Hard Heads
It was a dark and stormy day.
The sky was black with dark storm clouds that rumbled with thunder that threatened to shake the buildings of Briarwood like an earthquake. Wind blew in powerful gusts, shaking the trees and spreading debris all over creation. Lightning crashed and split the sky as the heavy rain fell down in sheets, creating lake-like puddles in the streets and on the sidewalks. It was a quite a stormy day for the people of Briarwood and it was an even stormier time inside the Rock Porium.
Xander slammed the door of the Rock Porium closed as he shivered from the cold rain. He then wrung out his sopping wet green jacket onto the rug on the floor, which was becoming a puddle by itself from all the rainwater brought in by the employees and customers.
"Man, it's horrid out there!" complained Xander.
"And it's going to get worse according to the weatherman. Toby's going to close early," said Lee-Lee, as she fruitlessly attempted to mop up the rainwater and muck.
Xander pulled a face. While he was thankful for the half day, it was also annoying as he wished he'd had more warning and it also meant a little less in his paycheck that week. But he stopped dwelling on that when an all-too familiar sound hit his ears.
"…get the heck out of my way, Pinky. You're in my way!" snarled Natalia. She was standing in the doorway of the backdoor and was holding the last box of stock from the delivery truck.
"Gladly, Princess!" spat Vida, as she stormed off to the breakroom.
Natalia glared daggers at the back of Vida's head for a moment before slamming the backdoor shut and then unloading the stock from the box.
Xander whistled low. "Wow. They're still fighting?"
Both Mason and Chip nodded miserably.
Generally, the Red and Pink Rangers got along well, but not so much anymore, as for reasons unknown, Vida and Natalia had been at each other's throats for over a week. Thankfully, in public they maintained a professional relationship but it was clearly forced and strained. Vida and Natalia spoke to each other only when needed and even then, their tones were stiff and cold and they were always glaring at one another. They wouldn't even work together on the same job during their shifts. And if that wasn't enough, they didn't restrain themselves when they were at Rootcore. There, they freely exchanged hurtful, angry words and insults and they didn't hold back when they trained together both in magical and unarmed combat. It was a terrible sight to see.
"We spent three hours acting as mediators to try and fix the problem last night," said Chip, as he rubbed his aching temples. "We didn't help them fix it. Not even close. They're so stubborn that they won't apologize until the other one does it first. All that happened last night was more yelling and name-calling. Heck, they came close to delivering punches and using their magic on each other! They would have too, if Fire Heart had suddenly wanted Natalia's attention! Oi vey."
Though the fight was Natalia and Vida's, it was taking a toll on Mason and Chip as well. They not only hated seeing their girlfriends at each other's throats all the time but they were finding themselves torn between the two women and were trying not to take sides in the quarrel, which only further added to the rift.
"Well, we can't give up. We have to find something to fix this. I mean, if they're like this while all's quiet, heaven knows what they'll be like on the battlefield," said Xander.
Mason paled at this and groaned. "Oh, gods, that would be disastrous! I can see it now. Natalia will give orders that she'll expect to be obeyed but Vida will be stubborn and ignore Natalia's commands and it'll be World War Three. Or it'll be something even worse. Gads, what the heck are we going to do about this? We can't let them keep fighting. We have to find a solution!"
"But how are we going to find a solution to the problem when we don't even know what started the problem in the first place?" Chip pointed out.
Nobody had an answer, which did not bode well. With no end to the rift in sight, was it possible that this was the end of not only Natalia and Vida's professional relationship as employees and Mystic Warriors, but worse, the end of their friendship as well? The others could only pray and hope that it was not so.
XXX
Meanwhile, down in the sacred chambers of the Ten Terrors, Necrolai was chasing after the Book of Prophecy, which had returned at long last. After its last reading had led the Vampire Queen to the Ten Terrors, Necrolai was eager to see what would happen next. What grand, exciting future would be foretold and come to pass once the Book was read?
"'Through his own arrogant confidence, Magma was destroyed by the Rules of Darkness. Oculous, the cunning hunter met his demise at the hands of the Red Dragon Fire Ranger,'" read Necrolai. "It's all true! What will happen next?"
Necrolai waited excited for the next page of the Book to become alight with its precious words, but before she could read them, an unexpected visitor arrived.
"You're reading the Book of Prophecy? Give it to me, you little gnat!" hissed Serpentina.
Necrolai did not need to be told twice as she released her grip on the book. "As you wish, my Lady Serpentina!"
The moment Serpentina took the Book of Prophecy from Necrolai's hands, the Book's magic reacted and changed size from tiny to gigantic for its reader's benefit.
"'When the Selection Ceremony began, Lady Serpentina was next chosen to battle the Mystic Rangers and the Solaris Knight. But although powerful and cunning, Serpentina was not unlike the two Terrors who fought before her and her arrogant confidence and taking of foolish risks led to her demise by the Rules of Darkness at the hands of her enemies.' read Serpentina. Her red eyes immediately lit up with anger and the snakes that made up her hair came to life and hissed. "WHAT?! That cannot be my future! I must take steps to prevent this!"
"My lady, please, you mustn't! You cannot alter what has been written!" warned Necrolai.
While there were times when the Book of Prophecy foretold two futures instead of just one, the writings of the Book could never be changed. What the Book of Prophecy foretold always came to pass. Destiny could not be changed, no matter the will of those it spoke of.
