by Neo Edmund
SLAM!
Without a bit of warning, the Yellow Ranger crashed into the icy cavern floor. The thud of the impact thundered in her head. The air was forced from her lungs. She felt dizzy, as if the world was spinning around her. She couldn’t think. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t breathe.
The Yellow Ranger snapped back to her senses when she heard the thundering thump of the serpopard slamming into the ground somewhere nearby. As she gasped to catch her breath, she also heard the labored breathing of the serpopard. Somehow they had both managed to survive their harrowing falls.
The Yellow Ranger knew she needed to get moving quickly. It took every bit of will she had to get to her feet. Just then, a pair of flaming red eyes, each the size of her head, peered at her. The Yellow Ranger yelped in terror. The beast wasn’t just alive; it was on its feet and ready for a fight.
The glossy gray-skinned serpopard towered over fifteen feet from head to tail. It stood on four legs and had a body that resembled a leopard. The head of a sea serpent stared down from atop a lanky neck.
The Yellow Ranger raised her fists for a fight. “I came here for the urn, and I’m not leaving without it.”
The serpopard replied with a thunderous roar. Two searing beams of fire then blasted out from its massive eyes. The Yellow Ranger made a desperate leap to the side, barely evading the attack. She looked over and saw a hole, burned into the icy floor, that spanned several feet wide.
The Yellow Ranger reached into her side holster and pulled out her blade blaster. She took quick aim and squeezed off several energy bolts. The serpopard roared as the shots burned a hole in its torso. Seconds later, the flesh began to rapidly rejuvenate over the damaged area. Just before it completely healed over, the Yellow Ranger saw something inside the serpopard that resembled a black urn.
Refusing to give up, the Yellow Ranger continued firing as fast as she could, scoring several more hits. The serpopard slowed as the shots burned another hole in its side. Before the flesh could heal over, the Yellow Ranger flipped high into the air and landed on the creature’s back.
She looked into the hole and was astonished to see the serpopard was hollow. The beast didn’t have any organs, or bones, nor a single drop of blood. The only thing the Yellow Ranger did see was the black urn rolling around inside its torso.
“Zack,” the Yellow Ranger said. She tried to reach inside for the black urn, but the serpopard bucked around, sending her soaring away.
“You’re not getting rid of me that easily,” the Yellow Ranger shouted. She raised her hands high, and a pair of short-bladed Power Daggers appeared in them. “Now we finish this.”
The serpopard roared and fired several searing blasts from its eyes. The Yellow Ranger leaped, rolled, and flipped clear of every shot. She looked back and saw a dozen holes burned into the icy walls. The floor began to shake with a thundering rumble. The walls began to crack and crumble. The cavern was moments from caving in.
The serpopard knew what was happening and began to back away, but the Yellow Ranger wasn’t about to let the beast get away now. Gritting her teeth, she raised the Power Daggers and charged forward. She spiraled high into the air and again landed on the serpopard’s back. The beast bucked furiously, trying to knock her off. This time, the Yellow Ranger was ready. She jammed one of the Power Daggers into the serpopard’s back and held on tight.
The Yellow Ranger used her other Power Dagger to hack a hole in the serpopard’s torso, exposing the black urn. She then dropped the dagger and reached inside the serpopard. The beast bucked again, this time even harder than before. The Yellow Ranger grabbed the black urn a mere heartbeat before being thrown off the serpopard’s back.
The instant the Yellow Ranger’s feet hit the ground, she broke into a desperate sprint. Falling chunks of ice pelted her helmet. The cavern ceiling was caving in quickly. She had to get out of the cave before being buried alive.
For the next several minutes, the Yellow Ranger ran through the endless tunnels with the urn gripped tight in her arms. She didn’t need to look back to know the serpopard was in pursuit and trying to blast her with beams of fire. Again and again the shots narrowly missed, instead hitting the cavern walls and ceiling.
Just when it seemed she would never escape, the Yellow Ranger found the cavern’s main entrance. It was about a hundred yards ahead of her, and just beyond it, there was sunlight.
