A/N - Made some minor adjustments to chapter 16 and 17, I've been calling Rachel the pink ranger instead of the white ranger...my bad.
"Do I really have to go," Ricky groaned as Sabrina dragged him up some concrete steps, "I'm sure your professor will let you skip your latest assignment."
"You just hate museums ever since Scotty Nolan stuffed you in a dumpster outside the science museum in ninth grade," Sabrina replied, pulling harder on his arm, "plus, they have a really rare exhibit showing this week."
"Dusty old bones all look the same to me," Ricky grumbled.
Sabrina chuckled, "Spoken like an engineering student, if you can keep the snide comments to yourself for long enough I might treat you to lunch."
Ricky mumbled under his breath, "Damnit Sabrina, you've exploited my one weakness."
"You have plenty of weaknesses," Sabrina shook her head, "now, I'm only in town for one more day. I spent three days of this trip in a hospital bed, let's make the most of today." The yellow ranger said nothing in response as his childhood friend dragged him through the door. In the center of the entrance hall was a giant escalator that took him up several levels, through a model of the Earth and into the main exhibition hall.
Ricky spent the next forty five minutes following Sabrina through several rooms filled with glass cabinets and in his words, dusty old relics. So far, he hadn't spotted anything different to other museums he visited in the past. He had to admit that the earthquake simulation room was moderately entertaining. As he stepped off the moving floor, he spotted Sabrina clutching her side, "Are you doing alright?" he asked, "the doctor recommended resting properly."
"The rocking motion pulled on my stitches, that's all," Sabrina tried to reassure him, "we're nearly at the special exhibit, it's just through here."
Once again Sabrina pulled the yellow ranger through the corridor and into the largest room of the museum. The cabinets around the outer wall were filled with gold, silver and other assorted gemstones. They were dwarfed in comparison to the huge diamond sitting in a glass pedestal in the center of the room, "Holy crap," Ricky muttered, "you wouldn't fit that on an engagement ring."
"Told you this was worth a visit," Sabrina walked them as close to the diamond as security would allow. On the other side of the pedestal, she spotted a familiar face, "Isn't that one of your friends," she pointed at the blue jacketed figure.
"Stevie," Ricky called out to the blue ranger, "what are you doing here?"
"Plotting a heist," she replied cheekily but the security guards surrounding the diamond didn't look impressed, "chill out guys, it was just a joke." The guards shook their heads but kept half an eye on the teen, "History field trip, the whole school has to visit this stupid rock for some reason."
"It's more than a stupid rock," Sabrina interjected, "this is the Pretoria diamond, second largest diamond ever discovered."
Stevie suddenly looked a little more interested, "Alright so it's an expensive stupid rock, what's so special about it?"
"Unlike most diamonds, this one has never been cut," Sabrina replied, fully entering lecture mode, "the largest diamond was the Cullinan diamond which was presented to the British Royal Family over a century ago. That was cut down into nine smaller diamonds and set into various parts of the Crown Jewels."
"But not this one?" Ricky asked.
Sabrina shook her head, "Not long after it was mined, anyone who encountered the diamond started showing signs of mental distress. The miners experienced hallucinations and the original owner had a full mental breakdown. The diamond has bounced around various owners, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake, earning its nickname of the cursed diamond."
"And now it's in a city that's under regular monster attack," Stevie snorted, "what could possibly go wrong?" She paused as Sabrina winced, "You don't look so good, should you be up and about?"
"Maybe I have overdone it today," Sabrina admitted, "could we sit down whilst I type up some notes?" she added whilst pointing to a bench, "you're welcome to stay Stevie, unless you have to catch up to your class."
The blue ranger watched her group disappear out the room, "Why not, doesn't look like my presence will be missed."
Ricky and Stevie sat largely in silence as Sabrina scribbled in her notepad, with only a few comments from the blue ranger about the college student using old fashioned technology for the process. The Ranger duo spend around half an hour people watching until the blue ranger began to shuffle on the bench, "Are we done yet, my ass is getting numb?" she moaned.
"You could've gone with your class," Ricky reminded her.
Stevie snorted, "I'd rather sit on my butt then listen to our teacher drone on," she stretched her legs, "still, we could do with a TV or something to keep us entertained." Suddenly there was a flash of light as a couple of dozen Gougers and Princess Lena dropped out a portal, "Not what I had in mind," the blue ranger was immediately on her feet.
