15Chapter 9: In the Time Warp
Very faintly, Clairie heard Billy calling out something to Zordon, and two other people talking.
"Clairie? Clairie!" she heard him scream as she fell asleep and heard a single tone.
It seemed like both seconds and long hours had passed when she heard another voice calling her name.
"Clairie? I know you're here. Open your eyes."
She did as she was told, opening her eyes slowly. She was lying on something soft, but firm, almost like grass. In the sky were swirls of different, yet dark colors.
"Who are you?" she asked. My...I spoke! With my mouth!
"I'm not an enemy. Can you get up?"
"I'll...try," she answered, then she tried to move. To her great surprise, she managed to sit up on her own, then stand.
It is grass, and flowers! Am I in-
That was when she realized that she was standing.
"I can move! Where are you? Who are you?"
"I'm right here," she heard a man's voice, coming from her left. She turned around and saw a bald man with pale skin and in a black robe. She couldn't tell his age at all.
"You're a smart girl, let's see if you can figure out from my voice who I am," he said with a little smile.
She thought for a moment, then said, "You...you're Zordon?"
"Yes. I am Zordon, from the planet Eltar."
"But...how come you're here? I'm..." she paused for a moment, then said, as though having trouble remembering something, "I remember Billy, screaming my name, then I heard a tone..." her eyes widened and she said, "Then...that means I died...and I went to...is Mama here?"
"This place is a time warp, Clairie. The evil one who made the monster that attacked you sealed me in this place a long, long time ago."
"I see."
"As for you," he continued, "Yes, your soul did leave your body. But, you haven't fully crossed over."
"Crossed over?"
"Come here," he said to her. As she did and sat down beside him, he took a branch and sat down near a patch of bare soil. He made a small x on the left, then a circle on the far right side. He then drew a line between the two.
"What're you doing?"
"That X is your body," he explained, "the circle on the far side is where souls go to." He then made an imprint, right in the middle of the line. "That is where you and I are at right now."
"Oh! I get it," she replied, "So, this is just a midway point, like a rest stop?"
"Something like that. I felt your soul in that stream, so I left the energy tube and came here to catch you."
"Oh, I see. Then after I rest, I'd better get going on my way over to there."
"That's not why I caught you," Zordon replied.
"But, if you're right, then I'm already dead, and Mama's on the other side."
"Yes, that's true. But, it would cause disaster if you continue onto the other side."
"It would? How come?"
"I have seen a future, a grim one for both you and another. In it, you continued on from here, and soon after...well, it would be best to see it for youself."
"Can I really see it here?"
"Yes. Look up, in front of you."
She looked up, and within moments, she saw an image in front of her that made her eyes widen.
Over in what looked like Angel Grove park, the same one where the monster first went into her, a woman with red hair, wearing armor of fire, took a bow and arrow into her hands.
"Now...time to find and put an end to this disaster," the woman said in a grim tone.
"No, Namarri. I'll do it," another voice, a very familiar one, cut in.
"Is that-"
"Yes," Zordon replied.
Billy came into view. His eyes were both wide and red, and there was an expression on his face that was outright frightening.
Clairie shivered at the sight.
"Though a Chosen, you won't be able to find-" Namarri said, then turned to him. She gasped in shock.
"No! Billy, no! Don't do it!" she replied, "If you do, you'll-"
He stepped forward, body glowing with tendrils of energy. He replied coldly, "I don't care, not anymore."
"B-Billy..."
He continued to walk forward, then raised an arm as he closed his eyes as he spoke in the same tone of cold anger. "You killed my little sister, and you'll pay for that. I'll make sure you can't take any more lives!"
"Wh-what's going on?" the little girl asked.
"In this future," Zordon replied, "Anger and grief over your death combined with something akin to madness, and it caused him to tap into strong powers that he wasn't ready for, mentally or physically."
Billy clenched his other fist and held it near his heart. "Clairie...be one with me. Combine your power with mine. We'll destroy it, here and now!"
With that, he unclenched his fist and raised it to join his other hand and the tendrils of energy flared up, becoming waves of red. With a scream, the waves shot from his hands, through the air. A short distance away, there was an explosion, and the image was bathed in red light.
"What happened to Billy after that?"
"That power not only revealed the monster, it also destroyed it in the same instant. Your brother and Namarri, however, died at the same time."
"No," she whispered, "Oh no..."
Zordon nodded, "If you want to prevent this, you need to go back to your body."
"Y-Yeah," she replied. Then her eyes widened as she remembered something. "But, I died because I don't have any energy left, right?"
"Yes."
