Requiem For A Ranger
Dedicated in the memory of Thuy Trang, may the Power always protect her
The footfalls were so silent, so hollow, that the cemetery might well have claimed the mourners as well as the dead and buried. No one had the courage to speak out over the bitter cries of the women, or the stifled sobs of the men who tried to no avail to remain strong. It was too hard to contemplate what a voice would sound like after the world had taken away the lilt from the notes.
What had brought them together had been happiness, and now what saw them assemble before the breaking of fellowship was a bitter goodbye for one who's time had come too soon.
Jason Lee Scott walked arm-in-arm with Emily. Jason had bought a last bouquet of yellow roses for his friend. He'd known Trini since they were small children in the second grade still learning to read and add. Even then she'd been so full of life, so beautiful and promising. She'd smiled and given him a warmth in his heart that he'd never imagined could go out.
"Goodbye, Trini," he whispered, feeling the tears starting to break from his eyes and pour down his cheeks. He could no longer hold the dam back with his strength of will. Trini had touched him in so many ways.
Zack Taylor walked next to the casket and brought with him one of Trini's precious dolls. He set it beside her. Angela supported him as he took the final plunge and walked away. "I'll always remember what you taught me about life and about myself, Trini," he promised. "I'll never forget you."
Tommy and Kim followed next with Trini's black belt and her favorite book of Buddhist prayers. "I know that there was a special place in heaven waiting for you when you got there," Kim said quietly.
Tommy laid the belt beside Trini's still form. "You were the most elegant martial artist I've ever known, Trini. You inspired such grace and respect. I'll always treasure what you gave me."
They walked away, hand-in-hand, feeling the breeze bring a sense of closure they hadn't thought possible. It was as if she was there, watching them and giving them the bright smile that they longed to see.
Billy came beside Trini's body and laid a necklace in her open hand. "You were the only person in my life who really saw me for who I am, Trini. When you looked at me you didn't see some insecure brainiac, you saw me. Thank you." Cestria held out her open hand and he took it carefully. He looked one last time at her peaceful face and turned his back. He took one step, then another, and another.
Rocky and Aisha came next, holding each a flower.
"I wish I had words to express what I feel right now," Aisha told her. "I wish I could tell you how much it means to me to have taken your place, Trini. You gave me this family and for that I will be eternally in your debt."
"Don't forget us, Trini," Rocky said hopelessly. "I know I won't forget you. We'll see each other again someday."
"Goodbye, Trini," Adam followed. "The spirits of all of us are with you right now. All you need do is talk to us and we'll listen." He wished that he could hear her voice reassuring him again as she had the moment they'd given her rest.
Tanya laid down a lily. "We'll never forget your sacrifice, what you did for us was the most selfless act I'll ever know. You are my inspiration, Trini." Goodbye.
The rest of the mourners walked slowly in procession each with a word of prayer, a goodbye, a thank you. The wind was coated in thick tears and beautiful words that were spoken from heartbroken lips.
And then Richie came. His last goodbye to his lover. "I remember meeting you sophomore year. You were the shining star that made Angel Grove heaven for me. When you moved away I thought I'd never see the sun again."
His ex-wife nodded quietly, holding their son's hand in hers. She came forward and hugged Richie lightly.
"Goodbye, love. I hope that I can make you as proud of me as I am of you."
"May the Power protect you," was the wispy chant that followed and was carried off by the breeze to the beyond. They'd finally said goodbye and their story had changed pages to a new and blank leaf. The could write it however they all wished. There was the dark path of pain and remorse, or the white path of redemption and hope and love.
They all knew which road Trini was taking them toward. She lead them all with outstretched arms cast in gold and silver, her hair of black pearls and her eyes of diamond. She would not let them wallow in the loss they all felt. They would live, and go on to do greater things than they could imagine.
The path was obscured beyond a few steps by large green vines that they could easily brush away with a few steps. It was time.
