It was late in the Command Center. The Alien Rangers were all on Aquitar, rehydrating. Aisha was still on her Zeo Quest; everyone else had returned home, and were in bed at this hour. Alpha was recharging, his sleeping cap tipped over the side of his head. Zordon wasn't in his plasma tube; he was probably meditating or sleeping or whatever it was he did in there. It was quiet and peaceful.

And it suited the mood of Billy Cranston just fine. Things had been so active the past few days, he needed the time to think. He didn't bother to run a systems check or anything; he knew everything was working fine, and he was starting to get just the tiniest bit tired of staying in here almost constantly.

But I just don't like being out there either, he mused. Being twisted out of time like this has changed Angel Grove so much, and I don't like it. It feels WRONG to wander around. . .I don't know anyone. . .my parents are worried sick about the 'younger' me, I think. . .I can't even go home, since they wouldn't know it was me.

He sighed heavily. I hope Aisha gets back soon so we can get things back to the way they should be around here. Billy almost visibly flinched as that thought went through his head. You know they're not going to be back the way they were. The Power Coins are gone, and. . .

BILLY? Zordon's voice startled him. BILLY, WHY ARE YOU HERE SO LATE?

The young Ranger shrugged. "Nowhere else to go, really. You know I can't go home, not being grown up now. My parents wouldn't have any idea who I was, and there's no place else I can go."

YES, I AM AWARE OF THAT, Zordon's voice was understanding. BUT YOU SHOULD STILL BE RESTING. YOU KNOW THERE IS A ROOM FOR YOU HERE.

"I know," Billy nodded. "I guess I was just doing some thinking. I'll go outside if I'm disturbing you."

NO, the old wizard stopped him with a word. YOU ARE CONCERNED, BILLY. WHAT IS TROUBLING YOU?

Billy managed to hold his tongue for all of a minute before he finally answered. "When Aisha brings back her Zeo Crystal and Earth is restored . . .I'm not going to have any powers. There are only five shards to the Zeo Crystal, and five people gathering them. It wouldn't be right to take the power from any of them, they earned it. Once things are back to normal. . .I'm not going to be a Ranger anymore," he was surprised by how quickly the words choked in his throat, and felt tears rising up in his eyes. He'd never known that the power, that being a warrior and defender, had gotten to be so much a part of him that he would shed tears over it's loss. Maybe it's because I didn't choose to give them up, he thought. Because it was an accident. . .because they were stolen from me. . .

I KNOW, BILLY, more tenderness filled the old one's voice than Billy had ever heard before. I MAY, HOWEVER, HAVE AN ANSWER FOR YOU.

The former Ranger's eyes shot straight up to Zordon, and it was almost with venom in his voice that he spoke. "Please don't suggest I just stay here in the Command Center and help out. I'd get bored of that inside of a week, not to mention even being near the Rangers, but not having powers, would make me a prime target for Rita and Zedd. They hate me, Zordon, every bit as much as they hate Tommy, since I'm putting the Zeo Crystal back together, and for everything else I've done. I'm going to make arrangements to leave Angel Grove as soon as I can after this, and hope that they don't bother me."

THAT IS NOT WHAT I WAS GOING TO SUGGEST, BILLY, Zordon's voice was almost reproving. THERE MAY BE A WAY FOR YOU TO STILL BE A RANGER.

That was not what Billy had been expecting to hear. He stared up at his mentor in shock. "Zordon? What are you talking about? You said that the Zeo Quest had to be accomplished by those who were still affected by the timeshift."

HEAR ME OUT, BILLY, Zordon had no hands that the young Ranger could see, but he could almost see him holding up one to stop the flow of words. I DID SAY THAT THE ZEO QUEST HAD TO BE ACCOMPLISHED BY THE YOUNG RANGERS, AND SO IT MUST BE. THE ZEO CRYSTAL IS THE ONLY THING THAT CAN RESTORE THEIR POWERS, AND BRING EARTH BACK INTO THE NORMAL FLOW OF TIME. BUT THERE IS SOMETHING ELSE THAT CAN RESTORE YOUR POWERS, AND IT CAN ONLY BE FOUND WHILE EARTH IS DISRUPTED IN TIME.

"What are you talking about?" Billy tried not to feel hope; he'd come to the conclusion that he would no longer be a Ranger, and had come to terms with that. Now, to have this hope dangling in front of him. . .

AS YOU MIGHT HAVE NOTICED, EARTH AND IT'S MOON ARE A REPOSITORY FOR ALL MANNER OF STRANGE AND UNUSUAL GALACTIC OBJECTS, Zordon continued. THE ZEO CRYSTAL, THE DRAGONZORD, THE MOON PALACE, THE POWER EGGS, AND MANY OTHERS. ONE OF THOSE ARTIFACTS IS KNOWN AS THE STARLIGHT CRYSTAL. IT IS AN EXTREMELY POWERFUL SOURCE OF ENERGY, AND HAS BEEN LOST FOR A GREAT MANY CENTURIES.

"What does that have to do with anything?"

Zordon paused for a moment to look at the young warrior before him. Warrior. Yes. That describes Billy perfectly. He is a warrior of the mind, the heart, the body, and the soul. And he is perfect for the Starlight Crystal. THE LEGENDS OF THE CRYSTAL STATE THAT IT CAN BE USED AS A POWER SOURCE FOR A POWER RANGER, IN MUCH THE SAME WAY AS YOUR POWER COINS OR THE ZEO CRYSTAL, Zordon informed him. IT WAS BROUGHT HERE TO EARTH SEVERAL EONS AGO FOR SAFEKEEPING, AND HAS NEVER BEEN TOUCHED BY EITHER GOOD OR EVIL IN ALL THOSE EONS. IT'S POWER IS THE ONLY THING THAT CAN MAKE YOU A RANGER NOW THAT THE POWER COINS HAVE BEEN DESTROYED. DO YOU WISH TO SEEK IT OUT?

Billy took a long, harsh breath, his eyes on the very verge of bugging out of his head. Over the last few days he'd grown used to the idea of not being a Ranger anymore, or at least had thought he had. But to have it offered to him again. . .I don't think I have a lot of choices. And I don't think I want any. "Yes, Zordon," he said softly. "I do."

THEN RETURN TO YOUR CHAMBER AND REST, BILLY, Zordon advised. IT WILL TAKE A FEW HOURS TO LOCATE PRECISELY WHERE THE STARLIGHT CRYSTAL IS ON EARTH. I WILL SEND ALPHA TO AWAKEN YOU AT DAWN, SO YOU MAY BEGIN YOUR OWN POWER QUEST.

The former Blue Ranger nodded, suddenly overwhelmed by what he had agreed to do. The concept of a solitary quest had never appealed to him. Ever since becoming a Ranger, he'd been part of a team. The closest he'd ever come to working alone was when he had taken on the occasional monster by himself, like Madame Woe or the Brick Bully. He had never wanted to be a solitary hero, not like Tommy or Jason, who seemed to enjoy every moment of being in the spotlight.

