The Adventures of Dark Falcon

by SilvorMoon

What is perhaps the only series in the known universe starring Skull.

6. Detour

ibDisclaimer:/b Skull, Lord Zedd, Kimberly, Tommy, Terra Venture, and various
other things are the property of Saban. Most other stuff belongs to me./i

pcenterDetour/center
pcenterBy: SilvorMoon/center

P Kimberly stared at the letter in her hand. It was written on her stationary, in her handwriting. It
was signed with her name, with her usual signature flourish. She could tell that much, even just
from looking at this Xeroxed copy of it. The horrifying thing was that ishe hadn't written
it!/i Someone else had done it, and then had the audacity to give her this copy with a pink
sticky note attached to it informing her that the original had already been delivered to its
destination - specifically, to Tommy, back in Angel Grove. All she could do was stare in disbelief.
How in the world could such a thing have occurred? Little did she realize that the cause had
started over ten thousand years in the past...
pcenter~*~/center
P For the past few weeks, something had been bothering Skull. It hung over his head like a
storm cloud, growing and darkening and muttering with thunder that grew more ominous day by
day. It was not that he was unhappy on Tien - on the contrary, he was probably happier than he
had ever been. Hemlock and Poplar had come to be like second parents to him, and Cedar was as
good a friend as anyone could ask for. He had even befriended a few other Aerials, like the young
man he had rescued from an Eccubus and some of the young soldiers that would drop by
Hemlock's study delivering messages. His days were filled with interesting new sights as he
explored the alien city and learned all he could about its people and culture. His days were busy,
and he felt good about his work. Yes, he was entirely content with his lifestyle on Tien.
Paradoxically, that was the problem. He was having the best time of his life, but soon, he knew,
he was going to have to give it up.
P Skull shuffled into his room and flopped down on his bed with a sigh. He had just returned
from a flying trip, practicing new flying techniques with his dedicated teacher, Cedar. He was
noticing improvements - at first, those excursions had left half the muscles in his body almost too
stiff to move. Though the exercise still left him tired, he found that it was no longer painful.
P Unfortunately, there was no longer any use for it, not with Lord Zedd out of the picture. There
hadn't been an attack on Tien in over a month. How could there be, when the mastermind behind
the battles was gone? True, there had been rumors that the fighting continued elsewhere, but
those strikes were being led by Zedd's minions and not by the warlord himself. Without his
guidance, the war was swiftly drawing to a close... which meant Skull's career as the Dark Falcon
was over.
P After a moment, Skull heard a tapping on his door.
P "Eugene? You awake?"
P "I'm awake. Come on in, Cedar."
p The door swung slowly opened, and the young Aerial stepped daintily in, carrying a tray with
an earthenware cup on it. She was dressed a bit finer than usual today, in a pale yellow dress with
deeper gold trim, held at her waist with a white belt with a silver buckle set with a large piece of
amber, the gem of choice on Tien. Her red-gold hair fell unrestrained past her waist. As always,
she was accompanied by a faint perfume; after spending over ten thousand years as a cedar tree,
the scent seemed to have attached itself to her permanently.
P "Thought Eugene might be thirsty. Worked hard today," she chirped, offering him the cup.
P "Thanks. That's nice of you," Skull replied, accepting the drink. It proved to be filled with
purple juice, the product of some of his earlier labors. He couldn't cook anything that wasn't
microwavable (and half the time he still got that wrong), but he was capable of helping squeeze
berry juice without making too much of a mess. He sipped the sweet drink quietly while Cedar
watched him with careful scrutiny in her sharp amber-colored eyes.
P "Something wrong, Eugene? You look worried," she said.
P "Yeah, kinda," answered Skull with a sigh. "I'm starting to think that... well, it might be time
for me to leave."
P "Leave?" Cedar replied. "You mean, to Terra Venture? But don't you like it here?"
P "Oh, it's not like that," Skull hastened to assure her. "I love all you guys, I really do. This place
is the greatest. I'd stay here forever if I could."
P "But you could," said Cedar. "Mother and Father like you. They don't mind you staying here...
and I would miss you very much if you left. You are very good friend, Eugene."
P "Thanks," said Skull, blushing and smiling a little in spite of himself. "But this isn't really my
home. I never really belonged here. My home is with my people, in my time. I've got friends
waiting for me back there. Besides, my job is done. You really don't need me to stay here
anymore. I just stayed because I couldn't let Zedd have Tien, but now that it's all over, I can't stay
any longer. You understand, don't you?"
p Cedar was quiet a moment. Then she nodded.
P "I understand. Your heart belongs with your people, just as mine belongs to mine," she said. "I
will not force you to stay. But... I can come visit a while, can't I?"
P "Sure!" Skull agreed enthusiastically. "That'd be great!"
P "Get your things ready, then," said Cedar. "I will tell Father where we are going, so they will
not worry." With that, she turned and hurried away, perhaps a little more quickly than was polite.
She couldn't help it, though. Despite what she knew in her heart, that it would be wrong to ask
her friend to stay with her, it would not be easy to let him go.
P Skull got up and began going through his things. He had brought very little with him when he
came to Tien, only his clothes and the contents of his pockets, so there wasn't a lot to pack. A bit
reluctantly, he changed out of his Tienese garb and put on his Earth costume - blue jeans,
sneakers, faded tie-dyed T-shirt, and a black leather jacket. Though his new clothes were every bit
as comfortable and practical, if not more so, and certainly more attractive, he thought they might
cause a bit of a stir back in his own time and place. Wearing sneakers again felt odd - he'd been
doing without shoes and socks for a long time, since the Aeriels tended to go barefoot in all but
the coldest and wettest weather, and sometimes not even then. There weren't too many other
things he felt he'd need to bring with him; surely Bulk and the Professor would see that he was
taken care of. He did, however, keep his Firebird necklace firmly in place. He might never need it
again, but still...
P "bYou're thinking about me,/b" said a familiar voice.
p Skull didn't even jump. It was, of course, the Firebird, and he had ceased to pay very much
attention to the flaming avian's surprise visits. The bird had a great fondness for dramatics of all
kinds, and Skull usually did his best to never seem surprised or impressed, no matter what the
Firebird did. There was some unconscious part of him that still harbored distrust of the strange
being, and he would sometimes find himself doing things just to spite the creature. This time, he
only waited for a finely judged moment before turning to face his visitor.
p "Oh, it's you. Hi, Firebird," he said. He went back to rummaging around in his closet,
pretending to be looking for something.
p The bird hovered in midair, doing a more than fair imitation of a radiant, blazing star,
shimmering with all colors of the rainbow. Skull never even looked up. Finally, curiosity
overcame the Firebird, and he swooped over to land on Skull's shoulder to watch his progress.
p "bWhat are you doing?/b" he finally asked.
P "Packing," Skull replied.
P "bMay I ask what for?/b"
P "Because I'm going home," Skull answered.
P "bAhhhh!/b" said the Firebird with interest. "bWell, well, and very well!/b"
P It was Skull's turn to be curious. "What are you 'well, well, well'-ing about?"
P "bI am simply intrigued. Would it be too much of a bother if I were to tag along a bit? I am
aware that you are from the future, and from Earth. I have never visited either of those places,
and I harbor a good deal of curiosity as to what they are like./b"
P "You can if you want to, I guess," Skull replied unenthusiastically, "but I'm not going to Earth.
I'm going to Terra Venture."
P "bNever heard of it./b"
p "It's a space colony. We just built it... I mean, it will be just built when we get back to where I
came from... or when I came from... or something," answered Skull. "Man, this time travel stuff is
really confusing."
P "bWhen you are an immortal, all times are Now,/b" said the Firebird loftily. "bBut be
that as it may, I still think I would like to see your Terra Venture, and to keep you company for a
while. I am sure it would do you good to have a friend nearby during your time of
transition./b"
P "Uh... yeah, sure, I guess," Skull replied.
P "Eugene? Are you ready to go yet?" called Cedar's voice.
P "Coming!" Skull replied. With the Firebird riding proudly on his shoulder, he headed
downstairs. Cedar was waiting for him, the Crystal of All Times in one hand.
P "Is he coming, too?" she inquired, staring at the Firebird. She didn't entirely trust him, either.
He offered lots of good advice, true, but somehow, it always seemed to come out wrong. "What
would your people think of him? Won't he frighten them?"
P "bI can take care of myself,/b" answered the Firebird grandly. "bBesides, I am every
bit as capable of assuming human form as you are, or becoming invisible, or disappearing
completely if I choose. No one will see me if I do not want to be seen./b"
P "I think he's made up his mind to come," Skull said.
