"I don't understand why you won't let me put a silencing charm on that thing," said Kali, glaring at the annoying beeping device in Cam's hand. "I can handle a lot of things - monsters, demons, Hunter - but that… is driving me insane."
Cam chuckled. "Would you put a silencing charm on a radiation detector?" he asked.
"If it annoyed me enough, yeah."
With a playful roll of his eyes, Cam turned back to his task at hand. He was searching for a surge in radiation, hence the annoying beeping that was driving Kali mad.
"I told you that you didn't have to come," said Cam. "You could've stayed at Ops."
"But we do everything together," said Kali. "Well, almost everything."
"This doesn't have to be one of those things."
Kali stared at the back of Cam. "Starting to get the impression that I am not wanted, Cameron," she said. "Do you have something you wish to share?"
Cam chuckled and shook his head. "Just, I don't need a babysitter," he said. "In the beginning, you watching out for me was rather enduring, now? It's plain annoying."
"This is about that chick, isn't?" Kali asked. Only yesterday, while out in Blue Bay Harbour with the other Rangers, a nerdy chick had caught Cam's attention at Storm Chargers - well, first of all it had been at the coffee shop, later it had been at Storm Chargers - and the two had been making flirty eyes from across the room until Kali had noticed.
Cam blushed. "No," he said.
Kali laughed. "It is. I said I was sorry," she defended. "I even offered to bring her back, you told me no."
"I didn't need to be humiliated further," said Cam.
Kali rolled her eyes, although she couldn't help the smile on her lips. "So, what do you think would've happened if I hadn't have humiliated you?" she asked. "Would you have asked her out? Ooh. Maybe she would've asked you out. Would you have said yes?"
Cam coughed, his face burning at the triad of questions. "Please stop talking," he said.
"Do you want to see her again?"
"I don't know her name, thanks to you."
Kali shrugged. "That's easy enough to figure out," she said. "Blue Bay Harbour isn't that big of a town. I'm sure a little locator spell - "
"No!" said Cam, turning sharply to his friend. "No magic. Please."
Kali held up her hands. "Alright. Alright. No magic," she said, laughing. "You're awfully jittery, though." She narrowed her eyes, observing his body language. "Now that we're talking about it, though, you did disappear for a little while yesterday. We were all at Storm Chargers, and you said you needed to get something from the van. Did you - OMG! DID YOU GO LOOK FOR HER?!"
Cam blushed crimson and Kali burst out laughing.
"I hate you," Cam grumbled.
"Love you too, lover boy," Kali teased.
The device in Cam's hand let out a loud wailing beep, causing both of them to fall silent and stare at the flashing red light on top.
"Dad," said Cam, lifting his amulet to his lips. "I think I'm getting close to the disturbance."
"That is good news, son," Sensei replied. "Until we can be sure what it is, you must be very careful."
Cam sighed and dropped his amulet. "You don't have to remind me every time," he whined.
"I wonder if Sensei would remind you to be careful if he knew you had a girlfriend?" Kali asked, grinning. "I mean, have you had the birds and the bees talk yet? I can't assume it would be comfortable, especially with your dad. It was uncomfortable with my mom. But a dad… that's gotta be worse, right?"
"Please stop talking," Cam said, his face burning again.
Kali snickered as she continued to follow Cam along the gravel path. They were in the valley of a quarry but reaching the end really fast. The last time they had been here was when Vexacus, Zurgane, and Shimazu had attacked during the guys camping trip.
"What's he doing out here?" Cam asked.
"Who?" Kali asked, looking around. Ahead of her, crouched beside his bike, his back to them, was Hunter. She cocked her head to the side. "I thought he, Blake, and Dustin were at the track today?" she asked.
"So did I," said Cam.
Brushing past Cam, their banter forgotten, Kali led the way over to Hunter and touched his shoulder. She yelped as Hunter reached back and grasped her wrist, tugged her forward, and pulled her smoothly over his head. "I hate you," she grumbled, staring at up him. His whole face blocked out the sun so she could only see a shadow.
