[FangRX]

The unthinkable had finally happened. They’d lost one of their own. It happened so fast, nobody understood how it happened. One minute she'd been fighting with them and the next she was gone. Richmond had been the first to find their friend, seeing what happened to her. He'd prayed he was wrong, but he hadn't been. He had known. Now, standing outside in the thunderstorm gathered around a trio of gravestones, the Rangers were experiencing their first real loss thanks to the Empire. Demi and April, given the means to help fight if they had to, were standing with Alec and Richmond, the girls giving their support in the only way they knew how.

“Now what?” Richmond asked, turning and looking at Thomas. “We need a plan, Thomas.”

“Now?” Thomas asked. The Red Ranger was the one that was taking the death and betrayal the hardest, and he’d barely said three words since seeing his friend on the ground. “Now, Alec? How the hell do you expect me to know?”

“Because you know her,” Alec said. “Because you understand her motives, her inspirations, her reason for wanting to do what she’s doing. Because you’re our Red Ranger, and that’s what matters most.”

“Right now…we take the fight to her,” Thomas growled. He couldn’t but keep thinking about they’d gotten to Andrea’s funeral, his mind flashing him back to that moment when they’d found out about Artemis and leading up to the last few hours…
__________________________________________

TWO DAYS BEFORE

“Do you know what you’ve done!?” Artemis yelled, holding her stomach where silver blood was pooling on her fingers. “Do you know what the hell you’ve done?!”

Andrea’s Sabre and Blaster fell from her hands, her suit dematerializing as she hit her knees, looking at the woman she thought was her younger sister. “Who the hell are you!? WHO ARE YOU!? ANSWER ME!”

An eerie silence crept over the street, the Rangers dropping their morphs beside Andrea, Richmond kneeling beside Andrea. Thomas had his hand clenched, anger surging through him. Alec didn’t know what to do or say, so he stood behind everyone, his hand on his Caller just in case.

“My name is….”

“Serpen,” Thomas growled, his knuckles turning white. “Why? Just…why?”

“Well, my son…you should know,” Artemis growled, her appearance shifting into that of a woman who looked molded after a serpent, her hair snakes that flowed down her back until they wiggled to life, hissing as they looked around. Her hands grew small claws, her body varying shades of purple. “You should know why I did this.”

“I don’t,” Thomas said. “And you need to tell us.”

“I don’t have to tell you shit, boy,” Serpen growled. “Besides, in a few hours, none of you will even matter much in the long run because when you’re dead, that’s it. That’s the end of the Rangers for good. And I’ll take all of those Keys and use them for the real purpose they were created for!”

“You’re lying,” Thomas said, helping Andrea up from the ground.

“Thomas…we can’t defeat her. We need to run,” the Yellow Ranger said, her voice breaking. “Please….please!”

Thomas looked ready to kill, but he knew that Andrea was right. “Alright,” he said, hitting his Caller and summoning the Galleon. A burst of fire from one of the port side cannons distracted Furyblaze and Serpen, allowing Geeps to get the Rangers back on board.

“Son of a bitch!” Serpen growled, anger in her eyes as she ran forward, seeing the scorched pavement where the fire was dying down. “Why is he still alive, Furyblaze? I told you what you needed to do to him.”

“I did kill him once, Serpen. I sent you with him, or did you forget your trip into the Morphing Grid?” Furyblaze asked. “He will die soon enough. But…first we deal with the Yellow Ranger. Correct?”

Serpen smirked, nodding slowly. “Yes, my devilish dear, we will,” she said, kissing Furyblaze. “Together. The two greatest powers in the known universe. Snakes and Flames will destroy everything, and then…”

“We will have what we want,” Furyblaze said. “The Deletion will commence, and once the Outlying return with the pieces of the Babylon, then things will go our way. For now, let’s return to the ship.”

Serpen nodded, snapping her fingers and taking herself and Furyblaze back onto the main deck of her ship, throwing Dimas out of the Commander’s Chair. “Listen up, maggots. There’s a new head bitch in town, and I plan on making some fucking changes around here,” she growled.
________________________________________

The mood inside of the Galleon was somber, and that was putting it mildly. The Rangers were tired and worn out, none of them having any strength to even speak. Andrea had put her Caller and Key into the Chest, looking down at the book in her hand, the title showing brightly to read: Jungle Fever. She sighed softly, remembering a time when her sister--no, she corrected herself, not Artemis--Serpen teased her for reading it.

