Disclaimer: Do I really have to keep doing this? We all know I will never
own them, and I'm running out of funny ways to say it!
Author's note: I forgot to mention, that Turbo never happened.
"Kim, do you read?" a voice said over her communicator. It wasn't really hers; she borrowed it from Kat, figuring it was pointless to modify another communicator.
"Yeah Andros, I read. Can you see me?" she responded.
"Check, you ready?" he asked.
"As I'll ever be." Kim sighed. "Let's get this over with."
She stood out side the same cave Kat had, glancing back at the luscious forest behind her. She exhaled, and made her way inside, pulling out her flashlight early under Kat's advisement. The darkness closed in around her, and Kim paused listening to the dripping water. She turned off the flashlight, instantly feeling more at home in the blackness she stood in, and continued forward. Dim light lit the pocket the narrow hallway opened up into, and Kim noticed the square of neon light in the corner. She walked over to it and looked up at the stone door, smiling faintly at the crest displayed on it. She turned her attention back to the modern device.
"Billy would love this thing." She grinned.
"State your name." A voice announced. Kim jumped, not recognizing the voice. She frowned curiously, but did as she was told.
"Kimberly Ann Hart."
"Place your hand on the key pad." The voice continued. Kim looked around the dark cove, but did as she was told. The keypad went green beneath her hand, and the voice continued.
"Access granted. Please enter phase one."
The giant stone doors slowly slid open, splitting the crest in two, and revealing a shimmering pond surrounded by a wide dirt ledge. Kim moved to enter, instinctively glancing back over her shoulder as she did so.
"Please place your personal belongings down and enter the pool. Do not come up for air during the duration of the memory or you the quest will be over. Are you ready Kimberly Ann Hart?" The voice asked tonelessly.
"I guess so." Kim said softly, placing her pack and communicator on the ledge. She removed her shoes and her sweater and sat at the water's edge, testing the water with her feet. "Oh!" she cried, "It's cold!"
"Are you ready Kimberly Ann Hart?" the voice asked again.
Kim huffed and slid into the pool, wading out into the middle. She took a couple of deep breaths as she tread water. "We're here Kim, all the way." She heard Kat say from her communicator.
Kim said a silent prayer and took a deep breath, submerging herself beneath the glistening surface. She opened he eyes, suddenly feeling the absence of the surrounding water, and opened her mouth to speak, but snapped it shut when bubbles of air came out.
Weird. She thought, looking around the familiar area she now stood in. I know this place! This is Angel Grove Park! She smiled. She glanced towards the lake she stood before, and did a double take when she spotted two very familiar people. That's me and Aisha! She was so distracted with seeing herself and her best friend, that she didn't notice the figure approaching from behind her. When she finally did notice the girl, she got a fright. The girl was staring at her.but wasn't doing anything about her presence. Kim soon realized that, eerie as it was, the girl before her, whom she now recognized as a younger Kat, was staring at the Kimberly out on the lake. Invisible Kim just happened to be standing in her line of sight. Once she got over the fact that she couldn't be seen, she noticed the look displayed on Kat's face as she stared at the brunette's younger self. Pure hate. Dwelling a moment in just staring, Kat looked just scary. She glared at Kimberly as she and Aisha tried to pilot the huge water bicycle they'd rented. Tommy and the other guys swam around the two, and invisible Kimberly noticed how Kat's glare seemed directly aimed at the way Tommy flirted with the brunette. Before Kim had a chance to blink, Kat had switched her focus to a backpack that lay on the pick nick table she stood beside. Kat was digging through it, searching for something. This is when Kat stole my power coin. Kim realized. Her stomach muscles tightened, hoping beyond hope that what followed would be a twisted, happier version of what she remembered.
Kat pulled out a picture from the bottom of the blue bag, and Kim moved to see what it was. It showed her and Tommy holding hands. She remembered the day it was taken. It was her and Tommy's one-month anniversary and he'd taken her out for dinner, and a walk in the park. While they walked, Tommy asked a stranger to take their picture. Kim was so lost in her memory; she only just caught Kat pocketing the image. So that's where that went. She frowned mentally. Kat turned back to the bag and dug around in it some more before finding what she wanted. She pulled out Kim's power coin, and smiled as she turned it in her hand. She stuck it in her pocket with the photo, and looked around for intruders. She then noticed another bag on the table: Aisha's. She was about to repeat the process with the yellow rangers things, when Bulk and Skull walked up, dressed in police uniforms. I wonder if they're still in the force. Kim thought as the two led Kat away from the table. Kim frowned and turned back to the lack. She knew all too well what came next. No! She breathed mentally.
