MISSING: Malcolm Lee Scott, Thomas Frank Oliver, and Mark Hillard.
Last seen at the Murder Mystery Party on February 14th at the Cranston Mansion in Angel Grove.
Billy sighed as he read the numbers that people should phone if any of the three were spotted somewhere; it had been nearly five days since the party and five days since the two had gone missing.
The Youth Center was the ideal place for such posters, Billy thought as he continued to study the one that Ernie had allowed the newly christened Detective Stone to put up just four days before. Since Ernie was busy in the kitchen and everyone else was in school, Billy found himself with time to think quietly.
Kimberly had left with Rita and Prince Gasket, but he had been left behind; in all fairness, Billy thought of himself as a traitor who deserved no friendship or mercy for what he had helped to happen recently.
"Billy?" Billy suddenly heard Ernie ask. "Could you please come over here and help me for a sec?"
A quick glance at the clock told Billy that it wouldn't be long before people would get out of school and he would be face to face with his former friends again; the thought of facing people that he had betrayed so easily because of a little jealously made his stomach churn and he suddenly vomited.
"Billy!" Ernie said in a shocked voice as he hurried over to the shellshocked teen. "Are you okay?"
Billy turned to Ernie with an embarrassed look on his face, "Sorry," he replied softly. "I just started thinking about how it's my fault that Malcolm, Mark, and Tommy went missing."
"…Aw, but sis!" Billy and Ernie suddenly heard a young voice say. "…I just wanted to see you!"
Billy frowned as Laura, who was wearing old jeans, worn sneakers, a loose t-shirt, and a flannel jacket, came into the Youth Center leading an aggravated looking Ashley, who was wearing boots, overalls, and a yellow t-shirt, by the hand, "Ashley, with Malcolm and Tommy missing, it's not safe to be running around Angel Grove by yourself. I don't know why you were wandering around the high school…"
"I was scared to stay at my school because of what happened on Valentine's Day," Ashley replied as she pulled away and went over to the mats on the floor. "I was looking for you so you could protect me."
As Ashley sat on the mats and took the backpack that Mrs. Lee Scott had bought for her off, Laura suddenly noticed Billy standing there, "Billy?" she asked in a cautious voice. "Is it really you?"
"Yes, it's really me," Billy replied, hoping that Laura understood that he was free of any evil spells.
Laura nodded and cringed as she noticed the poster, "Those are all over town and all over the school too," she said in a less than pleasant voice as she quickly turned away. "Ashley, are you hungry?"
Ashley suddenly looked nervous, but nodded, "Ernie, can I do a few dishes to get something for my sister and I to eat, please?" Laura asked in a nervous voice. "I'll wait until later to find dinner…"
"Don't you live at Doctor Oliver's?" Billy asked in a confused voice. "You could eat his food."
At the mention of Dr. Oliver, Laura suddenly tensed up, "Billy, I just remembered that I left something in my locker at the school," she said in an apologetic voice. "Could you watch Ashley for just a minute?"
"Of course," Billy replied calmly, not at all eager to encounter Jason or any of his former friends.
Laura smiled and hurried out of the Youth Center, "I'll go make some juice for you guys," Ernie said as he smiled at Billy. "You've had a rough few days, so consider the first one on the house, okay?"
Billy nodded and walked over to where Ashley was sitting, "What are you doing, Ashley?" he asked.
"Homework," Ashley replied as she pulled a workbook out of her backpack and opened it. "It's hard."
Smiling, as even he had experienced difficulty with his schoolwork in the months after his mother had passed away, Billy sat down beside her, "I don't like seeing Laura so sad," Ashley said in a worried voice that was too quiet for Ernie to hear. "She's stayed away from her cool friends since Valentine's Day and seems really scared when she's helping me with my homework; like something will happen to me."
"Have you asked Laura why she's sad?" Billy asked in a soft voice. "Maybe you could help her be happy."
