Chapter 4: Old Acquaintances

"Hey! They're doing better!" Kira argued from her spot in the Lair. It was comfortably set up for her and her guitar which she was messing with between conversations. Conner was at the computer considering it was his turn to watch it while Ethan was working on his video game. Since they were considered to be junior mentors, Kim, Tommy, and Hayley had decided that they needed to be on watch as well, setting up times for them. Fortunately, they had managed to get times where they were all free and tended to pull triple duty by keeping the one who was on shift company. Often, Zack would join them to have discussions on the creation of the Power Ranger Raptorball League, called PRRL for short. There were problems concerning Red's lack of appreciation toward other Rangers riding him, the fact that most teams had more than four members as well as Rangers who had belonged on more than one team. Wes and Eric's team was in the future and therefore, unable to play unless they broke several rules in getting them there which no one really wanted to do for a game. Thus, it was coming along slowly.

That day, however, there was only the three of them. They'd managed to go up against the spider creatures, which had been named Tarantumen, several times by now. None of them pretended to think it was a clever name, but they needed to call them something when they sent the new Rangers out to get them. While hanging back a bit, Conner, Kira, and Ethan did tend to go with in order to help if necessary. If there was just too many, even Kim and Tommy would join in. Hayley had improved Kim's arrows and Tommy had a sword similar to Jason's other than his had white stones encrusted into it and Jason had gotten red ones after the final fight from the year before. They'd both complained about the two swords being so similar that Zack had gotten it done to shut them up. Still, as the discussion was taking place, they were having difficulties with the newer Rangers that weren't easily fixed.

"I dunno, Kira," Ethan said, glancing over from his computer. "Conner's got a point. They're still not working together. Jera and Seth work together and Ben and Tara work together, but they're not working together on the whole."

"Be fair," Conner muttered from where he was sitting. "Tara tries."

"Tara tries," Ethan agreed. "And they're not bad. I mean, Jera fixed up Black's leg with Hayley and Billy's supervision, Ben really has a handle on his earth power, and Seth has gotten really good at fighting. Maybe we should talk Doctor O and Kim into getting them a new toy. We got our weapons right away."

"Yeah," Conner answered. "But I never threatened you with it. Seriously, I saw the weapons and I'm not sure if I want them to have it. We're responsible if they kill each other."

"You're exaggerating, Conner," Kira scolded. "I'm just saying that all we've had to face right now is the Tarantumen. What happens when the monsters start showing up? Or the mastermind behind this whole thing?"

"We're doomed?" Joked Ethan. "Seriously, I don't think they'll kill each other."

"Look, I'd rather they have the weapons when we need them to have them then worry about something they won't do," Kira argued. She looked at Conner, the last of them who they needed to agree in order to have a united front. They were able to convince their mentors of more when they had a united front.

"Alright, alright. Fine," Conner said. "We'll tell them when they get home. Speaking of our various baby-sitting jobs, where are we taking Neen this weekend?"

"Aquarium," Ethan answered. "We thought she might like to talk to the fish."

"You mean see the fish, right?" Conner asked as they both just looked at him. "Got it. That's one ability she still has."

"Why wouldn't she?" Asked Ethan.

"She's half-human, remember?" Conner said. "She can't do everything her mom could. Anyway, we talk to Doctor O and Kim, convince them to let the newbies use weapons, train them with them, pray they don't kill each other, and take our surrogate little sister to the aquarium. Am I forgetting anything?"

"God! You're as bad as Jason!" Kira answered. "You call them newbies, he calls them rookies…"

"He calls me a rookie," Conner answered. "Although, I think it's a term of affection now. It wasn't when he first started out though. Doctor O said he did the same to Cole when he first met him."

"He's also older than you and has been through two colors!" Kira reminded him. "You're the youngest besides them and have been through one color."

"When they start working together, I'll stop calling them newbies," he promised. "And… time. Ethan, your turn."

"Damn."

"You made a list?" Kim asked and the teens nodded. Tommy shrugged and pointed in the direction of Conner.

"You wrote him a note," he reminded her. She shrugged.

"It worked," she answered. Ethan and Kira looked confused and she shook her head. "Don't worry about it, guys."

"So, all of you think that we should give them their weapons. We gave them their guns," Tommy reminded them and Conner sighed.

"Yeah, but it's not the same and eventually something big and nasty, as Kim puts it, is going to show up. We think it would be better if they were ready," he said as the other two nodded. "And better now than when they're in trouble, right?"

