Gemstone Rangers

After the quintet left the school cafeteria to attend their afternoon classes, the fly watching over them flew back home. Upon arriving at its destination, a puff of smoke appeared, transforming the fly into Zylor. The blond-haired man slinked through the darkened passageways dripping with slime. He soon came to a dead end, with a single torch resting on the wall; that was when Zylor stopped. Resting his arm against the torch, Zylor caused the secret passage to reveal itself and walked in. “I know how to destroy them, brother,” Zylor said.

“How?” Pylor inquired.

“Two of their number are constantly bickering,” Zylor explained. “We can use this to our advantage to ensure that Archimedes’s rangers cannot mess with our plans. Is there any possible way for this to be achieved?”

“I cannot be sure,” Pylor stated.

Zylor stood there thinking. There had to be a way for this idea of his to work. Watching those pesky teens had provided him with numerous possibilities to destroy them with. At the moment, this one idea seemed to have the best chance of succeeding. It was a surefire way of eliminating the rangers. It was only after the rangers were destroyed that Pylor would be able to succeed in his goal and ultimately destroy Archimedes Carter in the process.

The brothers stood there staring at each other in complete silence for a few minutes before a gruff voice spoke up from the shadows. “I know of a way to ensure that your idea works.”

“How?” Zylor inquired.

A tube of glowing liquid was thrust across the room. “Use this. Two drops of this will ensure that they fight nonstop. Their power will be reduced to half with two of their number fighting.”

“But, how do we get it to them?” Pylor mused.

“Attack them,” Zylor concluded. “Send someone after them.”

◘♠♣♥♦◙

Much of Kevin’s afternoon was spent dissuading his friend from realizing the truth. Dustin seemed intent on uncovering his sister’s—and best friend’s—secret. Both he and Briar Rose agreed that her brother would not drop this as he was asked, and that it was Kevin’s duty to conceal their ranger secret from the inquisitive Dustin Hickory before he could get too close to the truth. How am I supposed to hide the truth from him? Kevin wondered. He’s my best friend and her twin brother. He looked longingly over at the rest of their group. Briar Rose, Joe, Nick, and Tiara were heading over to see Archimedes about something; Kevin was not briefed regarding their intentions. Oh, how I would love to go over there with them. It’s going to be extremely difficult trying to ensure that Dustin doesn’t pursue this. It’s his sister and his best friend; he won’t drop it.

Dustin sidled up to him. “How was your day?”

“Fair,” Kevin shrugged.

“What bug crawled up your ass?” Dustin countered.

Kevin rolled his eyes. Dustin is far too perceptive for his own good. No wonder he’s already realized that his sister and I have been hiding something from him. He groaned. There must be something I can do to keep him from learning the truth. There must be. “Nothing’s wrong, Dustin. I wouldn’t worry about it if I were you,” he assured his friend. He simply cannot find out about this, not now when Pylor is on the loose. Dustin could be used against us if he knew. Things simply mustn’t come to that. The less he knows, the safer he is. He may not realize it, but we’re doing this for his own protection, ensuring that happens to him as a result of our nemesis in Peter “Pylor” Lore.

“Oh, yes; nothing’s wrong. Just you and my sister conspiring against me to keep some big secret from me,” Dustin affirmed. “I would prefer to be kept in the loop about the things going on around me.”

“That may be true,” Kevin countered, “but sometimes there are things you just can’t know about. Sometimes there has to be secrets. And, this is something that I must not tell you.”

Dustin nodded. “Yes, I know secrets must sometimes be kept. Kind of that thing I know about between you and…”

“Hey!” Kevin shrieked, cutting his friend off before he could say anything more on the subject. “I thought I told you not to mention that to anyone. I made it very clear that you were never to mention that to anyone.”

“Oh, I know,” Dustin replied. “But, I think I should.”

“You will do no such thing!” Kevin argued. “I refuse to let you reveal that secret; not after all I’ve done to conceal it.” He clenched his fists, knowing the direction his best friend was headed with this, what Dustin was willing to do in order to get the answers he sought. Kevin was not about to play right into his friend’s hand. He refused to give up the ranger secret; nor would he allow his friend to reveal his own secret. Now what am I supposed to do? Kevin wondered. He didn’t have to wonder very long when a call came. Saved by my phone. Let’s hope it will stay that way. He flipped his phone open and pressed it to his ear. “Hello?”