As he headed for his small room, he closed his eyes briefly. I'm going to do this, he swore. No matter what it takes. I refuse to be a cowering, powerless wimp who'd be a target for every bad guy with a grudge against the Rangers, and who KNOWS how many of those there are?

Zordon watched as Billy shut the door to his room, and started the computers scanning for the Starlight Crystal. I am proud of you, Billy, he thought. Billy had correctly identified what had probably been going to happen when the Zeo Crystal was reunited, and had been making his own plans to deal with it. He was glad he had been able to locate the legend of the Starlight Crystal in time. Who knew what could have happened if he hadn't?

Alpha's metal hands were surprisingly gentle as he poked at Billy the next morning. The only adult human Ranger at the moment opened his eyes, expecting to have a fuzzy head and thoughts that were unclear, since he'd only gotten roughly three or four hours of sleep since agreeing to search out the Starlight Crystal. But instead, his mind was perfectly clear and he felt better than he had since this whole time distortion thing had gotten started.

"Good morning, Alpha," Billy smiled briefly, and he actually believed it was one! Something seemed to be telling him that things were fine, or at least were going to be fine.

"Ay-yi-yi, good morning, Billy!" the little robot was just as perky as he himself seemed to be. "Zordon told me you were going to look for the Crystal."

The young man nodded as he sat up and reached for the shirt he'd discarded the night before. "It's the only hope I have of being a Ranger again," he said quietly, sliding the blue tank-top on again. "And I'm not going to quit the team if I have a chance to stay on it."

"Then you're going to need this," Alpha rolled a little tray up to his friend, complete with a breakfast that looked like Rocky had ordered it. "This should provide you with all the energy you'll need on your quest!"

Billy blinked a little at the size of the meal, then shrugged. I guess I am going to need some food. I have no idea how long I could be gone or what the food situation wherever the Crystal is will be like.

Alpha was shuffling in and out of the room and around the Command Center, doing who knew what, as Billy ate. The young man found his thoughts drifting casually from the delicious meal finding it's way down his throat to the quest he would shortly be going on to. . .Stop that, Billy, she's ten years old now! Yes, but once the Zeo Crystal's back and time is restored, she'll be seventeen again, and beautiful. ..

"Billy?" the sweet, childish voice startled him out of his thoughts, and he looked up to see Kat standing there. Young Kat, his mind automatically filling in the adjective as it had since the moment he'd regained his age and the others hadn't. "I heard you were. ..leaving?"

"Yeah," he nodded, gesturing for her to come in. He did what he could to treat them as the equals they were still in so many ways, but it was extremely hard to keep his thoughts relatively decent while he was sitting with the younger version of a girl he wanted desperately to date. And if they slid into indecency, he wanted to slap himself badly.

When did I go and fall in love with her? he wondered to himself as he spoke out loud. "It's the only way I can get my own powers back," he said.

She nodded. "How long are you going to be gone?"

"I don't know," he admitted, wishing his mind didn't continually fill in the picture of Kat's full formed body whenever he looked at this young version. "All I really know is that it's called the Starlight Crystal, and that Zordon was looking for it's exact location when I went to sleep last night."

Almost as if his words had conjured up their mentor, Zordon's voice echoed in the small chamber. BILLY, WOULD YOU PLEASE COME TO THE MAIN ROOM AT ONCE? I HAVE LOCATED THE CRYSTAL AND HAVE SOME INFORMATION FOR YOU.

Billy took a deep breath and nodded, pushing the tray to one side as he got up. Kat followed silently as he entered the main room, both of them looking up to the floating head before them. "What is it, Zordon?" he asked.

IT TOOK MANY HOURS OF SEARCHING, BUT WE HAVE FINALLY RETRIEVED THE LOCATION OF THE STARLIGHT CRYSTAL, AND A MAP HAS BEEN PRINTED UP FOR YOU. Billy could see the map sitting almost in front of him and picked it up, casting a quick glance over it.

This doesn't look easy, he thought quietly, looking back up at Zordon. "Has there been any word from Aisha yet?" he wanted to at least get the latest info before he got started on this quest.

NO, BUT I BELIEVE RITA AND ZEDD ARE GOING TO MAKE ANOTHER ATTEMPT TO SUMMON HYDRO HOG. Billy and Kat both winced at that. WE ARE GOING TO KEEP AN EYE ON THEM, HOWEVER, AND PRAY THEY DO NOT INTERFERE IN YOUR QUEST. SUPPLIES HAVE BEEN PACKED FOR YOU AND THE CO ORDINATES ARE SET INTO THE COMPUTER. EVERYTHING HAS BEEN SHIELDED AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, TO MAKE CERTAIN RITA AND ZEDD DO NOTHING TO STOP YOU. ARE YOU READY?

Billy took a long breath, rolling the map up and sliding it into the backpack that Alpha handed him. "As ready as I'll ever be. See you when I get back."

He turned when Kat touched his arm. "Be safe," she whispered, gazing up into his eyes. Those eyes of hers were all he saw before he transformed into a streak of teleportation light and vanished from the Command Center.

The next thing he saw was a glittering expanse of deep blue sea, and a long strip of pristine white sand. Turning around, he saw he was facing a deep cave, backed by a jungle the likes of which he'd never seen before. Billy took a deep breath, shocked by the quite unexpected beauty.

I was thinking it would be someplace like the Desert of Despair, not like a vacation spot! he shook his head a little. Okay, time to pull out the map, he slid the backpack off his shoulder and jerked out the scroll of paper, trying to concentrate on the task at hand, instead of the thoughts of Kat that wanted to wander in there and take up permanent residence. "Okay, looks like the cave's the start of the whole thing, and somewhere inside of it is the Crystal. There's a mention of. . .," he looked a little closer at the notations to the side of the map, and gulped. "A guardian. . ."

"Yes, William Daniel Cranston," a voice spoke that made him jump almost a foot in startlement. He looked up to see a tall figure shrouded in what looked to be violet mist standing between him and the cave. "I am the Guardian of the Starlight Crystal, which you seek."

"Um, yes," he tried to keep his voice steady. "I need it to become a Ranger again. All the others are going after the Zeo Crystal, and. . ."

The Guardian cut him off harshly. "You fight against the forces of evil, but the Starlight Crystal must be earned. Make your way through the dangers of the cave, past the trials of Earth, Fire, Water, and Air, and you shall have won the Crystal and all that it entails. But should you fail in any of them, then the Crystal will never be yours. Do you accept this challenge?"

Billy glanced at the cave behind the Guardian, then at the figure themselves. He couldn't tell if they were male, female, or some indefinable version of either or both. He remembered Kat's eyes, her worry over him, and the slight taste of freedom that he'd had from the power. It wouldn't be right to leave them, though, he thought. Whatever my destiny is, it's with the Rangers. They need me and I need them. It was that way since the beginning, and it's going to always be that way.

One word sufficed for the answer. "Yes."

"Zeddy!" Rita's voice screeched like purest agony in the ears, or auditory organs at least, of her husband. "Zedd, you're not going to believe what that blasted Billy is up to! He's really starting to annoy me, we're going to have to do something about him!"

