Blake looked from Hunter to the sleeping girl, then back again. "Are you sure this is her?" he asked.
Hunter nodded, not taking his eyes off of Marah.
"Bro, if that's really her, then why is she... here? And looking like that?"
"They must be up to something."
"Like what? Man, whatever happened, Marah definitely got the short end of the stick. I mean... just look at her!"
Hunter stared coldly at Marah's unconscious figure. A surge of anger passed through him. This was Lothor's niece. Lothor- who had killed his parents. For that, he automatically resented her, almost as much as Lothor, and viewed her with disgust. Blake was quite the opposite. He was worried about her health. He wondered why she was on Earth, and in the middle of the forest no less. He wanted to know, but he knew that he would have to wait until Marah was better. Then she could explain.
"So..." Blake ventured, "what now?"
"We wait," Hunter said icily, so that even Blake shivered a little. "We wait until she snaps out of it. We won't let her out of our sight- even for a minute. If this is a trap, then we can't risk everything by trusting her. Remember, bro. This is Lothor's niece. He betrayed us, so who's to say she won't too?"
****************
"Bro! Come here! I think she's waking up," a distant and faintly familiar voice echoed inside Marah's aching head. She groaned and twisted where she lay. "Marah? Can you hear me?" Marah tried to open her eyes. Colors swirled around like a reflection in rippling water. She squeezed her eyes closed and tried to open them again. "Can you hear me?" Marah saw the lips of the blurry figure above her move, but the words didn't match. The sound was so far away.... Marah attempted to speak, but no words would come out. She let out a hopeless kind of whimper. "Come on bro! She's awake!"
"She doesn't look like it," another familiar voice sounded from what seemed to be an even greater distance away. Marah's heart dropped inside her chest like a stone as her vision cleared and she realized that she wasn't in her bed on the space fortress. It all really had happened. 'It wasn't a dream,' she thought despairingly, but forced her eyes to stay focused now. Two familiar figures loomed overhead. One had dark hair and a serious, worried expression on what might possibly be a kind face. The other stood back a ways, his icy blue stare piercing Marah even from afar. Both men appeared to be dragging with fatigue. They didn't LOOK familiar, but then why did they SOUND familiar? Then she noticed their clothes. They were both in ninja form outfits: one with navy blue details, one with crimson red.
"Can you HEAR me, Marah," the dark haired one was saying.
She blinked dumbly at him. "You- are you...? It can't- you can't be the-"
"We know who you are," came the shockingly bitter voice of the crimson ninja, "so you might as well not waste your time by playing dumb with us."
"Hunter, I really think we should-" the dark haired one started to say.
"It IS you!" Marah said suddenly, realizing who the two men must be. She sat up, causing her head to rush and her ears to pound. "The- the Thunder Rangers!"
She almost sounded eager, relieved, to Hunter from where he stood. For a second his cold stare softened, but almost immediately it was icy again. "Yes. And you're the niece of the man who killed our parents."
There was a long silence. Blake was angry at the thought of that too, but the look on Marah's face beat down the anger. She looked so pained by Hunter's statement, so saddened by it.
"I- I didn't know," she stammered, looking straight at Hunter.
"Bull. Of course you knew. All of you did. You were just playing us for your own sick twisted purposes."
"Bro-" Blake started, but Hunter cut him off.
"What are you really doing here?" he asked Marah, not taking his eyes off of her.
Marah swallowed hard, trying with difficulty to conceal it. Her eyes were a little glassy at the sudden confrontation, but she knew that she would get no sympathy now, not with these people, even if she wanted it. She felt the Crimson Ranger's stare boring into her. She looked back up at him, blinking and focusing on nothing else but being as hard and cold as her accuser. "I didn't know the truth until after you did," she said as firmly as she could. She could feel Hunter's glare harden. "I was the only one on that -that SHIP-" she said the word with a subtle hint of venom- "that didn't know the truth." She waited for a response. Silence. "I'm telling-" her voice quavered a little. She closed her eyes for only an instant to collect herself. "I'm telling you the truth," she said more solidly. She was terrified, but she could not tear her gaze away from the Crimson Ranger's. It was locked in place. She knew that the Navy Ranger was looking at her too. However, it was clear in her mind that he was not the one who needed convincing.
Hunter didn't believe Marah. 'Of course she knew,' he reassured himself. 'She's one of them.' He took a step forward. "You're setting us up. This is a trap. Admit it."
Marah's hard gaze was starting to weaken. She could feel that it didn't go unnoticed either. Her eyes involuntarily filled with tears once more. A pressure grew below her eyes and in her throat. She stifled a small sob. She wouldn't look away. She had to meet the Crimson Ranger's gaze. She COULDN'T look away. Biting her lip, Marah said, "I won't admit it because it's not TRUE." At the word "true", Marah's voice shook and the phrase ended in an raw sob. A tear found its way down her cheek. She quickly brushed it away, sniffing more loudly than she would have liked.