"Getting their weapons in battle is a time honored tradition," Tommy said with a slight smile. "Or at least first using it there is."

"Doctor O," all three teens said at once. He laughed and Kim smiled. He held up his hands in mock surrender.

"Alright, alright. You three win. We'll give them their specific weapon now before it gets too bad," he assured them. "They're coming to train soon so we'll give it to them then."

"How's college?" Kim asked, changing the subject since they resolved the other conflict. The three of them shrugged and Ethan's eyes shown with humor.

"Oh fine, besides for having to sharing my room with two people instead of one," he answered casually. Both Kira and Conner glared in his direction.

"Oh, come on, Ethan. We're not that bad. We don't do anything when you're not in the room," Conner said, rolling his eyes. Ethan's eyes widened.

"But you do when I'm gone? On your side, right?" He asked panicking. Kira shrugged and shook her head casually.

"Well, we started to, but your bed is more comfortable, so we thought…" She started and at both Kim and Tommy's glare as well as Ethan looking about ready to cry, she dropped it. "Relax, Ethan. We don't go near your side."

"I meant the academic part of it," Kim said quickly. "How's that going?"

"Good."

"Good."

"Passing."

"Conner!" Both Kim and Tommy said as he answered. The teen shrugged.

"Better than I would have been doing a year ago," he reminded them. "Besides, I'm passing. And I'm going to classes."

Kim quickly intervened before Tommy could. "You're right. Sorry, Conner. I think we're all a little stressed."

"We're taking Neen to the aquarium this weekend," Kira said, trying to change the subject a second time to save her boyfriend. "We're thinking she'll like that."

"More than likely," Kim agreed. "She's still adjusting to changing schools… and planets. And she gets excited when you three offer to take her."

Conner shrugged. "She's family."

"So, why can't you feel that way about the new Rangers?" Kim asked and Conner scowled. Kira had been leading the way in trying to accept the new Rangers, Ethan was once again the middle ground, and Conner had been treating it like a business relationship. Kim gave him a slight look and his arms folded as he turned away from them.

"Because if I don't care about them, then I won't care if they get hurt," he answered. "I won't feel bad and be wondering what I did wrong."

Kim sighed and put her hand on his shoulder. "You still will, Conner. You and I both know you care already. You have a good heart and you're like me."

"We all care, Conner," Kira said as she headed over and let Conner hold her. "We're all scared."

"Yeah. It's freaky," Ethan said. "We're responsible."

"It's one reason why we didn't want you three to help," Tommy said honestly. "We didn't want to put you through this, but you can handle it. And we're still mostly in charge."

Ethan gave a fake cough and motioned to the monitor. "They're here."

"So, we get individual weapons as well," Seth said. "Cool. Where are they?"

"Well, first you have to morph," Conner said, trying to be patient. He felt Kira's arms wrap around him and Kim's hand touch his shoulder which helped calm him. Seth shrugged.

"Planetary Alliance, power up!" They called. Seth pulled his out first.

"Fire of Kalderon!" He called as he finished morphing, his red suit done in such a way that he looked like moving lava.

"Water of Aquitar!" Jera continued, hers looking like ripples on water.

"Wind of Aeris!" Tara added. Hers was decorated with swirls that looked like yellow, seeable wind.

"Earth of Mirinoi!" Ben finished, his green suit giving him camouflage for green areas.

"Good," said Kim. "Now, Seth, repeat after me: Fire Sais!"

"Fire sais!"

"Jera, Water Trident!"

"Water Trident!"

"Tara, Wind Stars!"

"Wind Stars!"

"And Ben, Earth Sheild!"

"Earth Sheild!"

"These are your weapons," Tommy said. "You can use them apart and together. No one's is more important that anyone else's. Seth, yours are for close range fighting. Jera, use yours as both a lance and a staff. Tara, yours is for longer distance and Ben, yours is for protection. They each have powers which you're going to train to learn as well as just learning how to use them."

"It's getting late," Kim mentioned. "We'll teach you tomorrow. At the very least, you know how to call them. Now, Power Down."

They grumbled a bit, but did so and headed home shortly after.

"Conner! Kira! Ethan! Look!" Neen called out happily as she pointed at a large aquarium with various multi-colored fish. Ethan walked up behind her to look as Conner and Kira were discussing whether or not to go get food. They were all enjoying the lack of training that they had to put in for the day. The girl was a welcome distraction to the Rangering world for them.

