Chapter 6 - Strange Case

Sinclair Monning sat cross-legged on a cliff in the predawn light of the California Coast. Technically, the cliff was located within the Starkweather Game Preserve. That merely meant less people interrupting him. At the particular spot, the waves crashed rhythmically against the cliff, lulling him deeper into a calm state.

Something intruded. He wasn't completely sure how he knew that. He figured it all had to do with connecting to his ki. He considered this a good sign. He was giving it serious attention. Since molecularly bonding with the Blue Dynamic Morpher, his awareness of water had become pronounced. He was trying to connect with this awareness and his ki using the Ninja Techniques Taylor Hicks was trying to teach them. The more they connect with their elements, the better they could control the elemental powers associated with their Morphs.

Sin was a trained sniper. His eyes were sharp and his hands as steady as his nerves. A ways from where he sat, the cliff face sloped and led to a small secluded beach surrounded by forest. At the beach stood a woman with deep red hair.

A few weeks back, he'd spotted a group of people there. They were practicing martial arts while standing on top of the water. As he'd made his way down to them, he lost sight of them for a moment and in that moment; they disappeared as if they'd never been.

He'd had his suspicions of their origins, but he wasn't sure. He's informed Taylor about them.

"Sounds like it might have been Water Ninjas," Tay had said. "If I remember right, Sissy and her fiancé Kyousuke were looking for a place to establish a refuge for Water Ninjas who wanted to devote themselves to the art even after their training was finished. They may have settled in the area. I'm not sure. Water stuff," he shrugged vaguely. Taylor Hicks was a Wind Master and hadn't paid much attention to Water Ninja gossip. "I can find out I guess, but truth be told, they probably don't advertise the location. I've worked with Thunder and Fire Ninjas and I still have no idea where their schools are," he'd added.

Sin had absorbed that easily. From what he'd gleaned by observing Taylor, stealth and secrecy was part of the training. The dude was as vague and evasive and mercurial as the wind he'd mastered.

"You're best bet, after throwing my name at them, is to let them come to you," was Taylor's final piece of advice.

Sin had listened. He returned to this patch of coastline every day, twice a day. Not just for the elusive water-walkers, but for his training and meditation. He felt he was close to a breakthrough. The fact that he'd sensed he was no longer alone was a testament to his theory.

He got to his feet and began moving down to the beach. He moved slowly, cautiously. She was still there when he arrived.

"Not bad. You're getting a lot better at the quiet thing. You didn't sound like a mad mama bear tromping through the woods," remarked the girl, obviously waiting for him. "Just a lost cub this time," she grinned.

The first thing Sin noticed about her was that she was pretty. Really pretty. Seriously hot. Her eyes were almond shaped and hazel, neither green nor blue. Her skin was light but slightly olive. He was once again struck by the racial ambiguity of her features. The wavy red hair was wild and untamed in the ocean breeze; the humidity made it completely unruly.

It took him a moment to realize she'd insulted him. "There isn't a need for sneaking in a tree cancer. Just the ability to sit still without moving for several hours at a time," he declared.

"That you have down," she acknowledged. "I'm Nia," she introduced herself.

"I'm--"

"Sinclair Monning. Yes, I know. We were filled in even if you hadn't shouted it at us. Sorry it took so long. I mean, Taylor Hicks has a lot of sway. The Sensei’s respect the hell out of him and all, but it's still up to us who we approach if anyone," she explained.

What Sin took from that was that despite what he said, Taylor had been in contact with his Water Ninja friends on his behalf. That did not surprise him at all. "So what did I do to pass muster?" he asked.

"You sat, waited, mediated, trained and didn't press the issue. Sensei Kyou was impressed by that," she said. "We'll let you join us here on the beach for awhile until they decide you're ready to come to the Temple. Masters only and you're still a novice," she explained.

He nodded. "I get that. Thank you," he said.

Nia inclined her head. "I also came for another reason," she said. "We're not monks or anything so it's not like we're living in poverty or something. A lot of us have semi-normal lives and jobs in the city. The Temple is more like a sanctuary/apartment building. I work at a free clinic in a lower class neighborhood," she hesitated.

"Go on," he prompted.

