer, "Yeah, Doc. You've got Ethan."
"Can you meet me out at the end of Riverside Road in an hour?" Tommy requested.
"Yeah, sure. What's up?"
"Just be there, and I'll fill you in." He said before ended the communication.
1-2-3-4-5
Ethan grabbed Andy, who had to make excuses to Hayley for ditching work and met Tommy at their designation.
"So, what's going on?" Andy asked, looking around.
"After the island exploded, some of my experiments were scattered all throughout this area." He explained as they walked around for a bit, "There." They crouched down to see three different colored eggs nestled together on the ground.
"What are they?" Ethan asked with a frown.
"Eggs." Tommy answered, proudly.
"Oh, it's cool, Dr. O. I just had lunch a couple of hours ago."
"I don't think these are the type of eggs you eat, Ethan." Andy shook his head, "Why would you eat anything that's glowing?"
"You're right. We're not going to eat them." He looked down at them, "We're going to hatch them. Then you're going to ride them."
"Maybe it's all the quiet out here that's got me hearing things, but I thought you just said we're gonna ride these." Ethan stood up, looking down at his teacher.
"I did," Tommy confirmed. "Trust me Ethan, when these things are ready, they're gonna be a big help to us." He put his bag down and started to pick them up. Andy just shrugged and bent over to help him.
"Alright, whatever you say." As he leaned down to help them, they heard noise from behind them. "You heard that, right?"
"We have to protect the eggs, no matter what." Tommy said, holding the bag.
"Who'd wanna hurt them?" Ethan frowned.
"I would." They looked around quickly to see a woman dressed in black leather, wearing black lipstick and her hair in braids.
"And I." Zeltrax appeared behind her leading a group of Tyrannodrones, holding up his shield, "I'm starting to have doubts about your intelligence, Dr. Oliver."
Andy, seeing a Tyrannodrone sneaking up behind them to grab the bag, threw a blast of lightning out, sending it flying into the trees. He looked back over at the bad guys, "Gotta do better than that, Zeltrax. Never sneak up on a Ninja."
"Attack!" Zeltrax yelled, sending the Tyrannodrones at them. Andy jumped into the fray, tossing the lizards away from Tommy. He kicked one back and grabbed the bag it had just taken. "Tommy!" He tossed the bag at the teacher and leapt over Zeltrax, shooting him with a lightning bolt as he went. It didn't seem to matter how many he took out, as they just kept coming at him.
"Andy!" Tommy called out, trying to protect the bag, "Call the others!"
"You got it." He did a running flip off a tree and took down two more Tyrannodrones before lift his morpher, "Guys! We could use some Dino help out here." He looked at Ethan and nodded.
"DINO THUNDER, POWER UP, HA!"
Morphing, they called on their Thundermax Sabers to defend themselves. Andy and Ethan were shoved against a tree; simultaneously overrun by the lizard freaks. Before they could attack again, Conner and Kira showed up, evening the odds.
"You guys couldn't have done this another day?" Conner asked, holding up his own saber in defense.
"Oh, right. Blame the good guys." Andy complained, gesturing to the Tyrannodrones, "It's not like they gave us much of a choice."
"Let's make it quick! Tyranno Staff!"
"Ptera Grips, baby!"
"Spino Axe!"
"Tricera Shield!"
With the extra help, the Rangers spread out to take on their attackers.
Andy looked over to see Tommy taking on Elsa and Zeltrax on his own. Making his way over to help, he kept getting blocked by the Tyrannodrones. Before he could get there, he heard Zeltrax cry out.
"Elsa!" He ran to her side, concerned as the Rangers regrouped around Tommy.
"You really like these odds?" Ethan mocked, "Cause you look busted to me."
"We're not through with you, Power Rangers!" Elsa stood up, looking angry.
"Nor you, Tommy!" Zeltrax warned right before they disappeared.
"They're a pleasant couple." Kira snarked.
Andy shuddered, "And that's an unpleasant image in my head."
Laughing, Tommy held up the bag, "We better get these back to my place."
"What are they?" Kira asked, looking down at the bag.
"We're gonna ride them!" Ethan told them, with fake enthusiasm. Conner and Kira just looked confused.
"Look, I have to get back to try-outs. Can you guys handle this?" Conner asked.
