Power Rangers In Space/Power Rangers Lost Galaxy, Heather Ray [best novels ever TXT] 📗

Ranger, chosen to protect Terra Venture from evil. And her, the former Queen of Evil. And as I imagine the two of us nose to nose, I can't honestly tell who was the monster at that moment.

I shouldn't have punched her. That fleeting moment of satisfaction is nothing compared to the confusion I felt when she just took my abuse. She didn't try to block or retaliate. She just...took it. She tried to reason with me, and I shut her up with my fist. Does that make me the monster?

Thanks to Alpha's care, her wounds are long gone. Split lip healed, bruise faded, face good as new. And a little soap and water washed her blood from my hand. But the image has been carved into my brain. I've never hit someone in a blind rage like that. I can just imagine what my mother would say to me if she saw that.

I feel guilty, and that just makes me angrier. In my own mind, I was justified in my utter hatred of the murderous witch I saw lurking behind her eyes. But now, I'm just...confused

. I thought I knew her, but I can't easily reconcile my first hypothesis with her behavior so far. I'm not as sure of her intentions as I was before. And that's much more unsettling than when you know your enemy stands right in front of you.

It's better just to ignore her. Avoid her altogether, bury all the contradictions she embodies in the back of my mind, and get on with my damn life. But Mike won't let me.

I am sane enough to see his point. A house divided cannot stand. I can't just pretend she doesn't exist when the fate of thousands of lives rest on the Rangers' shoulders. If it ever comes down to just her and me, will I trust her enough to fight by her side?

Well, it looks like I have my answer. We've been on this planet for almost an hour now, and I haven't turned my back on her once.

I...need to make more of an effort here. For all our sakes.

"We're here."

I blink, shaking off my reverie as she pauses at the edge of the forest.

Chapter Thirty-Four

-Karone-

Kai doesn't respond with words; instead, he only nods curtly. I find I'm not surprised. Since I met him, the only words he's spoken to me were laced with acid. I prefer his silence.

I duck beneath the last few branches, and emerge from the forest into the quiet clearing. I will the Saber back to its inter-dimensional pocket, and approach the solemn cave unarmed. It feels like sacred ground, and I find I can't bring myself to carry a weapon here.

I straighten my shoulders as I march along the path to the former sanctuary of a great warrior, and prepare to face this demon from my past.

I deeply wish Andros or Zhane were with me. Or even Leo. But I know I need to find my own strength if I am ever to come to terms with my other life.

I pass a large boulder, and a sudden chill makes me hesitate. There, propped on the sun-warmed surface, is a human skeleton. Patches of armor and rags of leather hang from its structure, and its empty eyes seem to stare at me.

My throat tightens as I realize I'd forgotten all about him. He was the warrior's apprentice, a youth with fierce determination and courage. He faced me to defend his master, and I killed him with one blast of energy. It was almost negligent, like swatting a fly. And now, years later...I can't even recall his name.

I can't justify my cruelty that day. And as I stare at this proof of my wickedness, I feel so foolish for coming here.

I hear the sound of dirt crunching underfoot, just behind me. Kai has caught up with me, silently observing like a judge upon a dais.

My discomfort grows with his proximity. Gods, I wish Kai wasn't here! That accusing stare chills my blood each time I feel it on my skin, but here, in this very spot where I committed great evil, where I can't blame Dark Specter for outright manipulating my mind...I feel a desperate need to hide in shame.

But I know I can't, no matter how much I want to. I can't let Terra Venture fall because of my guilty conscience.

I decide to disperse the consuming quiet. "In there," I tell him, stepping past the skeleton as I resume my purposeful stride. "The Keys are inside the cave."

A sudden gust of wind sweeps through the clearing, making the nearby trees dance and tearing leaves off their branches.

"Astronema,"

a cold voice growls, "you struck down the Warrior and dare to return?"

I recognize the presence...only without Astronema's powers, I feel much more vulnerable. This is the spirit that kept me from the Keys years ago.

But this time, I feel a flash of insight. Perhaps it is because my perspective has changed so much. Before, I was the arrogant Princess of Evil, so consumed with the prize before my eyes that I saw nothing else. Now, I notice things I didn't see before.

I remember the face of the apprentice that I casually murdered. And I recognize the spirit that lingers in this clearing, to this day protecting the Keys as he did in life.