"Just you watch me, you little pest!" snarled Serpentina. She tossed the Book aside and then it shrank down to human size before taking off to who knew where. "If you value your life and the life of your filthy half-breed daughter, you'll not speak of this to anyone nor take action!"
Alarm flared in Necrolai's chest as she thought of Lee-Lee coming to harm or worse, being killed at the Terror's hand. Necrolai would fight to her last breath to protect her daughter, but even Necrolai knew she could not hope to battle a Terror and expect to survive. So, for the sake of her only child, Necrolai frantically nodded.
"Yes, my lady! I will obey," promised Necrolai.
Pleased, Serpentina nodded and then her eyes lit up as an idea came to her. "Hekatoid, come here at once!" she called out.
As commanded, Hekatoid waddled into the room. "What do you want, Serpentina? I'm late for my third lunch!"
"I'll give you twice that if you do me a little favor," said Serpentina, sweetly.
Hekatoid shook his head. "Forget about it. I'm too hungry to do you anything. Why don't you ask Megahorn instead? He's your boyfriend!"
This was the wrong thing to say as the serpents that made Serpentina's hair came to life and enlarged themselves. Deadly venom dripped from their sharp fangs as they hissed and snapped threateningly at the fat blue toad-like Terror.
"I'm not asking Megahorn, you feckless freak! I'm asking you!" hissed Serpentina, furiously. Under normal circumstances, Serpentina would've asked her lover for the favor but it was too risky now that Itassis was watching Megahorn like a hawk after his battle with the Solaris Knight. But more than that, Hekatoid had the power Serpentina needed for her plans. "And if you don't do as I ask, you will have your choice of being destroyed slowly and painfully or being turned to stone so that I may smash you into gravel! What do you choose, you wretched little toad?"
Terrified, Hekatoid held up his hands in a surrender position as he knelt down to the ground. Though Hekatoid was powerful, he knew he was nothing before Serpentina's dark magic and would never withstand a fight against her. "Okay, okay, I'll do it! Whatever you want!"
"Excellent," hissed Serpentina. She grabbed Hekatoid's arm and began pulling him away. "Come. Even here the walls have ears!"
And with that, they disappeared into Serpentina's own private bedchambers where the dark protective spells cast on the room ensured that none could enter or listen without Serpentina's consent or unless she was destroyed.
Unbeknownst to them, Itassis was keeping a watchful eye on not only Megahorn but Serpentina as well. The Egyptian-like Terror was no fool and she knew something was up, something that would either upset the balance or worse, put all the Terrors as well as the Master at risk.
"Necrolai, come here," she ordered.
Immediately, Necrolai flew up to Itassis's face. "Yes, my lady. What can I do for you?"
"For starters, you can disregard Serpentina's threat. I saw and heard everything," said Itassis. "Like me, you are a loyal servant of the darkness and Lee-Lee bears your blood. For that, I give you my word that you and your daughter will be kept safe from the others."
Necrolai could not stop the sigh of relief that emitted from her throat at this. She bowed her head in respect. "I thank you, Lady Itassis. You have my friendship as well as my loyalty and gratitude for this. But what can I do for you in return?"
Itasiss's blue gleamed behind her spectacles. Though she was a Terror, Itassis had been one of the two who did not sell her soul for her powers and status and for that, Itassis had retained some of her humanity. And because of that, the idea of having a friend, even one like Necrolai, made Itassis somewhat pleased.
"Keep an eye on Serpentina and Hekatoid and report your findings to me," said Itassis. If she was right, Serpentina and Hekatoid were going to get them all killed and that was something that Itassis could not allow. "Make sure you are not found out. I will deal with them, I promise you."
Necrolai happily nodded before taking off.
XXX
The next day, through little desire of their own, Natalia and Vida ended up walking together to their next training session with Daggeron and the others. On the way there, they started arguing yet again about their fight and whose fault it was.
"I know fire's your thing, but why are you being so hotheaded and stubborn? Just admit you were wrong, Princess!" demanded Vida. "And then we can be done with this and stop torturing everyone else with our arguing!"
Natalia's eyes flashed as she growled at Vida. "Me?! In case you've forgotten, Pinky, you're the one who jumped down my throat and won't admit that you're the one in the wrong! This stupid fight would be over if you'd stop being such an airhead!"
The wind suddenly picked up in speed. "Man, I can't believe I didn't realize you're a royal before! You are such a spoiled, royal pain! Why don't you—whoa!"
Vida was cut off when the ground suddenly shook as if from an earthquake and then Hekatoid appeared from out of nowhere.
Natalia groaned. Just what she needed. Another perfect way to begin her day! "Oh, great. Hekatoid of the Terrors, I presume?"
Hekatoid's blue eyes gleamed with excitement. "My reputation precedes me!"
Vida gagged as her nose wrinkled in disgust. "Not really. More like your stench. Don't you ever bathe or brush your teeth?" Hekatoid's body odor as well as his breath smelled horrific beyond words and it was making both women sick to their stomachs. "Let me guess, you're here to destroy us and the city if we don't roll over for you and the rest of your kind?"
Hekatoid did not take kindly to Vida's insults and his dark blue eyes flared dangerously. "You dare insult me, you weaklings? Take this!"
