Whole
By Jeannine Trevizo
Chapter 8: Accepting the Truth
In the circular room that
held the leaders of the world, the crackling static of the view screen filled
the air. The Power Rangers had announced their presence and intentions. And the
Global Government was on their radar. Not surprisingly, since they had
authorized the attacks on them and been hunting them down for weeks now.
But with the acknowledgement
of the leader of their group that Zedd was their main
foe, there perhaps was room to maneuver…
“What do we do?” asked
the thin woman with the dark hair and eyes.
“Lord Zedd
expects our cooperation…” stated the dark skinned man.
“What if he doesn’t get
it?”
Everyone turned and
stared at the Asian man who had just suggested…
“We have been trying to
kill the Power Rangers. Perhaps we simply ask his help as their technology is
far greater than our own,” he continued.
“I suppose…” the balding, tan man who led the Council replied,
somewhat sullenly.
“And it will give us an
excuse if he fails,” the Asian man suggested, and the Council members all
paused to consider it.
As they all looked at one
another, they had to consider their own lives. They knew the Power Rangers and
the Center wanted them removed once Zedd fell. Zedd was all that was technically keeping them in power –
but if they could survive both Zedd and the Power
Ranger’s wraith by not really siding with either group… perhaps they could salvage
something as important as their lives.
Finally the Council
leader turned to call his assistant to him. The major moved to receive his
orders.
“Recall Captain Dell and
his team. We will no longer be hunting the Power Rangers,” he announced,
resulting in a gasp from the thin woman and surprised sounds from the major and
the dark skinned man. “If Lord Zedd wishes them gone,
we have found we cannot match their technology – it will be up to him to
destroy them.”
-x-
“So, we’ve made our case,
now what?” Jason asked as he moved to flank Tommy following the broadcast.
“I don’t know if the
Global Government will come forward, but the people know why you’re here at
least,” Lt. Cranston explained unenthusiastically.
“What about the Center’s
support? You said there were people still in the underground. Can they assist
us with convincing the government to step aside?” questioned Tommy.
“Most of them are
politicians ousted from power, legal minds, teachers, intellectuals…
people that can rebuild the society. They won’t venture forth until they know
they can make a difference. They’re waiting on people like my unit and the
rangers to provide them that chance,” Lt. Cranston said simply, not wanting the
rangers to get their hopes up about additional assistance.
“So we are on our own
essentially,” complained Adam.
“My group and any of the
other fighting units can keep the Global Government forces at bay. Beyond
that…”
The rangers all looked at
one another with expressions of mixed emotions. They had allies, had help, but
in the end, they would have to win the war for anything to change.
“We’re just waiting on Zedd,” Tommy stated simply, acknowledging the fact that
everything came down to their arch-villain in space.
“Do you think he knows
we’re here?” Kim queried the tone of her voice denoting something that Tommy
disliked immensely – fear.
“I would think so,” Lt.
Cranston added quickly. “The Global Government Council has been in touch with
him. I would expect that anything they know, he knows.”
“So how soon till he
shows up?” Zack wondered aloud.
“Depends… he used to use
the moon as a base. With the planet under his control, he might not think he
needs to be so close…” Tommy remarked.
“Then it might be a while
till he gets here,” suggested Aisha, interjecting her thoughts into the
discussion.
“Well, if that’s the case,
we have some time to plan our next course of action,” remarked Tommy, and the
others instantly focused in on him, expecting him to start a strategy session.
Instead, before he could
say anything, Lt. Cranston moved to Tommy’s side, placing a hand on the White
Ranger’s shoulder, causing the younger man to turn.
“Sir… sorry, Tommy. I
really don’t know what your procedures are, but I would suggest that your team
eat and catch some z’s
before anything else. If we do have some time, based on what information I have
about your previous situation,” Lt. Cranston said, his tone becoming sorrowful
for a moment before he schooled it into a sense of normalcy, “my troops can
monitor the situation and act as look outs. Once the base identifies Zedd’s approach, we can let you know.”
The team suddenly turned
and looked to Tommy. It had been a while since they’d had any decent sleep when
someone wasn’t keeping guard. The idea that none of them would have to take a
shift was very appealing. And they wanted to take advantage of it. Even Tommy
wanted the chance to rest without worrying for a little while.
“Well, we could all use
the rest. Lt. Cranston, the
“It’s already in the
works. The rest of my unit has started setting up a base of operations at the foot
of the mountain. Anyone not working up here can shuttle back down to join the
others.”
“Sounds
good. I think sleep first, and
then we can eat with your people? Get to know them?” Tommy suggested much to
Lt. Cranston’s surprise.
“Certainly. We’d all be honored.”
Moving to the control
panels, Tommy stopped in front of Alpha, hoping that the robot knew everything
about the base that they didn’t.
“Alpha – are the ranger’s
personal rooms damaged?”
“Negative. The rooms are
still usable.”
A slight sigh escaped his
lips. That meant that everyone had a bunk where they could sleep, and in
private for that matter.
“Okay everyone, let’s hit
the hay,” announced Tommy, causing the rangers to smile.
With that the team headed
to the elevator, the six teens anxious to see what condition the personal rooms
were in. When the elevator car stopped at the floor for the private chambers
the rangers called home when not with their families, they carefully walked out
into the dusty, debris scattered and dimly lit hallway. Emergency lights lit
the corridor, Alpha probably deciding to conserve the power they had for more
vital systems. Colors and names marked the doors… the names unfamiliar to them
all as they belonged to the last ranger team to have been headquartered here.
