Two Sides of the Same Coin


Karone was Astronema and Astronema was Karone and they were permanently damned.

They knew it, too. Even during those early times, when Karone had been discarded but Astronema had not yet been found, when she was only a serial number or Ecliptor's princess, they were sure they were damned and that there was no escape. Their life would become hell for the next fifteen years.

Kill them.

Kill them.

Kill them.

Kill them.

Karone sank into the depths, even deeper than Astronema would go, so deep that she threatened to be erased completely. They wanted nothing more than to escape their entire lives, but hope was slowly and painfully drilled out of them by the evils that surrounded them. Even when no one was actively threatening them, even when they would just sit in the darkness and ponder the life they were given, the ground around them was always hot and lifeless, the sky dark with fighter drones. The threat of death always beat down like a whip on their back, and Karone considered joining death, sometimes. But, Astronema would have none of it.

Astronema was never quite sure why she clung so dearly to life, when all it had done to her was take things from her and torture her, but she did nonetheless. Was it the hope for rescue? No. It couldn't be. There was no escape and no one knew it better than Astronema.

Maybe it was spite? Yes… yes. That was it. They were damned for the crime of simply being alive, and if Astronema was going to be damned for being alive she was going to make it everyone's problem.

Kill them.

Kill them.

Kill them.

Kill them.

They were always killing things. The hot and sticky ooze of blood clinging to their hands became a routine, so much so that they hardly ever bothered to wash it all off—after all, why should they? It would be back within the hour. Just like it always was, the blood would return and burn their flesh like fire, guilt is a powerful thing. Life was always the same, killing someone who didn't seem to deserve it. Astronema may have been evil and Karone may have been suppressed, but no one will grow to hate senseless death like someone who can't escape it. Astronema didn't feel the guilt her double did—after all, why should others enjoy things like love and happiness if it was all out of her own reach—but Karone always rang with guilt whenever they ended something weaker than them. It wasn't the victim's fault, but if Astronema and Karone didn't do it they would be killed themselves.

Kill them.

Kill them.

Kill them.

Kill them.

There was one little thing the two of them could agree on loving. One small, inconspicuous thing no one had thought to take from them. It was their most prized possession, the one thing they would kill to protect without the tying of hands the United Alliance of Evil used on them—it was a locket, nothing visibly special about it, but it meant the universe to them. It was the only good thing in their life, it represented the short time of goodness they knew they had but could never remember. There was a photo of their older, younger brother inside, along with a photo of themselves—no. Of Karone. Just Karone. She was different from even the remaining Karone, a child with a bright smile and a natural hair color. A child that had hope for the future. A child that had life.

But, their brother… they always wanted an older brother. Someone to go to when they were afraid of the death that fell all around them, someone to talk to when they were feeling the weight of all the pain they were always feeling. He was an adorable kid.

They didn't know his name. As much as they tried, they could never remember their brother, and no one they asked could—or would, they were never quite sure which—tell them anything about him. He was one big mystery. They had, one evening, decided to call him "Andros". She didn't know why, but the name just felt… right. And, after all, he needed a name, didn't he? Yes. His name was Andros.

When they came to Earth to take over, and there was a Power Ranger with that same name? They were furious. No one could be Andros. No one was allowed to be Andros. And a Power Ranger, too? Yes. Yes, he had to die. He needed to die.

But, there was something… about, the red Ranger. Whenever Astronema looked at him, Karone would always scream. She kicked and screamed like she was trying to tell her evil half something, but no matter what she did Astronema just didn't seem to get the picture.

Karone, Astronema, they would stare into the red Ranger's face, and inside? Karone would be screaming and screaming, and Astronema did not know why.

That was another reason he needed to die. Astronema, although she didn't have the words to say this, felt that maybe if Karone disappeared then the guilt would go away. And Karone, for some reason, wanted nothing more than to be with the red Ranger.

Oh, well. They could burn in hell together.

Kill them.

Kill them.

Kill them.

Kill them.