At last, another chapter is ready! This time, let us switch scenes and follow another duo of characters as the story progresses!
Reviews
DB-19
Thanks again for the feedback! That's pretty much why I chose Ninja Steel as the season to be paired with RWBY, because the lead characters, Brody and Ruby, both shared some of those traits. Other than that, I also wanted to see how the other characters could interact with one another and how they can develop over the course of the story.
Also, thanks to FeartheKnown and Ana9Liz9 for liking the story too! Hope everyone will enjoy the next chapter! So, let us not sit around reading the author notes and start the story already!
Chapter 7: Snowing with a Chance of Magic
~WEISS' POV~
If Ruby was a pest normally, then she'd be a total wreck at the worst times. And right now, I didn't need to hear her haphazard attempt to bring back our supposedly lost glory. We were fine as we were. Headmaster Ozpin had put us back in our dorm and to remain out of action for a good reason. As noble as our intentions were during our mission at Mountain Glenn, there was much fixing to do after the Breach; an event that was most definitely due to our mistakes and poor timing. We may have succeeded in stopping Torchwick, removed the White Fang from their hideout and defeated the Grimm before they could do more harm, but the extensive damage done to the people's fears had solidified the fact that our mission had brought more failure than success.
The idea that we could be vulnerable at any time and due to our mishandling of our missions completely showed how much more we had to learn and Professor Ozpin had given us good word to be more cautious next time. For now, we remain suspended from missions until then.
But then, Ruby had to go and play the ever impulsive leader role again and went out on her own; an ironic act of selfishness. Blake was out studying about what kind of monsters that thing we faced in the forest was. And Yang… she was out doing the things she would do. I, on the other hand, was walking about in the city trying to clear my head over the whole messy situation between us.
One thing was clear, though, and I had to admit it, Ruby was right about those creatures. Just what were they? They were like nothing we had ever read, seen or even heard of. I certainly don't recall any of these abominations from Klein's stories he told me when I was little. Not even Winter's own tales of her hunting trips had ever described her quarries or encounters as of the sort I've seen in the forest.
Perhaps the others were right; if we have to face that thing again, then we'll have to prepare. Unfortunately, we also have our orders to stay put and wait until Beacon was ready to allow us out for action again. I'm sure we'll get our chance… after our semester break. Thank Oum we were not disqualified from the Vytal Tournament or anything. I'd be so pis- Ahem, disappointed… if we were kicked out because of what we failed to do.
The walk at the city was such so quiet. There's nothing much to do and people were just cruising by without noticing me. That was what I really needed; some peace and quiet without people looking at me saying that I was one of the Huntresses who failed to stop the Breach from happening. Thankfully, no one had ever criticized us for such a shoddy performance. I do, however, have that fear inside that made me wonder if people were indeed thinking of us as failures.
I really didn't want to blame my team after all that had happened, even Ruby. Everyone worked so hard and we managed to prevent a large-scale disaster. I didn't want to let ourselves be put down because of the incident. I just wish Ruby would slow down for a brief moment. Not everything has to be all heroics and those other childish fantasies. This is the real world. You either follow orders or be punished for disrespecting them.
Anyway, back to my walk, I was just enjoying a good amount of time from the argument we had. A good walk was all I needed to clear things out of my head after all. I then decided to head off somewhere to finish off my break time; somewhere nice with the view to enjoy. The grand balcony at the east side of the city would be just swell. I could grab a nice cup of tea and stare right into the serene seas of Vale this time of year.
Then, just when I was about to pass the still closed down bookstore, I just laid my eyes on a very peculiar scene. It was right outside one of the motels just a few blocks away from said store. From the steps leading up to the building, I saw a man being thrown off the door by the receptionist, stumbling down like some comedic act. He must had been one unlucky idiot who just didn't have the right amount of lien to spend the night.
It was strange, though. He seemed like the guy who would spend days and nights in that motel. His attire seemed to fit the money; dark blue jacket with a light blue shirt, clean cargo pants and a pair of red sneakers. One would think he would have enough money to keep those clothes in that condition. However, there was one bit of the clothing that really ridiculed the look. It fell off of him, but it appeared to be a top hat, like something magicians wore for those cheap magic shows.
"I'm sorry!" The man quickly picked up his top hat and placed it right into his jacket. "C-could you just let me stay for a while?" The door slammed, rejecting that man's pleas. Now, I've seen this kind of situation before and it totally made me feel like pitying him very much. Yes, this man was officially broke. Did he like steal those clothes or something?
At that moment, I turned around, hoping to avoid an encounter of the penniless loser, and hoped to cross the road as fast as I could away from him. Then, all of a sudden, timing was just not on my side. A bus came cruising right by, losing much valued time over my little escape.
"Oh man…" Then, I heard the man walking over after his failed attempt to book into the motel. For some reason, I did not see him, too focused on losing him. And apparently, with the dumbest luck ever, he didn't seem to see me…
"Aaah!"
"Owh!" I fell to the side, barely missing the asphalt on the road after being bumped onto the ground. I landed my hand on the ground in a desperate attempt to soften my fall. I ended up with a sore hand from slapping the sidewalk and my left knee was bumped into the same stone floor.
After groaning in pain, I sharply turned my head to see the clumsy klutz who crashed to me. As I expected, it was that same broke guy who bumped into me, still standing up and looking down at me with a grief-stricken face.
"I'm so sorry!" he gasped. "H-here! Let me help you!" I was so livid by how idiotic he was to crash into me like that. Couldn't he just look before he walked? Like, what was so hard to even look out? I would have wanted to scream at him with all of my heart. However, I couldn't simply lose my temper so easily. I'm a Schnee; we show grace and posture at all times, even when things don't go our way.
The guy tried to pick me up, extending his hand at me. I, on the other hand, didn't want to be helped by some clumsy boy. I just brushed his hand off, getting back up by my own hands.
"Ugh! I don't need your help!" I told him off. The guy grabbed the hand that I slapped off, seemingly offended by my sense of ethics.
"Okay, fine!" said the man. "Don't need to be so humble about it." I was so unimpressed by his rude demeanour that I decided to just leave him be. At least he had the decency to forget about our little encounter.
"Hmph!" With a huff and my head turned up high and proud, I walked off across the road, leaving him behind to who knew what he'd do to make his day. I sure hope someone would take him in and give him a life. No, seriously, I really did hope for him to just get a job or something. It's almost pitiful to see a man without his money…
~PRESTON'S POV~
"Sheesh, what an ice queen." That was all I could say after I had the unfortunate incident with a very rude rich-looking girl. I'm sure she was rich, considering the beautiful, sparkling white dress she was wearing, not to mention the stereotypical snobby attitude. Well, that didn't matter, I had a bigger problem right now.