P "I suppose," said Cedar, not sounding at all thrilled with the idea. "Shall we go?"
P "Not yet," Skull replied. "I mean, can we go outside for a little, first? I want to take one last
look around before I go."
p Cedar nodded her understanding, and they trooped out into the garden. Skull stood for a
while, looking over all the familiar plants and rocks, the outside of the cozy house that had been
his home all this time, at the roofs of other houses beyond this one, and at the tops of distant
plateaus that crowned the tawny deserts beyond the city.
P Little did he know that while he was looking at everything, something was looking at
ihim/i.
Pcenter~*~/center
P Meanwhile, in a dark place far distant, at the end of a darkened hallway, behind a locked door,
strange noises were emanating from within a long-silent room. First there came a metallic clang,
then a thump, and lastly a long drawn-out scraping sound. Then there would be a pause, and then
a repetition: clang, thump, scrape.
p On the other side of the door, Lord Zedd was up and moving again at last. He had been
inactive for weeks. For three days, he had remained unconscious in his bed, lost in a drug-fogged
haze. Gradually, as the pain slackened off, his medications were curtailed, but he remained
fuzzy-minded, unable to think clearly, and he was still too weak to move around very much. His
doctors had been amazed to discover the full extent of the damage the accident had done to him.
Beyond the obvious loss of nearly all his skin, he seemed to have been burned from the inside out
as well; his skeleton was, for all practical purposes, destroyed, and his circulatory system was in
such horrifying condition that it was surprising that he was still alive. He literally had no heart,
now - it had been replaced by a pump, and there was now a system of clear plastic tubes snaking
over his body in the place of veins and arteries. The truth was, he was now surviving on pure
magical power. The doctors did all they could do, but the warlord was never going to completely
recover. However, Zedd was determined that he would not let this mishap throw off his plans for
universal domination. Postpone them, perhaps, but not destroy. It was only a matter of time, he
told himself, as continued his trip around the room. He had been practicing walking for the last
few days, and he was gradually getting the hang of it. His new skeleton, bits of metal attached to
the outside of his body, worked differently than the old one on the inside, and many movements
had to be practiced and relearned. His muscles had weakened, too, from long disuse, and he was
having to rebuild his strength. Just walking required all his energy, even with his staff for support.
It rang metallically as he thrust it at the floor ahead of him, then brought one foot up beside it,
laboriously dragging the other behind. Clang, thump, scrape, a pause to catch his breath, and then
he took another step.
P After what felt like an eternity, he reached the far side of his room, where, by his own request,
stood a full-length mirror shrouded by curtains. Reaching out one hand (newly tipped with sharp
talons), he pulled the curtains aside and forced himself to stare at his reflection, accustoming
himself to his new form. At first, he had been revolted by the sight of his own raw flesh, by the
clear tubes that stood in lieu of proper veins and arteries as they pumped blood and the drugs he
now needed just to survive though his body, and he had been unable to look at himself for more
than a few seconds before turning away. Now he was actually getting used to it - even getting to
like it, in a strange way. It made people afraid of him - ireally/i afraid of him, not just awed
by his power and leery of his short temper. It was scary just looking at him, and he was willing to
use that to his advantage. Even so, he couldn't help missing his old form a bit. On a whim, he
waved his hand at the glass, watching its image shift to reflect a magical change: first to his true
form, a perfectly ordinary humanoid man, then to the shape he had assumed most often in his
former life. It was reassuring to know he could still take that form if he wanted to, but he no
longer had the luxury of wasting magic on appearances, not when he needed it for much more
vital purposes. He no longer knew how far it was safe to push himself before the expenditure of
magic would reach unsafe levels, and his doctors had already informed him that he would
probably have to be "recharged" from time to time to prevent his power supplies from running
dangerously low. With a sigh, he let the illusions fade away. This new form would have to do,
whether he liked it or not.
p Back to his walking he went, determinedly thinking over his current situation to distract
himself from the fact that it was still somewhat painful to be moving around. Things were not
going well for him, and not just where his physical state was concerned. The Dark Falcon had
been unsuccessful at killing him, but he had still accomplished his objective; the war had been
going poorly before the accident, but now it seemed as if there would be no avoiding a total loss.
His generals had been doing their best to carry on, but without coordinated guidance, even their
best attacks were nowhere near as forceful as they would have been with proper planning. Many
of his troops had broken ranks and fled. Even among those that remained, mutinous sentiments
abounded. It was only a matter of time before his entire army fell apart, and he was currently in no
position to do anything about it.
P "Oh, blast that Dark Falcon and everything to do with him!" he muttered fiercely, as a fresh
twinge of pain ran up one leg. "If I ever get my hands on him again, he'll regret the day he ever
considered messing with me! I will make him pay for doing this to me! On my life, I swear it!"
p "Perhaps I could help you arrange that," rasped a voice.
p Zedd jumped and whirled to face the speaker - and nearly lost his balance as he did so; he still
wasn't quite used to this new frame of his. He managed to recover himself and glare malevolently
at whoever it was. At least his new mask was very good for malevolent glares.
P His gaze was met by a sinister-looking bird that was perched like a vulture on the head of his
bed, grinning at him, if a bird could grin. It had a bone white beak with serrated edges, like teeth,
and its eyes were red and oddly catlike, strange to see set in an avian's head. It's feathers were
ragged, colored in shades of midnight blue, black, and forest green, in no particular pattern, as if
they had been pulled from a feather duster and glued to him at random. Black claws glistened, not
only on its feet, but on the wings as well. Seeing that it had Zedd's attention, it fluttered down
from its perch and landed lightly on the floor, executing a well-formed bow. For such a
tawdry-looking creature, its movements were surprisingly graceful.
p "How did you get in here?" Zedd growled.
P "Through a rift in time-space," the bird replied casually. "I had heard that you were...
inconvenienced, and I thought I might come and offer my services to you. I am a loyal servant.
Send me wherever you want me to go. Ask me to kill, and your enemies will die by my hand. I
can go anywhere, untraceably. I am called Chronavius. Have you not heard of me?"
P "Yes... I do remember you, now that I think of it. You are an assassin by trade, is that not so?"
P "More than just that. I am a master of doors. I can travel effortlessly through time and space.
There is nowhere anyone can go where they can hide from me." The bird ruffled its feathers and
looked smug.
p "Can you find the Dark Falcon?"
P "Easily."
P "And destroy him?"
P "He is as good as dead."
P "I don't believe you," Zedd replied. "Look what he did to me! Are you saying that you are a
greater warrior than your master?"
P Chronavius withdrew into his feathers. "I never meant to imply that, your greatness. You were
tricked by loathsome treacheries. In a fair fight, you would have decimated him. He deserves
punishment for his impertinence. I wish only your permission to attempt to give him what he
deserves. I do not believe myself as great a warrior as you, of course, but I do believe I am able to
tilt the odds in my favor before any battles are fought."
P "I tire of your voice," Zedd snapped. "Do whatever you feel like doing. I won't send anyone to
bail you out if you get in trouble."
p "Thank you, o my emperor," said Chronavius, bowing again. "I will disturb you no more,
unless it is to deliver to you the head of the Dark Falcon." The bird grinned ferally again, and then
vanished.
P Zedd only sighed. Let the foolish thing kill itself if it wanted to. Zedd was determined that the
Falcon would be destroyed, but he didn't believe anymore that it could be done by the ordinary
means. No, it would require some careful, deliberate planning. Still, there was no harm in letting
the brute try. If he succeeded, perhaps he would be the right person for the next job Zedd had in
mind...
pcenter~*~/center
P "Okay, Cedar," said Skull at last. "Let's go."
P Cedar nodded, trying to shrug off the uneasiness she was sensing. There was a funny feeling in
the air, she thought, a sense that something was not quite as it should be, and she was tense with
it. She shook her head. It was probably all in her head, a manifestation of her hidden wish that she
didn't have to do this. She held the Crystal of All Times aloft, whispering words of power as she
instructed it to carry herself and her companions across the borders of time and space.
p Meanwhile, Chronavius observed the spell-casting with interest. How silly! They had to
depend on a shiny rock to take them where they wished to be! All he needed to perform such a
task was just to will himself there, and he viewed Cedar's spelling with disdain. Perhaps, he
reflected, it would be fun to send her somewhere - or someIwhen/I else. Just as she was
completing the final word of her spell, he launched himself from the roof and swooped down upon
the threesome.
