Something was wrong; she could feel it. One minute, she was speaking to Nick, and the next, he was gone, vanishing instantly from the fringes of her mind. She snapped her eyes open and looked around frantically, only to find three Rangers and a troblin staring back at her.
"Are you okay?" asked Vida, unsuccessfully stifling her worry. Maddie looked to her sister, slightly spaced out, and frowned.
"Nick's in trouble."
"We know that," Xander said, thinking she may have forgotten what had happened. "We're trying to figure out how to get him back."
"No, I mean he's in big trouble. Catastros is chasing him, Koragg's playing some sick game with him and he has no idea where he is."
"And how do you know all that?"
"Because I just talked to him," she stated as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. The three Rangers only gave her questioning looks, whereas Phineas nodded emphatically.
"I get it. Telepathy spell, right?" he asked to his imaginary friend, nodding as if he'd received a response. "Right?" he asked again, this time directing the question to Madison. She only responded with a small nod. "Knew it! Oh, being right is nice, to be sure, to be sure!" he laughed, beaming at the four teens across from him and seeming quite proud of himself.
"What does he mean, 'telepathy spell'? Did Nick use a spell on you?" Vida inquired, enraged by the thought of magic being used on her sister.
"No!" Maddie shouted as she realized what kind of mood her twin was in. "Well, yes," she amended, "but I was okay with it. I still am. Not that it's your business, anyway. What happens to me is my problem unless I tell you. I don't always need you to protect me." No words came to Vida as she tried to process what her sister had just said. Maddie never acted like that. She'd always quietly accepted her sister's overprotectiveness and lived with it. Now ... It was strange. Nick seemed to be rubbing off on the girl.
"So, um, where is he exactly?" Xander asked nervously, trying to break the silence that had befallen the group.
"Some freaky bleached-out place. That's not the point, though. Wherever he is, we need to get him out," Maddie responded, letting some of her sudden anger toward her twin drop away with a sigh.
"Yeah, we do. He's our friend, after all. But how?"
"We'll find a way. We've got magic, so there has to be a way. C'mon." She marched intently back toward Root Core without another word. The others followed, less and less fazed by her new take-charge attitude.
Phineas stood alone as the Rangers left. As they disappeared over a hill, he leaned over to his imaginary friend and whispered gleefully, as if sharing a big secret, "I've got new friends."
Nick physically recoiled when he heard the voice of Koragg clearly in his mind. All traces of Madison were forcefully pushed out as the headache-like pain of the Knight Wolf took over.
'What do you want?' Nick asked harshly, angry at losing the connection with Maddie. He could almost see Koragg's vicious smirk.
'You know what I want, Nickolaus,' he answered wryly. 'I want you. You are my son and belong in your rightful place at my side.'
'Sorry, but I don't exactly see that happening any time soon.' Koragg only smiled in amusement at the boy's stubbornness.
'Believe me, you will come around,' he said, completely unfazed by Nick's words. 'That is, if survive to escape this place.'
Nick's eyes widened slightly as he replied, 'So this is a test.' He paused, taking a deep breath to help him forget the pounding pain behind his temples. 'Where am I?'
'A dimension used to train young dark children to become warriors. The only plants that grow are inedible and the water is poisonous. The closest food and water are four days walk from here, and your magic will exhaust much more easily. You'll be long dead before you leave here by foot. Catastros is your only escape from here. He will take you to the portals on the other end of the forest, but only if you can master your fear and tame him. Be warned that few have ever tamed him, and your chances of survival are slim. If you live, you are truly ready to join the darkness.'
'This isn't exactly a good example of great parenting skills,' he snarked back, irritated by the warrior's harsh way of dealing with him.
'It is the dark way,' he answered matter-of-factly. 'Now go. It is time to determine your fate.' And, without any other words, his voice was gone, lost in his swirling thoughts.
So this was it. Do or die. Master his fear and Catastros, or rot away in this thankless dimension. As much as he hated to comply with any of Koragg's wishes, even in a roundabout way, he sure as hell wasn't dying. Not when everything he'd wanted was waiting for him outside here. No, he planned on living through this.