After Brody sent me to find leads of Galvanax's schemes in this big city at some unknown dimension, I've been left with very little to work with. Apparently, the people in this world didn't take US dollars for money, saying it's either counterfeit or just play money from a game board. No matter where I went, I've been kicked out from every shop and stall, one by one with nothing to eat but the snacks I packed, and nowhere to rest at. At least they didn't call the cops or anything; I'd wonder what kind of punishments they would do to me in places like this.
Either way, I was now left with nowhere else to go. I really hoped the others had better luck than me. This whole world was downright confusing, and without anyone I know who could help, I was left out of options.
"I'm gonna need some money to refill my stomach." I thought to myself. Aside from the sandwiches I had packed, I needed something a little more edible. "What did they call it again? Lien?" That was the currency I had to have if I wanted to buy anything in this world. I'd take a job, but then I'd be losing myself from the mission, wouldn't I?
"Hmmm…" I had to think of a way to get some money, and fast. If I needed to progress through with the mission, I had to fit in and become one with the crowd. I couldn't afford to get kicked out of every single store or hotel in this city, or I'd be catching a lot of attention around here. Questions would be asked and I would probably make people think I'm crazy. "What can I do to earn some lien around here?"
There just had to be a way to get some money around here. I would need a miracle. A magical one…
Wait. Magical?
"Presto! I got it!" I snapped my fingers, now getting the idea I needed to earn some cash. It was time for this strange world to be introduced to the powerful wonder that was the great Preston the Magnificent! No Ranger power, of course. Just a bit of my own unique talent.
~THIRD PERSON POV~
Weiss had honestly worse days than this. Days when she would meet someone in a bad alley and try to mess with her. All of those hooligans would either be cast off by her own royal guards or be swiped away by her own hands. The heiress could not take another day of meeting such obnoxious or ignorant losers and just went on with her walk of refreshing herself, all while hoping that she wouldn't meet someone else to interrupt her time of peace and quiet.
Fifteen minutes after her accidental encounter with the man outside the motel, Weiss wanted nothing more than the free space and time to release the stresses of her recent debacle with her team leader; perhaps grab a cup of tea to soothe her mind before returning to Beacon with a little more positive stance against Ruby if she would ever return from her delusional quest to solve this problem with the monsters she had never seen before.
She was heading over to that grand balcony overlooking the sea where she could stare into nothing while taking a breather before she would come back to the reality of the situation. When she went to the location, she could see the tables empty and the entire floor devoid of anyone; the perfect opportunity to get that peace and quiet she deserved. No interruptions, no distractions. Just her and a nice moment to herself.
That was when she was going to be so wrong…
"Step right up!" A loud, jolly cry was heard from across the street, giving Weiss some degree of curiosity and a bit of disgust for having her peace possibly interrupted again. When she turned her head, she could see that it came from someone she definitely didn't want to see.
Out there, across the side of the road she was on, she spotted that man again; the same guy she bumped into earlier. Only now, he was pulling in a crowd of spectators, wearing a strange cloak over a tuxedo with a top hat on his head and holding a black stick on his right hand.
"Everyone, please come forth to witness the trick of a lifetime!" The man was none other than Preston, who decided that the only way to get some cash around here was to do the less-than-economic method to earn. Doing what he did best; just put on a little magic show, of course! "Feast your eyes on the spectacular! The magnificent!"
Weiss wasn't really impressed. She just watched from afar to see what kind of nonsense the man was about to do next. She felt that everyone was wasting their time watching this guy being so desperate to earn a few liens just to get into that motel, watching him wave the wand in his hand and flick his cape with his hand.
"The one…! The only…! Presto Change-O!" The crowd decided to give a somewhat intrigued clap, allowing Preston to try and amuse them. The young man remained hopeful, having had experienced such a decent crowd applauding to him with low expectations. There were of course, little children among the spectators who were a little more than enthusiastic for a bit of entertainment.
"For my first trick, I shall play a little game with these fancy cards!" And that was how Preston started the show, taking out a deck of cards from his sleeves and showed it to the crowd. He began to shuffle them up like a pro, shifting through them and arranging them into the order of his choice. Weiss, on the other hand, scoffed, clearly thinking this was an amateur trick. Maybe make the cards disappear or predict the one they would choose out of the deck. Either way, she hoped something interesting could happen from this boring old trick. Preston bent over to face a little girl, who was probably the most excited among everyone.
"Pick a card, little girl!" After showing the cards the back sides facing her, the young girl selected one of them. She then held it in her hand as Preston attempted to confirm the exact pattern on that very card. "And now! I, Presto Change-O, shall predict the card that you have chosen!" Waving his hands as if trying to produce some magical effect from his fingers, he prepared to deliver the word to say what was taken from the deck.
"You have… an Ace of Spades!" The girl looked at the card feeling excited. But then, once she took a look, her smile disappeared. She flipped the card around to show that Preston had given her a Four of Hearts. Now that was humiliating… Preston felt a little flabbergasted that his trick didn't work, and he was starting to disappoint the people around him. Especially one heiress who couldn't help but shake her head at his displeasure, as if saying 'I told you so'.
"Okay…" Preston awkwardly scratched his head, realizing the losing support from the crowd. "Not really my forte there." But there was no room for giving up; the show must go on!
"Moving on to my next trick!" He began again with a little more optimism against an unamused audience. He pinched the rim of his sleeves, pulling them out to reveal clear spaces inside. "Nothing up my sleeve!" He also pulled the ends of his gloves with the same flow. "Nothing in my gloves!" Lastly, he took off his hat and flashed the inside of its hollow inside to the audience, revealing nothing again. "And definitely nothing in the hat, either!" He picked up his wand and began to wiggle it around the rim of his hat, preparing yet another cliché act that still made the children watch, even as a few of the adults had already left from the loss of interest.
"Abrakadabra! Presto Change-O!" He smacked the hat and prepared to pull out another one of his white rabbits from out of it. He dug his hand into it and searched for anything solid, expecting a soft, fluffy back to be grasped gently and to reveal a cute little bunny from out of his hat.
Unfortunately, after some seconds, he could feel nothing, moving his hand frantically around to find the rabbit he assured he would find. Preston kept sweeping around the inside of his hat, praying that his bunny would appear. He even took a good look inside to find that there was nothing inside; not even a single hair. He looked at the crowd and saw the increasingly fed-up looks on their faces.
"Uhhh…" Awkwardly shrugging his shoulders, he cursed at himself deep in his mind. The humiliation he was going through was making him feel extra stupid. It felt even worse to know that his bunnies would always come out, even during the most inconvenient of times. They'd be the only things Preston could ever pull out; nothing else but them. The white bunnies he had managed to overfill his room with at one time, not bothered to show up even once.
