Power Rangers Zeo - Venusian Encounters, Heather Ray [best thriller books to read .txt] 📗

October 1997

A glimmering pink crane flew high over the United States of America, gazing down at the state of Rhode Island with a eagle's eye. A package hung from her sharp talons. Thanks to the bright sunlight of late afternoon, she could discern clearly the shapes passing beneath her. Still, she had never been to Brown University before.

Fortunately, the one she searched for still was connected to the Great Power. She might not have been able to track down 'Tommy', perse, but she could feel the presence of the Falcon. The Falcon watched over him, despite the fact that he was no longer a Ninjetti warrior.

Despite the fact that he was no longer a Power Ranger.

The magnetic pull of the Falcon brought Kimberly to a large building. Kim swiftly transformed back into her human form, and immediately fell to the ground. She landed with cat-like grace next to the building, in an area clear of onlookers.

Kim hastily straightened the slight wrinkles from her tank dress, her right hand still holding the rectangular box. Then, she swept her lengthening golden brown tendrils over one shoulder, cradled the box under her arm, and strode into the building.

Once she pulled open the large glass door, she realized she was in a lecture hall. Kim hesitantly climbed the few steps, and walked down the empty hallway, the heels of her sandals echoing against the dark tiles. She suddenly stopped at the entrance to the second lecture room, the pull of the Falcon beckoning to her from within.

Kim immediately pulled open the heavy wooden door, and stepped into the darkened room.

"...and it undergoes sporadic outbursts that eject one or two sun's worth of gas, and is one of the most massive and energetic stars in the galaxy," the slender, middle-aged man stated, his head turned to the three hundred students seated in the darkened lecture room. His left hand gripped a narrow pointer, with which he pointed to the large image projected on the movie screen. It was a bright white dot against a heavy black background, with two enormous, dense clouds connected to it on a plane, one on each side.

"This here is Eta Carinae," he continued, pointing to the small white dot, "This star is large enough to reach a full-blown supernova, which will be visible from Earth once the light from that star reaches us. These two bubbles are the gases it is constantly ejecting, and it will continue to do so until it collapses."

The professor squinted at his wrist watch, and pushed his wire-frame glasses back up his nose. "Lights, please," he said, collapsing the extendable pointer. A student turned on the lights, flooding the large room with bright light. Kim immediately felt awkward standing by the entrance, so she quickly ducked into one of the empty seats on the highest row. Once her eyes adjusted to the light, she began searching the large room for Tommy.

"Now," the professor said, stepping to the rectangular table at the center of the stage and opening his briefcase, "the first exam will go up through chapter seven of the text, even though we didn't quite make it to neutron stars in lecture. Still, I think the text covers it well enough for that material to be included. Have a nice weekend, everyone, and I'll see you Tuesday at noon for the exam."

Then, the students began shuffling around, forming a single file to move through the narrow door. Kim waited patiently, scanning the moving students for someone wearing a red T-shirt.

She was shocked when she did find Tommy, wearing a white T-shirt and beige denim shorts. He was busily talking to a young man beside him, so he didn't turn in Kim's direction when he walked passed. With a mischievous glimmer in her eyes, she reached up and grabbed his sleeve as he passed. Tommy glanced down, and his chocolate eyes widened in shock at the sight of her.

The shock almost instantly turned to excitement, as his eager smile would relate.

"I'll call you later, Jeremy," he called over his shoulder, "I just saw someone I need to talk to."

Jeremy nodded, and continued walking through the doors. Tommy stepped out of the crowd exiting, and moved into the aisle, where Kim was standing. Despite the dozens of students still in the room, he unheedingly greeted her with a tight embrace and a full kiss on the lips. Kimberly was awestruck by the blatant display of affection in public, but she quickly melted under the spell of Tommy's lips.

"I can't believe you're here!" Tommy exclaimed, once their lips parted. His smile was so intense, it almost glowed with a light all its own. "Man, I haven't seen you in months!"

"Well, I've been away," Kim noted, glancing around self-consciously at the students who still spotted the lecture hall. She then smiled warmly when she felt Tommy's muscled arm slide around her waist, and fell into step as he led her out of the room.

Together, Tommy and Kimberly walked into the early autumn warmth of the outdoors. There were still students rushing to and fro, yet they managed to carry on a relatively private conversation.