"They're pretty, huh?" Ethan asked and Neen nodded.

"I wish my face-place had more colors," she whispered, referring to her true form.

"Nah," Ethan answered. "If it did, then it would over shadow everything else."

Neen paused for a moment before nodding. "I believe you are correct, Ethan."

"Ah, his three favorite words," Conner teased as Kira and him joined them. Ethan turned to look at him.

"Hey! I'm not that bad!" He argued. "Besides, look who's talking."

"He's got you there, Conner," Kira agreed, grinning.

"He does not!"

"I do too!" Ethan fought.

"Don't!"

"Do!"

"Don't!"

"Guys!" Kira called out. They both turned to look at her. "Where's the kid?"

Neen was a little further down from the trio in front of a Leopard shark, where she could still hear them. If she could hear them, then she was probably close enough to them. After all, she'd be able to find her way back and her surrogate siblings could stay arguing for long periods of a time. She sighed and put her hand on the glass. "Salutations."

The shark paused in it's swimming and headed toward her. She could feel the slight confusion radiating off of it, well, him. He swam toward her a bit and stopped, waiting for her. Neen smiled and put her other hand up. The shark came closer and stopped in front of the glass looking at her. "I am Neen. What can I call you?"

He paused but made a noise that only she could hear. She nodded at that. "Kamoh. It is a very nice name. I am looking around your home. Have you always lived here?" She asked. He waited a few seconds before answering in the affirmative. "Wow."

"Has he?" Neen jumped and turned to look at a little boy about her age.

"Aff… Yeah," Neen answered, a little annoyed that slang didn't come easily to her.

"How can you hear him?" The boy asked and Neen shrugged.

"My daddy knew the Alien Rangers and they taught him a little bit," she answered, not exactly lying. What they had taught him wasn't necessarily how to speak to fish, but the boy didn't need to know that and Daddy had said it was okay to fib to protect the 'family' secret. Both the Rangers' secret and what she was.

"Wow! I was saved by a Power Ranger once," he said. "It was really scary. I'm Dante."

"I am Neen," the little girl answered and held out her hand to shake his. Dante looked at it, thought for a minute, and shook it. "Which Ranger did you meet?"

"The red one. It was last year," he answered. "He was really nice. The white one wasn't. He threw me!"

Neen's eyes got huge. "He threw you?"

"Uh huh. Into water. I couldn't swim neither!" Dante said and paused. "Neither could the red Ranger. But that's okay. Tyrannosaur Rexes can't swim. I saw it on a cartoon."

"But my daddy lived in Angel Grove and he said the red Ranger could swim and he was a Tyrannosaur Ranger too," Neen said. Dante looked a little confused at that and shrugged it off.

"Maybe he was just lucky," the child decided. Neen shrugged.

"We like the blue Rangers in my family. I even have a blue triceratops," she informed him. "I named it Ranger after the first blue Ranger."

"Why do you like blue Rangers? Most girls like the Yellow one," He asked and Neen shrugged.

"Because they are intelligent like me," she answered, leaving out the fact that her father had been one. "When I get older, if I get to be a Power Ranger, I hope I am blue."

Dante shrugged. "I wanna be red."

"There are other colors," she told him. "You could be black or green or white or even yellow!"

"Yellow's a girl color!" Dante argued, wrinkling up his nose. "No 'fense."

Neen shrugged. "Blue is a boy color, but I still aspire, that means hope, to be it. Besides, some red Rangers can be really bossy I have heard."

"Really? I don't wanna be bossy," Dante said, thinking it over. "You know a lot!"

"Thank you!" Neen answered happily and then frowned. "You are not going to say 'for a girl', are you?"

Dante shook his head. "Nah. Girls can be smart and I don't know any boys that can talk to sharks!"

Neen smiled brightly and turned to the shark. "This is my new friend, Dante. He is nice."

The shark said something else to her and she turned to Dante. "He says hello."

"Hi Mister Shark!" Dante exclaimed, waving. Neen was about to turn to ask it another question, when she was interrupted.

"There you are!" Conner said, looking a little relieved. "Kira! Ethan! I found her!"

"I told you she wasn't eaten by sharks, Conner," Kira said as she headed over and looked at Neen. "You scared us. I don't want to tell Billy we lost his only kid, okay?"

