Chapters:

1. First Light

She knew she should get up, but convincing herself to actually do it was another matter. She had spent a good part of yesterday afternoon in one of the Aquitian battle simulations, and despite Aquitar's relatively peaceful history, the training sims were as harsh as anything she'd gone up against on Earth.

Cassie rolled over, squinting in the dim blue glow that emanated from the single window. They weren't far enough under the ocean that sunlight didn't reach them, and the illumination from the transparent citydomes bathed most habitable locations on Aquitar in a constant muted radiance. Gazing out at the steady traffic to and from the command center dome, she tugged her pillow a little closer and snuggled deeper into the blankets on Saryn's bed.

She smiled, remembering Billy's hesitant question that first day. "Will you, uh, be wanting your own accommodations?"

Somewhat overwhelmed by the unfamiliarity of this alien planet, she had said yes automatically. And when Saryn had been busy in the command center until later than she could keep her eyes open, she had retreated to the room Billy had shown her to sleep. It had been strange and more than a little lonely, and she had had to remind herself that she had chosen to come here.

The next morning her misgivings had only increased. She had not had the faintest idea where to go, or even how to access the computer system to find out something as simple as what time it was. Luckily, Billy had found her just as she stepped out into the hall, and he had kindly invited her to join him and Cestria for breakfast.

Now she stretched, smiling again and very glad she had stuck those first couple of days out. She knew now that Cestria--and indeed all of the Aquitian Rangers, to varying degrees--was telepathic, and it had been she who sent Billy to find Cassie that morning. Those two had made her feel welcome when Saryn was too busy to really notice her, and they had not only answered her myriad questions but also taken time out of their own schedules to show her around.

And they had mysteriously disappeared that evening when Saryn finally removed himself from the command center long enough to take her aside. The first thing he had done was apologize, which had reassured her somewhat.

And he had proceeded to tell her. He had spent the rest of the evening with her, taking her out in one of the divers when he learned that she had already seen most of the Rangers' base. They had gone to one of the agricultural domes, a place that was, essentially, a very large underwater greenhouse, maintained to grow and supply food for Aquitar's many offworld visitors.

The dome had been deserted at that hour, and he had once more demorphed. They strolled hand in hand through the terrestrial environments, and he had explained as much of his position as she could stand, interrupted by numerous tangential explanations about organizations, League politics, and Ranger influence.

She had fallen asleep in his arms that night, more awed than ever by his offer to leave all this behind and stay with her on Earth.

Now, more than a week later, Cassie still couldn't bring herself to return home. Two more days, she knew, and she would *have* to go--school started on Wednesday, and somehow she didn't think Kaplan would take a little detail like being on another planet as an acceptable excuse for missing classes.

She sighed, reluctantly pushing the blankets away and sitting up. No time for lying around in bed. She would be alone again soon enough, and she wanted them to be together for as much time as he could spare in the meantime.

The floor was warm on her bare feet as she padded over to her duffel bag. She pulled on her jeans and pink t-shirt, untroubled that she'd been wearing them for the past three days. The Aquitian Rangers seemed to wear their uniform tunics as often as her team wore their flight suits, and she doubted anyone would notice her own clothes.

She ran her brush through her hair, slipping a headband on to hold it away from her face. She looked around, a slight smile on her face as she reflected that the room was far less neat than it had been a week ago. She hadn't brought much with her, but she had a habit of not putting anything away…

She shrugged, heading out into the corridor without a backward glance. He said he liked it that way, and she wasn't going to argue. She suspected he was only humoring her, but she would be gone soon enough and he could put the room back however he wanted it.

She sighed again without meaning to. She had no idea how she was going to readjust to Earth in general--and school in particular--after these wonderful days on Aquitar. She understood perfectly why Billy had come back… after all, everything he was living for was here.

The door from the control room to the hall in which the Rangers' quarters were located was locked open this early, so she peered in without having to do an ID check. Saryn was standing in front of the main viewscreen, talking--or arguing, it looked like--with someone she had come to recognize as Tobin, one of his partners in the leadership of the Frontier Defense.

She paused. The main screen had a fairly wide view, taking in most of the control room, and she wasn't sure it would be wise to have someone in civilian clothing wander through in the background.

Aura and Cetaci were there as well, off to one side. Cetaci was conferring with Zordon, but Aura looked up when Cassie appeared in the doorway. Noticing her hesitation, the Red Aquitian Ranger waved her in.

She entered the wide, windowless chamber, and joined Aura just out of range of the screen's video pickup. "What's going on?" Cassie asked quietly, nodding in the direction of the main screen.

She'd never seen an Aquitian roll their eyes, but that was the impression Aura gave nonetheless. "I am not sure I know anymore," the other girl answered, just as quietly. "Ever since the Inner Alliance started to come together, they spend as much time arguing over that as they do about the Defense."

"I thought Zordon was in charge of the Alliance," Cassie said, glancing over at where the interdimensional being was transferring data to Cetaci's console readout.

"He leads it," Aura agreed. "But Zordon, for all his experience, is not and has never been a fighter pilot. He is not a suitable field commander, and I believe today's 'discussion'--" she shot a look in Saryn's general direction, leaving no doubt as to what she meant, "began when they attempted to agree on someone to fill that position."

Cassie watched the two argue, knowing Saryn wasn't as calm as he looked. She could feel his frustration, and was thankful that Cestria had been teaching her how to keep his emotions from overwhelming hers.

"They're two different forces, and they should stay that way," Tobin insisted, and Cassie saw Saryn shift. She could tell from his stance that that had been the last straw.

"I wish to have Linnse's opinion," he said, voice even.

"What!" Tobin stared at him from the screen. "She has enough on her mind right now. You can't ask her to take sides on something this trivial."

Cassie took a deep breath, trying to remember what Cestria had told her. "You are a separate entity--concentrate on your own sensations as far as possible, distancing yourself from his."

"It is not trivial," Saryn ground out. "The Defense will continue to be pushed back until there is no frontier left to defend. If we do not cooperate now, the Inner Alliance will be left to throw Dark Spectre's forces back alone. Tobin, I do not ask that they merge, I only ask that they work together in some way!"

Tobin folded his arms. "The Alliance is weak and disorganized. We can't afford to spend our time training them to work with each other while our homes are destroyed."

"We can't afford *not* to," Saryn shot back. "I call on Linnse to do her duty as third party and settle this dispute."

Tobin looked, if anything, irritated. "Fine. I'll call her from the launch bay."

He reached forward, and the screen greyed out, the words "Transmission paused" flickering across the bottom. Saryn drew in a deep breath, and Cassie found herself echoing him. Aura glanced sideways at her but said nothing.

Saryn turned to her at last, stopping at the comm control panel to put the screen on standby before he joined her and Aura. She knew he was smiling, despite his argument with Tobin, and she smiled back. "Morning," she offered. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Aura move a discreet distance away.

"Good morning," he replied, and she could indeed hear the smile in his tone. "Did you sleep well?"

She nodded, glancing back toward the main screen. "Yes--which is more than I can say for some, apparently. Trouble with the Inner Alliance?"

He sighed, leaning against the console beside her. "The Inner League fighters are not the problem," he muttered, and under his breath she heard him add, "for once."

She tried not to smile, knowing how annoyed he was with the new Alliance's lack of cohesiveness as a fighting unit. "The problem," he continued, "is finding someone with the experience and skill to organize them."

"You have someone in mind?" she guessed.

He nodded. "There is a wing commander among the Frontier Defense who could undertake such a task. Lesris Tari manages his own squadron incredibly effectively, and has the tact necessary for dealing with such varied cultures as those that have been brought together in this Alliance. Unfortunately, Tobin thinks Defense members are more urgently needed where they are--*all* Defense members, no matter how suited for other tasks they might be."

*Stalemate,* Cassie thought to herself. Saryn was the most stubborn person she knew, and it sounded like Tobin had a little too much in common with him. No wonder Saryn had asked for Linnse--Cassie suspected she had been the tiebreaker in numerous similar confrontations over the years.

"Is Tobin right?" she asked gently.

His head tilted sharply, and she thought he had just given her a startled look. "I--" He stopped. "No," he said at last. "No, he is not right. We cannot continue as we have. The Defense could not stop Eltare's fall, and the frontier is crumbling. If the Alliance is not organized to support the Defense, the rest of the League will follow Eltare."

She smiled a little. "That's what you have to tell Tobin, then. Or Linnse--she's more likely to listen than he is. The Defense isn't enough alone; and if something doesn't change, they're going to have that forcibly proven to them."

He sighed. "That's what worries me. I do not wish to lose another world before they are convinced. But they have already lost their home, and Tobin is reluctant to agree to something that he sees as a division of forces, rather than an augmentation."

"Don't let them guilt you into this," she said softly, only barely keeping herself from saying his name. "They're not the only ones who've lost a home."

He looked away. Linnse and Tobin knew perfectly well who the Phantom Ranger was. Years ago, they had both been Eltaran Rangers, part of the team sent to support Elisia against Dark Spectre. Tobin had led the Rangers that forced Dark Spectre off Saryn's planet, and Linnse had saved the life of the only surviving Elisian Ranger.

"They will not," he answered. "Tobin is too caught up in the frontier to see what is happening to the rest of the League, but I am hoping Linnse will understand how much more than the Defense is at stake here."

She sighed. "No flying this morning, huh?" she assumed, smiling to show she didn't mind.

His head turned toward her again. "If you can forgive me, no," he said apologetically. "I do not know how long this is going to take."

"It's all right," she assured him. She was disappointed, yes--not only were their morning flights the only time she could positively count on seeing him, but they were addictive in and of themselves.

On her third day on Aquitar, he had asked, seemingly out of nowhere, if she would like to try piloting a starfighter again. The offer had surprised her, but, remembering the freedom and smooth control of his small craft, she had agreed eagerly. They had gone out every morning since, leaving Aquitar's atmosphere only when he was satisfied that whatever bizarre instinct she had relied on in sector 439 was now accompanied by some amount of skill.

"The Aquitian fighter wing launches in an hour and a half," Billy commented from somewhere behind her right shoulder. She hadn't even noticed him come in. "They're just doing some training drills, and I was planning to join them--you're welcome to come with us, Cassie."

Her eyes widened. "I can't do that!"

Saryn did not answer, so she turned to Billy. "I mean, I'm flattered that you offered, but I can't fly with a fighter wing."

Billy shrugged, smiling at her. "Why not?"

"Because…" She gestured helplessly. "There's so many other people! I'm lucky when I can get my ship to do what Sa--Phantom's is doing, let alone twenty others…"

"It wouldn't be anything difficult," Billy assured her, not even blinking at her near slip. "Like I said, it's just some training drills. You can slave your ship to mine if it gets too tricky."

She hesitated, glancing at Saryn again. He disapproved. She could feel it. But he still said nothing, and she didn't want to ask him why in front of everyone else. And Billy was going…

"All right," she said, knowing she would always wonder what it would have been like if she didn't go. "Thanks, Billy."

"No problem," he said. "You'll want to eat first, though, if you haven't already. We could be out there for several hours."

She took a deep breath, wondering *what* she was getting into. "I will. Where should I meet you?"

"Actually, I'll join you for breakfast, if you want company," he offered. "*I* haven't had anything to eat--I just came up to see if Delphinius was here."

"Delphinius is in the mess hall," Cetaci said without looking up from her console. "He plans to fly with the fighters this morning as well."

"Thanks, Cetaci," Billy answered. She did not acknowledge his thanks, but he didn't seem to expect her to. Instead, he just cocked his head at Cassie.

"Sure," she said, hoping he would explain what was going on once they were away from the others. She shot one more look in Saryn's direction, and he lifted his head as though he had not expected her to catch him watching.

"Be careful," was all he said.

She nodded, not understanding his reticence. "See you later," she offered, before following Billy out into the hall.

Shaking her head, she reminded herself to corner him about it later. Lengthening her stride to match Billy's, she asked quietly, "What was Cetaci so upset about?" The Aquitians were not as expressive as humans, but she was learning to read them.

Billy glanced over his shoulder as they walked toward the mess hall. "She doesn't like Delphinius flying with the fighters," he told her, his voice low. "Cetaci would rather he stayed in the command center with the other Rangers--she thinks it's safer."

"But you don't," Cassie pointed out.

"Cestria understands," he said with a small smile. There was no time for further conversation as they approached the open doors of the mess hall.

Delphinius was there, of course, calmly finishing his own breakfast. "Greetings," he said politely, as they joined him.

"Greetings to you, my friend," Billy answered, setting a tray down across from the Black Aquitian Ranger. Cassie sat next to him, wondering how long it had taken him to become accustomed to this food.

"You might want to stay away from the control room for a little while," Billy advised, digging into his meal with far too much enthusiasm, in Cassie's opinion. "At least until this afternoon."

Delphinius gave him a flat look that Cassie was starting to interpret as exasperated. "She is upset."

Billy nodded. "She's not talking to anyone except Zordon--although when I asked where you were, she did answer me. Grudgingly."

Delphinius set the utensil in his hand down carefully. "I have not flown with the fighters for weeks. Cetaci has no reason to complain."

Cassie kept her eyes on her tray, certain this was not something she should get involved in. She saw Billy shrug out of the corner of her eye. "She's just worried about you, you know," he said quietly.

The other Rangers' shoulders were tense. "I just--" He stopped abruptly. "I will go talk to her."

Billy reached out and put a hand on his tray to stop him. "Aura and Phantom are the only ones up there now. You know Aura can deal with her, and Phantom won't notice anyway. Maybe you should just let her be for a while."

"No." Delphinius got to his feet, removing Billy's hand from his tray. "This is not necessary. I will meet you at the launch bay."

Billy nodded, and Delphinius stopped only to return his tray before leaving the mess hall, as close to stalking as Cassie had ever seen him. She dared a glance in Billy's direction, and he shrugged at her. "They…" He seemed to consider his wording. "The two of them were involved until Cetaci was chosen to be a Ranger. Lately they've been having--difficulties."

"Because he flies?" Cassie asked, curious but not sure she should pry.

Billy shook his head. "He used to be a regular part of the wing, but he stopped flying so much after he joined the Rangers. And then when she became a Ranger, I think she tried to make him stop altogether. They're--I think it's as much an authority issue as anything else."

"Oh," Cassie said, realizing the problem. Delphinius had been a Ranger first, but Cetaci was the leader. Who obeyed whom…

She was silent for a moment, wondering if her friends would ever have that problem. The Astro team wasn't that structured--frankly, they all disobeyed Andros on a regular basis. His word wasn't the be all and end all of any given situation, and he didn't try to insist that it be that way. She supposed that was the difference that made Andros' and Ashley's relationship work where Delphinius' and Cetaci's was struggling.

Billy paused, glancing over at her. "I know you don't always eat breakfast, but wing drills do take a lot of energy…"

She looked at him nervously. "What did I agree to, exactly?"

"Nothing you can't change your mind about," he assured her. "But I honestly don't think it will be that hard for you. I monitored two of the flights you and Phantom took, and unless your ship was slaved to his, you can handle a fighter well enough to do this."

"It wasn't," she said, taking a deep breath and looking at her tray. "And maybe I can… but what if I *can't*? What if I throw the rest of the wing off?"

He smiled. "First, you shouldn't be able to throw them off. If one of our own can do that, how effective do you think they'd be against Dark Spectre?

"Second, you *can*. Phantom must have taught you well, because it took me weeks to learn to fly the way you do. You don't have anything to worry about."

She nodded once, spearing a small, unidentifiable object on her tray. His words reassured her to some degree--and she really did want to fly. Actually, what she really wanted to do was fly with Saryn, but failing that, there was no question that this would take her mind off of him…

Billy seemed to sense her distraction, and he let her eat in silence until she spoke again. She asked how he had started flying with the wing, and he was quite willing to tell her while she finished her breakfast.

At last, pushing her tray away from her, she asked, "So isn't it going to seem a little strange for an Earth Ranger to just show up and ask to fly with an Aquitian fighter wing?"

Looking up, she caught his slightly amused glance, and she blushed. "Well--but you're different. And you're an Aquitian Ranger, besides."

He smiled. "It won't be so strange. Any Aquitian pilot can be called on to join the fighter wing during an attack, so almost everyone here who can fly flies with the wing from time to time, just to stay in practice. The regular wing is used to having other pilots join them--especially during training drills."

She shook her head, looking over at him. "I'm still glad you're going to be there," she told him honestly. "I don't think I'd dare, if you weren't."

Billy gave her a sympathetic look. "I know what it's like, believe me. All this can seem overwhelming at first."

She nodded emphatically. About to speak, she paused when she saw him tilt his head to the side and frown. "Aura says I'm needed in the control room," he remarked, obviously puzzled. "Excuse me for a minute?"

She must have looked worried, for he put a hand on her shoulder reassuringly. "I'll meet you outside the launch bay. I promise."

"Right," Cassie said, taking a deep breath. "See you there."

He nodded, picking up his tray and heading for the door. He dropped it off before he left, and she followed suit more slowly. What if there was some crisis, something that kept him from joining the wing? Would she have the courage to walk into the launch bay and ask to fly?

She supposed she wouldn't know until and unless it came to that. Touching her morpher, she teleported out of the command center dome. The world that rematerialized around her was one she had visited frequently with Saryn--but this was the first time she'd been to the launch bay alone.

Glancing around uncomfortably, she leaned up against the wall and waited for Billy to reappear. It seemed an interminable amount of time, but finally a blue water molecule shape teleported into the hall beside her, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

Billy looked like he couldn't decide whether to be annoyed or amused. "I couldn't help noticing that Zordon was mysteriously absent just now," he said wryly. "Otherwise, I seriously doubt even Phantom would have done that."

Cassie frowned. "Done what?"

"He had Aura ask me to come to the control room. Aura and Cestria can broadcast to anyone, telepathic or not, and they usually coordinate team movements. But they're not really allowed into our heads unless it directly relates to Ranger business…"

"But what did--Phantom want?" Cassie asked, more confused than before. It was getting harder and harder to think of him as "Phantom", and she caught herself just in time.

Billy gave her a wry look. "He just wanted to express his displeasure in my suggestion that you fly with the fighter wing. He also mentioned something along the lines of, 'if anything happens to her, do not bother coming back.'"

Cassie stared at him in astonishment. Not knowing what to respond to first, she found herself speechless.

Billy just shook his head at her expression. "If you ever had any doubt about his feelings for you," he said, more quietly but still with a hint of amusement in his expression, "Don't."

"But--" That was all she could manage, before Billy gestured her toward the launch bay.

"We should go. Darian is the wing commander, and he doesn't appreciate tardiness."

From there on, the morning was a blur. Billy introduced her to the wing commander as a visiting Ranger from his home planet, thereby avoiding the discomfort involved in originally explaining her presence to the Aquitian Rangers. Darian let her take the same fighter she had been flying with Saryn, and the fact that she and Billy could morph instead of donning flight suits gave them the few extra minutes they needed for him to explain slaving to her.

Confident she could link her ship's computer to his if she had to, Cassie started the preflight with the rest of the wing. The routine Saryn had taught her got her through it, and soon the bay doors were opening to let the starfighters stream out. The tense seconds while she waited for her turn were the last moments she had to think until the fighters returned to the bay.

(flight of anger)

She stared down at the console in front of her, not registering the datastream that had been displayed there for some time now. She suspected Zordon had restarted it before he left, no doubt realizing that she hadn't been paying attention the first time through, but it hadn't done any good. She wasn't absorbing any more of it now than she had before.

With a fierce scowl that the datastream didn't deserve, she slapped the console with her palm and turned away. Intending to join Aura on the other side of the control room, she was brought up short by someone standing directly in her way.

"I wish you wouldn't do that," she growled, irritated that he had managed to startle her. It was a horribly annoying habit of his, that of sneaking up behind people and trying to get them to walk into him. "Get out of my way."

"Go around," he countered. "What I do in my off hours is no concern of yours, Cetaci."

"You came all the way up here to tell me that?" She glared at him. "You'll be late for your precious fighter training."

"What does it matter to you?" he demanded. "The fighters have never been anything but a second rate defense force in your eyes. I would be better off spending my time in the dome, indulging in your ridiculous drills."

"At least then you'd be doing your job," she retorted. "Instead you go thrill-seeking in a craft you will never fly in battle. It is a waste of time."

"My flight experience is no waste," he told her, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "Zaal is quite pleased with my competence. I am told the same can not be said of all the zord pilots."

"The Power imparts the necessary skills as soon as one morphs," she said stiffly. "As you have so often found in hand-to-hand combat sims."

"If you flew as often as I participated in combat sims, I would not worry half so much." His tone was as cold as hers. "Power-enhanced abilities are no substitute for practical experience."

"Which you don't gain in a fighter wing!" she insisted stubbornly.

"How would you know?" he inquired, the calm tone belied by his dark expression. He took every insult to the fighters personally. "As your own experience is sorely lacking, I see no reason for you to judge the validity of mine. When you learn to control Mireth I will give more weight to your words."

"Excuse me." Aura's voice intruded before she could retaliate. The Red Ranger had her back to them, but she had lifted her head from the console in front of her to stare at the wall instead. "I do not wish to intrude, but we are not the only ones attempting to work in the control room."

She glanced over to see the Phantom Ranger watching them wordlessly, his expression inscrutable behind his visor. The grey of a paused transmission still hung ominously on the main screen, and she frowned to cover her embarrassment. "Go play hero with your wingmates," she muttered, turning away from Delphinius to glower at the console again.

His voice slammed into her mind the moment she looked away. *Not until you listen!*

Her eyes widened at the sudden intrusion. There had been a time when she welcomed his voice in her mind, but now she couldn't believe his audacity. She whirled on him, seething. "Do not speak to me in that fashion! That is no longer your prerogative!"

His expression froze, and they stared at each other without another word for a long moment. He wasn't going to leave. She wasn't sure why not, but finally she gave a curt nod toward the door.

He spoke as soon as the door closed behind them, isolating them in the relative privacy of the hallway. "I apologize for my action." His spoken voice was suddenly strange to her ears. "I did not realize we had grown so far apart that my thoughts were abhorrent to you."

She stared at him, trying to read anything into his impassively formal apology. "Are you surprised? You called me inept in front of the entire control room!"

"You have done no less to me!"

"You cannot deny that I was provoked," she snapped.

His neutral expression gone, he looked nothing short of incredulous. "I could say the same! I didn't start this!"

"You sought me out," she shot back. "Did you come here for the sole purpose of mocking me, or do you have a better reason for delaying the launch of the entire fighter wing?"

"I fail to comprehend how you can blame me for this argument!" he exclaimed. "I only came here to tell you to stop making everyone else miserable on my account!"

"There were no complaints until you arrived," she informed him. "Go back to your ridiculously dangerous pastime and leave me to do our job."

"I am *not* on duty this morning," he ground out. "Stop implying that I am shirking my responsibility!"

"As long as you stay alive, you are not," she agreed darkly.

He stared at her so long that she wondered what he could possibly be holding back, then turned on his heel without another word and strode for the door. Just before it would have opened, though, he paused and muttered, "I never thought you were inept."

He disappeared into the control room before she could reply. She was left to stare after him, fingers clenching tighter and tighter until she couldn't stand it anymore. With a low growl, she slammed her fist into the wall.

The stinging numbness in her hand was a welcome relief from the angry, swirling thoughts in her head. At least the pain was something she could definitively feel, something that needed no more explanation than what she already had. She shook her hand out and stalked out of the hallway in his wake.

"Lesris Tari will command the Inner League fighters," Linnse announced reluctantly. "If that is his wish," she added, glancing at Saryn.

Saryn closed his eyes, knowing they couldn't see the gesture. He should feel relief, he knew, but it was all he could do to keep his mind off of the fighter wing in orbit far above the citydomes. "If that is his wish," he agreed.

"I will speak with him before tomorrow," Tobin said. The time for arguing was over, and he knew it. They had decided, and now it was up to him to carry out the plan.

A console on the far side of the control room chimed quietly, and he tried to ignore it. Cassie would kill him if she found out he was tracking her whereabouts. Aura had disappeared at least an hour prior, but Cetaci did not look up at the noise.

"I leave it to you, then," he told them, his voice as even as he could make it. "Thank you Linnse, Tobin."

They each nodded to him, even as he reached out to break the comm link. He knew it was an abrupt end to their conversation, but he had no doubt that he would be speaking to them again very soon, and they all needed time to calm down.

Besides which, he needed to know where Cassie was.

The readout tracing the Pink Astro Ranger would not have escaped Zordon's notice--if he had been in the control room. Fortunately, he had left for one of the research domes several hours ago, and showed no sign of returning before the end of the day.

The fighter wing had returned to the launch bay. He had to stop himself from breathing a sigh of relief. He had had the worst premonition as soon as Billy mentioned the wing, as though something awful and irreversible would happen to her as soon as she was out of his sight.

He had known it was ridiculous--aside from the Rangers, there was probably no other group of people who would keep her safer than those that made up Aquitar's fighting wing--and he had not voiced his concern. But he had been unable to shake the feeling, and it had stayed with him all morning.

The sense of dread finally abated at the knowledge that the starfighters had returned to the planet's surface, and he busied himself at the comm console. Today's complaints from the Inner League fighters were as trivial and numerous as always, and as usual, he was behind in responding to them.

He remained aware of the time, however, and he could feel concern creeping back into his mind the longer the control room stayed empty of all but himself and Cetaci. He had expected to see Cassie, full of enthusiasm as always after a flight, burst into the control room shortly after her return.

As the minutes ticked by, he couldn't help wondering if anyone would have thought to tell him if something had gone wrong. Billy would probably not have introduced her in any way that related to him--but Billy would have contacted him. Wouldn't he?

Glancing over his shoulder, he noted Cetaci scanning the patrol readouts from the outer solar system. Bypassing the voice command, he entered a request for Cassie's location directly into the computer system--and was relieved, if a little surprised, to find her in their room.

He hesitated, but as had happened so often in the past few days, he failed to convince himself that the Inner Alliance was more important than she was. Saving the messages he'd been going through, he turned away from the comm console and headed out into the hallway where the Rangers' quarters were located.

He knocked softly on his own door before entering. Cassie was seated on the floor inside, stretching. She had her headphones on, but she looked up as the door opened, and he let his armor fade away. She smiled, pulling her headphones off and murmuring, "Hey."

She was all right… He couldn't help staring, feeling a smile curve his lips as he looked at her. What had he ever done to deserve someone like her? And *why* had she waited for him?

"Are you all right?" Cassie asked, pushing her walkman aside and moving to stand up. She winced, though, and he motioned to her to stay where she was.

"I am well--what's wrong?" he wanted to know, sitting down beside her.

She grimaced. "I am *so* sore. After that battle simulation yesterday, I probably shouldn't have spent all morning sitting in a cockpit…" She rubbed her legs for emphasis, and he couldn't resist.

Gently pushing her hands away, he started to massage her calf muscles. She closed her eyes, sighing, and he asked, "Did you enjoy flying with the wing?"

She nodded, not opening her eyes. "Yeah. It was cool--not as hard as I expected."

"The training drills are only meant to keep pilots acquainted with their craft's abilities," he felt compelled to tell her. "The battle simulations are much harder, as are the scrimmages."

"Oh, thanks," she said wryly. "Your faith in me is amazing."

"That is not what I meant," he assured her, easing her sandals off and rubbing her feet. She inhaled sharply, opening her eyes to smile at him. He spoke quickly to distract himself from the warmth of her skin and the look on her face. "I only thought you might want to know… I could not keep myself from worrying about you this morning."

He had not meant to say that. He knew his fear for her was unjustified, even as he knew his jealousy of every man she spent time with was ridiculous. But she was everything to him. Without her, he would have no reason to go on.

"Why?" she asked, leaning forward to touch his face. "I wanted to ask you earlier--you didn't want me to go with the wing. Why?"

He shook his head, looking down. "I… It just did not feel right. I do not know why."

"How?" Cassie insisted. "Like you just didn't like it, or like there was really something wrong?"

He tried not to sigh in frustration. Pressing his fingers against her feet, he shook his head again. "I do not know."

She reached out and covered his hands with hers. "Saryn, that feels really good, but you have to stop if we're going to talk," she said with a small smile. "I can't concentrate."

He looked up, catching his breath at how close her face was and sorry he had said anything. *I will *not* kiss her,* he thought firmly. Her bare feet brushed against his hands as she pulled them closer, sitting cross-legged in front of him.

"It's just… you have good instincts," she said softly, glancing down. "But you're a little overprotective--I was wondering which this was."

"If I am overprotective," he murmured, stroking her hair away from her face, "it is only because I could never live without you."

"Is it just that?" she asked, studying him. "Because if you really don't want me to fly with them…"

"Just that?" he repeated gently, a chuckle escaping. He knew there was no way he could tell her not to fly with the fighter wing. He had no right to ask her to give up something she had obviously enjoyed, just because it worried him. "Just the fact that your life is more important to me than my own?"

Her expression had softened. "I love to hear you laugh," she whispered, reaching up to capture the hand that was still playing with her hair.

He couldn't stand it anymore. Her tender look stole the last of his resolve, and he leaned forward to kiss her. She closed her eyes, tilting her head toward him, and his heart was racing as their lips touched. It was all he could do to let the kiss end naturally, instead of pulling her close and kissing her until neither of them had any breath left.

She didn't seem to think that would be such a bad idea, though, and he was only too willing to let her draw him into a warm embrace. How could he have gone all morning without her touch, he wondered, even as her kiss erased the question from his mind.

So the League was finally rallying. The League worlds were coming together to form a fighting alliance without precedent in an organization where every planet took care of itself. Rangers, yes, planetary fighter wings, yes, but an intergalactic alliance of fighters? It had never been done.

*And it will never last,* the girl thought, gazing out her window at the blue-green world below. The League was based on compromise, where the forces of evil answered to absolute authority. Negotiation could never build an empire to rival Dark Spectre's.

Besides which, worlds like Earth would always be vulnerable. The League's policy of non-interference with technologically disadvantaged worlds left hundreds of planets with inferior protection. The fact that Earth itself refused to fall was an anomaly, a result of its irregular contact with stronger worlds--and Zordon's own intervention.

She grimaced at the thought of Zordon. That meddling Eltaran had turned an easy target into a source of constant irritation for the side of evil. Once off Earth, he had been surprisingly easy to capture, but the team he had broken all League rules to create had come for him, and the interdimensional being was once again free.

She lifted her gaze away from the unconquerable planet, staring out of this galaxy and into the next. Rumor had it that Zordon was now on Aquitar. Aquitar--another weak world, despite its technology. The water planet avoided fighting with as much determination as evil avoided love, and it had managed to duck out of more disputes than she cared to count.

That, too, would not last. Where Zordon went, evil would follow, until that ancient power became Dark Spectre's prisoner once more. Aquitar, so deep inside League territory, had been allowed to escape the full force of evil's wrath for many hundreds of years. The planet did not remember what war truly was, and there was no way they would survive a direct attack.

At least, they would not now. Given enough time, Zordon might be able to strengthen that planet's defenses the same way he had Earth's. Evil had to strike before he had the chance--and yet Dark Spectre ordered her to remain in Earth orbit, tormenting the Earth Rangers but making no appreciable dent in their forces.

She clenched her fingers around her staff. The Monarch of evil was punishing her for Zordon's escape. And it was costing his armies a valuable opening. The chance to attack Aquitar before it was prepared to defend itself was one they could not afford to let pass.

With Eltare under Dark Spectre's control, it was only a matter of time before the League found a new planet from which to focus their counterattack--and if Zordon was where rumor said he was, that planet could very well be the Aquitian homeworld. It needed to be subdued before it could mount any substantial resistance.

A flicker of violet played around her fingers as she turned. If she was the only one who could see that, then so be it. Dark Spectre was not the omniscient, all-powerful being Ecliptor made him out to be. He had failings, just like everyone else, and this blind spot with regard to Aquitar was one of them. She would see that his mistake was remedied.

And if she happened to make a name for herself in the process, so much the better. Dark Spectre had threatened her one too many times. Fear was fine for keeping the lower forms of life in line--if quantrons could even be considered alive, which she doubted--but it was unacceptable for one such as her. Though she had shared it with no one, not even Ecliptor, she was determined to prove herself, at the very least, Dark Spectre's equal.

*I refuse to hear "I will crush the Dark Fortress while you sleep" one more time,* she vowed. One way or another, she would free herself from his tyranny.

She stalked away from the observation window, knowing Ecliptor would be in the engine room. The Dark Fortress would leave Earth orbit, bound for Aquitar, very soon--but there was something she *would* finish first.

Her locket. If those Aquitians had turned it over to the Earth Rangers, she would get it back before she left this planet.

"Ecliptor!" She strode into the engine room, her eye falling on the dark shadow of her bodyguard.

He looked up the instant she called. "Yes, my princess?"

The girl tossed her azure locks over her shoulder with a twist of her head. "We need to find a monster."

2. My Name Is

"Astronema's been pretty quiet the last few days," Zhane was telling him. "I don't think you have anything to worry about."

Andros himself was very close to fidgeting. Truth to tell, he wouldn't mind if Astronema *did* choose tonight to attack. Ashley had invited him to some party with her high school class, and somehow he didn't think he was going to fit in very well. Not to mention the fact that he still wasn't used to crowds…

His best friend put a hand on his shoulder. "Andros--" Suddenly, something behind Andros caught Zhane's attention, and the Silver Ranger whistled.

"Shut up, Zhane," Ashley's voice said cheerfully. "Ready to go, Andros?"

He turned, and the words caught in his throat. She had changed her clothes since he saw her earlier--now Ashley wore short jean shorts and a yellow top that crossed her chest twice but did nothing to hide her tanned midriff. With her hair braided into two pigtails, she looked more casual than her normal style of dress appeared, but no less breathtaking.

"Should I have changed?" he asked hesitantly, but she shook her head.

"No, you look great," she assured him, coming onto the Bridge. With a warm smile, she added, "As always. Besides, guys just have to look presentable. It's the girls who try to outdo each other--but you're not supposed to look like you're trying."

Holding her arms out to her sides, she twirled around. "Did I succeed?"

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Zhane nod appreciatively, but Ashley was waiting for his reaction. "You look beautiful," Andros managed. "As always," he added quickly, and he tried not to swallow as she took his arm.

He hadn't seen her wear something this revealing since they'd last gone swimming, and he'd had a hard enough time keeping his eyes off of her when he had the others to distract him. He had no idea how he was going to do it tonight, when she was his date and there would only be two other people he knew there.

"Thank you," she said happily, tugging him toward the Bridge doors. "Have a good night, Zhane!"

"You too," he answered, with a knowing grin for Andros. "Enjoy yourselves."

The warm night breeze whispered across her bare skin, and the stars twinkled down from an almost cloudless cobalt sky. With Andros' arm linked through hers and the way he had looked at her on the Bridge, they couldn't walk slowly enough for Ashley.

She was almost sorry when they found themselves outside the Surf Spot, its doors open, spilling music and light out onto the pavement. Her senior class--it was still odd to think of herself as a senior--had planned an end of the summer get-together practically since school had let out. Over the months of vacation, the gathering had somehow turned into a dance party that they had conned Adelle into letting them use the Surf Spot for, and normally she would be looking forward to such a thing.

But she knew it wasn't really Andros' style, and her suspicions were confirmed when he paused on the sidewalk outside. "Ash…"

"Yeah?" she answered immediately, searching his expression. If he didn't want to go, they could just as easily--

"I just wanted to tell you how nice you look," he said, interrupting her thought and making her blink in surprise. "You're not--" He smiled a little to show he was teasing. "You're not trying to impress anyone, are you?"

She smiled in return. "Just you," she said lightly, giving him a quick kiss.

"It's working," he replied softly. Then he glanced over his shoulder at the doors to the Surf Spot, and she could feel him take a deep breath. "So, are we going in?"

A little concerned, Ashley told him, "You know, we don't have to go if you don't want to. I know crowds aren't your thing…"

Andros hesitated. "I'll let you know," he said at last, and she nodded. That was probably as close to an admission as he would give, and she promised herself that she would keep an eye on him. The moment he looked like he would rather be somewhere else, they'd leave, no matter what he said.

"All right," she agreed, squeezing his arm. He smiled at her, and they strolled into Adelle's establishment together.

"We're not taking your car."

Carlos looked at her in surprise. "Why not?"

He could have sworn Karen smirked at him. "Because my car has a better stereo system. And besides, I'm driving, and if I crash, I don't want to do it in your car."

"Are you planning to crash?" Carlos demanded, and she swatted him.

"Of course not. But we're still taking my car."

He felt his lips quirk, and he tried not to smile, wondering if there was some way she could get her way without it looking like he was backing down. "Only if I get to choose the music."

She hesitated. "You don't like rap, do you?"

He gave her a smug look of his own. "That would be telling."

"Darn right it would," she shot back. "And I'm not listening to rap all the way to the Surf Spot."

"The whole five minutes?" he teased, and he thought she was hard-pressed to keep a straight face. Karen folded her arms, and he relented. "No, I don't."

She breathed a mock-sigh of relief. "I'm so glad to hear that." Opening the passenger side door for him, she grinned and added, "It's a deal."

TJ stood outside the imposing brick building that was an AGU dorm, trying to figure out how to work the call box. He had tried simply punching in Tessa's number, but nothing had happened. Finally, he decided to go for the obvious, hitting the button labeled "call".

To his surprise, he got a dial tone, and this time when he punched in her number, there was a ringing sound. "Hello?" a slightly distorted voice asked, and he smiled.

"Hey, Tessa, it's TJ," he said, speaking carefully into the microphone.

"Oh, hi TJ," she answered. "I'll be right down."

"Okay…" He heard the phone click, and less than a minute later, the main door opened and Tessa gestured him inside.

"I'm not quite ready," she said apologetically. "Do you mind waiting for a few minutes?"

"Not at all," he assured her.

She led him up one flight of stairs and down the second floor hallway, pausing outside a door he'd gotten to know very well when he helped her move in two days ago. "Oh, I forgot to tell you--you don't have to speak right into the call box. It picks up your voice fine when you're just standing next to it."

"You could tell, huh?" TJ asked sheepishly. "Was it really loud?"

She smiled. "A little--but don't worry. I did it to my roommate last night; that's how I know."

She opened her door before he could apologize, and a girl he'd never seen before looked up from the far side of the room. "TJ, this is my roommate, Marie," Tessa said, gesturing between the two of them. "Marie, this is TJ."

"Nice to meet you," TJ said, just as Marie echoed him. He grinned, and Marie smiled a little. Standing up, she paced across the room and held out her hand. He took it, feeling a little awkward and suddenly much younger than the two of them.

"Tessa's told me a lot about you," Marie said, releasing his hand, and TJ shot a look in Tessa's direction.

"Mostly good things, I hope," he said, and Marie laughed.

"All good things. You two have a good time tonight," she said, and Tessa smiled in her direction.

"Thanks," she told her roommate, snapping a hair elastic around her wrist as she grabbed for her hairbrush. "You too."

Marie nodded and sat back down at her desk, turning her attention back to her computer. Tessa tugged the brush through her hair impatiently, pulling it into a high ponytail and wrapping the blue elastic around her blond hair. She tossed the brush into a bureau drawer and slipped something into her pocket before turning to TJ. "I'm all set," she told him with a smile.

He pulled the door open for her, bowing slightly, and her smile widened. "Thanks," she said, and he followed her out into the hall.

"Wow," he said quietly, as the door closed. "That room's a lot smaller for two people than it was for one."

She shook her head. "Tell me about it… But Marie and I get along all right. And the upperclassmen didn't arrive till today, so we had time to get used to each other before everyone else got here."

TJ held the stairwell door for her, too, and she thanked him again. "I thought there were a lot more people around than there were a few days ago. Man, it's weird to be the youngest one around again."

"*You* think it's weird," she said with a laugh, pushing the main door open before he could and waiting for him to step through. "*I* have to live here!"

"Thanks," he said, as the door closed behind him. "Yeah, but you're a college girl now. You're one of them," he teased, poking her playfully. "Practically an old-timer."

"I'm still younger than everyone, though," she protested, tugging the door of his uncle's truck open before he could do it for her. "Not that I'm going to tell them. I haven't even told my roommate I graduated early, and I don't plan to. On top of being a freshman, the last thing I need is to be a *young* freshman."

TJ paused, one hand on her door. "You graduated early?"

"Shh," she whispered dramatically, giggling. She sobered when she realized he was serious. "Yeah. Didn't Karen tell you?"

He shook his head. *No wonder she's in college…* She *was* his age--and the same person he had met weeks ago in another dimension.

"That's why you said you hadn't been to any of *your* class's senior activities," he realized suddenly. That had been what she told him when he said she probably wouldn't want to come to a high school party.

"Yeah," she said, smiling at him. "I thought Karen would have told you--you really didn't know?"

"Oh, well, you know who often things like that come up in conversation," he said wryly. "So when's your birthday?"

"I'll be eighteen next month," she said, and he gave her a look.

"Come on, you have to tell me what day…"

She sighed, but she was still smiling. "October 21^st."

"Great," he said, closing her door and grinning at her through the open window. "I'll remember that."

"Karen, this is Ashley," Carlos shouted, trying to make himself heard over the music.

She nodded, smiling as she reached out to shake Ashley's hand. "I've seen you around school. Nice to meet you!"

"Nice to meet you, too!" Ashley shouted back, and Karen withdrew her hand to cover both ears.

Glaring around the room, she said loudly, "If I don't go deaf from this noise, it will be a miracle."

Andros looked at Ashley, and saw her glancing at him. *I know, I know,* he heard in his mind. *"You told me so." I admitted it was loud, didn't I?*

"And this is Andros," Carlos continued. "Andros, Karen."

He shook her hand, repeating as Ashley had, "Nice to meet you."

Karen disappeared moments later, saying something about getting drinks, and Andros knew he was in trouble when Ashley turned to Carlos. "Carlos," she demanded of her friend, "you have to convince Andros to dance."

"What?" The Black Ranger stared at her. "I'm not going to dance. Why should he?"

Andros couldn't help but feel grateful. He was not as uninhibited as the teens on Adelle's impromptu dance floor, and Ashley knew it--but for some reason, she kept trying to drag him out there.

Ashley gave her friend an evil look. "Oh, yes you're going to dance. If Andros can dance, so can you."

"Andros isn't dancing," Carlos pointed out.

They might have won, if Karen hadn't picked that moment to return. Ashley caught her even as she set two paper cups down on the table. "Karen, do you plan to let Carlos sit there all evening?"

Karen looked up. "What?" she asked, and Andros couldn't tell if she really hadn't heard or if she just didn't understand.

"Are you going to make Carlos dance?" Ashley asked, louder.

Karen gave Carlos a surprised look. "You don't want to dance?"

"Well…" He struggled for a moment, giving Ashley a glare when Karen looked away.

The music was fading, and for the one brief moment when they *could* talk and be understood without shouting, no one said a word. As the strains of a softer song filled the transformed Surf Spot, Andros saw a determined look cross Ashley's face.

"Come on, Andros," she insisted, taking his hand. "Anyone can dance to a slow song."

He gave her a skeptical look. *I'm serious,* she thought at him. *You don't have to do anything--look at them.*

Andros glanced in the direction of the crush of teens on the Surf Spot's lower level. None of the pairs were doing anything more than holding onto each other and swaying back and forth. *Well…*

"Good," she said firmly, and he let her pull him to his feet. "Let's go." *If you don't like it, all you have to do is say so. But will you try it, before you decide?*

The more he watched the couples on the dance floor, the more he wondered why he was protesting. *I'm turning down a chance to hold Ashley?* he wondered to himself. *What is *wrong* with me?*

Trying not to shake his head, he smiled a little at her. *Sure. I'll try it.*

As she led him onto the dance floor, he glanced over his shoulder once. Karen was pulling a reluctant-looking Carlos to his feet, and this time Andros did shake his head. *Why do girls always win? And why don't we care?*

As Ashley turned to him, a smile on her face as she draped her arms around him, he knew the answer to both questions. "How you've changed my world you'll never know," the singer crooned, and Ashley sidled closer as he rested his hands against her back. "I'm different now; you've helped me grow…"

He made a token effort at following the shuffle of her feet, but before long he was hopelessly lost in her eyes. "I look at you, looking at me," the song continued, but he barely heard it. He pulled Ashley a little closer, and she leaned willingly against him, her head on his shoulder. "Now I know why they say the best things are free…"

Andros closed his eyes for a moment, amazed all over again by the strange twist of fate that had brought the two of them together. By all the logic of the universe, they should never have met--but here they were, somehow, in each other's arms, and he couldn't imagine how he had lived without her for so long.

"When I first saw you, I already knew, there was something inside of you--" He found himself paying no attention to the crowd around them, for once completely unselfconscious as he held her tightly and swayed with her to the gentle sound of the music. Somehow, she was all he needed. "Something I thought I'd never find, angel of mine…"

He heard the song growing quieter, but Ashley didn't move until the harsh tempo of another song started to wash over them and the couples around them started to pull apart. He didn't let her go, and she tilted her head to smile at him. *This isn't a slow song, Andros.*

His lips quirked as he stared back at her, and he was almost surprised to realize, *I don't care.*

She giggled, obviously overhearing the thought, and made no attempt to pull away. He thought they might have stayed that way, had a boy dressed in a strange combination of black and purple not gotten a little too close to Ashley. Andros frowned at him, and Ashley twisted around to see what he was looking at.

"Hey, Ashley," the boy said, putting a hand on her shoulder and leaning toward her. Andros pulled away from the intrusive presence instinctively, and Ashley followed his example. "Come on and dance with me."

"No thanks," she told him, smiling politely. "I'm with Andros."

The boy appeared only then to notice Andros' presence. His look was the closest thing to a sneer that Andros had seen on anyone from Earth yet. "Nice hair," he remarked, in a tone Andros assumed was not complimentary.

"Nice shoes," Andros replied, and the boy looked down automatically. The instant he released his grip on Ashley's shoulder, Andros pulled her away, for once grateful there was a crowd to lose themselves in.

They wound their way toward the other side of the Surf Spot's lower level, on the fringes of the "dance floor". *Sorry,* Ashley thought at him with a sigh. *That was Chad, but he's not someone you really want to be introduced to.*

*I could see that,* Andros thought, trying not to let his irritation show. *Are you all right?*

She nodded. *I'm fine. But I'm glad you were there.* She paused. *What was wrong with his shoes?*

Andros gave her an odd look. *What's wrong with my hair?*

She giggled, leaning against him again. *Absolutely nothing. I think it's beautiful.* He put his arms around her, hugging her, and she added, *but you know he's going to be wondering about his shoes for the rest of the night…*

Andros smiled, a little smugly. He was learning something about Earth culture after all. *That was the idea.*

It was late, and Zhane had almost decided to go to bed when DECA's calm warning drew his attention. "Astronema's teleportation signature has been detected on Earth."

Zhane's eyes widened. DECA couldn't detect something as subtle as a teleportation signature unless she was already scanning the area in which it occurred. And in this case, she had either gotten *really* lucky--or the teleportation had occurred near one of the Rangers, whom she would be keeping tabs on as a matter of course.

Calling up the results of her scan, Zhane found his suspicion confirmed. Astronema had teleported in the vicinity of the Surf Spot. But whether she had been coming or going was as open to question as it had been the last time this had happened, and he knew he would have to investigate.

He went instinctively to contact Andros, but he remembered just in time. Reaching for his digimorpher instead, he stopped himself there, too. *She can't have any quantrons with her,* he reasoned, knowing DECA's alarm would have sounded if such a concentration of evil energy had occurred. *Shouldn't be anything I can't handle unmorphed.*

The thought would have earned him an Andros look, had his friend overheard it. Andros liked to complain that the Silver Ranger was too cocky--while conveniently forgetting his own tendency to tackle even the most dangerous threats alone.

He touched a few controls on DECA's console, teleporting in streak of silver to the planet below. It was late enough that the streets were almost deserted, and no one noticed him emerging from the Rangers' alley behind the Surf Spot. He looked around the area quickly, but could see no sign of anything dangerous.

Pacing toward the front of the popular hangout, Zhane couldn't help peering inside. He knew Andros would have called him if there was trouble within the building, but as the intensity of the music hit him, he couldn't help but wonder if anyone in there would *notice* if something were wrong.

Something made him glance across the street, but the sidewalk was deserted, aside from a solitary figure making its way from streetlight to streetlight. He walked in that general direction, scanning the parking lot by eye and beginning to think that Astronema must have been teleporting out rather than in.

*But what was she doing here?* he couldn't help wondering. *The last quantron attack--*

His thought cut off as he the figure across the street from him entered another pool of light. The artificial illumination glinted on blond hair, and there was something about the way she walked…

*It couldn't be.* "Astrea?" he called, and wasn't surprised when the figure halted, head turning sharply in his direction.

He waved to her, and she lifted her hand a little in return. It was weird how often he'd seen her in the last few days. They seemed to bump into each other with alarming frequency, considering how large a city Angel Grove was.

Jogging across the street, Zhane smiled as he caught up to her. "Hey," he said, a little out of breath. "You like walking alone after dark, don't you?"

She just shrugged. "Things are… calmer, at night."

"They are," he agreed. *In more ways than one,* he added silently, thinking of Astronema's propensity for attacking during the daytime. "I happen to like the night better myself."

Astrea gave him an odd look. "But you're--such a person of light."

Her tone changed on the last word, and he frowned at her a little. "What do you mean?"

"Well--" She gestured at him, but did not elaborate.

He looked down. Dressed in stonewashed jeans and a white t-shirt beneath his silver vest, he supposed he wasn't exactly a picture of darkness. "Even the darkest night has moonlight and stars," he told her, flashing his most charming smile. "You're not so dark yourself."

She looked down at herself, even as he had. "I do not usually--look like this," she said finally.

Zhane shrugged. "What does it matter what we look like?" Seeing her troubled expression, he added gently, "We're all light on the inside, you know."

"How do you know?" she asked suddenly, looking up at him with a searching look.

He couldn't imagine what was bothering her, but she seemed to want a serious answer. "It's just the way life is," he said finally. "Everything living has to have both good and bad in it to exist. Just like the night," he added with a smile. "There's no night without stars, remember?"

"No day without shadows," she murmured.

"No," Zhane admitted. "You can't have one without the other. You just have to have faith that the good will win when it really matters."

She continued to regard him. "Do you have--faith?" she asked at last.

Leaning against the lightpole, he nodded quietly. "Yeah, I do, Astrea. I have faith in the good in everyone."

Resting her hand on Carlos' shoulder, Ashley leaned in between him and TJ in order to be heard. "Do either of you know where Andros went?"

TJ gave her a puzzled look. "I thought he went to find you."

In other words, no. She smiled at them, straightening up again. *Andros?* she asked silently, then made a face. She didn't have to know where he was every second…

*I'm outside,* he answered immediately. "Over by the side door.*

She patted Carlos' shoulder absently and headed toward the Surf Spot's second exit. Like the main doors, it had been propped open in a vain attempt to let some of the lingering heat of an August night escape, and she found Andros leaning against the wall outside. He was just out of line of sight from the interior, staring off toward the trees while he played with the locket that hung around his neck.

She couldn't help smiling as she stepped out to stand next to him. *Hey,* she thought gently, the mental words easier than ever after hours of using them to talk beneath the volume of the music. *You said you'd tell me if all these people started to bother you.*

He shook his head. *I'll be fine,* he promised. *I just wanted to be alone for a few minutes.*

*Do you want me to--*

"No, not you," he said suddenly and out loud. "That's not what I meant."

She smiled again, leaning up against the wall beside him. He shot a sideways glance in her direction, then, apparently satisfied that she understood, turned his gaze back toward the trees. They stood there in silence for a while, letting the peace of the night seep into them.

It was funny, Ashley thought, but suddenly the party inside Adelle's building seemed much farther away than just a few steps. They could hear the music and see the lights, but the two of them were separate somehow. Alone--yet not, for as long as they had each other.

She glanced over at Andros, still fiddling with his necklace. Tugging gently on the gold circle, he was sliding it up and down its chain--she wasn't sure he even realized he was doing it.

Reaching into her pocket, Ashley closed her fingers around the mirror image of his locket and pulled it out. He looked down in surprise as she held it out. "I never gave this back to you," she said quietly.

"You--have it with you?" he asked, meeting her gaze.

She nodded. "You never take yours off, and it didn't seem right to leave your sister's lying around somewhere. I've had it with me ever since you got it back from the Aquitians."

He regarded her for a moment, a look of wonder on his face. " I haven't worried about it since I gave it to you, Ash. It means a lot to me that you took care of it like that."

She smiled. "It's important to you, and that's enough for me."

He reached out to take it from her, but his hand stopped midgesture as he looked over his shoulder. "What's Zhane doing down here?" he asked, puzzlement in his voice, and she followed his gaze.

A white-clad figure across the parking lot and on the other side of the street raised its hand in their direction, and this time she felt the quick brush of another presence in her mind that must have tipped Andros off a moment ago.

*Yeah,* she heard Andros answer faintly. *But what are you doing here?*

"Astronema," Andros whispered a moment later, glancing around as though he would see their enemy leap out at them any second. "DECA says Astronema teleported somewhere around here a few minutes ago."

"What, is she stalking us?" Ashley muttered, unable to resist the temptation to do as he had done and survey the area.

He gave her a wry look, and she realized that that was as good a term as any. "Zhane came down to see if he could find out what was going on."

Zhane was crossing the parking lot, now, bringing someone with him. Ashley tilted her head to the side, amused as they got close enough for her to make out a pretty blond girl at his side. Leave it to Zhane to pick up a girl at any time of day or night, no matter what he was doing.

"Hi, guys," Zhane said cheerfully, obviously not concerned about the possibility of an encounter with Astronema. "This is--"

"Thief," the girl with him hissed suddenly, her gaze locking with Ashley's. "That is *not* yours."

Eyes wide, Ashley took an involuntary step backward, and found her back hard against the wall. Andros tensed at her side, glaring at this sudden threat. "Ashley's no thief," he said, no room for argument in his tone.

Without warning, the girl lunged forward, and Andros was suddenly there, blocking her path. She plowed into him, reaching for Ashley, and he grabbed her arm and twisted it behind her back.

Zhane jumped in to help, holding her other shoulder and staring from her to Ashley in complete shock. "Astrea, what are you--"

"That's *my* necklace," she spat, struggling against the both of them and still glaring at Ashley.

Ashley glanced automatically at the locket in her hand, hearing Andros say angrily, "That's my *sister's* locket. Ashley offered to keep it safe for me!"

"It's *mine*," the girl insisted, with a venomous glare for Ashley.

Ashley stared back at her, eyes narrowed as she tried to picture that face surrounded by blue hair instead of blond… "Astronema?"

"What?" Zhane exclaimed, staring at Ashley as though she'd gone completely insane. But Andros was staring at the girl, a look of utter surprise on his face.

*Zhane, look at her--really look at her.* Ashley felt the flicker that she assumed was Zhane, but the Silver Ranger did not look at the girl until she closed her eyes and shook her head, a look of distress warring with anger on her face.

*Ash, you're okay, right?* Andros asked, and she could see him watching the girl carefully, as though she might lash out at them at any moment. Which, Ashley supposed, if she really was Astronema, she might.

*STOP!* The girl stumbled a little, tossing her head violently. *Get out of my head!*

Ashley stared at her in shock, and from the look of absolute astonishment Andros and Zhane exchanged, they had heard the words as well. The girl took advantage of their distraction, jerking away from them and snatching the locket out of Ashley's grasp. Ashley cried out, and Andros leapt after the girl, but a purple outline flared briefly around her form and she vanished into a violet glow.

"Astronema," Zhane gasped, as though he had not even considered the possibility until now.

Andros was standing with his eyes closed, fingers pressed against his temples. "Andros, are you all right?" Ashley asked, concerned. She went to his side, gently touching his right hand, and his eyes fluttered open.

He was staring at the spot where the girl had vanished. "Kerone?" Andros whispered.

It couldn't be. Kerone? The sister he had spent so many years looking for, and his greatest rival--the same person? But he had *heard* her voice in his head, twice now. And he himself had told Ashley, "Kerone and Zhane were the only ones I could ever hear in my head, before you."

And there was no doubt Kerone's locket meant something to her. She had taken on both him and Zhane to get it back, not to mention risking Ashley's rather formidable fighting skills. But *Astronema*…

"Hey," Ashley said quietly. "It's going to be all right."

He nodded a little, pulling her into a hug. His mind was still racing, but it was nice to have someone to lean on for once. Her strength caught him up, reminding him of who he was in the face of his sudden uncertainty.

She squirmed a little, reaching her hand out to Zhane, and he loosened his grip on her to let her pull his friend closer. "Zhane, where did you meet her?" Ashley asked. There was no reproach in her voice, just genuine curiosity.

Zhane shrugged helplessly, still looking a little lost. "I've been seeing her all around town ever since we got here. I guess the first time was that night in the park…"

He trailed off, and Ashley turned her head to regard him again. "No," he said, as though he didn't want to believe. "That night in the park--when DECA picked up Astronema's teleportation signal. Just like tonight. I came down to warn you… and I found her."

"Astronema," Ashley supplied, but Zhane shook his head.

"*Astrea*," he said. "I know what Astronema looks like--that's not her."

Andros watched his friend trying to deny it. He didn't understand why Zhane would care so much. If Astronema's identity was in question, it was as Kerone, not this "Astrea"--obviously an assumed persona.

"What about Kerone?" Ashley asked quietly, voicing the thoughts Andros couldn't find the words for. "If you can't accept that she's Astronema… do you think she could be Kerone?"

She *was* Astronema. Her sudden and characteristic teleportation had erased any doubt from his mind. She must have some way to appear human--or was that her true form?

He was struck by the sudden thought. His sister was no longer eight years old. She would have grown up, even as he had. He wasn't looking for a little girl anymore; he was looking for someone nearly the same age as he was. *Has Kerone been right in front of me, all this time?*

"I--I don't know," Zhane said finally, reflecting Andros' own confusion. "Maybe."

"That would at least explain how she could talk in my head like that," Ashley said her gaze back to Andros. "Right?"

He started to agree, but stopped before he could say anything. "You heard her?" Andros demanded instead. When she nodded, he looked over at Zhane.

"Me too," the Silver Ranger agreed. "'Stop' and 'get out of my head'."

"That's what I heard," Ashley agreed. "She must have been hearing you talking to us, Andros."

"Wait--you can hear me, too?" Zhane asked, staring at her.

Ashley shook her head, hair brushing Andros' shoulder. "No, just Andros. And--her. But I can hear Andros even when he's talking to you; that's how I knew."

Zhane shot Andros a look. "You could have told me," he muttered.

Andros just shrugged a little, grateful for the distraction. "You didn't ask," he said. He watched with some small amount of amusement as his friend tried to remember all of their recent conversations, and what Ashley might have overheard.

"What about her?" Ashley asked suddenly. "If I can't hear Zhane, I *really* shouldn't be able to hear her."

"That was *loud*," Zhane said quickly, apparently willing to move on. "How could anyone *not* have heard it?*

"She has to be Kerovan," Andros murmured. "She has to be *Kerone*--as hard as it is to believe."

"She did want that necklace back," Ashley said quietly.

Zhane just shook his head. "This is really *weird*, you guys."

Ashley giggled as Zhane's vehement and somewhat irreverent comment lightened the tension a little. "So what do we do now?" she asked, looking at Andros. "If she's Kerone--she can't really be evil, can she?"

"No," Zhane interrupted firmly. "She's not. I've talked to her, not as Astronema, and she isn't evil. She's just--confused."

"I would be, too," Ashley offered quietly. "She's lived as much of her life with evil as she has with good. How does she know what's right?"

"She knows," Andros murmured. "She *has* to. She's just… forgotten, maybe."

"Then she'll remember," Ashley declared, tightening her arm around him for a second. He saw her squeeze Zhane's hand, too, and he smiled inadvertently, recognizing her determination to cheer them up. "When it counts, she'll be on the right side."

"I told her something like that earlier," Zhane admitted, with a small smile of his own.

"See?" Ashley seemed to take that as evidence in and of itself. "That's because it's true. Let's go back inside--we'll have plenty of time for brooding later.

"You too, Zhane," she added, as Andros reflected that he could not imagine Ashley brooding. "No one should be alone tonight."

"Hey, how come you always win?" Zhane demanded suspiciously, and Ashley couldn't help laughing. Next to her, Tessa was trying not to giggle, and Ashley felt Andros squeeze her shoulder in amusement.

Glancing up at him, she smiled, and he grinned back at her. TJ was trying to teach Zhane to arm-wrestle, of all things, and the Silver Ranger wasn't very good at it.

"Hey, Lindsay!" TJ yelled suddenly, gesturing toward someone Ashley didn't recognize. Somehow, even over the pounding music, she must have heard him, for the dark-haired girl looked up and started in his direction.

"Here, have a seat," TJ invited. "You can watch me beat Zhane again."

"Hey!" Zhane exclaimed. Intent on the girl now joining them, Ashley might not have noticed the flash in her mind if she hadn't been listening for Andros.

Feeling Andros shift, she looked back at him to see him stifling laughter. She tilted her head at him, and he told her, *He said, ''stupid Earth game.''*

Ashley giggled. Zhane must have heard her, because he glanced in her direction before glaring at Andros. "Come on," TJ said. "You have to get better at this, Zhane."

*He couldn't get any worse,* Andros remarked silently, and Ashley giggled again. Tessa gave her an amused look, and Ashley tried to calm down, knowing she must look a little bit odd to the others.

Zhane shot Andros another glare before turning back to TJ. As he offered his hand resignedly, Lindsay took it before TJ could. "It's no wonder he's beating you," she interjected, loudly enough for most of them to here. "Hold your arm like this."

She crouched down beside him to demonstrate, and Zhane looked at her in surprise. "I'm Lindsay, by the way," she said with a smile.

"Oh, I'm sorry," TJ said, a little sheepishly. "Everyone, this is Lindsay. Lindsay, this is Zhane, Ashley, and Andros."

"Pleasure to meet you," she said, glancing over at them. "Hi, Tessa."

Tessa smiled and returned the greeting, but Lindsay had already turned back to Zhane. "So you should be bracing your elbow on the table better--there. Try that."

She let go of his hand, and TJ gave her a confident look. "Not going to help," he opined. But this time, Zhane managed to hold his own for several seconds later, and TJ was suddenly concentrating much harder.

Lindsay just smiled smugly as Zhane started to inch TJ's hand toward the table. "Hah!" the Silver Ranger exclaimed triumphantly, as TJ's fingers touched the tabletop.

"How did you *do* that?" TJ demanded, looking over at Lindsay.

She shrugged. "You have to know the game."

"I *do* know the game," he exclaimed indignantly. "Hey, Zhane--"

"Enough," Tessa said, grinning as she reached out to take TJ's hand. "Accept defeat, and let's go dance."

TJ gave her a dark look that was somewhat spoiled by their clasped hands as he stood up. "I never accept defeat. He's just postponing my eventual victory," he said, pointing at Zhane with his free hand.

Tessa laughed, dragging him toward the dance floor, and Zhane turned to Lindsay. "Hey, thanks," he said, his former cockiness restored. "So what's a pretty girl like you doing here by herself?"

Ashley rolled her eyes, knowing what was coming. But Lindsay looked calmly back at him and replied, "My girlfriend couldn't make it."

Ashley blinked, but Zhane only smiled and got to his feet. "Neither could mine," he said cheerfully. "Want to dance?"

Lindsay stared at him for a moment, and then an answering smile spread across her face. "You're on," she said, offering her arm. He took it, and they sauntered away.

Ashley smiled up at Andros. *I guess that just leaves us. Shall we join them?*

He looked skeptical, obviously no less reluctant to engage in the wild movements they were all referring to as "dancing". *This isn't a slow song.*

*I don't care,* she said, echoing his earlier words. *That's not stopping Carlos and Karen--why should it stop us?*

He smiled a little and let her lead him onto the dance floor.

3. Last Day

As soon as Ashley woke up, she knew something was wrong. The dance at the Surf Spot hadn't ended until midnight, and the place hadn't cleared out for another half an hour. She'd been up way too late to be waking up before DECA's alarm.

Her first thought was TJ. He must have turned off the computer's voice again--but then she remembered him saying that he was going to stay at his uncle's last night. Who did that leave?

*Carlos.* It had to be. He and Karen had stayed out for some time after the dance ended, and she had been asleep before he returned. He would have had plenty of time to turn the computer's voice off without any of them knowing. *Motive and opportunity,* she thought with a wry smile.

And if Carlos had been out later than her, that meant she was probably the first one awake. Andros had a bad habit of sleeping through DECA's alarm even when it did go off, and he had said himself that Zhane was a late sleeper.

Her smile turned into a grin at the thought of Andros, and she sat up. It was a little bit mean, but worth it. And he hadn't gotten mad the last time she'd gone into his room uninvited…

She climbed out of bed, residual sleepiness fleeing in the face of her anticipation. She gave her hair a quick brushing but didn't bother changing out of her night clothes. Poking her head out into the hallway, she crossed her fingers that she wasn't wrong and everyone else really was still asleep.

The hallway was deserted, and she went quickly over to Andros' door. The others' opinions of their sleeping arrangements would not be improved if someone other than Andros caught her. There was no answer when she knocked, but she hadn't really expected one. Glancing over her shoulder, she keyed the door open and ducked into his room.

Andros was sprawled across his bunk, eyes closed and one arm buried under his pillow. His blanket was crumpled at the end of his bed, and she wondered if he'd been having nightmares again. He had told her about his dreams of Kerone and the day she'd been kidnapped, and she suspected that the confrontation with "Astrea" the night before had only brought those memories to the fore.

He looked peaceful enough now, though, and she smiled involuntarily as she watched him sleep. She didn't know how he could be so relaxed while he slept, to the point where she never seemed to wake him up no matter how much noise she made, and yet so alert the rest of the time.

*Not that I mind,* she thought, her smile turning smug. She'd woken up with him enough--under perfectly innocent circumstances, despite what the rest of the team thought--to know that he didn't come awake quickly. There were always a few seconds where he wasn't really asleep *or* awake, and a few days ago she'd found out just how interesting those seconds could be.

He'd slept through DECA's alarm, and she'd come to wake him up. She would suspect that DECA's alarm didn't sound in his room at all, except that she'd heard it once. Shaking his shoulder gently, he had blinked up at her and sleepily asked for a kiss. Literally, "Can I have a kiss, Ashley?"

She'd looked at him in surprise, unable to keep herself from asking if he was awake yet. He'd looked around, puzzled, and she could see him waking up the rest of the way. She'd regretted her missed opportunity, and she'd kissed him before he could say anything else. But she'd wondered ever since what would have happened if she'd kissed him when he asked…

And she planned to find out. Even if it did mean ambushing him in his own room. In his own bed. She hesitated for just a moment, wondering if she was taking something she meant as a joke a little too far.

*But I won't really do anything,* she told herself. *I'm just going to wake him up…*

And he really did look irresistible. She could stand there for hours, just staring at him, but she thought he'd be a little startled if he woke up and found her watching him. *As opposed to this?* Ashley wondered, bending down to kiss him.

"Andros," she whispered, touching his lips gently with her own. He stirred a little in his sleep, but his eyes didn't open. She ran her fingers through his hair, smoothing it against his pillow and saying his name again, a little louder this time.

This time, his eyelids flickered, and she felt something spark in her mind. Just as he opened his eyes, she brushed her other hand across his face and kissed him again. "Morning, sleepyhead," she said playfully.

He did move, then, and she thought he was stretching until she felt his hand slide through her hair to rest against the back of her head. Pulling her down again, he kissed her in return, catching her hand with his and tugging until she tumbled onto the bed beside him.

Surprised, Ashley stared into his hazel eyes and saw him smile. "Morning," he murmured back, kissing her again before she could answer. He didn't pull away, his kiss gentle as always but insistent enough that she suddenly wondered who had ambushed whom.

*You were awake!* she accused, silently but not as coherently as she would have liked. He had propped himself up on one elbow, his hair falling across his shoulders and his kisses warm on her face. His hand slid down her neck to rest on her bare shoulder, and she shivered, closing her eyes.

"No," he whispered, amusement in his voice. "Not until you kissed me."

She couldn't answer, not wanting to ruin the moment and not sure she could trust her voice anyway. But she didn't want him to think she was upset, and she tried to think, past his soft and sometimes elusive touch, of some response.

*You never wake up that fast,* she thought at last, eyes opening as he kissed her mouth again. Sliding her arm around him, she could barely think past the thought that she wanted him closer.

He broke away long enough to murmur, "You never kiss me awake, either."

How could he be so calm? His voice, as quiet as it was, was perfectly steady, while she knew that anything she tried to say out loud would be questionable at best. She raised her free hand to pull his head down again, kissing him as lightly as she could.

He leaned closer until her skin tingled at the not-quite contact, and she couldn't stand it anymore. Pushing him onto his back, she rolled on top of him and kissed him hard, feeling his arms go around her and his hands run gently across her back. So tentative…

She let her body relax against his, burying her fingers in his hair. He was breathing faster than she'd thought, and she realized he wasn't as calm as his words made him sound. Pressing closer, she felt him returning her kiss eagerly.

*He makes it so easy,* she thought distantly, barely able to focus on the thought with his mouth on hers and their bodies pressed close together. She almost never meant things to get as serious as they did, but he always gave her just enough encouragement that she couldn't seem to help it.

His arms tightened around her, and she realized suddenly how easy it would be to just stay here, in his arms… in his bed.

*No,* she thought firmly, the word fading in her mind even as she kissed him again. His hand slid lower across her back, and she wondered what she would do if--

Andros turned his head, pulling away from her abruptly and sitting up. "Ash," he said, his voice low and a bit hoarse. "We have to talk."

She drew in a careful breath, trying not to let the tremor show. "Yeah," she agreed in a whisper.

Her mind was racing, almost as fast as the pounding of her heart. She couldn't help but remember earlier conversations, when they'd agreed not to sleep together--yet. How soon was yet? How long did those words apply before they had to decide again?

"I'm not--" He looked down, his back to her. "I love you, Ash. I really do, and…"

"I know," she said softly, sitting up herself but careful not to touch him. "I love you, too. But that doesn't mean we have to--I mean… I don't want to pressure you into anything."