"Yeah, go ahead Conner. They can fill you in later." Tommy nodded.
"Thanks!" The teen said before running off.
"Good luck!" Ethan called.
1-2-3-4-5
After the teens left, Tommy got to work trying to hatch the eggs. The first crack had started in the red one when Zoey and Jenna came down the stairs. "Hey girls."
"Hey."
"How was everything at the Academies?"
They walked over to the machine that was holding the eggs and looked down, "It was good. Taught a few classes, visited with our friends, and had tea with our Senseis." Zoey bent down to study the cracks forming, "Are these the Raptors?"
"Yeah. Zeltrax and Elsa attacked us earlier while we were getting them." He held up a hand to forestall any questions, "And before you ask, I'm fine." He smiled as she wrinkled her nose at him, "Didn't you have a training session last night?"
She sighed, "Yes, I did. And I'm still feeling the effects." She slapped Jenna's arm as her friend laughed at her.
"Why don't you tell him what your mom had you doing?"
He looked over at his sister, concerned, "What? What happened?" When she didn't say anything, he looked over at Jenna, "Explain?"
"Her mother had her riding something called a Mystic Racer."
"What is that?"
"A broom."
He paused for a moment and looked at the two girls, "Did you say… broom?"
"Yes, I did."
"That's a little stereotypical, isn't it? The witch riding a broom?" Before they could reply, the Raptors exploded out of their eggs and started running around the lab.
"Oh, my gosh!" Zoey exclaimed, "They're so cute!"
"Yeah, well, wait thirty minutes." Her brother said, trying to wrangle the little reptiles.
"What happens in thirty minutes?" Jenna asked, curious.
"If mine and Billy's calculations are correct, they'll quadruple in size." He picked up the red one, who tried to bite him, "Large enough to be ridden."
"It's a shame you don't have a green one."
"Well, unfortunately, I didn't have the green gem at the time the Raptors were created." He looked around at the chaos, "You are gonna help me, right?"
"Are you kidding?" Zoey asked, looking excited, "I can't wait." She held up her hand, "But I need to know. Do you have the correct information needed to make another one of these?"
"Yes. Why?" He just received pointed stares which caused him to sigh, "I'll start work on another Raptor for Andy. Does that make you happy?"
"Extremely."
1-2-3-4-5
After leaving Doctor Oliver to deal with the eggs, Ethan, Andy and Kira returned to Hayley's Cyberspace. Andy was working behind the counter as Ethan played a game and Kira surfed the internet.
"Man, Doctor O is into some weird and funky stuff." Ethan said without looking up. "I don't even wanna know what he's hatching down in that cave right now."
Kira shook her head. "I have a feeling we won't have to wait very long."
"It's not like it's illegal." Andy smirked, refreshing their drinks, "Besides," He leaned down, "I for one am totally excited to see what was in those eggs."
"I'm kinda creeped out… about… Whoa." Ethan and Andy glanced over as Kira trailed off, "Who is that?"
They followed her gaze to see a teenager walking in. He was looking around, looking a little lost as he spoke to someone, who shrugged.
"I dunno." Ethan shook his head, not recognizing him. Andy smirked as he tapped Ethan on the shoulder and gestured to Kira, who hadn't taken her eyes off him. "Hello? Anyone in there?" He waved a hand in front of her face.
"Maybe… maybe…" Andy smirked, "nope. Nothing."
"He's really… wow… isn't he?" Kira smiled, not reacting to the pair.
"Can I get you a glass of water? Maybe an oxygen mask?" Ethan laughed.
"A dictionary?" Andy offered, laughing at the glare she threw at him.
"Quiet, he's coming over here." Kira turned her head quickly and looked back down at her laptop.
"Hey, I'm looking for Hayley. I'm supposed to start work today." The teen said to them, and Kira kept her head low while the other two looked up quickly.
"I think I saw her go into the back." Andy smiled at him. "She'll be back in a moment. I'm Andy. I'll be the one training you." The two guys shook hands.
"Hey, haven't I seen you at Reefside High?" Ethan asked curiously.
"Yeah, I just moved here last week." He nodded with a smile, "My name's Trent."
"I'm Ethan." Ethan said as he moved in his seat to shake Trent's hand. "You already met Andy, there, and this is Kira." He nodded to Kira, whose head just went lower.