"Just what I need," Lena sighed, "the B-team and Reise's last play thing," she pointed towards Sabrina. Instinctively Ricky stood defensively in front of his friend. The security guards immediately had their weapons trained towards the Vyglass princess, "Please," she snorted, slicing through the barrels of the firearms like they were plastic toys.
"Protect Sabrina," Stevie instructed the yellow ranger, cracking her neck in the process, "I'll take care of the goons." The blue ranger leapt into action, booting a Gouger in the chest before taking another out with a one-two jab to the head, "Run, get out whilst you can," the blue ranger said to a couple of civilians.
"I don't have time for this," Lena grumbled, "Gougers, seal the exits," the footsoldiers did as instructed, blocking anyone else from leaving the room. She opened her palm and a scorpion bot appeared, "I should thank you," Lena eyed Sabrina directly, "your little lecture gave me this idea."
Lena punched through the protective glass like it was paper, setting off the building alarm. This didn't bother the princess though who continued to place the scorpion on top of the diamond, "Humans have excelled at spreading misery for millennia, what if that was reflected back on you? Watch as this Stinger draws on that power."
The diamond crackled before mutating into something else, a pink crystalline body complete with a huge diamond tiara. Pink accents covered its predominately grey arms and legs, "Ah Caratron, show them your power."
The monster fired a rose coloured beam from its chest, hitting a couple of fleeing civilians. Immediately the pair looked at each other and began to exchange punches, "What the hell?" Stevie muttered whilst ducking an axe attack from a Gouger. Rolling quickly to one side, she kicked the creature in the back, sending it head first into a glass cabinet, "Hope there was nothing valuable in there," she shrugged.
The blue ranger looked over her shoulder and spotted Caratron turning towards Ricky. Breaking away from another Gouger by elbowing it in the face, she sprinted towards the pair, "Ricky, look behind you," she called. The yellow ranger turned just as the monster aimed its attack beam in his direction. Stevie leapt protectively in front of her fellow ranger, taking the pink light directly in her chest.
As Stevie lay prone on the floor, Lena let out a low chuckle, "Come on Caratron, our work here is done," and she calmly let her creation out the door, surrounded by groups of museum patrons brawling with each other.
With the monster gone, Ricky turned his attention to his fallen teammate, "Stevie, are you alright?" When the blue ranger didn't respond, he went to touch her shoulder but in a flash, Stevie grabbed his wrist. The yellow ranger instantly noticed her pallid face and furrowed brow, "Stevie?" he asked nervously.
The blue ranger swiped his hand away with a firm slap, "Whattdya care if I'm alright?" she practically snarled, "look at you, the nerd with the impossibly attractive friend, yeah, course you're peachy."
"Erm, is she usually this angry?" Sabrina asked Ricky carefully.
"Oh I'm just fantastic," Stevie leaped to her feet and paced the floor briskly, "no hope, no future, that's me."
"Stevie that's not true," Ricky stated.
"Oh yeah and what d'ya know," Stevie snapped, "you barely know me," her eyes flicked nervously towards the brawling guests, "the teachers have given up on me, lets not forget my parents and cause of these stupid powers, I can't do the one thing I love!" A flash of pink came from her eyes as she cracked her knuckles, "That guy looked at me funny," with a primal snarl she charged towards the nearest person, knocking them flying with a shoulder tackle.
All the while Ricky gaped at the blue ranger, unsure what to say, "I think she likes me," Sabrina said with a nervous chuckle, "we should do something to help her."
Ricky watched as Stevie lifted a man double her size easily above her head before spinning him with one hand, "Do you want to stop her?" he asked his friend. He looked at his communicator, there was only one thing he could do, "I have an idea but its probably going to get me in a lot of trouble," he sighed.
An hour later, Ricky and Sabrina were in a conference room at the Air Force base with the three remaining rangers. The group sat around a table with Harley struggling to hold in his laughter, "Did you see the Major's look when she spotted your girlfriend," he teased the yellow ranger, "I thought she was actually going to strangle you."
"I didn't really have a choice," Ricky sighed, "what else could I have done?"
"She's probably trying to find the deepest, darkest, off-record base to move her too," Harley continued.
"Knock it off," Rachel slapped the black ranger on the arm before turning towards Sabrina, "look I know you've probably got hundreds of questions."
"Yeah like how did the five of you get to be Power Rangers?" Sabrina said as a deafening silence filled the room, "its not too hard to guess, I've only seen Stevie in blue, so she's the blue ranger." Mark buried his face in his hands, "That just leaves red, black, yellow," she pointed in turn at the others but paused at Rachel, "and pink?" she added with uncertainty.
