Chapter 9: Stranger Within: Part 2
The atmosphere in Rootcore was tense, with the Rangers oddly solemn as they stood facing Vida. The Pink Ranger was standing within a circle drawn in chalk, exactly as it had been in Rock Porium when it had been discovered that Vampiric power remained inside of Vida.
"Guys," Vida's voice was oddly whimpering and pathetic as she stared at her friends with a look of fear. "I know you think you need to do this, but I'm alright," she insisted, but none of them budged. Her skin was still a sickly pale, and her eyes darker than usual. "Please let me out," she pleaded.
"We're gonna help you, V. I promise," Chip was the one to speak when Maddie couldn't bring herself to say anything. All of them knew that they couldn't risk letting her free. While she seemed in control enough to destroy Flytrap, the Vampire Chalk had caused that control to slip, and she'd almost bitten them several times when they had dragged her back to Rootcore.
"These items were being sold by a human, how is it having an effect on Vida?" Titania wondered quietly to Hermes, who was holding the Vampire Chalk in his hand and studying it with a look of curiosity in his bright green eyes.
"Simple. It's been blessed. Any form of prayer, even by non-magical folk, can bless an item," Hermes explained, setting it down on the table. Vida looked around at them all with a desperate look that tugged at them all, making them feel guilty for keeping her imprisoned.
"Maybe you should let her out," Claire suggested, giving into the guilt as she moved forwards. However, when she drew closer to the edge of the circle, Vida let out a snarl and lunged at her, hitting the forcefield as her eyes flashed red. All of them leapt back, and Claire stumbled backwards into Udonna, who moved protectively in front of her apprentice. "Maybe you shouldn't," she whimpered, visibly shaking.
"If Flytrap was destroyed, Vida should be fine," Maddie said as they walked out of earshot of their imprisoned teammate. "All the others were," she added, thinking of the others who had been under the monster's control.
"Well, Flytrap wasn't a true Vampire. He had been given the powers by someone else to put humans under his thrall," Carvallain reminded her, his arms folded.
"Then Vida must be under the control of that Vampire," Tári theorised as she stood beside him. She tucked a lock of her golden hair behind a pointed ear as she looked thoughtful.
"Indeed," Hermes agreed, glancing over his shoulder at where Vida was breathing heavily. "One that chose to keep that Vampiric power hidden, not letting it truly surface. It's only because of Chip's trap that it activated, which is why Vida's mannerisms are all over the place," he considered. "She will now desperately try to find her way to her master, whoever they are," he said.
"But who is this mysterious Vampiric Master?" Carvallain wondered.
"What if it's Necrolai, like Titania said before?" Chip suggested, thinking to Titania's comment after they had defeated Flytrap.
"Koragg would know," Xander pointed out, and they turned to Nick.
"Nick, Koragg seems to be able to contact you whenever he likes. Have you ever tried to contact him?" Chip asked the Red Ranger, who was surprised by the question. He gave a slow shake of his head.
"No…but I can try," he told them. He didn't like the idea of contacting the powerful knight, but they had to try anything to save their friend. Nick closed his eyes and put his hands to his temples, taking a deep breath as he focused on the feeling of that connection that often sprang up between him and Koragg. They all felt the air grow warmer around him, but it faded quickly and he opened his eyes. "I guess it doesn't work like-" Nick stopped, and after a moment gave a yell from the pain that threatened to split through his skull.
"That's Koragg alright," Carvallain growled.
"Next time Chip," Nick was breathing heavily as the sharp pain faded to a dull headache. "You can call him yourself. He's in the glen," he warned.
"While you go after Koragg, there is something I need to do. Hermes, Tári, I will require your assistance," Udonna told the two Eladrin, who nodded.
"Of course," Hermes agreed.
"Whatever you require," Tári offered a small smile.
"Who's gonna stay with V?" Maddie asked, worried about her sister as Udonna left with Hermes and Tári. She didn't like the idea of leaving Vida alone while she was suffering.
"I will!" eager to help out where she could, Claire volunteered.
"Claire, she will try everything and anything to get you to release her," Xander warned the apprentice gently. Claire nodded, her eager smile falling.
"Don't worry, I'm a lot smarter than I look," she said, trying to be reassuring. When the others exchanged wary looks, Claire blushed crimson. "Never mind…I'll be fine, I promise," she told them, determined to help. The Rangers turned to leave, only to pause.
"Where's Chip?" Nick groaned. The others turned, and found that the Yellow Ranger had already vanished.
"I'm guessing…the glen," Titania sighed wearily.
Dusk was approaching over the Mystic Realm, and the clashing of magic could be felt for miles as Chip fought Koragg alone, desperately trying to get answers about Vida's condition from him. At first it had seemed that he was strong enough to stand up to the powerful knight, but one well-placed Wolf Attack had sent the Lightning Mystic flying.