With his failure to impress, the crowd started to disperse entirely, leaving Preston at a loss for both a chance to earn money and impress the people of this world. Meanwhile, Weiss was watching with pity, shaking her head at the boy's unimpressive attempt to wow everyone while also having some joy in seeing him tremble. Preston had to do something to pull in the crowd before he ended up completely destroyed by failure. Forget the money; this was his reputation at stake, even as unknown as he was to everyone.
There was only one thing left to do…
"Wait! Wait!" he hurriedly called everyone. Everyone turned back in disgust, not sure if to give the man another shot or just leave. Seriously, does he have anything better to do around here? Apparently, they were not far from the truth, but Preston was going to give them a show that the people of this world could truly be amazed by! "There's only one last trick that will definitely work!" The crowd reluctantly gave Preston one last chance to prove himself, while Weiss just sat there, expecting another flop in his act.
Preston stood straight. He had to make this work perfectly if he was to pull it off. This was the only chance he had for getting his cash to sustain himself in this place. He took a deep breath, calming himself down from the nerve-wrecking stillness of the audience and not affording to fail this time. He had to rely on his only asset in emergency situations like this.
Preston reached within his pocket and clutched for the tool he would use to improve his magical powers. His Blue Ninja Power Star. He tightened his grip on the metallic star and allowed the power inside of it to course through his body, fuelling the fire to perform his grand surprise. After powering himself up, Preston took out his hand, revealing nothing to everyone. Since he was in a new world, no one would ever guess if he was ever using any power enhancement. Although, he didn't really find it wrong to do it; it was technically an extraordinary power that could help him unleash powers beyond anyone's imagination. So, it would indeed be magical to the common folk. Also, this was something to earn money, not just win over the masses like that one time he tried with the school that ended up in disaster.
"I summon the power of my inner self!" He twirled his hands around each other as if forming a ball of energy. Then, while he breathed in to channel all that power, he swung his hand up with all his might. "I unleash the power of Dragon Fire!"
All of a sudden, Preston could feel the explosive energy burning up inside of him, which he then flashed into blue flames around his whole body before unleashing a fearsome, fire-breathing dragon in an astral form with white flashing eyes. The spiritual projection then fired a furious blue flame that lit the whole scene in a brilliant flash of light that surprised the entire audience.
The sight of the almighty dragon sent chills of pure excitement throughout the crowd as they backed away from the extreme firepower of its flames being shot up in the air before it disintegrated into the air with a shiny finish. Upon finishing the act, Preston then relaxed his body after being drained of his energy from performing that move.
And as it turned out, the results were worth the effort. Preston could hear the sounds of clapping and cheers from the audience who were now in high jolly good spirits after finally seeing what Preston could do. It was such a bright and spectacular show of force that was enough to wow them all, especially the children who yelled at the top of their voices cheering on for the magician.
It was now time for Weiss to finally stop underestimating the boy. She looked on in awe at the powerful spectacle of seeing him summon a dragon from his body and flared up a great flame of blue fire right up in the sky. And here she thought the guy was nothing but a penniless freeloader. Apparently, he must have had some mighty Semblance inside of him to make such a move. She had to admit; this kid must have been one heck of a warrior, probably even having a hidden Huntsman inside of him. Now, she was really interested in seeing what he was capable of. After all, he wasn't the only person who could bring upon an astral being from his own powers.
"Thank you!" She watched as Preston bowed to the crowd amidst the clapping and money dropping down into his hat. He wasn't really expecting much success, but they were pouring in notes of lien into the hat like an ATM. Although it wasn't a big crowd, he accepted whatever amounts he got from them; just as long as it was enough to spend a few nights in a motel and afford edible food. "Thank you!" And after the generous offerings, the crowd finally left the scene, having had their excitement filled enough. Preston was satisfied with the outcome, putting in the lien inside his jacket and waving off to crowd afterwards.
As Preston prepared to move away from the street, Weiss was eager to know what that man was really capable of. So, she walked towards him, crossing the road with stride while making sure she was gentle and polite enough, considering her previous encounter with the boy was, to put it lightly, unsettling.
Preston was about to leave the area when he was met by Weiss strolling towards him. He didn't really want to mess with her this time, remembering the awkward meeting they had outside the motel earlier. He knew she was watching him perform to the people earlier and even after stumbling twice in a row, his final ultimate move may have peaked her interest. Thus, he had to make sure he wasn't going to mess up with introductions this time.
"Oh, hey." he simply greeted with a bit of hesitation, not wanting to upset this seemingly cold-hearted rich girl. Weiss just crossed her arms, wanting to get straight to the point with what she wanted to know about this mysterious man.
"How… did you do that?" She asked, pausing a bit in the middle to show how much she wanted to question him.
"You mean my little magic trick?" asked Preston, soon turning to boasting about his incredible power to summon that dragon. "Oh, it's nothing special. Just an old recipe for the crowd to feel extravagant about their viewing experience." Preston carried on being proud of himself, even when the past endeavours back at Summer Cove kept him from going the extra mile with his self-credit. Nevertheless, Weiss didn't really care about what he thought; she just wished to know the nature of his power, looking to see if there was a way they could become associated with one another for Weiss' own prowess. If she could get him to teach her how to summon such power, than she could probably give herself and her team the edge to face off against any potential combatant she would eventually fight at the Tournament.
"Whatever Semblance you have, I was actually impressed." Preston raised an eyebrow of curiosity. Semblance? What was she talking about his appearance? Did his magician attire really appeal to her that much? Whatever the case was, he knew that it was his dragon fire trick that mattered most in this conversation. "Not many around here could ever conjure such a powerful beast like that." So, it would appear that the locals here could also do magic? That there were other magical spells and stunts that were unique to this world? There was so much to learn from this weird place, and he had the feeling he was about to have a really long lecture with this ice queen.
"You're kinda on the mark there." noted Preston, brushing off the tip of the hat before pushing it into a flat circle and putting it back into his coat.
"So, are you going to tell me how you summoned a beast with your Aura?" demanded Weiss, using a term that Preston felt was so foreign, so new that his own imaginative mind couldn't guess what it was.
"Aura?" he asked again, with a hand to the chin. "What's that?" Weiss couldn't believe her ears. He was kidding, right? He had to be; there was no way he could ever be so laid back to not know the fundamentals of being a powered being in this world. She just chuckled sarcastically, thinking that Preston was just being a real joker of himself.
"Ha ha. Very funny, magic boy." Weiss shook her head, showing her distaste of the 'joke'. She settled in for a few seconds to wait for the boy to stop fooling around and show her how he got his powers and abilities. It was just ridiculous to keep up with this unnecessary sham for long. All she got, however, was silence. She looked at Preston, seeing the confused look on his face for a while now.
