Mighty Morphin Power Rangers by Heather Ray (books to read in a lifetime .TXT) 📕

Sunday, February 9, 1997

She was no longer Kimberly Ann Hart. She knew that now, and she knew she could never go back to being that young woman, so eager to face the new day, so full of happiness and energy, and love for her family and friends.

The Avatar entered her new bedchamber after an extensive tour of the magnificent lunar compound of Hecate. The palace was majestic and awe-inspiring, completely surrounded by a dome that both encased the complex in a pocket of air and controlled climate, as well as shielded it from the prying eyes of either satellites or human explorers. She took a miniscule measure of pride in the fact that she was most likely the first human being to ever see the wonders of the palace.

Just outside the shimmering pearl and marble construction was a surrounding lake of water, which sparkled with silver dust. Then, there was an expanse of greenery, with flower beds, orchards, and a lush forest. The Avatar knew that, in her past life she would have longed to explore the magnificent fields, yet she understood that she didn't have time to dilly-dally any longer.

Within the palace was also an incredible sight. Constructed with marble, jewels, and silver trimmings, it shone as brightly as the stars, or as newly fallen snow in winter. With elegant tapestries, large libraries, and a massive armory, it was a storehouse of knowledge in history, the arcane arts, and combat. Also, with sturdy walls, high ceilings, and an air of magic throughout, the Avatar was certain she would be able to practice her skills quite freely, without fear of damaging anything.

The tour of the grounds took the entire morning, at least, based on Pacific Time, which she kept measure of quite carefully. She knew that, come midnight this evening, her mission as Guardian of the Chosen would commence. And when would it end? That was a question she almost feared ponder, for until it ended, she would continue to be simply the Avatar.

Kimberly Hart would simply cease to exist.

Closing the door behind her, the Avatar slowly walked into the large chamber, noticing her reflection as she passed the full length mirror. Once again, she was dressed in the classical garb of the Huntress, with the strange silver glitter that covered her skin, and the silver orbs that served as her eyes. It didn't take long for her to determine that the silver glitter acted as a form of body armor, increasing the density of her skin to protect it from harm. As she ran her fingers along her exposed cheek, she realized she could barely feel anything. Her skin looked as smooth and baby-soft as it was just yesterday, yet she couldn't really tell how supple it was. True, sturdy skin was far more practical, yet it wasn't very luxuriant.

The same could be said about her hair. As the Huntress, her hair was piled in an elegant display of long ringlets, with silky flowers woven into the style. It was very elegant and graceful, surely a style that would have won plenty of compliments and admiration during a high school prom. Also, her hair maintained its incredible luster, shimmering now with silver glitter just like her skin. Yet, she realized quite quickly that she couldn't run her fingers through her soft tresses, as she used to. Her hair was very resistant, and maintained its perfect arrangement despite anything. She truly missed the breezy, flowing locks she had taken no small amount of pride in.

Finally were her eyes. In her new form, she knew she could see in even the darkest of nights, and discern forms far further than she could in her old form, even with binoculars. They were infinitely useful to a warrior, and a Huntress. Still, the silver orbs that stared back at her in the mirror gave the young woman chills. They seemed so... unnatural, as if she were some kind of Grecian statue rather than a living person. They were cold and inexpressive. They reflected the light easily enough, but they weren't as bright as her simple brown eyes. Brown eyes were plain and common, yet they shone with energy and passion. These eyes were as cold as the Moon itself. As beautiful as gemstones, and just as static.

Overall, her appearance was graceful, majestic, and wondrously beautiful. She was a statue, fit to stand in any fine art museum. She felt just as empty and lifeless as any statue.

Her body almost trembling in remorse for what she had sacrificed, Kimberly brushed her numb fingers along the pearl brooch pinned to her pure white garment. In a ripple of silver energy, the costume vanished, returning her to her nightgown she wore the previous night. She gazed into the mirror once again, anxious to see how different she appeared even without the direct use of her brooch.

Her golden-brown hair and tan skin were free from the silver glitter that was plastered on before. Her hair hung free, kissing against her neck and shoulders rather than being trapped in such an intricate pattern. Also, her eyes were large and brown yet again. She looked exactly like she did just yesterday, when she spent her time chatting with friends, shopping, and preparing herself mind and body for the Pan-Global Games.

Still, she felt very different. She looked like Kimberly, but she didn't feel like Kimberly. As Castimonia had said, the pearl would continue to transform her, seeping the power of Purity through her body so even when she wasn't the Huntress she would be open to its power.