"Oh. Sorry," Hunter apologised, helping her stand. "What are you doing sneaking up on people, anyway?"
"What are you doing out here when you're supposed to be at the track?" Kali asked. "Don't you have a race coming up?"
Hunter let her go and turned to Cam. "Nice glasses," he said, noticing the pair hooked into the front of Cam's shirt.
Kali pursed her lips, amusement glinting her eyes.
"Are you guys out here together?" Hunter asked, looking between them. "Why?"
"We were going to ask you the same thing," said Kali. "Especially since you're somewhere you aren't supposed to be. So, spill?"
"You first," Hunter challenged.
Kali narrowed her eyes.
"We were searching for a radiation surge that I picked up on the monitors," said Cam, interrupting. Leave it to Hunter and Kali to start a fight in the middle of nowhere and over nothing.
Kali raised an eyebrow at Hunter. "Your turn," she pressed.
"Uh, maybe you're looking for this?" Hunter asked, deflecting. He turned to his bike and removed a fragmented piece of sword from the holdall. "It's part of Zurgane's swords. But he wouldn't leave the ship without it."
"Not alive anyway," said Cam.
Kali furrowed her brow at the sword. There was something not right here, she could feel it, and she was sure it had nothing to do with Zurgane's sword.
~X~
"How are you feeling now?" Cam asked Kali as she sat beside him.
"Much better," said Kali, sipping her water slowly. "I don't know what that was. It felt like… like something was wrong with the Hellhound. Like, it was trying to break out, take control, you know?"
Cam stared at her. "You've felt like that before, haven't you?" he asked.
"Only once, and that was around the Gem of Souls," said Kali. She shook her head. "But it's gone. Leanbow took it deep into the Mystic Forest, never to be seen or found again."
"You sure?"
Kali nodded. She trusted Leanbow, especially when it came to the Hellhound. He would've taken it, not only as far away from her, but as far away from civilization as he could. The last thing anyone needed was someone getting their hands on it and trying to use it like the Thunders had. If Mr and Mrs Bradley hadn't have appeared when they had, she could've died.
"What's going on?" Shane asked, entering Ops with the others at his heels. "Hunter says you found something?"
Kali nodded at the fragment of sword that lay on Cam's computer desk. It was hooked up to the mainframe, while Cam used it to search for the last minutes of its owners life. He was sure, and so was she, that Zurgane was no longer living, they just needed the proof to back up their theories.
"So, what's the verdict?" Dustin asked.
Tori, however, was staring at Kali. "Are you okay?" she asked. "You look clammy."
"I'm fine. Just had a reaction to something, that's all," said Kali, forcing a smile.
"Are you sure?"
Kali nodded and sipped her water, again.
The computer beeped and, as everyone gathered around Cam, the Samurai hit the enter button and video evidence appeared on the screen. It showed Vexacus destroying Zurgane.
"I knew it!" said Kali. "I didn't know it would be Vexacus, however, but I knew Zurgane was gone."
"Not that I'm going to miss Zurgane, but why would Vexacus do that?" Tori asked.
"It appears there is a power struggle on Lothor's ship," said Sensei.
"Isn't that a good thing?" Dustin asked. "I mean, maybe they'll keep fighting each other until no one is left?"
The others chuckled.
"There'll be one survivor," said Kali. "But, I suppose we can handle whoever is left standing."
"Both scenarios are possible," said Sensei. "But, I fear that Lothor has a much more sinister plot in mind."
Kali's smile faded as Sensei met her gaze. The Abyss of Evil must've been reaching its maximum capacity, especially if Lothor was wheedling his way through his generals and monsters, trying to force it to explode.
"What do we do?" Shane asked.
"The time has come to face the enemy pro-actively," said Sensei. "We must reinforce our ranks by rescuing all the captured Ninjas."
"That's not going to be easy," said Blake, shaking his head. "Trust us."