Ashley sighed, "I asked five days ago when Laura and Jason got back from the party and Laura started crying and Jason went off to his room," she replied sadly. "Mrs. Lee Scott went to talk to him and Eugene left with his mom a few minutes later. Laura then kissed me goodnight and went to bed."
Before Billy could reply, he suddenly began to feel a severe pain in his head and placed a hand on his forehead to try and help himself feel better, "Billy?" Ernie asked in a concerned voice, suddenly seeing that Billy was very pale and looked ready to faint. "Billy, are you all right? Do you need some help?"
"No, I just need to lie down," Billy replied in a faint voice, convinced that he had earned this illness.
Swallowing hard, Billy slowly lay down on the mat and closed his eyes to try and block out the pain.
There's talk of security guards here. Katherine thought as she lingered in front of her open locker with books resting in her arms while she gazed at the metal, deeply lost in thought about her missing friends.
"Katherine, are you okay?" Tanya asked as she came down the hallway with Shawn at her side and stopped at Katherine's locker, ignoring Shawn's eye rolling. "You've been really, really quiet today."
Katherine sighed and looked at Tanya, "I was just thinking about Malcolm, Tommy, and Mark," she replied softly.
"I wonder where Mark, Malcolm, and Tommy are," Tanya replied in an equally somber tone. "I'm worried…"
Shawn scoffed, "Malcolm and Tommy are martial arts experts," he snapped. "I'm sure they're fine and nobody should be making a big deal about them not being here. Let's go to the Youth Center, Tanya…"
"I'll be along when I want to be along and not when you tell me to come," Tanya replied crisply.
Shawn scoffed, rolled his eyes, and walked off, "Has Zordon been able to find anything out about where any of them might be?" Tanya asked in a quiet voice. "I haven't been in touch with Zordon…"
"Neither has anyone else," Katherine replied in a somber voice. "There's nothing any of us can do right now because we don't know where Rita and Prince Gasket took Tommy, Mark, and Malcolm or why."
Tanya sighed and suddenly looked concerned, "I saw Billy walking around the park a few days ago, but he seemed to be very upset," she commented worriedly. "Do you think the spell on him was broken?"
"I don't know," Katherine replied softly as she put her books in her locker. "I want to talk to Billy and see what he might be able to do to help Zordon, but I don't want to end up kidnapped; I don't know…"
Both Katherine and Tanya thought for a moment and Katherine suddenly smiled, "Maybe we should go see how Doctor Oliver is doing," she suggested in a concerned voice. "I heard he was in his office today and he's got to be hurting since Tommy is missing and David's really not sure how to be of help."
"Okay," Tanya replied, suddenly missing Tommy and Malcolm. "It'll give us something to do."
Katherine nodded as tears came to her eyes, "Mark's got no chance against Rita," she whispered sadly.
"It's gonna be okay, Kat," Tanya replied gently as she put an arm around her friend. "It'll be okay."
"Mother, I cannot see," Zedison said as he felt a hand on his face. "How am I any good to you?"
Rita sighed and watched as Zedison sat on a chair that Zedd had crafted once Zedison was strong enough to be awake for long periods of time, "You are alive and that is all that matters to us," Rita said as she waved her wand and a silver ninja suit with only a head covering appeared over Mark's suit.
"The last thing I remember is being tortured by Ivan," Zedison whispered in an anxious voice.
Rita frowned and gently stroked Zedison's cheek, "I will send your father in to keep you calm, my Zedison," she said, worried that Zedison was very anxious. "Just take deep breaths to relax."
"Yes Mother," Zedison replied in a faint voice as Rita swept out of the room to let him rest.
A faint moaning sound could be heard as Rita swept into another, more darker part of the cave where Zedd was watching Goldar sword whip a form who was chained to the wall and had a sack over his face.
"Zedd, I am worried about Zedison," Rita said to Zedd. "His strength isn't coming back quickly…"
Zedd grunted, "Goldar, continue teaching Malcolm his lesson for trying to fight his destiny," he replied in a snappish tone as he turned his attention to Rita. "Did you plant the device for Prince Gasket?"
