The Offer of a Lifetime
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Disclaimer: Too tired to think of a witty disclaimer. All you need to know is that I don't own power rangers, or any of the characters in this story.
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A/N: This is an idea I had a while ago. Someone mentioned Lothor, and why he wasn't involved in with Dark Spectre. This is my lame attempt at filling in the gap. I'm not satisfied with it, but it's been hanging around on my computer for months without any more work being done on it, so it's as ready as it's ever going to be. As always, constructive criticism and advice welcome.
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"Lothor, I presume."
The languid drawl held implicit threat.
Lothor slowed and stopped. Marah and Kapri tried to edge closer to him without appearing to do so.
A beautiful woman was leaning casually against the front gate to their house. Her lithe body was encased in gleaming armor and black leather. A Wrath Staff was grasped loosely in one hand, it's wickedly sharp tip gleaming in the sun.
Marah couldn't wrench her eyes away. She'd heard of the deadly weapon. It was famous; the only one of it's kind in the galaxy. And only one person would dare wield it;
Astronema, Princess of Darkness.
No imposter would dare lay a finger on a similar weapon, for fear it would draw the princess' wrath down on them. She was cruel and vindictive, they said, but as cold as a snake. She did not let anger or pride – indeed, any petty emotion – govern her actions. She planned every manouver, every strike, every squirmish.
She never forgot an ill-turn, just as she never forgot a favour. Some warlords treated those that served them just as ill as the enemies they vanquished. Not Astronema. She was fair, even generous, with her followers. And because of that, they adored her almost as much as they feared her.
In short, she was a warlord of a kind almost extinct.
Astronema pushed off from the gate and stretched, cat-like, watching them beneath placid, half-lidded eyes.
"Well, I must say, I'm a little disappointed," she said. "I thought you'd be a little taller."
There was no discernable expression on Lothor's face.
"Let me see…" His eyes raked up and down her form. "Bad hair, dressed like a two-bit tramp… Divatox, right?"
The smile vanished from from Astronema's face. She glared at Lothor, her eyes blazing with fury. Her knuckles whitened where she grasped the Wrath Staff. For a moment, Marah was sure that they were all going to be blasted into oblivion.
Then the Princess relaxed.
"Well you have courage," she purred. "I'll give you that. Not many people would dare insult the Princess of Evil – not unless they had a death-wish."
Her voice went soft and silky on the last words, but Lothor just smiled sardonically, as if he knew something she didn't.
"Why are you here?" He asked bluntly. "I got the impression that our little planet was no longer of any interest to you."
Astronema shook her head.
"Quite frankly, it's not. After that last attack, everything of value was destroyed."
Her gaze fell on Marah and Kapri, and sharpened with interest.
"Well, almost everything."
Marah's heart pounded as Astronema smiled at her.
"Are these your offspring?" She asked. She sounded almost friendly.
Lothor blinked as if just noticing the two girls for the first time.
"My nieces," he said dismissively.
Astronema's gaze went from Marah to Kapri.
"Indeed," she said softly.
She walked forward. Marah stiffened in fright, and looked to her uncle for help, but Lothor seemed utterly disinterested. He watched Astronema with a bleak look in his eyes.
Astronema cupped Kapri's chin, forcing her to look up.
"Such a pretty child," she murmured. "And with such power."
Marah stared fixedly at the pavement, hoping against hope that Astronema would pass over her.
Long fingernails grasped her chin, tilting her head back. She closed her eyes. A throaty chuckle made them pop open again. Astronema was gazing at her thoughtfully. She had a lovely face, Marah realized, underneath the make-up and purple hair. She smelt nice, like some exotic perfume.
"This one has potential too," she murmured.
She looked over the girls' heads to their uncle.
"I'll give you five-thousand credits a-piece for them."
Marah felt her heart skip a beat. The Princess of Evil had just offered to buy them. She reached out and grabbed Kapri's hand. For once Kapri didn't eschew the gesture. She squeezed back just as hard.
"Much as I'd like to be rid of them," Lothor said with dark humor. "They're not mine to sell."
