"That was fun!" Justin cried as he was deposited in a new dimension.
"That was kinda cool," Skull agreed.
"I thought you were dead," a vicious voice said. Trini looked up to see a Sword pointed not more than three inches from her face.
Suddenly, Putties began to surround them. They burbled to each other incoherently. Before anyone could react, Trini, Tommy, and Skull were bound, hand and feet, and Justin was thrown over the shoulder of a Putty in a fireman's carry.
"Let me go!" Justin shouted.
"Morph Justin!" Tommy shouted.
"MOUNTAIN BLASTER TURBO POWER — SEAHORSE!!!" Justin cried frantically. The Putty collapsed under Justin's sudden increase in weight. He immediately launched himself at the Putties carrying his bound friends.
However, before he was close enough to inflict any damage, Rito blocked him. Justin took a severe hit to the midsection with Rito's sword. He "oomphed" and staggered back a few feet.
"Wait a minute!" Trini cried. "Rito! Don't you remember me! I'm the Trini from the dimension where we're good!"
Rito suddenly paused and turned to look at Trini. "You're from a different dimension?" Rito asked.
"Yes," Trini said. "Remember our five friends that came here after Zack and I left? They didn't come home, and we're on a search and rescue mission!"
"Put them down," Rito commanded. The Putties immediately did as they were told, while Rito proceeded to cut the ropes that bound them. "I'm sure Jenga would like to see you again."
Before any of them could say anything, they all teleported away.
Trini expected to be teleported to the Lunar Palace. Instead, she was teleported into the center of a small make-shift camp. Destruction was all around them, although the people they could see were not worried in the least.
"Jenga!" Rito cried. "I've got some people here you might want to meet!"
Jenga emerged from a large green tent. Her hair no longer trailed down h er back but instead was cut shorter than Justin's. Rather than have three luxurious blue strands that trailed down her back, she had three blue spots on the back of her head. A nasty cut was stitched shut across her forehead. Her clothing was tattered and torn, and she had a surprisingly dark tan, but it was undeniably Jenga Xett. Her face shifted slightly at seeing the three teens, but she then realized what had happened.
"Trini!" Jenga cried. "What are you doing back here?!" She hurried over to Trini and gave the teen a gentle hug.
"We're on a search and rescue mission for our five friends from earlier this summer," Trini said.
"They didn't go home?" Jenga asked sadly.
"No, but they're okay," Trini assured her. "Oh, you know these guys' names, but they're with me. They're good. Tommy and Skull, of course. And this is Justin. He's Blue Turbo Ranger on our world."
"Nice to meet you all," Jenga said warmly.
The other three didn't say anything, as Trini had warned them of what to expect in the Anti-Earth world, the first world in the slider's cache file. "What happened here?" Trini asked. "Where are we?"
"This pile of ruin is what's left of Angel Grove," Jenga said. "Zordon's Rangers attacked us at the Lunar Palace, and we fought back. They brought it to Earth, and we won, but barely."
"Survivors?" Trini asked warily.
"Everyone is here in Angel Grove, now," Jenga explained. "There aren't many people left. I suppose ten thousand. We're trying to rebuild a good society. We've only been at it for a week. Things are actually going pretty smoothly. What do you think of my new hair?"
"It sure is shorter," Trini said.
"Doesn't it look horrible?" Jenga asked. "Tommy did it with his Sword. Took nearly all of it off, and then gashed me across the forehead." Jenga unconsciously shuddered at the memory. "The Rangers killed as many people as they could. But we finally won. Our survivors, from the Dynasty, aren't as numerous. Myself, Rito, Scorpina, and Finster. The others were killed."
"I'm very sorry," Trini said.
"Thank you," Jenga sighed, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye.
"Is there anything we can help you with?" Trini asked.
"No, it's pretty dull around here now," Jenga said. "We have clean up crews working on the rubble and debris, but you need to save your strength for sliding."
Trini nodded in agreement and said, "If you don't, then we'll go ahead and go. You take care, okay?"
"Everything is going to be fine around here now," Jenga said. "Evil is dead."
Trini gave Jenga one final hug, and then pulled the slider from her pocket. "You guys ready?"
"It was nice meeting you," Justin said. "Let's hit it Trini. We've got seventy-eight worlds left."
She opened the slider and hit a button on it. A white beam of light shot from it, forming a whirling vortex of light. Justin took one look at his teammates, and then hurled himself into the light.
As soon as he emerged on the other side, he landed in deep mud and began to slide. A serious thunderstorm was raging, and thick mud lay everywhere. He was thoroughly covered in a matter of moments, but that thought didn't occur to him. He was more concerned with the fact that he was sliding down an extremely steep embankment that seemed to be leading him underground.
Suddenly, the embankment just disappeared, and he was airborne. Screaming, he fell into a dark abyss. Justin wasn't too sure of how far he fell, but suddenly, he was underwater. It couldn't have been too far, because it didn't take him more than a few seconds to resurface. He wiped the water and mud from his face just in time to see Trini and Tommy fall into their underwater pool as well.
"Justin, you okay?" Skull asked as soon as he resurfaced.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Justin told him.
Tommy and Trini swam up to Skull and Justin. "It looks like we're in some type of underground cavern," Trini said. Stone walls stretched up all about them. Light from an unseen source lit the area up. The four Rangers began to swim towards a nearby bank to haul themselves out. They saw no way to get out of the cavern as of yet, but getting out of the water would be no problem at all.
"The slider," Tommy panicked. "Is it okay to get wet?"
"It's virtually indestructible," Trini assured him. "We took every precaution we could to protect it."
"The food in our backpacks is ruined," Skull remarked. "Let's try and get out of here."
Tommy was the first to reach the bank. He latched onto the top of it and quickly hauled himself out. He then stretched a hand down to help Trini out.
Suddenly, screams of anger came from all about them. Tommy shot a "Stay down!" at Skull and Justin. Eight people in tattered clothing and masks that looked animal faces ran at Tommy and Trini, carrying crudely made shotguns and rifles. One woman with long chestnut colored hair and a mask that resembled some type of bird ran up to Trini. She took one look at her, and then rammed the butt of her rifle against Trini's ribs. The sudden move took Trini by surprise, and she bent over in pain.