He stood up shakily, noticing only the vague amount of fatigue his conversation had left behind. No leftover headaches, no throbbing pressure that took hours to fade away. At least his mind was adjusting to the constant mental assaults.
In the distance, he could hear a hellish whinny. Ignoring his first instinct, to run, he stood his ground anxiously. He was going to escape this freakish place, but it would be on his own terms, not Koragg's. He was going to going to show the man that under no circumstances did he play by the Knight's rules, and he was no one's pawn. No man controlled Nick Russell.
"Nominominus roxi," Xander said, adding a wink to the wave of his wand. A few green sparkles jumped around his wand tip before dying out, causing the Green Ranger to frown.
"How's it going?" asked Chip, walking over to his disheartened friend with an armful of books.
"I've got nothing," he responded pitifully, "and I even winked."
"How about this one?" Chip asked, opening a book from the top of his pile. "It's supposed to contact lost loved ones."
"You might as well try," Xander said, not bothering getting his hopes up.
"Colingo trebanage." Nothing that time, not even a few joyless sparkles. "Damn," the young man sighed, letting the book drop with a thud. A few sparks of electricity jumped from Chip's fingers to the book and danced across the cover. Xander noticed this and managed to send his friend a tired smile.
"C'mon, mate, don't lose hope yet. We'll find a spell eventually," he said wearily. They'd been working for nearly an hour trying to get Nick back. So far, their efforts had been fruitless, but Maddie refused to let any of them stop.
"Come on, you guys. We're not going to give up. Just keep trying," the Blue Witch said for what quite possibly could've been the thousandth time.
"Hey, guys, I think I just found something," Vida shouted excitedly. Maddie perked up and ran over to her twin, Chip and Xander not far behind.
"What is it?"
"Look at this," Vida said, pointing to a short passage in an ancient looking book. "A spell of transport is a one way deal, unless a source can reverse the seal."
"So wait," said Xander, trying to process the verse. "What does that mean?"
"That's the best part," Vida answered excitedly. "I think I've got it figured out." The others looked at her expectantly. "Do you guys remember the album that came out last year, the one that I always use for scratching because when you play it backwards, it has a different beat?"
"How could I forget it?" Maddie asked, irritation shining through her voice. "You drove mom and dad nuts with it."
"That's not the point. Don't you guys see what I mean?" Chip's face lit up.
"I think I do. You think that if we say the spell backwards, it'll reverse the teleport spell and bring Nick back."
"Yes!" Vida nearly shouted, looking at her oldest friend with respect and joy. He smiled back, quite pleased with himself.
"So does anyone remember the spell Koragg used?" Xander queried, bringing a sudden downer on the group. Chip's giddy smile fell as he scrunched up his face in concentration.
"I don't think I know it," stated Xander, removing himself from the race to remember quickly.
"Me either," Vida added dejectedly after a moment's silence. Chip and Madison both remained quiet, working against their own memories to recover the spell.
"I've got something," Chip said hopefully. "But I don't think it's the whole thing, or even completely right."
"It'll have to be good enough," threw in Maddie, "because I've got nothing."
"What is it?"
Chip gave the questioning Pink Ranger a sidelong glance, taking in her anticipant stare, and answered, "Something like 'at atrium very'!" When he noticed the strange looks they were giving him because of his exuberant exclamation, he let his grin fade a bit. Moments later, he was saved by a noise from the crystal ball.
The Rangers, pushing the current situation, rushed to it in time to see an ogre using their stolen Megazord power to grow.
"Come and get me, little Rangers," he growled, smashing a car with his fists.
"Nick'll have to look after himself for a while," Xander said, wand already out. Maddie reluctantly nodded. She knew better than any of them that he could handle himself, and that he'd want her to go stop the ogre. It was the right thing to do.
"Keep trying to remember that spell, okay Chip?" she said, simultaneously stepping into formation with the others.
