Disclaimer: Mystic Force is the property of Disney and Buena Vista, not me. This might have some violence later, still aren't sure how much.
Like Sands in the Hourglass
by Machiro-el
It was a routine day for the Mystic Force Rangers. The store was going fine, and it seemed crowded even without any customers to bother the employees there.
That lack of bothering didn't run both ways, however, as Xander Bly happily sought out the female populace.
Vida made a face at Xander's back. Not that she wasn't glad at his attempt to lure the customers in - after all, she had a vested interest in having a job and making money - but she really wanted to be left alone and or fussed over. Maybe both at the same time. Her sister, Madison, only younger by a few minutes, was too busy rearranging the CDs to notice.
As if in response to her unseen glare, Xander sprang back towards her, triumphantly clutching a scrap of paper. "Success. As you can see, I've netted Brianne's phone number. I believe I've heard the last of your allegations my charm was better... what was it again?"
"Better suited for a five year old's plastic bracelet," Vida snapped back.
"Right," Xander said breezily. "Anyway, I'm going to call her when I get off shift."
"She'll probably have forgotten you by then," Vida snapped, secretly hoping that Xander had gotten a "rejection line" phone number.
Madison wiped her brow and glared at her sister and friend. "If you both are through, I think Chip and Nick could use some help in the stock room. I'll cover the floor."
"By yourself?" Xander asked before fluffing his collar for effect.
"I think I can handle the store for a half an hour," Madison said, hoping for the store to remain quiet so she could get a bit of peace. She didn't want to complain about things - that was Vida's provence - but she could use with some nice and quiet.
"You sure, luv? You know Xander's always here to make it easier for a lady." he said with a smile.
Vida stepped between her sister and Xander. "We're going to the stock room. Now."
"Great! Can I call what's her name now?"
Vida dragged him by selfsame collar into the back, muttering about how the girl was still in the store.
Madison turned gave her sister a grateful smile that neither her sister or her co-worker could see. "Could I help you?"
"Yeah, I'll have a cheeseburger and a large Sprite," a disheveled young man said, staring into space.
"I think you're in the wrong store," Madison said gently, still smiling. It wasn't the first time the store had been mistaken for something else, though usually for a junk shop, an antique shop, or a pawn shop - not a food store.
"Huh? Oh." He slunk off a few feet before collapsing in a heap between two display cases. Madison brushed through the crowd and checked his vitals, pleased to find a strong pulse. She wondered if he was incapacitated due to drug abuse.
She immediately regretted being the only one at the front of the store, though the others pushed out of the back as if summoned. She looked to her older sister frantically.
The prone body of the young man began to twitch and convulse before Madison could get a word out. Electrical energy arced across his chest, and in a flash he collapsed back to the floor looking almost twenty years older.
Madison drew back, the others fighting their way to her side. She looked at Vida, horrified, knowing that this was not something that the hospital could manage. She also hoped she wouldn't be required to describe what had happened, or why weird things seemed to congregate around the store.
The rest of the customers hung back, avoiding the prone form as if it was a carrier - which for all they knew it could be. Madison herself couldn't even be sure of that, to tell the truth.
"Poor guy probably strayed too close to the woods," Xander said easily. "Don't worry, I'm sure the police or the Power Rangers will be around any second now to take care of this. Maybe we'd better clear out to make it easier for them, huh? If everybody wants to come back tomorrow, make your purchases then..."
But still the crowd hung around, until Madison was tempted to start shooing them out like demented ducklings.
"VACATE!" Xander yelled, dissipating the crowd in a flash.
Madison silently nodded behind him as she crouched next to the form. How would they explain this? How could they explain this? How would they even get out of here with the rumors spreading, and people probably coming back? They could hardly be Rangers if people were looking.
"Close the shutters," Xander said firmly as Chip and Nick scampered off to do as he asked. "Okay, one of us is going to have to take this guy to the proper authorities as a Ranger. The rest of us can hold the fort here."
"And how do we explain where this guy went that he ended up in Ranger custody?" Vida asked.
"Hey, the Power Rangers know everything!" Xander said, puffing his chest out. "I bet they just showed up at our back door!"
Chip snapped his fingers, dashing into the back room and morphing. "I'm going to go do that just so we have some plausible deniability. I'll be back!"
"Chip!" Nick yelled.
"It's a short trip back from Rootcore!"
The other Ranger dashed off a salute and disappeared. Nick stared after him. "Great."
Madison sighed. "We're not getting much accomplished as a team, are we?"
Xander twitched, ignoring Madison. "Right. Let's just sit around until Chip gets back. That's great."
Madison took the prone man's temperature, disturbed by how long it had been since her emergency training and how this was no longer second nature to her.
"So, how is he?" Vida asked impatiently.
"Slightly elevated temp. BP seems high. Really high, actually. Like he just ran a minute mile."
Nick considered that. "Or like he was just aged twenty years?"
Madison looked at him in confusion. "I'd, um, expect more hair and nail growth, then."
Vida tried to consider how the guy would look if that would happen. With the hair, anyway. "When Chip gets back, we'll just nail the bastard that got this guy."
Nick shrugged. "You guys said there's some weird crap going on in Briarwood. Maybe nothing happened to him. Maybe he fell in a giant sinkhole and it sucked the life out of him."
"Briarwood's weird, but not that weird," Xander said casually.
A thunderous boom came from the back door. "I was in the neighborhood -- does anyone need a superhero in here!" Chip yelled at an ear-shattering decibel.
Vida winced at the noise. "Just get in here," she muttered, "before the Power Rangers get written up on the city noise ordinance."
The Yellow Ranger bounded inside, and tossed the discombobulated man over his shoulder. "Come on, Udonna and Clare have got the whole place set up to treat him. There's cloves and crap. It's awesome!"
"Right," Vida muttered.
"We can't come on, Chip," Madison explained slowly. "We have to reopen the store, remember? Toby will get suspicious if we all bolt off."
Xander looked around and rubbed his hands. "Well, I can do that.
Nick shook his head. "You go, I'll stay here."
"You sure, boss-man?" Xander asked.
"Totally." Nick assured him. "Just keep me appraised on how he's doing, and what did it."
"Right," Xander said, heading back towards the back of the store.
Nick sighed, grabbing a copy of Spin and hoping desperately his friends would figure out what happened.
The other four Rangers morphed and slipped quietly out of the store, circling around the block until they could reach the park across the street and use one of its trees for transportation.
As Vida reached out to touch the tree, another eruption of sound washed across them. She turned to glower at Chip before noticing a monster bounding down the street.
No, she corrected herself, skipping down the street like a schoolkid on a sugar high. "Chip," Xander said, attempting to sound cool and collected. "Take the fellow to Udonna and Claire."
Chip saluted. "On it!"
Xander cracked his knuckles. "Okay guys, we in the clear?"
Vida grinned beneath her helmet. "Clear," she said.
The monster finished skipping. It seemed to be glowing a nice light brown, and let out a high-pitched giggle. It arched its hands, and strands of electricity flew out to touch each of the four Rangers.
Vida had the presence of mind to run at the monster, despite the dizziness she felt as the monster's power flew into her, and started to suck out her energy. She could see the others staggering.
She slammed into the monster, causing those streams to disrupt. "Vida, duck!" Chip called.
Vida ducked at just the right moment, and a bolt hit the monster. The monster staggered back, its aura shifting from brown to white, and the bolts changed from yellow to white. Vida felt dizzy once more, but she did manage not to pass out long enough to see a bolt streaking towards the music store.
Expect the next installment in a week or so. I think.