“Hey!” Andrea yelled, trying to get her book back from her sister.

“How can you read this smut?” Artemis asked. She looked at the page her sister was reading, and she started reading aloud. “James felt Tacari’s hand trail down his bare chest, feeling her heat against his body. His body couldn’t help but react to the woman sitting in front of him. He felt her hands sliding further down his body, and--”

“Artemis!” Andrea muttered, burying her face against her arms. “Jerk.”

“Where did you get this?” Artemis asked, marking her sisters page with the yellow bookmark that had been through hell and back in fifteen years. “Seriously?”

“Umm….well…remember my English Lit teacher my senior year? She gave it to me,” Andrea admitted.

“Ms. Rhoades! Hanna Rhoades? The hot one with the legs that came up to her neck, with the great rack?” Artemis asked, watching Thomas’ head turn.

“Yes!” Andrea yelled, stealing her book back. “Don’t ever take it again. Please?”

“Fine,” Artemis whined playfully, hugging her sister. “Where’s Richmond and Alec?”

“Alec…went below deck to train with his swords--though I don’t know why. And Rich…I think he’s in the kitchen,” Andrea said, watching her sister head off towards the kitchen.

Finally the silence was broken. “What do we do?” Richmond’s voice asked. The voice was soon followed by the Green Ranger’s body, holding a tray filled with sandwiches and glasses of tea that he passed out. “I mean…Serpen is the ultimate in bad guys. Thomas?” The Red Ranger in question looked into his tea glass, shattering it as his hands clenched, dousing the floor in shards of glass, ice, and tea that was soon mixed with blood. “Thomas.”

“I don’t know,” Thomas admitted. “For the first time in my life…since I started fighting…I don’t know what to do at all. I have no fucking clues whatsoever of what to do, no semblance of an idea, no motivations to keep fighting…I don’t--”

Andrea got up, wrapping her arms around Thomas and holding him tightly. “It’s alright to not know, Thomas. We’re not asking you to just have a solution instantly. This isn’t television…we don’t know what we can do right away,” she said, strangely being the voice of reason. “We just have to…press on, I suppose. Together. We’re a team, aren’t we? We can make the best of this.”

“But for now, let’s get that hand cleaned up,” Richmond said, leading Thomas to the table. “I do have one thought though.”

“What?” Alec asked, taking to cleaning up the mess from Thomas.

“Andrea, grab the chest and bring it over here,” Richmond said as he pulled a pair of tweezers from his lab coat and started to slowly pick the glass out of Thomas’ right hand. When she did, he flipped it open. “Take out these Keys.”

As the Rangers planned, Thomas had retired to his room, sighing as he found an old paper from his days in the Empire. His mind flashed back to the days of “old” as he called them, remembering some of Furyblaze’s training when Serpen would be watching.

”No, no, no!” Furyblaze snapped, throwing Thomas’ sword back to him as Thomas stood up, his lip bleeding. “Put more force into the thrusts. Like this!” Furyblaze leapt forward, slashing down with his sword, his arm stretching out before snapping into a solid line, the sword like an extension of his body. “Feel the sword. Make it an extension of yourself. Train yourself daily, Thomas. Become the sword. Fifteen lunges and then six sets of ten thrust-parry combos. Begin!”

As Thomas started his training again, his mind did what Furyblaze said, becoming one with the sword. He followed what Furyblaze said, lashing his arm our and snapping it into a solid line, feeling like his hand was melding in with the blade. “Like that?” he asked, holding his stance.

“Exactly,” Furyblaze said, nodding in approval. “One day, Thomas, you will be leading these Timbaks into battle. Keep yourself conditioned for anything.”

“Yes, my Lord,” Thomas said, bowing and crossing his arm over his chest in the usual salute of the Empire.

Thomas sighed as he sat up, heading back out into the main area where Richmond and Andrea were working with Alec to plan out their attack for whenever Serpen and Furyblaze came back. “Hey,” he said, leaning against the wall.