"Umm ... Ultrium terrace!" he shouted, realizing how wrong it sounded even as he said it. "Ready?" he asked hastily, flipping open his wand in an attempt to glaze over his sad attempt at the spell.
"Ready!" They too flipped open their wands and, in unison, shouted, "Magical source, Mystic Force!" The four teens were instantly replaced by Rangers, who disappeared into the woods and toward Briarwood on their Racers.
He could hear the footfalls (or were they hoof-falls?) of Catastros, charging intently in his direction. Fighting every instinct in him that screamed for him to run, Nick stood his ground exactly as he had an hour ago. For the past sixty minutes, the sounds of Catastros had come and gone, flooding him with relief and fear at every occurrence. The build-up was starting to become more than he could handle.
He'd almost lost the last shreds of his determination when the looming equine figure appeared through the brush, rapidly descending upon the boy. Before he could realize what he was doing, he had his wand out and pointing at the beast. Catastros stopped mere feet from the young man.
"Don't come any closer," Nick said, voice quivering. Catastros, sensing his fear, took a few goading steps forward, simultaneously sending Nick a few feet back.
"Don't!" Nick shouted, trying to sound more brave than he felt. He held his wand in the most menacing fashion he could, which really wasn't all too threatening.
The horse took a few more steps forward, but Nick could no longer move, paralyzed by fear. Memories flooded his mind, memories of the short adrenaline rush from being bucked off, of the pain as his shin was snapped in half, the weeks spent in a cast. He could almost feel the horse's weight crashing down on him again.
And then a familiar feeling washed over him, a feeling that he could never fight no matter how hard he tried. A layer of red blanketed his vision, surges of power washing over him. How dare this mere beast intimidate a powerful wizard such as he. No being was allowed such an act without punishment.
"Stop!" he shouted, voice dark and authoritative, laced with raw magic. Tendrils of red energy wove across his body, sparking as they crossed. Catastros froze in his place, finally satisfied with the response the boy had offered. He was quite powerful, the boy, rivaling that of his own so-called master Koragg. Knowing full well that this could be his true master, both beings of neither good nor evil, Catastros took a few more steps forward and lay down at Nick's feet.
Nick looked on Catastros helplessly, powerful energy dissipating as its use was fulfilled. Only the regular fear was now left, and even that was dispersing. Somehow, in those few moments where he lost himself, Catastros had become decidedly less frightening. Nick no longer felt any threat from the ebony steed and slowly bent down to touch its face and the smooth fur that covered it. As his fingers grazed the silky surface, he could've sworn he saw a spark of magic jump between himself and the horse.
Instantly, Catastros jumped up, the vivid crimson of its eyes fading into a dark mahogany brown. In a moment of unspoken purity, Nick could see the single wish lying in the horse's eyes - to be ridden not as a weapon, but as a regular horse.
Wordlessly, Nick hoisted himself onto it, taking the reins and nudging it gently on each side to spur it forward. In the very moment that the wind burst forward against his face, every fear he'd ever felt was lost in the absolute joy and freedom he felt atop Catastros. Everything that weighed down on him was ripped away in an instant of complete clarity, in which he saw the answers to all of his problems.
And then it was gone, leaving only mountains of self-doubt and confusion. He knew once again that everything in his life was going haywire, and he had no control whatsoever over what happened next.
"Ha ha, puny Rangers!" laughed the ogre in a voice that could level forests. He bashed his club down next to them, throwing the newly arrived quartet onto their backs. Xander was the first up, rubbing his helmet as if it would help the headache he'd suddenly developed.
"I think it's Titan time," he said, using his best leader-like tones. The others just nodded, picking themselves up with as much dignity as possible.
"Galwit mysto prifior!" they shouted, changing instantly into the Mystic Titans. Within seconds, they were assaulted with a barrage of boulders and found themselves on their backs once again. The gravelly laughter of the ogre only made it more humiliating. It did create one lucky result, though - Chip's face lit up with realization, as best his metallic features could.