"Lothor's ship is protected by a powerful energy field. Without some way to break through, we'll never get in," said Cam.
Kali nodded. "Not even my magic will be strong enough to break through," she said.
"Leave that to me," said Hunter. He quickly left the table, leaving the others behind in a state of confusion.
~X~
Hunter winced as Condortron - a giant black feathered bird tossed him aside like nothing but a rag doll. He rolled down the incline and came to a stop at the bottom, near the rock that Cam and Kali had found him near that morning. He struggled to his knees and looked up, his eyes widening as Condortron jumped down, almost landing on top of him, and hauled him to his feet again.
"Hey, big bird!"
Condortron looked up and squawked as someone jumped over both him and the Crimson Ranger and landed behind them. He released the Crimson Ranger and turned, raising his arms and blocking the high kick from the newcomer. She was dressed in all black and was radiating powerful energy.
"One more doesn't matter!" Vexacus called, his eyes on Kali as he watched her take on Condortron alone. She looked either side as his feathered hands landed on her shoulders, and then yelped as she was lifted into the air and thrown towards Hunter.
Hunter groaned as he tried to catch Kali but the momentum of her caused him to stumble and they both hit the ground.
"Sorry," Kali apologised, rolling off Hunter. She landed on her stomach beside him and looked up at Condortron. The feeling of nausea she felt this morning was back, and her stomach twisted uncomfortably as bile rose in her throat.
"You okay?" Hunter asked, rolling to his knees. He placed one foot on the ground and pushed up, reaching for Kali's hips and helping her stand by supporting her against him.
Kali groaned as she stood, her world sliding in and out of focus. "I don't feel so good," she admitted, hand to her stomach and one to her mouth piece of her helmet.
"Maybe you should go back to Ops?"
"And leave you out here alone?" Kali asked, shaking her head. She regretted it instantly but pulled away from him. "I'll be fine. Could be low blood sugar. I haven't exactly eaten anything to day."
Hunter eyed her suspiciously but chose not to argue. Instead, he turned back to Vexacus and Condortron, falling into a defensive stance beside Kali.
Before either side could attack, a blast of energy from behind flew over him and exploded the ground beneath Vexacus' feet. The two jumped back, and Hunter and Kali looked around to see the other Rangers arriving.
"You pair okay?" Cam asked, dismounting from Shane's bike.
Hunter glanced at Kali. "I'm fine," he said. "Kali - "
"Is fine!" Kali growled, shooting Hunter a glare. She turned away from the others before they could fuss about her anymore.
Vexacus laughed as he took in all the other Rangers. "You are no match for Condortron," he announced.
"We'll see about that," said Cam. He hit the buckle on the centre of his chest and his shoulder plates fell back, hitting the ground. "Super Samurai Mode!"
There was a flash of light, and Motodrone appeared on the other side of the quarry, an array of Kelzaks at his disposal.
"What now?" Tori asked, looking between the two.
"Miss me?" Motodrone rumbled.
"This is my battle!" Vexacus yelled.
With a simple wave of his hand, Motodrone sent the Kelzaks into battle first and then followed them, dividing the Rangers up.
Running up the incline, Kali ducked Vexacus' fist and jabbed her own into his stomach. He stumbled back and she jumped into the air, pulling both her feet together and slamming them into the shark's stomach.
"You don't look so good, black Ranger!" Vexacus taunted. "I'm not surprised given the power the Gem has."
Kali furrowed her brow. Gem? What Gem? He couldn't have been talking about the Gem of Souls, could he? That had been taken deep into the Mystic Realm and hidden away behind several spells and enchantments. No one could reach it. No one… right?
"Get away from her!"
Vexacus punched Kali in the stomach and sent her back down the incline as Hunter rushed past, swinging his Thunder Staff over his head and at Vexacus. The shark laughed and caught it and shoved the Crimson Ranger away.
"Shouldn't it be you that should get away from her?" Vexacus laughed.
