The Terran Ranger Saga Volume 6 - Heather Ray (read novels website TXT) 📗

Angel Grove, California
March 1997
11:00 am (Western Time)

A large black hole irised open upon the roof of Angel Grove High. Out of that hole fell five figures, draped in skin-tight, colored armor. They rose to their feet, and looked around at the scene below.

"Good," said Anthony, the Red Ranger, "I don't think anyone saw us."

"I wonder if they'd recognize us," said Micah, the Green Ranger, "I mean, Will didn't tell us whether or not this universe has a team of Starlight Rangers. It's not entirely impossible."

"It's highly improbably, but I'm sure we'll find out soon," said Regina, the Blue Ranger. "After all, we have to find David Trueheart and Tom Oliver, and most likely when we find Tom, we'll find the Power Rangers, no matter which incarnation they may be."

"Where are we anyway?" asked Rebecca, the Pink Ranger, looking down at the relatively quiet yard surrounding the building.

"We're at the school," said Brittany, the Yellow Ranger. "This is Angel Grove High! I'm a senior here back in our time."

"Great," said Anthony, "then you'll be able to navigate the place. Okay, gang, we'd better split up. Some of us will find Tom, and the others will find David Trueheart. Uh...Micah, do you know where your uncle lived in the year 1997?"

The boy rubbed the chin of his helmet with his white-gloved hand. "Uh, I think he still lived at the reservation," he said finally. "But, I'm not sure."

"That's a good place to start," said Regina, "Micah, you should go find your uncle. You'll recognize him better than the rest of us. Becky, you go with him. You can try to scan for David with your psi powers."

"That's a good plan," said Brittany. "The rest of us all about high school age."

"Should we go morphed?" asked Rebecca.

"Nah," said Anthony. "It'll only attract unwanted attention. But, if you run into trouble, don't hesitate to morph. I don't want to take any chances."

The five Starlight Rangers waited until the coast was completely clear. Then, they leaped gracefully off the roof to ground level, and hid inside a cluster of trees. After a bright flash of light, Anthony, Regina, and Brittany walked towards the school, while Rebecca and Micah ran the other way.

"Keep in touch!" Anthony called. "Every half hour! Don't forget!"

Rebecca waved, and the two youngest Rangers were out of sight.

Anthony, Regina, and Brittany walked into the double doors, and were surprised by the large number of students filling the hallway.

"I guess it's between classes," Brittany observed.

"Then this is the perfect opportunity for us to find Tom," Anthony responded. "Okay, ladies, split up, and keep an eye out for Tom Oliver. If you can't find him, look for one of the other Rangers. Try not to talk to them, just watch them. Contact the rest of us before you do anything else. Clear?"

The two girls nodded, and they separated. Regina walked down one hallway, lined with chatting students and lockers. As she passed, nearly ever male student stopped what he was doing to gaze at the mysterious six foot tall young woman, with an exotic beauty that demanded attention. Regina felt everyone's stares, and wrung her hands nervously. Her intense discomfort serving as a distraction, she accidentally bumped into a young Asian man with dark, curly hair and a green T-shirt. She knocked the books from his hands, and they both nearly fell to the ground.

"Oh, gosh!" she said nervously, bending down to pick up the books, "I'm so sorry..."

"No harm done," he said, picking up the rest. He then looked at the girl curiously.

"Have we... met before?" he asked. "You seem familiar..."

"Uh, I don't think so," she said, looking away from his dark eyes, "I... I don't attend this school."

"So, why are you here?" asked Adam, rising to his feet. Regina followed.

"Visiting," she said. "Uh, look, I have to go..."

"Maybe I can help you find who you're looking for," he offered. Regina considered this. "Do you know a Tom Oliver?" she asked. Adam blinked.

"Tommy Oliver? Yeah, he's one of my best friends. He has gym class now, down the hall, to your left. I'm Adam, by the way."

Adam extended his hand, and Regina looked at him in alarm. Oh my goodness, I didn't even recognize him!

"I'm Regina," she said. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise," he said. He then looked past Regina, and saw a tall, dark girl dressed in yellow, frowning at him. Adam turned a little red. "Uh, I have to get going," he said finally. "Bye."

Adam hurried away from Regina, and stood beside his girlfriend, Tanya Sloan. Tanya, who was usually of friendly demeanor, wore a frown that chilled blood.

"Who is that?" she asked Adam.

"Her name's Regina," Adam explained. "She bumped into me, that's all."

"Oh, right," Tanya said, "I'm sure you didn't notice she's got the body of a swimsuit model, eh? And that outfit doesn't leave much to the imagination."

"Really?" asked Adam innocently, taking Tanya's hand, "I hadn't noticed."

Together, they walked down the hall towards their next class.