"Well, we know you work for Astral Dynamics on a research base, right?" she didn't really ask in a way that required an answer. He merely nodded to confirm. "There's something strange going on at the clinic. People have been coming in over the past few days with strange symptoms. Kids mainly. The new doctor doesn't seem concerned but I've been around doctors and nurses and hospitals and sick people all my life. Something is not right," she declared.

"And you want us to look into it?"

"If at all possible," she agreed and bit her lip. She pulled a card out of the cross shoulder bag she wore. "This is the clinic's address and my hours are written on the back," she said, giving him the card.

Sin nodded. "I'll do what I can," he promised her.

She smiled, relieved. "Anyway, you can come at your regular hours to train with us," she said. "Oh, and your two Earth friends are over in that direction making more racket than a bull elephant with a toothache," she said and pointed.

Without thinking, Sin followed her finger. Just that fast, she was gone when he looked back. That must be another ninja thing. Taylor had the tendency of just either appearing or disappearing just as quickly. It was frankly annoying.

He couldn't wait to learn how to do it.

--/-\--

Sinclair returned to Sky Base and was summoned to an early morning briefing in the Lab. This suited him fine since he'd wanted to tell Lark Walker, who was basically in charge of running Sky Base, about the request from Nia.

There was a pronouncement that she and Enrique Ramon were close to finding new Zords for them to use. They weren't clear on what they were but apparently they'd found a block of programming that suggested it was more than one meant to be used in concert.

After that slightly underwhelming announcement, Sin had filled them in on the situation. Lark had looked at him steadily. "Run with it. If it turns out to be something, let me know," she said.

Tempest Strong, who ran Sky Base's Infirmary, volunteered to help him but realized her schedule that day did not coincide with Nia's. He'd assured her he could handle it.

"And if it turns out to be something more than some new super bug, give us a shout," Taylor had said and left the Lab to start his rounds.

That unsettled Sin. He was thinking it over and the implication as he headed toward the clinic around midday.

"You're thinking face is scary."

Sin slanted a glance at Gregory Houston as the two ambled along the streets of Starkweather Valley. The two of them wore plain clothes. They hadn't wanted to upset anyone or draw too much attention by wearing their Astral Dynamics uniforms. People in Starkweather Valley tended to give any AD personnel in the city wide berth. Officials and news people were putting two and two together and realizing they were somehow connected the Power Rangers and the aliens attacking their city.

"No one said you had to come. In fact I distinctly remember telling you personally you didn't have to bother," he remarked.

Gore shrugged. "Consider me back-up," he remarked.

Sin shook his head.

Though they thought themselves inconspicuous, they actually garnered almost as much attention as they would have dressed in full uniform with their sidearms strapped to their thighs. Mostly female attention. Sin wore jeans, sneakers and a button down shirt with the top couple buttons undone, the sleeves rolled up and untucked to hide the firearm tucked in the small of his back. Gore wore worn biker boots; equally warn jeans, a form fitting black shirt and a dark gray duster to hide the shoulder holster he wore.

"I'm perfectly capable of handling myself and ascertaining the situation," he pointed out.

Gore stuffed his hands in his pockets and looked at him. "You know, I've been wondering something," he said.

Sin glanced at him again. "What's that?" he asked.

"After we were discharged why you didn't go back to school," he said.

Sin looked away unsure how to answer that question. Sometimes he wondered the same thing.

Gore wasn't sure Sin would answer. He didn't expect him to run away.

--/-\--

An alien ran through a series of underpasses. It was bad part of the city and his quarry knew it well. She was fast. He shot a few lasers at her. She moved fluidly, avoiding the blasts. She was beginning to annoy him.

For a moment he thought he had her as she headed straight for a wall. Instead she ran up the wall and flipped, landing, facing her. "Who sent you and why are you after me?" she demanded.

Instead of answering her, from a gaping mouth he fired a giant fireball at her.

Something else moved. A blue flash of light deflected the fireball and the girl and her rescuer rolled out of the way. "Stay out of the way. Don't argue," Dynamic Ranger Blue said to her when she opened her mouth to do just that. She snapped it shut, flattened her lips and gestured for him to continue. He inclined his head and turned to face the alien. "What are trying to do with her, Warstar?" he demanded.

The alien stomped a foot. "That is none of your business, Power Ranger!" Rinovus the alien snarled at him, more annoyed than ever.

"That large mouth of yours must be your weakness," Blue said and lifted his Shark Sniper, aimed and fired in a split second.

