Betrayal
By Dany
Rated PG-13, but some adult content.
Disclaimer: PRNS and all its characters belong to Disney/Village Road Show.
No financial gains intended; this is just for fun.
Summary: Lothor's latest evil plan has some very emotional consequences for one of the Rangers...
The bulkheads of Lothor's spaceship were vibrating with his angry cries and rants. His entire entourage was cowered together, keeping out of his immediate reach, waiting for this current storm to calm down.
"I simply can't believe that you imbeciles have messed up again! My plan was perfect, but NOOO, you half-wits can't even follow the simplest orders. Can any of you please tell me what I don't pay you for?"
Zurgane dared to speak up. "Your evilness, we couldn't possibly foresee that the Thunder Rangers would turn on us..."
"Quiet!" From across the room Lothor hit him square in the chest with a power beam from his wrist. Zurgane crashed into the wall and Lothor cast angry glances at his evil team. "Now, I want a plan, a good plan, a foolproof plan, and I want it NOW!"
At that very moment, Lothor's nieces burst into the room. "Uncle, she's here, she's here. Her ship just landed in the docking bay. Finally!"
They were practically bubbling over with excitement.
"Who?" he snapped at them. "Who is here?"
Marah and Kapri looked at him incredulously. "Hello? Our best friend Crystal! You said it was ok that she come over to visit, remember?"
Lothor waved absentmindedly. "Oh yes. Fine, fine. Now, before you burst in here there was an important meeting going on. Out!"
After the two girls had dashed out he turned back to the subject at hand. He fixed his underlings with an intimidating stare. "All right, since none of you morons can come up with anything, here's my newest evil plan: I need to get my hands on one of the Power Ranger's morphers to exploit its technology. Once I know how the wristbands give them their powers, I can then turn it around and use it against them. I want you all to figure out how to obtain one."
Suddenly, girlish giggling could be heard, and Marah and Kapri walked into the room with a third figure in tow. "Uncle, here is someone who is dying to meet you."
All the assembled evil generals, as well as Lothor himself, stopped breathing for a moment.
The girl was simply stunning. Tall and lithe, she wore a purple catsuit that showed that there was not an ounce of fat on her curvy body. Sable-brown hair hung in long, luscious waves down her back and her eyes were the color of purest emeralds. A teenager, not much older than his two nieces, she nevertheless walked with a born grace, and the look in her eyes was intelligent and confident; attributes that both of his nieces sorely lacked.
She took one look around the room and walked straight towards Lothor.
"I am honored to finally meet the famous Lothor in person," she cooed. "Your tireless fight against the Power Rangers is legendary throughout the galaxy."
Lothor took both of her hands. "Smart and beautiful." He held her hands a little longer, for an idea had just come into his mind. "Say, Crystal, how would you like to be part of this legacy? You see, I have a dilemma..."
Blue Bay Harbor...
Only a few hours later, Crystal, Marah and Kapri were crouched behind a large bush next to the outdoor basketball court of Blue Bay High School. Crystal was dressed in Human clothes: Jeans, sneakers, and a tight fitting purple tank top. A cotton backpack was slung over her shoulder. They were scanning the entrance of the school, waiting.
"And exactly how were you planning on getting this wristband again?" asked Marah, who still hadn't fully grasped Lothor's plan.
Crystal was rolling her eyes at her friend. "Just watch and learn, ok? It's almost nine and school is starting. They should be here any time now."
Kapri cast her a glance. "Which ranger do you have in mind?"
Crystal shrugged nonchalantly. "Doesn't matter. Which ever one comes around the corner first. I'm not picky."
Those words had barely left her mouth when a figure dressed in black shorts and a red, sleeveless T-shirt came flying around the corner, hurrying towards the school's entrance. He carried a backpack over one shoulder, and a skateboard under his arm.
Shane.
"There's one of them!" Marah exclaimed excitedly.
Crystal grinned at her friends. "One's as good as the other." She jumped up and dashed off, on a direct collision course with Shane.
Shane was just glancing at his watch with a frown. He was going to be late for class again. This was the second time this week, and it was only Wednesday. Ranger training had been pretty intense lately, running well into the evening, and this morning he had been sleeping so deeply he hadn't even heard his alarm clock.
Out of the periphery of his vision he saw a shadow coming towards him, but before he could react he had already collided with the figure. The impact sent both him and the other person reeling backwards, falling onto their butts. Shane recovered first, pulling himself up. Now he was definitely going to be late. He whirled around, ready to unleash a verbal volley at the klutz who ran into him, but the words died in his throat. The most beautiful girl he had ever seen sat in the grass before him with her hand at the side of her head, moaning. His anger immediately turned to pity and he knelt in front of her. "Oh man, I'm sorry. I never saw you coming. Are you all right?"
