DISCLAIMER: All incarnations of Power Rangers named here belong to Saban. If they were mine, I'd make Donald Trump sweat for a few weeks. Same holds true for the JLA, and all other related heroes. They're DC's. Adam's family, Tommy's family, Jason's family, & Jamie Zedden belong to Ellen Brand. Kris & Kay Thomas are 2 very real young ladies, and I thank Kris for her permission. Brian Taylor, Karen Peel, Mark Stanton, and Jessica Park are mine. This is a change of pace tale. The song Holiday is by Madonna, Edge of Seventeen is by Stevie Nicks, and I Saw The light is by Todd Rungren. OOPS! Almost forgot, Keith, Laurie, Chris, & Tracy Partridge are the property of Columbia Pictures Television, Cody, Al, and Brendan Lambert and Karen and Mark Foster are courtesy of Paramount Pictures Television, and Bill Engvall is part of Warner Brothers Television/Blue Collar TV.

Reality Gems Prologue: Calm Before The Storm
by: Carl Turner and Jason Adams

Tommy Oliver was following a figure in red throughout the Hall Of Justice. Since his return, Wally West had returned to the Titans, and Tommy had a lot of questions to ask…but was too afraid to.

Barry Allen, the previous Flash, turned around and looked at Tommy, saying "Please, if you have a question, ask me."

Tommy stumbled over his words, then asked "What was it like, getting started, and forming the JLA with Green Lantern, Black Canary, Martian Manhunter, and…well…"

"I know. I heard about how far Arthur had fallen. The big difference between him and Hal was that eventually that Hal finally was able to get himself back on track. If I had been here when he was…no, according to Dinah, he was too far gone by that time. And as far as our first adventures, Zordon would have been shocked by our attitudes back then. Later, with Superman with us more and more…"

"Yeah. According to Hal, the world began to take the team more seriously, with the Trinity as part of the team. Speaking of which, both Batman and Wonder Woman HATE being called that." Tommy told him. Tommy paused, then continued with "Some of us are are taking some down time at the beach. Wanna come?

"Actually, I've got a little down time with Iris. I've got a lot of catching up to do. Catch you later." And with that, Barry was off and running to Central City.

Not long after a recent case, Batman ordered everyone to take some much needed down time. The Morphin Rangers, Jason Lee Scott, Trini Kwan, Zack Taylor, Kimberly Hart, Tommy Oliver & Billy Cranston, along with Purple Zeo Ranger Jamie Zedden and Zack's ex-girlfriend Angela Pierce, went to the beach with Diana Prince(Wonder Woman), Vanessa Kapatelis (the new Wonder Girl), and ThunderCats Keith, Laurie, Chris, & Tracy Partridge, along with Bill Engvall. Andros, the Red Lightstar Ranger, went along for awhile before joining the rest of the Lightstars at the movies to see Jackie Chan's latest. Danny Partridge, the one Partridge who wasn't chosen, grumbled "I will never understand why everyone wants to see his lame-o flicks."

"Oh, shut up, you Ozzie & Harriet/Roy Rogers fanatic! I honestly can't believe how retro you are sometimes! I swear you should have been in the '50's! I sure wouldn't wanna be back there!" Laurie frowned at her middle brother.

"Laurie's right. Other than our grandparents, the only 6 good things that came from that era were rock & roll, Lucy, the Honeymooners, tv dinners, Charlie Brown, & Donna Reed. Otherwise, I don't care for it. At all." Billy added.

"You wanna talk retro? Laurie's still stuck in the '80's! Musically, anyway!" Danny snapped back.

"So, what's wrong with that? I still love a lot of '80's music, and some '60's & '70's too." Trini smiled.

"Zack chimed in "YEAH! Pretenders, Bryan Adams, Scandal, Vanity 6, Sheila E., Joan Jett, John Cougar, Pat Benatar, man, I could go on!"

"Yeah, unlike SOME people who wanna go all the way back to the 20s, believe it or not!" Chris snapped, glaring at Danny as he said this.

"No wonder Zordon didn't choose you to be a ThunderCat, you are so money hungry!" Laurie added.

Danny stomped away as Bill asked "Did any of you hear of Crystal Gayle or Juice Newton?"