The alien's horizontal teeth were hinged on the side of his face and they snapped closed. The blue blast of energy bounced off of them.

"The hell?"

"Don't think I'm dumb enough to give you a clean shot, Blue Ranger," he warned. "Hand the woman over!" he demanded. He began running forward.

Blue continued firing, but the alien was heavily armored and all his shots bounced off harmlessly. He was really beginning to worry.

"Exploding Land Power!" Streaks of black energy cracked the concrete between them. "None of that now," Dynamic Black Ranger said and ran forward. He jumped high, hefting the Land Axe. "Snake Bite!" The alien had turned toward. He brought the Axe crashing against his teeth. It didn't break them, but the force of the blow was enough to send the alien tumbling backwards a few yards.

"Gore," Blue said gratefully walking over to join him.

"Don't just go running off by yourself," he scolded.

"Sorry. It's not like I didn't know you'd be right behind me," Blue pointed out.

"Not the point," Black said. "But a little more understandable now," he added as he spotted the girl the alien had been chasing. A girl with red hair dressed in scrubs.

"Don't let down your guard," Blue warned in a snippy tone that made his friend grin under his helmet.

"I gotcha," he said.

Rinovus regained his feet. "Why you--!" his teeth snapped open and he fired another giant fireball at them. Black stepped in front of Blue and knocked the fireball aside. Another one was already on its way. They both had to jump aside to avoid it.

In tandem the two of them came at the alien from either side. They engaged in close quarters. The teeth were closed again. They'd hit him but nothing was having much effect. He knocked Blue down. He landed but raised the Shark Sniper again. He fired, hitting the alien between the eyes.

That knocked Rinovus flat on his back, smoking wildly where he'd been hit.

Blue regained his feet. Black went to his side. "Not bad," he remarked. Blue took aim again.

"I'll remember this!" Rinovus said and his eyes glowed and small laser blasts were fired at them. They jumped back, distracted. When the smoke cleared the alien was gone.

Black moved around quickly looking for any trace that he might have escaped on foot. "He got away," he said. He quickly contacted the Lab. "The alien's gone. We don't need back-up," he said.

"Acknowledged," Lark answered.

Blue headed toward Nia. "Are you ok?" he asked.

"I'm fine. Thank you, Sinclair. I was trying to head toward water but he was faster than I counted on," she admitted.

Blue wondered if she was taking a guess or if all the Water Masters knew who he was. Either way, he dropped his morph. Black followed suit and joined them.

"I think we can safely say that whatever's happening at your clinic isn't natural," Sin said.

--/-\--

Taylor replayed the surveillance clip on the big screen. He wasn't sure what types of recoding devices were activated, but it captured the moment the alien appeared behind the red-headed nurse and began to chase her. The way she moved was an obvious tell to him. She was one of the Water Masters, most probably the suspicious one.

"So, she suspects something's up at the clinic where she works. Then an alien tries to kill her," Ram remarked.

"You suspected," Lark informed Taylor.

"Thing's like this happen when you're a Power Ranger. I was hoping it was a new strain of flu or something else mundane like that. I really was," he said with a frown.

Tempest pat him on the back. "Should we go help?" she asked.

Taylor shook his head. "Sin and Gore have it handled for the moment. They'll call when they need us. I have to finish my rounds. You have to finish your shift and Ram and Doc need to work without us bothering them," he said with a smile.

"How correct you are," Lark agreed.

"You ain't bothering me any," Ram said and gave Tempe a wink. She grinned back and ruffled his hair as she left the Lab.

Taylor chuckled and left the Lab behind her.

--/-\--

Devourer

"Sylon! You're plan, is it going well?" Captain Drage demanded.

Though he didn't appreciate being summoned like errant lackey, Sylon gave a stiff bow. "There is one minor flaw. It would not have happened if your man hadn't gone off half cocked. I should return to my position," he said.

"Don't speak to the Captain that way," Kragar growled.

Captain Drage held up a hand. "Explain to me again your plan?" he prompted Sylon.

"It's quite simple. Humans are weak disgusting creatures susceptible to attack from the smallest of organisms. The right virus can kill them. The right virus can also change them in ways they can't imagine. Soon it would have spread easily even without Rinovus' sneezes," he explained. "That nurse may have suspected that the illness being spread amongst the patients wasn't ordinary but there was no way to prove it until it was too late.