Natalia and Vida barely leapt out of the way in time as Hekatoid's cheeks enlarged like a balloon and disgusting slime emerged from his mouth. When the slime hit the pavement, the stone melted as if from acid.
Quickly, they took action. "Legendary Source, Mystic Force!"
And with that, Natalia and Vida morphed into their Legend Warrior forms and then they leapt into battle. Natalia and Vida delivered one blow after another to Hekatoid with their Mystic Lion Staffs before performing a powerful fire spell that was given further strength from Vida's winds. The resulting spell nearly burnt Hekatoid alive before the fat blue toad-like Terror managed to perform an amazing leapt into a nearby fountain, extinguishing the flames.
Despite his injuries, Hekatoid was not out of the game quite yet. "See if you can catch me, Rangers!" he cackled, as he leapt into the air and began bouncing up a flight of stairs.
"Let's get that slimy freak!" said Vida.
For the first time since their fight began, Natalia agreed and didn't hesitate to join Vida as they chased after Hekatoid. The race came to an end, however, when Hekatoid suddenly stopped in his tracks, swallowed a small shard of a black crystal and then spewed out another burst of disgusting slime.
"Look out!"
Without thinking twice, Natalia leapt into the air and narrowly dodged the slime. Vida, however, was not so lucky as she attempted to dodge the slime, only to end up being hit by it. Oddly enough, the slime was not acidic in nature and seemed to only cause a swirl of dark light to encircle Vida's body for a few moments before vanishing.
"Vida, are you okay?" asked Natalia, urgently.
Confused by this turn of events, Vida nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."
Glad as she was to be unhurt, Vida was quite puzzled. Why hadn't the slime hurt her in the slightest? Was it a slow poison that had yet to take affect? Something to damage her mind at a later date? Was she immune to its affects? Or was it something else entirely?
Despite not having hit both Rangers, Hekatoid was leaping with joy. "I got one of you! Oh, boy! Oh, boy! My slime will help Serpentina!"
"Serpentina?" echoed Natalia, incredulously. If Hekatoid was helping another Terror, that meant he hadn't been chosen, which also mean he was breaking the Rules of Darkness. And that would mean unforeseen consequences for the Terrors and for all Natalia knew, consequences for the Rangers and those on the surface world as well. And worse, it meant that something was seriously wrong with Vida, which was not at all good for the team. "What have you done to Vida, you slime bucket?"
"Oh, you'll find out, Princess! Because now, it's your turn and this time, you won't be able to stop it from happening!"
Hekatoid prepared to attack again but he was blasted back by a well-time Laser Lamp attack from Daggeron just as he and the other Mystic Warriors arrived.
"Natalia, Vida, are you two all right?" asked Daggeron, concerned.
Both Vida and Natalia nodded before turning their attention to Hekatoid, who was standing up yet again and now he had his weapon with him.
"You shouldn't have called your friends! Now, I have to stomp on all of you!" whined Hekatoid. And with that, Hekatoid summoned a dark spell seal that caused him to grow gigantic in size.
As always, the Rangers were prepared for this turn of events. While Daggeron summoned the Solar Streak Megazord, Natalia transformed into the Mystic Firebird while the other four Mystic Rangers joined together to form the Mystic Lion. Then together, all five joined as one to form the Manticore Megazord.
They were just about to do battle when suddenly, Hekatoid's weapon lit up, signaling the start of the Selection Ceremony.
"Oh, no! It's time for the Selection Ceremony!" Although Hekatoid would've loved the chance to destroy the Rangers, he knew all too well that his absence from the Selection Ceremony as well as the discovery of his actions could lead to lethal consequences for him as well as the other Terrors. He could not risk it. "Lucky for you, I have to go! So long, Rangers!"
Before anyone could stop him, Hekatoid disappeared through a dark spell seal.
XXX
Back in the sacred chambers of the Terrors, the Selection Ceremony was about to start and Hekatoid barely arrived in time to place his weapons in the circle with the others.
"Sorry, I'm late!" said Hekatoid, as he gasped for breath.
Sculpin's eyes narrowed. "You're quite out of breath, Hekatoid." While it wasn't unusual, given Hekatoid's unhealthy obesity, he shouldn't have been this exhausted unless there was a very bad reason for it. "And you almost missed the Selection Ceremony! Where have you been?"
Hekatoid struggled to maintain eye contact as he met Sculpin's piercing gaze. "Uh…nowhere. Just in a pond, eating and swimming with my fellow toads. But who cares about that? It's time for one of us to be chosen!"
It was to Hekatoid's good fortune that Sculpin bought his pathetic excuse and said nothing more on the subject as the Stone lit up. Moments later, Serpentina was chosen as the next Terror to attack the surface world and claim the Mystic Crystal for the Master.
"Oh! Is it my turn?" said Serpetina, excitedly.
As it was his lover who was chosen, Megahorn did not throw a tantrum for once. "Congratulations, my love! Now, you have a chance to destroy those Rangers!"
"That I do. But I promise, my love, that I will save one as a pet for you to destroy so that you can have some fun of your own," said Serpentina.
Needless to say, Megahorn was thrilled to hear this and went off to his own chambers to make battle plans.
Sculpin paid no attention to them. Rather, his attention was focused on the Stone. Aside from when it chose one of them to attack, the Stone had been quiet and there had been no signs whatsoever of their leader's whereabouts.
