Chapter 3

Clare and the Rangers did a good job with the room, Udonna decided. All the broken stuff which was kept here before was temporarily pushed to the side. The freed space was occupied by a single, narrow bed taken from the attic. The linens were fresh and clean, although she wasn't sure if Koragg would appreciate the little flowers which were decorating them. The only thing the room lacked was some source of light. It was already getting dark outside, so she had to squint to see clearly. Madison must've noticed this too, because she turned a broken chair leg into a lamp. The room instantly brightened and Udonna heard a strained hiss coming from Koragg.

Madison's brows went up. "I think it's too bright for him." The lamp's light became a bit softer.

"Now, Koragg, are you done complaining? There are some matters to discuss," Nick stated flatly.

Daggeron put a hand on Nick's shoulder. "Take it easy. We must get him to cooperate. Biting his head off will get us nowhere," he whispered urgently.

"Yeah, whatever," Nick grumbled, shaking off his mentor's hand.


The darkness began to slowly fade away, pain taking its place. His eyes shot open. What was that? Confusion clouded Koragg's mind for a moment. It felt like somone took away a part of the day.

But all thoughts about this odd state he found himself in disappeared when he looked around. This wasn't the Underworld nor one of his hidden dimensions. The room wasn't anything special, just some garbage pushed aside and the thing he was lying on. He had to get out of there. He tried to push himself upright.

And immedately regretted it. Pain shot throughout his limbs and weird buzzing filled his head. Koragg gritted his teeth in attempt to quelch the painful scream, letting out a strangled moan instead.

Then the door opened. A blonde head peeked into the room and looked straight at him. He stared back, not knowing what to expect. The girl slowly approached him...

And poked him on the visor.

He wanted to ask her what was she doing, but it came out like this: "Whuthhh 'r ghh dhhinghh?"

She jumped up and run out of the room, slamming the door after herself. He scowled at the unexpectedly noisy sound. The girl looked familiar, but he didn't manage to observe her face properly. And what was all this jumpiness about? Was she afraid of an unarmed, immobilised man?

After a minute or so he heard footsteps. But this time it wasn't just the girl, there were more of them. The door opened again.

The figures were blurring in front of him. It was too dark for him to make out their faces. One of them moved and suddenly blinding light erupted on his left. He hissed with annoyance.

A woman's voice mumbled something and the light became softer. He almost sighed in relief, but it quickly passed when he finally saw his visitors.

The Rangers were looking at him distrusfully.

"Now, Koragg, are you done complaining? There are some matters to discuss," he heard the Red Ranger say. He ignored him.

Solaris was whispering something to the Red Ranger, but he didn't care. His memories were slowly coming back. He remembered his master's call and Imperious' attack. Now he knew how he got here. He was going to find that blasted hidiac and make him pay.

Now he had to focus. 'The Rangers may be strong, but they are too naive. I can escape easily. I just have to wait for my injuries to heal. It won't take long,' he thought, recalling the many times when even the worst wounds healed in matter of hours.

"I don't think you realise how serious your situation is. Imperious is looking for you. I don't know what had happened, but I'm sure you're not welcome in the Underworld," the White Sorceress told him.

So that traitor was looking for him. He knew he would. The woman's words were disturbing, yet true. There was no place for him in the Underworld now. The Master has abandoned him. He felt hopeless. The only purpose in his life was gone. The witch spoke up again:

"Imperious wants us to help him. We have two days to decide what to do, but we want to hear what happened to you first. Your life depends on it, so I suggest you tell us the whole story."

He almost laughed. Has she just threatned him? He will remember that.

His silence was definitely making them annoyed. The Pink and Red were scowling. 'Enough of this,' he decided. If he wanted to stay alive he had to at least pretend to cooperate with them.

The main problem was that it hurt to talk.

Now that he really wanted to tell them his story, this actually became a obstacle. He did this weird sound with his throat and it instantly started to hurt. What was happening? Did Imperious place a curse on him? He never had problems with speaking!

"Does your throat hurt? Do you need some water?" the witch asked.

Water? Why would he need water? And how was it connected to his throat hurting?

"Just nod or shake your head, is that so hard!?" the Red Ranger snapped, clearly irritated.

He gave up and nodded. The Sorceress waved her wand and a glass with water appeared. She took it and walked up to him. Did she want him to drink it? He looked at the Solaris Knight, but he didn't act like this was something unusal. The glass' cold rim touched his lips and he intuitively opened his mouth to take a sip. Cool liquid slid down his throat. It felt like nothing he's ever experienced. The pain lessened to a dull ache. He didn't know that water had such properties. He thought it could be only used as a weapon.

He almost moaned when the glass emptied. The witch set it aside.

"Thank you," he said.


Did just Koragg thank her? Udonna thought she misheard him. But no, it wasn't her imagination playing tricks on her; the others looked dumbfounded. An uneasy silence settled over them. Even though Koragg's face was mainly covered, she felt he was suprised too. She cleared her throat.

"Can you speak now?"

He nodded, clearly not trusting his voice. After a while he started to speak.


It all made sense now. Udonna's assumptions were very accurate. Daggeron's thoughts were whirring inside his head. Koragg's betrayal didn't make sense. He was more loyal than anyone else he ever knew. Was this situation a result of Imperious' cunning plan? It seemed so. Koragg said The Master has been somehow tricked by Imperious, but could The Master actually be tricked by anyone? It just didn't sound possible.

He looked at the Rangers. They clearly weren't convinced. His gaze stopped on Madison.

Back when he's seen her for the first time, he decided that she would be the one to break his curse. He didn't know how; he just felt that she was ideal for this. The matters got complicated when he found out she hated frogs. He couldn't believe his luck when she actually kissed him. He was almost obsessed about her since then.

'Stop it, you old pervert! She's too young for you, don't you see it?' he scolded himself. 'Besides, she has eyes for Nick only.' That's why he envied him.

Time stopped for Daggeron for nineteen years. Yes, he still looked young, but his very soul felt old. He would probably fight to gain her love before, but now he knew he wasn't a good choice for her. She needed someone like Nick – the stereotypical 'bad boy' who would make her live her life to its full potential. Daggeron was stuck in past, still thinking about the good, old days of training with Leanbow and chasing after wood fairies.

He should stop staring at her. He turned his eyes to a less beautiful sight – Koragg.

Seeing a part of his face made him uneasy. It was a final proof that he was, in fact, a human, even if he didn't act like one. And what was up with him thanking Udonna? He thought he wouldn't even let her close to him, but here he was, lying there as if nothing happened. He shook his head in puzzlement.

Maybe he shouldn't read too much into his behavior.