Disclaimer : Power Rangers and all related indicia belong to Saban. The guys and gals who don't belong to Saban belong to me. If you'd like to use them, please ask first, even though I'll say yes. This fic is rated PG-13 for a teensy bit of bad language and a rather graphic fight. This is the last fic in what was supposed to be a three-part arc. This is a very short fic. A companion fic concerning the day after will be along shortly. Kudos to anyone who catches the reference to B*witched.

Final Throes
by Jeremy Ray Logsdon

"I'm not going to limit myself just because people won't accept the fact that I can do something else." - Dolly Parton

"Heather," Emily whispered in disbelief. Her arms dropped, and her helmet clattered to the floor as she gazed in shock at the viewing screen.

"That's your sister," Justin realized, looking at her.

"Why-why-why is Divatox making her do this?" Emily asked in a panic, turning to stare hopefully at Dimitria.

"Do any of us truly know the ways and wiles of evil beings?" Dimitria asked.

"Is that Lord Zedd?" Martin asked, looking at Alpha.

"Did he always look like that?" Guy asked next.

"If he hurts her," Emily warned in a menacing tone.

"Em, hon," Hallie said comfortingly, taking her teammate's hand, "she's a Ranger. She'll be fine."

"HELP ME!" Heather suddenly screamed. Black light bounced off of Hallie's hand as Emily teleported away in a streak of energy.

"Leave her alone!" Emily screeched, her axe drawn as she ran at the two monster holding her sister. Her weapon cleaved RoboGoat's bo in half, and she promptly leapt into the monster with a hard kick. Green light flashed around Heather's face as she finally re-morphed. The two sisters began to fight in earnest, both so completely consumed with rage that they were scarcely aware of the hatred pouring from them.

"To Angel Grove!" Lord Zedd cried, thrusting his staff at the sky. Black energy swirled from the Z, consuming himself, the five monsters, and the two Rangers. The fight wasn't even interrupted as they all found themselves moved from the warm television study to the cold, knee-deep snow of Angel Grove Park.

"Heather, we can't fight them alone!" Emily cried, slamming the butt of her axe into StagBeetle's face. She leapt into the air, placing her hands on the monster's shoulders as she flipped over him. Upon landing, she swung the axe beneath his feet, producing a shower of sparks and bringing the monster down to the ground.

"DECA, we need help!" Heather shouted into her wrist, not even realizing that she was fighting alongside her flesh and blood.

"Dimitria, send-," Emily started, but she was interrupted by a loud battlecry.

"GO, GO, GO!" Jason bellowed from atop a nearby hill. A truly unbelievable number of Rangers came streaming down after him, sending snow flying everywhere.

The Morphin Team, Jason, Billy, Kimberly, Zack, Trini, and Skull. Thunder, Maggie, Molly, David, Marge, and Aisha. Zeo, Katherine, Tanya, Rocky, Adam, Tommy, and Bulk. Turbo, Justin, Martin, Guy, Murray, and Hallie. And from the Space team, Andros, Ashley, Carlos, Cassie, and TJ. All twenty-seven Rangers, not counting Emily and Heather, roared toward battle. If one had keen eyes and no blink reflex, they would have seen a flicker of silver as Zhane Prescott, the Silver Ranger, was returned as promised, pushing the tally to thirty Rangers versus five monsters.

The battle was on.

"Hey Zedd, remember that time when you said you'd destroy the Rangers whether there was six or six thousand?" Goldar asked as he turned away from the RepulsaScope.

"Do we have hand fighters?" Zedd growled as he ducked through a doorway to enter the first class lounge.

"None beyond the prototype stage, yer majesty," Klank answered sorrowfully.

"Devise a fight strategy for my monsters and send it to them," Zedd ordered. "I want them to last as long as possible. Goldar, Rito... Go with them to help."

"Yes sir," Klank agreed before they all hurried off into the bowels of the ship.

"Quite a fight you have there, Zedd," Divatox remarked. "Thirty Rangers, five monsters... If your plan was to keep them together, you've failed. They're already dividing up. One monster for each team. How convenient."

Zedd growled low in his throat as he turned toward Divatox. "I will thank you not to underestimate me, wench," he snarled. "Things are going exactly as planned. Continue watching the fight.

"Astronema, adopt a mortal form and go find my mother."

