FicWad

It took some time for the five strangers to grow used to their surroundings and calm down sufficiently to listen to the voice in the pipe. This was understandable, as the adrenaline was pumping in each of them, having been lifted from a tremendous earthquake.

But now, they were calm. William Cranston was leaning against a console at the side of the room, examining the battered buttons and crooked panels. Kim Hart was standing in the middle of the room, her arms crossed, tapping her foot. Zack Taylor had sat down on the floor, and was toying with his shoelace. Trini Kwan was staring all around her, wide-eyed with wonder, and had yet to say a word.

Finally, Jason Scott was pacing calmly, examining the details of the room curiously. He seemed calm, but his mind was racing. So many questions, and no means of guessing at their answers.

But finally, the voice spoke – the voice in the pipe, that had introduced itself as Zordon.

"I am about to reveal a great deal of information to you that is secret from the rest of your planet," he said, speaking slowly, as though each word was a struggle. "It will be a lot to take in, and I imagine that you will have your doubts. But you must listen well to every detail."

"Fine," said Zack. "No talking during the exposition."

"Ten thousand years ago, on my home planet, I was attacked by Rita Repula, an intergalactic sorceress from Gamma Vile in the M-fifty-one galaxy."

"Dude, I was surprised to find out there was more than one continent," said Zack. "You can spare us the geography."

"Speak for yourself," said Miss Hart.

"Her intention was to destroy my planet, Eltar," Zordon continued, ignoring another look from Zack for name-dropping. "I fought to the best of my abilities, but was crippled, and trapped in a time warp."

"You mean that pipe you're in?" asked William, speaking rather too quietly in the large room.

"This vessel was built for me by my assistant," explained Zordon. "Meanwhile, the Sentinels of my home imprisoned Repulsa, with the aid of their secret weapons."

"Sentinels," said Jason. "These would be the police?"

"The premise is similar," confirmed Zordon. "They placed Rita in a space dumpster ..."

"Wait," said Miss Hart. "A what?"

"A space dumpster."

"A space dumpster," Miss Hart repeated. "You binned her?"

"The metaphor stands."

"You BINNED her."

"Dude," said Zack. "This guy claims he's over ten thousand years old, and you're bothered by an unusual justice system?"

"But now the space dumpster has been opened," Zordon continued. "By astronauts from your world. And Rita's free, and according to her culture's traditions, she must now destroy your planet."

"And her name's Rita," said Miss Hart. "Just to confirm."

"That is correct."

"Look, this is all great," said Zack. "But I need to get back. I've got to find someone out there before she gets hurt."

"No-one will be in danger while we're here," said Zordon. "Our systems will give us fair warning of danger to anyone in Angel Grove."

Jason looked at Zack. "You're from Angel Grove too?"

"Sure," said Zack. "I take it you are as well."

"Me too," said William.

"And me," said Miss Hart.

Jason looked thoughtful.

"You mentioned an assistant," said William, turning to Zordon. "What became of him?"

"He's still around," said Zordon. "This is my automaton, Alpha Five."

A four-foot-tall robot approached them from behind one of the larger consoles. It was humanoid in shape, and painted a metallic red.

"Good day," it said, with a warm, friendly voice that reminded the crew of an automated telephone service.

"Alpha is responsible for the Command Centre," Zordon revealed. "He found the five of you himself."

"Right," said Jason. "And why us? What are we doing here?"

"I mentioned a secret weapon," said Zordon. "Show them, Alpha."

The robot – Alpha Five – crossed over to a long unit that William had assumed was yet another console. The robot's arm slid down with a quiet humming sound, and reached out for a lever. Rather than pulling it downwards, as William had expected, Alpha moved backwards, opening a drawer in the unit.

From within, the robot retrieved a small wooden box.

"This box can only be opened by specific DNA," said the friendly voice. "I have set it to yours, Jason Lee Scott."

"Call me Jason," replied Jason absent-mindedly. He took the box. "So, I just open it?"

"You're the only one who can," revealed Alpha.

"Yeah, I got that," said Jason, opening the box. It was stiff, but there was no hint that it had been locked at any point.

Inside were five large golden coins, around two inches in diameter. Jason was about to pick one out, when Zordon spoke again.

"These coins have unusual properties," he said. "It is a coin such as these that powers this entire Control Centre."

