I sure hope that you enjoy this chapter, 'cause that's the last break you're gonna get before hell kicks in full-force.
6. No Fights
"Leave all that BS outside
We're gonna celebrate all night
Let's have fun tonight, no fights"
"Family Affair", Mary J. Blige
"I wonder what are the girls up to", remarked TJ. It was high afternoon, and they've been idling on the beach for several good hours now.
"What do you mean, what are they up to?" asked Andros.
"They are standing together, giggling, glancing in our direction and making sure that we don't hear a word of what they're saying", elaborated Carlos. "It's called a "girl talk" "
"And considering just how much they're glancing at us, they're hatching some sort of crooked plan", said TJ, "It's more than likely that you and Carlos are at the heart of whatever they're up to"
"And why is that?"
"Because it's our girls" replied Carlos.
"Our girls?"
"I thought you and Ashley got passed denying your mutual feelings?" asked TJ in interest.
Andros blushed scarlet, and in and attempt to change subject, asked: "Where's Zhane?"
"With all those people around, try to remember calling him "Johnny" ", asked TJ quietly, " "Zhane" is clearly a foreign name"
"You didn't try to change my name" retorted Andros.
"That's because it's not so foreign. People just assume it's some Norse variation on "Andrew" or something"
"And he's at the ice cream parlor", volunteered Carlos, "Talking to that blonde"
Andros lifted himself on his elbow. "What blonde?"
"Never saw her before", answered TJ, "She waved to him before, and he blushed considerably and said he'll be back in a minute. Guess he met her before"
Andros stared at Zhane's new friend. "Kind of familiar, isn't she?"
"I agree with TJ, I've never seen her before" said Carlos.
"Come on", said Andros, getting up. "Let's go"
"Oh, no, they're coming our way", said Zhane, looking behind Astronema's shoulder.
"Just remember to call me Tracy, and there shouldn't be a problem", replied Astronema lightly.
"You're really not supposed to be here. If any of them recognizes you…"
"You hardly recognized me, when you first saw me like this", she pointed out logically, "I doubt they will. Now smile, or they'll suspect something"
"You have an evil mind, Cassie!" blamed Ashley.
"I'm surprised neither of you thought of this, those are your boyfriends after all"
"Andros is not my boyfriend!" protested Ashley, blushing.
"Of course he isn't", said Shiera sweetly, "That's why he was the first on your side when I shot you on that first battle"
Ashley blushed even more.
"Don't talk about business matters in public, Shiera", said Cassie quickly. "What's your excuse?"
"How am I supposed to know what to do with friends, if I haven't had any for almost five years now?"
"You what?" asked Ashley, "Why?"
"Martial arts was my life", shrugged Shiera, "I didn't have time for making friends"
"You've got friends now" said Cassie firmly. "Now, back to our plan… Hey, where are the guys?"
"They went for ice cream", said Shiera, "I saw them getting up and walking to the ice cream parlor"
"Let's fetch them"
"Hi, Johnny!" called TJ as they entered the air-conditioned parlor.
"We've been looking for you, buddy", continued Carlos.
"Won't you introduce us to your pretty friend?", asked Andros, casually sliding to the sit next to Zhane. Carlos and TJ remained standing.
"I'm Tracy", said the girl sitting across from Zhane. She had sweet face, brown-green eyes, and her light blonde hair was chin-length. She was wearing a violet blouse that was tied behind her neck, exposing most of her back, jeans shorts and beach sandals.
"We met at the park the other day", added Zhane hastily, "Tracy, these are my friends, Andros, TJ and Carlos"
"Glad to meet you", said Tracy, smiling lightly.
"Glad to meet you too", replied Carlos.
"So, are you new in Angel Grove?" asked TJ casually.
"Actually, I'm living here for almost a year now"
"It's just that I don't remember seeing you around in the school or anything", apologized TJ.
"Oh, my dad has me home-schooled"
"Good for you", said Carlos.
"Oh, I don't know", she answered, pulling her shoulders, "I hardly get to meet people"
"You met me!" said Zhane.
"That's because you ditched school, silly boy!" she leaned forward, laughing, and slapped his hand lightly.