"I remember the spell, guys!" he cried out happily. "Ut atrum terra!"
"So say it backward," Maddie replied impatiently.
"Ummmm ... " Chip paused, running it in reverse in his head. The ogre launched another round of stones at the group, but Xander deflected most of them with his axe so Chip could think. The trio looked back at the Garuda as the ogre decided to charge them. A smile seemed to cross the Yellow Ranger's face.
"I've got it! Arret murta tu!"
"Yah!" Nick shouted, urging Catastros on. Ever since his moment of clarity had passed, he'd been riding around the forest, processing what to do next. He had no idea which way to go, save for heading out to sea. It was safe to say that wasn't the way to go. He didn't even know which way led to the outside of the forest, and not just more forest.
Right now he was just riding along the beach, watching the dark waves of the ocean. All the water reminded him of Madison, and just thinking about her helped him focus. He was going to get out of this creepy place and see her again. That thought always brought him back to the main problem: how was he supposed to get out of here?
As if hearing his plight, a hovering seal flared into existence not twenty feet from the riding Red Ranger. Spurring the horse, Nick prepared himself for whatever lie on the other side of his escape route.
Strangely, all he felt was the whoosh of air from teleporting and the seamless transition into Titan form. In a flash of light, he found himself astride the metallic Catastros in the heart of downtown Briarwood, surrounded by his friends.
They all gave an individual celebratory shout and turned to their returned friend.
"Good to see you, mate," Xander said, smile shining through his unmoving face.
"Good to be back," Nick replied, distracted by the sudden prevalence of a spell on the top of his mind. "We've got some fighting to finish," he added, turning to look at the ogre. Taking a deep breath, he called out, "Centaurus Phoenix Megazord!" Instantly, he and Catastros became a single Zord, accompanied by a flash of golden-red light.
"How do you like that?" he asked the ogre mockingly. "It's on!"
Not three hundred feet from the battle, Koragg smirked from his rooftop vantage point.
"He combined with Catastros," he said, impressed and amazed. "His power is greater than I'd thought. This will be all the better when my plan comes to fruition."
"You cannot blame yourself for this," she said, putting a hand on the man's shoulder. He only shook his head in disbelief.
"How could I have been so careless?" he asked, voice tainted by anguish. "I let her trick me, let her put that spell on me."
The young woman's mouth rounded in an 'O' shape, followed by a brief shake of her head and the words, "You did not. She placed the spell on you through trickery. You could not have realized her intentions until it was too late."
"But I could've fought it," he whispered, shaking his head again. "I did such terrible things."
"You had no control over it. You know as well as I that she was a powerful sorceress and that fighting such a mind-altering spell is impossible," she said firmly, taking a seat next to the man. He turned to look at her, dark hair hanging limply around his face.
"I'm sorry about all of this," he replied weakly, taking in the young woman's fiery red hair, so unlike her sister's blonde curls. "Udonna, I must thank you for rescuing me. If not for you, Bowen and I would be trapped in the Dark Lands, servants to the Master. I abandoned that life ages ago, and I cannot imagine our baby boy immersed in such evil."
"Well, I wouldn't be a good wife if I let you stay with that witch, would I?" she asked playfully, a smile gracing her face. "And now little Clare will have a playmate. I'm sure she'll appreciate that much more than unending attention." The two smiled, mood shifting to the less depressing for a moment.
"I will be going back to war," he stated, destroying the happy mood. The young woman looked at him sadly, wishing he hadn't said that.
"Why? If the darkness recognizes you, they could place an even stronger spell on you. You would risk losing yourself forever?"
"Please, do not fight me on this," he pleaded. "My mind is set. I must atone for the sins I have committed. Arguing with me will only make it that much harder." Looking into her husband's eyes and seeing the conflict in them, the pains that lie beneath the surface, she could only sigh.
"You always were stubborn," she caved, exasperated. "If you feel you must do this, then by all means do so. I will stand by your side, as a Mystic and as a wife."