"Liar," Hunter choked. "You're lying right to my face."
Blake looked at Hunter and saw his fists clenched into tight balls, his mouth a hard, thin line. "Bro, calm down a little. We-"
"CALM DOWN!" Hunter cried, suddenly pulling his leaden glare from Marah to Blake. Even Marah was surprised. "DON'T TELL ME TO CALM DOWN."
"I don't want to start a fight!" Blake exclaimed.
"Then why are you sticking up for this- this thing?" Marah bit her lip harder, letting the insult roll off her back.
"I wasn't sticking up for-" Blake glanced at Marah and stopped. "I'm just trying to be the voice of REASON!"
"HA!" Hunter laughed bitterly. "It's almost like you don't CARE that our parents are DEAD and her UNCLE'S the one that KILLED them!"
"How DARE you say that! You know that I miss them just as much as you do!"
"Then PROVE IT!"
"By what? Harassing HER? You know just as well as I do that she's harmless-"
"Heartless is more like it! All of them are heartless! Look at what Lothor DID! What makes her any different?!?!" Hunter swung a wild arm in Marah's direction.
"We don't have all the facts!"
"STOP DEFENDING HER!!!" Hunter lunged for Blake, his face wrought with fury. "IYAAAA!!!"
Blake stumbled backwards, then jerked his head up. His face was suddenly hard. Marah could only watch in fear, eyes wide. Blake met Hunter halfway in a second lunge. They kicked and twirled. It was almost beautiful to watch- almost. Hunter kicked off from a tree and flew through the air. Blake flipped backwards and caught Hunter in the stomach with his foot. Hunter yelled as her tumbled over his brother and to the ground. He rolled twice before leaping up again. But Blake was already there, knocking him back down. Hunter flipped up, his back arching, and landed on his feet. Both brothers stood with their hands up, their feet shifting weight, their chests heaving. Marah watched in wonder as they attacked each other once more, with even more fury this time. She barely keep track of who was who as arms and legs flailed everywhere. Suddenly Blake let out a yelp, and he flew back against a tree. Hunter pinned him there, one arm across Blake's throat, his face in a sneer. They stayed like that, panting, for a long time. After a while, Blake's face changed from one of anger to one of fear and sorrow. He stared almost pleadingly at Hunter, their faces just inches apart. Suddenly, Hunter's sneer was gone. The flat, stoney quality of his eyes softened, seeming to open like windows, as if seeing for the first time.
"Oh my God," he whispered under his breath. "What am I doing.... Blake." Hunter dropped his arm and stepped back, horrified at what he had done. Blake slid down half a foot against the tree trunk. "Blake, I'm- I'm sorry...." They stared at each other. Finally Hunter looked down. "I'm so sorry." With that, he turned abruptly and left, his head hung down.
There was a silence as Blake watched his brother disappear into the forest. He was still panting. He sighed in mild shock and disbelief. It wasn't until a few moments later that he realized Marah was still there. He turned quickly around, to find her still sitting slumped weakly against the tree, her eyes wide and her face unreadable- but sad. He kicked himself mentally. He had half expected her to have run away. That's what Hunter would have thought.... Blake turned away again; he couldn't bear to look at her. He covered his face roughly, dragging his fingers down his cheeks and sighing. After taking a minute to somewhat compose himself, Blake faced Marah once more with a stoney expression.
"Let's have a look at that ankle," he said; and he was almost afraid of the hollowness in his own voice.
**************
"Well folks, it looks like another rainy week ahead of us."
"Ugg," Dustin groaned.
"Oh, come on!" Tori exclaimed, exasperated, throwing a Cheet-o at the tiny T.V. screen.
The weatherman droned on: "Today will be overcast, with a twenty-five percent chance of rain. It's going to be a little chilly for Blue Bay Harbor, with highs in the mid to upper fifties...." Tori growled at the screen. "... But it might seem warmer due to full one-hundred percent chance of humidity. We might actually WANT the rain by the time night comes around! Heh heh!"
"ENOUGH! Ack! I can't take it anymore!" Tori jabbed at the power button.
"Hey hey, ease off on the merchandise!" Dustin said quickly.
"I haven't been able to surf all weekend because of the rain! I NEED to surf." Her eyes widened with emphasis.
"Well," Kelly said, coming up behind the two, hefting a huge box, "this weather hasn't been helping business too much either. People don't exactly feel compelled to do water sports when it could rain at any given moment. Oof!" she rearranged her arms around the box. "I really need to get some stalk boys..." she muttered to herself.
