Disclaimer: Not mine, please don't sue me, I have no money anyway.

GreenDayfan1: You'll find out what Aria's secret is, but not until I want you to. : )

Juzblue: I'll take that as a compliment. : )

Jenny: :applauds: Yay, you got it right. Ravenna is Ravenna. : ) No, not Karone, not Kim, not their mother, and not Andros' mother. No offense, but you're much better at guessing what my story is going to be about than you are at guessing people's secret identities.

Ashley Hammond/Astro Yellow: :grins nervously: Wow, if this how you react when you don't know, I'll be very glad that you don't know where I live when I put up the chapter where you find out. : ) Not that you scare me or anything . . . You seem like a very rational person, and there's no reason at all why you would want to kill me. (I think I'll stop now.)

Chapter 17:

Angel Grove

The warehouse was in an abandoned area of Angel Grove, and it allowed Ravenna to wander aimlessly around before the rangers or Astronema arrived. She tried not to dwell on the dangers of having Astronema come face-to-face with the red ranger, but she was counting on the fact that Astronema knew in her heart that she was Karone, and also hoping that her feelings for the silver ranger were deep enough that she wouldn't attack his best friend in front of him.

"Ravenna!"

She froze, nearly panicking before recovering. This was someone that she hadn't counted on, but she could play him as well as she was playing the others.

"Lord Darkonda," she said smoothly. "I wasn't expecting you."

"Why are you allowing the princess of evil to communicate with her brother?" he demanded. "She cannot know who she is!"

"She already does," Ravenna said coldly. "No matter what pains you have taken to hide her true identity from her, she knows who she is. This meeting is simply a test of her loyalty and devotion to Dark Specter and his cause. If she stands with the rangers, then you are no worse off than you are now. If she chooses darkness of her own free will, then you have gained a true ally, and not a puppet."

"And if she does not choose?" Darkonda growled.

"She will be forced to, sooner or later," Ravenna said.

"And the others?" Darkonda demanded. "Her other siblings? What progress have you made in finding them?"

"Who else survived?" Ravenna hissed. "What have you been keeping from me?"

"Everything that you don't need to know," Darkonda snapped. "Which is much."

"Ravenna?" a distant voice called.

"The red ranger," Ravenna told Darkonda, who nodded.

"I am watching you," he warned her.

"And I'm watching you," she muttered under her breath as he teleported himself away.

Sighing with relief, she turned to face the rangers.

"So the red and silver rangers have arrived," she said, beckoning them inside the warehouse. "That just leaves one."

"What are you talking about?" Andros asked her. "One what?"

Ravenna rolled her eyes. The red ranger, while an undisputably effective leader, was lacking the intelligence of his team members.

"One more person," she said patiently. "And I can wait all day."

"Ravenna," Zhane sighed. "Please?"

"All right," Ravenna said. "We're waiting for Astronema."

"We're what?" Andros and Zhane said together.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Zhane asked, failing to hide his anxiety. "I mean, she's our sworn enemy."

"The lines seemed to have been blurred recently," Ravenna said sweetly. "Need I say more?"

"No, I think you've said enough," Zhane assured her.

Andros wandered over to the door, glancing around anxiously for his sister. When Andros wasn't in earshot, Ravenna hissed at him, "You are so lucky that he's an idiot."

"I know," Zhane admitted.

"Have you considered telling him that you love his sister?" she asked.

"I've considered it," Zhane replied. "But none of the scenarios end well."

"Not for you," Ravenna murmured quietly, as Andros turned back towards them. "But have you considered all the people who depend on you for their amusement?"

"You are not a nice person," Zhane informed her.

"I don't have to be," Ravenna said. "That's what's great about being me."

"The only thing?" Zhane couldn't help asking.

"I don't like the lies much," Ravenna said softly. "Actually, I have no problem with the lying, only with who I'm lying to."

She stopped talking, realizing that she was about to give herself away.

"I see her," Andros announced.

"Get away from the door," Ravenna commanded, striding over to where he was standing. "I am not in the mood to stop a fight."

"Why are they here?" Astronema demanded the instant that she stepped through the doorway.

"Because they need to be," Ravenna said sharply. "I only want to go through all of this once."

"All of what?" Andros and Astronema demanded together.

"What do you know?" Andros added.

"Sit, all of you," Ravenna ordered.

There were enough overturned crates to serve as chairs for all of them.

"You all know by now that Amara and Jadon are alive," she said. "They are here on Earth."

"What?" Astronema said. "Earth?"

"Earth," Ravenna repeated. "Darkonda managed to find them, but he lost them again. My, uh, consultant and I theorized that Darkonda's mind had been manipulated to forget their specific energy."

"How is that even possible?" Andros demanded. "I thought the only way to block telepathy was to-"

"They're not blocking telepathy," Zhane pointed out. "They're making him forget."

"Correct," Ravenna said. "Except I think it is safe to assume that they are not the ones doing the manipulating."

"Then who is?" all three asked together.

"If you keep doing this, I'll never get to the end," Ravenna said.

"What end?" Astronema asked.

"I know for a fact that Darkonda has been keeping information from me," Ravenna said. "And that makes me think that he does in fact know exactly who he's looking for, and exactly where to find them."

"Then why bother hiring you?" Andros demanded. "I think he'd rather kill us himself."

"I have never taken an innocent life, Red Ranger," Ravenna said coldly. "And as for why he doesn't come after you himself, I think he's waiting."

"For what?"

She sighed. "This is only a guess, but I think Amara and Jadon are not easy to capture. His plan is to have me lead you to them, and then use your loyalty to them as a way to capture both them and you."

"How long has he known that they were on Earth?" Andros asked, beginning to feel hopeful. If he hadn't found them by now. . .

"Six months, I think," Ravenna said. "Or close to it."

"I have to go," Astronema said abruptly. "I need to think."

"Wait," Ravenna said. "Karone."

"What did you call me?"

"Karone," Ravenna said. "You know who you are. You have to make some choices now, choices that I will not attempt to influence you in. But can I trust you not to tell Darkonda?"

"Yes," Astronema said. "I wouldn't trust Darkonda with the smallest bit of information."

She vanished in a purple flame, and Ravenna watched her go, unnerved by the resemblence to fire. It was fitting for Astronema, and for show only, but she was relieved when it was gone.

Fire . . .

"Oh my god," she breathed, standing up abruptly, her skin turning cold. Without another word, she turned and ran out of the warehouse.

"Darkonda!" she shouted. "I know you're here! Answer me!"

The only response that she received was silence.