"Now, thanks to Rinovus acting on his own, she'll be doubly suspicious. She'll call undue attention before it's time," he added with thinly veiled ire.

"Then step up your plans," Drage instructed.

Seething silently, Sylon gave an acquiescing bow. He disappeared in a flash of blue light.

"Should I deal with him, Captain?" Kragar asked.

"Hmm?" Drage asked absently. "No. He's useful and he's careful not to get on my bad side," he said and paced out of the bridge.

--/-\--

Sylon appeared in the Open Hands Free Clinic. He activated the disguise of a human. It made his skin crawl. He was disguised as a tall man in his thirties with dark hair and light blue eyes. He wore a white lab coat and glasses.

"You returned quickly," said his accomplice.

He glanced at Azula. She had regained control of her host fairly quickly but he suspected it was not easy as she claimed. At times he could see her stop moving completely as a great strain crossed her features. She was dressed as a nurse.

He went to the desk he'd taken over when he'd infected the previous doctor. "It's time for the final phase," he said and pulled a controller out of a locked drawer. He pressed the red button, activating a code written into the virus he'd designed.

Azula gasped suddenly. "What are they doing here?"

Sylon frowned and went to the door and looked through the small window. Coming into the clinic was Nia, Sin and Gore. "It's time for us to go. There isn't anything the Rangers can do now. The final stage has begun," he declared.

Sin had spotted the two in the office and touched Gore's arm, a silent signal. The two of them made their way to the office. He figured speaking with the doctor was a good place to start. They arrived too late, he'd looked in the window in time the doctor and a nurse disappear in bright flashes of light.

"What was that?" Nia demanded.

"If I were to hazard a guess, I'd say it was Sylon," Sin said, recognizing the flashing blue light. He glanced at Gore and he nodded his head in confirmation. "I think it's time we take a look at some of you're patients," he said.

Nia nodded. "In the past few days, it's gotten worse. Much worse," she said and led the two of them to a room. Strapped to a hospital bed was a young man. Sweat coated his skin and plastered his hair to his forehead.

"What's with the restraints?" Gore asked.

"When the fever hit, he got a little wild, clawing at his own skin and hallucinating," she said. He laid a hand on his forehead. His eyes were open but glazed. He seemed abnormally calm. "I don't like this," she said.

Sin picked up the man's charts. His eyes widened. "You should have come to us sooner. None of this is normal. Whatever the Warstars were up to, it might be too late," he said. "Gather up whatever blood and tissue samples you've taken," he said.

It was definitely too late. The man suddenly gave a jerk and started shaking. Sin moved Nia away from him. His eyes began glowing; a brilliant, horrific acid green. His skin glowed. He shook harder as green ooze seeped through his pores. He glowed brighter and when he stopped glowing, he was no longer a man.

Nia clapped her hand over her mouth. "He turned into an Oozer," Gore said grimly.

Sin pressed the eyes of his Morpher. "Lark. Send a medical team to the clinic. Full hazmat. Collect everything," he said. "You may have to call him," he added.

"I'll send the team. I won't bother him. Dr. Hollings is still on base," Lark said, referring to the MD that had given them physicals.

"How many people do you think are sick?" Gore asked.

Nia looked at them for a long moment. "Too many. The clinic sees about a hundred patients a day. Around one in five has had these symptoms for the past two weeks," she answered.

Gore and Sin shared a grim look.

--/-\--

All around the area, people suddenly began to glow and seep green ooze before eventually turning into Oozers.

Taylor, Lark and Tempest had teleported down ahead of the medical team. They arrived in a horde of Oozers running amok. "Crap," Taylor said and moved in to help a woman.

"No! Wait, he's my son!" she cried.

Taylor stumbled back. "What?" he asked.

"It's the people. They turned into these things," a man shouted.

"If they're people, we can't hurt them," Tempest declared.

That didn't stop the Oozers from hurting them. One knocked Taylor aside and several more rounded on the two girls.

"We'd better get to the clinic fast," Taylor said and threw a blade of air that knocked the Oozers off their feet without really hurting them. The girl's nodded and they tried to get past the Oozers.

"Medical Team. Teleport directly to the clinic," Lark said into her communicator.

--/-\--

"There has to be a way to reverse this," Gore reasoned.