"Hey." Trent smiled at her, but Kira didn't look up. He let out a soft laugh, raising an eyebrow. "Are you ok?" He asked, but she still didn't react.
"She doesn't speak." Ethan shrugged, "We've been trying for years, but we just can't get through."
"It's quite tragic, really." Andy shook his head, "Especially considering she's the lead singer in a band."
"I'm fine." Kira finally managed to make herself look up at him. "It's nice to meet you." She smiled up at him, and Trent's own smile widened.
"Trent!" They looked up as Hayley walked over. "Good timing. Come with me, and I'll get you started." As he nodded, she looked at Andy, "You can be finished for the day if you want. I'll get him settled and we'll work out a schedule."
"You've got it."
"I'll see you guys later." Trent told the three, his eyes back on Kira. Ethan and Andy waved, and the two walked off.
"Isn't he just so 'wow'?" Ethan mocked and cried out as Kira kicked his shin.
"She's a little violent today, isn't she?" Andy asked, sitting down.
"A little bit." The guys stopped laughing when they saw Conner walk over, looking dejected, "Hey, how'd it go?"
"How'd it go?!" Conner repeated, sounding frustrated. "It's over! The coach basically said, 'forget it'! And who can blame him? I mean, I left in the middle of practice!" He growled angrily, pacing in front of them.
Kira frowned. "Well… it's not like you didn't have a good excuse."
"Right." Conner rolled his eyes. "Well maybe next time, I'll bring a note from our teacher! 'Sorry, Conner couldn't make it today, he was busy fighting freaky looking dinosaur things in the forest'!" Conner yelled, and the three grabbed him, shoving him along as they shushed him.
"I don't think he's ever heard that one before." Ethan commented as they sat down on one of the couches.
"Yeah, let's not say that out loud, shall we?" Andy glared.
"Whatever." Conner just rolled his eyes, and slumped down. "Look, the point is, what was I supposed to say?" He demanded, and the three fell silent, not having an answer. He sighed heavily. "Man… this whole 'saving the world' deal is seriously starting to bum me out."
"Oh, poor you." Andy rolled his eyes, "Cut the dramatics, Jock Boy. Some things are more important than soccer."
"You just don't get it, man." Conner sighed as he leaned his head back against the couch before popping up again, "I need to talk to Doctor Oliver."
"Uh… I think he may be kinda busy." Kira stopped him as he went to stand. "He's got this whole new project-"
"Too bad!" Conner yelled. "I was busy today, that didn't stop him from messing up my life." He growled in frustration and stormed off.
"Wait, we'll go with you!" Ethan called, taking off with Kira.
"Oh, Zoey is going to throw a fit." Andy smirked, "Can't wait."
1-2-3-4-5
The four Rangers arrived at the lab, taking the back entrance, and heard yells coming from inside. As the door lifted up, they could see stuff being thrown across the room, and then Tommy joining them. "Don't come in! It's not safe!"
"We kinda got that." Kira said, wide eyed.
"No! Bad!" They heard Zoey say from inside, "That is not a chew toy!"
Next thing they knew, Tommy landed in front of them, covered in slime and dust.
"Is that what was in those eggs?" Ethan asked, staring at their teacher.
"We're trying to train them." Tommy explained, as more crashes sounded from inside.
"Bad Raptor! Very bad Raptor! Drop it!" Jenna exclaimed, "Now! No, no, no. Zoey, duck!"
"How's it coming?" Ethan asked slowly.
"Slowly."
"Tommy, down!" He ducked just in time to avoid the tail coming at him.
"Very slowly." He coughed as he breathed in the dust that surrounded him.
"Look, I can see that you're busy with... well, whatever. But I need to talk." Conner said, looking apprehensively at the door.
Another tail hit Tommy in the back, throwing him out of the basement and into the tunnel.
"Sorry, bro!" Zoey called out before closing the door.
"Guess I could take a break." He sighed as Ethan helped him up. The Blue Ranger looked down at his hand, now covered in slime, and scrunched up his face in disgust. "Alright, what's up?" Tommy asked as Andy laughed at the computer geek.
"You gotta find someone to replace me." Andy stopped laughing to look over at the Red Ranger with wide eyes.
"What are you talking about?" Kira demanded.
"You're talking crazy!" Ethan insisted.
