"Help me, please. Help me." The voice was barely audible, dry and weak.

Zane thought back to the other rooms, did they all hold this horror? Without anymore hesitation Zane worked quickly, untying the ropes and letting the women slump into his arms. He said nothing. Zane refrained from speaking as much as possible. It was another identifier, something that could be traced back to him. Still his actions appeared to be enough.

"The others we must free them, please I can stand, you must save them." She spoke stronger this time as if releasing her shackles had released some kind of beaten strength. He nodded leaving her and moving into each room. He found all the remaining five rooms were full. Some containing two people, some only one. At some point the women from the first room had joined, ushering people into the passageway. Helping those who couldn't stand on their own. Some had been here a lot longer than her, they were skeletal, barely human.

Zane stood amongst seven other people now. The relief of being free quickly washed over the group, there was no time to relax. The women seemed to realise this to, quickly composing herself and taking charge.

"We must not waste this, we need to leave, now. Stand, there will be time for rest once we are truly free." She spoke softly but with authority, turning toward him as she finished. She didn't know the way out, although it should have been fairly obvious. Zane raised his arm, pointing in the direction of stairwell.

"A window, turn right, then left. You can leave towards the back once you are outside." Zane spoke, his words muffled by his mask. Another reason he prefered to be wearing it at all times. She nodded and quickly began to usher people towards the exit. He watched her go first, leading the people out of the basement prison. For some reason he stayed back, waiting until the last person fled up the stairs before following. Why had he stayed so long, why had he cared? He had never done anything like this before, helped people without reward. Then again he realised that he hadn't found people chained the wall in a basement before either.

Before reaching the top of the stairwell he found himself frozen to the spot, again. This time it was screams. Followed by the sound of drums. Mamba had returned. His heart sank. Zane burst into the hallway, his eyes quickly assessing the situation. Thankfully mamba had not yet returned to the house. There was however another problem. Two slithers stood, wiggling and hissing in the large living room. One of the prison had fallen, dead to his right. The women clutched her right arm which was now the same colour as his mask. She looked at him and something inside raged.

Without thinking he sped forward, surprising everyone including himself. Mid run he planted his foot, using the momentum to launch forward. His kick connected with one of the slithers. Force sending him crashing into window, which shattered which shattered under his weight.

Everything after happened very quickly. The slither he kicked stayed down, to his surprise and the second began to wriggle and hiss frantically. What had he done? In all the jobs he had ran over the years not a single time had he ever engaged with the monsters. It was a rule, any kind of engagement could lead to attention and attention especially from the empire was very bad.

Yet in this one moment he had acted without logic, without thought. What had caused him to break the one rule he had kept for so many years. He realised quickly exactly what it was. He needed to save them, the people he freed. The feeling had been ignited by the look of hope in her eyes, a feeling he still felt now.

"GO!" Zane screamed the words out, still muffled but more frantic. He met her eyes again and this time he saw something else. Gratitude. Pure, unsolicited gratitude. She nodded, tears forming in her eyes before disappearing out the window. Zane felt oddly calm, he had saved them. What came next didn't seem to matter. Only it did. There was only one slither, those odds he liked. The sound of drums pierced the room, closer now.

"Shit!" Zane screamed in his head.

This is why he had rules, one slip and everything came crashing down. There was still time, not much but if he acted quickly there was still a chance. Zane turned his attention back to the slither. It wiggled slower now, a standoff with neither of them making a move. Zane decided that first move would be his.

Normally he would have dashed for the window. This however was not a normal situation, the slither's right arm acted more like a whip, the tail sharp and deadly. It had reach but only at a distance. That meant close combat was his best bet.

The slither reacted quicker than Zane expected. Lashing out with his tail-arm with a crack. Luckily Zane had trained for moments like this and his own speed was enough. Ducking and stepping slightly to the side he felt the snap behind him. The air slapped his face as the tail missed, barely, finishing safely over his shoulder. This was his chance.

He drove his right fist into the slither's chest, gripping it's tail-arm he turned into a hip throw. It hit the floor with a crash. He ran back towards the window, making a point to stamp down hard on the slither as he past. As he went to round the corner the ground disappeared beneath him. He hit the floor hard, pain stung his ankle and the device he sole slid across the floor in front of him. The slither had caught his ankle with his tail-arm. He was screwed. Zane watched as the creature slowly stood, wiggling towards him. He edged back, still struggling to get free from his restraint. The slither moving closing every second, hissing eagerly for his death.

This was it, he would die in this dull living room to the hand of a snake-man. Not exactly the kind of death he was hoping for. He hadn't realised he was still lowly edging backward, his hand found the device, the useless piece of metal that led him here, to his death. Something felt strange about it this time though. It seemed to pulse slightly. Zane could feel something coming from it, nothing physical but more like a strange energy. The empty space seemed to glow red, pulsing. It seemed to call to him, he needed to place his hand on it. Unsure why but just knowing it's what he needed to do.

As he got closer he felt his body warm with energy, power. It felt strong again, stronger that it normally was. What would happen if he actually touched it? His blinkered daze was shattered but the sound of drums, intense now, frantic. The door exploded inward with a BOOM. Dust and splinters rained down. The roar hissed throughout the house. Mamba was home.

"Who dares trespass in my lair, no-none sets foot in my studio!" Zane cringed at the words, the snakelike lingo, each word sounding longer than it should.

As the cloud of dust settled Zane noticed something. His ankle was free, the slither lay crushed by the door. How ironic that the arrival of Mamba would be his salvation. Hesitation left his body, he flipped his hood back up, it had been knocked down by his fall. The device gripped tightly in his hand, the strange energy still filled his body.

As he was about to leave, he found himself staring directly at Captain Mamba-drummer. They looked at each other and oddly he noticed the monster take a step back. Zane didn't wait to find out why, he dashed out the window. Quicker than normal, he sped across the yard and over the wall in seconds. If he had stayed a moment longer her would have heard mamba stammer out his fears.

"Impossible, the device, that mask. King Zeal proclaimed they had been silenced forever. It's not possible. The power rangers are no more!" Mamba found himself slamming his drums in frustration, the chaotic sound waves bringing his lair crashing down around him.

A/N:

Ohhhh I wonder what exactly Zane just retrieved? Narrowly escaping the situation and saving a few people in the process. The action continues in part 3!

- End of Part 2 -