Streaks of Purple Saga Volume Four - Heather Ray (little red riding hood ebook txt) 📗

a small American city. However, once the alien threat had manifested over a year ago, the sudden influx of patients with injuries associated with the monster attacks had forced the staff to grow accustomed to emergency situations. Victims of these attacks appeared on a semi-weekly basis, and while the injuries themselves were routine enough, the sheer volume of broken bones and lacerations taxed the facility to its limits. As a result, Angel Grove had the unique recognition of having one of the most capable hospital staffs in the United States.

However, even this experienced group of physicians had been unprepared for the sixty-two comatose teenagers delivered to their doors over the course of two hours. None of the victims had any outward signs of injury, and from the puzzling reports given by police officers and witnesses, it seemed as if a strange mist had rendered them all unconscious, while sparing dozens of onlookers. Such a tale would be ludicrous, and perhaps laughable, in any other city. Yet in Angel Grove, the account inspired a cold fear in the hardened personnel.

Up until that day, the victims of alien attacks had only received injuries resulting from being near a battle site. This time, the victims had clearly been targeted for an unknown purpose.

The staff handled the unexpected challenge with notable professionalism. Doctors and nurses had taken every possible physical measurement to determine the functionality of the patients, and receptionists and assistants calmly assured the panic-stricken family members that while the injury had not yet been identified, the victims had stabilized and were in no discernible danger of deteriorating.

When the Blue Ranger had appeared several hours ago to conduct his own analysis, a raucous had sprung up in the complex. The Power Rangers were rarely seen up close, and when they did appear before an audience, their visit was always brief. This time, the Blue Ranger spent an extended time at the hospital, discussing the information he was collecting with the head doctor on duty, and even demonstrating the use of his space-age scanning device to appease the doctor's curiosity. Unfortunately, he did not reveal any miracle cure for the fallen teenagers, to the disappointment of scores of desperate families and puzzled practitioners.

So when the Blue Ranger returned, materializing in the lobby in a brilliant wash of light, the heartbeats of everyone present quickened as they immediately assumed the worst.

The hero disregarded the awed and alarmed stares lingering on him, and approached the receptionist. "Excuse me, Sir, could you please page Doctor Andrea Johnson?"

He nodded, shaking his head to focus his attention on the task at hand. "Doctor Johnson, please report to the main desk," he spoke over the intercom. "You have a... visitor."

He then turned back to the Blue Ranger, staring openly at the stylized helmet. "Have a seat," he murmured, gesturing to the couches, "She'll be... right with you."

"Thanks, I'll remain standing."

It took less than a minute for the zealous middle-aged physician to rush down the hallway. "Blue Ranger!" she gasped, "I was hoping it was you!"

The Blue Ranger nodded in greeting. "I'd like to update you on our progress, as well as determine if there have been any changes."

"Great! Come with me."

Everyone in the halls moved aside as the familiar doctor and the awe-inspiring superhero made their way to the wing that housed the victims.

"They've all remained stable," Andrea supplied, "No increased neural activity. But at least they haven't deteriorated. They're all breathing fine, and the pulse is regular. Still no sign of what's wrong with them."

She watched as the Blue Ranger crossed the large room, glancing at each unconscious teen in turn. "Have you figured anything out yet?"

The hero chose his words carefully. "The Power Rangers have consulted an ally whose experience with magic spells and human physiology exceeds our own," he related. "He has provided us with a device that should be able to block out the alien influence that has rendered these youths comatose. As we speak my teammates are preparing this device for testing."

The doctor sat heavily on a hard plastic chair. "Testing," she repeated, "This 'device' you're talking about has never been used on a human before, has it?"

"It was designed for human beings," Blue replied, "However, it needs to be modified for this specific purpose."

Blue then turned back to the victims. "I will need to take one of these victims back to our base to make sure the device is functioning optimally. Once testing is complete, I will return to treat everyone else."

Andrea's anxiety was obvious. "Blue Ranger, I can't release one of my patients to you. And I won't let them serve as guinea pigs for some alien technology."