"It's strange that there've been no signs of the Master's life-force. He was not completely destroyed, we should know, but we should have found out something by now," muttered Sculpin. "Is there something wrong with us or is someone interfering?"
Now that he thought about it, it was quite suspicious that neither the Master nor even Leanbow's residual magical energy had been located, much less their bodies. It was just a hunch but one that warranted an immediate investigation.
"I must consult the Lake of Lament and solve this puzzle!" declared Sculpin.
Without waiting for a reply or volunteers to accompany him, Sculpin disappeared for the Lake of Lament, there he would finally learn what was preventing the Master from rising up or perhaps if he was truly destroyed.
Meanwhile, Serpentina had taken Hekatoid to her chambers and he was filling Serpentina in on what had occurred on the surface world and needless to say, she was not happy.
"Are you serious? You didn't fulfill my request?! Hekatoid, you idiot, you said you'd take care of them!" hissed Serpentina.
Hekatoid held up his hands. "I couldn't! The Stone called me back! I had no choice but to obey! You know the consequences if I hadn't!"
Knowing the consequences, Serpentina was forced to hiss in acceptance. She could not entirely blame Hekatoid for events unfolding as they had. Even a stubborn snake like Serpentina had to admit that some of the Rules of Darkness had to be obeyed whether one liked it or not.
"But I hit the Pink Mystic Ranger with a special Black Heart Crystal enhanced slime that'll prevent her from morphing!" said Hekatoid, quickly. "That's good, isn't it?"
"Not good enough! What about the Red Mystic Ranger? The Princess? Did you hit her?" demanded Serpentina, as her snakes came alive again. "Can you even repeat the process?"
Hekatoid whimpered in fear as he shook his head. "She got out of the way just in time. She's unaffected and the shard's gone, out of my system forever! I can't replicate it, Serpentina! I'm sorry! Please, don't hurt me!"
Serpetina glared darkly at Hekatoid. "Though I won't, I should destroy you, for your failure! You're so useless! Since the Book of Prophecy told me I'd be chosen, I'd hoped to get rid of those brats first and secure an easy victory for the Master!"
Serpentina was quite powerful and had no doubt in her abilities, but she was no fool. As long as the Red Mystic Ranger could wield the Mystic Crystal's power, there was every chance that Serpentina would be destroyed instead of victorious. She'd hoped that Hekatoid's magic-blocking slime would at least given her a greater advantage on the battlefield.
Hekatoid's eyes widened at Serpentina's words. "The Book of Prophecy? So, you knew you'd be chosen! You used me and you cheated! There can be no lies or tricks with Prophecy! You know that! If Itassis or Sculpin find out what you've done—!"
Serpentina's snakes came alive again and nearly bit Hekatoid's fat cheeks for his words. "Silence, you feckless fool!" she hissed. "I've done nothing to violate the Rules of Darkness! You on the other hand, are the one who attacked the surface world without being chosen first! You are the one at risk here, not I!" It was true. Technically, Serpentina had done nothing wrong by reading the Book of Prophecy, but she was prepared to take a few risks to cheat fate. Even if that meant using one of her fellow Terrors as cannon fodder or a scapegoat for her actions. "So, if you value your slimy, fat head, I suggest you keep your filthy mouth shut!"
Hekatoid did not need to be told twice as he quickly blurted out his compliance with Serpentina's wishes and then he hopped away to his chambers.
Unbeknownst to them both, Necrolai had watched and listened to the two Terrors' conversation quite carefully and was now reporting back to Itassis with her findings.
XXX
Meanwhile, the Rangers had forsaken the day's training to regroup and recover at Rootcore. Hekatoid's actions and words made little sense and they needed to figure it all out before it was too late and the city was attacked yet again.
"We need to figure out what that slimy Terror's plan is," said Xander.
Due to his frog phobia, Mason couldn't help but shudder and run his arms over his torso, as though he had the creepy crawly feeling.
"Why did one of the Terrors have to be a frog or a toad or whatever?" Mason complained. How was he supposed to go up against Hekatoid without risking a massive panic attack?
Natalia gently squeezed Mason's shoulder and then kissed his cheek, making the Blue Ranger relax considerably.
"Aurora, you and Vida fought him first. Was there anything unusual about Hekatoid? Anything at all? It could help us figure out his agenda before he attacks again," said Daggeron.
"I don't think he will. I mean, you all heard him. He wasn't chosen by the Selection Ceremony to attack and he said his slime was going to help Serpentina," said Natalia, as she leaned against the table.
Chip's brow wrinkled. "Slime? What slime?"
Vida grimaced. "He hit me with some disgusting slime juice."
"Just you? Not Natalia?"
Natalia shook her head. "The Mystic Crystal helped me get out of the way in time. The slime didn't touch me. Everything's fine. I'm not hurt, I can still morph, and I can—oh, crap." Natalia's face fell as she turned to Vida. "Vida, try and morph. Right now."
Vida glared darkly at the Red Ranger. "We're not on the battlefield, Princess. You can't order me around right now," she spat.
Natalia's eyes darkened with phoenix fire and the Mystic Crystal glowed as she took a threatening step towards the Pink Ranger. "Vida, don't argue with me. Just do it!"
Despite her anger towards Natalia, Vida decided against arguing further as she had no desire to go up against the Mystic Crystal's powers. So, with great reluctance, Vida took out her morpher and shouted out, "Magical Source, Mystic Force!"