"Chip!" Nick yelled as the rest of the Mystic Ranger arrived. Chip was groaning on the ground, fighting to hold his Morph as Nick, Carvallain and Xander stood protectively in front of their fallen teammate.
"Are you alright?" Maddie asked Chip, helping him to his feet with Titania.
"If you are looking for the one who turned the Pink Witch into a Vampire, look no further than Necrolai," Koragg warned them coldly, not making a move to attack as he surveyed their actions.
"Necrolai!" Maddie growled.
"If you're lying…" Chip snarled, winded from the strike that had almost shattered his Morph. He leaned heavily on Maddie and Titania as he got to his feet, angry and wanting to take it out on the knight who clearly had the answers they needed.
"If you want the Pink Witch back, defeat Necrolai," Koragg ignored Chip, his focus seeming entirely on Nick before he turned his back and started to walk away.
"Why are you telling us this?" Nick demanded, unsure of the knight's reasoning when it benefited his enemies. Koragg paused, but didn't look around.
"If you are strong enough to defeat the Queen of the Vampires and get the Pink one back…then, and only then, have you earned the right to fight me," his words made them all bristle with offence at the arrogance that rolled off him. Without another word, Koragg vanished through a spell seal, leaving the Rangers alone in the glen.
"Defeat Necrolai, and then fight Koragg? I don't like this," Titania murmured, still supporting Chip.
"We'll play your game…" Nick hissed, glaring at the space where Koragg had been standing.
"Come on, we should return to Rootcore and check on Vida and Claire," Carvallain told them. They nodded, hurrying back the way they had come.
The air was tense around the Rangers as they returned to Rootcore, with Chip's silence unnerving them even more. He'd barely spoken as they had checked on him, making sure he wasn't injured after his attempt to take on Koragg alone. Even Carvallain had spared him a lecture, seeing that it wouldn't help. Not that he truly blamed Chip; all of them were worried for Vida.
"Koragg called Necrolai the Queen of the Vampires," Titania broke the unsettled silence as the dragon's head root opened to allow them access. "I knew she was powerful, but for her to be the Queen bodes ill for us all," she admitted.
"Oh no," Maddie gasped as they walked inside. "Look!" she stared forwards to where Claire was looking very sorry for herself, standing within the circle of Vampire Chalk.
"I knew it!" Xander groaned.
"Claire!" Titania ran over to the apprentice, who peered up at them with a mournful gaze. "Are you alright?" she asked, but before she could get too close, Carvallain caught her arm and stopped her from getting too close.
"I'm so sorry…" Claire apologised, tears in her eyes. "She got really sick, and then she fainted-"
"No need to explain, Claire," Nick shook his head, weary but not entirely surprised.
"I just thought…what if something really bad happens? I would never forgive myself," Claire looked down at the chalk circle around her. "I just erased a little bit of the circle and she…got out," she said shamefully.
"Well…" Chip tried for a reassuring smile - they all did, not wanting Claire to feel even worse. "At least she didn't bite you," he shrugged, before pausing.
"You weren't bitten, were you?" Carvallain asked, his mind going to the same place as Chip's.
"No," Claire lifted her hair out of the way to reveal her neck. While pale, she had no puncture marks on her neck that they could see. "But she reversed the power of the circle, so I can't get out," she gestured to the circle around her. "Please let me out," she pleaded with them. With a sigh, Xander stepped forwards and smudged the circle with his foot, creating an opening for her to step out of it. "Thanks…I better find Udonna," Claire was rushing off the moment it was open.
"I still say anyone with half a brain wouldn't have been tricked," Xander grumbled, annoyed that Vida had managed to escape.
"Be nicer about Claire," Titania warned, her eyebrows furrowing. "She may be a bit of an airhead, but she's the kindest person I've ever met," she told him. Carvallain nodded, looking unimpressed. His face burning, Xander quietly apologised, before footsteps caught Carvallain's attention. He frowned, recognising them as he turned and saw Claire walking out of another room.
"Oh, hi guys!" her cheerful voice made the others spin around quickly. "I didn't hear you come in," Claire smiled as she set down the broom in her hands. The team stared at her, before looking in the direction that they had seen her run off in. "Gosh, that Vida is a tricky one. She tried to convince me that she got sick, but I-" Claire froze as she saw the empty circle. "Hey…where did Vida go?" she asked them, confused.
"What was that about half a brain?" Titania asked Xander, almost sounding smug as he closed his eyes and let out a groan of irritation.
With Vida in the wind and no way for them to track her, the Rangers focused their efforts on looking for a way to save her.
"Koragg said that we have to defeat Necrolai to save Vida…" Titania reminded them as they stood around the table. The books they had been combing through in their attempts to find out about Fireheart had been pushed aside, leaving the few texts about Vampires in front of them.
