[See Through the Flames: Part I for disclaimer]
Note: This story takes place after the 2-part story Secret Admirer.
Poison Touch
By Phoenix Ranger
By Phoenix Ranger
Part 1
C'mon, Rikki!" Ashley pleaded. "Tell us about your date." Richelle sat in one of the CyberFortress' bridge chairs, not saying a word. She was enjoying this. Richelle had recently been reunited with her twin brother, Zhane, the Silver Ranger. The Phoenix Ranger kept smiling as she went about her duty of checking the Fortress' sensors.
Now it was Cassie's turn to try and pry info out of Richelle. "Yeah. Tell us all the juicy details from your hot date."
"Did he kiss you?" the Yellow Ranger prodded. Richelle's smile got bigger. "He did."
"Xander is sooooo fine," Cassie spoke. "You're lucky to have him."
While Ashley and Cassie were interrogating Richelle about her date, the guys were standing off to the side of the room, looking rather bored. TJ turned to Carlos, Andros, and Zhane. "Want to go shoot some hoops on the Simudeck?" the Blue Ranger asked.
"Sure," Andros replied as he followed the guys down to the Simudeck. TJ had MACRO create a basketball court that was surrounded by a scenic view. The simulation looked so real that they almost felt like they were outside. They decided to play two-on-two; TJ and Carlos versus Andros and Zhane. As the game proceeded, the score was tied. Andros saw the distant look on Zhane's face, which meant that he was thinking about something. He was right. Zhane's mind really wasn't on the basketball game. It was on his sister's boyfriend, Xander, whom Zhane felt couldn't be trusted. There was something about Xander that Zhane couldn't put his finger on. Suddenly, something hit him in his chest, knocking him onto the ground on his backside.
Zhane sat there, rubbing the spot on his chest that stung from where he was hit with the basketball. "What was that for?" the Silver Ranger questioned as he looked from TJ to Carlos to Andros.
"Sorry, Zhane," Andros replied, trying not to laugh. "Are you alright?"
Zhane stood up. "Yeah, I'll live," he spoke absently. "I've got to go do something." With that he left the Simudeck leaving Andros, TJ, and Carlos to stare curiously after him.
Back on the bridge, Ashley and Cassie kept pressing Richelle for more information. "So, when is your next date?" Cassie asked.
"Tonight," Richelle answered. She looked at her watch. " Whoa! I got to get ready, and I don't have anything to wear."
"Then that means that we'll go shopping," Ashley stated, smiling. The three of them teleported down to Angel Grove. They arrived in an isloated spot in the park. "So where is Xander taking you?"
"He's taking me dancing," Richelle replied as they walked into town, "and I don't have a dress."
Both Ashley and Cassie wore big grins. "We know the perfect place to start," the Yellow Ranger spoke as she and Cassie each grabbed one of Richelle's arms and ran/dragged her to the nearest fashion store.
Elsewhere, high above the planet, the Dark Fortress loomed in orbit. Astronema sat on her throne looking bored. Just then, Darkonda entered the room.
The evil bounty hunter bowed. "Your evillness," he spoke. Astronema looked at him. "I have something that may interest you."
" And, pray tell, what might that be," she stated lazily.
Darkonda pulled out a vial of purple liquid, and held it up. "I have in a my hand a rare poison that we can use on the Phoenix Ranger."
Astronema immediately perked up. She stood and walked over to Darkonda, and held out her right hand. Darkonda placed the slender vial in her dark gloved hand. Astronema looked closely at the vial, an evil glint in her eye. "Tell me," she spoke looking at Darkonda,"what am I holding?"
Darkonda chuckled. "It is a rare poison derived from the very deadly Corix flower."
"Very deadly," Astronema remarked. "How will the poison be introduced?" She looked at Darkonda, curiously.
"I have my ways," Darkonda stated as he reached for the vial.
Astronema snatched the vial away from him, and glared at him. "I hope this plan of yours works."
