Disclaimer: The Power Rangers and any related things are not mine. They are the property of the All Powerful Saban. Always have been, always will be...cept in my dreams! *giggles*
Author's Note: I have been working on this story for over three years, writing and rewriting it until it was perfect. I never planned to actually post this anywhere, so bear with me any mistakes I may have made. I'll try to get the other parts out as soon as possible, but it may take me awhile, considering it took me so long for just this!
Special Thanks: I would really like to thank Pam Marks for
convincing me to actually send this in, even though it's not completed. Also
thanks to her for HTMLing it for me! Thank you so so so so much Pam! Consider
us even!
Prologue
She was walking down the path, humming. There was no early classes today, so
she had all morning to do whatever she wished. Suddenly she noticed an odd sort
of glowing ahead. Frowning, she ran over to where the light seemed to be coming
from. When she got close enough, she saw that the source of the purple-black
glow was a crystal.
Miffed, she picked it up to examine it closer. The light grew brighter, and
there was a flash as it extinguished. The girl's eyes snapped open, and she
stared ahead, unblinking.
There was a voice. A soft, soothing voice.
"No one cares about you," it told her.
"No one cares," the girl repeated dutifully.
"You're all alone."
"Alone."
"They got rid of you with not so much as a good-bye. They never liked you,
you were never their friend. They hated you. You were thought of as a
liability, a airhead. You were hated." the voice informed her.
"Hated," her voice was wooden.
"You need to get back at them. It's the only way to make things right. Make
them sorry for all the trouble they've caused you."
"Make them sorry."
"No one can be trusted except me. I am your only friend. Anything else you
are told is a lie. All lies. Don't believe anything your former friends tell
you."
"Don't trust anyone."
"Do you want revenge?"
"Yes!" the girls eyes became black with rage.
"Then get it. Remember, hate is the only way. From now on, all you will
feel is hate hate and more hate. Block all other emotions. You are to forget
about me and everything I have told you until the time is right. Everyone is
your enemy. Hurt them the way they hurt you. Hate and only hate will you
feel... Hate...hate....hate..." the voice began to fade away.
Kimberly Ann Hart slipped the crystal in her pocket as the vacant look left
her eyes. Her head was pounding mercilessly. She stumbled down the path
towards the dormitories, rage and hatred burning in her very soul.
A young girl, barely older than seventeen, walked into her dorm room shakingly, her face an ashen white. She got a bottle of aspirin from the bathroom medicine cabinet and swallowed two of the small white pills. The teen then went over to her pink and white flowered bed and collapsed onto it gratefully. Her chestnut brown hair splayed around her angelic face as she stared at the ceiling with great intensity. Even though she looked very sweet and innocent, her thoughts at the moment were anything but.
This naïve teen was Kimberly Ann Hart, a valley girl, who had come all the way from Angel Grove, a small city in California, to Florida, to train for the Pan Global Games. Kimberly may have looked pretty ordinary, but she had a very interesting past. For three years Kim had defended the earth from evil space aliens as a power ranger, wielding first the power of the pterodactyl, and later the power of the crane. When she left the team to pursue her dream as a gymnast, she had given the pink powers to a girl named Katherine Hillard, who had recently broken the evil spell placed on her by Rita Repulsa and Lord Zedd.
_If you can even call it giving, _ Kim thought bitterly, _The minute I was no longer a ranger it was like I ceased to exist. Friends! Ha! More like merely acquaintances. Three years! I fought along side them for three years, but the minute Kat took my coin it was 'So long Kim, don't let the teleport beam hit you on the way out.' They don't even have the decency to call or write._ With each thought Kim grew madder and madder, her once pasty face becoming a scarlet red.
_ It's all that hateful girls fault! Without her coming into my life I would still be on the team and Tommy would still be mine. I mean, it's bad enough she tried to kill me, but did she have to take my powers, my boyfriend… my life!_ Kim fumed. She couldn't remember ever being this angry and hateful her entire life. All she wanted to do was kill.
Kim lay on her bed for about another thirty minutes, contemplating about how great her life would have been without Katherine to ruin it and how much she hated everyone who had abandoned her. Finally Kim managed to calm down enough to think rationally.
While Kimberly got ready for bed that night, a plan of vengeance began to formulate in her mind. Later on, as she was drifting to sleep, one last tendril of thought reached Kim. _ Aisha, Billy, Rocky, Adam, Tommy, Katherine. They will pay. They will feel pain a million times worse than the pain they have caused me. I swear, even if it's the last thing I do, I will get my revenge.