"How are my Mystics? Have you told them what happened?"
"They know and forgive you. They only wish to see their Red Mystic Warrior and friend again."
"By all means, then, let's go," the man said happily, knowing that his friends would not show up in Root Core on their own. Out of a doorway ran a small girl, blonde curls bobbing wildly.
"Yay! Uncle Leanbow's back!" she squealed gleefully. The man scooped her up and hugged her tightly.
"Yes, little one, I'm back. So is Bowen." The little girl, no older than three, pulled back.
"Is he gonna cry all night like he did before? 'Cuz I couldn't sleep," she pouted. He set her down with a smile.
"I hope not, but he is a baby, Clare. Babies like to cry." The little girl smiled innocently for a second, then turned to Udonna and gave her a questioning look.
"What is it, Clare?" the young woman asked playfully.
"Udonna, Udonna, you have to see this!" the little girl shouted. There was something wrong with her voice. It sounded too grown-up to belong to that little mouth. Something was wrong ...
Udonna's eyes fluttered open as Clare shook her shoulder. The elder sorceress blinked, trying to understand what was going on. It all rushed to her in an instant - she was in Root Core, safe haven and base for the Rangers, meditating. She'd returned from healing an elf at the Woodland Village, only to find the Rangers rushing out, all shouting something about Nick disappearing and an ogre downtown. Something in her had suddenly been compelled to meditate on her situation with Nick. It wasn't right to keep things from him and she needed to be enlightened.
Somehow, instead of enlightenment, she'd been flooded with past memories that were warped in odd ways. They were out of place with what she knew to have actually happened, and yet they felt right. Never before had her meditations gone off in directions other than the intended path.
Clare, noticing her aunt was awake, said again, "You have to come see this, Udonna!" She ran back into the main room hurriedly, leaving Udonna to follow her in. The sorceress walked into the well-lit room to find her apprentice watching the crystal ball intently.
"What is it, Clare?" she asked, hoping for good news.
Clare, not looking away from the orb, responded, "It's Nick! He's back and he combined with Catastros!" Udonna gasped despite herself and joined her niece over the ball.
It was true. Nick had formed a Megazord with the steed. Amazing.
"Wow. It's really cool, isn't it?" Clare asked, obviously astonished.
"It truly is," Udonna whispered back. He was progressing wonderfully, both with his magic and his acceptance of his roots. But, she realized, he deserved the complete truth. She could no longer withhold so much from him. He had a right to know his full heritage, the truth of his origins, no matter how hard telling him would be.
"He combined with Catastros!" Xander shouted in awe, stating the obvious. While the others could only stare, Maddie breathed a sigh of relief. Nick was back and completely safe, at least as far as she could tell. Gently probing his mind, she found nothing beyond the roller coaster that had become their lives lately.
Nick could feel the tendrils of Maddie's mind tracing across his own, but payed them no mind, too focused on the battle. The power that Catastros offered was overwhelming. Together, he knew they could bring down the ogre.
"Your puny pony won't help you, Ranger!" the monster laughed derisively.
"We'll see about that!" Nick shouted, already knowing what to do. The long tail extending from the back of his head burst into flames. He spun it whip-like at the ogre, knocking it back and making it easy prey for his next attack. Pulling out his sword, already alight with fire, he brought leapt and brought it down swiftly on the beast. Without so much as a scream, it died in a huge explosion. A ball of golden light floated away from the fire, separating into five colors and drifting to their owners.
"Our Megazord power!" Chip exclaimed, letting the light absorb into his body like the others. Nick turned to his friends as he received his power, parting from Catastros. The horse lingered as the others approached him, looking on in awe. Vida even dared to touch it, laying a hand gently on its hind leg.
"It's gorgeous," she murmured, any previous fears melting away. There was no malicious intent coming from the horse at all. Maybe that was why she was so surprised when it reared and took off, throwing the tiny Titan back.
From nowhere appeared Koragg, who joined with Catastros to form his own Centaurus Megazord. He stared down the gawking Titans, particularly the Phoenix.