William stood up, and walked closer.

"Really?" he said. "I'd wondered about that. How you keep your robot powered."

Alpha Five opened a panel on his chest to reveal, looking comically like a replacement heart, a matching golden coin.

"The coins offer unlimited power," said Zordon. "As long as it is channelled correctly. Merely holding them will grant you advanced strength and skill, heal wounds more rapidly, and grant you additional stamina."

"Could do with some of that myself," said Zack, whose shoulder and foot were still hurting him. He reached for the box.

"Take the Mastodon Coin," said Alpha hurriedly.

"The what coin?"

"The mastodon," said William. "Similar to mammoths, but died out much sooner."

Zack examined the coins, and saw that each were carved to depict a dinosaur head. He spotted one depicting a mammoth-like creature, and took it.

Immediately, he realised that these coins weren't merely props. He felt his entire body tighten, and his muscles strengthen. Zack was hardly unfit to begin with, but by the time the transformation was complete, he'd never felt better – other than his shoulder and foot, but he could literally feel them healing, the bones straightening and the bruising subsiding.

"Right," he breathed, taken aback. "Great."

"Which one's mine?" asked Miss Hart, marching for the box.

"The pterodactyl," said Alpha. "William Cranston has the triceratops, Trini Kwan has the sabre-toothed tiger, and Jason Lee Scott has the tyrannosaurus."

"I get the coolest one, then," said Jason with a smile, lifting his own coin from the box, and enjoying the sensation of his already muscular body increasing in strength.

"Hey," said Miss Hart. "The pterodactyl's the coolest. It flies!"

"The tyrannosaurus is in more films," insisted Jason.

"The mastodon has character, though," interjected Zack. "I mean, it's too cool to be in films. It lets its lame mammoth cousins get all the glory."

Jason turned to the others, seeing that they hadn't moved to take their coins.

"William, wasn't it?" he said. "Come get your coin."

William moved apprehensively, and picked out the triceratops coin. He was hit harder by the transformation, as hardly-used muscles tightened and grew, and all the excess fat disappeared from his body. It felt strange – not painful, but not pleasant either.

"Sorry," said Jason to the fifth member of the crew. "I didn't catch your name."

"Trini Kwan," she said curtly.

"Would you like your coin?"

"No thank you," she said.

"Right." Jason looked around to the others for support, but they were avoiding eye contact – embarassed by having been carried away by these strange coins. "Why not, Trini?"

"I don't like this," she said. "I don't know if this is some prank, or a TV show, or if, like ... If one of you ..." Her lip started to quiver, and the rest of her face followed. She screwed her eyes shut to hold back the tears.

"Get the others talking," Jason whispered to William, handing him the box.

Next, he walked towards Trini, and placed an arm around her.

"I'm sorry," he said. "This is a bit insane, I know."

"How can you do this?" she whispered. "You're just playing along, taking their magic treasure, and talking to robots and million-year-old aliens, and you're ... it's like you believe it."

"You're right," said Jason. "But today, an enormous earthquake hit my home town. Before I came here, the last thing I saw was the devestation outside. Some guy in a pipe wants to tell me a space witch did this? Fine. That's fine by me."

"How?" asked Trini. "Why?"

"Because the alternative is too hard to think about right now," he explained. "I saw the mess. Looters. Broken windows, probably entire buildings destroyed. Everyone rushing to get out. And then I disappear, and I'm given this coin, and told it's a secret weapon. And you know what? We could do with a secret weapon."

Trini wiped the tears from her eyes.

"And if it's all a prank," said Jason. "Then it's a damned good one. And I for one don't mind falling for it."

"You're very wise," said Trini.

Jason snorted with laughter. "I work in a leisure centre," he said. "I get a lot of thinking time."

Trini smiled.

"So," said Jason. "You ready to try out your magic treasure?"

And Trini laughed. The relieving laughter that comes after a good cry.

She followed Jason back towards the others, who were busy chatting amongst themselves.

"Oh, hi," said Miss Hart, as though she hadn't been expecting them.

Trini smiled at her, and reached for the box. She lifted the coin. She closed her eyes as it took effect, and when it was finished, she examined the coin itself.

"You will also need a device to channel the power appropriately," said Zordon. "Alpha will provide you with devices of this sort."