The next morning, Kim awakened in a much better mood. She smiled to herself as she began to put on a pretty pink leotard. Her huge grin turned into a frown as she realized exactly what that color, which she used to wear proudly, now meant to her. Kimberly threw the offending garment to the side as she dug threw her drawers, searching for something, anything, that wasn't pink.
_ I never realized that the Power influenced my taste so much. I know I wore a lot of pink, but this is ridiculous! Everything I own has pink on it!_ Kim thought, throwing a pair of pink leggings into the mounting pile of outfits in the corner. Finally, at the bottom of her drawer, she found a purple leotard with jagged pink and black lightning bolts on it.
"Ah-ha!" she said, raising it to the ceiling in triumph. Realizing she was going to be late if she didn't hurry, Kim quickly finished getting ready, and rushed out of the dorm at top speed. ~*~
"Concentrate," Coach Schmitt snapped as Kimberly fell off the balance beam yet again.
"Sorry," Kim said apologetically, hoisting herself onto the wooden beam. She began her routine again, but misjudged a step, and ended up on the royal blue mat.
"Kimberly, what is wrong? You haven't missed a beat since you got here, and now all of a sudden you're falling left and right. Is anything the matter?" Coach Schmitt asked, concerned.
"I'm sorry, Coach," Kim sighed, not even bothering to get up from where she had fallen. "I've got a lot of things on my mind right now. One of my friends is really sick, to the point where he might die." The lie rolled easily off her tongue.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Kimberly. Is there anything I can do to help?" her Coach asked sincerely.
"No," she sighed, "Unless..."
"Yes? What is it, Kim?" Coach Schmitt prompted.
"Would you mind if I took a couple days off and go to Angel Grove?" Kimberly requested, gazing at him with puppy dog eyes.
"Is that all?" the older man said, sounding amused. "Of course I don't mind! You are one of my star pupils! Besides, you're not going to get much done here, worrying about your friend! Go on! Visit Angel Grove! How does a weeks vacation sound?"
"Oh!" Kim exclaimed, gratefully. "That's great! It's better than great! It's perfect! Thank you sooooo much!" she bubbled on.
"It's quite all right! Now get going! Off with you! I expect you back here in one week, all right?"
Kim was already half way out the door. "I'll be there!" she called with a wave over her shoulder.
Coach Schmitt chuckled to himself as he watched Kim rush from the room. "Teenagers," he muttered, shaking his head.
Kimberly spent the next couple hours putting the next part of her plan into action. She packed her bags, and booked a flight to Angel Grove, which was to leave that evening.
Finally, after what seemed like eternity, Kim boarded her plane, and soon arrived back in California. She had spent the entire plane ride working on her plan, and immediately put her credit card to use, buying things that she would never buy under ordinary circumstances, but were necessary in order of for her plan to work. Then she stocked up a cabin, which was a family one, and hadn't been used in years. It was one of the assets of the divorce that had never been decided. She never mentioned the cabin to her friends, and she herself never went up there, because it drug up painful memories of happier times...but not anymore.
This would be the perfect place to carry out the next step of her plan. The cabin was a huge spacious two-story place, more like a house than a cabin. Upstairs there were four bedrooms and two bathrooms. Downstairs was the kitchen, living room, another bedroom, a cedar closet, a bathroom, and a rec room.
The cabin itself was situated on top of a high mountain, near a lake, which was an ideal spot for fishing. A cave near the back was perfect to 'camp out' in, Best of all, the cabin was situated so high up, teleportation was impossible (Kim knew this from having tired!). The massive trees which stretched out into a forest were also a factor that contributed to the lack of communication. The only way to reach the rambling house was by driving, and there was no path. You had to make your own. And even driving wouldn't take you all the way to the cabin. At a certain point, you had to start hiking up, and it was so steep, it was a major hassle. All in all, it was almost total seclusion, which the plan depended on.
Kimberly spent many hours in the cabin, cleaning, and getting it ready for her 'guests'. First she moved all the furniture from the downstairs bedroom into the rec room. It took her awhile, but she finally managed to set up two cages in the bedrooms, in corners caddie corner to each other. She had bought the cages at a pet store. Each cage was approximately six feet by six feet. They had originally been intended to be kennels. Kim had also bought a ton of locks, which she put on the doors of each cage. Then she laced the keys on a chain which she put around her neck.
Next Kim set to work on the rec room. She set the couch, love seat, and straight back chairs in a row against the far wall. Then she got out a hammer and nails. Since she wasn't very skilled at carpentry, she ended up with more then one bruised finger, but after a couple of tries she managed to have a row of nails securely imbedded in the wall across from the seats. After that, Kimberly lugged a large paper bag into the room. She carefully took each item and hung it on the wall. Among her purchases was a small dagger, a couple of lengths of chain, a revolver, a leather whip and a bow with a quiver of arrows.