But although Vida's morpher glowed with mystical energy, signaling that she still held her magic, nothing happened. Vida didn't morph into the Pink Mystic Ranger. Everyone looked crestfallen and worried.
"What the—? What's wrong with my magic?" demanded Vida.
"I was afraid of this. Hekatoid's slime blocking your powers. You can't morph," said Natalia, grimly.
Vida glared darkly at her teammate. "Why didn't the Crystal protect me too? Or should I even bother asking?"
At the implication in Vida's words, Natalia looked incredulously at Vida "And just what the heck's that supposed to mean?"
"What do you think it means? You're the team leader and the Mystic Crystal is yours to command, but you're the only one of us unaffected by that disgusting slime!" spat Vida, angrily. "I didn't realize you could be so unbelievably petty that you'd let that happen!"
At this point, everyone backed off as fire burned in Natalia's clenched fists while she glared furiously at Vida. "Let it happen? You miserable little—! How dare you?! Whatever our problems are, I would never deliberately endanger any of the team! If I'd known what the slime was going to do, I would've shielded both of us!"
"Then prove it!" snarled Vida, as she got up in Natalia's face. "Use your precious crystal to get this crap out of my system so I can morph! Or are you just going to stand there uselessly and—"
"ENOUGH!" roared Daggeron, cutting Vida off as he came in between them. He'd stood on the sidelines, hoping the Red and Pink Rangers would make amends on their own but it was clear that wasn't going to happen and now he had to make a stand if no one else would. "This has gone on long enough! Both of you, stop it now! Whatever your problems are, they need to stop now! Like it or not, you two are going to have to work together and put aside your differences for the sake of your duties! All right?"
Natalia's eyes narrowed warningly at Daggeron, making him take a cautious step back. But then her face softened somewhat. "Fine. For the sake of winning the war and everyone depending on us. I'll do what I must."
Though she had little desire to even consider working alongside Vida, Natalia was willing to put aside her feelings, at least temporarily, until Serpentina was dealt with. And given Natalia's position both as the Red Mystic Ranger and the Princess, it was what was expected of her and she would fulfill her duties.
"And so will I," said Vida, fiercely. "But how do you expect me to fight when I can only access basic spells and not morph?"
"We don't," said Natalia, unable to keep the exasperation out of her voice. Did Vida really think so little of Natalia that she would believe Natalia would leave Vida essentially unarmed while there was a war going on? "I'll use the Mystic Crystal and see if I can get that slime out of your system. Close your eyes and stand still."
For the first time since their argument, Vida did as she was told without the smallest protest. She closed her eyes and held still as Natalia invoked the Mystic Crystal's power. The Mystic Crystal glowed and bright, warm light encircled Vida's body but the light did not touch Vida's person. Instead, Vida's body glowed with dark energy and then the light of the Mystic Crystal vanished as quickly as it had appeared.
Natalia swore under her breath and looked worried.
"What just happened?" asked Chip, puzzled.
Mason looked grim as he cast a worried glance in Natalia's direction. "Please, tell me that wasn't what I think it was. Did Hekatoid—?"
Natalia just nodded in response, making Mason look more worried.
"What? What're you two talking about?" demanded Vida.
Mason sighed as he rubbed the space between his eyes. "Hekatoid swallowed a small shard of black crystal before you were slimed, didn't he?" When Vida nodded in confusion, Mason continued, "According to one of Leanbow's journals, the Master attempted to create a way to block the Mystic Crystal's power from affecting him as well as block his enemies' powers by creating its opposite, the Black Heart Crystal. Luckily, it was destroyed. But unluckily, a single shard was never found. Hekatoid must've found it and saved it for a rainy day."
"So, how do we get it out of Vida's system?" asked Chip, worriedly.
"We can't. The Master infused the darned thing with a drop of blood from each of the Ten Terrors. They're the only ones who can remove it until it passes through Vida's system and there's no telling how long that'll take," said Natalia, gravely.
This was seriously bad. With one of their own unable to morph, they couldn't form their Megazord and their odds of succeeding in battle against Serpentina just dropped. Worse, Vida was vulnerable now and at risk. What the heck were they supposed to do?
But there was no time to dwell on this as the crystal ball then lit up with images of Serpentina appearing in the city. So, having no other choice, everyone who could Ranger up, did, and then they raced down to the city plaza.
When they arrived, Serpentina was sending out countless snakes from her shield.
"My name is Serpentina and I've come to destroy your world! My babies are full of venom and ready to strike!" hissed Serpentina, gleefully. She
"You're not going to hurt anyone!" snarled Daggeron, from his position in the Solar Streak Megazord.
"We'll see about that!"
And with that, the two of them began battling it out together. But despite Daggeron's strength and power, Serpentina quickly proved to be more than a match for him. Whatever blow he dealt, she either blocked or met, effectively canceling it out before she dealt a stronger blow of her own, damaging the Solar Streak Megazord as well as its occupants. Natalia, Mason, Chip and Xander joined in as well but despite this, Serpentina put up a heck of fight and managed to knock all five of her opponents down. It was only when she fell that Natalia saw Vida running towards the battlefield, looking angry and ready to pick a fight.
Vida? What the heck is she thinking? Natalia wasn't surprised by Vida's actions but at the same time, she couldn't believe Vida's audacity. In the Pink Ranger's current state, she was a liability to the team, one they couldn't have at the moment.