A swarm of Tenga's appeared on the small beach, just like they had on that fateful day, and the citizen's of Angel Grove fled. All but six. She watched the fight progress, never taking her eyes off herself as she noticed the weakness beginning.
"Tommy!" she heard herself call, as four Tenga's surrounded her. The white ninja ranger came dashing to her rescue and fought off the foes. As soon as they were defeated, Kim saw her legs give way and she fell to the ground, her suit fading as she did Tommy called to her in worry. He got separated from her, and he and the others took care of the remaining Tenga's, keeping their attention away from Kimberly. When the threat was over, Tommy powered down and rushed to her again.
"Are you alright? What happened?" he asked, his voice thick with worry.
"I-I'm a little dizzy. I think I need to sit down." Her former self sighed.
Not again!
Tommy led her over to the table and Kim went to her bag in search of water, and her power coin. She needed to hold it, make sure her worst fear at the time, wasn't coming true. She watched herself pale when the realization hit.
"My power coin is gone!" she cried, frantically searching the cluttered bag. Her friends' concerned glances escaped her vision, as she noticed a flash of pink on her hand. She glanced down slowly at it, trying to wish it away, but what she saw were pink streaks of energy swimming around her arms.
"We've got to get to the Command Center!" Tommy cried, pulling a distraught Kimberly to her feet. He hugged her close and activated his communicator simultaneously with his team. They disappeared in their respective colours and formed in the power structure Tommy had spoken of. Invisible Kim was suddenly transported to the Command Center, her surroundings blurring and fading like running water until she was where she supposed to be. She saw herself standing next to Tommy, swaying considerably. She wasn't listening to what Zordon was saying; she could only focus on herself, as her body suddenly fainted into her muscular boyfriend.
Why did it have to be me? She thought softly. The rangers suddenly dematerialized, and she was met with herself. She lay on a bed in the Command Center, just waking up. Alpha was trying to get her to lay back down as she stubbornly rose to meet the images of Kat surrounded by Tenga's on the viewing globe.
"Zordon, please I have to help her. It's my duty as a ranger. The others need to take care of Rita's latest monster, I need to take care of this." She pleaded, looking up at the floating image of her mentor.
Zordon finally granted her permission, and she teleported to where Kat was stranded. Before she knew it, she was there, watching herself fight off the purple birds, and losing fast. She struggled so hard to beat them, and save her friend, but she fell quickly and was taken prisoner. Kat had betrayed her.
Why!?
"Oh god Kim, I'm sorry." Kat whispered aboard the Megaship. She and the other rangers watched helpless as Kim relived losing her powers to evil.
Back in Kim's memory, she was now in Zedd's dark dimension, her powers being slowly drained from her unconscious body. Kim blinked, a thought suddenly occurring to her.
How can I hold my breath this long? She asked no one. She was startled when the voice she'd heard back in the cave answered her.
Your heart rate has been slowed to ensure your safety during your memory. It said.
Kim frowned mentally. If that's true, the why do you have the rule about not being able to come up for breath?
Coming up for air disrupts the flow of the memory to the human eye, and once it has begun to run, it is only able to run once. The voice explained. Some people are so afraid that they will die, however, that they come up for air.
Why are they so afraid of dying? Their heart rate has been slowed enough to prevent it. Kim asked.
Fear that one will die is greater than the fear of failure. The voice answered.
Kim looked down at her body as it was rotated on the machine she was hooked up to. No matter how bad this gets, I'm not going to fail. I'll die trying, not giving up. She thought determinedly.
For Tommy Oliver's sake, I hope you succeed Kimberly Ann Hart. With that, the voice was gone. Kim frowned at the last comment, wondering how a computer, or so she guessed it was, could hope. Either way, she agreed.
*** The rangers watched in awe of Kim as her memory continued. They watched as Tommy fought Goldar, but noticed that the former pink ranger was focused on something else.
*** Kimberly could hear the thoughts from her younger self as she lay revolving in the background of Tommy's fight. Kim stood behind the table, her energy focused on her body. "I can hear Tommy." She thought softly. "I hope he wins. I can feel myself.fading.Tommy, hurry.not much.time."
