CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 4
"Tommy!" Jason called as Nick let him and Ashley, the Yellow Space Ranger, into the store, "What the hell is going on?"
"Jason, every single ranger here," he gestured at the rangers behind him, "has a loved one that's missing."
"You mean like… you and Kim love or family type love?" Jason asked, gazing at the other rangers. Tommy swallowed.
"Kimberly and I type love." Tommy looked pained.
"I'm sorry about Kim." Jason said quietly.
"We'll get her." Tommy said determinedly, "Jase, meet the rescue team." He turned toward the other rangers, introducing each one.
"How many are missing?" Jason asked, after shaking Nick's hand and resisting the urge to call him a newbie (he had after all defeated his 'big bad').
"Ten." Tommy admitted, "Including Kim and Kat."
"Jeez. Okay, so I vote we start out by-" Jason broke off as Nick's phone went off.
"Just a second." Nick flipped out his phone, setting it on speaker, "What's up?"
"I'm glad everyone has arrived." The Red Ranger's voice soaked through the tiny speakers, "Are you ready to begin?"
"Where are you?" Nick asked, his temper flaring.
"The Titans first battled here, and first joined together here." She sounded amused, "or at least above where I am currently located."
"I know where that is." Vida mouthed.
"You should know this isn't going to end up well for you." Nick reasoned, "We are going to defeat you. We've all defeated harder monsters than you."
"I'm a monster?" she laughed, "Naturally. It's how I fit into this spandex armor so easily! I would hurry if I were you Rangers." You could hear the sudden threat in her voice, "Your friends are quite feisty. I'm afraid I had to put some of them down."
"What have you done to them?" Taylor yelled, before Wes held her back.
"Oooh! Is that Taylor I hear? Don't worry. I took special care of Eric. Oh and don't worry Vida, Xander should live. Although I'm a little concerned about the Blue Wind Ranger." Blake turned red, "And, oh what was his name. Andy? Andorm?"
"Andros." Ashley was pale, "His name is Andros."
"Oh that's right, that was his name." there was a slight noise in the background, before she continued, "Jen in particular refused to give up, she and Sky fought until the end. Tori and Kim worked very well together I was impressed. Dana tried to protect Kat, but I have to say Jason, she didn't last very long. Neither of them did."
"What about Maddie?" Nick blurted out.
"What about her?" the voice sounded bored now, "She's still breathing, I think. Come to think of it I should probably check on that, I could be lying to you."
"If you've hurt them in any way-" Vida began
"Wow is that threat getting old." The Ranger paused, "Want to carry through on it? Find me, find your friends."
"We know why you took them." Wes challenged, "We figured it out."
"Then you know how much it will hurt if I kill them. As it is every blow that they've gotten, you'll feel ten times worse because you failed to protect them."
"If you know how cruel this is then why are you doing it?" Syd snapped, her fists clenched, "You're not a bad person, Bridge read your aura, and you could have killed the Yellow Mystic Ranger but instead you're healing him." She looked at Nick and Vida for conformation, "That has to be draining your energy."
"And you couldn't be a ranger if you didn't have some good in you." Ashley cried, "I don't understand-"
"Stop analyzing me!" the Ranger snapped, there was a brief pause, "You don't need to be good to be a ranger, all you need is a morpher. Be here or they die." There was a click, and Nick shut the phone.
"Let's do this." Taylor growled, "I'm so ready to inflict some damage.
"We can't rush into this." Tommy reminded.
"We have to move fast." Jason countered, "That ranger means business. Nick did you record that conversation?"
"No, I didn't think about it." Nick cocked his head, "Why do you ask?"
"You were thinking about the part where she was talking about Andros?" Ashley asked Jason, the Red Ranger nodded his head.
"There was a noise."
"It was water." Blake said, crossing his arms, "There was a splash."
"Are you sure?" Carter asked, "I could hardly even hear it."
"I'm trained to tune out all unneeded thoughts and noises." Blake smiled, "All ninjas have excellent hearing."
"Why couldn't you hear it?" Jason asked Tommy, "You had ninja powers."
"Yeah, but we never had ninja training." Tommy admitted.
"Let's go!" Taylor whined, "She's threatening death and we're still here talking about ninja training!"