He scrubbed at his face with one hand, sighing. Finally, he turned to look at her, his gaze meeting hers steadily. "Do you--do you want us to sleep together?"

She swallowed, knowing how hard it had been for him to ask something like that straight out. She opened her mouth to say no, but he had asked for a reason. He really wanted to know how she felt, and she couldn't just tell him what she thought he wanted to hear.

"I… don't know," she admitted quietly. "I mean, no--when I think about it." She paused, trying to sort her feelings into some kind of sense. Giving him a quick smile to reassure him, she murmured, "Just give me a second."

He nodded wordlessly.

"Okay," she said after a minute. "We've known each other for months. But we've only been going out for a couple of weeks. And we've been through some wild stuff together, but… that's still really soon. *Really* soon," she repeated fervently, and saw him nod again.

"So I guess I think that, no, we shouldn't sleep together." She couldn't help sighing. "It's just that--sometimes, when I'm with you, it's really hard to remember to think."

He smiled a little at that, and she thought he looked relieved. "Sometimes?" he echoed. "I can't think at *all* around you… and the scary thing is that I don't care."

She had to smile. "I know what you mean."

"Really," he insisted. "It's like… being in a fight, when you're totally on instinct because there's no time for anything else. Only there is time, but I'm acting on instinct anyway, because I don't remember how to do anything else…"

She let her breath out in amusement. "Yeah," she murmured. "All the things that seem so reasonable when we're not together don't seem to matter anymore when--" She hesitated, then shot a nervous glance at him and continued anyway. "Whenever you kiss me."

He looked at her for a moment, hazel eyes serious and unreadable. She waited patiently, wondering what he was thinking. Then he reached out, brushing her hair away from her face and letting his fingers linger on her skin longer than he had to.

"Maybe--we need some rules," he said after a minute.

She felt her lips quirk, but she nodded. "Like what?"

His own lips curved in answer. "Like, no kissing me when I'm just waking up. That was completely unfair."

Ashley gave him an indignant look. "All I did was kiss you. *You're* the one who pulled me into bed!"

He flushed, but he was still smiling. "That's what I mean--I wouldn't have done that if I'd been awake."

"Oh, really," she said, giving him what she hoped was an unreadable look of her own.

"Well, look," he said quickly. "Let's just say, no kissing when one of us is in bed. Okay?"

She couldn't help it. She tried to stifle a giggle and couldn't quite manage it. "No kissing when one of us is in bed," she repeated, the words interrupted by her giggles.

A sullen look warred briefly with his smile and lost. "Well…" He eyed her. "If we were living on Earth or something, you wouldn't have done that… would you?"

The thought of her parents only made her laugh harder. "No *way*," she managed to get out. "Even if you were somewhere where I *could* get into your room without anyone knowing--I don't think I would have dared."

He gave her a suddenly suspicious look. "You did knock first, didn't you?"

"Of course," she answered, miffed. "I wouldn't just walk in. But you know the way *you* sleep," she added with a grin. "I could have banged the door down before you noticed anything was going on."

"Yeah, but you didn't," he said wryly. "You snuck in and kissed me."

"You didn't seem to mind at the time," she retorted.

He looked down for a moment, and her smile faded. "Andros, I was just kidding--"

"No, you're right," he interrupted. "You're right," he repeated, meeting her gaze again. "I didn't mind," he said softly. "And the truth is, I wouldn't mind you doing it again. It's… it's where it starts going, after that, that--"

He sighed suddenly. "I wish I could explain better."

She shook her head, just stopping herself from reaching out to him. "You're doing fine," she promised.

He gave her a searching look. "I guess…" He stopped again, obviously frustrated, and she heard in her mind, *I guess I just can't let go that far. I mean, I can kiss you, and really like it, but something…*

He trailed off again, and she knew what he was thinking even before she heard he words. *I'm scared, Ash. I trust you, and I love you, but I just can't go any further than we are right now. Not yet.*

This time she did reach out, grasping his hand and wishing she could hug him. *I'm not asking you to. I'm not sure I could either. And there's *no* reason we *should*. Andros…*

She just stared at him for a moment. *The only thing I know for sure is that I love you,* she said finally. *And that means more than sleeping together. That means there's something between us that no one can take away, and it has nothing to do with sex.*

He smiled tentatively at her. *Do you really think that?*

She nodded vehemently. "Yeah, I really do. And I think that if we have to question it, we definitely shouldn't do it."

He smile became a little more sure of itself. "I think you're right. And--I'm really glad… that we can talk like this."

She smiled back at him, resisting the urge to throw her arms around him with an effort. "Andros?"

He tilted his head at her, and she continued, "Would it be breaking any rules if I hugged you?"

She thought he almost laughed. He did exhale suddenly, relief on his face as his smile widened. "The only rule is that you can't kiss me while I'm in bed, remember?"

That said, he leaned forward and hugged her himself. "I love you, Ash," he whispered in her ear.

"I love you too," she murmured happily, resting her head against his. It was unbelievable to think that tomorrow she'd be going back to school. Suddenly, she heard herself ask, "Andros? Let's leave."

He pulled away to look at her oddly. "What?"

"Let's leave, right now," she said impulsively. "We could go down to Earth, and just have a day without any Rangering at all."

She knew he wouldn't agree, but she had to suggest it. It was the last day before she started school again, and she wanted nothing more than to spend it with Andros. But he had things to do, and she couldn't see him cutting himself off from the Megaship for a whole day.

"But… what would we do?" he asked, obviously at a loss when it came to planning an extended period of free time.

"Drive along the beach," Ashley said immediately. She had wanted to do that with Andros for the longest time. "We could get something to eat, and go swimming, and--"

She stopped, seeing his expression. "I know, you have too much to do," she said, trying to smile. "It was just a thought."

"Just us?" he asked slowly, and she nodded. The corner of his mouth quirked, and he said quietly, "I'd like that."

She just stared at him for a moment, waiting for the "but" that she was sure would follow. When it didn't, she breathed, "Really?"

He nodded. "Let's go."

"Oh, Andros!" She threw her arms around him happily, and she heard him chuckle.

"If it makes you this happy, it must be fun," he said, and she thought he was teasing.

*It's spending time with you that's fun,* she answered seriously, and he hugged her in return.

"Are we going to tell the others where we're going?" he asked after a moment, and she shook her head as she pulled away.

"They'll figure it out. Meet me in the Glider bay?"

He was waiting when she raced in, car keys in hand and a grin on her face. "Carlos almost caught me," she said, a giggle escaping as she dropped a note on the table in the middle of the room. "I heard his door open just I got into the lift."

Andros couldn't help smiling at her enthusiasm. "How do you know it was Carlos?"

"Do you really think Zhane's awake yet?" she countered, and he had to admit that his friend was probably still sleeping. "Come on!"

She reached out and flipped his morpher open, doing the same with hers. "My driveway?"

He nodded, wondering what he had agreed to. Ashley was full of energy this morning, while he felt like he was still trying to wake up. There was no way he could have gone back to sleep after she'd kissed him like that, but he wasn't sure he was ready to face a whole day of Earth, either.

But she was already disappearing into gold sparkles at his side, and he followed quickly. Soon he was blinking in the bright sunlight of midmorning, and he smiled involuntarily as he saw Ashley lifting her arms over her head and raising her eyes to the sky.

"It's a beautiful day," she said with a sigh, and he found himself agreeing--but not for the same reasons that she had said it.

Before he could stop himself, he had said, "You make it a beautiful day."

Ashley turned her bright smile on him, and he knew why he had come. Sometimes he felt like he was being swept along by a hurricane, but it was worth every minute when she smiled. He could spend his whole life chasing a hurricane like that, trying to catch and hold, for one fleeting moment, the life and vigor that was Ashley Hammond.

Carlos wandered into the Glider holding bay, still blinking sleep from his eyes. It was funny, but as he had left his room, he had thought he heard someone else moving around in the hallway.

The note on the table didn't catch his eyes until he returned from the Synthetron and sat down. Andros and I went down to Earth for the day, it read. We'll be back this evening--have a good day! Ashley's name was scrawled across the bottom, and Carlos smiled.

Andros had relaxed a lot in the last few weeks. They'd all noticed it--his relationship with Ashley was changing him. He laughed now, and smiled more, and he would offer his opinion on non-Ranger matters without being asked. And now, apparently… he was learning to take time off.

*Good for them,* Carlos thought, lifting his glass in a silent salute. *Enjoy your last day of summer, guys.*

"Are you sure it's supposed to look like this?" Andros asked doubtfully.

Ashley swatted him playfully. "It's a sand castle; it can look like whatever you want."

"That's what you said," he agreed, still looking skeptical. "But it doesn't look like anything at all."

"Hey!" Ashley mock-glared at him, and when she saw his lips twitch, she knew she'd been had. "You," she growled, pushing him harder and seeing him struggle to maintain his crouching position. "You have the best poker face of anyone I know!"

"Poker face?" he asked innocently, and she opened her mouth to explain--and then she saw the twinkle in his eye.

"Andros!"

"If you push me again, I'm taking you with me when I fall," he warned, a smile creeping onto his face.

That was too good an offer to turn down, and she deliberately reached out and gave his shoulder a shove. Before she even realized he was moving he had grabbed her hand and tugged hard enough to completely upset her balance and send her sprawling across his lap.

"If that was a punishment, I think you're going to have to come up with something more convincing," she said with a grin, twisting to look up at him.

He just smiled. "Who said it was a punishment? That was my reward for putting up with you."

"Putting up with me?" she repeated indignantly, trying not to think about how sweet he looked when he smiled like that. Lifting her hand to push her hair out of her face, he must have misinterpreted her gesture.

"Yes," he said firmly, grabbing her hand. "You've been pushing me around all morning!"

She closed her fingers around his hand involuntarily, suddenly feeling self-conscious. She struggled into a sitting position, still holding his hand but staring down at the sand. "Yeah…"

She hadn't meant to say anything, but the word was out before she could stop it. He shifted so he was facing her again, suddenly serious. "Ash? What's going on?"

She shrugged a little, tracing a pattern in the sand. "It's just--I keep going to touch you, or hug you or something, and then I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable…"

"So you hit me?" he asked wryly, and she glanced up. For once, he was joking when she was being serious--she couldn't help but notice the strangeness of their sudden role reversal.

"I'm sorry," he said, sobering when he saw her expression. "Ash--that's not what I meant, this morning."

"I know," she sighed, staring into his eyes. "I mean…" She knew he didn't mind their usual touching, but she didn't know where to draw the line between that and what had happened in his room. The difference hadn't been so much in the actions as in the mood…

"The last thing I want is for us to be uncomfortable around each other," he said quietly. "I just--" He stopped, then, in a rush, "It felt so good to hold you this morning; I don't think you know how close I came to not stopping."

She looked at him, startled. "But you said…"

"I *know*," he replied, obviously frustrated. "But that was what I was thinking… not what I was feeling."

"What were you feeling?" she asked softly, reaching out to touch his face.

"Ash…" There was a pleading look on his face that she hadn't seen in a long time, but he continued without prompting. "I was feeling like I wanted to keep kissing you. For as long as you'd let me."

She was almost holding her breath, looking at him. "Even if it meant…"

He nodded, no longer meeting her gaze. "That's why I said we should have rules… Just so things don't get out of control. I never meant for us to not touch at all."

"So all we need is another rule," she said gently. "Just *tell* me when something makes you feel that way. Like you did this morning--just stop, and say something."

He gave her a look she couldn't interpret. "If I promise to do that--will you stop hitting me?"

She just stared at him, until she realized he'd done it again. She was going to learn to see through that poker face if it took her another three months…

But for now, she could only giggle and put her arms around him. "Promise," she whispered, feeling him return the hug.

The sound of sandaled feet on the control room floor made him look up, and he smiled at the pink-clad figure that stepped lightly across the room. The room was deserted but for the two of them, and although he knew one of the Aquitian Rangers could happen by at any moment, he felt his armor vanish as she approached.

The delighted look on Cassie's face was enough to erase any doubts, and he caught her up in a hug as soon as she was close enough. "Good morning," he whispered, breathing in the soft smell of her hair.

"'Did you sleep well?'" she echoed, even as he asked the same. She giggled. "You always ask the same thing."

"I always want to know," he answered, stroking her long dark hair and smiling.

"Yes, I did," she said, squeezing her arms tighter around him. "And you?"

He nodded wordlessly, knowing she could feel his head move as they leaned against each other. It was so nice to be able to hold her like this--lately, he had been more and more frustrated by the armor that had hidden his identity for so long. The need to maintain it in any company but hers grated on him whenever she was near and he could not reach out to touch her warm skin.

And the knowledge that she would be leaving today made it even worse. He felt as though they could never really be close enough, except for these few brief moments they managed to steal alone. And tomorrow, even that would be gone, and he would once more be incomplete--no "Saryn" anymore, just "the Phantom Ranger".

"What's wrong?" she whispered, sensing his mood. He still had no idea why she was so much quicker to pick up on his feelings than he was with hers.

"I'm going to miss your being here," he answered quietly. "I wish you did not have to go back."

He winced, knowing she couldn't see it. He shouldn't have said that. The last thing he needed was to make her feel trapped here, or to sound like he didn't respect her life outside of the Rangers. But for him, there *was* no other life… and he would desperately miss her constant presence.

"I'm going to miss it, too." She sighed a little. Then, after a moment, she added, "Well, except for the food." There was a smile in her tone as she said, "I'll be glad to eat real food again."

He tried to smile, too, remembering her repeated complaints about the Aquitians' idea of nutrition. "Nothing will be the same without you."

*Why* did he have to keep bringing it up? She offered a perfectly acceptable distraction, and all he did was bring them back to the original topic. *Am I trying to torture myself?* he wondered. She would go; they both knew that. She had stayed far longer than she had originally planned, and now she had to return to her own life.

But he would *miss* her, as much as the air he breathed…

"I'll miss you too," she said softly. "But we've been apart before. It won't be that different."

"Please, do not say that," he begged, drawing back to regard her anxiously. "It *will* be different. This is not like those times, Cassie."

"I know," she whispered. "That's not what I meant. I just--"

He silenced her with one finger across her lips. "I love you, Cassie. Never doubt that, no matter how far apart we are."

She smiled at him, taking his hand and leaning forward to kiss him. "I know," she murmured, touching his lips with hers. "I love you, too, you know."

He kissed her in return, closing his eyes and feeling her words breathe across his skin. She was running her fingers through his hair--she still hadn't realized that he refused to cut it because he liked feeling her play with it--and she opened her mouth to his willingly.

He was distracted enough that he didn't hear the scuff of a footstep in the doorway, but a moment later, a tuneless whistle caught his attention, echoing from down the hallway. He pulled away from Cassie, the disappointment on her face cutting through his heart.

"I'm sorry," he whispered breathlessly, stroking her cheek and silently pleading with her to understand. How he wished it didn't have to be this way…

"I love you," she murmured, as he took a step back.

"And I you," he promised, wishing the words did not have to be enough. Reaching reluctantly for the crystal that hung around his neck, he kept his eyes on her until the flash of dark red obscured his vision.

The armor surrounded him once more, isolating him from the world again--from her. He saw her square her shoulders determinedly, and his hand twitched toward her before he caught himself, wanting to take away some of her tension. He barely tore his gaze away as Billy wandered in, still whistling.

The Blue Ranger glanced around the control room somewhat warily as he entered, a slight smile on his face as he caught sight of them. "Gr--good morning," he said, switching from the usual Aquitian greeting to a more Earthly phrase.

The Phantom Ranger gave him a quick nod, moving back to the console he had been working at when Cassie entered. He heard Cassie return the greeting, and he listened only to hear the sound of her voice.

Then Billy's words sank in. "The fighter wing launches in an hour or so," he offered. "Want to join us?"

Phantom felt himself stiffen. *No!* his mind cried, insisting that she not go. The dread hit him, even harder than yesterday, and it was all he could do not to turn around and intervene.

He took a carefully controlled breath. This was ridiculous--perhaps not quite as ridiculous as the jealously he had finally managed to stamp out whenever he saw her with Billy, but close. *The wing is safe,* he reminded himself firmly. *Aquitar has not been seriously attacked in years, and the wing would protect her even if it was.*

With that thought in the fore of his mind, he managed to turn around when she said, "Phantom? You're too busy to fly?" and he nodded calmly.

"I am sorry," he apologized, working to keep his voice steady. *Go with her!* his mind insisted. *Just say you'll fly with her!*

But he could not do that. He did not have the time, and she would only wait patiently while he promised that there was just one more thing to be done, until the opportunity was gone. But it took an incredible effort to keep from asking her to stay anyway.

She nodded, smiling to show she understood, and turned back to Billy. "Sure," she told him. "Thanks, Billy."

The words seemed to come from a distance, and he almost spoke. But he clenched his jaw and let her go, nodding to her as she looked over her shoulder and waved on her way out of the control room. "Please be safe," he whispered, as they disappeared into the hallway.

The next hour was worse, knowing that she was still safe in the command center and that he could call out to her and stop her from going at any time. Finally, even the Inner Alliance's infighting wasn't enough to distract him, and he turned the system scanners to full gain and started to monitor the input from the far reaches of the Aquitians' solar system while he worked.

He couldn't explain the nebulous feeling of fear that had filled him yesterday when she went out with the fighters, but today the feeling had only grown stronger. If nothing else, he would make sure the system was safe while she was out there without him.

Cetaci entered the control room a few minutes before the wing launched, and she only nodded mutely to him. He returned the gesture, knowing why she was here. As he was, she was concerned for the one she loved, and being here no doubt made her feel as though she was making a difference.

They busied themselves with other tasks, no communication necessary between them--until the recalibrated scanner web blipped. No alarm sounded, but Phantom caught the sudden fluctuation in the readings out of the corner of his eye.

Glancing across the room, he saw Cetaci look in his direction as well. They both headed for the scanner readouts, studying them for a brief second before the White Ranger pointed to the upper right hand corner. One of the scanner buoys had stopped transmitting.

He frowned. "Malfunction?" he asked, and she gave him a measured look.

"Those buoys do not simply 'malfunction'," she reproved. He knew that as well as she. He had been referring to the possibility of a random event causing the problem, as opposed to an intended one--a meteoroid hitting the scanner, rather than, say, a laser beam.

"Halt the fighter wing's launch," he said finally.

She touched the appropriate comm buttons, then shook her head. "They've already left." Cetaci hesitated, looking as indecisive as he'd ever seen her. Finally, she turned to him. "Do I recall them?"

It was a split-second decision, and he had only the smallest idea how it would haunt him later. "No," he said, turning back to the scanners. "Wait until we know--"

"Phantom!" The computerized alert sounded half a second before Cetaci slammed her palm down on the Ranger-activated alarm system.

He could only stare in horror at the readout as the energy readings that had made the web fluctuate that first time suddenly became clear. Raising his eyes to the viewscreen, tied into the orbital scanner platforms as soon as the alarm sounded, the visual only confirmed what the more precise instruments had already told him.

Astronema's Dark Fortress wavered into view above the water-covered planet, cloak falling away as its weapons powered up.

Miles down the coast from Angel Grove, Andros felt an eerie sense of déjà vu. That and a rather strong sense of disorientation, but the latter was to be expected on waking up. What he had not expected was to feel Ashley's gentle kiss as he struggled back toward consciousness.

He couldn't help himself, but as soon as he started to return her kiss, she pulled away. "What have I told you," he mumbled sleepily, blinking his eyes open, "about kissing me when I'm waking up?"

She was crouching beside him on the blanket, a slightly sheepish expression on her face. As he came more fully awake, he realized she had shed her t-shirt and was now wearing only her shorts and bikini top. He resisted the temptation to just close his eyes again--*how* was he supposed to form coherent sentences with her dressed like that?

The last thing he remembered was lying with her on the blanket, watching the clouds roll in from the ocean. Now the sky was completely overcast, and he had obviously been dozing for some time. *So how,* he wondered idly, pushing himself into a sitting position, *can she be wearing *less* now than she was when it was sunny?*

"Rule number one," Ashley was reciting, not seeming to notice his distraction. "No kissing while one of us is in bed." She paused briefly, then added, "You weren't," as though he might not have noticed.

"Yeah, I see that," he murmured, looking around him, down at the sand, anywhere but at Ashley.

"Sorry," she said contritely, settling down beside him again. "I didn't mean to wake you. You must have been tired."

"You didn't mean to wake me up?" he asked suddenly, glancing at her in surprise. That proved to be a mistake, as it was all he could to keep his eyes focused on hers. "Then why did you kiss me?"

She squirmed a little, and he couldn't help glancing down as her arm brushed his. "I'm sorry," she said in a small voice, a tentative smile on her face as she looked at him from under her eyelashes. "You just looked so sweet…"

He barely even heard her words, getting lost in that expression. He suspected, in the back of his mind, that she had given him that look on purpose, but the part of his mind that was completely overwhelmed by it didn't care. He found himself leaning forward, and she closed her eyes as he kissed her gently.

He almost put his arms around her before he remembered what she was wearing--or not wearing--and what it would mean if they were any closer than this. So he drew away, reluctantly, and reached a hand out to her as he stood up. "Walk with me?" he offered, not wanting the day to end.

She smiled up at him and grasped his hand unquestioningly. Andros pulled her to her feet, almost forgetting to step back as she stood. She linked her arm through his, making his hesitation seem intentional somehow, and they headed down toward the water.

This stretch of beach had cleared out as the clouds came in, and they found themselves finally free of the crowds that had thronged California's sandy coastline earlier that day. They were still people out here, riding the waves and lying on the still-warm beach, but their numbers were far fewer. A lone kite flew overhead, its fiery orange tails whipping through the air behind it.

Ashley was on the side closer to the water, and she steered their joint course until they were both splashing through a few centimeters of surf. Andros had to smile as the warm waves lapped across their feet, amused that she insisted on walking *through* the water rather than simply beside it.

"Stop," she said suddenly, and he paused.

She wiggled her feet in the wet sand, grabbing his shoulder when she almost lost her balance. He reached out to lend support, although he couldn't believe she really needed it. A cheerleader with martial arts skills on top of that needed him to help her stand?

But she grinned at him when he caught her arm, and he found himself smiling back. "What are you doing?" he wanted to know.

"Going to China," she said seriously, then giggled at his expression. "It's a joke--'cause China's on the other side of the world, and see," she pointed to their feet, already half-buried in the wet sand that shifted every time a wave crept past. "We're on our way."

He looked at her doubtfully. "We're going to the other side of your world by sinking through it?"

"No, of course--" She glared at him as she saw him trying not to laugh. "What's that," she demanded, "the third time you've gotten me today?"

"Fourth," he said, adding hastily, "not that I was counting."

"You'd better not be," she muttered, but he saw her smile as she looked down at the ground. She moved abruptly, pulling one foot and then the other out of the sand. "I like California better anyway."

"I like wherever you are," he said quietly, lifting his feet to follow her example.

She gave him a brilliant smile, and he reached out to catch a few strands of her hair and tuck them behind her ear. The incoming sea breeze immediately freed them again, but she caught his hand and drew it to her mouth for a kiss. "I don't want to be anywhere but with you," Ashley murmured.

Taking a step closer, he freed his hand and cupped it underneath her chin. Tilting her head a little, he leaned in to kiss her mouth. When she put her hands on his shoulders, it was only natural to slip his arms around her, and as their kiss deepened her bare skin was a more and more welcome sensation.

He did give silent thanks, though, that he was wearing *his* shirt, no matter what she said about swim trunks. With the heat of her body already threatening to make him mildly crazy, he didn't think he would be able to stand anything more without forgetting everything he had ever known or thought.

Andros' communicator started to beep, but he didn't hear it. A moment later, Ashley's went off as well, but the sound no more reached their ears than that of his had. Across the beach, the two morphers lay forgotten, buried in a corner of the blanket Ashley had brought with them.

4. Irreversible

"Incoming transmission from Aquitar," DECA announced, and Carlos looked up in surprise.

"Open a video link," he said automatically. It was early for Cassie to be calling--she usually didn't contact them till evening.

He blinked as Cestria's face appeared on the screen. "Cestria," he greeted her, puzzled. "How are--"

"Aquitar is under attack," she interrupted. "The Dark Fortress has entered orbit, and the Phantom Ranger wished you to know that Cassie has engaged the enemy with the rest of our fighter wing."

Carlos just stared at her, a thousand things flickering through his mind. Foremost among them was the thought that a teammate was in danger, and Earth was not. "We'll be there as soon as we can," he said, already working out the time it would take to reach the besieged planet.

She merely nodded, and the transmission cut off. It was an uncharacteristically abrupt gesture from an Aquitian, as much as her interruption of his greeting earlier. But she certainly had reason, and he put the thought out of his mind as he snapped his communicator open.

He punched in Andros' code, but there was no response. Impatient, Carlos signaled Ashley's morpher instead. *This is no time to be cute, guys,* he thought, annoyed when she didn't answer hers either.

But he knew they wouldn't pull a prank like that. The sound of their communicator was one that every Ranger learned to take seriously very quickly, and he could not imagine either of his friends ignoring it.

When TJ's voice answered his hail, he couldn't help sighing in relief. "At least someone's around," he muttered out of frustration.

"Carlos?" TJ inquired curiously. "What's going on?"

"You'd better get back here," Carlos told him, already trying to decide where Ashley and Andros could be. They had conveniently forgotten to inform anyone of their plans, so they could be just about anywhere.

A moment later, a shower of blue sparkles appeared on the Megaship's Bridge, and TJ lowered his hand from his morpher. "What's up?" he repeated, sounding worried this time.

"Astronema's attacking Aquitar," he said. "It sounds like Cassie's right in the middle of it."

Under his breath, TJ said something that sounded suspiciously like, "Leave it to Cassie…" He didn't question that they would go; he just went to the nav station and started the preflight. "Where are the others?"

"I wish I knew," Carlos answered, glancing at the viewscreen as though he could see all the way to Aquitar. "Andros and Ashley aren't answering their communicators, and I haven't tried Zhane yet."

"I'll get Zhane," TJ said, reaching for his communicator. "You go find the two lovebirds."

Carlos' lips quirked, and he punched DECA's linkup code into his morpher. "DECA, lock on to the Red and Yellow astromorphers and teleport me to their location."

"Astromorphers located," DECA replied, and his world turned to shimmering night.

The bright sunlight made him blink as he rematerialized in the middle of the beach, next to an abandoned blanket. Giving it a dismissive glance, he did a double take as he caught sight of a muted red wristband sticking out from underneath one corner.

Carlos reached down and pulled Andros' morpher from its hiding place, finding Ashley's beside it. *What the--* Neither of them would just abandon their morphers, unless…

His gaze tracked toward the shoreline. *Of course.* Andros' bright red shirt leapt out at him from the water's edge, where he and Ashley were sharing what looked like a rather passionate embrace.

Carlos sighed. *They had to pick today to relax…* Ashley would never forgive him for interrupting them, but some things were just more important.

He jogged across the beach toward them, thankful it was nearly deserted. He hadn't been thinking when he told DECA to teleport him blind, but he had been lucky. No one appeared to notice his sudden arrival--except for Ashley, who pulled away from Andros as he approached.

She looked about to say something, but his concern must have shown on his face for she let him speak first. "Astronema's attacking Aquitar," he told them, breathing harder than usual. "Cassie's fighting with the others."

It was a condensed version, but they both seemed to understand. "Let's go," Andros said immediately, taking Ashley's hand and pulling her across the sand with him. They took off, with Carlos following, and skidded to a halt by the blanket.

Andros snatched their morphers up, passing Ashley hers, and she threw the blanket over her shoulder before flipping the catch open. Carlos glanced over his shoulder, and when he caught their gazes again, the three of them exchanged nods and teleported out simultaneously.

"Aq-one, incoming velocifighters!"

"I see them," a tinny voice answered, as the intership chatter over the fighters' comm links underlaid the normal hum of the control room.

Cetaci had opened a comm channel between the fighters and the command center as soon as the Dark Fortress appeared, warning the wing of its presence. The wing commander had acknowledged, and the Rangers' leader had left a one-way link open ever since, a muted but ever-present reminder of those risking their lives with no Power to protect them.

Phantom was glad of the link, more for the reassurance it provided than anything else. As long as he could hear what was going on, he felt somehow closer to it--to them. Cetaci and Aura had joined the fighters above Aquitar, their zords leading the defense that kept Astronema from getting any closer to their homeworld, while he was forced to watch from the command center.

Cetaci's Second, Cestria, was there as well, rerouting atmospheric traffic and grounding anyone still on the surface. She had said nothing about the open comm link that echoed in the background. He even saw her cock her head toward it from time to time, and it was only then that he realized that she was listening for Billy the same way he was straining to hear Cassie's voice among the overlapping comm signals.

"Phantom, what's the velocifighter distribution?" Cetaci's tense voice demanded, and he called up the appropriate schematic, uploading it to both zord terminals. Coordinating surface to air information flow would normally be Cestria's job, but the attack had been so unexpected that she was kept busy making sure the civilians were safe.

"Aq-22, behind you!"

His head jerked up at the sound of Cassie's voice, unmistakable even with the low volume of the comm transmission. He found himself looking in Cestria's direction, and saw her glance back. "Aq-22" was Billy's fighter.

"I see it, Aq-24." Their conversation was swallowed up by a flurry of position checks from the wing's leading edge, and he had to force his attention back to the incoming attack data.

"It gets easier," Cestria said softly, and he looked around again to find her bent over her own console once more. She shot a quick smile in his direction when he turned. "You just have to trust them to be as careful as you would be, in their place."

He froze for a moment, hoping Cassie would be more careful than that. But he knew the Yellow Ranger was right--Cassie's judgment was as good as his, and he nodded to show he understood.

A fourth comm signal vied for their attention, and Phantom found the Earth Rangers' request to enter the system flashing across the comm console as the Megaship streaked through the sensor web and on into the inner solar system. He sent an acknowledgment anyway, glad they hadn't waited for it.

"The Astro Megaship is entering Aquitian orbit," he told Cetaci, sending the signal to Aura's zord as well and overriding the fighters' comm channels momentarily to let them know.

"Confirm," Cetaci replied shortly, and he saw Cestria look up. He knew the Aquitians had not been particularly happy about calling for reinforcements, but he had argued that the Earth Rangers deserved to know when one of their own was fighting against the forces of evil.

Some of Cetaci's irritation probably came from the fact that they could use the Megaship's help. The unfortunate timing of Astronema's arrival had caught two of the planet's Rangers in starfighters--unable to transfer to their zords without the possibility of their unmanned fighters burning up in the atmosphere behind them.

The Aquitians were, frankly, outnumbered. The fighter wing was keeping the velocifighters occupied, but the two zords were only barely holding the Dark Fortress back. It was a stalemate, and all Astronema had to do was wait, for she could keep this up longer than they could.

The Megaship, though, came in from deep space with weapons blazing, and it was obvious the advantage had shifted. With the Aquitian zords backing it up--Cetaci might be proud, but she wasn't foolish--the Earth Rangers' battleship was managing to inflict some damage on the flagship of Dark Spectre.

Astronema could see what was happening as well as they could, and he frowned as a second wave of velocifighters launched from the Dark Fortress. The first wave had been decimated by the fighter wing, but there were enough left still that the next round would not be so easy to defeat.

Then one of the new velocifighters fired. "Cestria!" he heard Aura yelp, even as his gaze swept across the readouts, wondering if the laser blast's discoloration had been his imagination.

It hadn't. The blast's energy was skewed compared to normal curves, but what the readings meant, he had no idea. "The blast was less electrically disruptive than previous velocifighter fire, but its advantage is undetermined," he told Aura and Cetaci, knowing they could tell that much for themselves.

"It could be anything," Aura muttered, her zord diving under the Megaship and heading for the velocifighters.

"Yes," Phantom agreed reluctantly. He could tell them nothing else until they actually saw the effects of the beam on a ship--which all of them would rather avoid.

The new round of velocifighters had engaged the fighter wing, and the oddly colored laser blasts came more frequently as they dove between the Aquitian ships. But there were plenty of ordinary blasts to avoid as well, and the fighters were pushed to their limit just keeping each other out of the line of fire.

"Someone tell me what those lasers do!" Darian's voice demanded, no longer routed only through the intership comm channel that was still being picked up in the control room.

Cestria finally joined Phantom, and he assumed the rest of the planet was as secure as it could be. "We can't tell you because we don't know, Aq-one," she informed him calmly. "You will know as soon as we have any information."

"They're not coming from all the velocifighters," one of the other pilots observed, voice small and distorted over the intership channel.

"Isolate and target the anomalous fighters first," Darian commanded, his words still coming over two different comm frequencies.

Aura's zord was already in the middle of the fray, and Cetaci's broke off to engage the velocifighters as well. The Megaship was left alone to drive the Dark Fortress back, but it did seem to be having an effect. Phantom turned his attention back to the fighter wing.

The Aquitian fighters were rallying around the zords, obviously used to working with them, and the velocifighters were disappearing off the tactical map one by one. Billy's voice came over the comm channel again, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Cestria look up. Obviously, though it might get "easier", it was never truly "easy".

"Aq-17, close up," he was exclaiming, over top of another fighter's call for assistance. Aura's zord spiraled after the distressed fighter, while Billy and his partner went after another velocifighter.

Scanning the tactical readouts once more, Phantom saw the Dark Fortress in retreat. The Megaship was harrying it away, out past the orbit of Aquitar's only moon, and there were less than a dozen velocifighters left--

"Aq-24, break off!" Darian's voice boomed across the room. He hadn't cut off his double comm link, and Phantom felt his heart clench as he saw "Aq-24" riding dangerously close to one of the remaining velocifighters.

"I've got it, Aq-one!" a voice answered confidently, a voice he knew all too well.

"Cassie, no," he whispered, watching her streak closer--and then time started to slow as he saw the velocifighter flip end over end, dumping speed at a rate impossible for a living pilot. He knew what would happen then, but, powerless to stop it, he could only stand frozen in place as "Aq-24" tumbled past her target and wound up directly in front of the ship she had been chasing.

For one heart-wrenching second, nothing happened. Then, one of the bizarrely colored rays crept from the velocifighter's laser array, reaching for and catching the fighter that had tried to destroy it. The little fighter seemed to twist in the beam's grasp, the moment stretching into an infinite expanse of time as the laser burned through Cassie's shields.

The resulting brilliant explosion snapped time back to normal, and he heard his mind screaming out her name, over and over again until he no longer knew or cared whether anyone could hear him.

He didn't even comprehend what was happening as he saw an Aquitian fighter sail through the debris, heard Darian's urgent voice repeating, "Aq-24, respond. Aq-24, can you hear me? Please respond."

The bright red of a wounded ship showed on the tactical screen, surrounding a fighter tagged "Aq-24", and there was one less velocifighter on the grid, but it took a moment that felt like an eternity for those details to penetrate the icy numbness that had clamped onto his mind.

"Cassie," he whispered again, hesitant but wanting more than anything to believe that it was her, that her ship had not been the one to burst into a final, fiery light.

"I have her." Aura's calm voice overrode Darian's transmission as her zord closed in on the unresponsive fighter. "Teleporting now."

Phantom clenched his hands on the console in front of him, ignoring the returning Megaship's request to know what was happening. The battleship picked the few velocifighters that remained out of the Aquitian sky, and the fighter wing started to regroup, surrounding Cassie's damaged and now empty fighter before it could spiral out of control into the atmosphere.

"She's here," Aura announced a moment later. "Unconscious--I'm sending her straight to the Medical bay."

Darian's voice was still audible underneath it all, directing the wing in the retrieval of the unmanned fighter while the zords returned to their base, and the Megaship was signaling the command center again, but Phantom ignored it all as he headed for the control room door. Cestria's voice stopped him short.

"Where are you going?" she asked, her voice saying she knew very well, but it was stern enough that he turned instinctively.

"To the medical bay," he answered, his mind not even focused enough to notice how pale she looked all of a sudden.

"No, you're not," she said. Straightening, he saw her grip the console firmly. "You have duties, and the healers can take better care of her without you getting in their way."

He could only stare at her in surprise. Cestria had never spoken to him like that. She was the Aquitian team's heart and soul, the compassionate one who always understood. But now she was glaring at him as forcefully as Cetaci might have.

She sighed, seeing he was not convinced. "Phantom, you nearly deafened me just now. I had no idea you were that strong, but you can *not* go down there now and do that to the healers the moment you see her."

He shook his head, not understanding and only concerned with going to see Cassie to convince himself that she was really still alive. "I do not--"

The glow of teleportation briefly illuminated the control room, and Andros' voice asked, "Is everyone all right?" There was a note of distinct impatience in his tone, and it was probably only with the greatest strength of will that he kept from demanding answers straight out.

Cetaci and Aura arrived at that moment, however, and the White Ranger had no such compunction. "What happened?" she asked without preamble, focusing immediately on Cestria.

"That's what we want to know!" Carlos exclaimed. "No one would answer our comm transmissions!"

Cetaci shot him an annoyed glance, and went to Cestria's side. Grasping the girl's elbow gently, she led her over to a chair and pushed her down. "What happened?" she repeated, more calmly. "Are you all right, Cestria?"

Cestria nodded, putting a hand to her temple. "I will be," she said. "It was--"

Cestria had never been anything but friendly to him, but all he could think about was Cassie. About to use the distraction to slip away, he paused as the command center's alert started to blare away. Everyone looked up, and a sudden brilliant flash of pink light appeared in the middle of the control room.

She stood there, glancing about the room as though she'd never seen it before, and he closed his eyes in mute relief. There were no words for it, but he knew that his reason for living had just been restored. "Cassie," he murmured, joy in the very sound even as it was almost buried underneath the shrieking of the alert.

"No," the figure in pink replied, calmly lifting her astroblaster. Siting down the barrel, she pulled the trigger and silenced the alert system with a single shot. She didn't even bother to brace her firing arm, making the act of random destruction seem almost casual. "But you can call me that if it makes you feel better."

There was only one question on TJ's mind anymore: *What in the name of everything good is going *on* in this room?!*

From the moment one of the Aquitian fighters had been hit and the command center had stopped responding to the Megaship's comm signals, things had only gotten more insane. First Cetaci treated them like intruders instead of fellow Rangers--Rangers who had just helped save Aquitar, at that--and then she seemed to forget they existed.

As if things weren't confusing enough, that blasted alert had had to start screeching at them, and then someone who looked just like Cassie appeared and started shooting control panels, unhindered by the Aquitians.

TJ had come to the conclusion that this was all an incredibly bizarre dream, and at any moment he would wake up and wonder what he could possibly have eaten that would cause such a hallucination. And then he would swear off of whatever it was forever.

"Cassie, what are you--" Phantom was the first to break into the suddenly stunned silence, cutting off as the person who looked like their teammate swung her blaster in his direction.

That was when TJ decided that there must be something seriously wrong with his mind if he could dream something like this up. "I'm ready to wake up now," he muttered under his breath, to no one in particular.

The person in pink laughed, sounding enough not like Cassie to be strange, and just enough *like* Cassie to be frightening. "Oh, but it's not a dream," she assured them, blaster not wavering from its first Ranger target as she stared Phantom down. "Is it, *Saryn* of Elisia."

TJ heard Carlos gasp, and he thought Ashley did too. He was too caught up in his own shock to be sure--and if this was a figment of his twisted imagination, he wanted out *now*.

He glanced around the control room, seeing his teammates grouped, with him, off to one side, while Aura was closer to the main screen. Cetaci was at her side, standing protectively in front of Cestria, while Phantom was clear across the room. The armored Ranger stood stiff in the doorway, visor turned toward Cassie's face.

*Cassie?* TJ repeated incredulously to himself. *What the *hell*…*

"No, not a dream," she reiterated, walking slowly toward Phantom. "A nightmare, maybe--but not one you'll ever wake up from."

She was about three steps away from him when the only thing that could have happened to make the situation more confusing did. Two more teleportation beams lit the control room, a blue and a black water molecule shape appearing in front of the main screen.

Cassie spun, weapon still raised, turning her back on Phantom for just a split second. It was a brief moment, one that let him spring forward--but not quite long enough. She turned back in time to catch him in the chest with the muzzle of her astroblaster, and even as he reached for it they could all hear the distinctive hum of the weapon powering up.

Phantom sagged a little, raising his hands to the side in defeat. "Nice try, *Saryn*," she sneered. "But I'm faster than you and you know it."

"Cassie," TJ said, stepping forward. This was completely insane. "I don't know what you think--"

"Don't move," she hissed over her shoulder, turning so she could see them all but not letting her blaster leave Phantom's chest. Reaching out suddenly, she pushed Phantom backward, and all of a sudden his armor started to blur.

*She didn't push him,* TJ thought in shock. *She took his ruby…*

Indeed, Cassie clutched something in her hand, and Phantom's morph failed completely as she stepped back. He was Saryn once more, as he had been for those few days on the Megaship, and Cassie's blaster was now resting firmly against his unmorphed chest.

The look on Phantom's face was no less than one of anguish, and he stared at Cassie as though she had just betrayed everything he had ever believed in. *And she has,* TJ thought, unable to believe what he had just seen. He could not even begin to fathom what had made her do that--obviously, she was under some sort of outside influence, but to reveal Phantom like that would take more spite than he had thought she could ever express, possessed or no.

And possessed was a good word for it, he thought, watching her expression twist as she glared at them again. "Don't move," she repeated. "Or I *will* fire."

The Aquitians hadn't said a word in all this time, and TJ risked a glance back at them. Billy stood behind Cestria now, hands on her shoulders as he stared at the tableau before them. Aura looked perfectly calm, standing between Cetaci and Delphinius, but he couldn't help remembering what Cassie had told them about the Aquitians' telepathy.

*How much are they really communicating?* he wondered, wishing again that he had that talent that Andros and Zhane seemed to share.

"You won't," Phantom said suddenly, his words choked but understandable. Only at the sound of his voice did TJ realize how much this was really hurting him.

It still wasn't real to TJ--he was waiting for the explanation that would make all this another one of Astronema's tricks--but obviously, to Phantom, it was *very* real. Cassie was really standing there, before him, threatening to kill him with a Power-enabled weapon.

TJ wished he could reassure him, remind him that this couldn't really be their Cassie… but a thought flickered through his mind before he could stop it: what if it *was*?

"And what makes you so sure?" she demanded. In a move too quick to follow she lifted the blaster and fired over his shoulder, smirking in satisfaction when he flinched. "It's as easy as that, *Saryn*."

He shook his head. "No, *Cassie*, it isn't." His words were a little clearer this time, and he put the same emphasis on her name that she used on his, managing to sound almost defiant despite the pain in his eyes. "You are, somehow, still my Cassie. And we are linked--you can no more kill me than you could kill yourself."

TJ had no idea whether that was true even for the real Cassie, let alone for this--person. But as he did the only thing he could do--wait--he heard Andros shift quietly behind him. He didn't dare glance over his shoulder, but he chanced a look in the Aquitians' direction. They were as calm and motionless as before… except that Cestria was now staring directly at Ashley.

Andros shifted again, but Cassie did not look at him. She was instead glaring at Phantom, her face a study in frustration as she locked gazes with him. The entire room was deadly silent, and Andros' slight movement was unmistakable. Cassie started to turn toward him--

Another alarm went off, this one higher pitched and wailing over a much greater range. Phantom took advantage of Cassie's momentary lapse to knock her blaster out of her hand, just as a wall-mounted mechanism hummed and swiveled in her direction.

The purple discharge caught her full in the back, and for a moment, her startled expression made her look just like the teammate they had always known.

Then Billy's calm voice spoke. "Command center intruder protocols deactivate," he announced, and the mechanism settled a little in its wall brace.

Cassie's eyes slid closed, and Phantom caught her as she fell.

For a moment, no one moved. Ashley was torn between a sigh of relief and the exclamation of shock that she hadn't had time for when Cassie first drew her astroblaster. She could only stare at Saryn, eyes closed with some private pain as he held her friend's limp body close to him, while her mind tried desperately to put the events of the last few minutes into some kind of logical context.

Then she felt Andros fumbling for her hand, and her focus latched onto something she could at least understand. "Took you long enough," she murmured, squeezing his hand.

"Easy for you to say," he replied, his indignation muted in the quiet room. "Telekinesis is hard enough when you can't *see* what you're doing. I didn't even *know* what I was doing."

"So that *was* you?" TJ asked, turning toward them. "What happened?"

"The intruder alert system won't fire on Rangers," Billy spoke up. "But that's a failsafe that can be bypassed--if you know what switch to hit."

"Isn't that dangerous?" Carlos demanded, but Billy shook his head.

"It's really hard to do. The controls are inside the firing mechanism, so you can't get to them unless you know how to disable the intruder protocols. And no one does except the Rangers themselves."

"It was Billy's idea to see if Andros could do it," Cestria interjected. "Telekinetically."

TJ nodded his understanding. "You told Andros, and he changed the protocols to recognize…"

He glanced in Cassie's direction and trailed off, and Ashley shifted uncomfortably. "No," Cestria said, sounding slightly puzzled, and Ashley knew her secret was about to be out. "Andros blocks anyone he doesn't know. I told Ashley, and *she* told him."

Carlos choked. "What?"

There was a muted flash as someone morphed, and they all turned to see the Phantom Ranger lift Cassie as though she weighed nothing at all and cradle her in his arms. "I'm taking her to the Medical bay," he said quietly, and the two of them vanished in a dark glow.

"We should go too," Cestria said, standing, and Ashley nodded emphatically. She wasn't going to wait around for Phantom to tell them what had happened--they might *never* know, at that rate.

"The Medical bay is two floors down," Cestria told the Astro Rangers. "The lift is this way."

"Are you sure you are all right?" Cetaci asked again, as Billy took Cestria's hand and led the way across the control room.

"I'm fine," she said, but Ashley missed the rest of her answer as Carlos caught up with her.

"*You* told Andros?" he demanded quietly, but loudly enough for TJ, Andros and Zhane to overhear.

She nodded, seeing Andros give her an odd look as they all piled into the lift. The doors slid shut, adorned with the same simple design that climbed across the control room walls. "You didn't tell them?" he asked, and she this time she shook her head.

"Medical bay," Billy said, as Ashley tried to explain.

"I've been able to talk to Andros--the way Zhane does--for a while now." She shrugged uncomfortably. "I guess it just never came up."

TJ just rolled his eyes, but he gave the impression of throwing his hands up in exasperation. "That does it. You were right, Carlos; this whole team *is* psychic."

"Is that bad?" Cestria asked innocently, and Ashley couldn't help smiling a little.

"No, that's not what I meant," TJ said hastily, glancing at the Aquitians. He was saved by the opening of the lift doors onto a corridor directly across from the Medical bay.

"That is not possible," Phantom was telling someone tonelessly. "Lasers are electronic in origin."

The Aquitian to whom he was speaking gave the impression of exasperation as they all filed into the room. "I am not saying the beam was magically generated. I am saying it had a magical component, and it is that component which has altered her brain waves."

"What?" TJ demanded, even as Ashley felt Andros' hand slip out of hers. She glanced over her shoulder, and he shook his head at her as he hung back.

She frowned a little, and then she heard, *I'll just be a minute.* Looking around covertly, she realized that Zhane hadn't followed them into the Medical bay either. She nodded slightly, wondering what was up.

"What do you mean, her brain waves were altered?" Carlos was asking, apparently oblivious to their teammates' absence.

"The lasers," Aura murmured, and Ashley shot a sharp look in her direction.

"Lasers?" she prompted, and Aura glanced in Cetaci's direction.

The White Ranger did not give any sign that Ashley could see, but Aura continued, "Her fighter was hit by one of the second-round velocifighters. Some of the second round had--strange weapons."

"What does 'strange' mean?" TJ asked impatiently.

"We don't know," Cestria said, before Aura could answer. "Phantom and I were in the control room, but all we could tell for sure was that they were different. Less disruptive than the normal lasers--but that was all we knew."

"They did not *have* to be physically or electrically disruptive," the as-yet unnamed Aquitian told her. Ashley could only assume he was a doctor of some kind. "They were built with a sorcerer's influence. The beam disrupts a pilot's brain waves, turning them against their own wing. Hit someone with one of those, and they'll cause as much destruction as any velocifighter."

"More," Delphinius interrupted, quiet shock in his voice. "Because no one would be expecting it from a fellow fighter."

"But Cassie was unconscious," Aura said suddenly, breaking into the sudden silence. "What is the use of her altered state if she is not capable of operating her ship?"

Ashley shifted, staring at the prone form on the medical bed and not sure she liked the Red Aquitian Ranger's single-mindedness. Cassie was their friend, not just some anonymous fighter in someone else's battle plan.

"It was intended for use against Aquitians," the unidentified person replied. "It is not surprising that it would affect humans differently."

"Not differently enough," Billy said, his eyes on Cassie as well. "She threatened Phantom's life in the control room."

The unnamed Aquitian nodded. "She was most aggressive toward me when she regained consciousness here. I can only conclude that the weapon did, ultimately, have the effect it was designed for--it merely took longer than it would have on one of us."

Stepping into the room with Zhane at his side, Andros surmised, "She's evil."

Andros had known something was wrong when Zhane hesitated outside the lift, back in the control room. One glance at the crowded lift had told Andros what the problem was, but his friend had joined them without complaint.

Zhane had stood perfectly still through the ride down to the Medical bay, but Andros had seen the tension in his stance. Everyone else had been too concerned with Cassie to notice that, although he was the first one out of the lift when they reached their destination, he was the only one who didn't immediately enter the Medical bay.

Letting go of Ashley's hand, Andros stopped in the doorway to look at his friend. Ashley looked back, but he just shook his head and promised silently to join them in a minute. She must have understood, because she turned back to the argument without further comment.

"Are you all right?" Andros asked quietly, noting the paleness of Zhane's skin even in the oddly lit Aquitian hallways.

Zhane took a deep breath, leaning against the wall. He nodded mutely, and Andros just waited with him for a minute, listening to the conversation within the Medical bay.

"Man, those lifts will drive me over the edge someday," Zhane said suddenly, a ghost of his usual smile on his face.

"Not that you have far to go," Andros kidded gently, and Zhane made a face at him.

"Look who's talking," he retorted, his normal cockiness back in his tone. Then the façade faded again, and he added quietly, "It doesn't help that we're underwater."

Andros frowned a little. "You don't have that problem in space…"

"Yeah, but space can't crush you. Water can."

Andros just nodded, knowing his friend didn't need logical explanations about either the dangers of space or the safety of these Aquitian cities. Claustrophobia wasn't logical, and Zhane wasn't proud of it. But he had no control over it, either, and Andros refused to upset him by trying to explain again what the other already knew.

In the Medical bay, he could hear Billy telling the Aquitian healer about Cassie's actions in the control room. He looked over at Zhane, and found his friend listening as well. Zhane's gaze flickered to his, and his friend nodded. The two of them stepped unobtrusively into the doorway as the healer nodded in agreement.

They all seemed to be coming to the same conclusion. But to Andros, there had only ever been one explanation for his teammate's aberrant behavior. "She's evil," he said, voicing the thought that had to be on everyone's mind.

"No," Phantom said, speaking for the first time since they had arrived. But he was looking at Cassie, and the word did not seem directed at anyone in particular. It was only his way of trying to deny facts that none of them could ignore.

"What can we do?" Ashley asked finally, glancing from Phantom to the Aquitian healer.

The healer cocked his head. "This is not a medical condition. This is an alteration of her mental processes, and its cause is not scientific in origin. There is nothing I can do."

"There are other sorcerers," Phantom said suddenly, not looking up.

The healer seemed troubled by that comment, although his face was expressionless. "Any sorcerers willing to help a Ranger would not be the sort to have experience with the magic of evil."

"Isn't there some way to change her brain waves back?" Andros wanted to know. "Even if it was done magically, isn't there some way to undo it *without* magic?"

The healer looked at him. "Even if I were capable of altering brain waves, I would have no template to work from, nothing to try to change them back *to*. Her original brain wave patterns are gone, overwritten by whatever changes the laser beam made, and there is no way to retrieve them."

He hesitated, then shook his head. "I am sorry, but even if she could be returned to the side of good, she would not be the friend you knew."

Phantom finally looked up, his visor turning to face the healer. "What are you saying?" he asked, his voice dangerously quiet.

Billy stepped forward, putting himself in Phantom's line of sight--and conveniently in front of the healer. "Phantom, you know what he's saying," the Blue Aquitian Ranger said softly.

Andros closed his eyes for a moment, wanting nothing more than to deny it himself. Nothing--except the possibility of having the teammate he had come to love and respect back. *This can't be happening,* he thought, feeling Ashley step closer to him.

Glancing over at her, he could see tears shining in her eyes. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he let her lean against him, taking some comfort in her presence. He couldn't ignore the feeling that this was all somehow his fault--Cassie was a member of his team, after all, and he should have found a way to keep her safe.

"I know that Cassie is not as she was," Phantom answered Billy, his voice low. "I do *not* accept that she never will be again."

"There is nothing--" The healer cut off as Billy glared at him.

Andros saw Cetaci step forward and touch Cestria's shoulder, nodding toward the patient bed. The girl's eyes flicked toward her leader, then back to the shadow that still had not left Cassie's bedside.

"Phantom," Cestria said gently. "Maybe we can find a way to help Cassie--but… in the meantime, she's going to have to be moved to someplace more secure than this."

Ashley's fingers clenched on his arm, and he knew what she was thinking. A containment cell. Something in him rebelled at the thought of imprisoning their friend, but he couldn't help remembering the deadly seriousness on her face as she armed the blaster she had pointed at Saryn.

Cestria was right--Cassie needed to be someplace where she couldn't hurt anyone. But he didn't have to like it.

Unfortunately, Saryn didn't like it either, and he was far less willing to see the necessity of the situation. "No," he said simply, stubbornly.

"Phantom," Cestria tried again, but he only turned his back on them.

"I wish to be alone," he said, voice strained but somehow even.

The healer spoke again, his tone more subdued this time. "She could wake at any time," he reminded them.

"I can--restrain her," Phantom said, voice breaking as his control slipped.

"Can you?" Billy asked quietly.

Phantom turned his head a little, not quite looking over his shoulder at them. "Yes," he whispered. "Please, leave."

Andros looked at Ashley, who had her hand over her mouth and was staring fixedly down at the floor. He tightened his arm around her--she didn't look up, but she let him pull her toward the door without protest. He could feel Zhane shadowing them, and there was too much stir behind them for the three of them to be the only ones moving.

They filed out of the room silently, leaving Phantom to mourn alone.

5. Matter of Honor

"Those Astro Rangers are *everywhere*," the girl muttered, pacing back and forth across the metal decking of the Dark Fortress. Her mind was racing, and she couldn't help speaking aloud to herself. "Don't they know how to mind their own business?"

"Interfering *is* a Power Ranger's business," Ecliptor deep voice rumbled from behind her, and she whirled. "The Astro Rangers are no doubt here to repay the Aquitians for their protection of Earth."

*But I don't *want* them to be here!* she cried silently. She frowned sternly at the being that had cared for her ever since her family had been killed. "They're getting in the *way*," she complained, as though it were somehow his fault.

Ecliptor only nodded, and she spun away to resume her pacing. No matter how quickly she walked, though, she couldn't force the thought of Andros' locket out of her mind. *How could he possibly have that?* she wondered, the gold disc shimmering in her memory.

Her hand went involuntarily to her own necklace, the locket that hung on it a mirror image of the Red Ranger's. Only one other person in the universe should have a pendant like that, and he had been killed when she was too young to understand. Or so she had always believed…

She heard the metallic whisper of quantron speech, and as she reached the wall and turned back, Ecliptor signaled to her. "My princess, main propulsion is back online."

"And the velocifighters?" she demanded. While the shields on the Dark Fortress were nearly impenetrable, their offensive capabilities depended heavily on the small fighter ships.

"Another wing is prepared for launch, with a second standing by," Ecliptor informed her, and she nodded.

"Excellent." This was something she at least understood. Whoever Andros really was, she decided, he had gotten in her way one too many times. "Begin the second attack."

Carlos was the last one out of the Medical bay. He hesitated in the doorway, glancing back over his shoulder. He wasn't surprised to see Phantom demorph suddenly, head bowed over Cassie's still form as he reached for her hand.

Joining the others in the hall, Carlos wondered again how this could have happened. Cassie was a Ranger--Rangers always came back from battles. Somewhat worse for wear, sometimes, but never with anything that couldn't be healed or cured by a few nights sleep.

*Except for Phantom's team,* his mind reminded him. *None of them came back at all.*

"Everyone thought the entire Elisian Ranger team had died," Zhane had told them, and Carlos sighed. *Phantom's not going to be able to handle this, not on top of everything he's already lost…*

Somehow, it was easier to feel sympathy for Phantom than it was to think about Cassie. *She isn't really gone,* he thought automatically, and even though he knew it wasn't true, he couldn't seem to get his mind around the concept.

He shook his head, not wanting to think about it. The Dark Fortress was still out there, and if it had attacked Aquitar once, it would attack again. He tried to concentrate on that thought, rather than the image of Cassie prone on a patient bed.

"Someone will have to remain here," Cestria was saying quietly, tilting her head to one side. "Whatever block he had is obviously gone, or he simply does not care anymore--someone has to keep him from projecting to the entire citydome."

"I will stay," Aura offered, her voice equally soft. Then she cocked her head at the healer. "Unless you can--"

But the unnamed Aquitian shook his head. "I can barely tell he's projecting at all, let alone do anything about it."

Cestria nodded, and Carlos glanced around the hallway. Ashley was leaning against Andros, eyes closed and apparently paying no attention to the conversation. Zhane stood beside them, gaze downcast, and tenser than Carlos had ever seen him.

Annoyance flared suddenly within Carlos. Zhane had known Cassie less time than any of them--what right did *he* have to be upset?

But the thought was quickly suppressed as his mind once more rejected the possibility that their teammate was gone from them forever, and he sought out TJ with his eyes. The Blue Ranger glanced in his direction at the same moment, a frown on his face, seemingly as confused as Carlos by the whispered conversation.

"What do you mean, 'projecting'?" Carlos asked finally, careful to keep his voice as quiet as theirs had been. "Telepathically?"

Cestria looked in his direction, and he got the distinct impression of surprise, as though the Aquitians had forgotten anyone else was there with them. "Phantom is an empath," she corrected, but before she could say anything else, an imperative beep cut into the quiet.

Cetaci touched the gold band on her wrist, silencing the noise. A flat voice--Carlos honestly couldn't tell if it was computerized or Aquitian--spoke into the hallway. "The Drani seaport is requesting permission to resume scheduled launches."

"No," Cetaci said sharply. "The threat has not passed." Glancing up, she gestured to Cestria. Without another word, the two Aquitian Rangers disappeared into white and yellow water molecule shapes, presumably on their way back to the control room.

"Uh…" Carlos looked around, not certain this was the time to bring it up. "What does being an empath have to do with it?"

Aura looked over at him, and he blinked at her close regard. "An empath senses emotions, not thoughts. I had never thought Phantom particularly strong, but today…"

She trailed off, glancing toward the open door of the Medical bay. "He is projecting on a level almost equivalent to Cestria, which is unusual even among Aquitians."

"We should go," Billy interrupted gently. Delphinius was practically fidgeting at his side. "Cestria and Cetaci may need help, and we need to find out how badly damaged the Dark Fortress was."

"Not badly enough," Andros interjected, looking over at him. "We'll come with you, and give you as much information as we have."

"I--" Billy stopped, exchanging glances with Delphinius. "All right," he said abruptly. "Thank you."

"What?" TJ asked, catching Carlos' eye before cocking his head at Billy. "Is there a problem?"

Billy hesitated. "No," he said finally.

"Cetaci is somewhat proud," Delphinius said, not looking at them. "She has, to some degree, instilled that feeling in the rest of the team."

"Please don't take offense," Billy added. "We appreciate any help you can offer, and we're grateful for your assistance earlier."

He led them into the lift, but Carlos still didn't understand. "You helped us, on Earth--how is this different?"

"The Astro Rangers are not specific to one world," Delphinius said, glancing at Billy. "You defend Earth, but there are reports of you battling evil across the galaxy."

"So?" TJ asked, reaching out to catch the door before it could close. He gestured to Zhane, still standing in the hallway.

"It is reasonable to expect your team to cooperate with others," Billy explained. "But we defend Aquitar. That's our job, and Cetaci feels that we should be able to do it without any outside intervention."

Zhane finally stepped into the lift, and the doors slid shut behind him as the lift hummed to life. "There's no shame in accepting help," Andros said, glancing first at his friend and then around at the rest of the Astro Rangers. "This team has taught me that."

"It is a lesson Cetaci would do well to learn," Delphinius muttered, and Billy shot a warning look in his direction.

Carlos couldn't help looking over at TJ again. There was obviously some friction between the Black Aquitian Ranger and their leader, and the look TJ gave him said he hadn't missed it. They rode the rest of the way in silence.

He managed to hold himself together for the ride up to the control room, fighting the dizziness and the memories, but Zhane couldn't restrain a shudder as he stepped quickly out of the lift. He didn't care what it took--he was *not* getting in one of those things again.

He felt Andros' hand on his shoulder as the others followed him out of the lift more slowly, but he couldn't look up. He concentrated on breathing, reminding himself that there was plenty of room up here and trying to pretend there was no water beyond these walls.

*Will you be all right?* Andros asked silently, and he finally lifted his head. The Aquitians had joined their teammates across the room, but Ashley was at Andros' side, and Carlos and TJ were staring at him.

"Headache," he managed, echoing the excuse Cassie had given at breakfast once. "I--I think I'll go back to the Megaship."

Andros nodded, ignoring the others. "We'll call you if we need you."

With shaking hands, Zhane flipped his digimorpher open and escaped into a comforting stream of silver. The familiar lights of the Bridge faded into view, and he glanced automatically toward the viewscreen. It showed Aquitar spinning peacefully below the Megaship, and he went over to the auxiliary scanner station to adjust its field of view.

The stars of deep space filled the screen, lightening the close darkness at the edges of his perception. He walked around the front row of stations to stand directly in front of the image, letting the open freedom of space seep into his soul and soothe the fear that lingered there.

"*All* seaports," Cetaci repeated firmly, giving the comm console a glare. "Atmospheric transport is grounded until further notice. There are no exceptions."

"The Dark Fortress was hit here, here, and here," Andros was telling Delphinius, indicating several regions on a tactical grid. "From what we've seen--"

"Several zords usually fly with the fighters," Aura informed Carlos, walking in front of Ashley to check a readout on the other side of the control room. "We were simply unprepared this time, due to the training simulation taking place within the fighter wing."

"Why do your Rangers fly starfighters at all?" TJ asked, tagging along as Carlos followed her.

Billy looked up as Aura joined him, glancing back at TJ and Carlos. "It keeps us sharp," he said lightly.

"That is not a good enough reason," Cetaci opined, turning away from the comm system. "Neither of you should have been with the wing when Astronema attacked. We can not afford to be caught without two of our Rangers again."

Cestria turned a little, deliberately putting her back to the conversation as she spoke quietly to the smaller comm screen. Cetaci did not appear to notice, but she did step away from the comm equipment to join the small group gathered off to one side.

Ashley only watched, the words washing over her but making no impression. She didn't understand what was going on, but neither did she particularly care. There was one face missing from this crowd, and that was the face of her best friend.

Cassie wasn't dead. But she was gone beyond all hope of recovery, and somehow that was worse. She would never sit down beside Ashley at breakfast, or sleep over in her room, or gossip with her again. She wouldn't giggle about the guys, or confess her dreams for the future the way the two of them used to…

Ashley couldn't imagine life without her. She couldn't accept that Cassie was gone, and she couldn't believe her friend wouldn't appear at any moment to chide them for holding a strategy session without her. But at the same time, reality kept trying to beat her over the head with the fact that things were irrevocably different now, and all she could do was sit and stare while her mind tried to work things out.

Andros glanced at her from time to time, but he didn't try to say anything. Not anymore, anyway. She was sure he had tried to talk to her when they first arrived in the control room, but she hadn't been able to answer. One of the Aquitians had said something about shock, and she had wanted to shout at them.

What did *they* know about shock? Cassie hadn't been *their* teammate. But a little voice said that Cassie had been living with them for the last week and a half, and perhaps they did understand something of what she was feeling.

She hadn't protested when Andros pushed her into a chair and told her to stay there.

"The fighter wing does as much good for Aquitar as the Rangers," Delphinius interrupted, turning away from his conversation with Andros.

"In its own way," Cetaci allowed. "But there are plenty of fighter pilots. There are only five Rangers."

TJ couldn't read the Aquitians' more subtle expressions as easily as he could another human's, but there was no mistaking the angry glare Delphinius gave Cetaci. "There are *not* plenty of fighter pilots. People willing to risk their lives in battle with no Power to protect them are not so common as you seem to think!"

"If the people who *do* have the Power to protect them would do their job, the fighters would not need to risk their lives," Cetaci retorted.

"Please," Cestria interrupted, turning from the comm screen. Her voice was gentle, but it made everyone stop and listen. "I am trying to tell the Citydome Coordinator that everything is under control, and having two of our Rangers fighting in the background is not reassuring him."

Cetaci stiffened, but she accepted the reproof without comment. Delphinius turned his back on them, telling Andros flatly, "Please, continue."

That was a long-standing grudge if TJ had ever seen one. He glanced over at Carlos, but the Black Ranger was staring down at the console Aura was entering data into. She had managed to ignore the disagreement completely, from the time Cetaci turned away from the comm system on.

"Next time, the Rangers will be prepared," Billy said calmly, as though nothing had happened.

"'Next time' may be sooner than you think," Carlos said, peering over Aura's shoulder. "At least, if I'm reading this right?"

Aura turned. "The Dark Fortress has moved into position behind our moon," she informed the control room. "Power levels indicate that it contains at least one launch-ready squadron of velocifighters."

Everyone heard Aura's announcement. Andros looked up, and saw Cestria cutting off the comm link she had been using. His gaze tracked across the room, worriedly regarding the only person who didn't seem fazed by the Red Aquitian Ranger's words.

Ashley was still staring off into space, apparently oblivious to her surroundings. He wanted to reach out to her, to say something, but he recognized the look of numbness on her face. She was unresponsive in a way he had been himself at certain times in his life, and he knew there were no words to magically return her to normal. She would have to work through this on her own.

"Alert the fighter wing," Cetaci told Cestria. Turning to her male teammates, she added, "I assume your zords have not fallen into disrepair during your fighter scrimmages?"

Her words might have been directed at both of them, but she was gazing pointedly at Delphinius. He glared back, refusing to answer, and it was Billy who broke the silence. "The Zaal and Sirethian zords are ready for launch at any time," he informed her, then added neutrally, "as you know."

Her gaze flickered in his direction, and Andros spoke up quickly. "The Megaship will help as well," he said. "You can count on us."

"No," Cetaci said, turning toward him. "We will defend this world ourselves, Astro Rangers."

"Cetaci," Billy began, but a glance from Cestria stopped him.

Stepping to her leader's side, Cestria said quietly, "We helped them on Earth. They are only returning the favor, Cetaci."

"It is unnecessary," Cetaci insisted. "At full strength, we are capable of defeating the Dark Fortress."

Andros opened his mouth to object. Even the Megaship couldn't defeat the Dark Fortress on anything more than a temporary basis. With their combined forces, they would at least have a chance.

"You are not," a voice said from the doorway, cutting Andros off before he could say a word. "The Dark Fortress is stronger than all the Aquitian zords combined."

Every last Ranger turned to gaze at Phantom as he entered the room. Even Ashley looked up, and the silence that descended on the control room was almost a tangible thing.

He walked up to the tactical grid displayed on the main screen, and Andros stepped out of the way. Phantom just stared at the schematic of the Dark Fortress for a moment, then turned to address them again. "The Megaship barely holds its own against the Dark Fortress," he told them matter-of-factly. "Five individual zords will not be sufficient to drive it back."

"You underestimate us," Cetaci said, lifting her head. "This team has never been defeated."

"This team has never *fought*," Phantom snapped. "The last real threat this planet faced was the Hydro Contaminators, and not *one* of you was a part of the team that defeated them."

"They weren't defeated," Billy said quietly. "A compromise was reached, and a peace treaty negotiated."

"That is irrelevant," Phantom answered coldly. "The fact remains that Aquitar can not stand alone against Astronema."

"The Astro Rangers are not more experienced than we," Cetaci said indignantly--completely missing the point, Andros thought.

Phantom didn't bother with tact. "Yes, they are," he told her. "But what I am trying to tell you is that no one team can defeat Astronema. You must stand together, or not at all."

"Aquitar has never needed any defenders but its own Ranger team," Cetaci countered.

"This is not *about* Aquitar anymore!" Phantom almost shouted. "How can you not see that!"

Andros tried not to flinch. He had never heard Phantom shout before, and the armored Ranger was an imposing figure when angry. Cetaci did not reply.

Phantom took what was clearly meant as a calming breath. "The Inner Alliance is being run from Aquitar. The Frontier Defense is in part coordinated from here. Zordon himself is *here*. On *Aquitar*. This is no longer a single planet; it is becoming the focus for the League's defense. The Aquitian Rangers can not take responsibility for something so large."

"The Eltaran Rangers protected their planet from the time the League was formed," Cetaci said, her voice not quite as firm as it had been before. "It is a matter of honor."

"The Eltaran Rangers failed," Phantom replied harshly. "They alone did not protect Eltare; they were joined by forces from across the League. And in the end, it was not enough. Eltare *fell*. If you wish to prevent Aquitar from sharing that fate, I suggest you learn to cooperate. Honor will do you no good if you are dead."

The sound of the attack alarm prevented Cetaci from responding, and Aura announced calmly, "The Dark Fortress is approaching Aquitar."

Cetaci gathered her teammates up with a glance, and their battle cry could be heard easily above the sound of the alarm. "Rangers of Aquitar, we need full power!"

Andros looked around at his own teammates, and found all of them, even Ashley, watching him and waiting. "You will stay," Cetaci ordered him, before he could say anything.

Cestria touched a control on the comm console and nodded to her leader. "The fighter wing has launched," she said.

Suddenly, Phantom was at Andros' side. "Morph," he said, in a voice that left no room for argument, and Andros nodded.