Several men gathered around Tommy. Tommy slowly circled with them, ready to defend himself. Suddenly, one man with long blondish-brown hair, a beard of similar color, and the mask of a wolf kicked Tommy in the ribs. Tommy attempted to defend himself, but the man in the wolf mask was a split second faster. A few seconds later, Tommy lay at the four men's feet in a painful heap.
"Get them out of here!" one of the men shouted. "We save her death for last!"
Skull and Justin waited in terrified silence, pressed against the stone bank, until the only sound was that of water running into the pool. "Think it's safe?" Justin whispered.
"I'll check," Skull volunteered. He slowly raised himself up high enough to look over the bank. "It looks clear," Skull said softly, pulling himself out of the water. He then stretched a hand down to Justin to help him out.
"What are we gonna do, Skull?" Justin asked, picking up Tommy and Trini's discarded backpacks.
"I say we morph and go find them," Skull said. "They didn't look like they would have Ranger technology. It's Morphin Time?"
"It's Morphin Time," Justin agreed.
"What are you going to do to me?" Trini asked cautiously. The woman with the bird mask pulled it off, revealing a very familiar face. "Kimberly?" Trini asked.
"If you expect me to save you, you've got another thing coming," Kimberly snapped. "Tie her down to that table," Kimberly said to the two men who carried Trini into the room by her hands and feet. "I've got some things I'd like to say to her first."
"Kimberly, you don't understand," Trini pleaded. "I'm not even from this dimension."
"Aw geeze," Kimberly said. "If you're trying to save your ass you could at least come up with a better story than that, oh gracious Right Queen."
Dulcea, Master Warrior of Phaedos, teleported to the Earth. Project Genesis was well underway, as she expected it would be. The final Queen was dead, and she had to let the others know. However, she suddenly felt the Right Queen's presence. She quickly opened her satchel to make sure she had not been fooled. Once satisfied that the satchel's contents had not changed, she set out to determine what was putting off Right Queen's presence.
Just as she was about to teleport underground, she sensed Tommy as well. She knew that he was dead as well. Something was afoot that she didn't understand, and Dulcea didn't like that.
"Did you really think you were going to get the Great Power?" the man in the wolf mask asked Tommy, who was currently shackled and unable to move."We warned Dulcea. I just can't quite figure out why you are back. You should have either succeeded or died at Dulcea's hands."
"Your voice sounds so familiar," Tommy whispered thoughtfully, more to himself than the Wolf Man.
"Insult to injury, I see," Wolf Man said, obviously hurt. He yanked the mask off, revealing a set of eyes that Tommy would have recognized anywhere. The hair and beard had thrown Tommy off, but it was undeniably him.
"Billy?" Tommy asked in shock.
"Good call," Billy agreed. "Who on the Throne is still alive?"
"Billy, I'm from a different dimension," Tommy told him hurriedly. "I'm not from here."
Billy paused. "Can you prove it?"
"I don't suppose I can," Tommy admitted.
"I'll hold off on you," Billy said. "For now."
"Identify yourself!" Dulcea demanded.
Justin and Skull traded a glance, and then looked at Dulcea. "We aren't from this dimension," Justin said.
Dulcea looked thoughtful for a moment, and then said, "Identify yourself anyway."
Justin removed his helmet and immediately morphed down to his shorter height. "Justin Cranston," he answered. "Blue Turbo Ranger from a different dimension."
"Eugene Skullovitch," Skull said, following Justin's lead. "We have two friends with us," Skull continued. "Trini Kwan and Tommy Oliver."
"Also from a different dimension?" Dulcea asked. Justin nodded yes. "Then we must hurry," Dulcea told them gravely. "Your friends, especially Trini, are in grave danger."
"Kimberly," Dulcea said sternly. "That is not the Right Queen."
"That's what I've been trying to tell her!" Trini protested.
"How can you be so sure?" Kimberly asked, testing a dagger's tip with her finger.
Dulcea sat a white satchel, the bottom of which was stained red, on a table in the room. "Look for yourself," Dulcea said.
Kimberly walked over to the table and opened the satchel. She looked at the satchel's contents, and then nodded her approval. "Who is this then?"
Dulcea closed the satchel and said, "That's a Trini from a different dimension. Let her go. Skull, come in here and explain to Kimberly what is going on." Kimberly's eyes widened as Skull, clad in the original Green Ranger armor, walked into the room. She proceeded to cut Trini free.
"Billy!" Kimberly snapped. "That's not our Tommy!"
"How can you be so sure?" Billy asked, frowning angrily.
"Look in Dulcea's satchel," Kimberly said. Dulcea walked toward Billy and opened it. He looked in and nodded in approval.
"I will tell Jason and Katherine," Billy told Kimberly. "They will be happy to know that the Throne is now officially dead."
"Dulcea and I will tell everyone else what has happened," Kimberly said. Her eyes fell on the blood stained satchel, and a smile crept across her face in spite of herself. "I can't believe it's really over."
"I'll go with you," Skull volunteered. "If that's okay."
"Yeah, fine," Kimberly said. She laughed happily and ran out of the room.
Skull watched in awe as Kimberly and Dulcea delivered a speech to the survivors of the Throne. They stood at a balcony, crudely painted in shades of blue, overlooking a gigantic throne room. The two women had the crowd of less then five hundred cheering and hollering in a just a few minutes
His eyes kept falling on Dulcea's satchel, however. He had a pretty good hunch what was inside, but he had to look for himself. He knew he was going to regret it as soon as he opened it, but he had to see it for himself. Skull slowly walked over to the dirty satchel. His hands paused on the handles, and he then opened it. He looked at the contents for all of about two seconds, and immediately turned away and expelled everything he had eaten that day.
"You looked in the satchel, didn't you?" Kimberly asked, putting her hands on her hips.
"Yeah," Skull groaned. "Sorry."
"I think you learned your lesson," Kimberly smiled. "I know its hard to just see something like that and not judge Dulcea harshly, but they were evil people."
"What exactly is going on around here?" Skull asked. "This is confusing."
"You sure aren't like the Skull we had here before the Take Over," Kimberly remarked. "Let's go someplace quiet and we'll talk."
"So the rumors of my doppelganger coming through here are true?" Kimberly asked.
"True," Skull told her. "She's my girlfriend back home."
"Yeah, you've mentioned that several times," Kimberly chuckled. She would never have dated the Skull of her world, but she had to admit that the Skull sitting before her was remarkably more mature. "Do you know what may have become of Aisha? She disappeared before we did, but we never found her."