"Alright, settle down, you two." Tommy held up a hand as Conner glared. "What's the problem?" He asked, looking at Conner.
"Look, I'm a soccer player. That's all I've ever wanted to do." Conner said, looking at his teacher, "You know, every moment of my life has led up to playing for a pro team. And I get the greatest chance of my life, and I blow it."
"I understand. And you're right." Tommy agreed, nodded his head.
"You're agreeing with him?" Ethan demanded.
"Conner. I know how you feel, 'cause I've felt that way before. But I want you to think about this before you do anything."
"Look. I've got things I want to do," Kira pointed out. "But I'm here, I'm dealing."
"Good for you. I guess I'm just different," Conner shook his head, and walked out.
Andy looked over at Tommy, "If I promise to never pull another prank, ever, can I please be the one to tell Zoey about this?" Smiling at the look Tommy sent him, he shrugged, "What? Getting his butt kicked by her would be good for him."
1-2-3-4-5
"I'm sorry," Zoey closed her eyes and pinched her nose, trying to calm her breathing, "he said what now?"
Jenna covered her mouth, trying not to laugh.
Tommy sighed, knowing how frustrated his sister was getting, "Conner has requested we find a new Red Ranger. Says it's interfering with his soccer."
She threw her hands up in frustration, "Seriously? Soccer? That's more important than saving the world?"
"He's a teenager, Zoey." He said, trying to calm her down, "You need to understand where he's coming from. The gems didn't give them a choice."
"You're right, Tommy." She smiled, making him nervous, "I mean, the first five were given a choice, which they originally turned down, but ended up making the decision to accept the Power. You weren't given a choice when Rita made you evil. But after the spell was broken, you chose to keep fighting. No matter how many times they took your powers away, you kept coming back. Every Ranger afterwards was given the choice. The only reason anyone gave it up was for something important; like the Peace Conference, saving the animals in Africa, helping run the command center, or going to the Pan Global games."
She started to pace, "Rocky only passed his powers on when he hurt his back and you guys stepped down to go to college. In the whole time that you were Rangers; you played sports, went to martial arts tournaments, taught classes at the Youth Center, did volunteer work and participated in extracurricular activities." She stopped to look at him, "Never once did any of you ever decide that Ranger work was interfering with your life."
"I know. Trust me. I understand." He grabbed her shoulder, "But we were different. We need to have patience with them. Be more understanding." Hearing the alarms, they hurried over to the computers to pull up the footage. They saw a freaky reptile with purple and green leaves around its head leading a group of Tyrannodrones to attack the city.
"Not good." Tommy typed in a few keys to alert the Rangers, "Guys, we have a situation. There's a monster attacking in the city. People are in danger."
"You've got it, Tommy." Andy responded before closing the link.
"Alright, look," Tommy turned back to the girls, "I have complete faith in them. I know Conner will make the right decision. But we can't make it for him. He has to be the one to decide. So," he looked at his sister, "no mangling. Go back to your Academies. Teach your classes, like you promised, and I'll see you Monday night."
They sighed before standing up, "You sure we have permission to miss a day?" Jenna asked, worried, "I don't want to get in trouble on our first week of school."
"You're not students. You're Teacher's Aides. Which means, you have signed forms that state you can miss school to take your own classes." He smirked, "They just don't know what kind of classes you're taking."
"Or teaching."
"Or where the classes are taking place." The girls hugged him bye before they left, leaving Tommy to monitor the fight by himself.
1-2-3-4-5
Andy charged the giant bird, aiming a kick at its side, only to be thrown back with the others. Standing up, he drew his blaster and attacked with the boys to get the monster away from Kira.
"Hey bird brain!" Ethan yelled, "Thundermax!" They fired their blasters, giving her a chance to get back to her feet.
"Thanks guys." She nodded in appreciation.
"You okay?" Andy asked as they ran over to check on her.
"Yeah."
"Give up?" Conner yelled out, aiming his blaster at the creature.
"Catch me if you can!" The bird screeched before taking off in the air.
"He's getting away!" Kira started to run after it, but Conner stopped her.
"We'll never catch him." They looked down as their morphers beeped.
"You can," Tommy said, confirming that he'd been watching, "Meet the Raptor Riders."