Cetaci did not miss the exchange. "My planet," she said, stepping in front of Phantom and speaking loudly enough that they could all hear her over the sound of the alarm. "My team. And my decision."

"Your team," he agreed. "*My* decision. I am the senior Ranger here, Cetaci. The Astro team will join yours in defense of Aquitar."

Cetaci tried to stare him down for a moment, than shook her head. "I don't have time to argue with you," she muttered. "Mireth zord," she shouted, with a last glare for Phantom, "Power up!"

The other Aquitian Rangers echoed her cry, disappearing into teleportation beams even as Andros nodded to his teammates. "Let's Rocket!"

Andros' mental call had alerted Zhane, but even so he had barely enough time to turn before the rest of the team teleported onto the Bridge. They arrived morphed, and he blinked as each one removed their helmet and hurried to their station. *Andros?*

*Matter of honor,* was all Andros said, and Zhane shrugged.

The Aquitian zords rose out of the atmosphere only seconds before the Megaship's shields went up, coming up from behind the fighter wing and overtaking it in a heartbeat. The Dark Fortress's velocifighters were next, the leading edge blown to pieces by the powerful zords before they could even reach the fighter wing.

"Zhane," Andros snapped, and Zhane looked up to see Andros indicating the empty place beside him.

"Right," he said, after a brief hesitation. Sliding into Cassie's seat, he ran his hands across the controls. "Megalasers online," he announced, just as Carlos spoke.

"Thrusters at maximum capacity," the Black Ranger told Andros, and TJ leaned forward.

"Let's show Astronema what Power Rangers are about," he said grimly.

"We're receiving a transmission from the surface," Ashley said, her neutral tone betraying no sign of anxiety or distress. No sign of anything at all, really.

She didn't wait for Andros' nod to put the audio portion of the message on DECA's speakers. "Rangers, leave this comm link open," Phantom's voice told them. "If you are to work as part of a team, you must be in communication with your allies at all times."

Zhane gave Andros a surprised look. "What's he talking about?"

*The Aquitians aren't very happy about us helping them out,* Andros answered, manuevering the Megaship into position between the Dark Fortress and Aquitar. *Phantom's trying to make Cetaci accept us.*

It wasn't working, Zhane decided, watching a white-tinged zord streak past them on the tactical map. Speeding underneath the Megaship with no acknowledgement whatsoever, Cetaci's voice was clearly audible over Phantom's open comm channel. "Canthris, Sirethian, with me. Zaal and Lissan, reinforce the fighter wing. I don't want anymore casualties today."

Three acknowledgements sounded on the Megaship's Bridge; and Zhane wondered who had not responded. Then the velocifighters were in range, targeting the Megaship and not sparing any laser fire, and there was no more time to wonder.

"Zhane, ignore the velocifighters," Andros ordered, as he demolished one of the little ships. "The Dark Fortress is our primary target."

"I can't fire on the Dark Fortress," Zhane answered, frustrated. "Those zords keep getting in the way!"

"Mireth," Phantom's voice growled. "Back off. You are hindering the Megaship's attack."

"Stay out of this, Phantom," Cetaci's voice warned.

"Mireth, fight *with* the Megaship or stand down!" Phantom snarled, clearly not about to let her dictate the battle plan.

Cetaci complied, her zord spiraling out of the Megaship's line of fire and immediately flanked by Aura and Billy. Zhane opened fire, hearing Andros order the three zords into backup positions. For once, Cetaci did not argue, and the four ships managed, by some miracle, to coordinate their attack.

A small explosion on the Fortress's port side made Zhane wince, and he tried not to think about who was on that ship. He didn't even *know* who was on that ship, when it came right down to it, but it was someone he didn't think he wanted to see hurt.

In battle, however, there was no halfway. There was "us" and "them", and for now at least, she was "them". The Megalasers continued to fire.

"Megaship, fall back," Cetaci demanded suddenly. Zhane didn't lift his eyes from the tactical map, but he heard Andros asking for the reason.

"Fall *back*," her voice repeated sharply, and suddenly Zhane saw what she was counting on. The fighter wing was coming up on their starboard side, led by the other two zords, and at the angle they were coming in, Astronema would never see them until they were right on top of the Dark Fortress.

*Andros, move,* Zhane told him. *Thirty degrees to starboard, now.*

Andros didn't question him, and the Megaship dove out of the way--revealing the entire wing of Aquitian fighters converging on the Dark Fortress. The Megaship dropped back, keeping the remaining velocifighters from ambushing the Aquitians, and the Dark Fortress was suddenly alone.

Until another wave of velocifighters launched.

Carlos kept his attention fixed on the nav readout, making sure Andros' impulsive course changes didn't send them careening into another ship. But he heard enough of the Aquitians' broadcasts--and the conspicuous silences in the chatter--to realize that they were communicating telepathically almost as much as they were via the comm system.

*No wonder Cetaci knew what the fighter wing was doing,* he thought, coordinating yet another impossible maneuver. *One of them must have let her know--or let Cestria know, and she told Cetaci?* Carlos shook his head. He didn't know who could talk to whom anymore, and he didn't have time to figure it out.

Those zord names weren't helping matters any, either. He couldn't match code name to Aquitian to save his life--all he was certain of was that "Mireth" was Cetaci. And he thought "Sirethian" was Billy… but he couldn't spare enough attention to be sure.

"Zhane!" TJ exclaimed, as the Megaship took another hit from behind.

"TJ!" Zhane mimicked, then amended, "Or should I say, 'Andros!' If you'd stop throwing us around like an abused telekinesis ball, maybe I could actually aim here."

"Wouldn't do you any good," Andros muttered, but the Megaship's erratic course smoothed out a little. "You couldn't hit Aquitar if you were standing on the surface."

"Oh, and I suppose you'd like to try," Zhane retorted, hunching over the firing controls again.

The ship spun again, and Andros answered a moment later. "No. What would be the point of hitting Aquitar?"

Carlos chuckled, inputting another series of commands into the nav console. "Hang on," he warned suddenly, overriding Andros' control and sending the Megaship into a steep climb.

"Canthris, join the fighter wing," Cetaci's voice ordered. "Sirethian, with me."

This time, Carlos was listening for and heard the acknowledgements of both Aura and Billy. Billy and Cetaci's zords followed the Megaship "up", and Andros glanced over at Zhane's tactical readout. "Carlos?"

"We need to get behind the Dark Fortress," Carlos explained, glad Cetaci had seen what he was doing without needing an explanation.

"Right," Andros interrupted, obviously seeing the setup on Zhane's display. "If we can get some of the velocifighters to follow us--"

"--We split their forces," TJ finished for him. "Draw them away from the fighter wing; good plan, Carlos."

As soon as the second round of velocifighters had launched, Cestria's voice had warned the Megaship that they were firing the same weapons that had caught Cassie earlier. Ever since, the unspoken agreement between the Aquitian zords and the Megaship had been that they would draw as much fire from the fighter wing as possible.

No one knew what effect that laser fire would have on a Power-enhanced ship, but they had had a graphic demonstration of what it did to an ordinary ship. And that was not a demonstration anyone wanted to repeat.

"Aquitian zords have returned to their launch bays," the control room's computer announced, and Phantom tried to unclench his fingers from the console in front of him.

Astronema had been driven back. The Astro Rangers and the Aquitians were safe, and no more fighters had fallen to the discolored ray that had claimed one of their number earlier that day.

But that one fighter that *had* fallen still haunted his mind. He should have been there, should have been at her side when the Dark Fortress appeared, should have protected her in a battle she was too inexperienced to fight. What had he been *thinking* when he let her go out in a starfighter by herself?

He had thought the fighter wing safe. It had never occurred to him to tell the wing commander that she had no experience in a starfighter battle, for he had not truly believed Aquitar would be attacked. Now he could only curse his own blindness, and wish desperately that he could somehow turn back time and listen to the feeling that had urged him so strongly *not* to let her go with them.

"Phantom," Cetaci's voice said, but he did not look up.

He heard her pace across the control room, soft boots quiet on the coral floor. "You were right--" She hesitated for only a moment. "About the Astro Rangers. They were worthy allies in battle, and… their assistance was valued."

The last she said more quickly, but still he did not look up. So Cetaci was finally learning to see more than her own narrow worldview. That wider vision was one she should have developed long ago, as soon as she became a Ranger, and he had no patience with her insecurity now.

"The Astro Rangers have remained on their Megaship," she said suddenly, "but we are eating in the mess hall, if you wish to join us."

This time he did raise his head, regarding her with an expression she could not see behind his visor. He never ate with the Aquitian Rangers--partly because he could go longer without eating in his morphed state, and partly because to eat would *require* him to demorph. And Cetaci knew that perfectly well.

She lowered her eyes for just a moment, then met his gaze squarely. "I want you to know," she said quietly, "that all of us who were in the control room this afternoon have taken a vow of silence. Even the Astro Rangers, although they say they already knew. No one will learn of your identity from us."

He looked away, knowing he should feel relieved. He had worked hard to build a new identity for himself--a faceless identity, one without ties or any kind of past. That identity, first as the Shadow Ranger and then the Phantom, had been his refuge for more than three years, and he had never wanted to give it up.

Until last year. Until the one person who had made him long to demorph and to feel another's touch for the first time in a long while. Until she had smiled at him, and not cared what his name was, and told him that the past he had been hiding from didn't matter. Until the person who had touched his soul and warmed his heart, making him wish suddenly that he had not given all semblance of a normal life up to become the Shadow Ranger.

The same person who had betrayed him today. The one who had forcibly revealed his true identity to the Rangers he had worked with for months--not content in merely uttering his name, she had taken his crystal and smirked as he demorphed before their eyes.

*Cassie,* he cried, in the privacy of his own mind. *You can't leave me, Cassie; you can't do this…*

But Cetaci was still standing there, waiting for a response, and he tried to collect himself enough to give one. He should be relieved. But all he could think of was that horrible look on Cassie's face, and the awful feeling that she was slipping farther and farther from him with every word…

"Thank you," he managed to say dully. "I appreciate your effort."

Cetaci nodded and turned away without further comment, seeming to sense his wish to be alone. But she hesitated in the doorway again, looking over her shoulder. "Phantom? Maybe you should try to sleep."

He just looked at her. "So I will not bother anyone? I am not projecting anymore; ask Aura yourself. It stopped a few minutes after you left the Medical bay, and no, I can not explain it."

She blinked at the onslaught. "I meant for yourself, Phantom. If you--"

"I will," he said abruptly, impatient for her to leave. "I will sleep. Now go; join your teammates."

She nodded once and disappeared. Not caring about the myriad messages Tobin had left for him over the course of the day, he turned toward the back exit from the control room. The door opened on the hallway that contained the Rangers' living quarters, and he found himself standing, by habit, in front of the room he and Cassie had been sharing.

The door slid open, and his heart jumped into his throat as he caught sight of her slight form lying amid the tangled sheets of the bed.

As his eyes adjusted to the shadows, though, he realized it was only the pillows; a trick of the light and the room's disorganized state. She had left the bed in disarray, as always, and her duffel bag was lying open on the floor by the windows. The clothes she had been wearing yesterday were the only unchaotic thing in the room, folded neatly on the chair where he'd left them when he got up this morning.

He found himself stumbling backwards, moving blindly away from the open doorway and trying to put as much distance between himself and the omnipresent reminders of her as possible. He walked quickly through the control room, and felt the lift hum to life as he stepped inside. He wasn't really surprised when it opened on the prisoner containment facilities four floors down.

*Don't go in, don't go in,* his mind chanted over and over again. *You're trying to forget her, not torture yourself with an evil twin lookalike…*

But he couldn't help it. She wasn't just a lookalike--as he had told her in the control room, she was in some way still Cassie. And they were still linked--he could feel the faint tug on his mind that had always drawn him back to her before. A tug he could no more ignore now than he had been able to then.

He stepped through the first forcefield without any problem, the scanners detecting his Power source and automatically letting him in. The second set of scanners blipped as he stepped forward, though, and the next forcefield crackled warningly. He stopped, and glanced at the readout next to the door in surprise.

Of course. The system was programmed to recognize anything anomalous and deny entry--and two morphers registering on a single person was definitely anomalous. He reached slowly for Cassie's morpher, wondering if he could really leave it out here.

Staring down at it, he let his fingers slide across the pink wristband. He didn't want to let it out of his sight. But in the back of his mind, he knew there was a very slight possibility that she could convince him to do something foolish, and he couldn't let her get her morpher back. However dangerous she might be now, she would be infinitely more so when morphed.

He set the astromorpher down on the console by the door, and the forcefield let him through without further complaint.

She was pacing back and forth across the three-walled room, in front of the transparent forcefield that made up the fourth side. For a moment, she looked no more than frustrated, as though she was focusing all her attention on some puzzle that eluded her.

As the last soundproof forcefield wavered to let him through, though, she glanced up and the illusion was lost. Cassie's expression twisted into one of amused disdain, regarding him with the same look of distaste he had once seen her give Divatox.

"What are *you* doing here?" she demanded, turning toward the forcefield and folding her arms across her chest.

"I came to see you," he said, his voice softer than he had wanted and more than a little hoarse. Gods, it hurt to see her this way. Cassie, devoid of all the compassion and spark that had made her who she was, stared out at him with uncaring contempt on her face.

"You just don't get it, do you," she sneered, stepping closer to the forcefield. "I'm not your girlfriend anymore, *Saryn*. I'm the *enemy*, and there's nothing you can do to change that."

He stared at her, frozen, torn between the urge to shake her violently and the desire to get as far away as he could from this warped copy of the woman he loved. "I can't accept that," he whispered finally.

Deliberately, she reached out and laid her hand against the forcefield. The field crackled around her fingers, and he saw her grit her teeth against the discomfort. He took an involuntary step forward, knowing the unpleasant sensation would only get worse the longer she held her hand there and let the charge build, but she stopped him with a glance.

He tried not to gasp as she raised her head to stare at him. Her eyes flashed, glowing a momentary light green, and she growled, "I am *not* the person you knew. Do you understand?"

He shook his head, trying to deny what he was seeing, and he saw her fingers whiten as she pushed harder against the forcefield. It responded to the increased pressure with a higher charge, and he saw her wince. Then the faintest echo of her pain reached him through the link that had never been as strong for him as it had for her, and he cried out.

"Cassie, stop!" He found himself in front of the forcefield, and he brought his fist down on it in despair. She could seriously hurt herself if she did not back down, and he couldn't bear to see that happen.

Letting his morph fade, he flinched as the shock of the field ran through him all at once. But it was nothing compared to the pain in his heart, and he ignored it, locking gazes with Cassie in a silent struggle for control.

Through the link, he could feel her discomfort escalating beyond anything she should have been able to tolerate--but it wasn't until he pressed harder against the field and felt the pain shoot through his own body that she cried out. Drawing her hand back as though scalded, she gasped, "Stop…"

He yanked his hand away, tears forming in his eyes. That had *hurt*, and it was even harder to see her hurting because of it. It was almost impossible to hold himself still, to keep himself from reaching for the forcefield controls. All he wanted was to wrap her in his arms and drive away both her pain and his own, and he almost didn't care if she glared spitefully at him for it afterwards. Not as long as he could touch her now.

Luckily, she backed away from the forcefield before he could give in to his impulse. Giving him a last wrathful glance, she resumed her pacing, ignoring his presence as best she could.

He closed his eyes, making himself take a step back, and then another, until he felt the opposite wall at his back. Sliding down to the floor, he rested his head on his hands and listened to the sound of her sandals slapping angrily against the hard floor as she walked.

6. Last Chance

He tried to ignore the noise, burying his head in the pillow and hoping it would go away. But the more he tried to go back to sleep, the louder the noise got, and finally he rolled over, squinting in the darkness.

"Who is it?" Zhane mumbled, not quite loud enough to be heard by whomever was on the other side of the door.

"Who *is* it?" he repeated, louder, and this time he heard Andros' voice answer.

"It's me, Zhane." Then the briefest mindtouch added, *I need your help.*

"Come in," Zhane said automatically, pushing himself up and running a hand through his hair. "DECA, lights," he said, standing as the door slid open.

The lights brightened as Andros stepped into the room, looking over his shoulder as he did so. Zhane frowned as the door closed behind him. "What's going on?"

Andros sighed. "I'm really sorry to wake you up for this--"

"Andros, it's all right," Zhane interrupted, stifling a yawn. His friend was obviously concerned about something, and Zhane tried to force his mind to clear. "What time is it, anyway?"

Andros looked a little guilty. "It's almost midnight on Earth. Evening, here, but you've only been asleep for an hour or so."

Zhane blinked, giving his head a shake. "Well, at least it's not morning already, with me feeling this tired. I still have a whole night. So what's up?"

Andros looked, if anything, guiltier. "Actually, that's what I wanted to ask you."

Confused, Zhane wondered if he was really awake yet. "What do you mean? How would I know what's going on?"

A small smile crossed Andros' face. "No--I was going to ask if you'd mind staying up for a while."

Zhane scrubbed at his face, wishing his brain would realize he was trying to carry on a coherent conversation here. "Oh," he said, rather blankly. "Sure. Why?"

Andros sighed. "Ashley's not doing so well," he admitted. "She's pretty upset about Cassie--we all are--but she won't talk about it. Carlos and TJ have been keeping her company, but they really need to get some sleep if they're going to go to school tomorrow."

"What about Ashley?" Zhane asked, then could have kicked himself. If she was that bad, she wouldn't be going to school.

"I don't think she's going to make it to school," Andros said quietly, confirming his assumption. "I'm not even sure she's going to sleep. If she does, great, but if not, I don't really want her to be alone."

Something stirred in Zhane's mind, some thought half-buried by sleep--something he was supposed to remember about Cassie. But he couldn't for the life of him think what it could be, and it was overwhelmed by sudden curiosity as he realized what Andros was saying. "What about you?" he demanded. "Where are you going?"

"The Kalenay system," Andros answered. "Zordon says they're the only major world that isn't represented in the Inner Alliance yet, and they have this superstition about video transmissions. The invitation has to be delivered in person."

Zhane rolled his eyes. "How can people build technology they're afraid to use…"

Andros sighed again. "They're not afraid of it. They just believe that all treaties have to be confirmed in the physical presence of a representative from both sides. Too easy to fake video links, they say."

Zhane's mind finally caught up to him, and he gave Andros an odd look. "Why you?"

His friend shrugged. "Cetaci's needed here and Saryn's--not really available, so I volunteered. The Alliance isn't official until everyone's been offered a place in it, and Zordon can't order them into anything until it *is* official. The Kalenay are the last ones."

At least, he had *thought* his mind had caught up. He tried to remember anything that would give him a clue as to why this was suddenly so important, but he couldn't do it, and he finally gave up. "Why the sudden rush?"

He got one of the patented "Andros looks" for that question. "Because Aquitar needs the Alliance's protection. The Dark Fortress isn't going to be the last threat--it's probably just the beginning. But Zordon can't ask the Alliance to defend one world over another unless *all* the League worlds have a place in it."

Zhane tried to make that make sense, but finally he wrote it off as "politics" and ignored it. "So how long is this going to take?"

"A few hours," Andros admitted. "I'm going to take the Delta Megaship. I should be back before Earth morning, but…"

"You're worried about Ashley," Zhane finished for him. "Yeah, I'll stay up with her. It's no problem."

"Thanks, Zhane," Andros said, looking distinctly relieved. "I really appreciate it."

"No problem," Zhane repeated, offering his arm. Andros mimicked the gesture and clasped his hand.

That was when he remembered. "Andros," he said quickly, just as his friend was turning away. "I was thinking about Cassie, earlier."

It might have been his imagination, but he thought his friend stiffened. Andros was probably blaming himself for what had happened to their teammate…

"Yeah?" Andros looked back at him.

"The healer said that a sorcerer who knew anything about evil wouldn't help Cassie," Zhane said, watching the other carefully. He hadn't had much time to think this out before he'd fallen asleep, but it seemed too important to keep to himself. "What about Astrea?"

"Astronema?" Andros seemed surprised by the suggestion--but not quite surprised enough.

"You thought of that, too," Zhane said. It wasn't a question.

Andros nodded once, looking troubled. "Sort of. I mean, I thought of it, but I didn't want to say anything." He gave Zhane an uncertain look. "Do you--do you really think she'd help us?"

"You said yourself that she knows what's right," Zhane offered, not really sure himself but not willing to dismiss the idea.

"*Kerone* knows what's right," Andros said, fingers twitching toward his locket. "I'm not so sure about Astronema. She's the one who did this to Cassie in the first place."

"You don't know that," Zhane insisted. "It could have been anyone with magical ability that designed those lasers. And she didn't know it was Cassie… I know it's not a good thought, Andros, but it is easier to shoot at faceless people."

"She's seen *all* our faces," Andros muttered. "It's never stopped her from firing before."

"But it didn't stop us, either," Zhane pointed out quietly. "We knew she was on the Dark Fortress. We know--we think--it's Kerone over there, and we fight anyway. Because we have to. But if it were *her* needing *our* help, you know we'd help her."

Andros looked down, then lifted his gaze to some undefined point just beyond Zhane. "I want to believe that she'd do that for us," he murmured. "I really do. But then I keep wondering if I'm letting my own feelings get in the way. She's my *sister*, Zhane, and I can't make myself comprehend all the evil she's done."

Zhane just watched his friend not look at him for a moment, not sure how to answer. Finally, he just agreed quietly. "I know," Zhane said, and Andros caught his eye again.

"Andros," he said, suddenly remembering Astrea's questions the night of the dance. "I think she wants to change. I really think she might help us if we asked--I think maybe all she needs is a *chance* to be good again.

"It's awfully hard to turn your back on everything you've lived with for years and years without knowing what else there is," he added. "But if she knew there were people here for her, who would help her build a new life for herself, then maybe…"

There was a knock on the door, and they both started. Glancing automatically at the door, he caught Andros' eye again and shrugged. "Come in," Zhane called.

The door slid open to reveal Ashley, her face flushed, and flanked on either side by Carlos and TJ. "You guys," she said, sounding a little breathless. "Cassie--what about Astronema?"

The room was absolutely silent. Zhane just stared at her, and he suspected Andros was doing the same thing. Behind her, Carlos and TJ glanced warily at each other, and then looked back at Zhane and Andros.

Andros spoke first. "Ash, are you okay?" he asked, crossing the room to stand next to her. Zhane suspected his friend just barely kept himself from reaching out to her, but even the question made Ashley glare at him.

"Why does everyone keep asking me that?" she demanded. "Of course I'm okay; I just want to know if Astronema can help Cassie, and no one will listen to me!"

This time Andros did reach out to her, and Zhane winced a little. But instead of exploding, Ashley leaned into his embrace and started to cry softly. "Andros," he heard her whisper almost inaudibly, "Why is this happening…"

"Shh…" Andros closed his eyes, hugging her tighter. "It's going to be okay, Ash; I promise."

Zhane shifted uncomfortably, and Andros opened his eyes to glance in his direction. "Zhane thinks Astronema might be able to help, too," he murmured after a moment, and Ashley looked up, rubbing her eyes and blinking at him.

"Really?" she whispered. She looked over at Zhane too, and Zhane tried to smile.

"Yeah, really," he said. "I talked to her, remember, on Earth. I didn't know she was Astronema then, but I still think she might help us."

"Wait," TJ interrupted from the hallway. "So Astronema really was in Angel Grove?"

"I told you," Ashley murmured, sniffing a little as she took a deep breath. "Zhane talked to her."

Andros patted her back comfortingly as she drew back, taking a step away from him to glare at TJ and Carlos defiantly. He kept an arm around her waist, and she moved a little to lean against his side. "They didn't believe me," she said, sounding a little more like her old self as her voice took on a slightly indignant tone.

"Can you blame us?" Carlos asked wryly. "Astronema, wandering around the streets of Angel Grove disguised as an ordinary human?"

"Yeah," TJ agreed. "Sorry, Ash--but you have to admit that sounds a little wild."

"It's true," Zhane said, stepping forward to join the conversation. "I met her that first night we were back on Earth. She said her name was Astrea, and I've been seeing her around Angel Grove ever since. I didn't know she was Astronema until last night."

Carlos and TJ exchanged glances again. "And you didn't think this was important enough to *tell* us?" TJ demanded.

"We didn't really have time," Andros murmured. "I mean, everyone went their own ways after the dance, and then…"

"You guys weren't exactly around much today," Carlos admitted. "But Zhane?" Carlos gave him a look. "Couldn't you have mentioned at some point that Astronema was on Earth?"

Zhane shrugged uncomfortably. "I didn't think of it."

"Anything else we should know, while we're at it?" TJ asked, looking a little amused. "Ashley said something about…"

He trailed off, and Andros looked up. "We think Astronema is Kerone."

Carlos threw up his hands. "That does it. Next time, there's going to be a phone tree. As soon as anyone finds out that a major villain is either Zhane's friend or Andros' sister, and especially if she happens to be *both*, I want to know about it."

TJ was grinning, but he nodded. "Me, too," he agreed. "Andros, you call Carlos, and Carlos, you let me know. Got it?"

Zhane frowned, catching Andros' eye. *What are they talking about?*

*I don't have the faintest idea,* Andros answered. "What's a phone tree?" he asked aloud, and Carlos snickered.

"Never mind," the Black Ranger said. "Just try to let us know when things happen around here, all right?"

"Ashley told you," Andros pointed out, glancing over at his girlfriend. She actually had a small smile on her face, and Zhane assumed that whatever humor he and Andros had missed had done her some good.

"Yeah, but…" TJ looked over at Carlos, then shrugged apologetically. "Sorry for doubting you, Ash."

Ashley shook her head, her smile fading. "It's okay," she said, and her voice trembled a little before she got it back under control. "I know I've been acting kind of weird."

Zhane couldn't blame her for that, and he knew Andros wouldn't either--Andros had been through this before. "It's all right," his friend whispered, squeezing her shoulders, and TJ nodded.

"Yeah, you're entitled, Ash. Man, we all have reason to act a little crazy right now, but…" He hesitated, glancing at Carlos. "I really haven't stopped to think about it. In my mind, Cassie's just hurt, you know? I still think of her as needing to get better, not…"

"Not gone," Carlos finished, and TJ nodded mutely.

Zhane knew he shouldn't get their hopes up, but he couldn't really believe that Astrea *wouldn't* help them. "She's not," he said, and Andros shot him a warning glance.

Zhane sighed. "Look, I know it's a long shot. But it's a chance, isn't it? If *anyone* could undo this, it would be her."

"Yeah, since she's the one who did it in the first place," Carlos muttered, sounding more bitter than Zhane had expected.

"You guys, she isn't all bad," Zhane insisted. "I know Astronema's done some terrible things, but that's not who she really is."

"Zhane, if you can't judge someone by their actions, how *can* you judge them?" TJ asked quietly. "I want to help Cassie more than anything, but I'm having trouble believing that Astronema has any good in her at all. Even if she *is* Andros' sister," he added, glancing at the Red Ranger.

Zhane had fully expected Andros to defend her, but his friend just tightened his grip on Ashley and said nothing.

"Judge them by who they want to be, then," Zhane said at last. "She wants to change. I'm sure of it. We just have to give her a chance."

"Look," Andros said, finally speaking up. "Zhane's talked to her. He knows better than any of us what she's really like. And if he thinks he can convince her to help us, I think we should let him try."

Zhane swallowed. *When did this become *my* job?* he wondered.

"I want my sister back, you guys," Andros said quietly. "And if there's any chance that we can get Cassie back, too, then I want to take it."

*Oh, this is not good,* Zhane thought, trying not to panic. The full implications of what he was proposing hadn't really hit him until now. But all of a sudden, both Kerone and Cassie had become his responsibility--and he didn't even know where to start. Astrea had always found *him*, not the other way around, and after last night, he wasn't sure he could even count on seeing her again.

But Carlos was nodding, and Ashley gave him a small smile. "You're right, Andros," TJ agreed at last. "I can't believe we're seriously thinking about asking Astronema for help… but we have to take any chance we can get."

"I think so too," Carlos said, adding his support, and Ashley nodded.

"We'll be back on Earth tomorrow anyway," Andros said. "I'll set the course as soon as I get back tonight."

Wondering what in the universe he'd gotten himself into, Zhane almost missed the flash of panic on Ashley's face. "Where are you going?" she asked anxiously, turning to look at Andros.

"Irini," he answered. "In the Kalenay system--only for a couple hours, Ash. I'll be back before you know it."

"But why?" she wanted to know, and Zhane hoped his friend could see the fear on her face. Ashley obviously didn't want to let any of the team out of her sight, least of all Andros, and after what had happened to Cassie, Zhane couldn't blame her.

"Just some protocol stuff," he said gently, running his hand through her hair and completely ignoring the surprise on TJ and Carlos' faces. He had clearly not broken the news to them yet, either.

"Once someone's gone to Irini, the Alliance that Zordon's running can come in and protect Aquitar," he added. "The Aquitian Rangers can't keep doing it alone, not if Dark Spectre sends more than just the Dark Fortress, and we can't stay here forever."

"Does it have to be you?" Ashley asked reluctantly, as though she already knew the answer.

"No," Andros admitted. "But I volunteered. Cetaci's needed here--"

"So are you," Ashley murmured.

He smiled, but it didn't stop him from continuing. "And Saryn's not exactly at his best right now. After hearing him yell at Cetaci today, I'm not sure I'd *want* him to go on a diplomatic mission. I'll be back when you wake up, I promise."

"I'm not sleeping," Ashley said, lifting her chin. "I'm staying up 'till you come back."

"Ash, he'll be okay," Carlos cut in. "You heard him--it's just a diplomatic mission. No shooting involved."

Zhane didn't miss the look Carlos shot in Andros' direction, and Andros nodded quickly. "That's right; it isn't dangerous. You don't have to worry."

"I don't care," Ashley said stubbornly. "I'm worrying anyway, so you'd better come back quick."

She sounded like nothing so much as a recalcitrant child, but Zhane could tell his friend found it endearing. He felt a flash of envy as Andros leaned in and kissed her, and he couldn't help wishing he had someone who cared that much about him.

As Andros drew back and Ashley smiled at him, TJ cleared his throat. "Uh, Andros? I can't help bringing up that phone tree thing again. Next time, maybe you could *tell* us these things in advance…"

"*What* is a phone tree?" Andros demanded again, clearly exasperated.

Carlos actually chuckled, and although Zhane didn't know either, he couldn't help smiling at his friend's annoyance. "It's a way for a group of people to get information without any one person having to do much work," the Black Ranger explained.

"You set it up ahead of time," TJ offered, when Andros didn't look any more enlightened. "So the first person to find out information calls a certain person, and then that person calls a certain other person, and so on."

"But we don't have to do that," Andros said, his expression turning to one of puzzlement. "Our morphers can contact everyone on the team at once."

TJ just threw up his hands and turned to Carlos. "I give up," he said, and Zhane heard Ashley giggle a little.

"I think that's the point, Andros," she said, a real smile on her face. "It would be really easy to tell everyone what's going on, but you don't…"

"*I* don't?" he exclaimed. "Zhane could have told them! And you were the one who dragged me off to the beach--"

From where he was standing, Zhane could see the look in Ashley's eyes before Andros did. His friend was too busy expressing his indignation to notice her lean closer, but he cut off abruptly as she placed her fingers over his lips.

"We're just kidding," Ashley whispered, letting her hand fall and pressing her lips to his.

Andros closed his eyes, and Zhane looked away as the two of them held onto each other, apparently oblivious to everyone else in the room. Carlos looked away from TJ and caught his gaze, rolling his eyes, and Zhane couldn't help smiling. Carlos' look said as clearly as words, *We should be used to these demonstrations by now…*

"I have to go," Andros murmured at last, pulling away from Ashley with obvious reluctance.

Ashley sighed. "I know. Be careful, okay?"

He nodded solemnly. "I'll see you soon," Andros promised.

Glancing around the room, he nodded to Carlos and TJ, then locked gazes with Zhane. Zhane smiled, and Andros returned the expression before squeezing Ashley's shoulder one last time and stepping back. "See you guys in the morning," he said, reaching for the Battlelizer that appeared on his wrist.

Ashley lifted her hand in a half-wave as he teleported out. The room was illuminated by a flash of brilliant crimson as the glowing sparkles streaked away, and then he was gone.

Zhane turned to Ashley, realizing that if Andros hadn't even told TJ and Carlos he was leaving, he probably hadn't mentioned that he was planning to hand over custody of Ashley to Zhane. "Ash, I'm going to head up to the Bridge and run some scanner sweeps. Want to keep me company?"

He saw the other two Rangers give him a startled look, but Ashley just nodded, still staring at the spot where Andros had vanished. "Sure," she said distantly.

Zhane glanced at TJ and Carlos. Carlos looked worried, but Zhane waved at them in a "don't worry" gesture. Putting a tentative hand on Ashley's shoulder, he was relieved when she let him steer her toward the door.

TJ and Carlos looked at each other again, and he thought he saw TJ shrug. "If you two don't need any help, I think I'll go try and get some sleep," TJ said, following them out of Zhane's room.

"No, we can manage," Zhane said, hoping Ashley wasn't going to slide back into depression with Andros gone. "You guys get some rest."

"Right," Carlos said, clapping him on the shoulder. When Zhane glanced at him, Carlos mouthed, "Thanks," and Zhane nodded. "We'll see you in the morning, then."

"Pleasant dreams," TJ added, and he and Carlos headed for their respective rooms.

Zhane tried to stifle a yawn. *"Pleasant dreams"?* he thought wryly. *Very funny, TJ.* The Blue Ranger had to know neither of them would be sleeping for at least another few hours.

Ashley continued to let him lead her until they stepped into the lift. Then she looked up as the doors slid shut and caught his eye. "I know what you're doing," she said calmly.

Zhane punched in the lift's destination and gave her his most innocent look. "What do you mean?"

"Andros probably asked you to keep an eye on me," she said. "The same way he made Carlos and TJ stay with me while he went down to Aquitar a little while ago."

"Of course not," Zhane lied. "He woke me up to say he was going, and I figured if you were going to stay up anyway we might as well keep each other company."

"Right," Ashley said, no expression on her face. "You lie about as well as they do."

Zhane sighed, letting the act drop. "Look, he's just worried about you, Ashley. I think he blames himself for what happened to Cassie, and he's probably going crazy thinking it could have been you."

"It's not that I don't appreciate it," Ashley whispered, and he was startled to see tears in her eyes. "It's just--I feel so guilty having everyone fuss over me like this."

"We're your friends, Ashley," he said, amused. "We're supposed to act like this."

The lift doors opened onto the Bridge, and he was relieved to see Ashley smile a little through her tears. "I know," she said quietly. "And you guys are great. It's just… it's not like I'm the only one who's upset. Everyone's hurting, and I guess I feel selfish, having you all looking out for me like this."

Zhane thought about that as he walked out onto the Bridge. "You know," he said suddenly, "I think it makes us feel better to take care of someone. I mean, I can't speak for Carlos or TJ, but--it's kind of easier to worry about you than it is to feel sorry for myself. I guess maybe we're using you, in a way, to forget about our own problems… does that sound really bad?"

Ashley sniffed, but when he looked back at her she was still smiling. "Yes," she said. "But it makes me feel a little better. I think."

Zhane grinned at her. "Good. Now get out here and give me a hand."

"You're actually going to run some scans?" Ashley said, looking surprised. "I thought that was just a way to let TJ and Carlos off the hook."

"Well, that too," he admitted unrepentantly. "But I thought I'd check up on Astronema, and maybe--" He gave her a quick look, not sure he should admit to this one. "Track the Delta Megaship," he muttered in a rush.

Ashley tilted her head, stepping out of the lift and looking at him curiously. "Track the Delta Megaship?"

He was trying to figure out what to say when he saw the corner of her mouth quirk. "You must have read my mind," Ashley said, and he grinned in relief.

"I bet you've done this before," he said, going over to the scanner console.

"Oh, and you haven't," she retorted, following him.

"Well, not exactly," he said, and she gave him a knowing look. He tried to keep a straight face. "After all, we didn't have the Delta Megaship two years ago."

He flinched away, his grin showing through again as she aimed a half-hearted slap at his shoulder. "You know what I mean," Ashley said, setting the scanners to run briefly across the Dark Fortress and then follow the Delta Megaship until it was out of range.

"Yeah," he admitted. "It was worst before I got my powers. His team had given theirs up, and I had to watch him go off alone all the time."

"How *did* you get your powers?" she asked suddenly, glancing sideways at him. "If you don't mind me asking…"

He blinked. "I figured Andros told you."

She shook her head. "He never volunteered, and I never asked."

Zhane shook his head wryly. "If that's what you two are usually like with each other, I'm amazed you ever got together."

Instead of trying to hit him again, Ashley got a far-off look in her eyes. "If it had been up to him, we might not have," she admitted. "I sort of forced the issue."

Zhane raised an eyebrow. That sounded like a story he wanted to hear. "If I tell you how I got my powers, will you tell me how you and Andros started going out?"

She looked at him, startled, until she saw what he suspected was a rather devilish look on his face. Folding her arms across her chest, she smirked at him. "All right. But you have to go first."

Relieved that she was showing interest in something at last, he nodded in agreement. "Deal."

Spinning a chair around, he flopped down in it and put his feet up on the console. Ashley gave him a wry look, but said nothing. Pulling up her own chair, she sat down carefully and waited for him to speak.

"Well," Zhane began, then stopped. "Now that I've said I'll tell you, I've just realized that most of it won't make any sense." He looked at her more closely. "You're sure Andros didn't tell you anything?"

She shook her head wordlessly.

"Well," Zhane tried again, "Andros was the only Kerovan Ranger for a few weeks. We were… eleven, I think, when KO-35 was evacuated that first time, and his team had never been trained for the kind of attack that Dark Spectre threw at us. His team was kept out of the fighting, and his teammates gave up their powers when we settled on Rayven."

He paused. "You know this much, right?"

"Sort of," Ashley said. "He's told me about KO-35, and Rayven, and even some about you--but nothing about your powers."

Zhane shrugged. "Maybe because he doesn't understand them. No one really does, I guess. I said I wanted to fight with him--actually, I think my exact words were, 'If you don't let me come with you, I'm stowing away.'"

Ashley giggled a little at that, and he smiled sheepishly. "As you can imagine, no one was very impressed. Except Andros. And he was the one who had the morphers…"

Ashley's eyes widened. "He said you were offered an astromorpher--he didn't say it was his idea."

Zhane felt his smile widen at the memory. "Yeah, well, no one was very impressed with him either, when they found that out. There was actually some talk of disbanding the Kerovan Rangers altogether--all one of them--because of "lack of necessity'', they said, but the real reason was that the colony's leaders thought we were too young to know what we were doing."

Ashley tilted her head. "Before we came into space, the Turbo team had a Ranger almost that young--and he was the most experienced one of all of us."

It took him a moment to place "Turbo team", but finally he got it. Andros had said the old Earth Rangers were called "Turbo". "I don't doubt it," he said, "but--they were probably right about us. We *didn't* know what we were doing. But we were friends, and we weren't going to let some Power difference come between us."

"But you didn't take the astromorpher," Ashley said, when he paused.

Zhane shook his head. "I couldn't. I didn't earn it, and I didn't feel right taking a morpher that had been meant for someone else."

He saw Ashley glance involuntarily at her wrist. "Oh, you're different," he said quickly. "You earned the right to be a Ranger--I just made a nuisance of myself until my best friend gave in.

"So I went on my own--quest, I guess you could call it," he continued quickly, before she could say respond to that. "That's the part I can't really explain. I had heard about this Power…"

He remembered vividly the message that had come at exactly the right time, and then Andros' offer… "Andros took the Megaship and we went together--but in the end, I had to go seeking alone."

He sighed, realizing how unhelpful his explanation was. "Sorry," Zhane apologized. "I know it doesn't make any sense--"

"No, Ashley interrupted. "Actually, I've been hearing some wild stories about Power quests lately…"

She shook her head at his confused expression. "Just talking to some of the old Rangers. Sorry; go on."

Zhane shrugged again. "That's pretty much all I can tell you. Andros never said anything about my uniform, but I didn't choose it consciously--it just appeared that way."

"With the black bars instead of the colored ones?" Ashley asked, and he nodded. "I guess it makes sense, if there wasn't really a team then…"

"There was me and Andros," Zhane said quietly. "That was all we needed."

Then he added quickly, "But I really like you guys. I didn't mean that to sound so…"

"Exclusive?" Ashley suggested, smiling a little. "That's okay; I knew what you meant."

"So what about you and Andros?" he asked, hoping to change the subject. "You were going to tell me how you got him to come to his senses."

She looked down for a minute, but he couldn't believe she was embarrassed. "Oh, come on," he teased. "A smart, pretty girl like you, interested in *him*, and he didn't ask you out the second you met? What was he thinking?"

Ashley looked up again, a grin creeping across her face. "Well, we didn't exactly get along right away."

He stared at her. "You've got to be kidding me. I can't picture you and Andros fighting!"

"That's not quite what I mean," she said, and Zhane could have sworn she blushed a little. "I sort of… had a crush on him. Instantly. Like, the second I saw him."

Zhane grinned, and she sighed. "Stop it! It was really embarrassing…"

He had to laugh at her expression, and she sighed again. But Ashley was smiling, and he couldn't resist the opportunity to tease her some more. "Andros always had girl appeal. But they usually gave up when he completely ignored them…"

Ashley looked a little sheepish. "He tried. But I was a little too determined for that. And every time I *was* about to give up, he'd say something, or do something, that made me think maybe I had a chance after all."

"Like?" Zhane wanted to know, curious as to how his friend's heart had been stolen so quickly.

"Well…" Ashley squirmed. "I don't know. Just the way he'd look at me, sometimes, and how he always sat next to me when we had lunch on Earth." She shrugged ruefully. "Little things that didn't have to mean anything, but I kept hoping."

"And you "forced the issue"?" Zhane asked, amused.

The distant look was back in her eyes, for just a moment. "I kind of kissed him," she admitted.

Zhane blinked. "Just like that?"

"Pretty much… He'd stalked out on us again, and that time I went after him. I found him in his room, and he didn't look upset at all, just… lonely. We talked for a couple minutes, and--I kissed him."

"Man, I bet that was a shock," Zhane said, grinning. He was dying to ask what Andros had done, but he figured he was already pushing the limits of courtesy.

"Yeah," Ashley agreed, a dreamy look on her face. "I left, and when he confronted me about it later, I apologized, and then… he kissed *me*."

Zhane felt his grin fading as he looked at her. He couldn't doubt that she loved his friend, and he remembered Andros voicing his own feelings for her on Rayven. "You guys are really lucky," he observed quietly.

Her focus gradually returned to him, and she smiled. "I know," Ashley agreed.

The scanners blipped, and Zhane glanced over at them. "The Delta Megaship is out of range," he commented idly. "He must be almost there."

They sat in companionable silence for a few moments, and Zhane was about to suggest another topic of conversation when Ashley stiffened. "Andros?" she whispered, and he could see her gaze unfocus once more.

Zhane swung his feet off the console and sat up. "What's going on?" he demanded, alerted by her sudden change in demeanor.

"Andros is in trouble," she whispered. "Darkonda… attacked the Delta Megaship…"

He could see her trying to divide her attention between him and Andros and failing miserably. He tried to keep himself from reaching out to Andros, knowing another distraction was probably the last thing his friend needed--but the need to know overcame logic, and he called urgently, *Andros?*

*Zhane.* Andros' voice sounded farther away than it ever had. *I'm sorry--take care of Ashley.* There was a sharp sensation, almost painful, and his mind was ominously silent.

"Andros!" Ashley cried, leaping to her feet. "No! You can't…" She choked over the words, and Zhane slammed his hand down on the console, a sense of terrible dread filling him.

"DECA, take us out of Aquitian orbit," he snapped, adjusting the scanners to feed directly into the nav computer. "Follow the Delta Megaship, hyperrush nine."

"Hyperrush nine," DECA repeated, and Aquitar receded into darkness behind them as the viewscreen filled with simulated starlines.

"Andros, don't do this to us," Zhane muttered, cold fear gripping his heart. *Don't do this to her,* he thought, glancing over at Ashley's frozen figure, staring blindly ahead of her at something he couldn't see.

*Don't do this to *me*,* he added silently, selfishly. *I don't want to know what you went through those two years I was in hypersleep…*

"DECA, any sign of the Delta Megaship?" Zhane asked impatiently. Andros had passed out of range only moments before his telepathic call reached Ashley--the scanners should already be able to detect the other ship.

"The Delta Megaship is not registering on the scanners," DECA said, her voice somewhat subdued.

"Andros," Ashley whispered brokenly, a tear slipping down her cheek.

He had always been lucky. He'd never thought about it that way before, but there it was. His sister had been kidnapped from a park one day long ago, but she had not been killed. She was alive, and he had somehow found her again, against all odds.

His home planet had been attacked, but so many of its inhabitants had survived to be transplanted to a safer place. They had thrived there, and the team he had lost in the process had been replaced by the best friend he had ever had, and the only teammate he had needed for four years.

Those four years had come to an abrupt end when his homeworld was attacked again and his only teammate had been killed. Or almost killed--somehow, he had survived in hypersleep and recovered from his near-fatal injuries to join his best friend again.

And in the meantime, he had found four other people to share his ship and his life. They had made him smile for the first time in a long while, and she had filled the lonely ache in his heart. She had overcome the walls he'd built around himself, and taught him how to love again.

For everything that had gone wrong in his life, something more than right enough to make up for it had come along. He was luckier than he had ever realized… until that luck had run out.

As one of Darkonda's fighters made what was clearly going to be a kamikaze run straight for the Delta Megaship's engine core, Andros reached out instinctively. *Ashley…*

She knew something was wrong even before he told her what had happened. He managed to jettison the ship's automatic log before the core exploded, and he felt Zhane call out to him. *Zhane--*

There was no more time, and he wished he could wrap these two people he loved most in the world up in his arms. *I'm sorry. Take care of Ashley for me.*

He knew, as the ship burst into flame around him, that this time there was no more luck to pull him through. Even the Power could not protect him from this.

7. Downswing

*Andros…* She kept calling, desperately seeking some sort of response, but there was no response. The silence in her mind was worse than any pronouncement DECA could make.

He had always been there--she hadn't realized how constant his subtle presence was until she listened for him and heard nothing. She didn't know when that soft glow in her mind had started, but she knew now that it had never been extinguished.

Until a couple of minutes ago. He had been there, so close she could hear his thoughts and *see* what he was telling her, hear what he was feeling in his voice and know with a sinking certainty that he didn't expect to ever see her again--and then he was gone.

Gone, like he had never been there. No fading, no shifting focus, just a sudden snap that left her floundering for a moment before her own thoughts took over again. Aware of the Megaship once more, Ashley had felt the tears on her face and seen the look of utter despair on Zhane's, and she had known he felt it too.

"I am detecting the Delta Megaship's log beacon," DECA said, and Ashley closed her eyes, displacing another round of tears and trying not to whimper. There was only one reason the log beacon would be floating free in space.

"Establish a datalink with the beacon," Zhane said, his voice barely above a whisper. "And DECA--call TJ and Carlos."

"Zhane," she tried to say, but her throat was too tight with tears to get the word out. She tried to rub her face dry, but more tears just kept falling. "Zhane?"

This time he heard her, and his hands stilled on the console as he turned to her. He was crying, she realized, and she couldn't help thinking how strange it was to see tears in his normally cheerful blue eyes. "Is… is Andros…"

She knew, but she had to ask. Yet when she tried, she couldn't get past his name, and Zhane just reached out to touch her shoulder tentatively. She saw him nod, swallowing hard and making no attempt to brush away his own tears.

Trying to contain her own did no good, and she threw herself into his arms, burying her face in his shoulder. Zhane wrapped her up in a desperate hug, holding her so tightly she thought she might snap. But she was squeezing him just as hard, and they clung to each other as though they could somehow will Andros back to them.

Ashley didn't know or care how long they stood like that, but DECA didn't say anything, not even to tell them the datalink had been established. She heard the lift door slid open, and TJ's voice muttered, "I swear, if this is another one of DECA's practical jokes…"

He trailed off, and Ashley heard footsteps on the metal deck as he and Carlos left the lift. "Ashley?" Carlos asked. "Zhane? What's going on?"

Ashley felt a fresh flood of tears threatening to overwhelm her, and she clutched Zhane harder as he tried, haltingly, to answer Carlos. "Andros…" He cleared his throat, but his voice was rough as he continued. "The Delta Megaship was--shot down, on its way to Irini."

There was a stunned silence from behind them. "Andros?" TJ asked softly.

Zhane didn't answer, and Ashley couldn't.

"DECA, what's our course?" Carlos asked finally.

"We are currently following the vector taken by the Delta Megaship," DECA answered. "There is no sign of the ship at its last known location, or anywhere along its projected flight path."

There was another long pause, and then Ashley heard the beep of an accessed datafile. The viewscreen staticked, and she heard KERI's calm monotone take over the Bridge, reciting the vital stats as they had been downloaded to the log beacon.

"Access link two-three-eight point four," the Delta Megaship's computer announced. "ETA to Irini, six minutes. Enemy fighters detected by scanners; full battleship appearing from apparent EM cloak forty-two degrees to starboard. Laser bombardment underway. Heavy damage to aft shielding; overload imminent in main coolant lines. Engine core--"

"Stop," Ashley choked. "Stop it!"

She jerked away from Zhane, stumbling toward the lift. She heard Carlos call her name, but all she wanted was to get away from that terrible narration of damage to the Delta Megaship. She knew how it would end; she had been there with Andros when the ship had exploded, and she didn't want to live it again.

KERI's voice pursued her into the lift. "Engine core at critical. Enemy fighter--"

The door closed, agonizingly slowly, but finally it cut off the sound of the Delta Megaship's automated log. "Deck five," she mumbled miserably, sinking to the floor and pulling her knees up to her chest.

"He was ambushed," TJ muttered, staring at the viewscreen as the log played out its last few seconds. It had been jettisoned only seconds after a suicide run by one of the fighters had ruptured the engine core, and it wasn't hard to extrapolate what had happened from there.

Zhane didn't have to extrapolate. He had heard his friend's final words as the ship blew itself apart, and he didn't want to see it play out on the monitor. But he had watched in horrified fascination until the screen went black, and TJ and Carlos had started trying to trace the vapor trail of the ships that had attacked the Delta Megaship.

Zhane turned away abruptly. He wanted to know when they found something--but only so he could tear the entire fleet to shreds. Right now, he *had* to get away from here. And he knew where he had to go.

"Zhane." Carlos' voice stopped him before he had taken more than two steps. "We could use some help here."

The Black Ranger's voice was tense with anger and worry, but Zhane resumed his course for the lift without looking back. "I can't."

"Zhane…" TJ too sounded upset, but he didn't have a chance to say anything else before Zhane cut him off.

"Look." Zhane whirled, glaring at the both of them. "I know you think you understand, but you don't. You knew him for a few months. I knew him all my life. I was *talking* to him when--"

He broke off, trying to hold onto his anger so they wouldn't see the tears that were threatening to fall again. He couldn't do it, though, and he turned away, muttering, "I'm going to find Ashley."

He could practically hear their doubt, and he knew it wasn't the wisest thing to do. Ashley had run away, and Zhane wasn't sure himself that she wanted company. But he needed it more than anything, and she was the only one he could count on…

*Sometimes people run away to be alone,* he remembered Andros' mother telling him once, back when Kerone had been kidnapped and Andros had withdrawn from everyone around him. *But sometimes they run away to see if you care enough to follow them.*

"DECA, where's Ashley right now?" he asked, once the door had shut out the Megaship's Bridge.

"Ashley is on deck five, in Andros' room," DECA answered, her words sounding slower than usual.

He touched the control panel by the door, and the lift slipped up a level to deck five. He walked down the hall, hesitating in front of his friend's door. *I have as much right to be here as her,* he thought finally, and he keyed the door open.

Ashley was crumpled on the floor by Andros' bed, her shoulders shaking and her face buried in his pillow. Zhane drew in a trembling breath and walked over to her. Kneeling awkwardly on the floor beside her, he put a hand on her shoulder.

Ashley whimpered something incomprehensible into the pillow, and he tightened his fingers on her shoulder unintentionally. "What?" he whispered, surprised to hear his own voice shaking.

Ashley lifted her head and regarded him, her eyes bright with tears. "He said he'd be careful," she mumbled, her voice just barely audible.

Zhane looked down, remembering Andros' words vividly. "It isn't dangerous; you don't have to worry… I'll see you guys in the morning."

"He didn't--" Zhane swallowed. "He didn't mean for this to happen, Ash."

He put his other hand on her shoulder, and she leaned into him wordlessly. Wrapping his arms around her as he had on the Bridge, he stopped trying to hold back his tears. Ashley sniffed, hugging him as hard as he was holding her, and they both cried for the friend and love they had lost.

"It is six o'clock. Time to get up, TJ."

TJ groaned, rolling over and staring at the bunk above him. Then he winced, and groaned again as memory came crashing back. "Andros…"

Everything hit him all at once. Andros wasn't coming back. The Delta Megaship had been destroyed. Cassie was evil. Aquitar could be hit at any moment by more forces than its Rangers could conceivably handle alone.

And today was the first day of TJ's senior year of high school.

"Oh, *hell*," he swore fervently. It didn't make him feel any better, but it had to be said. There was just no possible way that things could get any worse.

"Time to get up, TJ," DECA reminded him, and he glared at the camera.

"Shut *up*, DECA!"

The camera's light blinked at him, and he sighed. "I'm sorry. It's just… man, I don't even know anymore. Never mind."

DECA did not answer, and he closed his eyes. They were in orbit around Earth now, having searched the better part of an hour for any possible trace of either the Delta Megaship or the ships that had attacked it, and finally given up. It had been one of the hardest decisions TJ had ever made, but in the end Carlos had agreed with him that they were searching for ghosts.

"The Astro Rangers continue," DECA said abruptly, and his eyes snapped open in surprise. "You are still that which you have always been. One goal, one team--known as the Power Rangers."

She was echoing what Alpha had told them, TJ realized, startled. Back when they had lost the Turbo powers, and it had looked like Andros wasn't going to accept them, Alpha had used those same words to encourage them.

They had lost one of their team then, too. But Justin had only been left behind, not…

TJ sighed, wondering if it was even worth it to get out of bed. "Thanks, DECA," he said half-heartedly.

"Andros!" She jerked awake, eyes wide as she stared into the dimness. Holding absolutely still, Ashley listened as hard as she could, and the faintest whisper of thought came again.

*I've always loved you…*

*Andros?!* She concentrated all her focus on him, remembering what he had told her about thought patterns and thinking *at* him instead of *of* him. She tried to remember as much of her dream as possible, and called his name again.

Then Zhane was shaking her shoulder, pulling her attention back to the darkened room in which they'd fallen asleep. "Ash," he whispered. "Ashley, it's all right. It's just a dream."

"No," she insisted, shrugging his hand away and trying to recapture that fleeting feeling. *Andros?*

But the spark was gone, and what she had thought she had heard had faded to nothing when Zhane shook her. *Just like a dream,* she thought miserably, wondering if that had truly been all it was.

"Ashley?" Zhane whispered again, as she slumped back against Andros' bed. "Are you okay?"

"No," she replied, knowing he knew that and it wasn't what he had meant. But she could feel the peace of sleep slipping away, and the tears were threatening again. "I was dreaming about Andros and I woke up, and now he's not here and he won't ever be again…"

She bit her lip, blinking hard. She really *didn't* want to start crying again this early.

Zhane looked about the way she felt, and she tried to smile a little for his benefit. "Sorry," she murmured, then she shook her head hopelessly. "Zhane… what are we going to do?"

He hugged her suddenly, hard, and she felt the tears sliding down her cheeks no matter how much she had promised herself they wouldn't. "You're making me cry again," she whispered, trying to make it a joke and not quite succeeding.

"Sorry," he whispered back, but he didn't let go.

Then she felt it again, the briefest flicker of a dream image, and she stiffened. "Did you hear that?" she demanded quietly.

*Andros,* she called again, reaching for the presence that had never abandoned her until the Delta Megaship had vanished from DECA's scanners the day before…

Zhane loosened his grip on her, regarding her with a worried expression, but she didn't notice. "Hear what?" he asked.

"Andros," she murmured, once more trying to call her dream to mind. The beach, lying on the blanket with him, some of it memory and some purely dream--she could almost feel the way she had felt when she woke up, and she closed her eyes, concentrating harder.

*Andros?* She called again, and again, sure had almost reached him this time--

Zhane was shaking her again, and she blinked her eyes open, shooting him an irritated look. "Stop it," she said, batting at his hands childishly. "I'm trying to talk to Andros."

There was no mistaking the concern on Zhane's face this time. "Ash… Andros--isn't there." He swallowed hard, but he met her gaze without flinching. "You remember last night, right? The Delta Megaship--got ambushed?"

She nodded impatiently, trying once more to reach out for Andros. But Zhane kept trying to get her attention, trying to make her focus on the here and now, and she scowled at him. "Leave me alone, Zhane," she snapped, more harshly than she'd meant to.

Seeing his expression, she sighed. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean that… Of course I remember last night." She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, the memory of KERI's voice invading her thoughts before she could stop it. "Engine core at critical…"

She tried to take a deep breath, and found herself shivering. Zhane tugged Andros' blanket off the bunk and wrapped it around her, hugging her close to him once more. "But what if he's not dead, Zhane?" she murmured, leaning her head against his chest. "What if he survived, and he's trying to call us?"

Zhane was stroking her hair, the same way Andros always did, and she felt her eyes slid shut. Maybe, just maybe, if she could get back to sleep, she could see Andros again. Yes… he would wait for her there. He wasn't really gone at all…

Enveloped in Andros' blanket, she could almost make herself believe that he was the one holding her now. Sinking farther into Zhane's arms, she waited patiently for sleep to claim her again.

He felt Ashley relaxing, heard her breathing even out, and he waited a few more minutes just to be sure. Then he twitched his arm a little, seeing if it would disturb her, but she didn't move. Pushing her away gently, he wondered if he dared try to lift her onto Andros' bunk.

He decided against it, taking Andros' pillow instead and propping it up in the corner where he had been sitting. Ashley accepted the transition with only a faint murmur, sliding down to curl up on the floor. He felt a little guilty for leaving her there, but he doubted he could move her without waking her up, and he knew *he* wouldn't be able to get back to sleep.

"What if he survived, and he's trying to call us?" That thought had haunted Zhane, too, but he knew how impossible it was. The Delta Megaship, as far as the scanners could tell, had been blown into pieces too small to keep an environment *anywhere*, let alone in the one place Andros would have been at the time.

Ashley's repeated insistence that Andros was trying to contact them bothered him, though, and he resolved to study the results of DECA's scans more thoroughly. He was afraid, though, that it was nothing more than a product of her sleep-fogged mind. She would probably apologize for it later, when she was truly awake--and he almost pitied her that awakening.

He too had had a moment, just as he woke up, when he had thought that Andros might really be all right. Almost like a lingering mindtouch, someone reaching out to him while he slept--but the feeling had faded as he opened his eyes, and he knew it was wishful thinking. There was nothing he wanted more than to believe his friend was alive, but the cold reality of it kept intruding.

With a heavy sigh, Zhane managed to pull himself to his feet. His body was stiff from sleeping on the floor, and his heart felt distant and uncaring. Without Andros, what *did* matter anymore?

But he told himself that that was depression setting in, and he made himself stop in the Glider holding bay on his way to the Bridge. To his surprise, TJ and Carlos were there, eating in total silence, as though afraid of what conversation might bring up.

Zhane joined them, getting something from the Synthetron only because he knew he had to eat. They each nodded to him, but no one said anything. Finally, Zhane broke the silence, his words sounding unnaturally loud to his ears in the quiet room.

"You're going to school, then?" he asked.

They glanced at each other. "Yeah," TJ said finally. "You know if there was anything we could do for--anything we could do, we'd skip in a heartbeat. But there really isn't…"

Zhane shook his head. "No, there isn't. At least you'll have something to keep you busy," he added, a little enviously. He didn't think he could face anyone other than the Rangers right now, but he also wasn't sure he wanted to be alone.

TJ looked more sympathetic than he had expected. "How are you doing?" he asked quietly. "And Ashley?"

Zhane blanked for a moment, then shook his head. "I… I don't know." He tried to smile a little. "I'll get back to you later."

He hesitated, then added, "Ash is a little… out of it. I'm hoping it's just because she was sleepy when I talked to her." He paused. "I guess I'll get back to you about her, too."

TJ nodded, and Carlos waited a moment before saying, "I hate to even bring this up, but someone has to tell the Aquitians…"

The Aquitians had probably expected Andros back hours ago, and Zhane flinched at the thought of breaking the news to them. "I'll do it," he said, knowing there was no other choice.

Carlos was watching him. "If you want--"

Zhane shook his head. "No," he said, more roughly than he'd intended. "My teammate; my responsibility."

"Andros was everyone's teammate, Zhane," TJ said, his voice cold.

Zhane swallowed. "I--I know. I'm sorry; I didn't mean that." His throat closed up, and he couldn't continue.

It was Carlos who nodded, and they ate the rest of their meal in silence.

The words echoed in her mind, and she tossed restlessly. Her shoulder hit something solid and she started awake, eyes open and unseeing in the still dim room.

*Andros?* she thought, holding her breath.

*Don't let go, Ash…*

*It's not a dream; please don't let it be a dream,* she begged, her fingers clenching on the blanket she wasn't even aware she was holding. *Andros!*

There was no answer, and she started to panic. The Delta Megaship was really gone… *Andros,* she thought desperately. *Please be there. Please don't be a dream.*

She felt the tears welling up in her eyes again, and she turned her head to bury her face in the pillow. She was lying on the floor, she realized distantly--how had she fallen asleep on the floor?

*Andros' room…* She remembered, now, running here after the scanners downloaded the Delta Megaship's log into DECA's databanks. She remembered Zhane finding her, and the two of them crying themselves to sleep. And she remembered waking up once before, with the same eerie echo of Andros in her mind…

Zhane hadn't believed her. But Zhane wasn't here now, and she closed her eyes, reaching for Andros again. She tried to recapture the fragments of dream that slipped and drifted away as she chased them, teasing her like leaves on a breeze--

*Leaves.* The forest snapped back into focus in startling detail, and she remembered the soft sound of the wind through the trees as she waited for Andros. He had come from behind her, running up and hugging her hard…

She tried to remember exactly what they had said, knowing that, if he was able, he would be doing the same thing in an attempt to get back that fleeting mindtouch… If he wasn't dead, gone beyond all hope, lost to her for--

She squeezed her eyes shut tighter, trying to forcibly erase those thoughts. Andros had said for her not to leave him, not to let go, and she'd held on as though she could keep him from fading just by keeping her arms around him.

*Don't let go…*

Ashley caught her breath, holding onto the memory of his embrace as firmly as she could. *I won't,* she promised, wondering if those words had only been a product of her memory--or imagination.

*I need your help, Ashley,* Andros' voice repeated, and she let her breath out in a gasp.

*Pleasetellmeyou'renotadream!* She pulled his blanket to her chest, clutching it with whitened knuckles and waiting breathlessly for the reply.

*I'm not if you're not,* Andros' voice said after a moment, and she felt tears stinging her eyes. It was something she might say, and she felt that nagging doubt again. Was she just imagining this because she needed to hear it?

*Ash, don't leave me,* he repeated, sounding suddenly panicked. She blinked, realizing her focus had been slipping.

*Andros?*

*I'm on one of Irini's moons,* he said quickly. *I can't call for help and I'm too far from the settlements to walk to any of them.*

His words were getting quieter the more he spoke, and she strained to hear him. *I need your help, Ashley…*

She hadn't even noticed when she opened her eyes, but now she shut them, trying to keep him there with her. *Don't go!*

There was no answer.

She was staring out the window, trying to explain the sudden ache in her soul, when Elgar's strident voice interrupted her. "Astronema, we're, uh, receiving a transmission!"

His tone was startled, as though he hadn't expected Dark Spectre to contact the Dark Fortress within hours of the attack on Aquitar. Frankly, she was surprised it had taken him this long.

*Of course,* she thought disgustedly, *Elgar has a perpetually startled tone. He could look out a window and say, as though it were the first time he'd ever noticed, "Hey, there are *stars* out there!"*

The thought brought a slight smile to her lips, but she banished it before turning away from the view of Aquitar's moon. "Well, let's hear it," she snapped impatiently.

"Uh--right!"

Ecliptor came to stand in the doorway of the tactical area, gazing toward the viewscreen with no expression in his stance. None, that is, until the viewscreen remained dark and a jumbled transmission emanated from the speakers.

She frowned. "Elgar, clear that up," she ordered, but he shook his head.

"That's how it arrived, boss! I dunno; maybe it's supposed to sound like that?"

She was about to give him a piece of her mind when a distorted voice started to speak over the background static. She froze, her eyes widening as she listened.

"Astrea," the garbled voice said. "I need to see you."

Then the static took over again, and Elgar scratched his head as the speakers went silent. "That's it; that's all there is. Whoa, can't even pronounce your name right…"

For once, she ignored Elgar. The sender's voice had been unrecognizable, but there were only three people who knew her by that name. Two of them were Rangers, and she was almost positive they wouldn't pull a stunt like this. Which left that boy she'd met on Earth…

But how had he gotten access to comm equipment? Earth could barely broadcast to its own moon, let alone one in the next galaxy over. And how had he been able to find her? And why could he possibly want to see her?

"My princess?" Ecliptor asked quietly, and she looked up in surprise. She hadn't even noticed him join her. "Does this message mean something to you?"

"Perhaps," she said evasively. "Can we track the signal, and find out where it originated?"

"Yeah, no problem," Elgar interrupted loudly. "I already did. It came from the Megaship; maybe those Rangers are prank calling us or something--"

"Quiet!" she snapped, irritated with his incessant commentary.

"Right, got it." Elgar saluted. "As quiet as those ninjas, that's me! You don't have to worry--"

"QUIET!" she shouted, and he shut up.

Turning her attention back to Ecliptor, she frowned a little. Playing with the beads in her hair, she repeated thoughtfully, "From the Megaship…"

Zhane looked up as Ashley burst onto the Bridge, hair tousled and uniform rumpled. She had obviously not changed since waking up, and the wild look in her eyes said she hadn't been awake long enough to even think of it.

"Zhane!" she exclaimed breathlessly, darting over to him. "We have to go back! We have to go to Irini!"

Zhane grabbed her shoulders, a sinking sensation in his stomach. Ashley wasn't any better for the extra sleep--if anything, she seemed worse now, and he had no idea what to do. "Ash, calm down," he said, trying to follow his own advice.

"I can't," she gasped. "It's Andros…"

He gave her a wary look. "What's Andros?"

"I had another dream," she told him seriously. "I heard him again--Zhane he's not dead; he's still out there!"

Zhane felt a brief flicker of hope, and he hated it because he knew it was ridiculous. Ashley was obviously unstable, but he *wanted* to believe her so much that he found himself listening.

"He says he on one of Irini's moons," she added. "We have to go back and pick him up!"

Zhane sighed, gripping her shoulders more tightly. "Ash, think about what you're saying. Andros told you, in a dream, that he was on a moon?"

"It wasn't a dream," she insisted, shaking her head vehemently. "I heard Andros, Zhane! I know how this sounds, but it's true!"

"Then why didn't Andros call me, too?" he asked, trying to reason with her. "He should be able to talk to me just as easily, right? How come I haven't heard him?"

"I couldn't either, not at first," she told him earnestly. "I kept waking up, thinking he was talking to me--but finally I heard him! I just had to concentrate really hard on the dream I was having!"

Zhane had to sigh again. "Ash, the Delta Megaship exploded," he told her. He managed to keep his voice from shaking as he said the words, and he saw her lip tremble. "How could Andros have survived? And why would he be on one of Irini's moons?"

"Maybe he crash-landed," Ashley said, her tone a little more subdued. He hated to do this to her, but she couldn't keep thinking Andros was alive and waiting for them somewhere. "Maybe all of the ship didn't explode, and part of it crashed on the moon…"

There was some doubt in her voice, now, and he pressed his advantage. "That's not what happens when the core explodes, and you know it," he said gently. "Even if some part of the ship did survive, and it somehow made it to a place with an atmosphere, there wouldn't be any way to control the reentry angle. It would burn up before it ever reached the surface…"

He felt terrible for the tears he saw in her eyes. "Ash, I'm sorry," he whispered, looking down. "I want him to be alive, too; I really do. I just don't want to keep denying the truth…"

"The truth sucks," Ashley muttered, her voice choked. "I hate the truth, Zhane."

"I know," he agreed softly, reaching out to hug her. "I hate the truth, too."

They held each other for several minutes, neither wanting to face the grim reality that confronted them every time they turned around. Finally, though, the comm system beeped and Zhane pulled away, thinking Carlos or TJ was calling.

*No,* he thought, trying to pull his thoughts together. *They would have used their morphers.* Walking over to the comm console, he figured, *Aquitar, then…*

But the comm system was indicating receipt of an automated transmission, not a live video link. Zhane frowned, calling up the transmission and blinking as static came over the speakers. It was audio only, and his eyes widened as a very familiar voice overlaid the static.

Not even slightly distorted, Astrea's voice told him, "Meet me in the park on Earth, at sunset." The static lingered a moment longer, and then the transmission ended.

Zhane looked automatically for Ashley, and found her staring at him in shock. "Was that--Astronema?" she breathed, and he nodded, a little dazed himself. He hadn't known whether to expect an answer at all, let alone one so prompt and affirmative.

"I contacted her right after I called Aquitar," he said after a moment. "I--didn't think she'd reply so fast."

"I didn't think she'd answer at all," Ashley murmured. "Or I wouldn't have, if I'd known… Zhane--how well do you *know* her?"

He shook his head, half a negative and half an attempt to clear his mind. "I don't, not really. I've just talked to her a few times. That's all."

"I guess that's enough," Ashley said softly, looking bewildered.

"I guess," Zhane said, feeling pretty much the way she looked. *Sunset…* "We're going to have to get Cassie; bring her back to Earth."

"But you don't even know if she'll help us!" Ashley whispered, looking at him with a look of childlike confusion.