“Kevin, we’ve got a bit of a situation here,” Nick’s voice came in frantically.

◘♠♣♥♦◙

As soon as Kevin ran off to join Dustin—hopefully to discourage his investigation into what Briar Rose, Tiara, and the Jonas boys were up—Nick and Briar Rose convened at the library. While they awaited Joe’s and Tiara’s arrivals, the two slipped into a quiet conversation regarding their abilities. For Nick, pyrokinesis and telekinesis. For Briar Rose, plant manipulation and flexibility. In the past few hours, it was made painfully clear that Briar Rose seemed the only person he could discuss this with; Joe and Tiara were far too busy insulting one another and Kevin had his hands full dealing with Dustin’s inquisition.

Nick slumped down against the beige lockers as he spoke with Briar Rose. Things seemed far more complex now that they learned of their ranger duties. Joe and Tiara seemed to be fighting more while Dustin wished to know what was going on; so much so that Kevin needed to detour his best friend’s investigation. This was not how things were supposed to be. Rather than bringing them together as it should, Archimedes’s little experiment had the opposite effect; it separated them. Tiara wanted nothing to do with this; Joe kept trying to convince her otherwise, resulting in cataclysmic arguments; and Kevin was left with dealing with Dustin, trying to keep their newfound secret—and Dustin—safe. Nick and Briar Rose were left to their own devices as this occurred, and Nick hated it.

It wasn’t that Nick didn’t want to spend time with Briar Rose; no, he really didn’t mind that. For him, this discovery caused him to become closer to Tiara and Briar Rose; more so Briar Rose because of the tenuous relationship that Joe and Tiara had. Prior to yesterday, Nick rarely associated with anyone other than his brothers. Archimedes’s experiment allowed Nick the opportunity to get to know people he knew, but rarely associated with. And, what really bothered Nick about what was going on was the fact that certain members of their group refused to put aside old grudges and bond together to destroy Pylor. Instead, the group was subjected to in-fighting, which could only lead to problems.

“Nick, have you spotted any sign of Joe or Tiara yet?” Briar Rose queried.

“Not yet,” Nick admitted. “I haven’t really spoken to either of them since lunch, not since the arguments started again. With their constant fighting, I really couldn’t stand being around them. My brother and your best friend have been fighting for so long; it’s just gotten so out of hand. Why do you ask?” he wondered. Nick knew that the Emerald Ranger was caught in middle of this as much as he and Kevin were—what with Tiara being her best friend. Because of this, Nick suspected that she’d be sick of the fighting as well.

“Oh, well, Kevin and I had a discussion earlier on in the day regarding my brother and him sticking his nose in something it obviously doesn’t belong in,” Briar Rose explained. “We figured that Archimedes might be able to help us keep this contained, keep my brother from learning our secret. After all, it was his experiment that caused my brother to get this way. That, and the fact that I neglected to account for Bevin and my penchant for visiting the stables every day. It was a mistake on my part—I admit that—but Archimedes and his experiment on us is also to blame for my brother’s inquisition.”

“I can see that,” Nick nodded. “But, why do you need us?”

“Mostly, I need you,” Briar Rose replied. “Joe and Tiara are too far embedded in their own feud to care at all about the fact that my brother could expose our secret. Neither one seems to care about the fact that my brother is putting himself in danger by doing this.”

“I think it’s more so Tiara than anything,” Nick remarked. “She not only refuses to accept her fate as a ranger and, whenever Joe tries, she completely blows up in his face. Their feud has gone on for so long untreated that her uncle’s experiment exacerbated the situation for more than we can ever stand. My brother, I will admit, is not making the problem any better, but it’s not entirely his fault; Tiara simply will not let this go. And, in order for all of this to end, we may need Archimedes’s help on this. He could be the only one to end this.”

“But, how exactly are we supposed to do that?” Briar Rose asked. “Throughout the past nine years, you and I both know that neither Joe nor Tiara has been willing to talk this out. Joe has come to accept—at least to a certain degree—that Tiara wants nothing to do with him. I suspect he wants to know the reason behind it, but that’s it. He’s accepted his fate. And, I don’t think that Tiara’s going to drop this any time soon. Like you said yourself, her uncle’s experiment exacerbated things. It’s as if Tiara buried the feud away for years, but, when her uncle made us aware of what he had done, it reopened old wounds.”