"I am sorry. I only wanted to talk to the shark and you were arguing. I did not think you would notice," she said honestly. "And I made two new friends. The shark is named Kamoh and this is Dante. He was saved by the red Ranger last year."

Conner looked at the kid and did his best not to pale. He knew for a fact that there were plenty of rugrats that were Neen's age, yet she managed to find the only one that he'd spent any time with as the red Ranger. Not to mention that the kid was observant which, while a good trait in general, was not good when he was trying to keep a secret. "That's great, Neen. Well, it was nice to meet you, Dante. Come on, Neen. It's time to…"

"But you told me that we could spend at least three hours here, Conner," Neen informed him, looking upset. "It has only been thirty-three minutes."

"Yeah, but…"

"There is still over two hours before Papa's date ends with Hayley," she told him. Conner, Kira, nor Neen noticed that Dante's eyes squinted a bit in concentration. "And you decided I could choose."

"I know but…" Conner started and Dante looked over at him.

"Mr. Conner, how many times did you save Hayley anyway?" He asked and Conner barely looked over at him.

"Lots but… uh oh," he said. Kira looked a little confused until she began to piece it together. She winced as badly as her boyfriend. Dante's eyes lit up.

"I knew it! You're…" he began, but Conner quickly put his hand over the kid's mouth. He motioned for the kid to keep quiet as he took his hand off and headed to a more secluded area. Kira grabbed Ethan as they passed by him and dragged him with. Once in an area where there was less people that could here the kid's exclamation, Conner nodded to Dante. "Red Ranger!"

"I don't suppose you'd buy it if I said I wasn't?" He asked Dante who shook his head wildly. "Didn't think so."

"I asked Miss Hayley to tell you, but in case she didn't thank you for saving me," Dante told him. "You were great! Why can't you swim?"

"Uh… no reason. And you're welcome," he answered. Kira blinked a few times.

"Doesn't he have parents?" She asked and Dante looked at her.

"I have a mom," he said helpfully. Conner groaned.

"Don't ask. There was a reason I had to save him," Conner groaned. Dante looked at Ethan and Kira.

"Were you Rangers too?" He asked, not waiting for an answer before looking at Conner. "Would you let me ride in the Tyrannosaurus Zord?"

"Can't. It got destroyed," Conner answered. "Alright, we can handle this. Dante, I'm going to let you in on a super huge secret but you can't tell anyone except Neen because she already knows. That means you can't tell your mom or your friends or anyone else you know unless we say it's okay. Got it?"

Dante nodded and looked at Conner solemnly. "Yep."

"Good. Yes, I was the red Ranger but my powers are gone now. I lost them after the last fight. Later on, we'll have a talk with Hayley and see what else you can know, okay?" He asked and the child nodded.

"Okay," he said and looked at Neen. "So, you already knew?"

"Affirmative," she answered happily before looking at Conner. "Conner, I thought the fish were supposed to stay inside of the aquarium."

"They are," he answered and she pointed toward the entrance.

"Then why is the lobster walking around?" She asked, pointing at a human sized lobster that was indeed entering the building. Conner groaned and looked ready to cry over the whole mess. He'd nearly lost Neen, had his identity figured out by a six-year-old, and now there was a giant lobster attacking the building. His life sucked.

"Because apparently I did something wrong in a past life," he answered and leaned down to his wrist. "Dactyl, you there?"

"Codenames again, Rex?" He could hear the amusement in his mentor's voice and tried not to scowl.

"I'll explain later. For now, you might want to send the newbies. They finally sent one," he answered. He heard Kim curse under her breath and he couldn't help but to snicker. "We'll evacuate, but the sooner the better."

"I'm on it. Good luck," she said and the communicator went dark again. Conner looked at the others and saw that they were just as unhappy that the entrance was blocked.

"Alright, where are the other exits?" He asked and Kira pointed to one that was equally blocked by Tarantumen. "Okay, not good. Neen, do any of your friends know a way?"

"I can ask Kamoh," she suggested, rushing back toward that part of the aquarium. Ethan picked up Dante under one arm so that they could move quicker and they headed toward Neen. She looked at Kira apologetically. "He says he will tell us if you promise not to scream. They have heard about it. They do not wish for the glass to break."

"Got it. No screaming," she promised. Neen nodded and turned back to the shark who gave her quick directions which Neen related back to the others. Kira looked up at the crowd and called out. "This way! There's an exit this way!"

The trio led the way, not letting go of either charge. Once they reached the exit, they directed the other patrons toward the door before the Tarantumen could catch up with them. Ethan glanced at Conner. "Someone should take the kids!"

