Chapter 2 - Black and Yellow

Command Center

Tai Stapleton nearly tripped over several small, mechanical dinosaurs that decided to run around his feet in a cat-like manner. "What the--?" he yelped. He looked around and realized there were several more mechanical creatures. A long-necked mechanical dinosaur about the size of a dog was wiping the floor with a rag in its mouth. Another one with a duck-bill was running through with a toolbox in its tiny arms and disappeared into the Zord lab where Holly was no doubt working on something.

"Sorry about that," Danny said. He held something that was like a notebook computer but actually opened like a book. "I was trying to test the recon R.A.D.s," he said.

"The what now?" Tai asked. What had his other geniuses been up to while he was in school?

Nyo's head popped up over a console. "Ranger Assistant Droids," he answered. "You should be able to interface them now, Danny," he said.

Tai was nodding slightly, then he shook his head. "No, I need more," he said.

Danny grinned slightly. He plugged the sideways laptop into the console. "Ranger Assistant Droids. I been working on them all summer with Nyo. Glad he decided to stick around. There are nine of them in total. Little Foot does a variety of cleaning chores," he motioned toward the long-necked dinosaur. "He is also the team 1 cannon that took out the monster yesterday," he explained.

"Duckie passed you earlier. It fetches and carries. It's the Team 2 cannon," Nyo supplied.

"The three miscreants that zoomed by earlier are Ed, Double-D, and Eddy. They're three of the recon Zords," Danny finally finished what he was doing and several of the screens on the Power Chamber lit up with split screen views. Three were moving quickly through the desert. Another three were aerial views of Angel Grove. "Petrie, Peewee, and Percy are pterodons that fly around."

"We figured we could use them for filling any holes in the viewing globe network," Nyo added.

Tai was nodding for real now. "Keep up the good work," he said and continued on to the Blue Lab where he knew Billie was holed up.

She didn't bother to glance up when he entered. "We have a problem," she declared.

Tai rubbed the back of his neck and glanced up at the ceiling. "That sounds ominous," he said.

Billie smirked slightly. "I finished," she said.  "But we're still at a disadvantage for when they launch their next attack," she said.

Tai crossed his arms over his chest. "Ah, the Black and Yellow problem. Has anyone heard from Fox?" he asked.

"Autumn and Winter received a letter stating he didn't know when he'd be able to return. However, I am unable to locate him," Beez's voice informed them.

Tai let out a breath. "From now on, anyone leaving the country for parts unknown is getting chipped," he declared. Billie snorted. "Where's Taran?" he asked.

"He's at the Youth Center. Should I ask him to come?" Beez asked.

"Yes. Tell him to come to Red One," Tai answered. He walked out of the Blue Lab and continued down the hallway. Across from the Blue Lab was the Zord Lab, where Holly and Danny worked on their larger projects. Past them were two more rooms. One was used as Beta Z's personal space, and the other had been inhabited by Billy Cranston, who had to return to his home on Aquitar before he could begin a rapid aging process that would lead to his death within a week.

He came to another door that slid open across from the Medical Lab. It'd been mostly used for storage, more of Alpha 5's junk collection, but at some point, someone had decided that Tai and Lani needed an office. So they cleared it out and dubbed it Red One. Tai actually found himself using the space, which he hadn't intended to do. He wasn't sure how he felt about being somehow separate or above the rest of the team. He had to admit though, it was useful to have a place where he could think and make plans quietly, even if constant interruptions were expected.

The room itself was barren, except for a large, round boardroom table that accommodated everyone and more. He liked the round table. That way he didn't feel like he was trying to be the "boss" of everyone by sitting at the head of the table or something.

No sooner had he sat down in one of the chairs than Taran was walking through the doors. "It's like you were waiting," Tai said.

Taran sat down in one of the chairs. "It's obvious we have a gaping problem," he said.

"Can you or Lammy or Rei find Fox?" Tai asked.