"No, I've told you everything I know," Skull said, "which isn't much."
"Well, Jason left us about a year ago. He eventually made his way back on the Throne. Emily was carrying his child, by the way. That's how he got back on. Jason remembered why he left in the first place as soon as he saw how wicked they were, and rejoined us. We weren't too pleased, but Jason proved to be a valuable asset. He knew from his very brief stint on the Throne that the Zeo Crystal had disappeared. We have no idea where it went to, but it gave us the edge we needed. Their armies no longer had the Zeo Crystal to threaten us with."
"And war started?" Skull tried.
"Right. We fought back. And we killed nearly the entire Throne. Tommy, Trini, and Zack escaped to Phaedos to attempt to get the Great Power to destroy us. Dulcea killed them, instead.
"The planet Eltare then sent us Project Genesis. See, we live underground because the entire surface was desolated in the war that drove us all underground. There's nothing left. Project Genesis was launched, and the planet is currently reviving itself."
"That's why it was raining so hard," Skull said thoughtfully.
"Right," Kimberly said. "The oceans are filling back up. Within a month, the rains will be over and vegetation will return. A year from now, we will move to the top. Eltare and Triforia are going to give us some of their animals so that one day, we'll be a real planet again. It's a fresh start for us."
"Do you have a boyfriend here?" Skull asked, obviously interested.
"Well, Billy and I had a fling a while back," Kimberly murmured. "But he's with Kat now. In fact, they're getting pretty serious. Jason and I have been kinda sorta thinking about it lately, but nothing serious."
"Kimberly!" Katherine cried from the doorway.
"Have you heard the news?!" Kimberly shouted as well, jumping to her feet to give her friend a hug.
"Yeah, and that's not all of the good news!" Katherine laughed. "Billy and I are pregnant!"
"There's a lot to be said for short hair," Billy muttered to himself as he cut the long locks off.
"Don't forget the beard," Skull said. "Man, that looks so bizarre."
"What does?" Billy asked. He then proceeded to cut on his beard, also with the scissors, so as to make shaving with a razor later on easier.
"You with a beard," Skull told him. "It's just not what we're used to. At all."
"Billy thought it was a great disguise," Jason said, "so he's been growing it out for a pretty good while now. Hey, Kat told me the news, man. Congrats."
"What news?" Billy asked, trading the scissors for a razor.
"You haven't talked to her yet?" Jason asked.
"Good news?" Billy asked, his curiosity piqued.
"Gentlemen?" Katherine asked from the doorway. "Can I talk to Billy alone?"
"Let's go guys," Tommy said, placing his hands on Justin's shoulders as they left what had formerly been a prison cell's bathroom.
"Billy, I've got good news," Katherine said, rushing up to him. "Ooh, you've cut your hair."
"I know you liked it short," Billy told her as he hurriedly finished shaving. He splashed water on his face, wiped the shaving cream off, and stared at a totally different face in the mirror. "Much better."
"Remember that night about two weeks ago?" Katherine asked.
"The night our war officially ended with the destruction of the Throne?" Billy asked with a grin.
"Well, yeah, but I'm talking about … later, in that night," Katherine said.
"Oh yeah. I certainly hadn't forgotten about that." He couldn't suppress the smile that followed.
"Well," Katherine said, a bit stunned that Billy still hadn't made the connection, "I think we're going to have a lasting effect from that night." Billy looked at Katherine questioningly. She finally took his hand and placed it against her flat stomach. "Billy, we're pregnant. I'm late, but not really late enough to be sure, but Dulcea told me she could sense a child within me," she told him.
"Pregnant?" Billy asked in disbelief.
"You aren't upset are you?" Katherine asked nervously.
"Oh no," Billy assured her, shaking his head frantically. "I'm just … amazed. I mean, you got pregnant the first time we made love? This is amazing." He pulled Katherine into his arms and kissed her passionately. He laughed out loud as he said, "I'm gonna be a dad!"
"Oooh," Katherine sighed, "no more facial hair. I really like that."
"Let's get married," Billy said happily.
"How?" Kat asked. "There are only like seven hundred people on the planet. I don't know if we have any preachers or priests."
"Well, we'll look," Billy said, "and…"
"I'll take your name," Katherine told him, "and we'll go ahead and tell people that we're married."
"Good," Billy sighed. "Wanna go on a honeymoon tonight?" Katherine smiled and nodded in agreement.
"I'd like to get out of here as quickly as we can," Trini whispered to Skull. "Even though they know I'm not their Trini, I'm still not very popular here."
"Yeah, I don't suppose so," Skull agreed.
"We need to go to the surface to slide," Justin said. "How do we get up to the top?"
"There are severe storms raging across the entire planet," Kimberly told them. "It's not safe."
"We have no choice," Tommy said. "We have to go up top."
"You could take an old SpideRover," Katherine suggested.
"I'll show you how the controls work," Billy volunteered. "Follow me."
"It was nice meeting you all," Justin shouted as they followed Billy into the distance.
"We're at the top," Tommy announced. Skull opened the door to the SpideRover as Trini prepared the slider. "Get ready to jump," Tommy told them, "and jump fast. This water is flowing too fast to take long. The SpideRover's going to be pulled away as soon as I let go of the controls."
"Let's do it," Trini said. She pointed the slider at the ground and pressed the button. A split second later, a whirling vortex of light had grown on the ground. "Go Justin!" He leapt from the vehicle and dropped directly into the portal. Skull was close behind.
"Give me the timer!" Tommy shouted over the roar of the wind.
Trini put the timer in his shirt pocket, and then leapt into the portal. Tommy moved the SpideRover as close as he could, and then hurled himself into the portal.
Tommy was the last to emerge on the other side of the wormhole, bringing with him all of the rain that had poured in during the horrific storm. "This world looks normal," Trini said as she picked herself up from the street.
"This world looks empty," Skull said. "Nobody on the sidewalks."
"Is this Angel Grove?" Justin asked no one in particular.
"Maybe," Tommy muttered, "but I doubt it."
Suddenly, five colored figures on motorcycles flew up the street. The four sliders leaped to the sidewalk as the figures drove off. "Were those Rangers?" Skull asked.
"Looked like Zeo Rangers," Tommy commented.
"Look you guys," Trini said, "we've got a lot of worlds to visit and we're already behind schedule. Let's keep sliding."
"Not so fast," a menacing female voice taunted. They all turned in perfect unison to see a robotic woman, dressed entirely in red, standing on the street.
