Power Ranger Ninja Storm, Heather Ray [best classic romance novels txt] 📗

Dustin dives into the ocean after her. My feet are strangely rooted to the ground as I turn away from the blue waves, tracing the arc of that red-tinged flash to the figure lingering where the sand meets the grass.

Hunter...

But, first things first.

I follow Dustin into the surf, water splashing against my boots as I struggle to keep up. Before I'm even knee deep, a force drags me from behind and wrenches me back to dry land.

"Back-stabbing bastard!" Shane growls, holding me with two fistfuls of my shirt. "You led

us here!"

I grab Shane's wrists to ease the pressure. "We don't have time for this! Tori needs help…"

A loud grunt of breath escapes the vent in his helmet as he turns to the ocean. "You and Hunter…you're just disgusting. The lowest of the low."

Before he can make up his mind, Kelzacks suddenly swarm us. Lunging kicks and punches rain on the Red Ranger from all directions, and he does his best to retaliate without letting me go.

Then, a Kelzack bodily tackles Shane from behind, and is followed by three more.

The added strain makes it possible for me to wrestle free from his grip, letting me stumble into the swarm. I blink as the Kelzacks make way for me, and pounce on Shane in earnest.

On second thought, I don't know why I'm surprised that the Kelzacks aren't attacking me. It's obvious who sent them.

"You're next, Blake!" Shane shouts after me, wrenching his arm free and drawing his sword.

Part of me wants to help him. But I know the Red Wind Ranger can handle a few drones. Plus, given his current state of mind, he's just as likely to slash me with that sword, and without my morpher there's not much I can do to stop him.

Besides, I'm a firm believer of dealing with the root of the problem. And with Shane fighting the Kelzacks and Dustin tracking down Tori, I think it's the most good I can do in this situation.

I run through the sand to the crimson figure standing not fifty feet behind us. His stance seems casual, one hand on his hip with the other balancing his Thunder Staff against his shoulder… but I know better.

I grimace at the smoke drifting from the Staff. "Why did you fire at Tori?"

"I didn't just fire at her," he answers matter-of-factly, "I hammered

her. That's one down, two to go, Blake."

He lowers his staff and begins to approach me. "How does that make you feel?"

Wide-eyed, I stare at him as if I'd never seen him before.

I have never, ever been afraid of my brother. He's always had a short fuse, and he's always been much stronger than me...but he's never given me reason to feel threatened. But now, his face hidden behind that helmet, his voice strained...there's no doubt something has changed.

"What's gotten into you?" I mutter.

He continues as if I hadn't said anything. "How does that make you feel

, Blake? To know I attacked a Wind Ranger? Proud, maybe? Or betrayed? How about vengeful? What??"

"Confused!" I shout at him. "What the hell happened to you? The Winds are our friends!"

He laughs; a brief, harsh chuckle that makes me wince. "No student of that murderer can possibly be a friend of ours." He shakes his head slowly. "Or, at least a friend mine. I can't speak for you, can I?"

There is so much wrong with this picture that, for a long moment, I wonder if this is a nightmare. "Hunter, listen to me: something happened to you. Don't you remember the Mountain of Lost Ninjas? The Gem of Souls?"

"Here's what I do remember: waking up on Lothor's ship, finding out from his dense niece that, instead of helping me, you'd rather spend your time with that water-brained beach bum."

I grimace at the accusation. He didn't have all the facts straight, but he wasn't completely wrong, either. If I'd have gone to Lothor's ship with him, and provided the backup he obviously needed, we wouldn't be in this mess.

"How did you get so side-tracked?" he demands. "We both made a pact; we swore to avenge our parents' murder. That was our goal, remember? We were willing to do anything, risk anything, to achieve it. Even cooperate with a space ninja and his motley crew." His free hand falls on my shoulder. "Somewhere along the way this became a one-man mission."

"Hunter, listen to me," I plead, "Watanabe didn't kill our parents, Lothor did! He murdered our parents, and lied to us!"

His grip on my shoulder tightens, from firm to uncomfortable. "And where did you hear this? From Tori? I'll bet she was batting her eyelashes while she fed you that tripe, too."

His snide tone sets my teeth on edge. "No, our parents

told us the truth. They spoke to us through the Gem of Souls. Don't you remember anything

that happened after we broke into Ninja Ops??"

Hope rises in my chest as his grip on me slackens. He remains silent as his helmet opens, revealing his tightened face and letting his hand press the bridge of his nose.

I sigh with relief. "You'll be okay, Hunter, I promise. We'll take you back to Ninja Ops, and Cam and Sensei can --"

My sentence is lost in a grunt as he pushes me aside. "You're calling that man Sensei now? He hasn't taught us anything!"

"Bro, you're not listening

to me!"

"If I'd seen the spirits of my parents, I'd remember it," Hunter states flatly. "So it didn't happen. Period."

"Hunter..."