"Even if we could, he won't make it back in time. Now we don't even have Griff keeping an eye on the Moon. We're flying blind when it comes to Widow and Roki. They're stronger than ever. We can't really wait for Fox," he said.

Tai sighed. "What do you suggest?" he asked.

Taran cleared his throat. "Beez didn't tell you?" he asked.

Tai raised a brow. "Tell me what?" he asked.

"Black and Yellow will sort themselves out. They're missing," Taran said.

Tai scrubbed a hand through his hair, messing his spikes up. "No, she didn't mention it. Jason said the same thing happened when we ended up with our Power Coins. I guess there's nothing to do except wait it out," he said. Though he had to admit he was patently curious about who'd be joining the team. "You can go back to playing with Autumn, now," he said, dismissing Taran.

"Yeah, I ain't gonna argue with that," Taran said and disappeared as quickly as he arrived.

Tai decided that going out to play was a good idea. Taking advantage of the quiet days was the only way to stay sane. He sent Lani a text message and left the room as soon as he got a reply.

--x--

A few days later Tori, Chloe (who was officially back in Angel Grove), Zara and Melody were doing some school shopping at the mall. Zara was complaining about her increased workload at Think Pink! Dance and Gymnastics. A studio run by former pink Power Rangers Kimberly Hart, Kat Hilliard, and Cassie Chan. Zara worked there as part receptionist, part janitor.

"Is something special happening?" Melody asked.

Zara shrugged. "I don't know. There's some special guest that Kim's advertising to get more sign-ups for gymnastics. She's dying to say but she won't actually say," she said. She dug around in her purse and fished out a flyer. It didn't say who the special guest was, the Olympic Rings were ghosted into the background of the flyer.

Tori gasped and looked at Chloe. "You don't think...do you?" she asked.

"Think what?" Melody asked.

Chloe sniffed. "Who else would it be?" she said with a sour expression.

"Who?" Zara demanded.

Tori grinned. "I forget you two weren't around for the last Olympics and the amazing fifteen-year-old who took the men's gold medal in gymnastics. He happens to be a hometown hero," she said.

Zara glanced at Melody. "That tell you anything useful?" she asked.

Melody shook her head. "Not really," she answered. "Olympics aren't broadcast on Terra Venture," she explained. "Instead we have our own version of the games."

Chloe sighed. "It's obvious who it is, whether Kim's telling or not. Seriously, in a gymnastics studio owned by Kimberly Hart, she's advertising an Olympic athlete without saying his name? There's only one person that would be. And his name is Mason Hart," she said with a chilling edge to her voice.

"Ooh," Zara and Mel said.

"So, why do we dislike him?" Zara asked.

Tori snickered. "We don't. He's every bit as loveable as Rex. I don't really know what her problem with him is," she said, looking at her best friend questioningly. She didn't know there was a problem. Her phone chimed and she checked her text message. "I got to go. DF says there's something of the utmost importance that she has to tell me," she said.

"Let's all head out together then," Chloe suggested. They agreed.

--x--

Palace on the Moon

Widow walked into the laboratory she shared with her husband. He was there, hard at work, hunched over a lump of Dark Clay with a loupe on one eye and sculpting tools in hand. An intense look of concentration was on his face as he worked.

"Isn't that Finster's job?" she asked, placing her hands on his shoulders and rubbing slightly.

The corner of Roki's mouth lifted slightly. "You know what they say, if you want something done right, you do it yourself," he declared.

She peered over as the blob of clay and narrowed her eyes. "What exactly are you working on, dear husband?" she asked.

His slight smirk turned into a full-on grin. "That, my dear, is going to be a surprise," he said.

Widow crinkled her nose. "I shall have to think of creative ways for you to tell me. In meantime, why don't I have Finster cook up a nice playmate for the Power Rangers? Silly things don't seem to have things together. It' be a shame to waste this opportunity," she declared.