"But how do we destroy her? Flytrap was one thing…" Maddie ran a hand down her face, stressed and scared for her sister.
"Do you two know anything about Vampires?" Nick turned to Carvallain and Titania.
"My knowledge on their species is rather limited," Carvallain shook his head. "They do not often…co-exist with others. Not in a positive way, at least," he sighed.
"They have a natural inclination to dark magic, so they don't tend to be welcome within communities," Titania told them, playing with the end of her braid as she spoke. "Because of that, they often keep to themselves, so there isn't much known about them," she admitted, and their shoulders slumped.
"Chip's book," Xander remembered the kit that their Lightning Mystic had brought with him. "It's got to have a chapter on destroying Vampires," he considered. Chip looked down at the book in front of him. It was worn from how many times he had read it since he'd gotten it, and was filled with the scribblings of his thoughts even before becoming a Mystic.
"Chapter 13," he said, barely looking at the book. By this point, he knew it practically by heart. "Basically, it's the old 'stake in the heart' scenario, but Titania pointed out that this only works on Spawn, not true Vampires. Holy water, a full concentrated power of sunlight-"
"Hey, there's Moon Magic," Nick looked at Carvallain. "What about Sun Magic?" he asked. Carvallain cleared his throat.
"Sun Magic is rare. So rare in fact, there's only been one recorded instance of someone wielding that kind of magic within the last two centuries," he then gave a bitter smile. "Unfortunately, that wielder vanished in the Great War. Nobody has seen or heard from him since," his words made Nick groan, growing more frustrated by the second.
"And it wouldn't really matter, seeing as we're dealing with the Queen of the Vampires…" Chip had an almost apologetic look on his face.
"What does it say about destroying them?" Nick asked, an eyebrow raised at the expression on Chip's face.
"It says you can't," he admitted quietly.
"That's encouraging…" Xander grumbled, his own frustration boiling over. However, his scowl only lasted a moment before another idea sprang to mind. "Wait, the Xenotome. That tells us what we need to know, when we need to know it. We need to know it now," he pointed out. They all nodded in agreement, hurrying across the room to climb the small stage, where they gathered in front of the large, magical book.
"Xenotome," Chip willed his voice to stay steady as he looked down at the blank page in front of them. "How do we destroy the Queen of the Vampires?" he asked. For a moment, nothing seemed to happen. Then a wave of magic washed over them all, and ink lit up on the blank page.
"A Dawn Crystal?" Titania repeated what was written on the page.
"That must be the only way to defeat Necrolai," Chip realised as he scanned the page in front of him. They had all learned the language of the Mystics by now, but of the humans, Chip was the best in deciphering it. "It says how to make one, but it takes time," he told them.
"These ingredients, some of them are incredibly rare," Titania spoke up as she studied the method to create a Dawn Crystal. "I don't know if we have the ability to gather these," she confessed.
"You don't," before they could consider it another dead end, Udonna's voice rang out. "But we did," she rushed through the doorway with Hermes, Tári and Obsidian following behind her. All of them carried small baskets and jars of ingredients that they had been collecting while the Rangers searched for ways to save Vida.
"I understand why Obsidian wanted to come to you," Tári smiled at Carvallain. He tilted his head. "Only with the help of a Carbuncle, can a Dawn Crystal be forged," she explained. His eyes went wide, and he stared down at the white quadruped, who wagged his three-pronged tail.
"You cheeky little thing," Carvallain crouched to pet him. "We will forever be in your debt," he told Obsidian, who chirped in response.
"We must hurry. There is not much time," Udonna warned, already at her cauldron and setting down the ingredients. "We must make the Crystal before-"
"Before what?" Maddie asked her sharply, her heart leaping into her throat. Udonna was quiet as she turned to the Blue Ranger. "Before it's too late, is that what you were going to say?" Maddie pressed her. Udonna looked grave.
"Make no mistake, Rangers. We are in danger of losing one of our own," she warned, knowing that they needed to understand the risks of everything going on. They were silent as Maddie took in a quiet, shuddering breath.
"That's not gonna happen," Nick was the one to speak up as tears trailed down Maddie's face. She looked at Nick in surprise when he reached out to squeeze her hand in encouragement. "Udonna, you make the Dawn Crystal. We'll find Vida," Nick decided.
"No," they were surprised when Chip spoke up suddenly. "I'm staying to make the Crystal. I owe Vida that much," he said when everyone turned to look at him.
"I'll stay with Chip," Carvallain clapped the Lightning Mystic on the shoulder, offering him a small grin. "As his companion, Obsidian will only share his power with me. We'll get the Dawn Crystal ready, and then we'll take down Necrolai," he said, his confidence making the others stand a little taller.
"Let's go," Nick said to the rest of them, and they nodded, turning to hurry out and find their missing friend.