"Oh, it will," Darkonda snapped. "Because I have the only known antidote."
A crooked smile appeared on Astronema's lips as she handed the vial back to Darkonda. The bounty hunter teleported away, leaving Astronema to her thoughts of victory.
Back down on the planet, Ashley, Cassie, and Richelle were done shopping, and decided to return to the Megaship. By the time 7:00 rolled around, Richelle was ready to go.
"How do I look?" she asked, spinning around for her two friends. She was dressed in a red, form-fitting, spagetti-strapped dress.
"You'll knock his socks off," Cassie stated, leaning on Ashley.
"Let's go show the guys," Ashley spoke, as she left Richelle's quarters followed by Cassie and Richelle. The trio walked onto the bridge. Andros was the first to notice Richelle. His mouth dropped open, and he dropped the datapad that he was carrying. The noise caused the other three guys to turn around.
"Wow! Rikki, you look great," Alpha stated as he approached the Phoenix Ranger.
"Y-Y-You look stunning," Andros stammered.
"Thanks, Andros," Richelle replied, blushing.
Cassie noticed the expression on Carlos' face. "You're drooling, Carlos," she snickered. The Black Ranger immediately looked away, his entire face red with embarassment.
"Xander is one lucky guy," TJ commented, a lopsided grin on his face.
Just then, Zhane walked onto the bridge. He saw his sister and walked over to her. A serious look on his face. "Where do you think you're going?" he asked.
"I have a date with Xander tonight," Richelle answered. She knew that her twin was not happy. " Why? Is there a problem?"
"Yeah. I don't think you should see any more of that creep," the Silver Ranger stated matter-of-factly.
Richelle's eyes narrowed. "And what gives you the right to tell me who I can or can not see?!" she growled angrily.
"Because I'm your brother and I care about your safety," Zhane replied. "I don't think Xander can be trusted."
"I'm going and you can't stop me," Richelle snarled angrily. Before Zhane could say anything, Richelle teleported away.
"Don't you think that you're being just a little bit overprotective, Zhane?" TJ stated.
Zhane whirled around and glared at TJ. "No, I'm not," he relpied angrily. "There's something about Xander that I don't trust."
The atmosphere on the bridge became silent. It was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Suddenly, Ashley got an idea. "Hey, why don't we all go down to the Surf Spot and have some fun?"
TJ picked up on what she was trying to do. "Yeah, I'm sure Carlos can get Kali to hook us up with some food," TJ stated as he slapped Carlos on the back.
"Real funny, TJ," the Black Ranger replied sarcastically as he rubbed his shoulder where TJ slapped him. It was settled that they would go down to the Surf Spot and have some fun. Once everyone was dressed in regular clothes they teleported down. Dragging Zhane along with them, even though he didn't feel like it.
Part 2
Richelle arrived at the restaurant and entered. She was then shown to a table outside. Richelle saw that Xander was already there waiting for her, so she walked over to the table and sat down.
"You look beautiful," Xander stated, Richelle blushed. They decided to order appetizers. As the evening progressed, Xander noticed that something was troubling Richelle. "Is there something troubling you?"
Richelle sighed. "It's my brother, Zhane," she replied. "We got into a fight, again about you and I."
"Oh, and what reasons did the Silver Ranger give you for not seeing me?" Xander asked, curious.
"He said that you were not to be trusted," Richelle stated, then she snorted. "if only he knew the truth. But then I don't care what my brother or the others think. I love you, no matter who you are."
After they finished with dinner, the couple walked hand-in-hand down the sidewalk. Enjoying the cool night air . . . and each other. "So, where do you want to go?" Xander asked.
"Hmm, I don't know," Richelle replied softly. "We can't go back to the CyberFortress while the others are there."
"The Dark Fortress is definately out of the question," Xander stated. "Especially with that lowlife, Darkonda hanging around. I'm content just walking here with you."