"Who are you?" Tommy asked.
"Jara," the robot said. "And yourself?"
"We're leaving," Trini told her. "Come on guys." Suddenly, the slider flew from her hands and into Jara's.
"Give it back!" Justin shouted.
"I'm sure that's going to happen!" Jara taunted. "Ta ta!" Before any of the quartet could react, they disappeared with the slider.
"What are we going to do?" Skull asked panicked.
"I suggest we morph and teleport to the Ranger's headquarters," Trini said. "They can help us get the slider back." Simultaneously, the four called on their Powers, and then teleported away.
"What happened to the Command Center?" Skull asked. They had teleported to a run down dilapidated mansion. There was a very elaborate computer console nearby, but otherwise, the room was in very bad shape.
A blue man, who looked eerily reminiscent of both Jay Leno and Elvis Presley, walked into the room. Upon seeing the four Rangers, he did an exaggerated comical double take, complete with bulging, flashing eyes.
"What the-?" Tommy asked in disbelief.
"Aisha?" the blue man asked. "What did you do to yourself?"
"We had better explain," Trini said, removing her helmet. "We're from a different dimension, and-"
"Oh, more of you guys," the blue man said, nodding. "My name is Flabber. And you are?" The four Rangers introduced themselves, and then Trini proceeded to give her tale.
Suddenly, blue, pink, green, red, and yellow light flooded the immediate area, producing five Zeo Rangers. "Flabber, what did those goons want?" Yellow Ranger asked while removing her helmet in a voice that was both youthful and old at the same time.
"Trini," Red Ranger, this one female, said coldly. Trini turned to look at Red Ranger, who had by then removed her helmet and revealed the face of Aisha Campbell.
"Aisha?" Trini asked. The Blue, Green, and Pink Zeo Rangers removed their own helmets as well, and immediately shrank into children Justin's age.
"I'm from a different dimension," Trini defended herself quickly.
"So am I," Aisha said coolly. "I'm from a dimension where you were a dictator."
"We just came from that dimension!" Justin cried.
"Not like THAT, though," Trini quickly defended herself. "We're on a search and rescue mission for five friends of ours."
"Billy, Kimberly, Katherine, Rocky, and Jason?" Aisha asked, slowly letting her guard down.
"Yes," Trini assured her. "We've got a slider that's taking us on the exact same route they went."
"They were the ones who saved me," Aisha said. "They brought me and the Zeo Crystal to this world."
"Thanks to you leaving with the Zeo Crystal," Tommy smiled warmly, "the Freedom Force had the ability to overthrow the Throne."
"The Throne is gone?" Aisha asked, awe struck.
"The Throne is gone," Trini promised her. "Billy, Kimberly, Jason, and Katherine are alive and well. They oversaw the destruction of the Throne.Oh, and Billy and Katherine are going to have a baby."
"Oh man," Aisha said, obviously thrilled. "I thought for sure I was the only survivor. Man, this is great!"
"Uhm, Aisha," the older woman in the Yellow Zeo Armor said, "we've got Chromite problems, remember?"
"Oh yeah," Aisha said hurriedly, "I forgot to introduce you to everybody. This old lady in yellow is Nano, my best friend on the entire planet."
"Old lady?" Nano asked, jokingly raising an eyebrow.
"That kid in green is Nano's grandson, Roland," Aisha continued. Roland acknowledge his presence with a slight wave. "Blue boy is Drew, and that girl in pink with all of the hair is Jo."
"Hi," Jo said sweetly, returning her attention to the computer console before her.
"Aisha," Roland interrupted her, "we've got a swarm of Chromites coming into Angel Grove, fast."
"What are Chromites?" Justin asked.
"They're strong, like Tengas, but stupid, like putties. In fact, they look like colored putties," Aisha said. "Look, we'll talk later, but right now, we have to go defend Charterville."
"We'll come with," Tommy volunteered.
"You sure?" Nano asked.
"Absolutely," Skull agreed.
"Back to action!" Aisha cried. Nine streaks of colored light left Hillhurst Mansion.
Trini punched a pink Chromite in the chest, sending it over the edge into self-destruction. Pink ooze splattered everywhere, some of it landing on her armor. "These things are really nasty," Trini said.
"Imagine what Kimberly would have to say about 'em," Skull commented as he went one-on-one with his Dragon Dagger.
Suddenly, the remaining Chromites disappeared, along with the gallons of multi-colored ooze coating the streets. Red light flashed before them, revealing the beast known as Jara. "All right!" Jara cried, throwing her hands up in the air. "How does that blasted device work!?!"
"What device is she talking about?" Drew asked Roland. The taller boy merely shrugged.
"She's talking about our slider," Tommy said, stepping forward. "You may as well give it back, … you-"
"Jara," Jo told him.
"-'cause it is designed to only work for us."
"Then you'll work for me!" Jara threatened. "Or else!"
"Hah!" Justin cried. "Work for evil? Not a chance!"
"Bash! Flimsha!" Jara cried angrily. "Perhaps after you fight PigSkin you'll feel differently!" With a wave of her hand, she disappeared as a tall pig creature, eerily reminiscent of Pudgy Pig, materialized on the street.
"Aisha, we have to get that slider back!" Tommy told her.
"Go back to Hillhurst," Aisha told him. "All four of you. We'll take care of PigSkin, and you can have Flabber start scanning for the slider."
"Let's go," Trini agreed. They teleported away in a colored rainbow of sparks.
"I smell… hmm…. Type AB," Count Fangula said hungrily.
"AB what?" Skull asked as he removed his helmet. "Blood?"
"What else is there?" Count asked, smelling the air. "It's you, isn't it?"
"Just who are you?" Skull asked.
"I'm hungry," Count said.
"No!" Flabber snapped, running up to his supernatural friend. "No! I've told you before, you couldn't eat BeetleBorgs and you can't eat Rangers!Now get out of here!"
"Aw, you're no fun," Count complained as he walked away with his head hanging.
"Sheesh, these house monsters drive me nuts," Flabber complained. "What are you guys doing back so soon?"
"That red chick," Tommy said, "Jaba? Something, anyway, she sent down a monster."
"We need to get our slider back," Justin told Flabber. "We HAVE to get it back. Aisha said you can scan for it."
"I'll do my best," Flabber said as a white lab coat materialized on his body.