"The lake." Nick looked at Vida, "V, the cliff where we all first came together is right next to the lake."
"Maddie swam in it as the Mystic Mermaid, it's pretty deep." Vida nodded, "Half of us should check out the lake and the other half the cliff."
"Split the team." Carter nodded, "You two know the area the best, you should choose the teams."
"Syd, Jason, Taylor, and Carter should go with Nick to the cliffs." Vida said, "They would do the best on dry ground."
"Blake, Tommy, Ashley, and Wes are with you." Nick nodded, "Sound's good."
"We explore the area, and find the tunnels." Tommy agreed, "Assuming that there is more than one."
"Keep in touch via our morphers." Syd looked at Taylor.
"Great," Taylor started towards the door, "Let's go already!"
--
"Nick! I found a tunnel!" Carter yelled, brushing aside the moss that disguised the trapdoor on the forest floor.
"Jason, over here!" Nick called as Syd ran over to help Carter lift up the heavy trapdoor. He moved to walk over.
"Syd! Carter! Watch out!" Taylor yelled as the forest began to howl, the area surrounding them seemed to erupt into a windstorm, with the epicenter right where Carter and Syd were kneeling.
"Nick grab on!" Jason yelled, reaching a hand out to the struggling Mystic Red Ranger. He and Taylor had grabbed onto a tree as they were pulled towards the trapdoor. Nick grabbed his hand as Jason strained to hold onto the tree, with Taylor pressed against the bark.
"Got you!" Jason cried as Nick reached the trunk. The wind abruptly died down, leaving the bewildered rangers alone in the forest.
"Jeez!" Taylor breathed, releasing the helpful tree.
"Where did that come from?" Jason asked, looking around the peaceful forest.
"Carter and Syd!" Nick yelled, running over to where he had seen them last. There was no Red or Pink ranger, and the trapdoor they had found was gone.
"Carter!" Taylor called, "Syd?" she looked back at where Nick was frantically searching in the moss, "Did they get blown away?"
"Probably got sucked down into the tunnel." Jason said as Taylor walked over to join Nick and Jason. Jason pulled out his morpher, "Tommy? You there Tommy?"
"Jason!" Tommy's voice sounded strained through the static, "We've been hit by a flash storm or something. Ashley, Wes, and Vida have disappeared. I don't know how much longer we can last!"
"Vida's gone?" Nick stood up, he and Taylor moving closer to Jason's morpher to hear Tommy's fading voice.
"I get the feeling we're next Jase! I think she's got us!"
"Don't talk like that Tommy." Jason's deep voice was determined, "We have to save Kim and Kat, remember?"
"Wait, I think the weather's dying down…"
"Okay, we should regroup." Jason began, then he looked at Taylor and Nick, "Did you feel that?"
"Feel wha-" the ground opened up below them, and Nick, Jason, and Taylor fell down into the tunnel. They were completely at the Red Ranger's mercy. Seconds later, frantically calling for Jason, Tommy and Blake were also sucked into the earth.
--
"Oof!" Nick grunted as he rolled down the dark damp tunnel. He landed with a wet smack on the damp dirt floor. He rubbed his neck and glanced around him, he was in a dank mossy prison shrouded in darkness. He blinked trying to get adjusted to the blackness surrounding him. Only half of the cage was lit, the other half was shrouded in a black cloak making it impossible to see just how big the prison was. His morpher was gone, he'd felt something grab it when he was falling. He got up slowly, feeling a tingle in his spine. Someone else was in here with him.
"Jason? Taylor?" he called, "Blake? Vida? Tommy?" he heard a rustling sound, "Who's there?" he cocked his head, listening for the slightest movement. There was a sniffling sound, causing Nick to become more confused, "Who's there?!" he asked again, his fists tightened, his blood heated, expecting someone to jump him any second.
"N…Nick?" A small voice whispered in the darkness.
"Maddie!" Nick cried, running forward, the blackness lightened, revealing the Blue Mystic Ranger curled up against the bars of the prison. Nick suppressed his anger as he saw the cuts on her fists and face. She had been in a fight, and she had lost.
"Is it really you?" Maddie whispered, her hands reaching blindly to find him.