Zedd barely glanced at her, he was too intent on trying to contact Hydro Hog once more. "What is it, Rita?" was the closest he came to acknowledging her presence. If I can get the Emperor of the Dark Waters here, then the Aquitian Rangers will have to fight the one foe they've never been able to defeat! And I will rule sup---did she say Starlight Crystal? He jerked his head around to look at her. "Billy is going after the Starlight Crystal?" he repeated harshly.

Everyone, good or evil, knew of the legend of the Starlight Crystal, and the power it contained. Second only to the Zeo Crystal in terms of raw power, it possibly surpassed the other in purity and strength. The peculiar properties of Starion Island, where it was kept, prevented it from being accessed however, since the island could only be teleported to during those few occasions when time wasn't behaving properly.

Apparently this qualifies, he thought. I should have thought of it myself and went to get it!

Rita's eyes blazed with a blue fire as she peered through her periscope, then glared back at him. "Yes, he is!" she grumped. "And he's probably going to make his way through it! Just when we thought we were rid of him!" the only thing that had made all the slights Billy had been delivering lately, restoring his age, working on a method to get the Zeo Crystal back in one piece, defending the Aquitian Rangers while they rehydrated, was the knowledge that even if they did get the Zeo Crystal back together, Billy wouldn't be a Ranger anymore, and he would be a perfect target, near the Rangers, important to them, but powerless and unable to defend himself.

The dark overlord's visor glinted red briefly as he scanned Earth for Billy's teleportation signature. His eyes, vaguely visible beneath the silver-steel mask, flared with their own crimson highlights as he spotted the young man standing before the Guardian of the Starlight Crystal. His taloned hands curved into fists as he saw the Guardian flicker away, allowing Billy entrance into the caves. "Very well," he grunted. "Let Billy have his quest, let them all have it. .. it won't do any good when we destroy the Aquitian Rangers with Hydro Hog, and Rito and Goldar blow up the Command Center!" he laughed harshly; for once her idiot brother and his stupid henchmoron were doing something right!

"Yes, my evil husband!" Rita laughed in unison with him, wrapping her arms around him and spinning him into a dance of evil. "And with the Rangers out of the way, we shall rule the Earth forever!"

Cold and mocking laughter echoed throughout the palace and stretched out to touch the very stars above them.

"Kat?" the young, much younger than usual, Australian looked up from the thoughts she'd been deep into to see Tommy there. There was a look in his eyes that she remembered clearly from when they had all been teenagers; it meant that he'd been thinking about things and had something important to talk about. "Are you busy?"

She shook her head, glancing around the Command Center. Since Billy had left, things looked so empty here, even with the Alien Rangers quietly keeping an eye on Rita and Zedd's palace. The evil duo's attempt to summon Hydro Hog two days earlier had freaked them all a great deal, and everyone who could was watching to be certain it didn't happen again. "I was just taking a break," it was true, but her thoughts had quickly turned to the young man on his own crystal quest now. She followed Tommy as he led her a short distance away from everyone else, plainly wanting privacy for whatever it was he was going to talk to them about.

"This is strange, isn't it?" Tommy asked quietly, glancing from her to the group wandering silently among the controls. "I mean, in just two weeks we went from seventeen to ten, with full memory of those seven years we lost, lost our powers, we've met people from another planet, we've literally touched our past. . .it's . ..strange."

Kat nodded, biting her lip a little. She'd literally seen two different versions of herself on her own search, and Tommy had met a very strange man. They had no idea as of yet what Rocky and Adam had went through; they hadn't had a chance yet to discuss things with them. But they'd all been successful.

The former White Ranger might be only ten now, but he still remembered what it could mean when someone was as distracted as Kat was, and since there were only two people missing from their team, and he didn't quite think Aisha was quite the former Pink Ranger's type. He raised one eyebrow, feeling closer to his old age than he had in weeks. "You're worried about Billy," was all he said, though he wanted to say much more than that.

"Yes, I am," she replied quietly, blushing just a little. "I hope he's okay. I wish I. . .we. ..could have went with him."

Tommy shook his head. "This is his quest, Kat," he reminded her. "Just like our quests were ours. We had to go alone and so did he. But he'll be back, and so will Aisha, and then we'll be able to put the world right again, and keep Rita and Zedd from destroying this world forever."

When she didn't say anything, just kept looking down at her hands, Tommy almost stopped breathing. She's in love with him, he realized. He'd half-entertained a hope that something might happen like this, yet at the same time was a little surprised that it had. "You love him," he said quietly. Kat almost jumped out of her skin at the soft words, and shook her head in pure automatic reaction. "Don't try and deny it, please," he put a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm ten and he's seventeen again," she sighed softly. "What do I know about love anymore?"

"Our bodies and minds are those of ten year olds," he agreed. "But our memories do have all those years that we spent as teenagers. How did you feel about him before all this happened?"

She didn't answer, she had to think about this before she did. When she finally did speak, Kat's voice was so low that Tommy had to strain to hear it. "I loved him then. I think I did when I first saw him, but. ..." she didn't finish, she didn't have to. Tommy knew what she meant; when she'd first met them she'd still been under Rita and Zedd's control, a living weapon designed to destroy them, or so they had thought, until she was able to overcome the spell on herself. "He'd never go out with me, though."

"You don't know that for certain," Tommy said quietly. "And there's only one way to find out."

She nodded slowly. "After we have the whole world straightened out again."

Billy glanced around the cave as he entered, taking in as much as he could. Once he had uttered his agreement, the Guardian had gestured him to the cave and faded away, after saying they would meet again if he solved the trials and reached the Crystal. Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. The four elements of mythology, he thought, checking out everything he could.

The walls were smooth, completely unclimbable, and only came to a few feet over his head anyway. The floor was equally smooth, not so much as a stray speck of dust anointed it. Shadows crowded around everywhere; the only light came in from the entrance, and that didn't go in very far. It was enough, however, for him to see a faint outline of another cave opening not too far from him.

"I guess I go that way," he muttered, heading over to it. The second he was about to pass through it, a literal wall of flame burst up between him and the cave opening. "Okay, I guess I don't."

Billy stared at the happily burning wall for a few moments, trying to figure out what was feeding it and how to stop it if he could. Somehow, he wasn't too surprised to see that nothing was feeding it, that it was standing, existing, whatever the proper phrase was, under it's own power without fuel of any sort. He frowned, by all the rules of science that he knew, that shouldn't even be possible! Then again, he reminded himself, I'm not exactly dealing with science. I should be used to it by this time, but I think this is magic, and magic follows only it's own rules.

He frowned, dividing his attention between the firewall and the entrance to the cave. A quick check of the map indicated that the wall stood between him and the proper path out of the cave. Another look at the firewall provided no answers, until he placed a hand a little closer to it, intending to test how far out the heat of it went, to get some indication of how hot the flames were.

His eyes went wide with pure shock. "Nothing!" he whispered. "Nothing at all!"