Hunter grit his teeth and tugged his staff away from Vexacus. He jumped back, to avoid the shark's claws, and then called on his Glider Cycle, and soared around the area, opening fire on all the Kelzaks, Condortron, Vexacus, and finally Motodrone.
From the air, he spied Kali on the ground, and found her surrounded by the others. Knowing she was safer down there, away from him, made him feel a little better about the situation.
Red lights flashed across his glider cycle as the tail end and left wing exploded. His heart rate increased, and the Glider spiralled suddenly out of control, sending him crashing towards the cliff side.
"Hunter!" Blake yelled. He hesitated and glanced back at Kali and the others.
"Go!" Kali said, waving him off.
Blake nodded and Ninja Streaked away to check on his brother.
Meanwhile, Motodrone skidded to a stop nearby. His kelzaks had been destroyed and he was severely outnumbered, but he had gotten the information he had come for. Vexacus was up to something, and he was even more determined to find out what.
"I didn't request backup," Vexacus growled, his eyes on Motodrone.
Motodrone shrugged. "I will leave you this time," he said, pointing at the fish. "But, be warned. I am watching you." He disappeared in a flash of light.
Vexacus turned to Condortron. "Return to the ship," he ordered. "I'll finish this alone."
Condortron nodded and disappeared.
Kali took a deep breath as Vexacus faced them. Her sickness was starting to wear off, but her stomach still felt like it was on a rollercoaster. Something Vexacus had said, about the Gem had stuck with her, and she couldn't help but wonder if he did really mean the Gem of Souls? Was there a chance that a fragment of it had managed to elude her and the other Mystics and was hidden somewhere nearby.
She couldn't deny that he made a good point. The last time she had felt like this was in the presence of the Gem, even though the last time the symptoms were mild, but she had touched it last time, she had been connected to it, maybe that was why the symptoms were a lot worse now?
"Maybe you should sit this one?" Hunter asked Kali, as he returned with Blake.
Kali frowned and looked up at him. Her brow creasing. She had been getting better when he wasn't around, now that he was back, and standing so close to her, she felt sick and faint again. Why? Did he have something to do with the Gem?
"Hey, Rangers," Vexacus called, drawing their attention to him. "Any last words?" He laughed and, without giving them a chance to reply, threw out his hands, fingers wiggling, as invisible strands of energy wrapped around the team.
Vexacus pulled back and the Rangers stumbled forward. Kali felt Cam's arms leave her body and she fell to her knees on the ground before she was lifted into the air.
"Dance!" Vexacus said, moving his hands and slamming the Rangers into one another.
Kali felt another dizzy spell hit her hard as she slammed, chest-to-chest with Hunter. Whatever was happening to her was connected to him. It had to be.
Depositing the team, unceremoniously on the ground, Vexacus laughed to himself. His eyes caught sight of the Black Ranger and he threw out his hands again, watching as his invisible strings wrapped around her.
Kali struggled feebly as she was dragged across the ground. The last time she had been caught like this was when Choobo and tried to control her and get her to destroy the others.
"Let her go!" Hunter called, struggling to his feet.
"What do you want?" Cam called, holding his arm to his side.
"Just having some fun!" Vexacus laughed. He lifted his fingers, hauled Kali into the air, and then tossed her back at the others.
Cam and Hunter hit the ground as they caught Kali between them.
Swords and staffs drawn, Shane, Blake, Dustin, and Tori raced around the other two and headed towards Vexacus.
"Kali, you have to teleport back to Ops," said Cam, carefully rolling the Black Ranger off of him and Hunter. He knelt beside her, and reached for her morpher, demorphing her manually. She blinked and curled away from him, groaning and raising her hand to block out the sun. He leaned over her, covering her face in mere shadows. She sighed in relief.
"You need rest," said Hunter.
Kali tried to shake her head. She didn't have the energy to stand, much less teleport. Besides, she wanted to know what Vexacus meant by the Gem, and whether he meant the Gem of Souls.
"Guys, look out!"