Looking up at the sound of the familiar growls from earlier, they saw three Raptors running towards them. Conner, Ethan and Kira yelled in excitement as they jumped on their Raptors and took off to find the monster. Andy, the only one without a Raptor, just stood there.
"Mmm…" He looked around, "I suddenly feel very left out." Not seeing anyone around to notice him, he Ninja Streaked all the way there, beating his friends. Seeing the Tyrannodrones attacking civilians, he started fighting them back, waiting for back up.
"No!"
Hearing Conner yell, Andy looked around to see them coming up behind him. Seeing where the Red Ranger was pointing, Andy saw a little girl being chased by the Tyrannodrones. "I'll help the girl; you follow that freak!" He jumped off his Raptor as the other kept going after the bird monster. Andy ran over to Conner just as he was handing the little girl to her mom. Looking over, Conner saw Andy taking down the lizards, "How'd you get here so fast?"
"I've got mad skills, Tyranno-Boy!" Andy ran over to him, "You might want to jump back on your Raptor and help the other two out. I've got this here. Just let me know if we need to call the Zords."
"You've got it." Nodding in agreement, Conner took off, leaving Andy to deal with the mutants. "Just another day at the office." He looked around, "Spino Axe!"
Since he was alone and the others couldn't see him, he utilized his Ninja abilities to help take down the Tyrannodrones. Holding his axe up to the sky, hoping this would work, he yelled, "Sky of Might! Power of Light!" Calling down a giant lightning bolt to hit his axe, he used it as a lightning rod and electrocuted all of the Tyrannodrones at once.
Suddenly tired, Andy meant down to catch his breath, "That took a lot out of me. I guess Ninja and Dino powers aren't supposed to mix." He looked up to see a black cloud appear.
"I knew it." Sighing, he waited as the cloud rained down, regenerating the monster the others had already destroyed.
"Doctor O, we may have a problem on our hands." He heard Conner on the communicator calling Tommy for help.
"Let me guess. A 30-storey version of that guy you were just fighting?" Tommy suggested.
"You've done this before, haven't you?" Ethan asked to Andy's absolute delight.
"Once or twice." Tommy replied softly. "I'll send the Dino Zords."
"Ready?" Conner asked, as the Zords appeared. They nodded and leaped into their Zords. After forming the Thundersaurus Megazord, they were instantly blasted by their opponent.
"I've got an idea!" Kira called after they steadied themselves. "PteraRang!" They detached the wings of the Pterazord and slashed the monster multiple times. Leaping into the air they used their Dino Drill attack, destroying the monster. "Now that's what I call monster-busting!"
"Really, Kira?" Andy shook his head, "I thought you were above bad puns?"
Seeing the little girl Conner saved, the Rangers jumped down to make sure she was okay. Conner waved to her as she ran over with a smile.
"Thank you." She said, hugging him.
"Anytime." Conner nodded as he hugged her back.
1-2-3-4-5
"You're just gonna have to practice more, Andy." Zoey said, speaking over the phone, "Jenna and I had to learn to do the same thing after we bonded with our gems."
"So it is possible to use my Ninja abilities and my Dino powers without exhausting myself?"
"Yes. You'll just have to retrain yourself; from the ground up."
"Great." He nodded, looking over at Tommy, "Just great. More training." The Legend laughed while scanning the computers, "So, what are you girls up to right now."
"Well, this is going to be our last phone call until we head back. Our Senseis were quite clear. No technology. That includes phones."
"Well, be good little Ninjas. Say hello to your Senseis, and we'll see you Monday night."
"Bye you guys. We love you."
"Bye!"
He hung up and turned to Tommy. "What did you find?"
"Remember me telling you about that gem that was activated when you bonded with yours? One of the missing ones?"
"Yes."
"It just moved. So, we're going to go watch Kira's performance. Afterwards, we'll tell them about the gem, and you guys can go get it for us."
"Sounds like a plan."
1-2-3-4-5
They were walking toward the Cyber Café when a group of Tyrannodrones surrounded them. "Seriously?" Andy braced himself to use his lightning when the reptiles converged on them in an overwhelming number. "You just don't know how to fight fair, do you?"
"They're bad guys, Andy." Tommy said, struggling against the ones who held him, "It's what they do. You should be used to it by now."
Before they could say anymore, they disappeared through an Invisiportal.
To be continued…