Billy took a deep breath, gathering his courage and praying with all his might that the hypothesis he had formed in that second was correct. Because if it wasn't. . .he shoved away those thoughts. That wasn't what he needed. With a quick jump, he had passed through the flames, which died down and faded away the moment he was firmly on the other side. "I was right," he breathed. "An illusion. A pure illusion."

He almost jumped out of his skin when a sudden bell-tone sounded, deep, loud, sonorous, and just once. Then, there was silence. Must be a sign or something that I passed, he thought. He smiled briefly to himself as he turned his back and pulled out the map again. Glad that fire wasn't real. Don't want to think on what might've happened if it had burned up.

Billy's eyes quickly ran over the map, picking out the direction he needed to go from this point. I think this is the right way, he thought, glancing down a stony corridor and slipping the map back into it's space in his backpack. "Time to go," he muttered, heading down what he hoped was the right way. I wonder what's going on back with the others. Has Aisha found her crystal yet, I wonder? Have Rita and Zedd been pestering them? They probably have, those two never give up. But honestly, if it hadn't been for their attacking Earth, then I wouldn't have changed as much as I have. Billy was under no illusions that he was a far, far better person now, in demeanor, in physical health, mental attitude, and just general all around well being than he had been on that day when Zordon had teleported the five of them to the Command Center that day.

That seems so long ago now, he thought. And so much has happened. For one moment, he let himself think about all the changes that had went on over the years. The coming of Tommy as the Green Ranger, him losing the powers, then regaining them, Zedd's arrival, the final death of the Green power, the coming of the White Ranger, Adam, Aisha, and Rocky joining the team, Zedd and Rita's marriage, the destruction of the Morphin Power by Rito Revolto, searching out Ninjor, them becoming Ninja Rangers, Kat's arrival into their lives. . .

His thoughts slammed to a halt. Kat is ten right now, I can think things like that some other time; I've got a quest to deal with!

But he kept on thinking, even as he walked. Apparently his subconscious didn't care about his quest.

Kat was being very careful as she wandered in the park after leaving the Command Center. They all had to be, they weren't at full strength, they had no powers, and they were all, except for Billy who wasn't even there just then, ten years old. Things just couldn't get any worse, was the general consensus.

Let's hope they don't, the young Australian mused as she walked down the familiar, yet unfamiliar path. The peculiar effects of the Orb of Doom that had spun the Earth back in time had warped Angel Grove and the world in so many ways. Their families still lived in Angel Grove, even those who hadn't in the 'original' run of time, but very few remembered the fact they even existed. It made things very. . .interesting.

I'm just glad that we all remembered each other. If Billy had forgotten me, since he didn't even KNOW me seven years ago, I think I would've died. Just died.

She bit her lip silently in thought, dismissing the intricate convolutions of time, space, and the relation of it all to them, their memories, and the world around them. It could all, really, be chalked up in just a few simple words: Angel Grove was strange.

No matter what, though, things always seemed to work out for the best. Be it monster attack, power loss, being warped in time, the Rangers always came through in the end. Master Vile's attack had hurt them deeply, but they had survived, and they had won the Aquitian Rangers as friends, and they had a lead on how to restore the world. I just hope it works. The Zeo Crystal is incredibly powerful, and Billy designed the device that'll hopefully harness it's power so Earth will be fixed.

Her thoughts halted dead in their tracks the minute Billy's name crossed her mind. He's so handsome, she thought, and he's been getting better looking ever since this whole thing with the Orb started up. I just wish I wasn't ten years old right now, so I could TELL him how I feel. It just wouldn't be the same as if I were my real age.

She sighed, pulling her fingers through her hair in thought. I was going to do it that day. My birthday, when all of this got started. I was going to tell Billy that I'm in love with him, and to hell with the consequences. But no, just when I'm trying to work up the nerve to talk to Billy, they've got to attack with the Tengas and Rito and Goldar and rip time all to shreds!

Looking up, she found she was already at the end of the path. Despite the difference in the park from the one she was so familiar with, she realized she knew where she was. Her eyes fell on a tall, broad tree, and she touched the trunk gently. It was here, she remembered. It was here when I first saw him.

Her eyes moistened a little at the memory. She had still been under Rita's control at that time; indeed she had just been defeated in her Cat Monster form by the Rangers. They'd left their MegaZord, and come to the park to find her there in her human identity, confused and scared, or so they'd thought. She'd played her part perfectly, and she had fooled them, and kept on fooling them until the moment she'd broken Rita's spell.

And I realized that I do love Billy, more than I ever thought I could love anyone, she realized. And I've never been able to tell him. Maybe once all this is over, I can. I hope so, anyway. I truly hope so.

Billy shivered, wishing he'd brought a jacket or something with him. It was getting very cold and very dark in this cave, far colder than he'd thought it could being under the Earth. Then again, caves do tend to be cold, unless they've got geothermal heat somehow, and this didn't exactly look like one that would have that.

A sudden idea hit him, and he paused for a moment, delving into the backpack and searching. Zordon said supplies were packed in here, I wonder if that would include. ..ahhhh, yes! He grinned as he pulled out a jacket and a flashlight. "Zordon, you think of everything!"

He shrugged into the jacket, quickly zipping it up and relaxing into the warm down of it. "Mmmmmmm," he felt it wrapping around him like a blanket, keeping him just as toasty as if he'd been in his Ranger uniform. That was one aspect of their suits he'd really enjoyed; no matter what the weather, they were totally unaffected by it. It seemed to be part of the power of them.

However, I cannot see in the dark,he thought, flicking the high-powered flashlight on and shone it up, down, and all around. Interesting. So that's why it's so cold, there's water dripping from the walls. He touched one wall lightly and shivered. Ice-cold. Once again, magic makes it's presence known. Wait. . .water. ..

He took a deep breath. "Something tells me that this is the trial of water," he whispered softly. "And this isn't going to be pretty."

His theory was borne out as he continued down the stone corridor. The tiny rivulets of water trickling down the walls grew larger and larger, coursing down to the ground and merging in a wash on the floor that was growing more and more difficult to walk in.

I think my ankles are freezing, Billy shivered as he sloshed through, hoping to get through this soon. This should be called the trial of ice and water!!! Wait, what's that?

He shone the flashlight up ahead of him, and smiled briefly. The corridor he'd been following widened out into what looked to be a broad room, and he entertained the notion that the trial was over with. That was dispensed with as he ran carefully to the end of the hallway and stared out over a broad river, looking to be at least fifty feet deep if not more, and a good thirty feet across. "This isn't good," he muttered. "Not good at all."

Billy took several deep breaths, glancing all around for some method to get through this. His eye fell on what looked like a bridge leading across it. Doesn't look very sturdy though. But I don't have any other options.

The water he had to wade through to get to the bridge was every bit as frigid as what he'd went through to get to this room in the first place. Even the jacket he had on wasn't enough to keep all the chill out as he shivered through the liquid barrier. The first thing I'm going to do when I get back is get next to the HOTTEST fire I can find! he promised himself. I'm going to ROAST myself! I didn't think anything could get this cold!