At Shane's yell, Cam and Hunter looked up. Their eyes widening at the giant shark steering towards them through the ground. The snout hit them, driving a wedge between them and lifting Kali up off the ground. The body followed and the trio were thrown aside, away from one another.
Kali grumbled and landed on her stomach. Now that she was away from Hunter, she found that some of her strength was returning. She was able to lift her head without help, although it still hurt, and the fog that was behind her eyes and filling her head, was starting to fade.
Hunter was definitely linked to what was happening to her. But was the Gem of Souls?
"Gotcha!" said Dustin, racing over and kneeling beside Kali along with Tori. He held her hips as she stood, supporting her against him as she stumbled.
"Where'd he go?" Shane asked, hurrying over with the others. Kali eyed Hunter carefully, making sure that she was as far away from him as possible. She felt better when he wasn't near.
"You didn't think I would leave without saying goodbye, did you?" Vexacus asked, appearing nearby. "With or without the gem I will defeat you. Good luck, Crimson Ranger," he added, his eyes flickering from Kali to Hunter. "You'll need it with her."
The others frowned as Vexacus disappeared and turned to Hunter. He swallowed.
"Tell me you didn't," said Kali, her voice weak. She lay against Dustin, her arm pulled across his shoulder.
"I - "Hunter started. He lowered his head and then shook it.
Kali scoffed. "Do you have any idea what you've done?" she asked. "Do you?!"
"What's going on?" Cam asked, looking between the two.
"Yeah, what was he talking about?" Shane asked. He clapped his hand on Hunter's shoulder.
"What Gem?" Tori asked.
Hunter sighed and turned away from his team. He could feel Kali's glare burning into the back of his head through is helmet.
~X~
Kali sat at the furthest end of Ninja Ops, her knees drawn up to her chest and her head resting on them. She was glaring at Hunter and had wanted to separate herself from him as much as possible, but even from here, she could feel the effects of the small shared of jewel he held in his palm.
"The Gem of Souls," said Hunter, eliciting a small gasp from the others. Eyes sought her out, and she lowered her head, pressing her forehead into her thighs.
"You should've told me, Hunter!" Blake exclaimed.
"You didn't know about this?" Tori asked.
Blake shook his head. "No," he answered. "And we're going to have a long talk why, aren't we, bro?"
"I was going to tell you," Hunter defended. "But the longer it took the harder it got. I'm sorry."
Blake deflated, but his glare remained. He was still pissed that Hunter had hidden something as important as this from him.
"Sorry?" Kali asked, raising her head. "You're sorry? Are you kidding me? You kept a highly dangerous substance that renders the Hellhound incapable of control! That thing may be broken from a bigger piece, Hunter, but it still contains souls! Souls that the Hellhound wants to destroy because they're breaking the natural order of its world! They shouldn't exist beyond the gate."
"That's why you almost passed out, out there," said Tori.
Kali nodded. "The Gem of Souls is connected to the Hellhound not its guardian," she explained. "I have no control over it or the souls that rest inside, but while they fight to stay away from me, the Hellhound fights to get at them. I'm literally Switzerland, and it's exhausting trying to hold back the Hellhound from doing it's natural duties!"
"Those fragments must've been the source of the radiation I was tracking," said Cam. "It had nothing to do with Zurgane's sword."
"After Lothor shattered the Gem, I hid this piece out there," Hunter explained. "I'd go out there every now and then to see if they can help me contact my parents."
Kali felt a ball of guilt drop into her stomach. She could understand his need to see his parents, but surely he knew that it didn't work with just the Gem Shards. He needed her, too.
"I know your loss is difficult to accept," said Sensei. "But what's done is done. You can never go back in time."
"Not without a scroll or time spell," said Dustin.
"No," said Kali, shaking her head. "Even using a spell or scroll, altering the timeline is dangerous. You can change things you don't mean to, and it can happen in the tiniest of ways."
"She is right," said Sensei. "The past is best left undisturbed."