"Wait? You're seriously not kidding, are you?" She was even more baffled by what the legit expression which pretty much confirmed that this was no joke to him. He truly was lost in the topic of her question, that he did indeed not know what Aura was. Jaune didn't know what Aura was, but at least he didn't have any extraordinary powers to show for it. This guy had something far more magical, fired out with little difficulty. Surely, he must have some knowledge of what he was made of to perform such a move.
"Seriously what?" Now, Weiss was beyond bewildered by how isolated Preston's view of the world was. "How can you possibly not know what Aura is? It allows you to power up that dragon! Surely, you have Aura to do that, don't you?" Preston couldn't understand Weiss, both because of the stuff about Aura she was throwing at him and why she had to be so shocked by it. Well, it was understandable enough that she probably assumed he was from this world, but because she was so quick to shout it out, he had no way of explaining to her about who he really was and most importantly, where he came from.
"I'm… not sure if I'm following here." Struggling to talk was all he could do. There was no choice but to ask, probably putting his mission at risk but anything to get this snob out of his hair. "What is this 'Aura' you're speaking of?" Flabbergasted even more, Weiss gasped, offended further by Preston's blindness to the significant power of Aura that everyone on this planet could learn to love. "I'm not sure if I really need it anyway."
Then, it suddenly became clear to Weiss. It made sense that someone like Preston could actually think about saying such a thing. This man… must be really arrogant.
"Alright." She nodded her head in a 'now I get it' expression. "I see what you're trying to pull. You think you're so great, thinking you can summon a power like that all on your own, huh?" Weiss accused, turning her body to face him while having her arms still crossed together.
"Uhhh…" Still, Preston did not know what to say, becoming quite annoyed of Weiss' apparent offense towards him. He didn't know how this world worked, so why not give him a break?! He wished Weiss would stop being such a snob and try to understand that he was a foreigner from a faraway world who had very little to no understanding of everything around him. He didn't have time for this nonsense; he had a mission to fulfil. Find any leads of Galvanax's involvement with this world and put an end to it. With a stern face, he tried to be as polite as possible, hoping for no ill will between them as he tried to dismiss her.
"Look, I don't have time for this. I've got some things to do, alright? I've got things to worry about right now." With a bow to bid her farewell, Preston tried to walk off to get back to that motel and finally pay off for the night's room. However, as he walked on, Weiss was not done with him, still bent on showing him who was boss in this fair city.
"Fine, then." she huffed. "But if you're so talented, how about a little challenge?" Then, Preston stopped in his tracks. He turned around to look at Weiss, seeing her irate while having her fists down at her hips and her foot tapping on the ground. He didn't want to make a big fuss about it, but she was really pushing his buttons, not seeing the point of making some challenge between them.
"What kind of challenge?" he asked anyway, deciding to at least be attentive.
"I, Weiss Schnee, proud heiress of the Schnee Dust Company, hereby challenge you to a duel to…" Weiss went on to propose the duel between two powerful warriors, to show this runt what it took to have such power in this world. That everyone should at least know how things worked around here.
Preston was about to prepare himself for a round of hectic proportions, hearing enough that he would have to face this brat in a one-on-one duel to see who was the better individual. Heck, he wasn't even told that she had something of the same powers as he did. Given the way she was challenging him with pride, she seemed to be quite talented in doing some magic on her own. Did this world have all sorts of magic users like Weiss?
Could that be why Galvanax was here? And speaking of Galvanax, he wouldn't have to wait long to find out about his enemy's presence on this strange world. Looking past Weiss, while she was still carrying on about her petty duel, Preston could see something happening behind her. He had to look closer to see it, but that was when he knew things were about to get really troubling.
"Hey!" snapped Weiss, irritated that the boy was not paying attention to her. "Are you even listening to me?!" Preston obviously didn't bother about listening to Weiss. He had a bigger problem that was right behind her and unfortunately for Weiss, it wasn't anything to be competitive about.
"Run." Preston muttered. Weiss saw the panic on his face, forced to shut herself up to see it right in front of her. Unfortunately, she hadn't bothered to ask why he was so rushed with panic and instead took it as a sign of offense towards her presence;
"Are you mocking me?! You think you're so powerful?!" Weiss scoffed with her arms crossed and her back bent back to distance herself from the negative affliction of an apparently brewing competition between them. She then moved forward and pointed a finger at his face with a strict tone, reprimanding the boy and showing him that she meant business. "Why, I have some good news for you… you disrespectful piece of-!" Before she could finish, Preston turned around and bolted away, but not before letting Weiss know that she was not in a right place at the right time.
"Run!" He continued to run and run as far away from Weiss as possible, hoping she would just turn around. Weiss was about to let loose another ill-tempered banter when she heard a few grunting noises from behind her.
"Huh?" She turned around and saw what was making those noises. What she soon laid her eyes on would baffle her to new heights. It was a squad of blue-armoured soldiers walking around with ridiculous-looking helmets and outdated rifles. They were already looking her way, one of them pointing at her while signalling the other men to pursue her.
Weiss wanted to stare at them and wonder what kind of ridiculous trick was this. These were completely dorky-looking people dressed in such ancient armour. She was going to call them out and question their presence here in Vale. That was when she saw them pointing their rifles around, which meant that they were more of a threat than a strange presence. Why was someone like Preston, powerful and skilled in some form of Semblance, could just run away from these things? Clearly, he wasn't as magnificent as she once thought. She was going to show him what she was made of.
Weiss stayed in place without following Preston's warning, standing her ground against the wave of monstrous soldiers now stalking towards her. She brushed off her ponytail to prepare her for the fight that was about to happen within the city walls. Whoever these punks were, they were dealing with the heiress of the Schnee Dust Company. She was no damsel in distress; she was a Huntress, full of pride and power.
Preston ran out a few more feet before he turned around to see if the girl had been following close behind. Unfortunately, by the time he moved his head to face the heiress' back, expecting her to run his way, he became startled by the sight of seeing Weiss standing up to the Kudabots with no backup. Preston panicked. She was unprotected and completely at the mercy of these goons, and yet, she stood defiantly against the Kudabots all alone. Acting upon good will, he had to run back and help her escape the wrath of these dangerous foot soldiers, doing what he was meant to do.
Weiss was about to pull out Myrtenaster from her belt to fight the enemy in front of her, when suddenly, she was interrupted by a loud call from Preston.
"Wait!" Her moment interrupted, she darted around to see the boy dashing towards her. She didn't know why she was being such a magnet for the weird today, but she didn't have time for such nonsense. He was getting in the way of her upcoming fight against these hideous creatures and she certainly didn't want to face the possibility of making another casualty out of this fool.