"I shall leave you to do your worst," Roki said. "Perhaps I'll see how they're faring soon," he said but went back to his sculpting.

--x--

Tori and the three other girls went in different directions after leaving the mall. She was headed home with several bags. She jumped when she heard a jaunty toot-toot behind her. She turned and smiled when Wood pulled up on his yellow scooter. "Need a lift?" he asked.

"Why thank you. If you don't mind," she agreed.

"What are boyfriends for?" He hopped off his scooter, pulled his extra helmet out from under the seat, and placed her bags neatly inside.

Tori grinned and kissed his cheek. "They do come in handy at times. Although I'm still not sure you got this pink helmet for me and not Nathan," she said. He chuckled without answering. Tori lifted the helmet to put it on her head but it slid through her fingers and hit the pavement. It took a Wood a moment to process what was happening.

Tori was staring at a girl who'd come upon them. Dressed in a designer artistically ripped jeans, a white tank, and yellow plaid shirt, the girl froze with the mp3 player she fiddling with dropped to the pavement. Her hair was a mix of reds, browns, blacks, and blonds, pulled into a high ponytail that cascaded in curls on one side. Her skin was a similar mochaccino color to Tori's, but the most striking thing about her was her bright aquamarine eyes.

Her shocked expression went from Tori to some point beyond them. "Look out!" she shouted. Tori and Wood spun around and there was a patrol of Dark Putties behind them. Tori opened her mouth and screamed. Waves of sonic energy knocked them off their feet. Several of them crashed into each other and merged into one monster-sized, hulking Puttie.

"Well, that's new," Wood breathed. He pushed the panic button on his comm and grabbed each girl, springing backward with them, just as the Hulk Puttie swung a large fist and crashed into his scooter, sending it flying through the air.

Tori helped steady the other girl when she stumbled on the landing. "Run," she said. The girl didn't need telling twice as the three of them took off down the street. They skidded to a stop when they just ran into more Putties. "We're being surrounded."

"Well, I haven't been here long enough to tick off the locals," the other girl said, her voice had a slight accent. "These guys must be wanting to meet you two," she added.

"Unfortunately, they don't discriminate," Wood said. Multicolored laser blasts had the Putties scattering slightly. The female Red and Green Rangers, the male Blue Ranger, the Gold and Electrum Rangers had arrived.

"Sweet as! Power Rangers are really a real thing," the girl gaped.

"Get to cover," Red told them as they faced down the Putties.

"Let's go," Wood said and tried to lead the girls away, but more Putties popped up in front of them. "What is this?" he demanded. He had separate to defend himself when a Puttie lunged at him. He sprang up without really meaning to, and he landed hard on a Puttie's face when he came back down. "Whoa," he said.

"Watch out!" The girl pushed Tori out of harm's way when one of the Putties turned his arm into a long blade and slashed at them. She stumbled back and they both landed hard on their backsides. A Power Dagger to the forehead had it turning to black dust. Wood ran to them. "Are you two all right?" he asked.

Tori sprang to her feet. The other girl bounced up almost as agilely. She was staring at something in her hand. "What the devil? Where'd this come from?" she asked. "You reckon they want this thing?" she asked and held up the metallic power coin emblazoned with a saber-toothed tiger. Wood and Tori gaped at her a moment. Then Wood grinned. "Awesome! New partner," he crowed.

"Come again?"

"Smilodon. Say it now!" Wood said urgently as more Putties combined to make another Puttie hulk behind her

"Smilodon?" she repeated dumbly. The Power Coin dissolved into her hand. A metallic yellow communicator formed on her wrist. A Morpher appeared on her forehead.

"It's Morphin' Time!" Wood said. In a single motion, he passed his hand over his communicator and spun his Power Coin. "Smilodon!" A yellow digital matrix formed a  power suit a  with a yellow saber-toothed tiger themed helmet.

Tori passed her hand over her communicator and her Morpher appeared on her upper arm. She spun her Power Coin. "Pterodactyl!" A light pink power suit appeared with a pink and white pterodactyl themed helmet.