Astronema's form flickered as she took on the guise of a blonde mortal. "Right away, Zedd," she said in a proud voice. As she disappeared in a purple glimmer of light, Lord Zedd walked away, heading for the open-air decks of the ship.

He quickly reached the bow of the ship, standing as far forward of the ship as one could. His mind was whirling with the possibilities, but he refused to let himself get his hopes up. That, he realized, was the downfall of the old Zedd. The new Zedd would be ruthless but sensible. He would likely receive losses, but he would deal with them as they came. The first thing to do, of course, was to make sure he was the most powerful person in existence. And to accomplish that, he would have to completely and utterly destroy his mother.

"I believe they are functional, Dulcea," Alpha said as he shut the compartment door on Purple Senturion's back.

"Go into battle and help the Rangers," Dulcea ordered. "Utilize any fighting strategy that works. I give you full authorization."

The Senturions gave their robotic salute, right arm held at an angle across the chest, and then teleported away in their unflashy teleportation. "Dimitria, I'm going to return to the monster shelters," Dulcea said. "I noticed that the fight is dangerously close to the shelter on Park Street."

"Of course, Dulcea," Dimitria said, granting the permission she didn't even have the authority to give. The fact was, Dulcea far outranked her, but Dulcea was used to following Zordon's orders and doing nothing without his permission. That respect had apparently flowed over onto Dimitria.

As Dulcea teleported away, two blue and purple triangular teleportation signals flashed in the Power Station, forming Cestro and Cestria of Aquitar. "Greetings, Dimitria," Cestro said as he and Cestria gave their sign of respect.

"We understood you need assistance with your Zords," Cestria warbled.

"Follow me, please," Alpha requested as he started toward the Zord Holding Bays.

Astronema ignored the polite comments from the policeman as she entered the Monster Shelter. Her eyes scanned the crowd, and she was shocked, just for a moment, at the number and types of people crammed in the basement like structure. The dirt poor were huddled around burning barrels with some of Angel Grove's richest. In the monster shelters, there truly were no distinctions among the classes. It was just everyone, hoping to survive.

She quickly found her. That mane of red hair wasn't easy to miss. She was sitting next to a young redhead that Astronema identified as Katherine's little sister.

"Jen-," and she stopped herself in time. Just the same, it was enough said to warrant Jenga's attention. As the Dark Mistress heard the voice, she looked up and saw Astronema, even through her mortal disguise.

"Stay right here, Brooke," Jenga muttered to the young girl as she hurried over to Astronema's side. "What are you doing here?"

"Your son sent me," Astronema told her in a hushed voice. "He wants you pretty desperately. He's... changed, too."

"All right," Jenga sighed. Not caring if anyone saw them, she teleported them away. Their absence went relatively unnoticed in the dark monster shelter, and those that did see a glimmer of light dismissed it as a reflection off of something.

"Satellite Stunner!"

"Star Slinger!"

In flashes of pink and yellow, Cassie and Ashley summoned their weapons. Both weapons were fired, sending colored bursts of energy at StagBeetle. He dodged Ashley's, but a sphere of pink energy from Cassie's weapon struck him in the chest. Nonplused, he channeled the energy up his body and out of his antennae, firing it back at the two girls.

"Lunar Lance!" Carlos cried, running at StagBeetle with his weapon. Much to his surprise, the monster grabbed the Lance by the end and flipped Carlos into the air, slamming him into TJ.

Andros shouted as he slashed his Spiral Saber across StagBeetle's body. The monster shouted and attempted to fire a burst of energy at the Red Space Ranger, but he dropped to the ground and rolled across the snow, dodging the blast.

"Leave them alone!" Zhane shouted suddenly.

"Zhane!" Andros cried gratefully. He had been positive he would never see his friend again.

"What are you going to do about it, Silver Ranger?!" StagBeetle taunted.

"This! Super Silverizer!" Zhane summoned his weapon and jumped into the air, flying toward StagBeetle. Before he could strike, however, the monster flickered black and turned into a block of grey marble. Zhane put his weapon away and rolled to the ground, spinning away from the statue that had previously been StagBeetle.

"What on Earth was that?" Ashley asked as the Space Rangers began to group around the marbleized monster.