"Yup. 'Queen of Hearts', and 'Love's Been A Little Bit Hard On Me.' Trini confirmed.

"Let's not forget the Go-Go's, the Bangles, Michael Jackson when he was a lot more public, the Stray Cats, and my all-time fave, STEVIE NICKS!" Kimberly added.

"Don't forget Culture Club!" Tommy added. This suprised everyone, Keith & Jason in particular. "I never would have pegged you for a Culture Club fan." Keith told him.

"Me neither. I had you pegged for a Springsteen man myself. It suprises the hell out of me that you like Culture Club." Jason added.

"Why not? I love their stuff. Still do."

As if on cue, the Pretenders 'Message of Love' came on the '80's channel that Laurie had the radio on. "Yeah!" Jamie shouted, and everyone began dancing to the music until everyone promptly got tired and sacked out on the beach.

"Man, we never had music like this on KO-35. We would have loved this." Andros smiled.

Laurie looked at him and asked "You don't have to go now, do you? I mean, we've got plenty of food, especially that we're keeping Danny & Tracy away from the picnic baskets, and the music's great too, and..."

Keith leaned in and quickly said "Eyes back in your head. Cassie's got eyes for him too, and the last thing we need is a pink war."

Andros grinned at the Pink ThunderCat and said with a touch of regret "I'd love to, but I'm meeting the others later at the movies. Later."

After 2 hours of Thompson Twins, Duran Duran, Fleetwood Mac, Wham!, Heart, Bon Jovi, the Waitresses, & Bananarama, Diana walked over to Zack. "So, how're you doing? I know you and Angela have recently…parted ways."

"Well, as good as can be expected. For some reason, we both decided that some things weren't meant to be. Still, the 2 of us are going out to dinner tonight." Zack told her.

Meanwhile, Tracy Partridge was talking to Vanessa Kapatelis, who was adjusting to life as the new Wonder Girl. "Feel like your world's been turned inside out?" the Yellow ThunderCat asked.

"That's one way of putting it. One minute, I'm studying for finals, the next I've got a teenage version of Diana's body, hair, & face, her powers, including bracelets & lasso, helping Robin, Superboy, the Geo Rangers, Zack's brother, & Impulse as a member of Young Justice. I think we need a better name than that." Vanessa spoke up.

"Actually, as far as names go, it's pretty cool. It could be worse, you could be JLA jr."

"UGH! You're right, that would be much worse!" Both girls stopped talking when they heard Laurie Partridge scream "JASON LEE SCOTT! JAMIE ZEDDEN! DON'T YOU DARE!"

The twosome gave her a rather evil grin, then Jason innocently told her "Laurie, you really need to cool off, so this is for your own good." then the 2 lifted her up and tossed her into the lake. Fuming and sputtering, she came up, only to have a huge grin on her face, which made them both very nervous. Jamie started "Why are you grinning like..." which was as far as she got before she realized that Keith had grabbed both her and Jason and was about to throw them in. "Get ready for a big splash!" he chortled.

"OH, MY GOD!" Jamie squeaked out before they hit the water.

Chris & Zack, along with Angela, had raced up behind him, and started laughing like no tomorrow, when Diana raced up behind the 4, grabbed them all, and soared over the lake before dropping her cargo into the water. Zack, however, had gotten ahold of Diana's lasso, and twirled it over his head, threw it, and caught her, pulling her and Bill in as well. Diana screamed "ZACK, YOU TURKEY!"

Nessie, Trini, & Tracy died laughing. "That's the ugliest group of mermaids I've ever seen!" Trini chortled. However, her tone quickly changed when she heard Kimberly squeal "TOMMY! THOMAS KENNETH OLIVER! DON'T YOU EVEN THINK ABOUT IT! PUT ME DOWN RIGHT NOW!" Tommy had Kim under one arm, and was headed for the lake...and Trini. Kim shouted a quick warning. "TRINI, RUN!"

Too late. Tommy had both of them, and in seconds, tossed them both in rather unceremoniously. The 2 screamed "YOU ARE SO MUCH DEAD MEAT!" Their tunes quickly changed, however, and were soon smiling from ear to ear. Nessie had crept up behind him, and tossed him in right after the girls. However, as she did this, he grabbed her wrist, and she went with him into the drink. SPLASH!