"Well, maybe the clouds will just... disappear!" Dustin waved an oily wrench he was holding.
"Nice attempt at optimism, dude," Shane laughed, stepping into Storm Chargers. "How is it that you're so dirty this early in the morning?"
"Well, hello to you too," Dustin retorted.
Shane paused, looking around the empty store before commenting, "Business isn't exactly boomin' is it?"
"Well, considering the circumstances..." Tori threw in.
"How observant of you.... You know, I could really use some help attracting customers," Kelly ventured, an idea dawning on her.
Dustin recognized that look on her face instantly. The mischievous gleam in her eyes. He grinned too. "Well, I'm really tied up in here, Kel, but Tori and Shane could help you out!" Tori shot Dustin a look.
"Do you think you guys COULD help me?" Kelly asked sweetly.
Tori and Shane looked at each other.
"I have to go do-"
"Well, you see I have this THING-"
"And it's really, um, IMPORTANT, and-"
"I'd really love to help but I-"
"Please?" Kelly broke in.
Tori and Shane both stopped babbling. Shane sighed, looking dutifully at Kelly's petite figure. "What all did you have in mind?" he asked a little apprehensively. Kelly smiled.
**************
"This is all your fault, Shane," Tori said through her huge plush mask.
"Well, I couldn't just say no!" Shane retorted. Tori pivoted awkwardly in her bulky dolphin costume to face him. Shane could barely see her face through the mesh that covered the dolphin's gaping grin, but he knew that she was glaring at him. "Hey, look it's not my fault that the costume was too small for me."
"If you didn't eat so many cheese burgers..."
"Hey! My diet has nothing to do with this."
"Sure..."
"Car!" Both rangers immediately flung up large cardboard signs, waving them around and yelling, "Come visit Storm Chargers!" Their voices trailed off and they dropped the signs as soon as the car rushed past them.
"You think he could have at least had the common decency to slow down and acknowledge our presence..." Shane's voice trailed off.
Tori sighed. "Oh, just give it up, Shane."
***************
"This is a disaster," Kapri snapped, glaring menacingly at Choobo. "And it's all your fault."
"But your Highness, I-"
"No excuses! It was NOT in the plan to send Marah to Earth! Who knows what horrible shape she must be in! Mind warp! That's all that was supposed to happen to her!"
"The monster acted on instinct..." Choobo started.
"Yes, and that's why you were ordered to get rid of him. I will NOT tolerate any mishaps so long as I'm in charge. Now, I'm ordering you to go to Earth and find my sister. Go!"
"Yes, your Highness," Choobo said and scurried off.
"And Choobo," Kapri called after him. He turned around just outside the doorway. "We can't afford having the Thunder Rangers join the Wind Rangers now that they don't work for us. If you find the Thunder Rangers while you're down there, kill them."
*************
Hunter sat at the edge of the cliff. He hated himself. What was he doing? He had attacked his own brother. Blake was all he had; how could he be so stupid as to jeopardize that? He didn't know what to do. Something had come over him... and he didn't like it. It struck a familiar chord with his dark past when he'd been working for Lothor. Hunter wasn't evil, or was he? No, he had just been seeking revenge for the death of his parents. His mind flashed back to an old memory....
A very young Hunter sat on his bed, his head hung down, hiding the cut on his lip. His mother entered the room. "Hunter...." He looked away. "Honey, look at me." His mother took his chin in her hands as she squatted down in front of him. "You know violence is not the answer."
"But Mom-" the little boy tried to explain.
"No 'but's. I know that the same boy keeps bullying you, but that doesn't mean that you can hurt him back."
"Then what was I supposed to do? Let him beat me up?"
"Where was Blake?"
Hunter shrugged with small, narrow shoulders.
"Sweetie..." she placed a hand on his tear stained cheek. "Always remember: the sweetest revenge is success. You just keep on being the amazing boy I know you are. Trust me, you'll be happier in the end, not heading down a road of violence. You'll be happy and successful, and that bully will be neither."
Hunter looked into his adoptive mother's eyes, so unlike his... but filled with love just the same. He leaned forward and wrapped his arms around her neck. "I'm sorry, Mom."
"I know, sweetie. I know...."
Hunter choked. His mother would be ashamed of him now. What had he become? His eyes stung. He yanked at a handful of grass and threw it off the cliff. After breathing deeply for a moment, he stood and made his way back to the clearing.
***********
Blake pulled the strip of cloth tightly around the stick against Marah's ankle. He knew she was trying to hide the pain she was in. She was biting her lip and her eyes were watering. "Done," Blake said, leaning back on his heels. "Are you okay?" Marah's head nodded stiffly. "Now, are you ready to talk?" She stared at him.