"You have proven yourself worthy yet again, my son," he said, triumph barely contained by his cool demeanor. "You passed my test, though not in the way I'd expected. I am pleased." He moved his gaze to the group as a whole. "We will meet again, Rangers." A dark circle pulled him down, leaving four questioning Titans and one exhausted Phoenix who got the feeling that he wasn't quite off the hook yet.
"Okay, I have a question for you," Vida stated as soon as they'd entered Root Core. "What is going on with you? What's the deal with you and Koragg?" Nick heard this last sentence and realized she was talking to him. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
"It's a long story," he replied nonchalantly. Vida wasn't about to be brushed off that easily, though.
"I've got the time," she said, paying no mind to the looks everyone else was giving the pair.
"Are all you Roccas naturally so curious?" he threw back. He'd been planning on telling his friends everything for a while now, but he'd rather it was on his own terms.
"Hey!" Maddie and Vida shouted in unison, the former in a much more good-natured way than her sister.
"You didn't answer me,"Vida said a moment later, still determined to find out what was going on with her friend. He'd been through a lot since becoming a Ranger, that much she knew. But she also knew that he was keeping something from her, and it was something important.
"Do we really need to do this right now?"
"Yeah, we do," Vida said indignantly, a spattering of anger beginning to glint in her eyes. He was trying to avoid answering her. "I want some answers because there's something weird going on with you, and you won't tell anyone but Madison! You made a promise not to keep any secrets, but somehow I get the feeling that you've got a huge one. We're friends, Nick, and you made a promise! Does that mean anything to you?"
"You want to know what my goddamn secret is?" Nick asked back, voice sharp as a razor's edge. He didn't care about telling them at the right time now. Vida's inquisition had pushed him an inch too far and he didn't really care about subtlety or timing anymore. "Koragg's my father. Happy? I said it. Koragg is my father." Four jaws simultaneously dropped around the room. Udonna stood frozen in the doorway, caught in the middle of approaching the boy. Vida, Chip and Xander could only gape at their friend's honest outburst.
"Oh, Nick," Maddie whispered, walking over to her boyfriend. She took his chin and made him look at her, breaking the steely gaze he had kept on Vida. Without warning, he found himself locked into a passionate kiss, which he eagerly sent back. As the two pulled apart, the stasis the room had fallen into seemed to evaporate.
"Maddie, I ... " he tried to say letting the words die out as he said them. She just smiled at him.
"It's okay. Now it isn't a secret, and we don't have to keep it anymore."
"Wait ... " Vida managed, breaking apart the couple with her words. "Koragg is your father? How is that possible?"
"Well, I'm adopted. That helps explain it. Apparently Phineas took me to the human world after Udonna took me away from Koragg and the darkness. And here I am. It really does explain a lot, you know, like my Firestarter tendencies since I was little."
"So that's why he's so interested in you? He thinks you're supposed to be evil like him?"
"Yeah, pretty much. He wants to help me recognize my 'true power', or something like that. Thinks I should be serving evil by his side."
"Okay, so he's nuts," Xander added with a hint of a smile. "But, seriously, why didn't you tell us? You know, 'no secrets' and all that?" His words were light, but they carried a darker edge of disappointment and traces of anger.
"I was planning on telling you soon. I just hadn't found the right time yet. At least you guys know now, though." He fell silent along with the others, all processing this new information.
"So you know," Udonna said finally, breaking the temporary quiet. The Rangers turned to see her standing stock-still in a doorway, staring at Nick.
"Did you know?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. She nodded. "And you didn't tell me because ... " He let his words drift off, seeking an answer.
"I wasn't sure how you would handle it. Now that you know, though ... " She walked over to him, looking him straight in the eye. "You must know the whole truth."
"What, you weren't telling me the full truth last time? Am I not really from here?" he questioned, slightly confused.
"I was not completely honest with you. You are still of this dimension, and Koragg is still your father. This was his," she said quietly, opening her hand to reveal a silver ring.