Hunter sighed. "I know they're gone," he said, admittedly. "But I still miss them, and those students on Lothor's ship, someone misses them, too. But it's not to later for them. Let's bring them back."
He handed the shards to Cam. He paused, and then turned to Kali. She was still glaring at him.
"Don't even say it," Kali interrupted before he had a chance. "I don't care for apologies, especially from you."
"Kali," Hunter sighed.
"I was warned you would do something like this," Kali continued, putting her feet back onto the floor and standing up. Now that Cam had the gems, and had left the room, she felt better about challenging Hunter. She stormed forward, raised her hands and slammed her palms into his chest, shoving him backward.
The others quickly jumped to restrain her, but she shook them off.
"I was warned about you, and I still trusted you!" Kali yelled, as Tori and Blake wrapped their arms around her again. She tugged away again, and pulled back the sleeve of her jacket, revealing her rune to Hunter. "These don't just appear for no reason. They have a purpose!"
Hunter eyed the small scar like rune on the inside of her wrist. It was exactly the same as his, but she hadn't ever told him what it meant. She had only said she didn't know, now she was claiming she did.
"What are you talking about?" Hunter asked. "You said -"
"I was wrong!" Kali said. "The exact translation isn't perfect, and the rune has a number of different meaning's, and one of them was something I refused to identify with you! I didn't want to believe that you would do something like that… not again!"
"Something like what?"
"Betray me!" Kali snapped.
Silence fell within Ninja Ops.
"Guardian, Protector, Betrayer," said Kali, glaring at Hunter. "You. You're the betrayer. You betrayed me and the Hellhound."
Hunter's eyes widened.
"I won't make the same mistake again," said Kali, starting forward. She side-stepped Dustin and Shane, as they both rushed to stop her from attacking Hunter, but instead she shoulder-checked him and left Ops.
~X~
Nick stared at Kali with a look of uncertainty. She was holding out a zip lock bag to Eithne, a glowing green shared of Gem in the bottom. The Gem of Souls. "I thought - "he cut off, as Kali shook her head, growling.
"Who gave you this?" Eithne asked, taking the bag from her daughter.
"Hunter gave it to Cam," Kali answered. "He kept it after the Gem broke. He wanted to use it in hopes of contacting his parents again, obviously he doesn't remember that the ritual includes me."
"If Hunter gave it to Cam, why do you have it?" Nick asked.
"I took it. Cam intends to use it to go to Lothor's ship," said Kali. "He can't go alone, and I can accompany him if I can't be within a short distance of this thing. I need you to charm it or enchant it, I don't care, but make it so it doesn't affect me for a long period of time."
Eithne took the bag and looked down at the gem. "I'll see what I can do," she said, walking out of the room.
Kali sighed and slouched into a chair around the table. She spun around and rested her elbows on the edge and dropped her head into her hands. She sighed and shivered as Nick wrapped his arms around her from behind and leaned back into him, her hands dropping to the rough wood.
"You okay?" Nick asked.
"I can't believe Hunter would do this," Kali sighed. "I really thought I could learn to trust him, you know. When Mom and Rune told me that one of the translations for our rune was betrayal, I didn't want to believe that Hunter could do something like that. I didn't tell him because I didn't want him to think I didn't trust him."
Nick squeezed her firmly.
"I'm such a fool."
"You're not a fool for wanting to believe in someone," said Nick. "You're human, Kali."
"I am more than just human," Kali argued. "I'm supposed to be able to sense deception, but I couldn't with him. Why?"
"You said it yourself, you wanted to believe he was a good person," said Nick. "You didn't want to not have faith in him. That doesn't make you a fool, it makes him one."
Kali lowered her gaze. "Maybe it makes us both one," she murmured.
Nick sighed as Kali pulled forward, away from him and buried her head in her hands.
~X~
Once back at Ops, Kali offered the Gem shard to Cam, smirking at the look of surprise on his face. "Mom put a protection spell on it," she said. "It will protect me from its powers long enough for us to get the Ninja students back. But, it won't last forever. We have to get in and out before the protection spell wears off, otherwise, I'm useless to you."