“Alpha 5, if you can hear me, I could really use some help,” the Yellow Ranger shouted.
“You don’t know the half of it,” Alpha 5 replied. “The cavern entrance is about to—”
Before Alpha 5 could finish, the archway entrance started to collapse. Thousands of razor-sharp shards of ice plummeted downward. The serpopard roared furiously as shard after shard impaled its body. The Yellow Ranger dodged and weaved around the falling shards, just avoiding getting ripped to pieces.
“Alpha 5, now would be a really good time,” the Yellow Ranger shouted.
“Aye-yi-yi! Just hold on a few more seconds,” Alpha 5 replied.
Just then, the entire ceiling collapsed. The Yellow Ranger screamed in terror, certain it was the end.
“Engaging teleportation now,” Alpha 5 cried out.
A mere instant before the Yellow Ranger would have been crushed, Alpha 5 teleported her away to safety.
Chapter 19
In the Moon Palace, several Putty Patrollers huddled fearfully in the corner. They were trying to stay clear of Squatt and Baboo, who were thrashing and bashing around in a furious frenzy.
“The Yellow Ranger has now found three of the four urns,” Baboo ranted.
“This is all your fault, Baboo. I should never have let you talk me into going along with this moronic plan,” said Squatt.
Squatt and Baboo wrestled like a pair of squabbling children.
Finster entered carrying a jeweled crown with flickering lights and glowing cables sticking out from the sides. “What foolishness are you two up to now?”
Squatt and Baboo stopped wrestling and glared at Finster.
“This foolishness is all your fault,” Squatt said.
“You’re absolutely right, Squatt. We shouldn’t be fighting each other when Finster is obviously to blame,” Baboo said.
“If you two stop yapping for a minute, I could tell you that I’ve created a solution for our problem with the Griffin Pharaoh,” Finster said, holding up the crown. “This crown, once placed atop his head, will render him under our complete control.”
Squatt and Baboo glared at the flimsily constructed crown.
“How do you plan to get that crown onto his head?” Squatt asked.
“After the battle at the rock quarry, he took off, and we haven’t seen him since,” Squatt said.
“Then I suggest you two stop horsing around and start looking for him,” Finster said. “We have to get this mess under control before Rita returns, or else.”
“Or else what?” Squatt and Baboo asked.
Finster trembled, not wanting to even think about what Rita would do to them.
• • •
After delivering the black urn to Alpha 5, Trini headed to the Youth Center to meet up with the Angel Scouts. Upon her arrival, she was surprised to find the scouts were busy signing up volunteers for the Community Fix Up. Ms. Gertrude oversaw the effort attentively and, as always, she wrote plenty of notes on her clipboard.
Silvia dashed over gleefully and hugged Trini. “I’m so happy you finally made it.”
“Sorry I’m late again. I was helping out some friends who got themselves in a major jam,” Trini said. She looked over and met the disapproving glare of Ms. Gertrude.
“Don’t let her get to you,” Silvia whispered. “We’ve already signed up almost fifty volunteers for the Fix Up on Saturday, but I think we can get a hundred.”
Trini smiled graciously. “You’re all doing such
amazing work. Thank you so much!”
“Oh, I have something cool to show you,” Silvia said, taking Trini by the hand and leading her over to a table. She opened her backpack and took out a large book with the title Myths and Legends of Ancient Egypt. “There’s an entire chapter in here about that Griffin Pharaoh guy we saw at the museum.”
“That’s great,” Trini said. “I’m so happy you’re taking the Historical Research Merit Badge project so seriously.”
“I don’t care about a dumb merit badge,” Silvia said, flipping through the pages of the book. “I just want to show Daisy that I’m right about how the Power Rangers defeated the Griffin Pharaoh.” She glared at Daisy on the other side of the room. Daisy looked over and stuck out her tongue. Silvia did the same.
Trini sighed. “It’s not good to focus your energy on just trying to prove people wrong. Angel Scouts are about friendship and unity.”