"How'd you get that?"
"He gave it to me before returning to war," she answered, an underlying hint of sadness in her voice.
"But how - I thought you said ... " He let his words drift off as he tried to piece together the truth.
"I said he was evil?" Udonna finished for him. "Yes, I did say that. Unfortunately, that wasn't the complete truth. Your father was indeed evil at several points in his life, but he chose good magic. He was never evil by choice."
"But he's still evil," Nick added questioningly.
"Yes, I know. Until very recently, I had no idea that Koragg and your father were one and the same. You see, your father was born to the darkness. At a young age, he defected to the light and found his way to my family. We took him in, and he stayed with us from then on. Once the Great War came about, he was a formidable warrior and wizard and gladly fought against his roots by our side."
"Wait, wait," he said, holding up a halting hand. "Koragg was born evil and turned good? Is that even possible?" Udonna nodded.
"It is incredibly rare, but not unheard of. That made him an invaluable asset to our cause, as he knew many dark tactics, having been trained in them from an early age. After several months, though, we began to notice that he was disappearing for days, even weeks, and then showing up again without an excuse. After some scrying and searching, we learned that he was secretly seeing a young sorceress named Akaia."
"What's so wrong about that?"
"She was a servant of the darkness. Later we would find out that she was only enlisted to seduce him in order to bring him back to their side. Now, though, we only knew what he eventually told us of her. It took time, but we persuaded him to bring her to us after many claims of her turn to the light. Imagine our surprise when we met her and she was pregnant."
"With me, right? Don't tell me I have some evil sister out there."
"Yes, with you. You are their only child. Only weeks after joining us in the light, they both disappeared again. I searched for months and eventually found them. You had already been born, and she'd gone through the dangerous process of finding your true name."
"True name? What's that?"
"Your true name is the one name that corresponds to your inner being and greatly enhances your magic. Finding someone's true name is too difficult for most to undertake, as you may even die in the act. She did it, though, and bestowed upon you the name Nickolaus. I became your nurse in order to get close to Leanbow. For days on end, I worked memory restoration spells on him, and I finally succeeded at bringing back his old memories. I sent him back home with you, and was about to leave myself when Akaia caught me. We dueled and I got the upper hand. She ended up killing herself rather than dying at my hand. There was nothing I could do, so I headed home."
"And all this makes me what? Evil? Half-evil?"
"You are what you choose to be. You can follow a path of evil, or live for the light like your father did. Even after everything he went through, he still participated in the Great Battle, despite the risk of being recaptured by the darkness. It was during this battle that he fought as the Red Mystic Warrior for the last time. He was trapped behind the Gates as Niella was closing them, pushing the last of the Hidiacs into the Underworld." She paused to sigh, eyes misting over. "On that day, I lost my sister and my friends. All that remained were you and Clare."
"Clare?" Nick asked. "What's Clare have to do with this?"
"She is my niece, the daughter of my sister Niella."
"So why did you keep her and put me with my family? Not that I'm complaining," he added hurriedly, receiving a small smirk from his elder.
"It pained me to do it, but I knew that if I kept you here, the remnants of the darkness would come after you. They knew nothing of Clare, but knew full well of the extent of your powers. You couldn't stay here. You needed to be some place where magic existed only as a myth, where no forester would dare to venture. I scried for a proper family for you, and found one not far from Briarwood. It was perfect, as our world and Briarwood overlap in the forest. Keeping watch over you would be easy. I reluctantly let Phineas take you to your grandparents, as I was needed to heal the wounded, and Daggeron and Calindor had disappeared."
"Who are Daggeron and Calindor?"
"Daggeron was your father's apprentice, and the Solaris Knight. Calindor was a great warrior and friend who too vanished during the Great Battle," she responded, sadness in her voice. "I made sure to keep a close watch over you for several years afterward, to make sure your magic was fading, as it did. Soon it came down to rare instances of strong emotion, so I devoted more of my time to training Clare and I soon lost track of you. It wasn't until the earthquake released Koragg did I check up on you again, and found you in Briarwood of your own volition."
