Power Rangers Nexus

Chapter 35: Another Meanwhile…

"You threw them where?"

"The holding cells," Magna Defender replied. "They did not come willingly."

"And they will certainly not help us willingly if we treat them like prisoners."

"That would be your problem, Darian. Not mine."

The young woman seated across the table from the black-armored mercenary glared daggers at him, her cold blue eyes glinting in the fluorescent lighting overhead. She gave a shake of her head, tossing back her long, purple hair, marked with lighter stripes like all her species.

"It will become your problem when it affects your fee. You know that I already feel you are overpayed. Don't give me any excuses to cut your funding."

"Cut my fee and I may just leave. Torozord can shuttle me off this rock in a heartbeat."

There was a knock at the door of the small office.

"Enter," the young woman called.

The door opened and a stunningly attractive girl entered. Her hair was long and blonde, the whole mass of it having been dyed to match her lighter stripes, so that it was all the same color. Her outfit was one that never failed to catch the male eye: form-fitting black pants and a brief, revealing leather top to match.

Verona smiled a bit upon seeing her. "Karone. What can I do for you?"

"Verona, the lab technicians are here to see you. They're ready to report on those devices you brought them."

"That I brought them," Magna Defender corrected. "I trust my fee will reflect that?"

"That all depends on how useful the information is, as you well know. Now return to your duties. We will discuss finances later."

Magna Defender turned on his heel and headed for the door.

"Oh, and Defender?"

The mercenary paused.

"In the future, bring all prisoners directly to me, instead of letting them stew in a holding cell for hours on end."

Without responding, Magna Defender continued out the door, rudely shouldering aside the messenger who still stood in the doorway. She glared at him, sticking her tongue out at his back before turning back to Verona.

The moment the Magna Defender was gone, Verona's demeanor softened. "Send in the scientists. We have much to discuss. And Karone? If you would be so kind, please bring the…guests…to see me. Take a security team with you; we can't be sure of their intentions just yet. But be polite."

Karone nodded, ducking out of the room.

Moments after the young woman left, a pair of technicians entered.

"Gentlemen. What news?"

"Very little, Madam Verona," the one on the left said.

Verona raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"We've dismantled and examined the devices you provided, but they appear to contain little to no actual technology," the one on the right continued.

"Each DOES contain a disk, made from a metal we've been unable to identify. Though they appear damaged, the disks radiate with powerful energy readings…"

"But the energy is of a type we've never seen before."

"It is not the energy of a morpher?" Verona asked.

"Yes."

"No.

The two technicians exchanged a glance.

"We're not sure," Left said.

"At the very least," Right continued, "it is not the type found in the Digimorpher."

"Frankly, There aren't enough moving parts in them for them to function at all, as anything other than fancy bracelets."

"Assuming they do function. Did Mr. Defender mention anything about having seen them used?"

"I'm afraid not," Verona said, her smile vanishing at the mention of the Magna Defender.

"Well, to summarize," Left said. "We're stumped."

"Thank you, gentlemen. I'm sure you gave it your best."

"We're sorry we couldn't do more," Right said, handing a steel-gray briefcase to Verona. "Here they are, reassembled and good as new."

Verona nodded again, and the two technicians left the room.

When they were gone, Verona snapped open the case, examining the two Spirit Summoners within.

"No moving parts. So how do they work?" she asked of no one in particular. "Magic?"

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Deacon, will you relax?" Jareth asked several hours later, as he lay on his bunk in the cell they'd been given.

"I am relaxed. Don't I look relaxed? Why in the world wouldn't I be relaxed?"

"You've been pacing back and forth for hours."

"Yeah, well, the fumes are beginning to get to me."

Jareth smirked, applying a layer of clear top coat to his fingernails. In the time he'd been in the cell, he'd filed them into points, painted them black, and inscribed gold runes on his nails in gold gel pen. The clear coat was to keep the gold from running, should they get wet.

"I can't believe they let you keep that stuff."

"I suppose they didn't see how I could use nail polish and gel pens to escape the cell. In all fairness, neither can I." Jareth blew impassively on his nails, not seeming to care that he was locked up in an alien prison.

Deacon's eyes roamed the small cell for the sixteenth time. The walls, floor, and ceiling were solid metal, the door was firmly sealed, the air vent was far too small to crawl through, and no one seemed to care how much noise he made, so the old 'Sick Prisoner' routine wasn't going to work.

"I want out," Deacon said. "Can't you pick the lock?"

"It's an electronic lock, so no," the Gold Ranger replied, blowing on his nails.

"Well, how about magic? Know any spells to get us out of here?"