Take me away, the voices beckoned.
Silently they all departed, one solid mass washing away the pain like a great wave. Leaving flowers in their wake they went on in the way of the soldier, the hero, the human being. Blood was washed away by love, pain washed away by a dizzying ecstasy for life, hope conquered fear. The sun reigned down over the ruins of Angel Grove where pillar by pillar it would return to life.
Children played in the park with curly dogs chasing them. Men painted the courthouse with a new cheery white coat that covered all the ash and smoke. The smell of fresh cut grass wafted through the city followed by the salty sea.
The world would begin again and the broken bones and wilted flora would grow back stronger and more alive than ever.
Zordon watched over them, feeling for the first time that no ounce of doubt clouded the minds of his beloved Power Rangers. They had fought and survived together as one force that he now knew was unstoppable. Evil might tear them apart through death, but they would still be linked by mind and body. No amount of hardship or span of time would separate them.
He felt at last that it was his time to return to the stars, to the heaven rest he'd waited for for so long. Goodbye, Power Rangers he said in his most heartfelt voice. The world no longer needed him, no longer required his presence. He felt weightless and free and at once was gone from the world of Earth and the stars beyond.
Shayla smiled up, feeling his great energy pass over the Animaria bringing with it a new wealth of life. Demetria gave one last sigh and returned too to the world where she had been born long ago where the fight against Evil would one day call her.
It could not have been a more perfect day to let go, to begin again. The sun had risen perfectly in an arc of golden fire that lit up the sky like a stroke of paint on a white canvas. The waves from the shore brought with them a cool and comforting breeze that spoke of peaceful days to come. There would be no more darkness or despair for a time.
Jason looked at the pictures of her all laid out in the chapel and knew now that it was not his fault that death had claimed her. In the battle between good and evil there was sacrifice. He was honored to have witnessed her sacrifice, no matter how difficult it was to accept.
Every dinosaur had eventually fallen to the changing Earth, and so had, at last, the powers that had made him a hero. He had to be a different kind of hero now, and he'd already taken it upon himself to pave that road. He could still hear the cry of the T-Rex in his ears, feel the heat against his face. That spirit would never die.
It would not do them any good to weep any more tears for the lost, nor carry the weight of them. It was time to celebrate life, not condemn death for existing in the end.
"No more shadows," he whispered. "I can't see any more shadows, Emily. It's all so bright and pure."
Emily smiled up at him. She could see in his face that the man she'd known before war and strife had returned in a way she hadn't thought possible. He was peeking out over the horizon like the sleepy moon, testing the waters only to find them warm and inviting.
Kimberly looked out across the grass at the hills where Trini had liked to go to meditate. She could hear the roar of the sabertooth tiger and the soft tones of her voice mixed in a heavenly melody that would reverberate until the world was changed beyond recognition.
"I can't remember ever seeing the world so clearly," Billy remarked, scanning the skyline looking at the wispy clouds.
"It's as if heaven's spilt a little glory for all of us," Zack said with awe.
Tommy wrapped his arm around Kimberly's waist. "We did a good thing," he told her. "We did something remarkable here."
Adam touched Tanya's nose. "Hey," he said warmly. "You're smiling."
She looked back at him. "I just feel so..."
"Free."
Rocky joined them with Aisha, their hands entwined lovingly.
"It's like this weight has been lifted off my shoulders, like I could do anything."
"Like the world has forgiven us," Kat calmly added, "For all our mistakes."
The day was full and then it waned like life, every facet more beautiful still until the end.
Candles burned brightly against the sky in an elegy. A requiem for a ranger lost but not in vain.
This day would never end, never fail to burn on in their minds for all eternity. They breathed with one lung, pumped with one heart, thought with one mind. For that moment in time they could hear each others' thoughts as clearly as if they had been spoken with words.
The music of the night cascaded in their ears until all grief had washed away and they awoke, each, to a bright new dawn.