[Tuesday October 5th, 1993 6:52am]
The sun hadn't fully risen yet, but the daily life of the citizens of Angel Grove were already beginning. Garbage-men on their daily patrols were picking up trash, the newspaper delivery boy was on his bike, tossing rolled newspapers in front of houses. Even for a moment, Tommy had to admire the simplistic beauty of it all, but that moment quickly passed as Tommy put the hood back over his head and continued to talk.
The proof of a major battle were evident on Tommy; there were cuts and bruises, his right eye was almost completely swollen closed, and dried blood stained his dirty green sweater, but that didn't bother him at all. He walked away from the construction site as if he had no place in particular to be, no sense of urgency in his step. He was more focused on counting the rolls of money he'd won in last night's competition. A lot of it was crumpled up, torn and bloody, but for the bills that were stained badly, he simply wiped off whatever it was on his sweater, added that bill back to the rest and continued to walk.
There were a few stares as he walked; a few of the Angel Grove citizens unsure of what to think of him. It occurred to him that walking around town covered in the blood and counting money could draw some unwanted attention, so he stuffed his winnings into his pocket, then took a turn down an alley to stay out of sight. The alleyway itself was long, at least two blocks long, but at least there weren't people pointing and whispering as he walked.
It was odd to Tommy that, as he walked down the alley, rats were rushing away in the other direction. They seemed to be in a hurry, which led Tommy to believe they were either running towards something or running away from something. As the sun continued to rise, Tommy, feeling a bit warm, pulled his sweater up over his head, then tied it around his waist as he continued. Next he noticed that there was no sound… none at all. No traffic, no conversations, the garbage truck, the wind, even the sound of his own footsteps… all of it was gone. It was enough to make him stop dead in his tracks, glancing around trying to make sense of the situation.
"Tommy!" a voice heckled.
Tommy spun around, trying to find the source of the voice. Finally, he glanced upwards where he was a figure standing on top of a building. It was at least two stories up, and because the sun was shining down directly in his eyes, he wasn't able to get a good look at who it was.
"I have chosen you," the figure announced to him.
Tommy stood ready, still exhausted from his earlier fights, but ready to do what he had to do defend himself. While there was no other sound, he did hear a slight gurgling sound. There was something unusual about it, something inhuman. He looked around as four creatures appeared in front of it, swaying back and forth in an awkward, menacing motion. At first glance, each of them looked misshapen in some way; their faces were contorted, out of order. It was as if, whatever these creatures were made of, was melting. There was no discernible eyes, nose or mouth, but each of them hummed with a sort of gurgle that was enough to make the hairs on the back of Tommy's neck stand at attention.
One of them lunged at him, getting a good shot in on his already injured right eye. Tommy spun around, clutching his eye, but then wiped the blood away and continued into his spin, hitting a back heel kick that knocked the creature a few feet off the ground and up against the wall. Another one charged at him, but he caught their arm, twisted it and flipped him over his shoulder. The creature fell to the ground, turning into what looked like a pile of gray goo, but it quickly reshaped itself into humanoid form. Realizing what he was up against, Tommy glanced around, trying to find something in his environment that would aid him in this fight. He picked up a broom handle, breaking it in half over his knee, then stood ready.
"Come and get me, clay brains," he taunted.
Two of them came after him, but he hit them both over the side of the head, spun around, hitting them a second time, then a well placed kick knocked them over. A third one grabbed him from behind, but Tommy dropped to one knee, flipping over the creature over his shoulder and right into the first two. The monsters regrouped as two of them each grabbed Tommy by the arms, restraining him. As the third one came close to him with some sort of device, Tommy kicked it out of his hand, did a backflip, freeing himself from the grip of the first two. A chop block knocked both of them down, and Tommy picked up his makeshift weapon, stabbing both of them in the chest. This time, they seemed to dissolve away, eventually drying into a small clump of what looked like putty.
The final two made their move, but Tommy pulled the shards from his broomstick out of what was left of the first two assailants, charging in towards them. He lunged the shards into their chests, then pulled upwards, snatching the shards up through the heads, splitting them in half. They both collapsed to the ground, and like the others, dissolved away, leaving almost no trace of them.
"Aw man, why me?" he mumbled to himself, doing one more quick glance around to ensure there were no more potential threats.
That's when he remembered; the figure on top of the he could make a move, the figure on the building pointed a staff at him. An energy beam came from the staff, connecting with Tommy's chest. His fight instinct was to howl out in pain, to scream, but before sound could even leave his lips, it was all over.
Tommy found himself in a stone room of some kind. It was cold, real cold, prompting him to grab his sweater, putting it back on. He walked over to what looked like a window, getting a good look outside.
"WHAT?" he gasped, realizing that not only was he in space, but the Earth was a great distance away from him. His first instinct was to put his index finger on the side of his throat to check for a pulse, then clutch his heart to make sure it was still beating. He took a deep breath in, and it hit him that wherever he was, there seemed to be a breathable atmosphere.
"Hello Tommy," a voice said from behind.
He spun around quickly, coming face to face with her. While he wasn't able to get a good look at her in the alley, he was certain that she was the same person he'd seen on the rooftop earlier. She wore a long, dark brown robe that seemed to have unfamiliar writing on it. There was a sort of armor, a chest piece connected to the robe that presumably served no other function but to be a decoration of some kind. She also had on a helmet of some kind that had two horns sticking out of it. Tommy wasn't sure if the horns were part of her head, and holes were cut into the head piece to accommodate them, or if the horns were part of the head piece itself. And the staff is easily recognized as the object she pointed at him before he appeared… wherever they were.