Alpha handed them each a bulky grey device, the size of a deck of cards. There was a button on two of the narrow sides, and a thin strap on the back.

"These are morphers," said Zordon. "Insert your coins into them, and pressing the button on the left of the devices will morph you into your power suits."

"Power suits," repeated Jason.

"The advanced physical capabilities of these coins are child's play compared to Rita's abilities. To stand a chance against her, you will need protection. These morphers will create a barrier around you, in the form of a suit. They'll be able to absorb a lot more damage, and will make you far stronger than any ordinary human could ever be."

"May I hazard a guess?" asked Zack. "We're forming a team, right? Like superheroes."

"That is correct," confirmed Zordon.

"I have the coolest dinosaur," said Jason. "Does that make me the leader."

"Not as cool as a pterodactyl," insisted Miss Hart.

"Of course you're the leader, Jason Lee Scott," confirmed Alpha. "That is why you were chosen."

"Right, I was joking," said Jason. "I'm twenty-seven and work in a leisure centre."

"So unfair," said Miss Hart. "I'm twenty-eight, and I have a cooler dinosaur. I should well be the leader." She paused. "Sexist," she added.

"You are the team's tactician, Kimberly Ann Hart," said Alpha. "You are resbonsible for planning and executing battles."

"Yeah, sure," said Miss Hart. "And call me Kim, by the way. Seeing as you're a robot and all."

"Are you not surprised by your designated role?" asked Alpha. "You appear to be taking this in your stride."

"Second I get out of here, I'm headed straight home," said Kim. "See if there are still robots and earthquakes tomorrow."

"You're in denial," Alpha accused. "You will have to conquer this quickly. Your first battle will take place soon."

"Looking forward to it."

"So, who am I?" asked Zack. "On this team. I'm not the Falcon of the team, am I?"

"You are here for morale," said Alpha.

"Morale?" said Zack. "Morale! Leader, tactician ... and morale. Wow, you were really scraping the bottom of the barrel."

"There will come a time when nobody wishes to go on," said Alpha. "You will have to ensure that everyone fulfils their duties."

"Hey, I'm the most likely of us all to run out on all this," said Zack. "I have a girlfriend out there, and she's probably still on the run from rock monsters."

"Putty Patrollers," said Zordon. "Rita's endless legion of brainless soldiers."

"Oh, endless legion," said Zack. "My favourite kind of brainless soldiers."

"Do I have a role?" asked Trini softly.

"You are the spiritualist, Trini Kwan," said Alpha. "Your purpose is to keep the team good and true."

"Whoa, there," said Zack. "Spiritualist and morale? We're here for diversity, aren't we? See how the white guys get all the cool jobs? I bet speccy here's, like, the scientist or something."

"William Cranston is the researcher," said Alpha.

"Same difference," said Zack. "Is there a superhero union we can join? First day on the job, I think I should strike."

"You aren't superheroes," said Zordon. "You are rangers of your planet, protecting it and enforcing its laws upon invaders from other worlds. You are vessels for the power contained within your coins."

"Power Rangers," explained Alpha helpfully.

"What do we do?" asked Jason, who'd now inserted his coin into his morpher, and clipped it onto his belt.

"You don't have much time," said Zordon. "The earthquake in your neighbourhood has subsided while you've been here, but a full brigade of Putty Patrollers have entered it. Soon, they will begin to move out. You must defeat the entire brigade before they harm anyone in Angel Grove."

"How many?" asked Jason.

"Twenty."

"Oh, great," said Zack. "Twenty. That's only four each!"

"Thanks for that," said Kim. "Good job keeping up morale there."

"I'm not fighting," said Trini.

"You don't have to do anything you don't want to," said Jason.

"Five each!" said Zack. "For anyone keeping count."

In the centre of the room, the white sphere glowed, and an image appeared in it.

"A crystal ball?" asked William, bemused.

"A viewing globe," said Alpha. "It can approximate an image based on the movement of energy throughout the world."

They saw a field. Twenty grey men were stood in four lines of five. As Zack had said, they seemed to be made of rock.

"Those are your opponents," said Alpha. "Prepare to teleport."

"Teleport?" asked William. "Is that how you got us here in the first place?"

By the time he finished his sentence, he and the others were standing in the middle of a field.

The Putty Patrollers spotted them, and began to advance.