"Blake," Hunter's voice sounded behind him. Blake turned. "I'm sorry. I- I don't know what came over me. I can't believe I would do something like that. I sorry!" Hunter's face looked extremely pained and saddened as he spoke. "You're my brother, my only family, and I would never do anything to hurt you."
"I know, bro." Blake glanced at Marah before getting up and striding over to where Hunter awkwardly stood. Then, more softly, Blake said, "Marah's not going anywhere with that ankle. We can talk over here. She can't hear us if we keep our voices a bit low." His brother nodded. "So what do you think we should do with her?"
"I have no idea. Figure out what happened to her, I guess. Blake... I really am sorry. I shouldn't have said those things."
"I know. It's cool. You were just mad about Lothor and our parents and all. I'm sorry too." They clasped each other's hands, hugging briefly. "So, ready to interrogate?"
************
Marah held her breath. The pain in her leg was suddenly forgotten as the Thunder Rangers approached. She tried to sit up straight and keep her face blank. What were they planning on doing with her?
"Marah, we just need to know the facts. Can you tell us why you're here? We won't interrupt you. Right Hunter?"
"Um, right."
Marah stared as the two sat in front of her. She was afraid. She couldn't find her voice.
"Just tell us what happened," the Navy Ranger said gently.
Marah looked down at her hands. She couldn't tell them. She didn't want to remember it. "Um," she started, swallowing hard. The brothers waited. "They- they drugged me," she said, keeping her gaze fixed on her lap. She could feel the air change between the brothers.
"Who?" the Navy Ranger asked, clearly surprised.
"I don't know. Choobo maybe," Marah told them, forcing herself to remember. "I fell asleep. When- when I woke up, Zurgane came to my room. He was- was running from something. He told me that they were going to kill him.... He said they wanted him dead...."
"Dead!" both brothers exclaimed.
Marah nodded. "We ran. We tried to get away, but they chased us. If I- if I hadn't fallen..." Marah stopped abruptly. "No..." she whimpered, shaking her head. "No... If I hadn't... they wouldn't have...." She coughed on a sob that had bubbled up in her throat. It was so painful to remember that night... to think that Zurgane's death could have been her fault. What if it was? What if-
"What did they do to you...?" Marah looked up in surprise. Hunter had leaned forward and placed his hand on her knee. He looked concerned.
"They killed him." Marah found that she was letting herself start to sob, looking into Hunter's eyes and feeling something discomforting stir inside of her. "I saw it happen. Zurgane- he told me to keep going, but I couldn't. If I hadn't tripped, he would have gotten away too." She pulled her eyes away from Hunter's, covering her face.
"Then?" Blake asked.
"I... I ran. They chased me and I thought that they would catch up to me...."
"But they didn't," Blake finished for her.
Marah nodded. "I lost them. I- I went to find Uncle and-" She stopped, sensing both brothers stiffen and shift uncomfortably. Hunter's hand retracted from Marah's knee, to her unexpected disappointment. She couldn't look at them. Her uncle had killed their parents. That was unforgivable. "I'm so sorry," Marah whispered over a stifled sob. "I didn't know what my Uncle had done. I- I didn't know!" She was crying now. She couldn't help it. She felt embarrassed and ashamed, afraid and betrayed all at once. Plus, she was in a great deal of pain. It was overwhelming.
Blake and Hunter sat in silence. The air was filled with nothing but Marah's sobbing. She heard one of them sigh. Hunter stood up. He couldn't think of what to say. He had started to forget that her uncle was Lothor, until she'd mentioned him. Was Marah being genuine? It definitely seemed to be that way, but how could he know for sure? He couldn't trust her so soon, so early in the game. Blake looked up at him, reading his face. Then he nodded, as if knowing what Hunter was thinking. Blake stood up too and looked down at Marah. "We can finish this later."
Marah looked up to see Blake walking away, over to the other side of the semi clearing. She waited for Hunter to do the same, but he didn't move. His face looked torn. He tugged at the cuff of his sleeve. "I'm sorry about earlier," he said quickly. A weak smile crept across Marah's face, but Hunter had turned and was walking away before he had had time to see it.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Another update! Was Hunter's "memory thing" too farfetched? Well, my whole story is, so never mind. What do I care? I'm the author after all! heh.... Anyway, I have loads of stuff planned for this story. I probably won't be able to use it all (the story might not make sense if I do), but I'll try to have as many of my ideas in there as possible. Thanks for all of the responses. But please, keep on reviewing! It keeps me motivated! Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm not really sure when the next one will be posted... hopefully soon. R&R PLEASE!!!!! And feel free to share your feelings and ask questions! I like hearing them. muches~ ECHO
Hunter nodded, not taking his eyes off of Marah.