P Firebird spotted the danger and shouted a warning, but it was too late. Skull didn't even see
what was happening. All he knew was that something heavy and unpleasant-smelling abruptly
crashed into him, knocking him off his feet, and then he was spinning, lost in light...
pcenter~*~/center
p When Skull came around again, he found himself standing on a sidewalk, surrounded by tall
buildings of the kind he hadn't seen in weeks - multi-leveled shiny constructions of glass and metal
and concrete. There was a street before him, and a few cars were muttering by, their drivers too
intent on their destinations to pay attention to the strange young man with the glowing bird who
had just manifested themselves. A few tacky Christmas lights dangled wherever anyone had found
room for them. Skull stared around in amazement.
P "Holey socks," he muttered. "I think we're on Earth!"
P Firebird glanced around. "bI'd say that would be an accurate guess. Judging by the time
flow of this area, I'd surmise that we have found your iwhere/i but missed your
/iwhen/i./b"
p "Huh?" Skull replied, baffled.
P "bWe seem to be on Earth, but we're not in the time we were aiming for,/b" Firebird
explained./b"
P "Oh," said Skull. "When are we, then?"
P "bI don't know. Why don't you ask... Uh-oh./b"
p "Uh-oh?" Skull repeated. "I don't like it when you say 'uh-oh.' If you say that, something's
igotta/i be wrong."
P "bWell, I don't mean to upset you or anything; it isn't anything immediately dangerous,/b"
Firebird replied. "bIt's just that I just looked around and I realized that Cedar isn't here
anymore./b"
P "WHAT?" shouted Skull in horror.
P "bPlease, not in my ear!/b" Firebird replied.
P "I'm not going to panic, I'm not going to panic," Skull muttered, sounding dangerously close
to panicking. "Where could she be? How are we going to find her? I don't want to be stuck in the
wrong time for the rest of my life!"
P "bCalm down!/b" Firebird replied. "bShe's still in this city somewhere. I just can't tell
exactly where. There's an energy in the air of this place that confuses my senses. If I didn't know
better, I'd say a thunderstorm was coming. I feel lightning in the air./b"
P "Electricity," said Skull distractedly. "So she is nearby somewhere? That's good. We'll be able
to find her eventually, if she doesn't get into trouble..."
P "bWhy don't you see about figuring where and when we are?/b" asked the Firebird,
diverting Skull's attention from worrying about his friend.
p "Okay," Skull agreed, looking around. "I think I see a newspaper machine thingy over there.
It'll tell us where we are. Can you make yourself invisible, Firebird? I don't want people staring at
me."
P "bAs you wish,/b" Firebird replied, and abruptly blinked out of sight. Skull could still feel
his warmth and the pricking of the bird's claws in his shoulders, but for all other purposes, the
Firebird could have been gone.
p Trying to look casual, Skull sauntered across the street to the newspaper vender and peered at
it, trying to make out the title and date through the dirty plexiglass.
p "iThe Miami Herald,/i" he read. "December 15, 1996. I think we missed Terra Venture
by a few years."
P Firebird didn't reply. Firebird wasn't even listening. Realizing that his partner wasn't answering,
Skull glanced up at the Firebird. Incredibly, the bird was gaping at something, wide- eyed and
slack-beaked. His attention was riveted by a dark haired young lady coming up the sidewalk,
swinging shopping bags from both hands and singing Christmas carols to herself. Skull grinned as
he recognized her.
P "Kimberly!" he exclaimed.
P Kimberly froze, her peaceful afternoon thrown suddenly awry by this unexpected greeting. Up
until that moment, she had been returning to her comfortable little apartment after an afternoon of
Christmas shopping, lighthearted with the joy of the season and thankful that her good-hearted
coach had allowed her a day off to prepare for the upcoming holiday. She had managed to find
gifts for almost everyone on her list. Presents for her parents and step-parents were already
wrapped, resting comfortably in bags marked with the names and logos of exclusive stores,
decorated with professional flourishes by the staff of those high-class vendors. Other trinkets were
tossed in a jumble into other bags - less expensive, but chosen with care, each one certain to bring
happy smiles to their recipients. Those were for her friends back home, and she preferred the
personal touch for them.
P The one thing that was disturbing her peace of mind up until that moment was the fact that she
hadn't yet found a gift for Tommy. It wasn't that he was the only one she hadn't bought anything
for yet. It was just that, well, he was still her boyfriend, and felt obligated to get him something
special - even something extra-special, since they were so far apart this year. She had dutifully
looked, but nothing seemed right. Everything was too frivolous or too ordinary or too expensive
or... something, always something. It had been so easy last year, and it was frustrating that she
couldn't make up her mind now. It was annoying.
P Even more, it was downright distressing, because it only highlighted the other worries that had
been preying on her mind. They were so far apart now, living on opposite sides of the country.
When the Pan-Globals were over, it was entirely likely that she would be moving to France to be
with her mother and stepfather, pulling her and Tommy further apart than before. How long was
it possible to carry on such a long distance relationship? Sooner or later, they were either going to
have to find a way to be with each other in person, or they were going to have to cut it off. In the
meantime, it was hard keeping a commitment to him when he was thousands of miles away and
there were plenty of perfectly friendly and attractive guys here in Florida who were offering to
spend their time and money on her. Was it cheating if she went out with them? It wasn't that she
didn't care about Tommy anymore. It was just that she got lonely sometimes, and she didn't enjoy
living like a nun when she could be out socializing. Deep down inside, though, she wasn't sure she
didn't trust herself not to lose her heart to someone else, and that made her feel guilty. The issue
tore her in two. Sooner or later, she knew, she was going to have make a choice.
P All that had been mulling around in the back of her brain as she jingle-belled her way down the
street, hoping to make a relaxing end to her day with a quiet dinner and maybe a good book and a
hot bath. Then, without warning, a familiar voice hailed her from the other side of the street, one
that was so unanticipated that she had to stop and stare to make sure it was who she thought it
was.
P "Skull?" she said uncertainly.
P "Yeah, Kim, it's me. Long time no see! How ya doing?" he answered, feeling very glad that he
was at least not friendless here in this city. "I wasn't expecting to see you here!"
P "Me neither," said Kimberly, still a little surprised. She walked across the street, partly to greet
her old acquaintance properly, but mostly to reassure herself that she wasn't hallucinating.
However, getting a closer look only confused her more.
P Skull hadn't really noticed, but he had undergone a few changes while living on Tien. Spending
hours out in the sun had tanned his formerly pale skin, making it better suit his dark hair and eyes,
and a combination of healthy exercise and the largely vegetarian Tienese diet had made him
stronger and more energetic than he had once been. On the whole, he looked and felt better than
he had in years, but the changes had been so subtle and gradual that they had escaped his limited
attention. The difference that struck Kimberly most, though, was something a little harder to pin
down. It was marked on his face, but it could be seen mainly in his eyes. There was a kind of
thoughtfulness there that she'd never seen before, as if all kinds of ideas and knowledge moving
around behind those eyes that she could only guess at. She wondered what had happened to him
to give him that look.
P "You're looking good," she managed at last. "What are you doing here?"
P "I... I'm visiting my aunt for the holidays," Skull replied, with only minimal hesitation. He was
developing that most useful tool of a hero, the capacity for a quick white lie. "I was supposed to
meet a friend of mine here, but I think she maybe got lost or something, because she's not here.
You wouldn't have happened to see her somewhere, would you?" He gave Kimberly a quick
description of Cedar's human form, since that was the shape she had last been in.
P "No, I haven't seen her," answered Kimberly. "If I see her, though, I'll tell her where you are."
p "Thanks, Kim," Skull said, a little disappointed.
P "No problem," Kim replied. "Hey, sorry I can't stay longer, but I'm kind of in a hurry. I'll see
you around, okay?"
P "Okay," agreed Skull sincerely. As much as he would have liked a chance to talk a while with
his old schoolmate, finding Cedar would have to be his first priority, and he wasn't entirely sure
that could be done without making Kimberly suspicious or frightened or both. He could only
imagine what she would do if she were to actually see the Firebird... who, he suddenly realized,
was being suspiciously quiet. The bird would certainly not be stupid enough to speak aloud, but
he should have at least been making remarks via telepathy. As Kimberly set off down the street
once again, Skull surreptitiously prodded the bird with the odd feeling that it must have fallen
asleep to be so quiet.
P "bHmm? What? What?/b" said the Firebird dazedly. "bOh, hello. I forgot you were
there... Who was that young lady you were talking to?/b"
p "Oh, that was Kimberly," Skull replied. "I've known her for years. We went to school
together."
P "bShe is beautiful,/b" said the bird, mostly to himself. "bAbsolutely beautiful.../b"
p *iIf birds could drool.../i* thought Skull irreverently.