Despite the ongoing battle, Natalia changed from her Titan form into her Legend Warrior form and joined Vida on the ground. "Vee, what the heck do you think you're doing? You can't morph! Get out of here!" she ordered.
"No! I'm not just going to sit at home and wait for everyone to be destroyed! I may not be able to morph but I can still fight!" insisted Vida. "I still have my magic and I've been trained just like you! I can still do something!"
Natalia could see that Vida couldn't be dissuaded, so she wasn't going to waste her time or breath by arguing. Instead, she decided to stand by Vida and at least protect her from Serpentina.
"What do you have in mind?"
For the first time in over a week, Vida smiled. "Serpentina thought she could beat us by having Hekatoid slime us, right? And she's a snake, which means she hates the cold. What if we turn all of that on her? Make her lose her footing?"
"It's worth a shot," admitted Natalia. "We'll do it together."
"Then maybe you'll think about apologizing to me?"
"Don't push your luck," warned Natalia, in annoyance. Did Vida really have to bring that up at that exact moment? "Let's just shelve that for now. The team's in trouble!"
Vida nodded in agreement and then the two of them joined their morphers together. "Ventum Multos Bituminis!"
As streams of red and pink magic shot into the sky, the wind suddenly picked up in speed and dropped in temperature, making Sepertina shake and shiver with pain and then she suddenly lost her footing and fell as the ground beneath her changed into a slick, disgusting slime. The fall not only briefly knocked Serpentina out cold, it also caused her to shrink down to human size.
In spite of it all, Natalia found herself genuinely laughing and smiling for the first time since the rift between her and Vida started.
"Good job, Vee," she said.
Surprisingly enough, Vida smiled back. "Hey, we did it together. We make a good team when we're not trying to kill each other."
Natalia laughed loud and hard at this. "Yeah, yeah, we really do." She meant every word and already, she could feel the anger and frustration of late beginning to leave her body. Judging from the look on Vida's face, the Pink Ranger was starting to feel the same. Natalia felt a twinge of hope. Had the ice been broken between them? Were they finally going to start fixing their rift after so long?
There was no time to dwell on this as Serpentina then awoke, more furious than ever. "You won't get away with humiliating me like this!"
In the blink of an eye, Serpentina turned into a giant black snake and quickly slithered on the stone pavement towards Vida, only to be forced back when Daggeron hit her with a well-timed Laser Lamp attack. He then sent forth a Jenji Shining Attack, expecting Serpentina to be badly injured but a shock came everyone's way when Serpentina brought forth her shield and one of the snakes on said shield bit Jenji hard on the arm.
"OWWW!" cried Jenji, as he clutched his arm.
"Jenji, no!" cried Daggeron. "What did you do to him, you vile beast?"
Serpentina's eyes gleamed with a smug air of confidence. "Oh, you'll see."
The eyes on her shield then lit up and when they did, Jenji retreated to his lamp to try and recover from the attack, but it was fruitless. Much to everyone's horror, when Jenji popped his head out of the lamp, the feline genie turned into solid stone.
Serpentina cackled gleefully. "Oh, it's just the beginning, Rangers! Once my precious babies bite everyone in the world, I'll activate my shield and then the entire world will turn to stone! But if you want to try and stop me, come join me in my Serpent Dimension for a stunningly good time!"
Without waiting for a reply, Serpentina vanished through a dark spell seal.
"Oh, poor Jenji," moaned Mason. Having been a stone statue once himself, Mason felt quite sympathetic to Jenji's situation and he knew better than anyone how it felt. "We'll fix this, buddy, I promise."
"Then we have to destroy Serpentina. It's what happened with you," reminded Xander.
Natalia in agreement. "Daggeron, take the boys to the Serpent Dimension and see if you can stop her there. I'll stay with Vida to protect the city and see if we can find a way to stop these stupid snakes before it's too late."
Splitting up was the last thing that Natalia wanted to do, but in this case they had no choice. They had to find some way to get rid of Serpentina's snakes before they bit everyone. Not to mention, Natalia wasn't prepared to leave Vida alone and vulnerable against another potential attack on the city. The risks were far too great. So, having no other choice, the team divided and conquered, all the while, praying they weren't too late to stop Serpentina.
XXX
Meanwhile, Sculpin had decided to do some investigating into the Master's life-force absence and so, he'd descended to the Lake of Lament, a dark and tragic place where servants of evil sought consultation and aid in their work.
"O Lake of Lament, by the powers of darkness, I command that you show me that Master!" said Sculpin, as he thrust out his hand and plunged his weapon into the pitch-black water.
Sculpin's wish was heard and granted but not in the way that he expected. The black waters bubbled and then exploded in a geyser-like shower. When the water fell, the astral form of Koragg the Knight Wolf appeared before Sculpin.
"You?!" exclaimed Sculpin. "The knight who betrayed the Master?"
"Though I wear Koragg's armor, I am no longer he who fought the Master and nor did I betray him, for I was never his servant! I am Leanbow, the Fire Wizard King and Wolf Warrior, father of the Light!" snarled Leanbow, as he tightly clenched his sword. "I fight to protect the innocent and their protectors and all who follow the ways of good magic!"
Miraculously, Leanbow had not been killed when he last confronted the Master. But though he lived, he could not rejoin his loved one in the surface world. To protect his family and his people, the Fire Wizard King had to take extreme measures to ensure their safety.