Bracing myself, I whirl around to the skeleton just in time to see the ivory bones move, rising beside the boulder against which they'd been propped. I'm stunned to see brown eyes within those large sockets. Without the surrounding skin, they are truly horrifying. And the anger and contempt they carry petrifies me.

I stare into those wide, hateful eyes, and I see my death.

I open my mouth, but my mind whirls with fear and shame as I face the fallen apprentice. My tongue won't cooperate. I can't speak...I can't think!

Then, to my endless astonishment, Kai stands beside me. "We're Power Rangers," he declares, "and we're here on a mission to save thousands of lives! One of our member has been stripped of his power, and Terra Venture, the vessel we protect, is under attack! We need those Keys to --"

"I recognize Dark Specter's princess," the ghost hisses, "I am not deceived by her disguise."

After a few moments of silence, Kai gives me a sideways glance. "If you want to save Terra Venture, I suggest you speak up."

The tone was sharp, but not as malicious as most of his comments. But it does help me focus on my goal once again. I know I am unworthy...but this isn't about me. This is about the people I've sworn to protect.

"I wear no disguise," I state, my voice surprisingly steady given the height of my anxiety. "I am as you see before you. I am no longer a servant of the Darkness. And I've sworn to make amends however I can, and it is that which brings me to your planet."

The ghostly voice chuckles. It's a chilling sound devoid of humor. "So you claim to have reformed, Astronema?"

I take a breath. "I've been purged of the evil that once ruled me. I am no longer Astronema."

"Then you must prove it,"

the ghost decides. "Prove you are worthy of the sacred Keys! Face your past, princess."

Before I can even question his meaning, a flash of purple assails my peripheral vision. For a moment, I feel the world spin as cool, mocking laughter greets me.

I barely hear Kai's startled gasp, because my heart pounds frantically in my ears.

"So," Astronema mocks, aiming her Wrath Staff directly at me, "Do you have the backbone to face me?"

I can feel the air sizzle as energy gathers at the tip of the staff. I dive at Kai, throwing us both to the ground just in time to let the lavender blast pass harmlessly above us.

Sacred ground be damned. The apprentice has decided to spill my blood here, and I won't just bow my head and let him. The Pink Saber materializes in my hand, warm and pulsing with power.

Kai and I both roll into a crouch, holding our Sabers to block whatever Astronema might hurl at us next. Then we trade a single glance, and nod. For once, we are of one mind.

"Go Galactic!"

Yet the Power doesn't come to us. I scowl at the illusory sorceress as she mocks me with her clicking tongue.

"So sorry," she chides, "but that's cheating. You can't hide behind the Power, dear. You have to face me as yourself."

She then lifts her palm, and a chain of purple magic swirls around Kai, locking his arms to his sides. With a snarl of outrage, he struggles against the confining magic, but to no avail.

"And no help either," Astronema finishes with a smirk.

My teeth grind in frustration as I stand up straight. I turn to the skeletal ghost, and meet his vicious eyes steadily. "I agree to your terms. However, you must swear that, whatever the outcome of this duel, Kai will be released. This is..." I smile ruefully, "..none of his business."

My eyes widen as the ghost shakes his weathered skull. "No. He is your ally, so he will share your fate. You showed me no mercy when you stormed my Master's sanctuary to steal the sacred Keys. You and those who serve you will not see any today."

I want to shriek my outrage, but I bite my tongue as I desperately rein in my frustration. I take a breath, meeting the doppelganger's arrogant smirk with hard eyes. I will not be intimidated by this charade.

The witch begins her assault with a series of short energy bursts that fly like a barrage of baseballs. However, even without being morphed I can still tap into the Power. I still have the Quasar Saber, and the enchanted blade is a match for the Wrath Staff despite my inexperience using it.

I dodge most of the blasts, until one flies at just the right angle. I brace myself, measure the speed and target, and then smash my Saber into the energy sphere. The burst shatters into a million fragments of light, glittering faintly like the stars in the night sky.

The witch snarls at me as she lunges, settling on a physical attack. My blade clashes with hers, forcing her blow to glance harmlessly to the side. We continue our macabre dance, thrusting and parrying, neither one so much as tearing the leather of our garments.

Despite everything that hangs in the balance, I can't help but enjoy the confrontation. This fight is something that I've dreamed about, with a mixture of fear and exhilaration, ever since I first shed