Sin nodded. "And I think I know a way," he said. He could see that the Oozer was restrained enough not to cause any harm.

"How?" Nia asked.

"That alien. He's part of this. We'll find him and ask him nicely," Sin said but the shark grin on his face was frankly too dangerous to inspire any confidence that he'd be asking nicely. Gore smiled grimly.

"Stay here and wait for the medical team," Sin told her.

She nodded.

The two of them went outside. Oozers were wreaking havoc everywhere. "How are we supposed to find him?" Gore asked Sin.

"I have a feeling it won't be hard now," Sin said, looking into the distance. He began running. Gore glared his back but began running after him.

They skidded to a halt as Rinovus was standing on a car, surveying the destruction around him. The newly created Oozers were destroying everything they could come into contact with. What was worse, the virus seemed to be spreading and progressing at an alarming rate.

"You! What do you know about this virus?" Sin demanded.

Rinovus turned toward them. Rinovus laughed. "I am this virus! Well, its part of me now, thanks to Sylon," he gloated. "Soon this world of humans will be no more!" He threw a fireball at them. It connected with Sin and sent him flying backwards. He landed with a crash.

"Sin!" Gore exclaimed.

"Hahaha! Soon you too will be no more than slime on rocks," Rinovus gloated. Energy blasts knocked him backwards.

Sin gained his feet. "Little warning. I always carry a gun," he said.

Gore nodded. "That's true," he agreed.

"And the best part is you told me exactly what I need. Just a little piece of you," he said and flashed a smile. "See, I told you all I had to do was ask nicely," he pointed out to Gore.

"A little courtesy goes a long way," Gore said as if repeating something that had been said to him over and over.

"A friendly smile opens more doors than a scowl," Sin intoned. He flipped out his Morph Card. "Ready?"

Gore flipped out his own Morph Card.

"DynaMorpher!"

"Blue Ranger Power!"

"Black Ranger Power!"

Black and blue energy enveloped them, forming power suits, helmets and blasters at their hips. "I'll take him first," Dynamic Ranger Black and pulled out his Weapon Card. He summoned his Land Axe and charged forward.

Dynamic Ranger Blue watched a moment, trying to ascertain the best way to go about getting a hunk of his alien hide.

Black was hacking at the alien but every swipe and slash was avoided as the alien danced away. "Stop running away and fight me you buck toothed ba--" He slashed forward.

Rinovus's arm came up and stocked the blade. "Fight you say? With pleasure," he said and pushed the axe back. He used the mace-like fist to hit him several times, hard enough to cause sparks. His teeth sprung open as Black gripped his middle in pain. A fireball sent him flying and crashing backwards. He dropped the axe and rolled.

"How was that? Fight enough for you?" Rinovus demanded wickedly.

"Not bad," Black said painfully and began getting to his feet. He grinned under his helmet even though he was in serious pain.

Blue energy hit the alien squarely in the back several times. He turned to find Dynamic Blue running toward him with the Sea Sniper. He jumped and rolled over the top of the alien's head. He ran to check on Black. "Never fails," he said.

"Afghani insurgents or alien monsters. They're all the same," Black agreed and made it to his knees. "Now go get a piece of his ugly hide," he said.

Blue nodded and ran forward firing his weapon.

Rinovus turned quickly, the armor of his back easily deflecting the blast. “That doesn't work on my armor," he said as turned back. He was spitting out another fireball.

"I know," he said and jumped over the first fireball. He used the Sea Sniper to disburse the rest of the fireballs as he moved forward. He stooped to grab the Land Axe. He hadn't counted on it weighing a tone. It distracted him long enough for Rinovus to hit him dead on. Only the momentum of the blast allowed him to actually move the Axe.

"Damn," he said. "How the hell do you lift this thing?" he shouted at Black.

"I'm special," Black said and struggled to his feet. "Give it, I'll do whatever it is you need me to do," he said and gritted his teeth in pain but didn't last long.

"Give it a rest, macho guy," Blue said and gripped the Axe. He could do this. He pictured his ocean, and the sound of the waves. He closed his eyes. His mind cleared and then opened his eyes. "It's time the experience the power of the sea," he told the alien. He got to his feet he tossed the Sea Sniper into the air.

"What!" The alien glanced up automatically.