Firstly, she felt cold. Kim knew it wasn't because of the room temperature, because the cold feeling wasn't on her skin. Rather, it was within her. Strangely, she felt a protruding cold in the core of her being, which sat in her stomach uncomfortably, distributing to the rest of her body.

Once again, Kim passed her fingers over her cheek. Her eyes began to shimmer with moisture when she realized her suspicion was correct: her skin was becoming more dense. It wasn't as bad as with the odd silver glitter, yet it was very much noticeable. She was swiftly losing sensitivity to the touch, which meant she would feel less pain, and since her skin was becoming more dense, she would be less prone to injury. That also meant she would never be able to feel Tommy's butterfly kisses on her neck, or the warmth of his presence that tickled her when he stood next to her.

Not that it matters,

she thought bitterly, since I can't be with him anyway. I'm just like Artemis, the Greek Goddess of the Moon. Beautiful and graceful, yet cold to emotion. Goddess of Chastity, never able to feel love. How fitting that I can't feel at all, nearly lacking a sense of touch completely. How... poetic...

Kim felt her appreciation for poetry quickly fading into nothingness.

"That's what I'll call myself," she decided, speaking to her reflection that seemed so foreign to her, despite the fact that it wasn't much changed, "I am Artemis, Avatar of Purity. I shall hunt the forces of Corruption who dare invade Earth prematurely, and vanquish them to preserve the Champion for the great Conflict."

Kimberly blinked when she heard her words through her ears. They sounded so strange... as if she hadn't uttered them herself. The entire situation had an ambiguous, odd feel to it, almost like a dream. But no dream could be this terrible.

Frustrated, Kimberly strode to her bed, and lay flat on her stomach for a few moments. Through her mind, the various tasks she had to complete floated around vaguely. First and foremost, she had to figure out how to pull Kimberly Hart out of the lives of her loved ones.

"I hate lying to people," she reflected, rolling onto her back to stare at the spotless white ceiling above her, "but I have no choice. I'll have to tell Coach Schmidt that I had an emergency to attend to, that simply couldn't wait until the end of the Pan-Globals. He'll be disappointed, but he's always understood my loyalty to my friends and family. As for my family... uh... I'll tell them to not to call me as often, because I'll be practicing at odd times during the year. That should at least stop them from calling me..."

Almost weakly, Kimberly held her hand in front of her face, palm up. In a flash of silver light appeared a small marquise-cut rose quartz gemstone, that glittered with silver magical energy. One thing she learned rather quickly was that as the Avatar of Purity, she had at her disposal an inter-dimensional pocket used for storage, that she can access at any time. Castimonia had given her several of these gemstones early that morning, when they had discussed her options regarding her parents.

"A Forget-Me Stone," Kim whispered sadly, her eyes focused on the stone, "Slowly, it will decrease how often my family thinks of me, until they just... don't. They won't forget I exist, but it'll just stop occurring to them to call me, or wonder about me. Oh God, can I actually give this to my parents?!"

She squeezed her eyes shut, refusing to break down into tears again. She had cried a good deal of the night, her nightmares ravaged by visions of Tommy's terrible accident that she witnessed through the Death Orb left by the visiting Castimonia from the future. She didn't have time to cry... to wallow in self-pity. She had to be strong. She had to keep in mind why she was doing this.

"All I have to do is place a Forget-Me Stone in a location which will expose the people I want to forget about me to its magical energies at least for an hour daily. If they don't get their daily dose, they'll start to remember. I'd better not take any chances with these."

Kim opened her other hand, and three more stones appeared. "One for my mother, my father, Pierre, and my brother," she counted off, "and... what about the Zeo Rangers?"

Out of the present members of the Power Rangers, she had only kept in contact with Tommy. She used to call Aisha quite often, until she suddenly moved to Africa, due to Mastervile's manipulation of time. As for Rocky and Adam, she sent them the occasional card, but that was about it. She used to be quite close to Billy, yet recently, his endeavors as an assistant to the Power Rangers have taken up even more of his time than when he was the Blue Ranger, making it almost impossible for her to reach him most of the time. Over time, she had slowly lost contact with Jason, Zack, and Trini, who were always busy with work and travel due to their participation in the Peace Conference. So, she only needed to expel memories of her from Tommy, the love of her life.

"If Tommy forgets me, then it'll be so much easier for him to move on with his life,"