The girl looked up and he was once again struck by her loveliness. Her skin was creamy and flawless, surrounded by a mane of soft, brown waves. He stared into her emerald eyes until she smiled. "I'm ok, but would you mind moving a little bit so I can get up?"
"Oh, sure," he mumbled, embarrassed. He held out his hand, gently helped her to her feet and went to get her backpack that had landed a few feet from them. When he handed it to her, she smiled at him gratefully. Class vanished from Shane's mind at this sight.
"Are you sure you're ok?" he asked, eager to drag out this encounter, strange as its circumstances might have been. "You fell kind of hard."
She nodded, still smiling her slightly shy smile. "Yes, but now I'm gonna be late, and it's my first day of school here. Talk about a good first impression."
"I figured you must be new here. Otherwise I would certainly have noticed you much earlier." Shane blurted out and promptly started to blush.
The girl gave a small laugh and held out her hand. "I'm Crystal."
Shane took her hand. It was warm and soft, and a feeling like a jolt of electricity came over him. He did not ever want to let go again. "I'm Shane."
"Nice to meet you." Crystal said. "Listen, I'm sorry, but I've got to go..."
"What class are you going to?" Shane asked.
"Biology." She thought for a moment. "Dr. Cooper."
Shane's face lit up. "That's my class, too. Come on, let's go."
He grabbed his knapsack and skateboard, and they set off towards the school entrance.
Shane did not see the quick glance Crystal cast over her shoulder towards the bush before they entered the school.
Afterwards...
Shane and Crystal were inseparable for the rest of the day. He introduced her to his classmates, showed her around the school grounds, sat with her in the cafeteria, and talked. Crystal told him of her move her just one week ago due to her father's new job.
"It all happened so fast, he got transferred and suddenly we were packing, leaving my hometown behind." Crystal tapped her fork into her food with a sad look on her face. "I've never lived anywhere else before, and this town feels so...alien to me. I don't know where anything is, and I don't know anyone."
"You know me," Shane said with a grin.
She grinned back at him. "Yes." She gave him a long look that made him feel almost light-headed. With effort he tore his eyes away from her and they ate in silence for a few moments.
"Hey, how would you like to hang out with me after school?" he said suddenly. "I'll introduce you to some of my friends. I'm sure you'll like them." He looked hopeful.
Crystal nodded happily. "I would like that."
Later...
Later that afternoon, Shane and Crystal arrived together at Storm Chargers dirt-bike shop. The rest of the gang was already there, and Crystal met Tori, Dustin, Hunter and Blake. It turned into a fun afternoon, with lots of joking and teasing, and when Shane later excused them to take Crystal home, the four remaining friends all agreed that Crystal seemed like a nice person.
Over the next two weeks, Shane spent more and more time with Crystal. He took her on walks around town, helped her with her homework, and to get adjusted with her life in a new town. He still came to Ninja Ops, of course, and trained, but since it had been almost unnaturally quiet as far as Lothor's attacks on Earth were concerned, he had time to spare. And he chose to spend it with Crystal. The rest of the gang, though, was not so happy about this course of things anymore.
But Sensei set their minds at ease. "You all must make your own experiences, live out your young lives. And as long as he does not neglect his Ranger duties, we should all wish him happiness."
Tori and Dustin, however, were not so easily convinced as they watched the hastily retreating figure of their friend sprinting out of Ninja Ops right after training.
They looked at each other, and Tori ran a hand though her blond hair. "Sometimes, too much of a good thing can actually be bad."
Dustin only nodded.
Study time...
Slightly out of breath, Shane arrived at Crystal's house. He had jogged all the way from Ninja Ops to get here in time. The day after tomorrow they had a big biology test, and they wanted to get as much studying in as possible. Shane rang the doorbell. A smile formed on his face while he waited for Crystal to answer the door. Over the past few weeks, they had grown pretty close, and by now they were openly holding hands on school grounds. Their quick, shy kisses had gradually deepened, and a few times Shane had to actually pull himself away from her for fear that his passion would get the better of him. He was not completely inexperienced, but none of the girls he had gone out with before even came close to Crystal. She was simply intoxicating. When he was with her, Shane felt lighter, as if the heavy responsibility of being a Power Ranger did not exist in those moments. Not that he would ever turn his back on the Rangers! That thought never crossed his mind, but it was definitely nice to be just Shane for a break.
