Public Enemies

Chapter 22: Seeds of a Civil War

"Do you know how hard it was to find you?" Rose pointed her laser gun at Madison's forehead. "Do you have ANY fucking idea how hard I looked for you!"

Madison was on her knees, shaking at the sight of the gun's barrel, pointed directly at the space between her eyes. She couldn't utter a peep. She couldn't scream for help. But the good Lord knows, if she could, she would.

"You took him away from me." Rose's tears streamed down her face, as the fury that consumed manifested itself in her facial expressions. "The only man I ever loved…to ever make me feel special…my reason for living…you FUCKING TOOK HIM FROM ME!"

Meanwhile…

"Where is she!" Nick furiously shook Clare, who was trembling in fear. In his fury, he slaps her. "Tell me where she went!"

"You hit me…" Clare whimpers. Tears stream down her face, as she places a hand to her cheek.

"You must have teleported her somewhere!" Nick slaps her again. And again. And one more time. "Tell me where she is!"

"I'm sorry." Clare trembles, trying to calm Nick down. She looks around, and sees that neither Chip nor Vida are willing to calm Nick down. Or to stop him from hitting her.

"What the hell?" Casey walked in on that exact moment. Seeing Clare's red cheek, and Nick just grappling her like that, he came into a rage. He dashes towards Nick, punches him hard in the jaw, and knocks him away. He looks over to Clare, and helps pick her up. "The fuck's wrong with you all!"

"Look, dude! Madison's really fragile right now!" Chip steps in. "And what does Clare do? She 'accidently' teleports her away! Madison needs to be HERE, kept safe and secure!"

"It really was an accident…" Clare whimpers. "I didn't mean for it to happen."

"You asshole. You were there too!" Nick gets up. "You HEARD her screams! You HEARD her cries for help! What the fuck's wrong with YOU! Did you forget just how BROKEN she is!"

"That's no reason to beat Clare up!" Casey gets into a fighting pose. He knows he is surrounded, but he doesn't care.

"ENOUGH!" Jason roars as he enters the room. After he is informed of the situation (and decks Nick), he calmly thinks of a plan. "Clare, help us locate Madison."

Back at Reefside Woods…

"Mack was my world, my love and soul." Rose is in tears now. "He was a man like no other. Always a smile on his face. Always hungry for life. Always ready for the next big adventure."

Madison wanted to cry. She wanted to express sympathy to Rose. She wanted to tell her all about how sorry she is that Chip had killed Mack. She wanted to tell her about how horrified she is at all the events that had transpired.

"He wanted to help you." Rose's face contorts with fury. "He only complied with the government to help his team. You think he WANTED to sell you out? No. He only wanted to help us out! He couldn't stand it, seeing his friends suffer needlessly because of that fucking Ranger Act…because of those FUCKING INGRATES! The common man…ungrateful hoarder of slime that he is!"

Madison trembles, her eyes fixated on the barrel of the gun.

"Mack knew what he was doing wasn't right. But he did it anyway. He joined up with the government, sold you all out. None of you went to jail because of that, remember? No, no one went to jail because of him. That part, you guys getting arrested, you did that to yourselves."

Suddenly, Madison thinks about all that had happened to her. She was forcibly taken from her home by men with guns. She was stripped naked, and searched. She was thrown into a dark cell, never to see the sunlight. She ate from the floor. She was brutally beaten on a day by day basis. Worst of all, she had been raped. All for the 'crime' of being in a Ranger team which had ONE member still on the lam from the law. How did she do THAT to herself?

Meanwhile, in Hartford Manor…

"It's been a week since she's been missing, and not ONCE did it ever occur to you to look for her!" Taylor grabs Andrew by the collar. "So…what is she doing, eh? With her MORPHER? Did you forget, the people are in a panic!"

"I don't care anymore. I lost my son… because of them…" Andrew does not make eye contact. Taylor slaps him.

"You sick, twisted FUCK! Don't you care about anything! We HAVE to find her!" Taylor takes out her Growl Phone. "She's in no condition to be out on her own, wielding what is currently classified as a WEAPON OF DESTRUCTION. The Government has spoken, her Morpher privileges have been suspended, and she is now to be taken into custody until she is considered No Threat."

"We should all search for her." Danny speaks up. "I'm sure we will find her soon."

"Look, we can use our Trackers!" Ronny takes out her Tracker. "Guys… Rose is just…upset. I mean…she lost Mack… She's no threat, ok?"

"That is not what worries me." Taylor clears her throat. "Right now, the Mystic Force are considered a threat to US security. The danger meter right now is in RED. And it will continue to be Red until the Mystic Force, Jungle Fury, and Mu Rangers are in custody, or…eliminated. Any provocation could cause an attack."

Back at Reefside Forrest…

"The Mystic Force killed him. YOU killed him! You, and that sister of yours, and that idiot boyfriend, and those two assholes! You five killed him!" Rose's hand trembles, but her finger is still on the trigger. "He was going to help you. He was going to get you out of there. He was going to set you free! And you killed him! Had I known… I would have told him to let you rot in there. That you DESERVED to be jailed!"

All fear vanishes for Madison. She thinks back to all the brutality, all the pain she had to suffer through. 'All that shit I went through… don't I deserve to be angry too?' She thinks to herself. 'My dignity was stolen from me. I ate from the floor while SHE ate from a plate! While SHE slept in a bed, I slept with my hands handcuffed! I WAS RAPED!'

"Shut the fuck up, you bitch." Madison's eyes reflect her unstoppable rage, her indomitable spirit, her iron will. "You don't know a god dammed thing."

At that precise moment, Nick, Vida, Xander and Chip arrive.

Zap.

A smoldering gun lets out a bit of smoke. A lifeless body limply falls to the floor. A terrified young woman holds the instrument of murder. Her eyes reflect the deep regret that she felt. Four witnesses stand in disbelief. The wind blows softly, as if to mourn the last minute of peace amongst the Power Rangers.

"YOU FUCKING BITCH!" Nick lets out all his fury. "DIE!"

Nick takes out his Magic Staff, and unleashes a tremendous fireball that consumes Rose. As her body burns to a crisp, her last moment of life is spent remembering the best moment of her life…

"Rose, what do ya say? Want to get married?"

Danny arrived too late. He came just in time to see Nick unleash his deadly spell on Rose. He watches as Rose's charred remains fall to the ground. He stands horrified, trembling at the sight of three Rangers staring at him dangerously.

Nick, Chip and Vida would have killed him, right then and there if Xander hadn't stopped them. He used his Magic Staff to summon roots from the earth, to hold their hands down. Tearfully, he takes out his Cell Morpher, and calls Clare. His voice is broken and trembling, as Xander tries his best to keep a cool head. "Clare…get us home, please. We found her…"

Danny stands there, unable to so much as move an inch. He looks at Rose's charred remains. He slowly draws out enough courage in himself to grab his Growl Phone and call his team. "Guys…we have a problem…"