A small staircase led up to the bridge, with a handrail Billy gripped as firmly as he could to get up there. A long look at the bridge confirmed the fact it looked about as rickety as a thing could get and still be in one piece. "At least I'm not afraid of heights like Trini," he muttered. He cared a great deal about the former Yellow Ranger, but her acrophobia would have been an incredible liability here. Or an asset if she could overcome it, he reminded himself. She'd already made great strides towards doing that. The fact she was able to fly to Switzerland proved it.

He took a deep breath, and realized there was only one way he could get across here without fear trying to paralyze him. It wasn't quite fear of heights, it was fear of the bridge falling underneath him and fear that he'd drown. Time to go.

Billy practically threw himself forward, pushing to top speed as quickly as he could, putting one foot in front of the other so fast he was amazed he didn't trip or fall. Almost before he realized it, he was on the other side. He paused as he got his footing on solid ground, dry ground, again, and looked back. Everything looked just as it had, nothing had vanished. But something had changed, inside of him.

"I passed the trial of water," he whispered. As the words fell from his lips, the same bell he had heard earlier sounded, only this time, it rang twice before fading away into pure silence.

"I had to climb down into a volcano for mine," Rocky said, tossing small pebbles into the lake and staring at the ripples they made. "What about you?"

Adam smiled faintly. "I met this very strange gentleman and found it behind the waterfall he lived in," the two children glanced simultaneously over at the third member of their little group. Tommy was staring up at the sky, to where the faint circle of the moon could just be seen in the afternoon welkin. "Tommy?"

The white-wearing boy jerked around at the utterance of his name. "Yeah? What is it, Adam?"

"How did you find your crystal?" Rocky asked the question. Tommy shrugged a bit and told of his meeting with True of Heart and the quest he'd went through in order to find his part of the Zeo Crystal.

"He gave me this too," Tommy slowly pulled the arrowhead out of his pocket and showed it to them. He was going to get it put on a cord when the world was set right. Until then, carrying it made him feel a little better, for what reasons he didn't know. "He said that when I found the other half, my personal quest would be at an end."

Rocky glanced at it. "It's really nice. I wonder what he meant by that."

"Who knows?" Tommy shook his head as he slid the arrowhead back into his pocket. "Anyone heard anything from Billy or Aisha yet?"

"Nope," Adam shook his head. "Kat's been kind of moping around since Billy left too."

Tommy only nodded, not saying what Kat had told him just after their friend had went on his own personal power quest. She didn't ask me to keep it a secret, but I think she'd rather I did, and I'll respect her wishes, even her unspoken ones. I really hope those two get together. I really do.

He closed his eyes for a moment, his thoughts going briefly to his own girlfriend, his long-distance girlfriend, Kimberly Hart. I wonder how the former Rangers are affected by this, he thought. I wish I dared call, but I'm not even certain if she'd know me. I think it's better to leave things alone for now. I'll call her after the world's back to normal.

With those thoughts, he turned back to his friends, and promptly pushed Adam into the lake. Their quest comparing quickly devolved into a good old fashioned water fight.

Billy squeezed the last of the water out of his jacket and hair, trying to at least get dry, if not warm. A slight tickle in his throat and nose warned him of the possible consequences of his trek, and it wasn't nice at all. He stretched, trying to work the chill out of his muscles before it was too late and he stiffened up.

After a few quick moments of exercise, which did go a long way towards restoring the warmth to his body, he started down the corridor he'd found on this side of the underground river. He didn't seem to need the map anymore, the cave system was set up so that each test led into the other, and he was already half-through.

The tests of earth and air to go, he thought, glancing a bit nervously around him. What could those tests of the final elements be, he wondered. Water and fire hadn't been easy, though fire hadn't taken the time he'd thought it might. Water had been downright annoying, and dangerous. Earth and air's own hazards could very well be enough to wipe him out. But I'm not going to give up, he thought firmly. I've got too much at stake here, not just my powers, but the whole world. I'm not going to quit.

A soft breeze started to gently blow around him as he rounded a corner in the corridor. Billy was instantly on the alert. Breeze. Wind. Air. The third test. Something's going to happen.

That turned out to be the understatement of the century as the breeze turned almost once into a raging tornado, blasting straight at him. Billy found himself being forced backwards by the blast that roared in his ears and ripped the backpack right off his arm, skinning his hand and forearm in the process. "Hey!" he screamed in protest, though what or who he might be protesting to he didn't know. He watched helplessly as the backpack, and the map with it, blew down a small corridor that was almost immediately sealed by a small rockslide he knew he couldn't get through.

"This is just wonderful!" he growled, trying to cover his face. I've lost the only way I had to figure out where I was going, if this thing branches off into a maze or anything, then I'm totally lost! I've gotten lucky so far, but I think my luck just got blown down a hole!

He turned his attention back to the wind that hadn't stopped for a moment, trying to figure out how, or even if he could get past it! He took several quick glances around, looking for anything that looked like it wasn't being blown halfway to Oz by the hurricane-force winds, and groaned mentally when nothing seemed unaffected.

"And I thought Rita had a lot of hot air in her," he muttered as he was forced back another couple of steps. He leaned against the rocky wall behind him and closed his eyes to prevent the small pieces of grit he could feel flying against his skin from hurting them. "This has got her beat by a mile."

As his eyes closed, he started to think more and more logically. More magic here. Which means logic might not have that much to do with it. Those two things go together only when they have to, not when they SHOULD. All right, let's try it logically and see where that gets me, and hope that it's not in the graveyard.

Unfortunately, there was nothing very logical about a wind that just blew and blew. Fortunately, Billy was learning the ways of this strange cave, and even as he realized he couldn't think his way out of his, he comprehended something else.

The wind's only hitting me from roughly my head to my waist. I'm getting pushed back because of the force, not because it's pushing against my legs. In fact, there's no pressure against my legs at all!

He dropped down at once to the ground, and grinned to realize that he was right. Down here, there was no wind; it started about four feet from the ground. And here he could see to the end of the corridor he'd been in. What lay beyond it he couldn't tell, but he had the sneaking suspicion that it was the trial of earth and beyond that, the Starlight Crystal.

As he reached the corridor's end, the bell rang again, this time in three pure, clean, echoing tones.

While Billy was seeking out the Crystal that would restore his powers, events were happening much quicker with his friends than they were with him. On her Zeo Quest, Aisha met a young girl named Tanya, who told her of the strange plague the animals of that region of Africa. The two girls returned to Tanya's village, where Aisha's quest was completed when the wise woman Ashala gave her the Yellow Zeo Subcrystal.

Meanwhile, Alpha worked on locating Aisha so they could make certain she was all right. The other child-Rangers started staying at the Command Center on a regular basis, they didn't want to risk Rito or Goldar attacking them while they were out.

"I don't know, Tommy," Adam mused when their leader stated his reasoning once they were all in their headquarters. "I haven't seen either of them in a while. Since before we started the Zeo Quest, actually."