Tracy & Billy were chortling, when they too were tossed in, right behind everyone else. Danny was the only one left, and he was busy laughing to beat the band.

14 pairs of eyes glared at Danny. Diana promptly took her lasso back from Zack, and nailed the redhead. Everyone grabbed it, and started to pull him in, Billy shouting "Any last words?"

"Yeah. We who are about to die salute you, not to mention... I'M GONNA KILL YOU TURKEYS!" With that, he was yanked into the lake, and into a full-blown free-for-all water war.

Meanwhile, in Central City, Iris West Allen asked her husband, Barry "You sure this isn't boring you?"

"Of course. Why do you ask?"

"Because you said about unpacking your office, and I quote: 'It was like being dragged across hot coals by a snail with a limp."

Barry then turned to Iris. "After all that time in that…other place, I learned that there are some things to hurry through…time with you is not one of them. In fact, I wish that time would stand still…so I can really enjoy each and every moment…"

"Why, Mr. Allen…are you trying to seduce me?" Iris asked coyly as she drew the curtains closed.

Later that evening, there was a party at the Youth Center, which was in full swing. Trini was on hand-held keyboards, Jason on synthesisers, Tommy on rhythm guitar, Kimberly on fender bass, Zack on lead electric guitar, Jamie on percussion, & Billy on drums, the music of the '80's was alive again, with the group performing music from Joan Jett, Stevie Nicks, Madonna, Rick Springfield, Bryan Adams, Belinda Carlisle, & others. The JLAers were all out of costume, and enjoying the evening. The Zeo Rangers were there, as well as the Geo Rangers, the Thundercats, & the Lightstar Rangers." We definitely needed a night like this!" Andrea Thomas(Isis) told everyone.

"Where's Impulse?" Kat asked.

"He's being punished for spraypainting the JLA cave HQ. Max Mercury found out and totally freaked out." Justin told her.

"Where's Keith and the others?" Bill Engvall howled.

He was soon answered when Keith, Laurie, Chris, Tracy, and Shirley Partridge were joined by Jason, Kimberly, Zack, and Trini along with Eric Forman & Donna Pinciotti. Tommy did the lead vocal, while Keith, Zack, and Kimberly worked the guitars, Trini, Laurie, and Eric had the keyboards, Chris played the drums, and Tracy and Donna played the tambourine to Todd Rungren's 'I Saw The Light'. Shocked howls followed by cheers greeted the group as they played.

Kat looked over and saw Samantha & Skull at a table, totally engrossed in one another. -I see it, and I still can't believe it!- she thought to herself, before the group began to play 'Edge of Seventeen'. Walking over to David Truehart, she smiled "Come on, let's dance." as she dragged him out onto the floor.