The door opened and Crystal's smile brightened the doorway. She wore a knee-length jeans skirt and a multi-colored tank top that accentuated her curves most pleasantly.
"Hi," she beamed at him, planted a kiss on his lips and pulled him inside.
Arms around each other, they walked down the short hallway and up the stairs to her room.
"Your parents are never here," he remarked once inside her room. So far he had yet to meet her father and mother, despite the fact that he had been at her house quite a few times already.
"Yeah, dad is working crazy hours and mom is still out job hunting." Crystal remarked casually, then quickly changed the subject towards biology. She did her best to hide her nervousness from him. That condition resulted from Lothor's latest communication. He had hailed her from his videocomm just before Shane's arrival. Lothor was getting impatient and had demanded she get the morpher. Pronto! Time was running out, but unfortunately, Crystal did not want this assignment to end any time soon. Something had happened to her so unexpected, so disturbing that she could not yet believe it herself;
She actually liked this Human. She enjoyed his company, and to have to leave him filled her with sadness. It wasn't so much the fact that she had to steal his wristband as it was to never see him again.
Crystal looked at Shane's handsome profile as he read over some of her biology papers.
"Tomorrow," she thought to herself. "I'll do it tomorrow. Today I want to enjoy my time with him."
As if he had heard her thoughts, Shane looked up at her. She gave him one of her best smiles and handed him a glass of ice tea.
They cramped biology for two hours. Finally, Shane stretched and yawned. "I think I've had enough of this stuff for now." He rolled his head left and right. Crystal got up from her chair, moved behind him and began to gently massage his shoulders.
"Gee, you are tense," she remarked.
"Yeah, I was, aehm... working out before I got here."
Crystal's hands were slowly moving from his shoulders to his upper arms. She squeezed his biceps. "You seem to be working out a lot."
It was an innocent gesture, but Shane picked up on the underlining sensuality and turned his head. For a moment they looked at each other wordlessly before he rose from his chair. Crystal was a few inches shorter than he, so she tilted her head up to meet his lips in a lingering kiss. His arms came up to enfold her and he pulled her close to him.
Crystal had been with many men, but there was an innocence, a purity to Shane that touched her soul despite her best efforts to ignore it.
She moved backwards until her legs bumped against the bed frame. She pretended to loose her balance and they fell back onto the Queen-sized bed. There they stayed, kissing. While he explored her mouth with his tongue, Shane ran his hands up and down her arms and waist, raking his fingers through her hair, but he did not touch her in any other places. That was a new experience for Crystal, since the men she had taken to bed before would have had her naked and under the covers by now.
Then, suddenly, Shane broke the kiss. "I should be going," he said hoarsely and moved to get up. Crystal held on to him. "Why? Is there somewhere else you'd rather be?"
Shane shook his head. "Crystal, you are so...incredible. I'm afraid that if I stayed, I don't know if I would be able to control myself, and I don't want to do anything you don't want to do."
A gentleman. That was the only word that came to her mind as she reached out for him. "But I don't want you to go, no matter what happens."
He looked at her intently for several moments before he spoke. "Are you sure of that?"
Her answer was to pull her tank top over her head. She wore nothing underneath.
Shane's heart was hammering hard against his ribcage and his throat had gone dry.
He had fought numerous battles against the most evil monsters, but never had he been as weak-kneed as he was right now. He tried to calm his racing heart by taking a few deep breaths, but when Crystal reached for him, pulling his T-shirt over his head, all thoughts of meditation were purged from his mind as the blood raced from his head down to his groin.
His hands shook slightly as he cupped one of her breasts. Seeing his nervousness, Crystal had a hard time believing that this was the Red Wind Ranger, the most powerful one of them all. He was, quite literally, putty in her hands. She craned her neck for another deep kiss and pressed herself against him. Through the fabric of his jeans she could feel how hard he was. He was definitely ready.
"Shane," she breathed and looked straight into his eyes. "Is this your first time?"
The blush on his brown face was all the answer she needed. "Don't worry," she whispered with a sweet smile as she reached for his belt buckle. "I'll be gentle with you."
That broke the ice. Shane's features changed from embarrassment to a wicked grin, and he fell back onto the pillows, pulling her with him.
Aftermath...
Crystal looked into Shane's sleeping face. He was laying next to her under the sheets, one leg draped over hers, and, most importantly, the arm that held his morpher slung across her waist. The wristband was in easy reach. Slowly, deliberately, she wrapped her hands around his wrist and examined the device. She could not see any clasp, buckle, or lock of any kind. How the heck does it come off?
