Pterodactyl - That was the call of my dinosaur each time I morphed into a Power Ranger. I felt a jolt of pink electricity running through my veins as the suit is layered over my civilian clothes. For two years, I served my duty to protect the city of Angel Grove and the people that inhabit this very place I called home. It was a time in which an outside force threatened to spread havoc on Earth with the intention of conquering our planet. Luckily, a wise sorcerer named Zordon took me and my friends under his wing in stopping the likes of Rita Repulsa and later on, Lord Zedd in a war between humans and aliens.
When we discovered Zordon, an earthquake ensued in our neck of the words. As a former Californian resident, we tend to have one every couple of years. While I was practicing my gymnastics, I was teleported out of the Angel Grove Youth Center along with my friends to an abandoned headquarters called the Command Center. Along with a highly intelligent robot named Alpha, it would be that moment when I encountered Zordon for the first time. I wasn't sure what to think about him. The thought of seeing him stuck inside a tube sounded absurd. He explained to us about an alien witch who had been set free from a dumpster that some astronauts discovered on the moon. When we found out she was behind the earthquake, I would realize that my life would change in an instant. By passing down five dinosaur coins, we were recruited to defend the Earth from Rita and her vile faction. When danger looms, we swore our duty to become Angel Grove's finest superheroes: The Power Rangers.
Throughout my time as the Pink Ranger, I saw folks come and go. Three people I admired addressed their goodbyes stepping down on their duties to attend a peace conference in hopes of changing our world for the better. As sadden as I was to see Jason, Zack, and Trini leave, I remained supportive for them and continued to press on. In turn, I also met three new kids our age that would later learn our identity as Power Rangers. Rocky, Adam, and Aisha would come along becoming the fastest of friends while they contributed to helping us combat against Zedd and his evil shenanigans. When three of our teammates prepared to leave for the peace conference, the former students of Stone Canyon High stepped in to fulfill their roles as the Red, Black, and Yellow Rangers.
Despite the shakeup in our team, we continued to serve and protect the Earth keeping a step ahead against the baddies. At this point in time, Zedd had ousted Rita of her leadership at the Moon Palace where they reside. I figured for sure she had banished from existence; that was not the case unfortunately. The moment when Rita returned, not only did she concoct her love potion to brainwash Zedd into loving her. As they wedded in holy matrimony, hindsight showed the tides would shift in their favor.
Eventually, the morphing grid responsible for operating our Dino powers would cause an overload that caused the destruction of our Thunderzords and power coins. Our fight with Rita's brother Rito was such an obstacle for us not even our best artillery could outdo him. I cried out desperately knowing to the fact a significant amount of hope I had depleted right before my eyes. As thankful as I was to bounce back and receive our new ninja powers, the fight against Evil took a turn for the worse. Whether if it was the Hate Master that placed us in a spell to turn us against each other or Face Stealer trying to do what he intended to set out, nothing compared to what happened when an ally of ours had succumbed to the control of Rita and Lord Zedd. This in fact was the beginning of the end of my tenure as a Power Ranger.
Aisha and I spent the weekend volunteering at a local animal shelter. As we went through our day, we came across an abandoned feline cat standing along the side of the road. It was there that we decided to give it a name abbreviated in two letters: P.C aka Park Cat. What we didn't realize at the time that this pet would be disguised as a teenage girl of our age sent out by Rita to spy on us. Arriving from Australia, I first met with Katherine after the Rangers and I defeated Katastrophe in a hard fought fight. She had a bubbly and sweet sense of personality that enamored us right off the bat. The coincidence never occurred to me that Katherine and P.C had some sort of connection. Given her first name and all, that should've indicated a red flag. But things went from bad to worse.
When I became a Power Ranger, Zordon told me that the power coin was an important object that should never be lost or fallen under Evil's hands. It was like the essence of our life force that protects us from enduring serious harm in our physical state. Anyone that possesses our power coin would experience a significant decrease in hydration from our bodies. For the longest time, I've managed to guard my power coin at all times. Sadly, the fear of having that taken away from me would turn out to be a reality.
As my friends and I were fending off the Tengas, something didn't feel right. My head started to become a fatigue almost as if I had been in a car crash. Everything became a big blur that I nearly lost my balance. When I de-morphed, I felt a wave of pink energy sucking the life out of me. I realized that very instant that Rita and Zedd's cronies may have been responsible for stealing my power coin.
Zordon and Alpha monitored me back at the Command Center. Due to my condition, I was barred from helping out my teammates. I had never felt this vulnerable in my life. I couldn't blame myself for what happened at the lake. I had no way of knowing Kat, even despite under a spell, would go off the deep end and snatch my coin. With the Tengas to distract us, it was a cunning strategy on their part. If that wasn't enough, they even went as far as tricking me into thinking they were preying on Kat. With the rest of the rangers preoccupied, someone had to volunteer. If it meant making a sacrifice, so be it. I did not hesitate than to channel my energy into the ninja coin to become the Pink Ninja Ranger.
I confronted the Tengas to ensure they didn't get their hands on Katherine. Being the cronies that they were, it was clear they would not budge. I insisted for her to get to safety just when the fight had gotten underway. By harnessing the power of the crane, I used this opportunity to thwart them off. It seemed as though I had everything under control. They may have been more powerful compared to the Putties. Given my seniority as a Power Ranger, the Tengas had a weakness. Despite my efforts, I would not be so lucky.