Confused but not sure what else to do, the other girl spun her Power Coin. "Smilodon!" A slightly lighter yellow power suit appeared with a yellow saber-toothed tiger themed helmet. "This is so awesome!" she said, looking at what she could see of herself. "I'm a Power Ranger," she said.

"Yes, and Power Rangers fight Putties and monsters," Pink stated. "Power Fans!" She summoned, her weapons appearing in her hands.

"Power Daggers!" male Yellow summoned.

"Power Grips!" female Yellow summoned.

--x--

Chloe lived closest to the mall. She also didn't buy very much, as much as she wanted to. She was saving up for an even better camera than the one that'd turned evil. She never could bring herself to look at it the same way again. She also thought it didn't work quite right either, but Danny had taken it apart and put it back together several times for her and he never found anything wrong with it.

Even if it was all in her head, she was getting a new one. She thought about selling that one to help her fund, but then she'd be camera-less and that was even worse. She was also in a grumpy mood and stupidly not paying that much attention to her surroundings. She literally ran right into the Putties that were waiting for her.

"'Ey! Watch it!" she scolded and looked up. "Youse know what? My bad. I wasn't watchin' were I was goin'," she said, backing up a few paces. She dropped her mall bag, pressed her panic button. She fisted her hands and took a stance.

"You've got to be kidding me. Run, idiot!"

Someone ran past her, grabbing her arm on the way, dragging her behind him. She glanced back and saw the Putties merging together. "Faster!" She said and put on as much speed as her short legs would allow her and they ducked into an alleyway.

However, it appeared to be too much for her would-be rescuer. As if his leg suddenly stopped working, he went down, almost bringing her with him, but he let go of her arm. She skidded to a stop. "What's with youse? We gotta move," she said. She took stock of her wannabe hero.

Although his face was contorted in pain as he kneaded his leg, it was easily recognizable. He had a messily stylish mop of black hair, and his golden eyes were dim with the pain he was feeling. His face had the unmistakable stamp of a Hart. So much so, he was nearly identical to his older cousin, Rex. "Don't hang around here. Run away. That thing is right behind us," Mason Hart said through gritted teeth.

"The Power Rangers are on their way. Looks like I gotta rescue youse," she said drily.

He blew out a frustrated breath and used the wall of a building behind him to push himself to his feet. "Why are you so stubborn?" he demanded.

"That's my charm," Chloe said. The Puttie hulk pushed itself into the ally. Chloe took a calculated risk and stepped out to face it. Mason didn't seem to be able to run anymore.

"What are you doing?" he demanded.

Before Chloe could answer him, a blast of energy exploded the Puttie hulk into a cloud of black dust. When the dust dissipated they could see the male Red Ranger holding the BrontoCannon while the female Blue Ranger, the male Pink and Green Rangers, and the Silver Ranger were engaging other Putties beyond him. "Everyone all right here?" Red asked.

"Thanks to the Power Rangers," Chloe said.

Red cocked his head. "Whatcha holding there, kid?" he asked Mason.

Chloe glanced at Mason. He seemed puzzled to find himself holding a metal coin with a Mastodon emblazoned on it. "Uh...does it belong to you?" he asked.

Chloe groaned. "Really? Him?" she asked.

Red chuckled. "Are you really that surprised? He's a Hart," he said. She made a sour face. "It belongs to you," Red said to Mason.

"We got another big one!" Pink shouted, hovering and firing at another hulk with his Power Bow.

"I hope Little Foot has another blast in him. Grab your partner and let's go," Red said to Chloe and ran out of the alley.

"What's...happening...? Was that...Tai?" Mason asked slowly.

"Say Mastodon and let's go help," Chloe told him.

"Mastodon?" The word activated the Power Coin. It dissolved into him. A communicator and Morpher appeared.