She swallowed the wave of guilt that threatened to rise from her gut. Just get it over with!
She carefully turned his arm around, checking the device from all sides. All the while she tried not to look at Shane or think about the past few hours, but images were flashing before her eyes nevertheless.
Shane's body, once freed from his clothing, was exquisite. His chest was completely hairless, his stomach firm, his arms and legs rippling with muscles. Not to mention that he was also quite well endowed.
She had to guide him the first time. And being that this was his first experience, it had also been over pretty fast. But once he got his breath back, he more than made up for it during round two. She still saw the fire in his eyes, still heard the echo of him whispering her name with such tenderness as he explored her body for the second time.
It was getting harder and harder to think of him as a dangerous enemy.
She was still trying to figure out how to open the wristband when suddenly the device squawked to life. She yanked her hands away. At the same time, Shane twitched, his eyes flying open. She feigned sleepiness as he checked the morpher and pressed a button on it. He sighed and looked at the clock on her nightstand with genuine regret in his eyes.
"I have to go."
"Already?" She pulled herself up to a sitting position, the sheet still draped over her chest.
He kissed her longingly and leaned his forehead against hers. "I'm sorry. I never meant to fall asleep. But there is somewhere I have to be." Yet he lingered, watching her face. "I'll be back as soon as I can. I promise."
She watched him as he dressed hurriedly.
"Where are you going?" she asked innocently.
He slipped into his sneaker, then turned to her. His open, honest gaze was clouded with sorrow as he looked at the girl who, only a few hours ago, had made him a man.
"I...can't say that. Please understand." His eyes were pleading with her.
She nodded slowly. "You'll be back?"
He leaned over for a last kiss. "Before you know it."
Then he was gone.
Reflections...
Shane jogged back to Ninja Ops. He knew he was in trouble the moment he had seen Cam's signal on the Ranger Comm. Thank goodness it was only training he had missed. What if it had been an attack from Lothor? His friends would have been out there alone. Who knows what could have happened? Not that they weren't already ticked off by now for all the time he had spent with Crystal instead of them lately.
Crystal.
His life had changed today because of her. He had changed, had crossed the threshold.
Something else had changed, too. Maybe it had already been there for a while, but until now Shane had not been sure of it. He was sure of it now, though.
He was in love.
When he got to Ninja Ops, five Humans and a guinea pig were glaring at
The trap...
Training was rough, even without the five-mile penalty run Sensei had ordered him to complete, but as he rinsed the sweat off his body in the shower, he felt not the slightest bit tired. On the contrary, he felt invigorated, alive with new knowledge, almost giddy.
He stifled the urge to whistle a tune while he toweled himself off and put on fresh clothes.
He had a date to keep.
When he got back to Crystal's house, the sun was getting ready to set. Still no cars in the driveway. Shane ignored the nagging feeling in the back of his head. So, Crystal's parents were out a lot. Why was that bothering him, though?
He repeated the doorbell ritual. Crystal let him in, but her smile she gave him now seemed forced. A clump of ice started to form in Shane's gut. Did she regret what happened?
Crystal took his hand, staring at his morpher for a moment before she looked up into his face. Her eyes looked sad.
"Shane, I am sorry," she said hoarsely. Only then did he recognize the device she held in her other hand. Her grip on his hand became steely as she depressed a button on the remote control. Immediately, a bright flash of light appeared directly behind him. Before he could turn around, multiple hands grabbed him and he was pulled backwards into the transporter light.
Lothor's Territory...
When his vision cleared from the blinding light, he found himself on the bridge of Lothor's ship. He had never been here before, but the dozen kelzaks in their black/red outfits and helmets that were surrounding him, not to mention Lothor's looming presence directly in front of him, left the question of his whereabouts safely answered.
He was still held down by multiple hands, his arms yanked behind his back, a sword pointed at his throat. And Lothor grinning slyly at him. "Welcome to my humble home, Ranger."
She stood directly next to Lothor, looking at him with an expression he couldn't quite place. But seeing her there, and the sudden knowledge of the depth of her deceit, shook him to the core.
"You were working for Lothor all along." Shane struggled briefly against his captors, but to no avail. He was hopelessly outnumbered.
Crystal opened her mouth, but Lothor cut her off. "Of course she was working for me," he bellowed boastfully. "She was only supposed to bring me your morpher, but I guess you came as a bonus." He laughed heartily at his joke.