"Get back!" Weiss warned, but her request came unheard as Preston charged forth and tackled himself at the squad of Kudabots, surprising everyone, including the heiress and the goons. "What are you doing?!" Weiss snapped, watching in shock as Preston eventually had the guts to fight the enemy.
"What does it look like I'm doing?!" exclaimed Preston as he took on the Kudabots. "I'm trying to get you to safety!" One of the soldiers tried to bash the human on the head with the stock of its rifle, swinging it right for him. Preston saw the attack coming and delivered a nice kick upwards to knock the rifle off away from him. Soon after, he retaliated with a following spin kick to the Kudabot's head, sending it spinning to the ground. He then punched one more with a strong fist at its head, but the Kudabot caught his arm, stopping the attack. Fortunately, Preston was still the nimbler fighter, kicking the Kudabot with his foot before flinging himself backwards.
"Why do you think I need saving?" countered Weiss.
"Umm… hello! You're an heiress! You must be too important to get hurt or something." Preston argued on before being grabbed upon by a Kudabot. One which he was all too willing to throw off his back with one mighty judo move. "Go! I'll take care of these clowns!" As he continued to fight off the Kudabots, Weiss stood behind, fists clenching and ego burning up inside her. There were a lot of things she hated from the opinions of certain boys, and the thought of her assumed of being a defenceless woman was probably the most infuriating. It certainly didn't help that the boy 'rescuing' her wasn't paying attention to her when she said she too was skilled in projecting powerful apparitions. Either way, she wasn't going to back down from a fight; a chance to prove to the city that she had what it took to save lives. As noble as Preston was, he was not going to have all the credit for saving the city.
"Not a chance." At that moment, Weiss pulled out her shining silver rapier from her belt and proceeded to press on the handle to rotate the colourful Dust cylinders inside the weapon. With grace and a bit of power, she unleashed a shining white circle of aura below her feet that energized her body, allowing her to then accelerate forward and skated towards the fight.
Preston was about to give another Kudabot a strong punch to the head when he felt the wind blowing against him. Along with the breeze, he felt a very chilling sensation dashing right by, making the strands of his hair straighten from the freezing blow of the wind. When he turned around, he saw that, from out of nowhere, the girl he tried to save had swooped by and slashed at a Kudabot within milliseconds since he laid his eyes on it being cut down. He then bared witness to Weiss gliding to the other Kudabot a few feet away and finished it off as well.
She then brought the blade to her face, closing her eyes as she moved her finger very close and across the blade, unleashing her inner aura as she aimed the tip towards the rest of the Kudabots. Weiss then conjured a blistering twister of snow-like particles that sped right for them, piercing them with their hard and sharp edges like a barrage of knives thrown at them.
Once the storm was over, Preston reeled from what he encountered after seeing Weiss effortlessly demolished the entire squad of Kudabots with only a few moves. The sheer power of her magic had completely wiped out the opposition, with the help of some mystical sword that allowed her to summon these awesome powers. All of which she was able to utilize gracefully and, ironically, without mercy. It looked like she wasn't just cold from her attitude, she was pure freezing with all the right moves and power. In awe, he breathed out the amazement in his voice at how skilful and precise Weiss' strikes were against the Kudabots.
"That was simply… magical." he gasped with admiration. Weiss shook her head to whip the ponytail after her rush against the Kudabots, making herself comfortable after the attacks messed her hair, if ever so slightly. She took one good gaze at Preston who was still staring at her with amazement. It was this time to take in the glory and let the boy know who he was talking to.
"Now, are you impressed?" Weiss showed off with a grin, pride and self-esteem voiced out with a Schnee's ease. Preston couldn't help but feel very astounded of Weiss' power that all of his awkward discomfort towards her snobby attitude were almost forgotten, save for the last bit where she gloated. He was going to commend her amazing abilities to make magic like that, and then perhaps ask her how she got so powerful. Maybe there was a good chance that he might learn a lot from this girl after all.
However, the chance would not come when the two teens heard another collective set of high-pitched gibberish, instantly recognized as the same ones coming from those hideous creatures Weiss so easily eliminated earlier.
"What?!" Overwhelmed by the larger size of a new squad, the Huntress-in-training couldn't believe that there would be more of them coming. Just when she thought she had it easy, of course, things just strike back when she least expected it. Just how much more would ever catch her off guard? For Preston, however, this was nothing new at all.
"And this is where I lose my element of surprise." With no surprise whatsoever, Preston only slumped his arms, expecting another round with the nuisance that had been plaguing his days for some time now.
"More of them?!" Weiss cried with shock.
"Yeah. They do that a lot." cleared Preston, evidently very tired of dealing with more Kudabots. Weiss had to snap her attention back to Preston after hearing how bored he got with having more of these unknown soldiers coming out of nowhere. From his not-so stellar response to the enemy, she had the feeling that there was a connection between these two sides, as if he had come across these minions before.
"You know who these freak shows are?" Inquisitively, the fact that Preston had faced such ugly creatures before needed a lot more clarification. Whatever he had to do with these monsters, she wanted answers as soon as she could.
"Four words; Kudabots. Nasty and evil." Suavely, Preston showed that these minions needed no introduction. They were among the most irritating foes he had to face in recent months and he wanted Weiss to know how much trouble they were. Suddenly, the two didn't have time to clear things up, as the Kudabots all charged forward to fight them. "We have to drive them away from the open!" Preston exerted the need to divert any attention from the public, advising Weiss that they must get the Kudabots as far away as possible from any innocents, especially since he had to keep his involvement with these other-worldly beings a secret from everyone.
Weiss couldn't argue with a safety precaution, even if it was from this boy who had some sort of knowledge about these 'Kudabots' as Preston called them. The safety of the citizens came first and as a Huntress, she had to consider bringing the fight elsewhere so no one would get in the way. Thus, after nodding reluctantly to Preston, she then made a run to distract the Kudabots, followed by the boy. As they scurried off elsewhere, the Kudabots immediately followed behind, pursuing the two teens to remove any opposition.
Weiss and Preston ran across the street and jumped down to the canal areas of the city, close to the docks which provided a serene flow of water channel. They stepped down the stone steps and into the side of the canal until they reached underneath a bridge where they might be able to avoid any unwanted attention. As they stopped under the shady belly of the bridge, they could see that the Kudabots had managed to follow them all the way to their location. Preston gladly sighed, thankful that no one had ever seen them running after him, let alone getting in the way. Now, all he had to worry about was fighting alongside a prideful skating heiress.
"Who are these guys, really?" she groaned before turning to Preston to get some answers from him. "Who are you?" Even as Kudabots were facing them intent on destruction, Preston quickly dismissed her attempt at getting to know him.