Richelle smiled, as they continued their walk into the park. "I remember you saying something about dancing," she spoke, stopping on one of the foot bridges in the park, and turned to look at Xander.
Xander smiled. He loved the way the moonlight highlighted Richelle's hair. He took her into his arms and began to slowly sway. Richelle seemed to melt into his arms.
Over at the Surf Spot, the Rangers were just leaving. They decided to go for a walk in Angel Grove Park. Ashley and Andros were walking ahead of the others. Ashley stopped when she saw Richelle up ahead dancing slowly with Xander on the foot bridge. Andros was about to shout a greeting when Ashley jerked him behind a tree and some bushes. They were joined by the others.
"Hey! Why'd you two stop?" TJ asked. Ashley jerked her thumb over her shoulder towards the bridge. "Oh!"
"We'd better turn around and leave the two lovebirds alone," Ashley spoke, as she began to usher everyone back the way they came.
They weren't the only ones who had been spying on the couple. Darkonda watched from the cover of some bushes on the other side of the foot bridge. Next to him was the latest monster, Pantherax. Darkonda pulled out the vial and coated the monsters razorsharp claws with the poison. "You are to only attack the Phoenix Ranger. Is that understood?" Darkonda spoke, the cat-like monster nodded. "Good. Now to set up the attack."
Over on the footbridge, Richelle and Xander danced slowly. Richelle looked up into Xander's dark eyes. Xander slowly leaned down and kissed her. Richelle responded by kissing back. Both wrapped their arms tightly around each other. Their kiss was soon interrupted by a whole mess of Quantrons. The couple broke out of their embrace. "Quantrons," Richelle spoke as she took a defensive stance. The Quantrons attacked, as Richelle and Xander held their own.
"When do I attack?" Pantherax demanded, as he flexed his claws.
"Soon," Darkonda replied. "Let the Phoenix Ranger tire herself out, then you will strike."
Somewhere in the park, the Rangers were alerted to the sounds of fighting behind them. "Uh-oh, sounds like my sister's in trouble," Zhane stated as he took off running back to the footbridge with the other Rangers hot on his heels.
Darkonda gave Pantherax the order to attack. The monster made a beeline for Richelle, who was busy battling several Quantrons. With her attention focused elsewhere, Richelle didn't notice the monster snekaing up behind her, but TJ noticed. "RICHELLE! BEHIND YOU!" the Blue Ranger shouted.
Richelle heard TJ's warning. She started to turn around, but was a little too late. Pantherax's claws slashed across her back, ripping her uniform. The Phoenix Ranger fell forward onto the ground in what seemed like slow motion. Pantherax was moving in for another attack, when he was hit by several energy blasts. "GET AWAY FROM HER!" Phantherax looked up to see the Silver Ranger come charging towards him, but decided to ignore the Silver Ranger. When Zhane was close enough, he switched his Super Silverizer from blaster mode to saber mode, and swung it at the monster.
Xander, who had seen Pantherax attack Richelle, threw off the remaining Quantrons that he was fighting and ran to her side. So did TJ and Andros, but then they noticed Zhane fighting the monster. "Go. I'll watch her," Xander replied. The two Rangers jumped to their feet and ran to help Zhane. The three of them struck the final blows to the monster, who exploded.
With the monster destroyed, the remaining Quantrons retreated. Zhane hurried over to his sister. "Are you alright, sis?" he asked kneeling down beside her.
"I think so," she replied as Xander and Zhane helped her to her feet.
Cassie noticed the cuts on her back. "Those are some nasty cuts on your back, Rikki," the Pink Ranger replied.
Xander examined the cuts. "They don't appear to be too deep."
"Sorry the date got ruined," Richelle replied.
"It added a little excitement to the evening," Xander replied, a lopsided grin on his face.