"If you think I'll just hand it over to you, then you better think again." Shane snarled.
"Oh, you'll hand it over, all right," Lothor grinned. "Willingly or not."
He nodded to the kelzaks holding Shane down, and with a vicious jerk, one of them twisted his arm. Shane fell to one knee, letting out an involuntary cry. Lothor painstakingly examined the wristband, but he could not find a release mechanism either.
Shane clenched his teeth and stared at the floor until a shadow fell over him. He raised his head slowly. Crystal was looking down on him. "Shane, I..."
"I thought we had something," Shane said quietly, his voice laced with pain that had nothing to do with his current position. "I guess I was wrong."
Crystal couldn't think of anything to say to explain her actions, and the look of utter hurt in his eyes finally made her look away.
Lothor, having finished his inspection of the morpher, motioned his gofers to pull Shane back up.
Ranger and evil general locked stares. "How does it open?" Lothor hissed.
Shane remained silent. Lothor's gloved hand shot out and wrapped around the Red Ranger's throat. Shane gasped as his air supply was abruptly cut off.
"Make no mistake, Ranger. I will have the wristband. One way or the other," Lothor growled at him.
"Take him to the laboratory," he commanded his ninjas. "I will deal with him there later."
The kelzaks yanked at Shane's arms, shoving him towards the double exit doors.
Crystal's distraught face was the last thing Shane saw before he was taken from the bridge.
Zurgane turned towards his master. "Sir, my men are restless. They are itching for a good fight, and since we have been laying low for so long..."
Lothor cast his general a glance and nodded. "Yes, you are right, and now that I have what I wanted, there's no more reason to hold back on the pathetic earthlings." Lothor grinned. "Go ahead, wreak some havoc. Have fun."
Confrontation...
In Ninja Ops, Cam's computer console suddenly lit up like a Christmas tree with multi-colored warning lights. Tori, Dustin, Hunter and Blake crowded behind him, watching the computer screen, where at least a dozen of Lothor's kelzaks were happily terrorizing innocent people in the streets.
"Still no word from Shane?" Dustin asked in a worried tone.
Cam shook his head. "No, and what worries me even more is that I can't even get a signal from his Ranger Comm."
Tori leaned forward with a frown. "Meaning?"
Cam's frown matched hers. "Meaning that it's either disabled, which is downright impossible, or that he is out of range. And we are talking seriously out of range."
Tori's grave face turned back to the scene on the computer screen. "Isn't it also strange that it's been so quiet lately, but now that Lothor Inc. is obviously back from vacation, it just so happens that we can't contact Shane?"
The Rangers all looked at each other, lines of worry etched across their foreheads.
Blake put a hand on Cam's shoulder. "Keep trying, Cam. We've got to go and take care of this mess out there."
They streaked out of Ninja Ops, and within moments they arrived at the scene of the disturbance, dressed in full battle gear.
Zurgane was standing on top of a low wall, directing his gofers to attack the citizens.
The Rangers went into action right away, and for the next several minutes they fought valiantly, but they were clearly outnumbered.
"There are too many of them!" Tory yelled, helping up Hunter, who had just come flying across the plaza due to a vicious blow.
By now the Rangers were pretty unsteady on their feet, but suddenly Zurgane called his men towards him.
"Hey, Power fools," he called from his vantage point. "Where's your Red Ranger? You sure could use him right now."
"None of your concern," Dustin yelled back at him.
"Oh, but it should definitely be your concern, because he is enjoying Lothor's hospitality as we speak." Zurgane was thoroughly enjoying their cries of alarm; his words had hit home.
They all seemed to be talking at once.
"WHAT?"
"You are lying!"
Zurgane guffawed. "Are there any last words from you I may deliver to him?"
Tori's fist shook with rage as she waved it at him. "You wouldn't dare! If you harm him..."
"Let him go!" Dustin screamed, but Zurgane only laughed, already depressing a button on his remote control. He and the kelzaks were instantly sucked into the transport beam.
The Power Rangers were left standing in the now deserted square, helpless and sick with worry about their friend.
Betrayal...
The laboratory was cold, and so was the highly uncomfortable high-backed metal chair he had been strapped to. Shane shivered, but he didn't think that the frigid temperature in the lab was the primary reason.
To keep him from reaching his morpher and the Ranger Comm imbedded in it, his wrists and ankles were tied to the chairs' armrests and legs by metal clamps that cut painfully into his flesh every time he tried to move. There was no wiggle room, but even if he would have been able to get out of his bonds, there were still the three kelzaks that were guarding him closely. Behind the black visors of their helmets, Shane could feel their eyes on him.