"White actually, you're not the first to make that mistake," the other rangers glared at Rachel, "what, she's already guessed."
"I might've been lying when I said I didn't remember anything from the Comic Con incident," Sabrina added sheepishly.
Mark let out a sigh, "Great, one of our team is running riot in the city and we have a national security breach." He spotted Harley sniggered, "And don't you start, I could do without your attitude."
"Can't let a guy have a little fun," Harley teased the red ranger, "beginnin' to wonder if you were grown in a lab."
Sabrina leaned over and whispered to Ricky, "Are they always like this?"
"Unfortunately," Ricky replied with a long sigh.
The door banged open as Major Earhardt stomped into the room, "You'll be pleased to know we've managed to bring Stevie into custody," she began, "Jazz is helping the medical team run a few tests."
"How's she doing?" Mark asked the Major.
"See for yourself," Taylor replied, switching on the television monitor showing Stevie strapped to a bed, thrashing around maniacally. There was no sound but they could only imagine the horrific noises the blue ranger was making, "The MP's who brought her in shot her with enough tranquiliser to drop an elephant," Taylor continued, "believe it or not, she's calmed down a lot."
"Always knew she was one crazy chick," Harley shrugged, "so what's the plan, find the monster and make it go boom?"
Taylor glared at the black ranger, "What makes you think the Air Force would do that?" she stated as evenly as possible.
"Major," Mark began nervously, "Sabrina knows," the Major's head snapped towards the red ranger with almost impossible speed, "she remembers more from her possession than she initially disclosed."
Taylor's eye twitched and for a couple of moments was almost completely motionless. Slowly and deliberately she leaned across the table, keeping her gaze on Sabrina the entire time, "You better have a good reason for failing to tell us that important piece of information," she said coldly.
"I-I didn't want Ricky to get in trouble," Sabrina stammered, "I've never seen him so happy, outside of a Star Wars marathon that is." When Taylor refused to relinquish her stare, she added, "I thought you might ask him not to be a Power Ranger anymore if you knew that he had compromised his identity."
"To be fair if he hadn't, we would've had to scrap you off the desert floor," Harley added with a shrug.
"Not, helping," Taylor hissed towards the black ranger, "fortunately for you we have bigger problems to deal with." She looked quickly across the room, "Someone give me something useful and quickly."
"Remember what the monster said Ricky," Sabrina began, talking at the yellow ranger to avoid catching Taylor's eye, "something about reflecting misery back onto humans."
"Vaguely," Ricky replied, "she doesn't look depressed though, maybe it was Lena's way of trying to mislead us."
Mark leaned forward in his chair, "Maybe you're thinking too literally, it might be calling on a negative personality trait."
"Not a bad suggestion," Taylor replied with a small amount of warmth, "wouldn't be the first time in Ranger history that's happened."
"Never seen the little bundle of sass ever act like that before," Harley reclined in his chair, "come to think about it, I don't really know anything about her," he added with a shrug.
There was a long pause, Mark looked like he wanted to prove the black ranger wrong but he couldn't come up with a counter point. Finally it was Ricky who answered, "She really likes athletics and got really bummed out when she got injured."
"Oh and she really likes money," Rachel added.
"That's it?" Sabrina frowned at everyone, "I could've told you that and I've only known her for a few days."
"To be fair we've been trying to save the world," Mark countered, "but I see your point, we barely know Stevie at all."
"Perhaps that's where we began," Rachel got up from her chair, "if we can find out what could drive Stevie's negative emotions, maybe we can free her from the monster's control."
"Not a bad idea," Taylor nodded in agreement, "that has been known to work, either that or destroy the monster." She pointed towards the black ranger, "Harley, go with Rachel and visit Stevie's parents, see what you can find." Harley snorted with laughter, "Consider it punishment for your cheek early."
"What cheek?" Harley said indignantly.
"I'm sure you've been cheeky or insubordinate at some point today, or you will be before the end of the day," Taylor countered, Harley opened his mouth but had to admit that the Major had a point. "Plus, Mark and I need to have a word with Ricky and his friend about what National Security means."
"Yawn," Harley pushed himself out of his chair, "come on princess, I'm driving," he said to Rachel.
"No way," the white ranger shook her head, "I've seen the rust bucket you call a car, I'm driving." As Harley approached, Rachel grabbed him roughly by his jacket and pushed him out the door, "Oh and if you call me princess again, I'll castrate you," she added, bringing a chuckle of laughter to the room, including Taylor.