"Mr. Conner! There's more people coming!" Dante mentioned, pointing at the new crowd that hadn't seen the exit before. The three moved a bit to let them get in the moving line, wishing the group would go quicker. Conner gave Ethan a look and the other teen set Dante next to Kira. Conner gently pushed Neen over to her as well. Kira looked up at them, fury in her eyes.

"Oh, he...ck no!" She exclaimed, watching her language in front of the children. Conner sighed.

"Kira, you're the only one who can't use her power right now. Ethan and I can. I'm sorry, Babe," he said honestly and her eyes darkened further before she finally relented.

"Don't call me 'Babe'," she said, though there was little malice behind it. "Only until the other Rangers get here?"

"We're hoping," he promised her. He turned to Neen and Dante. "Listen to Kira and if you guys notice that someone you saw inside isn't out here or running down the street to the car, let her know so Ethan and I can watch out for them. Okay?"

"Okay," both children answered. Neen had learned to copy the okay when they asked her for it instead of giving her father's old response. Conner nodded, gently messed with Neen's hair, before nodding to Ethan as they ran back in. Kira only hoped that the others would get there in time.

Both of the former Rangers looked at each other and Conner looked at Ethan. "We need a plan."

"Okay, we should probably get him out of the aquarium before the others come. We can try to push him out the front door," Ethan suggested. "You know, so there aren't fishy casualties when the others get here."

"Fishy cas…?" Conner asked, giving him a look. "Are you serious?"

"Hey, you want to tell Neen we got her friends killed?" Ethan shot back.

"Not really. Okay. We protect the fish. Come on," Conner said, still not having much of a plan, but he hoped that Ethan and he would be able to work one out as they went. They rushed in and toward the monster. Conner used his speed to trip it while Ethan toughened his skin and let loose into its body, knocking it toward the door. They heard the clattering behind them and knew that the Tarantumen were heading in toward them.

"Conner…" Ethan said and the other nodded.

"I know. Let's go down fighting," he answered and they charged again, managing to knock the monster from the building. The Tarantumen followed as Conner and Ethan stood their ground. They weren't exactly disappointed to see a burst of fire cut off the monster from them, nor that the Tarantumen retreated a bit when it happened.

The new Rangers rushed over to help up Conner and Ethan. "Are you okay?" Ben asked and Conner nodded.

"We're fine. Go kick ass. We'll make sure everyone got out okay," he assured them. They nodded and called for their weapons as Conner and Ethan made their way back inside. Conner paused a few feet in and touched his communicator. "Hey Kira, everything okay?"

"It's fine. I took the car," she answered and both boys cursed quietly knowing that they were down a ride. "Sorry, Guys, but I wanted to get the kids out."

"No problem," Conner lied. "Just don't crash my baby."

"I won't. See you back at the house. Kira out." Conner sighed and touched the button to hang up as they looked around. With luck, she'd already let Kim know and Doctor O would be on his way to pick them up. Neither one wanted to call her and ask since she needed to concentrate on watching the new Rangers.

"You see anyone?" Conner asked, a little ways off from his friend. There was no reply. He turned around to face him, but he wasn't there. "Ethan?"

He turned the corner and was face to face with an older looking man with tan-grey hair, a slight beard, and tan armor as well as a helmet. His hands, however, were pinchers and it was clear that this wasn't his permanent form. Ethan was at his feet, eyes wide open and looking around, but paralyzed beyond that. Conner took a fight stance as he tried to figure a way out of the situation. The man looked at him. "Stand down, Boy."

"I'd rather not. We're not exactly good at surrendering," he answered and watched as the man lifted a hand and some sort of energy rushed at him. He used his super speed to dodge the first couple of shots, but the third hit him straight on and he fell where he was, paralyzed as badly as Ethan. He thought for a moment and used his speed to rush his metabolism, determined to get Ethan and him out of there. He wanted to scream out in pain as it was painful to rush through, but by the end of it, he was able to pull himself up and onto his feet. The man sighed, but didn't bother to paralyze him a second time. Instead, he merely knocked Conner's legs out from under him.

"Stay down," he told him. "Where's the third?"

"Somewhere not here," Conner answered trying to sound brave, though his voice even sounded tired to him. He wasn't sure that was going to be a good enough answer until the man nodded. Conner reached for his communicator, but the man took it from him and Ethan's soon after. Thanks to Billy, he recognized the feeling of being transported and felt his hope leave him.