“If being an Angel Scout means having to be friends with Daisy, then count me out,” Silvia said, crossing her arms in refusal. “I could never be friends with a stuck-up cheerleader.”
Trini held Silvia’s hand. “You should never judge people until you get to know them. My best friend, Kimberly, is a cheerleader. My friend Billy is a science whiz. Zack is an amazing dancer. And Jason is one of the best martial artists I’ve ever known. They’re all into totally different things, but we’re all great friends just the same.”
Silvia shrugged, not entirely convinced. “I guess I never thought of it that way. Maybe I’ll give Daisy a chance, but no promises.”
“That’s a great start,” Trini said proudly. She then noticed that Ms. Gertrude, standing nearby, had been listening in the whole time. Ms. Gertrude wrote a note on her clipboard and walked away. Trini sighed and then turned her attention back to Silvia. “So tell me what you’ve learned about the infamous Griffin Pharaoh.”
Silvia turned to a page she had bookmarked. “At the museum, we learned about how the Griffin Pharaoh trapped all his enemies in magic urns, and then he used his powers to hypnotize everyone into being his mindless servants. What we didn’t learn is that he made everyone build him a giant pyramid in the middle of the city and ruled over them like a big jerk for ninety-nine years.”
“That’s a really long time,” Trini said. “Did you ever figure out how he was defeated?”
Silvia pointed to a drawing of the Griffin Pharaoh. He was refusing to fight a long line of warriors. “A lot of great warriors challenged him, but he would never accept a fight because he said he would only fight those who were worthy. I think he just used that as an excuse because he was afraid to lose. But someone must have defeated him.”
Trini’s communicator chimed. She let out a long sigh. Of all the times Alpha 5 could be calling, this was the worst possible moment. If she were to walk away now, Ms. Gertrude would think she was flaking out again.
“What’s that beeping sound?” Silvia asked.
For a moment, Trini debated if she should answer right away, or if it could wait just a little longer. Before she could decide either way, the communicator chimed again. It had to be urgent or Alpha 5 would not have been so persistent.
“I’m sorry, Silvia, I have to go,” Trini said, then raced for the exit.
“Wait. Not already,” Silvia said, slumping in disappointment.
Chapter 20
Trini’s communicator chimed again as she exited the Youth Center.
“Alpha 5, please tell me you’re calling about the last missing urn,” Trini said into her communicator.
“I am, Trini, and the situation is desperately urgent. Somehow the urn ended up in a Dumpster in Tokyo,” said Alpha 5.
“That doesn’t sound so bad. I’ve always wanted to visit Japan,” Trini said.
“The where isn’t the problem,” Alpha 5 replied. “The Dumpster is scheduled to be transported to a massive landfill in less than three hours. If we don’t recover the urn before then, we may never be able to find it.”
Not wasting a minute, Trini teleported to an alleyway behind a shopping mall in downtown Tokyo. It was early in the morning, but the mall was already bustling with activity. She looked around to make sure nobody was watching and then squeezed through a gap under a fence. A wretched stench hit her senses like a slap in the face when she emerged on the other side. She took a quick look around and was startled to see that there wasn’t just one Dumpster; there were hundreds.
“Alpha 5, are you seeing what I’m seeing?” Trini asked.
“Aye-yi-yi, I’m sorry, Trini,” Alpha 5 said. “When we first detected the Dumpster, it was in an isolated location. The mall workers must have moved it.”
Trini pinched her nose to block out the stench. “Any clue which Dumpster the urn is in?”
“Not precisely, but I know it’s somewhere in your immediate area,” Alpha 5 said.
“In that case, I’ve got just one thing to say.” Trini pulled out her Morpher. “It’s Morphin Time!”
One after another, the Yellow Ranger flipped open the lids of the Dumpsters, hoping to find the one containing the urn. Most of the Dumpsters were filled to the brim with molding food and other assorted garbage.
“Alpha 5, I could search all day and not find the urn. There has to be a way to narrow the search,” the Yellow Ranger said.