HOLIDAY

MADONNA

Holiday Celebrate

Holiday Celebrate

If we took a holiday, just some time to celebrate

Just one day out of life, it would be, it would be so nice

It's time to tell the world, we're gonna have a celebration

All across the world, in every nation

It's time for the good times, forget about the bad times, oh yeah

One day to come together to make things better, we need a holiday

If we took a holiday, just some time to celebrate

Just one day out of life, it would be, it would be so nice

We can turn this world around and bring back all of those happy days

Put your troubles down, it's time to celebrate

Let love shine, and we will find

A way to come together and make things better, we need a holiday

If we took a holiday, just some time to celebrate

Just one day out of life, it would be, it would be so nice

Holiday Celebration

Come together in every nation

Holiday Celebration

Come together in every nation

We have got to get together

We've got to get together,

take some time to celebrate

Just one day out of life,

it would be so nice

EDGE OF SEVENTEEN

STEVIE NICKS

Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she's singin,

Who, who, who

Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she's singin,

who, who, who

And the days go by...like a strand in the wind,

In the web that is my own, I begin again,

Said to my friend, baby...nothing else mattered

He was no more than a baby then

Well he, seemed broken hearted...something within him

But the moment...that I first laid...eyes on him

All alone on the edge of seventeen

Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she's singin,

who, who, who

Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she's singin,

ooo,baby, ooo, said ooo

I went today, maybe I will go again...tomorrow

And the music there, it was hauntingly...familiar

And I see you doing, what I try to do for me

With the words from a poet, and a voice of a choir,

and a melody Nothing else mattered

Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she's singin

who, who, who,

Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she's singin

ooo, baby, ooo, said ooo

The clouds...never expect it...when it rains

But the sea changes colors...but the sea...does not change

And so...with the slow...graceful flow...of age

I went forth...with an age old...desire...to please

On the edge of...seventeen

Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she's singin,

who, who, who

Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she's singin

ooo, baby, ooo, said ooo

Well then suddenly...there was no one...left standing in the hall

In a flood of tears that no one ever really heard fall at all

Oh, I went searchin' for an answer...up the stairs...and down the hall

Not to find an answer...just to hear the call...Of a nightbird

Singin' come away (come away, come away)

Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she's singin'

who, who, who

Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she's singin'

ooo, baby, ooo, said ooo

Well, I hear you(I hear you) in the morning (in the morning)

And I hear you (I hear you) at nightfall (at nightfall)

sometimes to be near you...is to be...unable...to give you...my love

I'm a few years older than you are...my love

Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she's singin'

who, who, who

Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she's singin'

ooo, baby, ooo, said ooo...

I SAW THE LIGHT

TODD RUNGREN

It was late last night
I was feeling something wasn't right
There was not another soul in sight
Only you, only you

So we walked along
Though I knew there was something wrong
And the feeling hit me, oh, so strong
About you

Then you gazed up at me
And the answer was plain to see
'Cause I saw the light in your eyes
In your eyes

Though we had our fling (we had our fling)
I just never would suspect a thing(suspect a thing)
Till that little bell began to ring in my head
In my head, in my head

But I tried to run(I tried to run)
Though I knew it wouldn't help me none(Not help me none)
'Cause I couldn't ever love no one
Or so I said

But my feelings for you
Were just something I never knew
Till I saw the light in your eyes
In your eyes

But I love you best
It's not something that I say in jest
'Cause you're different girl from all the rest
In my eyes

And I ran out before
But I won't do it anymore
Can't you see the light in my eyes
In my eyes, in my eyes, in my eyes

Three days later:

In the ruins of a formerly stately castle on the moon, a witch was snickering to herself with delight. Rita repulse was married to Lord Zedd until three years ago, when his Earthly wife and daughter, Leslie and Jamie Zedden, re-entered his life in a big way. Their return caused him to renounce his evil and become Larry Zedden once more. This caused a major power loss for her.

Upset about this Rita stomped around until her new associate, Lex Luthor, had found a set of gemstones that could alter reality if allowed. She was thinking about how to use this to their advantage, when a devilish glow appeared before her. The glow coalesced into the form of: LORD ZEDD!

"I thought you were happy with your wife and Ranger daughter! What the hell are you doing here!" she snapped.

"ME? I thought I had killed you! What are you doing here…close to the Justice League Watchtower? Have you completely lost what's left of your mind?" Zedd snapped.

"You? Kill me?" Now it was Rita's turn to do something she hadn't done in 2 years: Laugh. "That's rich! Don't try to come back in my life now…I have Luthor now!"

"Perfect! 2 pathetic dead fools! Lovely!" Zedd nearly doubled over with laughter…then realized… "This is Not my dimension, is it? It explains all of this…and the pull of the reality gems!"

"No way! Those are ours, go find your own!"

"Still the pathetic pair of idiots! Nearly as foolish as my brother…Darkseid!" Zedd continued to chuckle.

"Darkseid? Since when were you on New Genesis? You were the Prince of Danata!" Rita said with growing suspicion.

Zedd confirmed "Dear stupid witch…I have the Reality Gems…and can bend 2 dimensions to my evil will!"

Rita smiled and said "Sorry…but Luthor, this planet's villains…and myself have real plans to destroy the world…and they don't involve YOU!"

Zedd smiled to himself, whispering –We'll see.-

JLA satellite:

Kimberly Hart, the Pink Pterodactyl Ranger, was sparring with both her protégé, Laurie Partridge, the Pink Cheetah ThunderCat, and Princess Diana, a/k/a Wonder Woman, when a signal blasted throughout every level of their HQ. "Something's up. That's the call for an emergency meeting!" Diana spoke.

