Kicking it to the Max Part Three
Bobby gripped his steering wheel as he drove toward the abandoned warehouse at an accelerated speed. Max had completely forgotten that he had shared his phone's location with his father, and Bobby had followed the exact location where his son had fled, believing that it would be near the place where his wife was being held hostage.
He drove his car up a hill, only to find the warehouse fully in view. He parked his car just at the edge of the ledge before hopping out, pulling out his gun just in case. He could overhear on the other side of the warehouse a commotion, and could easily piece together that it was the Rangers. He figured they would take care of the forces on the other side, while he would sneak in the back door to rescue his wife.
He rushed over and used his foot to burst through the back door. What he saw caused him to lose his breath.
"Mary!" He cried, rushing over to the vat. He pressed his hands against the glass barrier, banging on it repeatedly. "Mary, darling, I'm here!"
Mary, who was still chained to the bottom by her neck, turned her head and felt her heart take a leap of joy seeing her husband. "Bobby! Please get me out of here!" She screamed.
Bobby looked around in the rusty and filthy warehouse, desperately searching for anything to save his wife. The entire room was bright, but he had yet to find anything useful.
Bobby pressed his forehead against the glass. "Mary, just hang on baby, I'll save you! I promise-"
"BOBBY, BEHIND YOU!" His wife suddenly screeched
Bobby whipped around and only managed to catch a brief picture of a person wearing red clothing before he felt a hard object bash against his head.
Mary shut her eyes for a brief moment right when her husband was knocked out. She wished that what she was experiencing was just a horrible dream. This was just wrong.
The Red Ninja giggled as she dropped the metal pipe she had just used to knock the officer down before grabbing Bobby by his arm and slowly dragging him to the far right corner of the warehouse, which held a large block of ice that was the size of a bookshelf. There were what appeared to be large electronics that were connected to each side of the ice. On top of the ice, against the adjacent wall, was a large, rusty lever that was flicked upward. Attached to the lever was a long rope that was tied in a hangman's knot, just a few feet above the ice.
Mary noticed what was going on and screamed in vain for the safety of her and her husband. "HELP! SOMEBODY HELP US!"
"HELP! SOMEBODY HELP US!"
Max could hear his mother's screeching voice as he slashed each Karadrac that tried to take him down. He was experiencing adrenaline that was so intense that he managed to grab both Maya and DJ and ushered them to isolate themselves from the herd of Karadracs that were charging at them. When given enough space, they decided to finish them all off at once and combine their weapons.
"Combat Cannon! FIRE!" A beam surged from the cannon toward the foot soldiers, eliminating them all in an instant as they erupted and deteriorated into dust.
Once they disassembled the cannon, they all hurdled over toward the warehouse. The large garage door was shut, so they decided to try and enter through the door to the left, but it was jammed shut.
"Are you kidding me?!" Max screeched. "WHOEVER IS IN THERE, IF YOU HURT MY MOTHER, I WILL KILL YOU, YOU HEAR ME?! I WILL KILL YOU!" He yelled through the door.
"Wait a minute, Max, there is a note here," the Blue Ranger pointed out, kneeling to pick up the note that was on the ground just in front of the door. The three teens read the note carefully.
Hello Red Ranger,
I can see you right now as you are reading this note. I will not grant you entry unless you intend to come in here unmorphed, so we can play our game. Second, I do not want your friends to come aboard. This needs to be a fair game.
Maxine
"Game? GAME?!" The Red Ranger exclaimed angrily. "Is this bitch serious? I swear-"
"Max!" The Yellow Ranger interrupted. "If we want any chance of saving your mom, we should at least figure out what she has in store before we trample her over."
Max groaned in frustration, shaking his head. "Fine," he said defeatdly. "You guys stand by. Do not barge in until given a direct order to do so. Clear?"
"Clear," Both Maya and DJ said simultaneously.
"Power down," Max said, demorphing. Just like magic, the door became unlocked. DJ and Maya looked over at their leader and cringed at the sight of Max. His red, long-sleeved dress shirt was crooked and his hair was an absolute mess, mainly from him breaking down and nearly ripping his hair out after discovering his mother had been kidnapped. Max closed his eyes and took a deep breath as he laid his hand on the doorknob. He knew that there was no telling what was awaiting him on the other side. He opened his eyes back up and looked over at his head. Maya just gave him a hopeful smile and a thumbs-up, while DJ nodded, giving him the green light to proceed.
Max turned his attention back to the door and, in a split second, he swung the door open and leaped inside. He landed roughly on his knees. It was pitch black for a few seconds until the door shut behind him. A *click* was heard, signaling to Max that it had been locked.
Max looked around the empty warehouse. It was filthy, and a foul stench violated his nostrils. His attention aimed toward the side, and he didn't notice the scene that was taking place several feet ahead. That was until Max heard a woman screeching in agony. He looked straight ahead, and what he saw made him gasp in horror.