"Seth! Watch your left!" Kim shouted to him and nearly hit her head against the desk. "Your other left!"

"Need a break?" She glanced upward as Tommy lean in to kiss her cheek as they watched. Kim shook her head.

"No, I've got it. I'm just worried about them and the other three. I haven't heard from any of them," she answered.

"Any of who?" Kira asked as she headed downstairs, Neen and Dante each holding one of her hands. Both Tommy and Kim looked at the little boy and then back at Kira. She shrugged. "He figured out about Conner and he knows about me and Ethan."

Kim nodded and turned back to the screen. "Jera, use your trident. Tara, fly them upward. Ben, Seth, work together. Earth and fire are powerful. That should help," she instructed before turning back to Kira. "Where's Conner and Ethan?"

"Back at the aquarium. They were fine the last I heard. I was going to head back for them," she answered and Tommy shook his head.

"Don't worry about it now. We'll just teleport them," he said, watching as Kira winced from not thinking about that before. "So why did you come back?"

"I'm on kid duty. I couldn't use my scream because I promised Neen I wouldn't break the fish's glass after they said they'd tell her the exit if I promised," she answered. At their confused look, she shrugged. "Couldn't scream, they could still use their powers, I was elected to get the kids to safety."

Tommy nodded and began to mess with the teleportation device as Kim continued to help the Planetary Rangers. After the fire and earth held him down, they used their weapons together to destroy him. Tommy, on the other hand, looked more than a little perturbed. "Huh."

"What is it?" Kim asked, the menace not growing at the moment. She was still watching the screen, but there didn't seem to be a continued threat. For some reason, it wasn't growing. Tommy didn't answer her right away, but instead moved to his communicator.

"Conner? Ethan?" He asked. There wasn't a response. "Come on, Guys. I need you to come in. Guys?"

When there was no answer again, both Kira and Kim looked at Tommy. Kira was the first to respond. "Doctor O? Where are they?"

"I'm not sure," he answered, messing with the controls as well as the communicator to try to find them.

"What do you mean you don't know?" Kim asked, deadly calm. This time Tommy looked up at her.

"I mean, I can't reach them on the communicator or find them with the teleportation system," he answered. "They're just not there."

"You lost our boys?!" Kim screeched and Kira immediately turned to Neen and Dante.

"Okay, that's enough adventure for the two of you. Upstairs to color," she said and Neen shrugged taking Dante's hand.

"They need grown up time," she said wisely. "You should call your Mommy."

"Okay," Dante answered, going with the flow. Kira waited until they were upstairs before looking back at Kim and Tommy.

"I didn't lose them! They were already lost!" Tommy argued, though even he had to admit that there wasn't much of a difference and it didn't matter who had lost them. The only reason they were yelling was because they were both scared. Kim moved to yell something back, but Kira's voice, though quiet for her, interrupted.

"We're going to find them, right?" She asked and both adults turned their attention toward her. They immediately dropped the argument and turned back to her.

"Of course," Tommy said, gently pulling her to him. Kim wrapped an arm around them both and put the other on the girl's back. "We're not going to leave behind our own."

"The others are coming back," Kira mentioned, pointing to the screen as the four headed through the cave entrance. "I'll call Hayley. She'll want to know about Ethan."

"Send her and Billy down here when they get here," Kim ordered, trying to hide her own fear for Kira's sake. "We'll find them."

Conner was unceremoniously dropped to the floor once they reached their destination. The man had been forced to drag him when Conner had tried to fight once the transporter had stopped. The man was more gentle with Ethan, setting him down on the ground instead of dropping him. The other boy was finally coming out of it and was trying to pull himself up. Conner pulled himself up and helped Ethan up, letting the other lean on him. Before he could try anything, the man placed a pincer-hand against each of their necks. He could feel the sharpness of the edge and knew that if the man wanted to, he could eviscerate them without a problem.

"My lady, I brought them," the man said, not being able to kneel, but bowing his head in respect.

"Good, Chelone," a voice spoke softly to him. "They seem to be in one piece. Were they trouble?"

"A little," Chelone answered. "But an understandable amount. I would have done the same."

Conner and Ethan didn't see or hear a response, but they'd learned that that was usually a good thing in these circumstances. The voice continued. "There were three? Where is the girl?"