"Billy?"
Billy shuddered and opened his eyes, shocked to see that Jason was kneeling next to him, "Here's that ice you wanted, Jason," Ernie said as he approached the two. "Billy, are you feeling any better?"
"Y-Yes," Billy replied in a nervous voice, still very shaken what he had seen. "I-I'm feeling better."
Even though he wasn't entirely convinced that Billy was okay, Ernie nodded and moved back to the counter where Ashley and a tired looking Skull were sitting and looking at Ashley's homework.
"What are you doing here, Jason?" Billy asked, unwilling to look at Jason any longer than necessary.
Jason looked surprised for only a moment, but quickly recovered, "I came to get ready for the class I teach after school," he replied in a gentle voice. "Ernie mentioned that you weren't feeling well."
"I just had a little headache," Billy replied nervously. "I guess I must have fallen asleep."
Ashley's giggle caused Jason and Billy to look over where she and Skull were sitting. Skull was showing Ashley something he had drawn on an empty page on Ashley's notebook, "I thought Skull was still sick in the hospital?" Billy asked in a quiet voice as he slowly sat up. "He looks like he's doing a lot better."
"I donated some of my bone marrow to Skull," Jason whispered. "He went to school today…"
Billy suddenly frowned, "Jason, I know where Malcolm is," he whispered in an anxious voice.
"How do you know that?" Jason whispered just as Detective Stone came into the Youth Center.
Detective Stone smiled as he approached Skull and Ashley's table, "Hello Miss Hammond and Mister Skullovitch," he said in an official, yet very gentle tone. "Did you both have a good day at school?"
"Today was my first day back to school and it was all right," Skull replied. "Bulk had to stay after school, so I'm waiting for him here. He said he wanted to talk to me about something really, really cool."
As Detective Stone listened to Skull, Billy looked at Jason, "We need to go talk to Zordon," Billy said in a low enough voice so that only Jason could hear it. Jason nodded and carefully helped Billy to his feet.
The door to Dr. Oliver's office was open, Tanya and Katherine observed, as they came down the hallway towards the other end of the school, "…It's not healthy to hole up in your office at school or be alone at your house too much…," David's voice filtered out of the office. "Let me get you something to eat."
"I'll only be a few minutes more, David," Katherine and Tanya heard Dr. Oliver say in a tired tone.
Exchanging a look, Katherine and Tanya knocked on the door, "Come in," they heard Dr. Oliver say.
Katherine and Tanya entered the office and saw Dr. Oliver sitting behind his desk with a pillow underneath his casted leg. David was sitting on the counseling couch with his backpack at his feet.
"Hello there Katherine and Tanya," Dr. Oliver said in a tired voice. "How can I help you two?"
Katherine sighed, "We were wondering the same thing," she replied softly, fighting back her tears.
"Katherine, it's all right to cry because you miss your friends and your brother," Dr. Oliver said in a less tired voice as he offered her the box of tissues on his desk. "Crying is a perfectly natural thing…"
Beep-beep-boop-boop-beep-beep.
"What was that?" David asked, suddenly wondering why two watch alarms had gone off.
Katherine and Tanya exchanged a look, "Alarms reminding us that we have to do something important," Tanya quickly lied, not wanting to lose their powers should David find out they were Zeo Rangers.
Beep-beep-boop-boop-beep-beep.
David frowned, but remained seated, "Does that beeping have something to do with why I never got my half of the arrowhead back?" he asked in a concerned voice. "What did Tommy do with my half?"
Katherine swallowed hard and silently groaned as her Zeonizer suddenly appeared on her wrist, "Is that some sort of wristwatch?" David asked in a curious voice. Dr. Oliver sighed and also swallowed hard.
"Close the door please, Tanya," Dr. Oliver replied in a firm voice, which Tanya did rather quickly.