"Who are you and what the hell is going on?" Tommy snapped, standing ready to fight, despite the fact that he knew he was much too injured to continue without patching himself up a bit.
"You have nothing to fear from me, Tommy. Let me prove it to you," she offered. She took her staff, waving it slightly in front of him. His first instinct was to back up, but as the staff passed over him, he could feel his wounds healing. The swelling in his eye went down, the blood dissipated, and within seconds, Tommy was as good as new. "There. Feeling better?"
He glanced down at his hands, clenching and unclenching his fists. Next, he touched his face where he wounds were, but they were gone.
"I… I'm fine," he admitted.
"You see, Tommy. You and I are alike a lot of ways. We…" he immediately interrupted her.
"You don't know the first thing about me," he snapped. Despite her generosity, Tommy still knew nothing about this woman.
"Oh but I do, dear boy. I know all about your past… about your father. I know about what he did, and I especially know what you did. I know that it haunts you, keeps you awake at night. I know the pain you're in, Tommy. I can help you. I can take that pain from you," she told him.
"Who are you?"
"I am the Queen of Darkness, I am destruction. I am despair. I am anguish, I am suffering. I am your Empress, Rita Repulsa," she introduced in a dark, ominous tone.
"Fancy resume, but why should I trust you?" he asked, visibly shaken by her statements, but doing his best not to let it show.
"Because I can give you the one thing you've always wanted, the one thing that, if you'd had it back then, you could have saved her. I can give you what you need to make people cower at your feet and fear your name. I can give you power," she told him, opening her hand slightly. There were a quick surge of energy, followed by a momentary flash of green light, and when it faded, there was a coin in her hand.
At first glance, the coin looked old… ancient. Without a word Tommy took it from her, examining it closely. There appeared to be a foot print etched into it. No, more like a paw print, he thought to himself. Whatever it was, it was exactly what she said it was, powerful. He wouldn't openly admit it to her, but he could feel the energy of it surging through his body as he held it.
"What is it?" he asked, admiring it.
"It is the legendary sixth power coin of Eltar. Over 10,000 years ago, a Sage named Zordon entrusted six coins to six warriors. Their goal was to rid the universe of evil, but they failed. The first five coins are in the hands of the ones you have come to know as the Power Rangers," Rita told him.
"Power Ranger," he mumbled under his breath, unable to take his eyes off the coin as he seemed to glow slightly in his hand.
"With this power coin, you will be become the green ranger. My green ranger. Imagine it Tommy, power. More power than you could have ever dreamed of right at your fingertips. You will be the right hand of the Empress of the Universe, second only to me. We'll have those power twerps heads stuffed and mounted in our throne room, and the aches of that old wind bag Zordon will be sprinkled at our feet."
"What do you want me to do?" Tommy asked, still unsure what to think of all this.
"I will give you the power and tools you need to defeat the Power Rangers and destroy Zordon. Then, we will raise an empire that Dark Spector himself will come to fear," she said, clenching her fist and snarling at the mere concept of universal domination.
Tommy had only been in Angel Grove a few months. He'd started a new school and was just trying to get by. He wasn't interested in making friends or community activities. He just wanted to be left alone, but even he had knowledge of the power rangers. Five multi colored warriors fighting the forces of evil, dispatching giant monsters with their own battle vehicles, then disappearing into the shadows. No one knew who the rangers were, but if there was some sort of attack, the rangers were there to save the city. It was all so… so noble.
"You want me to be a power ranger?"
"The sixth power coin once belonged to Zordon's most trusted ally, and is the most powerful of the six. I don't want you to be a power ranger, I want you to be the power ranger. Defeat them, and you will be the only of your kind. The universe will be ours for the taking," she moved in closer to him. "All you have to do is swear your loyalty to me. Bow to your Empress, and we will rule this galaxy," she assured him.
The longer they talked, the more he could feel the energy from the coin surging through him. He felt powerful, alive. He didn't know much about the rangers, but he knew enough to know there were no match for him. He was faster, stronger, smarter. They may have outnumbered him five to one, but he'd faced much biggest obstacles in life and come out on top. This would be no different for him. There was something about it, something he couldn't explain; there was a part of him that wanted to refuse her offer, but the energy from the coin continued to boil inside him, almost demanding that he agree to her request.
While Tommy will never be sure if he simply grew tired of resisting, or if the power itself overwhelmed him, compelling him to comply, but Tommy dropped down to one knee in front of her, bowing.
"To the fall of Zordon, and to the destruction of the power rangers," he proclaimed, accepting her proposal.
Rita let out a sickening laugh, a laugh that seemed to fill the entire chamber. "Tommy Oliver, you are now my evil green ranger," she proclaimed.
Almost all at once, the energy pulsating through him doubled in intensity, then tripled, then… it was more than he could even put into words. When it subsided, he found himself wearing the green ranger uniform. It looked very similar to the rangers he'd seen on the news fighting monsters, but he was certain the feeling was different. He felt strong, powerful. He rose to his feet, placing the power coin into the buckle on his belt almost instinctively.
"What is our first move, my Empress?" he asked, surprising even himself with how his voice sounded through the green ranger helmet. It was more the slight muffle of behind in a helmet. There was a sort of dark, demented distortion to it.
"Patience, my loyal warrior. This is only the first step in your journey. Besides, you have a class to get to," Rita told him in a sinister tone.