"Well, how am I gonna keep from dying again, then?"
He chuckled and replied, "You leave that to me. I know a way to send you back to the right time and to make sure you survive."
"How?"
"Keep in mind, this is a time warp. Just because you came here after you left your body doesn't mean you'll return to the same time."
"Oh, I think I get it," Clairie replied, "That also means I'm not gonna remember any of this talk."
"That's correct."
"That's ok, then. Maybe after I get better, I can see what you look like."
"Perhaps." He stood up and asked, "Are you ready?"
Clairie got on her feet as well, dusted off, then said, "Yeah."
"All right, then. Close your eyes."
As soon as she did so, Zordon approached her and closed his own eyes. Within moments, both of them turned into sparkles of light that drifted away.
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Billy's eyes welled with tears as he said, "Clara Marie Cranston, don't you dare die on me!"
"Sorry...Billy..." could faintly be heard as she closed her eyes.
He shouted as loud as he could, near panic, "Zordon! It's-"
Before he could finish the sentence, Zordon spoke urgently, "Billy. Bring Clairie to me, right now."
Namarri asked, puzzled, "What?"
"Hurry!"
They nodded and moved quickly. Billy quickly picked up his sister while Namarri grabbed the portable IV unit that was connected to the little girl. Within seconds, both ran into the main room of the Power Chamber and stood before the energy tube, with the Rangers standing close by.
Whatever you have in mind, I hope it works, he thought as he felt a small puff of breath near his cheek that almost wasn't there.
Zordon closed his eyes and the face within the energy tube took on a white glow. Within seconds, white sparkles of light left the tube and went into Clairie's body.
Even as she gripped the medical device, Namarri's eyes went wide as she realized what was going on.
This is...!
For a couple more minutes, the sparkles of light went from the tube into the little girl. When the last sparkle disappeared into her, the room fell silent.
"Zordon, what-" Tommy started to ask when suddenly, Clairie coughed loudly, gasping for air for a few moments, then opened her eyes.
"I made it in time," their Sentinel said, relief in his voice, "Now, put her back on the medical bed and reverse the positions of the two Essence Prisms. If we don't hurry and put Clairie's essence back into her body, it will be too late."
"No need to tell me twice," Namarri replied as she and Billy hurried back into the medical bay. As he put her back onto the bed, the Vallan woman took the two Prisms and put the back one in front, and vice versa. She then put her hands on both of them and closed her eyes.
"What are you doing now?" Billy asked.
"I'm purifying both prisms, destroying all traces of that monster from her essence. If I don't do this before returning it, that monster will regenerate, putting us back to...I think the term is 'square one'."
The crystals changed from black to gold, and then to purest white. Immediately after that, the one in the back shot out a beam of pure, white light, going through the second Prism and into Clairie's body.
"Am I gonna...be okay now?"
"Yes, you will," he replied.
"Big brother, how come you're crying?"
Billy touched his cheek and founds tears on his fingers. He took a shuddering breath and replied, "You really scared me a moment ago. I-I thought you were dead."
"Oh. I'm sorry."
"It's all right. Clairie, don't ever scare me like that again."
Right then they heard alarms coming from the main room.
"Ai-yi-yi!" Alpha spoke up, "The sensors are picking up a monster in Angel Grove Park."
"Can we see it?" Tommy asked.
"No," Zordon replied, "it won't be necessary. That monster is Mother Parasite. Namarri, Rangers, proceed with the next phase of the operation."
Adam asked, "Is it possible for that thing to infect us? I men, we have power signatures."
"Not to worry. All of you are much older than the parasite's victims, and you are Rangers. You are all immune to the monster's main attack."
Billy came in as he wiped his eyes. Namarri was right behind him. "I've got a message from Clairie," he said, "She said to, quote, get rid of the mama for me, unquote."
"Don't worry, you two. We're putting Mother Parasite out of business," Tommy replied.
"Ready?" Namarri asked.
The Zeo Rangers replied in the affirmative and Tommy said, "Ready and willing."
"One warning: Since King Mondo is here, he's liable to have a hand in the battle to come, so when I expose Mother Parasite, escalate immediately."
Rocky asked, "Escalate?"
"In other words, call your Zords as soon as the monster shows itself," Billy translated, "But that's against Zordon's first rule."
"Yes it is, normally, but there are exceptions. This is one of them. Rangers, Namarri, good luck, and may the Power protect you protect you all."
Billy remembered something he heard while he had been on Valle. He said to them, "Fly in the Phoenix's Light, you guys."
"It's Morphin' time!"
"Phoenix, Arise!"