P "Don't get any ideas," he said. "Kim's got a boyfriend. She's not going to leave him anytime
soon. Ask me, I know."
p "bWhat is he? A human?/b" Firebird asked scornfully.
p "Of course he's human! What else would he be?" Skull answered.
p "bShe'll forget him eventually if he's human,/b" said the Firebird with certainty. "bShe
will eventually meet one of her own kind, and she will lose interest in her human
divertissement./b"
P "Own kind?" Skull repeated. "Are you trying to say Kimberly isn't human? You've lost your
marbles. If she weren't human, someone would have figured it out by now. Tommy would have
known, wouldn't he?"
P "bWho's Tommy?/b" asked the Firebird.
p "That's the title of a musical, I think," Skull muttered to himself. Before the bird could ask him
about that, he told it, "Tommy's her boyfriend, back in Angel Grove. She met him at the Youth
Center a few years ago, and they've been together ever since."
p "bInteresting, but irrelevant,/b" said the Firebird, after a moment of thought. "bAnd
you are wrong about your friend. She does not belong among humans. She is a Firebird, a female
Firebird, the first I have seen in over a thousand years. I have to meet her.../b"
P "No," Skull cut in firmly. "We are going to find Cedar, and then we are going to get out of
here. You don't need to be annoying Kimberly." As an afterthought, he added, "She'd probably
scream if she saw you, anyway."
p "bYou look for your woman, and I'll look for mine,/b" said the Firebird tartly.
P "Okay," said Skull, feigning unconcern. "All right. I'll find Cedar all by myself."
P "bGood. I'm glad you see things my way./b"
P "And then I'll tell her to use the Crystal of All Times to send you to some planet where there's
nothing but water, and you'll have to fly over the ocean until you get tired and fall in."
p Skull felt the Firebird wince. "bOh, all right. I'll help. You don't have to be so cross about it,
though. Humph, you aren't so smart yourself. You don't know what you are, either." There was a
click, as if the bird had abruptly shut his beak on something he hadn't meant to say, but Skull
didn't catch it.
p "Fine. We'll split up," Skull decided. "I'll look around the streets, and you check from the air in
case she's decided to be a bird."
p "bAll right, I agree,/b" answered the Firebird amiably. "bI'll be off, then. See you
shortly./b" There was a rush of warm wind as the bird pumped his wings and flew away,
leaving Skull on his own. With a sigh, Skull pressed his hand to his necklace for reassurance and
set off down the street.
pcenter~*~/center
p Cedar looked around her in panic, momentarily overwhelmed by all she was seeing. She
was surrounded by towering buildings, and, alone as she was, she could not fight down her avian
fear of being caught in a small space with no room to fly. She leaned against a wall, panting a little
in fright, trying to still her heart and get her thoughts organized.
p After a few moments, she calmed down enough to think rationally again, and it was then
that she was finally able to realize, or remember, where she was. She was in a city, such as the one
she had visited with Ashley, where she had first met Eugene. Since they had been trying to reach a
human habitation anyway, she shouldn't have been surprised to see something like this.
p The larger problem, of course, was the matter of finding Eugene. He had been with her
when she started, and she had been careful to include him and the Firebird, but now they weren't
here. Where had they gone? She remembered, now, the feeling of some kind of powerful impact
just as the spell had gone into effect, and hadn't she heard the Firebird shouting? Had something
interfered with her spellcasting that had separated her from her companions? That was a logical
explanation, but it wasn't an especially comforting idea. Time-space travel was complicated; if the
spell had misfired, Eugene could be Ianywhere!/i So could the Firebird, for that matter, but
she could be excused for not worrying about him. He was perfectly capable of taking care of
himself if he had to, but her Eugene could be so easily confused and misled. He could be in
danger, and she needed to be there for him. Glancing this way and that, Cedar checked to see if
there were any other humans in the vicinity. Satisfied that there were none, she decided that it was
safe to shape-shift, and she prepared to transform and search for her friend from the air.
P "Well, hello, my pretty bird!" said an unpleasant voice in sugar-poison tones.
P Cedar jumped, whirling around in search of the voice.
P "Who's there?" she quavered.
P "It is I, Chronavius," answered the voice. "I am very pleased to make your acquaintance,
madame Gold Eagle."
p As Cedar watched, a lumpy shape, which she had taken for a pile of garbage, shuffled out
of an alley, grinning at her. She had never seen such an ugly bird, or such an evil-looking one. He
grinned at her with his jagged-edged beak and winked one crimson eye.
p "How did you know who I am?" asked Cedar, more suspicious than frightened.
p "I know many things, pretty bird," it answered. "I know that you are the Dark Falcon's
partner. I need to find him. You are going to take me to him... or I will take you apart bit by bit."
p "Never!" Cedar replied. She tried to shift to bird-form and escape, but Chronavius already
had his wings ready for use, and he leaped at her and dragged her down. There was a frantic
scuffle that tossed up clouds of dark and light feathers as Cedar tried to fight and shape-shift at
the same time. Unfortunately, Chronavius had the upper hand from the beginning, and his greater
bulk and strength put her at a severe disadvantage. Realizing she would never win this contest of
strength, Cedar made a desperate grab for her amulet and cried out the word that would provoke
her transformation to someone with a bit more going for her.
p Chronavius was suddenly surprised by a wave of heat as flames seemed to engulf the small
creature he was grappling with. He reeled back, fearing for his feathers, unsure whether or not
they were flammable. By the time he had recovered his wits and reassessed the situation, he was
almost too late to witness the sight of a sleek golden bird surging upwards into the sky, feathers
flashing in weak winter sunshine. Gathering his strength, Chronavius leaped into the air and began
to pursue her.
pcenter~*~/center
P While his human companion searched earnestly for Cedar, the Firebird was attending to
what he considered to be a more vital task: the courting of the lovely young Firebird-woman he
had just encountered. He had not been lying to Skull when he said it had been centuries since he
had last seen a female of his kind. He had made the mistake of marrying the last one he had
encountered, a move that had nearly been his undoing. He would be more careful this time.
Marriage had been unwise; he would not be so serious this time. A dalliance, that would be all. It
shouldn't be hard, for how could she fail to be awed by his beauty and power? Such were the
Firebird's thoughts as he soared down the streets in pursuit of his new interest.
P Moment's later, Kimberly was very surprised by a multicolored glowing bird abruptly
manifesting itself in front of her. She shrieked and jumped backwards, and the bird gave an
involuntary flutter of dismay. That wasn't the reaction he had been expecting!
P "bCalm yourself, my lady! I mean you no harm. I apologize if I startled you,/b" he
said.
p Kimberly stared at him, her eyes narrowed with puzzlement and suspicion.
p "What the heck are you supposed to be? Some kind of parrot or something?" she asked
him.
p "bI am no such thing,/b" said the Firebird, briefly offended. Then he remembered that
he was dealing with a woman raised among humans, and she had probably never seen a true
Firebird, poor thing. He would have to educate her. "My dear, I am a Firebird - Ithe/I
Firebird, Fenikus. I am honored to make your acquaintance./b" He executed a clever bow, still
hovering in midair.
P "Um," said Kimberly, looking all around her. "Is this one of those TV shows with the
hidden cameras, or are you really-and-truly a talking bird?"
p "bI do not know what a camera is,/b" answered the Firebird, "bbut I can assure
you that I am truly a Firebird./b"
p "Firebird," Kimberly repeated. Images flitted briefly across her mind, memories dating
back to the days when she had been the Pink Ranger, battling evil with the help of her swift,
beautiful Firebird Thunderzord. She could easily believe that it had been inspired by this glowing
being that hovered before her, watching her with strange hypnotic eyes. She let her gaze meet his
and, for the briefest instant, she thought she felt something, the briefest flicker of electricity
moving through her. She wasn't at all sure she liked the feeling.
p "Okay, okay," she said, "I believe you're a Firebird. So what? My Ranger days are over.
I'm done with magic. All I want is to live a nice, quiet, ordinary life. Kat is the Pink Ranger now.
Talk to her if you're looking for adventures."
p "bI am not interested in cats, my lady,/b" answered the Firebird. "bI am interested
in my own kind, and in you in particular. You might enjoy the kind of adventure I am
offering./b"
p Kimberly winced; she didn't like the tone she heard in his voice. She'd heard it from plenty
of slimy guys, accompanied by wolf whistles and sly compliments. She decided that, for all his
otherworldly beauty and charming words, this Firebird was probably in the same league.
p "Sorry, but I'm not in the market," Kimberly replied. "I've got a boyfriend already, and that
means I don't have any room in my life for you. Go find someone else to annoy."