When she reached the bow and arrows, a small smile crossed her face. Kim pulled back the string and giggled at the 'twang' sound it made when she released it. She remembered all the good times she had as the Pink Ranger, and sighed. Suddenly a wave of rage hit her hard, so hard she almost doubled over in pain. An evil smile crossed her lips. They would pay for making her feel so much pain! First her successor, then her ex boyfriend followed by everyone else who had betrayed her.
After a while longer, Kim finished with the rec room, and set to work adding finishing touches on other portions of the house. In the cedar closet she put a lone chair and a two pairs of handcuffs. She stocked the kitchen up with food and such. After a few more adjustments, Kim looked around in satisfaction. Everything was ready! Now onto the next phase of her plan!
That night, Kim fell into bed, exhausted, yet giddy. She was so excited! Kim woke up early, eager to get going. However it was way to early. School wouldn't be letting out for hours. Kim bounced around the cabin, looking at her watch every couple minutes. She tried watching TV, but couldn't sit still long enough to follow a single program. Gymnastics worked a little while, but a hard wood floor with no mats was a very uncomfortable place to move.
Finally, she figured it was soon enough to go. Kim hopped into a huge van she had rented just for the occasion and drove to Angel Grove High School. School hadn't quite let out yet, so Kimberly parked her vehicle, and crept up to the school. She spotted a huge oak tree with wide branches low to the ground. Perfect! With little effort, she swung herself up and hid in the thick foliage. Fifteen minutes later, she heard the bell ring, signaling the end of school. Kim looked on in interest as teenagers began pouring out the double doors. Two people in particular caught her attention. A blonde girl in pink and a long-haired guy in red.
"Katherine!" Kimberly hissed, leaning forward for a better look.
They walked towards her perch, laughing and holding hands. Kim strained to hear what they were saying.
"Katherine, would you like to go to the Youth Center?" Tommy asked.
"I'd love to!" Kat exclaimed. Suddenly she smacked herself in the forehead. "But I can't! I have a lot of homework due tomorrow.
"Well, meet me there when you're done, okay? I'll treat you too a smothie!"
"Sounds great!" Katherine told him.
By this time the couple was almost directly Kim's tree. As Kimberly watched, the two wrapped their arms around each other and shared a semi passionate kiss. She clenched her hands into fists at her sides. It was all she could do to keep from jumping down from the tree onto them. As much as she wanted too, it would ruin everything! When the Rangers finally parted and went their separate ways, Kim was so mad she lost her balance and fell out of the tree with a load cry.
She looked around in embarrassment and hoped no one had noticed her ungraceful fall. Not seeing anyone, she scurried off to her van, driving at full speed towards Katherine's house. She padded herself with extra clothing and grabbed some rope and before going up the porch steps. Sooner or later Katherine would probably come out to see what was going on, and she'd be ready for her.
Katherine hummed to herself as she worked on her homework. Suddenly, she heard the sound of a cars engine. She ignored it, as passing cars were common in this neighborhood. However, she frowned when she realized the car had not driven past, but had pulled into her driveway. That was strange. Her parents weren't due home for hours. Who would be pulling into her driveway? Oh, well, if they wanted her, they'd ring the doorbell. Kat strained her ears, expecting the car to start up again and pull out. It was probably just someone using her driveway to turn around, she rationalized. She returned to her homework. Five minutes later, she looked at the clock, and realized that she hadn't heard the car leave. With a sigh, she set down her pencil, and walked to the front door. Didn't people get the purpose of a doorbell?
Before she could go out far enough to see whose car had driven in, someone rammed the screen door against her, knocking her down. He must have been standing behind the potted ficus tree, hidden by its thick leaves.
Katherine glimpsed a figure in a long hooded coat.
Then something heavy and stifling and dark was yanked down over her head.
Katherine struggled to free herself from the smothering folds of thick cloth that seemed to go down almost as far as her knees. But strong arms circled her and held her firmly. She couldn't scream because one of the arms was locked around her head, pressing the heavy material against her mouth so that she could scarcely breathe.
In desperation she drummed her heels on the porch, hoping someone, anyone would come running out to see what was going on.
But nobody came.
"No use, Katherine," a whispery voice said in her ear. "Nobody's going to hear you."
She wanted to scream at her captor, ask why he was doing this to her. What had she done to him? What made him want to hurt her?
And above all, who was he?
She could scarcely breath inside the stifling bag. Her heart lurched and stopped from fright, then started up again, whacking against her ribs so loud she was sure Zordon in the Command Center must hear it. Why didn't he see what was going on? Why didn't he summon the others to help her?