“Hey, man,” Richmond said, looking back at Thomas before moving to the side, twelve Ranger Keys set up in different formations. Noting the look on his Red Ranger’s face, Richmond began explaining. “We’re doing some setting up for the next fight. Here’s what we’ve got planned…”
_______________________________________

On the Blizkon Mk. 2, Artemis was pacing around her controls, anger searing her silver eyes as a section of bandages were pressed to her right side, the slash marks from Andrea’s attack with the Quasar Saber having run deep. “Bring him in!” she snapped, looking at the Timbaks that were sitting around waiting for orders. “Now!”

Coming through the door, his blood red horns eliciting gasps from the crew, several Timbaks wetting themselves in fear. Strolling through the door with a sense of empowerment, a warrior with a red body, blue at certain intervals with six dark yellow eyes that seemed to pierce the soul, teeth as yellow as his eyes, a bone handled sword in a sheath that looked to be made of real flesh at his hip, his fingers ending in long yellow claws, Artemis smirked at her newest arrival.

“Skelecron,” she said, standing in front of him. “It’s been far too long. Have you revived the Styxerians on Miranoi yet?”

“I am close to my lord Reapus’ return, Lady Serpen. Though I must say that your…Terran look is oddly serving of yourself,” Skelecron said, bowing lightly at Artemis.

“Skelecron, don’t flatter yourself,” Artemis chuckled, allowing her “human” form to melt away into her true look as Serpen. “Ten years in that body, I’ve become comfortable with her. She was a good experiment, but it wasn’t one I had planned for so long.” Cracking her neck, Serpen took her place behind the console, tapping a few keys and forming a map of the Galaxy, black dots against a white square representing where the Empire had struck.

“What worlds are left to conquer?” Skelecron asked. He found his home of Miranoi, crushing the holographic planet in his hands. “Other then Miranoi and Earth?”

“Eltar, for one. We’ve a task force there now attempting to get past Megas and his Aurora Team, Aquitar is putting up a decent resistance, though they’re close to being crushed. Also resisting is Triforia, the Tri-Beings’ putting up resistance particularly well for a group that does not like fighting,” Serpen said. “Miranoi is next on the Invasion’s itinerary, and then we’re heading for KO-35. Most of the United Alliance fell when the Rangers sacrificed themselves for a pointless planet. Though the sooner Earth falls, the sooner we move on with the Deletion.”

“You’re going through with that, then,” Skelecron said. “Seems that the Outlying have been lying to me when I have asked on the status of the Key. Let us hope it works better here on Earth then it did on Anubis, my Queen.”

“Stop with the flattery, Skelecron. It won’t work,” Serpen said. “You know what you must do. Did you remember the Conversion chamber for the Golbaks?”

“Yes, Lady Serpen. It is already being assembled in the labs downstairs,” Skelecron said, nodding his head. “I shall take some troops to the surface and begin my assault. Let us see if I cannot draw out the Rangers and cause their destruction.”

“Bring the Yellow to me. I have my own plans for her,” Serpen said, melting back into her human disguise. “Ugh, why do I keep returning to Artemis? She was supposed to just simply be an undercover face…”

Having a suspicion but wishing to remain silent lest he lose his life, Skelecron walked out, taking a hoard of Golbaks with him onto the surface, preparing for his time to destroy.
___________________________________

Having let Thomas in on their plan, the Red Ranger was surprisingly alright with it. Suddenly--as usual--the alarms rang out as the Rangers had set out some food. “Never fails,” a very disgruntled Andrea growled. “Geeps. Who is it?”

The mechanical bird flapped out of his perch, hitting the computer keys and bringing up a security feed from the city. “Oh, by the Allspark,” he groaned. “Thomas. You’d know ‘im.”

Thomas ran over to the computer and his blood ran cold. “Skelecron,” he whispered, visible fear on his face.

“Skelecron?” Richmond asked. “You don’t mean--”

“I do mean,” Thomas said, looking back at a confused Yellow Ranger. “He’s a Styxerian from the planet Miranoi’s darkest depths. He’s been on a mission to revive his master, Reapus, but when he tries, there’s always people that stop him somehow. There haven’t been Rangers on Miranoi since the late twentieth century, and they died saving Earth the first time.”