P With that, she shoved the Firebird out of her way and continued along the sidewalk. The
Firebird was so shocked he could hardly understand what had happened. He had been refused!
P "Hmm..." he said thoughtfully. "This boyfriend of hers is causing more trouble than I had
expected. Perhaps I will have to find a way to remove him..."
pcenter~*~/center
P Unnoticed by the people in the busy streets of Miami, a deadly aerial battle was taking
place high above their heads. Shrieking threats at each other as they swooped and gyrated through
the maze of buildings, Chronavius and Cedar were having a trial of speed and agility. Chronavius
looked more like a molting crow than a war bird, but he was surprisingly strong and clever.
However, the smaller and more streamlined Gold Eagle was meant for swiftness and acrobatics,
and she could reach greater heights with less effort than her pursuer. They looped, dodged, dove
at each other with ear-piercing battle cries, slashing at each other with their sharp talons before
veering away again in a flurry of feathers. Cedar attempted to press her altitude advantage,
climbing above the tops of the towering buildings to dive at the monstrous bird with deadly speed
and accuracy, attempting to throw him out of the sky. He countered with quick reflexes and
superior strength, absorbing her blows and snatching at her throat and wings as she tackled him,
wrestling he in midair until she escaped to attack again. The air rang with the sound of screaming
eagles.
p A man on the street half-heard the noise and sighed in resignation. "Cat fight," he
muttered.
p "What did you say?" asked a dark-haired teenager in a faded tie-dyed T-shirt.
P The man shrugged. "That noise. Sounds like cats fighting. Kind of annoying, if you ask
me. Someone ought to do something about these strays - throw 'em in the pound or something.
They shouldn't be allowed to disrupt people's peace and quiet like this."
P The teenager wasn't listening - not to the man, anyway. He was attending to the sound,
which he realized was coming from above. Scanning the skies, he was just in time to catch a
glimpse of a brightly glowing bird and a much larger, darker shape locked in mortal combat a
hundred feet off the ground.
p "Oh, man!" he cried in dismay. "That's Cedar!"
p "Huh?" said the man. He, too, looked up. "Great Scott! What in blue blazes are those
things? Someone should call the police or something! Hey, I'll get you a quarter if you'll go find a
phone booth... Young man? Where did you go?"
p He looked all around, but the young man had mysteriously vanished.
Pcenter~*~/center
P Kimberly was naturally a bit disturbed by her encounter with that strange talking bird, but
over the last few years, she had developed the equanimity to take almost anything in
stride. If she had been asked, she would have said there wasn't much of anything left that could
shock her, but that was before she got to know the Firebird and the Dark Falcon.
P As a matter of fact, other than a brief moment of surprise at having the bird materialize
before her so unexpectedly, her meeting with the Firebird hadn't shaken her all that much. She had
seen more monsters than she cared to remember, and had been on good terms with wizards,
robots, and shapeshifting cats, so why be amazed at the appearance of a talking bird? To her, it
was just more of the same - perhaps a bit late in her career, but certainly nothing to worry about.
Truth be told, it was her reaction to meeting Skull again that was preying on her mind. That was
strange, when she thought about it. Anyone else would have been at least a little bit unnerved by
meeting a fire entity on the streets of Miami, especially one making the kind of veiled proposals
the Firebird had made, but she could put all that out of her mind. It had been out of her control,
none of her doing, just one of those weird things that happened on occasion. What really bothered
her was the way she had treated the perfectly ordinary human being who had come to her looking
for help. She hadn't exactly been kind to him, after all. If it had been Billy or Adam or almost any
of her old schoolmates, she would have gladly put aside what she was doing to help hunt for their
missing friend. It wasn't as if she had something she needed to be doing; today was her day off!
She had all the time in the world to be of help, but instead she had brushed poor Skull off with a
lie. She felt guilty, now, imagining him wandering through the unfamiliar streets alone. Why had
she done that to him? True, she had never liked him much before, but that was mostly because
he'd usually been rude to her and was often up to no good. This time he had been perfectly polite
to her, honestly glad to see her, and in need of real help. IShe/i was the one who had been
rude to Ihim!/I
P"I'll go back," she decided. "I'll put this stuff in my room and then I'll go back to him, and if he's
still there, I'll help him. After all, he is a friend, sort of. What kind of Power Ranger am I, not
helping my friends when they need me?"
pShe entered the lobby of the apartment building where she currently lived and waited patiently for
an elevator. She could, if she chose, have lived in the dormitories used by other trainees at Coach
Schmidt's compound, but as long as her parents were willing to help pay her rent, she enjoyed her
independence. The elevator reached the ground floor and announced it's arrival with a soft
Iping/I, and the doors opened. She got into the empty cubicle and rode up one, two, three,
four, five, six, seven, eight levels to get off at the ninth floor. Elevators were a wonderful
invention, she mused. Yes, she knew it was healthier to climb the stairs, but after a long day of
shopping and thinking, she was physically and mentally exhausted, and nine flights of stairs were
something she didn't feel like contending with. Well, it would be nice to put down these heavy
shopping bags, and then...
PHer thoughts were cut off in an instant as her gaze was caught by a bright and familiar light.
There, sitting casually on her desk, was the Firebird, looking insufferably smug.
P"What are you doing in my room?" she demanded angrily. "I thought I told you to go away!"
P"bI did go away,/b" said the bird placidly. "bI came here. And to answer your first
question, I've been writing letters./b"
p"Letters?" Kimberly repeated, confused.
p"bYes indeed. It has been pointed out to me that you are inconveniently possessed of a
boyfriend. I have arranged for him to be removed from your life./b"
P"You did what?" cried Kimberly angrily. "Are you nuts? What are you trying to pull?"
P"bYou don't need a boyfriend anymore. I'm here now./b" answered the Firebird. "bThat
being the case, I sent him a very nice letter in your name, informing him that you've met someone
else and no longer need him. It's already been delivered, but I arranged to have a copy made. You
may peruse it, if you like, but I don't think you really need it./b"
P"Why you...!" Kimberly shouted. "You little creep, you have no right to do this to me!"
P"bI have every right,/b?" Firebird replied. "bTrust me, this is for your own good./b"
P"What do you know about what's good for me?" asked Kimberly, still outraged.
P"bI know what is best for Firebirds from personal experience. You shouldn't deny your
nature,/b" said the Firebird. "bHowever, if you are uncomfortable with seeing me in this
form, I am fully capable of taking on human form. Observe./b"
PThere was a brief fiery flash, and the Firebird abruptly seemed to vanish. In his place was a human
male, perhaps a bit older than Kimberly. She winced - not because he wasn't good looking, but
because he was, very. If she had just seen him on the street, without knowing who and what he
was, she wouldn't have been able to take her eyes off of him. Even as it was, she was having a
hard time getting her eyes to obey her mind. He was dressed entirely in white, as pure and brilliant
as his feathers had been, showing off his tanned skin, and his shirt was evidently designed and cut
for the sole purpose of displaying the muscles on his arms and chest. His eyes were still a brilliant
blue-green, fathomless and hypnotic.
P"Does this form please you better, my dear?" he asked gently. There was both strength and music
in it, and it penetrated her mind and wrapped around her thoughts, making it hard to concentrate
on anything else. "If there is anything at all that displeases you, it can be changed. For you, I will
be anything and do anything. I can be your dream come true, if you let me. There is nothing I
cannot make possible for you. Say you'll be mine, and you will never want for anything ever
again."
PKimberly struggled with herself, feeling that she was being caught in trap and unsure she could
escape. She stared at the letter that still rested benignly on the table. Everything had been taken
care of for her. The Firebird had done it, taken away the source of her worries and set her free.
She could do anything she wanted, now, and he could make it all happen. He put out one hand to
gently touch her cheek, and the fire it sent rushing through her blood was unlike anything she'd
ever known before. It would be so easy, so easy, just to be with him and forget everything else...
pThere was a sudden screech outside her window, yanking her thoughts forcibly away from that
avenue, and she jumped away from the window - and the Firebird - staring wildly at the indistinct
shapes that rushed by. In that instant, the spell was broken, and she was herself again. She glared
furiously at the Firebird. Out of his influence, she was seeing him again for what he truly was.
Beautiful he may have been, but that was all he was. Beneath the surface, he was still selfish,
arrogant, and foolish, and she wanted no part of him.
P"Nice try," she said, "but you aren't going to catch me that easily."
PThe Firebird, for his part, seemed rather distracted, not to mention dismayed.