"Do what I do and don't ask a bunch of questions. It's Morphin' time!" She waved her hand over her communicator and spun her Power Coin. "Mastodon!"  A black power suit appeared with a black mastodon themed helmet that had pink eyes.

Mason, still confused and unsure what he could do with his nearly useless leg, followed suit. He spun his Power Coin. "Mastodon!" A black power suit appeared with a black mastodon themed helmet that had yellow eyes. He was startled when the pain in his leg had disappeared.

"Let's go, new guy," female Black said. "Power Axe!" she summoned the large axe and ran out of the alley in order to help the other Rangers.

"Power Flail!" The new male Black Ranger summoned a spikey black ball that connected to a shovel handle by a retractable chain. He followed her into battle because...that's what he did now?

--x--

Palace on the Moon

"Was there any use in this?" Rio scoffed, watching the proceeding through the telescope on the balcony overlooking the earth.

"Finster wanted to test something, so I let him. If it took out a couple of Rangers off by themselves, then it would be all the better," Widow said.

Rio smirked slightly. "But that's not what happened, is it? Instead, they filled in their missing pieces," she said.

Widow looked at Rio steadily. "I only tolerate you because Roki allowed you to serve us. Do not test my patience. You aren't my cousin," she warned and followed her warning with a cold smile. She quietly walked away.

Rio made a face and silently mocked her behind her back. She turned her attention back to the action on Earth. She'd get her revenge one day. On all of them. Power Rangers and Repulsas alike.

--x--

The new female Yellow Ranger was handling herself pretty well. She seemed to have the fundamentals of karate and a few other things thrown into the mix. She was also extremely agile, and light on her feet, almost seeming to react before the enemy could make a move. She turned a handless flip and landed gracefully in a crouch when a Puttie tried to pummel her with a hand that formed into a large heavy club. She struck out with the Power Grips before headbutting it in the forehead making it disappear.

"How are you doing that?" male Yellow asked his new partner.

"Dunno, bro. Just kinna happens," she answered.

"Not quite as impressive as sweep kicking the Skeleton Ranger without a power suit, but I approve of the new girl," Blue stated. While he was fighting with one Puttie, he threw out a hand toward Green, and a force-field protected her back.

She dispatched the first Puttie, and swung around and got rid of him. "Thanks," she said.

"Did yours and Wood's Powers evolve?" Pink asked, taking out another Puttie.

"Looks like it," Red said as she stretched herself further than ever before in a bid to slip around behind a Puttie to lop off its head with her Power Sword. There was a beat as everyone sort of watched it fly through the air as it crumbled away.

"Beheading works, too!" Electrum announced. She forgot about accuracy and used her VelociRapier to whip heads off left and right.

As the strongest member of the team, Gold was holding off the Puttie Hulk. He used his StegoMace to block blows, but he never could get the upper hand. Regular Dark Putties kept trying to distract him. "Knocking them off also seems to work," he said and crashed the weapon into one's head and watched it roll. "I'm not sure how it's going to work out with our friend here," he ducked out of the way of a massive swing.

"Let's give Duckie a test drive, then," Blue said.

"You mean the new Team 2 Cannon?" Red asked.

"That's the one."

"Let's get on with it. Not sure how much longer Taran can hold him off," Electrum said.

Red held out a hand. "Saurolophus!" she called. The duck-billed dinobot digitized before them. "SauroCannon Mode!" The R.A.D. shifted into a single barrel team cannon that seemed to hover on its own power but Red aimed it. "Spidey senses working?" she asked Gold.

"Go!" he assured.

"Sauro Blast!" She fired the weapon. There was a slight recoil with the amount of energy released from its single barrel. Gold kept the hulk distracted until the last possible moment when he disappeared in a cloud of white smoke. The energy plowed into the hulk and it exploded.

There was quiet for a moment, then the remaining Putties began merging together, creating more hulks, then the hulks merged together creating a giant Puttie the size of a building. "Um, Tai, sweetheart, trade you Wood for Sora," Red said into her communicator.

