The Terran Rangers/Spiderman Volume 4:, Heather Ray [well read books .TXT] 📗

Meanwhile, inside his room, Doctor Conners splashed some cold water onto his face. No matter what he did, he continued to sweat profusely, and his head was pounding.

"Oh no," he whispered, his knees wobbling. "Not now!"

Doctor Conners gasped in horror as he noticed the green hue his skin had taken. He then held back his screams as his lost arm grew back, with sharp claws and scales. His face elongated into a snout, with razor sharp fangs instead of teeth. He roared as a tail grew, ripping through his slacks and white lab coat. He released one more roar, and sniffed the air around him.

"Where am I?" asked the Lizard in a deep, rumbling voice. "What has happened?"

The Lizard leapt across the room in a single bound, and punched the glass of the window, shattering it into infinite pieces of glass. He stared out at Philadelphia curiously.

"I do not recognize the surroundings," he growled, "but I do smell something familiar. Spiderman..."

The Lizard growled once again, and leapt out the window. His claws dug into the outer wall, and he safely lowered himself down the building. Once he reached the ground, he hid inside the bushes along the hotel, until he located a manhole. He effortlessly ripped the manhole cover off, and leapt into the darkness of the sewers.

It was Friday evening in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and the sky had taken on a slightly pinkish hue. Two young women bundled up to keep out the bitter January winds as they walked home.

"Looks like it's gonna snow," commented Dawn, looking up at the sky.

"I hope so!" said Alexis with a grin, "I've always loved snow. Snowball fights, sledding..."

"Yeah, I know," chuckled Dawn, "and also shoveling, slippery sidewalks, car accidents... hmm, now that I think about it, there probably wouldn't be many car accidents."

"Why do you say that, Dawn?"

"Because, the Purple Ranger would probably stop the accidents before they start. Just like she did New Year's."

Alexis' emerald eyes widened in surprise. "I thought she was the Purple Knight

!"

"That's what the press says," said Dawn, rolling her eyes, "but I know it's the Purple Power Ranger. About six weeks ago, there was a Purple Ranger in Angel Grove, where the other Power Rangers are always sighted, but she disappeared shortly after. I mean, the Power Rangers went back down to six. Then, suddenly, a flying armored Purple warrior appears in Philly. Honestly, Lex, its pretty obvious that the Purple Ranger came to Philly! If the rest of the population believed the Power Rangers really exist, then they'd realize it."

Alexis was astonished at Dawn's logic. "Since when did you know so much about the Power Rangers?"

"Well, I read up on them when you moved to California," Dawn admitted, "I was curious to see what Small Town, USA was like. Man, it's no typical town!"

"You got that right," Alexis said with a smile. She then looked up at the sky again. "It's probably going to snow tonight," she said with a sigh. "The sky always turns pink--"

Alexis stopped in mid sentence, and looked up curiously. She blinked her eyes in surprise, and then peered once again into the darkness. A moving shadow had caught her eye.

That's weird,

she thought, looking around, I saw something! It was really strange. It moved so quickly, and it was flying through the sky! Maybe the Purple Ranger should investigate.

"Hey Lex!" Dawn yelled, gaining Alexis' attention. "What're you looking at?"

"Nothing," Alexis lied. "Uh, Dawn, I... I forgot, Denise asked me to pick up some diapers for Jonny on my way home..."

"No problem," said Dawn, "we can stop off at CVS. It's just down the block."

"That's okay," said Alexis, breaking into a jog, "I can go by myself."

"Alexis!" Dawn yelled after her best friend. "It's getting late! You shouldn't go alone! This is Philadelphia, not Angel Grove!"

"I'm only about two blocks from home anyway. I'll be fine!" Alexis assured, disappearing in the crowd. Dawn shrugged, and continued to her house. Alexis hid in an alleyway, and took a quick look around.

"No one here," she whispered, digging into her coat pocket. She pulled out a small rectangular box with a golden coin on the surface, and held it in front of her at arm's length.

"Its Morphin Time!" she cried, "Purple Ranger Power!!"

Brilliant beams of purple light shot forth from the golden coin, and cascaded around Alexis' body, donning her in the form fitting metallic purple armor of the Purple Power Ranger. White thigh-high boots appeared on her legs, and golden Mercury wings stretched forth from her ankles. White opera gloves covered her hands and arms, and a golden shield materialized on her torso. A golden belt with the Eagle coin sat low on her waist, and finally, a purple and white helmet covered her head and hair. The bright light faded, and the Purple Ranger, Philadelphia's protectress, slowly rose from the ground.