"No time. If you really want to fight, then do as I say." Weiss scoffed at Preston's request to lead the fight.
"Tch! I don't need to take orders from some… amateur magician!" Weiss was prepared to make her move and go up ahead. However, she had to wonder how would Preston sustain long enough for a fight like this. If he couldn't use his magic tricks for combat earlier, then surely he wouldn't be such a competent comrade to fight with against a horde of these unknown threats.
How wrong she was going to be… Preston stood out despite her discomforting perception of his skills and lack of arsenal. While the Kudabots squabbled some more, he was ready to let Weiss know how much she had underestimated of him. He reached for his pocket and pulled out his Morpher and blue Power Star, leaving Weiss to witness it all.
"POWER STAR! LOCK IN!" With his Power Star out front, he then swung his hand and the star towards the larger red Morpher and locked the Star in place. Giving it one last push, Preston spun the Power Star and let its energy do the rest.
"NINJA SPIN!" The rotating blades spun with such velocity, blue and white sparks began to fizz out before a white blanket of light covered Preston's body, which also started to reveal the new body suit beneath it. The final touch; his own signature Ranger helmet was placed over his head and his transformation was finally complete, transforming Preston into the Blue Ranger. He had his Star Blade immediately after the morphing, ready to face the Kudabots the best way he could.
It was this transformation that quickly took Weiss by immediate shock. She flinched to see that in Preston's place, this weird warrior in a suit and helmet appeared within an instant. As stupid as the outfit looked, she couldn't comprehend what he had become. This dorky-looking hero wannabe with a colourful sword. Then again, if he was able to summon a powerful dragon and fight decently, then perhaps this was some sort of power boost, despite the childish look of the kid's show superhero.
"What kind of Semblance does this guy have?!" she wondered wildly upon seeing the sudden transformation.
Preston prepared to move out and take on the Kudabots. The goons took their defensive stances, with their rifles and Basher clubs at the ready. Weiss, too, had her Myrtenaster drawn out and powered up with another clip of Dust. This time, whether she liked it or not, she was going to have to work together with Preston. She would have to give him the chance to prove himself and let him deal with enemies who were apparently his.
"Let's get this over with!" cried Preston.
"Very well." agreed Weiss. Soon, the Kudabots began to charge forward and attack the two heroes along the thick sidewalk next to the canal. The blue-skinned troopers with their firearms stood behind while the ones wielding their melee weapons faced the two at close quarters. Weiss began by engaging two of the Kudabots, swinging Myrtenaster with grace and precision at blocking off each attack. Preston, on the other hand, resorted to quicker tricks and rapid sword strikes with his Star Blade, flipping about as he fought three more Kudabots.
Weiss summoned her power and strengthened her blade with a durable, icy coat of aura that made her strikes stronger. Her slashes simply knocked the Kudabots' blades away before she moved in for the kill. When one was about to kick her down, Weiss leapt back to avoid being hit and skidded away. Within range, she pulled the trigger on her weapon and the cylinders inside it clicked with a rotation to switch to an electrical charge that surged across her blade. She aimed right at the Kudabots before shooting out a stream of electric shots that zapped right at them. The bolts precisely hit the two of them and sent them fidgeting violently to the ground before completely blowing up in two small explosions.
Weiss panicked when she saw them exploding, triggered by the sudden noise of the explosions. That would most certainly catch everyone's attention… Also, it was very surprising the minions had blown up in the first place. Grimm had always just dissipated into ashes and other enemies pretty much just fell to the ground, unconscious. Exploding enemies, however, was very much unheard of.
Preston fought three of the Kudabots as they flanked him from both sides. One by one, they took turns trying to bring down the Ranger. He was too close for them to fire their rifles and had to resort to fighting with the stocks at the back of their guns and the sharp edges of their bayonets. Not that they were any less dangerous, as the hard iron material could still knock a Ranger unconscious. Thus, Preston wasted no time slicing them up as fast as he could.
The Blue Ranger was able to strike one of the Kudabots without problem with his sword. Immediately afterwards, he swung his sword to the other side to block off another charging Kudabot before swiping it off with a good kick to the chest, sending it tumbling into the water. For the final Kudabot, Preston slashed his sword, being blocked by the Kudabot's rifle, but then gave it another swing that was strong enough to swipe the weapon of the goon's hands.
Just as he finished kicking the one Kudabot into the river, he then prepared to take out the two others he had managed to injure. However, the two of them still managed to remain strong and fought him again, charging with their rifles to stab the Ranger with their bayonets. Preston quickly pulled out his frog-like Ninja Blaster and fired away, blasting out blue bolts of energy that vaporized the Kudabots into oblivion.
Weiss was just about to meet up with Preston to finally get things straight with the situation and discuss what she might had done to solve it. Unfortunately, once again, they were interrupted by another swarm of Kudabots and now, Basher bots coming in towards them. Flanked from both sides of the canal, the two heroes backed up, both of them facing away from each other to look at each group of enemy goons.
Weiss panted softly, having been exhausted from using her aura on these fragile enemies, as she aimed her rapier at her side of foes, while Preston, breathing heavier breathes, was pointing his sword on his own end.
"They're just too many of them." panted Weiss, getting tired of fighting these seemingly endless waves of strange creatures, alongside an even stranger boy in a suit. She had so many questions flooding her head about what in the world was going on.
"Just keep up the pressure." advised Preston again. "They don't last long."
"For your sake, they better not." Weiss' hostile tone was starting to annoy Preston, and let him add that, aside from Victor and Monty, no one would go to such lengths to irritate him. On the plus side, though, Weiss had a right to worry about her home world. Victor and Monty, on the other hand, were more worried about themselves; Victor probably more so.
Either way, he was going to have to put up with it if he wanted to rid the city of the Kudabots. However, it did raise suspicions as to how these Kudabots ended up in the city and what it might mean for the city. Could there be a monster leading them here, or were they just randomly deployed ahead of the Rangers' expectations? Well, whatever the case, he had to do something and repel Galvanax's influence to the inevitable chaos that might spread, and it all came down to his abilities as a Ranger.
So much for maintaining a low profile…
"You think you can still fight?" asked Preston.
"Naturally." answered Weiss with suave. "We'd best be done with this nuisance of yours." Preston rolled his eyes, not wanting the girl to refer to the Kudabots as his nuisance, despite the practicality of it all; that their presence was indeed motivated by Galvanax's desire to destroy him and his fellow Rangers. Out of the blue, however, he felt like starting things off with Weiss, hoping to at least form a partnership between the two combatants.
"My name's Preston by the way." said Preston, coming off as a tad bit goofy, which didn't really impress the heiress with the rapier.
"Less talking. More fighting." cleared Weiss, putting the Blue Ranger in his place.