Hurry Tommy, not much time left. Kimberly thought, echoing her past as she watched herself sadly. She looked up and watched Tommy finally defeating the gold monkey. Once he was gone, her love ran to her, and as he did, time for Kim seemed to slow almost to a crawl. She watched as her shining white knight ran towards her. She could read his face, even though it was hidden by his helmet. Somehow, she could see through the dark visor. When he finally reached her, she could see the raw emotions on her beloved's face. The fear of losing her, the love, the sadness, the anger. She knew that he loved her more than anything.then. She had no idea how he felt now, but she still felt the same. She could see how sad and angry he was at what had been done to her. She could feel the vengeance he wanted against his former empress. Then, he did something she never expected, something that took her completely off guard as he carried her out of the gates of hell: he looked at her. For a split second, she saw a look of hope on his face, a look that said there was still a chance for them. For that very brief moment in time, she believed it. She felt like she could do anything. She latched onto that feeling, grasped it as though it was the end of her life. She held onto it as long and as hard as she could, but soon only a fraction remained. Then, he was gone, and time sped up again. Tommy disappeared through the portal with Kim in his arms, back to life.back to the future that lay ahead. As the memory disintegrated, and she found herself surrounded by water again, she remembered how sometimes she wished she had died that day. Just so she wouldn't have to leave, to go to him, in Florida.in hell. Her body jolted as her heart rate returned to normal and her lungs cried out for breath. Her eyes snapped open and she scrambled for the surface as fast as her limbs would take her. She burst through the smooth surface and inhaled as deep as she could. She felt like she had broken through a wall of ice, broken back into life. She regrouped herself, quickly remembering her surroundings, and felt her control over her body returning. She swan quickly to the pool wall, hearing faint voices in the distance as she gripped it. She shook her head, dismissing the disorientation, and realized that the rangers were trying to get her attention.
"Kim, come in! Answer me, are you okay?!"
She jumped out of the pool as fast as her weak limbs would carry her and landed on her stomach, reaching for the communicator. Gasping for breath, she pushed the button and answered her friends.
"I'm here. I'm okay."
She heard the sighs of relief as Kim confirmed what they hoped. An awkward silence followed. Kim frowned.
"Guys, I'm fine. Any change in Tommy?"
"No nothing. I, uh, I'm sorry Kim. We saw the entire thing.heard the entire thing. It must have been horrible." Andros said sympathetically.
"Look," Kim said irritably, "I'm. fine. I don't need pity; it's in the past. No sweat." she sighed, and sat up to gather her things. "That's one down and three to go." With that, she ended transmission, and stood to face the next test.
Author's note: I forgot to mention, that Turbo never happened.
"Kim, do you read?" a voice said over her communicator. It wasn't really hers; she borrowed it from Kat, figuring it was pointless to modify another communicator.
"Yeah Andros, I read. Can you see me?" she responded.
"Check, you ready?" he asked.
"As I'll ever be." Kim sighed. "Let's get this over with."
She stood out side the same cave Kat had, glancing back at the luscious forest behind her. She exhaled, and made her way inside, pulling out her flashlight early under Kat's advisement. The darkness closed in around her, and Kim paused listening to the dripping water. She turned off the flashlight, instantly feeling more at home in the blackness she stood in, and continued forward. Dim light lit the pocket the narrow hallway opened up into, and Kim noticed the square of neon light in the corner. She walked over to it and looked up at the stone door, smiling faintly at the crest displayed on it. She turned her attention back to the modern device.
"Billy would love this thing." She grinned.
"State your name." A voice announced. Kim jumped, not recognizing the voice. She frowned curiously, but did as she was told.
"Kimberly Ann Hart."
"Place your hand on the key pad." The voice continued. Kim looked around the dark cove, but did as she was told. The keypad went green beneath her hand, and the voice continued.
"Access granted. Please enter phase one."
The giant stone doors slowly slid open, splitting the crest in two, and revealing a shimmering pond surrounded by a wide dirt ledge. Kim moved to enter, instinctively glancing back over her shoulder as she did so.
"Please place your personal belongings down and enter the pool. Do not come up for air during the duration of the memory or you the quest will be over. Are you ready Kimberly Ann Hart?" The voice asked tonelessly.
"I guess so." Kim said softly, placing her pack and communicator on the ledge. She removed her shoes and her sweater and sat at the water's edge, testing the water with her feet. "Oh!" she cried, "It's cold!"
"Are you ready Kimberly Ann Hart?" the voice asked again.
Kim huffed and slid into the pool, wading out into the middle. She took a couple of deep breaths as she tread water. "We're here Kim, all the way." She heard Kat say from her communicator.
Kim said a silent prayer and took a deep breath, submerging herself beneath the glistening surface. She opened he eyes, suddenly feeling the absence of the surrounding water, and opened her mouth to speak, but snapped it shut when bubbles of air came out.
