After departing from Devil's Palace, Black Shadow and Astronema met on the Dark Fortress.  The Rangers and Spices were nowhere in sight, so the evil couple could easily try again with the wedding.....or can they?

         “Black Shadow....are you feeling all right?” Astronema asked.

         “I’m not sure,” Black Shadow replied.  “We had it made.  We would’ve been perfect together.  But silly me, I should’ve known that Jenny would stir suspense in the home audience by waiting ‘til the last second to intervene.  Gotta give her credit.”

         “But it’s not too late,” Astronema assured him.  “We can still wed.”

         “I’m not sure about that,” Black Shadow sighed.  “It just wouldn’t be the same.  No friends, no relatives......no cake......a wedding isn’t a wedding without those things.  Even if we did wed here and now, I wouldn’t feel like a husband at all.  I’d just feel like another wasted bachelor.”

         Astronema smiled.  “You really do like cake, don’t you?”

         “I love it.”

         “Me, too.  Black Shadow, I’m really sorry about.....what happened.”

         “Oh, that’s all right,” Black Shadow said.  “With my vengeance plan in mind, I won’t need to be married.......yet.”

         “But I thought that the Rangers and Spices were sucked through that vortex thing,” Astronema protested.

         “Hmm......”  Black Shadow put his fingers to his head and concentrated.  “No.....they survived.  Every one of them.  Everyone except Darkonda.”

         “Darkonda?”

         “Mm-hmm.  He let himself be sucked into the portal to save Jenny.  Very noble, I must say.  Who would’ve thought that such a despicable tyrant would be so loyal to his wife?”

         “But how do you know all of this?” Astronema asked.

         “From Spinal, of course,” Black Shadow told her.  “Remember, he and I are telepathically connected.  I can still sense his presence in this dimension.  He knows that the others have survived as well, including Piccolo and Koko.  He knows that Darkonda sacrificed himself to save Jenny.  And what Spinal knows, I know.”

         “Wow, that link really is useful,” Astronema said.

         “That’s why I came prepared with a backup plan, just in case.  Fear not, I’ll pay Jenny back; I promise you that.  And Black Shadow never breaks a promise......”

Spice Rack Bridge

         “I still can’t believe that Jenny actually stopped the wedding!” Leo cried.

         “Hey, what would you have done if your mom was about to marry the King of Evil?” the Cryptkeeper asked.

         “Well, I would’ve stopped the wedding, too,” Leo admitted.  “But I’m just worried about what Black Shadow will do to Jenny.  He sounded pretty serious when he said that he’d make her suffer.”

         “Don’t worry about it.  Jenny is strong; she can handle it.”

         “So, Rangers,” Ruth called.  “What will you do now?”

         “Well, we could just hang out here for a while,” Ashley said.  “But then again, we should go back to Terra Venture....”

         “Not with Astronema around here, you ain’t,” Yamcha said.

         Chiaotzu began laughing.  Damon looked at him, wondering how someone who can talk so clearly could giggle like an infant.

         “Man, you laugh just like a baby!” he exclaimed.

         Chiaotzu pointed a finger at Damon, who suddenly felt a surge of pain throughout his body.  Chiaotzu laughed again.

         Meanwhile, Pico wasn’t very happy at all.  They may have stopped Black Shadow and Astronema from getting married, but what was to stop them from trying again?  The best thing to do would be to send Astronema back to where she came from.  And if Astronema left, Trakeena would surely leave, too; and that’s all Pico cared about.  Trakeena, who had been madly in love with Pico long before he joined the Spice Club, would stop at nothing to possess him.  Although Pico was an insect-eater, the thought of having a bug like Trakeena for dessert thoroughly sickened him.

         It might be the only sure-fire way to get rid of her.

         But devouring Trakeena wouldn’t be necessary.  If only Pico could send her back to Scorpius, he would be all right.  Back in the old days, when Pico was racing and hanging out with Mighty Gazelle and Arbin Gordon, he knew that Trakeena was out of his life forever.

         That is, until he joined the Spice Club.

         When his brain cells were completely drained, Pico rushed to the controls and pushed the levers, causing the ship to tilt to the left.

         “Hey Pico, what the hell are you doing!?” the Cryptkeeper demanded.

         “Astronema needs to be more permanently dealt with,” Pico responded.  “She can easily try to marry Black Shadow again, and if she does, she’ll succeed for sure!”