"Bro, if that's really her, then why is she... here? And looking like that?"
"They must be up to something."
"Like what? Man, whatever happened, Marah definitely got the short end of the stick. I mean... just look at her!"
Hunter stared coldly at Marah's unconscious figure. A surge of anger passed through him. This was Lothor's niece. Lothor- who had killed his parents. For that, he automatically resented her, almost as much as Lothor, and viewed her with disgust. Blake was quite the opposite. He was worried about her health. He wondered why she was on Earth, and in the middle of the forest no less. He wanted to know, but he knew that he would have to wait until Marah was better. Then she could explain.
"So..." Blake ventured, "what now?"
"We wait," Hunter said icily, so that even Blake shivered a little. "We wait until she snaps out of it. We won't let her out of our sight- even for a minute. If this is a trap, then we can't risk everything by trusting her. Remember, bro. This is Lothor's niece. He betrayed us, so who's to say she won't too?"
****************
"Bro! Come here! I think she's waking up," a distant and faintly familiar voice echoed inside Marah's aching head. She groaned and twisted where she lay. "Marah? Can you hear me?" Marah tried to open her eyes. Colors swirled around like a reflection in rippling water. She squeezed her eyes closed and tried to open them again. "Can you hear me?" Marah saw the lips of the blurry figure above her move, but the words didn't match. The sound was so far away.... Marah attempted to speak, but no words would come out. She let out a hopeless kind of whimper. "Come on bro! She's awake!"
"She doesn't look like it," another familiar voice sounded from what seemed to be an even greater distance away. Marah's heart dropped inside her chest like a stone as her vision cleared and she realized that she wasn't in her bed on the space fortress. It all really had happened. 'It wasn't a dream,' she thought despairingly, but forced her eyes to stay focused now. Two familiar figures loomed overhead. One had dark hair and a serious, worried expression on what might possibly be a kind face. The other stood back a ways, his icy blue stare piercing Marah even from afar. Both men appeared to be dragging with fatigue. They didn't LOOK familiar, but then why did they SOUND familiar? Then she noticed their clothes. They were both in ninja form outfits: one with navy blue details, one with crimson red.
"Can you HEAR me, Marah," the dark haired one was saying.
She blinked dumbly at him. "You- are you...? It can't- you can't be the-"
"We know who you are," came the shockingly bitter voice of the crimson ninja, "so you might as well not waste your time by playing dumb with us."
"Hunter, I really think we should-" the dark haired one started to say.
"It IS you!" Marah said suddenly, realizing who the two men must be. She sat up, causing her head to rush and her ears to pound. "The- the Thunder Rangers!"
She almost sounded eager, relieved, to Hunter from where he stood. For a second his cold stare softened, but almost immediately it was icy again. "Yes. And you're the niece of the man who killed our parents."
There was a long silence. Blake was angry at the thought of that too, but the look on Marah's face beat down the anger. She looked so pained by Hunter's statement, so saddened by it.
"I- I didn't know," she stammered, looking straight at Hunter.
"Bull. Of course you knew. All of you did. You were just playing us for your own sick twisted purposes."
"Bro-" Blake started, but Hunter cut him off.
"What are you really doing here?" he asked Marah, not taking his eyes off of her.
Marah swallowed hard, trying with difficulty to conceal it. Her eyes were a little glassy at the sudden confrontation, but she knew that she would get no sympathy now, not with these people, even if she wanted it. She felt the Crimson Ranger's stare boring into her. She looked back up at him, blinking and focusing on nothing else but being as hard and cold as her accuser. "I didn't know the truth until after you did," she said as firmly as she could. She could feel Hunter's glare harden. "I was the only one on that -that SHIP-" she said the word with a subtle hint of venom- "that didn't know the truth." She waited for a response. Silence. "I'm telling-" her voice quavered a little. She closed her eyes for only an instant to collect herself. "I'm telling you the truth," she said more solidly. She was terrified, but she could not tear her gaze away from the Crimson Ranger's. It was locked in place. She knew that the Navy Ranger was looking at her too. However, it was clear in her mind that he was not the one who needed convincing.
Hunter didn't believe Marah. 'Of course she knew,' he reassured himself. 'She's one of them.' He took a step forward. "You're setting us up. This is a trap. Admit it."
Marah's hard gaze was starting to weaken. She could feel that it didn't go unnoticed either. Her eyes involuntarily filled with tears once more. A pressure grew below her eyes and in her throat. She stifled a small sob. She wouldn't look away. She had to meet the Crimson Ranger's gaze. She COULDN'T look away. Biting her lip, Marah said, "I won't admit it because it's not TRUE." At the word "true", Marah's voice shook and the phrase ended in an raw sob. A tear found its way down her cheek. She quickly brushed it away, sniffing more loudly than she would have liked.