“So, you want to go talk to Archimedes about that?” Nick inquired.

Briar Rose nodded. “My other reason for wanting to go. He’s the only one who can tell us what initiated the whole thing. Only Tiara knows what caused this and I doubt she’s going to tell u about it any time soon.”

“Then why don’t we just go over there ourselves?” Nick suggested. “If either Joe or Tiara comes with us, they could only hinder us.” He could not understand why Briar Rose wished for all for of them to meet up with Archimedes when it would be far easier for just the two of them to go speak with Archimedes Carter about everything that was going on.

“You’ll understand why when we get there,” Briar Rose assured.

“Okay,” Nick shrugged. He was still uncertain about Briar Rose’s idea, but he would go along with it. Briar Rose was not really one to make outrageous claim; that was more Joe’s territory.

A few minutes went by before Joe and Tiara arrived, bickering as usual. Nick and Briar Rose exchanged a glance as the bickering reached their ears. “Joe!” Tiara shrieked. “Get out of my life!”

“Can’t do that, Ti,” Joe replied.

“Why not?” she boomed.

“Gold ranger,” he reminded her smugly.

Tiara clenched her fists. “I warned Uncle Archimedes that it was a bad idea. After all that happened last time, I warned the man that making you aware of the truth would be a mistake. But, did he listen to me? No! Uncle Archimedes decided not to heed the advice of the person who knew what everyone was capable of in favor of his own opinion. Well, his opinion is wrong!” Tiara shouted. “Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! Wrong Wrong!”

Nick’s chestnut eyes peered over at Briar Rose. Their friend finally let something slip. For nine long years, Briar Rose and the Jonas boys made every attempt to pull the reason for the feud out of Tiara. Until now, no one succeeded. Tiara assured them that no one would ever discover what transpired between them; it was to be her little secret. “We’ve finally got something out of her,” Nick grinned.

Briar Rose nodded. “Now all we have to do is find out what.”

“Yeah, and that may prove far more difficult than before,” Nick remarked. “I doubt my friend will let anything more slip. A trip to speak with Archimedes is definitely required.”

“Understand why I suggested it now?” Briar Rose pointed out.

“Yeah,” Nick murmured.

“Then, let’s go,” Briar Rose suggested. “I don’t think we can wait very much longer to do this. Pylor is sure to use this against us. He’ll stop at nothing to ensure that we do not succeed. So, we’ll do the only thing we can do in this situation: eliminate said problem before Pylor can use it against us. We must deal with this imminently; the safety of the world can not afford our continued in-fighting. Joe! Tiara! Come on! We’re headed off to see Archimedes.”

“What about Kevin?” Joe asked.

“He’s busy dealing with my brother,” Briar Rose replied. “Kevin’s his best friend, so he might have a chance at preventing Dustin from realizing our secret. Then, while he deals with my brother’s suspicions about us, the four of us must go speak with Archimedes about something.”

“What about?” Joe asked.

Nick and Briar Rose exchanged a glance. They’ll never come if they discover our true intentions; they can’t learn of the intervention. “You’ll see when we get there,” Nick replied.

Joe gave him a pointed glare. “Nick, what are you up to?”

Crap! Forgot about the telepathy, Nick realized. “I hope he doesn’t know what we have planned,” Nick whispered to Briar Rose. “Otherwise, we may have a major problem.” So long as Joe knew what was going on, any intervention attempt was sure to fail quite miserably. When Briar Rose gave him a confused look, Nick elaborated. “Joe’s telepathy. If either one of us even thinks about what we have planned over there, any chances of our plan succeeding will go down the tube. Joe and Tiara won’t ever stop fighting then.”

“I seem to think Joe is a little too focused on Tiara to pay attention to our thoughts at the moment,” Briar Rose noted. “We should be okay for the time being. The plan will proceed as planned.”

The quartet headed out to Archimedes’s place, with Joe and Tiara taking the lead. Nick and Briar Rose brought up the rear to make sure that the fighting duo in front of them did not stray off-course. If they didn’t keep a close eye on the pair, something could happen and they could not afford to make such a mistake. The fate of the world depended on the Power Rangers and them using their combined power to obliterate Peter “Pylor” Lore from the face of the Earth.