"Send Danny along, too, and it's a deal," he responded.

"Deal," she agreed. Blue and male Yellow teleported.

--x--

As it turned out, the BrontoCannon took awhile to recharge, so male Red let it go back to the Command Center. Instead, he summoned his Tyranno Sword. "Sora! Split up, bring the big sword, and help me out," he said.

Silver gave a jaunty wave and triplicated. The one still holding the CeratoSword ran toward Red.

Going on pure instinct, because his rational mind was still trying to process everything, the new male Black Ranger grabbed the chain of the Flail, spun it, holding the handle end, whipped the ball toward one of the Putties. The chain expanded, smacked the Puttie right in the forehead, and contracted back to him.

Male Green summoned his Stygian Blade. The triangular bladed sword was handier than for combat than his Stygian Dagger by far.  The Flail seemed to take out Dark Putties creeping up on either side of him as he plunged the Blade through one's forehead. "Whoa. Thanks. Nice...flail-ing," he said.

Male Black gave the head of the Flail a little spin. "Mrs. Manahan's fifth-grade yo-yo champ," he stated.

Female Black gagged. "Stop showing off," she said. She axed a Puttie, Cleaving off a leg. Even though it grew back, she already moved beyond it. "Billie, watch out!" She sprang forward to help out the female Blue Ranger, densing herself, but the Puttie that was about to strike Blue was behind, knocked her off balance. She fell into the Blue and they both hit the ground like a ton of bricks.

"Did you just dense me?" Blue demanded.

Female Black let it go. "Kinda felt like it," she agreed as they got to their feet.

"We'll come back to that later," Blue said and winked out of sight. One thing she's always had on her side is a dead-aim. And also the capacity to create Grid generated duplicates of her Power Sais. Which then seemed to appear out of nowhere and stick into the foreheads of the Dark Putties. She fizzled back into sight in the middle of several Putties. They turned on her. "Inconvenient," she said.

The Putties were too close to stab. Instead, pink energy bolts opened up their foreheads. Male Pink landed gracefully in a crouch as they disintegrated. "Thanks. How long were you," she made a hand movement indicating to his levitation.

He shrugged. "I didn't keep track. Awhile," he said. He quickly raised his Bow and took out a couple of Putties coming up behind her just as she tossed a couple of Sais that were coming up behind him. They separated to go back to working independently.

The hulk swung a big fist to swat at Red, but he ducked. The other came to try to crush him. He brought his arms up to take the blow. He groaned and used every bit of his strength to push up.

The CeratoSword cleaved the arm in half. The Puttie hulk made a muffled roaring sound. The arm disintegrated but another Puttie joined the hulk and helped reform the arm.

"Is Little Foot ready for another blast?" Red asked into his helmet.

"Afraid not. Sora should be able to use the Pterodon recon Rads," Nyo answer answered him since he'd had a hand in designing the R.A.D.s. Red gestured for Silver to get one with it.

The other two Silver Rangers were using their smaller swords to take out what they could as they covered the other Silver and Red. Since they shared one mind, they began closing in. "Pterodon! Petrie!"

"Percy!"

"Peewee!"

Swooping in after digitizing, three small flying dinobots flew to each of the Silver Rangers. They transformed from dinosaur-shaped robots to handheld blasters. "PteroCannon!" The three Rangers assimilated as the PteroBlasters stuck together to create a long barreled rifle cannon that Silver rested on his shoulder like a rocket launcher. "PteroBlast!" He fired the Cannon at the hulk.

A powerful blast of energy ran through each of the R.A.Ds and gathered at the opening of the last one. Once enough energy had built up, it blasted into the hulk and exploded it into black dust.

"Brilliant," Silver declared.

"Let's not celebrate too soon," Blue said when the Putties they'd been engaging suddenly abandoned the fight and ran toward each other. They joined together and began growing, surpassing even hulk status, and going on to giant size.