"Better to be ready if she will," Zhane said firmly, glad to have something to focus on other than the events of the night before. "DECA, set a course for Aquitar."

"Course set," DECA confirmed a moment later, and Zhane walked around the second row of consoles.

"Hyperrush nine," he said, and DECA acknowledged. Shifting the engine controls back, he pushed them forward with a determined shove and watched the screen turn to myriad lines of light.

"Should we tell Carlos and TJ?" Ashley asked uncertainly, looking as though she couldn't even decide whether to stand or sit, let alone whether to alert their fellow Rangers.

"We'll be back in a little while," he promised. "They won't even know we're gone." Then he winced, hearing the similarity to the words Andros had uttered the night before. "After all, they're on Earth," he said, trying to make up for his slip. "What trouble can they get into?"

"Oh, don't ask that," Ashley murmured softly, apparently making a decision and dropping into Cassie's seat. "If things can get worse, I really don't want to know."

Zhane nodded mutely, moving back to the comm console. *That* was certainly a sentiment he could empathize with…

Pushing the ever-present thoughts of Andros from his mind, he set the comm system to signal Aquitar. The Aquitian swirl logo appeared on the screen almost immediately, fading into view over the starlines. Someone must have been in the control room, because the logo was there only a few seconds before Cetaci's face replaced it.

"Astro Rangers," she greeted them, in the toneless way of all Aquitians. "How can we be of assistance?"

"We're coming back for Cassie," Zhane told her, saving Astrea's transmission for future reference. "We may have found a way to help her."

Cetaci hesitated, and he wondered if that was surprise he saw on her face. "She is your teammate, of course," the White Aquitian Ranger said. "We will release her to your custody--but I would personally advise that she be kept in a secure facility until and unless she can be cured, through whatever method you have found."

*We were there,* Zhane thought impatiently. *We know what she's like.* "That's probably smart," he said out loud. "Thank you; we'll do that."

Cetaci nodded, and turned to someone just out of range of the narrow comm pickup. "Contact Phantom," she told them, and Zhane tried not to sigh. Of course *he* would have to know…

There was a pause, and he tried not to fidget. Glancing over at Ashley, he saw her staring blankly at Andros' chair. He suddenly realized that she was inside the view being projected to Cetaci, and the Aquitian Ranger had not said a word. He wondered whether it was more appropriate to be grateful for Cetaci's silence, or annoyed by her lack of concern.

"Bring up a visual of the containment area," Cetaci said, her voice muted as she continued to speak to someone offscreen.

Zhane leaned forward a little, puzzled by the delay. "What's going on?"

Cetaci glanced in the direction of the comm again, appearing to look back at him. "Phantom is not responding to our attempts to contact him," she said, her tone neutral. "Please wait one moment."

*In other words, "mind your own business and let us mind ours",* he thought wryly. What could possibly make Saryn ignore their calls? *Asleep,* Zhane decided. The armored Ranger had to sleep sometime, after all.

"Are you certain?" Cetaci demanded, and Zhane tried not to smile. She was starting to show signs of annoyance. *Maybe Saryn's yelling at her again…*

Cetaci turned back to the viewscreen, and this time her irked expression was unmistakable. "Cassie has escaped from containment. We are unable to locate her anywhere inside the command center dome."

8. Twisted

*Damn blue eyes.* She could feel them watching her every move. She was starting to hate those eyes, as much as she hated the forcefield that held her captive in this tiny room.

At least, she was trying to hate them. He was a Ranger, after all, the essence of everything good and honorable--everything she was not. She wanted nothing to do with him. But every time she tried to glance scathingly in his direction, that pretty sapphire gaze would pull her in, and she would have to jerk her own eyes away.

*Stupid Ranger,* she thought disgustedly. What was he thinking to demorph like that, anyway? He could have just let the forcefield knock her unconscious, but instead he had let it hurt *him* in an effort to get her to stop.

He still loved her. She could feel it as clearly as her own scorn, and she was careful to keep the feelings separate. She knew everything he felt through this link of theirs, and as ridiculous as it was, he still cared about her. *That* was what had made him demorph and let the forcefield shock him, and it was what kept him just outside her cell now, watching her.

She frowned to herself. He should have been the easiest one of all of them to destroy, for she knew he wouldn't defend himself against her. But to her dismay, he had been right when he told her that she couldn't do it. She *couldn't* fire on him, any more than he had been able to watch her hurt herself.

She stopped pacing abruptly, turning a glare on the dark Ranger who sat slumped against the wall on the other side of the forcefield. This time she wouldn't be distracted--she was going to stare at him until she figured out what this link was, and how to stop it.

He looked up as her footsteps ceased, and she saw him blink once. Surprised and forgetting to glare, she peered more closely at him. Had he actually been--sleeping?

Only a fool would sleep in a prisoner cellblock. A fool or a prisoner, of course. But if he had been asleep, he had awoken as soon as she stopped moving, and now she couldn't tell. His eyes were as alert as always, but she couldn't help noticing the shadows that dimmed their usual brilliance--

*Damn blue eyes,* she thought again, yanking her gaze away furiously. No matter how hard she tried to hate them, she couldn't ignore the effect they had on her. All it took was one look and she found herself suppressing memories that she didn't want.

She dropped to the floor, putting her chin on her fist and staring hard at the opposite wall. There had to be some way around the obstacle that was *him*. Even assuming she could get out of here, there was no way she would be able to get past him, and she had already had it proven to her that she couldn't hurt him.

He didn't seem inclined to leave anytime soon, either. So she was stuck with a Ranger who wouldn't take his eyes off her, and a forcefield she couldn't disable from inside--

*But *he* could.* The thought caught her unaware, and she lowered her head so he wouldn't see the expression of smug delight on her face. She was going about this all wrong. Why fight him when he could help her?

Stifling a yawn, she glanced covertly in his direction. This time she caught him with his eyes closed, and she tried to make as little noise as possible as she settled back against the wall and closed her own eyes.

She would allow him to sleep thinking that she despised him. But when morning came, it would be time for a change of tactics.

He started awake, shaking violently as the dream images crystallized instead of fading from his conscious mind. The nightmare wrapped cold fingers around his heart, and it was with added dismay that he recognized his surroundings.

That was far from the first memory-turned-nightmare he had had of his old team, but it was the first in several weeks. The first since Cassie had told him she loved him… But Cassie had been in the dream herself, this time--the second love he had not been able to give enough of himself to, and the second love he had ultimately failed.

As with Jenna, he had let his responsibilities put barriers between the two of them. He had let his duty separate them, and though Jenna had finally beaten some sense into him, he had forgotten what she taught him and had repeated his mistakes with Cassie. *And now it's too late,* he thought miserably, staring through the forcefield at the sleeping form on the other side.

"You never knew how much you meant to me," he whispered, wishing those dream words hadn't burned themselves into his mind. "You failed us, Saryn…"

He had never told her how difficult she made it for him to stay morphed all the time, or how hard it was to leave her every morning before she woke. She hadn't known how close he had come, sometimes, to demorphing just to kiss her when she wandered through the control room at odd intervals.

"Cassie," he murmured hopelessly, remembering how happy it had made her that one time he *did* demorph when she came in. She had felt so good in his arms, and it had been harder than he had ever imagined to morph again after that.

The girl in the cell twitched a little in her sleep, muttering something he couldn't hear, and he closed his eyes. If only he *hadn't* morphed then… He couldn't help thinking things might have been different. She might not have left, might not have gone with Billy to join the fighter wing--and she might be with him now, heart and soul still those of the woman he had fallen in love with.

Another sound caught his attention, and he realized he had been dozing off again as his eyes snapped open. Cassie turned in her sleep, and he frowned as he saw her shiver. The Aquitian climate always felt a little cool to him, but she had never complained.

*She's sleeping,* his mind reasoned. *Not generating enough heat anymore…*

His mind knew that this wasn't Cassie, that for all intents and purposes it was someone else's personality inhabiting her body. But his heart still refused to believe it, and he found himself climbing slowly to his feet and walking over to the forcefield controls.

His hand hesitated over the control panel, but she was obviously asleep. He deactivated the forcefield and knelt down at her side, pulling off the overshirt he had been wearing on top of his tunic. With trembling hands, he laid it over her upper body, trying not to disturb her.

She moved a little, and his eyes went wide as she murmured his name. "Cassie?" he whispered, brushing a strand of hair from her face.

His hand froze as he realized what he was doing, and he squeezed his eyes shut. *It isn't Cassie!* his mind shouted at him. He *knew* that--and yet, as long as he could see her, she would never be truly dead to him. And worse, he knew he would never stop caring about this person who *wasn't* her anymore…

He tried to force his hand away from her, but his eyes opened involuntarily as she shifted yet again. She couldn't seem to stay still--but this time, her movement dislodged her loose hair enough that his gaze caught on a tiny metal disc just beneath her right ear.

He leaned forward, touching the metal dot gingerly, and he felt her jerk awake. Rolling away, she came up in a sitting position and glared at him suspiciously. Cassie never came awake that quickly, and he thought suddenly that she might not have been as asleep as she had seemed a moment ago.

Her hand went to the miniature disc on her neck, and her eyes narrowed at him. "What did you do?"

"Nothing," he said softly, wishing the anger and suspicion in her expression didn't hurt so much. *It isn't Cassie,* his mind reminded him again, and he was torn between belief and denial. It *wasn't* Cassie, but to admit that to himself would be to admit that she was gone forever…

"Then what's this?" she demanded.

He shook his head. "I don't--I don't know. I think…" He hesitated, remembering something the healer had said about monitoring her brain waves. "I think the Aquitians put it there."

She reached up to touch it, and he saw her wince. "Stupid thing shocked me," she muttered under her breath. She reached up again, and this time he heard the tiny zap of electricity. She yelped, glaring at him as though it was his fault. But when she reached for it a third time, obviously determined to get rid of it no matter how much it hurt, he made an involuntary movement forward.

"No," he said urgently, then stopped, knowing she had no reason to listen to him.

She just looked at him, her glare gone. "I want it off," she said matter-of-factly. "I don't particularly care what it takes."

He swallowed, not wanting to know how far she would go. "Then--" His voice dropped to a near-whisper as he said, "Let me."

She showed no sign of surprise, only continued to look at him a moment longer. Finally, she gave a short nod and turned sideways, pulling her hair away from her neck.

Moving closer, he stared at the minuscule device, trying to find any kind of deactivation sequence. But it seemed to have none, and the longer he looked at it, the more he saw only the gentle curve of her neck. His fingers trembled as he lifted his hand, and he hoped fervently that she wouldn't recognize his hesitation--or its cause.

It didn't shock him when he tugged at it, and it came off with little resistance. She turned her head, trying to see the device he held in his hand, and he froze, knowing he should pull away but unable to make his body respond.

Her eyes flickered to his, and with their faces only centimeters apart he could see exactly when she realized what was on his mind. She didn't move, and he fought the overwhelming urge to lean just a little forward and kiss her, just once…

He wondered if she was closer than she had been a second before, and then her lips were sweet against his and nothing else in the universe mattered. For one blissful moment, Cassie was his again, and he would have done absolutely anything to keep her.

Then that nagging voice was back. *It isn't Cassie!* the voice insisted belligerently, as it had been doing ever since he woke up. He tried to ignore it, but it was too late--he found himself scrambling back, unable to meet her eyes and trying desperately to make his heart stop pounding so hard.

He saw her withdraw as well, pulling her knees up to her chest. "Stupid memories," he heard her whisper.

"But they're not," he pleaded quietly, feeling a flicker of hope. "They're who you *are*, Cassie; they're not stupid. Please… can't you listen to those memories?"

"I'm trying not to," she muttered.

"Why *not*?" he whispered. "I need you, Cassie…"

"No," she said through clenched teeth. "You need *her*."

He could feel the faintest whisper of sorrow through their link, and he leaned a little forward. "You *are* her--you can be. Remember who you are, Cassie, please…"

"I--" She stopped, glancing up at him from underneath her eyelashes. "It isn't that simple," she said at last. He thought he saw a pale green glow flare in her eyes, but it was gone too quickly for him to be sure.

"Even if I could, somehow, be her…" She stared down at the ground. After a moment, she murmured, "I'll never know. They'll kill me, you know."

His heart clenched, and he stared at her in shock. "The Aquitians?" he choked. "No…" Aquitar had not executed anyone in more than a century. They wouldn't start with a Ranger.

"Them, or your friends," she said softly. "I'm evil. They have to get rid of me somehow. Do you think they're going to keep me here forever?"

He shook his head wordlessly. Of course she couldn't stay here--but to actually… kill her? He could barely even think the word. She couldn't die. She just couldn't--he didn't care who she was now, she had once been Cassie. And he couldn't let anything happen to her.

He got to his feet slowly, his mind racing. He looked around the room, realizing only then that the forcefield had been down this whole time. She had done nothing to try to escape. And she had all of Cassie's memories…

He reached for the ruby that hung around his neck, and the flash of fear on her face tore at his heart. "It's all right," he murmured, as his armor faded into place around him.

Not looking at her, he drew his blaster and stared down at it for a moment. If he did this, he was turning his back on everything he had ever believed. But if he didn't… the price would surely haunt him for the rest of his life.

He lifted his weapon and blasted the security camera in her cell to pieces. From where he stood, he couldn't quite get the one by the entry chamber, and he stepped forward, turning and firing in one smooth motion.

Behind him, Cassie was still crouched on the floor, her eyes wide as she gazed at him. "Come on," he said roughly, holding out his hand.

She took it immediately and scrambled to her feet, still staring at him. "Demorph," she ordered suddenly, and he frowned warily.

"Why--"

She didn't let him finish the sentence. He saw her move, knew what she was going for, and with anyone else he would have been prepared. But his reflexes didn't function properly when it came to her, and she grabbed his ruby before he could think.

As the datafeed from his visor was replaced by his own vision once more, he felt her press her body close and crush her lips against his. He couldn't think, he couldn't question; all he knew was the pounding of his heart and the irresistible feel of *Cassie*.

Then she pulled away, whispering "Thank you," and placed the crimson stone back in his hand. He curled his fingers around it automatically, but what he really wanted to do was to reach for her again and never let her go.

"Let's go," she murmured impatiently, and he was once more hit with the realization that this was not the person he wanted so much to believe it was. But he remembered her hesitation earlier, and he knew that if there was the slightest chance she might ever be that person again, he had to help her.

Slipping the gold chain back over his head, he morphed again. This time he was grateful for the armor, for it distanced him from her touch enough that he could concentrate. Letting the door scanners verify his own Power source, he reprogrammed them to allow her to pass, and he nodded to her when he was done.

She stepped through hesitantly, looking a little surprised when the forcefield didn't protest. He followed, taking her morpher from the table and gesturing her toward the next forcefield. He "reprogrammed" that one as well, glad he had had time to learn his way around Aquitian computer systems--but he grabbed her arm before she could step through.

"There are more cameras in the hallway," he said quietly.

"So blast them," she whispered back.

"That will only give anyone who is looking a trail to follow," he pointed out, trying to overlook the callous tone of her voice.

"You have a better idea?" she asked skeptically.

Through his visor's datafeed, he saw her eyes widen as his cloak powered up. "But I can't--"

He held out his hand, knowing she would be aware of the gesture whether she could see it or not. Sure enough, her hand found his without effort, and she gasped as light started to bend around her. Jerking her hand back, she whispered indignantly, "I can't see that way!"

"That's the way it works," he replied. "You are invisible--you neither reflect nor absorb visible light. As a consequence, your eyes perceive nothing."

"But *you* can see," she said, looking a little suspicious.

"My visor can pick up light in different parts of the spectrum," he told her, still holding out his hand. "You--" He gazed steadily at her. "You will have to trust me."

She stared at him for a moment. "Give me my morpher, then," she said at last. "Trust for trust."

He hesitated. But he had no intention of letting her out of his sight, and he thought he could stop her if she seemed about to try something foolish. Without a word, he passed the Pink astromorpher to her, and she fastened it around her wrist.

She nodded to him and took his hand once again. He saw her square her shoulders as visible light started to ignore her once more, and he felt an involuntary flash of admiration for her courage. He suppressed it as best he could and stepped forward, tugging gently on her hand to make her follow.

She hated this. She hated it; hated having to trust him, and worse, she hated the fact that she *did* trust him. No matter how much her mind told her not to, her instincts kept remembering all those dozens of times she had counted on him and had not been let down. Even when she could suppress the memories, the feelings were still there, and it was getting harder to separate them from his.

Especially in this absolute darkness. There was no light, nothing to *see*, only the impression of movement as she followed him blindly through the Aquitian command center. They were surrounded by an eerie silence, as though her hearing had stopped working along with her vision, and all she had for company was his hand wrapped around hers and the feeling of him in her mind.

*Damn blue eyes,* she thought half-heartedly, knowing it wasn't his eyes that had talked her into this. She had agreed of her own accord--because she had nothing to lose. Wherever he was leading her, it had to be better than that cell, and as soon as she could see again she would be able to assess the situation for herself.

The comforting weight of her morpher rested on her left wrist, and she smiled a little. He had no idea what a mistake that had been. "Trust for trust" she had told him, but he had obviously not stopped to think. She *had* to trust him; there was no choice involved. It was that or imprisonment. But he had willingly relinquished the one device that would guarantee her escape…

She twisted her arm a little, satisfying herself that it was still there. No matter what happened, she would not be going back to the cellblock. She could teleport now at any time, take a starfighter and be gone before anyone could catch her.

Instead she waited, more secure with the knowledge that she would not be a prisoner again, to see where this Ranger would take her. On her own, she would have to evade Aquitians in both the launch bay and in the atmosphere above their planet, and she knew unconsciously that she would have a better chance with him there to run interference for her.

She felt his pace slow, and he tugged her a little to the side. She thought at first that they were getting out of the way of passersby in the hallway, but then the world faded back into view around her.

They were just around a corner from what must be the hallway they had been traversing moments before, and he was standing between her and the main corridor. As she blinked, readjusting to her vision again, he stepped back, his visor turning toward her. "Are you all right?" he asked quietly.

She nodded, puzzled as to why he'd stopped. "Where are we going?"

"The launch bay," he answered. "Teleporting will trigger an alert in the control room."

She tried not to roll her eyes. Why was he trying to be so subtle? "So?" she demanded.

"The longer it takes them to realize you are gone--" He broke off abruptly, stiffening. She tensed too, glancing toward the empty hallway.

"Cestria is signaling me," he murmured. She watched him warily, ready to reach for her morpher if she needed to. Instead, he shook his head and grabbed her hand, his cloak sliding into place around the two of them. "She wants you--come on."

She tried to wrench her hand away, but his grip was too strong. "No!" she protested, bracing herself to fight if she had to. "Saryn--"

The darkness disappeared, and she saw his head whip around. She stumbled a little as he let go of her, falling back against the wall and feeling his shock slip through her mind. She tried frantically to push it away, to concentrate only on escape, but he was in every thought she had and she couldn't get him out of her mind--

"Cassie?" His whisper barely reached her ears, but the sound of her name on his lips brought the walls crumbling down, and she saw a flicker of light as he demorphed. She almost threw herself at him, wanting his kiss more than anything in the world.

*NO!* She struggled violently against the tide of emotions that threatened to tear her mind apart. That was *his* surprise at the sound of *his* name, *his* longing for her that was burying all her other thoughts.

*He is a *Ranger*,* she thought viciously, reminding herself of everything she hated about him. *He is *nothing* but a lovesick fool, who can't see past his own feelings!* "Get out of my head," she hissed, trying to hold onto her disgust.

He flinched back, and she did her best to ignore his hurt. His presence was fading a little, back to more manageable levels, and she resolved to think about what she was calling him next time. As she calmed down, she knew she had to fix this somehow.

"I… I can't think," she whispered, putting her hands against her temples and trying to sound as confused as possible. She pouted a little, and she saw his expression soften. "Is it--you feeling this, or--or me?"

"Maybe it's both," he replied softly, and it was all she could do to keep a smug smile off her face. He was unbelievable. He was falling for it as readily as he had before--she could tell him the world had turned upside-down and he might believe it.

Then he winced, reaching for his ruby again. "Cestria again," he muttered. "We have to go."

This time she understood. He wasn't taking her *to* the Aquitians, he was trying to avoid them. She put her hand in his without question and let him lead her into the darkness.

Twin streaks of silver and yellow appeared in the control room, and Zhane strode over to where Cetaci stood by the comm console. "What do you mean, she escaped?" he demanded. "How do you escape from a containment cell?"

"With help," Billy interrupted, pointing at something on the console in front of him.

Cetaci glanced at Zhane, and he backed up enough to let her join Billy. "The cameras in the containment area were destroyed," Billy said. "But they're set up to feed all of their data into a secondary storage system as they record, so that in the event they *are* destroyed we can still retrieve the information."

Zhane peered over his shoulder, and Billy stepped slightly to one side to let him see. A video readout had been called up on the small monitor built into the console, and it clearly showed Saryn firing on the camera a split-second before it went black.

"He… broke her out?" Ashley murmured from behind them, and Zhane turned instinctively. His heart went out to her at the lost look on her face and he found himself torn between sympathy for her confusion, and anger at Saryn for making everything more complicated than it had already been.

Cetaci cocked her head at the colloquialism, but Billy nodded. "It looks that way," he agreed.

"And there's no way of tracking them?" Zhane couldn't believe they could just vanish like that.

"Cassie was wearing a medical tag," Billy offered. "But according to the medical bay, it's still in the containment area."

"And the command center scanners detect no life forms there," Cetaci said, as though they needed to have the obvious reiterated. "Clearly, Phantom removed it and left it there."

"Wait," Ashley said quietly, her tone bewildered. "Isn't anyone surprised? Why would--Phantom do that?"

Billy glanced at Cetaci, then motioned Ashley over to the monitor he had been using. He rewound the camera's video output, then let it play without a word. Zhane watched too, and saw Saryn lower the forcefield and kneel at Cassie's side. The images blurred briefly as Billy sped through what was probably only a couple of minutes, and suddenly Cassie was kissing Saryn. He wasn't doing anything to stop her, and when the readout skipped forward once more, he got to his feet and drew his blaster, aiming at the camera.

"We should have known he could not be trusted," Cetaci muttered under her breath.

Zhane was inclined to agree, but Billy did not look convinced. "It's not entirely his fault," he argued, punching a sequence of commands into the console. "They *are* empathically bound--she's influencing him to some degree, probably without him knowing it."

A gasp from behind them stole Zhane's attention again, and he turned to see Ashley looking suddenly pale. "What's wrong?" he asked, concerned.

"Are you *sure* you can't hear that?" she whispered, looking at him with pleading eyes.

"Andros?" he murmured, reaching out to take her elbow. She nodded wordlessly as he guided her over to a chair. "No," he answered quietly, troubled. "I'm sorry, Ash; I can't."

"Of course!" he heard Billy exclaim. "Where else would they go?"

At the same time, Cetaci said, "They *are* still in the command center dome."

"What's going on?" Zhane demanded.

"I'm tracking Phantom's ruby," Billy answered. "Anything that gives off that much Power is bound to be traceable, same as our morphers. It's three levels up, moving toward the diver launch bays."

"I am bringing up a visual of the location now," Cetaci said, fingers flying across the console.

Zhane looked automatically toward the monitor, where an image did appear--of a completely deserted hallway. "Invisible," Billy muttered. "Cestria?"

Off to one side, the Yellow Aquitian Ranger was seated by an auxiliary console, watching them work with a far-off look in her eyes. "I've *been* trying," she answered softly. "He won't acknowledge anything I say."

"Can Cassie be with him, if he is invisible?" Cetaci asked, glancing from one to the other.

Billy shrugged, and Cestria shook her head. "I do not know," she admitted. "But he is hiding *something*."

"We will have to go after him," Cetaci said, straightening up from her console. "Billy, with me. Cestria, notify the other Rangers of the situation."

"I'm coming with you," Zhane said, putting a hand on Ashley's shoulder. "Wait here, all right?" he asked gently.

She nodded mutely, and he joined Cetaci and Billy. Before he could ask for the coordinates, Billy reached out to tap the console, and the world flared silver as the glow of computer-guided teleportation enveloped him.

The reappeared in an apparently empty corridor, and Cetaci stepped forward. "Phantom," she called urgently, but there was no answer.

She glanced at Billy, and he nodded. "Intruder protocol level three, initiate," he ordered, and Zhane saw a forcefield snap into place at the end of the hallway. Glancing over his shoulder, he could just make out the shimmering outline of a similar field behind them.

For a moment, nothing happened, and he wondered if Phantom had moved faster than they had anticipated. The seconds stretched out as he strained his eyes for some hint of motion from the other end of the corridor.

Then Cassie was there, Phantom's weapon in her hand as she sited down the barrel toward them. "Down!" Cetaci shouted, pushing Billy out of the way as she dove for the floor. Zhane threw himself in the other direction, seeing Phantom fade into existence at Cassie's side out of the corner of his eye.

The armored Ranger grabbed for her arm and the shot went wide, hitting the forcefield at the other end of the hall and dissipating harmlessly into the power grid. "White Aquitar Ranger power!" Cetaci yelled from the floor, and a brilliant light flashed around her form.

Zhane fumbled for his digimorpher, realizing with dismay that it was still in Andros' room on the Megaship. In his distress he had left it there this morning, and it had never occurred to him since to go back for it

"Zhane!" Billy gestured to him from the other side of the hall, even as Cetaci rolled to her feet and drew her own weapon. He scrambled across the hall, ducking instinctively as a shot hit the ceiling nearly overhead.

"Disable the safety on that before Cetaci uses her blaster," Billy ordered, tossing an Aquitian stunner in his direction.

Zhane did as he was told, not asking what Billy was doing to the wall. "Cetaci!" Billy shouted, seeing Zhane hold up the stunner. "Catch!"

Zhane tossed it in her direction, and the White Ranger turned enough to snatch it out of the air. She turned back toward the struggle taking place at the other end of the hall, lifting the stunner and firing just as Phantom jerked the blaster out of Cassie's grasp, making her stumble backward a step.

"No!" Cassie yelled, as Cetaci fired. Zhane wasn't quite sure what happened next--whether Cassie tripped, or went for Phantom out of revenge--but he knew that Cetaci's shot would have hit the wrong target if Cassie hadn't lunged back into the line of fire.

Phantom's arms went around her as she slumped against him, and he lifted his head to stare down the hall at them. His gaze seemed somehow accusatory as the ripples of his invisibility cloak started to surround the two of them once more, and as their forms became transparent Zhane thought he saw Phantom lift Cassie and start to turn away.

Then they were gone, and Cetaci stepped involuntarily forward before catching herself. "Billy?" she asked, shooting a glance in his direction.

A soft sigh was the only sign of frustration from the Blue Ranger. "I've got it now, but he had plenty of time to teleport out. I couldn't get the locks into place quickly enough."

Cetaci hesitated, then said, "Cestria has sealed the launch bays. But if they teleported out of the command center dome entirely…"

"We should be able to find them from the control room," Billy said, climbing to his feet and offering Zhane a hand.

Cetaci nodded. "Let's go."

As she disappeared into white light, Billy teleported both of them back to the control room. Delphinius had joined Cestria, but Aura was nowhere to be seen. Glancing around, Zhane frowned suddenly. "Where's Ashley?" he wanted to know.

"She returned to the Astro Megaship," Cestria said over her shoulder. "She seemed quite distressed, and I thought it wiser to let her go."

"Yeah," Zhane said, worried. "Thanks, Cestria."

"Orbital Station two reports an unscheduled launch," Delphinius said suddenly, and Cetaci was suddenly at his side.

Peering over his shoulder, she ordered, "Open a comm link with that ship."

Delphinius nodded, his fingers playing across the comm console, but a moment later he reported, "There is no response."

"Wait," Zhane said suddenly, feeling rather foolish for not thinking of this before. What, after all, was the one thing that would get Phantom to turn around? "Cestria, can you make Phantom hear you?"

She hesitated. "Yes," she said at last, glancing at Cetaci. "But--"

Zhane didn't wait for her to finish. "Then tell him we can help Cassie. Tell him we can make her good again without losing the person she was."

Cestria's eyes widened, as though something so simple as telling him *why* they wanted Cassie had never occurred to her. Her gaze lost its focus, and within seconds Delphinius announced, "Incoming transmission."

Without being told--at least not that Zhane could hear--the Black Ranger opened a link and switched the transmission over to the main screen. Phantom stared out at them as Zhane turned, his voice expressionless as he said, "Cestria tells me you can help Cassie."

Zhane nodded, feeling Cetaci move forward to stand at his side. It was up to him to explain, though, and he knew it. He knew, too, that Phantom might not entirely approve of this plan, and he tried to come up with some way to word what he had in mind.

"Not all sorcerers who know evil magic would be unwilling to help a Ranger," he said finally. "One who had reformed, for example…"

Phantom tilted his head, looking at something out of range of the visual pickup. "And you know of someone like this."

Zhane nodded, knowing he was stretching the truth but equally aware that Phantom was perfectly capable of vanishing from all scanners with Cassie, never to be seen again, if he wasn't stopped. "Yes."

For a moment, Phantom did not respond, apparently considering that. Then at last, he seemed to look directly at the screen behind his visor. "If you are lying," he said calmly, his voice quiet, "I will make certain you regret it."

Zhane's eyes widened, but the comm link cut off before he could retort. **I'll* regret it?* he fumed. *I'm not the one who let someone so obviously evil out of her cell just because she kissed me!*

"He is not himself," Cestria observed quietly, but Zhane couldn't tell if the comment was directed at him or just at the room in general.

"Oh, I don't know," he couldn't help muttering. "Sounded like himself to me."

The control room was silent until Delphinius announced, "Orbital Station two is accepting the ship's return."

Zhane reached for the old Earth communicator on his wrist, trying not to remember the time Andros had given it to him. "DECA, one to teleport."

He realized as the Megaship's Bridge reappeared around him that he had not even said goodbye, but he couldn't very well change that now. They were Rangers--they would understand.

A dark crimson flash announced Phantom's arrival, cradling Cassie in his arms, and Zhane put the Aquitians out of his mind as he headed for the pilot's station. He ignored the other Ranger deliberately, setting the course without a word. He spared a thought for Ashley, probably down in Andros' room again, but there was nothing she could do here that he couldn't do himself.

*She needs the time to herself,* he thought, hearing Phantom moving about behind him. *I certainly wasn't helping her. Maybe she can figure some of this out on her own…* He hoped fervently that if she did, she would tell him how.

Shoving the engine controls forward, he tried to keep his focus on Earth--the person they were to meet there, and the teammate she would hopefully help. But he couldn't help thinking that the rain of stars streaking across the screen looked a little too much like tears for comfort.

9. Irresistible

The heavens were crying. He knew the starlines on the main screen were part of a computer-generated image, for the EM scanners didn't work at hyperrush velocity. Even if they did, stars were simply too far apart to look like what he saw on the screen, no matter how fast the Megaship was going--but the image haunted him nonetheless.

If the stars themselves were tears, it still wouldn't be enough for what he was feeling. With Cassie unconscious, his mind was slowly starting to clear, and he couldn't even fathom what he had done. He had been ready to fire on Aquitian fighters, even the other Rangers, if necessary, all for the sake of someone he didn't even know.

The person he had freed from her containment cell wasn't Cassie. She was changed beyond recognition, twisted into the essence of an evil he had spent his life fighting. And he had almost given up that fight, sided with her over everything he knew to be right.

*Almost?* he thought bitterly. He *had* sided with her. He could blame it on their link all he wanted, but the truth was that he couldn't live without her. Evil or not, he had to be with her, had to be able to pretend Cassie was still alive somehow.

*Without her, I die.* She had been his reason for living even before he met her, ever since Jenna had forced him back from death to wait for her. But he had not truly realized how much he depended on her until today, when someone who wasn't even Cassie had been able to turn him against everyone around him for nothing more than the promise of her kiss.

He knew that when she woke, things would start to blur again. Now he could see what she had been doing, how she had been manipulating him, but one look from her and he would start to question again. The difference between good and evil would become less distinct--and less important in the face of the possibility that he might never see her again.

He had chosen her over the side of good once today, and he knew instinctively that she could make him do it again. He needed her, needed to believe that some spark of Cassie still lingered within her, no matter her actions to the contrary. The day he gave up on her would be the day he had nothing left worth living for.

He wished it wasn't that way, that he was stronger, but Cassie had always been the strong one. She had been the one who could go on with her life not even knowing if he was still alive, while he had had been tormented by constant dreams of her and the ever-present fear for her safety while they were apart.

*Without her, I die.* The truth behind those words had brought him back to her over and over again, and it had kept him at her side from the moment he learned that she wanted him there. And all it would take was her saying that she *still* wanted him there, and he could not deny that he would stay with her--evil or not.

He was dangerous, and he knew it. He had seen what she could make him do. As soon as she woke, she would make right seem wrong again, and all he had to cling to was the thought that somehow she *could* be the woman he loved again.

If Zhane had lied…

He glanced away from Cassie's still form for the first time since teleporting onto the Megaship. The Silver Ranger stood by the pilot's station now, hands braced on the console and head bowed. The other seemed strangely subdued, and he managed to pull his thoughts away from Cassie long enough to wonder about it.

"Zhane," he said finally, and saw the other start. But he didn't know what to ask, couldn't make himself concentrate enough to form a question.

Zhane did not look at him. "We're going to Earth," he muttered. "We'll meet--the sorceress there."

He straightened, flinching as he felt his fingers stroke Cassie's hair unconsciously. If Zhane was lying, or somehow wrong about this "sorceress", he knew he would be lost. Even now he couldn't stay away from her…

Turning his back on Cassie with an effort, he joined Zhane at the forward row of stations. "That is not what I was asking," he said. "You--are troubled."

"It's none of your business," Zhane said in a low voice. "DECA," he said, still not looking up. "Where's Ashley?"

There was no immediate reply. Lifting his head at last, Zhane's eyes were a little too bright. "DECA?" he asked again.

"Ashley did not want you to know where she had gone," DECA answered at last.

Zhane looked momentarily bewildered. "DECA, just tell me," he said, sounding tired.

There was a brief pause. "Ashley left the Megaship for Irini in the Astro Megazord shuttle approximately half an hour ago," DECA said.

Rather than seeming surprised, Zhane just dropped into Andros' chair and stared at the console in front of him. "I should have known," he muttered under his breath.

"Zhane--" Now he was sure there was something more going on than Cassie's altered state. "What has happened?"

"Why do you care?" Zhane asked, his voice flat. "You can't see anything but *her*."

He didn't appreciate Zhane's accusation, but he knew it was true. He forced himself to stay calm as he said, "I have no reason to if you do not tell me what has occurred."

Zhane shrugged, as though it didn't really matter to him. "I thought the Aquitians would have told you. The Delta Megaship was destroyed by Darkonda last night."

"I am sorry," he said automatically, but he still didn't understand why it warranted this kind of distress from the Silver Ranger. "This--is a great loss?"

Zhane glared up at him, unshed tears shining in his eyes. "*Andros* was onboard."

Shocked, he could only stare--until a tremor ran through the ship and DECA announced simultaneously, "Hyperrush is offline." The starlines faded from the screen, replaced by realtime images as the EM scanners took over the monitor again.

"What--" Zhane was on his feet in an instant, almost glad for the distraction. He didn't want to fall apart in front of anyone, least of all a Ranger who hadn't even cried over the loss of his entire team.

*Cassie cried,* his mind reminded him, but he shook his head. *It isn't the same,* he thought, calling up a tactical map on the screen to the left of Andros' station. *You can't cry *for* someone…*

"Cassie's gone," Saryn said suddenly, and he thought the other had somehow read his mind until he glanced over his shoulder. There was no one on the Bridge but the two of them.

"I thought you were watching her," Zhane snapped.

"She was unconscious," the other Ranger replied defensively, and Zhane saw his visor tilt slightly. "Zhane--"

Zhane heard the high-pitched whine at almost the same moment, and he knew what it meant where the other did not. He leaped backward a half-second before the panel in front of him sparked violently, a good third of its lights dimming to complete darkness.

*Feedback,* he thought, spinning toward the lift. "She has to be in the engine room."

Saryn was right behind him, and Zhane's mind raced throughout the brief ride. If Cassie had sabotaged the engines, they had better hope she hadn't done anything permanent. Stuck between star systems, they had nowhere to land, and at anything less than hyperrush it would be weeks to *anywhere*, let alone Earth.

The doors slid open, and somehow Saryn made it out of the lift before him, running down the hall toward the engine room. Zhane followed, and saw him draw his weapon just before he entered. Once more, Zhane found himself regretting the absence of his digimorpher.

"Cassie, step away from the console," Saryn was saying as Zhane came to a halt behind him.

Cassie didn't even look up from what she was doing. "We've already been through this," she said, her voice sounding almost amused. "You won't fire."

Zhane held himself still for a mere second, seeing Saryn's arm tremble and knowing Cassie was right. Stepping forward, he held out his hand wordlessly. It was asking a lot, he knew, but he couldn't summon his own blaster without his morpher, and they couldn't let Cassie continue.

Saryn's visor turned toward him, and he stared back intently. *Come on, Saryn,* he willed. *You can't do it, and *someone* has to.*

The other looked down abruptly. "Please don't hurt her," he whispered, so softly Zhane could barely hear, and put his blaster in Zhane's outstretched hand.

The weapon was unfamiliar, but the Power was universal, and instinctive knowledge of how to work the blaster flooded Zhane's mind. "He won't fire," Zhane said, raising the weapon and letting it power up. "But I will, I promise you. Step back."

He saw Cassie hesitate, and he was about to fire a warning shot in her direction when she lifted her hands out to her sides and stepped away from the console. The smile on her face worried him, though--and a mere second later the console she had been working on exploded outward in a shower of sparks.

He flinched instinctively, and he saw her wince as the sparks stung her skin. Saryn took an involuntary step forward, and Zhane shot a warning glance in his direction. "Keep moving," he ordered Cassie. She took another step, and in one quick movement he let the weapon's power setting fall to a mild stun charge and pulled the trigger.

Saryn's hands clenched at his sides as he watched her crumple to the floor. "Light stun," Zhane said quickly, not really wanting to know what the other would do to him if it had been anything more.

Saryn nodded once, his gaze still fixed on Cassie. Zhane hesitated, but the other didn't seem inclined to say anything, and they needed to find out what she had done.

He walked over to the console, fanning the light haze of smoke away and inspecting the damage. This was considerably worse than the power overload she had sent through the console on the Bridge, and there was no way to tell if she had actually damaged the engines or just the equipment that controlled them.

"We will have to replace this entire console," Saryn said, suddenly standing at his shoulder, and he tried not to jump.

*No wonder they called him "Phantom",* he thought inadvertently. *Couldn't he make *some* noise?* "Yeah," he agreed. "We won't know if she did anything to the engines until that's done. I think the one on the Bridge can be repaired, though."

Saryn nodded. "I can--" He paused suddenly. "It is your ship, now," he said at last. "What do you wish me to do?"

Zhane blinked. He supposed, once, the ship would have been his had anything happened to Andros. But now… "It's the team's ship," he said quietly. "The Megaship belongs to the Astro team."

The other Ranger accepted the correction with a single nod. "If you can replace this," Zhane said with a sigh, gesturing to the burned-out console, "I'll try to fix the Bridge controls."

"I can." Saryn glanced at the console, and then over at Cassie.

Zhane followed his gaze. "We're going to have to confine her--"

"No!" Zhane just looked at him, and Saryn took a deep breath. "She won't hurt me," he said softly. "I will watch her."

"I don't think that's such a good idea," Zhane said warily. The last time Saryn had set himself to "watch" her, he had ended up breaking her out of her cell and taking off in a stolen Aquitian ship.

Saryn didn't answer right away. "Then keep my blaster," he said at last, and Zhane glanced down automatically at the weapon he still held in his hand. "DECA can monitor the engine room," the other continued. "Have her do a visual check every few minutes, to make sure--" He swallowed. "To make sure we are both still here."

Zhane considered that. Maybe that would be enough. He didn't know, but Saryn seemed adamant about not confining Cassie. And how much trouble could they get into if DECA was watching them? "All right," he said at last. "I'll check back with you in a little while."

Saryn nodded once. Zhane clipped the other's blaster to his belt and turned to leave, pausing when Saryn said his name. Glancing over his shoulder, he raised an eyebrow.

"Thank you," Saryn said quietly. "For--what you did a few minutes ago."

Surprised, Zhane had stop and think. *For threatening Cassie,* he realized suddenly. *When he couldn't.* "You're welcome," he said neutrally.

Walking out of the engine room, he headed for the lift, hoping he had not made a huge mistake by leaving Cassie alone with Saryn, unconscious or not.

He dragged the new console top over to the damaged section of paneling, but did not slide it into place. There was too much to do underneath to block out the only source of light, so he propped it up against the unaffected panels and paused for a moment.

He told himself not to look, but he couldn't help it. Twisting, he glanced over at Cassie's motionless form, still sprawled on the floor where she had fallen. He had been sorely tempted to go to her the moment Zhane left, but he had managed to restrain himself.

Tearing his gaze away from her, he stared hard at the console in front of him until his mind reluctantly started to focus again. He let his morph fade, knowing he would need every bit of space to complete these repairs. He reached for the welder he had left on a nearby console--and froze as he heard movement behind him.

*No, please don't let her be awake,* he thought involuntarily. Why hadn't he let Zhane confine her?

"Ow," he heard a familiar voice mutter, and he couldn't keep himself from turning around.

Cassie was struggling to sit up, clutching her right arm and wincing a little as she tried to move it. "Are--are you all right?" he asked, wishing he didn't have to know.

She nodded, biting her lip. "I'm fine."

A glance at her arm betrayed her, though, and he was at her side in a moment. "What happened? Let me see."

"No, it's nothing," she insisted, pulling her arm closer to her chest. "I just got burned a little when the panel…"

She trailed off as he reached for her arm, tugging gently on her hand to make her let go. She let him inspect it, wincing when he ran his fingers across the angry red marks on her skin. "This should be treated," he told her, getting to his feet again. "Wait here."

"No, it's fine, really," she protested, but he didn't listen. Crossing the room he retrieved one of the emergency aid kits and brought it back to where she was sitting.

"Hold still," he ordered, trying not to meet her gaze. She inhaled sharply as the cool gel touched her skin, though, and he looked up at her face automatically. She was staring at her arm, and he looked away again quickly.

Smoothing the gel across her skin, he tried to be careful, but he saw her wince again. "I'm sorry," he offered quietly, hesitating, but she just shook her head.

"Just do it," she said, through clenched teeth. He did, covering each of the smaller burns with gel and trying not to think about the intimacy of the situation. If DECA told Zhane about this…

Pulling out a light bandage, he wrapped it around her upper arm and tied it carefully. She breathed a sigh of relief as he finished, and he couldn't help looking up again. "Are you all right?"

She sighed again. "I said I was all right last time you asked, and look what it got me."

He looked away. Reaching for the emergency kit, he snapped it shut and stood up to put it away. "Thank you," he heard her whisper, and he looked back in surprise.

She looked strangely vulnerable, sitting on the floor with her bandaged arm cradled against her chest. Her dark eyes followed his every movement, and for a brief moment he thought he saw real gratitude in her expression.

*She's using you,* he told himself harshly, but he couldn't ignore the look in her eyes. And it had been his idea, after all, not hers, to treat her burns. "You're welcome," he answered quietly, staring back at her until she looked away.

Then he shook himself, turning away and striding across the room to replace the emergency kit. *Don't let her do this,* he reminded himself. But when he tried to think about it, he couldn't come up with anything that she *had* done--it had all been him.

This time, as he returned to the console he had been working on, he avoided looking at her. He grabbed the welder off the workstation to the left of the repair area and crouched down in front of the skeletal outline of the new console. Twisting to maneuver underneath it, he shot a covert glance in her direction and found her still watching him.

He almost dropped the welder at the intensity of her gaze, but he managed to continue as though he hadn't noticed. He flipped on the flashlight he had left on the floor and propped it up beside him--the welder itself was one of Andros' tools, and would generate only heat, rather than the combination of heat and light that he was used to working with.

"You can't possibly see with that," Cassie's voice said suddenly, and he heard her footsteps on the metal deck.

"It is enough," he answered, a little wary as he turned the tool on and applied it carefully to the junction between new workstation and old. Unfortunately, she was right--he *couldn't* see as well as he would like, but such were the hazards of working alone.

"Let me," she said, dropping down beside him and picking up the flashlight. "Is that better?"

"Y-yes," he stammered, startled. He waited for some mocking comment, but none was forthcoming. Why was she being so… cooperative? Even helpful?

He shook his head, not wanting to think about it. He had to concentrate on what he was doing. He shifted the welder a little, and from where she was sitting on the floor outside she tilted the flashlight to follow.

As Zhane stepped onto the Bridge, he told the onboard computer, "DECA, let me know when Cassie wakes up."

"I am monitoring her now," DECA answered.

"Thanks," he said, looking at the forward stations. He was not looking forward to this. Repair work invariably involved small spaces, of which he was not particularly fond. He was downright scared of them, when he admitted it to himself, but he hoped the fact that he would not actually have to be *inside* anything would help.

*There's plenty of room up here,* he told himself, and indeed, as he worked, the words seemed to help. The words, and the view of deep space that he left displayed on the forward monitor. He found himself remembering the time he had told Andros his trick for falling asleep on the Megaship, and his eyes started to blur.

"Cassie is conscious," DECA interrupted suddenly, and he blinked, trying to clear his eyes.

"Thanks, DECA," he murmured, trying to think of something else. But the memory refused to be banished. "The stars are there, whether you can see them or not," he had told his friend. "Pretend you *are* space--the darkness is you, and all the stars are inside you…"

His hands shook, and he let go of wire junction before he broke it. It had been a child's fancy, but he and Andros had been taken with the idea. They used to pretend that they were moving the stars, rearranging them to make any patterns that occurred to their imaginations--a silly game, he thought now, but one that had entertained them for hours while they were in hyperrush.

Grasping the edge of the console overhead, he pulled himself out from under it abruptly. He took a deep breath, trying determinedly to hold onto his calmness. He let out his breath, then drew another, and just concentrated on breathing for a minute.

The minute stretched into two, and then three, and finally he stood up, sitting in Andros' chair and staring out at the stars. *Andros,* he thought bleakly. *Why did you have to leave me?*

He wondered where Ashley was by now. Andros had said the shuttle had been outfitted for deep space voyages, in case they ever needed to use it as an escape pod, and Ashley would have had to be crazy to take off for Irini in anything without hyperrush capability. Although lately, he wasn't entirely sure of her ability to reason…

He sighed. *Could she really have heard Andros?* he wondered for the fiftieth time. He wanted to think she had, wanted to believe her more than anything else. But his own logic said there was no way Andros could have survived--and more than that, he had been talking telepathically to Andros since they were children. How could she possibly hear him when Zhane could not?

*Andros…* He tried, as he had more times than he could count since the Delta Megaship had exploded, to reach out to his friend. He didn't really expect an answer, but he kept trying, in case that slimmest of all possibilities turned out to somehow be real.

There was only the echo of his own mind, reverberating with his cry. He pushed a hand through his hair, leaning his elbow on the dim console in front of him and resting his forehead against his palm. *If I don't finish this, it won't get done,* he reminded himself half-heartedly.

That wasn't necessarily true, of course. Saryn might finish it. If he didn't run off with Cassie first. The way things were going, Zhane wouldn't be surprised.

"DECA, are Cassie and Saryn still in the engine room?"

"Cassie is helping the Phantom Ranger with repairs to the engine room," DECA confirmed, and he wondered why the computer would never just say "yes" or "no".

Then the import of her words hit him, and he lifted his head. "What?" he asked, puzzled and wondering if he had not been listening carefully enough. "Did you say--Cassie's *helping* him?"

The main viewscreen flickered, the stars replaced by an image of the engine room. Saryn--unmorphed, Zhane noted--was half-buried under the console Cassie had blown apart. And sure enough, there was Cassie, seated at his side and calmly holding a flashlight for him.

*They have the weirdest relationship,* he thought, unbidden. *She threatens to shoot him, and he breaks her out of a cell he put her in. He threatens to shoot her, and she helps him repair a workstation she blew up. Very strange.*

On the other hand, they seemed to be coexisting peacefully, and no matter how it was happening the hyperrush controls *were* getting repaired. Saryn was working, and Cassie wasn't destroying anything, and he supposed that was the most he could hope for right now.

With a sigh, Zhane decided to follow their example. "DECA, put the stars back up on the main screen, please."

The screen faded to black, speckled with glimmering points of far-off light, and he stared out at them for a moment more before getting back to work himself.

She wondered if he was cold. His overshirt was still in her cell back on Aquitar, and she couldn't help remembering his tendency to dislike cool temperatures. He almost always wore long sleeves--

She shook her head abruptly. Why should *she* care? *Besides,* she thought, *he never complained about the Megaship's temperature, just Aquitar's.*

She frowned. Seeing him move a little, she tilted her head down to get a better view of what he was doing. Adjusting the flashlight accordingly, she couldn't help but be struck by the bizarreness of the situation.

*What am I *doing*?* she wondered. *I don't want him to fix this--I don't want to go to Earth, and whatever "sorceress" his friend wants to show me to.* She had overheard their conversation earlier, and she had sabotaged the engines as a way of buying time.

She didn't know what had changed his mind about helping her escape, but she could guess. This "sorceress" was going to change her back, make her good again. *That* she most emphatically did not want. "Good" was synonymous with "weak", and she didn't want to give up the power she had found.

There was a freedom in being evil, one she knew from the memories in her head that she had not had before. Why give it up? Why help him *make* her give it up?

Because she cared if he was cold. Because she had offered to hold a flashlight for him just so he could see better while he worked. Because no matter how much she had told herself that she was using him, she had stayed with him even after he had given her the means to escape on her own. And she had done it for a reason.

She didn't want to think about it. But she couldn't avoid the fact that he drew her to him, no matter how she tried to hate him. She couldn't tell if it was all these memories she had of him, or if it was something about the link between them, but she wanted to be where he was. And--she wanted him to be well.

It wasn't just that she couldn't destroy him. She flinched now just thinking about that earlier thought. She couldn't… she didn't want to see him upset, either.

*That's impossible, of course,* she thought, twisting the flashlight a little to follow his hands. *He'll always be upset while I'm like this, and I'm not changing.* But… she had to admit, if only to herself, that she wouldn't mind seeing his pretty eyes smile at her somewhere other than in her memories.

Obviously, his happiness had to be secondary to her own. But she wondered suddenly about something he had said earlier: "You are her--you can be," and she knew that he wanted nothing more than to believe that. Could she, maybe, be that person for him?

*Just for him,* she thought firmly. *None of this playing good for anyone else.* But… maybe for him, if it would keep him with her. He had been willing to run away with her before, after all--why would this time be different?

The station frame was firmly in place now, and he had managed to replace most of the optic bundles that had been melted or otherwise destroyed. He linked the last one to the datafeed it would express on the console top, seeing the narrow beam of light follow his every action.

He had no idea how she was doing that. Every once in a while, he would see her lean down and glance underneath the console at him, but most of the time she seemed to trace his movements with the flashlight by sheer instinct.

He couldn't help but remember the last time they had done this. Crammed inside the Megaship's damaged port thruster, she had admitted of her own accord that she was too busy staring at him to pay attention to where she was shining her flashlight. And though she was considerably more helpful this time, he would have given anything to switch this time for that one.

That had been no more than two weeks ago now, and yet it felt like an eternity. For that matter, it had only been two nights since they had fallen asleep in each other's arms, and *that* felt like another lifetime.

*Gods, I *miss* you, Cassie,* he thought, remembering the morning before. He had told her he would miss her when she went back to school… If only he had known how much worse it would be than just seeing her leave for Earth.

He was reaching for miniscan assembly when he felt her hand brush against his knee. He froze, hearing her shift her position and then feeling her hand come to rest on his knee again.

He closed his eyes, reminding himself to breathe. *It's all right,* he told himself. *She's just getting comfortable. She'll move again in a minute.*

But she did not, and he did his best to ignore her. He tugged the miniscanner into place, watching the light play across it and pushing against it to make sure it would stay. He almost lost his grip when her hand started, almost absently, to rub his leg.

"Cassie," he whispered. "Please stop."

He wasn't sure she would hear him, but her hand jerked away abruptly, and he heard her mutter, "Sorry. I didn't even realize…"

He caught his breath at the sincere apology in her voice, and he grabbed hold of the edge of the console to drag himself out. She wasn't looking at him, and he sat up, reaching out tentatively to touch her shoulder. "Cassie?" he breathed.

She looked up, no trace of malice in her expression. "Yes?"

He stared at her, wondering if he dared-- "You're not evil." He said it half because he wanted it to be true, and half because he was starting to doubt again--but was it her influencing him, or the other way around?

"Yes I am," she said, but the words sounded half-hearted at best.

"No," he said, lifting his hand to her face. "You are not…"

She tilted her head the slightest bit, leaning into his touch, and he wondered suddenly if it was unfaithful to Cassie to want to kiss--well, Cassie. As she gazed back at him, dark eyes revealing nothing, he thought it couldn't possibly be.

Leaning slowly forward, he saw her close her eyes, and he told himself that it was only one kiss. *Just one kiss,* he promised. *Then I'll be able to think again…*

Her lips touched his, and he couldn't do anything but feel. Feel her mouth on his, her hand snaking around behind his head, her hair falling soft against his face. He kissed her harder, opening his mouth against hers and feeling her imitate him eagerly.

Her other hand rested on his shoulder, and as she tugged him closer, he suddenly realized what was happening. He had expected her to turn away, to resist somehow, and when she didn't it was up to him to draw back--before the "one kiss" he had so desperately needed turned into something he couldn't stop.

He managed to draw away, the look of frustration on her face not even registering as he tried to calm his heart. "I--I have to finish this," he mumbled, meaning the console repair. So much for clearing his head. It felt twice as cloudy as it had before, and the need to touch her had suddenly become an ache he couldn't ignore.

*It will only get worse if you kiss her again,* he tried to tell himself. His body disagreed, telling him that all it really needed was one more kiss--but he had listened to it before, and it had been wrong.

"No kidding you do," Cassie muttered under her breath. In a more normal tone, she added, "Saryn?"

In the process of turning toward the control top, he stopped in his tracks. To hear her say his name, without the disdain she had been putting into it at first and so nearly like the way Cassie had always said it, continued to startle him. "Yes?"

"Tell me what I can do."

*You can be her!* his mind cried, unbidden. Then he closed his eyes, knowing that wasn't what she meant. If Zhane was wrong about this "sorceress", he knew he would spend the rest of his life trying to convince himself that this person was Cassie.

"Take the other side of this panel," he said at last. "It slides into place along these grooves." Pointing to them with one hand, he gripped the left side of the console top with his other.

She took the right side without question, and together, they lifted it into position. He stepped sideways, giving it a shove down the middle to make sure it was in the right place, and she moved to help him.

"No, it's--all…" He trailed off, feeling her press against him as she leaned forward to give it a push.

"Why do you push it at all?" she asked, not seeming to notice the fact that he suddenly couldn't talk.

He swallowed. "In case the--the clamps haven't…"

She put a hand on his shoulder and rested her chin on it, for all the world as though she was considering his words. But the gesture was far too familiar, and he fought with a vengeance to keep from turning in her direction. "Cassie," he whispered. "I know what you are doing."

"Distracting you?" she answered, lifting her head off his shoulder to look at him. He stared down at the console, feeling her breath warm on his face and her whole body sending chills through his. He knew what she was like--he couldn't *not* react to her.

"Very much so," he admitted, trying to speak above a whisper and failing miserably. "Please… step away."

"You didn't seem to mind kissing me a minute ago," she said quietly, keeping a hand on his shoulder as she slipped around in front of him. Somehow, she squeezed into the space between him and the console, and to step back himself would be admitting defeat.

"That--was different," he managed. He was about to back up anyway when she wrapped an arm around his waist and leaned into him.

"What, because you started it?" she murmured, kissing him hard enough to make him shiver. She didn't let up, kissing him again and again until he couldn't stand it anymore.

With a groan, he pushed his body against hers and let her drive him crazy. Slipping his arms around her to hold her close, he gave himself up to her savage kiss and searching hands, wanting only the ineffable feel of *Cassie* on his skin.

Distantly, he heard someone call his name, and over the pounding in his ears he thought he caught the distinctive hum of a weapon powering up. Cassie stiffened in his arms, and Zhane's voice said, "Cassie, I swear, if you don't step away from him right now, I will shoot you *both*."

He bit his lip, trying not to cry out in protest as she did as she was told. Trembling, he braced his hands against the console and held as still as he could. He heard Zhane bullying her out of the room, did not ask where they were going. He stared with unseeing eyes as the darkened panel in front of him, and all he could think was, *Without her, I die…*

Leaving Cassie both sedated and restrained in the Medical Bay, Zhane headed back to the engine room--and Saryn, who was still in exactly the same position he had been when Zhane left. Hunched over the workstation, he did not even look up when Zhane stomped into the room.

"Does the word 'evil' mean nothing to you?" Zhane demanded. "What were you thinking! She can't be your assassin *and* your lover, you know!"

"She is not my assassin," Saryn muttered, his voice hoarse.

"Oh, but she is your lover!" Zhane threw his hands up in the air. "Great! That's just great! So when you're lying in bed, does she tell you all her plans for universal domination?"

"Don't say that," Saryn said, his shoulders stiff and his voice a little stronger that it had been before.

"What, that your lover is evil?" Zhane glared at the other Ranger's back. "For every time she smiles at you, Saryn, she's shot at one of us!"

Saryn whirled, his face a mask of anger. "You dishonor Cassie's memory by speaking of her that way," he said through clenched teeth.

"You dishonor her memory by sleeping with her!" Zhane shot back.

"I am not sleeping with her!" Saryn shouted.

"You could've fooled me!"

Saryn's hands were fists at his sides, and his eyes were dark underneath his furious expression. "Don't you think I know she's evil? Don't you think I *understand* that? I can't stop the way I feel about her, Zhane!"

"You mean you can't stop wanting her in bed with you," Zhane snapped.

Some of the fight seemed to drain out of Saryn at that, and he closed his eyes. "No," he said, his voice tight. "I can not. You are right."

Zhane paused, somewhat startled. "What?"

"You are right," Saryn repeated, louder. "But you can not imagine what it is like to love someone with all your heart and soul, and then have them suddenly ripped away from you."

Zhane's eyes narrowed. "Yes, I can," he said bitterly. "If you would open your eyes and look around you, Saryn, you'd see you're not the only one who's hurting."

Saryn just stared at him, an unreadable expression on his face. "Are you--"

"I don't want to talk about it," Zhane interrupted flatly. "All I want is to know what you're going to do about Cassie."

"Cassie is evil," Saryn answered roughly. "What *can* I do?"

"Accept it," Zhane shot back. "The way the rest of us have to."

"I *know* it," Saryn said with a glare. "I *know* she is evil, and it terrifies me that I do not care!"

Zhane just stared at him for a moment, wondering if there was a veiled insult in there somewhere. "What do you mean?" he asked at last, warily.

Saryn looked away abruptly. "I mean that I need her," he said quietly. "I have to be with her, whether she is good or not. I have to hear her say she loves me, even if it's the most transparent lie I ever hear her speak. I need *Cassie*, Zhane, or I have no more reason to live. And if she is evil forever…" His voice trailed off to almost nothing, and he whispered, "Then so will I be."

Zhane said nothing, not sure words existed to respond to a declaration like that. Finally, with the silence weighing heavily on him, he muttered, "Then she'd better not be evil forever."

Turning to look past Saryn, he asked, "How close are you to being done?"

He ignored Saryn as the other Ranger tried to steady himself, process the question and come up with a reasonable answer. "Very," he said at last. "If you reconnect the power flows, I will test the optic expression."

Zhane stared at the dark hole underneath the console top and sighed. This was exactly what he didn't need right now. "No," he said simply. "If you want to switch jobs, I'll help, but otherwise, no."

Saryn looked at him, an easily readable expression of annoyance on his face. Zhane just shook his head, too tired to fight anymore. "Look," he said. "I'm not being difficult. I'm just not climbing under that panel, and that's all there is to it."

"You are afraid," Saryn said, watching him carefully.

Zhane sighed again. "Yes, I'm afraid. I was trapped under a very large building when I was eleven; are you happy? Now, do you want help or not?"

Saryn actually seemed to consider it for a moment before nodding. "Yes," he said at last. Then, more quietly he added, "Thank you."

He turned away before Zhane could answer, and Zhane just stared after him for a moment. Finally, he followed the other Ranger to the newly replaced control panel and waited beside it to call out light numbers as they appeared. As Saryn climbed underneath again, Zhane muttered quickly, "You're welcome."

He couldn't be sure, but he thought he saw Saryn's lips quirk just before his head disappeared into darkness. His hand groped for the flashlight Cassie had been using earlier, and Zhane grabbed it off the console and passed it to him.

The other said nothing, but lights started to flicker on the console, and Zhane read them off as they appeared. As the last one glowed to life, Saryn's hand grasped the panel and hauled the rest of him out from underneath the workstation. Getting to his feet, he looked over Zhane's shoulder as the station ran an automatic engine check.

Zhane breathed a small sigh of relief at the results, glancing instinctively toward the engines. "They're all right," he said grateful for whatever small amount of luck had been watching out for them.

He caught Saryn's eye again and added, "ETA to Earth is fifteen minutes."

10. Don't Let Go

Zhane was going to be upset. She shouldn't have taken the shuttle. She knew she had left the Megaship at a disadvantage if it had to fight in anything other than a space battle. At it was already disadvantaged enough, with two--three of its Rangers, now, missing.

On top of that, she had stuck Zhane with the job of getting Cassie to Earth. He not only been left to convince Saryn that his plan had a chance of working, but to eventually convince Astronema that it was the right thing to do as well.

She sighed, not envying him that task. She was sorry he had been left with it, for she knew he was hurting over Andros just as much as she was. But if she had tried to tell him what she was going to do, he would have found a way to stop her.

*He wouldn't even have to do anything,* she thought, staring without seeing at the control panel in front of her. *He could just tell me what we both know--that Andros couldn't have survived, and it's all in my mind--and I'd have to listen to him.*

It was true, after all. She knew it as well as Zhane did. But what she felt was an entirely different matter--she *felt* that Andros was alive, somewhere, and when she ignored facts, the feeling grew strong enough that she couldn't go on without knowing.

*Facts suck,* she thought, not for the first time. She didn't want anything that told her Andros was dead, and she was determined to put them aside. She was going to follow this feeling, which told her something she was much more willing to listen to, until it faded or she found what she was looking for--whichever came first.

She had always imagined what it would be like to fall in love. To *really* fall in love, to be utterly and uncontrollably head over heels for someone else. She had even thought she had experienced it a couple of times, but the initial intensity had always faded, leaving her restless and dissatisfied.

The moment she had seen the Red Astro Ranger, she had felt a strange fascination, a desire to know about the person he was. But until he demorphed, it had only been the curiosity of someone who had never been off her own planet wondering about an alien ship and its unearthly occupant.

She had never expected to see someone human when his Ranger uniform vanished into crimson sparkles, revealing a teenage boy standing before them. But when she did…

Ashley couldn't help a tiny smile. The eerie not-light of hyperspace gave the shuttle's cockpit a washed-out tint as she traced the outline of the pilot's console. When she *did* see Andros, she couldn't deny the purely physical attraction she'd felt.

Andros wasn't the type she'd always gone for, back on Earth. She'd always been drawn to the tall, dark ones, same as Cassie--though she liked less mystery and more openness. Friendliness and easy smile had been a plus, and she had been firmly against the rebel look. No punk hair or spiked jackets for her.

Andros' hair was certainly--different, and he wasn't much taller than her, even when he stopped slouching. He had been neither friendly nor open, and he hadn't smiled at them once that first day. But her first reaction had been a sudden and uncharacteristic stare that had continued for several seconds before she realized what she was doing.

Her next had been dismay. Just what she needed, a crush on a Ranger who clearly wanted nothing to do with them and whom they would probably never see again, if he had his way. But identifying the feeling as a crush had not made it go away, and she had wanted nothing more than to melt that stoic façade and see what lay behind it.

The first time he had smiled, she had caught her breath and committed herself to making that expression appear on his face again, preferably as often as possible. And then she had caught him showing off for her--she had been the first one to find out about his telekinesis, not because it was a secret, but because he didn't bother to use it around anyone but her.

Her smile faded as she remembered all those times he had tried to teach her. He had been right when she said she wasn't concentrating hard enough--how could she, with him so close by and wearing a look of endearing focus whenever he used his own talent? But he had never lost patience with her, and it had been during one of those practice sessions that she had suddenly realized what she was feeling wasn't just a crush anymore.

He had told her to stop trying so hard, and she had just made a face at him. "Easy for you to say," she remembered telling him. "You can do it!"

*He never did,* she thought now, watching the hyperrush readout as the auto navigation systems carried her toward Andros' last known location. He never said anything, never did anything that *had* to mean something any more or less than a team friendship. And finally she had had to know.

She hadn't planned it, but she had been thinking about confronting him for some time. She'd even considered asking him out, just to see what he would say, but in the end it had been simpler than that. She had kissed him, and he had had to choose--just friends, or something more.

She had never been happier than that fleeting moment on the Bridge, later that day, when he had leaned forward and tentatively kissed *her*.

That had been her first real indication that he felt something for her, and she had pursued it eagerly. Despite his self-consciousness, he had finally started to let her into his life, even his heart, and she had suddenly found herself where she'd tried to be so many times before… completely and unashamedly in love.

The nav comp that had been installed on the modified shuttle chimed, and she reached slowly for the controls to bring the vessel out of hyperrush. She almost didn't want to see the emptiness that would greet her, though she knew the place where the Delta Megaship had exploded would look no different from any other area of space.

As the bizarre glow of hyperspace faded, the blackness of deep space became visible through the shuttle's forward window. An irrational cold gripped her heart as she stared out at the vast nothingness. Andros had been all alone out here when…

She frowned, fiercely determined *not* to finish that thought. She set the shuttle's rather limited scanners to search for any sign of anomalous reading, but she didn't expect to find anything. If DECA hadn't picked anything up when the Megaship had come this way, the shuttle certainly wouldn't. But she had to check before she went on, just to make sure.

The scanner readout chimed, and her heart leaped. They had found *something*--but as she skimmed the readout her excitement turned to dread as quickly as it had come. The Megaship had never fought this "Darkonda", at least not while she was on board, but DECA had identified his battleship and KERI had sent all the data the Delta Megaship had collected before it was destroyed.

The readings in front of her now matched those KERI had detected just after the Delta Megaship disappeared from their scanners.

The shuttle couldn't fight, but it could run, and that was exactly what Ashley did. The coordinates of Irini's only habitable moon were already programmed into the nav comp, and she threw the little vessel into hyperspace without a second thought. Thinking would only slow her reaction time, and she couldn't afford that right now.

Hyperspace wrapped the shuttle up in its protective embrace, but she did not relax. After all, Andros had been in hyperspace. Darkonda must have some way to knock ships back into realspace--she could only hope the shuttle was too small to make an easy target.

Someone must have been looking out for her, because seconds later the auto nav system yanked her back into realspace of its own accord, dumping speed as fast as the shuttle could do it and screaming toward Irini's largest moon. She turned the limited scanner array toward the surface, searching for any sign of a recent crash-landing.

With the scanners turned on the moon she had no warning when Darkonda came out of hyperrush behind her, but considering the shuttle's limited defenses, it wouldn't have helped anyway. She *saw* the lasers streak past her before she knew the battleship had arrived, and the shuttle was just swinging into orbit when one of the energy blasts clipped its starboard thruster.

She felt the pilot's controls start to lag, and she knew she was in trouble. She almost missed the scanners' chime as the impact of a second laser caught the shuttle's rear shields and overloaded them with a single shot. *Damn…*

Distantly, she knew the shuttle was going down. But her gaze leaped across the panels to the scanner readout, showing a large concentration of metal in an impact crater about thirty degrees off her current trajectory. Pushing the port thruster as far as it would go, she managed to skew the shuttle's degenerative orbit in the appropriate direction, and the sudden change kept the next few laser blasts from reaching her.

Then the shuttle's heat shield began to glow as the atmosphere flared up around her, and she knew that landing in one piece had just become her primary goal. She doubted Darkonda's battleship could maneuver in an atmosphere, and the shuttle's course was probably too erratic to follow by now anyway. He might even break off his attack entirely, assuming she wouldn't survive the impact.

*Now there's a cheery thought,* she thought, working feverishly to keep the shuttle at such an angle that it was braking hard--but not so hard the heat shield overloaded and fried the craft before it ever reached the ground.

She kept the nose up as high as possible, but it wasn't working. She knew she was still going far too fast to survive the landing, and she hesitated only a half-second before firing the modified port thruster again. The action would wreak havoc on the local atmosphere, but it was that or vaporize on impact, and she knew which one she would choose.

As the thruster fired in reverse, the shuttle spun out of her control, the one side slowing while the starboard side tried to keep accelerating. Ashley gave up on the nav controls and reached for her morpher, praying it would be enough.

"Let's Rocket!" she yelled, knowing she had only seconds before she found out. As her Ranger uniform sparkled into place around her, she felt the shuttle's wing graze something and the forward window filled with trees.

Then she was slammed against the console, the breath knocked out of her as the shuttle fell below the treeline. Her last thought before darkness claimed her was that if the trees were slowing her down this quickly, she couldn't have been going as fast as she thought…

The silence was louder than the roar of re-entry had been, and Ashley flinched as consciousness yanked her back into the waking world. Still morphed, the Power was urging her to get up, to assess the situation and be ready to fight if she had to. But as she tried to pull herself up, off the console and out of her chair, her foot caught on something hard.

She winced, tugging harder, but the forward end of the cockpit had crushed the front of the pilot's station and she couldn't see through the tangle of metal that had trapped her ankle. Frustrated, she gave up and drew her astroblaster, vaporizing the metal with a single shot.