“So…how bad is he, exactly?” Andrea asked.

“He’s bad enough to make me scared,” Thomas said. “And you know that isn’t easy.”

“You? Scared? Jesus…I didn’t think it was possible,” Andrea admitted. “So…are we going? Because I would really like to hit something right now.”

Thomas nodded, inputting the coordinates where Skelecron was reeking havoc downtown. As they jumped down from the Galleon’s underbelly, Alec and Richmond were surprised to see Demi and April swinging around pipes and rebar at Timbaks, knocking several of them down and stabbing them through.

“Damn!” Richmond chuckled, stopping April from spearing him with her pipe. “Easy, April. You and Demi get the hell out of here. I don’t need you guys getting killed right now. Go!”

April nodded, hugging Richmond tightly before kissing him, watching Demi lean up and kiss Alec--kisses which the two men returned eagerly--before they headed away, taking cover under a small bridge near the park. “They’ll be alright…right?” she asked, looking at Demi who had a worried look on her face. “Demi?”

“I sincerely hope so, April. I sincerely hope so,” Demi whispered. “Otherwise I will kill Alec with my bare hands if he dies.”

After the girls had left, Thomas stood ready with his team, each of their hands clenched around their Ranger Key. “Skelecron!” the Red Ranger yelled, hiding the fear in his eyes.

“Ah…Rangers,” Skelecron smirked. “Come to die? It can be arranged. Though three of you are going to die. I’ve got orders to bring one of you back to Lady Serpen.”

“I won’t go,” Thomas said, having an idea it’d be him.

“Oh, not you, Red Ranger,” Skelecron smirked. “She wants the woman.”

“She can have me,” Andrea growled, stepping up as her Key turned in her Caller. “Once I’m dead.” She rushed forward, slashing down several Golbaks before kicking one in the head, wrapping her legs around his face and dragging him to the ground, slinging it backwards.

“Andrea!” Thomas yelled, morphing and firing on one of the Golbaks before rushing Skelecron. “Andrea, calm down!”

“No!” the Yellow Ranger yelled, slamming her fist into one of the Golbaks’ chest, her hand coming away in blue blood with a beating heart that she crushed, staining her glove before she fired one shot into his head that splattered her suit with brains and more blood, sending his lifeless body down. “Come on, bitch!”

Skelecron rushed forward, locking blades with Andrea, neither of them giving any inch at all. Andrea kicked Skelecron below the belt, making everyone flinch as they watched the Yellow Ranger go full on Amazon on their enemy. Andrea leapt up, kicking Skelecron hard in the chest so he got thrown backwards.

“Unleashed Engage!” Andrea snapped, slotting another Key into her Caller. YELLOW AQUITAR RANGER POWER it rang out. Andrea ran forward, a silver handled sword in hand as she slashed around at Skelecron, drawing black blood from his side. “Go to hell!”

“Andrea!” Richmond yelled, diving under a Golbak and kicking it in the crotch, sending it flipping around before popping up, trying to get to his friend in the Yellow.

“You first,” Skelecron snapped, lashing out and slugging Andrea hard in the stomach, hitting her hard in the face with the butt of his sword, her head snapping back and knocking her down, her suit vanishing from the force of the blow. “Golbaks. Fall back. We’ve got what we came for.”

As they vanished into the air, Thomas ran forward and grabbed Andrea’s Unleashed Yellow Key that had fallen onto the ground, his hand clenched around it. “Damn it!” the Red Ranger snapped, kicking a trash can over.
________________________________

Waking up and feeling cool air against her skin, Andrea jerked a bit, her arms feeling sore as she realized she was just in her underwear, her clothes in tatters on the floor. “What the--” she groaned, her legs restrained at the ankles while her arms were held together at the wrists. “Let me go!”

“Actually, we won’t,” Skelecron smirked. “Not until you’re dead, little Yellow.” In his hands was a bullwhip, each of the lashes tipped with sharp glass. His arm came back, but as Andrea closed her eyes for the blow, the sound of a hand stopping Skelecron was heard in stead.

“I said not to hurt her,” Serpen said, taking the whip from Skelecron and putting it down. “Andrea.”

“Bitch!” Andrea growled, lashing her legs out and kicking Serpen hard in the face, anger clear on her face. “Go to hell, you fucking bitch!”