"Dimitria? Alpha?" TJ asked into his wrist. "Do you know what is going on out here?"

"Rangers, please teleport to the Power Station at once," Dimitria requested. The Space Rangers glanced at each other and then hit their morphers, disappearing in a six-colored rainbow of light.

Jenga and Astronema reappeared in the Open-Air First Class Lounge on the 'Lusitania' mere moments after they left Angel Grove. "Where's Zedd?"

An almost inhuman-sounding grunt came from behind her, and she turned just in time to jump aside. His staff, sharp as a sword and thumping with magic, almost ran her through. "ZEDD!" she shouted angrily. She brought her knee up into his abdomen and spun away, grabbing the golden sword from Goldar's stunned hands.

"Tonight, you die!" Zedd roared at her, coming at her again with his staff.

Astronema screamed and darted away, slamming into Goldar and placing him between her and the battling Xetts. Jenga imbued Goldar's sword with her own magic, and she blocked him with the blade which would have otherwise been cleaved with Zedd's staff.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" she screeched at him. As of yet, she still hadn't attacked him back. She was just defending herself.

He leapt across the room, literally shaking the ground as he landed. "I want your role," he boomed. "I DESERVE IT!"

"You deserve nothing," Jenga spat, crossing the room and stepping right up to him. With the palm of her right hand, she slammed it into his chest and pushed him back a step. "You have accomplished NOTHING."

Zedd shouted, his voice so filled with rage that no one could discern what he was saying. He thrust his staff at her, but Jenga anticipated his move and leapt over the golden blade. As soon as one foot touched the floor, she lashed out with her other, striking Zedd in the chest. All of the force she could muster went into that kick, and Zedd flew backwards and through the wall of the lounge, breaking through it. As he landed on the upper deck, Jenga leapt through the hole he had created. Her feet touched the ground, and all of her weight was still resting on her ankles as Zedd, still prone, swept his staff beneath her feet. He lifted her off of the floor and brought her crashing to the ground, landing on her shoulder blades.

"Sinead edele keavy lindsay!" Jenga screamed, promptly rolling onto her hands and knees. Zedd roared again, not sure what had happened but well aware of the curse she had just placed on him. "Every monster! Every monster produced from your magic will be made of marble for eternity!"

"You BITCH!" he bellowed, using his golden staff like a club. The sharp Z caught her in the midsection, and he lifted her into the air, tossing her over the railing. She fell twenty feet and crashed into the second class promenade deck.

Pain flowed through her body as she lifted her shoulders off of the wooden deck. She glanced down at her abdomen, seeing her shirt cut through and some shallow wounds on her abdomen seeping black blood. Jenga looked up, and she saw her massive son standing on the railing of the first class deck he had just thrown her off. He jumped, and she quickly rolled away, spiraling up onto her feet gracefully. She thrust her hand into the air and summoned Goldar's sword. It promptly leapt into her grip, and she brought it down across her body, ready to fight to the death.

He slashed at her with his staff, but she blocked his hit with her sword. One of his gold-plated feet kicked out at her, and she was surprised that the soft metal could hurt so badly. She staggered just a bit, but only for a moment. Time was of the essence, and she wasted none of it as she thrust forward with her sword. The serrated blade caught him in the thigh, slicing through his quad. Blood as thin as water and black as oil rolled out of the wound, sliding down the red and black striated muscle of his leg and the golden exoskeleton covering the musculature.

"This ends with one of our deaths," Zedd threatened, his chest heaving with deep breaths.

"One hundred and fifty thousand years of experience," Jenga said rationally, "versus eight hundred thousand. Who do you think will be left standing?"

"You are an old woman, and today is the day you-"

"Threat later!" she shouted, coming at him again with her sword. A shower of blue and black sparks burst from the contact point between the staff and sword. "True villains have no need to make threats!"

Zedd flipped the staff into the air, yanking the sword from her hands and sending it high into the air. Before she could summon it back, he leveled his staff and let loose with a blast of black energy, obliterating the sword. "And of course, leave it to a man to fight an unfair fight."

"Fights aren't fair," Zedd said, but just the same, he threw his staff down at the ground. It clattered to the side, still sparking black magic.