"My lady, I apologize. She left before I could get her. I thought it best to bring these two here before I looked for her," Chelone answered and he tapped Conner's neck. The boy breathed in sharply instinctively, but Chelone didn't break his skin. "This one can move through my poison."

"We have two. That will be enough," was the answer. "You were wise to bring two back instead of none."

"Thank you, my lady. Do you want me to lock them up?" He asked and she finally came out of the shadows. Conner had to admit that for someone who was probably going to kill them, she was pretty. She seemed Asian, if she would have been human, with golden armor. She was definitely not someone to be messed with and he instinctively knew that at one point, she'd been more willing to kill and move on, but the years had seemingly calmed her. She wasn't threatening them or even harming them yet and she seemed to know what she was doing as if she'd been through it before. More importantly, as if she had a long-term plan.

"Not yet," she said and looked between the two boys for a moment before landing her look at Conner. "You're the red one, aren't you?"

Conner wanted to nod, but the pincher was too close. "Yeah. Well, I was."

"Close enough," she said and looked at Ethan. "Blue Ranger, tell me. Does your base still have a communication center?"

Ethan didn't answer right away and winced when Chelone moved his pincher in closer. Using their powers took energy that he still didn't have. "I don't think I'm supposed to answer that."

"They had communicators, my lady," Chelone said. "I took them from them before the transport."

"Good. Release the red Ranger," she instructed and he did so. He handed her one of the bracelets that he'd confiscated and she took it in one hand and Conner in the other. "Make no mistake, red Ranger. I only need one of you alive and Chelone is in the perfect position to kill your friend there. Just do what I say."

Conner looked at Ethan and saw just how right she was. He swallowed hard and nodded. "Okay."

"I'm going to hook this up to a communication system. It will find a way back to your base's computer. Then, you and I are going to have a little chat with your mentors. Do you understand?"

Conner glanced back at Ethan and nodded, feeling a little defeated. "Yeah," he answered.

"Good," she answered as she hooked it up. Conner made sure to watch, but didn't do too much else. He figured that if he could figure out how it worked, then they might be able to use it later. It flickered a few times before they could hear anything, let alone see it.

"Doctor O? Kim? The computer is doing something." Kira's voice spoke and after a couple seconds, Conner could see her face. He had the feeling that she could only see him since he was standing directly in front of it. "Conner?! Where the hell are you? Do you have any idea how much you scared me, you stupid jock!"

Conner winced a bit at that, but didn't take any direct offense to it, knowing that she was just scared. "Hey, Kira. Are Doctor O and Kim there?"

"Conner, are you okay?" He heard Kim asked before he saw her stand behind Kira and Tommy joined them a second later.

"What's going on, Conner?" He asked, not sounding angry. At that point, Conner knew that his mentors knew he was in trouble. If they hadn't, they probably would have been as angry as Kira, whose expression was starting to change back to worry. In as much trouble as he was, he just wanted to wrap his arms around her and promise her that he'd be okay as Tommy was subconsciously holding Kim.

"We, uh, ran into some trouble. She wants to talk to you, I think," Conner answered and glanced at the woman who nodded. "Yeah, she does. Look, don't tick her off, okay? The other guy has Ethan and I'm trying not to get him killed right now."

Tommy's expression darkened. "Well, tell her we're ready to talk to her."

Conner looked at the woman. "They're, uh, ready to talk to you."

She moved behind him and pressed a few buttons so that the screen's view increased. She wrapped one arm around him, pinning him in place and the other she gently moved through his hair as if he were a pet. Conner didn't move a muscle though he wanted to throw her across the room. He watched as both of his mentors' eyes widened in quiet panic. She only looked at them. "Tommy, Kimberly."

"Aren't you supposed to be dead?" Tommy asked, keeping his voice calm. The woman shrugged.

"I wasn't in this galaxy, Ranger," she answered. "I was surprised to hear what happened to my former allies, however. As was I surprised to hear that you and the rest of your friends had moved on from being Rangers and were mentors now."

"And you came back?" Kim asked. "I would have thought that would be a reason not to."

"I'm full of surprises," the woman answered with a slight shrug. "Enough with your bantering. I'm assuming you want the two younger Rangers back."

"I'd like you to get your hands off him before I come there and wipe that smug smile off your face," Kim nearly growled. In spite of the situation, Conner had to smile at his mentor's response. The smile disappeared when she scratched the side of his face slightly.