When they got to the bottom of the stairs, Katherine was pushed inside a car. The Whisperer must have left the door open when he came up the stairs so he wouldn't have to let go of her long enough to reach for the handle.
Kim shoved her onto the seat, and before Katherine had a chance to free herself, or touch her communicator, she felt a rope being wrapped around her, binding her arms to her sides.
Now that his arm was no longer choking her, Katherine screamed, but her captor quickly replaced his arm, choking off her air.
"Don't do that," Kim whispered. "It could be fatal."
Katherine shut off the screams. Nobody was around to hear, anyway.
"Why are you doing this?" she demanded as soon as her kidnapper removed his arm again.
The Whisperer didn't answer. He slammed the car door.
Katherine was uncomfortable, pushed down in the seat as she was. She struggled to sit upright, her arms clamped to her sides by the ropes. That was better, but she could barely suck in any air through to thick folds of the bag over her upper body.
The driver's side door opened. Katherine felt the car bounce a little as the Whisperer got in behind the steering wheel. He seemed to be right beside her, so she figured she was in the passenger side of the front seat.
Oh, why, why didn't Zordon or one of the others come to see what was going on?
Terror choked Katherine as tightly as the arms had done a few minutes before. Terror and the heavy bag.
"I can't breathe," she gasped.
Kim chuckled, a dry, rattly sound deep in her throat. She loved hearing Kat in so much terror.
Katherine felt him lean across her, heard him open the glove compartment, then there were tiny snicking sounds. He was using a scissors to cut a small hole in the heavy bag, near her nose.
"Thank you," she said sincerely as she felt a tiny rush of oxygen.
Kimberly started the motor and backed out of the driveway, then sped off down the street. To the left, as near as Katherine could tell.
Katherine felt dizzy as the car squealed around corners and screeched to jolting stops at signs.
"I'm sick," she said. "I'm going to barf."
"Your problem," The raspy voice was unsympathetic.
Katherine tried to concentrate on something else. The sound of the engine. Did it sound like anyone she knew's car?
She couldn't tell anything from the car's noises.
If only she could figure out who her captor was. It might help her to know how to plead with him.
The air hole! Maybe she could see enough through the air hole to identify him!
The hole was near her nose. By turning her eyes downward, she could see light. Perhaps if she tipped her head up, she could see her captor's face.
She tried it. But no matter how she twisted her head, she couldn't see far enough up to get a glimpse of his face.
What she could see was a dark blue robe of some sort. Thick and bulky, like a winter coat. He must be as hot in that as she was in the heavy bag.
Maybe she could get a clue from his shoes. But she couldn't get a glimpse of them either. They were hidden by the way the coat was draped over the edge of the seat.
Katherine's arms were beginning to hurt. The binding cords were too tight, and she felt as if her circulation was being cut off. Her fingers tingled.
She shifted on the car seat as much as she could, trying to relieve the pressure.
"Settle down," Kim said, growing annoyed with her captive, "or I'll add more ropes."
Katherine didn't want that. She eased back against the seat.
"Where are you taking me? Why are you doing this to me?" Katherine asked, trying to sound calm.
Silence was the only reply.
"Where are you taking me?" she repeated. "What are you going to do to me?"
There was that dry chuckle again, then Kim replied, "You'll find out soon enough."
Katherine felt smothered again, more by her thoughts then by the bag. What was she going to do?
They rode along silently for what Katherine guessed was about half an hour. Then she felt the car turn off the main highway and bump along a lengthy stretch of rutted road. It seemed to Kat that the vehicle was traveling up a steep incline.
Finally, it stopped.
"Don't try anything funny or I'll tie you down so you can't move," Kim informed her.
What could she do? Her arms were firmly bond down, and it would be hard to try to kick him since she couldn't see.
Her abductor got out and came around to her side of the car. He opened the door, and helped her to stand up.
"I'll get behind you and guide you by the shoulders," he whispered. "Just walk where I point you.
What else could she do? She did as he said, listening for identifying sounds, the wind in the trees or waves crashing on the beach or the rush of traffic, just so she would know where they were. But through the heavy material over her head she could hear nothing but their feet crunching on gravel as they walked. She was marched up a steep incline. A couple of times she lost her footing, and started to tumble to the ground, only to have her kidnapper haul her back up to her feet.
"Come on!" Kim said, sounding impatient. "Walk faster! I don't have all day!
Kat found herself being pushed hard and fast, and was struggling to keep up.