The black and white ranger's drove through towards the city, reaching the suburb where Stevie lived within a few minutes. Despite his earlier protests, Harley had to admit the white ranger's white convertible was the better ride, "Never knew making a few videos paid so well," he said whilst admiring the car's leather trim, "you sure you don't have an OnlyFans account on the side?"
"No I do not," Rachel snapped, "do you know how many DM's I get asking that or asking for nudes everyday?"
"Alright don't get your panties in a twist," Harley replied defensively, "I was just curious how someone barely in their twenties could afford a convertible BMW."
"Hard work and wise investments," the white ranger stated coldly, "you should try it some time." She slammed the brakes on, jerking Harley forward roughly in his seat, "We're here, try to be nice to Stevie's parents."
"Hey chill," Harley jumped out the car and grabbed Rachel by the arm, "I'm sorry alright, sometimes my mouth gets ahead of my brain." Before Rachel could reply, Rachel's phone buzzed. She checked the notification before immediately stuffing the phone angrily back into her jeans, "Problem?" the black ranger asked.
Rachel shook her head, "Just a follower who doesn't take a hint, nothing I can't handle."
"Does this guy need a talkin' to?" Harley asked, "call it my way of an apology."
A small smile crossed the white ranger's face, "Like I said he's harmless, nothing I can't handle," she said whilst knocking on the door.
"Bet many a victim of a serial killer said that too," Harley said blankly, Rachel cast him a sideway glance but before she could reply, someone answered the door, "Mrs Chang I presume?" Harley asked the middle aged woman.
"Yes?" she answered nervously, "may I ask who you are?"
"I'm Rachel and this is Harley," the white ranger answered, "we're friends of Stevie, could we come in for a few minutes?"
The older woman let out a resigned sigh, "What has that daughter of mine done now?" she stepped aside and allowed them into the house, "Could I offer you a drink?"
"Coffee would be good," Harley answered, "black and bitter would be fine," Rachel elbowed him in the ribs, "better make that two cups." Mrs Chang nodded and made her way to the kitchen, all the while Rachel was glaring at the black ranger, "What? I'm not going to turn down a free drink."
"Unbelievable," the white ranger shook her head and entered what they assumed was the front room. The room was on the smaller size but crammed full of family photos and trophies, "I knew Stevie was a good athlete," Rachel began, running her hand over a medal holder with more than two dozen medals, "but I didn't realise she was this good."
"Under 12 State Champion," Harley read the plaques on a few of the trophies, "regional champion and this one," he pointed at the biggest trophy, "under 14's National Champion."
"Wow," Rachel admired the golden trophy, "being the best in your school is one thing but the best in the entire country."
Just then Mrs Chang returned with two cups of coffee, "I have never been prouder of Stephanie than I was that day," a warm smile crossed her face, "she was predicted to win the Under 16 National Championship too, until her injury that is." Her smile slowly faded until she was staring blankly at the trophy, "I'm sorry, what did you say your names were again?"
"Rachel Zane," the white ranger introduced herself again, "Stevie's been working for me recently at my new gym."
"Ah so you're Rachel," Mrs Chang's face lit up, "in almost every other conversation I've had with Stephanie, your name had come up."
"In a good way or a creepy stalker type way?" Harley asked.
Rachel shot the black ranger a look, "Forgive my soon to be ex-employee for his lack of tact."
"Oh no trouble at all," Mrs Chang waived her hands, "she talks about all of you from that gym, I'm just glad that she's found some friends again."
"Again?" Harley asked between sips of coffee, "strikes me as a real social butterfly that one."
A tight smile crossed Mrs Chang's lips, "Her knee injury hit her hard," she began, "most of her friends were either on the school athletics team or at the local club. During her rehab she drifted away from both, said it was too hard for her to watch others race and train when she couldn't."
"She really enjoys competing," Rachel replied, setting down her cup, "truth be told, it's the only thing we know she loves."
"Along with money," Harley snorted.
Rachel's dropped and shook her head, adding through clenched teeth, "Yes, but we weren't going to mention that."
To their surprise Mrs Chang let out a soft chuckle, "Oh that sounds like Stephanie, always thinking of ways to finance her running." She paused, taking a sip of her drink, "My husband used to run an investment firm, right up to the financial crash in 2008," a far away look crossed her face, "we didn't feel the effects immediately but gradually business began to slow down."