Tommy frowned darkly. "That's right. And that's worrying," the ten-year-old still had a leader and a warrior's instincts, and they were beginning to scream at him that something was very, very wrong about that. He looked over to Alpha, who had just finished setting the computer to scan for Aisha. "Alpha, can you check for Rito and Goldar's presence, as well as that of everyone that we know is up there on the moon?"

"Ay-yi-yi, yes, but why, Tommy?" Alpha hadn't heard that tone in Tommy's voice, both worried, concerned, and commanding, since they had become children.

"Just a gut feeling," he half-whispered. "Please do so."

I CONCUR, ALPHA, Zordon agreed. THE SUDDEN DISAPPEARANCE OF THOSE TWO CANNOT BODE WELL FOR US. BEGIN BY SCANNING THE COMMAND CENTER; IT WOULD BE THE MOST LOGICAL TARGET FOR RITA AND ZEDD'S MISCHIEF.

Alpha nodded and got down to business, unaware of what was going on a few thousand miles away on the moon. Rita and Zedd had managed to send a successful message to Hydro Hog, Emperor of the Dark Waters of Aquitar. In a very short amount of time, however, everyone knew what those two evil beings had been up to, though there was still no sign of Rito or Goldar.

"It is him. . .," Delphine's voice shook just a little. "Hydro Hog!"

There was nothing for the Alien Rangers to do except go fight, they had no other choices. It was either that, or let their greatest enemy drain all the water from Earth and leave it a dry, worn out husk. The five of them went into action at once, leaving the child-Rangers to watch their fight, to search for Aisha, and to wait breathlessly for the results of the search for Rito and Goldar.

They did have to leave rather quickly when Hydro Hog drained the water from the Alien Rangers and was going on to ruin everything else in the world. Zordon remembered the remote control Billy had made once for the FalconZord, and they were able to adapt it in time for the Alien Rangers to use it in tandem with the ShogunMegaZord, to form the ShogunMegaFalconZord. That superzord reduced Hydro Hog, Emperor of the Dark Waters, to nothing more than a puddle. Once again the forces of good had won. But they still had no idea of where Aisha was or where Rito and Goldar were.

And they were still waiting for Billy.

Without his map, Billy could only trust blindly that he was going the right way, but that seemed to work as he half-ran, half-stumbled down the corridor, seeking the way out and the next test all in the same moment. Something he couldn't identity was screaming in his mind that he had little time left, that his friends needed him, that Rita and Zedd were up to something.

When aren't they? he thought as he dashed through another room and down the corridor on the far side. He'd forgotten how many times he'd done that already. That's their job, they try to conquer the Earth and we stop them every time. That's OUR job.

He halted in place suddenly as he turned and faced what he'd most feared: a sheer blank wall. "Uh oh," he growled quietly. "Not good."

A sudden grinding noise from behind him caught his attention, and he jerked back to see something that almost gave him heart failure: the corridor he'd run in by was closed off, and the walls were quite literally closing in on him! That was an understatement. He looked around as fast as he could, he had to find a way out of here before he became a pancake! Wall closing in here. Wall closing in there. Blank wall ahead. It's not moving. Wait. . .it's NOT moving, and it's the only thing that is that's a solid wall. Or maybe it isn't solid!!! I haven't touched it. ..I wonder if. ..fire was illusion. . .earth and air weren't. ..I. .only one way to find out!

Billy didn't bother with thinking, breathing, or anything that he had tried all this weird quest. All he did was do as he had when crossing the trial of water: closed his eyes and leaped forward as swiftly as he could, praying that he was right and the wall in front of him was the same illusion-type the fire had been.

He had, honestly, half-expected to slam into a wall and feel the rocks crush him. He got an extremely pleasant surprise when a faint ripple seemed to pass through him, and he instead fell flat on the floor, to the harsh sound of the walls slamming together. He blinked for a moment, then slowly got to his feet, looking around.

The room he was in was wide, far wider than anything he had ever seen before. The walls gleamed with a thousand different shades of colors, with five columns of solid light right in front of him in the colors of purple, black, white, silver, and gray. Billy could hardly help but have a shiver of combined fear and delight in his heart when he gazed on each of them. When his gaze fell on the purple column, however, his heart seemed to swell with purest joy and light. Something beyond what he had ever known was about to happen, he sensed.

He jumped, though he had sort of expected it, when the bell he'd been hearing all along rang four slow, solemn notes. And this time he was able to see it, when he looked up above and saw a bell that looked to be made of purest crystal, with a clapper of sapphire.

"Welcome, William Daniel Cranston," the voice of the Guardian spoke suddenly, and he saw the tall, willowy figure ahead of him. "Welcome and well met. You have done well, and passed the trials of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. You have earned the Starlight Crystal."

Rito and Goldar had gotten themselves well and truly lost in the corridors under the Command Center in the last week and a half. Rito was carrying the bomb they had been given, and Goldar was about ready to take it away from him; there was no way he wanted to be there if the walking skeleton did something wrong {as he was prone to do}, and blew up not only the Command Center, but the two of them as well. Rito would probably live through it, there was very little that he couldn't survive, but Goldar held no illusions about his own mortality.

"We've almost reached it," he murmured, looking at the piles of things around them with various labels in who knew how many languages on there. He recognized a few things that the blasted Billy had used against Rita and Zedd's monsters in the past, along with the remains of a former Alpha or two. I always did wonder what happened when the bodies were destroyed. I guess the consciousness or whatever is put into a new body. Oh, well, pretty soon there won't be anything left but a smoking hill anyway!

Rito scratched his head a little. "We have?" he said. "Where's it at then?"

Goldar glanced around, trying to remember what the map had said. pausing, he said finally, "Let's just put it here, that should cause enough damage to destroy this place!"

"Yeah!" Rito slammed the bomb down, and they both stared as a sudden click alerted them to the fact it had just been activated! "Ummm. ..uh oh. .."

Goldar's eyes widened and he started to back away from the bomb, regretting every moment that he'd ever spent with Rito right now, and wishing he'd had the time to tell Scorpina what he really felt about her. . .Now she'll have to hear it from my ghost . . .wonderful. . .this is all Rito's fault!

"Hey!!!" his head jerked up and he growled to see the four remaining Rangers standing there in the storage room! "Alpha's scans were right, they're down here!" it was young Tommy who was speaking right now, and he didn't look happy!

"Uh oh, Goldy!" Rito whined. "I think we'd better get out of here! Right now!"

Goldar didn't bother talking about it, with a flash of his golden teleportation fire he was out of the corridors and on his way back to the moon. Rito glanced at the four kids standing there, with clenched fists and their eyes burning, and made what could actually be considered a wise decision, if it were possible for him to do such: he laughed and left.

"What is this thing?" Kat asked as she and the others ran over to the still ticking bomb the two evil minions had left. "It's got a ----" her voice trailed off, as everyone got a good look at it.

"Alpha, Zordon!" Tommy shouted into the miniature Viewing Globe crystal Billy had left for them to use if they needed it in his absence. "There's a bomb down here, and it's ticking fast! Teleport it out now!"

