Haywire Ranger

Chapter 55: The Lift Shaft

Sky's enhanced sonic gun slipped from his grasp when the Blue Ranger yanked him from Haywire's back.

No! My gun! His breathing went ragged when he shot a hand down below, wishing he could still grasp his beloved gun as it fell. When he lost sight of it, he grunted and grabbed the Blue Ranger's claws.

Mrs Evergreen's new best friend sped up to approach the gestation facility at the centre of the volcano.

The air harshly combed his long green fringe all over his face. Sky's feet dangled and danced in the air, struggling to run over an invisible ground that didn't exist. Where is she taking me? To Endurance's metal nesting structure?

When the Blue Ranger slowed down, they soon disappeared out of sight behind the massive metal structure, leaving Sky's friends and family wondering where they were.

I wonder whether Mrs Evergreen knows what this sort of building is, and whether she knows there are eggs about to hatch. Things could get messy. And if I play my cards right, I could use those newborns to startle her and attack her.

A moment later, they landed on a squarish roof, which resembled a helicopter landing pad without no painted signs. The Blue Ranger unclasped its claws, making Sky land roughly as he rolled over and over while grunting.

As Mrs Evergreen climbed down from its back with a graceful swing of her long legs and a sly grin, Sky was trying to sit up, but his arms, legs, and back were full of bruises and making his life a real pain.

He panted and groaned as he dusted himself off. With a glare, he forced himself to kneel despite the pain.

"You said you'd give me a quick death," he said with a coarse voice. "Why didn't you order your ranger to drop me off while flying?"

"Because I want something from you," she replied as she took a couple of steps leisurely towards him.

"And what makes you think I'll willingly give whatever that is to you?"

"I don't know. Torture, maybe?"

She sprinted to him and, in the blink of an eye, she was already twisting his right arm behind him at an awkward angle.

Sky yelled in pain.

"This is nothing. And the Lifebringer will put everything back in its place soon enough. Which means I can repeat this as many times as I need until you break down and talk."

"About what?"

"About this precious little gadget of yours."

She toyed with Sky's long-lost time-skipping wristwatch.

My watch? What about it?

"My technicians have been unable to reverse-engineer it. They were lost so as to its workings. They could only tell me that it's already been activated, waiting for the next command."

"So?"

With a snap of her fingers, the Blue Ranger jumped on him and crushed his body to the cement floor.

Sky's mouth was ajar next to the dusty floor.

"Don't get smart with me," she said with a defiant attitude as she paced around them. "I want answers—clear and direct. No beating about the bushes, no defiance, no geeky technicalities that no one understands, no nothing."

"Fuck off," he whispered roughly while the Blue Ranger still had a claw over his chest, crushing his lungs on the floor.

She giggled and clapped her hands slowly.