"It was the same for my parents businesses, we were lucky," the white ranger paused, noticing that Mrs Chang's expression hadn't changed, "but I guess you weren't so lucky."
"Don't get me wrong, others had it much worse," Mrs Chang sighed, "we had to downsize our home, be a little more watchful with our spending. Moving home hit Stephanie hard, she didn't fit in as well with the other children in the area."
Harley leaned back in his chair slightly, "Think I'm beginning to understand the little sparkplug a little better," he began, "was this also around the time she started to get serious 'bout her running?"
Mrs Chang nodded, "Her dream was to make the Olympic team, said winning a gold medal would set her up for life."
The black ranger nodded, "I think that's all we need to hear," he said whilst standing up.
"It is?" Rachel asked, looking at Harley in confusion.
"Thank you for your hospitality Mrs Chang but we've taken up too much of your time," Harley squeezed passed and headed for the door.
"Oh," Mrs Chang said in surprise, "well don't be strangers, any friends of Stephanie are welcome here any time."
"Thank you," Rachel replied, "I'll see myself out." Once outside, she spotted Harley leaning on the Chang's mailbox impatiently, "Want to tell me what that was all about?" she asked.
"You could see it was difficult for her," Harley shrugged, "don't like to see mother's goin' through a tough time like that."
"Speaking from experience?" the white ranger raised an eyebrow. Harley stared blankly for a couple of seconds before slowly lowering his sunglasses. An uncomfortable silence passed between the pair until Rachel decided to change the subject, "Did you hear something that could help Stevie?"
The black ranger pulled a cigarette from his pocket, pausing to light it, "That kid probably had it all, new toys, big house, only for it to change practically overnight," he blew smoke into the air, taking care not to blow it in the white ranger's direction, "no wonder she likes to squeeze every dollar out of us."
Rachel paused in thought for a couple of moments, "Remember when I offered everyone those Comic Con tickets?"
"How could I forget," the black ranger replied with a sly grin, "especially your outfit."
The white ranger grunted with annoyance before stating, "Not that, Stevie acted really funny when I tried to give her a ticket. Wouldn't she be overjoyed to receive VIP entry? Those tickets retailed for hundreds of dollars."
Harley took another drag on his cigarette, "Maybe she doesn't like being seen as a charity case," he shrugged, "I dunno, I don't have all the answers."
"Could've fooled me there Sigmund Freund," the white ranger grinned, "I have an idea but there's no guarantee it'll work, are you with me?"
The black ranger smirked, flicking his cigarette to the ground, "All the way sugar."
Rachel shuddered, "Don't call me that either, in fact cut out the nicknames all together," Harley shook his head before jumping into the passengers seat of Rachel's car. The white ranger raised her communicator, "Major, how's Stevie doing?"
"She's calmed down thanks to the sedatives," Taylor replied, "but her and body temperature heart rate is extremely high, she's in danger of burning out if we can't break this spell."
Rachel let out a breath before continuing, "I have an idea, can you transport Stevie to my place."
There was a long pause before Taylor replied, "I'm not really sure that's a good idea."
"For once I agree with the Major," Harley added, "she's calm now but what if she goes all She-Hulk on you?"
"You're coming with me," Rachel said, to which the black ranger balked, "this all come from your psycho analysis so you're gonna be there," she turned back to her communicator, "trust me Major, I think we can get through to Stevie."
"Alright," Taylor said with resignation, "but only because we have no other ideas right now. I'll get her ready for transport ASAP."
Harley sighed and shook his head, "I hope you know what you're doing," Rachel didn't respond as she started the engine and drove away.
Back at Rachel home, the white and black rangers waited near the pool for Stevie to arrive. The white ranger decided this would be the best place for the meeting, mainly to avoid her house getting totally trashed if they lost control of the blue ranger. Rachel paced nervously whilst Harley relaxed on a sun lounger, "You sure this is a good idea?" the black ranger asked.
"You asked that question a dozen times so far and my answer is the same," Rachel replied, "I think so."
"Hardly filling me with confidence," Harley peeked up from his seat and noticed two suited men approaching, "too late to back out now," he mumbled.
One of the men was pushing a vacant looking Stevie towards them in a chair. Rachel spotted that the blue ranger's arms and legs were tied to the chair, "Are the restraints really necessary?" she asked.
"She bit two of the doctors," the man replied, "we didn't have a choice."
"Untie her," Rachel said coolly, "then leave us, go wait in your van."
The two men looked at each other, "With due respect-," one on them began.