A week later, Richelle wasn't feeling too good. She couldn't figure out what was wrong. The Phoenix Ranger tried to hide whatever was wrong from the others, but they kept asking if she was alright. Richelle would reassure them that she was fine.
On the Dark Fortress, Darkonda strutted into the throne room, a smug look on his face. Ecliptor stood off to one side going over some data. He ignored the fact that Darkonda was in the room.
"Darkonda, how goes your plan?" Astronema questioned, looking at the bounty hunter.
"Perfectly," he laughed. "The Phoenix Ranger has been successfully poisoned." Ecliptor's head suddenly shot up when he heard this.
An evil smile appeared on Astronema's face. "Excellent," she replied. "Now for the final test." She immediately sent a monster down to the planet surface, and Darkonda went along to gloat.
[Warning! A monster is attacking Angel Grove Park,] MACRO stated, alerting the Rangers.
The Rangers went into action. "There he is!" Andros shouted as they ran to engage the monster.
"Ah! So nice of you to come," the monster sneered, then attacked. The Rangers did their best to fight the monster. As they fought, Richelle saw Darkonda standing nearby. So she broke away from the others to find out what Darkonda was up to.
"Well, well, if it isn't the sickly Phoenix Ranger," he sneered.
"How'd you know?" Richelle demanded.
Darkonda laughed. "Because I am the one who poisoned you." He circled around the Phoenix Ranger. "Want to know the best part? I have the only thing that can save you. So I'll make you a deal."
Richelle let what he was saying sink in. "I don't make deals with slime like you," she snarled as she summoned her AstroStar Sword.
"Fine, have it your way," Darkonda replied dismissively. With a flick of his wrist, yellow energy shot out and hit the Phoenix Ranger square in the chest. The blast was enough to throw her off of her feet and onto the ground. "This will be so easy." He was about to stab her with his sword when Zhane came running firing his Super Silverizer.
"You stay away from her, Darkonda," the Silver Ranger growled angrily. Before anyone could make a move, Darkonda teleported away. Zhane knelt beside his sister. "Rikki, I'm taking you back to the Cyber Fortress." Picking her up in his arms, Zhane called for his glider. Once the Glider arrived, Zhane hopped on, carrying Richelle, and headed back to the Cyber Fortress, leaving the Rangers to duke it out with the monster, which had become enormous.
15 minutes later, Alpha was checking Richelle out to see what was wrong, but he couldn't find anything. The only thing that showed up was that she appeared to have flu-like symptoms. Richelle jumped down off of the table to show everyone that she was alright. "See, I told you that I was fine," she remarked as she left the infirmary. Richelle walked briskly until she was out of sight from the others, and leaned against the wall. "I know you're watching MACRO, and don't you dare say a word to the others."
[If that is what you wish.]
"I'm going to my quarters to get some rest," Richelle stated as she continued down the hallway. "Alert me if there are any disturbances."
Part 3
With Richelle resting in her quarters, the rest of the rangers were assembled on the bridge. They were trying to figure out what could be plaguing Richelle, and how they could help her. MACRO alerted them to a transmission that was coming in. They were all surprised to see Darkonda on the main view screen.
"What do you want, Darkonda?" Andros demanded.
"Oh, I heard that the Phoenix Ranger had suddenly taken ill." Then he laughed.
"What do you know about what happened to my sister?" Zhane demanded, coloring rising in his face.
"Everything," Darkonda replied smugly. "Since I'm the one that poisoned her." Everyone on the bridge gasped. "And I hold the only antidote that can cure her, and the clock is running."
"What do you mean by that?" Andros questioned.
"I mean that the Phoenix Ranger has only 48 hours, then its bye-bye Phoenix Ranger for good," Darkonda laughed. With that the transmission ended.
"MACRO, did you get a trace on where Darkonda is?" Andros asked.
[Darkonda is on KO-35.]