"Is that why you came to that place specifically when you asked for help?"
Xander, who'd been listening along with Chip, Madison and Vida, raised an eyebrow.
"What do you mean 'when you asked for help'? That was an old man looking for his brother," he said like Nick was being stupid. Nick and Madison exchanged smiles as Udonna turned to Xander and quickly changed into the old man and back. The Green Ranger seemed stunned.
"I was the old man," she answered with a smile. "And yes, that was one reason I chose that spot to ask for help," she said, turning to face Nick again. "Your friends had also shown great magical capabilities with what little magic seeped into their world through the forest. Combined with your presence, it was the most logical choice. I was going to give up on you later when you didn't believe, but Clare urged me to try again. When I saw you defend your friends from Koragg, I knew you were truly your father's son."
Udonna's green eyes sparkled with the memories of her old friend, and Nick let her reminisce. He himself was lost in thought, picking apart this new information. It felt like something was wrong with the story, as if it had been skewed somehow, though Udonna seemed to believe it wholeheartedly. Before he could mentally explore this feeling anymore, Udonna broke the silence that had fallen over the room.
"Not many can say they've ridden the mighty Catastros," she said, respect obvious in her voice. Nick looked up at her face, smiling happily as he momentarily relived it.
"Yeah, it was beyond awesome. You've still got to give props to them, though," he added, motioning to his friends. "If it wasn't for them, I'd still be riding up and down that freaky beach." The four other teens smiled, none of them more widely than Chip.
"It was actually mostly Chip," Madison said. "He's the one that remembered the spell."
"It was nothing," the Yellow Ranger said, grinning ear to ear crazily.
"I'm proud of you all. Nick mastered his fear and you all worked as a team. You are coming along quite well, as Rangers and as wizards," Udonna said, smile gracing her features. The Rangers all beamed proudly.
"This whole thing has been so cool," Nick said after a minute. "A couple months ago, I had a small family and almost no friends, none of which were troblins, by the way," he added with a grin.
"Phineas?" Udonna asked, already knowing the answer. "You wouldn't believe how long I've known him. He's been a family friend for decades."
"No way," Nick replied disbelievingly. "Decades?"
"Yes, decades. Troblins age differently than we humans do, much likes elves. He hasn't changed since I was a young girl, and he was a great help in the Great War."
"Phineas fought?" Vida enquired, an eyebrow arched.
"Not much, but he would occasionally join the fray. His magic is stronger than it may seem. Usually his work was more on the information end, though. It ended up causing both sides to distrust him." Nick could only shake his head in disbelief. They were talking about their troblin friend's role in a magical war.
"If you'd told me that I'd be a Power Ranger that's friends with a troblin and uses magic a month or two ago, I'd have told you that you were nuts. Somehow, I'm guessing it's only going to get weirder from here, though."
"I hope so," Chip said enthusiastically. Everyone smiled, but Nick's eyes went wide.
"Oh, great. What time is it?" he asked. Xander checked his phone.
"Six-thirty," he answered. "Why?"
"Gracey was having friends over tonight for dinner, and she wanted me to be there at six. I'm dead." The look on his face was a mixture of horror and fear. Maddie only smiled and took his hand.
"Come on," she said. "You can blame me. Gracey'll understand, and you can introduce us. She sounds like she's a lot of fun."
Nick rolled his eyes and muttered, "Tons." Begrudgingly, he walked out the door with Madison, completely unprepared to experience what would prove to be one of the most interesting dinner parties his sister had ever held.
A/N - Yes, another chapter. Up a little later than I'd wanted, but whatever. It's nice and long. I even redid most of the final scene so it'd work a little better in the story.
Dark Wish rocked my face into oblivion. The second part was my favorite, especially when Nick tried to attack Koragg with his own sword. "And you guys took his sword away from me... " The whole second part was great, as were the unmorphed fights. I heart Dark Wish Part II.