P"Oh, dear," he muttered. "Monsters have such foul timing. I suppose I'm going to have to go see
what's happening. Have no doubts, lovely lady, I will return. I am nothing if not persistent. You
will succumb eventually, and be the happier for it. Until we meet again..." There was a shimmer of
light, and he was suddenly gone.
P"Man, what a weird day," said Kimberly. She looked out the window, searching for whatever it
was that had shocked her out of her trance, but it seemed to be gone. "Oh, well. Guess I'd better
start looking for Skull."
PTossing on a light jacket against the chill - even Miami could get cool on late December evenings
- she headed out of her room. She locked the door securely, as if she thought it might prevent the
Firebird from returning, and then headed for the elevator. It took a moment for it to reach the
lobby, and she occupied the time with idle thoughts.
P*II wonder if that Firebird really did see a monster? I hope Skull doesn't run into it. If he did,
he'd probably faint clean away./I*
pcenter~*~/center
P Skull gazed with worried eyes at the fight that waged on above his head. Cedar had
chosen to end her erratic course for now, and was instead simply circling a single high-rise
apartment building. It was causing quite a commotion, and everyone to policemen to wildlife
experts to tabloid newspaper reporters were speculating wildly as to what was going on and
trying to get in on the action. Concerned security guards were trying to herd the building's
occupants out into the streets.
P Meanwhile, Cedar was beginning to get tired. She ached from scrapes and bruises she had
earned in her swift encounters with her enemy, and her strength was starting to give out. She
struggled to draw enough oxygen into her overworked lungs to fuel further flight, but exhaustion
was beginning to take its toll. She knew she couldn't keep this up much longer.
P "Give up, Gold Eagle!" shouted Chronavius. "I have you beaten, and you know it!
Surrender, and help me destroy your partner, and I'll spare your wretched life. Perhaps his
majesty, Lord Zedd will be willing to let you serve him. I'm sure he could find uses for a girl as
strong and beautiful as you."
P "Stow it, mangy monster!" Cedar gasped. "I'll never betray the Dark Falcon or my
people!"
P "Then you will die!" Chronavius replied.
P He wheeled abruptly in midiar, swooping around and up, placing him behind and above his
prey. Cedar cast about wildly for an escape route, but she was too tired, slowing down...
p Skull watched in horror. As Cedar fell, her stricken scream was echoed in his own throat.
P Chronavius snatched up Cedar's limp form and carried her to the roof of the apartment
building to inspect it. He plucked a feather from one wing and held it over her beak, and was
rewarded by the sight of a faint stirring of breath. It seemed she was tougher than she thought,
still clinging to life. He shoved her into a corner before shuffling up to the edge of the roof and
peering down on the gathered crowds.
P "Dark Falcon!" he shouted. "If you can hear me, listen well! Your partner yet lives, and
you still have a chance to save her. Surrender now, and no more harm will come to her. If you
will not surrender, you can fight me for her, and suffer the same fate. I have given you your
chance."
p There were murmurs in the crowd. Who or what could a Dark Falcon be? What was going
on? They had all heard of monsters and Power Rangers on television and read about them in the
morning papers, but none of them had ever really expected something like this to happen in their
own home city. Now, all eyes were turned uncertainly to the sky, wondering what was going to
happen next. They took no notice of a lanky teenager as he slipped inconspicuously through the
building's front doors, clutching an enameled silver amulet. Chronavius did, though, and he
grinned his triumph.
P Meanwhile, Kimberly was just getting off the elevator, not knowing the full extent of the
chaos that had been going on around her. She was very surprised, therefore, when Skull suddenly
burst through the doors and nearly collided with her.
P "Yow!" she yelped, jumping backwards in surprise. "Oh, Skull, it's just you! I was just
going to look for you. Did you find your friend?"
P "Um, yeah, kinda," Skull replied distractedly. "Kim, you'd better get out of here - there's a
monster hanging around the building, and no one knows what he's doing."
p "What are Iyou/I doing?" asked Kimberly, a little concerned. Skull was the last
person she would have expected to be hanging around when a monster was on the loose.
P "I've got to get to the roof," answered Skull grimly. "My friend is up on the roof."
P "You can't do that!" Kimberly cried. "What do you think you're going to do against a
monster?"
p "That's right!" rasped a voice. "What are you going to do about me?"
P Kim and Skull both spun in place to see Chronavius leering at them as he stood before the
doors.
P "You'd be surprised," Skull muttered, answering both Kimberly and the monster. Turning
to Chronavius, he said, "All right, monster. Tell me what you've done with Cedar, or you're going
to be in big trouble!"
P "Don't worry about her. She's perfectly safe. I have her right here!" answered Chronavius.
He made a gesture with one hand, producing what looked like an electric birdcage. A bright shape
could be seen lying very still in the bottom of the cage.
P "What did you do to her?" Skull demanded.
P "I've put her out of the way," said Chronavius simply. "I repeat, surrender to me, and she'll
be returned to you safely... or, if you prefer, you can battle me for her."
P "I'm not surrendering."
P "Skull," said Kimberly quietly, "what's going on?"
P "Not now, Kim," answered Skull. "I'll see if I can explain later."
P "You're a fool not to surrender straight away," Chronavius said, "but if you want to fight
me, be my guest. Begin!"
P He made the cage vanish again, and then dove at Skull. Both humans dove in different
directions, and the bird just barely avoided crashing into the wall. He paused a moment to get his
bearings.
p Skull turned to Kimberly and said, "Kim, you aren't going to believe anything that happens
next, so would you please do me a favor and pretend you're dreaming all of this?"
P "What?" asked Kimberly, thoroughly confused.
P Instead of answering, Skull put his hand to his necklace pendant and shouted the
transformation word: "IFirebird!/I"
P "Firebird? What's the Firebird got to do with..." Kimberly began. The rest of the sentence
was cut off as the Skull she knew was suddenly surrounded by lights and then replaced by a
warrior in black and red armor.
P "Um... okay, I get it," said Kimberly dazedly. "I've got to be hallucinating."
p Skull grinned. "Thanks, Kim. I knew I could count on you!"
P "I knew it!" Chronavius crowed. "You Iare/I the Dark Falcon! Well, well, well! I'm
pleased to meet you at last! Let's see how well the dark lord of the sky is up to fighting in a small
room! I can manage it. How about you?"
P "I'd rather not," Skull replied. "Come on, Kim, we're out of here!" So saying, he turned
and ran for the steps. Bewildered, Kimberly trailed behind.
P As soon as they made it through the door, Skull turned and pointed his laser at the
doorknob, melting the lock.
P "Maybe that'll hold him for a while," he muttered, as he began to dash up the stairs.
p "I hope so," Kimberly replied. "So, what are we going to do?"
P "We're going to the roof," answered Skull.
P "Okay, all right. That makes sense," said Kimberly, trying to hold on to her sanity. "What
are we going to do once we get to the roof?"
P "We're going to jump off."
p "Jump off?" repeated Kimberly in shock. "Um, Skull, I know this situation is kind of
desperate and all, but isn't that a little extreme?"
P "Just trust me," Skull replied.
p Kimberly stared at him suspiciously. "Who are you, and what have you done with the real
Skull?"
P "Sometimes I wish I knew," answered Skull with a sigh.
P They continued running, panting a little from the exertion.
P "Couldn't we have taken the elevator?" Kimberly complained.
P "How many movies have you seen where the bad guy cuts the elevator cable?" asked
Skull.
P "Oh. Good point."
p At that moment, there was a sudden explosion at the bottom of the staircase, followed by
a triumphant shriek and the pumping of wings.
P "He's coming after us!" shouted Skull.
p "But we're almost there!" Kim replied.
P Chronavius flapped up behind him, screaming a victory cry. Skull paused in his running
long enough to whip out his laser and fire a few rounds at the approaching avian. There was a
scream of inhuman pain and a smell of scorched feathers, and then a series of thumps and
squawks as the monster began to tumble down nine flights of stairs. Kimberly couldn't help but
giggle at its plight as she reached the door that led out onto the roof. Skull followed up behind
her, grinning.
p "That takes care of him, for now," he replied. "He'll be back soon, though... Look, there
he goes!"
P Kimberly looked down. Far below her, she could make out a dark form sculling through
the air, and the crowds parted on either side of it, giving it plenty of leeway. It gave its wings a
few powerful flaps, gaining altitude, obviously heading for the observers on the roof.
P "We've got to get out of here," said Skull.
p "We aren't really going to jump off the roof, are we?" asked Kim fearfully. "Even you
aren't that crazy, right?"
p "Who's crazy?" Skull replied. "It's not crazy to jump off the roof when you can fly."
p "Skull, what are you talking abou-"
P Before Kimberly could finish asking her question, Skull reached for the handles on his
backpack and pulled, unfurling his purple wings. Kimberly stared in amazement.
p "Okay, never mind," she said.