But they still remembered their colors and the rooms.
Kim and Tommy stood and
watched the others make their way to their rooms, everyone looking forward to
the private time as well as the sleep. But after doors closed, they were both
still standing there in the corridor, and Tommy turned to Kim, a questioning
look on his face.
“Kim?”
“I’m not used to sleeping
alone… well, you know,” she said, and he did understand.
Ever since they woke up
from the cryogenic tubes, they’d either been in the same warehouse sleeping
area or huddled together on the run. Kim could have asked Aisha to share the
room, like they had at James’, but instead she was coming to him.
Not like he minded.
They’d had precious few moments to share with one another since they’d both
accepted the feelings within them as real and not just a by-product of their
genetics. The thought of curling beside her on a real bed made his heart
flutter a bit in his chest. All the things he felt for her were tempered by the
situation they were in; but this small thing, letting her sleep in the same
room with him was enough to placate his desire to be with her – for now.
“Yeah. Come on,” he said finally, moving to the room tagged
white on the door. He remembered when it was tagged green… but that was so long
ago…
Pushing the door open,
they found the room in similar condition as the corridor outside. But in the
center of the room was the double bed that graced every ranger room. It was
covered with dirt and dust, but it was there.
Taking the sheets and
covers off the bed, the two of them shook them out, removing the dust and
debris. Once cleared, they replaced the covers and Tommy sat and pulled off his
shoes at the end of the bed. Kim stood over him for a moment before he looked
up at her face; the look of worry shown through her eyes like a neon sign.
“I hate him,” she said
finally, and Tommy reached up to wrap his arms around her, pulling her to the
bed and into his embrace. “Everything he did to you…”
“Everything he did to
us,” he argued, memories of Zedd’s crimes against
both of them crystallizing in his mind as they spoke of him. Targeting Tommy
for violence, kidnapping Kim… neither of them had fond memories of the alien
lord.
“I’m just afraid that
he’s going to hurt you.”
“He won’t. We got through
it before, we can again,” Tommy insisted, leaning to kiss Kim briefly and softly
on the lips. “There’s nothing we can do about it right now. Let’s try and get
some sleep, okay?”
She nodded, leaning in to
kiss him again before she pulled back to ease out of his arms so she could
remove her shoes. Tommy crawled up the bed to lie on his side. Kim climbed on
from the opposite side and then wiggled backwards until she was pressed against
Tommy’s chest. His arm wrapped around her as they found comfort in just being
together like that and they slowly settled in to sleep.
-x-
Lt. Cranston was having his
team rotate shifts as the night wore on. They’d all been through a lot in the
last week, and he wanted to make sure they all were able to rest and relax
some, even with the future battles ahead.
Once Sarah and Samuel had
been killed, the warehouse compromised, and the rangers forced to go on the run,
he’d hurriedly gathered the military cells of the Center to locate the rangers
and provide them support. Now that they were here, in the actual
No one knew that they’d
had a relationship. Or that he’d assigned her to support Samuel at the
warehouse, knowing that her skills as a soldier would be necessary to help the
rangers not only get up to speed with their fighting skills but to protect them
until they were ready to resume their roles. He’d never thought that by asking
her to take the job he was signing her death sentence.
After they’d found out
about the Black Global Force raid, he’d been devastated by the loss, but had
done his best to push it aside. The rangers were unaccounted for, and he knew
that she must have helped them escape, by trading her life and Samuel’s for
them.
He’d actually been
somewhat resentful of that fact. His ancestors were rangers, yes, but that
didn’t mean much except that he now had a duty to be a member, a leader for the
Center. And he had a responsibility to help these resurrected rangers.
But when he’d finally
seen them in action, met them face to face…these teen… no, he reminded himself
forcefully, these rangers were like no one he’d ever seen before. It was truly
as if the stories passed down through his family were validated. These strong
young people were Power Rangers in every sense of the myths that were told
about them. And here he was, helping them, and in doing so, maybe saving the
whole world in the process.
And he knew now that
Sarah would have willingly sacrificed herself to save them, having been with
them for much longer than he, and even now he’d be willing to throw himself on
a grenade to keep them safe. They were hope in human form; Guardians of Earth
and the people who lived their. Even without understanding the circumstances
they were in, there had been no reservation, no questioning of what they had to
do. They simply were Power Rangers and their duty was clear.
It was amazing.
Sighing lightly, he
indicated for one of his mean to take over the watch and moved to find a spot
to lie out in on the command room floor, not wanting to be more than two steps
away from the monitors… just in case.
-x-
“Ai yi
yi!” exclaimed Alpha, bringing Lt. Cranston fully
alert from where he’d been dozing near the ruins of Zordon’s
warp tube.
“What is it?” he asked
quickly, jumping from his prone position to look over the robot’s shoulder at
the monitor.
“Sir, we have a large
moving object coming into the orbit of the moon,” said one of his people,
checking the radar.
“Sound the alarm!” Lt.
Cranston said suddenly, and Alpha pushed a button causing the whole facility to
flood with red light and an air horn like siren to go off.
“I guess it’s time to
wake them up,” Lt. Cranston said sorrowfully as he watched the incoming object
as it grew closer to the Earth’s orbit.
Lord Zedd
had arrived.
-End Ch 8-