They could hear Zordon's reply through both the crystal and faintly from above them. LOCK ON IT, ALPHA, AND TELEPORT IT TO THE SUN, QUICKLY!

The bomb glowed briefly pure white, then was gone. They couldn't hear the explosion as it detonated, but they did hear Alpha's tiny voice, "The bomb has exploded harmlessly in space, Rangers, and we have a lock on Aisha now. Please return to the main chamber; Billy should also be returning home soon."

The four of them looked at each other, and smiled. Even though they'd really done nothing but frighten Goldar and Rito off, he had felt good to face them again. It felt right. And they knew they were going to be doing it many more times in the future.

That, after all, was their destiny.

"You have done well," the Guardian told Billy as he stood in front of her once again. "And now the power of the First Shard of the Starlight Crystal will be yours."

Billy frowned. "The first Shard? What do you mean?"

"The power of the Starlight Crystal is far too extensive for it to power just one person," he was told. "Just as the Zeo Crystal that was recovered from the Caves of Deception had five shards, so does the Starlight Crystal have five, in the shades of purple, white, black, silver, and gray. Observe."

In between the two of them there suddenly glowed a crystal, round and smooth and flickering with the colors the Guardian had named. She held her hand out quietly, and the crystal separated into five smaller ones, each a shining solid color. "Each of these can and will power a Starlight Ranger," the Guardian continued. "The Starlight Rangers and the Zeo Rangers will be a team, and as Tommy leads the Zeo Rangers, so shall you lead the Starlight Rangers, though both types will fight in unison against any and all forces of evil that shall and will attempt to gain control of your planet, under your joint leadership."

Billy nodded slowly as the information sunk into his brain. His eyes went even wider as the Guardian waved a hand, and the white, black, silver, and gray orbs vanished into thin air. "Where did they go?" he gasped.

"They went to their proper bearers," the Guardian told him. "And in the fullness of time, you shall find the other four Starlight Rangers."

"How will I know them?" he asked breathlessly. Four other Rangers? That would be a ten Ranger team in full. . .oh, man. . .

The Guardian smiled faintly as the purple crystal in front of her began to pulse brighter and brighter with power. "You will know when they are needed, my dear friend. And now, it is time for you. Hold out your hands."

Billy automatically did so, the tone of command in her voice was so absolute. With a slight flick of her wrist, the purple orb floated over to him and glowed almost too bright to look at. Then, the glow faded and the orb landed peacefully in his hand. "Use this well, Billy Cranston, in the fight against evil. Zordon will unleash it's power within you as he will the power of the Zeo Crystal in those who shall become the Zeo Rangers."

"Thank you," Billy could feel the power that dwelt within this orb, and it was almost overwhelming. He'd touched a Zeo Crystal shard once, and had felt the power of it even through his uniform. This orb at the very least equaled that, if not surpassed it. "Thank you just seems so inadequate. . ."

The Guardian placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled. "You earned this, and the power of the Starlight Crystal will see you through your Ranger days, my young friend. And now it is time for you to return home. Your friends are missing you, and there will be something happening soon you're going to want to be there for."

Billy nodded quietly, then frowned. "Um, how do I get back? I think I lost my communicator somewhere along the way," he'd only just now noticed his bare wrist!

"An easy thing," she chuckled, and once again flicked a hand. A moment later, she was the only being who stood in the cavern. She smiled almost sadly, as she began to rise higher and higher. She had one last duty to perform.

As the glow of teleportation faded from his eyes, the first thing Billy saw was all his young friends gathered around the Viewing Globe, with the Alien Rangers there as well. "What's going on?" he asked, conscious even as he did so that the crystal was still in one hand, and he was holding it like he wasn't ever going to let it go.

"Billy!" Kat whirled, her eyes dancing with happiness, and ran over to him, grabbing him in a quick hug despite the difference in their sizes. When she realized what she was doing, she stepped back quickly. "Did you get it?" she asked eagerly. Her eyes widened as he held out his hand, displaying the magnificent crystal in his hand. "Oh, it's beautiful!"

CONGRATULATIONS, BILLY, Zordon said. YOU HAVE TRULY PROVEN YOURSELF WORTHY OF THE STARLIGHT CRYSTAL'S POWER.

"Zordon," Billy frowned briefly. "The Guardian of the Crystal said something about how there would be four others who would be powered by the Starlight Crystal as well."

I SUSPECTED AS SUCH, their mentor nodded. WE WILL SEEK THEM OUT IN TIME, BILLY, BUT FOR NOW, WE HAVE LOCATED AISHA ON THE VIEWING GLOBE, AND WE WILL BE IN CONTACT WITH HER SHORTLY.

The whole group turned at once to the Globe, and no one noticed, or at least pretended not to notice, that Kat hadn't really moved that far from Billy's side. In the globe, two young girls were moving quickly through the savannah. Zordon concentrated for a moment, then sent his image to them both.

"Zordon!" Aisha looked up in surprise. "Zordon, this is Tanya Sloane. I've decided to send her back with my Crystal, to take my place on the team. The animals here are suffering from a terrible plague, and I think that I can help. Everyone, I love you all, and it's been the greatest honor of my life to know you. Rocky. . .," her voice trailed off, she couldn't finish her words. The two of them had always cared about each other, they'd just never said anything.

Now Rocky did, the strength of his love coming through despite his age. "I love you, Aisha," he said quietly, knowing his image was appearing next to Zordon's in the sky over Africa and the two girls. "And we'll meet again one day, I know we will."

I KNEW ONE OF YOU WOULD CHOOSE THIS PATH, Zordon spoke. AISHA, WHEN THE WORLD IS RETURNED TO NORMAL, YOU SHALL FIND THAT YOUR PARENTS HAVE JOINED YOU, AND YOU WILL HAVE THE MEMORIES YOU SHOULD FOR YOUR PLACE AND TIME, AS WELL AS THOSE FOR THE ORIGINAL TIMELINE. WE WILL MISS YOU.

"And I'll miss you," tears flowed down Aisha's cheeks as she gazed at them both. She turned to Tanya, formally handing the crystal over to her. "I know you're going to be a fantastic Ranger, Tanya. They're all going to love you."

The young girl smiled a little, then hugged her new friend. The two of them had bonded swiftly in the short time they had been together, and Tanya was going to miss her. She'd had become in a matter of hours all those friends, sisters, and cousins that everyone else in the village had seemed to have except her. She took a deep breath, as the gateway opened above her, and the next thing she knew, she was standing in a room with several other people and children. What drew her attention fastest was a tall young man with a glowing purple crystal in one hand. He matched perfectly the description that Aisha had given her.

"You must be Billy," she said, holding the crystal out to him. "This is for you."

Billy smiled as he took it in his free hand, and glanced at the others before putting it in with the four they had retrieved. "It's been a long time in coming," he said quietly. "Everyone ready?"

Nods came not just from the child-Rangers, but from the Aquitian Rangers, Zordon, and Alpha. Billy took a deep breath, glancing at the crystal he had earned for a moment. This is it. Let's do it.