David suddenly looked nervous, "David, what I am about to tell you is a highly guarded secret and you must never ever tell anyone," Dr. Oliver said in a serious voice. "Katherine and Tanya are Power Rangers and Power Rangers have been entrusted with protecting the citizens of Earth from evil forces."
"What?" David replied in a shocked voice. "Are Tommy and Malcolm Power Rangers too then?"
Katherine nodded, "That's why Malcolm and Tommy were kidnapped," she explained solemnly.
"Katherine and Tanya, you'd better get to the Command Center," Dr. Oliver cut in. "David, stay here."
Still shocked that his newly found brother had such a great responsibility, David nodded and silently watched as Katherine and Tanya teleported out of the office. Dr. Oliver let out a distressed sigh.
"David, I just had a thought," Dr. Oliver said in a gentle voice. "Why don't you and I go to the Youth Center for something to eat and a chat? This has been a very long day and I could use the break."
David nodded and was surprised when Dr. Oliver slowly got to his feet using his crutches, "I just have to get something from the staff room and then we can go," he said in a gentle voice. "I hobbled to school this morning because my car ran out of gas five days ago and I haven't felt like filling up the tank…"
"I have my truck," David replied gently, knowing that Dr. Oliver was tired. "I can give you a ride."
Dr. Oliver nodded and slowly hobbled over to the door, "Thank you," he said in a semi-tired voice.
"No problem," David replied, deeply concerned as he watched Dr. Oliver open the door and hobble out into the hallway. Ever since Tommy had disappeared, Dr. Oliver had become more subdued.
David swallowed hard, silently wishing that there was something he could do as he stood up and moved towards the door. He suddenly noticed Dr. Oliver's satchel was beside the desk and carefully picked it up just in case there was something that Dr. Oliver needed later. He then turned off the lights, left the room, and closed the door. After taking Dr. Oliver's keys out of the door, David hurried after him.
"…This is harder than I thought!" Rocky and Adam heard as they passed a classroom on their way out of the school after staying to help Mr. Wilton clean up a mess that Bulk had accidentally caused during a science experiment after Bulk had been unexpectedly dismissed. "…I'm too dumb for this."
Rocky and Adam exchanged a look and moved over to the classroom doorway. They were surprised to see Bulk sitting in a desk holding an English textbook with Laura standing next to the blackboard.
"Bulk, no you're not!" Laura replied in a gentle, yet very firm voice. "Just believe in yourself."
Not wanting Bulk to see them, Adam and Rocky ducked into the open classroom next door as Bulk stood and came outside, "I'm going to get a drink," Bulk called out as he walked off down the hall.
Adam and Rocky quickly came out of the classroom, "What are you guys doing here?" Laura asked in an anxious voice, suddenly spotting them in the hallway. "Bulk will be embarrassed to see you here."
"What are you doing here anyway?" Rocky asked in a curious voice. "Where's Ashley at?"
Laura sighed, "Billy's at the Youth Center watching her and I'm helping my fellow man," she replied just as Bulk came back and almost turned away because Adam and Rocky were there. "Bulk, don't go…"
"I have trouble reading, okay?" Bulk snapped in an embarrassed voice as he glared at Rocky and Adam, daring them to make fun of his problem. "Detective Stone said that I have to get better at my reading before he'll let me do official work for the Junior Police Force. He asked Laura to help me with it."
Adam frowned, but said nothing, "Bulk, why don't you go get your other books so that you don't have to go back to your locker once we're done for today?" Laura suggested in a gentle voice. "Okay?"
Bulk nodded and hurried back down the hall, "Look, Rocky, I'm not a Ranger anymore so you and the others don't have to waste your time socializing with me," Laura said in a less than pleasant voice as she moved back into the classroom. "Besides, I'm responsible for Tommy getting captured, so…"
"Is that why you've been avoiding everyone?" Adam cut in, deeply shocked. "It's not your fault."