He fixed his visor on Jenga's green eyes, and extending his arms, he flicked his fingertips at her tauntingly. Lord Zedd looked for all the world like a demonic cenobite from the depths of hell, but the 5'9" beauty rushed him anyway. In a very mortal move, Jenga leapt off of the ground and punched Zedd in the face with all of her might. The gold bent from her punch and his visor cracked. Before she could land, he punched her in the kidneys, ruining her form. She landed on one knee, and as he kicked at her, she dropped to the ground and rolled.

"Come on!" she shouted at him, darting to the railing and climbing to the top. Zedd nimbly leapt to the top rail himself, his inhuman size and weight having no discernible effect on the railing. He punched at her, but she ducked beneath his massive arm, pulled it over the top of her body, and gave him two rapid-fire kicks, one coming and another as she pulled her leg back. Then, she took advantage of his astonishment, and flipped herself so that she was spooned against his body. She dropped to her knees and flipped him over her body, sending him falling another twenty feet to the steerage open-air deck below. Before he had even hit the deck, she had already leapt off of the railing.

Zedd, though, suddenly regained the advantage. He leapt to his feet, and with a powerful uppercut, he hit Jenga in the jaw as she was falling. She didn't cry out, and she landed to the deck with a thud, not even attempting to catch herself. Before she could regather her senses, his claw-tipped left hand grabbed her around the neck. Lord Zedd yanked her off of the ground, holding her up so high that her toes didn't even brush against the ground.

She clutched at his forearm, but at the moment, she had no leverage point. She tried to kick at his body, but she just couldn't work up the leverage to have any effect against someone of his brute strength. Lord Zedd chuckled low in his throat as he walked toward the bow of the ship.

Jenga looked so fragile in his massive grip. Her face was bruised, and black blood was trickling from one of her nostrils. Her green eyes, though, were still vivid and expressive, and he was flooded with a deluge of memories from his childhood. A wave of black energy washed over his mind, though, and he threw such mortal sentimentalities aside.

"I promise to make your death quick, Mother," he said as he reached the bow. He stepped up onto the first rung of the railing and held her out over the front of the ship, dangling above the sea. They could both hear the water beneath roaring as the 'UAE Lusitania' cut through the ocean. Zedd raised his hand up above them, and the claw on his right index magically extended and strengthened, becoming a very sharp dagger. "Thank you for bringing me into this world."

"I'm strangely proud of you, Zedd," she managed to gasp, "but first... there is something you should know."

"Make it quick," he said, holding his hand ready to kill her.

"You really wanna know how your father died?" His answer was a complete and utter silence, and he found himself squeezing her throat even tighter.

Suddenly, her body suddenly flashed blue, and he found his grip empty. Hovering before him was a tiny firefly, glowing blue. And then, from all around him, her voice said, "He made the mistake of underestimating all that is ME."

The tiny firefly suddenly grew, eight insectile legs jumping out of its back. They plunged down into the ocean, and a gargantuan, serpentine body formed amongst them. The underbelly continued glowing that eerie blue, and it grew ever larger. A gargantuan cobra head with flared hood rose out of the water, and it was unmistakably Jenga. Though there was nothing even remotely human about the face, the eyes were that eerie shade of green and the hood was a bright, reptilian red, with three tell-tale streaks of blue running through it.

Black clawed fingers shot out of the water, wrapping themselves around the sides of the 'Lusitania.' With a lurch, the ship was raised out of the water, disturbing items in all rooms all throughout the multi-leveled mammoth ship.

"Do you understand me now?" Jenga asked, her voice considerably more powerful, though still feminine. It echoed from all around her gargantuan, demonic body. She was larger than Zedd could have ever imagined a living creature could be. She had lifted a ship, weighing tens of thousands of tons, right out of the water and lifted it high into the air, holding it as though it were nothing more than a toy. When Zedd didn't answer, she said calmly, "Do you think that I can't kill you, or that I just won't?"

Zedd didn't know what to say. He had just been given a wealth of power, and his mother was still more powerful. He had just a glimpse of her power, and he suddenly understood what she was. She truly was completely possessing the most powerful source of evil in the universe. "Answer me!" she yelled at him.

"Please don't kill me," he said meekly, bowing his head shamefully. "I- I didn't mean it."

"Yes you did," she answered, but she still lowered the ship back to the ocean and set it back on the waves as carefully as she could. Her gargantuan form quickly dissipated, and just a few seconds later, she was standing on the deck of the still-rocking 'Lusitania' in her human form.