"Liar," Hunter choked. "You're lying right to my face."
Blake looked at Hunter and saw his fists clenched into tight balls, his mouth a hard, thin line. "Bro, calm down a little. We-"
"CALM DOWN!" Hunter cried, suddenly pulling his leaden glare from Marah to Blake. Even Marah was surprised. "DON'T TELL ME TO CALM DOWN."
"I don't want to start a fight!" Blake exclaimed.
"Then why are you sticking up for this- this thing?" Marah bit her lip harder, letting the insult roll off her back.
"I wasn't sticking up for-" Blake glanced at Marah and stopped. "I'm just trying to be the voice of REASON!"
"HA!" Hunter laughed bitterly. "It's almost like you don't CARE that our parents are DEAD and her UNCLE'S the one that KILLED them!"
"How DARE you say that! You know that I miss them just as much as you do!"
"Then PROVE IT!"
"By what? Harassing HER? You know just as well as I do that she's harmless-"
"Heartless is more like it! All of them are heartless! Look at what Lothor DID! What makes her any different?!?!" Hunter swung a wild arm in Marah's direction.
"We don't have all the facts!"
"STOP DEFENDING HER!!!" Hunter lunged for Blake, his face wrought with fury. "IYAAAA!!!"
Blake stumbled backwards, then jerked his head up. His face was suddenly hard. Marah could only watch in fear, eyes wide. Blake met Hunter halfway in a second lunge. They kicked and twirled. It was almost beautiful to watch- almost. Hunter kicked off from a tree and flew through the air. Blake flipped backwards and caught Hunter in the stomach with his foot. Hunter yelled as her tumbled over his brother and to the ground. He rolled twice before leaping up again. But Blake was already there, knocking him back down. Hunter flipped up, his back arching, and landed on his feet. Both brothers stood with their hands up, their feet shifting weight, their chests heaving. Marah watched in wonder as they attacked each other once more, with even more fury this time. She barely keep track of who was who as arms and legs flailed everywhere. Suddenly Blake let out a yelp, and he flew back against a tree. Hunter pinned him there, one arm across Blake's throat, his face in a sneer. They stayed like that, panting, for a long time. After a while, Blake's face changed from one of anger to one of fear and sorrow. He stared almost pleadingly at Hunter, their faces just inches apart. Suddenly, Hunter's sneer was gone. The flat, stoney quality of his eyes softened, seeming to open like windows, as if seeing for the first time.
"Oh my God," he whispered under his breath. "What am I doing.... Blake." Hunter dropped his arm and stepped back, horrified at what he had done. Blake slid down half a foot against the tree trunk. "Blake, I'm- I'm sorry...." They stared at each other. Finally Hunter looked down. "I'm so sorry." With that, he turned abruptly and left, his head hung down.
There was a silence as Blake watched his brother disappear into the forest. He was still panting. He sighed in mild shock and disbelief. It wasn't until a few moments later that he realized Marah was still there. He turned quickly around, to find her still sitting slumped weakly against the tree, her eyes wide and her face unreadable- but sad. He kicked himself mentally. He had half expected her to have run away. That's what Hunter would have thought.... Blake turned away again; he couldn't bear to look at her. He covered his face roughly, dragging his fingers down his cheeks and sighing. After taking a minute to somewhat compose himself, Blake faced Marah once more with a stoney expression.
"Let's have a look at that ankle," he said; and he was almost afraid of the hollowness in his own voice.
**************
"Well folks, it looks like another rainy week ahead of us."
"Ugg," Dustin groaned.
"Oh, come on!" Tori exclaimed, exasperated, throwing a Cheet-o at the tiny T.V. screen.
The weatherman droned on: "Today will be overcast, with a twenty-five percent chance of rain. It's going to be a little chilly for Blue Bay Harbor, with highs in the mid to upper fifties...." Tori growled at the screen. "... But it might seem warmer due to full one-hundred percent chance of humidity. We might actually WANT the rain by the time night comes around! Heh heh!"
"ENOUGH! Ack! I can't take it anymore!" Tori jabbed at the power button.
"Hey hey, ease off on the merchandise!" Dustin said quickly.
"I haven't been able to surf all weekend because of the rain! I NEED to surf." Her eyes widened with emphasis.
"Well," Kelly said, coming up behind the two, hefting a huge box, "this weather hasn't been helping business too much either. People don't exactly feel compelled to do water sports when it could rain at any given moment. Oof!" she rearranged her arms around the box. "I really need to get some stalk boys..." she muttered to herself.