After trudging along silently for what seemed like forever, her captor rasped, "Stop. We'll be going up three steps. Just step when I tell you too. Step.... Step.... Step...." Kat followed his instructions, as they climbed three steps to what must have been a porch. "Stop," he said again.
Katherine heard the jingle of keys, then the opening of a door. Her captor guided her into a room, and shut the door.
Positioning her against something solid, the Whisperer loosened the ropes around her body just enough so he could reach under the heavy bag, and grab her hands. Pulling them behind her, he tied her to whatever she was leaning against, some kind of post.
"How about taking me out of this bag now?" she asked. "Even with the breathing hole you cut for me, I'm not getting enough air."
"All right" the whispering voice became firm and threatening. "But no funny stuff. I'm going to tie your feet before I do anything else.
She could feel him wrapping a rope around her ankles, then around the post. He worked silently.
"Why don't you tell me now why your doing this?" Kat asked again. "I can't get away. Is it because of something I did to you? Won't you at least tell me who you are? As far as I know, I've done nothing to you!"
Silence.
He started to pull at the stiffling bag. He did it slowly, as if to tease her.
The bag was almost off. At last Katherine could breathe real air again, not just snatches of oxygen filtered through the small breathing hole.
She drew in a deep breath as he pulled the bag all the way off, and let it drop to the floor.
Kat raised her eyes to look at him, and then gasped in disbelief.
"Kim!" Katherine gasped.
It was Kim, in a thick nave blue coat with a hood.
Kim smiled. "Surprised, Kitty?"
Katherine stared at her. This wasn't possible. It had to be a joke.
But Kimberly's smile was cold and cruel.
"Kim," Kat choked. "Why?
"Why what? Isn't this just like something you would do?"
Kimberly took off the big coat, and a thick sweater that she'd had underneath it. No wonder she had seemed as big as most males. She'd padded herself so she'd feel bigger to Katherine.
She continued to smile. There was no humor in it, no warmth. It was a hard, mocking smile. Kat had never seen anything like that on Kim's face before. It made her heart wham against her rips.
"Kim," she had to try again. "Kimberly, listen to me. Maybe I was evil for awhile. But what does that have to do with you and me? I thought we were friends! You've got to tell me why you're doing this. Who are you working for? You're under a spell. You've gotta be! Please, fight the evil."
"Shut up, Kitty!" Kim came to stand right in front of her, and slapped Kat hard across the face.
Kat cried out in pain. "Kim please! Tell me why you're doing this!"
"Why? Why?!?!?!" Kim began punching and kicking Katherine, who was unable to defend herself. "I'll tell you why! I was perfectly content until you arrived, you Aussie slut! You came and took everything from me! My boyfriend, my best friend, my powers! You left me with nothing! Let's not forget trying to kill me! I hate you! I hate you I hate you I hate you! I'd like nothing more than to kill you right now. But I have much bigger plans." She spat in Kat's face. Katherine wished she could at least reach up and wipe the spittle off.
She stood there glaring at Kat for what seemed like an hour. Finally she turned and walked over to look out of the window. "Just keep quiet," she said over her shoulder. "Let me think."
Katherine leaned back against the post and looked around the room. Where were they? It seemed to be a secluded cabin. They were in a fairly large room, with a fireplace in the opposite wall.
Behind her was a rough lumber stairway leading up. The post to which she was tied was the anchor for the stairway leading up.
Kat twisted her hands so her fingers could explore the knots in the ropes around her wrists. Her hands were so sweaty with fright that she thought they might slip right out of the ropes. But the knots were tight and solid. She tried to twist her wrists far enough around to summon her Zeonizers. However, the ropes were to solid even for that.
Taking a deep breath so her voice wouldn't quiver, Katherine said, "Kim, the ropes are too tight. They're shutting off the circulation in my hands. Could you adjust them just a little?"
Kim was not dumb. "Sure," she said, turning her head. "And pretty soon you'd work yourself free, and morph. Forget it Kitty. I left enough slack so your blood can get through."
She smiled a little when she said "blood."
"It doesn't matter much anyhow, in the long run." She left the window, and walked toward Katherine. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go get some things."
Kim clamored up the stair.
Kat figured it was no use trying to get her to loosen the ropes. Katherine glanced around for other possibilities. What could she do? What might be of use to her? what was available there in the cabin?
There were the usual tools in a small stand beside the fireplace. A poker. A small shovel. A little broom. If she could get hold of that poker, she'd have a weapon. But how could she get across the room?
There wasn't much furniture. There was a sofa near the window. There where some chairs by the low kitchen counter in one corner. Before Katherine could finish examining her surroundings, Kim came thundering back down the stairs.