"It's me Maddie." Nick's voice cracked as he carefully took her hands in his, and led them to his face. She felt his face, and her pale eyes lit up in happiness.
"It's really you…" she whispered, then he grabbed her in a hug as if he'd never let go.
"I'm sorry Maddie, I'm so sorry." He whispered into her hair.
"For what?" Maddie asked, staring blankly at the wall to the side of him.
"If I didn't-." Nick started before Madison cut him off.
"It's not your fault." She said quickly, taking his hand.
"Maddie." He said softly, rubbing her hands, "You're blind."
"I… I know."
"Tell me everything that's happened since you got caught." Nick sat beside her, wrapping his arms around her in an attempt to warm the freezing ranger.
"Okay, here goes." She took a deep breath, "When she let me out of the card, I fought her and her goons. I got beat pretty badly, and then they dragged me back to a huge cell with everyone else. The bars were spelled so anything could get in, but they were solid the other way. Andros was working on breaking us out, but she came back to taunt us or something. Then Kimberly told the Red Ranger that if she was really a ranger, then she would fight like one and challenged her to fight us. She accepted, and told us to pick four of us to fight." She closed her eyes, remembering, "We chose Kim, Tori, Xander, and Eric. She gave them their morphers, and then laughed at us saying since we all wanted our freedom, we would all end up rushing her anyway and how we should've given the morphers to the weakest."
"She beat all of you?" Nick asked, amazed.
"She used a mixture of magic and speed to take us all out. Tori and Kim lasted the longest with their ninja speed. She cast a couple of powerful spells. The one that caught me was a blinding spell. It caught some other people too. Andros was beside me at the time, so I think he got hit. There's a counter-spell but… I didn't have my wand…"
"How badly did she hurt you?" Nick's voice was dark, promising revenge.
"After that since I couldn't see… everyone was screaming… there were explosions… it was practically a massacre. I remember Xander yelling, then I must've gotten hit with something because next thing I knew I was here." Maddie laid her head on Nick's shoulder. "I'm scared of what happened to the others. I just don't understand why she took us."
"We may have figured that out." Nick murmured rubbing her cold shoulder, he took a deep breath, "She only took the rangers that have feelings for each other."
"What do you mean?" Madison asked, sitting up.
"Maddie," Nick tucked her hair behind her head, "Wes loves Jen, Tommy loves Kim, Syd's in denial about her feelings for Sky, Blake clearly has feelings for Tori though he hasn't said anything. Vida and Xander are crazy about each other though they won't admit it yet. Taylor's scared out of her wits because she just discovered how much she loves Eric. Jason was really upset over Katherine being taken so he must have feelings for her. Ashley loves Andros, the pieces all fit together!"
"What about us?" Madison whispered.
"That day I left?" Nick swallowed, "You wanted me to come back for you." Madison nodded in agreement, clearly nervous, "I came back for you Maddie, and next thing I knew you were taken from me before I even had a chance to tell you."
"Nick…"
"I like you a lot Maddie, and I think it could defiantly be more than that, in fact I know it is." Nick watched as Madison's face lit up and she laughed.
"I feel the same way." She giggled happily, as Nick leaned closer to kiss her. But just then there was a grating sound behind them.
"What was that?" Maddie whispered to Nick.
"Part of the bars just opened up." Nick replied, helping her to stand.
"Escape?" Maddie asked looking brave.
"It could be a trap." Nick looked down into Maddie's pale eyes, knowing that the longer the spell on her stayed in place the more permanent it would become.
"Should we stay here?" Maddie gaze stayed pined on the wall behind him, unmoving. Nick's heart broke, and he made his decision.
"It's the best chance we have." He stated simply, guiding her towards the opening.
"Nick, I'll only slow you down-"
"Don't even go there, Maddie." Nick warned as they walked slowly down the passage.
--
"Andros?" a feminine voice called through the darkness. Andros blinked, trying in vain to rid himself of the blackness that cloaked his vision. He lay on his back, arms spread out beside him, awaiting his fate.
"It's not her." He reminded himself, trying to will his aches and pains away. The Red Ranger had beaten him pretty bad after he had gotten hit with that spell. He felt like one big bruise.
"Andros!" he heard running feet, than a sudden cry, "Ow!" a pause in Ashley's voice. "Some kind of force field. Andros! Are you okay?" he kept his eyes closed, ignoring her.