"Sorry." Before long, the Kudabots began their assault on the two, flanking them from both sides. Weiss and Preston stayed in position, waiting for the alien soldiers to reach them before, when in range, countering back with their own moves.
As soon as the Kudabots on her side came, Weiss created another snowflake-shaped ring around her feet and used her aura to charge right at the group, crashing into them like a battering ram and sending them flinging to the wall on her right and one of them into the water on the other side. Preston, on the other hand, simply jumped over the heads of his side of the horde, rolling to the ground before facing back at them.
Weiss was already being surrounded by the two remaining Kudabots as they continued to attack her with rapid speed. The graceful Huntress was still able to hold out on her own, however, swiftly blocking each attack with Myrtenaster like a fencer sparring against a bunch of clumsy drunkards in a tough street. The limited amount of space didn't seem to bother her as well; her slim posture allowed her to stay close in the middle of the narrow pavement.
One of the Kudabots soon dashed to try and spear Weiss with its bayonet, but she was able to see the attack coming and spin away to let the Kudabot crash into the other behind her. In position, she had them right where she wanted them. She concentrated her energy into the blade again and, this time, swung it straight at them to fire up a stream of flames that incinerated them to ashes, ending her fight almost effortlessly.
"Hmph." She gloated with a huff, swinging her blade down to the ground while standing proudly over her victory.
Preston, meanwhile, was leaping over and through the four other Kudabots, using the wall to vault over them and keeping his balance as he navigated through the tight space of the floor. When all four Kudabots charged, he had one little trick up his sleeve; something he had done once back home. He turned left and jumped, straight into the water in a dive. The Kudabots didn't have time to pursue the Ranger, stopping just at the edge to stare down at the water where Preston dived into, only seeing the splash die down and ripples produced. They waited for any signs of the Ranger, eager to find out if he had somehow drowned himself, or was simply ridiculous to jump in like some coward.
Then, all of a sudden, the water raged wildly as the blue form of Preston leaping out of the canal, jumping right into the four of them and tackling them with his arms spread out. The Ranger crashed right into the four goons and brought them down to the ground in a heavy fall before rolling behind them upon landing. With the enemy down, he prepared for one final attack.
"Dragon's Ire." His arms, at opposite ends, waved around before he thrust his right arm to summon another apparition of a dragon much smaller than the one he managed to unleash for the crowd earlier. "Full of Fire!" The spiritual abstract form of the blue dragon slither around his arm before facing the Kudabots and breathing out a large fireball that completely blanketed them in a burning trap that eventually destroyed them.
All the while, after Weiss had destroyed her side of Kudabots, she managed to catch Preston's magic trick yet again. While the dragon was smaller than the one she got to see back at the street, she was still somewhat impressed by what Preston was able to unleash with only the tinier version of the serpent, incinerating his foes with one blast. With that, she walked towards the Ranger, who was also breathing in for a moment of exhaustion.
It seemed like the worse was over. After beating the Kudabots, the two waited to see if anymore would come to attack them. While all was quiet at the moment, Weiss now had the space and time to commend the ninja Ranger for his skills.
"Not bad." she bluntly praised.
"You're quite the fighter yourself." Preston stated back. At least Weiss was being courteous enough to comment on his abilities as a fighter, so she could use some praise back. Now, while the peace was present, Weiss took the time to finally get to the bottom of this whole strange chain of events. With a sneer and her arms crossed, she began the questioning, hoping to get all the answers she needed from this strange kid from who knew where. What were those beings he apparently knew of, and what kind of powers did he possess to transform him into this ridiculous-looking superhero from children's television programming?
"So, do you mind telling me what is going on here?" began Weiss.
"No time." However, Preston simply shrugged off the question, wanting to have his own answers as to what his old enemy was doing in the city. "I've got to find out what these Kudabots are doing here." Weiss was soon left disappointed that Preston refused to say anything about himself or what crazy situation he had brought upon here in Vale. He was more concerned about the threat of Galvanax and what he wanted with this world.
"Look, thanks for helping me out, but I have to go and find out what's going on here." he added. "Just… don't tell anyone about this. If you can help me, then you might need to keep all of this a secret."
Weiss couldn't help but feel insulted that Preston had considered her unimportant for the protection of the city. The nerve of the boy to go and leave her to shut her mouth about what she had been involved in. There was no way she was going to be silenced for the purpose of maintaining a secret. She had every right to know what was threatening her city and she was going to let Preston know that she meant business.
"Oh." She tapped her finger on her lips while gazing up in the air, being coy with her approach. "I don't know. Maybe I should… do the right thing and tell the police." As she expected, she had gotten Preston really good. The Ranger snapped, turning around to face the heiress to see that she was being very sly with him now.
"What?!" he exclaimed. Weiss decided to play along and kept up her persuasive threat.
"These things clearly are a threat and they must be dealt with." She continued to toy with Preston's fidgeting anxiety. "And I suppose I can give credit to the mysterious ninja warrior in spandex who helped me out." Another card down on the table; exposing him for being involved as well, thus making him a prime suspect for the situation.
NOT SPANDEX! An ominous high-pitched female cry from out of nowhere echoed through the scene as if it came from the seas.
"You don't understand. This is a very important mission. Which, I might add, is top secret!" defended Preston, still agitated by Weiss' threat to expose him and his mission. He was going to keep on pressuring her to stop, but she still went on.
"Whatever goes on here in Vale is my business. As is every Huntsman or Huntress of this city." told Weiss with burning passion. Preston, however, didn't get the idea of what she was and what she was meant to do.
"Huntsman? Huntress?" repeated the Ranger, confused over the seemingly dangerous title she had given herself.
"Please. Don't play that stupid trick on me." She just scoffed at his confusion, thinking that he was fooling around with her. The only thing was that she was indeed unaware that he had no idea on how the Huntsmen functioned in this world. Nevertheless, Preston was too spooked to even bother asking on, more worried about his mission. "Are you going to let me help you, or shall I call for backup?" The moment Weiss had finished; he was hit with a hard dilemma. Unfortunately, as much as he wanted to keep on fighting back, she was already hard set on making sure she got her chance to save lives and finding out what she needed to know from him. The Ranger was now trapped; unable to relent any longer.
He couldn't afford to spoil the mission at a rate much worse than it already was. If he was going to lessen the exposure, then he would have to spill the beans and finally satisfy the heiress' questions. Hesitantly,
"Fine…" groaned Preston, surrendering to the threatening persuasion. "You can come along." Perhaps it would be best to let her on with his mission. She was still a powerful warrior after all, and maybe it wouldn't be an entirely bad idea to let her follow along, just as long as she kept her lips sealed for the whole time working together.