P "Wings come in handy, sometimes," said Skull. "You're going to have to ride on my back,
though. I don't think I can carry you and fight at the same time."
p "Oh, no, you're not getting me to fly!" said Kimberly, backing away.
p "You want to stay up here and maybe get eaten by that buzzard thing?" asked Skull. "Just
trust me! I know almost exactly what I'm doing."
p "That's really comforting," Kimberly said sarcastically.
p There was a sudden rush of wings, and Chronavius landed on the roof with them.
P "Well, well! We meet again," he said. "Give up now, Falcon, and I'll make your
destruction easy!"
p "Forget it, vulture," Skull replied. "Come on, Kim. We gotta get out of here."
P "I'm right with you," she said. She hurriedly scrambled onto his back, piggy-back style. It
was awkward, but they had more important things to worry about. "You've done this before,
right?"
p "Nope, never," said Skull. "Hang on tight!"
P Taking a running start, the Dark Falcon leaped from the roof and dropped like a stone,
diving at breakneck speed toward the pavement. Kimberly screamed in terror, instantly convinced
that they were both about to become smudges on the pavement.
P "Shut up!" said Skull through clenched teeth. "I'm trying to concentrate here!"
P Kimberly's mouth shut with a snap. In the next second, the Dark Falcon's purple wings
were spread wide to catch the air, and the plummet turned to a swoop, and then a climb, and they
glided together down the street, as the crowds watched in amazement.
P "Hey, we Iare/I flying!" Kimberly said. "This is pretty cool!"
P "I know," said Skull grinning, reminded of his own first experience with free-flight. "Can
you help me navigate while you're up here? I don't know my way around. Is that bird thing
following us?"
P Kimberly turned back and looked. "Yeah, he's there."
p "Okay, guess it's time to see what I've really learned from Cedar," Skull replied. "Hold on,
Kim. You're going for the ride of your life."
p So saying, Skull abruptly shifted direction, flapping his purple wings in a desperate
attempt to gain altitude. Chronavius saw the change in speed and direction and responded in kind,
rising up in pursuit. Skull looked around frantically in a desperate attempt to find what he was
looking for. He saw it sooner than he expected - a little too soon. He wasn't high enough, not
moving fast enough. He wouldn't be able to move fast enough if he couldn't build up more speed.
He changed direction again, intending to buy himself a little more space as he circled the block.
P "Higher, higher, higher," he muttered.
P "He's gaining on us!" cried Kimberly.
P "Not for long!" Skull replied, spinning around a corner. His goal was back in sight again: a
narrow alleyway directly in front of him. Even as he was inwardly rejoicing at the sight, he felt
something snatch at his heels, and Kimberly yelped.
P "I've got you now, Dark Falcon!" snarled Chonavius.
P "That's what you think!" Skull replied.
P In the next instant, the Dark Falcon had suddenly dropped out of sight - literally! He was
now diving in true falcon style for the crack between the two buildings, trading height for speed,
just as Cedar had taught him. The monster was only stunned for a fraction of a moment, and then
he was diving after his prey. There was no way, he thought, that the wide-winged Falcon would
really try to fly through that narrow gap. If he tried it, his wings would snap, and he would be sent
plunging to the ground. He was too smart for that. He would turn away, and then Chronavius
would have him.
P Just then, Skull reached the alley, and he did something unexpected. Giving one final,
mighty flap, he folded his wings close to his sides and shot through the passage like an arrow from
a bow. Chronavius, startled, couldn't stop himself fast enough, and he smacked into the sides of
the buildings, and he cried out as his delicate wings snapped backwards unnaturally. Skull, on the
other hand, reached the far side safely, swooped up into the air a short ways, and then dropped
lightly onto the pavement.
P "You can get down now," he said to Kimberly. The wild ride had left her clinging to his
neck with a death grip.
p Kimberly got slowly down, shaking a little.
p "I take back every bad thing I ever said about you," she said.
p "Not now, Kim. We've still got a monster to deal with," answered Skull. "Look!"
P At the far end of the alley, Chronavius was painfully and laboriously dragging himself to
his feet. One wing was hanging oddly, perhaps broken, and he was panting. He looked up at Skull
with a desperate expression in his red cat-eyes.
p "Well?" Skull inquired. "What are you going to do?"
P "I'll destroy you for this!" hissed the creature. "Somehow, I'll make you pay for hurting
me! Even if it's the last thing I do, I'll get you!"
p "We don't have to fight, you know," said Skull. "Just give Cedar back, and this can end
peacefully."
p No one could have told just by listening, but he was fighting to keep his voice level. The
Dark Falcon wasn't afraid of monsters or narrow escapes, but Skull was, and it was an eternal
struggle to keep his calm alter-ego in the forefront. It was one thing when it was just him against
the villain - what loss was it to the world if something happened to him? - but when he was
holding another person's life in his hands, knowing that one false move could kill them both...
even with all his past experiences, it still rattled his nerves.
P *iI never wanted to do this again!/i* he thought, feeling his grip on his emotions
slipping.
P A hand rested lightly on his shoulder, and a soft voice spoke.
p "Give it up," said Kimberly. "Look at you! You can't fight the way you are. Give up and
leave quietly, and you won't get hurt."
p The creature looked at them both for a moment. Then he sighed, making his dark feathers
ruffle.
p "I underestimated you, Dark Falcon. I admit, I did not take enough precautions. You've
beaten me fairly," Chronavius rasped. "You are truly worthy to call yourself a hero. I will let you
have your prize." He made a gesture, and a crackle of lights shot from his uninjured wing,
resolving themselves into Cedar's limp form, resting silently on the dirty pavement. Skull rushed
to her side, trying to remember if he knew some way of telling if a person was alive or not.
p "She is only sleeping," said the monster. "She will awaken soon. Now I will take my leave
of you. I thank you for your mercy, Dark Falcon. It's been wasted, but I thank you." He looked at
Skull with narrowed eyes and an oblique glance. "I think you should be warned, there's trouble in
store for you. You think you're out of danger, but you're not." With that, the bird abruptly
vanished in a cloud of muddy green colored light.
P Skull collapsed then and there, completely drained of energy. It had been a rough
day! Now that he was out of danger, it was all he could do not to faint entirely. He just
hadn't been prepared for this! He whispered the words of regression that put him back to his
ordinary human self and leaned against the side of a building. Kimberly sat down next to him and
looked sympathetic.
P "You okay?" she asked.
p "Fine," answered Skull tiredly. "Thanks for helping me. You don't know how much I
needed that."
p "You were really brave."
p "I was scared stiff. I really hate doing this. Sometimes I wish I'd never gotten into the
hero business... Man, I could have gotten you killed!"
P "It's okay. Stuff like that happens," Kimberly replied. Taking a deep breath, she added, "I
never liked fighting monsters much, either. I got scared a lot, too."
p "You did what?" asked Skull, suddenly wide awake and alert. "You never fought any
monsters... did you?"
p "I did as the Pink Ranger," answered Kimberly softly.
p "Pink Ranger?" Skull repeated, brain reeling. "So that's what the Firebird was talking
about!"
p "bDid someone mention me?/b" answered a voice.
p "Where have you been?" Skull demanded of the Firebird. "I've been fighting for my life,
Cedar just about got killed, Kim got stuck in the middle of it, and you didn't even try to help!"
p "bReally?/b" the Firebird replied. He turned to Kimberly. "bI'm dreadfully sorry,
my lady. If I had known you were in danger, I certainly would have come to your rescue./b"
P Kimberly rolled her eyes and turned to Skull. "Do you know this creep?"
P "Yeah, kinda," Skull answered. "He iis/i kind of a pain."
p "bI'm offended,/b" said the Firebird. "bBy the way, what happened to your lady
friend? She looks to me as if she's had a difficult morning./b"
p "A monster zapped her," Skull explained. "Is she okay?"
p The Firebird fluttered closer to the unconscious Aerial and inspected her closely.
p "bShe's well enough,/b" he said after a moment. "bShe seems to have had a bit of
a shock, but once it wears off, she'll be as good as new. If I were you, I'd let her sleep it off. The
rest will do her good, I think./b"
p "As long as she'll be okay," said Skull with a relieved sigh.
P "While we're waiting," Kimberly put in, "would you people mind giving me some kind of
explanation of what's going on here? What are you people doing here? Where did that monster
come from? Are we under attack? And since when is Skull a superhero?"
p "Long story," Skull replied, "but I guess we've got time. It all kinda started back in the
park..."