"Careful, pink Ranger. I'm sure you'd hate for something permanent to happen to them," the woman answered as Kim's anger seemed to increase even further. Still, she kept her tongue. "Now, I want the two of you. You two want Conner and… Ethan I think his name was? How about a trade?"

"What, no 'give up the Rangers' power' idea?" Tommy asked and the woman laughed.

"I can defeat them later. And I will. I want the planet, but for now, I want the two of you. Especially you," she said, looking at Tommy. "So, do we have a deal?"

Tommy looked directly at Conner. "Other than the scratch, have they hurt you?"

Conner shook his head. "No. I'm a little confused about that actually. They paralyzed us, but that was it," he said honestly. He kept himself from taking a deep breath before he continued. "Don't. Stay. Help the new Rangers."

He was expecting the backhand she gave him and he didn't move to dodge it when she let him go. He could hear the protesting on the screen as he started to pick himself up. The woman looked at him and back at Ethan, causing him to stop in his tracks. She turned back to the screen. "I'll give you some time to think it over."

"Scorpina!" Tommy called out, but she hung up afterward. She turned her attention to Conner who wasn't moving and shook her head as she dragged him up.

"You were doing so good," she told him. "And then you had to ruin it at the end, didn't you?"

"If I answer that truthfully, are you going to kill Ethan?" Conner asked and she shook her head. "Powers or not, we're still Rangers. Kim and Doctor O are better mentors than we are so it's better for Earth if we die instead of them."

She had to admit that she was surprised by his words. She was expecting him to tell her that they'd be save anyway and that it wasn't necessary for his mentors to do that. She'd expected him to be unlike this young man standing before her telling her that he didn't matter as much in the grand scheme of things. "Chelone, lock them up."

"Yes, my lady," he answered, waiting on Conner. Conner looked over at Scorpina who glanced back at him in annoyance.

"Get moving, Little Ranger," she warned him. "Before we do something you'll regret."

Chelone looked at him again and Conner headed over. Once he had both of them in front of him, he let go of Ethan as his pinchers turned back into hands. They started to move to make a run for it, but Chelone sighed and they were each grabbed around the waist, pinchers back. "I can carry you both there or I can leave you your dignity and you can walk."

They both sighed and Ethan nodded to Conner who answered. "We'll walk."

"Good," Chelone answered, leading them down a corridor and into a room. Both boys were surprised at how well furnished it was. There wasn't a bed, but rather a bunch of pillows and blankets instead. There wasn't much other than that, though neither Ethan nor Conner knew if there were buttons that opened a closet or something like that. Nor was there a window, but that too could be closed. "You'll have to share the sleeping nest. Don't bother trying to knock through walls or doors. You won't be able to. I'll bring you some food later."

With that, he closed the door and locked it. Conner glanced at Ethan. "You okay?"

"Yeah. I think you got hurt worse than me," Ethan answered.

"Is this freaking you out too? I mean, I'm used to them trying to kill us on sight, but…" he started and Ethan nodded.

"They haven't really hurt us too much, they're being sort of nice for psychotic evil people, and they gave us a pretty nice room," he finished. "You think we shouldn't tell Kim and Dr. Mercer this part?"

"Not unless you want to hear them both, Kim especially, complain about how she got a freezing cold room where they starved her and we got paradise," Conner joked. They were both quiet before Ethan spoke up.

"I think she likes you," he told his friend who made a face.

"My cheek says you're wrong," Conner answered as he laid down in the nest, tired from everything that had happened. Ethan shrugged. "Besides, she's evil. Oh god! This isn't going to be like Elsa coming on to Doctor O, is it?"

"Not that kind of like!" Ethan said, making a similar face. "I think you intrigue her."

"Oh," Conner answered. "Hey Ethan? I'm bored."

Ethan sighed. "Fine. Want to play 'Anywhere but here?'"

"Cool."

Author's Note: I decided Neen needed a friend. And since I'm lazy and don't want to create another new character, I brought back Dante. He's named, he was going to figure it out, and I could see him getting along with her. So, yeah. Plus, I found myself liking him well enough. Always a plus.

Maybe it was just me, but I always liked Scorpina. Even when I was a little girl, I liked her. And don't think that she isn't after the other Rangers, by the way, Tommy and Kim were just easier to start with if you think about it. Chelone seemed like a good second for her.

Because I missed last week, I've decided to give this one to you as well. I still feel bad about missing my own deadline. So, I hope you enjoy it. Thank you for all of the reviews! I appreciate it!