As I continued to taunt the Tenga warriors, that moment of déjà vu came back to haunt me. Once more I started to feel nauseous. My eyes were blurry that I couldn't maintain focus on the action. I staggered around the instant I lost balance of my body. It was the worst feeling in the world. Despite this tumultuous ordeal, I had to pull through. But to witness my life force being drained out of me would prove to be too much to handle. The overwhelming state of my condition would lead me into an inevitable blackout. I would be taken hostage as I lied unconscious inside the depths of the Moon Palace.
I was mortified. In my time as a Power Ranger, I've had a fair share of being abducted time and again. Somehow I would manage to figure out a way in freeing myself from the clutches of Evil. This time was different. I was about as vulnerable as a wounded animal with no way of fighting back. It's as if I had been the Sleeping Beauty of having to endure a deep sleep I could barely get out of. Part of me wanted to take action. Even in my physical form, it would take a lot more in me to snap out of it.
As I remained in my current state, I found myself reliving some personal experiences in my life. I wandered aimlessly around my living room home seeing my parents argue. Just to witness this crucial moment up close once again pains me. Ideally, I would do anything possible enough to reconcile - at the least to work something out. Growing up as an only child, they were genuinely great people. My mother is an aspiring artist while my father worked with my Uncle Steve as a flight school instructor. Not very often would I see them together when it came time for dinner.
Dad would tend to work the night shift when it came to his evening lectures. Sometimes he and Steve would have me visit his worksite to sightsee some of the aircrafts displayed. Growing up, I was afraid of flying. I felt like it would be a matter of time before the emergency hatch opens to where I would fall to my death. I screamed and begged not to go. Now the more I look back, it wasn't all that bad. I really have to hand it to the two. Between piloting a plane and a Megazord, it really brought out the confidence in me when it came to operating a vehicle. I channeled my inner pterodactyl that has guided me in every step of the way. For that, I commended her.
As for Mom, she had a profound love for art. She would use her inspiration to express her emotions through her series of drawings. Whether she liked to sketch with her pencil or using an ink brush to paint, it was her way of bestowing her talent to the world. To no surprise, one of my favorite paintings happened to be a drawing of the Power Rangers. Seeing them aligned alongside one another night and day got me into thinking. No matter how gloomy our duties as rangers can be, somehow we managed to fight back. She may not have known I was one of those rangers. It didn't matter. Whether we were superheroes in tights fighting injustice or a local civilian donating food to the homeless, we each have our way of giving back to the community. Her art was an inspiration to many that it would be put up for showcase. It brought a whole new perspective as well as a newfound respect for my mother. The painting has since been on display in the Angel Grove Museum.
When I walked over to confront them, they failed to acknowledge me, not even at the slightest. It didn't make matters any better to spot a reflection of my younger self shedding teardrops that poured down my face. I approached my younger self sitting alongside by the staircase. Although she didn't notice my presence, I went ahead to provide her with comfort. I closed my eyes shaking my head in hopes of draining out all the madness that unfolded. Though my parents may have their differences, the one thing that brought them close together was compassion for their daughter; In other words, love.
That wouldn't be all. Stepping down from a brief flashback experience, I walked into another dream sequence. As I opened the front door of my house, I found myself witnessing the rest of my teammates fighting off against Goldar and Rito. As I stood around the open field of Angel Grove Park, I reached inside my clothes to find my morpher. But then I realized that not only did I not have my power coin, but my ninja coin went missing as well. The two creatures managed to gain the upper hand while the rangers struggled to hold their ground. My heart raced in desperation. I couldn't let them annihilate my friends the way they annihilated to me. Just like the situation with my parents, neither my friends nor the villainous duo acknowledge my presence. Even when I tried to take Goldar down with a kick of my own, my leg went through his chest. I was a ghost begging for attention. No matter what I did, it wouldn't affect the outcome of the battle.
Goldar and Rito snickered. The evil smirk lurked from their faces as they celebrated their victory over the Power Rangers. I watched some of my teammates crouching on the ground defenseless than ever. I shouted with encouragement insisting for them to get back up. As the remaining ranger standing, I rooted for Tommy to turn the complexion around in hopes of destroying the duo once and for all. With Saba on his side, it appeared that was going to be the case. But when things are too good to be true, this battle would not be farther from the truth. Tommy would soon fall victim at the hands of Goldar and his signature saber. I cried out his name insisting for them not to hurt my friends any further. Despite that, the fear of seeing my friends on the brink of destruction was fast approaching. The instant he lunged his saber towards Tommy, I began to realize what had been transpiring was only a dream albeit a terrifying dream.
When I regained consciousness, I found myself back inside the Command Center. Everybody from Billy, Aisha, Rocky, Adam, and Tommy to Zordon and Alpha all watched as they were relieved to see me alive and well. I was terrified to witness my friends suffer at the hands of Evil. Although I was relieved of the fact that they hadn't confiscated my ninja coin, the pink power coin remained somewhere back in the Moon Palace. As ambitious as I was in retrieving what had been stolen from me, with everything that occurred that day, I would be benched from my duty as a Power Ranger. Zordon advised me that if anytime I morphed, my energy would gradually deplete like a battery gone uncharged. It was gutting to hear of the unfortunate news. For the sake of my well being, this move would be for the better. It was one of the rare moments that Zedd and Rita were one step ahead of us. They may possess my power coin but we have something we have that the two fiends lack: Hope.