Tommy
"Alright. I'll see you guys as soon as you land. Just give me a call as soon as you can." I heard Jason on the phone behind me, talking to who I assumed was Rocky. He let out a sigh, dropping his phone on the bed before returning to his position in the chair next to it. I continued my pacing, trying like hell to rack my brain of how this could even be slightly possible. Rita was purified. Everyone knew that. That was one of the main reasons why Zordon died. He gave himself to purify her, Zedd and the rest of the bad guys trying to take over the planet. It was baffling me how she was here now and how she had managed to get passed the security measures in place to get back on Earth without one of the Ranger teams finding out. Since my team founded, I've been in contact with a number of other teams that have been in action. We've formed a council of sort to keep an eye on Earth. Most of the council is made up of teams that are no longer functioning but it's still one way to protect the planet. When something occurs, we reach out to the still active teams, but these instances are far and few between. How did Rita slip through the cracks?
"Rocky, Aisha and Zach will be here in the morning." Jason said, reminding me he was still there. "We'll have to grab them from the airport but at least that's three more of us. Aisha is going to try to get ahold of Adam, so he can get here, and Trini will be flying down tomorrow night. The whole gang will be here."
"Not the whole gang." I said, frowning.
"We're going to get her back, Tommy. We've taken Rita down before. There's no way we can't do it again."
"How the fuck is she back?" I muttered, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Did we miss something? Was she not entirely purified? Was it only temporary?"
"I don't know. We're gonna figure it out though. What did Billy say about the ocean?"
"Something about how our tidal waves seem to be out of the ordinary than they should be. He's going to run some tests on it and see what's going on. Do you think there's a chance that she has Kim on the moon?" He shook his head.
"That's the first thing I thought of. Trini used checked the readings on the moon on her end and nothing living is on it. Where ever she has Kim, it isn't there. She has to be somewhere nearby." I stood up, sticking my hands in my pockets.
"I can't just sit here anymore. I think I'm going to go talk to her roommate. What was her name? Andrea?"
"Yeah. I'll come with. I can use a break from this room. C'mon." Jason took the keys and he drove back over to the campus. Night had fallen now, the rich red and pinks from the sunset gone and replaced with ink black. The moon was full, sitting high in the sky as we drove the highway. My eyes lingered on it, wondering if Kim could be there. If not, where was she? Was there a chance Rita was masking her vitals on the moon? All of my questions made my head hurt and I closed my eyes to try and ebb the pain away.
"Come to me, Tommy." A voice called out in the distance. I stepped forward, the sea of blackness around me making it difficult. My legs felt like pure jelly and each step felt like I would tumble to the ground. Reaching out around me, I tried to grasp something, but nothing was there. The shifting was making my stomach hurt but there was nothing I could do about it. "Tommy…just a little further. You can do it."
"Hello?" I called out, trying to figure out the source of the voice. There was a soft purring noise followed by a light chuckling. I moved forward more, finally seeing a small globe of light in the distance. I tried running for it, but my legs wobbled under me. I nearly stumbled but I was able to stay standing. I felt something heavy hanging at my waist and when I reached down, I felt the familiar feel of the Dragon dagger on my hip. My morpher was in front of me and I realized I was gazing out of the helmet of my green suit. There was a loud banging sound behind me, but I could see what it was. It sounded like metal on metal, the noise bouncing off the walls that seemed to be closing in on me. There was also a slight muffled moan, but I couldn't hear what the voice was saying. It was too far away for me to understand.
"I'll make the pain she caused you go away, Tommy." The voice cooed. "I'll make her pay for what she's done."
"Who are you?" I asked, my voice vibrating around me. I was finally nearing the light, it growing in size as I came closer. I recognized it as a flame, an orange glow coming from it. I stopped in front of it, seeing nothing but the fire. I couldn't even see the source of where it burned.
"Accept it, Tommy. I can give you everything you've ever wanted. I can give you back your powers. For good." I felt myself reach out and hold my hand over the flame. It suddenly turned green and I felt a warmth envelop my entire body. It felt amazing, like something I hadn't felt in years. The strength coursed through my veins and I could have sworn I was able to leap a tall building if I wanted to. A vibrating began in my chest and the sound of my laughter filled my ears until they hurt.
