After Ji leaves, the bonds between the rangers begin to burn. Their present and past traumas affect their relationships, however, they must pull together to save the world.
WARNING: Sexual Themes. Violence. Blood. Reference to Abuse. Physical Tortur...
The room felt awfully still, as if everyone's brains froze for a second.
Jayden and Mia didn't know how to react to Kevin's claim. They simply turned to the secret couple, waiting for them to say something.
But Mike and Emily were too stunned by Kevin's decision to put them on blast.
"Wait," Jayden finally broke the silence. "What exactly do you mean?"
"Yeah Kevin, what exactly do you mean?" Mike has never been anymore pissed off at upright Kevin.
Mike stood up, leaning as if he was going to jump at Kevin, but Mia got in his way.
"This morning, I noticed that Mike wasn't in his room. I couldn't find him anywhere so I was concerned." Kevin explained.
He eyed Mike for a second but then looked away. Mike looked too furious to bare.
"I peeked into Emily's room and saw them in her bed..." Kevin finished.
"So you just assumed we had sex and announced it to everyone?!" Mike yelled. "What an asshat!"
Emily's face turned red with embarrassment. Unlike Mike, she wasn't so comfortable with the subject.
"Calm down, Mike." Jayden tried to have him sit down.
"How could I?!" Mike pushed Jayden off. "He didn't even come to me or Emily to ask us what happened!"
"Are all of you crazy?!" Mike yelled. "Do we all just turn on each other's backs like this? What happened to your precious samurai code; trust one another?!"
"Or is it only me that you all don't trust?" Mike looked at each ranger's sorry face, and then Emily.
Mike's eyes became watery as his anger melted into hurt.
"Yeah, I think that's it." He choked the words out.
He quickly ran off, grabbing his jacket.
When he clenched his eyes shut, tears streaming down his face.
"Dammit..." Mike whispered to himself as he stormed out of the Shiba House.
~~~
Mike sighed.
He wanted to go play video games and revisit the memories he had of being a loose college student.
But Mike was surprised to find those memories were playing out right before him. He spotted his old friends in the arcade he always used to hang out in.
His friends were laughing and cheering each other on. They seemed to be perfectly fine without him.
No matter how hard he wished, Mike couldn't meet his old friends as a safety precaution. But it seemed they had been doing since he disappeared.
Mike couldn't look at the stupid arcade anymore, so he let his feet take him wherever it took him.
They just so happened to walk him into a forest, filled with tall trees and greenery. As he ventured deeper, less sunlight filtered through the trees.
When his feet got tired, he finally decided to sit and face his feelings. And so, he leaned against a tree, sitting in a pretzel.
He was tired of not being taken seriously by the other rangers.
Just because he joked around didn't mean he was a joke. Mike was fun-loving and well-intentioned. He was the one to lighten the mood and always make the other rangers laugh.
However, Mike couldn't see any of his greatness at the moment. He was too busy wallowing in feelings of shame and self pity.
~~~
"What's this?" A nighlok was lurking through the woods after a soak in the Sansu River. "Is this....? No, it can't be!"
Amarex was certainly of the creepiest and foulest looking nighlok. Her purplish features were monstrously deformed.
However, she wore sharp armor on her wrists, feet, and waist. Her face seemed frozen in an expression that was hurt and angry.
This Nighlok had been shunned by Master Xandred since her unique power seemed useless. But Amarex believed that she could manipulate anyone just about anyone.
Amarex took a better look to confirm her excitement. She saw a man sitting in a slump with the bear folding zord crawling around him in an attempt to cheer him up.
"Oh yes, it is! The green ranger on a silver platter!" The nighlok was so joyous that she jumped.
With the green ranger vulnerable, there couldn't be a more perfect time for Amarex to strike.
"There you are, Mike!" Emily ran towards her loved one, who was slouched over.
When Emily was in front of Mike, Mike held her hand and pulled her down softly so that he could hug her tightly.
"I'm sorry, I'm just really upset with myself." Mike admitted.
"Tell me all about it." Emily held a short blade to Mike's neck.
Mike was completely shocked, as he watched his adorable girlfriend turn into one of the most hideous looking nighlok he had ever seen.
"What did you do to Emily?!" Mike yelled and tried to elbow the nighlok with his right arm.
Amarex took Mike's attempt as an act of disobedience.
As a result, Amarex decided to twist the arm he used to attack. Mike's screams vibrated through the forest as it felt like his arm was close to being torn off.
For her own fun, she took a five-bladed throwing star and stabbed Mike's shoulder with one of the blades.
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Mike squealed from the pain as blood trickled down from the wound. If he wasn't crying before, he was crying now.
"Aw, what's the matter? Do you miss that blonde?" Amarex laughed at the ranger's pathetic human behavior.
"Now this right here," Amarex pushes the throwing star deeper into Mike's shoulder, causing Mike to let out more loud cries. "This is a warning."
"Obey me and we shouldn't have a problem." She knocked Mike out with a swift hit before lugging him over her shoulder.
Amarex felt over the moon. Her excitement was almost unbearable. Finally, she was going to prove herself to Master Xandred.