Cam nodded and took the shard. He wasn't happy with Kali coming along to Lothor's ship, but he also knew better than to argue with her. She was stubborn and could out shout anyone, she even had the ability to justify her reasonings without having to think too hard.
Plus, she was the Hellhound - as she loved to point out every so often - anything and everything that happened that could've put the Mystic World at risk, she had a right to know about and be involved in.
Sometimes it was just easier to let her tag along than it was to argue.
"How does this work?" Shane asked, looking curious.
"With the Gem shard, I should be able to break through Lothor's energy field," said Cam. "Once I've done that, you guys should be able to teleport right onto the ship."
"Then why is she going with you?" Blake asked, nodding at Kali. "Wouldn't it be logical she stay with us?"
"It would," said Cam.
Kali glared at him and then turned to Blake. "Since you and your brother left him, Lothor's not going to give us a chance to get onto his ship without a fight," she said. "You can guarantee that he's going to have a contingency plan in place should he need it, and this would be a very good time to execute it."
"What do you think he's gonna do?" Dustin asked.
"He may attack the city while we're separated," said Kali. "Without Cam, your possibilities of a Megazord are limited, and I don't have a Ninja Zord to help you. Cam won't let me go alone, and I refuse to let him go without me. So, we either do this, or no one goes. Your choice."
Blake followed his arms. "You're a piece of work, you know that?" he asked.
"Yes," Kali admitted. She turned back to Cam. "We're wasting time. The protection spell won't last much longer."
"Be careful, you guys," Tori warned.
Kali and Cam shared a look and reached for their morpher's.
"Magical Storm, Ranger Form!"
"Samurai Storm, Ranger Form!"
~X~
Kali eyed the Gem nervously as Cam slotted it into the front of his Dragon force vehicle. She was sitting in the seat behind the driver, her hand tightly wrapped around the seat in front of her.
"You okay?" Cam asked, noticing the look on her face as she clambered into the front seat. "Not afraid of heights, falling, or flying, are you?"
Kali shook her head. "I'm nervous the protection spell isn't going to last all the way," she admitted. "The last thing I need is to pass out in space. I'm not a burden."
"Since when are you anything but optimistic?" Cam asked. "This will work. Relax."
"Careful, Genius, they could be your famous last words."
Cam started the engine and lifted into the air. The Dragon's tail unfurled from around its head, and the slinky body wavered in the air, slithering through the open hatch and shooting into the skies. Within seconds, they had breached the outer atmosphere and soared onwards to Lothor's ship.
"Cam, come in, can you hear us?" Shane's voice came over the coms.
"We've been gone all of five minutes," said Kali. "We're fine!"
Cam fussed around with the controls.
"Right?" Kali asked.
"Yes," said Cam. "The only issue we have is, if we can't get close enough to use the gem shard, we won't be able to get in."
"How long until we reach the ship?" Kali asked.
"Less than - "Cam cut off as the Dragon Force shuddered.
Kali gasped and clung to the chair in front of her as she was thrown to the side. Laser beams were shooting at them from ahead, to the side, and underneath, almost like they were being attacked by an armada, but there was no one around, save for Lothor.
"He's gone drones!" said Cam, struggling to maintain his course.
Kali closed her eyes and imagined her shield blanketing the dragon force, she could imagine the shield all around her and Cam, deflecting the drones attacks and protecting them.
The Dragon Force stilled and Cam half-glanced over his shoulder. "What are you doing?" he asked.
"Just do what needs to be done!" Kali said. "I can't hold this for long. Not this far away from Root core."
Cam nodded and turned back to the front. He prepped the gem shard and hit the red button to his left, the power expanded from the front of his ship and cut through Kali's shield, hit the forcefield around Lothor's and sliced straight through.
"Let's go!" said Cam. He reached around,grabbed Kali's hand and disappeared.
They reappeared in the middle of a deserted corridor somewhere on Lothor's ship.
