It had been nine days since they last saw Saline and it was showing on Billy. She didn't come to school anymore and she wasn't in the park as she used to be. It was as if she disappeared from their lives altogether.
The rangers watched helplessly as their friend began to bury himself into his work. He barely spoke to them. And when he did, it was a sigh or a movement of his head.
Saline had to be saved. She had to be, for Billy's sake as well as for hers.
Lena watched the world and it's goings on for some time. She would often check on the rangers and get sick to her stomach whenever she saw Billy's sorrow. She felt mostly so because she could feel her grasp slipping away as Saline gained more control of her body.
Now her hair was a rich auburn and her eyes were a darkened emerald. She spoke to noone and noone dared speak to her for fear of provoking her. They could sense that something was wrong, and it was not to Rita's liking.
"She has fallen in love with that punk. You should have destroyed her essence when you had the chance!"
"SILENCE!"
She shot a spell at him that sent him to the ground, writhing in agony.
"I know what I'm doing you idiot! I will attend to my business while you stay out of it!"
Mane shook off the spell and confronted her once more.
"I don't trust that witch. You see how she pines after that human like a whipped dog? It's pathetic! It's disgraceful! It's-"
He was once again struck by a spell. Lena's spell."
"Why don't you try saying something to my face and not behind my back?"
Mane said nothing. The sheer intensity of the spell had knocked him out cold.
"Well my daughter, I have prepared you the best I could. Tomorrow, we finalize your training and officially accept you. You had better be ready."
Lena smiled in acceptance while Saline frowned. Her expression came out neutral and uncaring.
"It has been quiet for some time now. Saline hasn't been seen for days." said Trini "Can we take that as a sign that they're working on a plan of action?"
"Most likely." said Tommy "Something big is going down and we're gonna take a full blow."
"Their key fighter is the most of our worries. How are we supposed to tackle this?" asked Zack.
Everyone tried their best not to look at them, but he could sense that they were thinking it.
He was dreading having to fight Saline. To think that the one time he cares for someone so deeply had to conflict with his duty in such a way. It was as if something wanted him to hurt. Something wanted to bring him down without mercy.
Not able to take their plans of strategy any longer, he sighed and teleported out of there before they could protest.
He walked through the desolate landscape of the park. It was the dead of night and not a soul was in sight.
Crystal light,
Heaven light,
Let me be your guide…..
To sacrifice,
To know what's right,
Have no sin to hide…………….
Billy was shocked. He looked around frantically until he saw what he was looking for.
She sat in a tree clad in a long, black gown. She stared out in space as she sang her lamenting song, oblivious to Billy's presence.
"Saline?"
The girl jumped, then settled down once more. She looked to him with a sad smile.
"It's me."
"Where have you been?"
"……..Home."
"How are your injuries?"
"Healing."
Billy walked up to the tree and pulled her out of it. Their embrace was strong and lingering; neither teen wanted to let go.
"I can't."
"Billy please-"
"I can't hurt you. If anything, I want to protect you."
"Then do this for me. I want to protect you too, but Lena will destroy you. I'm holding her back as we speak, and it's no easy feat. Please do all you can to subdue me when we fight again. I know you have it in you, so don't try to fool me."
Billy didn't answer, but broke his hold on her to claim her lips. They were soft and cold from the outside air.
Pulling away, he saw tears stream down her face and slowly wiped them away.
"I have missed you so much."
"Classes aren't the same without you."
"Focus then, barely anyone knows I'm gone."
That made them smile, something they haven't done in a while.
"Is that why your appearance has changed ? Because you're holding her back?"
Saline rubbed her arms. "The balance is tipping. I'm gaining more control so it's showing. Not really a good thing when living among the forces of evil."
Billy frowned and sat down on the ground. "How do you stand it? How do you live with those monsters?"
Saline sat next to him and leaned against his shoulder.
"I turn my feelings off and bear it. It's not so hard once you know where to hide." She forced a smile. "It's actually like a daily puzzle so my senses never dull."
Billy didn't return the smile, but took her into his arms. When he thought of how much she might've went through, it made him sick to his stomach. The sensation caused him to remember a particular moment in the past. A moment in time when he became impure.
He gazed at the top of Saline's head and contemplated whether he should tell her. Looking at it, it was her body, so she had a right to know.
Sucking in breath, he prepared himself.
"Saline, there's something I wanted to tell you."
"Yes?"
"Well, the first time I met Lena, we-um-"
"Yes?"
"I-uhm, we-"
"Come on Billy, talk to me."
"We….had..sex."
Quiet.
"I had no idea it was you! I'm really sorry and-"
"….."
"What?"
"I know."
Quiet.
"At first it was Lena, then it was me."
Quiet.
They looked at each other in such a way that made them blush simultaneously.
"There's some activity near Angel Grove High. It seems like a meeting of evil." said Alpha "Lena is also there."
"Then let's go and settle this, for Saline." said Tommy.
"Rangers." said Lena. It wasn't her same tone of scorn, but a softer, breathier voice.
Mane noticed it and sneered at her.
"Welcome rangers to our initiation party." said Rita
"So glad of you to come." said Goldar
A few minor monsters gathered close, casting dirty looks at the rangers.
"Why don't we start with the entertainment!"
At that, the monsters sprung at the attack. There were four to a ranger with Mane getting Tommy and Billy getting Lena. The fighting was intense and got increasingly difficult with the periodical rotation of monsters. Analyzing this strategy, Lena and Billy smiled and went into a routine of their own. They graced the ground as if they were dancers. Each time there was a rotation, they would follow the same pattern. Each movement was graceful and carefully executed. The other rangers soon picked up on this and were now competing with each other to see who could do it better.
Rita then got irritated and called her minions back. As they were pulling back, Mane snatched Lena's arms and pulled them into a hold.
"Get off me!"
"Oh, but Lena, it's time to finally time for your initiation."
"What?"
He pulled her towards Rita, tightening his grip.
"Quite right my dear, you've proved your worth and are now my most powerful fighter." She raised her wand. "However, Saline. Your time has expired. I will call upon you for your last job soon enough, but for now-"
A spell of explosive power shot forth and racked Saline's body , causing her to cry out no sound that was human. The rangers charged forward, but were sent back by a dark barrier.
Her cries became pleading, though the witch would not heed her.
The magic looked as if it were purifying her of the evil that possessed her body, but it was really ripping it from her very essence.
After she stopped, Saline dropped to the ground. What stood standing was evil of such potency, it chilled everyone's bones.
It was Lena, the true Lena.
Her appearance would have truly frightened them if it weren't for Saline.
She was lying unconscious, her chest and the ground around it damp with blood.
I was worried about adding the part about the blood. Just tell me what I need to tone down or inhance. Anyway, I thank my fans for keeping me going. You have no idea how much you affect this story.