Her foot came free abruptly, the intense heat of the weapon's blast barely registering through her uniform. Letting the uniform disappear in flicker of light, she flexed her foot, testing it. Her ankle moved without complaint, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

Standing, her eyes went immediately to the scanners. By some miracle, the atmosphere was clear for as far as the scanners could reach--either *none* of Darkonda's ships were equipped for atmospheric maneuvering, or he was searching too far away for the scanners to detect. Or, if she was really lucky, he had written her off as killed in the crash, but she wasn't going to count on that.

She reached for the comm controls, but the crackle of static and the lack of a carrier signal told her that it was a lost cause. *Andros?* she thought desperately, searching for some sign that she wasn't alone here.

There was no answer, and she called up the location of the metallic concentration she'd detected from orbit. Three kilometers due west--she'd overshot, but she was far closer than she'd been able to hope when she'd felt the shuttle spiraling out of control.

*Andros,* she called again, trying hard not to think. She didn't want to consider what that metal blip on the scanners could be. She knew what she wanted to find, and she knew she was going to look. But if she let any kind of rational thought enter her mind, she wouldn't be able to hang onto the hope that would make her do it.

*At least I'll know,* she reminded herself. If that *was* some remnant of the Delta Megaship that the shuttle's scanners were detecting, she would most likely find it burned beyond recognition--but she had to see for herself. She had to *know*.

She forced herself to stop thinking, gathering up what emergency supplies the shuttle had been equipped with and shoving them into one of the backpacks stowed in the rear living compartment. She was here, in the one place Andros had told her to look for him, and she was not only stranded but completely cut off from the rest of the universe. She had no reason *not* to head for the source of the anomalous readings, nowhere to go but toward the one thing that could possibly offer her peace of mind.

Slinging the pack over her shoulder, she downloaded the shuttle's scans of the planet's surface into a handheld scanner and turned away from the console. The shuttle would be the first place Darkonda looked, *if* he looked, and assuming he could locate it. She had somewhere else to be, and she stepped out of the airlock and into the humid jungle air without a backward glance.

The metal hulk was visible through the trees from several hundred meters away, and she paused in her headlong rush through the undergrowth to stare. She could catch glimpses of the characteristic black coating that had covered the Delta Megaship, and it might have been her imagination, but she thought she saw the yellow and red markings that had adorned the ship's top side.

*Please let it be--* She firmly stamped out that thought, reminding herself not to think, not to feel. It might be the Delta Megaship. It might not be. She continued to push her way through the vegetation until she broke through the last barriers between her and the metallic concentration her handheld scanner had led her to.

The distorted wreckage poked out of the ground at an odd angle, buried in an impact crater several meters deep. The Astro Rangers' colored logo was clearly visible along the leading edge, pitted and scraped but unmistakable nonetheless.

Ashley stared at it, feeling nothing but the glimmer of recognition. This twisted metal giant had once been a part of the Delta Megaship's forward hull, but how it had survived to crash here, she had no idea.

One thing was clear, though: the landing had not been easy. The impact crater extended backwards a good hundred meters, and a huge swath had been cut through the surrounding vegetation. Even if someone had been onboard, had survived the core breach and the re-entry, she didn't see how they could have lived through the crash.

She found herself walking forward anyway, scrambling up the incline of rubble that lined the leading edge of the crater. The metal hull loomed over her, and she reached out slowly, laying her hand against the hard surface. *Andros' tomb.*

The words came out of nowhere, intruding on her mind and beating against the numbness she was trying so hard to hold onto. She felt a single tear slide down her cheek, and she wiped it away impatiently. She had to get inside.

Stepping back a little, she surveyed the imposing edifice in front of her. The Astro Rangers' logo was at least a meter above her head, and although it appeared to be overlaid across the same dark, shadowy finish that had covered the rest of the ship, the hull below it was a distinctly paler grey.

The more she looked, the more convinced she was that the odd shape of the hulk in front of her was not due only to battle scarring or distortion caused by impact with the moon's surface. It was almost as though this part of the ship had actually broken away from the rest, somehow released to find its way here.

And if it had been intended to do that… She started walking along the edge of the metal wreckage, knowing that any escape was incomplete without a way *out* of the escape pod. And where someone could get out, she could get in.

She found what she was looking for just beyond and below the black Astro bar. A sealed airlock, with a metal plate beside it that she pulled open without hesitation. There was a keypad underneath, and she just stared at it for a moment, wondering how she was supposed to know what sequence to enter.

Then she saw the tiny embedded scanner at the top, and she pulled her morpher off and held it up to the mechanism. A violet light emerged, flickering green as it scanned her morpher. The airlock started to cycle, and she stepped inside as soon as it rolled open.

It occurred to her as the door slid shut behind her that if the next one failed to open, she would be effectively trapped. But it didn't seem to matter that much, and she felt no relief when the second door opened for her.

Stepping out, she blinked in the almost non-existent lighting. It was the Bridge, she realized suddenly, glancing around as she tried to orient herself. The airlock she had come through was near the point where the forward hull met the port side of the ship, an exit she had never thought much about but had assumed led to an escape pod.

*The whole Bridge was an escape pod,* she realized distantly, staring around her. Somehow it must have detached--

Her mind froze. She couldn't think, suddenly forgot even to breathe as the shadow slumped over the pilot's console leaped into the foreground of her vision. "No," she whispered. "No, please…"

But her legs carried her forward, and she could see Andros' blond-streaked brown hair falling across his arms as they pillowed his head on the console. From where she stood he looked for all the world as though he had simply fallen asleep, but as she got closer, she could see the unnatural paleness of his skin even in the dim lighting.

She tried to stop herself, knowing she should remember him the way she had always known him. She didn't want to see what injuries he had sustained, didn't want to know how hurt he had been before--

But she couldn't help it. Some trick of the shadows, or maybe only a figment of her imagination, made her think she could actually see him breathing shallowly in the darkened room, and she was drawn inevitably closer. She felt her own breath come faster, and she reached out tentatively to touch him.

She jerked her hand back almost instantly, wondering if her imagination could truly make her think his skin had felt warm to the touch. She extended her hand again, seeing it shaking but unable to do anything about it, and laid her fingers gently against his cheek.

His skin was warm. She fumbled frantically for his hand, wrapping her fingers around his wrist and holding her breath. "Andros?" she whispered, disbelieving.

The beat that pulsed beneath her fingers failed to convince her, and she laid her hand over his chest. "Andros," she whispered again, feeling another tear roll down her cheek. "Andros, tell me I'm not dreaming; I'm not. Please, Andros…"

She saw his head move a little then, tilting to the side, and she brushed his hair away from his face. "Andros?" she asked, voice trembling.

His breath escaped in a sigh, and she could see him struggling to push himself away from the console. Swallowing hard, she grasped his shoulders gently and helped him sit up, resting against the back of his chair with his eyes still closed. "Ash?" he murmured.

Her throat was too tight to let her speak any more, and she could only lay her hand against his face once more, praying she had not found him only to watch him leave her again. *He *can't* die,* she thought fiercely, leaving her other hand over his heart as though she could keep him with her by not turning away.

*Andros,* she thought carefully, trying to think clearly enough to communicate in the only way she still could. *Tell me what's wrong.*

She saw him try to open his eyes, then wince, letting them slide shut again. "My…" His breathing was still too shallow, and she could see him struggling to get the words out. "My head--hurts…"

*Where?* If there was any visible sign, the lighting was too dim for her to make it out, and she ran her fingers across his scalp gently, trying to find out where he'd been hit.

As her fingers caressed his forehead, he flinched away, and she paused. With the lightest touch she could manage, she traced what had to be a nasty bruise over his right eye, and he moaned.

"Stay here," she whispered, blinking tears out of her eyes. He muttered something she couldn't make out as she turned away, trying desperately to remember where she'd seen the emergency aid kits the last time she'd been onboard.

Shrugging out of her backpack, she dropped it on the floor without a second thought. She found one of the emergency kits at the rear of the Bridge, buried behind a panel that would have been clearly labeled had she had more light to see by. There was a flashlight with it, and she flipped it on immediately, the sudden illumination stinging her eyes in the pervasive darkness.

She sniffled, annoyed to realize she was crying. She couldn't cry. She didn't have time to cry; Andros needed her. Andros was alive…

She stifled a sob, clutching the flashlight harder as she stumbled back to his side. Fumbling with the catch that held the kit shut, she tried to make her hands stop shaking. She knew what she was doing, but if she didn't calm down it wouldn't matter.

Glancing over at Andros, sudden fear stabbed at her heart as she realized he must have fallen back asleep. His expression was still pained, but he looked too relaxed, and he didn't react when the flashlight's beam played across his face.

"Andros," she whispered, trying not to choke over his name. Reaching out to grab his shoulder, she shook him gently. "Andros--wake up."

His head rolled to the side, but he mumbled something and she leaned closer to hear. "Ash," he whispered again, and she bit her lip.

"Yeah," she murmured, laying her hand against his cheek. "I'm here, Andros. It's--" She swallowed. "It's going to be okay."

"Ash… don't leave me," he muttered, and she caught her breath. She had never expected to hear him say those dream words out loud, in person.

"I won't," she promised, as she had then. "Come on, Andros, try and stay awake. You're going to be okay."

"If--if you're here," she heard him whisper, and those stupid tears just kept sliding down her face. Scrubbing at her cheeks with the sleeve of her uniform, she pulled her other hand away from his face and reached for the emergency kit.

Even with the flashlight, it was harder than it should have been to locate the concussion patches. She managed, finally, and couldn't help remembering the time he had gotten them all together and shown them how to use everything in these kits. She remembered trying not to be jealous when he demonstrated everything on Cassie, not even looking at Ashley unless she asked him a direct question.

"Andros," she murmured, trying to keep him awake as much as anything. "Remember last month--when you showed us how to use the emergency kits?"

Pulling the sterile wrapper off of the patch, she brushed his hair away from his forehead as carefully as she could. His eyes were still closed, but he flinched when she turned the flashlight full on his face for a moment. "Sorry," she whispered, tilting it away. "Hold still…"

"Yeah," he muttered, as she positioned the concussion patch over his skin. He cried out as she pressed it down, as gently as she could, and she winced. Before she could apologize again, though, he added with some difficulty, "I--I remember."

Dropping the wrapper back in the kit, she snapped the cover shut. "Used Cassie," he whispered. "As--an example."

"Yeah," she said, a little relieved. If he could remember that much, he was far more coherent than she'd thought. If she could just keep him awake now, it would keep the swelling caused by the concussion from getting any worse, and the patch she'd applied should reduce whatever had already occurred.

"Had to," he said, still struggling to speak. "Couldn't--" He tried to open his eyes once more, wincing in the flashlight-brightened dimness, but he managed to keep them open this time. "Couldn't get that… close to you."

She paused, automatically wiping her cheeks again. "What?"

"I--" He was trying to sit up, she realized, and she jumped forward to either stop or help him, whichever he seemed more likely to accept. "Might--have… kissed you."

"Andros?" she murmured worriedly, not sure how lucid he was after all. What if he had sustained more injuries than just a concussion?

He let her help him sit a little straighter, and met her gaze with surprisingly clear eyes. "Don't cry," he whispered, staring at her tearstained face. "Please… don't."

She shook her head, impatient with her own tears. "You said…" She hesitated, sniffling a little. "You said you didn't know what kissing meant, on Earth."

His hand jerked, trembling as it fumbled for hers, and she grabbed for it desperately, entwining his fingers with her own as though there was nothing more to life. "Didn't matter," he said softly. "I--" His fingers tightened on hers abruptly. "Wanted to… anyway."

She leaned forward slowly, and it occurred to her suddenly that if this was a dream, now would be when she woke up. But her lips brushed his, and she saw him close his eyes. *I love you,* she told him silently, thanking anyone who might be listening for keeping him alive until she could find him.

An urgent beeping broke into the moment, and she pulled away quickly. She reached for the scanner she'd brought with her, realizing as she did so that Andros' fingers were still tangled through hers and he wasn't letting go.

Glancing over at him, she could see him squinting in her direction and his hand squeezed hers. "Don't let go…"

She nodded mutely, looking back at the scanner. Although the atmosphere read as clear now, the device had picked up an unknown ship at the limits of its range and had alerted her accordingly.

"Man," she muttered under her breath. "He doesn't give up, does he."

"Who?" Andros wanted to know, as she tried to open her backpack with one hand. Succeeding, she dropped the emergency kit inside and fastened the top quickly.

"We have to get out of here," she said, adrenaline kicking in once more. She didn't want to move Andros this soon, but it looked like they didn't have a choice. If her scanner was detecting ships, it wouldn't be long before the ships were detecting the remains of the Delta Megaship. And if anyone came to investigate… Andros wasn't in any condition to fight, and she couldn't hold them off alone.

She lifted her backpack, slipping the straps over both shoulders, and glanced around the Bridge. The shortest way back to the airlock would be--

"Ash?" Andros was definitely frowning now. "What… what's happening?"

"Can you walk?" she asked gently, taking their clasped hands and switching his grip to her other hand as she wrapped her arm around him.

"I--" He seemed to sense the urgency, letting her tug him out of the chair. "Maybe…"

She draped his other arm over her shoulders, hoping he was more capable than he seemed to think. "Just try," she whispered. "We don't have to go far."

That was blatantly untrue, but she hoped they would be able to take cover in the surrounding jungle and let him recover a little longer before they had to decide on a course of action. His fingers clenched on her shoulder, and his first steps were stumbling, but she caught his other arm too and kept him from falling.

As he clung to her, she let go briefly to reach for the flashlight. It illuminated a narrow path across the debris-littered floor, and she managed to steer Andros around most of it--he couldn't seem to focus enough to watch where he was going. *Or maybe,* she thought with dismay, remembering her own experience with a concussion, albeit far less serious than his, *he just can't see, period…*

They made it to the airlock without either of them falling, though, and she had the chance to find out without asking. Her morpher was around the arm supporting him, and she shot a covert look in his direction. "Andros, hold your morpher up to the keypad, please?"

He frowned, squinting first at the airlock and then, helplessly, at her. His one-word question confirmed her fears. "Where?"

She winced, reaching for his hand. "Give me your hand," she said quietly. He held it out, groping for hers in the darkness, and she caught it, holding his wrist up in front of the keypad's scanner. He didn't protest, and when the airlock cycled open, she helped him inside.

"Airlock?" he asked, and she gave him a worried look he probably couldn't see.

"Yeah," she told him, tugging gently to get him to pick up his feet and move through the second door. "We're outside now--can you tell?"

He started to nod, then inhaled sharply and she felt his fingers tighten on her arm. His free hand went to the side of his head, and she heard him stifle a moan.

"*Don't* move your head," she told him sternly. "I'll get you a pain reliever--can you hang on for just a few more minutes?"

"Yes," he breathed, his eyes shut tight.

She hesitated, but the muffled beep from her scanner convinced her. "All right--hang on to me, okay? We're going downhill, on loose dirt, and I don't want you to slip."

"Right," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

She didn't know how she got him away from the crash site, let alone through enough of the jungle undergrowth that she felt reasonably certain of their safety should Darkonda come for the Delta Megaship. If he could detect Power signatures, of course, no amount of distance would ensure their safety, but that was an ability usually limited to Rangers. The two of them were, at the very least, out of line-of-sight from the crash, and at best, far enough that their life signs would blend into those of the jungle around them.

"Andros?" she asked tentatively, seeing his eyes close again. "Sit down…"

He seemed to think that was a good idea, and she was hard-pressed to support him as he almost collapsed to the ground. But his back was straight as he leaned forward over his knees, pressing his hands to either side of his head, and she thought he hadn't so much fallen as dropped quickly on purpose.

"My head *hurts*," he muttered, not even trying to look up at her.

She dropped her backpack, fumbling with the emergency kit as she tugged it out. She was annoyed to realize her hands were trembling again, and she tried to still them as she sifted through the contents of the kit.

*Control yourself,* she thought, trying not to feel. Andros didn't need her breaking down on him; they had enough problems already. He took the pain reliever she passed him without question, and she watched him wince as swallowing prompted another wave of dizziness.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, while he waited for the pain to fade a little and she just stared. She couldn't take her eyes off of him--he had finally let go of her when they arrived in this tiny clearing, but now she found herself wishing he hadn't. His touch would give her *some* reassurance that he was real, that this wasn't just some bizarre dream.

But she couldn't move. If it *was* a dream, she didn't want to know--she would stay in this dream forever, if she could, just to think that Andros was alive.

*Even if Darkonda doesn't give up?* she wondered suddenly. But she knew the answer. She didn't want to live without Andros, and if it meant they had to keep running from evil, maybe never seeing the Megaship again, she would do it. She would choose a life with him, no matter how hard, over anything she had had when she thought he was dead.

"Ash?" Andros asked suddenly, and she blinked as she realized he was now staring back at her. Some of the pain was gone from his expression, but out here in the light she thought she could see the unfocused look of his eyes.

"Yeah?" she answered, moving a little closer to him. "Did that pain reliever help at all?"

She saw him almost nod, and then abort the gesture as it began. "At least--I can think now. Ash… the others aren't here with you, are they."

She bit her lip, then shook her head slowly. "We--we thought you were dead." Her voice broke on the last word, and she berated herself for the tears she felt threatening to escape once more.

"Ash…" He reached out, hand wavering as he couldn't quite find her, and she reached up to grasp his hand. He pulled, quite hard for someone she had thought dead up until a half an hour before, and she found herself wrapped in his tight embrace.

"It's okay," he whispered in her ear. "I'm not dead, and you're here, and we're together. That's all that really matters."

"But--" She tried desperately to hang onto the calm shell that had protected her since she started this crazy journey to find Andros. "But the shuttle crashed, and Darkonda's after us, and--"

She felt him stiffen. "Darkonda?"

"He shot at me," she said, hearing her voice tremble. "When I came to look for you…"

"Is he why the shuttle crashed?" Andros asked softly. She could hear the anger in his voice, quiet though it was, and she hugged him tighter instinctively.

"Yes," she admitted. "I couldn't control it after--"

"Shh," he interrupted, and she broke off abruptly as his hand started to stroke her hair. Tears started to well up in her eyes at the familiar gesture, and there was nothing she could do to stop them.

Andros held her while she cried, saying nothing, just rocking her back and forth. She cried for the loneliness that had descended on her the instant she had felt his mindtouch disappear the night before, and she cried for the despair that had settled over her when she tried to envision the rest of her life without him. She cried for the pain that had found its way into her soul at the sight of him, lying unmoving across the pilot's console of the ruined Delta Megaship.

"We're going to be all right, Ash," he murmured finally. "We're together now…"

She swallowed hard, trying to blink away the rest of her tears. "Don't leave me again," she whispered suddenly, fiercely, lifting one hand over his shoulder to rub her eyes. "Ever again, Andros, *ever*."

It was a promise she knew, logically, that he couldn't make, but her heart demanded she ask it of him anyway. She wasn't sure she could endure that heart-wrenching separation again, and she knew she never wanted to find out.

"I won't leave you," he said softly. "I promise."

She nodded a little, drawing back to look at him, remind herself that he was really there. "Never," she insisted, and he smiled a little.

"Never," he agreed, his voice quiet.

"Good," she sighed, oddly reassured. Looking around them, she took a deep breath. She was about to say something more practical when she felt him tense again. "What--"

He cut her off with a look. Tilting his head a little, he gestured upward. "Do you hear that?" he whispered, and she strained her ears to hear what he had noticed.

"Atmospheric fighters," he said after a moment, when she didn't answer. "They're gone now, but for a minute…"

"We'd better get moving," she said, letting go of him reluctantly. "We can't stay here forever anyway."

"The nearest settlement," he began, and she grabbed her scanner out of her backpack.

"Twenty kilometers," she interjected, and he gave her a startled look. "But it's only two to the nearest water source," she continued, feeling a little smug. "And that's a river, which eventually feeds into the settlement we're aiming for--I say go for that and follow it as far as we can."

He was just staring at her, one hand still in hers and their clasped hands in her lap. "You're not the only one who can have a plan, you know," she added, a little disconcerted by his gaze.

"My plan…" He hesitated, then gave her a rueful smile. "My plan pretty much consisted of--kissing you, and then asking you what the plan was."

Surprised, she looked at him for a moment, his words somehow transforming themselves from suggestion to undeniable urge in her mind. She found herself leaning forward, and his lips met hers as her eyes fluttered closed.

"I like--" She felt him kiss her again, gently. "Your plan better," she finished with a sigh.

"But see…" His fingers ran across her face. "Without your plan, it's incomplete." Softly, he added, "Like me without you," and she felt his mouth on hers once more.

This time, even she heard the hum of the fighters, and as he pulled away he breathed, "Time for--"

"My plan," she finished, grabbing her backpack and closing it quickly. Shrugging into it, she clipped the scanner to her belt and scrambled to her feet, reaching for Andros' other hand as she did so.

Somehow, he managed to grasp her fingers and she hauled him to his feet, stepping closer to him as he stumbled. Obviously, his vision was not improving, and she suspected he was still dizzy. What he really needed was rest and to not have to move around, but that wasn't an option.

Wrapping one arm firmly around him, she thought she could have enjoyed the closeness if the situation weren't so urgent. He took a deep breath and one step forward, and she followed suit. He seemed almost surprised when his feet found the ground without incident, and she squeezed the hand he had over her shoulders encouragingly.

He smiled a little, and they started, at a painstakingly slow walk, toward the river.

11. Sunset

"Sit," Ashley told him, in a tone that left no room for argument.

He sighed, and decided to try anyway. "It's really nothing, Ash--"

"Sit down!" She was clearly upset. He probably should have told her, but the pain in his head had overwhelmed everything else. And then, in the hurry to get away from the Delta Megaship, it hadn't seemed so important.

Reaching out, his hand found the trunk of a tree and he lowered himself slowly to the ground. She dropped down beside him, tugging impatiently at his uniform jacket as he started to shrug out of it. He honestly couldn't feel anything, but she insisted there was blood on the back of his jacket.

As she pulled it away, he heard her gasp. He winced, having a vague memory of being hit from behind as the ship's inertial damping failed to compensate completely for the stress it had been under. He knew the tank top he wore under his jacket had torn, but the pain reliever she had given him prevented him from knowing how bad the injury was.

"Dammit, Andros!" That couldn't be a good sign. Ashley never swore, much less at him. "Would you *tell* me when you're hurt!"

"I wasn't--" he started, intending to say he hadn't meant to hide it from her. But even as he spoke, he knew that wasn't entirely true, and he was a little relieved when she interrupted him.

"Take off your shirt," she demanded. "Right now, or I'm going to do it for you."

He tried hard not to smile. He would have dearly loved to say something to that, but he doubted it would help her mood any. Without a word, he tugged his tank top loose and pulled it off over his head, a little surprised at the lack of dizziness accompanying the motion.

He felt her touch his back tentatively, and he inhaled sharply. It didn't hurt, but it *felt* like it should hurt. "God, Andros," she said, her voice choked, and he heard her rummaging through her backpack.

"Ash, it's okay," he said, a little alarmed. "It doesn't hurt..."

"Of course it doesn't hurt," she snapped, pulling out the emergency kit she'd brought with her. "That pain reliever didn't just work on your head, you know."

"Ash," he said again, twisting a little. He knew instinctively that it wasn't that bad--she was upset about something else. "What's wrong?"

"You're hurt!" she exclaimed, glaring at him. "Isn't that enough?"

Carefully, he shook his head. "No," he said quietly. "Not for you to be like this."

"Well, excuse me for worrying about my boyfriend!"

"Ashley..." He said her name again, as though he could somehow get through to her with just that word. He wondered, suddenly, if this was how she had felt all those times, trying to get *him* to talk. How had she done it?

He reached out, fumbling for her hand. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you," he said finally, when she didn't say anything. "I--I just didn't want you to worry."

"Oh, and bleeding through your *jacket* was supposed to reassure me?" she retorted, but her indignation sounded half-hearted.

"I'm sorry," he offered again, meaning it. The last thing he had wanted to do was to upset her.

Her fingers tightened on his, and she sniffed a little. Even through his blurred sight, he could see her fighting not to cry again. "Ash," he murmured, pulling her closer and feeling relief when she let him draw her into his embrace.

"I didn't mean to yell at you," she whispered, and he hugged her tighter. "Andros... I love you."

"I love you, too," he murmured, grateful beyond words for her presence. "Always."

"Always have, always will," she said softly, repeating the words he had told her once. "I'm sorry I was so terrible--I just--" Her voice wavered. "I'm so scared, Andros," she whispered. "I can't lose you, I *can't*. And when I think how close I came to giving up on you..."

"But you didn't," he told her, closing his eyes and letting the feeling of warm comfort she offered envelop him. "You're here, and I'm fine, and I love you. No one's going to lose *anyone*."

She let him hold her for another minute, seeming to take comfort in those words. It seemed, in that fleeting moment, that he had never needed anyone or anything but her. He marveled at his own feeling of contentment, but he didn't question it.

She pulled away far too soon, and he sighed without meaning to. He tried not to blush, looking away as she gave him a surprised smile. Her fingers brushed his cheek lightly, and she got to her feet.

"I'm going to clean up that scrape on your back," she said, not sounding nearly as upset as she had before. Grabbing a cloth from the emergency kit and a canteen from her bag, she added, "Be right back."

He nodded wordlessly, turning a little to watch her make her way down to the river's edge. He blinked automatically, trying to clear his eyes, but it did no more good than it had the dozen other times he had tried it.

Then he could see her returning, and a moment later she dropped to the ground behind him. He heard water slosh as she covered the mouth of the canteen with the cloth and turned it upside down briefly. "This might sting," she warned. "I'm not really sure how thorough that pain reliever is..."

"S'okay," he said, shaking his head. "I'll live."

She was silent for a moment, and he winced as he realized that that probably wasn't the best thing he could have said. "You'd better," Ashley said quietly. Her tone was fond enough to reassure him, though, and he smiled a little.

"How could I not--" He caught his breath as the cloth, cold from its dowsing with river water, touched his back. "When I have you to live for?" he finished more softly.

"Good," she whispered. "Just remember that." He felt her hair brush his arm and suddenly her lips were warm on his skin as she kissed his shoulder.

Surprised, he twisted around to look at her. "Oh, no you don't," she said, putting her hand on his shoulder and firmly turning him back around. "Hold still."

She didn't remove her hand as she started to clean the scrape on his back again, and he was suddenly very conscious of his half-dressed state. TJ had told him--and he had observed for himself--that it wasn't uncommon for the males of Earth to go shirtless, especially on the beach. But he had never been able to bring himself to do it.

Now, with Ashley so nearby, he found it didn't bother him as much as he had expected it to. He couldn't help feeling a little vulnerable, but around her it was almost a pleasant sensation. Now if only she would slide her hands forward and wrap him in the kind of possessive hug he knew she could do so well...

"And by the way," she was saying, her words flowing into his daydream but not interrupting it. "How did you manage to tear your shirt and not your jacket?"

The gentle sound of her voice in his ears was as welcome a feeling as her hands on skin. Several times after the crash he had imagined he heard her, had almost thought she was talking to him. But the sound had always faded back into the darkness, leaving him even more alone than he had been before.

"Andros?"

He started, reacting instinctively to the sound of his name. "Huh?"

"I just asked why your jacket isn't torn," she said, sounding amused. "What were you thinking about?"

"I--" He wondered if she would let him get away without answering the second question. "I wasn't wearing it. The Delta Megaship's environmental controls reset, and it was such a short trip that I didn't bother trying to fix them."

"They reset?" She sounded as though she was frowning.

He shrugged. Her hand left his shoulder briefly, and he heard her tip the canteen over once more. The sudden coldness startled him again, and he shivered involuntarily.

Then her fingers were back on his skin, rubbing his shoulder soothingly. "Sorry," she offered. "Almost done."

"No, it's okay," he assured her, a little disappointed. He knew it was selfish, but he found--he liked having her take care of him. It was a strange thought, after being so long alone and convinced he needed no one, but meeting her had changed his life irrevocably. And he wouldn't wish it any different.

"The environmental controls?" she prompted, and he thought ruefully that he probably ought to be grateful she was almost done. At least once she had moved farther away he would be able to think coherently again, and about something other than her.

"Yeah. Saryn must have set the default settings higher than Earth normal, because it was pretty warm." He shrugged again, trying to ignore the fact that she had put the cloth down and was now running her fingers lightly over his injury, as if she could somehow make it disappear faster that way.

"The Power will probably heal that pretty quickly," she said suddenly, pulling her hands away. "Um--" It could have been his imagination, but he thought she sounded a little flustered. "I'm just going to cover it up so it doesn't get infected or anything in the meantime."

He nodded, wishing he could turn around and see her expression. "Thanks," he said simply, not trusting his voice to say anything more.

"You're welcome," she said, her tone soft. Then she cleared her throat, and he heard her tearing open the covering on one of the sterile adhesive bandages. "So," she said conversationally, as she laid the bandage gently across his back. "You didn't tell me what you were thinking about a few minutes ago."

He sighed a little, amused. "You never forget anything, do you."

"Not when it comes to you," she said, and this time the urge to turn and look at her face was harder to resist.

He tried to remember, but her fingers were running across his back again, pressing the adhesive part of the bandage down. He almost thought he could feel her breath on his skin as she leaned closer to inspect her work, and he tried not to shift restlessly. If he didn't get to wrap his arms around her after this, he thought he might go crazy.

"So?" she asked again, and he blinked.

"I don't remember," he said truthfully, and she gave him a gentle shove. "Really," he insisted. "But it was probably about you..." The words sprang unbidden to his lips, but even as he said them, he knew they were true.

Her hands met between his shoulder blades, finishing the bandage's seal, but she didn't pull away. Instead her hands slid over his shoulders and across his chest as she leaned closer, resting her head against his. He leaned back without thinking, letting her embrace draw him in.

"Did I mention that I missed you?" Ashley whispered, and he smiled a little.

"I think so, yes," he murmured, putting his hands over hers. He turned his head a little, felt her kiss his cheek, and wondered if maybe he wasn't the only one to want more.

He shifted so he could actually see her, reaching tentatively to touch her face. It troubled him that he still couldn't see her clearly, even this close, but his hand found her cheek by instinct, and his fingers caressed her soft skin.

One arm still draped over his shoulders, she lifted her other hand to catch his and hold it while she kissed his fingers. "Andros..."

"Yeah?" he whispered, slipping his free arm around her and edging closer. He wanted her lips on his with a sudden intense longing that he couldn't explain, only obey.

"Nothing," she breathed, leaning forward and fulfilling his unspoken wish. Her kiss was light, but her hand dropped to his chest and he leaned into her touch, returning that gentle kiss again and again.

She let him kiss her, eyes closed and seemingly not half as affected by their nearness as he had found himself. But she wasn't pulling away, and that was all that mattered--until her hand started to slide across his bare chest, his skin tingling in the wake of her trailing fingers.

The sensation overwhelmed the last of his defenses, and he kissed her harder than he had intended. He felt the fingers of her other hand tighten on his shoulder, and suddenly she was returning his kiss with the same hunger that had both frightened and excited him the morning before.

He didn't try to stop her. They had nothing else to worry about, nothing to care about except each other. And it was only kissing, he thought, a little dazed as she pressed closer and he tightened his arms around her. What harm could that do?

The ground shook, and he almost didn't notice. Lost in the feel of her kiss and her body against his, gravity itself could have shifted without making him blink. But then came an attenuated high-pitched screech, followed by a distant rumble, and they both froze where they were.

"Andros?" Ashley whispered, her tone strangely alert for someone who had been kissing him breathless only seconds before.

"I think--" He struggled to focus, the adrenaline coursing through him not completely negating the effects of having Ashley almost in his lap. "Darkonda must be destroying what's left of the Delta Megaship. He--he probably searched it first, but he wouldn't want to take any chances."

He felt her shiver, and he hugged her closer instinctively. "We'd better get moving," she muttered, and he drew back to look at her in concern.

"Are you all right?" he asked, worried by her tone of voice.

She didn't say anything for a moment, and he couldn't quite make out her expression when she lifted her face toward his. But her words made the cause of her distress clear. "That came so close to being you," she said quietly. Her voice shook as she added, "Another few hours, and..."

"It's okay," he said, pulling her back into a tight hug and wishing he could kiss her again. But the farther they got from the crash site, the better they would feel, and that wasn't going to happen if he gave into his impulse again. "Let's just think about now, all right?"

He felt her nod, and then she was drawing back, scrambling to get her backpack together and climb to her feet. He thought he saw her stumble as she stood, and he frowned up at her. "Ash," he said, accepting her hand gratefully when she offered. "You would tell me if *you* were hurt, wouldn't you?"

She managed to pull him to his feet, and he thought the world had started to spin again as he felt her pressed against his side. But then she straightened, and he realized that she had been the one to need support, not him. "It's nothing," she said, stuffing his jacket into the still-open top of her pack.

"Ash." He let himself sigh, and he saw her hesitate.

"Well, it's dumb, anyway," she amended, grabbing his shirt off the ground. "I caught my ankle underneath the console when the shuttle crashed, and I had to blast it free. I didn't think I twisted it, but it feels like it's swelling a little."

"Hey," he interrupted, as she started to put his shirt in her backpack as well. "I'm wearing that; don't put it away. And we should bandage your ankle."

She shook her head. "Can't. I wouldn't be able to get my boot back on over it. I think it'll be all right, honest. It's just a little clumsy right now. It'll be better once we've walked a little way."

"Maybe better, maybe worse," he countered, but he suspected she was right. Her boot would keep the swelling down by itself, and if she hadn't actually sprained it, the Power would probably heal her ankle in a matter of hours. Assuming she didn't aggravate the injury by walking on it nonstop, of course. "And give me my shirt, Ash."

She eyed his tank top distastefully. "But it has blood on it."

"So does my back," he said, reaching for it. "I'll wash it next time we stop."

She relinquished his shirt with reluctance, and he had to admit that the idea of putting it back on didn't appeal to him either. But he pulled it on anyway and he felt one of her hands take his, her other arm slipping around his waist. "Ready?" she asked.

Andros nodded once. "But your ankle..."

"It'll be okay," she assured him. "I'll tell you if it gets worse." He must have given her a skeptical look at that, for she added, "Promise."

He supposed that was the best they could do right now anyway, and he resolved to question her again the next time they stopped. And at least didn't have to support him anymore. She was just guiding him, to make sure he didn't trip over anything, and if she needed to, she could lean on *him*.

"All right," he agreed finally, giving her shoulders a squeeze. "Let's go."

The muted rumble that filled the halls of Angel Grove High as school let out for the afternoon sounded hollow to Carlos. The laughter and the occasional shouts made no impression on him as he fought his way through the crowds to his locker.

He twisted the combination lock and yanked the flimsy metal door open, a little annoyed by the normalcy of the activity. With one friend lost in an act of random violence and another who might as well have been, he had barely made it through the day without lashing out at someone. He had trouble tolerating the grumbling and complaints of other students when his own life had taken such a drastic turn for the worse the day before.

He debated just shoving his entire bag in his locker and forgetting about it, but responsibility too deeply ingrained to ignore made him sort through his books and pull out those in which he had been assigned homework. Stuffing them into his bag, he slammed his locker shut and slung his backpack over his shoulder as he turned away.

"Hey," Karen said, appearing abruptly from out of the crowd before he could take a single step. "I've been looking for you all day--wow, you look upset. Are you all right?"

"No," he said, more sharply than he'd intended. "I'm not; and if one more person asks me that, I'm going to explode!"

She blinked, looking a little taken aback but not particularly offended. "Sorry... With that kind of expression, I guess you've been hearing that question all day. Um--should I ask what's wrong?"

He sighed, reminding himself not to take it out on her. She didn't deserve it, especially when she was only concerned for him. "I don't care," he muttered. "I really don't care anymore."

She bit her lip, frowning a little. "Carlos--do you want to talk, or should I leave you alone?"

He couldn't make decisions right now, let alone second guess her motives or her sympathy. "What I really want is to sleep," he said, glaring at someone as they shoved by him. "I feel like I've been awake forever."

She hesitated, shrugging her backpack a little farther over her shoulder. "Do you want to crash at my place? My dad's away right now, and at least you wouldn't have to deal with anyone asking you questions."

For a moment, he was seriously tempted. She seemed willing enough to let him keep to himself, and it would mean not having to face any of the others on the Megaship. But at last, he shook his head. "Thanks, but I can't. I don't want to get in your way."

She gave him a half-smile, and he looked down in surprise as she took his arm. "You won't get in my way. Come on; let's go."

"But--"

She didn't listen as he tried to protest, and he followed reluctantly as she led him down the hall and out into the open sunshine. *It *would* be a beautiful day,* he thought, irritated all over again by the way the world was going on as though nothing had changed.

"Here," she said, unlocking the passenger door of her car and giving him a gentle push. "Get in. I'll drive you back this evening so you can pick up your car."

He let her bully him into the car, strangely comforted to have someone else making decisions for him. She got in on the other side and stuck the key in the ignition. Pulling her seatbelt over her shoulder, Karen gave him a pointed look and waited until he did the same.

The little car shook itself awake as she turned the key, and he stared out the window as they took off across the parking lot. She said nothing on the brief ride to her house, and he was grateful for her silence. He didn't know what to tell her, how to explain his sudden depression without giving away more than she could know.

He supposed, watching the trees fly by the window, that he and TJ would have to come up with some sort of cover story for the whole mess. Andros hadn't gone to Angel Grove High, of course, but a fair number of the students had known him. He had hung out at the Surf Spot and the beach with everyone else, and he had even accompanied them into the high school from time to time.

Carlos blinked, trying not to think. But he couldn't help it--as soon as he managed to get Andros out of his mind, he would think of Cassie. Friends had asked about her and Ashley all day...

"Here we are," Karen announced quietly, her voice a welcome diversion from his thoughts. "You know that if you want to talk, I'll listen."

He nodded wordlessly. She waited a moment more, then pushed her door open and climbed out. He followed her into the house, shaking his head when she asked if he wanted anything to eat, and she pointed him toward the couch.

"Karen," he said, pausing in the doorway to the living room.

She looked up. "Yeah?"

He took a deep breath, then found himself fighting to keep it from turning into a sigh. Depressed people weren't exactly fun to be around, and no matter what she said, he knew she was going out of her way to be here for him right now. "Thanks," he said, wishing he could say more but not sure how.

The smile on her face made him feel a little better, and she nodded. "Anytime."

As he lay on the couch, he found himself staring toward the open window. A delicate wooden bird was suspended in front of it, its wings waving gently in the breeze, and he stared at it as though it could erase the images in his mind.

To some extent, he found that it did. Watching the bird bob slowly up and down gave him something to focus on other than his own thoughts, and the peaceful motion lulled him toward the sleep that had eluded him the night before.

He thought he heard an inquisitive "Merow?" come from the floor nearby, and he realized his eyes had drifted shut. It was too much work to open them again, but he smiled a little as he felt Karen's cat leap up onto the couch beside him. Its warm fur pressed against his arm, and he was drowsily aware of Karen entering the room.

He thought she sat quietly down on the floor by the other end of the couch, and there was the rustle of paper. He didn't know how long he drifted in the haze between waking and dreaming, but the calm comfort of the room seemed to keep his nightmares away, and for that he was grateful.

Then, what he could have sworn was only a few minutes later, he felt her hand on his ankle. "Carlos," she whispered, shaking him gently.

He pried his eyes open, surprised to see that the cat was gone and shadows were coming through the window where sun had shone not so long ago. "What?" he mumbled, wondering why his voice wouldn't cooperate.

"Sorry to wake you," she said quietly. "But your watch alarm's going off--I wasn't sure if it was important or not."

*Watch?* He glanced down automatically, just as the black and gold band around his wrist chimed again. *Not good...*

He pushed himself up, lifting one hand to rub his eyes. "Man--Karen, I'm sorry, but I have to go."

He tried to come up with some kind of excuse, but he must have been asleep longer than he'd thought. His mind was too muddled to come up with anything coherent, so he just stumbled to his feet and hoped she would understand.

"It's all right," she assured him. "Just give me a call later to let me know how you're doing, okay?"

He hesitated, but it was the least he could do. "Sure," he said, crouching down beside her to give her a quick kiss. "Thanks, Karen," he said again. "I really appreciate it."

She smiled up at him. "No problem. Here, let me give you a ride back to school--"

"No," he hurried to assure her. "That's all right. I'm just going down the road; I'll pick up my car later. I have to get going--thanks again."

He backed up as he spoke, and he ducked out of the living room and let himself out the front door before she could object. He felt badly about not being able to accept her offer, and especially about not offering a better explanation. But his communicator had already gone off twice now, and he didn't want whoever it was trying to call him again in her presence.

"This is Carlos," he said, lifting his wrist as he made his way down the front steps.

"Carlos!" TJ's voice was concerned. "Are you all right?"

His jaw clenched as he struggled not to snap at his friend. "I'm okay," he answered as calmly as he could. "What's going on?"

"It's Astronema," TJ said, and Carlos tensed. "She's going to meet us in the park at sunset. Can you get back to the Megaship?"

Carlos blinked, glancing over his shoulder as he stood on the sidewalk in front of Karen's house. *That's right--Zhane thought she might... help us.* He shook his head. If the world went any more insane, he was going to do something drastic. He didn't know what yet, but *something*.

"Yeah," he said finally. "I'll be there in a few minutes."

"Right."

Carlos' communicator hissed faintly as TJ cut the transmission off, and Carlos lowered his wrist, letting the APD turn the little device off by itself. He started down the street, hunting for a place he could teleport from without being seen.

A car cruised past, leaving the street nearly deserted in its wake. He stepped behind one of the wide tree trunks that lined the road, counting on it to hide him from casual observers inside the houses. A curtain of sparkling black enveloped him as he tapped his communicator, and when it lifted he found himself on the Megaship again.

There was no one in the Glider holding bay, but he could hear voices coming from the Bridge. Striding out of the bay, he recognized first Zhane's voice and then Phantom's, and he could see TJ through the open doors.

The Blue Ranger was leaning against one of the auxiliary consoles, arms crossed and no expression on his face as he watched the argument taking place in front of him. He did glance over at the door as Carlos stepped through, and Carlos frowned, giving his friend a questioning look.

TJ just shook his head and turned back to the two Rangers standing in front of the main viewscreen. Phantom was demorphed, his calm expression at odds with the tension in his stance. Zhane, too, seemed tenser than usual, but he looked more annoyed than anything else.

"How do you expect me to entrust Cassie to someone you will not tell me anything about?" Phantom was asking as Carlos joined TJ beside the auxiliary console bank.

"I've *told* you, I don't *know* that much about her," Zhane told him. "She was evil, she's not now, she might help us. What else matters?"

"How do you know her?" Phantom insisted, and Zhane glared at him.

"I know her from KO-35," he said, and Carlos raised his eyebrow. Zhane obviously hadn't told Phantom whose help it was they were trying to enlist. With a wry look that said he knew the answer to this question, Zhane asked, "Don't you trust me, Saryn?"

"I trust what I know," Phantom shot back. "I do not trust those I do not know, and I certainly do not trust someone who used to be evil!"

Zhane pounced. "Why not? Cassie's evil, and you trust her!"

Phantom visibly flinched. "I love Cassie," he answered quietly. "I do not trust her, not as she is now. There is a difference."

"Well, it certainly doesn't show," Zhane snapped.

"Stop it," TJ interrupted at last, stepping forward. "Look, both of you--"

"You do not understand," Phantom told Zhane coldly, ignoring TJ. "You are nothing but a child who does not know what it is to love."

"Phantom!" TJ sounded as shocked as Carlos felt.

Zhane paid no more attention to TJ than Phantom had. "Just because you can't keep your hands off of her doesn't mean that you do, either!"

Carlos glanced at TJ, wondering if the Blue Ranger wanted help. He was as irritated with their squabbling as TJ was, and two weeks apart seemed to have made the situation worse rather than better.

"You can *not*--"

"Shut up!" TJ yelled, effectively cutting Phantom off. "Both of you, stop it right now! This is no time to be at each other's throats!"

Carlos blinked, straightening up. Although TJ had hidden it better, he had been under as much stress as the rest of them. It was a wonder that any of them had kept their tempers as long as they had, when it came to that.

*At least he picked a good target,* Carlos couldn't help thinking, feeling some small amount of satisfaction at the twin expressions of surprise on Zhane and Phantom's faces.

TJ took advantage of the momentary silence to press his point. "We're all angry and upset, but Cassie still needs us. We have a chance to help her, and we need to take that chance, not stand around insulting each other!"

"That 'chance' is based on someone that Zhane will not tell us anything about," Phantom objected. "Someone who may or may not help us, and whom he admits was once evil herself!"

Carlos stepped forward, seeing TJ's shoulders rise and fall as he sighed. His friend gave him an appreciative glance, silently thanking him for his support, and Carlos nodded once. All they had was each other, now, and he couldn't stand to see Zhane and Phantom tear that apart.

"Look, Phantom," TJ said quietly. "I'm sorry, but we've already decided. This is a chance the team has talked about and agreed to take. All of us, before Andros left, before Ashley took off--"

"What?" Carlos gave him a sharp look. "Where's Ashley?"

TJ just barely took his eyes off of Phantom, as though he didn't trust the other to behave for the few seconds it would take him to explain. "She took the shuttle to go looking for Andros," he said with a sigh. "Zhane didn't know about it until after she was gone."

"She thinks she can hear Andros," Zhane interjected in a low voice. Carlos looked over at him and found the Silver Ranger staring toward the viewscreen, where a realtime image of the stars was currently being displayed.

"Can she?" Phantom asked suddenly, and they all looked at him in surprise.

"Yes," Carlos said, realizing that Phantom didn't know of Ashley's newfound ability.

At the same time, Zhane said, "No." They exchanged glances, and Zhane added, "She used to, yes. Since the Delta Megaship exploded--" He blinked, looking away again. "Neither of us can hear him anymore."

"How do you know?" Phantom asked, an odd expression on his face. "If she says she does--do you not trust her?"

Zhane's head jerked up, and hid eyes shone with unshed tears as he glared at Phantom. "You know how I know? I know because I've felt Andros in my mind since I was four years old. He has *never* disappeared the way he did last night, and I have never in my life been as alone as I am now!

"I am *tired* of you telling me I don't understand, Saryn!" A tear spilled down Zhane's cheek, and he brushed it away angrily. "I've loved Andros for as long as I can remember--longer than Ashley has, and certainly longer than you've loved Cassie! Just because I can't drop everything and take off across the galaxy looking for him doesn't mean I don't care!"

The flood of words stopped abruptly, but Zhane swallowed hard and kept right on glaring at Phantom. The expression on the other's face had gone from odd to almost... malicious. But as he stared back at Zhane, it started to fade a little and suddenly he looked away.

"I--" Phantom stopped, and quiet though his tone was it was obvious that he was forcing the words out. "I'm sorry; I did not mean to say that. Cassie--" He hesitated, and this time his voice was no more than a whisper. "Cassie is waking up again."

Carlos shot a quick glance at TJ, frowning when he caught the other's eye. He had no idea what that had to do with anything, but it seemed to mean something to Zhane, for he nodded once. At least Phantom had apologized...

"We'll have to sedate her again before we go down to Earth," TJ said calmly, as though nothing had happened.

Phantom drew in a breath to object, than glanced at Zhane and said nothing. Oddly enough, it was Zhane who spoke up. "No," the Silver Ranger said, his voice almost steady again.

Carlos transferred his frown to Zhane. "What?"

Zhane straightened, turning toward Carlos and TJ for the first time. "First, Astrea might want Cassie to be conscious. The sedative won't wear off completely for a little while--maybe we should just leave her in the Medical bay until Astrea tells us one way or the other.

"Second--" Zhane took a deep breath, as though he knew they weren't going to like this. "I don't think it's such a good idea for all of us to go down to Earth. At least not right away. I was the one who sent the message to her, and I'm the only one she's expecting. I don't think we should startle her by having most of the team appear."

No one said anything for a moment. "You're right," TJ agreed at last. "I don't like it, but you're right."

He glanced at Carlos, who hesitated. He didn't like Zhane going down there alone either, but it wasn't exactly a first time occurrence. If Zhane was to be believed, he had been seeing this "Astrea" for several weeks now, and she hadn't tried to kill him yet.

Carlos nodded reluctantly. "I agree. But--DECA should monitor you, just in case we have to teleport you out of there quickly."

Zhane was already reaching for his digimorpher. "Right," he said, catching each of their gazes in succession. "Thanks, guys."

The park was quiet as the last glimmer of the sun's spectacular presence began to fade from the sky. The fading glow spread itself across the western horizon, silhouetting the trees against a multitude of darkening hues. The calm beauty was almost eerie as the city lingered on the terminator line between light and dark.

*And in the end,* the girl thought, gazing through the lengthening shadows toward the vanishing sun, *night always wins.*

"There's no night without stars," Zhane had told her, with a look of something like affection in his eyes.

Was that why she was here? Because someone saw more than "Astronema, princess of darkness" when he looked at her? Because he had been the first in years to look at her without fear or hate, and he had thought it worth his time to reintroduce her to a way of life without violence and destruction?

*Not anymore,* she thought to herself, tossing her head to shake away the twinge of sadness. The Rangers he had been with that night at the dance would undoubtedly have informed him of her identity, and she had assumed he would want nothing more to do with her.

Then had come his audio message. *That* was what had brought her here--curiosity, surprise, and maybe the smallest amount of hope. She had enjoyed spending time with him, when she admitted it to herself, and if nothing had changed she would have continued to seek him out.

A noise she knew all too well made her whirl, and her eyes widened as a silver streak teleported into the clearing behind her. She summoned her staff without thinking, bracing herself and ready to fight even as the rain of sparkles cleared to reveal--

*Zhane?!* Years of caution kept her from saying the name aloud, but suddenly things clicked in her mind. The sudden appearance of a sixth Astro Ranger, combined with his tendency to always be in close proximity to the Rangers...

"*You're* the Silver Ranger," she said flatly.

He gave her a startled look. "Yeah--I thought you knew."

She glared at him for a moment, her instinctive hatred for Power Rangers warring with the kinship she felt for him. It was the same inner battle she'd been waging ever since the Red Ranger had insisted her necklace belonged to his sister.

She had almost believed him, for she had seen the locket's duplicate hanging on a chain around his neck. But every time she started to wonder if there was some crazy, remote chance that *he* was her brother, she would remember Ecliptor's tales of the destruction of her homeworld and family. Destruction caused by Power Rangers.

For the past couple days, as that internal debate continued, her hatred for the people who had taken her old life from her had always won. But now, she started to wonder all over again. She found it almost impossible to hate this person who had never questioned her and always welcomed her presence. And--she found she didn't *want* to hate him.

"No," she said finally, swinging her staff upright again and letting it rest on the ground. "I didn't know."

He regarded her for a moment, an unreadable expression on his face. "I'm sorry," he said at last. "I would have told you, if you had asked."

Her lips quirked a little. "I wouldn't have told *you* who *I* was," she said wryly. "You had to find out from your Ranger friends."

She must have put more sarcasm into her voice than she thought, for he frowned. "They're not just my friends, Astrea. They're my team, and I'm not ashamed of them."

"I'm not ashamed of who I am, either," she said defiantly, stabbing the ground with her staff for emphasis. "I'm evil, and I like it."

That might not be entirely true anymore, not now that he had shown her how much more there could be to life than fighting, but she certainly wasn't going to admit it to him. As it was, he gave her another inscrutable look and said, "I'm not here to argue with you. I asked if you would meet me because I need your help."

She drew her staff back a little, looking at him suspiciously. "What could you possibly want *my* help for?"

"It's Cassie," he said bluntly, watching for her reaction. "She was in one of the ships your velocifighters shot down over Aquitar. The next thing we know, she's blowing things up and threatening to kill people."

"The evilyzer ray." She looked away, remembering Ecliptor's words. "'Not honorable, but effective.'"

"No, not honorable," Zhane agreed. "If we're going to fight, we should be able to do it because we believe in something, not because it was programmed into us."

She frowned. Ecliptor had expressed doubts about the ray as well, but Dark Spectre had insisted. "What do you want *me* to do?" she asked, suspecting she already knew.

"Change her back," he said. "She's our friend, Astrea. She doesn't deserve to have her life torn away from her, any more than you deserved it when you were kidnapped from our home years ago."

She looked at him, shocked, and the words tumbled out before she could stop them. "You're from KO-35?" she demanded.

He looked as startled as she felt. "You know *you're* from KO-35?"

"No! I--" She looked down, annoyed that she had spoken before she had thought. "Where's your friend?"

He only hesitated a moment before answering, "On the Megaship. But we can bring her down here--"

She shook her head. "This is too public. The kind of magic you're asking for won't be very inconspicuous."

He frowned. "Well, we can't go to the Dark Fortress."

She twisted her staff a little, hoping he wasn't about to suggest what she thought he was. "You can't expect me to teleport onto *your* ship."

The sheepish look he gave her said that he had indeed been thinking of that. "What if..." He paused for a moment, then looked at her consideringly. "What if I gave you my morpher?" he asked, his voice as even as though he weren't suggesting anything out of the ordinary.

"That way, the computer will register you as a Ranger," he continued when she didn't answer. "We won't be able to stop you from leaving whenever you want."

She wondered if she looked as incredulous as she felt. "You wouldn't give me your morpher!"

For answer, he pulled the Silver Ranger's digimorpher out of his pocket and held it out to her wordlessly.

She just stared at it, her mind racing. She had asked about his friend only as a way to distract him from her slip, but here he was, ready to hand over his entire Power just to save his fellow Ranger. Could he actually trust her, or was it only desperation?

"Why?" she asked finally, looking up at him.

He looked a little taken aback. "Because she deserves a chance. Just like you. And because I believe in the good in everyone."

She had thought that a naïve thing to say, the first time he had told her that. She had thought it only a statement from one ignorant of the true evil that existed in the universe. But he was a Ranger--he *knew* that kind of evil, and yet he could still say something like that.

"Because she deserves a chance. Just like you." She had never had the chance to fight back when she was young. She had spent the last couple of years making up for it, attacking Rangers wherever she could in a desperate attempt to make up for everything that had been stolen from her.

But was it really Rangers she should be fighting? Or was it anyone who could ruin a life as thoroughly as hers had been, without even a trace of remorse? "She doesn't deserve to have her life torn away from her, anymore than you did."

Before she could change her mind, she reached out and snatched the morpher from his hand. Letting her staff vanish, she gave him a sharp nod. "Let's go."

12. Fade to Black

He had been wrong. She wasn't awake after all. His anger with Zhane had been his own, and he had no one to blame but himself for the inexcusable attitude he had taken with the other Ranger.

With Cassie unconscious, he had no qualms about freeing her from her restraints. It let him take her hand, wrap it in his and hold it close against his chest. "Cassie," he whispered, staring down at her peaceful expression. "I'm so sorry."

*Sorry for her, or for yourself?* his mind asked, and he closed his eyes. What had made him lash out at Zhane like that? Could she influence him even when she was not awake, or had the stress of the past couple days simply taken its toll?

He knew, instinctively, that that wasn't it. He had been through worse without losing his temper. And he hadn't just lost his temper--he had deliberately tried to hurt Zhane. He had wanted to see his enemy weakened by his own actions.

*Not my enemy,* he thought, a little uncertainly. Not Zhane, a fellow Ranger. Zhane was a friend, not an enemy. A friend whose careless attitude had endangered others time and again, one that had competed with him from the beginning and tried to steal Cassie's affection on more than one occasion.

His eyes snapped open, and he held Cassie's hand a little tighter. He had reason to dislike Zhane. The other had cheated death when his homeworld fell and had returned to the living to steal a girl who was another's entire world.

It was no wonder he had wanted to hurt the Silver Ranger. What was so wrong with it, really? Cassie didn't want Zhane. He was only protecting her by reminding the other of his place.

Her gentle voice breathed his name, and he looked down to see her struggling to open her eyes.

"I'm here," he whispered, brushing her hair away from her face. "Are you all right?"

"Can't… move," she murmured, frowning prettily.

"That's the effects of the sedative," he said, keeping his voice soft. "It will wear off in a few minutes."

The comm panel next to the door chimed, and he reached over to activate it. Her hand still in his, he raised a finger to his lips and gave her a warning look. Cassie managed to nod incrementally, and he turned their clasped hands to kiss her fingers.

"Phantom," TJ's voice said. "Zhane's on his way back with--Astrea. They're going to teleport directly into the Medical bay. Is Cassie still sedated?"

"Yes," he answered, glancing over at her again. "I was wrong; she is not yet conscious."

"Good. We'll be right down."

He frowned as the comm light blinked out. There was something about Astrea, something he was supposed to remember. He and Zhane had been fighting over whether to let her do something to Cassie, and Zhane had won. Zhane had--

Cassie's fingers tightened on his, and those thoughts flew out of his mind. "How do you feel?" he asked, leaning closer.

"Okay," she murmured, shifting a little. "She's going to hurt me…"

"No," he said quickly. "Do not worry."

He saw her eyes cloud over as he morphed. No sooner had his armor appeared around him than a silvery purple light filled the Medical bay, and Zhane teleported in with a young woman about his own age. Her stance was wary as the luminescence faded from them, but her eyes widened as she caught sight of him and she drew back instantly.

A staff appeared in her hand, one that he knew very well. "Astronema," he growled, reaching for his blaster. But it wasn't where it belonged; Zhane had never given it back after this morning.

He felt Cassie scrambling into a sitting position at his side, and he was relieved that the sedative had worn off so quickly. Whatever Zhane had planned, there was no way he was letting Astronema near Cassie.

"Satellite Stunner," Cassie snapped, and out of the corner of his eye he saw the weapon materialize in her hand. Her morpher was on his belt, but he didn't stop to question.

Astronema lifted her staff and fired before Cassie could and he lunged forward, staggering a little as the bolt dissipated across his armor. Zhane was shouting something, and he saw the Silver Ranger go for Astronema's staff even as a blast from Cassie's stunner streaked past.

He turned in time to see her catch herself against the patient bed--she wasn't steady on her feet yet, and that stumble had cost her her aim when she turned her weapon on Astronema. "Cassie!" he called, and she glanced up automatically.

He stretched out his hand, ready to teleport them both out of here, and she nodded her understanding. She took a step forward, her fingers brushing his as a blue-tinged bolt from the door caught her in the back. He felt the same electric fire he had shielded her from before hit him again, far stronger and strangely numbing this time as it crept underneath his armor and wrapped darkness around his eyes and mind.

He had been wrong to trust any of them, these Rangers that would take her from him. The deck slammed against his side and he knew nothing more.

"Zhane," TJ snapped, tossing his blaster to Carlos and hurrying across the room. He crouched at Cassie's side, checking to make sure she was only stunned before he glared at the Silver Ranger. "What happened?"

"Saryn lost it, that's what happened," Zhane answered. Turning to the girl beside him, he asked her, "Are you all right?"

As she lifted her chin, TJ realized with a shock that *this* was Astronema. The staff in her hand and the defiant expression on her face convinced him. This blond-haired, fragile looking young woman was the same villain who had ordered so much destruction in Dark Spectre's name.

"It was my fault," she said, ignoring Zhane. "I was not expecting to see the *Phantom*." She put the same emphasis on his name that Divatox always had, and TJ would have been amused if the situation weren't so serious.

"Yeah, well, he probably wasn't expecting to see you, either," Carlos put in. "Zhane, why didn't you tell him she's Astronema?"

"Because I didn't think he'd agree to it if he knew," Zhane retorted. "I didn't see you volunteering any information."

TJ shot another look at the girl standing beside Zhane. He knew suddenly why Zhane insisted on calling her Astrea--he found he couldn't think of her as Astronema, no matter how much her face or mannerisms were the same. She stood silent now, watching them with no expression as he and Carlos lifted Cassie back onto the patient bed.

They did the same for Phantom, placing him on a second patient bed that extended from the wall. TJ had to wonder about a blast powerful enough to render a morphed Ranger unconscious on the first try, but Phantom was still breathing and he decided it might be better not to know.

Turning back to Astrea, he saw her head bowed and her knuckles white as her fingers tightened on her staff. Then a light from the corner of his eyes made him glance at Cassie, now enveloped by a bright violet glow. "That's the magic that's making her--different," Astrea said, opening her eyes.

She frowned suddenly at something past TJ's shoulder, and he backed up a little to stand beside Carlos. From their vantage point by the door, they could see the entire Medical bay--including the faint purple haze that surrounded Phantom. "Why is *he* affected?" she demanded. "You didn't tell me I'd have to change two of them!"

Zhane held his hands out to his sides. "I didn't know," he protested, gazing unflinchingly back at her as she glared at him.

"You didn't *notice* one of your precious Rangers could no longer be trusted?" she asked, clearly incredulous.

"He really hasn't been acting that strangely," TJ offered, in their defense. "Not until now."

Zhane cleared his throat. "Well…" He shrugged uncomfortably. "He has been a little--aggressive, lately. But he and I never really got along, so I just figured he was upset with me about something."

Astrea shook her head. "He's under the same spell. Why?"

The look she gave them said she expected an answer. TJ and Carlos exchanged glances, and she let her breath out in an impatient huff. "I can't fix it if I don't know how it happened," she warned.

"They have some kind of empathic bond," Zhane muttered at last. "They each--feel what the other feels, I guess. I don't really understand it."

"That's not possible," Astrea said flatly. "If that was true, he would be completely under the spell, the same as her. He is not."

Her head turned suddenly, and she stared at him as though seeing something the rest of them had missed. Purple sparkles shimmered into existence around her fingers, swirling around her hand for a moment before shooting up and down the length of her staff. The haze around Phantom dimmed a little; streamers of the stuff reaching for the staff and dissipating as the sparkles engulfed them.

"He's awake," she said, just as the last of the glow faded.

Indeed, Phantom turned his head at her comment, and TJ wondered how she had known. Levering himself into a sitting position, he said, "You are the sorceress that Zhane thought might help Cassie."

She just looked at him, not speaking and no discernible expression on her face.

"Next time, try not to shoot at people who are here to help," Zhane said wryly.

Phantom drew in a breath, but did not answer right away. At last he said quietly, "In the future, I will endeavor to trust you more."

Zhane looked nothing less than startled at that, but Phantom continued, apparently speaking to Astrea now, "I apologize for my reaction."

She only shrugged. "I'm used to it."

TJ frowned, wondering if she sounded a little resigned or if it was just his imagination. She continued before anyone could speak, though, tilting her head to give Phantom a hard stare. "You are Elisian."

Phantom stiffened, but did not reply.

"Zhane said that you have bonded to Cassie," she said. "Elisians are the only people I know of who do such a thing. You love her, then. And yet, despite this bond, you remain good while she is evil."

Phantom did not move. When he spoke again his voice was strangely calm for someone whose soul had just been laid open to and analyzed by a stranger. "She has always been more sensitive to the bond than I."

Impressed by his composure, TJ glanced over at Carlos. This was the Ranger they had always known. How could they have thought his behavior since Cassie had been made evil was normal? How could they not have seen how he had changed?

"But she *shouldn't* be," Astrea said, obviously frustrated. "I took away the evil from you--but I didn't change the spell. The spell is still affecting *her*, and it should still be affecting *you*."

The sparkle of purple around her left hand was the only warning TJ had before the whole room expanded. Everything quadrupled, as though he were seeing the Medical bay through a kaleidoscope, and he saw details he hadn't even noticed before--he saw *himself*, and he blinked, trying to clear his head.

He was shocked to realize that closing his eyes didn't help. He could still see the Medical bay and everyone in it, as clearly as he had before--until someone cried out, and the multiple vision ceased as abruptly as it had begun.

"You're blocking," Astrea said calmly, as though nothing had happened.

Phantom was on his feet, his entire stance tense. "Do not do that without asking permission," he said, his voice dangerously quiet. "Ever."

She tilted her head, an expression of familiar smugness on her face until Zhane agreed, "You *could* have asked." He pressed his fingers to his temples for a moment, and she glanced at him, the smug look gone.

"What *happened*?" Carlos demanded. "That was really weird."

"We were mentally linked for a moment," Astrea muttered. "Just a moment, and not deep enough to actually know anything."

"*You* did that?" TJ looked at her. "Why?"

"To see if *he* would let me." The look she shot in Phantom's direction left no doubt as to whom she meant.

That didn't sound like a particularly good reason to TJ, but it made Phantom look away. "You should not have done that," he repeated, his voice barely audible.

"What--" Zhane looked from Phantom to the girl at his side. "What's going on? So you couldn't link with him. So what?"

She tossed her head, the gesture of someone used to having longer hair. "I can link with *anyone*," she said, giving him an unreadable look. "If he blocked *me*, then he's definitely blocking *her*."

"No," Phantom said suddenly. "I would not do that to Cassie. I trust her."

Unspoken was the implication that he did *not* trust "Astrea", but the girl chose to ignore that. "You *are* doing it," she insisted. "It's the only way to explain why you're not affected by the spell to the same extent she is."

"I'm not," he denied, oddly sullen. "I'm not blocking her."

Astrea somehow managed to fold her arms without letting go of her staff. Phantom shook his head once, and the slight violet haze that had accumulated around him was noticeable only in its sudden absence.

"Then how did you do that?" Astrea demanded.

He took a deep breath, hesitating a moment. "You are right," he admitted, lifting his head and sounding once more as he always had before all of this had started.

The girl at Zhane's side blinked, glancing uncertainly at Zhane. He just shrugged, and she looked back at Phantom. "Then stop," she ordered, as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You can change her back yourself."

Phantom's visor jerked toward her. "What?"

"Probably," she amended.

"Probably?" TJ repeated, not sure he liked the sound of that.

She shrugged a little. "Either he'll make her good, or she'll make him evil. One or the other."

"Oh, well, I'm glad the options are so good," Carlos muttered sarcastically.

"I will try," Phantom said quietly. "For Cassie, I will try."

TJ almost said something, but a warning nudge from Carlos made him close his mouth. They watched without speaking as Phantom walked across the room to stand beside Cassie. He took her hand, bowed his head, and the room suddenly became even quieter.

After a few seconds of holding his breath, TJ glanced over at Carlos. The Black Ranger was watching them with the same intensity TJ had been, but he turned his head when TJ did and caught his eye. Carlos shrugged, and TJ just shook his head once.

*Sometimes, I wish I knew what was going on,* he couldn't help thinking. *The rest of the time, I think that would take the fun out of it.*

Zhane was staring too, but TJ couldn't tell if he actually knew what Phantom was doing or if he was watching for lack of anything better to look at. Astrea, too, was watching, but her eyes darted back and forth between the two figures as though she was waiting for something.

Carlos elbowed him again, just hard enough to get his attention, and TJ saw the purple haze starting to surround Phantom once more. Giving Astrea a furtive glance, TJ saw sparkles gather quietly around her fingers as she closed her eyes. The haze dissipated, as it had the first time, and Phantom's shoulders rose and fell in a silent sigh.

TJ's eyes widened, and he looked at Carlos quickly to see if he was imagining it. But Carlos looked just as startled, and when TJ's gaze shifted back the swirling of the violet illumination around Cassie was obvious. Slowly, in an ever-widening circle, the violet glow was retreating from their clasped hands.

"He's doing it," Carlos whispered.

*Doing *what*?* TJ thought wryly, unable to tear his eyes away.

Astrea took a single step forward, sparkles still dancing around her hand but not going anywhere. After what seemed an interminable amount of time, the glow retreated from Cassie without her help. Phantom slumped, bracing his arm against the patient bed and not protesting when Carlos moved forward to help him.

"Zhane." TJ looked up at the sound of Astrea's voice, saw her backing away from them. As soon as she had Zhane's attention, she pulled his morpher from--somewhere--and tossed it to him.

Even as the digimorpher tumbled through the air, the girl's fingers tightened on her staff and a purple outline appeared around her body. As Zhane's hand closed around his morpher, she vanished into the glow of her signature teleportation.

Her fingers made narrow V's in the water as it tumbled past, and Ashley looked up through the trees as she realized there were more shadows than light falling across the water now. "Hey, Andros," she called, twisting to look over her shoulder. "The sun's going down--think we should stay here for the night?"

He nodded without hesitation, grabbing her canteen from her backpack and standing up. "Yeah. I was just thinking about that. It's getting darker already, and we'd probably be better off not trying to move around until morning."

She watched him walk the few steps to where she sat on the bank of the river. He moved carefully, sliding his feet a little, and she couldn't help but agree. Andros was having enough trouble with his vision without adding darkness on top of it.

She shifted, making room for him on the rock she was perched on, careful not to disturb her ankle. Immersed in the cold water as it was, she couldn't even feel her foot anymore, but at least it didn't seem to be swelling.

"How's your ankle?" Andros asked, lowering himself to the ground beside her.

"Fine," she said automatically. "I think," she added, as an afterthought. "It's hard to tell when you can't feel it."

He smiled. "Believe me, I know what you mean."

She opened her mouth to reply, watching him lean forward over the water to dunk the wide-mouthed canteen below the surface. His hair clung to his face, damp with sweat that wouldn't evaporate in this humidity, and droplets trickled down his bare back when he straightened up.

He took a gulp of the water, his hands dirty on the canteen from bushwhacking all afternoon. With smudged dust across his cheeks and a weary expression on his face, he made quite a sight. But she was struck by the sudden thought that he was the most beautiful person she had ever seen, and when he offered the canteen to her she realized she was still staring at him.

With a shake of her head she tore her gaze away, accepting the canteen with murmured thanks. She didn't bother to turn the canteen before drinking from it, not caring, even liking the idea that her lips would touch the same place his had.

"Who knows what's in the water," he said with a rueful smile, "but it's the best we can do."

"I'm not sure I even care, as long as it tastes this good," she admitted, closing her eyes and savoring the feel of the cool liquid sliding down her throat.

When her eyelids flickered open, she found him watching her with the same intent gaze she had turned on him a moment ago. "You know you're pretty," he said softly, the words somewhere between a question and a declaration.

"Not like this," she said, looking down self-consciously. "I've never been so hot and tired in my life."

"Yeah," he insisted. "Like this. You're--" He smiled a little, as though he realized suddenly how strange it sounded. "You're really beautiful."

She passed the canteen back to him, feeling a smile spreading across her own face. "Thanks," she whispered. No matter *how* hot and tired she was, she was unequivocally grateful to have him here, alive and with her once more.