Despite his worry and desperate desire to save Vida, Chip couldn't deny that he was enjoying the potions lesson. Udonna guided him through every step, measuring out the ingredients and preparing them for Chip to toss into the water that bubbled over the low heat of the flames. Hermes helped where he could as well, offering little bits of advice.
"Purified flakes from a first snow," Chip sprinkled the snowflakes that barely stayed solid before hitting the water. "Hair from a bat's wing, blood from a ghost vine plant," he poured the bright yellow sap into the cauldron, causing smoke to gush up and pour over the side of the cauldron. "I'm sounding like a Sorcerer," Chip couldn't help but laugh.
"Chip, you are a Sorcerer," Udonna reminded him with a pleased look on her face. Hermes hid his laugh. "Now stir," she encouraged.
"He's certainly energetic," Tári smiled as she watched Carvallain's side. The Prince was sitting on the floor cross-legged with Obsidian curled up on his lap. The faint glow of his white fur was brighter than normal, and faint light was shimmering in his ruby horn.
"They all are," Carvallain said softly as he stroked the Carbuncle's soft fur. "We rarely have a quiet moment in Rootcore these days," he said, which made Tári's smile widen.
"It is good to see that they have succeeded in lowering that iron-clad guard of yours," she told him. Carvallain looked up at her in surprise, and Tári nudged him. "You are…gentler, than before. It's nice," she said simply, getting to her feet and walking away as Carvallain blushed crimson.
"She must say these things simply to get a reaction," he muttered to Obsidian, who lifted his head to look at him. The expression on the creature's face was almost a knowing smile, and Carvallain's blush grew stronger. "Oh…go back to channelling your magic, pest," the Elf huffed, but the corner of his mouth tugged up as he spoke.
"Vida!" the calls for the Pink Mystic echoed through the forest as Nick, Maddie and Xander searched from the backs of their Mystic Racers. With more speed and manoeuvrability thanks to her vibrant wings, Titania darted around the trees and searched all around them, expanding their search.
"V!" Nick shouted as they flew through the night, only able to see thanks to the light of the twin moons overhead.
"Sis!" Maddie yelled, but heard no calls in response. She gave an angry, frustrated moan. "Where is she?" she wondered as Titania caught up to them again to shake her head.
"I didn't find her hiding below," she told them as she easily kept up with their Racers.
"She has to be somewhere!" Maddie shouted, leaning further forward on her Mystic Racer. "I'm not giving up," she vowed, determined to find her sister and help her. Udonna's words echoed in her head, only pushing her to fly faster.
"No-one is Maddie," Nick assured her, flying close enough that he didn't have to shout back at her. "No-one is," he repeated. "Let's keep moving!" Nick shouted over his shoulder to them, and they continued their desperate search past the woods of the Mystic Realm, and through the boundary to return to Briarwood.
Despite the ingredients that Chip was dropping, pouring or sprinkling into the smoking cauldron, the smell was oddly pleasant. The heat was getting intense, and all of them were sweating as the hours passed.
"Here, you need to keep your strength up," Tári handed Chip a bottle of water, and he gratefully chugged it down. "And this is the toad oil…I hope I did not mix those up," a flicker of mischief was seen in her eyes as Chip took the dark green bottle. He flashed a grin back, still energetic despite having been slaving over the cauldron for a few hours.
"I would hope that Chip would have noticed when drinking, but with how fast he finished that water…who can know for sure?" Hermes sounded equally as cheerful as he passed over a small jar of powdered Valerian root.
"Eladrins, practically nothing can truly bother them," Carvallain stated from where he still sat tending to Obsidian. The glow of his ruby horn was even brighter now. Tári, who'd gone back over to him, nudged him with her boot, and Hermes grinned as if to show his agreement with Carvallain's statement.
"You've never met a Winter Eladrin. Miserable beings," he said, and Carvallain almost snorted at his words.
"I think that was the last of the ingredients," Chip frowned as he carefully scattered the powder into the cauldron, watching as it turned bright yellow. The smell that wafted from the bubbling concoction was fresh and pleasant, as if it were sunlight itself. "Now what?" he asked Udonna.
Before the Snow Sorceress could give an answer, Obsidian gave a loud yip and leapt from Carvallain's lap as the sun rose over the horizon and hit Rootcore. His horn light up even brighter, and the ruby glow suddenly shot from the pointed tip to slam into the cauldron hard enough to cause it to wobble precariously. Torn between shielding himself from potential splash, and keeping the cauldron steady, Chip reached out towards it, only for a bright flash to practically blind them all.
With their search unsuccessful before the sun rose, the Rangers who had been out searching for Vida returned to Rock Porium.
"Maybe she left town," Maddie was listing all the various different possibilities about what could have happened to her sister. "Maybe she was taken, maybe she-"
"We'll find her, Maddie," Nick stopped her before she could wind herself up enough that she had a panic attack. He put a reassuring arm around her, squeezing her shoulder as Maddie forced herself to take a breath. "I promise," he soothed as she managed to look up.