"Then kill me quickly," Zedd surrendered, dropping to one knee and bowing his head.

"Get up," Jenga spat with disgust. "Dead men perform no favors." She walked away from him, leaving him kneeling alone on the steerage class deck. "But remember this... I own you now and always. And if you ever forget that, I will murder you, I will murder your wife, and I will grind the bones of your unborn children into dust beneath my heel."

Jenga said nothing as she walked up the connecting sets of stairs that led her into the first class open-air lounge, where the rest of the UAE members were watching in surprise. The injuries Zedd had inflicted on her were gone, though her clothing was still haggard and torn. She had just delivered a message to all of them, and they all understood loud and clear.

Without a single comment, Jenga passed through their ranks, leaving them speechless. Far below, Lord Zedd remained kneeling on the third class deck. She had done far worse than kill him. She had defeated him, and all present knew that Zedd would never be the same.

"Jenga," Astronema called bravely, hurrying after her sister and reaching her at the bridge, "the monsters are gone... Duran's, Zedd's... Should we send more to-"

"Let the Rangers be," Jenga answered over her shoulder. "We've put them through enough."

"Are you going to be okay?" she asked.

Jenga paused, one hand clutching the railing tightly. Then, she turned to Astronema and said, "I will be tomorrow." And without saying anything more, she walked away.

Divatox and Sydney walked up to Astronema, who was still looking in the general direction where Jenga had walked off. "What's wrong with her?" Divatox asked.

"I think she's depressed," Astronema answered truthfully.

"Things have changed," Sydney whispered, her voice barely heard. "In the morning... things will never be the same again."

"Do you think she will kill Zedd?" Astronema asked.

Sydney shrugged and said, "I don't know. I doubt it, but... Something big is going to happen. I'm sure of it."

"You should get back to Angel Grove," Divatox reminded her. "The All-Clear alarm has already sounded, and the snow has already dropped down to just a flurry.

Sydney didn't say anything, but she nodded and teleported away in a pink sparkle.

Astronema murmured, "She reminds me of someone."

"It's Neve Campbell," Divatox remarked as she walked away.

"Maybe," Astronema agreed. But as she began to walk down to her room, she suddenly remembered something. With a gasp, she grabbed at the pendant hanging around her neck and flipped it open. On the right, a photo of a woman who looked like a mature Neve Campbell and a man with brown hair and a boyish grin. On the left, two girls, one red-haired and the other blonde.

"Mom," she realized, her mouth agape.

In the Aftermath...
"Return to your homes! Return to your homes!" Blue Senturion shouted as he walked up and down the still icy streets. Purple Senturion was performing a similar duty on another street, as were Dulcea and other cops. No one wanted to go home, it seemed. It was almost surreal, as the word had gotten out that the mechanical objects in Angel Grove were all dead. Everyone knew they were going to be in for a chilly night.

The Disaster Emergency Service was working as fast as they could, trying to come up with a working plan to keep the city safe for the next few days. They were afraid that they might be looking at a long stretch of riots, looting, and worse. But the immediate concern was keeping people warm and fed. Plans were already made to make sure the elderly had blankets for the night.

That was also when the DES discovered that several dozen people, mostly elderly men, had died due to pacemaker failure. They constituted the only fatalities in what was already being described as one of the worst fights yet.

Cestro and Cestria had, indeed, managed to get the Zords back online. Several Zords were patrolling the streets, pushing snow out of the way and carefully warming up the pavement with some gentle laser blasts. ZeoZords I and II were found to be especially useful as snow plows.

People were slowly finding their ways back home, reuniting many a happy family. The next day would be Thanksgiving 1997, and it was most definitely going to prove to be an interesting day. Many Rangers and residents still had many stories to tell, but they would wait until morning. At the moment, Angel Grove was merely releasing a collective sigh, secure in the promise of a future.

The Next Morning
"Jenga, what are you doing?" Astronema asked.

"Packing some bare essentials," Jenga said. A single canvas duffel bag was open on her bed, and she was placing some clothing in it. "You can have my room, if you like. I'm leaving you in charge."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm leaving," she answered, carefully folding a blouse before placing it in her bag. Seeing it was full, she picked it up and slung the strap over one shoulder.