“You know nothing of hell,” Serpen growled, lowering Andrea to the ground before her body melted back into that of Artemis. “You don’t know a damn thing of hell.”

“I know enough,” Andrea whispered, curling up against the corner, trying to make herself small. “Why’d you do it?”

“Do what? Masquerade as your deceased sister, love you and be loved in return, kill your father? Is that what you’re talking about?” Serpen asked, sitting down. “Because I wanted to see what it was like to have a family that knew love. Manipulating memories is easy, but rewriting a lot of them is a challenge. I had to find a way to know what humans were like. As you’ve noticed, I’m not human.”

“No shit,” Andrea muttered. “But why me?”

“Andrea, there are things that even I don’t know why I do them,” Serpen said, looking at Andrea. “But I did love you. I truly did.” She put her hand on Andrea’s face, holding the Yellow Ranger’s head in place before kissing her, Skelecron chuckling in the shadows. “Goodbye, Andrea. It was…a great adventure to get to be your sister.”

Andrea spat on the ground as Serpen stood up, trying to force the taste out of her mouth. “What are you going to do to me?” she asked.

“Not what I’m going to do,” Serpen said, her hand on the open door. “What Skelecron is going to do. Like I said…goodbye, Andrea.” With that, she turned and closed the door behind her, and the next thing she heard was Andrea’s screams and the crack of the whip, closing her eyes as a single tear ran down her cheek.

Skelecron, with his dark laughter echoing throughout the ship, took sick pleasure in his torture of the Yellow Ranger, switching his whip for just his hands, beating Andrea hard. He slammed her head into the wall, knocking her back onto the ground. “How’s it feel, bitch? Being the one getting your ass beat within an inch of your life,” he growled, kicking her in the stomach.

“Go…to hell…” Andrea coughed, spitting out some blood and a couple of teeth.

“You first,” Skelecron growled, his sword swinging down point first as he drove it into her heart.
___________________________

“Now what?” Richmond asked, still rooted in the same spot he was when Skelecron left with Andrea. He felt a hand in his, and he let his suit fall as he looked at April, the young woman looking fearful having watched the entire fight.

“We find Andrea,” Thomas said.

“What if she’s already--” Alec started, Demi’s arms around his, her body shaking.

“Then we fight harder,” Thomas replied, looking at the Yellow and Pink Ranger Keys in his hand.

“Thomas,” a soft voice said, Demi stepping forward. She put her hand on the Red Ranger’s, her had covering the Yellow Ranger Key. “I can help you. You need someone to fight.”

“Demi,” Thomas whispered. “I can’t put you in danger.”

“Dude, they were holding off the Golbaks before we got here. I think they’ll be fine,” Richmond said, stepping up with April at his side. “You know it as well as I do.”

Thomas sighed, closing his eyes and weighing the options. On one hand, he knew that they needed a Pink and Yellow Ranger and he knew that Demi and April were fighters and could hold their own. On the other, he didn’t want to put two civilians in even more danger. He pulled the last two Callers out of his coat, motioning for Demi and April to come forward. He held out the Callers and Keys, Demi taking Andrea’s while April took Andrea’s.

“Welcome to the team. Don’t get yourselves killed,” Thomas said, nodding his head.

“No problem,” Demi said, giving Thomas’ arm a squeeze. April hugged him softly, one he returned before stepping back. “Now…do we hunt this bastard down or wait?”

“You don’t have to do anything,” Skelecron’s voice laughed, dropping out of the sky carrying a familiar body, scantily clad and bloody. “Because, I’m here to finish you all of.” He threw what he was carrying, the body rolling to a stop and revealing it to be Andrea, her body whipped all to hell with a single stab wound over her heart.

“What did you do to her?” Richmond asked, stepping forward and lifting Andrea’s body and feeling how cold she was to his fingers. He set her body off to the side, hiding her behind a dumpster and standing beside his friends.

“Nothing I wasn’t allowed to my Mistress Serpen,” Skelecron smirked, cracking his neck. “Now…it’s time to finish this.”

“Couldn’t agree more,” Alec growled. “Captain. Call it.”

“Let’s do this,” Thomas said, holding his Caller and Key up. “Girls, just follow what we do.”