"There. What's that ever so hard?" quipped Weiss with sass, grinning slyly for her successful attempt on gaining Preston's trust in allowing her to follow him. Finally, she could get her questions figured out about what was about to threaten the peace of Vale again. This unknown threat had to be dealt with, even if it was beyond anything she would be prepared for.
"You're really not going to like what's coming." warned Preston.
"I am Weiss Schnee. Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. I can handle myself just fine." Weiss assured with pride and confidence. Dust company? Why would she be invested in some dust? Is that the real money grab this world had to offer? If that was the case, then this must be one twisted place. At least the people here are sociable, unlike her… "So, where do you suggest we begin?"
"I'm…" Preston was about to go forth with what he was about to do to find out more about Galvanax's plans for this strange world. Unfortunately, it didn't really come out right, simply because he didn't know where to go through next. This lack of foresight stopped him from carrying on. "Not sure…"
"Ugh… Thought so…" muttered Weiss. "No wonder you've been kicked out of a motel. You're just a lost cause." The comment wasn't really appreciated by the Blue Ranger. This was going to be one heck of a partnership, if he could call it one…
Regardless, if he needed all the help he could get, especially with navigating through the city, Preston had to depend on someone who could probably help in the form of both guidance through the world and actual help fighting against any further threats that might come their way. Despite his slight hesitation, however it may be, he had to depend on Weiss' help out of anyone who had similar powers.
So, after accepting Weiss into his mission, the two were prepared to move on to find out what was going on behind the scenes as evil threatened to bring more chaos to the city of Vale, far more powerful than the two of them had ever imagined…
Said evil had been brewing about in the shady alleyways of the city, where even sunlight couldn't expose it. It was, however, in a seemingly abandoned warehouse where the worst of the worst truly manifested in, with two sides of darkness converged to meet and plot. The structure did look very lost and left unattended, with cracks on the walls and webs stuck to the dirtiest corners of the inside, as well as machines completely shut down and rusted from long years of abandonment. It was the perfect place to have a dark, secretive meeting, and that was what was going to happen.
The lone, shrouding figure of a robed creature crept into the building with her yellow clothes drifting along the ground as she walked. The white evil mask of Madame Odius soon checked around the room of the warehouse, looking for the few people she had been conspiring with for a while now. She found the bunch of people idly waiting for her in the building, right at the centre as if they knew the exact time of her arrival without having to hide deeper from any prying eyes.
The one with the dark grey hair known as Mercury was sitting relaxed on top of the deactivated conveyor belt with his left knee up on the dirty thick rubber belt while his partner, Emerald, leaned against the machine connected to the belt. Their boss, Cinder, was standing in front of them, arms crossed with her finger tapping on her arm. She had been waiting for the sorceress to meet up with her after a sudden call. After hearing what Madame Odius had to say, she felt like the alien woman had been troubled by something in her plans. Whatever it was that was stressing her was clearly another surprise waiting to spoil her own ambitions.
"So, what do you need, Odius?" Cinder called, feeling the anxiety from Odius' moody attitude.
"It seems we hit a little obstacle in our way." reported Madame Odius, plagued by the one problem she hoped wouldn't happen. Cinder raised an eyebrow from curiosity, wondering what it could be that was troubling her uneasy ally.
"What could possibly go wrong this time?" she asked with sully calmness. Odius wouldn't find it really assuring once she showed them what could be in her way this time. She reached out her palm to summon a purple cloud that shrouded over her hand. Within the middle, a clear orb of light formed, causing Cinder to come in closer to take a look, joined by her two cohorts who also fell eager to know what all the worrying was about. The light orb in the cloud began to reveal a small vision picturing the source of Odius' distress.
"These." When the image became clearer, it soon revealed the group of six colourful warriors clad in suits with blades drawn out and gathered together in poses. To Odius, this was the image of pure disgust, but to the humans she allied with, this was rather a very peculiar sight. They did not have a good idea on what Odius was trying to emphasize, instead being shown some dorky-looking hero wannabes. "These are our mortal enemies from our world. They call themselves the Power Rangers."
Mercury and Emerald just didn't know if they should take this seriously, glancing at each other with puzzled faces, while Cinder looked on with neutral taste, if not a bit unamused by what Odius saw as a problem.
"You expect us to take a bunch of losers in childish outfits as serious threats?" uttered Mercury, being the first to voice out how awkward and anticlimactic the reveal was. These 'mortal enemies' didn't even seem menacing or even threatening. They were the sort of beings who he could take pleasure of punching and kicking up, but only because it would only be out of amusement rather than the thrill of challenging action.
"I assure you. These are not your average heroes." explained Odius. "They are far more powerful than you think. They possess powers that even rival that of Galvanax himself." Cinder had to grasp her chin with her two fingers, wondering about how could these pathetic heroes could ever face up against anything her world had to offer. "And as it so happened, one of them managed to team up with one of your enemies to defeat one of my contestants."
"Okay, so they're a bunch of losers in childish outfits… with tremendous powers." mused Mercury again. "Still not buying it."
"And if these Power Rangers are as dangerous as you say they are…" added Emerald. "How do you expect to handle the problem now?"
"So far, there is only one Ranger confirmed to be working with a Huntress." reported Odius, sparking some alarm in the group for a change. So, apparently, those bratty Huntresses were foolish enough to even have one of these childish warriors by their side, making it seem even more of a reason to at least cause some concern. "There's no telling if the others are out there, forming their own alliance with your foes. If we wish to mobilize and have our goals realized, then we must formulate a plan."
Cinder had to think this through. She did have to look at things at a far deeper level, ahead of the physical appearances of these warriors and envision the possible threats they did pose. The Huntresses and Huntsmen were able to repulse a major emergency and as much as they all played into her hands, she still had some form of respect for their abilities. So, it came to the idea of not judging a book by its cover. If Odius truly saw these fighters as real enemies, then perhaps it was for a good reason.
"You raise a very clear point." She decided to acknowledge the Power Rangers as potential problems, not on the level of animosity yet, considering she had to see for herself how powerful these warriors really were. Then, she soon put her thoughts together to find a way to help Odius prepare for the inevitable moment her own forces had to come into blows with the Rangers. It didn't take her long to find her answer that might prove progressive enough to move forward with the ultimate plan. "Perhaps there is a way we can settle the problem."
"Speak your mind." Odius crept closer to Cinder, eager to hear what the mysterious woman had in mind. She then looked towards her minions to let them into the new phase of her plans.
"Mercury, Emerald." she called out to them, causing them to stand straight at attention.
"Yes, miss?" Emerald, being the loyal one of the pair, complied with her master's command. Cinder gave the two a cold smirk with intent on bringing chaos growing high before she told them further of her newest scheme.
"I have a little assignment for the two of you."
TO BE CONTINUED…