"What's that?" Skull asked panicked as the entire house began to rumble.
"Hey you guys!" an unfamiliar voice said. The four Rangers turned to look at a mummy, standing by the window, along with a werewolf, a vampire, a Frankenstein creature, and a short "thing" in a full-bodied brown shawl. The mummy shouted, "They're using the Super Zeo Zords!"
Skull and Justin hurried over to the window to look out with the paranormal quintet. The ground before the house opened up, and the five Super Zeo Zords leapt out and immediately ran off to the Zeo Rangers.
"Hey, how's it goin?" the short creature said to Justin. It was apparently female, and two red orbs glowed where her eyes should have been in the black pit that should have been her face. "My name's Little Ghoul. Who are you?"
"Justin," he told her. "Nice to meet you."
"Likewise," she said, shaking his hand. "These things are Count, Frankenbeans, (he's kinda slow,) Mums, and Wolfgang."
"Hi guys," Justin said warily.
Count sniffed the air and then looked at Justin. "What's your blood type?"
"COUNT!!!" Flabber yelled from somewhere in the house.
"Aw, come on Flabber!" Count yelled back as he walked away. "I was just playin'!"
Trini, meanwhile, looked intently at the readings that were coming from the large computer console. "Flabber, this is it," Trini told him. "Where is this signal coming from?"
"Hmmm," Flabber said thoughtfully, "that is coming from…Jara's headquarters."
"Where's that?" Tommy asked.
"We have no idea," Flabber told them.
Trini sighed heavily and ran her fingers through her hair. "Is there any way to get there?" Trini asked.
"I've never tried," Flabber admitted.
"Why did they want it in the first place?" Tommy asked.
"Jara's been itching to send Aisha and the Zeo Crystal back where they came from," Flabber told them, for once talking seriously. "She's probably got some way to scan for any type of unique energy reading, signifying a transdimensional traveler. Ever since the first five Rangers who brought Aisha and the Zeo Crystal through here defeated the Magnavores, she's been pretty ill. Some space demon, what was her name… Tetris? Rubiks Cube? Monopoly? Jeopardy? Man, what was her name?! Wheel of Fortune, no that's not it… Nintendo… Sega? Dang! Maybe it was Jane? Margaret Munger? Theodore!"
"Jenga?" Justin tried warily.
"Yeah! That's it! She came by here about three weeks ago and brought Jara back to life. Jara is going to destroy the Zeo Crystal while Jenga is taking care of things in the M-51 Galaxy. She killed this guy, Mister Vomit, or something, and she's taking over his whole empire. Anyway, as soon as Jara has gotten rid of the Zeo Crystal, they're going to merge dynasties and kill us all. Apparently, Jara plans to use your slider to get rid of the Zeo Rangers. She can't use it, can she?"
"No, we put a safe-guard feature in it," Trini said. "Only those with the Ninja Power can make it work, and that's just us. But she could certainly break it."
"Perhaps if I can isolate the exact energy readings of Jara's HQ, and create a tightly focused energy beam, then I can sneak one of you in without Jara noticing," Flabber said thoughtfully. "Getting you back will be tricky, but it MIGHT work."
"Do it," Trini said. "I'll go and-"
"No," Tommy told her. "I'll go. I have the best fighting ability if I lose my powers, I'm more used to these evil guys, and I don't know much about the slider, so we don't have to worry about sacrificing my intelligence."
"Okay," Trini relented. She hated it when Tommy gave her that look. He had a way of using his eyes to make his point. It was just as effective as Jason's leader voice and Billy's rapid-fire technobabble.
"I've got a lock," Flabber said, "but it'll take me at least twenty-four hours to get the beam exactly how I want it to break through Jara's dimensional barrier."
The Zeo Rangers teleported into Hillhurst and began removing their helmets. "Any luck?" Nano asked.
"Sort of," Flabber said. "It's just going to take time."
"Well, you all can spend your time at Nano's," she volunteered them. "Come on. You guys hungry?"
"I can always eat," Skull said truthfully.
"Eh, Jara's useless," Nano told Tommy as the two of them cooked lunch for the group of Rangers.
"Sounds about like Rita," Tommy murmured.
"But man, I love being a Ranger," Nano said. "I haven't had this much fun since I was a teenager."
Tommy chuckled as he shook his head. It seemed slightly odd to have a Ranger be a woman in her sixties, but he supposed it really wasn't any different than having kids on the team. Jo didn't look like she could be any older then ten or eleven, while Drew, Roland, and Justin all hovered around the age of twelve or thirteen. The Power put a person in their ideal fighting condition. It simply took forty years off of Nano's body and enhanced the fighting skills she already had.
The rest of the Rangers were scattered about Nano's living room having an assortment of conversations. "We're already way behind," Trini said. "I was hoping to be through at least ten worlds by now. We've wasted three hours, and we're just on our third world!"
"There's nothing we can do about it, Trini," Aisha assured her. "We'll get the slider back. It's just going to take a few hours."
"Hey Justin," Drew said, "after lunch you should come with us to Zoom Comics."
"Sure," Justin agreed. "Sounds like fun."
"How many Rangers are there on your world?" Jo asked in disbelief.
"Fourteen different people," Skull said, "and we've got a robot named Alpha, a hologram named Catalina, and a big floating head named Zordon."
"A big floating head?" Jo asked in disbelief. "That's weird."
"Not unlike having a vampire, mummy, werewolf, Frankenbeans, Flabber, and Little Ghoul?" Skull countered.
"Touché," Jo admitted.
"Lunch is on!" Nano called.
"Nano is the best cook there is," Roland promised as the potpourri of Rangers made their way into the kitchen.
Nano did prove to be one of the best, as some time later, everyone sat around with an overly full belly. "Man, if I never eat again it'll be too soon," Skull complained.
"Good thing Rocky wasn't here," Tommy commented.
"That boy could put food away," Nano remembered.
Suddenly, a unique tone, five beeps that slowly lowered in pitch, sounded from five of the communicators in the kitchen. "We're here, Flabber," Nano said into the yellow band on her wrist.
"Rangers, you guys better get your color-coded butts out here now!" Flabber shouted. "Tommy, I can send you to Jara's now!" Nano's dining room was lit up with a multitude of colorful lights as all nine Rangers teleported away.
With a bright red flash, Tommy morphed into the Ninja version of Zeo Ranger V. The only significant difference between his costume and his former Zeo costume was the red and white morpher on his belt and the coin in the golden triangle on his chest that carried the Falcon. "I'm ready, Flabber," he said.