By the time the quartet reached the park, the arguing between Joe and Tiara had started up again. Nick rolled his eyes and elbowed Briar Rose. “It’s never going to end, is it?” he asked.

“Not likely,” Briar Rose shrugged.

“Our only shot, it seems, is if Archimedes forces the two to put aside their differences and work together. Pylor is sure to use their feud as a way to keep us from foiling his plot. If we can settle the feud before Pylor can take advantage of it, we shouldn’t have a problem,” Nick mused.

“But, will they actually listen?” Briar Rose questioned.

The quartet was about to leave the park when a large group of rock figures appeared before them. Nick growled and shouted out to the others. “Joe! Tiara! Stop arguing! We have a situation!” As they were ahead of him and Briar Rose, Nick knew that Joe and Tiara were less likely to have seen the rock figures attacking the emerald and ruby rangers.

Unfortunately for their companions, the gold and sapphire rangers did not hear their fellow ranger’s warning. Nick and Briar Rose were then forced to contend with these rock figures—that Nick could only assume were Pylor’s flunkies—while his brother and Tiara continued on their way. “I got a weird feeling,” he informed Briar Rose as the two rangers fought their way through the cluster of goons that surrounded them. He smashed to the figures together and continued telling the emerald ranger what he thought. “Something’s going to happen.”

“You’re not the only one to think so,” Briar Rose called from over her shoulder. She kicked two of the rock figures down and spun around to face Nick. “I’m pretty sure this all has to do with Pylor. In taking up the mantle of the Power Rangers, the two of us, Tiara, and your brothers; we’ve set ourselves up for a life of danger; of duty and a responsibility to protect the city we love.” Nick gave her a questioning look. “Oh, come on. Need I remind you that I’m the only one around who watched Power Rangers as a kid?”

“So, what do we do?” Nick queried.

“Contact Kevin,” Briar Rose called.

◘♠♣♥♦◙

The message was clear. Joe and Tiara were in danger. While they were headed out to Archimedes’s place, Nick and Briar Rose hit a bit of a roadblock, leaving Joe and Tiara unattended. And, since it seemed as if the gold and sapphire rangers had no realized that their fellow rangers were in danger, Kevin had no choice but to disappear. Considering Dustin’s propensity to investigate things he shouldn’t be poking his nose into, Kevin was rather hesitant to do so at first; but he eventually gave in, remembering what was said. It was his duty to go rescue his friends as he was the only one who could do anything. “Dustin, I really need to get going,” Kevin announced. “Something’s come up and I have to go.”

“Kevin, what’s going on here?” Dustin asked. “What could be so important that you must forgo spending time with your best friend?” He groaned. “First my sister starts lying to me; now it’s my best friend. Are you and my sister ever going to tell me what’s going on here?”

“I doubt it,” Kevin shrugged.

“You need to tell me sometime, you know,” Dustin replied.

“I’m aware,” Kevin said. Despite Dustin’s insistence that he be told of the Power Rangers secret, Kevin had no intention of doing so. He couldn’t, not with Pylor around. Maybe if there was no danger around, he’d consider revealing the secret to his friend. But, the chances of that were slim. After assuring his friend that he would return, Kevin hurried off to locate Joe and Tiara, to ensure that nothing happened to the gold and sapphire rangers.

◘♠♣♥♦◙

As he watched his best friend disappear, Dustin allowed a smile to appear. Whatever caused Kevin’ focus to be split, it allowed Dustin the opportunity to begin looking in his sister’s and his friend’s odd behavior. They, the other two Jonas brothers, and Tiara McShea all seemed to be a bit on edge the past few hours. And, it seemed as if whatever happened yesterday caused the quintet to have changed their attitudes considerably. While Kevin seemed to have spent an inordinate amount of time by his side, Dustin also noticed the increased arguments between Joe and Tiara as well as the increased amount of time that Nick Jonas spent speaking with Briar Rose in comparison to just the previous day.

Something happened that day Dustin swore he would find out what it was. He had no intention of sitting idly by as his sister and their friends acted out of character. There must be something I can do to figure this out. I can’t just sit around and watch this occur. I just can’t. Dustin grabbed his effects and headed to Verein, intent discovering what the people he cared about most in the world were up to. He simply wasn’t willing to watch this occur.