Using not his physical strength but the power of his spirit, Blue hefted the Land Axe. He ran forward. Rinovus opened his mouth again and began spitting fireballs at him. Blue used the Axe to deflect. He made it to the alien and swung. Rinovus used his mace hand to knock it aside. Blue used that his advantage and used to momentum to spin back around and lash the creature through the middle, leaving a deep furrow in the armor.

He tossed the Ax aside and caught the Sniper. He placed the tip against the furrow he'd just made. "Shark Snipe!" He fired. A strong blue blast exploded through the alien and out the back of its grotesque thorax. Green, slimy substance exploded around.

Black was on his feet. He'd spotted Nia nearby. He assumed that meant the medical team arrived at the clinic. He scooped up some of the blood. He ran to her. "Get this back to out team. They should be able to use this formulate a cure," he said and put a blood covered rock in her hands.

She made a face. "Will do. Good luck," she said. She began running and sort of phased away in a blue streak.

Blue watch them. Rinovus got to his feet. He was knocked aside by three multicolored blasts of energy. He crackled energy as he fell. Blue and Black turned to see the three other Rangers with weapons drawn.

"We finally made it," Yellow declared.

"Sorry about the wait," Red said.

"The changed people made it difficult to get passed them without harming them," Pink explained.

Black picked up his Axe as the two of them went to join their comrades.

"We had it handled," Blue assured them.

"What did you do with them?" Black asked.

"We gathered them up. Tempest made a box of earth and we kind of floated them all inside," Pink answered.

"Ram helped. He was handy with a quick code," Yellow demurred. "Now, can we finish him?" she asked, pointing at the alien regaining his feet. He was smoking and angry.

"I'll make you all pay!" he shouted and his mouth sprang open, firing giant fireballs at them.

They jumped and rolled aside. "Everyone! Aim for the stomach wound!" Blue said and did just that. He fired. Pink fired her Sky Shooter.

Yellow and Black rolled to their feet and ran forward just as the Blue and Pink shots hit. Yellow slashed with her Land Claw and Black swung with his Land Axe. The hits connected and the alien was smoking.

Red ran forward and jabbed his Sky Sword directly into the wound. The alien sparked with electricity and fell back.

They came together. "All right. Time to put an end to this," Blue said. The other's nodded and they put their weapons together.

"Dynamic Cannon!" They pulled out their Cards.

"The Shining Power of the Sky!" Pink and Red put the cards into the Cannon.

"The Raging Power of the Land!" Black and Yellow their cards into the Cannon.

"The Serene Power of the Sea!" Blue put his card into the Cannon.

The Cannon Charged.

"Dynamic Victory Charge!" The Cannon fired a powerful blast of golden light and electricity that tore through Rinovus and his armor. He exploded.

No sooner than it happened than a canister of Ooze was launched. It exploded, spattering the green slime all over his remains. His pieces reintegrated and his mass expanded. "Ah. Nice," he said and stretched.

Red made the Cannon disappear as they flipped out their Macro DynaZord Cards.

"Dragon DynaZord!" Red slid the Card through his Morpher.

"Phoenix DynaZord!" Pink slid the card through her Morpher.

"Snake DynaZord!" Black slid his Card through his Morpher.

"Tiger DynaZord!" Yellow slid her Card though her Morpher.

"Shark DynaZord!" Blue slid his Card though his Morpher.

The Zords appeared and teleported their pilots aboard.

"Dynamic Megazord!"

The Zords combined to form the Dynamic Megazord with wings and a dragon's tail for a sword. They appeared in the combined cockpit. The Megazord walked forward to meet Rinovus drawing the Dragon Sword.

Rinovus charged forward. The Megazord stopped his with the Sword. He knocked it away. The Megazord slashed again. It hit but deflected easily.

"Even the Dragon Sword doesn't work on him," Blue said.

"Don't under estimate my armor!" Rinovus crowed. He spun around and grabbed the Dragon Sword from the Megazord.

"Did that thing really just steal our Sword?" Pink demanded.

"Die, Rangers, die!" Rinovus said and began to slash them with their own Sword. They learned first hand really quickly how powerful that thing was. The cockpit crackled and fizzled as the Megazord was knocked back. "Let's finish it," he said and raised the Sword high and brought it down.

"I don't think so," Blue said and jerked his yoke. The Megazord's right arm shot up, the Shark's teeth closing around the blade before it could make contact.