I jumped awake with a start, hearing a yell echoing through at the car as I felt my heart nearly beat out of my chest. Gripping the seat underneath me, I glanced around quickly, trying to figure out where the hell I was. It took nearly a full minute for me to realize I was in the rental car, but Jason was no longer next to me. The car was parked in the parking lot of Kim's building, a street light next to the car draping it with a yellow glow. Running a hand over my face, I was met with sweat that seemed to trickle down the back of my neck and through my t-shirt. I wiped my hand off on my jeans and popped open the car door. The cool night air felt amazing as I gulped for air. I wish I knew what these fucking dreams meant. It wasn't a big deal when I was at home going through them. I didn't have time for it now. It was probably because of everything going on. Shaking my head, I tried to rattle the feeling off.
"Hey." Jason's voice said from my left. Picking my head up, I saw him walking towards the parking lot with a girl around our age next to him. She had long reddish-brown hair and a round face. A pink hoodie with USA printed on it was on her torso and red flannel pajama pants housed her legs, black flips flops on her feet. The pair stopped in front of the car, Jason giving me a confused look. "You okay? You look like you've just seen a ghost."
"Yeah. I'm fine. Why did you leave me in the car?" I asked.
"Figured you could use the sleep. Tommy, this is Andrea. Andrea, this is Tommy." Jason smiled at Andrea as he pointed at me. I held out my hand to her and she shook it gently.
"Wow. It's weird to meet you in person." She stated, eyeing me slightly. I took a step back, wondering what she knew about me. I didn't think Kim was a big talker to people other than Aisha and Trini. Had she told Andrea about our past?
"I asked Andrea about Kim and stuff that might have been going on before she came missing. I thought you might want to hear it yourself." Jason interjected, getting the spotlight off the elephant the seemed to linger in the parking lot.
"Kim told me a few days ago that she thought she saw some weird at the beach. Sometimes, we go there on Sunday mornings when we're off. She went for a run down there and she said that there was something floating in the water. She didn't go out and get it or anything. All she said was that she felt something was off about it. I didn't think anything about it until all those whales died at the same beach." Andrea explained. I raised an eyebrow, my eyes darting to Jason who nodded.
"Did she say what it looked like?" I asked.
"No. Just that she thought it was a log or something first." She replied.
"Did she mention anyone following her or feeling like someone was following her?" Jason asked. Andrea shook her head, hugging her arms around herself.
"No. Not to me, at least. Do you guys have any clue where she might be? I'm really worried about her and so are the girls. It's not like her to just up and go without telling me." Andrea asked, looking between the two of us. Jason gave her a sympathetic smile.
"We'll find her. I promise. Thank you for your help, Andrea." He gestured towards the walkway. She turned to leave but stopped, shifting so she was looking at me.
"I just started here around the time Kim was getting ready to retire from the games. They knew she was going to quit that year and they were looking for someone to fill her shoes. I was too old, but they let me stay on as an assistant coach, hoping that she would accept the position of head coach. She wasn't going to. She had this big plan that she was going to move back home to be with you, you know. She's a private person but in the grand scheme of things, she used to tell me everything. And I do mean everything." She eyed me with an accusing stare. "You fucked her up, royally. I've never seen someone so broken before. For what it's worth, if you're here to find her, you better be doing it for her and not yourself." She shot me a glare before walking off towards the building again. I let out the breath I didn't know I was holding as she disappeared into the door. Jason let out a low whistle, rubbing the back of his head.
"Well…that was helpful at least." He said after a minute. I nodded, feeling lower than I had before. "We going to talk about what she's referring to?"
"Nope." I replied, walking over to the passenger side of the car. I heard the doors locked before I could open it though. Glancing over at Jason, I saw he had the keys in his hands and was giving me an expectant look. "None of that is important right now. We should be getting down to that beach and seeing if we can find what Kim saw."
"Listen. I've been letting this all slide for a while now. For months now, you've been acting like someone took your birthday away. I thought it was the divorce and everything at first but now, I'm thinking it might be something else."
"It's nothing. Unlock the car, Jase." I pulled on the handle, but it was still locked. I growled in my throat, not wanting this to be happening right now. Or at all, really.
"Not until you tell me what is going on."
"What do you want from me?" I asked, my voice raising a bit. He walked over to his side of the car and leaned against the door.