"You heard the lady," Harley said with menace. He didn't wait for them to release Stevie, choosing to rip the restrains clean off the chair. The Air Force agents scrambled away, wisely following the black ranger's instructions.
The white ranger offered Harley a small smile, "Thank you, now help me more her somewhere more comfortable." The two rangers grabbed Stevie underneath her armpits and tried to walk her towards the seating area. The blue ranger was completely dead weight, making the process difficult, "What the hell have they doped her up with?" Rachel muttered.
"I wanna know how someone so skinny can weight so much," the moment the black ranger finished his sentence, Stevie's head snapped towards him, "maybe they should've given her more," he added. The pair carefully placed Stevie onto the sun lounger and took a couple of careful steps back, "Right, now what?" Harley asked.
Their communicators suddenly sounded and the pair jumped in shock, "Jesus Christ," Harley cried, "this better be good, you just gave us both a heart attack," he said into his communicator.
"Just a Vyglass attack in the city, that important enough?" came Jazz's sarcastic reply through the device, "how are you getting on with Stevie?"
"Haven't started yet," Rachel sighed before turning to Harley, "you go and help Mark and Ricky, this was my idea after all."
"I am not leaving you alone with Jaws over there," Harley said firmly.
"I'll be fine," the white ranger replied equally firmly, "please James, go help the others." The black ranger stared in surprise at the use of his first name, "We'll join you as soon as we can."
"Fine but if the Major or Medical Examiner asks, I left reluctantly and under great duress," Harley grumbled.
"Duly noted," Rachel stated and watched the black ranger jog up the path. The white ranger grabbed a wicker chair and sat next to Stevie, "Just us girls now," she said to the blue ranger but there was barely any response, "we visited your mother today," that comment brought a small tilt of Stevie's head.
Rachel pulled out her phone and began to type, "I'm sorry if I made you feel like a charity case," the white ranger continued, "I know I have lot more money than others my age," she turned her phone towards Stevie, "around that much and that's just my personal account. The business and investment accounts have more but I leave my team to handle that."
Unnoticed by the white ranger, Stevie's fingers were twitching furiously, "My entire career could disappear overnight, one wrong word or action could see me blacklisted and cancelled." As Rachel turned to put her phone down, Stevie began to sit up, "So I like to share with my friends because I never know-," her sentence was cut-off by the blue ranger grabbing her around the neck.
Rachel grabbed Stevie's arm but the blue ranger's grip was too strong, "I don't want to hurt you Stevie," she managed to say.
"You can't," came Stevie's firm reply.
The white ranger's knees buckled slightly and her survival instinct took over. She kicked Stevie firmly in the stomach which broke her grip, "Fine, you really want to do this," Rachel rubbed her throat before adopting a defensive guard, "let's go."
Stevie roared and charged towards the white ranger, attacking with a flurry of punches that Rachel struggled to block. Eventually Rachel stepped aside and Stevie tumbled passed, crashing through the metal fence surrounding the pool. The white ranger carefully followed but Stevie was up quickly, pushing her on the defensive once again, "Come on Stevie, fight this," Rachel implored.
The blue ranger said nothing, instead she caught Rachel's arm and spun behind the white ranger, wrapping her in a firm sleeper hold, "Easy on the neck," Rachel spluttered. Drastic action was needed, Rachel dropped her shoulder which forced Stevie to overbalance. In her magic induced rage, she hadn't notice how close they were to the swimming pool. Rachel pushed with all her might and the pair fell in the water, disappearing with a splash.
The shock of hitting the water forced Stevie to let go, allowing Rachel to kick for the surface. Once she felt fresh air, she whipped her head to move her damp blonde hair from her face. For several seconds there was no sign of the blue ranger, "Stevie," she called but there was no sign of movement.
Rachel wasn't sure how much time passed but to her relief, the blue ranger broke the surface, "Would it kill you to heat your pool," the teen cried whilst pushed her dark hair back, "it's absolutely freezing."
"Have you seen the bill for a heated pool," Rachel said automatically until she realised, "Stevie, you're back to normal," she stopped when she noticed steam rising from the blue ranger, "and you're smoking."
"Thanks for noticing," Stevie replied with a cheeky grin, "I can't explain it but I don't think the spell is broken but you've cooled me off," she flicked some water towards the white ranger, "literally."
"Not what I had planned," Rachel shrugged, "but good to see you back to normal, for now."
"What was your plan anyway?" Stevie grumbled, "taunt the poor High School student with your wealth?"