         Pico aimed the ship directly at the Dark Fortress.  He pressed several buttons, firing massive lasers at the enemy spacecraft.  Each shot struck with small explosions, pushing the Dark Fortress away....

Dark Fortress Control Room

         “I guess this is goodbye,” Black Shadow sighed.  “I must get back to Devil's Palace.”

         “I understand,” Astronema said.  “I should take the Rangers out of your hands.  It was an honor to work with you, Black Shadow.”

         “The honor is all mine, Astronema, Princess of Darkness.”

         Black Shadow held the corner of his cape across his chest and vanished in a purple lightning crack.

         “Ecliptor, set a new course,” Astronema ordered.  “We’re going back to Terra Venture!”

Astro Megaship Bridge

         “We have to go after it,” Andros said.  “Well, I guess this is goodbye again.”

         “It was great to see you guys again,” T.J. said.

         “Same here,” the Cryptkeeper said.  “And don’t worry about Jenny; she’ll come around.”

         Cassie turned to Vegeta.  “Well, it was nice meeting you, Vegeta.”  She held her hand out to him.  “Tell Jenny that we hope she feels better.”

         “I’ll deliver your message,” Vegeta said.  “Excuse me if I don’t shake the hand of a typical Earth female.”

         After saying their final goodbye, the Rangers teleported away.  In the video screen, the Spices could see the Dark Fortress and the Astro Megaship flying away.  Both ships got smaller and smaller until they were nothing but stars in the sky.

         “Wow!” Ruth exclaimed.  “People come and go so quickly nowadays!”

         Jenny returned to the Spice Rack, for she knew that Black Shadow would return to Devil’s Palace.  At the Spice Rack, Jenny continued her mourning.  She stared at the snowglobe that Darkonda had given her.  Then she set it down on the dresser next to her bed and reclined.  Jenny and Darkonda had been at it from the moment they met.  Although back then it was only considered to be a silly flirting game.  But in reality, it led to a fiery passion that was a greater prize than complete control of the entire universe.  And now it was over.

         “Are you about done?” Vegeta called from the doorway.

         “Vegeta, I’m already in a foul mood; don’t make it worse,” Jenny warned.

         “I just wanted to tell you that Astronema has gone off to conquer other galaxies, and the Rangers went after her,” Vegeta said.

         Jenny sat up.  “They didn’t even say goodbye?”

         “Sure, they said goodbye, they hope you feel better.....you know, all the sentimental rubbish that you’d expect from an overblown pile of spandex and ground beef.”

         “Hey, those are our friends you just insulted,” Jenny said.

         “Then why didn’t I break a sweat when I fought the Pink Space Ranger?” Vegeta asked.

         “Aarrgh!!”  Jenny threw her pillow at Vegeta, then reclined in bed, throwing the covers over herself.

         “Hmph.”  Vegeta turned and left the room.  “Look at her; I’ve never seen guts like that in a woman before.  She won’t take crap from anyone, and she’s got the beauty to match....wait a minute, what am I thinking!?”

Devil's Palace Throne Room

         “I commend your noble sacrifice, Darkonda,” he said.  “But I’m afraid that you’ve only placed Jenny in more danger by doing so.”

         “We’ll see about that,” Darkonda responded.  “This is just a temporary setback.  I will return.  Jenny and I will be reunited!”

         “What makes you think that she’ll still be around when you return?” Black Shadow asked.

         “She will be there; I’m sure of it,” Darkonda told him.  “And if I find that she’s gone when I return, I shall kill you without any hesitation.”

         “Whatever....”  Black Shadow tossed the glass onto the floor, letting it shatter.  Then he looked up at the ceiling.  “Hmm, I wonder who blew those holes in my ceiling?”

         He sat back and thought about the battle with the Rangers and Spices.

         “Time.  Everything in life comes with time.  Perhaps it wasn’t time for me to be married yet,” he told himself.  “No matter; the whole gathering was worthwhile enough.  Truthfully, I had a marvelous time.  I can just imagine the fun I’ll be having when I take my sweet revenge....”

         Black Shadow ended his chain of thought with an evil chuckle.  He had lost the battle, but it wasn’t a total loss.  Darkonda was gone, and that would surely put Jenny through an excruciating period of pain and grief.  Black Shadow looked up at the blown-up ceiling again.  His plan had failed, yet he was still happy.  He sat back in his throne and sank into another deep meditation.....