"Aren't you happy that I did?" he retorted, holding her pale, long-fingered hand between his callused ones.
Carlos, spotting the look on TJ's face, snorted and clapped him on the back. "We need to set you up, bro!"
"Say that near the girls and you're a dead man!" threatened TJ.
Tracy giggled. She was pulling the act so well, Zhane relaxed a little. Only to spot a new danger cruising in.
"Oh". Shiera made a sudden movement, as if to turn back from the ice cream parlor.
"What's wrong?" asked Ashley.
"No, it's nothing, it's just that… I didn't realize the guys had someone with them, that's all"
"Lord, you're shy", said Cassie, "She's just a girl"
"So I'm shy". Shiera pushed the glass door. "Shall we?"
"Hi everyone", said Cassie. "We've been looking for you"
"Well, you found us", answered Andros.
"They're your friends too, Johnny?" asked the pretty blonde sitting across from Zhane.
"Yeah. Guys, this is Tracy. Tracy, those are Ashley, Cassie and Shiera"
The girls did their "Hi"s, and then Ashley went down to business.
"Anybody for volleyball?" she asked.
"Sure, why not?" answered Andros, "Right guys?". He totally missed the mischievous glint in Ashley eyes, Cassie's thin feline smile, and the way Shiera pursed her lips, holding back laughter.
Zhane, who was relieved that Shiera apparently didn't recognize "Tracy", was just as oblivious. "Sure", he agreed.
Carlos and TJ had no choice but to agree.
Cassie, watching the way Zhane and Tracy ogled each other, was struck with sudden inspiration.
"Why don't you join us, Tracy? We need an even number of players"
"I'd love to, but I never played volleyball"
"It's easy enough, we'll explain it to you"
"Great, thanks"
"How do we split into teams?" asked TJ, and received precisely the answer her feared.
"We're playing boys against girls", said Cassie, "And you're playing with no shirts on"
"No, we're not!" protested Carlos.
"Yes, you are", stated Shiera simply.
That settled it.
The theft of the Crystal tortured Darkonda, and not only because it was a priceless, rare and enchanted gem. The identity of the thief was the thing that troubled his mind. Nobody knew that he possessed the Crystal: he swore to Dark Specter himself that he, Darkonda, had the Crystal destroyed, as the monarch of all Evil considered the gem too dangerous to preserve. There was only one person Darkonda could think of who might suspect that Darkonda lied; and it was highly unlikely that that person stole the gem himself, or sent someone else to do the job for him. It simply wasn't his style. And so Darkonda was forced to the inevitable conclusion that someone discovered how he came upon the Crystal. It was the second-worst news Darkonda could think of.
"The first, for my planet"
This time, Darkonda wasn't even surprised at the blow from behind, and managed to break his fall.
"The second, for my people"
He didn't get a chance to get up though, as the kick in his ribs came to quickly.
"The third, for Karone"
It was some sort of energy ball this time, and it tore Darkonda from the inside. A gloved hand lifted him easily, and finally he saw his attacker. He gasped.
"The fourth, for Andros"
And the sword went through him once again.
"Hi", said Andros when he came into the mess, a considerable while later.
"Hi", answered TJ without lifting his eyes from the chessboard. Carlos didn't even bother that much, and grunted rather than spoke.
Andros set next to the two players.
"Who's winning?" he asked.
"TJ is flattening me, as usual", said Carlos, pushing the board away from him, "And I've had enough of it"
TJ looked downcast.
"We're in mid-game!"
"Even I can see the "check" you're holding up your sleeve"
"Here, I'll play", suggested Andros. He and Carlos switched places. TJ rearranged the board.
"By the way, where's Zhane?" asked Carlos.
"In his room, I guess. Ashley and Cassie teased him something awful about keeping Tracy a secret"
"But the girls aren't on board now, aren't they?"
"They went shopping", answered TJ.
"Don't they do that a lot?" asked Andros.
"It's "the girls' way", as Ashley once put it", said TJ.
"I can't imagine Shiera on a shopping spree", said Carlos.
"She had a pained expression on her face, as far as I recall, so the others probably dragged her along"
"I'm glad we took the day off", admitted Andros, "I needed the down-time"
"Did you just admit to needing free time?" said Carlos in mocked astonishment.