"Get in, get the slider, and get out," Flabber told him. "Just return to the coordinates I send you to. As soon as you get the slider, hurry back there and I'll bring you home."
Tommy nodded in agreement. Flabber fired a white ball of light at him, and he promptly disappeared with a large crackle of electricity.
"You guys!" Drew shouted, running into the house with Justin and Roland in tow. "We've got Chromites out there!"
"Jara must know what we're doing," Nano said. "It's Morphin' Time!"
Justin found himself surrounded by a quartet of pink Chromites. "Aw man!" he cried. "HAND BLASTERS!!!" He held his hands out before him as his weapons materialized in his hands. He leveled them to fire twin blasts at the Chromites, only to realize that he hadn't called on his Hand Blasters. "What the?" Justin asked in disbelief. He was holding blue batons, and then realized what had happened. With his Ninja Power he had gotten new weapons. "Twin Batons!" Justin shouted happily. He immediately defended himself against the Chromites, beating the stupid Putty-like creatures senseless.
"I've got an idea!" Drew shouted. "You guys, herd 'em up! Aisha, let's form the Zeo Cannon!"
"Good idea, Drew!" Aisha agreed.
"We're on it!" Skull shouted. As the Zeo Rangers assembled the Zeo Cannon, Skull, Trini, and Justin quickly got the Chromites in a tight group. They leapt away just as the Zeo Cannon fired, obliterating the Chromites.
Tommy ran down the darkened corridors of Jara's headquarters. Chromites chased after him, but fortunately, he was a few steps faster. He clutched the slider against his chest, determined not to lose it again. He step on the section of ground he had teleported in on, and disappeared in a red line of light.
A split second later, he materialized in Hillhurst Mansion, still running. "We got it!" Tommy announced triumphantly, holding the slider up in the air.
The Rangers ran into Hillhurst a few minutes later. "We've got the slider," Trini said, "then let's go."
"Thanks for lunch, Nano," Skull said as Tommy held the slider out before him. He hit the button, and nothing happened.
"You're right, Trini," Flabber told her. "That's exactly what happened. The slider has been altered."
"The cache file is at least still there," Trini muttered for her own assurance.
"How has it been altered?" Skull asked.
"I think I've figured it out," Trini said. The slider was hooked up to Flabber's computer system. "Jara tried to take it apart. She messed up the energy capacitor."
"Energy what?" Jo asked.
"The energy capacitor is sort of like the slider's battery," Trini explained. "It's designed to draw energy from whatever dimension we are in to open the portal to the next. It was very powerful and allowed us to hop from one dimension to another instantaneously. But no more. It's much weaker, and it's going to have to take some time to charge up in each dimension."
"We can make a read-out that will tell you how long it will take until it's recharged," Flabber said. "According to this, you've got seventeen more hours."
"That's eight o'clock tomorrow morning," Tommy remarked.
"We're way off schedule, now," Trini sighed dejectedly. "It's gonna take us longer to get there than the first group."
"You know, the sky looks the same no matter where you are, doesn't it?" Justin asked.
"It sure does," Aisha agreed. The two virtual strangers sat on Nano's roof to look at the nighttime sky. A full moon hung high in the sky, providing a great deal of silvery light.
"The sky even looked a lot like this from Phaedos," Justin said. "Different stars, and a different moon, two of them in fact, but still… All of the universes are basically the same." The two sat in silence for a while, until Justin finally asked, "Do you consider this home?"
"Yes, I do," Aisha said. "I lost everything in the other dimension when Trini and Tanya took over. My parents, everything… This place was a fresh start. I'm technically an adult, but Nano is practically like a parent to me. I've got a new job here that pays very well. It's a good thing, too, because my Ranger responsibilities are keeping me in Charterville. How about you? How is your new family treating you?"
"Well, I've just recently started calling Becky Mom," Justin said. "My real mom wanted me to. And, well, I've always called Dad Dad. I guess because the only Dad I can remember is George Stewart, and he beat me."
"He beat you?" Aisha asked in horror.
"Yeah," Justin said sadly. "Actually, Jenga is the one who killed him. I don't know why she did it, but I can't help but be a little bit thankful. But then that makes me feel guilty."
"No," Aisha told him. "You shouldn't feel guilty. You have no reason to feel guilty."
"I know," Justin sighed. "I don't think about that much, anymore. And Billy is my brother, but except for when he came back for prom, I haven't seen much of him. He's not at the Peace Conference anymore, so I'm really looking forward to him coming home so I can get to know him. I mean, I have a brother now, and I don't really even know him, and I really want to. And Kimberly is sort of like a sister. She was staying with the Cranstons, when the whole sliding thing happened. I got to know Kimberly really well. I just – I miss everybody."
"You'll get there," Aisha assured him. "Everything almost always has a way of working out for the best."
"I hope you're right," Justin said, nodding.
Justin, Trini, Skull, and Tommy gave the Zeo Rangers, along with Flabber and the House Monsters, their goodbyes. "I know we'll probably never come through here again," Trini said, "but…"
"It was very nice meeting you all," Tommy finished for her.
The slider emitted a beep and the timer read 0000:00:00, indicating that it was fully charged and capable of opening a dimensional portal. "Let's go," Skull said solemnly.
Trini opened the slider and hit the button. A bright whirlpool of light appeared before them.
2349 A.D.M
On the spaceship "Christa", far from Earth
Catalina wandered down the corridors of the Christa through her dimensional double Suzee's projected mind. Suzee always let her consciousness roam free while she slept, so Catalina could have free access to the Christa. During Suzee's waking hours, Catalina could only see what Suzee saw and hear what Suzee heard. While Suzee slept, though, Catalina was on her own.
The only person she ever got to meet by herself, though, was Thelma. The rest of the crew was fast asleep. While Thelma could be fun, she also tended to be a bit repetitive. Ever since Harlan had broken her memory crystal, which occurred before any one else had even got to meet android Thelma, she had been a bit loopy. For that reason, Catalina spent most of her time reading in the Christa's on-line libraries.
Suddenly, a silent red alarm began to flash on a distant console. The purple visage, reminiscent of Suzee but currently carrying Catalina's consciousness, floated out of the chair and hurried over to the console. A single red light blinked on and off.