"I wasn't taunting," Rachel said defensively, "I had a whole speech planned about how I understood you and what drove you to seek financial security. Then you went and ruined it by going all strangler on me."
Stevie snorted, "Sounds like a stupid plan, look I know my family was rich and now we're not. Yeah, it sucked but we're working through it, forgive me for wanting to earn a few extra dollars on the side."
"Believe me, I could make plenty of dollars if I posted a picture of this," Rachel indicated towards her now nearly see through white top, "on the internet."
"Only if I got ten percent of the rights," Stevie joked, "maybe we should go help the others, at least if I go beast-mode again you can point me towards the monster." Rachel laughed and helped Stevie out the pool before climbing out herself.
In the city, the three male Rangers were tackling Caratron alone but were finding the diamond based monster hard to damage. Mark swung his Jet Sword with all his strength but the blade just bounced off its hardened skin, "This is ridiculous," the red ranger groaned, "nothing in our arsenal is strong enough."
"It's like they don't want their creation to blow up this time," Harley added sarcastically. He fired a few bolts from his Jet Blaster, unfortunately they were reflected back on the group, "Not my smartest plan that," he grumbled whilst picking himself up off the floor.
"Good thing we're here," Rachel called as she and Stevie jumped in front of the fallen Rangers.
"Stevie, you're alright," Ricky stopped when he noticed the pair were soaking wet, "why do you look like you've been swimming?"
"Long story," Stevie crackled her knuckles, "now, I want a word with you," she added whilst pointing at Caratron.
"Ah, someone infected by my power," the monster chuckled, "this will be interesting." The blue ranger let out a rage cry and leapt towards the monster, morphing into her suit in the process.
The other Rangers could only stand back and watch Stevie pummel the monster relentlessly, "I thought you said your plan worked?" Harley said to the white ranger.
"No I didn't, I just managed to bring her to her senses for long enough to get her here," Rachel shrugged.
The black ranger looked at the dripping wet white ranger and chuckled, "You threw her in your pool didn't you?"
Rachel stared back blankly, "Technically, we fell together," she said, bringing a loud chorus of laughter from the male rangers. Just then, their communicators when off, "Yeah, Rachel here," the white ranger answered.
"Someone sounds in a good mood," Jazz began, "did the plan to help Stevie work?"
The four rangers looked at each other then at the monster cowering from a rage-filled blue ranger, "Let's just say the Vyglass aren't going to inflicting the berserk status on us in the future," Ricky answered.
"Yeah I can see from the traffic cameras," Jazz laughed, "maybe now is a good time to try out your new weapon." The three suited Rangers twisted their right arms and a heavy white weapon with their team log covered their forearm and hand, "This is the Jet Gauntlet," Jazz continued, "the electro-rod on the end can crumble even their toughest monster."
The semi-circle near the knuckles of the weapon arced with energy, "Nice," Mark whistled, "what do the wings on the side do?" he asked whilst looking at the red wings near the top of the weapon.
"Sonic blast," Jazz answered, "trust me, the numbers have been off the chart during testing."
Rachel looked back towards the blue ranger, "Maybe we should use these to save that monster from Stevie," she laughed before assuming a stance, "Jet Force, Take Flight," she called and morphed into her Ranger form, "come on, lets show Caratron some mercy."
Carefully the Rangers approached Stevie, careful not to antagonise her lest her rage was turned on to them, "Stevie, maybe save some for us," Mark said slowly.
The blue ranger paused in her attack, immediately eying the new weapon, "What are those?" she barked.
"Jet Gauntlet," the red ranger replied, "Jazz says this will help with the monster." Before he could continue, Stevie had summoned her Jet Gauntlet and punched Caratron in the face, causing the diamond on top of its head to shatter.
The monster stumbled briefly before falling flat on its back, the Rangers weren't sure but they thought they heard it mutter 'thank you' as it fell, "Man, I was looking forward to trying this out," Ricky grumbled.
"Works a treat, trust me," Stevie replied perkily, "the diamond on its head must've been the key to the spell, my head feels much clearer."
The Rangers turned and stumbled backwards as the monster began to grow, "That's good because this fight isn't over," he raised his left wrist, "time to launch the Zords Jazz." On command, the five Zords flashed overhead and the Rangers flew up into their respective cockpits. Immediately the five vehicles came together to form the Jet Force Megazord.