"Then we'd better hurry," Zhane replied as he dashed out the door and down to the docking area followed by the others. When I get my hands on Darkonda, Zhane thought angrily, he'll wish he never messed with my sister. The Astro Megaship headed out of the docking bay and leapt into hyperspace.
"Excellent! The Rangers have taken the bait," Darkonda laughed as he set up the trap to catch the Rangers when they arrived.
An hour and a half later, Richelle was tired of lying around, so she decided to get up. Walking half way to the door, she collapsed onto the floor. 15 minutes later, Xander appeared on the bridge of the Cyber Fortress. "MACRO, where is Richelle?" he asked.
[She is in her quarters,] MACRO stated. [But she isn't responding.]
Xander hurried to Richelle's quarters. When the door opened, he saw Richelle laying on the floor, and hurried over to her. Kneeling down, he felt for a pulse and found a slow and steady one. "She's alive," he replied, then he picked her up and carried her to the infirmary.
About a half an hour later, Xander was looking at the bio-scan of Richelle. "Hmm," he spoke, stroking his chin, thinking. "MACRO, can you produce a full hologram of Richelle before and the one done now? And have them displayed side-by-side."
MACRO did what Xander asked. He studied both images. "Now, rotate the images to show the back." Then he found what he was looking for. "I knew it."
[What did you find?] MACRO asked.
"This," Xander spoke as he traced his right index finger in a circular motion around the cuts on Richelle's back. "There is a purplish coloration that seems to be spreading outward from the cuts that she received from Pantherax."
[Which means that Richelle was poisoned?]
" Yes. That and Darkonda's bragging," Xander replied. "I only hope that there is a cure." MACRO told Xander about the transmission that the Rangers had received from Darkonda. "Knowing Darkonda, it's a setup." Xander then began to search through the Cyber Fortress' vast data files, looking for a cure.
Several hours later, MACRO alerted Xander that the Rangers were returning. Once the Astro Megaship was safely in the docking bay, MACRO told the Rangers what had happened to Richelle while they were away. The Rangers hurried into the infirmary to find Xander standing there.
"Xander, what are you doing here?" Ashley asked, a curiouse look on her face.
"MACRO had trouble contacting Richelle. So he teleported me here, and I found Rikki out cold on the floor in her quarters," he stated, all the while Zhane looked suspiciously at him.
"Well, we got the cure," Zhane spoke as he pulled out the vial containing the purple liquid. Xander's eyes narrowed, then, before anyone could react he grabbed the vial from the Silver Ranger. " Hey! Gimme that!" Zhane tried to grab the vial back, but in one quick move Xander smashed it on the floor. The vial shattered, creating a pool of purple liquid on the floor. "Now look what you did!" Zhane was about to take a swing at Xander when TJ and Andros held him back.
"I did what I had to do to save Richelle," Xander replied coolly.
Zhane shrugged off TJ and Andros and stepped closer to Xander and began jabbing his finger into Xander's chest. "That could have cured my sister! I knew that there was something that I didn't like about you!" he snarled angrily.
Xander returned Zhane's angry stare. "Did you ever stop to think that the vial may have contained more poison? Did you?" he retorted hotly.
Ashley stepped inbetween the two. "Cool it! This pointless bickering is not going to help Richelle," she spoke, glaring at both Zhane and Xander with her hands planted on her hips.
"Ashley's right," Cassie spoke up. "We have to find the cure soon."
"But how?" Zhane asked, looking at Cassie.
That was when Xander moved to a computer terminal. "I may have found a way," he spoke, bringing up the data that he had found. An image of a yellowish looking planet appeared on the monitor. "This is SX-9. We may be able to find the cure there."
"MACRO, set a course for SX-9. Hyperrush 9," Zhane commanded. The Cyber Fortress cloaked, then leapt forward on a course for SX-9.
Meanwhile, on the Dark Fortress, Darkonda was reporting on what had happened. "The Rangers fell for it," he laughed. Astronema smirked.