Meanwhile, just down the hall, Anthony Monroe was busy trying to make sense of the rough map of the school he picked up at the main office. Once in a while he glanced up, and watched the students walk past him. He keenly noticed that many students looked at him curiously, especially the female population. Anthony disregarded the attention, and continued on his way. He stopped beside the bathrooms, and flipped the map around in frustration.

"Am I looking at this the right way?" he muttered to himself. "Twentieth century two dimensional maps...I'll never understand them!"

"Are you having trouble?" asked a perky voice. Anthony lowered the map, and gazed down at a pair of doe-brown eyes, framed with long, dark lashes. Anthony barely stifled a gasp when he realized who he was looking at.

"Ma --" he started, but quickly caught himself before making a fatal mistake. Kimberly looked at him in confusion.

"What did you say?" she asked.

"Ma...math," Anthony recovered, "I was wondering where the math room is."

Kimberly smiled, and shook her head. "You're gonna need to be more specific. There are lots of math classes here. Are you a new student?"

"Yeah," Anthony breathed, "I'm a new student. Just got here from New York." Well, it's not a total lie...

"Oh really?" she said. "That's great! I always wanted to visit New York. Never have, though. I'm Kimberly, by the way. Kimberly Hart."

"Hello," he said, rather uncomfortably. Kimberly frowned a little.

"That's your cue," she said good-naturedly.

"Cue?"

"To tell me your name!"

"Oh, okay. I'm Anthony."

"Do you have a last name?"

"Monroe," he said, and then instantly regretted it.

"Oh, really," she said, staring at his features even closer, "I know a guy named Monroe. He goes to school in Florida. His name's Trevor. Are you related?"

"Nope," he said, backing away from Kimberly's gaze. He only ended up with his back to the wall.

"It's funny," Kimberly continued. "Now that I think about it, you kinda look like him. Except for the eyes..."

Before Kimberly could further analyze the situation, a ringing came from Anthony's wrist. Both he and Kimberly were surprised to hear the six-tone signal.

Will never changed the sound the communicator makes?!

Anthony thought, rolling his eyes in frustration. Now I'm in trouble...

Anthony looked down at Kimberly, and noticed that she was covering her wrist with her hand.

"Uh, I'd better get going. Nice to meet you, Anthony."

With that, Kimberly hurried down the hall. Anthony sighed in relief, and then ducked into the men's room.

She must've thought it was her communicator ringing, he thought, raising the device to his mouth. "Hello?"

^Tony? It's me, Regina.^

"What's up, Gina?"

^You're not going to believe this, but I bumped into Adam Park!^

"I believe it," Anthony said, "I bumped into, of all people, my mother!"

^Really? What are the chances?^

"Well, it's a small high school after all. Man, she just wouldn't leave me alone! I think she's figured something out. She knows my name --"

^You told her your real name?^

"It just slipped! Anyway, when my communicator went off, she left. I think she thinks her communicator went off."

^That's bad, Tony. When she finds out no one paged her, she'll know where that sound came from. You'd better avoid her completely, Tony.^

"I'll try," Anthony sighed. "What about you? What happened with Adam?"

^I didn't even know it was him until he introduced himself. I asked him which class Tom has now. He said gym. I figure the three of us could go down to the gym, and meet up with him. We just have to figure out how to go about doing this, without revealing too much about our future. We probably should try to keep the other Rangers out of this, to keep the situation from escalating. We'd better handle this delicately.^

"Good point. Let's touch base with Brittany before we do anything else."

Brittany was wandering down the halls, looking at the room numbers in surprise. She found her way to the second floor, her forehead wrinkled in confusion as she searched for the stairs to the third floor. She stood still and pondered the design of the school when a young Mexican American man tapped her on the shoulder.

"Hello," he said, "I don't think I've seen you before. You new?"

Brittany nodded, and turned around to see a tall redheaded girl standing beside him.

"Welcome to Angel Grove," she said, "I'm Alexis Darling, and this is my friend Rocky DeSantos."

"Friend?" asked Rocky, arching an eyebrow.

Alexis giggled. "Okay, slightly more than friend."

"Oh," said Brittany, "hello. I'm Brittany."

"Well, what are you looking for?" asked Alexis.

"The stairs."

"They're right behind you," said Rocky, pointing to the stairs she just ascended.

Brittany shook her head. "No," she sighed, "not those stairs. The stairs that lead to the third floor. The computer labs, observatory..."

Brittany stopped when she saw Alexis and Rocky exchange bewildered looks. Brittany looked around nervously.

"There is no third floor," said Alexis. "There are only two floors at Angel Grove High."

"Oh, really," said Brittany with a nervous smile. "My mistake. Well, that explains why I can't find my classes! Well, see ya, and thanks for your help!"

Before either of them could say anything, Brittany hurried down the stairs, and leaned against a locker, catching her breath. By now, most of the students had gone their ways, and the bell rang.