But before his mental eyes he only saw one face, Crystal's face.
She had played him brilliantly, and he had bought every one of her lies like a fool.
Shane could almost hear his heart breaking in the silence of Lothor's laboratory.
Overcome with misery, he yanked at the metal clamps, but was rewarded only with a sharp pain in both wrists.
He hardly noticed it; her betrayal had already cut deeper than any bonds ever could.
He let out a shuddering breath.
His guards, misinterpreting his heartache for fear, grinned under their masks.
Rescue...
The dejected Ranger team was assembled in the dirt-bike shop, mulling over their situation.
"I don't understand. How did Lothor get his hands on Shane?" Cam brooded.
"Crystal." Tori literally spat out the name.
"Of course!" Blake exclaimed. "She is the only one apart from us who has been close enough to him. He was comfortable around her. And just when he let his guard down..."
"...she snatched him for Lothor." Hunter finished his brother's thought.
Tori's glare could have cut through steel as she paced before the checkout counter.
"That rotten, miserable, lying b..."
"Call me what you want, but make it fast, because we don't have much time," came a familiar voice from the entrance door of the shop.
The Rangers spun around in unison, going straight into attack formation when they recognized Crystal. She held up her hand. "No need for that. I've come to take you to him."
"Where is he?" Hunter growled at her.
"On Lothor's ship." The girl sighed. "Lothor wanted one of your Ranger morphers. He is planning on using its power against you, but I couldn't get it off Shane."
"So you took the morpher with the Ranger still attached to it," Tori remarked sarcastically. "Very practical."
Crystal ran her hands through her hair in a frustrated gesture. "This was supposed to be a quick and easy job, but somewhere along the way things went wrong..."
"Like Shane falling in love with you?" Dustin snapped.
"Look, I know you aren't going to believe anything I'll say, and you have every right to, but I never meant for Shane to get hurt." Crystal said sincerely. "But that's exactly what's going to happen if you don't get to him fast."
She produced a remote control from her shoulder bag. "I stole this from Zurgane. We can transport straight to the ship."
"Like heck we will!" Cam spoke up. "Who knows how many of Lothor's goons you'll have waiting for us once we step through this thing."
Crystal shook her head. "This is not a trap. You must believe me that."
Cam crossed his arms before him. "No way, sister. We can't trust you."
Crystal's shoulders slumped at his words and she seemed to deflate. "You're right. You can't trust me. I've made sure of that, haven't I?" She looked at the remote in her hands. "I'll try to get him out myself. I owe him that." She turned to leave.
"Wait." Tori's voice held her back. The blue Power Ranger turned to her friends. "What if she does speak the truth? And then, what if she doesn't manage to get Shane off the ship?" She looked into her friends' faces. They were as torn as she was. "I don't trust her any more than you do, but I just have to do something!"
"All right," Blake decided. "We'll go, but we are morphing first, all weapons drawn." He looked around determinedly. "If we are going straight into the Hornet's nest, we better be going with guns blazing."
Crystal looked relieved as she punched a button on the remote control.
The Rangers morphed, drew their swords and lunged towards the transport beam.
Dustin was getting ready to leap through the portal, but Crystal put a hand on his arm.
"I know I don't have a right to ask this, but: would you do me a favor?"
"And what's that?" Dustin asked suspiciously.
"Would you give Shane a message from me after you have returned?" Crystal's eyes were pleading. Dustin cast her a scrutinizing look, but then he nodded.
"Please tell him: We did have something."
Dustin seemed confused, but Crystal said quietly, "He'll understand."
Then she stepped into the transport beam.
Meanwhile...
The icy silence of the laboratory was broken by the sharp swishhh of the double doors.
Lothor and his entourage strutted into the room, heading directly for Shane. The evil general circled the metal chair slowly, looking down onto the immobilized Ranger.
"I thought it might interest you to know that my men just gave your pitiable Ranger friends the whacking of their lives," he chuckled.
Shane stiffened, but remained silent.
Suddenly, Lothor was in front of him, pushing his ugly visage close to Shane's face. "I could have wiped them off your pathetic planet today, you know, but then I wouldn't have any more use for this toy of yours." He tapped Shane's wristband lightly. "And I already have such ingenious plans for this technology. Would be a shame to miss out on the fun of seeing the stupid looks on your friends' faces, not to mention my dear brother, when I walk straight into your headquarters, and take it over." He glanced at the morpher again. "And this little device will lead me straight to it once I have reversed its comm signal."