They were interrupted whe Elgar bumbled into the room. " What is it?" Astronema demanded.
"Uh, what was it that I came in here for anyway?" the dimwitted goon spoke as he scratched his head, trying to think.
Astronema was quickly losing patience. She motioned to two Quantrons. "Take him to play with Scrudley," she ordered.
The two Quantrons grabbed Elgar's arms and began dragging him away. "Wait! The Rangers have left orbit," Elgar spoke in a panicked voice as he was dragged through the doorway.
"Where could the Rangers be going?" Astronema spoke outloud, then she spun around and glared angrily at Darkonda. "Could they have found a cure?"
"It is unlikely," Darkonda replied, but then something came to mind, "but…"
"BUT WHAT?" Astronema growled.
"Unless they somehow found out about SX-9, which is that only planet that has an antidote," he replied. Astronema summoned her wrath staff and aimed it at Darkonda. "I'll make sure that the Rangers never get that antidote." With that, he teleported away.
The CyberFortress arrived at SX-9 in record time. The Rangers used the launch tubes, and reached the planet's surface via their Galaxy Gliders. They walked through the city when they were approached by a young woman in her late teens.
"Can I help you?" she asked, curious.
Andros hesitated. "Yes," the Red Ranger replied. He told her why they had come.
"Follow me, please," the green haired teen spoke, motioning for the Rangers to follow her, which they did. They were led to a large pyramid-like building.
Inside, they were greeted by a tall man wearing a dark green flightsuit-like outfit. "Greetings, I am Mekos, Chief Doctor and Premiere of SX-9," he replied as he shook hands with each of the Rangers. "You have already met my daughter, Jade. What brings you to our humble planet?"
"We need to cure a friend who has been poisoned with the Corix flower," the Red Ranger replied. "Can you help us?"
Mekos looked at his daughter, then back at the Rangers. "Yes, we can help," he answered, and motioned for the Rangers to follow him and his daughter. They walked down a long corridor, until they came to two large, metal, double doors. Mekos opened the one door and entered the room, holding the door open for the others to enter. Once everyone was inside, he let the door close by itself. Mekos then walked over to a large black cabinet, opened it, reached in, and pulled out a slender silver metal box. Shutting the door, Mekos turned around and walked over to the Rangers. "Here is the antidote that you need." He handed the box to Andros.
Andros took the box. "Thank you," he replied, then he shook Mekos' hand.
Several minutes later, the Rangers were leaving the building along with Mekos and Jade when they were attacked. "So nice of you to get what I need," Darkonda spoke as he approached the Rangers. He held out his hand. "Now hand over the antidote."
Andros' grip tightened on the box. " Never," he growled defiantly. "LET'S ROCKET!" Andros and the others morphed.
Darkonda shrugged dismissively. "Suit yourself," he replied as he snapped his fingers. A spider-like woman and a squad of Quantrons attacked.
Zhane turned to Mekos and Jade. "You two better get to safety. We'll handle this." Then he headed into the thick of the battle.
Jade turned to her father. "We have to help them, father," she spoke as she stared helpless at the fighting going on around them.
Up in orbit, Alpha was nervously pacing the floor. "Ai-yi-yi! Something must have gone wrong," he replied nervously. Alpha had MACRO pull up what was happening on the planet surface, which now made him even more nervous. While the Rangers were battling Darkonda and forces below, Richelle's condition was getting worse.
[Xander,] MACRO spoke.
"Yeah?" he answered from where he sat next to Richelle's bed.
[The Rangers have run into trouble down on the planet surface.]
"Let me guess. Darkonda?" Xander replied as he stood up.
[Yes.]
Xander glanced down at Richelle, who was still unconscious, and looking even more pale than before. "Darkonda will pay dearly if Richelle dies," Xander whispered angrily as he made a fist. "Are the armor and weapons that Richelle gave me still hidden in the launch tube room?"
[Yes.]