His kiss surprised her, and she couldn't help giggling as he pulled away. "I love you," she said, too happy not to laugh.

"I love you, too," he answered, his smile widening. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," she said quickly, and he gave her his patented Look. It was milder than it had been at first, and it melted her heart to see the affection on his face, but there was no mistaking that expression.

She giggled again. "Do you know you're doing that?"

"Doing what?" he said, looking puzzled.

"The Look," she said, amused. "The one you give people whenever you're exasperated with them…"

He didn't look any more enlightened, and she tried to imitate it for him. "You know, like this."

His lips quirked, and she insisted, "I'm serious! You do it all the time--do you really not notice?"

He shook his head, his smile visible through the encroaching shadows. Only then did she realize how dark it was getting, and she looked away reluctantly. "We're going to have to find someplace to sleep around here, you know."

"And I'm hungry," he added, glancing over his shoulder.

She made a face. "For ration bars?"

"Of course not," he said, getting to his feet. "But since they're all we have, they're good enough. I'll be right back."

She bit her tongue to keep from saying, "Be careful." He was only going a few steps, but she worried that he would trip over something in the dimness and hurt himself further.

*He doesn't need you to mother him,* she reminded herself firmly, but she breathed a sigh of relief when he returned to her side. Crouching down beside her on the rock, he tore open one of the ration bars and handed it to her before opening his own.

"Thanks," she said, giving it a skeptical look. "Are you sure these are nutritious?"

He nodded, mid-bite, and she watched him fondly. "How can you eat like that? They taste awful!"

This time he swallowed and shook his head. "They're not that bad."

Wondering if they had somehow changed since they had stopped for a break earlier, she took a tentative bite. The reminder only served to convince her that she had not been mistaken. "Andros, they taste like cardboard."

He settled more comfortably on the rock, drawing one knee up to his chest and turning his head toward her. "Have you ever eaten cardboard?"

She drew her right foot out of the water gingerly, turning a little so she was facing him. Letting her numb ankle rest on the rock, she mimicked his position. "You just won't admit that these--" she gestured with her ration bar, "are the most disgusting things you've ever had."

She tried not to grin as he stopped chewing to look at her. She was deliberately trying to provoke him, but she wasn't sure quite why. For whatever reason, it wasn't working. "It isn't," he said calmly.

"Oh?" Ashley leaned forward. "Then what is?"

He seemed to think about it for a moment, and she was just about to declare victory when he told her, "Zhane's hot chocolate."

She blinked, staring at him in surprise. The answer wasn't at all what she had expected, and his deadpan expression was just a little too good--she didn't catch on until he chuckled.

"You!" She swung at his shoulder, but he was too quick. He caught her arm before she could hit him, sliding his fingers over her wrist to hold her hand. "You said you'd never even had hot chocolate till you met us," she said, his gentle touch muting her indignation some.

She saw him shrug. "Yeah, but anything Zhane tries to make is terrible."

"Worse than this, huh?" Ashley tried to imagine the Silver Ranger cooking and found that she couldn't do it.

"Try dipping it in water," Andros suggested, picking up the canteen and tipping it in her direction. "They're not as bad when they're soft."

She reached out for the canteen, then paused. "Hey! You just admitted they were bad!"

"I didn't say they weren't bad," he said, amusement in his voice. "I just said they could be worse."

Dipping her ration bar in the canteen he held out, she shook her head. "Remind me not to eat anything Zhane cooks…"

"I don't think you'll have to be reminded," Andros said wryly, watching as she took another bite of the bar. "Any better?"

She made a face. "Now it tastes like wet cardboard."

He laughed. "Sorry. There's only so much I can do."

Touched, she dunked her ration bar in the canteen again and took another bite. "It is better this way, actually," she admitted. "Thanks."

"Anytime," he said, dipping his own ration bar into the water.

She scooted closer to him so she wouldn't have to reach so far, and he shifted so they were sitting shoulder to shoulder. The next time she reached for the canteen, her hand brushed his arm, and she leaned against him contentedly as she finished her ration bar.

His was gone before hers, and he switched the canteen to the other hand, putting his right arm around her. She smiled, reluctant to move even after she finished eating, and they sat quietly watching the river until it was too dark to see much of anything.

Finally, Andros sighed and squeezed her shoulders. "We should sleep," he said quietly.

She nodded reluctantly, her head heavier than she expected. She blinked, trying to clear her mind and realizing she'd been closer to dozing off than she'd thought. "Yeah," she said, struggling to sit up straight.

She felt him fumbling around for something, then he whispered, "Close your eyes. I'm going to turn the flashlight on."

She shut her eyes obediently. A click and a flood of red across her eyelids told her when he turned the light on, and she cracked her eyes open just a little. The light swung across the bank, and he asked softly, "Could you hand me my shirt?"

Still squinting, she reached over to the nearby rock where he'd left it to dry in the sun after washing it. She caught it in her fingers and passed it over to him, unable to keep herself from watching as he pulled it on. "Thanks," he said quietly, moving to stand up.

"I hope the bugs didn't bother you," she said, trying to follow and wincing as her ankle refused to take the weight. Andros caught her as she stumbled, and she sighed.

"No," he said, letting her get her balance again. "They don't seem too bad by the water--the breeze must keep them away. Maybe if we sleep here we can avoid being eating overnight."

"There's a pleasant thought," she said wryly, testing her ankle again. She bit her lip as it complained, but she said nothing. "Anything to avoid that fate."

"Your ankle's hurting?" Andros must have seen her expression.

She sighed again. "I couldn't feel it at all at first. Why is it hurting now?"

"You were moving around before," he pointed out. "Now your muscles are stiffening from sitting still. Sit back down; I'll go get our stuff."

"No--" She tried to protest, but he interrupted.

"Ash, sit down." Andros' tone was gentle, not at all commanding, but she found herself doing as he said without thinking about it. "I'll be right back."

From her perch on the banking, she watched the pool of light bob slowly but evenly over to her pack. She could see him reach down to grab the backpack--and then he stopped. The light swung away, but he didn't move.

"Andros?" she called softly, concerned.

"I'm okay." The whisper floated back to her on the darkness, and she frowned. He didn't *sound* okay…

"Just a headache," he said, and she saw the shadow that was him straighten. The light headed back in her direction, and he dropped the pack to the ground beside her.

"That pain reliever's probably wearing off by now," she offered. "You should take another one before you try to sleep."

He just shook his head, crouching down next to her. "Can't," he said, propping the light up between them as he pulled something out of her backpack. "I can't think to you this way, remember? If I'm going to reach Zhane, I'll have to wait until this wears off all the way."

She sighed. "I know," she admitted. "I just don't want to see you hurting."

"I could sleep on the other side of the clearing," he teased gently, and she smiled.

"Somehow I don't think that would help… Tell me if it gets too bad, though, okay?"

"I will," Andros promised. "Can I test on you every so often? If you can hear me, Zhane will probably be able to, too."

She nodded, not sure he could see the gesture. "Of course; whenever you want."

He was quiet for a moment, then passed her something over the flashlight. She reached out to take her jacket, balling it up in her hands and wondering if he had just done what she thought he had. "You just tried to talk to me, didn't you."

"Yeah," he said with a sigh. "It's weird to not hear you at all."

He pulled out his own jacket, and she reached out to touch his arm. "It'll come back," she promised. He knew that, but sometimes it helped to have someone else tell you. "Give it a little while. That pain reliever probably isn't all the way gone yet."

"Oh, I'm sure it's not," he said, closing her pack again and pushing it aside. His tone was wry. "I'll probably feel a lot worse before it fades all the way."

She patted his hand, sliding down off her rock in search of someplace to curl up. "Take another one as soon as you talk to Zhane," she murmured, sensing his nod more than seeing it.

She moved just enough to avoid a tree root and laid her coat down on the ground, picking a place and leaving it to him to decide how close he would sleep. She saw him hesitate, watching her lie down and supposedly close her eyes.

She kept them open just enough to see him fidget with the flashlight for a moment before turning it off and tossing his jacket down next to hers. He turned, stretching out in the opposite direction so their faces were close but they were lying some distance apart. She couldn't manage to be disappointed, not when she had thought him dead only the night before, but she had wished him closer than that…

*Ashley,* she scolded herself, as her thoughts turned inadvertently more intimate. She managed to keep from sighing, but she thought she was blushing and she was thankful for the darkness.

"Andros?" she whispered suddenly, just loud enough to be heard of the murmur of the river.

"Yeah?" he answered immediately, and she heard him move a little.

Ashley smiled into the night. "I love you."

His voice came back, soft and reassuring. "I love you, too."

The sky was deep cobalt overhead, wispy clouds blocking out most of the stars. The dock lights would have drowned out the starlight anyway, blazing away over the edge of the bay and the almost deserted marina in an attempt to imitate the close-up fire of the sun.

Zhane watched the lights' reflections dancing on the incoming tide, wondering idly why there was no one around. On Rayven, night sailing was a popular activity due to the glowing trails left by any sea vessels that ventured out after dark, a beautiful sight that became almost addictive.

Maybe Earth's oceans *had* no natural phosphoresence, he thought. Or maybe it was just the wrong season…

He sighed. He didn't care about the air of eerie loneliness that surrounded the dock. There was only one person whose absence bothered him, and the longer he sat here alone the more worried he became.

He didn't blame her for leaving so abruptly that evening. After all, she was surrounded by people she must still consider enemies, and as far as she was concerned they had no more use for her. To run would probably have been his first reaction, too.

But he had hoped she would stay. Or at least, not vanish quite so quickly. He had thought her concession to help them had been an encouraging sign, and he had hoped she would let them try to talk to her.

He had hoped she would let *him* talk to her.

*She's not supposed to be Astronema!* his mind cried, and he rested his chin on his fist sadly. If she really was Andros' little sister, he owed it to his friend to try and make her remember her old life. And no matter who she was, he owed it to *her* to try and help her resolve her identity crisis.

She had been there for him when he was trying to figure out who *he* was, after all. Waking up from a two-year coma had left him confused and a little lonely, even with Andros around, and her unpredictable appearances had always come at just the right time to cheer him up.

Ever since the night of the dance, though, he had felt their roles should be reversed--and then she had disappeared. He hadn't yet had the chance to return the favor. He had hoped, by teleporting down here tonight, that she would understand that he was offering to listen if she wanted to talk.

But she remained absent, and he was beginning to think that she didn't *want* his company any more. Maybe he had asked too much when he asked her to help Cassie, or maybe she had just grown tired of the simplicity of the time the two of them spent on Earth. Being a princess of evil had to be a pretty exciting life, after all…

He was just about to give up and climb to his feet when a slight crackle behind him made him turn.

Astrea stood there, blond hair shining in the lamplight as the faint violet glow of teleportation faded from her. Her arms were folded across her chest and her stance was wary, as though she didn't quite know what kind of reception to expect.

"Hi," he said, not taking his eyes off of her. "I'm glad you came… I wanted to thank you."

She drew back, surprise in her eyes. "Thank me? What for?"

"For changing Cassie," he said simply.

She shook her head. "I didn't do that."

"But you told Sa--" It took a conscious effort to stop himself and use the Earth Rangers' name for him. "You told Phantom how to do it. And I saw you help him, there at the beginning."

Astrea lifted her chin but didn't answer.

"Cassie was influencing him again, wasn't she," Zhane said, getting tired of looking up at her but not wanting to spook her by moving. "You said she could make him evil--and she would have, if you hadn't helped him."

She shrugged. "He would not have fought for the side of evil, I think. He would have been loyal only to her. That made him a threat to all of us, not only to you."

Zhane shook his head. "You didn't have to help; and you did. That's enough for me."

She looked away, staring out across the water. He held still, wondering if she would vanish again. But after a moment she took a single step forward and dropped gracefully down beside him. "Thank you for trusting me," she said suddenly, glancing sideways at him.

He shrugged nonchalantly, but inside he was pleased. "Thanks for helping S--Phantom."

She looked down, laying her hand against the wood surface of the dock. "I did him no favors," she said quietly. "He will feel everything she feels, now. It will be a serious disadvantage in battle."

Zhane watched her fingers trace out imaginary designs on the dock. "You did *me* a favor," he reminded her. "Thanks, Astrea."

He saw her sneak a look at him again, and she hesitated over the words. "You're--welcome."

They sat in silence for another few minutes, listening to the lapping of the waves on the dock. "Not everything in life is about battle," he said suddenly, wincing as his voice broke into the peace.

She didn't jump, though, and she even turned her head toward him.

"You said making him overcome his block would be a disadvantage in battle," he explained. "But there are things other than battles…"

He couldn't help but remember Saryn's focus, the look on his face as he chased the evil away from Cassie with little more than the determination to restore the woman he loved. "And I think, maybe, that that was what he wanted all along. To feel what she feels."

She tilted her head, and the frown on her face was unmistakable. "Why?"

Zhane tried to come up with an answer for that, but finally he just shrugged. "Because--he loves her."

Her curious expression did not abate. "Is that what it means to love someone? To want to share what they feel?"

He was quiet a moment, stumped once more. This time, though, he shook his head. "I don't know," he admitted. "I've never been in love, not like that."

"But you have loved?"

He was surprised by the openness of her expression, and he found that as long as she seemed genuinely interested in the answer, he couldn't be annoyed by her questions. "There are people I love, yes," Zhane told her, wondering if he was about to make a mistake. "Your brother, Andros--I'm not *in* love with him, but I do love him."

She completely ignored the brother comment. "What's the difference?" she asked, a charming look of confusion on her face.

"Well…" He had to think about that one. "You can love your parents, or your--" he glanced at her, deciding not to edit his comment-- "your siblings, or your friends, without being *in* love with them. Someone you're in love with might be… well, sometimes someone you would want to marry."

"Marry?" she repeated, apparently not understanding.

He tried hard not to smile. "That would be--" He stopped, suddenly realizing he had no idea if the custom was even the same here on Earth. But she was from KO-35, so maybe it didn't matter.

He did his best to explain, stumbling through explanation after explanation as every answer brought up another question. He was surprised and more than a little pleased to find her so inquisitive about something so opposite to her current way of life, and he told her as much as he could. She waited patiently while he searched for words, and the water rose slowly beneath the dock as the bay reflected the dance of the ocean tides.

13. Promises

"No!" she cried, and the sound of her own anguished voice brought her awake with a start.

She stared around wildly, not even recognizing her surroundings. Everything was too dark, the shadows hiding things she didn't want to think about, and she twisted her head to the side as she realized her hand was still restrained.

She drew in a sharp breath as she caught sight of the same figure that had haunted her dreams, his blue eyes wide with concern as he stared back at her. "Cassie?" he whispered, his tone laced with unguarded hope.

This was real. *It was a dream,* she thought, *only a dream.* But she knew it had not been, not all of it--she remembered everything, and it had been all too real, and there was no way to change any of it.

But he was here. He was real, and there was no hatred in his eyes. There was only the most open expression she'd ever seen on his face, one of desperate and unashamed hope that whatever the sorceress had done had been successful.

She threw herself forward, wrapping her arms around him and feeling him crush her against him so hard it hurt. It was the sweetest pain she'd ever felt.

Confusion, fear, and an overriding sense of guilt assaulted him, her emotions battering against his mind, and he held her tighter. *Cassie,* he thought, again and again, incapable of anything more coherent.

"Saryn?" he heard her whisper, and he had to remind himself to do more than just feel.

"Yes?" he managed to answer at last. It had been years since anyone's feelings had overwhelmed him this way, and he struggled to remember how to deal with it.

"Saryn, I'm so sorry," she murmured, her tone miserable and her feelings even worse as they intruded on his mind to a degree he hadn't known since Lyris.

"It's all right," he whispered, trying not to forget himself. *I am Saryn,* he thought, the exercises Lyris had taught him reasserting themselves automatically. *I am one, not many. I am Sa--*

The thought dissolved as Cassie's distress overrode all ability to reason. "It's not," she muttered, her embrace tightening. "It's not all right--Saryn, how could I have *done* all the things I remember doing?"

"It--" He tried to clear his mind, found he couldn't. The old exercises were too vague, the old skills rusty from disuse. "It wasn't you." He only just got the words out, hoping it was the right thing to say.

"But it *was*," she insisted, still not letting him go. "It *was* me, and I didn't care. Everything that matters now just didn't matter then…"

Now she did loosen her arms and he let her draw back just enough to turn her head and look at him. "Except you," she said softly, her eyes seeming to plead with him. "I'm so sorry…"

She wanted forgiveness, he thought distantly, staring into her eyes. Or he wanted *her* forgiveness--it was so hard to tell. He had forgotten how all-encompassing true empathy was.

Either way, he thought there was one thing he had to say, more important than anything else, that couldn't wait any longer. "Cassie--" And it *was* Cassie. He could spend the rest of the night staring into her eyes, just reassuring himself of that. "I love you."

He could feel her relief invading his soul, peace washing over him like a wave on the shore. Whatever she might have feared, the thought that he might not be able to see past the last two days was obviously the worst. There was only one more thing she needed now--or was it him?

He didn't care. He closed the minute distance between them, kissing her lips gently. She relaxed the rest of the way, her body melting against his the way it had not when she--wasn't herself. He couldn't even bring himself to think of her as evil, even now that it was over.

*Over forever,* he thought firmly, sliding his hands over her back and leaning into her return kiss with a passion he had meant to control. Never again would he have to deny himself her sweet touch, and never did he want to.

The pent-up feelings of the last two days came crashing back, and he kissed her harder as they demanded release. He remembered every look, every touch they'd shared, every time he had lost his own private battle and ended up letting her kiss him, or kissing her himself. And every time he had been about to give himself up to her, no matter the consequences, something would interrupt.

*No more,* his mind insisted, his body feverish where it pressed against hers. She seemed as eager as he was, and her hands, still so innocent of their effect on him, were devastating to his self-control.

He wanted his shirt off, wanted to feel her skin on his, but he couldn't pull his mouth away from hers long enough to do anything about it. She didn't protest when he pushed her backwards, gravity and their unbreakable embrace pulling him with her onto the bed. Her fingers slid through his hair, and it was all he could do to suppress a moan. It had been days since she had done that, and he longed to return the favor.

"Saryn," she gasped, as he started to push her shirt up. He was so lost in the feeling of *her* that her next word barely even registered. "Wait…"

Her words said one thing, but her body said another, and he was in no mood to listen to her words. "Why?" he murmured, kissing her neck as she turned her face away from him.

"I--I didn't--"

He loved her voice. He reached out and tilted her head back toward him so he could kiss her lips, a futile attempt to capture the sound that brought so much joy. She shifted, and with her movement his kiss deepened, grew harder and more wild.

For the briefest second, she responded, and coherent thought fled. He wanted Cassie, and she wanted him--

And then she tore herself away, muttering, "I didn't--take my pill this morning."

"I don't care," he whispered, kissing her bare skin as far as the neckline of her t-shirt would allow. He felt a tremor take her body as he deliberately played on her weaknesses, needing her to want him, needing *her* more than anything in the universe.

"I do," she sighed. Her hands came to rest on his shoulders, and it was with a feeling close to despair that he understood what she was saying.

"*I* care," she repeated, more loudly. Dismay turned to horror as he realized he wasn't listening. He knew beyond a doubt that she meant it; the feeling of needing to stop before things got out of control could only be hers. But he could feel her desire, too, her yearning for him, and it was as intoxicating as his own feelings for her.

"Saryn…" She tried to push him away, and he felt a flicker of fear echo through their link when he wouldn't let go.

The fear was hers, and it hit him like a slap in the face. *What am I *doing*?* He jerked away, scrambling to sit up and keep himself from even looking at her. Lyris's training picked that moment to reassert itself, and his feelings started to reluctantly separate from hers.

*He* had been the one to start this. She had just wanted him to hold her; he knew that now, and he had read more into it only because he wanted to. And even if she had not protested at the time, he had no right to ignore her when she *did* object.

Gods, she was still so new to this--she still didn't understand the power she had over him. He knew that was no excuse, anymore than he could blame his actions on the empathy that suddenly seemed to magnify every feeling beyond his ability to contain it. After all, she had always had this sensitivity to him, and she had never let it overwhelm her.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered, still not able to look at her. He was the one with empathic training, and though it was easy to forget, she *was* the younger of them. And yet it was always he who was getting out of control. "I hate that you have to--" He closed his eyes. "You should not need to tell me twice."

"You--you hate what?" she asked tentatively, and he knew she had misunderstood the sentence he hadn't finished. She thought he was upset with *her*.

He heard her move behind him, and he couldn't help glancing over his shoulder at her. She had turned on her side, propping herself up on her elbow with her hair falling over her shoulder. Her wide dark eyes begged him to keep talking, and it was an entreaty he couldn't ignore.

"No," he assured her hastily, "you are right to stop me--I hate only that it is so hard. When you do not want me so close, I hate that I hesitate before respecting your wishes. I wish--" He realized abruptly that his hand was drifting toward her again, and he placed it determinedly on the bed. "I wish you did not have to worry that I will do as you say."

"You--" He saw her blush, looking down at the bed and tracing a star pattern with her finger. "You're not my slave, Saryn."

He could only stare at her. She had no idea how far from the truth that simple statement was. *I want nothing more than your happiness,* he thought, wondering how she could not know.

"But I am," he breathed, and saw her head come up.

He swallowed, realizing how that sounded and not wanting to scare her. "In this, at least," he said in a more normal voice, "I ought to be. If it is not something we both want, it should not happen."

"But it is--I didn't *want* to tell you no," she said quietly. "It's just--I missed one of my pills. I can't take that chance."

"Nor would I want you to," he promised, unable to stop himself from reaching out to her this time. He caught her fingers, stilling them. "You should not have had to remind me--I am sorry."

She blinked, and he noticed the tears in her eyes for the first time. "It's my fault, anyway," she whispered. "I know how I acted today. Every time you turned around, I…" She blushed again, looking away. "I was all over you," she admitted, her voice barely audible.

Her fingers twitched in his, and he gladly took the excuse to lower his gaze to their joined hands. "I did not resist to any significant degree," he admitted ruefully.

"I had this stupid idea that I could control you that way," she muttered miserably. "I thought somehow you still loved me, even though you hated who I was, and that if I made you choose you'd choose me."

He lifted his eyes, staring at her in surprise. "You *wanted* me to choose you? You--wanted me with you?"

She glanced in his direction, her gaze catching his. "Well, yeah," she said, as though it was obvious. "In a greedy, selfish sort of way. I knew you hated what I was doing, and I thought maybe if I could get you to leave, with me, we could find a place where you wouldn't hate me so much."

"I *never* hated you," he said, startled. "I didn't stop loving you just because you were--different. I tried--I did try. But I couldn't…"

She looked so lost, but he could feel her wanting to believe. He *had* to touch her then, and he tried to think of some way to do it without making her think he was pressuring her into something else. Finally he just lifted their clasped hands and kissed her fingers.

He could see her remembering the time, hours ago now, when he had done exactly the same thing, and it seemed to reassure her in a way his words did not. "I did choose you," he whispered, not sure she wanted to know. He could only hope that telling her was the right thing to do. "You said you were trying to make me choose--you, or what I knew was right.

"I chose you." He kissed her fingers again, wishing he could trust himself to lean closer and kiss her lips.

She looked at him, wide-eyed, and he couldn't help smiling a little. "You must have known," he told her, lifting his other hand to uncurl her fingers from his.

She straightened her fingers herself when she realized what he was doing, and he laid his cheek against her palm. "I helped you escape twice," he said softly, staring into her eyes. "Do you think I could justify that to myself as something that was right? I did it because I loved you, because I couldn't live without you."

"But it wasn't really me," she said wonderingly, her eyes soft as she gazed back at him.

"Believe me, I knew that." He closed his eyes for a moment, but he found that he couldn't stand not being able to see her. As his eyes snapped open again, he caught an expression of sorrow on her face. "But being with you--with her--let me pretend that you were still here somehow, still loving me…"

She pulled her hand away from his face, putting her hands behind her to push herself into a sitting position. He reached out automatically to help her, his hand lingering on her waist even as she pulled one leg closer to her and twisted to face him.

"I *did* still love you," she murmured, smiling tentatively at him. "I didn't care about anyone--but somehow, I cared about you. I didn't want to lose you…"

"I thought you were just manipulating me," he admitted, searching her expression.

"And you still helped me?"

He nodded, not taking his eyes off of her. "I had to," he whispered, seeing her hand reach for his. He surrendered it willingly, fighting the urge to lean closer. "I love you."

"I love you too," she breathed, squeezing his hand. "But to give up everything, just to--be with me?"

He smiled, teasing her to distract himself from the look of tender amazement in her eyes. "Are you saying you would not do the same for me?"

"I came to Aquitar," she reminded him softly.

His smile faded. "Was it that hard for you? I am sorry; I should not have asked you to come--"

"If you hadn't," she interrupted, "I probably would have gone crazy. I had to be with you somehow…" She trailed off, maybe realizing that she was echoing his words.

"I would have stayed, Cassie," he murmured, putting his free hand over hers. "I would have stayed with you on Earth."

She swallowed. "I know," she said softly. "I had no idea that would only be the first time you'd be willing to give up--your whole life, practically, for me."

"I have always been willing to do that," he told her honestly, squeezing her hands. "When will you believe that I love you, and would do anything for you?"

"I know you love me," she said, looking away. "I love you too, more than anything."

There was something she wasn't saying. She had always known when he wasn't telling the truth, and now he remembered for himself how easy it was to know when someone was hiding something.

"But?" he prompted, troubled that she had doubted for this long and never said anything.

"Nothing," she said, turning wide eyes on him. She looked for all the world as though she had no idea what he was talking about. Her guileless expression might even have convinced him, if his awareness of her emotions had not been so strong that Lyris's mantra had been running through his mind for the last few minutes in an attempt to keep her from overwhelming him.

"It is not nothing," he insisted, gazing intently at her. "There is something you wish me to do… and you will not ask?"

She flinched, and he knew that was it. He lifted her hands, then let them fall again, helpless. "Cassie--you know I would do anything for you."

She looked down. "That's why I can't ask," she murmured, and he remembered, with startling clarity, the last time she had said that.

"You wanted me to stay," he said suddenly. "The last time you said you couldn't ask me to do something, that was it, was it not? You wanted me to stay with you, but you would not ask."

She nodded wordlessly.

He reached out to tap her chin with one finger. "I offered to stay anyway," he reminded her gently.

She swallowed. "Without me asking," she pointed out, not looking up. "You've never offered to do this on your own."

He was so focused on her that he couldn't tell if the growing sense of dismay belonged to him or her. *Maybe both…* "Cassie," he pleaded. "Please tell me--perhaps it simply never occurred to me."

He winced, realizing as he said it that if this was so important to her, suggesting he had not even thought of it might not be the most comforting thing to say. She just shook her head. "I'm sure it hasn't," she agreed quietly.

"Cassie…" He didn't know what else to say.

She squeezed his hands again and looked up. "It's nothing," she said, with a determined smile. "It really isn't half as important as you're making it out to be--how did we get into this conversation, anyway?"

He wasn't going to let it go this easily. "We 'got into it' because you are hiding something from me."

"I'm not," she said, with a slight frown.

"You are," he insisted. He didn't want to upset her, but he couldn't bear the thought that there was something she wanted from him that he was not doing. "Please, Cassie--I do not know how to convince you, but I can not stand not knowing."

He couldn't interpret the look she gave him, and the only feeling he knew for certain was hers was--guilt. He didn't understand, until she admitted, "It's selfish. I can't tell you… especially now."

He felt as though she had hit him. "Especially now?" he repeated. She was retreating from him, and he had no idea how to follow.

Cassie must have seen his dismay, for she pulled her hands from his and wrapped her arms around him without a thought for what had happened the last time. He felt even worse, then--not only was she picking up on his needs while he was so miserably failing with hers, but she was offering comfort and all he could think of was how good it would feel to kiss her.

"You're so *not* selfish," she whispered, still holding him. "You keep saying you'll do anything, and I know you would, but I could never ask for anything more than to just have you."

"I told you once," he murmured, amazed that she could think him unselfish, "that there was only one thing I wanted more than you."

"Did you?" she asked, pulling away to regard him worriedly. "What?"

"Your happiness," he reminded her softly. "Making you happy makes *me* happy, and in that way, it is the most selfish thing I will ever do."

She sighed, but he saw a smile tugging at her lips. "Once," she confessed, "I would have laughed at a guy who said something like that. But--" She placed her hand lightly over his heart, and he struggled to keep his breathing even, to not let her know what her nearness was doing to him. "I believe you when you say it. And it's all I want for you, too--happiness."

"Then *tell* me what you would not ask," he whispered. "Without knowing, how can I be content?"

He saw her hesitate, and he caught the hand that still rested on his chest. "Please, Cassie--it will drive me crazy if I do not know."

"I just--" She took a deep breath, then burst out, "I want us to be normal!"

He stared, forgetting to breathe. That was one thing he would never be able to offer her, and he wondered if that was why she hadn't wanted to tell him. He was not of her world, and there was no changing that.

"I am sorry I am not the person you wanted to love," he managed to say, drawing in an unsteady breath. "I--this bond--it is not a decision, it simply happens." It hurt to say, but he had done it before and he would do it again, for her. "If I could--I would end it, that you might be free to choose."

She was staring back at him, easily readable shock on her face. Before he could wonder why, she leaned forward and hugged him hard. "No, Saryn, no," she murmured, her arms warm and welcome as she continued to hold him.

Slowly, he let his own arms slip around her, letting his head rest gently against hers. "No," she repeated, and he smiled involuntarily at the sound of her quiet voice so close to his ear. "Saryn, that's not what I meant at *all*. I would never in a million years give you up, ever. I've *never* wished that I loved someone else--how could you even think that?"

She rushed on, not giving him a chance to answer. "Maybe sometimes I've wished things were different, that you didn't have to be 'the Phantom Ranger' to the rest of the world, the rest of the universe, but I don't want anyone but you.

"I love you--I love Saryn, and I love the Phantom Ranger. They're the same person to me… I've wished sometimes that they didn't have to be so separate, but I have never, ever wished that I didn't love either of them."

Her vehemence was as endearing as it was reassuring, and his smile did not fade. "Thank you," he whispered, unable to tell her how much that meant to him. She didn't always say what was on her mind, and he had wondered, once or twice, if there were times she just went along with what he wanted because it was easier than not.

"Thank *you*," she answered, sounding a little surprised but not loosening her embrace. "You're all I've ever dreamed of, you know."

"No," he managed to answer. "I did not know that." He might not be able to find the words, but he had to *try* to tell her how happy it made him to hear that. "I am--relieved, that I can be for you some small part of what you are to me. I will never stop loving you, Cassie."

"I won't stop loving you, either; I *can't*," she told him, hugging him harder. "And I don't want to. Ever."

He couldn't help but chuckle. "I am convinced," he assured her softly, though privately he thought he could let her go on like that for the rest of the night. "And… what you said…"

"I didn't mean it," she said quickly. "I like you just the way you are. I don't care if you're only Saryn when we're alone; I wouldn't have even said anything if you hadn't made me."

"That is precisely what bothers me," he said, drawing away enough for her to see his expression. He wanted her to know he was serious about this. "If I could have one wish, it would be for you to tell me what you want. Do not keep everything inside, Cassie--it is not good for you, and it hurts me to think that you do not believe your feelings are worthwhile."

She swallowed, looking down, but he caught her chin and tipped her face up again. "Do not look away," he said firmly. "Everything about you is worth knowing, and I want to know it. Tell me how I can be both 'Saryn' and 'the Phantom Ranger' to you."

"You *are* both," she said quietly. "To me."

"You wish me to be both to everyone else?" He kept his voice neutral, not disapproving or judgmental. All he wanted was for her to talk to him, as he had always felt comfortable talking to her.

"No," she said reluctantly. "Unless you want to be, I mean. I'm not trying to tell you what to do…"

"Cassie," he interrupted. "I will not take it as such. Tell me what you have been *thinking*, what you would like, and I will decide whether to do it or not. Is that acceptable?"

She nodded slowly, and he realized she was looking away from him again. It took an effort not to force her to look up, but he tightened his fingers on her shoulders and did not move. "Talk to me?" he asked quietly.

She took a deep breath. "I guess… sometimes I wish you didn't have to be 'the Phantom Ranger' *all* the time. On Aquitar, you demorphed when we were alone, but most of the day you'd just be 'Phantom'. I couldn't even touch you…"

"The way you could when we were on the Megaship," he finished softly. He had hated that too, not being able to even *see* her except through his visor when they weren't alone.

She nodded. "But even on the Megaship, we couldn't do that. None of them know about us, except for Ashley…"

The way she said her friend's name made him pause. And something in the feelings that surrounded him made him wonder, "Are you--jealous of Ashley?"

She was startled into meeting his gaze. "What?"

"She and Andros are very close," he said, watching her expression closely. "And they are not afraid to demonstrate their affection."

"And we can't," she said, obviously frustrated. "You're almost always morphed, and even when you're not, when we're on the Megaship, I'm afraid of what the others will think!"

He was quiet for a minute. "What to do about the rest of your team is of course your decision," he said finally. "Although I do not believe they would disapprove, you know them better and I will continue to support whatever you decide.

"As for always being morphed--" He hesitated only a moment. "I can change that. If that is what you think of as the difference between 'Saryn' and 'the Phantom Ranger', it is easy enough to correct. I will reveal my identity to anyone who might know me as Phantom, and there will be no more reason for me to stay morphed all the time."

"No!" Cassie exclaimed. "You can't!"

He had almost expected her objection and he had freed an arm from her embrace even before she spoke. Pressing two fingers against her lips, he shook his head. "I can, and I will. There is no need for me to continue to hide my identity."

*Especially when it threatens our relationship,* he thought fervently, but he did not say the words. He knew she would not like him doing it for her, but if he could convince her that there was no reason for him *not* to do it, she might agree.

"There *is* need," she insisted, pulling his hand away and twining her fingers through his. "Phantom is practically a legend in some places; even I know that. You've taught me enough that I can see that's an advantage to you in some kinds of politics, and to reveal yourself would diminish that.

"Not to mention bring up questions about Saryn," she added when he did not interrupt. "Remember how curious Zhane was? A lot of people will want to know exactly what happened on Elisia, and you've said yourself that the League doesn't have time to be distracted by political intrigue right now. You telling everyone who you are would be like 'political intrigue' times ten."

His lips twitched, and he tried not to smile. He had not realized she had been paying so much attention when he explained the details of the League to her.

"You can laugh," she warned. "But you know I'm right. You have to keep being Phantom--just Phantom, not Phantom-who-used-to-be-Elisia's-Ranger-team-leader."

Now he did smile, a little surprised that the mention of his old team brought with it no twinge of pain or guilt. But considering that was not as important as this discussion with Cassie, and he didn't give it another thought.

"What about the Aquitians, then?" he asked. "The Aquitian Rangers all know, now--"

She looked away, and he winced. He wished he could have found a better way to remind her of that, but he had not taken time to think about it. "I'm sorry," she said softly, self-reproach evident even in her quiet tone. "I don't know what I was *thinking*--"

"You were not thinking, not as you are now," he said firmly. "You were different; your perceptions, your very personality was altered. You can not be held accountable for your actions."

Her fingers tightened on his, and he couldn't help himself. He leaned closer and kissed her temple, very gently, and pulled away before it could turn into anything more. She glanced up at him, and to his relief she smiled a little.

"Cetaci came to speak to me afterwards," he told her quietly. It occurred to him all of a sudden that there was a lot Cassie simply didn't know, and he would have to fill her in--later. "She told me that the entire Aquitian team has sworn to protect my identity--and your own team, as well, although I think they might have remained silent of their own accord."

She nodded quickly. "None of us would tell--would have told," she amended. "Except maybe Zhane… but you said he promised too?"

"Yes. Everyone in the control room, or so Cetaci said." It hadn't surprised him at the time; he had been too emotionally numb to feel anything. Now, however, the gesture both startled and pleased him. He would have expected them to be upset with such a deception, but instead they had simply accepted it, not questioning his wishes or his motives.

"That was nice of them," Cassie murmured. "It makes me think--I never promised, did I?"

He didn't let her complete that train of thought. Pulling her into a fierce hug, he told her softly, "I would not take such a promise from you. I have never doubted your judgement, and the information is yours to do with as you please."

"I won't tell," she whispered anyway. "I don't have to swear--I just won't tell."

"I know," he whispered back, letting his hand smooth her soft hair against her back. He wanted to bring up the Aquitians again, but if he said anything now, he was afraid it would sound like an accusation.

Instead, he just held her, feeling her heartbeat against his chest. This was all he had wished for since he had seen a ship he had thought was hers explode into fragments of metal and atmosphere. He savored the moment, wishing for just a second that it could last forever.

Then she moved a little, her hair sliding across his hand and her breath warming his neck as she sighed. He pulled away with an effort, reminding himself not to tempt fate by kissing her now.

She smiled at him, brushing his hair away from his face with her fingers, and he swallowed. "The Aquitians," he said hastily, wishing he could pull his gaze away from hers somehow. "They do know, now, and they have given their word that they will not say anything.

"We are there on Aquitar most of the time, when we are not on the Megaship--I am there," he corrected, remembering with a pang that she had school to attend now. "There is no reason not to demorph around *them*."

She nodded slowly. "You're right, I guess," she said, her eyes not leaving his. "If--if you feel comfortable with it, if you want to--"

"Cassie, I would not have offered if I was not willing to do it," he said, a little impatient. "When we are together on Aquitar, as on the Megaship, I will demorph."

"Only when it's just the Aquitian Rangers who are around," she added, and he tried not to smile at her care in establishing conditions. Either she had some political inclination of her own, or he had been boring her for far too long with League and Defense talk.

"I will demorph whenever there are none present but those who already know of my identity," he said, watching for her reaction.

She appeared to seriously consider it before nodding. "That sounds good," she said, her expression solemn.

"To me, too," he agreed in a whisper. He found himself staring into her eyes, no longer able to ignore their closeness. He wanted badly to kiss her, but instead he disentangled himself from her arms and moved a little distance away. "You did us a favor by revealing me to the Aquitians, it seems."

Her hand settled on his shoulder. "I never meant to hurt you," she said guiltily. "I'm so sorry--"

"I am not," he interrupted. "Not if it means I will be able touch you when they are around."

He glanced at her when her fingers clenched on his shoulder, and he saw an odd look flash across her face. "I forgot to tell you--Billy saw us, that morning in the control room."

He frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Yesterday morning--" She looked bemused. "Or the day before, I'm not sure anymore. When I came in, and you were alone, and you demorphed. We kissed--and Billy came into the control room a few minutes later."

He nodded. "I remember. But Billy did not enter until after we had separated."

She cleared her throat. "Well, that's sort of true. He didn't *enter* until then… but he stuck his head into the room and saw us together first. He disappeared before I could say anything, and a few seconds later I heard him whistling from the other end of the hallway."

He shook his head, amused. "He was trying to respect our privacy by warning us that he was there before we noticed him. It is an Aquitian practice, not to intrude on--private moments. I have noticed it is not so common among humans."

A smile spread across her face. "That's certainly true," she agreed. "We're a pretty uncivilized bunch."

"That is not what I meant," he said quickly, but she didn't look upset.

"I know," she whispered, leaning toward him. "But I don't think I'd do this if I were Aquitian."

She kissed him hard, strangely careful not to touch him. Only their mouths melded together. He braced his arms on the edge of the bed and leaned into the kiss, feeling sensation ignite all over his body despite her physical distance. He knew instinctively that she would pull away if he tried to touch her anywhere but on the lips, but her kiss sorely tested his restraint.

"No," he agreed breathlessly, wishing he could stop her from pulling away. "And I am glad you are not."

"Me too," she said, glancing down at her hands as though she had no idea how much he was holding back. It was as though she couldn't tell how hard it was to concentrate with her so close by, as though she didn't know what her constant teasing had done to him through the course of the day.

"I'm glad to be *me* again," she added, looking up and smiling at him. "But--" She frowned uncertainly. "Was that--*Astronema* who teleported in here, a little while ago?"

He drank in the sight of her, trying to convince himself that it was enough. He didn't even realize she was expecting an answer until the silence went on a little too long. His memory managed to come up with the last words she had uttered, and he nodded quickly.

"That was Astronema," he agreed. "She was 'the sorceress' that Zhane kept referring to."

Cassie's eyes were wide. "But how did he convince her to help us? To help me?"

He had been wondering that himself. "I do not know," he admitted. "He implied that he had known her for some time, even said that she had some connection to KO-35. But I know none of the details."

"Zhane knows Astronema," Cassie repeated wonderingly. "I wonder why he never told us. And what could he have meant about KO-35?"

He only shook his head, watching and feeling her growing curiosity. *I am one,* he reminded himself, the fragment of Lyris's mantra running through his mind. But the attempt was half-hearted, for he did not feel like expending the effort necessary to keep their feelings separate.

It was pleasant, in some ways, to have her emotions mingle with his. And when he could not hold her, this was the next best thing…

"Ashley could tell us," Cassie was saying. "She always knows what's going on. Where is she, anyway?"

As she looked around as though she expected her friend to materialize from the walls at any moment, he took a deep breath. His mind suddenly and unexpectedly cooperated, focusing on the small amount of information he had on what had occurred and wondering just what to tell her. He didn't want her to have to deal with recent events so soon after her recovery, but at the same time, there was no other way to answer her question.

"She is not on the Megaship," he said finally, seeing Cassie turn a sharp look in his direction. "Andros--disappeared in the Delta Megaship last night, and as I understand it, Ashley took the shuttle to go looking for him."

"What?!" Cassie stared at him. "Wait. Start at the beginning. Andros disappeared?"

He sighed. "I am sorry. I wish I could tell you more, but I was somewhat--distracted at the time. All I know of what has happened I have learned from Zhane, and the two of us do not communicate as well as we could."

"That's the understatement of the year," she said with some asperity. She swung her legs over the edge of the patient bed and straightened her back.

"Where are you going?" he asked, recognizing her intent.

"To find Zhane," she said firmly. "I want to know what's going on."

"Are you certain that is a good idea?" He reached for her arm, meaning to support her if she needed it. "It's late--he is probably trying to sleep."

She looked at him in surprise. "Is there something you don't want me to know, or did you just show concern for Zhane?"

"It has been a long day for him as well," he muttered, avoiding both questions. He couldn't answer the first, and he would hardly admit to the second.

The look she gave him said she knew perfectly well what he was thinking. "Maybe," she agreed. "All right; I'll talk to him in the morning. But I'm not giving up that easily."

He knew he was in trouble when she glanced up at the camera mounted on the wall near the door. "DECA?" she demanded. "Where are Andros and Ashley?"

14. Close As You

Irini was already on the downward arch of its journey across the sky. The blue-green planet's nearly full face could be seen sweeping toward the horizon over the river's west bank, glowing with a luminescence sufficient to obscure all but the brightest stars.

Despite the lateness of the hour, however, Andros found himself staring up at the cobalt sky, eyes wide open and as far from sleep as he was when the sun had been up. He knew he had dozed since lying down to sleep, but he knew too that he had not closed his eyes for more than a few hours at a time.

He was simply too miserable to dream for long. His head ached with an overwhelming pain, and now his back was beginning to hurt as well. Lying down was incredibly uncomfortable, but he had tried sitting up, and that was even worse.

So he lay by the river, staring up at the sky and listening to the sounds of nocturnal life on Irini's largest moon. The soft chirps and squeaks might have been comforting, and he knew the sound of running water ought to soothe him. But neither offered any solace from the pounding of his head.

*Ashley?* he thought, knowing she would not thank him if he woke her up but unable to keep himself from trying. He refused to take another pain reliever until his head was clear enough to exchange thoughts, but he wasn't sure how much longer he could stand this.

To his immense relief, he heard her stir. "Andros?" she murmured sleepily.

*Can you hear me?* he asked, holding his breath.

"Yeah," she said, still sounding drowsy. "What's wrong?"

His head throbbed, and he let his breath out in a sigh. At least, it was supposed to be a sigh--as pain stabbed through his brain, it turned into a whimper.

The quiet sound must have brought Ashley the rest of the way awake, for she was at his side in an instant. "Andros," she whispered, her fingers curling around his hand. "Are you all right?"

He didn't even try to nod. "I'm okay," he managed to whisper. "I'm trying to reach Zhane."

She fell silent. Her hand tightened on his, but she said nothing more while he concentrated as hard as he could on his best friend. It was hard to think properly through the pain, but *she* had heard him, for the first time since he had taken that pain reliever. Zhane should be even easier to reach.

*Zhane,* he thought desperately, reaching for his friend's steady presence. They had been able to hear each other for almost as long as he could remember, and he knew he was trying harder than he should have to.

Despite his effort, silence was his only answer.

*Zhane,* he tried again. He could sense his friend--the feeling was faint and almost intermittent, but it should have been enough. It would be night on the Megaship as well, but sleep had never been enough to separate them before.

*Even Ashley woke up when I called her,* he thought, not giving up on Zhane yet. *Both times…*

He had awoken her once by accident, and then again, just now. And he and Zhane had roused each other from sleep countless times over the years, sometimes legitimately, sometimes not. But never had an attempt by one of them to reach the other failed.

"Andros?" Ashley whispered, her tone worried.

He felt her fingers brush his cheek, and only then did he realize that tears had gathered in his eyes. He blinked them away furiously, frustrated that something so simple as a headache could provoke such a reaction.

As though to emphasize that point, the pain he had been able to ignore for a few brief seconds intensified. He must have cried out, for Ashley leaned instinctively closer. "Andros," she whispered urgently.

"I--" He struggled to sit up, knowing it wouldn't help but wanting *any* kind of change at this point. The pain was wearing him down, and he would do almost anything to stop it. "I can't reach him," he confessed, pressing his hands to his temples.

"Hold still," Ashley said, reaching across him to grab the flashlight. He squeezed his eyes shut before she could flip it on, and then he felt her leave, probably going across the clearing for her pack.

He doubted anything short of Darkonda would have made him move in this condition, so her warning was unnecessary. He just sat where she had left him, trying and failing to think of anything to keep his mind occupied. All he could concentrate on was the pain.

He didn't even notice Ashley's return, until he felt her lift his hand and press two tablets into it. "Take these," she instructed. "Right now, Andros; I mean it. You can't reach Zhane; there's no point in torturing yourself any longer."

She didn't have to convince *him*. He would try to talk to Zhane again in the morning. He swallowed the tablets, bracing himself for the intensified pounding that would inevitably follow the simple gesture.

Then he felt Ashley's fingers on his temples, heard her murmur, "Tell me if this hurts." Her fingers traced small circles in the gentlest and most focused massage he'd ever received. And to his amazement, it seemed to help.

He remained tense, waiting for the sharp, shooting pain that would signal the headache's redoubled efforts, but Ashley's soft touch seemed to hold it at bay. Her fingers continued to rub his scalp, her hands burying themselves in his hair as she managed to hit just enough of the pressure points to keep his headache from overwhelming him again.

He let himself start to relax, feeling his breath come and go and not daring to think about anything else in case the pain should suddenly return. He almost didn't even thank her, afraid that if he said anything, she would stop. But politeness eventually won out, and he whispered, "That feels really good; thanks, Ash."

"Does it help at all?" she asked, not even pausing.

"It helps a *lot*," he said fervently. He wasn't sure how he would have gotten through the few minutes before the pain reliever took effect without it.

"Good," she murmured. She kept it up for a little while longer, before her hands slowed to a stop. "Any better?"

He hesitated, waiting to see if the headache would return. Experimentally, he nodded just a little, and couldn't help a sigh of relief when he felt nothing more than a slight twinge. "I think the pain reliever is finally taking effect, yes. Thanks," he said again, wanting to turn and look at her but still not sure he dared to move.

"You're welcome," she said, her fingers combing his hair back into place. "I'm glad you're feeling better."

"Me too," he agreed gratefully. He tried turning then, and felt somewhat amazed when the motion provoked no additional bout of pain. "I can honestly say that I've never been happier to take pain relievers in my life."

"That bad, huh?" Her gaze, even in the harsh flashlight glare, was sympathetic.

"Worse," he said, hearing the wry tone in his own voice and seeing her smile. "Sorry I woke you up," he added. As glad as he was that she *had* woken up, he was annoyed with himself for breaking into her sleep.

"I'm glad you did," she said, handing him the canteen. "I'm sorry you couldn't talk to Zhane, but I can't believe you've gone this long without taking another pain reliever. I thought it would have worn off a long time ago."

*It did,* he thought. He had assumed, since he couldn't hear Zhane, that the effects of the pain reliever weren't completely gone. He had tried Ashley more out of desperation than anything else, and had been surprised when she answered. The fact that he *still* couldn't reach Zhane meant that it wasn't the drug that was keeping them from being able to communicate.

"Something must be wrong," he muttered. "I've *always* been able to talk to Zhane." *Except when he was in hypersleep,* he reminded himself, but he would not accept that anything had happened to his friend this time. There had to be another answer.

"I'm sure he's all right," Ashley said quietly, as though she could read his mind. "They all are. They're together, and that's all the Rangers have ever needed."

But the team *wasn't* all together. "What about us?" he couldn't help asking.

She leaned in front of the flashlight before he could see her expression, but he was sure she smiled. "We're together too," she said, putting her arms around him in a gentle hug. "We'll be all right."

It was a strange statement to make, deep in a jungle and kilometers from any sentient civilization. Chased by agents of Dark Spectre and with no way to communicate with *anyone* on the side of good, let alone their teammates, he had never let himself consider the odds against them.

But as he returned her hug, Andros heard himself whisper, "I believe you."

She let out her breath in amusement. "You sound surprised," she chided.

She didn't seem to expect an answer, but after a moment he admitted, "Maybe I am, a little."

Ashley drew away, leaving just her hands on his shoulders. She cocked her head at him, not saying anything, just waiting to see if he would explain.

He looked at her for a moment, feeling the wisp of a nighttime breeze tug at his hair. It lifted her shorter hair and pushed it away from her face, and he smiled. "It's strange, I guess, to think that everything really *does* seem like it will be all right," he said finally. "Just because you're here with me."

She sighed, raising one hand to stroke his cheek. "That's all I need," she murmured, leaning forward to rest her forehead against his.

"Me too," he whispered, content in her closeness. The humidity had not abated much with nightfall, but her warmth was a welcome presence nonetheless. He found himself once again reluctant to move, and this time for a far more pleasant reason than before.

He closed his eyes, feeling more relaxed than he had since they had first lain down on the ground to sleep. A little too relaxed, he realized a moment later, when he had to blink his eyes open to keep from nodding off.

Ashley turned her head, letting it rest for a moment on his shoulder before she straightened up. "I'm going to fall asleep right here, if I'm not careful," she said reluctantly, and he nodded.

"I'm tired," he confessed, not wanting to let go of her but unable to see any way around it.

"Have you gotten *any* sleep tonight?" she asked, sounding worried again.

"On and off," he said. It was true, but it didn't feel true. He felt like he'd been up for two or three days, actually.

"Hopefully the pain reliever will help." She caressed his cheek again, and he couldn't help reaching up to rub his eyes in an attempt to keep them open.

Ashley just laughed. "In fact, that and sheer exhaustion should be enough to get you to sleep now. See you in the morning, Andros."

Though her words were those of "good night", she had not yet pulled away. He hesitated a moment, then leaned forward before she could leave and kissed her. "Thanks for coming after me, Ash," he whispered.

She took a deep breath. "Anytime," she murmured. "Thanks for being here."

"Always have been," he told her quietly, and she smiled.

"Always will be," she answered, giving him a quick kiss in return. Then she did pull away, reaching for the flashlight. " 'Night, Andros."

"Good night," he replied, watching her return to her selected sleeping area. She rearranged her jacket before flicking the flashlight off and lay down across from him.

He watched her for a moment longer, then lay down himself, pillowing his head on his jacket as she had done. The sound of the river was a calming murmur in the background, and the birdlike chirps continued to emanate from the jungle. But this time it was the quiet sound of Ashley's breathing that he noticed most, and it lulled him to sleep where the noises could not.

She wasn't sure what woke her this time--Andros was still sound asleep, and the jungle actually seemed to have quieted as the sun rose. Or perhaps she had slept through the early morning animal activity, and now the native fauna was retiring from the oncoming heat.

It certainly was warm, there was no denying that. She hadn't realized how much it had cooled down during the night until the sun, already significantly above the horizon, had brought back yesterday's heat with a vengeance.

Somehow, though, her sleep since the time Andros had awoken her with his telepathic call had been unbroken. For that she was grateful, and she hoped he had slept as well--they had a long way to go yet, and the Power healed best while its wielder slept.

She rolled over on her side, wincing as she pushed herself into a sitting position. As if she weren't stiff enough from their hike the day before, she had to compound the problem by sleeping on the ground without so much as a blanket to cushion her body.

Ashley didn't even try to stand before testing her ankle. She stretched her leg out in front of her, groaning quietly when even that simple movement made her muscles complain. Flexing her ankle carefully, she then bent her knee and pushed her foot against the ground.

Her ankle was the one part of her anatomy that *didn't* seem to object to moving, and she judged it safe to stand. Gingerly transferring her weight to her right foot, she sighed in relief when her ankle took the added burden without a problem. Her next test was walking over to her pack, but that too was accomplished without incident.

*I love being a Ranger,* she thought, for no less than the hundredth time since the Power had healed some injury or other.

With a wry smile, she admitted to herself that she wouldn't have *gotten* most of those injuries if she hadn't been chosen to be a Ranger. But she wouldn't give the job up for anything, and having injuries and illnesses healed practically overnight was a definite perk.

Pulling the scanner out of her pack, she let the instrument power up. They'd left it on standby over night, running continuous passive scanner sweeps. It would have alerted them had anything particularly big--either Darkonda, or any other nasty sort of predator--had gotten within a kilometer of them. It wasn't much warning, but it was the only thing that was practical in this kind of setting.

A chime signaled the device's readiness to operate at full capacity once more, and she gave the surrounding terrain a quick once-over. If the concentration of vegetative life was anything to go by, the morning's hike would be easier than the afternoon's. She wasn't sure she liked that, having the difficult part at the end of the day, but they would just have to make the best of it.

*Fourteen point two kilometers to the settlement,* she thought, dropping the scanner back into her pack. She and Andros hadn't covered all that much ground the day before, although they'd made good time for the shape they'd been in.

Turning to look over her shoulder, she smiled. She knew better than any civilian that the Power Rangers were just ordinary people, like everyone else. But seeing Andros in one of his rare moments of vulnerability, sleeping sprawled out by the riverbank with a completely peaceful expression on his face, it was hard to think of him as the Astro Rangers' team leader.

She went over to his side, crouching down next to him and smoothing his tousled hair away from his face. Hard though it was to think of him as the leader of the stronger of the Ranger teams she'd been on, it was harder still to think of him as the cold and withdrawn personality she remembered meeting when the former Turbo Rangers first came into space.

*You've changed so much,* she thought, watching him turn a little in his sleep. He was still the same person who had lost his sister, his best friend, his entire world at a heartbreakingly young age. He was the same person who had lived alone aboard the Megaship for nearly two years, and who had refused to even consider taking on a team when they first met.

But he was also someone who had been through a great deal of change in the last few months. Necessity had made him accept them as teammates, and by the time the team had accomplished its original mission, none of them would think of parting. Andros had relearned what friendship meant, and the rest of them had drawn him into their own inseparable group.

*And,* she had to admit, *Zhane's return probably didn't hurt any, either.*

He had been as used to being alone then as he was used to being part of a whole now. He had even admitted to her once that "the important thing is that we're all still together". And last night he had told her that everything seemed better "just because you're with me".

She smiled, stroking his curled fingers. She knew she would always treasure those words. "Things always seem better to me when we're together, too," she whispered.

Andros stirred again, and she drew her hand away quickly. No matter how much he enjoyed their company, enjoyed *hers*, she had been pushing it these last few days and she knew it.

She grabbed the canteen and stood up, moving quietly along the river's bank--away from him. If anyone could become claustrophobic about a relationship, it would be Andros, and the quickest way to make him feel trapped would be to be there watching him, yet again, when he woke.

A few minutes later, Ashley was sitting by the river, the cold water on her bare feet only emphasizing the heat of the still air that hung around her. She had thought about eating, but somehow ration bars--which had had only the smallest amount of appeal when Andros was awake to share them with her--did not sound even slightly appetizing without him.

Instead, she settled for fresh water and the promise of real food when they finally got off this moon. It wasn't very filling, but with the humid air weighing heavily around her she was strangely unmotivated to do anything, least of all eat.

The water felt good, though. While the river had tumbled rapidly past the spot where she and Andros had spent the night before, it evened out and slowed here, contained within a wide pool that stretched a good ten meters downstream. She was sorely tempted to strip and just dive in, but she knew that the moment she did so would be the exact moment that Andros woke up and came looking for her.

She did wonder if she could wash her hair, though. Or at least rinse some of the previous day's sweat out of it. There was a rock close by that protruded into the pool, and she thought that if she sat on that she could lean out over the water and wet her hair while the rest of her stayed dry.

*It always sounds easier than it looks,* she thought, as she tried it. She managed to soak her hair, but no matter how much she tried to wring it out afterwards there was absolutely no way to keep water from running down her back when she straightened up.

Ashley couldn't help giggling a little, and finally she just let go of her hair and let it hang down over her shoulders and neck. *I must look crazy,* she thought. She had managed to get more than just the cuffs of her pant legs wet in her scramble onto the rock, and her shirt felt as wet as it might if she had just jumped into the water.

She considered that for a moment, a smile on her face. Her wet clothes actually felt good in this humidity, and it would solve the problem of Andros finding her. And it was just silly enough to sound like a tremendous amount of fun…

Before she could think about it any further, she slipped off the rock and into the water. She bit back a shriek as the cold water came up to her waist. Giggling again, she splashed water on her face and then flung her arms out to the sides happily.

"*This* is the way to beat the heat," she announced out loud, grinning like an idiot.

"If you say so," a skeptical voice said from behind her, and this time she did shriek.

"Andros!" She whirled, or at least she tried to. The drag of the water threw her off balance, and she had to take a step backward. Andros watched in amusement as she didn't quite get her feet underneath her in time, and only the shallowness of the water kept her from going completely under.

"Warn me next time, would you?" she sputtered, making her way to where he stood on the bank. "I thought you were still asleep!"

"How could I be, with the racket you're making?" he asked, a smile creeping across his face as he looked down at her from the steep embankment. He had the upper hand here, and he knew it.

"Are you going to help me, or not?" she demanded, holding her hand out expectantly.

Instead of taking it immediately, as she had expected, he just stood there with a considering look on his face. "No," he said after a moment. "I don't think I will. You look pretty playing in the water--why should I interrupt?"

"Why, you--" She just stared at him, not sure whether to be flattered or embarrassed. She had never heard him say something like that.

He blushed a little in the face of her scrutiny, but he did not apologize. "Besides," he added, sounding more like himself as he offered her his hand, "the first thing you're going to do is hug me, and you're soaking wet."

There was only one answer to *that*, she thought, grabbing his hand. Instead of pulling herself out, she tugged hard, smirking in satisfaction as he stumbled forward. His foot slipped on the banking, and he leaned toward her for support--as she stepped back.

Andros yelped as he lost his balance and tumbled into the water. She folded her arms and watched smugly as he flailed about, trying to get his feet under him again. She couldn't help giggling as he managed to stand up, water dripping from his face and arms as he glared at her.

"*Now* who's soaking wet?" she asked primly, making a show of backing away from him. Unfortunately, the pool only got deeper toward the middle, and as she stepped back, her bare feet slipped off the rock she'd been standing on and she found herself floundering in water that came up to her shoulders.

Andros laughed, making no move to help her. "Both of us," he declared. "I think that was some sort of cosmic revenge for you dragging me in here in the first place."

She tried to sulk, but he looked so delighted that she couldn't do it. He was still chuckling, and she couldn't help smiling at the carefree look in his clear hazel eyes, a look that wasn't there often enough as far as she was concerned.

As she made her careful way forward, pushing her arms through the water as she maneuvered just beyond the edge of the deeper part of the river, she realized what was different. "Andros?" she asked, a little surprised, while part of her mind wondered how close she could get to him before he would suspect something. "Can you see now?"

He nodded, glancing around as though it still surprised him, too. "Yeah. Almost as well as normal, I think. A lot better than yesterday, anyway."

She sidestepped a little, trying to get in position. Just as he looked back at her, she grinned and lunged forward. "I'll show you revenge," she exclaimed, tackling him and catching him enough off balance that he actually fell backward toward the deeper water.

She had only meant to make him stumble, but this was certainly preferable. Andros had time only for a startled, "Hey!" before the water splashed over both their heads.

She let go of him as soon as they were underwater, scrambling to her feet and shaking water out of her eyes. He came up only a second later, coughing and trying to push his dripping hair out of his eyes.

She couldn't help it. She started to giggle. The blond streaks in his hair darkened when they were wet, and for a moment his hair looked almost all brown. Brown and long, as he still couldn't get it out of his face, and he sent her an indignant look that only made her laugh harder.

"You look just as funny," he warned, a smile tugging at his lips. "But do you see me laughing?"

"You're just mad that I surprised you," she teased.

He gave her the Look, but it lost most of its effectiveness when combined with a reluctant smile. She caught her breath as he tipped his head back and ducked under the water again, letting the water smooth his hair back from his face. The gesture was so natural that she knew he'd done it before, and for a moment the strangest image took hold of her mind.

"Ash?" Andros was shaking her shoulder, and she blinked at him. "You okay?" he asked, clearly concerned.

"What, I'm not allowed to stare at you for no reason?" she said, trying to smile.

His lips quirked. "I don't mind. But you looked like you were thinking about something."

She frowned a little. "I had this dream…" Suddenly, she realized how odd it was to be having this conversation in the middle of an alien river, both of their clothes soaked through and kilometers of hiking still to do.

She shook her head, laughing a little. "It's nothing; I was just remembering a dream I had. It made me think of you."

"Couldn’t have been bad, then," he said, and she grinned at his cocky tone.

"You're confident this morning," she teased, splashing him. "Taking lessons from Zhane?"

"Why--" He splashed her back. "Do you think I need to?"

"No!" she exclaimed, giggling. "Definitely not!" Throwing her arms around him, she conveniently blocked any future splashing attempts. "There's a reason I fell for you, after all."

"Why's that?" he murmured in her ear. As he slid his arms around her waist, she grinned.

" 'Cause I love you," she whispered back, and felt him chuckle soundlessly.

"That's a good reason," he said, his tone amused, and she nodded.

"I thought so," she answered, hugging him harder.

She was a little surprised when he pushed her away, but the look in his eyes was tender, not at all distressed. "I love you too," he said quietly, searching her expression in a way that made it perfectly clear that he was about to kiss her.

She toyed with the thought of ambushing him right now, pushing him over when he was least expecting it, but she couldn't do it. Not when he looked so solemn--but her eyes widened when he grinned at her. "I know what you were thinking," he whispered, leaning closer and kissing her gently.

"Do not," she mumbled, pulling him closer.

He didn't answer, but for the first time, he opened his mouth first and leaned into her as soon as she tightened her arms around him. She could hardly breathe with their mouths pressed so close together, and she could hardly *think* with his hands rubbing her back like that. If she didn't know him better, she'd think he really *did* know what she had thought when he went to kiss her, and now he was going to make her pay for it.

*I'm glad you didn't push me.* His words echoed in her mind, and her eyes flew open. He *had* known--but before she could wonder how, his lips had left hers and started to kiss her face and forehead.

*Me, too,* she thought, but she wasn't sure she had thought clearly enough for him to even pick up on the words. She gasped, feeling his lips, gentle on her neck--everything she had ever done to him was coming back to haunt her.

She shifted unconsciously as his hands slid just underneath her shirt. He didn't really *do* anything, and she wasn't sure whether to be relieved or disappointed. After that first kiss, he was just barely touching her, but it was enough to drive her completely crazy.

She wanted to press closer, wanted to run her hands across his body and feel him kiss every inch of her skin--she knew she was out of her mind, and she couldn't help it. Andros had never done this to her before, he had never been the aggressor; that had always been her role. But he was *good* at it…

She felt him pull away, his hands slipping off her waist and the slightest movement of water as he took a small step back. It was only then that she remembered that they were still standing in the middle of the river, and she opened her eyes again to find his fingers lingering near her face.

He smiled tentatively at her, and when she smiled back, amazed, his hand stroked her cheek. He brushed her wet hair back behind her ear and leaned forward to kiss her once more.

She returned it eagerly, wondering if she would think they were both completely insane later. Then she heard him in her mind again, and she decided telepathy wasn't always everything it was cracked up to be. Even with their lips pressed together, he could still tell her, *We should probably get moving, Ash.*

*Ever the voice of responsibility,* she thought, disappointed, as she pulled away.

"Someone has to be," he whispered, and she felt better to realize that he was breathing just as hard as she was. The look in his eyes said that he didn't want to separate either, but she knew he was right.

She could stay here with him all day, but they certainly weren't going to get where they were going like that. And even if Darkonda's search--if indeed there *was* one now that he had destroyed the rest of the Delta Megaship--had been grounded by nightfall, he could come looking again at any time.

"You're right, of course," she mumbled, taking his hand and wading reluctantly toward the banking.

"Hey…" He stopped, tugging on her hand until she turned. "Did I--do something wrong?"

She shook her head. "No, of course not!" She smiled, a little slyly. "We really do need to get going, but--you think we could continue what you didn't do wrong when we stop for a break?"

A smile spread across his face. "That'll make me walk faster," he kidded gently, and she grinned.

He startled her by putting his hands on her waist and lifting her out of the water, setting her on the rock she'd been sitting on just before their impromptu swimming party. He climbed up beside her as she was standing up, looking down at herself in mock-dismay.

"I'm soaked," she announced, as though she hadn't expected it.

Andros shook his head as he, too, got to his feet. "*You're* soaked? It was your idea. And at least *you* weren't wearing your boots."

"Sorry," she muttered sheepishly, glancing over at him.

"I'm not," he answered immediately. To her surprise, he put his arm around her shoulder as they walked back toward where they had slept the night before. "I had fun."

She smiled again as she put her arm around his waist. "Next time I get stuck on an alien moon in the middle of an uninhabited jungle, remind me to make sure it's with you."

He chuckled. "Next time, maybe we should just go on vacation."

Backpack over his left shoulder, TJ stepped off the lift and strode toward the Medical bay. The doors were closed, but they slid open at his approach and he slapped the lock by the door as he stepped inside to keep them from closing behind him.

Unmorphed, Phantom lifted his head off of his arms and caught TJ's eye as he entered. TJ felt a brief flash of sympathy as he realized that the other Ranger had been literally sleeping at Cassie's side, probably all night long. He had been sitting on a stool by the main patient bed, his arms on the bed and his head resting on his arms in what had to be a terribly uncomfortable position.

TJ's gaze flickered to the other patient bed, only a few feet away, then back to Phantom. The other didn't say a word, just flowed to his feet with enviable ease and nodded to TJ.

" 'Morning," TJ greeted him, looking down at Cassie. "How is she?"

"She woke during the night," Phantom replied quietly. "We spoke, and I am convinced that she is herself again."

"But is she okay?" TJ asked, impatient. He had been only slightly worried that the girl Zhane had vouched for would deceive them--she had been on their ship, with a clear opportunity to strike, and she had not. Mostly, he was concerned about Cassie's reaction to being under the spell in the first place.

Phantom seemed to consider that. "Yes," he said at last. "I believe she will be all right. She still feels extremely guilty, but when she fell asleep again, she was more worried about her teammates than she was about her own actions."

TJ's head came up, and he glared at Phantom. "You *told* her?" He couldn't believe the other would do something so heartless--the last thing Cassie needed to hear as soon as she woke up was that two of her teammates were now missing in action, with one on them presumed dead.

"I could not avoid it," Phantom answered, no expression on his face. "She asked--"

"Then you should have lied," TJ snapped. "Or is that word not in your vocabulary? Didn't it occur to you that maybe Cassie's been through enough in the last couple days without you adding to it?"

"TJ…" Cassie moved a little, but her murmur had drawn his eyes to her instantly. "It's not his fault."

"Of course it's not," he soothed, taking her hand. He gave Phantom another glare, his look saying everything he could not without upsetting Cassie. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay," she mumbled, lifting her free hand to rub her eyes. Out of the corner of his eye, TJ saw Phantom take a step forward, but the other said nothing.

Cassie struggled to sit up, and he reached out to help her. "It's not Saryn's fault," she repeated, blinking at them. "I asked DECA. TJ--Andros…?"

She couldn't finish the question, and he had no answer for her. Instead, he just leaned down and enveloped her in a hug, hoping somehow that it would help. He heard her sniff, and he patted her back, feeling her hug him harder.

"Ashley went out looking for him," he said quietly, when it became clear that Cassie did not want to let go. "Zhane says she thought she could hear Andros talking to her--did you know they could do that, talk the way Zhane and Andros do?"

He felt her nod. "Yeah," she murmured. "Ashley told me a while ago. Did she tell you?"

"We found out on Aquitar," he admitted. He almost told her how, but then he realized that that would bring up more bad memories than she needed right now. "Anyway, Zhane says that she dreamed about Andros, and she kept insisting she could hear him trying to talk to her. She took the shuttle while Zhane was down on Aquitar with you guys, and we haven't heard from her since."

"Could she have?" Cassie asked, pulling away from him at last with a hopeful look in her eyes. "Maybe she knows something we don't."

TJ looked over at Phantom, but the other stayed silent. "Zhane didn't seem to think so," he said at last. "He said she had been acting sort of strangely all day. And Zhane and Andros have been able to talk that way for years--Zhane didn't think that Ashley would be able to hear Andros when he couldn't."

"Sometimes you just know," Cassie murmured, a little sadly. "We should go after her, either way."

TJ nodded. "I think so too--she should be okay for a while in the shuttle, but me and Carlos were planning to go looking for her this afternoon."

"This afternoon…" Cassie frowned, and he saw the realization hit her. "School."

"Yeah," he said. "Don't worry; I went to see Ashley's parents yesterday. The school had already called them to ask where you were, and they were pretty worried. I told them--as much as I could."