Kim came over to Kat, who winced, but didn't say anything. She held up a black permanent marker which she waved in her captive's face. "Since you seem so found of being called a Kat, I thought I'd help you look the part! Now hold still. This won't her a bit!" The minute Kim touched the marker to Kat's fair skin, Kat began to shake her head from side to side.
"I said hold still! I may not want to kill you now, but I will if you don't cooperate!" Kim growled.
Kat held her head as still as possible as Kim drew on her face.
"There!" Kim said, putting the cap back on her marker. She stepped back to admire her work. "Now, that wasn't so hard now, was it?" She giggled in some sort of childish delight.
"Wanna see?" She pulled out her compact mirror and held it up so Kat could view her face. Katherine gasped at her reflection. Kim had drawn whiskers going across her face. She'd blackened her nose, and made her eyes look huge and round. All in all in was a pretty good representation of a cat. "I think I'll just leave you here today to contemplate your fate," Kim told her. After that she seemed to loose interest in Kat and went back to the sofa, humming to herself.
Later that night, Kim came over with food in hand. Kat was reluctant to be fed like a child, but knew she would need her strength so she forced herself to swallow down some of the tasteless dinner.
After leading Kat to the bathroom, Kim gripped her shoulders, and steered her to what might have once been a bedroom.
"Stop." Kim said. She took a set of keys out of her pocket, and unlocked the cage she had set up.
Kim ordered Kat into the cage. Katherine obeyed, and reluctantly crawled into the cage. After making sure Kat was all the way in, Kim slammed the door shut and locked it. Kat was amazed at how many locks Kim was using.
"Go to sleep." Kim ordered. "I'll deal with you in the morning."
Kat got very little sleep that night. What was Kim going to do to her?
The next morning Kim came in, smiling brightly. She unlocked the cage, and put a bowl of...something in. "Eat up!" she said, "After you're done, I'm going to train you to be very...shall we say obedient..." she grinned evilly, and Kat shivered.
She looked at the bowl of unappetizing food, and tried to figure out how she was supposed to eat it with her hands tied. Finally, she figured out the only way to do so would be to lap it up like a dog. Tears threatened to fall. This was so demeaning! How could Kim do this to her!
She looked at the bowl of food again, then up at Kim, who glared back at her.
"Eat." Kim simply said.
"Fine, fine." Katherine surrendered. She knew that if she was going to make an escape attempt, she would need to keep her strength up. No matter how awful the food was, she needed to eat because it might be the last she would have for awhile.
Kat swung her head so her hair was over one shoulder, and lowered her head over the bowl. Like the night before, she forced herself to eat. The taste was incredibly bland, and it was hard to swallow even one bite of it.
Kat ate slowly, not all that eager to see what Kim had in store for her. How was she going to be trained?
It took awhile, but she managed to eat what she considered to be a substantial portion of her "meal." She looked up at Kim, quivering slightly, which she tried to hide. However, she apparently was unsuccessful.
"Scared, Kitty?" Kim sneered. "Well, you should be!"
Kim unlocked the cage, and grabbed Kat, yanking the girl out by the hair. Katherine stumbled a bit, and it took her a moment to regain her balance. It was hard staying up on her feet because she couldn't use her hands to help her. They were still tied securely behind her back.
"First things first...." Kim mumbled. She grabbed a pearl handled gun from a box in the corner of the room.
Kat gasped when she saw the weapon. Kim wasn't going to shoot her...was she? All this just to shoot her?
"Come here," Kimberly ordered.
"Nonononononono," Kat muttered in a whisper to herself, shaking her head and backing away. "I said, come here!" Kim growled.
"No!" Kat refused stubbornly.
"Yes. Now. You are really starting to piss me off. I don't think you want to see me any madder. Get over here, now, or I shoot." To accent her point, she leveled the revolver at Kat's head.
Kat winced at Kim's voice. It was so full of hatred...a hatred she had no idea her friend possessed. She couldn't believe the bubbly girl was capable of sounding so cold...so evil. It sent shivers down her spine. Had she sounded like that when she had been enspelled?"
"I'm really starting to loose patience now."
"All right, all right!" Kat scurried over to where Kim was waiting.
Kimberly dug her fingernails into the tender flesh of Kat's arm. Kat whimpered in pain, but Kim ignored her, as she prodded the helpless girl into an adjourning room.
"Welcome to the rec room! Or as I like to call it, the torture chamber!" Kim giggled at her own joke.
Kat looked around in fear. What exactly did Kim plan to do her? She had a sinking feeling she already knew, and it wasn't going to be pleasant. Before she had a chance to get into it any further, Kimberly smacked her.