The Megazord and Caratron locked together, the two giants staggering through the city. The repaired diamond on top of the monsters head emitted a beam that rocked the Megazord, "Structure's holding," Ricky checked the computer, "but I wouldn't want to take too many shots like that."
"Well punching it felt real good," Stevie pushed a button on her console, "let's see how it like a Rocket Punch." The Megazord's fists flew through the air and crashed into Caratron but it had little effect.
"Looks like its recovered from Stevie's beating and its skin is just as tough as before," Mark commented, "that's means the Avian Sabre isn't going to work either."
"Diamonds aren't as tough as you think," Rachel began, "they're tough but hit hard enough, they will shatter. Just look what happened when Stevie used the Jet Gauntlet."
"Maybe use the Phoenix Blast attack," Ricky suggested, "the power of the attack mixed with heat could do the treat."
The Megazord was rocked by another blast and the console sparked, "Alright, its worth a try," Mark pulled at the control stick, "engaging Jet Mode," the Megazord twisted until it changed into the Jet formation, "Phoenix Blast, fire," he called. The jet burned with the power of a phoenix and flash through the monster. Caratron thrashed around before it crumbled and shattered into thousands of pieces.
Down on the ground Princess Lena steamed with fury as her creation disintegrated into nothing, "Now isn't that a shame, your plan nearly worked," she heard the deep voice of Count Trivium, "better luck next time," he taunted. Lena's fist clenched tightly before she teleported away in a rage.
The following day, the Rangers along with Jazz were at Aaronsdale bus station. Ricky struggled to move Sabrina's suitcase into the luggage compartment of the bus, "Put your back into it," Sabrina teased, "I thought you had super strength."
"Keep your voice down," Ricky hissed, "you should count yourself lucky that Major Earhardt hasn't taken you into protective custody."
"Nah we talked it through," Sabrina smiled, "she's a big softie once you get to know her."
"We've known her for several weeks and we've yet to see her soft side," Rachel grumbled, "are you sure you want to ride the bus all the way back to the east coast? I could put in a few calls and arrange an alternative."
Sabrina shook her head, "Since I'm still not cleared to fly, I don't have a lot of choices."
"I've said you could stay with us for as long as you need," Ricky said.
"And I told you that I need to get back to college, I've already missed enough time," the dark haired woman wrapped the yellow ranger in a hug, "you try and stay safe," she whispered in his ear.
Ricky slowly released the hug and for a moment, looked like he wanted to say something. Whatever speech he had planned died pretty quickly, "Yeah, you too," he said simply.
Sabrina looks a little downbeat much managed to smile at the Ranger team, "Keep this big idiot safe for me would you," she began, "I want to see him in one piece the next time I visit.
"No promises," Harley smirked, Sabrina gave them one final wave before boarding the bus. Once she was out of sight, the black ranger slapped Ricky on the back of the head, "You idiot," he began, "that was your chance to tell her how you feel."
"With you lot standing over me," Ricky rubbed his head, "not a chance," the bus slowly began to pull away, "like Sabrina said, she'll be back." As the group began to leave the bus station, the yellow ranger decided to deflect the conversation, "How are you doing now Stevie?" he asked.
"Better now I've had a good night's sleep," the blue ranger began, "and whatever you learned from my mother," she added towards Rachel and Harley, "I'd appreciate if you'd keep it to yourself."
Harley mimed zipping his lips whilst Rachel said, "Not a problem but if you need help then all you need to do is ask."
"Really," the blue ranger began slyly, "does that mean you'll give me a raise? I'll take double the usual salary."
"Firstly, you don't really work for me yet, not until you've finished school," Rachel replied, "secondly, don't push your luck."
Stevie pouted before adding brightly, "What about an investment? This whole thing made me realise what Aaronsdale needs," the others rolled their eyes but waited for her idea, "a rage room, maybe a small chain."
Everyone groaned except for Mark who looked confused, "What's a rage room?" he asked.
"You pay money to smash stuff up, taking a baseball bat to a computer that sort of thing," Ricky replied.
"Hey, if people willing to pay money for that then go ahead, got my support," Harley shrugged whilst retrieving a packet of cigarettes.
"Don't encourage her," Rachel warned, "its not your money that she's looking for."
"Call it compensation for trying to drown me," Stevie said with hands on hips. She began to list off various ideas for her business idea with the Rangers showing various levels of interest.
Harley hung back for a moment to light his cigarette, chuckling at the animated way the blue ranger was pestering the white ranger, "Think I liked her better as a psycho," he chuckled before catching up to everyone.