"Find who?" all four jumped and spun around, unable to believe their eyes as Vida swaggered up to them with a cocky grin on her face.
"Vida!" without waiting, Maddie ran over to throw her arms around her sister.
"Sis, I'm fine," Vida laughed as she hugged her back. "Calm down, I'm fine," she reassured her as Maddie let go, tears in her eyes. "I had quite the night, but I'm okay," she insisted, and grunted when Maddie pulled her into another hug, laughing.
As the sisters laughed, Nick and Xander looked at Titania, who was watching Vida with a quizzical look on her face. Unable to sense anything strange around Vida, Titania wasn't sure what to make of her sudden reappearance.
"How did you escape Necrolai's thrall? And to walk in daylight…" Titania looked at the open door, where sunlight was streaming in. Vida glanced up at the three over Maddie's shoulder, and her grin widened.
"It's a long story," she laughed.
Chip had never been so careful in his life, than he was as he carefully lowered tongs into the still smoking cauldron to lift out the Dawn Crystal. It shimmered with the power of the sun, golden in colour with three sharp edges that caused it to resemble an arrowhead.
"It worked…" Chip breathed a sigh of relief, able to feel the magic radiating from the Crystal he had helped to create. Udonna beamed with delight.
"Well done, Chip," she praised him.
"Indeed. Not many can claim to succeed at such a potion, even master Alchemists," Hermes nodded, impressed by Chip's skill. The Yellow Ranger blushed.
"I couldn't have done it without you guys," he insisted. "Especially Obsidian," he grinned, but it faltered as he saw the Moonstone Carbuncle curled up in Carvallain's arms. His almost ethereal white fur was dull. Seeing the concern, the Elf gave a reassuring smile.
"He'll be fine. He just used up a lot of magic helping to create the Dawn Crystal. Let's not see it go to waste," he encouraged, and Chip smiled again. Udonna carefully took the Dawn Crystal from him, checking over it to ensure it was flawless.
"You won't be needing that," Nick's voice echoed through Rootcore, earning their attention. To their surprise, the four Rangers had returned, led by Vida herself.
"V!" Chip's eyes lit up and he bounded over to hug her tightly. Vida laughed as he lifted her off the ground and spun her around.
"Not that Carvallain would ever admit it out loud, but when it comes to Tári, he wears his heart on his sleeve," Titania grinned. Xander had to agree, having seen the look on Carvallain's face.
"Sounds almost like two people I know," he murmured, his mind going elsewhere.
Remembering Xander's comment, understanding hit Titania, but she remained quiet at the back as she continued to watch Vida carefully, still unsure of what had happened. "Are you alright?" Chip asked, staring at Vida with a bright smile.
"Is she alright?" Nick laughed as he hopped up onto the table. "She defeated Necrolai all by herself," his words made Udonna slow as she held the Dawn Crystal carefully. Casually, Hermes moved to place himself between her and Vida, protecting both the Snow Sorceress and the Crystal they had worked so hard to craft. Carvallain passed the sleeping Carbuncle in his arms to Tári, who nodded in understanding at the look on his face. While she seemed back to normal, they had to be sure.
"Why didn't you call? We all wanted to help," Chip stared at her in awe.
"I know," Vida gave a small shrug of her shoulders. "But it was my problem. You know me," her grin was cocky.
"Defeating the Queen of the Vampires as a lone Spawn," Hermes kept his usual cheerful tone as Vida barely glanced at him. "Must have been one hell of a fight," he mused.
"We were a little suspicious before," Xander admitted, not having been quick to believe her. "But she walked all the way here in broad daylight. Not many Vampires can do that," he pointed out. None of them could argue that, especially after seeing Vida struggle in daylight before.
"Hail Vida!" Chip cheered, striking the pose that Vida had come up with a few nights ago - a V sign by his eye. "Vampire Slayer," he declared. Instead of mirroring his action, confusion flickered across Vida's face. Alarm bells started ringing for the Yellow Ranger, who slowly lowered his hand.
"Vampire Slayer…" Vida lifted the bag she'd been carrying since arriving in Rock Porium. "And gift giver," she fished out a bright red apple. "I picked you all a little something," she passed out apples to everyone, including Udonna, Hermes and Tári. "A gift from me, to all of you. My best friends in the whole world," she beamed at them. Hermes spun the apple on the tip of his finger, watching it carefully. "To the Rangers!" Vida declared as she held up an apple of her own.
"To the Rangers!" only Nick, Maddie and Xander echoed her, the rest too wary to react.
"Wait," it was Chip who spoke up, stopping the three before they could bite into the apples. "Something's wrong. She couldn't have picked these apples; they're not grown in Briarwood," he pointed out.
"There's certainly a magical element to them," Hermes mused as the apple still spun on the tip of his finger.