"Which way now?" Kali asked Cam. "Did the Bradley's tell you?"
Cam looked around, trying to get a feel for the place, before motioning over his shoulder. "They said the south-east corridor was off limits," he said. "If we start down this way, we should find it. Come on."
Kali hurried after him down the hall, turned left, then right, and finally left before stopping as she heard a gasp somewhere above her. Her eyes widened as she spotted a bubble lodged between two walls, inside, all rotating as they clamoured to get to the front, were individual balls with people inside.
"Look, Rangers!" someone gasped.
"Help us!"
"Please!"
"She's not just any Ranger, she's a Hellhound."
"She's from the Mystic Realm."
"They sent a Mystic to get us."
Prodding Cam, Kali raced to the console beneath the bubble and looked over the keys. They were all in a language she didn't recognise and turned to Cam, hoping beyond hope that he knew.
"I think it's -"
"Nephew!" Lothor's voice boomed. He stepped out of a corridor to the right, his arms wide and a beaming smile on his face as he surveyed Cam and Kali through his mask. "And the Hellhound. How nice of you both to join us."
"Believe me when I say this was the last place we wanted to come," said Cam. "But, you gave us no choice."
"Ah, yes, the other Ninja's," said Lothor, looking up at the bubble. "Tell you what? Why don't you join them?" He threw out his hand, a red beam powering up at his fingertips, and chipped a piece of wall off as it missed Cam and collided with a pillar behind them.
Cam looked up at Kali as she rolled off of him. "Thanks," he said.
"Don't mention it," said Kali, standing. She pulled him up, too, and turned back to face Lothor.
Lothor snapped his fingers and a horde of Kelzaks appeared, cutting Cam and Kali off from him. Without saying a word, he ordered them into battle, watching as they separated the two from one another, making it that much harder for them to escape together.
Ducking under a Kelzak, Kali jumped up and launched herself across the heads of two soldiers, turning as soon as she landed and kicking them in the back. She grabbed the arm of another and swung him around, raising her foot and kicking him in the stomach, he stumbled into another Kelzak and they both hit the floor.
Side-stepping another attack, Kali looked up and jumped, digging her fingers into the grooves of the arching pillars above her head. She swung forward, bending her legs and then straightening them as she slammed her heels into the Kelzaks nearest.
They all stumbled back, taking out several more behind them.
Dropping down, Kali landed with her knees bent and easily toppled a Kelzak over her shoulder. She then looked up and met Lothor's gaze from across the group. He was standing the farthest away from him, watching her and only her. He smirked as her gaze met his and then raised his head an inch.
"Can you hear me, Hellhound?"
Kali's eyes widened as she heard Lothor's voice in her head.
Lothor's smirk grew.
"You can, can't you?"
Kali narrowed her eyes. How was he doing this? Only those of Magical descent had the ability to communicate telepathically. Leanbow and Nick could do it, and so could she and Eithne.
"You and I need to have a little chat, don't you think?" Lothor asked. "I'll give you an incentive. Tell my nephew to leave, you'll follow behind him."
Kali grit her teeth. Cam wasn't about to leave her behind, not unless he had a viable reason to do so, and even then he would only do it in a desperate move. But, if she did it for him - yes, he would be mad at her, but, while she didn't want to remain on Lothor' ship alone, she would be lying if she said she wasn't interested in hearing what Lothor had to say.
Cam would understand, right?
"What do you say?" Lothor asked.
Tearing her gaze away from Lothor, Kali spotted Cam fighting nearby. He had lost his transporter in the fighting, and she found herself moving forward. She drove through the Kelzaks, picked up the transporter and hit the button before throwing it at Cam. "Catch!" she called.
"Kali, you're to -" Cam cut off as his fingers brushed the transporter, and he disappeared.
Lothor smirked as Kali turned back to face him. "Interesting choice," he said. "I thought for sure you wouldn't stay."
"You said we needed to talk," said Kali, folding her arms and glaring at him. "So, talk."