Laurie and Kimberly looked at each other. Nothing else needed to be said

Within moments the satellite was filled to capacity with the complete Justice League roster. Wonder Woman, Batman, Black Canary, Green Lantern, Hawkman, Hawkwoman, Martian Manhunter, Isis, Firestorm, Superman…plus the Flash…Barry Allen. With his return, Wally West returned to the Titans and had assumed a new identity—RPM. Also in membership were Jason Lee Scott, Kimberly Hart, Zack Taylor, Trini Kwan, Tommy Oliver, Samantha Dean, and Billy Cranston…the Morphin team of Power Rangers, plus their protégés Keith, Laurie, Christopher, and Tracy Partridge, and Bill Engvall…the ThunderCats.

In the middle of the meeting table, a plasma tube appeared…containing Zordon. "Rangers, JLA…the Reality Gems have been stolen!"

Isis asked "Reality Gems?"

"Yes. I've read about those. Both sets have a positive and negative effect on reality, affecting major elements of the Earth. They also have their own physical power. These are the gems…

Red=ruby=passion/lust= fire

Pink=garnet=innocence/temptation=virginity

Black=onyx=wisdom/doubt=success

Yellow=topaz=energy/greed=electricity

Blue=sapphire=hope/defeat=water

Purple=amethyst=love/hate=luck

White=quartz=time/space=light

Green=emerald=nature/destruction=plants

clear=diamond=life/death=animals

If Luthor or any of crew has those…this world has had it!" Batman told her.

"It is even worse than that! Lord Zedd has returned!" Zordon told them.

"Zedd? But, he's Larry Zedden now! He forsook those powers." Jason spoke in shock.

"True. This is a Zedd from another dimension! He and anyone this Zedd comes in contact with must be stopped before they join forces to gain the Gems!"

"We'll have to get in touch with his dimension's Rangers and JLA!" Hal spoke.

Barry smiled to himself. Oddly, despite his years away, he had missed this.

In an Alternate Universe

The Power Rangers were at the Justice League Satellite HQ watching as their new proteges, the Geo Rangers, sparred with each other.  Cody Lambert, the Black Thunder Ranger, wasn’t participating since he was already a black belt, but the others were much greener, therefore they needed the practice more.  He sipped some water as he and the veteran Rangers watched.

Alicia (Al) Lambert, the Red Fire Ranger, was dueling with her younger brother Brendan, the Green Earth Ranger, her stepsister Karen Foster, the Pink Wind Ranger, and Karen’s younger brother Mark, the Blue Water Ranger.  And Al was giving them a pounding.  Having been a tomboy growing up, she was always into this sort of thing.  She took down Mark with a kick to the groin, dropping him to his knees and causing him to clutch his midsection.  Karen tried to move in, but Al flipped over her, then swept her off her feet.  Brendan attempted a punch, but Al caught his arm and flipped him down onto his back.  Finally, as Al kept his arm in a twisted position, Brendan said, “Alright, alright, Al, you’ve made your point!”

“I’ll say,” said Mark as he got to his feet.  “I took karate lessons once before, and I still got whooped.”

Karen sat up and shrugged, saying, “Well, at least I’ve still got a pretty face.”

“Aw, quit whining,” said Al as she finally released Brendan’s arm.  “No pain, no gain.”

A slow clapping sound got everyone’s attention.  Everyone turned to see Batman stepping out of the shadows.  “Brilliant.  Now, Alicia, how about you show me how you intend to lead your team against someone like me.”  Mark, Karen, and Brendan backed away as Batman stepped onto the sparring mats.  Casually, he just stood there and said, “Attack me.”

Al hesitated for a moment before throwing a punch, which Batman easily avoided.  She tried a series of kicks, but nothing connected.  Al tried another punch, but Batman grabbed her arm, spun her around and bent her arm behind her back before dropping her face-first onto the mat.  As Al winced at the pain that shot through her arm, Batman said, “No pain, no gain.”  He finally released her and stood up, saying, “Keep practicing,” as he walked away.

Al got up to one knee and shook the pain out her arm, saying, “Jerk.”

Batman never looked back, simply responding with, “I’ve been called worse.”

As the two teams of Rangers were getting ready to take a break, the alarm sounded.  “Uh oh,” said Tommy Oliver, the White Ranger.  “Trouble.”