Blue took a long, slow breath. "Andrea, I promise no harm will come to them. The initial test to insure the safety of the mechanism will be performed on a volunteer. Only once I am satisfied that there is no danger in using the device will I then perform the second test, to see if the device accomplishes what we need it to."

He then approached the conflicted physician. "You will hear from me within an hour, hopefully with a solution, and absolutely with your patient unharmed. You have my word."

After a few more moments of silent consideration, Andrea Johnson nodded her consent.


Chapter Forty-Eight

Trini chewed her lip as she contemplated the wealth of information in Zordon's extensive data banks. Her almond eyes followed the movement of the three dimensional model, slowly turning as different systems within the amplifier were highlighted and described with text.

"Alpha," she called over her shoulder, "do we have a working amplifier anywhere?"

The small robot nodded, producing a device that was strangely reminiscent of a phonograph. "I found it when I got the helmet," he related, "It's pretty easy to set up."

"Yes, it seems to be," she agreed, walking to the far corner of the Command Center. In that separated area was the lab table on which she and Billy had performed their most ambitious work. From repairing Alpha 5 after the Green Ranger fed him a virus, all the way to developing the weapon that saved the Rangers from Zedd's monstrous Saliguana; she'd spent nearly as much time in this niche as she did in Billy's garage laboratory. For over a year she gained experience with technology light years beyond human industry, yet she was never intimidated. Billy had a talent for making it all seem so easy, leaving her confident that she could lend assistance, even when dealing with problems that would've rendered degreed astrophysicists hopelessly baffled.

She sat down at the workstation, pulling open a drawer to access the most frequently used hand tools. On the table before her, the cumbersome Kerovan helmet and amplifier sat whole and intact, yet in her mind's eye she could visualize the key operating systems as laid out in the diagram.

Just one more puzzle for Billy and me to piece together.

She had just finished removing the exterior paneling of the helmet when a wave of blue-white light brightened the Command Center.

"Alpha, set up the med-unit," the Blue Ranger advised. In his arms lay the prone form of the Rangers' chosen test subject.

"You brought Skull back?" Trini remarked.

"We've already performed the rudimentary analysis on him, and have established a status baseline from which we can easily detect any changes," Billy reminded her, setting the teen on the soft cot. Alpha scampered around, activating the appropriate scanners and uploading the applicable data collected previously.

The Blue Ranger then grabbed his Morpher, breaking contact with the Power. "Where are we?" he asked.

Trini gestured to the gadgets spread out before her. "We've got a functional helmet and amplifier to work with. We'll need to augment the helmet's internal systems to recognize and deflect magical energy, and I've started looking at the Command Center's own shielding."

Billy grinned. "That's a good place to begin; the Command Center's shield systems resist magical and technical scanning and infiltration."

The genius picked up a pair of safety goggles and fit them over his glasses. "Let's get to work."

Part Four

Chapter Forty-Nine

^Zack, are you okay?^

The Black Ranger took a deep breath, wincing at the pain in his chest.

^Zack! Do you hear me??^

He pushed forward to reach for the communications relay, only to grimace at the wave of dizziness that blurred his vision.

"Kim," he grunted when he finally found the right button, "where the hell do I keep the Advil in this thing?"

The panic flowed out of her voice like water. ^I don't think you ever bothered to stock the Lion,^ she answered glibly, ^but when this is over, I'll treat you to one of Ernie's banana splits. Enough sugar will cure any pain.^

"If that's not an incentive, I don't know what is!" he responded, his senses quickly returning.

^Be careful, Zack,^ she advised, ^The Misfit kicked your Zord like a soccer ball!^

The Black Ranger snarled. "Time to show that freak this Lion's bite is worse than it's bark!"

^Lions don't bark, Zack.^

"Black Ranger out," he grumbled, switching off the link. The Lion emerged from the tangled heap of fallen trees that gathered around him after the Misfit's last assault, and hurried back toward