Disclaimer: No I do not own anything Power Ranger related, but I do own this story line, title, and any and all original characters.
Spoilers: Set a few weeks after Beginnings 2.
Author's Note: I have only seen two episodes so far of Power Rangers SPD, so I'm sorry if any of my facts are incorrect. Feel free to correct me if you see anything wrong with this story.
Living In Your Shadow
Chapter One
Shadow pulled her hair back into ponytail, securing it with a white scrunchie, before zipping up her jacket to ward off the early fall chill that was in the air. The streets and sidewalks were teeming with people going home after a long day at work. She moved among them swiftly, holding her guitar case tightly in her hand. She had just finished performing in the park, where she had earned a decent five hundred bucks. Money was down from the past few weeks, but then of course not many people were up to dishing out their hard earned money to a street performer, not with the threat of Earth's destruction looming over them. In the past few weeks attacks on Earth had become more and more frequent as the villain the SPD were calling Grumm, tried to take over the world.
Turning the corner, Shadow headed into one of the more respected parts of town. One of the neighborhoods were the rich and successful lived. She made her way down the sidewalk, which had become considerably less crowded as soon as she entered the neighborhood, and stopped in front of a large, historical, white mansion that had been made in the mid 1900's, and was surrounded by a decorative wrought iron fence. Shadow pulled her card-key out of her jacket pocket and held it up for the computer that operated the gate.
"Welcome home Miss Kimberly." the computer said as the gate swung open. Shadow rolled her eyes. Stupid computers were always referring to her by her given name, and not the name which she had adopted for herself.
Named after her great-grandmother, Shadow wanted to set her own identity for herself, and not be judged by who her family was, or what they had done in the past. That's why she'd changed her name.
"Kimmy, is that you?" Her mother's voice floated down the large spiral stairs as Shadow walked inside, her sneakers squeaking across the marble floor. She cringed at the nickname.
"Yes mother," she called back. Her mother's high-heeled shoes clacked against the finely polished wood as she made her way down the stairs.
As usual, her mother was dressed to the letter in a finely made black pant suit with a white blouse and pearls.
"Good, your home." she said, "Your father and I are going out to dinner tonight. Big business function or some such thing. Marnie has the night off, so you're one your own for dinner."
"Fine." The young woman rolled her eyes.
"How many times do I have to tell you Kimmy, a young woman does not roll her eyes, they will get stuck like that." Her mother sighed, exasperated.
"Whatever." Shadow sidled past her mother and made for the stairs.
"Don't tell me you were in that park again." Her mother cried, catching sight of the black guitar case in Shadow's hand. "How many times have your father and I said that you are not allowed there? Do you know the kind of criminals and lowlifes that go to that park?"
"I'm fine mom, I can take care of myself." Shadow quickly hurried up the stairs before her mother could say anything else.
Rubbing his shoulder, Sky Tate made his way into his dorm room at the Space Patrol Delta headquarters. Practice had been tough that day, Captain Cruger had made them spar for hours without a break, and now, Sky was ready to fall into his bed and sleep. The blue SPD Ranger cringed as he pulled his training clothes off and opted into comfortable sleepwear. It hurt to move even the smallest muscle in his body.
A knock sounded on his door. Sky sighed. He didn't want to talk to anybody right now, he just wanted to sleep.
"What?" he called. The door slid open and Jack walked in. Anger surged through Sky's body at the sight of the red Power Ranger.
"What do you want?" he seethed.
"Calm down dude," Jack threw his hands up in front of him, as if to shield himself from Sky's anger, "I was just wondering if you were plannin' on getting some dinner."
"Why do you care?" The older man turned his back on the red Ranger.
"I don't, but the Captain said I should try and be nice to you. Though that's harder said than done. Look, I don't know what your problem is…"
"I was supposed to be the red Ranger," Sky cried, rounding on Jack, "not you!"
"Chill out dude," Jack took a step back, "Captain Cruger gave each Ranger the morpher they were supposed to have."
"No, he didn't." Sky's voice was low and menacing, "Being the red Ranger was my dream, not yours. And I am the one who possess the leadership that the red Power Ranger should have."
"You don't lead people dude, you order them around, that's not what a leader does."
"And I suppose that you know everything that a leader does."
"No I don't, but I'm willing to learn. Unlike some people who think they have all the answers." With that said, Jack spun on his heel and marched out of the room.
Her parents had just left, after leaving strict instructions for her not to leave the house, and now Shadow was alone in the large mansion. She picked up her guitar and plunked herself down on her bed, Indian style. Gently strumming the strings, she thought about her life.
There she was, eighteen and still living at home. She could move out if she wanted to, the money she earned performing in the park was more than enough to live on, but her parents kept her under close watch, afraid that they would lose her if they didn't. In fact, Shadow was surprised that they let Marnie - the housekeeper and Shadow's former nanny - off when they knew they weren't going to be home.
Shadow loved her parents, truly she did, but they were way over protective of her. They said it was because she was their only child, but Shadow knew it was for different reasons. She was the last of their bloodline, and they didn't want to risk losing her for fear of losing that fame. For their bloodline was special, so very special that people were in awe of the family when they told them who they were. It was their ancestry that had helped Shadow's father to grow so wealthy and prosperous. There was no way they would let that die.
She sighed and placed the guitar down on the light pink comforter. It was beginning to get dark out, the sun was slowly inching down towards the horizon. She glanced at her watch quickly and gasped. She was late. Springing off the bed, Shadow grabbed her jacket, ran out of her bedroom, down the stairs, and out the door.