"I really have underestimated these Wind Rangers," he continues, "They're not much on the battlefield, but they're a devious bunch. They're trying to split us up, Blake, and I'm not letting them."

He turns hateful eyes toward the shore. "I'm not letting her..."

Eyes widening, I follow his gaze. Squinting against the sun, I see Tori leaning heavily upon Dustin, treading water and shaking visibly, but at least conscious.

She's okay...

But I can feel the air charging, hear the sizzle of a thunderbolt forming. Frantic, I scramble from the sand and tackle my brother, throwing all my strength at him and praying it's enough.

Thankfully, it's enough; the blast flies well over the Wind Rangers' heads as we both take a tumble into the sand.

"How can you turn on me?" Hunter roars, pinning me by the shoulder. "After everything we've been through? I'm your big brother!!"

"Hunter, you have to trust me," I wheeze through compressed lungs. "Lothor wants you to kill the Winds and their sensei for his own reasons! I won't let you do it!"

"Lothor wants me to leave them stranded on Vertical Island," he snaps at me. "My job would've been a piece of cake, if someone

didn't ignore me and follow them through the portal. I'm only here to make sure you don't get yourself killed." He stands, dragging me up by the arm. "I'm taking you home. Then Lothor can deal with his prisoners however he wants."

"Hunter, we don't have

a home!" I pull my arm free and stand toe to toe with him. "Ever since we lost everything, all we've thought about is revenge. We have no home, we have no plans beyond avenging our parents' murder."

"Are you saying our parents aren't worth a little personal sacrifice? Putting your precious plans on hold?" His teeth are gritted with the kind of fury I rarely see. "You know, Choobo said something earlier. He suggested that maybe, our family isn't as important to you as it is to me."

…what??

My mouth hangs open as my brother…my brother

…shakes his head like a disappointed schoolteacher. "I hit the nail on the head, didn't I Blake?"

Out of nowhere, a kind of anger I rarely feel makes my entire body tense. "Wh...how could you even..." I mutter, anger and hurt and a strange sense of unreality making my words barely intelligible. "Why would you listen to Choobo

??"

"I didn't, at first," Hunter answers. "But look at yourself, Blake! You've forgotten everything

we've been working toward. What does that tell you?"

The world blurs, and a lump tightens my throat. Hurt, rage, confusion, frustration… they all burn for an outlet, and before I can stop myself, I deal my brother, the only family I have, the protective shadow that has watched over me for half my life…a sound kick in the stomach.

I know it couldn't have hurt him, a morphed Thunder Ranger. At most it surprised him. It surprised me that it even connected, considering his speed. Did he let me hit him? Is this what he wants… for me to get angry?

"You can be such a stubborn ass sometimes!" I shout at him, punching at his exposed face. He easily dodges, my arm glancing off his wrist guard, "Lothor is pulling your goddamned strings, and you just won't see it!"

A lunging shove upsets my balance, and the Thunder Staff planted behind my ankles drops me into the sand. He doesn't stop me from getting back up, though.

Coughing on the dust in my throat, I glare at Hunter through watery eyes. "Why are you taking an evil space alien's word over mine??"

A derisive snort, that almost sounds like the obnoxious big brother I know. "Don't misunderstand, Bro, I know Lothor's not playing a fair game. But, I also know in my gut that something's not right between the two of us. I should be able to depend on you, but right now I can't."

I bite back a wordless scream of frustration. Mom, Dad… I hope you can't see us right now… "Of course you can! Hunter, I'll never betray you!"

Another shake of the head. "Maybe not intentionally, but you're too naive, Blake. You've liked the Winds since we met them! You have to learn that the only one you can honestly trust, the only one you can rely on, is me. Family

."

"You and me against the world? Do you really think we stand a chance?"

His eyes narrow, and then his helmet seals shut. "Absolutely. Once we get back on track, of course."

Then, he leans forward, moving so quickly he actually blurs around the edges, and punches me.

The world swims around me as I gasp sharply, the breath knocked right from the depth of my chest. My legs are suddenly limp noodles, unable to keep me standing.

Before my face hits the sand, my cheek lands against the cold metal of Hunter's shoulder armor. "We'll settle this later."

A moment later I'm hanging over his shoulder, the blood rushing to my head keeping me dizzy and off-balance.

But I'm aware enough to hear a screeching burst of power not far to my right; and the explosion it causes makes Hunter stop in his tracks.

"Let him go."

That's Tori's voice, and as Hunter turns, I catch a glimpse of her, poised with her Sonic Fin and flanked by her teammates.

"This is none of your business, Blue Ranger."

"Let. Him. Go."

"You heard her," came a sneer I could swear was Shane. Wasn't he wringing my neck not ten minutes ago? "You're not just walking away."

My ear focuses on a faint sizzle that makes my spirits sink. The Thunder Staff…

"Just watch me."

And with that, the roar of thunder and shouts from the Winds. Did they dodge? Were they hurt? They