Pcenter~*~/center
p Chronavius appeared in an enfolding shadow within Zedd's palace. He knew he was in a
sticky situation just now. He had failed an assignment - and not just any assignment, either. He'd
been doing an assignment for an angry, vengeful, powerful, and, some had whispered, slightly
insane. When word got to Lord Zedd that he had failed, he wouldn't have the life expectancy of
an icicle in a furnace. There was only one thing left for a self-respecting assassin to do. When you
couldn't kill your target... kill your client.
P Zedd, as usual, was locked in his room. He had issued an edict some time back, sending
secretaries and census takers scurrying for their record-books and digging through old records,
and now he was passing time as he waited for their answers. To pass the time, he had taken to
walking in circles again, mildly pleased by the fact that it was easier now than it had been a few
hours ago. His mirror had not been covered, and he found that he was no longer wincing at the
sight of himself. He was adjusting to this new form. Soon, he hoped, he would be back in fighting
condition again, and then he could think about re-establishing his armies again and getting back
into the universal game. Now was the time for planning and making strategies. He would have to
find somewhere to lie low for a while, and until then, he had the perfect plan to cover his tracks.
P He knew, now, for an absolute fact, that he was going to lose this war of his. He had made
some small gains that he might or might not be able to hold on to, depending on the
circumstances, but his overall goal of universal domination was simply not to be at this time. Still,
surrendering would only make him look weaker than he already did, and that was not to be
tolerated. Instead, he was going to issue a few well-worded decrees, to the effect that he had
chosen to work through an agent who would relay his orders to the rest of his troops while he
recovered from his accident, and he would take the helm again as soon as he was sufficiently
recovered. This was not precisely the truth, nor was it what his "agent" was going to hear. In
actuality, he was going to leave him, her, or it in full command of his remaining armies,
threatening dire punishments for failing to win this war but promising great rewards for success.
When whoever-it-was failed miserably, the blame could fall upon them. In the incredible event of
a victory, he could take the credit for his proxy's work. It was a good plan, and he was almost
looking forward to carrying it out. He should have implemented it a long time ago, he thought.
P Suddenly, his attention was caught by a flicker of movement in the mirror: something
seemed to be approaching him stealthily from behind, holding a gleaming dirk in one clawed hand.
He paused, pretending to be lost in thought while actually watching the reflection in the glass. Just
as the blade fell, driving toward the back of his head in a movement that would have spelled his
doom, had he been unwary. To the utter amazement of the intruder, he brought up one hand and
caught the creature's wrist, nearly crushing it in an iron grip. There was a strangled cry of pain
and surprise from the creature, and the dirk clattered to the floor. Zedd gave a powerful pull,
flipping the lightweight bird over his shoulder and slamming it onto the floor. Chronavius
screeched in agony as pain flared through his already battered body. He stared up at his master
with fear in his eyes, knowing full well that he had reached the end of the line.
p "Thought you could cross me, did you?" Zedd growled harshly. "Do you believe I am
weak because of what has happened? You are wrong! I am still more powerful than you can
imagine, and now you will die for your mistake!" He held his staff over the fallen monster, it's
pointed end aimed for the creature's heart.
P "You are not strong enough to stop the forces of Good, it seems," Chronavius replied,
strangely calm. "Had I known, I would have cast my lot with the Dark Falcon."
P They were the last words he ever said. Then the silver lightning bolt drove through his
heart, and he gave one final scream before quietly expiring, seeming to cave in on himself as he
softly disintegrated.
p "He was nothing but a pile of feathers, after all," Zedd muttered.
p Almost as a reply, a little breeze sprung up from nowhere and began to stir the feathers.
Making a sound like laughter, it swept them up and blew them all away, leaving the dark overlord
to watch in puzzlement. For a moment, he had the funny feeling he had done something he hadn't
intended to do. Then he shrugged and turned away, suddenly uncomfortable with looking at the
place where there should have been feathers but weren't. The monster was dead. He could do no
more harm.
p Just then, there came a knock on the door, distracting Zedd's attention. He almost
jumped, and he tried to convince himself he was more unnerved by nearly being assassinated than
he was by the monster's odd expiration.
p "Come in," he snapped.
P The door opened, and a dusty-looking furry creature, one of his scribes, padded through
the door. It looked up at him with wide, frightened eyes. Very few of Zedd's attendants had
gotten entirely used to his new appearance, and the bookkeepers were generally more timid than
the rest of his staff.
p "What do you want?" Zedd asked it.
p "Your m-majesty, we have finished considering your request," it said. "We have located a
suitable c-candidate for your c-consideration."
p "Fine, fine. Anyone I know?"
p "A sorceress, daughter of a very well-known and powerful magic user. She has not been in
your service long, but her records seem to indicate that she's exactly what you're looking for,"
answered the scribe. "Her name is Rita Repulsa."
p "Oh, her, Yes, I have heard something about her somewhere. She'll do, I think. Have her
informed at once," Zedd replied.
p "Yes, majesty," answered the scribe, bowing low. "Will there be anything else, majesty?"
p "Not now. Get out of here," Zedd growled, and watched with some gratification as the
little creature scuttled away from him in real fear. Yes, he could definitely get used to this. Things
weren't as bad as he thought they might be. He was sure he could trust Rita to properly bungle
things in his absence, and in the meantime, he would be preparing for a return that no one would
ever forget.
pcenter~*~/center
P Explanations over with, Skull sat back and was quiet a while, waiting for all he had told
Kimberly to sink in. She was looking somewhat dazed by it all, and he couldn't blame her - he
didn't believe half of it himself. Still, she had seen the monster and the Dark Falcon, and the
Firebird was here to back up his story, so he hoped she'd be able to absorb it eventually.
P Suddenly, there was a soft sound, and Skull turned to see Cedar stirring and blinking her
amber-colored eyes. She looked up at him in vague confusion.
p "Eugene," she said softly. "What happened? Where am I?"
p "It's a long story," Skull replied, smiling with relief. "But it's all over now, and I'm really
glad you're safe."
p "Bird happy to see you again," Cedar chirped.
P Kimberly watched the two friends hug each other, smiling wistfully. She never would have
guessed, never would have believed that all this was happening if she wasn't seeing it right before
her eyes. Where was the Skull she had known? How had the mindless, cowardly, annoying guy
she had avoided all through high school developed intelligence and courage? It was truly amazing,
and yes, it was hard not to feel a little sorry for what she had missed...
P "bThey're happy together,/b" said the Firebird. "band I am very sorry that I upset
you. Could I possibly have another chance?/b"
p "Forget it!" said Kimberly, drawn out of her reverie. "You don't have a chance."
P "bAll the same,/b" Firebird replied, unwilling to give up, "bat least let me offer a
token of my esteem. Here./b"
p So saying, he inclined his head to pluck a single, shimmering feather from one wing and
handed it to Kimberly. She took it from him in faint amazement, watching its color shift and flash
in fiery tones.
P "Oh. Thanks," she managed. "Not like I need it to remember you by or anything, but...
thanks."
p "Well," said Skull, "I guess it's time for us to be going. I mean, I wasn't even planning on
coming here..."
p "I understand," said Kim. "I guess I need to be going home soon, too. It's getting dark.
Take care of yourself, okay?"
P "I will. You too," Skull replied. "Um... goodbye, I guess."
P "Bye," said Kimberly. She turned and began walking away. Suddenly, she stopped and
turned around. "Hey, Skull! You said you've been in the future, right?"
P "Yeah."
P "Can you answer me a question? Is... is Tommy dating someone else where you came
from?"
p "Yeah. After you sent him that letter, he was bummed for a while, and then he started
seeing Kat," Skull answered innocently.
P *iKatherine,/i* thought Kimberly, surprised that she wasn't more surprised.
*iWell, I did choose her to be my replacement. I couldn't think of anyone who deserves
Tommy more. They have a lot in common... I think they'll be happy. Maybe it's better things do
end like this./i*
P "Thanks, Skull. I'm glad to hear that," she said. "Goodbye, and good luck!"
p And as she turned and walked down the sidewalk toward her home, she felt strangely
happy. Her dilemma seemed to have solved itself, and she was content with the outcome, and glad
to be free of the problem. She hummed a little as she walked, absently twirling the Firebird's
feather between her fingers.
P Skull watched his old friend go with a smile. Then he turned back to Cedar.
P "Ready to go?" he asked.
p "I'm ready," she replied, smiling back at him.
p "All right!" Skull cheered. "Onward to Terra Venture!"