"Uh-oh, I think we need a bigger gun," male Black said.

"Uh-huh." his partner agreed.

"Um, Tai, sweetheart, trade you Wood for Sora," female Red said to her partner through his communicator.

"Send Danny along, too, and it's a deal," he responded.

"Deal," she agreed.

"Good call," female Blue said giving two thumbs up. Silver teleported and within moments male Yellow and Blue arrived.

"It's Zord time. TyrannoZord!" red summoned.

"TriceraZord!" male Blue summoned.

"MastoZord!" female Black summoned.

"PteroZord!" male Pink summoned.

"SmiloZord!" male Yellow summoned.

"StygiZord!" male Green summoned.

"Alpha Megazord!"

The large mechas began appearing from digital matrixes. Each of the Zords was a dinosaur in a corresponding color as its pilots. The pilots teleported into the cockpit of each Zord. The six Zords came together to form a humanoid robot. They

"Okay, that's kind of cool," male Black said. "So are there designated pilots or..." he left his question hanging.

"We usually let whichever team needs it have it, but some of us are much more skilled than others. My partner for example. Ok, new guy. Let's get out of the way," she said. She reached over and activated his teleport and he disappeared in a glow of energy. She followed suit almost immediately.

--x--

When Silver arrived on the scene to join Gold and Electrum he looked up at the giant Puttie. "I met his twin," he declared.

"Let's not keep yakking," Electrum said.

Gold nodded. "StegoZord!"

"VelociZord!"

"CeratoZord!"

Three large mechs began digitizing into existence. The pilots teleported to their cockpits. "Legend Megazord!" They combine into a vaguely humanoid robot.

"Sweet. As," female Yellow said succinctly. "But where did the Silver one come from? Where'd the other two go?" she asked, confused by the teleporting.

Green draped an arm around her shoulders. "All in due time," she said.

"We should get out of the way," Red stated.

Pink hesitated. "I'm...going to speak with DF. Now. See you at the CC," she said and teleported away.

"That was very un-Tori-like," Green said.

"She'll fill us in when she's ready," Red said. "Let's go." She teleported in a burst of red energy.

"Choice," Yellow said.

"Our turn," Green activated the other girl's teleport before following herself.

--x--

The giant Putties had the ability to mold weapons out of their own clay. The Alpha Megazord discovered this when they sliced off one of the hands. Not only did the hand grow back, but the Giant Puttie pulled a glob of clay from its own body and formed a wicked looking scimitar with it.

"Well, that's..." Pink put up his hands, unable to accurately articulate what he was thinking.

"Balls. I think the word you're looking for is balls," Black stated.

"Mad balls," Blue said, agreeing with his sister.

"Yeah, well, let's see how much he likes getting blasted into nothing," Red stated. "Sharp-tooth Bazooka!" The weapon appeared on the Megazord's shoulder. "Aim," he lined up his shot.

"Here goes," Green said hopefully.

The bazooka's mouth opened up. "Fire!" Six-multicolored projectiles hit the Giant Puttie in a circular pattern, exploding through him. individual Puttie Patrollers exploded from the creature and dissipated into dust as they fell to the ground, leaving nothing in its wake.

--x--

The Legend Megazord had a spikey lance that wasn't doing much against the Giant Puttie. It was having fun trying out different weapons against them. Their trio wasn't as large or powerful as the Alpha Megazord, but they still should have had some impact.

"Let's stick it to him," Electrum suggested.

"Right," Gold agreed. The Megazord dropped the lance as if to joust. "Legendary Lance!" The lance began to glow and the Megazord zoomed forward, crashing through the Giant Puttie.  Appearing on the other side of it, the Megazord rested the Lance against its shoulder. Energy from the lance exploded a hole through it's middle but wasn't powerful enough to destroy it completely.
"That's not good," Silver stated.

"No, it's not," Electrum agreed grimly.