“Perhaps you should just ask the cats,” a snarly voice said from behind her.
The Yellow Ranger yelped, then spun around. Standing atop a Dumpster was a hairy creature with the body of a woman and the head of a cat.
“Just a friendly neighborhood alley cat,” it said.
The Yellow Ranger took a cautious step back. “I remember learning about a mythical cat at the museum. That’s you, right?”
“Now that’s not a very nice way to talk about your new friend,” the cat scoffed in offense. “I do have a name, you know.”
“I didn’t know we were friends. But maybe we should start with introductions. You can call me the Yellow Ranger,” Trini said.
The cat sneered. “That’s not a name! That’s a warrior title!”
“A title I’m really proud to have,” the Yellow Ranger said. “So what do I call you?”
“Since you asked so nicely,” the cat said, glaring ominously at the Yellow Ranger, “the name is Bastet, or at least it is for the sake of this conversation.”
“Nice to meet you, Bastet,” the Yellow Ranger said, not daring to take her eyes off the creature for even a second. “Maybe you can help me out. I’m looking for an urn. It’s red and about half as tall as we are.”
“And so much for us being friends,” Bastet said, giving her a dangerous snarl.
The Yellow Ranger’s adrenaline was rising fast. “I’m guessing you’re the guardian of the urn, and that means we’re about to have a fight.”
Bastet raised her hands, revealing ten razor-sharp claws sticking out from her fingertips. “It’s not that I wouldn’t enjoy shredding you into kitty litter, but fighting just isn’t my thing. I’m more interested in playing a little game called ‘catch me if you can.’”
“And why would I play such a game with you?” the Yellow Ranger asked.
“Because I have this,” Bastet said, clicking her claws together. In a flash, the red urn appeared in her arms. In a swift bound, she took off running.
“I should have seen that coming,” the Yellow Ranger said, letting out a long sigh.
And with that, the chase was on.
Chapter 21
With the red urn clutched under one arm, Bastet leaped from one Dumpster to the next. Her catlike agility made it tough for the Yellow Ranger to keep up the chase. Every time she got close to catching Bastet, the cunning creature dashed off in another direction.
“Catch me if you can, Yellow Ranger,” Bastet teased.
“Oh, I’m going to catch you, and when I do—” The Yellow Ranger then lost
her footing on a mess of garbage. She tumbled from the top of a Dumpster and flopped down onto the asphalt.
Bastet glanced down at the Yellow Ranger from atop a Dumpster. “You may have the agility of a cat, but you sure don’t have our pizzazz.”
The Yellow Ranger rolled to her feet and grabbed her blade blaster. Taking quick aim, she squeezed off several rounds. Bastet nimbly flipped and cartwheeled around, dodging every shot.
“Now that wasn’t friendly at all,” Bastet snarled and landed on the exact point where she had started. “So tell me, Yellow Ranger, why do you want this old urn, anyway?”
“I just do, so why not hand it over?” Trini said, keeping her blaster aimed at Bastet.
“You must have a better reason than that.” Bastet clicked her claws together. “Is this about a boy?”
The Yellow Ranger rolled her eyes in irritation. “Not in the way you mean, if you mean what I think you mean.”
“So what you’re really saying is, the boy in the urn put you in the friend zone. Too bad! So sad!” Bastet teased.
The Yellow Ranger scowled. “It’s so not like that. He’s the Red Power Ranger and the leader of my team.”
Bastet giggled. “That was so much easier to get out of you than I expected. And now that I know, you’re never getting him back,” she said, then clicked her claws. The urn vanished in a flickering flash. She then dashed away with the lightning-quick speed of a cheetah.
The Yellow Ranger grunted in frustration and raced after her. Bastet reached the perimeter fence and sprang high into the air, clearing it in an effortless bound. The Yellow Ranger proved to be equally agile and leaped over the fence with the same ease. When she hit the ground on the other side, she saw Bastet was still on the run and already over fifty yards away.