She turned her face up toward him questioningly, and he shook his head. "Just that Andros was--missing, and that you and Ash weren't in any condition to go to school," he assured her. "They wanted you to come home, but I told them that we needed you and that you were better off where you were anyway."

She sighed, and he could see the gratitude in her expression. "Thanks, TJ," she said softly, and he just nodded.

"No problem," he told her. "I told them you wouldn't be going today either, so I'm sure they've already let the school know."

She gave him a wide-eyed look. "Teej, I missed the first day--I can't miss today too!"

He glanced at his watch. "Yes, you can," he said wryly. "For one thing, it's already started. Even I'm going to be late, and there's no way you can get yourself together in time to make first period.

"Second, you need time to recover. You have a perfectly legitimate excuse, so take advantage of it. I'll go over to the Hammonds' again after school so they don't worry that we've all been eaten by aliens or something, and you can go tomorrow."

He didn't add that by tomorrow they might have some news on the Hammonds' biological daughter as well, but he could see that Cassie understood. "All right," she agreed with a sigh. "I guess I couldn't really face school today anyway. Thanks for taking care of--everything. I really appreciate it, Teej."

"I know," he said, giving her a wink. Just seeing her back to normal lifted his spirits considerably, and he started to think that they might be able to pull the team back together after all. "You take it easy. I'll see you this afternoon."

"Right," she said, a real smile on her face. As he started to turn away, she said suddenly, "Wait--TJ, want us to look for Ashley while you're in school? It wouldn't be that big a deal; DECA knows the coordinates…"

He shook his head. He had thought of that, and discarded the idea. "I think it might be better to let her have the time alone. She can call for help if she gets in trouble, and she may need time to try and sort some of this out on her own. If we haven't heard from her by this afternoon, we can all go looking for her and try and get each other through this."

She swallowed, but she nodded in agreement. "Okay," she agreed quietly.

"Incoming transmission," DECA interrupted, before he could say goodbye again, and TJ rolled his eyes. Cassie saw, although he hadn't meant her to, and she grinned a little.

"Someone just doesn't want you to go to school," she said, glancing toward DECA's camera. "Who's it from, DECA?"

"Request for assistance from Aquitar," the onboard computer replied calmly, and TJ frowned.

"Since when do they ask for help?" he demanded, of no one in particular.

"Get going," Cassie chided, sliding off the patient bed and pushing him toward the door. "It's not a distress call, it's just a request. They probably want to know how to spell your names right so they can print it up in their newspapers or something."

"Aquitar uses electronic news relays," Phantom interjected quietly.

This time it was Cassie who rolled her eyes. She sounded almost like her old self when she answered impatiently, "Whatever." Giving TJ another shove, she assured him, "We'll take care of it; don't worry."

"Be careful," he said over his shoulder, and she just grinned at him.

"You too," Cassie shot back. "Those teachers are dangerous. I hope you know how much tutoring I'm going to make you do to catch me up."

At that, he grinned back. "Just say the word."

She waved, and he twisted his wrist to dispel the illusion of a blue-banded gold wristband. His morpher appeared in its place on his wrist, and he punched in the code for the school coordinates--this wasn't the first time they'd gone directly to Angel Grove High from the Megaship.

The world turned deep sparkling blue, and when it lifted he found himself in a small, secluded grove just off school grounds. Settling his bag more firmly over his shoulder, he started across the courtyard toward one of the side entrances, careful to avoid any area where he could be seen from the west wing's second floor windows. His traditional "car trouble" excuse would not be so believable if his first period class saw him entering from the courtyard rather than the parking lot.

Despite his tardiness, he stopped at his locker to dump most of his books and found a note in Carlos' nearly illegible writing. "Waited till the bell--meet you after second period."

"Sorry, man," he said under his breath, slamming the door shut. He had told Carlos that he would check on Cassie and then meet him in the cafeteria to grab some breakfast. He hoped the other Ranger had not gone hungry on his account.

Stuffing the note in his pocket, TJ spun away from his locker and headed for his Literature class.

15. Request for Assistance

"The Barox?" Hands resting on the Bridge's main comm console, Cassie looked over at Saryn. "Who are they?"

Unmorphed, the expression on his face made it patently obvious that he had been paying more attention to her than the comm link. At her question, though, he roused himself enough to look back at the viewscreen and exchange glances with the leader of the Aquitian Rangers.

"The Barox are a race of mechanical bounty hunters," he answered at last. "They hire themselves out for almost any kind of reward, and they do not stop until they complete their mission."

"Or until they're destroyed," Billy said, from his position at Cetaci's left shoulder.

Saryn nodded, acknowledging the correction. "Or until they are destroyed," he repeated.

"Then we must find a way to destroy them," Cetaci said firmly. "Immediately. Three of their ships have penetrated our system within the last hour, and they have already caused significant damage to the outsystem orbital stations.

"Aquitar thanks you for your information," she added, clearly intending to end the communication.

"Wait--" Cassie shot a look at the Ranger standing beside her, wondering if she should even offer. He had reminded her of Cetaci's stubborn pride on their way to the Bridge, but she couldn't *not* say anything. "You've dealt with them before; could we help Aquitar fight them now?"

"That is not necessary," Cetaci interjected. "We are quite capable of dealing with these… *bounty* hunters." The scorn she put into the word made it clear that she didn't think much of their profession.

"They are not mere bounty hunters," Saryn warned quietly. "The Barox are ruthless, efficient killers. Destruction is all they know, and they stop at nothing. I--will not intrude on your fight unless you ask, but I wish you would not face them alone."

Cetaci actually hesitated, glancing over her shoulder at Billy. He just looked back, and they stared at each other for a moment. Finally Cetaci shook her head, turning back to the comm channel.

She looked about to speak, but a sound from out of the screen's range caught her attention. She looked away again, and suddenly Cestria was at her side, one hand on her leader's shoulder and her eyes on the viewscreen. "We would be grateful for any assistance you could offer," she said simply.

Cetaci tilted her head to one side, but she said nothing. Cassie waited a moment, to see if she would disagree, but the White Aquitian Ranger remained silent. At last, Cassie said, "We're on our way."

Cestria nodded once. "Thank you, Astro Rangers."

The transmission cut off from the other end, and Cassie sighed. Inputting the appropriate commands into the Megaship's nav system, she said quietly, "They're still afraid of me, aren't they."

Saryn seemed to consider that, his eyes on her once again. "I would not say afraid," he said, after a moment. "They may be a little wary, yet, but they are not afraid."

She stared back at him, wondering suddenly if he was seeing her or the person she had become for the last two days. "I didn't mean it!" she burst out. "If I could, I'd go back and change things, but I can't!"

He reached for her hand, still resting on the console, and she squeezed his fingers hard. She wished she could lean against him and feel his arms hold her, but she sighed again and stayed where she was. For the last two days she'd touched him at every opportunity, and doing it now would only serve to remind him of everything else she'd done.

"They will not hold it against you, Cassie," he said, his voice low. "They know as well as I that you were not yourself."

"And you?" she whispered, not sure she meant him to hear.

He leaned closer. "Cassie?"

She looked up, knowing and annoyed by the fact that there were tears in her eyes. She was helpless to prevent it, though, and the open concern on his face only made her feel worse. "And you?" she asked again, louder. "Do you hold it against me?"

He looked startled. "Of course I do not. You did nothing that I have reason to be upset about."

She felt a tear slip down her cheek even as she smiled a little. "Do you want a list? Threatening you, shooting at you, making you demorph in front of the Aquitians--"

She cut off as he laid a finger over her lips. "Cassie, none of those things were your fault." He brushed the tear away from her face, letting his hand fall to her shoulder. "Your brainwaves were altered; your personality was no longer your own. You were, in all practical ways, a different person."

"Then why did you still help me?" she whispered. He could not possibly believe that, or he wouldn't have kept trying to talk to her.

"Because I wanted to believe everyone else was wrong," he said softly, tucking her hair away from her face. Tapping her temple with one finger, he continued before she could speak, "I wanted to think that you were still in here somewhere, that you could hear me and come back to me, somehow…"

She couldn't help it, then; she stepped closer and put her arms around him, leaning her head on his shoulder. "I don't deserve you," she admitted quietly.

"You deserve someone far better than I," he murmured, hugging her gently. "But if there are times when I make you happy, that is all I ask."

"You *always* make me happy," Cassie insisted, not moving. "I love you… and I couldn't ask for anything else."

"I love you, too," his voice whispered in her ear, and she closed her eyes.

She leaned against him, listening to him breathe. She was inexpressibly glad that she had not managed to drive him away in the last two days--with anyone else, she was knew love would not be enough to make them stay. But his strength had kept him believing in her, even when it seemed hopeless.

She wasn't sure how long they stood there, just holding on to each other, but she wasn't about to let go. He seemed content to stay that way forever, but eventually DECA's unmistakable voice announced their arrival in orbit around Aquitar.

Cassie frowned as she lifted her head from Saryn's shoulder. They should have received a recognition signal from Aquitar as soon as they entered the system--things must be more serious than she had thought if the Megaship had made it into the heart of the Aquitian solar system with no acknowledgement at all.

Saryn caught her eye as they separated, and he looked surprised as well. "DECA, contact the Aquitian Rangers," Cassie said, watching his reaction.

"I am attempting to establish communication," the computer answered, after a short delay.

Saryn was doing something to the scanners, and he looked up suddenly, gazing at the viewscreen as its field of view shifted. "That is why they are not answering," he said.

Cassie followed his gaze, squinting at the magnified blips that swarmed across the screen. "Barox?" she breathed, and he nodded.

"But--there's more than three of them," she said, wondering why the fighter wing had not been launched.

"There are six Barox ships," he confirmed, tapping the control panel until a closer image appeared on the screen. She drew back, alarmed by the bristling armament on the nearest ship. "They are not equipped to launch an all-out assault on an underwater world--but they are perfectly capable of infiltrating a city and destroying it from the inside."

Cassie stared at him. "You mean…"

"There are undoubtedly several Barox on the planet's surface already," he told her grimly. "We cannot be sure the Aquitians even know, if their satellites have been disabled."

"DECA, call Zhane," she said, glancing toward the computer's camera. "How many of those ships are still manned?"

Saryn did not answer for a moment, and she looked at him. Studying the screen, he replied, "Four, I think."

"How do you--" The view on the screen answered her question without her having to ask it. Four of the Barox ships were headed straight for the Megaship, while two remained on what could easily be autopilot as they continued their orbit of Aquitar. "Never mind."

"We cannot take on four ships," Saryn muttered, almost to himself.

"Where's the fighter wing?" she asked, before she understood what he was saying. If he didn't think the Megaship could take four of them, there was no way an Aquitian fighter could even hold its own. "Oh…"

"The wing will not have been launched, not to fight something like this," he answered anyway. "The Barox are a formidable enemy, even to a Power enhanced ship."

"The zords?"

He looked over at her, but she couldn't read his expression. "I do not know," he said at last. "It is possible they could hold the Barox off--but I would not like to see them try."

She glanced over at her usual station, and a green glow surrounding the tactical map told her that he had already raised the Megaship's shields. "So they can't do any damage up here--but there's two on the planet?"

The ship shuddered, and he corrected grimly, "They cannot do any damage to the *Aquitians* up here. We seem to be an acceptable substitute."

"Can't even get a good night's sleep around here without someone trying to blow us up," Zhane grumbled from the doorway, and Cassie glanced over her shoulder. She hadn't heard him come in.

"Took you long enough," she said, half-seriously.

"Hey, I don't live on the Bridge," he said, sounding subdued, but not as depressed as she had expected under the circumstances. "DECA woke me up--what's going on?"

"The Barox," Saryn interjected. "Six of their ships are attacking Aquitar--or were. Four of them have now turned their efforts on us."

There was no answer, and Cassie took another look at the Silver Ranger as she slid into her accustomed seat. The shock on his face made her suspect that he, too, had encountered the Barox at one point--or at least heard of them.

"Six?" he managed, coming forward to stand by the nav console.

Bringing the Megalasers online, Cassie scanned the tactical map quickly. Zhane seemed to have shaken away his astonishment, for he said, "The Barox are space and atmospheric fighters, aren't they?"

Cassie brought the Megalasers to bear as a ship streaked past, spraying weapons fire and catching the Megaship's shields repeatedly. She hit her target full on, with both laser arrays--and it didn't even slow down. She felt a sinking feeling descend upon her as she began to realize exactly what they were up against.

"Yes," she heard Saryn say, from somewhere behind her. "They cannot damage Aquitar from here. But there are two hunters already on the surface, and we have been unable to establish communication with the Aquitian Rangers."

The Megaship banked abruptly, cutting between two of the well-armed ships, and Cassie just shook her head. For someone who was used to piloting a starfighter, Saryn knew what he was doing at the helm of a battleship.

She kept firing, isolating and tracking each ship for a second or more as they swept past, pelting them with as much laser fire as she could keep control of. They didn't seem even slightly affected, but then, the Megaship hadn't taken any serious damage yet either. *Stalemate?* she wondered, but it was too early to tell.

"Could we draw some of them away from Aquitar, then?" she heard Zhane ask. "Keep them from joining their friends?"

The stars spun wildly as Saryn tested that theory. The Megaship was suddenly racing away from Aquitar, heading at sublight for the edge of the system--and two of the Barox were following.

"Yes," he said calmly. "We can."

"But what about the Aquitians?" Cassie protested, punching the fire controls far harder than she had to and smirking as she managed to knock one of the Barox ships off its original course.

The Megaship jerked violently a moment later, and her tactical screen showed both ships in parallel alignment--far too close and lessening the distance quickly. She grimaced as they raked the Megaship's stern with their own laser fire, her train of thought completely forgotten.

Saryn picked up where she had left off. "We cannot simply leave them to fight their enemies from the inside," he argued, even as the Megaship twisted to the side and downward simultaneously, neatly evading a second strafing run.

**He* can concentrate on two things at once,* Cassie thought wryly, targeting the closer of the two ships they were racing. "What if we let DECA lure these ships away while we teleport back to Aquitar?"

She had no idea where that thought had come from. She had voiced it before she thought, and now she had no time to contemplate its ramifications. *I could really learn to hate these Barox,* she thought, as another round of laser fire failed to do any significant damage to the other ships.

She didn't even notice the silence behind her until Saryn broke it. "DECA cannot pilot this ship under fire alone. I have dealt with the Barox; I will go, while you and Zhane remain aboard the Megaship."

"No," Cassie said sharply. "If you go, I go."

"Both of you go," Zhane interrupted. "I can handle the Megaship better than either of you."

"You cannot--"

"Shut up, Saryn," Zhane said, not sounding particularly annoyed. "I know what I'm talking about. And I'm only going to fight long enough to make them mad--with a little luck, they'll follow me into hyperspace and straight into the Qesiti system."

Saryn was quiet, probably considering that. "They will not thank you for bring the Barox down on them," he warned.

"Probably not," Zhane agreed. "But they'll fight, and between the Megaship and their Megazord we should be able to defeat these two. If it works, I'll be back to help you as soon as they're gone."

Cassie did not ask what would happen if it *didn't* work. They were Rangers; this was what they did. So long as none of them did it alone, she thought, taking her gaze away from the tactical map just long enough to glance at Saryn.

A movement beside him drew her attention, and she caught Zhane watching her as she turned back to the weapons' console. She felt a pang of guilt then, not only for leaving him alone--but also for forgetting, even for a few minutes, about Andros. He was more alone now than Saryn would be if he went to Aquitar by himself, more alone even than she had been when she was evil…

Blinking determinedly, she stared at the tactical map and reminded herself sternly that she couldn't afford to get teary-eyed now. She was slammed against the console as the Megaship took another hit, and she threw herself back into the fight with a vengeance, waiting for Saryn to decide.

"We will go," he said finally, and then Zhane's hand was on her shoulder, nudging her out of her chair. She saw him slide into her place, staring intently down at the tactical map.

"Good luck," Zhane said, not looking up. "Stay in one piece until I get back."

"You too," Cassie said quietly, backing away. She caught at the second row of consoles to steady herself as the ship shook again. "DECA, thirty degrees to starboard," Zhane snapped, and she looked to Saryn.

He held out his hand, and she took it, letting his teleportation carry her away before her morpher could download the appropriate coordinates.

The stars streaked across the screen, wheeling as DECA tossed the ship around--not fast enough. Laser fire made the shield readout flare yet again, and he cursed silently. "Andros," he muttered, "where are you when I need you?"

He could have used a pilot with his friend's skill, but more than that, he desperately needed the companionship. No matter what he had told Saryn about being able to handle the Megaship, it was hard to go into battle by yourself. He and Andros had fought side by side for longer than he cared to think about, and it was impossible not to be conscious of the empty chair at his right.

He triggered the Megalasers again, chasing one of the other ships determinedly through the night. He kept the lock several seconds longer than Cassie had been doing, but while he was concentrating on that one, the other managed to get behind him.

Something made him look up just before the second ship fired, and he lost the lock--but he braced himself against the console just before the ship rocked. He could almost hear Andros chuckling at the mistake, and he shook his head. "Let's see *you* do better," he said, out loud and somewhat indignantly.

He gave DECA a new heading and got ready to jump into hyperspace. "If you want to laugh," he told his absent friend, "you may be about to get the chance." If the Barox ships didn't follow him through lightspeed, he was going to have to turn around and fight them without help.

"Hyperspace vector confirmed," DECA reported, and he looked up.

"Hyperrush nine," he ordered, and the view outside finally steadied as the EM scanners went offline and computerized starlines streaked across the screen.

"The Barox ships are following," DECA said unnecessarily, since he could see that for himself on the tactical map.

"Yeah!" he cheered. He might get through this after all. "Told you I could do it!"

Glancing over at the empty pilot's station, his grin faded. *Andros,* he thought, unconsciously projecting the thought. For a moment, he had almost forgotten his friend was gone, and the loneliness hurt that much more when it came crashing back.

He thought he was hallucinating when he *heard* his friend's startled reply. *Zhane?*

It sounded far too distant, too removed to be anything more than his overstressed imagination inventing the comfort he so desperately needed. But as many times as he had wished to hear Andros' voice answering his mental call, he had never thought his friend would sound so--startled.

*Zhane, can you hear me?*

He hesitated, wondering just how real hallucinations could become before he could be considered insane. But what if it wasn't a hallucination, he wondered, reaching out to that faint voice warily. *Andros?*

The jungle suddenly became distant and unimportant. Fighting the brush was a mere annoyance, and he stopped, holding absolutely still. The heat surrounded him, seeming somehow to still everything that had been making noise. For just a moment, he had thought--

*Zhane?*

His headache lingered on the outskirts of his awareness, reaching phantom fingers toward his mind even as he wondered if it was returning. But the discomfort was muted, barely there. It certainly wasn't strong enough to signal the complete disappearance of the pain-relieving drug from his system. And yet--

*Zhane, can you hear me?*

"Andros?" Ashley, only a little way ahead, had noticed his frozen position. He motioned her quiet, straining to hear the one person who was the closest family he had left.

He felt a ridiculous grin break across his face as her voice was echoed by the one in his mind. *Andros?* Zhane asked uncertainly.

*Time really can stop,* Carlos mused, giving the clock over the door a disgusted look. *It's been a minute before the bell for at least an hour now.*

The bell rang, startling him, and he stuffed his already-closed notebook into his backpack. "Finally," he muttered, and the girl sitting beside him gave him a sympathetic smile.

They filed out of the classroom with everyone else, and a flash of blue at the other end of the hallway caught Carlos' eye. "Teej!" he yelled, and saw his friend's hand lift above the crowd in acknowledgement.

"Hey--" TJ fought his way through the crowd and lowered his voice, almost too low for Carlos to hear. "Have you tried contacting the Megaship this morning?"

Carlos gave him an odd look. "Why would I do that?"

TJ glanced over his shoulder, then tilted his head toward a classroom that had emptied out for the first period of lunches. Puzzled, Carlos followed him inside and watched as TJ shut the door behind them.

"Remember how I said I'd call Cassie and see what the Aquitians wanted?"

Carlos nodded, the hurried hallway discussion after second period coming to mind. "Yeah. What'd she say?"

"That's just it," TJ insisted. "I couldn't reach her. I can't contact Zhane either, or DECA."

Carlos couldn't help looking over his shoulder, even in the deserted room, before lifting his own morpher and signaling Cassie's morpher. Static was the only answer, and he frowned. He tried to contact Zhane, and then DECA, with identical results.

TJ folded his arms. "Well, at least it isn't my communicator. Where could they have gone?"

"Aquitar?" Carlos guessed. "Maybe it *was* a distress call…"

"Nice of them to keep us informed," TJ muttered.

"Down!" he shouted, pushing Cassie out of the way and remembering only at the last moment that he was not morphed. She was thinking faster than he was, however, and she yanked him to the floor on top of her.

As pleasant as the situation would have seemed in other circumstances, he had no time to enjoy it. Laser fire shot by over their heads, and Cassie's stunner was suddenly in her hand. Holding his shoulder to keep him down, she aimed over him and across the room, catching one of the Barox full in the chest.

The only effect seemed to be that the hunter turned in their direction, his weapon tracking faster than his eyes. "No!" someone yelled, and blaster fire drew the alien's attention to another corner of the room.

Cassie pushed away from him and he rolled in the opposite direction, cursing himself for not morphing before he teleported. They *both* should have morphed--what had they been thinking?

"Phantom!" Billy's voice, followed by a trail of blaster fire that laid down enough cover for him to scramble out of the center of the room. He had seen Cassie duck behind one of the consoles; she would be safe--

A shot, far too close for his comfort, sprayed sparks from the panel Billy was hiding behind. Billy retaliated, his weapon returning fire that centered on the nearer of the two hunters. "Intruder protocol level two!" he shouted, his voice penetrating the surrounding din of laser fire and explosive impacts. "Initiate!"

The chaos only intensified as five wall-mounted laser units opened fire on the room, and Billy grabbed his shoulder. "Let's go!" he said loudly, jerking his head toward the lift. "Cestria's ordering us out!"

"Cassie--"

"She's with Cestria; she'll be fine! Phantom, come on!" Billy obviously wouldn't leave without him, but Billy wouldn't leave Cestria either, not if he thought she was in trouble. So he followed Billy as best he could, well aware that it was as much luck as skill that got them to the lift unscathed.

He felt Billy shove him through the door as it opened, heard the other Ranger yelling for one of his companions. Nearby blaster fire was the only warning he had before Aura dove inside, Billy right behind her as the doors slammed shut.

"Level three," Aura told the lift breathlessly, collapsing against the far wall. "Thank you, Billy."

"No problem," Billy answered, checking the charge on his blaster. It took that simple act for the realization to set in that *none* of them were morphed--that wasn't a Power enabled weapon that Billy held, it was an ordinary blaster.

"Intruder protocol level one," the Blue Aquitian Ranger was saying. "Control room only, isolate and initiate."

The lift slowed to a halt before any of them could catch their breath, and the door slid open on a completely empty hallway. Billy held out his hand to Aura, pulling her to her feet. The three of them stepped out into the hallway, and several wall-mounted systems swung in their direction.

"Let's go," Billy said, ignoring them. "The other lift comes out--"

As they rounded the corner, he didn't even have to finish the sentence. Cestria and Delphinius were moving an unconscious Cetaci out of the lift, and behind them--

*Cassie,* he thought, relieved beyond measure. No matter Billy's assurances, nothing could compare to visible proof of her safety. She caught his eye and smiled, letting the door slide shut as the four of them cleared the lift.

"The intruder protocols?" Cestria asked, glancing over at Billy.

"Level one, control room only," he answered, and she nodded.

Cocking her head at Delphinius, the two of them set Cetaci down gently against one of the corridor walls. He couldn't help but approve--at least this way, they would be able to see the enemy coming. And though the intruder defense systems did not extend everywhere, they were omnipresent in the hallways.

"What's level one?" Cassie asked, crouching next to Cestria.

"No safeties," Billy answered. "Before the lasers were scanning for morphers and avoiding them. Now they'll shoot at anyone--there's a nerve gas, too, but I doubt that will slow the hunters down much."

"The lasers may, though," Aura said. "The wall mounts are shielded from attack, and even the Barox can only withstand so many hits."

Cetaci moved a little, and on the floor next to her, Delphinius reached instinctively for her hand. "Teleportation," she mumbled, her fingers clenching on the hand that took hers. "Lock… it down."

He lowered himself to the ground beside Cassie, watching Cetaci struggle to open her eyes. "Are you sure that is wise?" he asked. "We will be far more limited in our movement--"

"So… will they," she muttered, trying to push herself into a sitting position. "Keep others--"

"She says it will keep the other Barox out, if they're not all here already," Cestria said quietly.

Cetaci nodded painfully, managing to straighten up a little.

"And it will keep them from surprising us," Cestria added, though it was hard to tell if they were her words or Cetaci's.

He nodded reluctantly, but Cetaci must not have seen it. "My planet, Phantom," she said hoarsely, the slightest bit of tired amusement in her tone. "My decision."

He couldn't help smiling a little. Billy took a step away from the group, moving down the hall toward the nearest command panel, and Cestria watched him go for a moment before turning back to Cetaci.

"There could be as many as six hunters inside the dome," she said quietly, the voice of one who knew no one wanted to be reminded. "We saw two--where are the others?"

"We should… split up," Cetaci said awkwardly, squinting at the opposite wall as though she could see something in it. "We can't trust…" She ran out of breath again, and Cestria picked up the narrative for her again.

"She says we can't trust the lifts anymore," the Yellow Ranger explained in a soft voice. "They were a convenient escape route, but to use them to *enter* the control room could be suicide."

He nodded without realizing it. The confined space would offer no escape if the Barox were there and waiting for them when the door opened--and they would be. The lifts warned of arrivals with a chime and a quiet hum that would be audible to anyone listening for it.

"There are two corridors which lead directly to the control room," Cestria continued. "The lift in the mess hall is obvious to anyone who looks, but the living quarters have a manual exit that the hunters are probably unaware of.

"We may be able to use that to regain entrance--if either of the hunters in the control room have survived, we will deal with them then. The others…" Cestria trailed off, waiting patiently. "The control room scanners can tell us their locations."

"Maybe not," Billy interrupted as he rejoined them. "Don't they have some sort of cloak that makes them invisible to scanners?"

"Yes." He ignored Cassie's hand on his arm as best he could, somewhat grateful for the current crisis. It gave him something to focus on other than the fact that he was unmorphed--if not for their situation, he thought he might be as uncomfortable as he had been around the Astro Rangers at first.

"They will not be so easy to track," he continued, seeing Cetaci's gaze turn toward him. "But I do not believe we will have to search them out. They will no doubt find us, and sooner than we would like."

"Secondary operations," Delphinius said suddenly. "If the hunters have not determined its location yet--"

"A base," Aura interrupted, rather uncharacteristically for an Aquitian. Delphinius only nodded.

"That was my thought," he agreed, and Cetaci nodded a little.

"Cestria," she murmured, taking a deep breath. "You and… Billy will secure auxiliary control. Aura--" She stopped for breath. Cestria opened her mouth to speak, but Cetaci shook her head. "Aura and Phantom… will try to retake the control room."

"And I?" Delphinius asked, looking somewhat irritated. "You must stop trying to protect me, Cetaci."

"I am not…" Cetaci struggled for breath, not letting go of his hand when he tried to pull away.

"She needs you," Cestria said simply, when Cetaci trailed off. "Cetaci is in no condition to fight--you must stay here and keep her safe until one of our two targets is secure."

The irritation vanished, and Delphinius actually looked slightly startled as he turned to look at Cetaci. She nodded once, confirming Cestria's statement, and the Black Aquitian Ranger's expression softened.

"I will stay," Delphinius said quietly.

Cassie's hand tightened on his arm, and he glanced at her as she asked, "What about me? I know I'm not part of your team, and I know you don't exactly want to trust me right now, but I have to do *something*."

"It is not--" Cetaci looked over at her. "Not a matter of trust," she said slowly. "You… choose."

He willed her to stay with Cetaci, or even to go with Cestria--but of course she did not. "I'm going with Sa--Phantom and Aura," Cassie said, hesitating only over his name.

He tried not to sigh. She *would* pick the most dangerous task. He did not understand why Cetaci had not simply assigned her to a task as she had everyone else, but there was nothing he could do about it now.

Objecting would only make her more determined, however, so he just said quietly, "You may call me Saryn in front of them. I am not morphed; there is no need to refer to me as though I am."

She nodded wordlessly, and Cetaci drew another breath. "And us?" she managed to ask, as Billy helped Cestria to her feet. "What shall we--call you?"

He saw Cassie watching him, and he carefully avoided her gaze. "You may… also call me Saryn," he said, committing to the change.

Cetaci nodded too, looking up at him as he stood. "As you wish, Saryn."

This time, he did look at Cassie. She had a small smile on her face, and she looked contented enough to dispel any misgivings on his part. She really was happier this way.

Her smile made any discomfort he might have felt worth it, and he held out his hand to her as she climbed to her feet.

"Go," Saryn whispered, motioning Cassie to precede him through the access hatch. She thought about arguing--after all, he was the least used to fighting unmorphed--but thought the better of it. The faster she moved, the less time he would be alone.

She tucked the handle of her stunner into her jeans pocket and started up the ladder. Billy had told them how he tracked Saryn the day before, homing in on the Power his ruby was drawing, and they had all agreed that morphing would only make them easier to find. So they went unmorphed--and in some cases, weaponless.

Billy, Aura, and Cetaci were all armed with blasters taken from the control room. The mergence of Saryn's Power and life force let him summon his own blaster without being morphed, and somehow Cassie had her stunner. She had not been able to explain how that happened, but no one was about to complain. Between the blasters and the two Power weapons, that left only Cestria and Delphinius unarmed.

"Careful," Aura murmured from above, and Cassie pulled herself through the hatch.

Saryn, dividing his attention between the hallway and the ascent, had seen that the way was clear and came up the ladder behind her. She only shook her head as he took the rungs two and a time, *with* his blaster in his hand. If she didn't know better, she'd think he was showing off.

"The door is unguarded," Aura told them quietly, and Cassie followed her gaze toward the closed control room door.

"It is unguarded from *this* side," Saryn corrected, and she shot him an unreadable glance.

"Of course," she agreed, catching Cassie's eye. Cassie rolled her eyes, just a little, and the corner of Aura's mouth quirked.

They all knew what Aura had meant, but Saryn seemed to be in full formal mode, precise speech and all. She wasn't sure he realized he was doing it, but she felt a little guilty. He was only formal when he was upset or uncomfortable, and she suspected it was the latter--because he was unmorphed.

"Your weapons are the stronger," Aura continued. "If one of you will trigger the door, I will enter first and draw their attention from you. You will both have clear shots for perhaps two or three seconds, depending on the hunters' reaction time."

"No." Aura seemed to have expected Saryn's objection, and she interrupted before he could get farther than, "I will--"

"It does not surprise me to know that you were the leader of your Ranger team," she said, drowning out the rest of his sentence. "You want to take all the risks for yourself. But I am the logical choice for this--I am used to fighting unmorphed, and I hit my target almost as often as Cassie does. And Cassie's weapon, as well as yours, is more suited for a prolonged attack."

Saryn did not look convinced, but Cassie hadn't missed his alarm when Aura implied that Cassie--not him--was the other "logical" choice. She suspected it was that as much as anything that made him say, "Agreed. I will override the door lock, and Cassie and I will cover you from the doorway."

Aura nodded, and before she could turn away, Cassie held out her hand, palm down. Aura looked at her oddly, but Saryn must have recognized the gesture, for he placed his hand over hers. She looked at Aura until the Aquitian reluctantly did the same.

"Power *Rangers*," Cassie whispered fiercely, and their hands broke apart.

"Incoming transmission," DECA announced, her clear voice somehow cutting through the chaos around him.

Zhane ignored it anyway, concentrating the Megalasers on the remaining Barox ship as it tumbled through the fringes of the outermost Qesiti asteroid belt. A boulder crumbled to pieces as the powerful weapons blasted through it, but the ship continued on.

"Incoming transmission," DECA repeated, sounding almost impatient.

"From who?" He knew from past experience that the computer would not be silenced until he had done what she wanted.

"The signal is coming from Earth," she replied, sounding rather smug.

That wasn't what he had expected to hear, but he didn't stop to question. "Fine; put it on the auxiliary comm screen."

He didn't have time to glance over and see who it was, but TJ's voice was easily recognizable. "I'm a little busy, here," Zhane said, trying not to snap at the other Ranger as the Qesiti Megazord requested his assistance.

"Yeah, well we're a little worried, here!" TJ retorted. "We haven't been able to contact anyone all morning--are you all right?"

"I'd be better if I weren't trying to two different people and fight at the same time," he answered, annoyed.

"Can we help?"

The Megaship dove forward, intercepting a blast from the hunter's ship before it could reach the Megazord. The energy impact wasn't completely dissipated by the shields, and Zhane clutched the console in front of him in an effort to stay in his seat.

The Qesiti came up behind him, letting the Megaship shield them as they locked onto the Barox ship and fired, again and again. Zhane wasn't too happy about the beating he was taking for their heroic effort, but it was his fault the Barox were in this system at all--he supposed if anyone was going to get shot to pieces, it ought to be him.

"I'll get back to you," Zhane said at last, trying to bring the Megalasers to bear while DECA kept the Megaship between the Barox and the Qesiti. *Great,* he thought. *One wrong move, and I'll be blasted from *both* sides…*

"Zhane," TJ insisted, and Zhane shook his head in frustration.

"Look, I'll get back to you! DECA, end transmission!"

No sooner had the link dissolved than the Barox's port thruster ignited. The Qesiti swooped in, but Zhane beat them to the punch. "I'm the one taking all the fire," he muttered. "You're crazy if you think I'm going to let you destroy that ship alone!"

Between the Megalasers and the Qesiti armament, the Barox ship disintegrated into expanding ripples of dust.

*Not the most satisfying explosion I've ever seen,* he told his friend smugly. *But it's not bad.*

*Are you all right?* Andros demanded, his voice stronger than it had been before.

*Yeah--I think TJ's a little annoyed with me, though,* Zhane said, glancing over at the comm station as DECA announced an incoming Qesiti signal.

*TJ?* Andros repeated.

"DECA, accept the Qesiti transmission," Zhane said aloud. As the Red Qesiti Ranger appeared on the main screen, he repeated resignedly, *I'll get back to you.*

16. Helpless

*Trigger the door.*

He glanced over at Cassie, and she nodded once. He punched the final override sequence into the keypad next to the door, and it slid open.

Aura dove through, weapon in hand as she rolled across the floor of the control room. His eyes scanned the room even as the Aquitian Ranger brought her weapon to bear, and he heard Cassie's stunner power up--but none of them found a target.

One of the Barox lay face down in front of the main viewscreen, but the other must have been out of line of sight from the door. Cassie took a single step into the control room, and he followed silently, keeping his blaster ready.

Aura cocked her head toward the comm panel, where the remains of a second disabled hunter were just visible behind the bank of consoles. He nodded, approaching it carefully and looking for any sign of concealed and possibly automated weaponry.

It seemed to have been destroyed beyond any hope of that, however. He had never been involved in any of Billy's tests on the intruder defense systems in the command center, but the systems had obviously fulfilled their function. If wall-mounted lasers could take out a Barox, they were more powerful than he had believed.

"Saryn?"

He turned, certain enough of the hunter's demise that he could turn his back on it. Cassie stood over the second hunter, staring down at it with a frown on her face. "Any idea what this is?"

"We are receiving a transmission from the Megaship," Aura said, looking up from the comm console.

"Is he all right?" Cassie asked, momentarily diverted.

Aura nodded. "Your teammate has succeeded in destroying two of the--"

He didn't hear the rest of her sentence. Staring over Cassie's shoulder, a flashback tore through his mind, and he saw again the explosion that had killed his best friend and begun the destruction of the Elisian team. *My fault,* he thought, as the vision released him, but there was no time for self-recrimination now.

The thermal detonator still loosely gripped in the hunter's inactive hand had probably begun its countdown as soon as Cassie came near it. "Aura," he said tersely, grabbing Cassie's arm and shoving her toward the scanner console. "Get down!"

*What?* He heard her question in his mind, but fear overwhelmed his irritation. To her credit, she slapped the comm link and ducked behind the console without waiting for an answer.

Cassie didn't question at all, just darted for identical cover on the other side of the room. He could hear the detonator's faint hum now that he was listening for it, and it was only getting louder--they weren't going to make it.

He pushed Cassie hard, sending her sprawling to the floor, and reached for his ruby as he suddenly remembered that he wasn't morphed. The sudden explosion of searing heat and sound caught him full in the back even as his armor shimmered into place around him, his Power fighting with the deadly concussive force. The Power lost, and the world went black as he was thrown violently to the floor.

"Saryn!"

Her scream went unheeded in the roar of the explosion, and she felt fire flicker in the air around them. It was impossible to breathe, the flames stealing the oxygen and superheating the air.

Shrapnel stung her arm even as the wall of fire burned itself out, and she gasped for air as the ventilation systems tried valiantly to compensate. She tried to move, heard Aura's calm voice in her mind telling her to stay put, but she couldn't acknowledge it.

"Cassie," her friend was saying, from somewhere beside her. "Cassie, stay still."

She could move again, and she scrambled into a sitting position, crying out as pain lanced through her right arm. Aura was holding Saryn, his morph gone and his eyes closed. "He saved you," the Aquitian said quietly, reaching for her hand.

Cassie just stared at her, then down at her outstretched hand. Aquitians didn't offer physical contact lightly. "Saryn," she whispered, ignoring the hand and reaching out to touch her lover's face. "Saryn, wake up…"

A light spray of water was falling all around them, and she realized distantly that the fire suppression systems must have kicked in several seconds ago. The room was oddly quiet, the soft fall of water droplets mingling with the tears on her face as she stared down at Saryn's unmoving form.

"Saryn…"

"What's going on?" Ashley asked, trying and failing to be patient.

Andros frowned, staring straight ahead with a curiously unfocused expression in his eyes. "Aura cut off the comm link from her end," he said at last. "Zhane doesn't know what's wrong--she said two of the Barox were destroyed, and then she turned around to talk to someone else… and then the transmission just ended."

"Did he try to contact her again?"

He nodded. "He says he's been trying to reach Aquitar ever since, but no one's answering. All he gets is the Aquitian logo--the signal's going through, but if anyone's receiving it, they aren't sending any kind of reply."

Ashley sighed, frustrated. Obviously, Aquitar had to be Zhane's first priority, but she hated being stuck out here and knowing that there was absolutely nothing she could do. "I feel so *helpless*," she muttered.

She felt Andros' hand on her shoulder, and she reached up to cover it with her own. "I know," he said quietly. "Me too."

"This sucks!" Carlos exclaimed, pacing across the tiny room. "We finally reach Zhane, and all he can say is, 'I'll get back to you'!"

Tommy looked up from where he was perched on the edge of his desk. "You have to trust him, man. He knows what he's doing."

"Yeah, but *we* don't," Carlos said, annoyed. He knew the former Red Ranger was right, but he hated not knowing what was going on. "They could have at least told us they were taking off in the first place!"

"Tommy's right," TJ said with a sigh. "Zhane's probably doing everything he can to stay in one piece right now--we have to let him concentrate."

Carlos turned, starting back in the other direction. With two teammates already missing, it wasn't exactly comforting to have the rest of the team vanish in the space of a few hours. With no word whatsoever.

"Still," Tommy said after a moment. "This is a little different from anything we faced. I mean, we never *had* a mobile command center--the Power Chamber was always there. If someone disappeared, we could at least count on Zordon. Most of the time," he added wryly, a faraway look in his eyes.

"It's not all it's cracked up to be," Carlos assured him, pausing in front of the window to glare outside.

A quiet beep made him turn, and Tommy reached out to touch the modest comm setup in his apartment. "Useful when you have friends offplanet," he had explained with a smile, when TJ asked if the former Ranger knew of anyway to boost the limited range of their communicators.

"TJ?" Zhane asked, and the Blue Ranger stepped forward.

"Yeah, I'm here, Zhane. We're borrowing a friend's comm equipment--*what* is going on?"

Zhane sighed. "We got a distress call from Aquitar this morning--"

"But it wasn't a distress call," TJ objected. "I was there when it came in; it wasn't an official distress signal."

Zhane just shrugged. "Well, they're in trouble," he said bluntly. "There were six Barox attacking their planet--"

"Six?" Tommy exclaimed, and Carlos took his eyes off the miniature screen long enough to look over at him.

"You've heard of them?" he asked, a little surprised.

Tommy folded his arms. "We *fought* one of them. Long story; sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt."

Zhane glanced over his shoulder, apparently monitoring something while he spoke to them. "Saryn and Cassie must have decided not to tell you; when I made it to the Bridge we were already in orbit around Aquitar.

"We couldn't contact any of the Aquitian Rangers, and the two of them went to the surface to find out what was going on. The Megaship destroyed two of the Barox ships--with help--and I got through to Aura for a few minutes, but the transmission was cut off and I can't reestablish contact."

Zhane ran a hand through his hair, a characteristically frustrated gesture, and Carlos frowned. "You can't reach *anyone* on the surface?"

"Well, I didn't try any of the civilian population," Zhane said dryly. "I didn't think they'd be much help."

He turned away before either of them could reply, and Carlos heard DECA's voice in the background. "Just a minute," Zhane said, looking back at the screen. Then it went dark, and Carlos sighed.

"I hate this," he muttered. He caught TJ's eye, and saw the same frustration with their helplessness mirrored in the other Ranger's eyes.

"This is Zhane," he said, when DECA routed the Aquitian transmission onto the main screen.

Instead of Aura's face, as he had expected, the Blue Aquitian Ranger appeared. "Zhane, it's Billy," he said. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah--are *you*?"

Billy glanced around. "So far. We've secured auxiliary control, but the team had to split up. Cestria's checking with the others now. We still don't know how many Barox are in the command center dome."

"No more than four," Zhane interjected. "Two of them chased the Megaship all the way to the Qesiti system, and they've both been destroyed."

Billy frowned. "Four--I may be able to isolate their energy signatures from here, and find out if there are that many in the dome." He did something to the console in front of him, and the screen's view widened as he stepped away from it to adjust something else.

"I heard from Aura just a few minutes ago," Zhane remembered suddenly. "She was transmitting from the control room, but…"

He trailed off as Billy turned sharply away from the screen. "Cestria?" Zhane could hear him asking, and the camera withdrew further to show him catching his girlfriend's arm. "What's wrong?"

Zhane boosted the amplification on the transmission, and Cestria's voice came through clearly. "It's Saryn," she whispered, her face pale. "Billy… Saryn's dead."

Zhane felt as though someone had punched him in the stomach. He could only stare at the screen, trying to remember how to breathe.

Billy seemed equally stunned. He just stood there, gazing at his teammate with an expression of horrified disbelief on his face. Then Cestria closed her eyes and bowed her head, and he seemed to rouse himself.

He guided the Yellow Ranger over to a chair near the screen, putting a hand on her shoulder as she sat down. "How?" he asked at last, his tone one of quiet shock.

"One of the Barox had a thermal detonator," she murmured. "Aura took cover… but he and Cassie were too close. Aura thinks he tried to morph, but it was too late…"

"Cassie?" Billy asked.

"She lives," Cestria replied, lifting her head. "In that, at least, he succeeded--he shielded her from the blast."

Billy nodded, his expression already calmer. "That's all he would have wanted."

"What--" Zhane finally managed to choke the words out. "How can you say that? Saryn's *dead*, and all you can say is, 'oh, at least he died well'?"

Cestria turned that impassive Aquitian gaze on him. "We will mourn later. For now, the threat of the Barox still remains, and we must focus all our energy into dealing with them."

Zhane shook his head, but Billy spoke before he could. "Don't mistake focus for lack of caring, Zhane," he said quietly. "If there's one thing the Rangers have taught me, it's that grief and anger don't win battles."

Zhane took a deep breath, decided against what he had been about to say, and replied flatly, "I should be there."

Billy frowned for a moment, then shook his head. "No--Zhane, there's nothing you can do here. All teleportation is locked down so the Barox can't sneak up on us, and there's no other way you could get down here. You'd be stuck in orbit, with nothing to do except feel helpless."

*Like I don't already,* Zhane thought, but he managed not to say it out loud. "I'm coming anyway," he said. "I just have a few people to pick up along the way."

"I wish I could come with you," Tommy said, a little wistfully.

TJ shot a look at Carlos, who had finally stopped wearing tracks in Tommy's floor and was now fidgeting impatiently at his side. "We can give you a ride, you know," he offered.

The former Ranger team leader hesitated. "Thanks," he said at last. "But I can't interfere. It's not my job anymore--and besides," he said with a forced smile, "I have classes this afternoon."

"Right," TJ said, sighing as he glanced over at Carlos again. "A life--I think I've forgotten what that's like."

Tommy clapped him on the shoulder. "You don't miss it till it's gone," he quipped, and this time his smile looked more sincere. "Trust me; you'll get your turn."

TJ offered his hand, and Tommy clasped it. "Thanks for your help," TJ said, and Tommy nodded.

"Anytime. Just keep them safe, man."

"He's *what*?"

Zhane swallowed, looking away from Carlos' accusing glare. "Saryn was killed by an explosion in the command center on Aquitar," he repeated quietly.

"But…" TJ, for once, seemed to be at a loss for words. "His armor--"

"Maybe he wasn't morphed, I don't know," Zhane said, programming a new course into the helm. "He died protecting Cassie; that's all Cestria could tell me."

"Is she sure?" Carlos demanded. "If she didn't *see* him--"

"She's a telepath," Zhane said without looking up. "Of course she's sure."

"But how could he--"

"Look," Zhane snapped, not caring that he was cutting TJ off. "Do you think I like people dying on me like this? Every time I turn around--" His voice gave out, and he swallowed hard.

*Andros?* he asked desperately.

*Yeah,* his friend's voice came back. *I'm here.*

"I thought we were going to Aquitar," Carlos said, breaking into the silence.

"We have to get Andros and Ashley first," Zhane muttered.

*You would have found a way to keep this from happening.*

*No,* Andros answered, his voice subdued. *I would have done exactly what you did--used the Megaship to lure some of the hunters away, and figured the others could handle the rest.*

"Uh, Zhane?" TJ said hesitantly, but Zhane didn't answer.

*There were seven of them, Zhane,* Andros reminded him. *Only one of you. There's nothing you could have done even if you *had* been there.*

"Zhane?"

"Yeah," Zhane said, staring out at shifting starfield.

"Zhane--we're going to pick up Ashley," TJ said, in an odd tone of voice.

"That's what I said," he answered, not taking his eyes off of the screen.

*Maybe,* he admitted silently. *But I guess I'll never know, will I?*

*Zhane--I wasn't there either. But you don't blame *me* for what happened.*

*Of course not.*

"You said, 'Andros and Ashley,'" TJ corrected.

"I know what I said," Zhane said, turning his head a little.

*Then you can't blame yourself, either,* his friend said firmly. *You did everything you could.*

"Zhane?" Carlos, who had remained silent until this point, was now frowning at him. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," Zhane answered, glancing down at the console in front of him. "Let's just get Andros and Ashley and get back to Aquitar. I'm tired of having information relayed to me."

"*You're* tired of having information relayed to you?" Carlos repeated indignantly, but Zhane saw TJ motion him to be quiet.

"Zhane, have you heard from Ashley since yesterday?" TJ asked.

Zhane shook his head. "No; how could I?" Catching sight of the Blue Ranger's concerned expression, he added, "Andros says she's fine."

TJ and Carlos exchanged glances. "The last we knew," TJ said carefully, "Andros was on the Delta Megaship when it exploded. Were we wrong?"

Zhane just stared at him, wondering what he was talking about. "No…"

"But you can hear him talking to you?" Carlos asked, giving him a skeptical look.

All of a sudden, it clicked. They didn't know--and how could they, when he hadn't told anyone? He shook his head, a slight smile tugging at his lips. "You think I'm crazy." It was some sort of justice, he supposed, for the way he had dismissed Ashley when she tried to tell *him*.

The days that Andros had been absent from his mind had been glossed over as soon as he heard his friend's voice, a gap bridged as easily the years Zhane had spent in hypersleep. It was once again as though they had never been separated--but the rest of the world went on without the knowledge he held so close to his heart. And now they probably thought him as delusional as he had supposed Ashley to be.

They were looking at each other again, and he just shook his head. "I know how this sounds, but Andros *is* alive. The Delta Megaship was built with a failsafe that ejected the command module as soon as the engine core blew. It had minimal thruster capability, and its programming crash-landed it on the nearest habitable planet."

TJ didn't look much less skeptical. "Then why couldn't you hear him right away?"

"He was unconscious until sometime after the crash," he said, telling them what little Andros could remember. "He doesn't know how Ashley heard him, but he says he doesn't remember anything until she found him."

"And--he's all right?" Carlos asked incredulously.

Zhane frowned. "He will be, once we get him back on the Megaship. He won't tell me how badly he was hurt, but he says Ashley's been 'taking care of him'. They're walking, too, heading for one of the lunar settlements, so they can't be too badly injured."

"Lunar settlements?" TJ repeated. "Where *are* they?"

Zhane noted with relief that there was no doubt in TJ's question, just curiosity, and he thought he might have convinced them. "Irini's largest moon. I'm still not sure how Ashley found him there, but he's sure she saved his life."

"Wait--" Carlos still looked doubtful. "Ashley took the shuttle. Why couldn't she have just contacted us when she found him?"

"Darkonda chased her to Irini," he said, bracing for their concern. "The shuttle went down, and she says everything in the cockpit was inoperable. They've been running ever since."

Ashley squirmed closer, resting her head against Andros' shoulder. "What does he say?" she asked softly.

Andros sighed, his arm tightening around her shoulders. "I think he believes me. It wasn't his *fault*, Ash."

"I know," she whispered. "It wasn't anyone's fault."

He closed his eyes, leaning his head against the top of hers. Cassie was all right; that was some comfort. Zhane had told them that Kerone had indeed agreed to help them, and that Cassie was once again good--and then this had to happen.

"I feel like we've just gotten one friend back when we lose another," Ashley murmured, echoing his thoughts.

Andros nodded once, reaching out to take her free hand. "Yeah," he admitted in a low voice. "We just can't seem to keep this team together, no matter how hard we try."

She squeezed his fingers. "It'll be okay," she whispered. "The Rangers are like that--things always work out in the end."

"I thought that, once," he said softly. "Then I lost my sister."

"And got her back, maybe," Ashley said, sliding her hand out of his to run her fingers across his palm. "If she helped Cassie…"

He sighed. "I hope so, Ash. I really hope so."

"And you got Zhane back," she reminded him, tracing the line the curved around his thumb. "And you have all of us, now."

He smiled a little at her earnest tone. "I do," he agreed. "And I have you."

"You'll always have me," she whispered.

"I know," he said, hugging her closer.

She sighed, her fingers stilling on his hand. "It's not enough, is it. I love you, Andros, but the Rangers are family."

He was quiet for a minute. "Yeah, they are," he said at last. "I never thought about it that way before. Saryn was--part of your family, wasn't he?"

"Yours too," she said, wrapping her hand around his again. "You knew him longer than us. And besides, we adopted you and Zhane. Our family is your family."

He had to smile at the thought of being "adopted". "I guess it is."

Ashley sighed again. "Cassie must be devastated."

The spray from the fire suppression sprinklers was soaking into her clothes and running down her bare arms, but she didn't care. She held Saryn now, but Aura had not left her side. The other Ranger said nothing, just offering her silent comfort as Cassie's tears kept falling.

She stared down at the face she had known for weeks, lifetimes. His features blurred with the tears in her eyes, but the truth remained heartbreakingly clear. In seconds, her world had fallen to pieces and there was no getting it back.

There had been no warning, no fear--just the rush of adrenaline as he shoved her out of the way, and then a sudden snap as his awareness vanished from her mind. She was alone in a way she hadn't been in a long time, and she still couldn't believe it had happened.

*He's gone,* she realized, her mind tentatively trying the idea and rejecting it instantly. To spend the rest of her life without him, to go on with only her friends--who once would have been enough--for company, to try and make a life without the one person who had given it meaning…

This man--this boy, for he was not truly that old, despite the years between them--had taken over her heart and soul, reclaiming what had been his for far longer than just the brief time since Cassie Chan had met the Phantom Ranger. She could not, *would* not, go on without him.

Without knowing what she was doing, Cassie reached out and laid her hand on his chest. She swallowed hard, feeling a sob catch in her throat when no heartbeat pulsed beneath her fingers. "Saryn," she whispered, resting her other hand gently on his forehead.

*Don't leave me…*

She knew she had said the words aloud, but they echoed strangely in her mind. She could feel the Power flooding through her, uncalled but stronger than ever. She braced herself to morph, but her Ranger uniform did not appear.

She heard Aura gasp as the Pink Power swirled around her, but she was too caught up in her loneliness to notice. She would not live without him…

*I need you, Saryn.*

This time, the roaring in her ears was too loud for her to know whether she had spoken or not. The Power rushed through her, a torrent she had never felt before, let alone controlled. Her hands glowed where they pressed against Saryn's body, and she couldn't let go.

His ruby had slid along its chain to rest against the coral floor, like some tossed-aside child's toy. But as the shimmer in her vision increased, the stone flickered, and for one brief moment she felt something more than her own emotions in her mind.

Then the Pink glow flared about her, drowning out everything else as the Power flux exploded out of her control, and she knew nothing more.

"Cassie?"

The voice was familiar, but the noise was drowning it out. She couldn't hear anything clearly over the ringing in her ears. And the chaos in her mind… she couldn't tell is she was safe or falling, calm, scared, or out of her mind with joy.

Groaning, she twisted her head in a vain attempt to clear it. Something touched her hair, and she flinched away, only realizing then that she was being held.

The voice came again. She strained to hear it, wondering if there was amusement in it this time. "Don't hit me, please."

"What…" The word didn't sound quite right, and she struggled to get her eyes open.

"You have a disturbing tendency to hit me when you are waking up," the voice explained, and she managed to frown, certain she knew whose voice it was.

Squinting into the light that assaulted her eyes, a face wavered into view above her. "Cassie?" the amusement had gone from the quiet voice, but it was definitely coming from--

"You're dead," she whispered, trying to move, but afraid that if she did this vision would be gone.

"Surprise?" he said tentatively, sliding his hand behind her back and helping her into a sitting position. It was such an un-Saryn like thing to say that she could only stare, her heart pounding in her ears as she waited for the dream to end.

"Are you all right?" He watched her worriedly, as though she might collapse at any moment.

She tried to laugh, but it came out as a sob as she threw herself forward. "Saryn," she choked, never so glad for his embrace as she was at that moment. "Don't leave me."

"I would never do such a thing," he murmured in her ear. For a moment, he just held her, and then he added, "Now, it seems, I *can* not."

She didn't question, just tightened her arms around him and let his confidence convince her. They were together--that had always been enough before, and this time was no exception.

"I do not mean to interrupt," Aura said quietly, and Cassie started. She had forgotten anyone else was there. Saryn stroked her hair soothingly, and the Aquitian Ranger continued, "A Power surge of that magnitude will have registered on scanners all over Aquitar. The Barox could not have missed it--we must leave this area if we are to avoid them."

"You're right," Cassie mumbled, though the "Power surge" was nothing but a jumble of incoherent images in her mind. She still didn't know what had happened, but staying there probably wasn't the best idea.

Saryn waited until she pulled away. As she sat back, he flowed to his feet, catching her hand and drawing her effortlessly along with him. She smiled, then froze as she realized he was holding her right hand. "My arm," she murmured, glancing at it without thinking. There was no sign of injury, not even lingering burn scars from the day before.

"I healed you," he told her quietly. She opened her mouth to protest, knowing it drained him to use his ruby that way, but he covered her mouth before she could speak. "Do not say anything--it was the least I could do, after you saved my life."

She kissed his fingers, and he smiled at her. "Thank you," Cassie whispered, as he let his hand fall.

"You're welcome," he said, returning her gaze with a soft look of his own. They stared at each other for a moment, until he blinked and glanced over at Aura.

The Red Aquitian Ranger was standing by the door, rather pointedly ignoring them, and Cassie tried not to smile. "It is an Aquitian practice, not to intrude on private moments." "We have to go," she said, and he nodded reluctantly.

As she started to turn away, though, he caught her hand and she looked back in surprise. "I love you," he murmured. "Never forget."

"I can't," she promised, kissing him quickly and delighting in it. "I love you, too."

"We isolated the control room again when we left," Aura was saying, and he tried to focus on her words. "The forcefields will keep the Barox out--though I am not sure how much of the control room is still operable."

"With that kind of explosion, on top of the laser damage, they would probably find little of use inside," Delphinius agreed, settling Cetaci more comfortably against the far wall of auxiliary control.

"It is better not to take that chance," Cestria put in.

"Excuse me," Billy interrupted. "I hate to be the one to bring this up, but--Saryn?"

He shifted uncomfortably under the Blue Aquitian Ranger's gaze. The shock on the Aquitians' faces when he entered the room with Cassie and Aura had made it perfectly clear that Aura had informed them of the explosion, but not the events that followed. Aura had spoken without offering explanation, and her teammates seemed willing to overlook the situation, at least for now--except Billy.

"Not that I'm not glad to be wrong," the Blue Ranger said quickly, "but aren't you supposed to be… dead?"

He glanced at Cassie inadvertently, and she stepped closer to him. "He was," she said quietly.

"Ah," Billy said. "Well… I'm glad he isn't." There was silence for a moment, then Billy glanced around. "Could someone explain that part to me, actually?"

"Cassie healed him," Aura said, as though it was nothing out of the ordinary.

Billy looked at her, then back at Cassie. "I apologize for doubting, especially when the evidence is standing right in front of me, but--you brought someone back to life?"

"Not exactly," Cassie muttered, scuffing the toe of her sandal against the floor, and he almost smiled. It was such a normal thing to see her do. She had done it a hundred times before, and somehow, it restored some of his perspective.

"Yes, she did," he said firmly, and saw Cassie look up in surprise. "Or at least, the Power did," he amended, and this time she nodded a little.

"That was it," she agreed, her voice a little stronger. "Saryn's done it before--healed people with his ruby--this was the same thing; the Power just went through me instead."

"He has never restored life to one who was dead," Cestria interjected quietly.

"He never used someone else's Power, either," Billy said, an odd look on his face.

Cassie was frowning. "What do you mean?"

Billy cocked his head. "I could be wrong about this, but Cassie--can you make your stunner disappear?"

He saw her tug carefully on her stunner, dislodging its handle from her pocket and dismissing it with a slight movement of her hand. "Now what?" she asked, sounding genuinely curious.

"Would you give me your morpher?" Billy asked, and Cassie nodded. She pulled it off without hesitation and handed it to the other Ranger, waiting expectantly.

"Now… summon your stunner," Billy said.

"My stunner?" Cassie repeated, as though she hadn't heard. "But I can't--"

"You couldn't before, either," Billy reminded her. "At least, you *shouldn't* have been able to. Just try it."

Cassie shrugged. Holding out her right hand, she declared, "Satellite Stunner!"

The weapon materialized in her hand without so much as a shimmer, and she looked startled. "But you have my--"

"You're not using your morpher," Billy surmised. "Your Power is always with you, but without your morpher, you should have no way to channel it--either someone else is doing it for you, or you're using someone else's Power."

He shifted as Cassie glanced his way. She wasn't the only one; all eyes were suddenly on him. "The Power is Ranger-specific," he reminded her, reminded all of them. "Rangers do not share Power."

"Actually, that's not quite true," Billy said. "My original team could do that--share Power among ourselves. All of us could focus our Power into one person, making them temporarily stronger."

"We share everything else," Cassie said softly, staring at him. She lifted her hand slowly, tracing a "V" shape over the neckline of her t-shirt and then pointing at his ruby.

He knew what she wanted--but he was afraid to try. He had failed her so often before… he wasn't sure which of them would be more disappointed if it didn't work.

"You don't have to," she said quietly. "But we won't know, otherwise."

He caught his ruby with one hand and slipped the chain over his head before he could change his mind. He passed the stone to her without a word and she wrapped her fingers around it, the gold chain falling across her wrist.

He stared at her for what seemed an interminable amount of time, until finally she whispered, "Can you morph?"

Her words sounded loud in the silent room, and he swallowed. Concentrating on his armor, he had time for only the briefest flicker of surprise as the Power flowed through him. He looked down in amazement as his uniform shimmered into existence.

Glancing up again, he caught her eye as a smile lit her face. "Yes," he said, somehow managing to keep his voice calm as he let his armor fade away again.

She took a step forward, searching his expression and, he thought, silently asking for his permission. After all, it wasn't just Aura this time--

He reached out and pulled her into a hug, not caring what the others might think. He heard her sigh contentedly, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Aura look away. He closed his eyes and rested her head against hers, wondering what the Aquitian team's human member had thought of their experiment.

He got his answer a moment later.

"Interesting," was Billy's only comment.

17. Anything

*Ask him why he didn't answer last night,* Ashley urged.

*Zhane?* Seated on a rock outcropping by the edge of the river, the two of them had abandoned their trek toward the settlement and were waiting for the Megaship's arrival. *I couldn't hear you last night, when I tried to reach you--it might have been me, though. Ashley's been giving me pain relievers like crazy--"

"Hey!" Ashley slapped his shoulder affectionately.

*But she could hear me just fine,* Andros continued, grinning at her. *So I thought they'd worn off enough for me to reach you.*

Ashley swung her legs in mock-annoyance, breaking the surface of the water and splashing both of them. "Sure, blame it on me," she murmured, a smug look on her face as he ducked instinctively.

But there was no answer from Zhane, and he frowned a little. *Zhane?*

*You tried to talk to me last night?* his friend asked slowly.

*Yeah,* Andros said, glancing over at Ashley. She cocked her head, a questioning look on her face. *Over and over. I could sense you, just barely, but I never heard you answer.*

*That's because I didn't hear you.*

Zhane must have been with the others, because even his thoughts were tightly controlled. Andros could tell his friend was trying very hard not to get upset, but he couldn't figure out why. "He couldn't hear me," he told Ashley quietly, as though his words would somehow interrupt his conversation with Zhane.

"But *I* could hear you," she answered, obviously puzzled.

*Zhane?* he prompted gently.

His friend's response startled him. *I'm going to kill her.*

Andros waited for him to explain, but that was all he said. Finally, he asked, *What? What's wrong?*

*I'm going to kill her!* Zhane exclaimed, genuine irritation in his tone. *I don't care if she's your sister, Andros; I'm going to kill her!*

Andros exchanged glances with Ashley, though he knew she couldn't hear Zhane's side of the conversation. *Zhane, what happened?* he demanded, remembering Zhane's steadfast refusal to believe the girl he had met could be evil. *She didn't hurt you, did she?*

*I--no, she didn't. No, I just--* Zhane's thoughts were barely coherent enough for Andros to understand, but he couldn't tell if it was because of anger or something else. *I don't know what to *think*, Andros.*

He glanced over at Ashley, her curiosity evident in her expression. He just shrugged helplessly, aware of his friend's frustration but no closer to understanding its cause than he had been before.

*I thought you said she vanished as soon as Cassie was better,* Andros said at last, trying to prod Zhane into talking.

*She did--I… I saw her later, on the docks outside Angel Grove,* Zhane admitted. *She left so quickly… I was hoping she'd come back, and talk to me.*

*And she did?* Andros said, a little surprised. He knew Zhane had an odd friendship with the girl he called "Astrea", and he was convinced now that his sister was somewhere inside her--but she had been Astronema for years, and it was hard to think of the princess of evil as… normal.

*Yeah. I mentioned--* Zhane's thoughts dissolved again, and Andros waited patiently. *I said I'd been having trouble sleeping,* Zhane told him. *She offered to *make* me sleep--she said there was some spell that would make me sleep until I was ready to wake up.*

"Andros?" Ashley asked softly, but he just shook his head.

"One second," he said, squeezing her hand. *So you let her?*

*No!* There was no hesitation in the thought. *I trust her, Andros--she did help heal Cassie, after all. But I don't want anyone messing with my head unless they *have* to.*

Andros couldn't doubt the truth of that. Zhane was fiercely independent, despite his carefree attitude, and he hadn't really expected any other answer. *She did it anyway,* he guessed.

*Yeah,* Zhane confirmed. *She must have. It's the only way I could have slept through you calling me. Andros, I'm so sorry; I had no idea--*

He couldn't help smiling in relief. *It's okay; I was just worried that something had happened to you.*

*I'm going to kill her,* his friend repeated half-heartedly. *I can't believe she did that!*

Privately, Andros was proud of her. His sister wasn't so far buried under her Astronema persona that she had forgotten how to care--the fact that she had helped Cassie and tried to help Zhane proved that. He sincerely hoped they would see each other soon… he owed her so much.

*She was just trying to help,* he reminded Zhane quietly. *She must have been worried about you too.*

*Then--* Zhane hesitated a little. *You're not upset?*

Startled, Andros asked, *Why should I be upset?*

*Because I wasn't here for you!* his friend burst out. *I should have heard you, should have been able to help…*

*You are helping,* Andros said, a smile on his face. *We could have been stranded here for a long time without you. Zhane, you have never, ever failed me, and you know it. Stop feeling sorry for yourself and get over here to pick us up.*

"She spelled him to sleep?" Ashley repeated, her eyes wide.

Andros nodded, a preoccupied look in his eyes. "She offered, and he said no, but she did it anyway."

Ashley couldn't help sighing. "That's so nice…"

Andros gave her a surprised look, and she realized that that must have sounded strange. "Well, you know," she said, shrugging a little. "Nice in an inconvenient kind of way."

Andros' lips twitched, as though he were trying not to laugh. "'Nice in an inconvenient kind of way'?" he repeated.

She splashed him again, smiling. "You know what I mean," she accused.

"How come I have to keep getting wet?" he asked suspiciously, sliding closer to the water. "And you think it's nice, too?"

"Of course," she said, watching him intently as he moved closer to her. "She was just trying to help Zhane--I think it's sweet. She's definitely your sister," Ashley added impishly, and he laughed.

"Dark Spectre's favorite villain is 'definitely my sister'? Thanks a lot!"

She went to splash him, but this time he was quicker. Leaning over the edge of the rock, he slapped his hand across the surface of the river. The spray went mostly wide, but she shrieked as the edge of it sprinkled across her face.

Andros just grinned when she splashed him back indignantly. Before she could say anything, though, she heard Zhane's distinct drawl ask, "Since when do you two have parties and not invite us?"

"Zhane!" she exclaimed, twisting around to see him grinning down at them, flanked by TJ and Carlos. Then she yelped as Andros took advantage of her distraction to send a spray of water in her direction.

"Andros!" Zhane said, mock-horror in his tone. "How could you? Splashing a *lady*?"

He held out a hand to her before she could retaliate against Andros, and she took it, giving Andros a smug look. Zhane pulled her to her feet, giving her a slight bow, and she hugged him. "It's so good to see you," she said happily. "And not just because I needed rescuing!"

She tried to give Andros an indignant look, but he was closer than she had thought, and his hand was on her shoulder before she could meet his gaze. "All right, all right," he said, grinning at Zhane. "That's enough rescuing."

Ashley giggled and let Andros pull her away. Carlos engulfed her in a hug next, and she returned it without hesitation. "Ash," he said sternly, as he pulled away. "Next time, *tell* someone before you take off across the galaxy!"

"No kidding," TJ added, clapping her shoulder. "You had us worried for a while."

"Only for a while?" she asked, pretending to be hurt. "I'm glad you got over it so quickly!"

TJ laughed. "Zhane eventually got around to telling us that you were all right--Andros too."

She couldn't help looking over at them then, smiling at the Kerovan Rangers' clasped hands. "Two whole days?" Andros was saying. "See how long it takes me to find *you* next time!"

"Just back from the dead and you're already threatening me," Zhane complained, but they were both grinning at each other. Ashley could hear Andros in her mind, talking away to his friend as though they'd never been apart.

She was privately amazed at how easily the two carried on both conversations at the same time, but Carlos distracted her before she could think about it any longer. "Ash, you look *terrible*," he opined, in a voice loud enough for all of them to hear.

"Keep those compliments coming," she said, putting up her fists in a mock-defensive gesture. "You think you can take me?" she kidded, swinging at his shoulder.

"Any day, Hammond," he retorted, laughing.

"Watch it," TJ said, folding his arms over his chest and looking distinctly amused.

"What, are you siding with her?" Carlos demanded.

"I'm always on the winning side," TJ answered, a grin on his face.

"Was that a yes or a no?" the Black Ranger asked indignantly.

"It was a yes!" Ashley declared. "Give it up, Carlos!"

"Hey, guys?" Andros said, and they all looked up. "Ashley would win, but we need to get to Irini."

"What?" Carlos glared at him, and TJ just laughed again.

"Good to have you back, Andros."

"Yeah, whatever," Carlos muttered, giving Andros a dark look.

"You're *not* going to Irini," Zhane interrupted.

"I have to," Andros said simply. "The Megaship alone can't help Aquitar, and the Alliance still isn't official. Until Irini's invited, we can't ask for outside help."

"I know," Zhane told him, not looking any less determined. "*I'm* going to Irini--you're going to the Medical bay on the Megaship."

"That's right," Ashley chimed in, sobering quickly. "I want DECA's opinion before you go anywhere."

"Not to mention that neither of you are fit to be seen until you clean up and get a fresh change of clothes," Carlos contributed smugly.

She made a face at Carlos, but he just smirked back at her.

"All right," Andros admitted. He twisted his wrist once, and his morpher appeared in place of the red-banded gold communicator. He pulled it off and passed it to Zhane. "Just in case they have any doubt," he explained, and Zhane nodded.

Ashley frowned. "Any doubt about what?"

"That I've authorized Zhane to speak in my place," Andros told her. "Things like this have more weight if they come from a team leader. It's kind of a silly rule, but…"

"That's politics for you," Zhane put in, slipping Andros' morpher onto his wrist. "Find something in there that makes sense, and the universe would probably fall apart."

Andros nodded reluctantly. "Something like that," he said, a small smile on his face. "Be careful, all right?"

"I won't start any wars," Zhane promised.

"I'll be happy if you don't steal some important diplomat's girlfriend," Andros shot back.