"Now," she said, "to find that flying shadow."

Meanwhile, the costumed superhero Spiderman stood atop the on-campus apartment building High Rise South, whose twenty four stories house hundreds of University of Pennsylvania upperclassmen. The building was located on 39th street, on the western end of campus.

I've been web-slinging for two hours, and still nothing!

Spiderman thought as he gazed into sky, I've crossed the Penn campus three times. Maybe I was wrong -- maybe I should start searching the rest of Philadelphia. Still, something tells me I should keep looking around here. She should have spotted me by now.

Suddenly, Spiderman's sixth sense warned him of danger. Something had come too close for comfort.

Spider Sense! The Purple Knight must be nearby!

Spiderman looked around, but still saw nothing. But he felt a gust of wind on his head, and looked directly above him. He saw a woman, donned in a complete purple uniform, hovering a few feet over him.

"I'll tell you one thing," she said, "red and blue spandex isn't the best camouflage."

"Neither is a highly reflectant purple and gold uniform," Spiderman retorted. "What are you, afraid of getting hit by a car?"

Alexis scowled under her helmet. "Who are you?" she asked seriously, landing on the roof. Spiderman stood his ground.

"Just your friendly neighborhood Spiderman."

The Purple Ranger held up her hand, and a purple whip appeared, sparking with purple hued energy. "Sorry," she said, "there aren't any Spidermen in this

neighborhood."

Spiderman quickly leapt back, and just managed to avoid being struck by the whip. He somersaulted in the air to the other side of the roof, and looked down.

That's a long way down,

he thought, and I'm too far away from any other high buildings to web-sling! This isn't going quite how I intended!

"Listen," he said out loud, his hands held out in a gesture of peace, "I'm not a bad guy!"

"Then just what are you?" she asked, launching her whip at Spiderman again. He once again managed to avoid it, but he was running out of room to maneuver.

"I'm a superhero! Like you!"

The Purple Ranger stopped to consider this. "Why are you here, then?"

"Well, I--" Spiderman started, but he suddenly felt a tingling sensation in his head again. His eyes widened beneath his mask.

Why is my Spider Sense going off again?

he thought Unless... the Purple Ranger isn't the one who set it off in the first place! But then, who--?

"Spiderman?" Purple Ranger asked, waving her hands in front of his face. "Are you still here?"

Spiderman snapped back to reality, and looked around. "Huh? Well, I've... got to be going," he said, slowly bringing his hands to his belt. "Until next time."

With that, he touched the small button on his belt, and a bright flash from his camera momentarily blinded the unwary Power Ranger. While she was distracted, Spiderman leapt off the high building and created a parachute with his webbing, slowing his descent. He landed safely on the ground, and as soon as his feet touched, his Spider Sense once again went off, even stronger than before.

I was right! Something else is here!

Before Spiderman could move, he was struck by a powerful swing. He flew into a nearby tree, breaking the trunk and nearly knocking him unconscious. He shook his head to clear the cobwebs, and caught a quick glimpse of his attacker. It was a seven foot reptile.

"Not good--!" he uttered, just as the monster grabbed him by the neck with both clawed hands. Spiderman struggled under the monster's superior strength, but he couldn't loosen its grip. His vision slowly blurred, and his struggles weakened. But before he could pass out completely, the monster gave a howl of pain, and dropped Spiderman. It turned away, and Spiderman noticed a smoking hole in the soiled white lab coat the monster was wearing.

"I've got more were that came from!" Purple Ranger remarked, her fist still glowing faintly with purple energy. She then waved her gloved hand over her helmet. "Ew!" she croaked. "Where have you been hanging out? The sewers?"

The monster roared deeply, and the Purple Ranger shuddered slightly. Suddenly, the monster leapt at the frozen ranger, baring its enormous fangs. Its claws didn't penetrate her purple armor, but the force of his attack knocked the wind out of her. It then picked up the stunned young woman, and tossed her with all its might into High Rise South. The Purple Ranger crashed through the brick wall, and landed in the empty first floor television lounge. The monster roared again, and turned back to