“No rest for the weary,” said Rocky DeSantos, the Red Ranger.

Withing moments, the Justice League (Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, the Flash Wally West, Green Lantern Hal Jordan, Isis, Martian Manhunter, and Black Canary), the Power Rangers (Tommy, Rocky, Adam Park, the Black Ranger, Aisha Campbell, the Yellow Ranger, Katherine “Kat” Hillard, the Pink Ranger, Jenny Oliver, the Green Ranger, Billy Cranston, the Blue Ranger, and Trini Kwan, the Gold Ranger), and the Geo Rangers were all gathered as Alpha 5 worked at the computers.  “Ay, yi, yi, yi, yi!  I had hoped this day would never come!”

“What is it, Alpha?” asked Jenny.  “How bad is it?”

“Oh, ay, yi, yi!  Bad’s not the word for it!” exclaimed Alpha.  “This is awful!  This is a disaster!  Ay, yi, yi, yi, yi, yi, yi, yi, yi!”  He was in such a panic that he began spinning and smoking.  Billy and Trini quickly went over trying to calm him down.

The Geo Rangers watched Alpha in surprise.  “Does this happen to Alpha all the time?” asked Karen.

“Only when an emergency is REALLY serious,” answered Aisha.

“But what is the emergency?” asked Mark.

Zordon materialized in his plasma tube, saying, “ALLOW ME TO ANSWER THAT.  I WAS JUST IN MY LAST REST CYCLE WHEN I FELT A DISTURBANCE IN THE MORPHING GRID.  LORD ZEDD IS NO LONGER IN OUR UNIVERSE.”

“WHAT?” asked the veteran Rangers in surprised unison.

“I’m probably going to regret saying this,” said the Flash, “but that’s a good thing, right?”

“I WISH IT WERE SO, FLASH,” said Zordon as he shook his head.  “HOWEVER, LORD ZEDD HAS NOT LEFT THE UNIVERSE OF HIS OWN FREE WILL.  THIS IS THE DAY THAT I HAD HOPED AND PRAYED WOULD NEVER COME:  LORD ZEDD HAS FOUND THE REALITY GEMS.”

“The Reality Gems?” asked Kat.  “What are they?”

“According to your archives, they are nine gemstones that allow whoever possesses them to control all of reality itself,” answered Batman.  “Each gem has both a positive and a negative effect as well as its own individual power.”

“THAT IS CORRECT, BATMAN,” said Zordon.  “THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO ON ELTAR, MY ANCESTORS DISCOVERED THE GEMS AND HID THEM AWAY, SCATTERING THEM THROUGHOUT MULTIPLE UNIVERSES IN THE HOPES THAT THEY WOULD NEVER FALL INTO THE WRONG HANDS.  DETAILS ARE SCARCE DUE TO POOR RECORD-KEEPING AT THAT TIME, BUT THE GEMS WERE OBVIOUSLY TOO DANGEROUS FOR ONE PERSON TO POSSESS.”

“These are the gems,” explained Isis.  “The red gem is a ruby.  Its effects are passion and lust, with the power of fire.  The pink gem is a garnet.  Innocence and temptation are its effects, virginity its power.  Then there’s a black onyx.  Wisdom and doubt are its effects, success its power.  The yellow topaz has the effects of energy and greed.  Its power is electricity.  The blue sapphire has the effects of hope and defeat and the power of water.  Next is the purple gem, an amethyst, with the effects of love and hate and the power of luck.  The white gem, a quartz, has the effects of time and space and the power of light.  There’s a green emerald with the effects of nature and destruction.  Plants are its power.  And finally, we have the clear gem, a diamond.  It has the effects of life and death with the power of animals.”

“Wow,” said Adam.  “If Zedd gets his hands on those, he could have the power of a god!”

“And he’s already gotten a head-start!” realized Brendan.

“We’ll have to move fast,” said Superman.  “And hope it’s fast enough.”

The Reality Gems have been discovered in two separate universes.  In each Universe is a team of heroes ready to risk it all to save not only their worlds, their universes, but all of reality itself.  To say they were about to go on the adventure of a lifetime would be an understatement.

AND SO IT BEGINS. . .