The sun had disappeared completely by the time Shadow made her way down the paved path that led through the park. It was eerily quiet there, everybody had abandoned the area to return to their homes, but still a few huddled figures remained. The homeless and the refugees, all of them aliens from other planets and galaxies. They had never bothered Shadow before, and she knew it was useless to fear them. She wound her way through the deserted park to the fountain that claimed the center of it. Nobody was around, perhaps they had left before she got there, fed up with waiting for her. No, in the shadows, she could dimly make out a figure. Tall, with broad shoulders. There was no mistaking this person as a refugee, even though he was dressed as one.
"You are late." A voice spoke from the darkness.
"Sorry," Shadow said, rolling her eyes just slightly, "but you should know by now that I'm not exactly the most prompt of people."
"No," the figure said, "you are not. Now let's get down to business. I want three thousand space credits for the whole lot of it."
"Three thousand," Shadow cried in dismay, "that's robbery and you know it. The shipment can hardly be worth three hundred."
"Do you want it or not?" the voice was harsh and impatient. Before Shadow could answer, however, five figures surrounded her and her comrade.
"Freeze, you're under arrest." Commanded one of the figures. Shadow glanced around at the other four. Space Patrol, the lot of them, she could make out their cadet uniforms even in the dark.
She frowned and shifted her gaze over them all, sizing them up in case of a fight. Her comrade whirled about in circles, fear pouring off him so thick Shadow could smell it. If it came to a fight, he would flee and leave her to do all the work.
"I don't think so." Shadow leered at the one who had spoken.
"Then you leave us no choice." the same cadet spoke again. He held out his arm, the dim light of a distant street lamp catching on the silver badge. The badge flicked open. Shadow 's frown deepened. It was a justice meter, one of those things that stated whether or not a person was guilty of a crime or not. She calmed her breathing, and tried to slow her heart's rapid beating. They wouldn't take her, not if she had anything to do with it. It showed guilty. She cursed under her breath.
"You're under arrest." The Ranger's voice held a trace of wicked amusement. Shadow arched an eyebrow and smirked.
"You'll have to catch me first." She said, jumping up and doing a back flip over the head of the cadet that was behind her. She kicked him in the back as she landed, sending him flying into one of his teammates, which caused them both to fall. She took off at a sprint into the dark park. She knew the layout of the place like the back of her own hand, and could easily move through it in the dark. They would be hard pressed to catch her as she weaved in and out of the benches, flower beds, statues, and trees that littered the park.
Nearly winded, Shadow paused and leaned her back against a tree as she caught her breath. A hand clamped on her arm in a vice-like grip.
"Gotcha." The cadet said. Shadow's eyes flashed. She grabbed his wrist pulled him off her arm and flipped him. He landed on his back with a grunt. Another pair of hands grabbed her shoulders and whirled her around. The cadet she now faced blended in with the dark. She frowned and brought her knee up to his stomach. He caught her leg, causing Shadow to lose her balance and fall. Quickly, she launched herself back onto her feet and took a fighting stance. If it was a fight they wanted, a fight they would get.
The five figures stood in front of her in a perfect line. A street lamp turned on behind Shadow, casting light over the five cadets. There were three men and two women, none of them looked much older than Shadow.
One of the men stepped forward. His black uniform had a blue badge in the upper right hand corner.
"You're under arrest," he said. The voice was that of the cadet that had first spoken. There was a pompous air about him, as if he thought himself better than Shadow.
"I thought we already tried this dude," Shadow smirked, "if you wanna arrest me, you're gonna have to do it by force."
He made a move to step forward, but one of the men behind him laid a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't do anything stupid Sky." the man said. The cadet scowled, and pushed the hand off him roughly.
"Don't tell me what to do, Jack." He seethed.
Shadow watched them intently. There was a rift between them, one that she could work to her advantage. She shifted her stance slowly, so that nobody would notice what she was doing.
Tension and anger rippled through Sky, wafting off him like a foul stench. Shadow fought back the evil grin that threatened to show on her face. She knew exactly how she would strike, as long as the other cadets didn't get in her way.
The angry cadet took a step forward. Shadow tensed, awaiting the fight that was sure to happen. Adrenaline pumped in her veins, sending her heart racing and causing her breathing to come more harshly. A good fight was just what she needed that night, and she was certain she was going to get it.
"Sky," the other man's tone was commanding. Sky scowled, but stayed where he was. Obviously he had some sense of loyalty and knew who his commanding officer was, even if he didn't want to follow his rules. Shadow would have to change that.
"You really gonna let him order you about?" She asked, one eyebrow cocked. She had delivered a striking blow to his ego and pride, she could sense it. His body grew rigid, his eyes burning with hatred. Whether the anger was towards her or the man who still stood behind him, Shadow did not know.
"Come on," she continued, "a big tough guy like you doesn't need to follow orders. You wanna fight me, then fight me."
With a growl, the man pounced on her. Shadow easily used his momentum to throw him over her shoulder. He landed on his back, hard, but he sprang right back up onto his feet and came at her again. Shadow shifted her weight to her left leg, and kicked out with her right. Her foot connected with his abdomen and he groaned, taking a few steps back and trying to catch his breath.
"And here I thought Delta cadets would be more of a challenge." Shadow mocked as he stood upright. There was a flash in his eyes and, before Shadow knew what was happening, he stood before her in full Power Ranger morph. She gulped, knowing that she was in for more of a fight than she had bargained for.
Ooh, a nice cliffhanger to start the first chapter out with. I don't know very much about POWER RANGERS SPD yet, and so some stuff may be made up (like the space credits). Anyway, please review and tell me what you all thought of this chapter and whether or not I should continue.
PS. I am going to take a poll, which Ranger would you like to see Shadow pair off with - Sky or Jack (I'm not including Bridge in the poll 'cause I'm going to pair him with Z)? Each person is allowed one vote per chapter and you can say who you want her with in your review.