"Well, maybe the clouds will just... disappear!" Dustin waved an oily wrench he was holding.
"Nice attempt at optimism, dude," Shane laughed, stepping into Storm Chargers. "How is it that you're so dirty this early in the morning?"
"Well, hello to you too," Dustin retorted.
Shane paused, looking around the empty store before commenting, "Business isn't exactly boomin' is it?"
"Well, considering the circumstances..." Tori threw in.
"How observant of you.... You know, I could really use some help attracting customers," Kelly ventured, an idea dawning on her.
Dustin recognized that look on her face instantly. The mischievous gleam in her eyes. He grinned too. "Well, I'm really tied up in here, Kel, but Tori and Shane could help you out!" Tori shot Dustin a look.
"Do you think you guys COULD help me?" Kelly asked sweetly.
Tori and Shane looked at each other.
"I have to go do-"
"Well, you see I have this THING-"
"And it's really, um, IMPORTANT, and-"
"I'd really love to help but I-"
"Please?" Kelly broke in.
Tori and Shane both stopped babbling. Shane sighed, looking dutifully at Kelly's petite figure. "What all did you have in mind?" he asked a little apprehensively. Kelly smiled.
**************
"This is all your fault, Shane," Tori said through her huge plush mask.
"Well, I couldn't just say no!" Shane retorted. Tori pivoted awkwardly in her bulky dolphin costume to face him. Shane could barely see her face through the mesh that covered the dolphin's gaping grin, but he knew that she was glaring at him. "Hey, look it's not my fault that the costume was too small for me."
"If you didn't eat so many cheese burgers..."
"Hey! My diet has nothing to do with this."
"Sure..."
"Car!" Both rangers immediately flung up large cardboard signs, waving them around and yelling, "Come visit Storm Chargers!" Their voices trailed off and they dropped the signs as soon as the car rushed past them.
"You think he could have at least had the common decency to slow down and acknowledge our presence..." Shane's voice trailed off.
Tori sighed. "Oh, just give it up, Shane."
***************
"This is a disaster," Kapri snapped, glaring menacingly at Choobo. "And it's all your fault."
"But your Highness, I-"
"No excuses! It was NOT in the plan to send Marah to Earth! Who knows what horrible shape she must be in! Mind warp! That's all that was supposed to happen to her!"
"The monster acted on instinct..." Choobo started.
"Yes, and that's why you were ordered to get rid of him. I will NOT tolerate any mishaps so long as I'm in charge. Now, I'm ordering you to go to Earth and find my sister. Go!"
"Yes, your Highness," Choobo said and scurried off.
"And Choobo," Kapri called after him. He turned around just outside the doorway. "We can't afford having the Thunder Rangers join the Wind Rangers now that they don't work for us. If you find the Thunder Rangers while you're down there, kill them."
*************
Hunter sat at the edge of the cliff. He hated himself. What was he doing? He had attacked his own brother. Blake was all he had; how could he be so stupid as to jeopardize that? He didn't know what to do. Something had come over him... and he didn't like it. It struck a familiar chord with his dark past when he'd been working for Lothor. Hunter wasn't evil, or was he? No, he had just been seeking revenge for the death of his parents. His mind flashed back to an old memory....
A very young Hunter sat on his bed, his head hung down, hiding the cut on his lip. His mother entered the room. "Hunter...." He looked away. "Honey, look at me." His mother took his chin in her hands as she squatted down in front of him. "You know violence is not the answer."
"But Mom-" the little boy tried to explain.
"No 'but's. I know that the same boy keeps bullying you, but that doesn't mean that you can hurt him back."
"Then what was I supposed to do? Let him beat me up?"
"Where was Blake?"
Hunter shrugged with small, narrow shoulders.
"Sweetie..." she placed a hand on his tear stained cheek. "Always remember: the sweetest revenge is success. You just keep on being the amazing boy I know you are. Trust me, you'll be happier in the end, not heading down a road of violence. You'll be happy and successful, and that bully will be neither."
Hunter looked into his adoptive mother's eyes, so unlike his... but filled with love just the same. He leaned forward and wrapped his arms around her neck. "I'm sorry, Mom."
"I know, sweetie. I know...."
Hunter choked. His mother would be ashamed of him now. What had he become? His eyes stung. He yanked at a handful of grass and threw it off the cliff. After breathing deeply for a moment, he stood and made his way back to the clearing.
***********
Blake pulled the strip of cloth tightly around the stick against Marah's ankle. He knew she was trying to hide the pain she was in. She was biting her lip and her eyes were watering. "Done," Blake said, leaning back on his heels. "Are you okay?" Marah's head nodded stiffly. "Now, are you ready to talk?" She stared at him.