His mother was in a large glass vat, chained to the ground. There was what appeared to be a large, silver faucet hanging over on the far left side of the circular structure. At the corner of his eye, he found his groaning father standing helplessly on a block of eyes, with a noose around his neck that was attached to a lever.
"MOM! DAD!" He screeched, sprinting toward his parents, but was suddenly stopped when a sinister voice emanated loudly from a large, black speaker on the top left corner of the warehouse.
"I would reconsider taking another step forward. After all, I control the joystick to this little game!"
Max was shaking on his feet. He was just a few feet from his mother and SEVERAL feet from where his father was.
"WHERE ARE YOU?!" Max screamed with fear and rage, not taking his eyes off his mother. Mary succumbed to unconsciousness, mainly because stress had overwhelmed her, as the pressure the chain had on her neck, blocked some of the oxygen from rushing through her brain when she struggled to break free.
"I just want to play a game! Have you ever watched any of the Saw movies? Consider me as this generation's John Kramer. You have a fun part in my game, so do not blow it for your parents' sake."
Max remained silent, so Maxine continued.
"As we speak, the ice that your poor father is currently standing on is melting, and let's just say that as of now, the noose is wrapped just tightly to slow down the flow of blood from rushing to his brain, so his brain activity is sort of faulty, but he will live...for now. There are several levels on the lever, and currently, it is on level 0-" Maxine paused for a moment as the lever moved downwards by one number. She giggled mischievously. "Never mind, it has now been lowered to level one, which means..."
A *clink* was heard. Max looked up in horror as the water began to pour from the faucet, traveling downward into the vat. The water was soaking his mother, but her face was still way above the water, Max knew that it would be a matter of time before that wouldn't be the case anymore.
"Don't do this!" Max screeched, taking a step forward, but Maxine cut in.
"Do not even think about it! With a push of a button, I can easily turn the ice into liquid in a split second, and the force of the fall would most definitely break your dad's neck, and in turn, your mother will drown!"
"Okay, Maxine! I am begging you!" Max finally caved in, looking up at the speaker, which had a camera implanted next to it. He went down to his knees and folded his hands as a sign of submission. "I am begging you! Tell me what you want, and I will give it to you!"
"Tell me where your Karate Operations are, and I just might break the rope your dad is in," Maxine said blatantly. "All it would take is a single ZAP to do so."
Max's eyes widened. He bit his lip. He didn't know what to do at that moment. He knew that if Karate Operations were to be discovered, then the Rangers would be in jeopardy, and so would the entire world.
Max then heard a small beep, ending the conversation. Max looked from one parent to another fearfully. He didn't know what to do at that moment. He cringed as his father was having difficulty standing on the ice, desperately trying not to slip, as he knew his breathing depended on it.
Then, an idea lit up in Max's head. Who else can keep ice cold than one whose power revolves around it? He spoke into in communicator.
"Ellie? Ellie, do you read me?"
"Yes, Max! I can hear you!" Ellie said, her voice sounding fearful. "I can see the situation you are in through my computer!"
"Listen, I do not care what your dad says, or what he thinks of this. Call the twins and inform Maya and DJ about this...I got a plan!"
"Are you sure? They are still sus-"
"Just do it!" Max ordered.
"Alright, alright!" Ellie caved, before sighing defeatedly. "My dad won't approve of this, but he might understand if it's for your parents' sake."
Max looked around for any trace of Maxine. He had just heard his mother scream in agony while he and the others were outside dealing with the Karadracs, which meant that there may be a stationary room or cubicle in which Maxine would be able to observe the scene.
He just needed to find her, but where would she be?
Bonnie and Donnie sat at the kitchen table, eating their afternoon grub. Ever since their continuous fight, their aunt had made a new rule that they were to eat every meal together in the same room, or they would eat other meals such as watercress salad, rice cakes, and other foods that they completely despised.
Donnie just looked up at his sister and rolled his eyes. Bonnie was busy on her phone as she ate, not even acknowledging that her brother was there. They ate in silence for a while until Bonnie's phone suddenly rang.
"Oh, it's Ellie," she said, reading the caller id. She answered. "Yes?"
Donnie just continued eating, until Bonnie gasped. "Are you serious? Are they okay?"
This perked up Donnie's attention. He looked up as his sister stood up. "Okay...okay...the abandoned warehouse, and you want us to..."
Ellie continued speaking. Donnie couldn't make up what the genius was saying over the phone, but Bonnie simply nodded her head before hanging up. She looked over at her brother. "Get up, we're going."
"Where?" Donnie asked hurriedly as he stood up and followed his sister toward the front door. "What is going on?"
"Max's parents are in trouble. Just follow me." She said simply. Bonnie grabbed the car keys to her new car and bolted out the door with her brother. They hopped into her small white hatchback vehicle and drove off. They were on a rescue mission. Donnie grinned as he figured this would be their chance to redeem themselves, and finally push his sister out of her stubborn phase.
To be continued...