Xander hurried out of the infirmary and into the room that had the launch tubes for the gliders. He walked over to a hidden compartment in the wall and opened it. Then he began pulling out pieces of assorted armor. Once the black armor was on, Xander walked up to the launch tube that Richelle used, and paused. "MACRO, you will let me know if there is any change in Richelle's condition?"
[Of course.]
With that said, Xander jumped feet first through the launch tube. Within minutes, he arrived at the battle. He dropped down on Darkonda. The duo went crashing to the ground. Xander rolled away and got to his feet. Darkonda looked angrily at Xander. "You," he snarled angrily. "I'm gonna enjoy ripping you apart." Darkonda drew his sword and charged towards Xander, and a duel began between the two.
The other Rangers were still battling the Quantrons. "Gimme the case, Red Ranger," Spydera commanded, approaching the Red Ranger.
Andros looked around and noticed that the Ranger closedt to him was Cassie. "CASSIE!" Andros shouted. The Pink Ranger turned her head towards Andros. "CATCH!" The Red Ranger tossed the silver case towards his friend.
Cassie leapt into the air and grabbed the metal case with her right hand. "Got it." She landed lightly on her feet, then she was grabbed from behind by Darkonda.
"And I got you," Darkonda laughed. He reached for the case as Cassie struggled, but she threw it to the ground out of his reach. Darkonda threw Cassie aside, and dove for the case, but was beaten to the punch by Zhane.
"I don't think so," the Silver Ranger spoke as he stood up. "Looks like you lose this round, Darkonda." Darkonda only sneered.
"Really?" Darkonda smiled smugly at the Silver Ranger. Zhane turned around just in time to see some sort of webbing come down around him. The metal case dropped out of his hand and outside the webbing. The Silver Ranger saw that the other Rangers were in the same situation. Darkonda picked up the metal case,a smug look of satisfaction on his face. "Thank you." The Silver Ranger tried to lunge at Darkonda, but couldn't.
"Struggle all you like, little Ranger," Spydera spoke coolly, a hungry look on her face. "The more you struggle, the more my web will drain from you, which will make the feasting taste sooo much tastier."
At the same time, Velocifighters had been attacking the CyberFortress. Alpha was getting tossed about the bridge as more laser fire rocked the fortress. MACRO targeted as many as he could, but more seemed to be appearing to replace the ones that had been destroyed. The next blast knocked some of the systems off-line, which also included power to the infirmary.
The machine by Richelle's bed began to beep, then flatlined.
Zhane sensed that something terrible had happened. "No," he whispered outloud. Then he clenched his hands into tight balls. "Darkonda, you'll pay for killing my sister." With that, he pressed the 03 on his Battleizer on his right wrist. He was then transformed into the Silver Battlized Ranger. The transformation was enough to break the webbing.
"Uh-oh," Darkonda uttered as the Silver Ranger attacked.
But at the same time on the CyberFortress, the flatline turned into a slow beep. There was movement and Richelle was gone.
Down on the planet, Zhane's fight was soon joined by Jade, who was duking it out with Spydera. Darkonda and Spydera soon got the upper hand on the two. "Looks like you lose — again," Darkonda sneered as he loomed over Zhane and Jade. "Prepare to meet your doom."
Suddenly, blasts of energy hit both Darkonda and Spydera sending them staggering backwards. The metal case flew out of Darkonda's hand and clattered to the ground. Jade used her powers and snagged the case with a green hard light claw. While Zhane freed the other Rangers from the webbing.
"Thanks, Zhane," Ashley spoke weakly as she shook off the effects of the web. That was when she noticed a shape walking through the flames, and pointed. "Look!"
There, walking through the fiery mess from the fighting, was the Phoenix Ranger. Darkonda saw her. "It's not possible!" he shouted, looking a bit scared. "You're supposed to be dead!" The Phoenix Ranger kept walking towards him. "I'm outta here." He teleported away, leaving only Spydera to face the Rangers.