"What is this?" the young Saturnian asked herself. "This alarm has never gone off before."
She silently wished that she were in a flesh and blood body, but Suzee had taught her how to mentally work the controls. The glowing purple outline of Suzee's hands still moved across the controls, although Suzee's sleeping mind, manipulated by Catalina's active thoughts, actually caused them to move. A few moments later, the confusing results came back to her.An anomaly of both space and time had occurred somewhere in the past, and the energy signature it gave off was in some way affecting the Christa.
"Christa, notify Thelma," Catalina commanded. "Christa, give me the date and place of this disturbance."
"The date of this disturbance is June 24, 1997, 9:53 a.m. The place of this disturbance is the country-side of Stone County, California, United States of America, Earth, Tribeta System, Maxell Belt, Milky Way Galaxy, Goldwyn Cluster K. The cause is unknown."
The silver android hurried up to Suzee's project mental image and said, "Catalina?"
"It's me, Thelma," Catalina told her through Suzee's voice. "Something is happening to the Christa."
Thelma paused for a moment as the Christa relayed the information into Thelma's computer brain. "Oh," Thelma said in response to an unasked question posed by the ship. "It is nothing serious, Catalina."
"Well what's happening?" she asked.
"The Christa is merely being pulled through space and time to the device that caused the dimensional disturbance. The Christa is under the impression that it is being caused by an identical sister ship. As such, She is going to attempt to dock with the ship."
"Thelma!" Catalina cried. "Christa hadn't even been invented in 1997! We're going to Earth. They couldn't even get past their moon!"
"Perhaps the other Christa traveled back in time and crashed," Thelma theorized.
"Then we're going to crash, too!" Catalina shouted.
"Perhaps the other Christa can help save us," Thelma suggested.
"If there is another Christa back there, they are crashed too!"
"Perhaps we can help them."
"Thelma!" Catalina shouted frantically. Catalina immediately flew toward Suzee's body. Standing beside her sleeping friend's body, she opened her mouth and emitted a Sonic Scream, a scream all inhabitants of Titan were capable of producing.
Suzee screamed in pain and clamped her hands over her ears as she sat up "Cat?" she asked frantically.
"Sorry 'bout that," Catalina said from within Suzee's head. "But the Christa is about to travel through space and time and Thelma isn't going to stop it!"
"Where to?" Suzee asked as she hopped out of bed. The bed immediately retracted into a triangular cubicle on the wall. "Rosie, wake up."
"Earth, late twentieth century," Catalina told her.
"Suzee, what's wrong?" Rosie, her Mercurian roommate, asked groggily.
"The Christa is about to crash," Suzee told her as she put her gray suit on over her gleaming blue nightgown.
"Again?" Rosie asked in disbelief.
"Only this time it's worse," Suzee said frantically. She zipped up her jumpsuit and ran out of the room. Her shoulder length brown, red, purple, and blue hair bounced as she hurried off. "Go wake up the guys!"
"Thelma, make the Christa stop!" Suzee cried as she hurried over to her station.
"That is not an option," Thelma told her calmly.
"Why not?" Suzee demanded.
"Suzee, what's wrong?" Harlan asked as he ran into the main control room, wearing only a pair of gray sweatpants. Radu, Bova, and Commander Goddard were close behind.
"We're all going to die!" TJ Davenport cried as she ran into the room with Rosie behind her.
"Calm down, Miss Davenport," the ever-cheerful Rosie told her. "We aren't going to die."
"That is no longer an option because the Christa is making the sub-space/time leap," Thelma said, "now." White light overwhelmed the spaceship, and She disappeared.
9:53 a.m.
Countryside in Stone County, California
Trini rolled into a kneeling position. It was already Monday morning, and they had told everyone they would have been home Sunday night. Only one world had passed since their encounter with Flabber, Nano, and the alternate Zeo Rangers. "Oh man," Trini complained. "We've got two days to spend on this world! It's gonna take us forever to get home!"
Suddenly, lightning flashed across the morning sky above them. "Storm?" Skull asked. He looked up, but the sky was a beautiful shade of blue. Lightning cracked again, and a sonic boom seemingly shook the entire planet. A gigantic silver and bronze space ship, reminiscent of both a fish and a bird, appeared in the sky. It arched toward the earth and immediately crashed into it. The ship came to a rest, not more than a mile from the Rangers. A gigantic wave of dust and dirt rose up from the collision and began to move toward the teens.
"You guys!" Justin cried.
"Morph!" Tommy commanded, immediately followed by, "ZEO RANGER V, RED — FALCON!!!"
They had barely morphed into their armor when tons of debris pummeled them. Trini rolled up in a ball and placed the slider against the flat of her stomach. That was currently their only means to both rescue the Rangers and get home. It couldn't be damaged.
Eventually, the debris stopped raining down on them. Trini quickly dug her way out of the tons upon tons of dirt and rocks and was relieved to see that the slider had not been damaged.
"Is everybody okay?!" Tommy shouted.
"I'm okay," Justin called out.
"We're okay," Skull answered.
"Should we check out them?" Justin wondered outloud.
"That ship is awfully big," Skull commented. It seemingly took up most of the horizon.
"What if they're hostile?" Tommy asked.
"You guys," Trini said, "I think it might be our fault they crashed here. It's just too big of a coincidence for a spaceship to crash on Earth at the very same moment we slide through. The slider might have affected their navigational systems. I say we check it out, but stay morphed."
"Is everybody okay?" Cmdr. Goddard asked.
"We're not dead?" Miss Davenport asked in disbelief.
"What are the odds we would do this twice and survive both times?" Bova asked skeptically. "I say if we crash a third time, we're dead meat."
"Don't be silly, Bova," Rosie told him. "We're alive and well. Let's be thankful for that."
"I'll go check the Protomix," Suzee said nervously.
"Harlan, get dressed," Cmdr. Goddard instructed. "When you get back, you, Radu, and I will go check the damage to the Christa from the outside."
"Good deal," Harlan said, running off.
"At least the main engine room is working," Suzee muttered to herself. "I'd hate to get stuck on this back-water planet without a good Protomix."
"Suzee, we've got a problem," Catalina said inside her head.
"Yeah, no joke," Suzee agreed. She realized, a moment later, that Catalina meant a different problem. "Cat? How did you end up in the past, too?"
"The Christa must have pulled me along," Catalina told her. "Yensid is totally empty! I don't see any people anywhere!"