Rinovus grunted and attempted to free the Sword. "Struggling is pointless," he said even as he struggled to get the Sword free.

"We need a better plan than that," Red said, highly annoyed that the alien had stolen his Dragon Sword.

Blue struggled to keep his Zord steady. "I'm all ears over here," he said through gritted teeth.

"And the great Enrique Ramon comes to the rescue again. Bow down before your god. Check you're belt," Ram said triumphantly through the comm systems.

Blue risked pulling the Card from his belt. "I'd be more impressed if you didn't dramatically leave it to the last minute," he said.

"What is it?" Red asked.

"Macro DynaZords," Blue said and slid the card through the reader. "Summon Deep Sea DynaZords!" he said.

A large gray cloud formed. Thunder rumbled but instead of rain, a whirling blue portal formed. Out from the portal flew three Zords; a Hammerhead, a long nosed Sawfish and Manta Ray. They zoomed toward the alien and blasted him with blue energy beams.

The alien was knocked back and dropped the Dragon Sword. Red got to his feet. "Ha! Ram, can we combine with them?" he asked,

"Naturally," Ram answered.

Blue pulled another Card from his belt and slid it. "Deep Sea Megazord!" The three Zords connected with the Megazord. Sawfish Zord connected to the right arm. Hammerhead Zord connected to the left arm. The Megazord's default flipped back into its chest and the Manta Ray Zord connected to the neck and formed a new head with an eye-patch and a general pirate-y flare. So, Ram had had a little time to play with the schematics coding.

"What is that hideous thing?" Rinovus demanded, pointing a finger at the Megazord.

Blue was perusing his new toys' abilities. "Ah," he said and pressed a button. "Analyzing," he said. The eye-patch was actually useful, scanning the alien and sending him the data. "Let's go get him," he said to the others.

The Megazord pushed forward and began trading blows with the alien. "Hammerhead Punch!" The Hammerhead Zord glowed and the Megazord punched. Rinovus threw up his mace hand as defense. The Hammerhead hit it, nearly shattering it. "Manta Ray Strike!" The Megazord head-butted the alien. "Sawfish Slash!"

The Sawfish Zord powered up. Rinovus turned his heavily armored back. The Megazord struck. The blade-like nose of the Sawfish Zord disintegrated the hard shell.

Rinovus whirled back. "That can't be!" he snarled.

Blue calmly pulled another card out of his belt. "Victory Charge!" He swiped the card. The Deep Sea Zords powered up. "Deep Sea Strike!" The Megazord stepped forward. The Hammerhead Zord slashed first, leave crackling blue energy. The Sawfish Zord slashed next, leaving a second slash of blue energy. The Megazord turned its back as the energies ignited and the alien exploded.

"You did it," Red told Blue, turning to him.

"Yeah," he agreed with a nod. He certainly did. He just hoped he did some good.

--/-\--

A distance away from the Open Hands Free Clinic, the five Rangers watched as people came in and out for shots of the antiviral and vaccine for the Oozer Virus. "Dr. Hollings did good work," Tempest remarked.

Lark pursed her lips. "Dr. Hollings didn't do anything. The project was taken out of his hands as soon as he had the blood sample from the alien," she said.

Sin nodded. "By the way," he said to Gore, "that is why. I ran off to the military with you for the same reason I didn't go back and become a doctor. I'd have to work for him," he told Gore and started to go toward the clinic. He'd decided to volunteer twice a week, remember the calling he'd once felt.

"You already work for him!" Gore called, pointing out.

"Not as a doctor!" Sin called back.

"Uh, who are you guys talking about?" Tempest asked, thoroughly confused.

"My guess is the big boss. The man whose name is on your checks," Taylor said.

Lark turned and walked a way.

Gore grinned. "Dr. Grayson Walker, President and CEO of Astral Dynamics," he answered.

Tempest still looked confused. Taylor shrugged. "Who's up for food and games at Steve and Bucko's?" he asked them.

"Ooh! Me!" Tempest said and raised her hand.

"I'm in," Gore agreed. The three of them caught up with Lark and dragged her with them.

"Let's call Ram. He deserves some fun too!" Tempest suggested. That was met with approval all around.

--/End 06\--           

You are not authorized to comment here. Your must be registered and logged in to comment