"Unlike Darkonda, I am not afraid of a mere ghost," Spydera charged forward. This time, the Rangers didn't waste any time, and used the Quadroblaster and the Spiral Saber booster. The monster exploded in a fiery blast.
"FIRE THE SATELLASERS!!!!" Spydera grew to new heights.
"Man, what does it take to take her down?" Carlos remarked.
Zhane turned to Andros. "You guys take care of the spider-woman while I see to my sister," the Silver Ranger spoke, then he hurried to where Richelle had collapsed. The Rangers called for the MegaVoyager.
"I'm gonna enjoy this," Spydera sneered as she charged towards the Mega Voyager.
"Don't bet on it, web breath," Andros stated. The MegaVoyager blocked Spydera's kick with its left arm.
While the MegaVoyager was battling Spydera, Zhane, Xander, and Jade were taking care of Richelle. Zhane removed her helmet, and underneath he saw that his sister was extremely pale and her face was glistening with sweat. "I thought that you had died," Zhane spoke, his voice tight with emotion.
"Almost did," Richelle replied faintly.
"Keep her talking while I prepare the serum," Jade spoke as she opened the now battered metal case, and prayed that nothing was broken inside.
"Rikki, I've got a surprise for you," Xander spoke softly. Richelle's eyes brightened a little.
"What kind of surprise?" she asked.
"Now, if I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise, now would it?" Xander replied, a mischeivous grin on his face.
"Ready," Jade spoke as she held up the injector. She pressed the injector against Richelle's neck, and pressed the trigger. There was a slight hiss as the serum was injected into the Phoenix Ranger's bloodstream. It only took a few seconds and the blue liquid was gone. Jade removed the injector. "It should take effect in several minutes."
"Thanks, Jade," Zhane spoke as she shook Jade's hand.
At the same time, the MegaVoyager launched the V3 missile at Spydera. The monster erupted into a huge fireball, which quickly dissipated. Andros and the other cheered.
Ten mintues later, the Rangers were preparing to board the CyberFortress. They took on medical supplies, just in case. Richelle was now looking better, and standing on her own. However, Xander stayed close just the same.
Mekos looked at Richelle. "Now I want you to take it easy for the next couple of days," Richelle was about to object. "To make sure, I'm sending my daughter with you."
"Thank you for everything that you have done for us," Richelle spoke as she shook Mekos' hand. Mekos then turned and gave his daughter a hug. The Rangers boarded the CyberFortress, followed by Jade, who turned and waved good-bye to her father, then disappeared into the large ship. Everyone entered the bridge.
"MACRO, time for us to go," Zhane spoke as the CyberFortress lifted off. Jade watched sadly as the image of her father got smaller and smaller on the main view screen, until they broke through the planet's atmosphere. "Set a course for Earth. Hyperrush 4."
Epilogue
As the CyberFortress made its way back to Earth, Andros gave Jade a tour of both the CyberFortress and the Astro Megaship, while the others went to their quarters to sleep. Elsewhere in the Fortress, Richelle and Xander sat cuddled up together on one of the couches in the rec room.
"You said that you had a surprise for me?" Richelle asked as she glanced up at Xander.
Xander had a sheepish look on his face. "I don't know what you are talking about," he replied. He was rewarded by getting pinched hard in the arm by Richelle, then he pulled out a small box and handed it to her.
Richelle opened it, and insided was a gold necklace. At the end of the necklace was a gold firebird with a red crystal center. "Its beautiful. I love it," she spoke as she took it out of the box. Xander took the necklace from her and placed it around her neck. "Thank you." Richelle wrapped her arms around Xander and kissed him.
Elsewhere, a storm was brewing on board the Dark Fortress. Everyone was staying out of Astronema's way. She was furious over another loss to the Rangers. She was also furious at Darkonda's failure, and at Ecliptor's mysterious disappearance.
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