Weird. She thought, looking around the familiar area she now stood in. I know this place! This is Angel Grove Park! She smiled. She glanced towards the lake she stood before, and did a double take when she spotted two very familiar people. That's me and Aisha! She was so distracted with seeing herself and her best friend, that she didn't notice the figure approaching from behind her. When she finally did notice the girl, she got a fright. The girl was staring at her.but wasn't doing anything about her presence. Kim soon realized that, eerie as it was, the girl before her, whom she now recognized as a younger Kat, was staring at the Kimberly out on the lake. Invisible Kim just happened to be standing in her line of sight. Once she got over the fact that she couldn't be seen, she noticed the look displayed on Kat's face as she stared at the brunette's younger self. Pure hate. Dwelling a moment in just staring, Kat looked just scary. She glared at Kimberly as she and Aisha tried to pilot the huge water bicycle they'd rented. Tommy and the other guys swam around the two, and invisible Kimberly noticed how Kat's glare seemed directly aimed at the way Tommy flirted with the brunette. Before Kim had a chance to blink, Kat had switched her focus to a backpack that lay on the pick nick table she stood beside. Kat was digging through it, searching for something. This is when Kat stole my power coin. Kim realized. Her stomach muscles tightened, hoping beyond hope that what followed would be a twisted, happier version of what she remembered.
Kat pulled out a picture from the bottom of the blue bag, and Kim moved to see what it was. It showed her and Tommy holding hands. She remembered the day it was taken. It was her and Tommy's one-month anniversary and he'd taken her out for dinner, and a walk in the park. While they walked, Tommy asked a stranger to take their picture. Kim was so lost in her memory; she only just caught Kat pocketing the image. So that's where that went. She frowned mentally. Kat turned back to the bag and dug around in it some more before finding what she wanted. She pulled out Kim's power coin, and smiled as she turned it in her hand. She stuck it in her pocket with the photo, and looked around for intruders. She then noticed another bag on the table: Aisha's. She was about to repeat the process with the yellow rangers things, when Bulk and Skull walked up, dressed in police uniforms. I wonder if they're still in the force. Kim thought as the two led Kat away from the table. Kim frowned and turned back to the lack. She knew all too well what came next. No! She breathed mentally.
A swarm of Tenga's appeared on the small beach, just like they had on that fateful day, and the citizen's of Angel Grove fled. All but six. She watched the fight progress, never taking her eyes off herself as she noticed the weakness beginning.
"Tommy!" she heard herself call, as four Tenga's surrounded her. The white ninja ranger came dashing to her rescue and fought off the foes. As soon as they were defeated, Kim saw her legs give way and she fell to the ground, her suit fading as she did Tommy called to her in worry. He got separated from her, and he and the others took care of the remaining Tenga's, keeping their attention away from Kimberly. When the threat was over, Tommy powered down and rushed to her again.
"Are you alright? What happened?" he asked, his voice thick with worry.
"I-I'm a little dizzy. I think I need to sit down." Her former self sighed.
Not again!
Tommy led her over to the table and Kim went to her bag in search of water, and her power coin. She needed to hold it, make sure her worst fear at the time, wasn't coming true. She watched herself pale when the realization hit.
"My power coin is gone!" she cried, frantically searching the cluttered bag. Her friends' concerned glances escaped her vision, as she noticed a flash of pink on her hand. She glanced down slowly at it, trying to wish it away, but what she saw were pink streaks of energy swimming around her arms.
"We've got to get to the Command Center!" Tommy cried, pulling a distraught Kimberly to her feet. He hugged her close and activated his communicator simultaneously with his team. They disappeared in their respective colours and formed in the power structure Tommy had spoken of. Invisible Kim was suddenly transported to the Command Center, her surroundings blurring and fading like running water until she was where she supposed to be. She saw herself standing next to Tommy, swaying considerably. She wasn't listening to what Zordon was saying; she could only focus on herself, as her body suddenly fainted into her muscular boyfriend.
Why did it have to be me? She thought softly. The rangers suddenly dematerialized, and she was met with herself. She lay on a bed in the Command Center, just waking up. Alpha was trying to get her to lay back down as she stubbornly rose to meet the images of Kat surrounded by Tenga's on the viewing globe.
"Zordon, please I have to help her. It's my duty as a ranger. The others need to take care of Rita's latest monster, I need to take care of this." She pleaded, looking up at the floating image of her mentor.