Sculpin's eyes narrowed in anger. "So, I was right. Someone is preventing the Master from rising and that someone is you!"
"The Master will NEVER rise again! Not as long as I live!" swore Leanbow. "Now, go if you value your life, you wretched abomination!"
Without waiting for a reply, Leanbow vanished without a trace.
Sculpin then roared in pure rage.
XXX
While the others attempted to battle Serpentina in her Serpent Dimension, Vida and Natalia had taken down every last snake they could find before they returned to Rootcore to rest for a little while before Serpentina attacked again.
"I can't believe we're staying here while the boys are off in that heaven-forsaken dimension," whined Vida, as she sank into a chair. "We should be with them!"
"I agree, but we can't be with them. Someone had to stay to protect the city. And I don't care what our problems are, I wasn't about to leave you to fend for yourself," said Natalia, not looking up from her own practice dummy.
Vida scowled, but she was too worried and numb to be angry anymore. But still, unable to morph, Vida might have been, but she didn't need a babysitter. Even a powerful, royal one like Natalia. "Well, that's nice of you but—wait a second, what's that?"
Natalia turned around to see what Vida was pointing at and she ducked her head. There, in the corner, was a brand new DJ table with a pink ribbon tied to it along with Vida's name inscribed on a tag in Natalia's handwriting.
Realizing the jig was up, Natalia sighed and shoved her hands into her pocket. "It's…it's an apology gift for you from me," admitted Natalia.
Vida stared in shock. "What?"
Feeling a little nervous, Natalia quickly blurted out, "I know you love playing on Toby's equipment, but I thought maybe you'd like your own. And, well, I was and am sick of the fighting between us and words don't always come as easily to me as everyone else, so I was hoping this might help start to fix things."
Vida's jaw dropped and she looked visibly touched. "Are you serious? That's really nice. Thanks. Wait a second, when did you get it?"
Natalia sighed in relief and smiled a little as she sat down. "You're welcome. I, uh, got a couple days ago and I meant to give it to you the other night along with an apology letter but you know…" Natalia's voice wandered off as she thought of the other night when Mason and Chip tried to play peacemaker, only for the fight to escalate even further. Gads, how had they let things get so bad between them? Natalia and Vida were usually close friends, almost like sisters. Yet, you would've guessed that they were bitter enemies, with the way they'd been acting lately.
Vida winced as she sat down beside Natalia. "Yeah, I do know. And I'm sorry, Natalia. I overreacted bigtime and I said some really nasty, hurtful things that you didn't deserve." Throwing Natalia's title of princess back in her face along with all the other rude, nasty insults had been completely uncalled for, no matter how angry Vida had been. "I'm so sorry."
Natalia shook her head. "No, no, no, I was at fault too. I was a real jerk and too stubborn to admit my part in the fight. I'm the one who should be sorry and I am." Regardless of who was to blame for the start of the fight, Natalia was more than willing to admit that she was not without blame. Vida was right, Natalia was a bit of a stubborn hothead.
Vida squeezed Natalia's hand. "Let's make a deal. The next time we have a problem with each other, we won't let it go on for this long or go this far ever again. We'll take a little time to cool off and then actually talk to each other to fix it. Deal?"
Natalia smiled. "Deal."
And with that, the Red and Pink Rangers hugged one another, their anger gone and their fight completely forgotten.
As they broke apart from their embrace, Vida glanced at her new equipment and then her face brightened with an idea.
"Hey, you know, sometimes, I wouldn't mind taking a break from using to equipment to dance to some tight tunes. Are you any good at the needles?" asked Vida.
Natalia actually blushed as she shook her head. "Me? No. Absolutely not. I've never even tried and besides, I don't think I'd be any good." Ask Natalia to perform combat moves or fix a motorcycle and she could do so without breaking a sweat. But getting up on the stand and performing music with all eyes on her? That was another story entirely.
"Oh, come on. I've listened to some of your playlists. I bet if I took you under my wing, you'd be really good at it," said Vida, encouragingly. She put on her best puppy-dog eyes and pouted. "Please?"
After a moment's consideration and a moment of watching Vida's face, Natalia threw up her hands and caved. "Okay, okay. I'll do it if you tell me what's in that box of yours. What'd you order for yourself, anyway?"
This time, Vida looked sheepish as she held it out. "Oh, uh, it's not for me. It's for you. Open it."
Natalia raised an eyebrow but said nothing as she took out her pocketknife and then sliced open the tape holding the box together. When she saw the contents of the box, she couldn't believe her eyes.
"No way. I've been looking for these for two weeks," said Natalia, stunned. As a means to take her mind off missing her parents and the situation they were in, Natalia had taken up a pet project in her spare time: building two new motorcycles. The project was proving to be quite the difficult task as not only was Natalia extremely careful and fussy about the procedures but some of the parts she sought after to improve the bikes' performances were difficult to come by as well as expensive. Now two of the parts were sitting in Natalia's lap thanks to Vida. "How the heck did you find these?"
Vida smiled. "Let's just say you're not the only one with some connections. I got it to say sorry, too. And if it's not too soon to ask, maybe you could teach me to ride when you're finished fixing those bikes? I mean, I know I have my Mystic Racer but I'll bet it can't compare to that motorcycle, especially after you've finished with it."