"Blake," Hunter's voice sounded behind him. Blake turned. "I'm sorry. I- I don't know what came over me. I can't believe I would do something like that. I sorry!" Hunter's face looked extremely pained and saddened as he spoke. "You're my brother, my only family, and I would never do anything to hurt you."
"I know, bro." Blake glanced at Marah before getting up and striding over to where Hunter awkwardly stood. Then, more softly, Blake said, "Marah's not going anywhere with that ankle. We can talk over here. She can't hear us if we keep our voices a bit low." His brother nodded. "So what do you think we should do with her?"
"I have no idea. Figure out what happened to her, I guess. Blake... I really am sorry. I shouldn't have said those things."
"I know. It's cool. You were just mad about Lothor and our parents and all. I'm sorry too." They clasped each other's hands, hugging briefly. "So, ready to interrogate?"
************
Marah held her breath. The pain in her leg was suddenly forgotten as the Thunder Rangers approached. She tried to sit up straight and keep her face blank. What were they planning on doing with her?
"Marah, we just need to know the facts. Can you tell us why you're here? We won't interrupt you. Right Hunter?"
"Um, right."
Marah stared as the two sat in front of her. She was afraid. She couldn't find her voice.
"Just tell us what happened," the Navy Ranger said gently.
Marah looked down at her hands. She couldn't tell them. She didn't want to remember it. "Um," she started, swallowing hard. The brothers waited. "They- they drugged me," she said, keeping her gaze fixed on her lap. She could feel the air change between the brothers.
"Who?" the Navy Ranger asked, clearly surprised.
"I don't know. Choobo maybe," Marah told them, forcing herself to remember. "I fell asleep. When- when I woke up, Zurgane came to my room. He was- was running from something. He told me that they were going to kill him.... He said they wanted him dead...."
"Dead!" both brothers exclaimed.
Marah nodded. "We ran. We tried to get away, but they chased us. If I- if I hadn't fallen..." Marah stopped abruptly. "No..." she whimpered, shaking her head. "No... If I hadn't... they wouldn't have...." She coughed on a sob that had bubbled up in her throat. It was so painful to remember that night... to think that Zurgane's death could have been her fault. What if it was? What if-
"What did they do to you...?" Marah looked up in surprise. Hunter had leaned forward and placed his hand on her knee. He looked concerned.
"They killed him." Marah found that she was letting herself start to sob, looking into Hunter's eyes and feeling something discomforting stir inside of her. "I saw it happen. Zurgane- he told me to keep going, but I couldn't. If I hadn't tripped, he would have gotten away too." She pulled her eyes away from Hunter's, covering her face.
"Then?" Blake asked.
"I... I ran. They chased me and I thought that they would catch up to me...."
"But they didn't," Blake finished for her.
Marah nodded. "I lost them. I- I went to find Uncle and-" She stopped, sensing both brothers stiffen and shift uncomfortably. Hunter's hand retracted from Marah's knee, to her unexpected disappointment. She couldn't look at them. Her uncle had killed their parents. That was unforgivable. "I'm so sorry," Marah whispered over a stifled sob. "I didn't know what my Uncle had done. I- I didn't know!" She was crying now. She couldn't help it. She felt embarrassed and ashamed, afraid and betrayed all at once. Plus, she was in a great deal of pain. It was overwhelming.
Blake and Hunter sat in silence. The air was filled with nothing but Marah's sobbing. She heard one of them sigh. Hunter stood up. He couldn't think of what to say. He had started to forget that her uncle was Lothor, until she'd mentioned him. Was Marah being genuine? It definitely seemed to be that way, but how could he know for sure? He couldn't trust her so soon, so early in the game. Blake looked up at him, reading his face. Then he nodded, as if knowing what Hunter was thinking. Blake stood up too and looked down at Marah. "We can finish this later."
Marah looked up to see Blake walking away, over to the other side of the semi clearing. She waited for Hunter to do the same, but he didn't move. His face looked torn. He tugged at the cuff of his sleeve. "I'm sorry about earlier," he said quickly. A weak smile crept across Marah's face, but Hunter had turned and was walking away before he had had time to see it.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Another update! Was Hunter's "memory thing" too farfetched? Well, my whole story is, so never mind. What do I care? I'm the author after all! heh.... Anyway, I have loads of stuff planned for this story. I probably won't be able to use it all (the story might not make sense if I do), but I'll try to have as many of my ideas in there as possible. Thanks for all of the responses. But please, keep on reviewing! It keeps me motivated! Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm not really sure when the next one will be posted... hopefully soon. R&R PLEASE!!!!! And feel free to share your feelings and ask questions! I like hearing them. muches~ ECHO