Laura sighed as she turned her attention to the blackboard, "If I hadn't gone upstairs, Tommy wouldn't have had to come after me," she replied in an upset voice. "Kimberly caught me as soon as I reached the second floor and dragged me into the library. She cut my arm right before Tommy and the others…"
For a moment, Laura was silent and then she rolled up her left sleeve, revealing bandages extending all the way from her wrist to her elbow, "The stitches are supposed to come out in five days," she commented in a nervous voice. "I've gotten what I needed from Doctor Oliver's first aid supplies for the last five days and I've taken care of keeping it dry. I haven't wanted to bother him by asking for help."
"Doctor Oliver doesn't blame or hate you for Tommy's disappearance," Adam replied softly. "He's been asking me where you are between after school and curfew. You haven't been visiting Ashley…"
Laura scoffed just as Bulk came back into the room with his backpack over one shoulder, "I've done my best to make sure Ashley does well in school and that she does good things after school," she replied in an unusually upset voice. "After the chaos on Valentine's Day, I decided it was better that I don't depend on others to look after Ashley's well-being for me and I helped her move over to Doctor Oliver's…"
Bulk suddenly cleared his throat, "Uh, Laura?" he asked. "Do you want to help me more today?"
"If you want to be done for the day, Bulk, I understand," Laura replied, seeing that Bulk was anxious to go home. "Just practice your reading and we'll get together again tomorrow, okay? Good job today."
Bulk nodded and quickly left the classroom. Laura sighed and began to clean the board with the eraser.
Beep-beep-boop-boop-beep-beep.
"You guys had better go," Laura said in a melancholy voice. "I have to get back to Ashley and Billy."
Rocky frowned at the mention of Billy watching Ashley, "Don't do anything reckless to try and find Tommy," he said in a worried voice.
"Even though I'm not a Ranger anymore, I can still help others," Laura replied softly. "Maybe in the course of helping others, I can think of some way to help rescue Tommy. You guys had better go."
Even though they didn't want to leave Laura, Rocky and Adam nodded and quickly teleported away.
A thought suddenly crossed Laura's mind as she rolled her sleeve back down; Tommy still had a love for Kimberly and maybe if she could heal Kimberly from whatever spell she was under, perhaps they could work together to get Tommy back from Prince Gasket. Where and how could she find Kimberly, though?
"…Maybe we'd better just order a pizza from my house," Laura suddenly heard the faint voice of Dr. Oliver say as she heard footsteps coming down the hallway. "I'm suddenly feeling really tired."
Laura picked up her backpack and moved out into the hallway just in time to see David walking alongside Dr. Oliver, who was hobbling slowly down the hallway looking very pale and tired. David looked very concerned and was carrying both a backpack and a dark satchel.
"Laura, school ended nearly an hour ago," Dr. Oliver gently commented. "What are you still doing here? Did you get detention today?"
Laura swallowed hard and looked at David, "David, I need your help in going on a vision quest," she said, knowing that a vision quest would be the only way to locate Kimberly without having any powers. "I think the answer to finding Tommy lies in finding and helping Kimberly first."
Dr. Oliver's eyes widened, "Wasn't Tommy captured by some guy named Prince Gasket because he's a Power Ranger?" David suddenly asked.
"Yes," Laura replied softly just in case Bulk was nearby. "The story's long and complicated, but can you take me on a vision quest?"
Dr. Oliver cleared his throat, "Laura, that sounds really dangerous," he stated in a concerned voice. "You could end up seriously hurt."
"I may not be a Ranger anymore, but I still have the power to help others," Laura replied in a determined voice. "Please let me do this."
Dr. Oliver sighed and nodded, "You and David can do this on one condition," he replied in a firm voice. "I come on the quest with you two."
"All right," Laura replied, knowing that Dr. Oliver might be able to help them. "We need to get started on this as soon as possible."
David nodded, "What we need for it is at my house," he replied gently. "I'll drive us there since my Uncle Frank's feeling a bit tired."
Smiling at being referred to as 'Uncle' by David, Dr. Oliver slowly hobbled towards the exit doors with David and Laura walking beside him.
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