This time, Natalia smiled as she nodded. "Sure. I'd love to."
After over a week of a brutal, gut-wrenching fight, the Red and Pink Rangers had finally made amends to both their friendship and their professional relationship. And the timing could not have been better, for they were needed now more than ever.
XXX
Later that day, Vida and Natalia journeyed down to the battle site. Having had no communication from the others, they were worried and hoped they might be able to pick up a trail or at least cast a spell to tell them what had happened. Vida still could not morph but she was determined not to let it stop her and just Natalia couldn't leave her alone, nor could Vida leave her leader alone.
"Man, I feel so stupid about our fight," said Vida.
"Not half as stupid as I feel, I'll bet," said Natalia. "But you know what? It doesn't matter. We've made up and it's officially over."
They hugged one another again, only to break apart when Serpentina then appeared, only this time, she was different. Her stomach was now enlarged and bulging, worse something or someone appeared to be moving beneath the serpent's flesh.
"I declare you two officially over!" hissed Serpentina. "And now I'm going to swallow you both whole just as I did your little teammates!"
While in the Serpent Dimension, the others had been swallowed whole one-by-one by Serpentina. Though they were alive, they wouldn't be for much longer due to the venom spread through Serpentina's body.
Vida and Natalia looked horrified as well as disgusted at this.
"Let them go, you sick freak!" snarled Vida.
Serpentina just cackled before gesturing for Vida to attempt to attack her. "Oh, don't worry. You'll see them soon enough! Inside my stomach, that is!"
Natalia then morphed into her Legend Warrior form and Vida took a defensive stance, but before any attack could be made, a voice rang out, "Stop, Serpentina!"
Everyone turned and looked in the direction of the voice and much to their shock, it was Itassis. The Egyptian-like Terror thrust out her weapon, which glowed as dark magical energy left Vida's body and then vanished.
"Vee, you okay?" asked Natalia, concerned.
Vida nodded and then her face brightened. "Yeah, as a matter of fact, I feel better than ever. I think I can morph again!"
"What?!" hissed Serpentina, outraged. She glared furiously at Itassis. "Itassis, how dare you ruin my moment of triumph and betray us all?"
Itassis's eyes flashed dangerously. "I have betrayed no one, Serpentina. You have been underhanded and deceitful. Do you think me so blind that I don't know of your actions with Hekatoid? You betrayed us. And while I have no doubt that these two Rangers will fall, I will do everything in my power to ensure that any victory we have is a result of abiding by the Rules of Darkness, no matter the cost. The laws must be obeyed, as you well know, Serpentina."
Before Serpentina could protest or the Rangers could take any action, Itassis vanished back to the sacred chambers of the Terrors, leaving the three alone.
With her powers now fully restored, Vida then wasted no time in morphing. "Legendary Source, Mystic Force!" And with that, Vida morphed into the Pink Legend Warrior and she was more than ready to battle against Serpentina.
"Let's join together, Vee!" said Natalia.
"With pleasure, Lia!" said Vida.
Together, they joined their Mystic Lion Staffs together and shouted out, "Ferit Igne Spiritus!" A powerful firestorm descended from their combined staffs and when it hit Serpentina, it not only completely destroyed the serpent-like Terror and every last snake, it also freed the others from their imprisonment and restored them to full health. The battle was over and another Terror was destroyed.
All was well.
XXX
The following Monday was sunny and bright, and it clearly reflected in the moods of the Rangers as they went about their business at the Rock Porium.
Thanks to some lessons from Vida, Natalia was currently playing some awesome mix records she'd made while Vida and Chip happily danced to the beat. It turned out that Natalia had a hidden talent for DJ work and under Vida's tutelage, her talent was flourishing. And if that wasn't enough, Vida was not only excelling in the motorcycle riding lessons from Natalia but Natalia had decided to make one of the bikes Vida's and had even begun decorating it with silver paint and dark pink butterflies. It was Vida's as soon as the Pink Ranger got her motorcycle driver's license.
"Man, those were some sick tunes, Lia," said Vida, smiling as Natalia descended from the stand. "A little more work and you'll be as good as moi."
Natalia smiled. "Thanks, Vida."
"I'm just glad you two finally made up and fixed your problem," said Chip, in relief. He was quite glad as he no longer wanted to play mediator between his leader and girlfriend.
"On that note, what were you guys even fighting about in the first place, anyway?" asked Mason, curiously. "What started the fight?"
Natalia and Vida each opened their mouths only to fall silent and then they exchanged questioning glances for a few moments before looking quite sheepish.
"You know, I don't actually remember," admitted Natalia. Talk about embarrassing. They'd been fighting for over a week and yet, Natalia couldn't even remember what had triggered such a long and frustrating fight to begin with.
"Neither do I," admitted Vida. She threw up her hands as she grinned. "But who cares? The fight's over and we're back to being friends again. So, whatever! Let's have some fun!"
Upon hearing this confession, the three male Rangers just groaned and shook their heads as Natalia and Vida started laughing.
"Women," muttered Xander. "Such stubborn hard heads."
"WE HEARD THAT, XANDER!" yelled Natalia and Vida, in unison, as they glared darkly at the Green Ranger.
Naturally, Xander took the opportunity to run for his life as Natalia and Vida chased after him while Mason and Chip doubled over in laughter.
Some things never changed.