"That's because I picked them in the Magical Realm, not in Briarwood," Vida said. Her smile had vanished when Chip had spoken up, but she forced it back to her face.
"What about the pose?" Chip demanded, repeating the action that Vida hadn't responded to. "You didn't even recognise it," he accused her. Maddie's smile faded as anxiety started to make her stomach churn.
"I recognised it. I've just moved on from it," Vida shrugged, almost dismissive of Chip's concerns. "You know me, I never stick with anything for very long," her words earned uneasy laughs from her sister and friends.
"But how could you defeat the Vampire Queen and break her hold on you?" Titania asked softly. She'd set the apple down on the table beside her - something about holding onto it felt wrong.
"Through a lot of hard work and magic," Vida fired back, her tone clipped. "Like I would ever lose to that hag. Now, I'm gonna get a complex if none of you eat my gifts," she encouraged once more, and took a large bite out of the apple she'd been holding as if to prove they were fine.
"No!" Chip yelled as Nick, Maddie and Xander went to follow suit. He lunged at them, flailing enough that he managed to knock the apples out of their hands. "I'm telling you, this is not Vida!" he insisted as they groaned in annoyance.
"Chip…" Maddie chided, bending down to pick up the apples from the ground. "Now you've gone and ruined perfectly good apples," she scolded him.
"I wouldn't do that," Hermes' voice was soft, but the warning was clear enough that Maddie stopped and looked up. "Not if you value your mortal life the way it is," they all froze at the sight of the apple he'd been spinning. Still balanced on his finger, he'd stopped it from spinning, and they found that it was rotting. Black ooze dripped from it, dripping to the ground. Instantly all three reared back from their fallen apples.
"What?" Titania gasped, glancing at the apple she'd left on the table. There was a small burst of heat, and the ones that Tári and Carvallain were holding vanished, with Tári's turquoise eyes shimmering with magic.
"Took a little bit of digging, but I worked out the magic within these apples," Hermes said lightly, and the apple he'd been holding vanished in a small burst of magic. "They must have been grown in the Underworld with the amount of Vampiric magic within them," he considered. The Rangers shuddered, particularly Nick, Maddie and Xander, as they realised how close they'd come to ingesting something so dangerous.
"We have another problem," Titania gestured to where Vida had been standing.
"She's gone!" Nick hissed, leaping from the table. "She can't have gotten far. Let's go," he said. All of them nodded - they had a lot of questions, but they had to wait. Vida was still in a lot of trouble.
It didn't take too long for the six Rangers to chase down their errant Wind Mystic, who was fleeing through Briarwood.
"Hold it right there!" Nick yelled. Titania flung out a hand, and rainbow light shimmered in front of Vida like a barrier. She stopped before she could collide with it, and snarled over her shoulder at them. "There's nowhere else to run," Nick warned. Vida sneered, and turned to face them fully.
"You are so right," she growled. When a clawed hand rested on her head, the Rangers recoiled in horror. Necrolai laughed as she stood beside her Spawn.
"Good servant. Very good servant," she praised, happy that while Vida hadn't managed to get them to eat the apples she'd sent, she'd still managed to lure out the Rangers. After everything that had gone on over the last few days, they were clearly worn out. "Now get them!" she ordered.
"Yes, Mistress," Vida's voice was flat and lacked emotion as she Morphed and slowly started to approach her friends. Instantly the team hesitated, taking a step back.
"No, Vida!" Maddie shouted at her sister.
"We don't want to fight you!" Titania pleaded, but Vida didn't listen. Drawing her Magi Staff, she charged at them.
"Don't hurt her. I'm going after Necrolai," Chip decided, running off before they could say anything. He Morphed as he ran, leaping over Vida's head and continuing to run as he approached Necrolai.
Vida immediately turned to try and stop him; the instinct to protect her mistress stronger than the orders to defeat the Rangers, but the other Rangers threw themselves forwards to grab a hold of her and restrain their friend. With her Morphed, however, Vida easily broke their hold and tossed all five to the ground. She laughed mockingly at them as they got up, wincing in pain.
"Going easy on Vida is easier said than done when she's not doing the same to us," Carvallain considered as they regrouped. Vida then waved her Magi Staff, and the butterfly motif shone bright pink as it channelled her magic and created a strong burst of wind that threw them all off the side of the walkway to a lower section. As they fell, each of them Morphed, and rainbow light shimmered around them as they found themselves righted and landing lightly on their feet.
"Thanks, Titania," Nick called to the Black Ranger, who nodded back. They didn't have time to talk as Vida landed in front of them and charged once again. "Stop!" Nick yelled as she kicked Maddie and Xander, knocking them to the ground again. Dodging her strikes, Nick grabbed Vida's arm, and Carvallain grabbed her other. "It's us, Vida!" he pleaded, but she broke free and shoved him into Titania, who was lunging for her Magi Staff. The two tumbled to the ground, and Carvallain was thrown into a table nearby, rolling backwards off it.