"I don't have any of my spellbooks with me."

"You've had the things for months," Deacon argued. "Surely you've memorized some by now."

"Don't call me Shirley," Jareth said. "I've only memorized one, and I don't see how…"

He broke off, looking at the reinforced cell door curiously.

"Actually," he amended. "Maybe it CAN help."

Jareth rolled off his bunk, landing on all fours, then rose to his feet, taking a few steps towards the door. He began muttering and making complex hand motions.

A surge of magic rushed through the room, but the door remained as it was.

"Oops…no, that's not right….misspoke the second syllable…how did this go?…Oh, I should…right…let's try that…Oops, no, wrong finger…"

Flashes of magical energy surged with every attempt, but the door didn't budge in the slightest.

"Jareth! Dude! Stop! Forget I said anything!"

"Just one more try. I can do this, really I can…"

"No, no more! Look what you've already done to the-"

Deacon grabbed Jareth's shoulder and pulled him away from the door, just as Jareth had started the incantation again. There was another rush of wild magic, but this one felt disjointed somehow, thrown off by the unexpected interruption.

Shrrrip!

Blinking, Jareth looked down at the seat of his pants. The black fabric had torn, and a long furry tail now grew from his backside, at least six feet long and covered in blue-black fur. It terminated in a fluffy tuft of metallic gold fur, similar to a lion's tail in design if not in color.

"Oh, my," Jareth said, staring at the new appendage, not sure whether to be fascinated or horrified.

Deacon, likewise, stared at the new addition in a combination of astonishment and curiousity.

"Wow. Can you move it?"

Jareth twitched the tail. "Yes. Yes I can." He waved the golden tuft of fur at the end in Deacon's face. "Look what you did."

"You're blaming me for that?"

"Well, you interrupted me."

"Yeah, because it was only a matter of time before you blew us both to small gooey bits. Look what you've done to the cell."

Blinking more, Jareth looked around the small room.

"Wow."

"Wow is right. How did you manage all this, just trying to open a door?"

"Well," Jareth said, scratching the back of his neck. "I wasn't trying to open it, exactly."

"What were you trying to do?"

"Turn it into pudding."

Deacon blinked, staring at his friend. He couldn't help but feel that had that answer come from anyone else, it might have surprised him. "Dare I ask why you memorized the spell for turning things into pudding?"

"Because I was hungry and wanted pudding. Duh."

Before anything more could be said, the door swung open.

Jareth frantically pulled his new tail up beneath his shirt, wrapping it around his waist where it couldn't be seen. It was so long that it had to coil around his midsection several times before it was out of sight, but his clothes were baggy enough that it shouldn't have been obvious.

As for the rest of the room…Umm….maybe they wouldn't notice?

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Karone gaped at the inside of the small holding cell. Without turning around, she could tell that the armed security guards behind her were gaping as well. It was the sort of thing one couldn't help but gape at.

Flowers were growing from the ceiling, their stems growing straight through the industrial-grade titanium. Pictures of clowns had been drawn on the walls in what appeared to be chalk, which would have been a good deal less disturbing if they hadn't been moving, turning cartwheels, making chalk balloon animals, and generally being clowns. A number of live goldfish flopped around on the two bunks, gasping for water, and the tiled floor of the cell seemed to be growing blue fur.

The two young men inside the cell stared back at her, evidently surprised at her sudden arrival. For a moment, she thought she saw something move behind the taller one, but when her eyes darted back to it, it had gone.

She hastily shook the look of astonishment off of her face, replacing it with one of (she hoped) authority.

"I am to take you to see Verona. Please come with me."

The two males exchanged a glance, then shrugged.

"Okay," the taller one said. "Who's Verona?"

"Verona's our leader. She wants to talk to you…Why are you staring at me like that?"

"Oh," the taller one said. "Well, you'll have to forgive us for that. You see…"

"You're drop dead gorgeous," the shorter one finished.

"So I'm told," Karone said coolly, but she couldn't keep from smiling. "Well, you can look all you like, but don't touch. I'm taken."

"Then your mate is a lucky creature indeed," the shorter one said smoothly.

"You've got a silver tongue, don't you?"

"He has a silver everything."

Karone raised an eyebrow. "Everything?"

"Well…actually, I wouldn't know. Do you have a silver…?"

"No!"

Karone giggled. "What are your names?"

"Christopher Deacon Parrish, at your service, M'lady."

"Jareth Valentine, available for birthday parties or bar mitzvahs. Your money back if your child is turned into a toad."

"I'm Karone. Just Karone. Well, come on," the girl said, turning her back towards them (and giving them a remarkable view in the process). "Verona's waiting."