"Pay attention when I'm talking to you!" Kim told her, "Now, where was I?" she pondered. "Oh yes! Okay, kitty, I'm going to untie your hands."
Katherine smiled. This was just the opportunity she was looking for. Maybe she could morph before Kim had a chance to shoot!
Kim's next words shot that to the ground, no pun intended. "If you try to morph, I'll shoot. If you so much as breath, I'll shoot. I won't kill you but you'll be in a lot of pain!"
"Understand?" Kim asked her captive.
"Y.eess..." Katherine stammered.
Kim moved up behind her and placed the gun to Katherine's temple. In one swift movement she grabbed the dagger hanging on the wall and slit the ropes binding Kat's hands. Kat wanted to shake some of the feeling back into her hands as the blood flowed freely again, but didn't dare. Especially with the gun held right up to her temple.
"Now, you may summon your morphers, but do nothing else." Kim told her. Katherine complied, a little miffed. "Good, now throw them and your communicator over into the corner."
As soon as the morphers and communicator were out of Katherine's possession, Kim pushed her to the ground. Keeping the gun trained on her prisoner at all times, Kim scampered over and picked the tools up, fastening them on herself. Katherine almost felt like sobbing. That had been her last chance!
Katherine was just rising to her feet when Kim came back over.
"Did I tell you that you could get up, slut?" Kim asked. "Back on the floor!" As soon as Katherine had lay down again, Kim had her get up. "Undress!" she ordered.
"Wh...what?" Kat stuttered.
"You heard me! Take off your clothes, now. A bitch like you doesn't deserve clothes! You can keep your bra and underwear on, but everything else goes!" Kim told her. Seeing Kat's hesitation, Kimberly cocked her gun. "We could do this the easy way, in which you strip voluntarily, or the hard way, in which I shoot you and then do it myself. Which will it be?"
"Umm...I'll take the first option!" Kat said hurriedly. She began peeling off her clothes, slowly. When she was almost totally nude she stood there before Kim shivering
"Here, I'm not totally uncompasionate," Kim threw something at Kat. Kat turned it over in her hands. It was something like a hospital gown, and didn't look like it provided much warmth. Katherine gratefully put it on, though.
Kim had Kat sit in one of the chairs and tied her to it. Then she left the room, and returned a few minutes later, with a long staff of iron attached to a red hot letter K.
"This has been cooking all night over a fire," Kimberly informed her. "I'm going to brand my mark on you so everyone knows you're my property! It will also serve as a reminder forever, which in your case won't be that long, of all the pain you've caused me.
Katherine shook her head and started struggling against her bonds. "Please, don't, Kim! Anything but that! Don't! Please!"
Kim ignored the girl's frightened protests, and picked up Kat's left foot. Katherine moved around as much as she could, trying to avoid the hot iron.
"Hold still! Or would you rather I put it on your face?" Kim asked.
Katherine immediately stopped struggling. She didn't want that.
"Good Kitty!" Kim said.
She picked up the iron and moved it slowly and deliberately towards Kat's foot. Katherine's heart thumped loudly in anticipation of the pain to come. Kim pressed the hot rod hard into Kat's flesh. There was a sizzle of burning flesh as a K was imprinted on the bottom of Kat's foot. Kat howled in pain, tears streaming down her cheeks. It hurt like hell! She could never remember being in so much pain!
Katherine finally couldn't handle the intense pain of her skin being burned. She let out one last shriek before passing out.
Tommy rushed into school. He saw his friends goofing around in the hallway, and skidded to a stop.
"Whoa, Tommy!" Rocky exclaimed. "Where's the fire?"
Tommy ignored Rocky, and asked, sounding slightly out of breath, "Have you guys seen Katherine?"
"No, not since yesterday at school," Tanya informed. The others nodded their agreement.
"Why?" asked Adam, "Has something happened to her?"
"If I knew, would I be asking?" Tommy snapped.
"Well, knowing you..." Rocky started to say. He stopped when he noticed how worried their leader appeared.
"What's wrong?" Tanya questioned, concern evident in her voice.
Tommy motioned them into a little used classroom. They followed, miffed, and waited while Tommy shut the door.
"Yesterday, Katherine was supposed to meet me at the Youth Center when she finished her homework. When she didn't show up, I didn't think much of it. I figured she just had too much homework. This morning, I was supposed to pick her up for school. I was running a little behind."
"That's no surprise," Rocky muttered. Tommy shot him a dirty look before continuing.