Even Morphed, the team of Rangers were easily overwhelmed with Vida, whose only concern was destroying them. They all held back, trying to restrain her as they hoped that Chip could use the Dawn Crystal and defeat Necrolai.
"Vida, you don't have to do this," Titania pleaded as she latched onto Vida's back, holding steady even as the Pink Ranger thrashed. "You're our friend, not her servant. Please!" she shouted as she used more of her Fae magic. It connected with Vida, only for something dark that surrounded the Pink Ranger to respond. Titania cried out as the clashing magics caused her to be flung off Vida, and she crashed against a wall.
"Titania!" the others yelled, and Vida took advantage of their distraction to strike them all with her Magi Staff. When they hit the ground, she leapt back up to higher ground at Necrolai's summoning.
"We have to go after her!" Nick groaned, pushing himself back up.
"Necrolai's magical presence has completely engulfed Vida," Titania said as she managed to get up, wincing. "That's probably what gave her the ability to walk in daylight and hide her alignment," she warned as they followed Vida. Their injuries made them slower than Vida had been, taking a longer route.
"Vida!" Chip's yell reached them, and they pushed themselves. They finally came into view of Necrolai and Chip's battle, and found Vida standing in front of Necrolai as she acted like a shield to the Vampire Queen.
"Chip, you can't!" Xander yelled as horror hit them. Chip was aiming his Magi Staff directly at Vida; the Dawn Crystal shining brightly where it was attached. "It's Vida!" he pleaded.
"Don't do it, Chip!" Maddie pleaded.
"There's got to be another way!" Titania insisted, unwilling to lose their teammate.
"We can still save her!" Carvallain's yell was hoarse. All of them were rooted to the spot, not knowing what they could do.
"Put it down, now!" Nick ordered, but Chip ignored them all.
"I believe in you, V," Chip breathed. "Fire!" he launched the Dawn Crystal directly at them, and right before it hit Vida, she darted to the side. Necrolai screamed as the Dawn Crystal pierced her chest, draining her of her magic. "V is for Victory!" Chip laughed as he struck the same pose as Vida had done - the same one she hadn't remembered in Rootcore. "Vida showed me her sign. Even though she said she wasn't with us anymore, I knew she was," Chip explained with a grin to the other Rangers as they ran to stand beside him.
"You tricked me, Pink Witch?! You'll pay for that," hearing his words, Necrolai let out a pained snarl and snapped her fingers. Vida started to scream as the dark magic surrounding her suddenly turned against her, feeling like electricity running through her body. There was a flash as Vida demorphed, pale and weak.
"You have to stop her," she pleaded to her friends, finally thinking somewhat clearly.
"You got it!" Chip agreed. "Do it for V, guys!" he shouted as he held up his Magi Staff. The others followed suit, and they moved into a circle as they channelled their magic into their Staffs, causing them to glow.
"Magi Staff, full power!" all but Chip then moved aside as he held the combined magics.
"Bite this, Necrolai," he taunted, and hurled it at Necrolai. She screamed as it collided with her, causing the Dawn Crystal to bury deeper into her chest.
"This can't be happening…" she groaned, and screamed as she exploded.
"We did it!" Titania cheered, and they ran over to Vida. Already the colour was returning to her skin, and her teeth were no longer pointed into sharp fangs as she smiled up at them.
"Are you alright?" Chip asked as he helped her back. Her smile grew wider.
"Yes! I feel my power surging back into my body," she laughed.
"You're back!" Chip cheered, and both struck the V-Pose that had helped them win the battle against Necrolai.
"I can't believe you really defeated the Vampire Queen," Carvallain clapped Chip on the back. "You really are something," he praised.
"We all did it," Chip insisted, and they all cheered, excited to have defeated one of their most formidable foes.
Their joy was shortlived as the ground suddenly rumbled beneath their feet, and Koragg appeared from a spell seal to tower over the city.
"You seven have shown great power and cunning to defeat Necrolai. This is what I have waited for," Koragg declared as he loomed over them. With another spell, he summoned Catastros and combined to form his Megazord. Without hesitation, Vida pulled her Mystic Morpher from her side.
"MAGICAL SOURCE, MYSTIC FORCE!" she Morphed, and they all called on their Mystic Titans for form their own Megazord.
"Let's show him!" Nick shouted as they faced off against Koragg.
"Ancient Power, Mystic Spell Seal!" they chorused together as they combined their magic into the powerful Spell.
"Dark Magic Spell Seal," Koragg followed up with his own power, and when the two combined, the Titan Megazord was thrown backwards.
"He's stronger than we are!" Maddie groaned.
"We can't just give in…but what can we do against his strength?" Titania wondered. Chip straightened up, still riding the high of the victory against Necrolai.