Lothor fixed Shane with a crazed stare. "For the last time: Tell me how to take it off!"
Shane glared right back at him. "Never!"
Lothor's eyes turned to slits. "Very well, fool. You had your chance." He motioned to his goons. One of them placed a small metal table next to Shane's chair, while another unlocked the armrest clamp. They grabbed Shane's arm that held the morpher, dragged it onto the table and held it down onto its surface with vice-like grips.
"You've tried my patience long enough, Ranger. Now we'll do things my way." Lothor snarled, reached into his leather coat and produced a wide, wicked-looking blade.
The evil ninja relished the sight of Shane's eyes widening in horror. The young man's breath came in short, quick bursts, and he was unable to tear his eyes away from the blade as Lothor raised the weapon dramatically into the air.
He's bluffing! Shane thought frantically, sweat breaking out on his forehead.
"You wouldn't!" he hissed at his nemesis, his heart thundering wildly in his chest.
Lothor smirked. "Watch me."
"NO!" Shane cried just as Lothor was getting ready to ram the blade down onto his wrist.
But the blow never came. Suddenly, Lothor's hand was engulfed in sparks. The evil space ninja let out a cry of pain and dropped the weapon.
Familiar voices sounded from the laboratory entrance:
"Get your hands off him, Lothor!"
"If you so much as bend a hair on his head, you are so gonna regret it, dude!"
The startled goons let go of Shane's hand. Shane whipped his head around and saw the most welcome sight in the world: His five friends standing in the doorway, poised, weapons drawn.
"ARGHH, what are those multi-colored pests doing on my ship?" Lothor screamed.
He gesticulated wildly with his uninjured hand. "GET THEM!!!!"
The laboratory was plunged into chaos as Rangers clashed with evil kelzaks.
Cam lunged into the air, did a double flip halfway across the room and landed directly in front of Lothor.
"You've come to the wrong place, Nephew," the alien general snarled.
"Don't worry, we have no intentions of staying for dinner, Uncle," Cam replied dryly.
Lothor attacked with lightening-quick moves, but the Green Samurai Ranger matched him punch for punch.
Meanwhile, with his free hand, Shane was desperately feeling along the side of the other armrest for the lock release that still tied down his right arm.
Suddenly, Tori was by his side. With quick hands she freed Shane from the chair and helped him up. "Are you all right?"
Shane nodded. "Yeah. Awesome timing."
"We've got to get out of here, before the rest of the ship finds out we're here," Tori said urgently. "Come on!"
"How did you guys even get here?" Shane asked, but Tori was already pulling him towards the lab doors.
As soon as all the members of the Power Rangers team had spilled out of the laboratory and into the hallway, Blake swung his staff and struck the sensor above the door. It exploded in a shower of sparks, and the laboratory doors swished shut, muffling Lothor's enraged roars.
"That should buy us some time," Blake exclaimed.
Dustin's helmeted head moved left and right. "Where's that closet again?"
"Closet?" Shane asked confused.
At that very moment, a side door opened a few yards ahead of them, and Crystal stepped out into the hallway, waving at them urgently. "Over here, quick! The portal's getting unstable." Then she dashed back inside.
Seeing her jolted Shane all anew. "What...?" he began.
"Crystal was the one who got us onto the ship," Tory explained while they sprinted down the hallway. "The transporter beam's hidden in the closet."
The entire team crowded into the small janitorial room, where the transporter beam flickered wildly. Blake and Hunter went though the portal first. Cam was next. There was
barely time for Shane to lock eyes with Crystal one last time before Tori hurled herself into the beam, pulling him with her.
"Goodbye, Shane," Crystal whispered.
Dustin had guarded their retreat. Consequently, he was the last one of the Rangers left in the closet. Crystal was standing off to the side of the transporter portal, frantically pushing buttons on her remote control. "I can't keep this portal open any longer. You've got to go," she cried.
"What about you?" asked Dustin.
"Don't worry about me," Crystal replied, "I know how to cover my tracks."
"But Lothor..."
"I can handle Lothor," the girl said unconcerned. "Besides, I've been wanting to move to the other side of the galaxy for some time now. Just have to expedite that a little bit, I guess. "She nodded towards the flickering beam. "Now go!"
The yellow Ranger hesitated for only a moment, then took a flying leap into the beam and vanished.
Epilogue...
Two days later, Dustin was walking solemnly down the murky darkness of the tunnel that connected Ninja Ops to the concealed cove the Rangers used for training. He was pretty sure he would find Shane there.