"What do you mean you're leaving?" Astronema continued, more than a bit surprised.

Jenga extended her arm and summoned Ioaeu Sjknth. She placed the heavy, magical Sword in her sister's hands and said, "Use it in good health."

"Jenga, you can't leave!" Astronema cried. Jenga pushed past her and walked into the hallway. She was dressed in jeans and a sweater, nothing fancy. Astronema then realized that the blue streaks in her hair were gone. She had removed them either with magic or ordinary red hair dye.

"I can leave, and I am leaving."

"What did you just say?" Divatox asked, suddenly appearing in the conversation.

"I'm just tired of this, okay?" Jenga said. "I'm tired of the fighting, I'm tired of the bickering on the ship, I'm just tired of EVERYTHING."

"If this is about what Zedd did," Astronema started.

"No," Jenga said forcefully. "This isn't about him. This is about me. But do not let him try and take charge. Kill him if you have to. You can cleave him in half with that Sword without even breaking a sweat." She then broke away from the two women and continued up the hallway.

"Are you going to go conquer another world?" Divatox called after her.

"No," Jenga answered over her shoulder. She reached the end of the hallway and turned right, emerging in the first class lounge that was doubling as their meeting room. Most were present. Only Zedd and Sydney were absent. "Everyone, Astronema is in charge."

"In charge of what?" Orbus chirped.

"The UAE," Jenga answered. "I'm leaving. And I'm leaving as a mortal. I'm not going to go out and conquer another world, or do research for some great project. I'm not even going to go on a murderous rampage. I'm just going. I'll probably read some literature I've been meaning to read for a few centuries."

"Will you be back?" Rita asked.

"Maybe, maybe not," she answered. "Depends on how things go in my new life."

"Will you be on Earth?" Goldar asked.

"I'd rather not say," she said. "I don't want any of you following me."

"Jenga... Why?" Astronema tried again.

"Because I'm tired of this!" she shouted. "Don't you understand that?! I'm miserable here! This isn't fun anymore. It's not even a job anymore. This is a punishment for me, so I'm getting out. You know, the UAE had a rule once that you couldn't take over the planet that you grew up on. You get too attached to it, and you just can't get anything accomplished. I was universally-renowned until I came to Earth. I was hardly ever defeated. But then, I come to Earth, and I can't win a fight to save my life."

"That's not true," Divatox rebutted. "You have Ioaeu Sjknth, you sent the Rangers to a different dimension, the entire planet knows your name and they're afraid of it..."

"Ioaeu Sjknth can't even be used in a fight against the Rangers, and the Rangers found their way back," Jenga challenged. "Do you all even remember why I came here? Back in January, I came here to find the Earth Crystals so I could take over the entire planet. But the Earth Crystals are being held by the Rangers, so I'll never have them, and now, Zordon is dead and I had nothing to do with it, the entire universe is virtually void of evil, and there are more Rangers down there than I'd like to count. And sure, maybe the whole planet does know who I am, but what good will that do me?"

"Are you really going to go live a mortal life?" Rita asked.

"It's the only way to live," Jenga said. "My soul misses it... I need to see one little corner of the world and get to know it intimately. I- There is so much out there! I need to see it and experience it and-" She paused, letting her thought dangle in mid-air. "I have to get away, or I will end up changing."

"Into what?" Rito asked.

"I don't know, and I don't want to find out." There was a flicker of blue light, and a glass orb with a magical sparkle inside appeared in her left hand. It was enough magic to send her into a new life. Then, she pointed her hand at Ioaeu Sjknth in Astronema's hand. A torrent of magic, all that was contained inside her, channeled out and into the Sword, leaving her as ordinary as any other mortal. "I may be back someday," she said, "and if I am, I'm going to resume my role. Keep my magic safe."

"Please don't go?" Astronema tried.

Jenga walked over to her little sister and, on tip-toe, gave her a kiss in the center of her forehead. Then, without saying a word, she turned and walked out of the lounge. Astronema and Divatox followed her at a safe distance, and they watched as she walked out onto the open-air deck.

"I am going to miss this ship," Jenga said. She turned back, waved to Divatox and Astronema, and then crushed the magic orb in her left hand. Blue light swirled around her, and when the light faded away, she was gone.

End