"I'm only human", said Andros pointedly.
"Don't push our luck", warned TJ. "The fact that we didn't have Quantrones, monsters or Ecliptor attacking us so far doesn't mean we won't have to fight them before the day is over"
"Take those words back, now!"
"Since when are you guys superstitious?" asked Andros.
"Since this is the first non-eventful day we had since… Well, since Carlos made up that History exam" retorted TJ.
"That would be the day Shiera was kidnapped", winced Carlos at the memory. "This, and the day the Power Chamber was destroyed, are the worst days of my life"
"It was only a week ago", said Andros.
"So I only know Shiera was two weeks? It feels like forever"
"I can understand", replied Andros with a smile.
"Can't you at least pretend you're happy for us, TJ?" teased Carlos.
"I'm happy for you alright. It's just that whenever you start talking like that I feel a little left out. Now I don't even have Zhane for an ally"
"Cassie is single too, and she doesn't seem to mind so much", noted Andros.
"She at least gets to boss Ashley and Shiera around, and she's a better actress than I am"
"Don't worry, we won't try to set you two together", promised Carlos.
"You'd better", growled TJ. "Andros, are we playing chess here or not?"
"We are"
"I'll go catch up on sleep hours", said Carlos, getting up, "Have fun"
"Hi, I thought we said no cooking today", said Carlos when he went into the kitchen, some hours later, to find Ashley making herself coffee. "At least let me make you normal coffee instead of this instant sewage"
"I only want it for the caffeine, I've got a headache" she said, but retreated and allowed him to take over. "Speaking of no cooking, what are you doing in the kitchen?"
"DECA said you're here. Andros and TJ are playing chess, and Zhane is still asleep. Did you girls have fun shopping?"
"Cassie tried to give Shiera a make-over, and Shiera nearly knocked her off in the middle of the mall"
"I thought you were the fashion-prone Ranger?"
She smacked him lightly. "I'm not thick enough to mess with your girlfriend! I'm still a little scared of her"
"You know she only targeted you because she was – well, angry on my behalf and enspelled"
"Evil or not, she's frankly dangerous"
"I won't deny that. So, how did Cassie make it without getting hit over the head?"
"She kept her good spirit. Apparently Shiera can't handle it when people are nice to her"
"I might have known. She's not used to having friends"
"So we heard"
"So Cassie got the better of her?"
"You wait and see. Is my coffee going to be ready in the next century or so?"
"Where are they?" asked Andros impatiently. "We scheduled at "Surf Spot" at 19:30 sharp". The four male Rangers were sitting at their regular table at their favorite hangout.
"Probably making themselves pretty for the occasion" said Zhane, "They'll be here any minute"
A group of guys standing by the entrance begun whistling and cheering. TJ looked up. "They're here", he said, "And Zhane was dead right"
The girls definitely pulled some efforts. Cassie was leading the pack, wearing a shocking pink mini skirt, a white blouse tied below her breasts and high-heeled pink strap sandals. Ashley was just as pretty in a fluttering yellow summer dress with butterflies printed on it and her hair arranged elegantly. Shiera was third.
" "Dead Right" is the understatement of the year", said Carlos.
Cassie definitely got the upper hand with the green Ranger. The waistline of the camouflage pants was lower than Shiera's usual style, the black top more revealing. The self-consciousness in her body language only made her more attractive.
Then came the forth girl, and Zhane choked on his coke.
"They arranged for Tracy to meet us here back when we were at the beach, didn't you know that?" asked Andros, grinning.
Tracy was wearing a buttoned mauve shirt and cobalt-blue pants, both of which form-fitting. Zhane's ears were burning.
"We'll deal with you later" TJ told Andros
"You weren't on this with them?" asked Zhane.
"I'm even more set up than you are, bro. In case you haven't noticed, I'm trapped with a triple date!"
"Nice pun" observed Carlos.
"Bringing her wasn't my idea!" said Andros defensively.
"You're still a gonner, buddy"
Next time: "You… No…"
(The next chapter has more than its share of possible teaser lines. Naturally, I chose the most mysterious one)