"The truth!" He exclaimed. "You've had this thing going on for forever now and I'm sick of it. Does it have to do with Kim? Did something happen? You and she have been acting weird and I just want to know what's going on. Was there another fight I don't know about? Cause that is nothing new for you two. What is it? What is going on that's so bad you can't tell me?"
"Jason, I-." I was interrupted by a blood curdling scream, coming from the direction of the door Andrea had just walked through. Jason and I both took off running towards it. The glass doorway was brightly lit, a flashing light seeming to fill the area. I recognized it as a flickering fluorescent bulb. Jason reached the door first, flinging it open. I followed closing behind him, seeing Andrea standing on one side of the lobby. She was trembling, covering her mouth with her hand. Tear filled eyes looked over towards the security desk.
"Jesus." Jason hissed, turning to see what she was looking at. Over his shoulder, I saw the slumped over body of George, the doorman. Blood was everywhere, and his body seemed to be almost chopped in two from the belly button. The organs that were supposed to be inside of his body was oozing out, his small intestine drooping on the floor by the wheel of the chair Jason had only sat in hours ago. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as the reality of what I was looking at seeped in. I quickly took a fighting stance, looking around for the source of who could have done this. There was no one else in the lobby though, the late hour meaning the girls upstairs would be sleeping.
"I walked in and he…he…he…" Andrea spoke but she was unable to finish her sentence. Jason walked over to her, careful to not step into any of the blood that was pooling on the floor.
"Andrea, I need you to go up the stairs and make sure none of the girls try to come downstairs." He said, gripping her shoulders. "Tommy and I will call the police. Can you do that?" She nodded, tears streaming down her face. Quickly, she darted up the staircase, her steps making the wood creak under her weight. Jason walked toward George, kneeling down to get a better look.
"Goldar." I said softly, knowing all too well there was only one sword that I could think of that could dismember a person like that. This was his traditional move too. I had seen it numerous times over the years we fought against him. "He could still be here somewhere."
"I'm going to check out the rest of the building. You check the outside." Jason said. "Call me if you see anything." Nodding, we went our separate ways. He darted up the stairs where Andrea had gone, and I went out the front door. Nothing seemed to be moving out here, the walk way stretching around the adjacent building and between the two of them. It was the same area where Kim had been taken. I recognized it from the video. Slowly, I walked along the side walk as I checked for any signs of life. As I came around the corner of the building, I saw nothing but palm trees and a high way below, just beyond a fence. There wasn't a soul around, a few lights on above my head as girls were beginning to stir from the activity in the lobby. Sighing, I pulled my phone out of my pocket and dialed 911.
"911. What is the nature of your emergency?" A woman's voice said on the other line.
"There's been an attack at the Schmidt Gym. I believe the door man has been murdered." I replied.
"Do you know who attacked him?" She asked. I could hear voices and typing behind her.
"No." I lied. "It's bad though. I don't think he's alive."
"We'll send out a unit to you immediately." She stated. "Sir, can I have some information about you?"
"My name is Tommy Oliver. My friend Jason Scott and I were here trying to find our friend. We heard someone scream and that's when we found him." I explained. Something from the corner of my eye caught my attention. I noticed a picnic table was set up in the corner of the small patio area. On top of it, there was what looked like a tablet. The screen was flashing a bright white glow and I could see something moving on it. Walking towards it, I saw the crest for Rita's family in the middle of the screen.
"Tommy, are you there?" The 911 operator asked in my ear, but I ignored it. Picking up the tablet, I touched the screen. It faded to black before a video began to play. It showed Kim, sitting in the middle of what I recognized as the throne room in Rita's castle. I had seen it too many times for my own liking. I could make out what looked like Goldar's arm behind her, gripping the back of her head to make her look up towards the camera.
"My name is Kimberly Hart." She said through gritted teeth. "Rita Repulsa has taken me prisoner at the Moon Palace." She let out a gasp, her head trying to shake as she looked to the left of the screen. "I won't say it." She whispered, tears filling her eyes. One slid down her cheek as she closed her eyes. Slowly, she opened them and shifted them back towards the camera. "If Tommy Oliver doesn't turn himself over to Rita in 24 hours, she will murder me." Kim gave a pleading look and I felt it right down to my core. Off in the distance, I heard the sound of sirens as the police were racing to the scene. Tucking the tablet into the back of my shirt, I headed back to the lobby.