"No, it's not her." He reminded himself again.
"Andros! Can you hear me? Andros!"
"It's not her. It's not her. It's not her."
"Andros! Oh god please be alive, Andros!"
"I KNOW IT'S NOT ASHLEY!" he finally screamed, "STOP TORTURING ME!" he took deep breathes, silently cursing himself for losing his very well controlled emotions. Emotions only got you worse torture.
"Andros?" her voice cracked now, "Andros, it's really me. I don't know what she's done to you…" he heard a small slap against something hard, "I wish I could break you out of here! I'm so sorry Andros!"
"You're not Ashley." Andros repeated, his voice dead.
"I am too! Um… ask me something that only I would know!"
"I'm not falling for that again."
"Andros! Look at me!"
"How?" he opened his eyes and heard her small gasp.
"You're blind." He heard her say.
"You would know."
"No I wouldn't I-" she broke off mid-sentence noticing that part of his hand was sticking out of the force field. She took a deep breath, kneeling down beside him. She hesitated, gazing at Andros's pale eyes, then she reached out and touched his fingers with her own.
"What…?" Andros cried, snatching his hand back and sitting up with a jolt. The familiar Andros-worry lines appeared on his forehead.
"Andros…" Ashley whispered.
"Ashley?" Andros tightly closed his eyes, "Please… I can't take it if it's not you again."
"Reach your hands through the force field." Ashley told him, "I promise you, I would never hurt you." She saw Andros hesitate, and then he extended his hands, reaching out into the air. She took his hands and led them to her face, letting him know where she was. He traced her lips, felt the wet tears threatening to fall off of her eyelashes.
"Ash." He breathed, finding the necklace that he had given her for her birthday around her neck.
"We've got to get you out of here." Ashley said determinedly, getting up and pulling him out of the force field. He staggered, wincing in pain.
"Andros?" she asked worriedly, he gave her a small smile.
"I'm fine."
"Okay." She answered, noting the burnt clothing that he was wearing, "You fought her again, didn't you?" Andros slowly nodded.
"We all did." He groped for her hand as she pulled away from him, "Ash?"
"How bad was it?" she replied, searching the prison for some sort of escape. Andros stood limply in the center of the prison.
"Bad." He finally admitted.
"You could've been killed." Ashley muttered walking back over to him and taking his hands again, "I can't find a way out." She could see the pain in Andros's eyes; clearly he had more serious injuries then just his blindness.
"Ashley." He murmured, his hands traveling up her arms to stroke her face again.
"What is it?" She asked him, his unseeing eyes staring into the distance.
"I don't think she was trying to kill us." He put his ranger face on, "It was something else."
"I know." Ashley replied, "She wants to hurt us in the worst possible way."
"Ash." Andros breathed pulling her into his arms, "I should have listened to you."
"It wasn't your fault. There's no way you could have known." She rested her head on his chest, closing her eyes and feeling him wrap his arms around her protectively.
"Do you know how she's going to hurt us?"
"She already did."
"What do you mean?" Andros asked, alarmed. Ashley smiled, happy he was alive and breathing.
"She hurt you." Feeling Andros's confusion she pulled back, cradling his face in her hands, "She took you, because I love you. All of the rangers captured are in love with their rescuers."
"Ash… your saying that you're in this dank pit because I love you?"
"No." She smiled up at him, though he couldn't see, "You're in this dank pit because I love you." Then she pressed her lips to his, for a sweet kiss.
"Ash." Andros whispered, closing his eyes, "I…"
"I know." Ashley whispered, feeling tears threatening to fall again. There was a thunk behind her, she whirled, feeling Andros move protectively beside her.
"What was it?" he asked her, feeling completely helpless.
"The cage just opened up…" Ashley said, awed.
"Ashley…" Andros had a warning tone.
"Andros, this is a way out. I just know it." She wrapped her arms around him, noting the twitch of pain that he carefully tried to hide from her, "We're taking it." She decided, grabbing his hand and pulling him towards the dark tunnel.
"Ash." Andros started, and then he gave up, following her blindly in the dark.
--
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A/n please review and suggest who the Red Ranger should be! It's the only part of the story I haven't finished!