Zordon finally granted her permission, and she teleported to where Kat was stranded. Before she knew it, she was there, watching herself fight off the purple birds, and losing fast. She struggled so hard to beat them, and save her friend, but she fell quickly and was taken prisoner. Kat had betrayed her.
Why!?
"Oh god Kim, I'm sorry." Kat whispered aboard the Megaship. She and the other rangers watched helpless as Kim relived losing her powers to evil.
Back in Kim's memory, she was now in Zedd's dark dimension, her powers being slowly drained from her unconscious body. Kim blinked, a thought suddenly occurring to her.
How can I hold my breath this long? She asked no one. She was startled when the voice she'd heard back in the cave answered her.
Your heart rate has been slowed to ensure your safety during your memory. It said.
Kim frowned mentally. If that's true, the why do you have the rule about not being able to come up for breath?
Coming up for air disrupts the flow of the memory to the human eye, and once it has begun to run, it is only able to run once. The voice explained. Some people are so afraid that they will die, however, that they come up for air.
Why are they so afraid of dying? Their heart rate has been slowed enough to prevent it. Kim asked.
Fear that one will die is greater than the fear of failure. The voice answered.
Kim looked down at her body as it was rotated on the machine she was hooked up to. No matter how bad this gets, I'm not going to fail. I'll die trying, not giving up. She thought determinedly.
For Tommy Oliver's sake, I hope you succeed Kimberly Ann Hart. With that, the voice was gone. Kim frowned at the last comment, wondering how a computer, or so she guessed it was, could hope. Either way, she agreed.
*** The rangers watched in awe of Kim as her memory continued. They watched as Tommy fought Goldar, but noticed that the former pink ranger was focused on something else.
*** Kimberly could hear the thoughts from her younger self as she lay revolving in the background of Tommy's fight. Kim stood behind the table, her energy focused on her body. "I can hear Tommy." She thought softly. "I hope he wins. I can feel myself.fading.Tommy, hurry.not much.time."
Hurry Tommy, not much time left. Kimberly thought, echoing her past as she watched herself sadly. She looked up and watched Tommy finally defeating the gold monkey. Once he was gone, her love ran to her, and as he did, time for Kim seemed to slow almost to a crawl. She watched as her shining white knight ran towards her. She could read his face, even though it was hidden by his helmet. Somehow, she could see through the dark visor. When he finally reached her, she could see the raw emotions on her beloved's face. The fear of losing her, the love, the sadness, the anger. She knew that he loved her more than anything.then. She had no idea how he felt now, but she still felt the same. She could see how sad and angry he was at what had been done to her. She could feel the vengeance he wanted against his former empress. Then, he did something she never expected, something that took her completely off guard as he carried her out of the gates of hell: he looked at her. For a split second, she saw a look of hope on his face, a look that said there was still a chance for them. For that very brief moment in time, she believed it. She felt like she could do anything. She latched onto that feeling, grasped it as though it was the end of her life. She held onto it as long and as hard as she could, but soon only a fraction remained. Then, he was gone, and time sped up again. Tommy disappeared through the portal with Kim in his arms, back to life.back to the future that lay ahead. As the memory disintegrated, and she found herself surrounded by water again, she remembered how sometimes she wished she had died that day. Just so she wouldn't have to leave, to go to him, in Florida.in hell. Her body jolted as her heart rate returned to normal and her lungs cried out for breath. Her eyes snapped open and she scrambled for the surface as fast as her limbs would take her. She burst through the smooth surface and inhaled as deep as she could. She felt like she had broken through a wall of ice, broken back into life. She regrouped herself, quickly remembering her surroundings, and felt her control over her body returning. She swan quickly to the pool wall, hearing faint voices in the distance as she gripped it. She shook her head, dismissing the disorientation, and realized that the rangers were trying to get her attention.
"Kim, come in! Answer me, are you okay?!"
She jumped out of the pool as fast as her weak limbs would carry her and landed on her stomach, reaching for the communicator. Gasping for breath, she pushed the button and answered her friends.
"I'm here. I'm okay."
She heard the sighs of relief as Kim confirmed what they hoped. An awkward silence followed. Kim frowned.
"Guys, I'm fine. Any change in Tommy?"
"No nothing. I, uh, I'm sorry Kim. We saw the entire thing.heard the entire thing. It must have been horrible." Andros said sympathetically.
"Look," Kim said irritably, "I'm. fine. I don't need pity; it's in the past. No sweat." she sighed, and sat up to gather her things. "That's one down and three to go." With that, she ended transmission, and stood to face the next test.