When he stepped out of the tunnel and into the sunlight, he saw the familiar figure of his friend down by the little stretch of beach, dressed in his black leather training uniform, performing the flowing movements of the Wind Ninja karate kata.
Dustin sat down on a boulder, waiting for him to finish his practice. The Wind Ninja kata were long and complicated, meant to hone one's combat skills and reflexes, but also to strengthen and focus the mind. Performing a flawless kata took great concentration, and from watching his friend's fluid and graceful movements, Dustin could see that Shane was a little over halfway through the Ten-kata, the longest routine of them all. From that fact alone Dustin could conclude that his friend's mind was still deeply troubled.
He shifted to a more comfortable position and unscrewed one of the water bottles he had brought along. This would take a while longer.
Dustin's eyes continued to follow Shane's block-, kick-, and strike combinations, practicing the difficult combos along in his mind, when suddenly Shane mis-stepped.
His concentration broken, Shane slumped down onto the sand. Dustin waited a few more seconds before he approached him, plopped down next to him and handed him the other water bottle. Shane nodded his thanks and drank deep, showing no surprise at his friend's sudden appearance.
"How long have you been here?" he asked Dustin.
"Couple of minutes."
Shane nodded wordlessly, sipping his water.
"You almost made it though the kata," Dustin said. "That was pretty good."
"With the emphasis on 'almost'."
"No, that's not what I meant," Dustin replied quickly. "Dude, I've never made it though the Ten-kata, so don't feel bad."
No reply again. Shane was looking out onto the calm ocean, clearly not in chatting mood.
But Dustin had not come here to chat anyways. He had a message to deliver.
He turned towards his friend. "Shane, how are you doing?"
Since their escape from Lothor's ship, Shane had been very quiet, even though he had repeatedly assured them all that he was fine. Now Shane opened his mouth to give him this well-prepared answer, but Dustin cut him off.
"No, for real, Shane. How are you?" The concern in Dustin's voice was genuine.
Shane exhaled heavily. "You mean besides the facts that Lothor almost cut off my hand, and that I have been played like a complete sucker by...his accomplice? How do you think I feel?" The words had come out harsher than intended, and Shane immediately felt guilty about it. "Sorry, Dustin."
Dustin shrugged it off. "Hey man, don't worry about it."
"You've been though a lot," he added quietly. Then he looked at his fellow Ranger and drew a breath. "Listen, Shane, before we got onto the ship, Crystal asked me to give you a message. Do you want to hear it?"
At the mention of her name, a muscle in Shane's cheek twitched. "All right."
"She said to tell you: 'we did have something'."
"She said you would understand," he continued, watching his friend's face.
Shane closed his eyes, raked his hands through his hair. He said nothing; the myriad of emotions on his face were speaking for him. When he opened his eyes again, he stared out over the glistening water for several moments before he finally spoke.
"I've spent t he last two days trying to figure out what I feel, how I feel about her," he began. "I guess I should be angry, and I was...at first. Furious and hurt. But now..." Shane shrugged helplessly. "I don't know."
Dustin knew he shouldn't be asking this, but his curiosity got the better of him.
"Did you guys...?" He raised his eyebrows questioningly.
Shane cast him a glance. "Yeah, Dustin, we did."
"Aw, man," the yellow Ranger mumbled sadly with a new understanding of his friend's anguish. He also knew that he had absolutely no business asking the next question, but he couldn't help himself. "So...how was it?" he asked softly.
Shane looked down at his hands in his lap. "It was...incredible."
The two Rangers spent some moments in silence. A flock of seagulls swooped low over the ocean waves, looking for scraps. Dustin watched one of them dive into the water, emerging again almost immediately, a small fish dangling from its beak.
Next to him, Shane sighed. "I miss her, Dustin. Despite all that happened, I miss her." He shook his head sadly. "I wonder if she's all right. Is that crazy, or what?"
Back in Ninja Ops after their escape, the rest of the gang had filled Shane in on all that had happened since his abduction, including Crystal's sudden appearance in the bike shop and her part in the rescue operation.
Dustin reached out and squeezed his friend's shoulder gently. "No, dude. Not at all."
"You know..." Dustin continued, catching Shane's eye.
"You still have us. You know we're all there for you, right?" Dustin held out his hand, and Shane clasped it tightly.
"Yeah, I know," the Red Ranger said gratefully. "And that means a lot to me."
The two Power Rangers pulled each other up and slowly made their way back to the tunnel, and Ninja Ops.
THE END