With a firm motion, he planted the crystal Tanya had given him into the device with the others, and flipped the on switch. A single heartbeat passed, then light began to glow from the recombined crystal, a light that shot up through the roof and literally wrapped around the world. Everyone, every member of the human species, paused for a single moment, as their minds and memories were slowly and subtly rearranged to deal with the new reality that the Orb of Doom and the Zeo Crystal had written for them. Rita and Zedd screamed in double outrage; not only had the destruction of the Command Center been prevented, but now the world was going back to it's normal time period!

It only took a true fraction of a second for everything to be rearranged. As the Rangers, Earth and Aquitian alike, recovered from it, they began to slowly rise up. "We. . .we did it," Tommy, now returned to his full size, breathed quietly. "We really did it."

"Yeah!" Rocky's shout of triumph was only slightly tinged by grief at Aisha's leaving. The Zeo Crystal had arranged things in the world so that she had left some months earlier to go to Africa on a two-year scholarship to try and help a local veterinarian figure out what was ailing the animals there. At the same time, Tanya had moved to Angel Grove. Any and all monster attacks had been dealt with by the Aquitian Rangers, while the Rangers of Earth had sought out their new power source when their Coins were destroyed.

Everyone turned to where the young Tanya had been, and Adam caught his breath at the sight of her, in her teenage form. Oh, wow! "Hi, everyone," she said a little shyly. "I'm Tanya."

Introductions were held all around, then Delphine cleared her throat a little. She and all the other Aquitians were looking dried out. "We must return to Aquitar, my friends," she said in her water-tinged voice. "We have to rest and rehydrate there, and you will have your new powers soon enough to defend the Earth. It has been an honor to meet you all."

"And an honor to meet you," Tommy said, extending his hand out to the other Ranger leader. "Thank you for everything."

"It was our pleasure," Cestro said. "Farewell, Rangers of Earth. Until we meet again."

"Good-bye!" everyone echoed, even Tanya who had barely known them at all. Red, yellow, blue, black, and white light vanished out of the Command Center, as the Aquitian Rangers headed for home.

The Zeo Quest was ended.

Far from Earth's solar system, but growing closer and closer with each passing moment, the Skybase of the Machine Empire soared. Within the throne room, King Mondo, Queen Machina, Prince Sprocket, along with royal servants Klank and Orbus were busy plotting how their first attack would go.

"We must get rid of Lord Zedd and Rita Repulsa," Mondo declared. "Once that is done, we shall crush the human population into dust!"

"Yes, my dear!" Machina waved her fan about as Sprocket hopped and skipped a little around the throne room, humming on how he was going to be the greatest king the Machine Empire had ever seen one day.

None of them were prepared for the mighty blast of golden light that appeared out of nowhere, along with what sounded like a whole fanfare of trumpets blowing. In the center of the light there floated a tall, powerful looking humanoid, with blazing eyes of silver.

"Machine Empire!" she declared. "Leave the planet Earth alone and seek your conquests elsewhere! This planet wields not only the power of the Zeo Crystal, but that of the Starlight Crystal as well! Should you challenge it's might, the Power Rangers will blow you away like so much trash! Heed my warning, if you would survive, then do not attack Earth!"

A wave of a hand sent a concussion blast of energy shooting through the entire Skybase. "That is my final and only warning, Machine Empire. The only warning you shall receive from the Guardian of the Starlight Crystal. Go this way no more!"

With another trumpet blast, the figure vanished, and the entire royal family stared at their king. "You're not going to do that, are you, Daddy?" Sprocket whined.

Mondo struggled back onto his feet, and bellowed out one simple word. "Retreat!"

The Machine Empire would not be attacking Earth now or ever again.

RANGERS, STAND BEFORE ME, Zordon declared. He saw no need to inform them that the Machine Skybase had so suddenly turned about and fled for no reason he knew. They didn't need to know that now. YOUR COURAGE AND SACRIFICE HAVE BROUGHT TOGETHER THE ZEO CRYSTAL, AND NOW IT WILL POWER YOU INTO THE NEXT GENERATION OF RANGERS.

A flash of light resulted in the creation of five pairs of armbands in front of them. THESE ARE YOUR ZEONIZERS, AND BY USING THEM YOU WILL BE ABLE TO MORPH AND CALL UPON THE POWER OF YOUR CRYSTAL. Zordon continued with the ceremony, bestowing their new powers and colors upon the Ranger. Kat became Zeo Ranger I, Pink, while Tanya was now Zeo Ranger II, Yellow. Rocky used now the power of Zeo Ranger III, Blue, and Adam was Zeo Ranger IV, Green. Last but never least, Tommy was Zeo Ranger V, Red. As they accustomed themselves to the power, they all stepped back to let Billy take his place in front of Zordon.

BILLY, YOUR SEARCH FOR THE STARLIGHT CRYSTAL WAS SUCCESSFUL, AND NOW THE POWER OF IT'S FOUR OTHER SHARDS SLEEP WITHIN FOUR YOUNG PEOPLE IN THIS WORLD. WE SHALL INITATE A SEARCH FOR THEM AS SOON AS WE CAN, BUT FOR NOW, IT IS TIME YOU CLAIMED YOUR OWN POWER. HOLD OUT YOUR HANDS.

Once again, Billy did so, and the crystal orb floated just above them for a moment. Then, everyone jumped a little as the orb split and flowed onto his wrists in matching bands much like the Zeonizers. "Whoa," he breathed.

JUST AS THE ZEO RANGERS DO, YOU HAVE ZEONIZERS, BILLY, AND THEY WILL LET YOU MORPH AND USE YOUR NEW STARLIGHT POWERS. AS WITH ROCKY, ADAM, AND TOMMY, YOUR COLOR HAS CHANGED AS WELL. POWER RANGERS ZEO, I PRESENT TO YOU THE NEW CO-LEADER OF THE POWER RANGERS, THE LEADER OF THE STARLIGHT RANGERS WHEN THEY ARE GATHERED, WILLIAM DANIEL CRANSTON, THE PURPLE STARLIGHT RANGER.

As with the others, his new armor flowed onto him in a wash of light. Theirs was totally new and seemed based on geometric designs. His resembled their old armor, with a few differences. The bodysuit was exactly the same, only in a deep shade of purple, and his helmet was also purple, without any other designs on it, smooth and featureless, and somehow dangerous, without being threatening. Billy smiled as it faded away.

"It's good to be back," he said quietly, turning to look at the others. His eyes met those of Kat, and he slowly smiled. It's now or never, he thought, slowly walking over to her and taking her hands. "I wanted to tell you something back on your birthday, Katherine," he said softly. "But things interfered. I love you, Kat Hilliard, and I will forever."

Kat's own lips curved tenderly, and she pulled him closer to her, in an embrace they didn't ever want to break out of. "I love you, too, Billy," she said. "And I will forever."

And there in the Command Center, under the eyes of their friends and mentor, they kissed for the first time ever.