"...so I felt it necessary to go to Phaedos and basically bond with the Great Power," Kim explained in a low voice, "I figure that, as queen, it's really my duty to become as familiar as possible with the source of Venusian magic and power. It's almost like a deity to Venusian culture."

Tommy nodded pensively. "Yeah, I got that feeling when we were all on Phaedos. The ruins really struck me as being something of a temple."

"So, what's been happening with you?" Kim pressed, leaning closer to him as the strolled leisurely along the walkway, "I can't believe you came to Brown University! I didn't even know you got in!"

"Well, I had applied senior year, but I didn't really think I'd get in," Tommy revealed, "When I did get in, I still didn't think I'd come. I mean, it'd be hard for me to deal with Ivy League classes across the country while still being a Ranger. But when we retired, I decided to check and see if the school still had a spot for me, and they did. So I packed my bags, and came."

"And... how are you taking it?" Kim asked, a faint cloud of worry on her face, "I mean... not being a Ranger anymore."

Tommy took a deep breath, casting his dark gaze to the clear blue sky. A serene grin crossed his face. Kim then noted just how peaceful and at ease he was; being released from the burdens of being one of Earth's primary defenders.

"At first, it was really hard figuring out what I wanted to do with myself," Tommy admitted, "I mean, suddenly I had so much... time on my hands! I still do martial arts, but there isn't the urgency in it anymore. I'm no longer preparing for war. I took a few weeks to figure out just where I wanted my life to lead. Originally, I had taken into account me staying a Ranger indefinitely, and I was willing to stay in Angel Grove all my life, and just open up a karate school to pay my bills. But, I don't need to make that kind of sacrifice anymore. I can literally do whatever I want to."

"And what would that be?"

Tommy frowned slightly. "I'm not entirely sure. At first, I was thinking of doing something in Astronomy." He chuckled at the perplexed expression in Kim's eyes. "Yeah, not what you'd think, right?"

Kim shrugged in response. "Actually, it does make some sense. You've visited Phaedos and Edenoi, and maybe even other planets. There is definitely something appealing about the expanse of the universe."

"But that's the problem," Tommy said, his voice slightly frustrated, "When you've been in the heart of a star, or physically on another planet with intelligent life, looking at slides of nebulae isn't very stimulating. This Astronomy class that I'm taking is really boring. The kind of physics we're doing is grade-school stuff compared to the equations Billy was always working with in the Power Chamber. Sure I'm not Billy, but I did pick up a lot from watching him do his thing."

Tommy's energetic grin then returned. "But it's not like I have to decide right now what I want to do. I'm keeping my mind wide open."

Kim's grin matched his own, and she snuggled into his chest a bit more. "I'm glad."

She really was glad. She was glad that Tommy had dealt with the loss of his powers so well. During their early days, when he was the independent Green Ranger, Tommy was subjected to two forced power losses. First, Rita stole his powers in one fell swoop with the Green Candle. The second time, Lord Zedd slowly siphoned off his energy bit by bit, reducing the Green Ranger to a husk of his former glory.

On both occasions, the loss of power brought on a severe depression, and feeling of emptiness.

Yet, this time it was different. Tommy had to surrender his powers, but it wasn't the forces of evil that brought it on. Instead, it was his own growth as an individual. He had dedicated a significant portion of his life to the protection of the planet, and he was comfortable with leaving that part of his life behind, and starting something new.

Still, it hurt Kim slightly that Tommy had changed so much without her knowledge. It certainly wasn't his fault... she was completely unreachable while on Phaedos. But she couldn't help but assume that when she returned to Earth, everything would be as it was.

Kimberly had to accept the fact that the world would move on without her. Tommy would continue to mature and grow, even if she isn't there to witness it. Tommy would have both wonderful and painful experiences, and she wouldn't be able to congratulate his successes, or support him through his failures.

That day was a needed escape from the pressures of Kimberly's everyday life. She had a wonderful time just being a typical young woman. Strolling around the university, eating pizza and frozen yogurt, and even going to the movies was a wonderful refreshment. Also, she was completely informed on how Tommy had spent the past four months, and how her other friends were doing.

At the end of her visit, Kimberly bestowed upon Tommy the gift she had carried with her. It was a magical hand-held mirror, with silver frame. It served as a communication tool, allowing Tommy to contact Kimberly through her private magic mirror on Venus