"I say we fight back. We don't give up," he
"Chip's right," Vida agreed as she held her Magi Staff tightly. "We fight back, we never give up!" she shouted.
"Count me in!" Xander nodded.
"Let's take this wizard down!" Carvallain shouted.
"One for all…"
"And all for one!" Chip finished for Nick. As their seats moved so that Chip was in the centre, a bright light started to shine down from above. Instinctively, they held up their Magi Staffs to the light, feeling their power grow. "What's going on?" Chip wondered as the light went into their Staffs.
"Your belief in me has given us a new spell!" Vida realised with a laugh.
"Nice!" Chip cheered. Still standing in front of them, Koragg grew impatient.
"Battle me!" he roared, ready for another round after overpowering them. When they activated the new spell, the wings of their Megazord flung open, taking him by surprise. "You have new magic?!" Koragg demanded.
"Titan Megazord, take flight!" at the shout, a golden spell seal appeared above them. The Titan Megazord shot into the air, passing through the spell seal as Koragg could only watch. "Spirits of the Ancient Titans!" images of their Elemental Spirits - Phoenix, Mermaid, Garuda, Sprite, Minotaur, Kitsune and Luna Lepus - appeared all around the Megazord as they powered it up. "Titans attack!" they then descended on Koragg, delivering a powerful magical blow with their sword that caused Koragg to collapse as they landed safely nearby.
As the seven cheered at their victory, a noise behind them earned their attention. To their horror, Koragg was getting back to his feet. He had split from Catastros, who vanished through a Dark Spell Seal with a loud cry, and looked worse for wear, but was able to stay standing.
"Impressive," Koragg murmured. "You grow more powerful by the day. But so do I!" he warned as he turned on his heel. "Our next battle will have a different outcome," with the threat made clear, Koragg vanished through another Spell Seal.
"We did it!" despite the threat, Nick refused to let him sour their victory. They had destroyed Necrolai, and won their battle against Koragg.
After being fussed over by her team and checked over by Penelope, Vida was finally confirmed to be back to normal. Happy with that and full of energy now that she no longer had Necrolai controlling her, Vida and the other Rangers returned to Rock Porium.
"Looks like LeeLee is still freaked by what happened the other day," Vida mused, spotting the blonde lurking a small distance away. She looked somewhat uncomfortable, as if she were still bothered by Vida and the Vampire Chalk only a few nights ago.
"I'm enjoying the distance," Titania admitted, arms folded.
"She doesn't seem that bad," Tári said, leaning her head against Carvallain's shoulder. She peered at the book he was reading, looking fascinated. "Just a bit…odd. But all humans are odd to me," she admitted.
"We're not odd!" Xander protested. Tári looked up to eye him as he sat in one of the other seats.
"You're the oddest of them all," she told him honestly. Titania burst out laughing at the look on the Green Ranger's face.
"Surely Chip should be the oddest of us," he protested. Chip shrugged, not arguing against what he said. "It's only because you've never met humans before. You'll see," Xander huffed. Tári tilted her head.
"I have met a human before," she said softly. "He saved me when Miramalos was attacked when I was young. He still lives nearby to our kingdom," she elaborated when they all looked surprised.
"A human lives so close to the Elf kingdom?" even Titania hadn't known this. Tári nodded with a smile.
"He's an exception," Carvallain said, not looking up from his book. "Not only did he save Tári and a number of Elflings in the attack on Miramalos, he made it abundantly clear that he was simply searching for a quiet place to live, unbothered by anyone," he explained, and after a short pause, he looked at the beautiful blonde still leaning against him. "And honestly, with those skills he demonstrated, he is likely the oddest human I've ever met. Xander included," Carvallain smirked, and the others started to laugh again as Xander rolled his eyes.
"Guys, I'm gonna clear things up with Leelee," Vida decided, walking over to where LeeLee was looking through CDs.
"There goes my peace," Titania sighed.
"Be nice," Xander chided lightly, reaching out a hand to ruffle her hair. She protested as it knocked her hat askew, revealing her long pointed ears for a moment.
"Hey, you know that Vampire thing in the store the other day?" Vida started as LeeLee looked up at her. Wariness was obvious in her gaze, but she nodded all the same. "I was just playing a joke on the guys," she lied.
"Yeah!" LeeLee forced a too-wide smile onto her face, but her nerves were still obvious. "I knew that," the blonde told her, struggling to meet her gaze. "You didn't think that I thought that you were really a Vampire, did you?" she asked.
"Of course not," Vida smiled pleasantly at her, fighting laughter. LeeLee looked away, her smile fading for a moment before returning.
"I gotta run!" with that, she turned on her heel and quickly stalked out the door. She was barely out of view before the team of Rangers burst out laughing.
I wonder who Carvallain and Tári were talking about...
I hope you liked it!
Please review!