"You don't think we left you guys out of our new upgrades do you?" Holly's voice asked. "Just summon the Spike-Tail Silo," she instructed.

"Spike-Tail Silo!" Gold immediately summoned as the Megazord spun around. A stego-saurus faced rocket-launcher looking cannon digitized onto their shoulder. "Aim!" The stego's mouth opened. "Fire!" Three balls of metallic light where launched from the Silo in quick succession. Each hit the Giant Puttie, blowing it into smaller Putties in chunks before they disintegrated into black dust.

--x--

Palace on the Moon

Rio thought about rubbing Widow's nose in the fact that her pitiful creature's creations had failed, but Widow was too calm. Though Rio didn't know the girl that well, her calmness was more frightening than a rage she was known for. "You don't seem...disappointed that your plan failed," she said hesitantly.

Widow raised her brows. "Who said anything failed?" she asked and walked away from the observation post, leaving Rio even more uneasy. She really needed to get off this rock.

--x--

Back in the Command Center, everyone gathered after the battle. Not only was the debrief of Widow and Roki's upgraded Putties, but also their newest team members.

"I know we all miss Rex, but don't you think cloning him was a bit much?" Autumn asked pointedly, eyeing Billie suspiciously.

"And poor Tori hasn't even gone anywhere. Why her?" Lammy agreed.

Billie pursed her lips and put her fists on her lips. "First of all, that's not a clone of Rex. That's his little cousin, Mason," she said. "As for Tori's clone, not my doing," she said.

"She's not a clone either. She's LaKeisha Woods. She's an actress from New Zealand that I always thought looked a lot like Tori," Wood stated excitedly.

"Thus, you're a big fan, huh?" Win teased.

Nathan snapped his fingers. "Yes, she's been in all those movies and TV shows that film down there," he said.

"I didn't think I was thet famous," the new female Yellow Ranger said. "I go by Kiki, bro," she said. "I cannot believe thet I'm a Power Ranger," she said, looking around in amazement. It was going to take some time to get used to everything and learn who was who.

"Same here. Gee, I know a lot of people in this room," Mason said, crossing his arms over his arms over his chest. "For those that don't know me, I'm Mason Hart, Olympic Gold Medalist, teen heartthrob," he said and gave a winning smile.

"Are you sure somebody didn't clone Rex?" Autumn asked.

"I can't vouch for that," Billie stated.

"So, Kiki, tell us a bit about yourself," Lani suggested.

"Not much to tell. I've been acting since I was a kid. I have been in almost every American film and programme that films down there as a guest or an extra. I recently finished as a series main about mermaids when my dad and mum decided to come to California for their jobs," she said.

"So..." Nathan tried to find the right way to ask how she looked so much like Tori.

"You look like Tori. Any idea why?" Chloe asked bluntly. Tori was her best friend and delicacy wasn't her forte anyway.

"Because she's my sister. My...twin sister. We were Parent Trapped when we were little," Tori said, making her entrance moments after teleporting. "DF learned through mutuals that our father moved to Angel Grove, and with him, my sister," she said and gestured to the other girl.

Kiki blinked. "I need to go home. We'll do this whole thing later, eh?" she said. She fiddled with her communicator for a moment before teleporting away.

"This is going to take time to sort out," Tori said. "I need to go, too."

"Totally understood," Tai assured her.

"You need some moral support?" Wood said.

Tori nodded and held out a hand. He took her hand and they teleported out.

In the quiet that followed, Mason cleared his throat. "So...who can tell me why my leg doesn't feel like it'll fall off at any given minute anymore?" he asked.

"I got this. Come with me to the Medi-Lab," Billie told him. He nodded and they walked out of the Power Chamber.

"If anyone needs me, I'll be in Red One," Tai said, effectively dismissing everyone to do their own thing.  

Sure Widow and Roki had upped their game, but so had the Power Rangers. With a full and capable team, he had confidence that whatever was thrown at them, they'd rise to occasion.

-x-End 02-x-

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