"Anyway, I honked the horn a couple but she didn't show. So I went up to the door, figuring she hadn't heard for some reason. A potted plant on the porch had been upturned, and there was dirt all over. Since her parents are out of town, they wouldn't have noticed if anything unusual had happened. I barged in yelling for Kat, but there was no answer. So, I went up to her room thinking maybe, just maybe, she had slept in and didn't hear me calling her. There was no sign of her. Her books were splayed out over her desk like she had been working on homework, but hadn't quite finished. I hightaled it over here, and that's about it!"
Rocky whistled, "Woah!"
"Do you think Mondo...." Adam trailed off.
"But if it was Mondo, why weren't we notified the minute he or his goons teleported to Earth?" Tanya asked sensibly.
"I don't know," Tommy told them truthfully. "But I intend to find out!"
Just then the bell rang, signaling the beginning of the next class. Tommy swore. He couldn't be tardy one more time or he'd be suspended.
"You guys, let's meet back here during lunch, and we'll see what we can find out," Tommy tapped his communicator.
Everyone agreed and went their separate ways.
Finally, it was lunch period, and the Rangers gathered in the same classroom they had earlier. Making sure that no one was anywhere near them, the four each pressed a button on their communicators, transporting them out in flashes of red, green, yellow, and blue. A few minutes later, they landed in the Power Chamber.
"RANGERS!" Zordon boomed, sounding surprised, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?"
"Kat's disappeared!" Tommy told him, then proceeded to inform his mentor of all that was going on.
"THAT IS INDEED STRANGE." Zordon said, "ALPHA, RUN A SCAN OF EARTH. SEE IF YOU CAN LOCATE KATHERINE'S COMMUNICATOR OR ZEONIZERS. ALSO, CHECK TO SEE IF ANYONE HAS TELEPORTED FROM THE MOON TO EARTH IN THE LAST 24 HOURS."
"Oh, aiyiyiyiyi!" Alpha cried, "I'll get right on it!" He bustled around the consoles.
"RANGERS, I'D ADVISE YOU TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL. I'LL CALL IF THERE ARE ANY DEVELOPMENTS." Zordon told them.
Tommy looked like he was about to refuse but Adam grabbed his arm. "Come on, there isn't anything we can do here except worry," the Green Ranger told his friend. Tommy nodded, and they all teleported back to school, just as lunch was ending.
When school ended, the Rangers immediatly returned to the Power Chamber. They found Billy and Alpha busy working on locating their missing friend."
"Any luck?" Tommy asked anxiously.
"No, something's distorting our sensors. I can't get a lock on her!" Billy said, barely looking up from his console.
"What does that mean?" Tanya questioned anxiously.
"Well, either Katherine isn't on Earth, is in some kind of forcefield, or she's in a natural blocker. In any case, we can't find her! I tried recalibrating the scanners to penetrate any natural barriers, but no luck."
"Damn!" Tommy cursed, "How about Mondo?"
"I'm sorry, Tommy," Alpha replied. "But nothing evil has teleported on or off the Earth in the last 72 hours."
"Tommy, I hate to tell you this, but there's nothing we can do except wait. Because either Katherine doesn't want to be found, or she was taken...by someone human."
Tanya gasped, covering her mouth with her hands. Rocky and Adam were in total shock, and Tommy...well, Tommy was a little angry to say the least!
Once Tanya recovered, she asked, "Why? Why would anyone kidnap Kat? Sure, I can understand the machine empire wanting her...but humans? It just doesn't make sense!"
"We don't know if that's the case," Billy reminded her, "She might have taken off on her own."
"Without telling anyone?" Adam said skeptically.
"Who knows?" Billy shrugged, "All we can do now is wait. If she took off, I'm sure she'll contact us, and if that's not the case...well, we'll just have to wait and see."
For the next few minutes, everyone stood around, not sure what was going on. This was one of the strangest things that had ever happened to the Rangers....and they didn't even know what was going on!
Rocky broke the silence. "Come on guys! Let's go to the Youth Center and wait it out!"
Everyone agreed this was the best plan of action, and after convincing Billy to come, they all teleported out. When they arrived, Tanya, Rocky, Adam, and Billy claimed a table while Tommy started beating the hell out of a punching bag.
"Woah! Somebody needs to calm him down!" Rocky commented.
"That wouldn't be wise, considering he will most like snap," Billy advised.
"What's wrong with him?" Tanya wondered, "He's taking it harder than any of us!"
"It has something to do with the fact that he started his rangering career as the evil Green Ranger. When he was picked to be the leader of the team, he didn't think he was worthy. He took it upon himself to make up for any mistakes he made. Now whenever something happens to anyone, he blames himself." Billy informed them.
The others nodded their understanding and continued watching Tommy beating
the hell out of the punching bag. Hopefully, they'd soon find Katherine before
Tommy had a major breakdown. Or something of the sort.