Astronema shrugged.
"Pity."
Marah breathed a sigh of relief as the Princess moved away. She should have known that Uncle Lothor would protect them, that he wouldn't let anything bad happen to them. She shouldn't have been so silly as to doubt him.
"I doubt you're hear to haggle over slave-prices," Lothor said dryly. "So I'll ask again – why are you here?"
Astronema smiled, and there was a cruel edge to it.
"I'm here to make you the offer of a lifetime."
Each word was drawled out between venomous purple lips, making sure that he marked the importance of what she was saying. She sauntered forward, eyes never shifting from Lothor's cold face.
"Your work has drawn the attention of Dark Spectre. You're a cold, calculating bastard with a sadistic edge and a lot of raw power."
She smirked.
"He likes that combination. So today, you are being offered the opportunity to join the United Alliance of Evil."
The silence following that statement was deafening. Even Marah, at twelve years old, could understand that something momentous had just happened. Lothor, however, merely looked bored.
"I'm afraid I will have to decline," he said.
"Think about it, Lothor," Astronema said. There was suddenly a hard, ugly edge to her voice. "My master doesn't make the same offer twice."
"Your master can't offer me anything of meaning."
"Nothing of meaning!" Astronema looked outraged – and baffled. "We're offering power. We're offering wealth beyond your wildest dreams. The fear and respect of the entire galaxy! What else is there?"
"Can he turn back time?"
Lothor's unexpected question caused a flicker of uncertainty to cross Astronema's face.
"Can he turn back time and call off the attacks that killed the one person who meant anything to me? The one person who made this miserable existance worthwhile?"
Beneath his scorn, there was a desperate hope.
Astronema stared back at him. She seemed to be at a loss at how to deal with it, which Marah didn't understand. The Princess of Evil handled attacks on planets, the extermination of entire races, and bloody executions. Why should she be so stumped by the grief of one man?
"That's beyond his power," Astronema said at last.
Lothor's expression closed over, until there was nothing but icy cold rage.
"Then we have nothing more to say to one another."
He strode past her and unlocked the gate. Marah and Kapri scurried under his arm into the relative safey of the garden.
As Lothor started to close the gate, Astronema slapped a hand against the bars, arresting the motion.
"I do hope," she purred. "That you wouldn't be so foolish as to act against my Master."
Her stance had changed. There was a coiled tension in the way she watched Lothor with narrowed eyes: a hint of readiness. The Wrath Staff was pointed loosely at him.
Lothor's lips twisted in a bleak, humourless smile.
"If I could," he said. "If I stood the smallest chance of destroying Dark Spectre, I would take it. But you and I both know that's not going to happen. I'm less than a mosquito buzzing about his head. I'm nothing."
Astronema's gaze flicked momentarily to the two young girls standing inside the garden, watching the exchange with wide eyes.
"True."
She withdrew the Wrath Staff and stepped back.
"If you ever change your mind about joining us…"
"I doubt it."
He shut the gate with a resounding clang, and strode up the path to the house.
Marah and Kapri lingered a moment longer, staring at the woman through the bars. She looked down at them, and for a moment, the cold, impersonal mask slipped.
"Who was it?" She asked, and if Marah didn't know better, she'd say the woman actually cared.
"Our aunt," she said softly.
"His wife." Kapri's voice was sharper, and held an unvoiced note of accusation.
Astronema hesitated, then spoke;
"I'm sorry." The words sounded awkward, as if she were speaking them for the very first time. It was quite likely she was too. "I know what it is to lose someone."
Kapri make a small sound of anger, which Marah understood. It had been Astronema's forces that decimated their planet. She was at least partly responsible for their aunt's death.
But when Marah stared up at the woman who, until a few moments ago, had been the most frightening creature in the universe, she couldn't summon up any anger. Suddenly the black leather and purple hair looked out of place. She was just a young girl, not much older than them.
Marah nodded, acknowledging the words. She could have imagined it, but she thought she saw relief in Astronema's face.
Then Kapri tightened her grip on her sister's hand, and dragged her up the path. When Marah looked back, Astronema was gone.