"My colony didn't have any inhabitants at this date," Suzee said. "Catalina, this is bad. Even if we can get the Christa back to the future…"
"I know, the return trip will probably kill me," Catalina said grimly. "It about beat the Sonic Scream out of me carrying me into the past."
"Well, we'll just have to find some way to bring you here," Suzee said in a determined voice. "That's all there is to it."
Radu, Cmdr. Goddard, and Harlan Band walked out of the Christa. "You guys," Radu said, pointing to the four brightly colored figures walking toward the Christa.
"What are they saying, Radu?" Cmdr. Goddard asked.
"There are people," Justin said, pointing toward the trio that had just emerged from the fallen craft.
"I hope they're friendly," Tommy wished hopefully.
"That guy looks like Zack!" Trini cried in disbelief.
"They're friendly," Radu said. "Get Suzee out here. Maybe she knows what these … are."
"Robots, maybe?" Harlan suggested.
Tommy slowly approached the ramp leading up to the ship. "Hi," he said, holding his hands up defensively. "We don't mean you any harm."
The black teen looked at the older white man, who slowly nodded. "Nor do we," the older man said. "I am Commander Goddard of Earth, and this is my ship, the Christa. This young man here is Earthling Harlan Band, and the other fellow is an Andromedan, Radu." Radu had long curly hair and very unique ears.
Tommy removed his helmet. "My name is Tommy Oliver." He nodded to his friends, who removed their helmets as well. "These are my teammates, Eugene Skullovitch, Trini Kwan, and Justin Cranston. We are from Earth, but not this Earth. We're dimensional travelers."
A shapely woman, probably not older than 18 or 19, emerged from the ship. She wore a silvered jumpsuit and had hair that reached just past her shoulders. It was mostly dark brown and curly, although occasional red, purple, and blue streaks highlighted it. She was actually quite attractive. "Dimensional travelers?" she asked. "My name is Suzee. I'm from a pocket dimension of this dimension, known as Yensid. Are you from a pocket dimension or a totally separate dimension?"
"Completely separate," Trini told her. "Can I ask what caused your ship to crash here?"
"A dimensional and temporal anomaly pulled us here," Suzee said.
"That was us, I believe," Trini said solemnly. "I'm very sorry. We had no idea that this could happen."
"Well, what's done is done," Suzee said, nodding. "Why don't you four come aboard the ship, and we'll introduce you to the rest of the crew."
Justin and Skull looked to Tommy for approval. He nodded, and the four Rangers walked up the ramp with their helmets under their arms.
"Are those Rangers?" Catalina asked Suzee.
"I believe so," Suzee answered her with her thoughts. "They have different helmets than we do in Yensid, and the basic armor design is slightly different, but otherwise…" Suzee felt a slight twinge of remorse. She had been the Lavender Ranger on Yensid before being yanked out of her pocket dimension into a completely foreign environment. Catalina had taken over for her as the Lavender Ranger, and in about every other aspect of her life.
Fortunately for Catalina, the Yensidians were very understanding of her problem. Unlike Catalina's friends who had always made fun of her for talking to her "imaginary" friend Suzee, Suzee had been believed. Suzee's parents had always believed in Catalina. The only person in Catalina's life who had even come close to accepting Suzee as real before meeting her was Rosie.
"They are dimensional travelers," Suzee told Catalina. "Perhaps I can use their device to bring you here with us."
"That would be great!" Catalina shouted.
"This place is amazing!" Justin thought to himself. The walls had a very unique 3-dimensional pattern and seemed to glow with their own unique light. Round silver consoles with a seat in the middle were everywhere.
"Who are your friends?" a pink bald female asked. She didn't look like she was any older than Justin, although she certainly wasn't an Earthling.
"You guys," Commander Goddard said, "these are some Earthlings we have just met. Tommy, Trini, Justin, and Eugene."
"Call me Skull," Skull said with a smile.
"My name is Rosie," the pink female said.
"Bova, over here," a tanned boy said. He looked human, but he had a golden wishbone antenna in the center of his forehead.
"He's from Uranus," Rosie giggled. "Oh yeah, I'm from Mercury."
"I hate being from Uranus," Bova groaned to himself, blushing slightly in the process.
"TJ Davenport," Miss Davenport introduced herself.
"I am Thelma," a voice that seemed both robotic and human said at the same time. A woman with maroon circles around her eyes and silver clothing, as well as a silver cap and silverish-maroon curls of hair hurried up to the Rangers. "I am a Techno-Human EmuLating MAchine."
"And you know everyone else," Cmdr. Goddard said.
"How bad is the damage to the outside of the ship?" Rosie asked.
"Very little," Cmdr. Goddard told the crew. "We'll be flight-worthy in a few days."
"We have a more pressing concern," Suzee said. "Catalina was pulled into the past with us. I believe I can get the Christa back into the future, but Catalina won't survive the leap through the future with us."
"We can't kill Catalina!" Rosie cried.
"Darn right," Catalina said, although only Suzee heard her.
"Actually, I have an idea," Suzee said. "Who among you four knows how the slider works?"
"Justin and I do," Trini told her.
"Come with me," Suzee said. "I've got an idea." Trini and Justin demorphed as they left the main control room with the alien.
"Why don't I take you two and explain a bit more about what's going on?" Harlan suggested. "Okay?"
"I'm game," Skull nodded.
"Let's do it," Tommy agreed. Cmdr. Goddard gave the rest of the crew their instructions, and everyone set to work.
"You are identical to a friend of our's," Tommy told Harlan. "His name is Zack Taylor."
"You know Zack Taylor?" Harlan asked in disbelief. "That's like my great great grandpa! He was one of the original Power Rangers on Earth. Was he one with you all?"
"Yeah, he still is," Skull said. "Black Ranger."
"Wow," Harlan said, shaking his head. "This is amazing. Well, did you know Tanya Sloan? She was his wife, and used to be the Yellow Ranger."
"She's on the team, too," Tommy told her. "Well, where we're from. I mean, you're talking about a different dimension, but still…"
"Why are you all sliding the dimensions?" Harlan asked.
"We're on a search and rescue mission," Tommy answered. "Five friends are lost, and we're trying to find them. Unfortunately, our slider has messed up. That's what caused you to crash, I guess. I'm really sorry about that."
"Eh, nothing can be done for it now," Harlan told him. "Suzee can get us back to the future."
"This might be a stupid que