“Got it, boss,” Demi and April said, standing beside Alec and Richmond respectively.

“UNLEASHED ENAGE!” the five Rangers called out, each one morphing in a flash of colored light.

Demi and April drew their weapons, the Yellow Ranger smirking under her helmet. “Alright, this feels good!” she grinned.

“Well, let’s get to this,” April said, feeling good in Pink.

Not wasting time with words anymore, Skelecron drew his sword, several feet long with razor sharp edges, the handle crafted from several bones and held together with various pieces and colors of rotting flesh. He rushed forward, locking blades with the Green and Blue Rangers, neither of them giving up any ground as they pushed.

“Is that all you’ve got, little Rangers?” Skelecron asked, missing three people get behind him before they blasted, Richmond and Alec getting out of the way as Skelecron tumbled forward, skidding along the ground. “What?!”

“Keep all eyes open, asshole,” Thomas smirked, holding his smoking blaster. “Otherwise you’re open for an attack like that.” He jumped up and landed with both feet on Skelecron, planting him further into the ground. “Now, girls!”

"TWIN FRIEND STRIKE!" Demi and April yelled, firing two rounds and having two sword slashes connect with them as the girls dropped out of the air.

“Thomas, what do you say we change it up?” Alec asked, holding up a Key.

“For Andrea,” Demi said, a Key in her hand as well.

“You got it,” Thomas said, the Rangers standing around the crater that was Skelecron at the moment.

“Unleashed Engage!” the Rangers yelled out as they turned five Yellow Keys in their Callers.

“Rescue Drill!” Richmond yelled out, launching forward with the Yellow Lightspeed Ranger’s weapon, the drill from the Rescue Bird spinning rapidly on the end of his Rescue Blaster. “Lightspeed Crash!” He drove through Skelecron, leaving a bit of a gap on his right side that bled black.

“Zeo Power Double Clubs!” Demi summoned, using the signature weapon of the Yellow Zeo Ranger and swinging the nunchuck inspired weapon around before grabbing Skelecron and flipping him over near April and Thomas.

“Quasar Saber! Thunder Crash!” Thomas announced, several large blasts of lightning spearing out and slamming into Skelecron, knocking him around. Slashing with his Saber, he knocked Skelecron’s sword away, ending up point down in the ground five feet away. “Alec!”

“Power Daggers!” the Blue Ranger called out, throwing the two daggers into Skelecron, embedding them in his chest before driving them up, charging them with energy. “Tiger Strike!” He ripped them out of the Styxerian, throwing him backwards. “April!”

“My pleasure!” April smirked under her helmet. “Star Slinger!” As she jumped into the air, she let several blasts fly from the Slinger, each of them slamming into Skelecron hard. She kicked him in the head, yelping when he grabbed her leg and flung her backwards, knocking her into Demi. “Sorry, Dems.”

“No problem,” Demi groaned, moving her best friend off of. “NExt time, though, don’t put your ass in my face. Save that for Richmond.”

“Hey!” Richmond laughed. “Thomas, let’s finish this.”

“My thoughts exactly,” the Red Ranger said, landing beside his team and taking two Red Ranger Keys from his Belt. “Let’s use the finale.”

The Rangers nodded, Skelecron standing up and taking his sword from the ground, yelling out and forming a blast of black energy around him that charged itself into his blade. “BLOOD BRINGER!” Skelecron yelled, throwing his slash out at the Rangers.

“Unleashed Scramble!” Thomas called, the five Rangers firing their blasters before slashing down with their swords. The two attacks sailed towards each other, colliding in the middle of the street, smoke filling up the area…
___________________________________________

“Guys,” Thomas said, snapping back into reality before putting his hand on Andrea’s headstone, situated between her mother’s and sister’s. “You know after this there’s no going back, right? Skelecron’s still out there, and so are Serpen and her duo of dicks. We need to get stronger, and…I’ve got an idea of how to do that.”

“How?” April asked, pressed into Richmond’s side under the umbrella. “Tom?”

“We need a Silver Ranger…” Thomas said, holding up the Silver Unleashed Key. What nobody saw was a man standing on the hill beside a black motorcycle, his hands in his pockets as black lines ran down his face…