"Who, me?" Zhane gave them his most innocent look. "I don't have the slightest idea what you're talking about."

"He means don't 'rescue' anyone," Carlos said wryly, and Zhane grinned.

"Oh, *that*. I'll do my best."

TJ raised his eyebrow as Zhane disappeared into a stream of silver light. "Do you think he meant he'd do his best *not* to?"

Cassie yawned, blinking as she tried to refocus on the orbital station data in front of her. The Barox had disabled all five main stations as soon as they entered the system, but Billy had managed to get two of them operational through their computer linkup. Now she found herself on monitor duty while Billy and Aura tried to track down the remaining hunters.

"You are tired," Cestria said softly, joining her at the scanner console.

"It's been a long day," Cassie admitted. "I'd love a nap right about now."

"You are not alone," Cestria said, glancing around the small room. Cassie smiled a little, following her gaze. Billy and Aura were speaking in whispers. Cetaci's eyes were open and unclouded, but Delphinius, still at her side, was clearly dozing. And closer to the door--

Cassie's eyes widened. Saryn had never been able to sleep in anyone's presence but hers for very long. Yet he, like Delphinius, was sitting on the floor with his back to the bulkhead and his eyes closed.

"I can't believe he's sleeping," she whispered, catching Cestria's eye.

"I was surprised as well," the other Ranger agreed. "But Billy thinks that the Power you used to heal him came from both of you. It is to be expected that it would drain him more, as his Power and life force are intertwined."

Cassie couldn't help feeling guilty. "I never thought of that."

The hint of a smile graced Cestria's face. "Do not be sorry for what you have done, Cassie. He lives--is that not worth some small amount of fatigue?"

"Of course," Cassie murmured, her gaze straying inevitably back to the sleeping figure by the door. "That and more. I'd give my life for him."

"That he would not thank you for, I think," Cestria replied quietly, glancing in Saryn's direction as well. "I am not convinced he would *want* to live, if you could not be with him."

Cassie shook her head. "But you knew him for years before I did."

"He was not as he is now," Cestria said gently. "He has changed a great deal since you came to stay with him. He--feels things now, I think. For a long time, he was almost… pretending to live, not doing more than responding to events around him. Since you have been here, he has become a real person, as he must once have been on Elisia."

"You know who he was, then," Cassie said, no longer surprised that someone recognized Saryn's name.

Cestria's eyes flickered toward her. "Everyone knows of the person he was, Cassie. Elisia was not just another border planet; it was the heart of the frontier. The colony there was established by Eltarans, and the leader of such a planet's Ranger team could scarcely go unnoticed by the rest of the League."

Cassie heard the words, but she didn't register them. She was more concerned with the increasing restlessness of Saryn's sleep--she knew how he slept, and he barely moved. Now though, his fingers twitched, and though his eyes were still closed, his expression was no longer peaceful.

She could feel a vague discomfort in the back of her mind, but she couldn't tell if the feeling was hers or his. She had already started across the room when his head turned, and she saw his eyes snap open as he gasped, "Lyris…"

The discomfort exploded inside her head as he came awake, and she tensed involuntarily. Guilt and despair threatened to overwhelm her, and she was more thankful than ever for the lessons Cestria had given her over the last couple of weeks.

His expression cleared even before she reached his side, his features assuming a look of neutral impassivity, but the feelings did not abate. She crouched down beside him, aware that everyone in the room had heard his whisper and that their eyes were only now turning away to give the two of them some amount of privacy.

"Saryn?" she murmured, distancing her awareness from his emotions as best she could.

"I am well," he said, and she scrambled to her feet as he stood. "I wish to check this level for hunter activity; I will return shortly."

"I'm coming with you," she insisted, bracing herself for an argument.

He just nodded silently, and she glanced over at the Yellow Ranger. "Cestria, could you--"

"I am monitoring the orbital data," Cestria assured her, and Cassie shot her a grateful glance as she followed Saryn out into the hallway.

She had expected to have to hurry to keep up with him, but as soon as the door closed behind them he came to an abrupt halt, putting a hand against the corridor wall as if to steady himself and looking down. "Saryn?" she asked again, more worried than ever.

He swallowed hard, turning so his back was to the wall. Closing his eyes, he leaned back against it and whispered, "I am well, Cassie."

"You're not," she said quietly, wanting to touch him but afraid of startling him. "You had a nightmare?"

His lips quirked, but there was no humor in the smile. "I have had so many nightmares… there was a time I could not sleep without them. Lately--" He opened his eyes slowly to regard her. "They have been fewer since I met you."

She stared back at him, willing him to take her own strength, her own confidence and make it his. "He has become a real person again," Cestria had said, but with that came all the weaknesses that the Phantom Ranger had been able to ignore by immersing himself in duty.

"Lyris was one of your teammates," she said, not sure how she knew. He had rarely spoken of his former team since the time in the Megaship's hangar bay when he had told her about his homeworld. And he had never mentioned anyone's name but Jenna's.

"My best friend," he said softly. "The first to fall when Elisia came under Dark Spectre's attack--he did not survive the explosion of a mine triggered by his body heat."

Cassie's eyes widened, suddenly understanding. "A thermal detonator," she breathed, and he nodded. "I'm sorry," she said, not knowing what else to say.

"I know," he murmured, closing his eyes again and letting his head rest against the wall. "I am sorry I took you away from your duties in control--I will be fine, if you wish to return to them."

"No." She leaned against the wall even as he was, watching his expression from the corner of her eye. "I'd rather stay."

He smiled a little at that, and though he said nothing, she thought he was grateful for her company. She tried to remember anything she might know about Lyris, despite Saryn's reluctance to talk about his old teammates. Oddly enough, she could call to mind a vague image of tan, sandy-haired boy in blue, but she wasn't sure where it came from.

"Lyris was the Blue Ranger?" she wondered aloud, then winced as she realized her curiosity might upset him further.

"Yes," he said, opening his eyes again to glance at her. "Did I tell you that?"

"I guess so," she said, smiling tentatively. He gave her a half-smile in return, and it bothered her suddenly that the two of them *still* knew next to nothing about each other. They were the closest friends he'd had in his entire life, and she didn't even know all their names…

"You are troubled," he said quietly, still watching her.

She let out her breath in amusement. "I liked it better when I knew what *you* were feeling, but you weren't so quick to know about *me*."

"The allure of mystery?" he teased gently, and she smiled.

"You had it all those months. Maybe I thought it was my turn."

He reached up and stroked her cheek with the back of his finger, then let his hand fall. "The more I know about you," he murmured, "the more I love."

She sighed, but it wasn't an unhappy sigh, and her question was an idle one when she asked, "How much *do* you know, though? How much does either of us know about the other? We never think to ask…"

"To ask what?"

She smiled again, thinking for a moment. "Do you even know how old I am?"

"Seventeen," he answered immediately, and she gave him a surprised look.

"How did you know that?"

"You told me." When she frowned, he amended, "Indirectly. You said I wasn't that much older than you--'since when does six years matter' I believe were your exact words."

Cassie tried not to blush. "I can't believe you remember that."

"The first time you lost your temper with me," he said, clearly amused by the memory. "How could I forget?"

She didn't know how to answer that, and after a moment, he saved her the trouble. "What do you not know about me that you wish to?" he asked, more seriously.

For a moment, she honestly couldn't think of anything. Even as she remembered her curiosity about his team, though, a completely different question sprang to mind. "If you weren't here," she said suddenly. "If you weren't on Aquitar, if there was no fighting, anywhere…" She turned her head to watch him. "What would you want to be doing, right now?"

He looked over at her, catching her gaze and holding it. "Anything," he said. "Anything with you."

That wasn't exactly what she had meant, but it didn't matter. "Me too," she said with a smile, and felt him wrap his hand around hers.

"You said you wished I could not read you so easily," he murmured. "But I like feeling you say it, not just hearing the words."

She squeezed his hand, knowing exactly what he meant. "You couldn't before?"

He shook his head, not quite meeting her eyes anymore. "Only since--Astronema made me realize I was blocking you."

Cestria had tried to explain the basic principles of telepathy and blocking, and Cassie had assumed they applied to empathy as well--everything else seemed to. But everything she knew about blocking said that it was intentional, and she couldn't imagine that he would deliberately try to keep her out of his mind.

"Why?" she asked at last, and he sighed a little.

She waited while he just stood there, staring across the hall at something she could see. "Not all Elisians are empathically sensitive to only one person," he said at last.

"The person--they love?" she prompted, when he stopped.

He nodded. "Some are true empaths, responding to some degree to the emotions of everyone around them." He hesitated again, taking a deep breath. "Lyris was one."

He said nothing more, as though that were all the explanation she needed, and she mulled it over for a moment. Then, just as she was about to admit to her confusion, he admitted in a whisper, "I was another."

Startled, she tried to catch his eye. He was staring down at the ground, now, and for the briefest instant, he looked like nothing so much as a guilty little boy who had just confessed to a prank he knew he wasn't supposed to pull.

"I don't understand," she said finally, and at that he looked up.

"Neither did I," he said, his voice still a whisper. "I didn't know I needed training; all I knew was that keeping myself separate from others made me feel better. So I did, whenever I could--until I joined the Rangers, and one of my new teammates recognized me for what I was.

"Empaths weren't allowed in Elisian politics, Cassie. They were considered to have too much of an advantage. I made Lyris promise not to tell--I couldn't keep the rest of the team from finding out, but to my surprise they agreed to keep my secret, and it went no farther than them."

She wanted to interrupt. She wanted to ask questions, to distract him from a memory he almost seemed to be reliving rather than recounting. But he so rarely told her anything about his life on Elisia that she couldn't bring herself to do it; couldn't make herself stop him from telling the story.

"Lyris taught me everything he knew about empathy," he said, a distance in his eyes that she knew all too well. "He gave me the training I never had, and we became very close. We even found we could communicate empathically, to some extent…"

He drew in another breath, but it was shaky, and she had all she could do to keep from reaching out to him. "We were doing so during our last battle on Elisia. It was that which distracted him, prevented him from noticing the detonator until it was too late. You--"

He swallowed, not looking at her. "You know the rest. His death was the only the beginning, and our team was defeated for the first and last time."

*Cassie. Saryn.*

She started, glancing down the hallway in both directions. Only when it remained empty did she realize the voice had been in her mind--Cestria had spoken to her that way on occasion, but Aura's "voice" was louder, more a statement of fact than a suggestion of a presence.

Saryn must have acknowledged for them, for Aura said, *One of the Barox is almost directly above your location, and only a level away--*

She cut off before Cassie could find out whether she meant for them to return to the relative safety of the auxiliary control room or to go after the hunter themselves. She glanced over at Saryn, but he did not look at all surprised--*He's talking to her!* she thought, annoyed to be left out of the conversation. Especially since she knew what he had to be saying.

"You're not going without me," she said firmly, and his gaze snapped toward her.

His eyes were flat, and there was no expression on his face as he turned to her. "You should not--"

His closed-up look worried her, and she wished Aura could have waited just a few more minutes before springing this one them. "Was I the one that died last time?" she asked indignantly. She answered her own question. "No. End of discussion; I'm coming."

The corner of his mouth quirked as he stared at her, and she put her hands on her hips. "Don't even think about laughing," she warned, although privately she thought she would give anything if he would. "You're not going alone, and I'm not staying here and waiting till you come back."

He smiled slightly, and she breathed a sigh of relief when he nodded.

The Barox was not where Aura had pinpointed it by the time they reached the next level, but he had not expected it to be. He signaled to Cassie, and she pulled herself through the hatch and into the deserted hallway. "Billy thinks it was headed for the area below the control room," he whispered, and she nodded.

He started to turn away, stilling when she caught his hand. "Saryn--I know this isn't the time, but it wasn't your fault."

"What?" he asked, his voice as quiet--and puzzled--as he could make it. He didn't want to talk about it anymore, but she didn't seem willing to let the subject drop.

"Lyris," she whispered. "He'd hate it if he knew you were blaming yourself for his death. It wasn't your fault; and you know he'd tell you the same thing if he was here."

He glanced at her, and her dark eyes drew him into her intense gaze. Quietly, she added, "I don't think he'd be very happy to know you cut yourself off from a talent he helped you to train, either, just because you felt responsible for what happened to him."

A muffled clank from somewhere down the hallway caught his attention and put every sense on alert. He didn't know how she did it, but not only could she distract him from everything around him, she could be right at the same time.

"Come on," Cassie whispered, tugging gently on his hand.

He tried to shake the jumbled feelings out of his mind, to focus only on the enemy up ahead of them--but he couldn't help squeezing her shoulder with his free hand, just to let her know he understood. When she turned and smiled at him, he caught his breath and reminded himself to *tell* her later.

They were one turn away from the common area below the control room when the air seemed to crackle around them. He halted where he was, and Cassie looked back at him in surprise. They were still handfast, and she could not continue without pulling her hand away from his.

"What's wrong?" she mouthed in his direction, but the puzzled look on her face was enough to tell him that she had not felt it.

"There is something…" He frowned, trying to pin the feeling down. "Back up. Now."

She complied, letting him pull her back down the hall. "Saryn, what--"

He ducked into the first turnoff they came to and pressed his fingers to her lips. "If I am wrong," he whispered, "we have wasted nothing but time. Please, just wait."

She nodded wordlessly, wrapping her fingers around his and resting her cheek against their clasped hands. A moment later, a burst of thunderous noise rocked the corridor in which they stood, and a flash of light made sharp shadows leap across the opposite wall.

Cassie stared at him, her eyes wide and her body tense. "Another detonator," she whispered.

He freed one hand from her grasp and summoned his blaster, stepping out into the main hallway before she could go first. She was right behind him, stunner appearing without ceremony in her left hand.

She came to an abrupt stop as they rounded the last corner, and he, not willing to let her fingers slip out of his, paused with her. The common area looked worse than the control room had, but he assumed that that was because there had been nothing to contain the blast--until he followed Cassie's gaze to the ceiling, and saw the flickering remnants of the forcefields that had surrounded the level above.

"The control room was breached," she murmured, her tone nothing less than shocked.

Something drew his eye back to the floor in front of them, and he realized suddenly what they were seeing. Not just the collapsed ceiling or blast debris--this was what was left of the hunter they had been chasing.

"Suicide mission," he said aloud, wondering what the purpose could have been. The control room was accessible to anyone now, certainly, but the hunter was not in any position to take advantage of it. So why…

He caught Cassie's eye as she turned her head toward him, shock on her face. "That explosion couldn't have been--"

"A distraction?" he finished, and he knew she had arrived at the same conclusion.

"Auxiliary control," she breathed, and they left the scene of devastation without another thought, both of them racing for the hatch that would give them access to the lower levels.

"No," Cassie murmured, dropping to the ground and catching sight of the light spilling out of the doorway to the auxiliary control room. The doors had not been propped open, they had been burned through--the doors themselves no longer existed, and she didn't almost didn't want to know what lay on the other side.

Behind her, Saryn caught the edge of the deck above and swung through the hatch without even bothering with the ladder. He didn't wait, just ran silently for the doorway, his blaster in his hand.

She followed without hesitation, slowing only when he stopped short of the opening and motioned her to the side. There was no sound of fighting from inside, and as they listened, Cestria's calm tone drifted out into the hallway, joined by Billy's a moment later.

Saryn didn't lower his blaster, but he stepped away from the wall and strode through the door as soon as they heard the Aquitian Rangers' voices. Right behind him, Cassie gasped as she got her first unobstructed view of the room.

The entire place had taken more than its share of laser fire, but the most obvious damage was the burn marks on every surface. It was as though someone had been trying to juggle blowtorches--and failing--and she could only stare at the scene, not comprehending how such a battle could have taken place in the short time during which they had been absent.

Her gaze swept around the room, seeking out every member of the team that had welcomed her into their ranks over the past few weeks. Cetaci was still against the opposite wall, conscious and snapping at Delphinius for something Cassie didn't understand. The Black Aquitian Ranger looked unhurt, but nearby Aura was being tended to by Cestria.

Billy stood by the comm console, one hand curled into a fist as he looked over his shoulder at the Yellow Ranger. "Communications are down," he told her, but she was glancing toward the door.

"Cassie, Saryn," she greeted them. "I am relieved that you are well."

Billy looked up, as though he had only now noticed their presence. "The other hunter?" Cetaci asked from the other side of the small room.

"Disabled," Saryn answered, joining Billy by the comm station.

"In pieces," Cassie added, and it was Cestria who nodded. "Yours?"

Billy gestured to the largest burn streak, spread across the floor no more than a meter from a strangely untouched corner of the room. "That was the hunter. It tried to tunnel through our shield."

"Tunnel?" Cassie repeated, alarmed.

"That is how they moved so quickly," Cestria replied, placing a clip over the edge of Aura's bandage. As Cassie watched, the clip changed color and blended into the fabric of the bandage. "They were tunneling through the coral. But they couldn't get through the shields on the wall-mounts in the control room, and Billy recreated such a shield here. The hunter--had an adverse reaction to the energy field."

"Adverse reaction, huh?" Cassie repeated, eyeing the two-meter long burn.

"We were extremely lucky," Delphinius put in, and she couldn't help but agree.

"Lucky and *good*," Cassie said, shooting an admiring look in Billy's direction. He glanced over his shoulder at her words, and grinned when he saw her expression.

"I'm glad you approve," he said, and she just shook her head.

"Earth must have been sorry to see you leave," she said over her shoulder, going to Cestria's side. Aura moved a little when Cestria laid a hand over her forehead, and her eyes opened slowly.

"Where… the Barox?" the Red Ranger murmured.

"The last of the Barox have been destroyed," Cestria told her gently.

A sudden noise made them both look up, though, and Billy's frustration was evident in his posture. "The last Barox in the dome, anyway," he said, and Cassie knew with a sinking certainty that she didn't want to hear what he was about to tell them.

"Ten more Barox ships have been detected entering the system," Saryn announced grimly.

A chime sounded in the suddenly silent room, and Billy slammed his hand against the console. "The fighter wing just launched."

"Bring them back," Cestria said immediately, and Cassie glanced sideways at her, wondering how she could be so calm.

"I *can't*," Billy said, fingers flying across the console as he tried anyway. "The comm's down--we can't even talk to them, let alone override their controls."

"Incoming battleship," Saryn said, touching several controls on the scanner console.

Billy looked over at the adjoining console. "The Karse don't travel singly--"

Cestria got to her feet, even as Saryn corrected, "Three incoming battleships."

"You had to say it," Cestria murmured, joining Billy at the console. He glanced back, and the two of them shared a brief smile.

"Can we launch the zords?" Delphinius asked, leaving Cetaci's side for the first time.

Feeling left out, Cassie climbed to her feet and went to stand with the others. "We must," Cestria said, and Billy nodded.

Another chime cut into her sentence, and Billy didn't even have to look to know what it meant. "The fighter wing just cleared the atmosphere," he said quietly.

Cestria looked around at her companions. "We have no choice," she told them. "This planet will *not* surrender without a fight."

Delphinius and Billy looked at each other, then turned steady gazes back to Cetaci's second-in-command. She saw their acknowledgement, and turned to the only non-Aquitians there. "You will hold the command center as long as you can," she said quietly. "Aquitar will not give up as long as the Ranger dome still stands."

Cassie nodded, moving instinctively closer to Saryn. He put a hand on her shoulder, and she swallowed. The three Aquitians stepped away from them, and she saw Cestria glance over at Aura.

The Red Ranger was could barely sit up on her own, let alone stand, but she lifted a hand in farewell. Cetaci, not far away, watched them with envious eyes. "Our spirits go with you," she murmured, and Cassie thought she saw Cestria nod before each of the three Rangers called their own Power.

*No more "Rangers of Aquitar",* Cassie thought. Yellow, Blue, and Black morphed separately, for without their teammates there was no united battle cry. Three zords powered up, and three Aquitians disappeared into colored water molecule patterns.

She stared at the spot where they had been for a moment, before turning to search Saryn's expression. "Can they do it?" she asked softly, pleading with him to tell her something other than what she knew to be true.

"Perhaps," he said, but in his eyes she could see the reflection of a similar last stand, taken years ago on his own homeworld. Aquitar was under siege, as Elisia had once been, and for all their courage and sacrifice, in the end it came down to brute force against brute force. And when the other side was stronger, you lost.

She looked around, seeing her helplessness mirrored in Aura and Cetaci's eyes. For a moment, she was back in the Power Chamber the day the pirahnatrons had come, the impenetrable stone edifice crumbling around them. And all she could do was stand and wait for it to happen.

"We will stay," Aura said abruptly, and Cassie looked at her in surprise. "Cestria's orders were to hold the command center dome--we will. Your duty here is complete."

She looked over at Saryn, and she knew what he was thinking. *Anything would be better than waiting here,* she thought, not wanting to say it aloud. *Anything.*

He held out his hand, not asking her, just offering. She took it without hesitation, and he nodded to Aura, and then Cetaci. "We will join the fighter wing. Aquitar will not fall as long as there are Rangers to defend it."

"You honor Aquitar," Cetaci murmured. The last thing Cassie saw was Aura dragging herself to her feet as the crimson glow of Saryn's teleportation obliterated her world.

18. System Clear

He shouldn't have let her come. An inexperienced pilot had no business in the middle of a starfighter battle. While her chances of survival in the command center dome were slim, out here they were practically nonexistent.

But once Aura had offered to remain in their place, he knew there was no way he could have *kept* her from coming. And he couldn't deny that it felt right to be flying alongside her fighter, no matter what the reason.

He lifted one hand, forgetting for a moment that he was morphed. He would give almost anything to keep that kiss for eternity, to see all the fighting stop and have nothing to be concerned with but the feeling of her in his arms.

As their fighters cleared the atmosphere, he touched the controls of a tiny holomatrix just below his fighter's comm unit. It responded only to his Power signature, and as it acknowledged his presence a miniature image of Cassie appeared on the edge of the projection unit.

He had never told her about the afternoons he would spend in the park on her home planet, patiently waiting to see if today would be one of the days she and her friends came. His cloak hiding him from prying eyes, he would wait in the shadows, hoping for a glimpse of her slight figure.

Once, she had walked through the sunlit park alone, and he had been unable to resist the temptation to record her smile. That image played before him now: Cassie lifting her arms to the sky and smiling up at it, her dark hair falling loose across her shoulders.

He glanced through the canopy, ignoring his tactical map as Aquitian starlight glinted silver on her nearby fighter. He could feel her focus on him, but the comm link remained silent. They had said all they needed to say.

The Barox swarmed through the fighter wing like poorly animated graphics in an all-too-real video game. Cassie let the weapons' lock float, the computer seeking targets while she concentrated on flying. She couldn't do both, and all the laser fire in the world wouldn't do her any good if she couldn't keep her fighter under control.

The green blips on her tactical map scattered as the hunters' ships came in from all sides, but there was one that never seemed to leave her side. It was always there, no matter how she turned, and she didn't have to see the numbered tag superimposed on the image to know who it was.

Her fighter's lasers flared, over and over, responding to the computer-guided weapons' lock, but the red blips on her screen were unaffected. This, unfortunately, was a video game that none of them could win--the enemy had superior firepower, and there were no secret tricks to turn the tide.

Throwing her fighter to the side, narrowly avoiding a rain of fire that flashed by just below, she spared another glance for the tactical map. There were more red blips than there had been before, she was sure, but there had been no warning from the planet below…

"No comm," she muttered, pushing her thruster controls to maximum. Of course; how could she have forgotten--the command center had no way to communicate information to the wing, or anyone, when it came to that. There would be no ground-based assistance this time.

A red border lit up around her tactical map, flashing urgently at her, and she twisted her fighter downwards as sharply as she could. The map continued to blink, signaling a target lock by one of the Barox, and she couldn't help swearing as the hunter's laser fire seared her aft shields.

No matter how she tried, she couldn't shake the hunter. She saw Saryn's fighter drop back, flying tandem with hers and blasting the Barox ship from behind. She dove underneath one of the Karse battleships, her shields recharging as the pressure on them momentarily ceased.

The Karse hull flashed by overhead, and another glint of silver and blue made her wince as she came out right on top of another battleship. Her starboard thrusters fired in reverse, flinging her fighter into a spin that yanked her out of the Barox's line of fire. Saryn's ship shot by overhead, still pursuing the hunter, and she glanced down at the tactical map just as the battleship in front of her opened fire.

Bright blue laser beams reached out of the looming vessel, reaching for and catching the Barox ship in their grasp. The battleship--*The Megaship!* Cassie realized incredulously, noticing only then that the ship showed as green on her tactical grid.

The hunter writhed in the grip of their lasers, lasting several seconds before disintegrating into a ring of dust. Two more green blips moved across her screen, far too slowly to be fighters and too big to be anything but cruisers at least the size of the Megaship.

On top of the intership chatter between fighters, another voice was broadcasting on an open frequency. She gasped as she recognized Andros' stern tone, sounding far older and more commanding than that of the boy Ashley had had to coax into playing frisbee with them at the beach.

"This system is now under Alliance protection," the Red Astro Ranger declared, and she knew his face would be appearing on any comm screen that accepted the transmission. "Non-Alliance ships will stand down or be forcibly removed from Aquitian space."

"Aq-24," Saryn's voice interrupted, coming through the ship-to-ship channel and jerking her attention back to the fight. "Port thirty degrees!"

She followed his instructions without question, and saw the Megaship opening fire even as the stars spun past her canopy. Saryn's fighter screamed past, far too close for comfort, but the Barox followed him instead of her. She took off after them, hoping her computer could mimic what he had done for her earlier.

A flood of green blips infiltrated her tactical map, and she had no time to realize what it meant until a streamlined, three-prong starfighter dove in front of her and demolished the Barox ship with a single shot. "Damn!" Cassie exclaimed, staring wide-eyed after the ship as it shot out of sight and off her tactical screen.

A second three-pronged fighter flitted across the edge of the view afforded through her canopy, and she wondered where in the universe ships like that had *come* from. She searched her tactical screen automatically, trying to keep up, or at least know where to turn next--but for one brief moment, it was empty of red blips.

Then one of the Karse battleships cut through a corner of her screen, and she widened the view. Four Karse ships remained, and all were in full retreat, heading for the edge of the system and being harried by what looked like an entire fighter wing.

"Aq-one, respond!" someone demanded, and she blinked as Billy's voice came across the Aquitians' fighter wing comm frequency.

Two of the three Aquitian zords were closing on the planet, where four Barox refused to back down. Before they could arrive, a trio of the streamlined silver fighters that had arrived with the Megaship intercepted two of the hunters and blew them to pieces. The zords, backed up by the Megaship and a second battleship, surrounded the others and Cassie let herself relax a little.

Darian's voice finally answered Billy over the comm, and she looked automatically for the green blip that would be Saryn's ship. Holding close on her port side, his fighter was a comforting presence as she scanned the map again, unable to believe that it was over.

"Aquitian fighters, assemble," Darian ordered, and she responded automatically to the command that had been drilled into her during the training flights.

The Aquitian wing reassembled just above the atmosphere, awaiting Ranger confirmation. Billy's voice gave it a moment later, broadcasting to the entire wing. "Aquitian fighters, stand down," he said, his voice betraying no hint of emotion. "The system is clear."

Before Darian could order them home, the Blue Ranger's voice added, "You have honored Aquitar with your bravery today." This time, there was a note of quiet pride in his voice, and the intership channel was completely silent for a brief moment.

Then Darian barked, "You heard him. Stand down; prepare to return to base."

Cassie glanced through the canopy, seeing the flickers of light that were nearby fighters. Saryn's would be the nearest--she thought she could see it, one spark of silver against the celestial backdrop. Suddenly, they couldn't set down fast enough for her. She wanted nothing more than to demorph and find him waiting to hold her as she scrambled out of the cockpit.

Darian's voice came back once more, with the order to return to the launch bay. The fighters turned as one, her own fighter barely keeping up as she braced for re-entry. But when the wing leader added, "Well done, Aquitian fighters," she found herself grinning.

Three battleships had joined the Megaship when it left Irini bound for Aquitar, and two Qesiti fighter transports had met it halfway. The wing of Defense ships that had joined the newly formed Alliance fleet at the edge of the Aquitian system were the only group whose presence Andros could not explain, but he certainly wasn't going to complain.

"Those ships are amazing!" Ashley exclaimed, as three of the Defense fighters took on two of the Barox ships by themselves--and won.

Andros exchanged glances with Zhane, privately agreeing with her. Zhane's expression was as admiring as Ashley's tone. It took the combined forces of the Megaship, the two still-functional Aquitian zords and one of the Irini battleships to finish off the other two Barox.

Cestria's voice came over the comm channel the Alliance fighters had established, seconds after the last of the Barox had vanished from the tactical map. "Megaship, the Aquitian system is clear."

Andros looked over at Ashley for confirmation, and she nodded. "Acknowledged," he answered. "This fleet will remain in-system to protect Aquitar until a rotating Alliance patrol is established."

"Understood," Cestria replied, after a brief hesitation. "We of Aquitar thank you for your assistance. There was a great deal of damage done, however, and we will be unable to hold a debriefing right away."

"We'll wait," Andros told her, speaking for all the powers represented here. Turning to Carlos, he added, "Put us into orbit around Aquitar."

Carlos nodded, and the open comm transmission was ended. "DECA, send a closed signal to Aquitar," Andros said, but the computer did not immediately acknowledge.

He glanced over at the camera, saw it blink at him. "Aquitar is not responding," DECA informed him.

Andros frowned. "Contact Cestria again, but don't use the Alliance channel."

Cestria appeared on the main screen, a stylized design glowing softly behind her in her zord cockpit. "Andros," she greeted him, looking up from the control panel in front of her. "Thank you again for the role your team played in this--I know you were responsible for bringing this fleet together."

Andros shook his head, smiling a little. "I didn't do anything but make the Alliance official. We're just glad we got here in time--how much damage *have* you suffered?"

That was exactly what the debriefing would be for, to exchange this kind of information, but he wasn't asking as the unofficial field commander of the Alliance fleet. Andros was asking her as a friend and fellow Ranger, and Cestria knew it.

"Too much," she said quietly. "The command center has been torn apart from within, and two of our Rangers are seriously injured."

Andros looked down, wishing there was something he could say that would be any comfort. "If there's any way we can help," he began.

"You have already helped more than you know," Cestria told them. "However, if you and your team wish to join us in the command center, I will send you coordinates. I am sure Cetaci will want to thank you personally, and one of your own is there as well."

*Cassie,* Andros thought, his eagerness to see her muted by the sudden memory of her loss. He didn't have to look around to know what the others wanted.

"Of course we'll come," he told the screen, and Cestria nodded.

"It was necessary to abandon the control room--I am transmitting the new coordinates to you now."

"I've got them," Carlos said a moment later, and Andros wondered what kind of damage the command center had taken that the Rangers would desert the control room.

But all he said was, "We'll be there soon."

"Aura!"

Carlos tried to turn, reacting instinctively to the exclamation, but the teleportation stream was only just releasing him. He jerked as the temporary stasis faded, reaching out to steady himself on a console--and drawing back in horror as his fingers touched the charred surface.

"You shouldn't be on your feet yet," Billy was telling the Red Aquitian Ranger.

"*You* should not be moving around at all," Cestria said quickly, pulling Cetaci away from the console. The White Ranger did not protest, and from what Carlos knew of her personality, he suspected that was a bad sign.

"Delphinius," she muttered, as Cestria helped her sit down against the far wall.

"The Zaal zord will not fly again for some time," Cestria told her quietly, "but Delphinius was not hurt."

"Your Medical bay?" Andros was asking Billy. "Was it damaged?"

"No," Billy said. "We should be able to--"

Carlos didn't hear the rest of his sentence. Aura was suddenly sheet-white, and he was closest. Without even thinking about it, he caught her arm, startled to feel her stumble.

He heard Cestria ask Cetaci, "Where are the others?" but Billy took Aura's other arm and motioned toward the door.

"The Medical bay is on this level," he said. "Cestria, can you help Cetaci?"

The sudden flash of a black teleportation streak made the question unnecessary, as Delphinius appeared in the small room. "The Zaal zord has been--" He cut off as soon as he saw Cetaci, and he strode across the room to help Cestria. "You should be in the Medical bay," he said sternly.

"You should be more careful," she answered, her tone sharp despite the obvious fatigue in her voice. "Your zord is not a starfighter."

"Cetaci, please," Cestria murmured, helping the leader of her team to her feet.

Carlos shot a worried look at Aura, who was leaning on him more heavily with each passing moment. Billy caught his eye, and the Blue Ranger looked irritated. Without turning, he said, "Cetaci, you weren't there. Delphinius did what he had to."

"So did Cestria," Cetaci answered. She shrugged off Delphinius' attempts to help her, but she let her second-in-command guide her toward the door. "But her zord is still intact."

Any response to that was cut off as Ashley shrieked, "Cassie!"

Carlos couldn't help grinning as Ashley darted forward and wrapped her friend in an enthusiastic hug. The Pink Ranger just laughed, her face flushed and her eyes sparkling as she looked around the room at all of them.

Someone walked into the room right behind her, and Carlos heard Ashley gasp. She pulled away, staring at Saryn even as Cassie's gaze settled on Andros.

"Andros?!" Cassie exclaimed, giving Ashley's hand a squeeze before she let her go completely. "I thought you were dead!"

The room got very quiet, and Carlos glanced around. The Aquitians did not look particularly startled, but the entire Astro team had stopped in their tracks.

Then Aura shifted her weight a little, and Carlos pulled her arm closer over his shoulders. "Let's get down to the Medical bay," he reminded them. "Then we can establish who isn't dead--you, for example," he said, glancing over at Saryn.

"Everyone?" Zhane suggested innocently.

"Where were you?" Cestria asked, as she and Cetaci moved past Cassie through the doorway.

"Everyone what?" Andros wanted to know, and Carlos heard Ashley snicker.

"Carlos asked who wasn't dead," she explained, and Carlos rolled his eyes.

"That's not what I meant," he called over his shoulder, helping Aura down the corridor. "No one on this team stays dead, you know?"

"I think…" Aura's murmur surprised him, and he ignored Ashley's retort to lean closer. "I think that is a good thing," Aura whispered, and he smiled.

"You bet it is," he told her. He jumped as someone bumped into him from behind, and he glanced over his shoulder to see TJ grinning at him.

"Had a bad day, huh, Carlos?" The Blue Ranger smirked. "'No one stays dead'?"

"Shut up," Carlos complained good-naturedly. "I don't see you volunteering anything useful to the conversation."

"Neither are you!" TJ told him, slipping past him to duck into the Medical bay.

Saryn, Cassie, and most of the Aquitians were already inside, and Billy and Carlos helped Aura over to the nearest empty patient bed. "I don't understand," Ashley was saying as she entered the ward behind him. "Zhane said Saryn was…"

She trailed off as she realized most of the room was listening. It was TJ who broke the silence. "That seems to be a common misconception lately," the Blue Ranger cracked, and Carlos couldn't help laughing.

"Reports of my death were greatly exaggerated?" Ashley suggested, and TJ gave her an affectionate shove.

"Anyone who *didn't* die took off after someone else and managed to get themselves into serious trouble--except for Carlos and I, notice--so you don't have room to talk!"

Carlos watched Billy's expression as he read the biomonitor, listening with half his attention as Ashley argued, "Define 'serious trouble.'"

"That's easy," Zhane said. "Getting shot down by Darkonda and crashing the Astro Megazord shuttle."

"Or getting chased out of the system by a pair of Barox," TJ put in. "And that was your *plan*, no less!"

"Is she all right?" Carlos asked, glancing down at Aura's now-closed eyes.

"She's unconscious," Billy said, and Carlos tried not to roll his eyes. He could *see* that. "She didn't quite evade one of the Barox fireballs, but she should recover."

"Delphinius," Cestria called, her soft voice somehow cutting through the multiple conversations taking place in the Medical bay.

The Black Aquitian Ranger joined her immediately, and she said something to him too quietly for Carlos to overhear. He took the opportunity to glance around the rest of the Medical bay--Andros and Zhane stood near the door, as out of the way as they could possibly get and still be in the room. TJ and Ashley's banter had quieted, and they were nearby, Ashley next to Andros while TJ lounged against the wall.

Billy looked over his shoulder as Cestria stepped away from Cetaci's bedside, leaving Delphinius to watch over the sedated Ranger. She joined Billy at Aura's side, passing Cassie and Saryn as she did so--Carlos blinked, realizing he hadn't even noticed the two of them standing quietly in the corner.

"We must find a place to hold the debriefing," Cestria said, as Carlos regarded the handfast couple on the other side of the room. They were standing closer than he had ever seen them, and he wondered briefly if Cassie might actually be leaning against Saryn.

"The southern research dome," Billy suggested. "Any place in the command center is pretty much out, and Zordon would at least be able to join us there."

"Zordon," Cestria murmured. "No one has spoken to him since this morning, I assume?"

Billy shook his head. "Cetaci was with him until just before the Barox arrived. But she left when Delphinius summoned her, and Zordon stayed to continue the negotiations with the Defense."

Carlos saw Andros' sudden movement out of the corner of his eye, and glanced over at him curiously. "*That's* how the Defense ships knew to meet us here," Andros surmised, and Billy nodded.

"It must be," the Blue Aquitian Ranger agreed. "We were as surprised to see them as you."

"Can we reroute command center communications to the research dome?" Cestria asked.

"Of course," Billy said, giving her a smile. "I'll head out to the dome and do that now."

"I will accompany you," Cestria said, glancing around the Medical bay. "I would speak with Zordon before the debriefing, and there is little more I can do here. Delphinius, will you stay or come?"

For a moment, Delphinius seemed uncertain. Then he looked down at Cetaci and shook his head. "Her condition is only barely stable--I will remain here."

"Very well." Her gaze slid across the Astro Rangers. "If you wish to accompany us to the research dome, I will give you the coordinates."

But Andros shook his head. "I think we'd only get in your way--if we're not already. We'll return to the Megaship and wait for you to announce the debriefing."

Even as he finished the sentence, Andros' communicator beeped. DECA's voice informed him, "Incoming transmission, from the Defense wing for Cetaci."

Carlos saw Billy and Cestria exchange glances. "We need that comm system," she murmured, and he nodded.

"I'll meet you in the research dome," Billy said, and disappeared into a blue teleportation stream.

"Put her through, DECA," Andros told the Megaship's computer, and he passed his communicator to Cestria.

"This is Cestria of the Aquitian Rangers," the soft-spoken girl said. "Cetaci has been injured, and I am acting in her stead."

"Well met, Cestria of the Aquitian Rangers," a female voice answered, and Saryn's head swung around. "I'm Linnse, field commander for the Frontier Defense. I apologize for intruding, but I've been trying to contact the Phantom Ranger, with no success."

"One moment," Cestria said, before the other could continue. She offered Andros' communicator to Saryn as he stepped forward.

"This is Phantom," Saryn said, and Carlos blinked, only then realizing that he had started to think of their old ally as "Saryn" instead of "Phantom".

"Phantom!" Linnse's exclamation was distinctly scolding, and Carlos looked over at TJ in bemusement. "We haven't been able to reach you for days! Are you all right?"

"If I were not," Saryn said with a slight smile, "I would see no point in telling you now."

"Phantom," the voice warned, and he relented.

"I am well, Linnse. Thank you for coming to Aquitar's aid."

"Zordon told us you were under attack; I'm glad we arrived in time to help." There was a slight pause, and then she said, "Tobin's calling--shall I field his questions for you?"

Saryn glanced around the Medical bay. They were all listening: each of the Astro Rangers, Cestria, and even Delphinius. "Please," he said. "I appreciate your effort, Linnse."

"You'd better." Her tone sounded wry this time. "I'll talk to *you* later."

"Transmission ends," DECA's voice said a moment later, and Saryn handed Andros' communicator back.

"Thanks, DECA," Andros said to the device, and Cestria shifted as he slid it back onto his wrist.

"I must go," she began, and Andros nodded quickly.

"Just let us know when to come, and we'll be here," he promised.

"Thank you, Astro Rangers," Cestria said, her gaze touching on each of them. She looked over at Saryn last, maybe seeing if he would join her. When he made no movement, though, she followed Billy into the teleportation stream.

Carlos gave Aura a last glance, then nodded to Delphinius before stepping back himself. Reaching for his morpher, he saw Saryn offer Cassie his hand. She took it, looking delighted, and he saw the two of them disappear together just before velvet black enveloped him.

"What was that about the fighter wing?" Ashley asked, as they gathered in the Glider holding bay.

"TJ!" Cassie exclaimed, laughing as the Blue Ranger hugged her. "I have to breathe!"

"Sorry," he said, not looking at all repentant. "Forgot to do that this morning."

She gave him an affectionate smile as he let her go. "Good to see you too," she said. "What did you say, Ash?"

A movement beside Ashley distracted her, and she shot Andros a menacing look. "Sit *down*," she warned him. "DECA said to take it easy, remember?"

"I'm fine," Andros protested, but Zhane clapped him on the shoulder and pulled him toward the table before he could object further.

"Want me to hold him down for you?" Zhane suggested, and Ashley laughed.

"Zhane!"

She grinned at Andros' startled yelp as his friend pushed him onto one of the stools. "Please do--he won't stay, otherwise."

"Since when do you have someone else do your dirty work for you?" Carlos demanded, and she slapped his shoulder fondly.

"I considered sitting in his lap, but I think he'd be embarrassed."

"And you think that's a reason *not* to do it?" Zhane said, grinning.

"Don't encourage them," Andros said, giving Zhane a warning look.

" 'Them'?" Ashley repeated indignantly, catching his eye in surprise. "Now I'm 'them'?"

Andros' lips quirked. "Don't encourage *her*," he said, his gaze not leaving hers. His words were perfectly innocent, but there was something in the way he looked at her--

*He's daring me!* she thought, startled. It couldn't be; not Andros. But that look was still in his eyes, and she couldn't ignore the challenge.

*You asked for it,* she thought at him, a little smugly.

Cassie laughed as Ashley skipped across the room and seated herself carefully in Andros' lap. "You asked for that one, Andros," she said, echoing Ashley's sentiment without knowing it.

"And *you* haven't answered the question," Ashley said, shifting a little. The only comfortable way to sit on someone's lap was to lean back against them, and she glanced at Andros as she did so.

He didn't look upset--in fact, he smiled a little when she caught his eye, and she felt his arm slide around her shoulders. Resting her hands in her lap, she smiled back, completely forgetting she had said anything to Cassie until her friend asked, "What question?"

"The fighter wing," TJ put in, shooting an amused glance at her and Andros. "She asked what you meant when you told Cestria you were with the fighter wing."

Cassie gave him an odd look. "I meant I was with the fighter wing. When the Aquitians called their zords, Saryn and I took fighters and went with them."

"Starfighters didn't have a chance against the Barox," Carlos objected incredulously, but Cassie just shrugged.

"We had to do *something*," she said quietly. "We couldn't just sit around in the command center."

"Are you sure you should be flying those things?" TJ asked, frowning. "Look what happened last time."

Cassie folded her arms, looking slightly irritated. Before she could say anything, though, Saryn stepped up behind her and put both hands on her shoulders. "Cassie is a good pilot," he said, his tone neutral. "What happened last time could have happened to any of the wing."

"Which brings me back to my question," TJ said dryly. "Are you sure you should be flying those things?"

"We all take risks," Cassie started, at the same time Saryn spoke.

"Believe me," he said, "I would not let her fly if it were any more dangerous than any Ranger activity."

Cassie's eyes widened. "You're *letting* me fly?" she asked, twisting around to look at him.

"Maybe Phantom's not the best judge," TJ began, and Cassie turned to glare at him instead. She didn't say anything, though, and the silence only accentuated TJ's last words.

At length, Cassie took a deep breath. With some measure of calm, she told TJ, "He does have a name, you know. And *I'll* judge whether it's dangerous or not--I can make my own decisions." She included Saryn in her look this time--somewhat unfairly, Ashley thought. He had only been trying to help, after all.

"You guys, Cassie's right," she spoke up. "If anyone should tell her not to fly, it's Andros, but our team doesn't work that way. We're all responsible enough to make our own decisions."

"I don't want to hear about Andros," Cassie muttered, surprising her. "Every time I turn around, you and Andros are fawning over each other, and thanks to TJ, I don't even dare touch Saryn."

"What?" TJ asked, obviously startled. "What did I do?"

"You disapprove," Saryn said quietly, before Cassie could answer. "Even I know this."

"What, of you two?" TJ said, looking taken aback. "I just want you to be happy, Cass, you know that. If Phantom makes you happy, then--"

"His name is Saryn!" Cassie cried. "Stop calling him that!"

"Cassie," Saryn said quietly. "I do not mind."

"I do," she insisted. "He and Carlos have never--"

"Whoa," Carlos exclaimed, holding up his hands. "How did I get involved in this? I don't care if you kiss him or not."

Ashley tried to stifle a giggle, but Zhane didn't bother. He just burst out laughing. "If that's what this is about, just kiss her, Saryn. You can solve this right now. I'd do it for you," he added, almost as an afterthought, "but I don't think it would help."

Saryn glared at him but said nothing.

TJ sighed. "I'm sorry if I've made you feel uncomfortable, Cass. I honestly haven't meant to. I thought you knew I could never "disapprove" of someone who makes you happy."

Cassie held still for a moment, but then a small smile crept onto her face, and she hugged TJ. "Thanks, Teej," she murmured.

Ashley exchanged smiles with Andros, and caught a glimpse of Zhane squinting at Cassie and TJ. "I could be wrong," he said, "but isn't she hugging the wrong one?"

Ashley pushed him as hard as she could, which unfortunately wasn't very hard, considering that she was still sitting in Andros' lap. But Cassie just giggled, pulling away from TJ and stepping closer to Saryn.

He reached out to touch her cheek, and she rested one hand on his chest. "You 'let' me fly?" she repeated.

"You know that's not what I meant," he said quietly.

Cassie smiled. "I know," she agreed. Her gaze swept around the room before settling on him once more. "So are you going to kiss me or not?"

He, too, glanced around the room. Then, deliberately, he leaned forward and kissed her gently, his lips lingering on hers for just a moment.

Ashley sighed happily, leaning closer to Andros. Resting her head against his, she felt his arm tighten around her shoulders and she smiled. For a few seconds, everything was right with the universe.

"You *what*?" Carlos exclaimed, and Ashley giggled.

"I pulled him into the water too," she said, as thought it should be no real surprise. "It was his fault, anyway."

"Excuse me," Andros interjected. "Is this relevant to the story?"

Cassie smiled, watching Ashley relate the tale of her crash-landing and subsequent time on Irini's moon. Certain parts of it, anyway. She wouldn't be surprised if her friend was leaving some of it out, but Cassie would corner her about that later.

Meanwhile, she edged away from the group to linger in the doorway. Down the hall, the Bridge doors were open as usual, and she could just see Saryn standing in front of the main screen.

Linnse had called for him again a few minutes before, and he had politely excused himself. Cassie had only narrowly evaded the myriad questions the others had bombarded her with as soon as he was gone, wanting to know how he was still alive after what Zhane had told them all before.

She knew she wouldn't be able to put off the explanation forever, but she felt bad enough for her outburst earlier. She didn't want to add to her embarrassment by explaining that she had, in effect, brought Saryn back from the dead.

She took a single step into the hallway, glancing back to make sure no one was watching. Zhane looked up, catching her eye just before she slipped away, but he turned back to the group without a word.

Cassie walked slowly down the hall, knowing she should be with the others, catching up on everything she had missed in the last few days. She was glad to see them again--how could she not be?--but something drew her to Saryn, and no matter how much she enjoyed her friends' company, she could not ignore his absence.

She paused in the doorway to the Bridge, watching him talk to the woman on the screen. He wasn't morphed, but then, Linnse had always known who he was. She didn't seem at all fazed to be talking to "Saryn", instead of "the Phantom Ranger", and Cassie had to smile as the Eltaran scolded him for not answering his messages.

*My fault,* she realized suddenly. *He didn't answer because he was with me almost the whole time I was evil.* She saw Saryn's head turn a little to the side, and she knew he had just noticed her presence.

"If I could speak to you before the debriefing," Linnse was saying.

Saryn interrupted, "Linnse, may I ask you to wait for one moment?"

"Of course," Linnse said, peering at him curiously but not seeming particularly upset by the abrupt halt to the conversation. She pressed something on the console in front of her, and the screen went momentarily grey.

Saryn turned without bothering to pause the transmission from his end. "I did not distress you by leaving, did I?" he asked, looking genuinely concerned.

She walked around the second row of consoles toward him, smiling. "Of course not. Never apologize for having your own life, Saryn."

"Only when it makes you unhappy," he murmured, reaching out to slide his hand over her shoulder and squeeze her arm.

"Not even then," she whispered, stepping closer. "I love who you are, Saryn. Don't change for me."

"That is one request I can not honor," he said softly. "I am different because you are in my life, Cassie, and I would not have it any other way."

She kissed him before he could say anything else, sliding both hands around his neck and feeling him pull her close. His arms around her, she wished they had time to stay like this forever. His kiss was light, as it had been in the holding bay, but each time their lips separated he would kiss her again, as though he couldn't stand to let her go.

She didn't want him to--but as they stood there, lost in each other's embrace, DECA interrupted. "Incoming transmission from Aquitar," the computer told them, and the viewscreen suddenly cleared.

Linnse looked up as the grey vanished, a frown on her face as she began, "Did you just receive--"

Cassie let her hands slide down Saryn's chest as she stepped away, reluctant to put distance between them but knowing the two of them weren't exactly the epitome of professionalism. Linnse cut off midsentence as she caught sight of them, and her expression was nothing short of incredulous.

"Oh, I definitely want to talk to *you* before the debriefing," she told Saryn.

19. Debriefing

The southern research dome had been emptied of its usual occupants, and the people that now gathered at one end of the underwater facility were there by invitation only. There were six Qesiti, one flagship captain from the Irini ships, the woman who had introduced herself as Linnse, two Aquitian Rangers and of course, Zordon.

Almost the entire Astro team had come as well, including Saryn but minus Zhane. Only Andros and Saryn were actively participating, however, and Ashley found herself trying not to yawn.

"I'm so hungry," she whispered, standing a little apart from the group gathered in front of Zordon's time warp.

"Complain, complain, complain," Carlos teased quietly. "If you hadn't been so busy sitting in Andros' lap, you could have gotten something to eat back on the Megaship."

She reminded herself not to make a face at him. "I wasn't hungry then," she murmured.

"Not for food, anyway," he said with a straight face, his gaze still on the gathering in front of them.

Her eyes widened, and this time she almost did stick her tongue out at him. "Carlos Vargas, you are insufferable," she hissed, very softly.

"Hey, at least you get to spend time with your significant other," he said, a wry half-smile on his face.

That made her pause. "How's Karen?" she asked after a moment.

Carlos shrugged slightly, but his expression was sober and she knew he was more worried than he let on. "All right, I guess. I haven't really talked to her since the dance. We saw each other yesterday--"

He broke off suddenly, wincing. "Shoot."

Ashley gave him a quick glance. "What?" she whispered.

"I was supposed to call her last night," he muttered. "Between Cassie and Astronema, I totally forgot."

"She'll understand," Ashley said, reaching out to squeeze his arm reassuringly.

He just sighed. "Sure, she'll understand this time. But what about next time? And the time after that?"

Ashley didn't answer right away, suddenly realizing exactly how lucky she was to have Andros. Beyond the fact that he was her favorite person in the entire world, he was also a Ranger. She never had to worry about explaining herself to him when one of Dark Spectre's attacks came--as they seemed to more and more lately--at the worst possible time, because Andros would most likely be there fighting with her.

"Maybe--" Ashley hesitated, for Dimitria had often drilled into them that they were to tell no one. But when they had lost the Power she had wanted them to protect, and gained a new one that required them to be offplanet for days at a time, they had had to bend the rules a little. "Maybe you should tell her?"

She saw Carlos glance sideways at her. "Believe it or not, I've thought of that," he muttered. "In some ways, it would make things so much easier. But in other ways…"

Ashley nodded, just a little. They were already trying to balance their lives as normal teenagers on Earth trying to survive their senior year of high school with their duties as Power Rangers in a League caught up in war. The absolute last thing they needed was to have their secret get out and have the media go crazy over them.

"I've only been going out with Karen for a couple of weeks, Ash," Carlos said softly. "I just can't trust her that much yet."

"Relationships take time," she reminded him quietly. "It was more than a month before I could even talk to Andros alone without him suddenly remembering something on the Bridge that he had to take care of."

As she had hoped, Carlos flashed a brief smile in her direction.

"Hey." He leaned over and poked Cassie gently. "What are you dreaming about?"

She blinked, tearing her gaze away from the group they stood on the outskirts of. More specifically, he suspected, she looked away from the dark, mysterious Ranger who had captured her heart before he even gave her his name.

"A shower," she answered, quietly and a little ruefully. "I haven't had a shower in… I don't know how long."

"Sure," TJ said knowingly. He gave the object of her affections a pointed glance. "Come on, Cass, you can tell me."

She followed his gaze with a slight smile. "Well, okay, him and a shower would be nice."

"But not at the same time," he teased.

She leaned carefully back against one of the science consoles, further distancing herself from the group. "Actually…" She let the sentence trail off, an impish look on her face.

Startled, he raised an eyebrow at her until he remembered where he was. All anyone had to do was look in their direction--even if they weren't really adding anything to the exchange of information, they were still representing the Alliance here. They should at least *look* like they were paying attention.

Glancing back toward the discussion currently taking place, TJ could have sworn he saw Phantom's visor turn slightly toward them. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Cassie smile a little. The Phantom Ranger did not respond, but TJ would bet anything that underneath that armor Saryn was smiling back.

"Anything you want to tell me?" he murmured, only half kidding.

Cassie shifted, rearranging her hands on the console behind her. "Maybe," she admitted, and he resisted the temptation to look at her again. "Teej… would it--*really* freak you out…"

She took a deep breath, and he had to glance over at her. She looked almost nervous, despite the calm expression she was trying to hold onto for the sake of anyone who might be watching. "To know that we've slept together?" she finished in a rush, her voice so soft it took him a minute to figure out what she'd said.

As he did, though, he just *stared* at her. He tried desperately to keep from saying anything, knowing that it would come out--at best--in a normal tone of voice that anyone in the room could overhear. And at worst, it would be a yelp of surprise that he would never live down.

Clenching his jaw, he counted, very slowly to ten. Judging from the way her lips were twitching, she was trying to restrain what was probably a wide grin, if not outright laughter, and he did *not* want to know what his expression looked like right now.

Finally, he managed to stammer, "You and Ph--Saryn?"

She nodded wordlessly. He knew it had been a ridiculous question, but it was, quite frankly, the only one he could voice. She had *slept* with him? Cassie, the girl who had asked him what he thought about Andros and Ashley only a few weeks before? The one who had promised him that it wasn't a decision *she* had to make?

He couldn't say any of that, of course, and especially not here. How could she have sprung this on him *now*? Finally, he managed to give her an indignant glare. "Don't ever, *ever*, do that to me again," he whispered vehemently.

She looked a little worried. "Do what?" she whispered back.

He glanced wide-eyed at the others, but fortunately none of them seemed to be paying any attention to them. "Don't *tell* me something like that when there are other people around!"

Her lips twitched again, and he gave her an incredulous grin that he couldn't stifle. "I can't believe you just *did* that to me," he breathed, putting as much indignation into the quiet words as he could.

She shrugged, her apologetic look spoiled by her obvious amusement at his plight. "I kind of wanted you to know--I hope you're not… upset?"

"Only with your timing," he managed, giving her a wounded look. "You couldn't have told me on the Megaship or something?"

She bit her lip. "Well, I didn't really want everyone to know. Ashley sort of found out by accident, and you're like my other best friend…"

*By accident?* he couldn't help wondering. *Do I want to know how you find something like that out by accident?* He decided the answer was probably "no".

"You didn't have to tell me," he murmured, resting on hand on her shoulder.

"I know," she said simply.

For a moment, neither of them said anything. Then, finally, he had to tell her what he was thinking. "I'm glad things are finally working out for you guys," TJ whispered.

"Me too," she replied, glancing sideways at him with a small smile.

Even morphed, he couldn't quite pick up what TJ and Cassie were saying to each other--they were talking almost inaudibly, and had managed to inconspicuously separate themselves from the rest of the group enough that overhearing their conversation was impossible. No one else seemed to notice their absence, but he had been fighting to ignore Cassie's presence in his mind for some time, and he couldn't help being aware of her activity.

He doubted she even knew she was doing it, but she was thinking so completely about him that she might as well have walked over and put her arms around him. The action could not have distracted him any more than what she was doing now.

As TJ caught and held her attention, though, he almost sighed in relief. He saw Linnse glance in his direction, under cover of Billy's argument with the Qesiti, and he was terribly grateful for the visor that hid his expression. She had tried to corner him before the debriefing was called to order, but the rest of the representatives had arrived as quickly as they, and Cestria had suggested beginning right away.

He had nothing to hide from Linnse, but her curiosity was insatiable, and he would much rather talk with her privately than in the middle of a gathering such as this. Not to mention that the focus of this debriefing was supposed to be the defense of Aquitar--though he had to admit that he could not concentrate on it anymore than Linnse seemed to be.

Beside him, Andros spoke up, defending Billy's position, and he tried to drag his attention back to the discussion. Cestria was not intervening, despite Billy's obvious irritation with the Qesiti commentary on the situation, and he couldn't help but think that it would be different if Cetaci were here.

The White Aquitian Ranger would put an end to the argument with a few sharp words, and the debriefing would continue. The atmosphere might be slightly more strained for her sometimes tactless remarks, but she would keep the others in line. Cestria simply let the debate grow more heated, and Zordon, to his surprise, did not seem inclined to stop it either.

After a few more minutes of listening, he found himself wondering more about when this would finally be over, rather than what the outcome would be. Without turning his head, he looked in Cassie's direction. She was, as he should have expected, watching him again, and he tried very hard to suppress an exasperated sigh.

Her impatience felt like his own, and he could *not* shut it out. Why had he even come to this debriefing? He was adding nothing but his presence and silent support of the Aquitian team. Other than Andros, the Astro Rangers really had no reason to be here either--

*Politics,* he reminded himself firmly. *The Rangers must be seen as a strong and unified force.* There *was* a reason for all of them to be here; Cassie just didn't understand it. And it was her wish to be elsewhere that was influencing him, to the point where he couldn't ignore it.

He wondered, trying to find humor in the situation, whether he preferred the distraction of her present impatience, or that of her earlier daydreams about him.

"What time is it?" Carlos asked quietly, leaning a little closer to Ashley.

She shrugged. "How should I know?" she whispered back. "I don't have a watch."

He tried not to fidget. "I know. Thought I'd ask anyway."

"Feels like dinner," she volunteered, and he tried not to smile.

"It probably is. Not to mention time to start some serious homework."

He saw her fold her arms. "I don't even want to think about how much homework I'm going to have tomorrow," she murmured, sounding dismayed.

"Not as much as you'll have tonight," he replied softly. "If we ever get out of here, that is."

She shot a quick glance in his direction. "What do you mean?"

"I went around to your classes today and got your books and your homework for you," he whispered. "I told the teachers you'd been sick, but you were feeling better today and you were really bored."

She was quiet for a moment. "What about Cassie?" she asked at last.

"I think TJ got her stuff," Carlos admitted. "We haven't exactly had time to compare notes yet."

There was another long pause. "That's *so* nice," she murmured finally, and he shrugged a little.

"Just be glad we all exchanged schedules back at the beginning of summer," he kidded quietly.

Ashley shook her head. "Thanks, Carlos--I mean it. That was really great of you."

"Hey, what are friends for?" he whispered, and she turned to smile at him.

It was the same bright smile that she turned on Andros from time to time, and she used it with no regard for where they were. "Hey," he teased, nudging her with his arm and cocking his head toward the rest of the group. "Pay attention."

"I am," she insisted, looking away again. He was glad she was pleased, though--he hadn't been sure the girls would thank him and TJ for their intervention, but he knew how *he* would feel if he had to face the "first" day of school after everyone else had been attending for days.

"Andros says the important stuff is done," Ashley murmured suddenly. "But they could argue about details for another hour or so."

Carlos barely kept himself from looking at her in surprise. He kept forgetting that she and Andros could talk without actually talking.

"Another *hour*?" he repeated, studying the rest of the group. Cestria was talking, presiding over them all in her soft-spoken way, and he was impressed that even the Qesiti--who had apparently sent six representatives because they couldn't agree among themselves on who should come--listened when she talked.

Linnse also appeared to be listening carefully, but the Irini captain looked as bored as Carlos felt. Saryn--well, who knew what *he* was thinking under the armor, and Andros' poker face was almost as complete. Carlos would never have guessed that he was talking to Ashley even as he appeared to be completely focused on Cestria.

TJ and Cassie were on the other side of the group, nearer to Zordon, and Carlos managed to catch TJ's gaze briefly. TJ actually gave the suggestion of rolling his eyes, and Carlos tried to stifle a smile.

Then Ashley unfolded her arms, and his eye was drawn inadvertently to her. Her whisper sounded puzzled as she began, "He says he's going to--"

The blurred three-note tone of their morphers' comm units overrode the end of her sentence, and Carlos looked down at his wrist in surprise.

"Excuse me," he heard Andros say smoothly, and the Red Ranger stepped away from the group. He didn't go far enough for his conversation to be private, however, and those gathered in front of Zordon's tube all paused to listen.

"This is Andros," he told his morpher, and Carlos glanced at Ashley, wondering if they should join him.

"Andros, the Dark Fortress was detected inside the Sol system," Zhane's voice said urgently, and Andros nodded.

"We'll be right there," he answered, catching Ashley's eye and cocking his head. She and Carlos joined him without hesitation, followed closely by TJ and Cassie.

"There's an emergency on Earth," Andros said, turning back to the others.

"Of course, you must protect your own planet," Cestria said quickly. "Thank you for your assistance here today."

Andros gave her a quick nod. Glancing around at the others, he reached for his morpher and the rest of them followed suit. The Aquitian research dome disappeared.

The bright red glow of teleportation had barely faded when he felt Ashley's arms around him. "Thanks, Andros!" she exclaimed, and he heard Zhane laugh from somewhere near the main screen.

Glancing in that direction, he hugged Ashley back absently. Zhane was sitting backwards in the pilot's chair, grinning at them. "She's a terrible influence on you, you know?"

Andros tried not to blush, but Ashley just let go of him and wrinkled her nose at Zhane. "Oh, you made him do worse; admit it!"

"Don't we need to get to Earth?" TJ asked, sounding somewhat impatient.

Andros cleared his throat. "Well, not exactly…"

"No, he's right," Zhane said, still grinning. "We can't just sit here in orbit."

Carlos was looking back and forth between the three of them. "All right, what did I miss? *Is* there an emergency, or not?"

"There is," Ashley insisted. "The emergency is that if we don't do our homework and get some sleep, we'll fail out of high school, and our parents will kick us out, and *then* where will the team be?"

"But what about Astronema?" Cassie asked uncertainly.

Zhane just shrugged. "The Dark Fortress has been in orbit around Earth on and off for days now. She's there, but she hasn't sent any monsters--not even quantrons--in weeks."

"And the debriefing?" TJ asked, sounding as though he couldn't decide whether to disapprove or just laugh.

"Well…" Andros shifted uncomfortably. "It was mostly over. Zordon will keep the Alliance under control, and there's no question that more ships will be coming to Aquitar to relieve the ones already there, probably within the next day or so."

"Andros asked me to do that 'emergency call'," Zhane said, swiveling idly in his chair. "I couldn't exactly say, 'Andros, get those kids back up here so they can go to school' now, could I?"

"What about Saryn?" Ashley asked suddenly, and Andros saw Cassie shoot a grateful look in her direction.

"He couldn't say it either," Zhane said, twisting to one side in his chair. "Not with a straight face."

"Don't you think they sort of need him down there?" TJ asked skeptically, ignoring Zhane.

Ashley shrugged. "Andros said they were mostly done. We should at least tell him we're going, don't you think?"

"I think he knows," Carlos said wryly.

Andros couldn't help feeling uncomfortable. "I'm not sure this is the kind of thing he'd approve of…"

"Oh, come on, Andros," Ashley said with a smile, putting an arm around his shoulders. "A little while ago, we would have said the same thing about you."

"A little while ago, you'd have been right," he muttered, but she had won as soon as she smiled, and he suspected she knew it.

Zhane knew it, too. "Make Cassie call him," he suggested. "He won't get mad at *her*."

Cassie looked hopefully at him. "Can I?"

Andros sighed. "Sure, why not."

Everyone in the room heard the miniature comm unit on his wrist go off, and he excused himself with a nod to Cestria and Zordon. He headed for the nearest door, stepping through and waiting until it closed to tap his comm unit. He could not imagine who wanted his attention, but that didn't mean it might not need to be confidential.

"This is the Phantom Ranger," he announced, keeping his tone neutral.

"Hi, it's Cassie," a voice replied, and he couldn't keep from smiling, both at her "hi" and at his own involuntary delight in hearing her voice.

"Cassie," he repeated, knowing his own voice had softened as he said her name but powerless to prevent it. "I thought you were on your way to Earth."

"Well…" She hesitated. "We sort of are, but it's not quite an emergency." She paused again, and then added, "Well, Ashley says it is."

He heard the Yellow Ranger exclaim indignantly, and his smile returned. "There is no threat to your planet," he surmised, remembering a similar prank his team had pulled to get him out of a meeting they considered both boring and unnecessarily long.

"Not exactly," Cassie admitted. "But we have to get back to Earth." There was another pause, and he felt disappointment stab at his heart.

He had no wish to see them face danger--quite the contrary--but if they were returning to their planet for personal reasons, they could be gone indefinitely. *At least when she was evil I got to see her.*

He drew in a sharp breath, a flash of uncontrollable fear flickering through his mind as he firmly repressed that thought. The despair of the last two days was something he never wanted to repeat, no matter the cost. If she had to leave, he could not ask her to stay, and he would not try.

"We--" He knew distantly that someone else was talking to her, even as she spoke with him, accounting for the intermittent pauses. "Um, we wondered if you wanted to come with us," she finished at last.

He froze, feeling the almost irresistible urge to look over his shoulder.

"We're not saying you have to," Cassie said hastily, and he smiled, a little sadly. Those days were gone forever--but if he let her, Cassie would draw him just as tightly into her own group of friends. "We just thought--"

"Yes," he whispered. There was more to life than politics, and without Cassie, he knew he never would have remembered that. Then cleared his throat, knowing the comm link wouldn't have caught his tentative reply. "I--will come."

"Hurry up, then," Zhane's voice said, somewhat muffled, but distinctive nonetheless. "We can't just sit up here forever."

He broke off the communication without further comment.

"Zhane!" She heard the faint hiss as her communicator registered no signal from the planet below, and she glared at the Silver Ranger.

He just winked unrepentantly, and Cassie gave him a shove. "If he doesn't come because of that, I'm going to kill you!"

"Oh, he'll come," Zhane promised, holding up his hands defensively. "I heard you using that sweet "pretty please" tone on him."

"Yeah, Cass," TJ agreed, a wide grin on his face. "You don't have to pout when he can't see you, you know."

"Hey!" She ducked her head a little in embarrassment, but she couldn't help giggling. She *had* done it on purpose, after all. "It's always worked before!"

"So what are you getting mad at me for?" Zhane demanded.

She didn't have time to retort, for at the same moment TJ asked, "So when are you going to make him cut his hair?"

"Hey!" Carlos exclaimed. "What's wrong with long hair?"

"Nothing, nothing," TJ said hastily, and Cassie grinned as she saw Andros also giving him an indignant look. "But his isn't long, it's just--shaggy."

"Oh, you take that back, Mr. I-have-no-hair-because-it's-cooler!" Cassie exclaimed good-naturedly.

"No, he's right," Zhane chimed in. "Come on, Cassie, it's shaggy; admit it."

"I won't," she cried, trying not to giggle. "Ash, help me out here!"

Carlos took a step back. "Oh, never side against the girls. I'm staying out of this."

"It *is* cute," Ashley admitted, paying no attention to Carlos.

"Ashley!" Zhane threw his arms out to the side in mock-dismay. "I thought you had better taste than that!"

"I like you," Ashley shot back. "What does *that* say about my taste?"

"Oh!" Carlos pretended to have been stabbed in the heart.

"I thought you were staying out of this," Cassie said, giving him a mock-suspicious look.

"Just the part about Saryn's hair," he assured her cheerfully.

She couldn't help laughing. "I can't believe we're talking about this!"

"You started it," Carlos reminded her, and her eyes widened.

"*He* started it!" She pointed at TJ, but TJ just held up his hands and backed up a step.

"I may have started it, but it was Zhane's fault."

"It usually is," Andros muttered, just loud enough to be overheard, and his friend gave him a hurt look.

Ashley burst out laughing. "That's so true!"

Luckily, a dark flash cut off the conversation before it could get any more out of hand. Cassie supposed they all needed the release, but it did occur to her that they were all tired and tempers could flare if it went much longer.

Saryn's morph vanished with the teleportation stream, and she hesitated only long enough to remember that she didn't have any more reasons for not hugging him in front of the others. She darted forward and wrapped her arms around him, smiling happily as she felt him return her embrace. "I'm so glad you came," she murmured.

She thought she heard Zhane snicker, but she ignored him. She *meant* it, and she didn't care--much--how she sounded.

"As am I," he agreed. His arms tightened around her and she closed her eyes, grateful that they'd been given another reprieve from separation.

The silence lasted for only a minute, before Ashley broke into it with a plaintive tone. "Am I the only one who's really, really hungry?"

A few hours later, she glanced up as the tape in Cassie's battery-powered player stopped. She'd already flipped it over once. "Hey, Cassie, want to find another…"

Ashley trailed off as she realized her friend's eyes were closed. Cassie had put her head on her arms a few minutes before, claiming she thought better that way. Ashley had just laughed and gone back to her vocab list for Spanish, but she found her own eyes drifting shut as she tried to study, and she made a quick executive decision.

"Cassie," she said more quietly, shaking her friend's shoulder. "Time to go to bed. Come on, Cass…"

Cassie lifted her head a little, blinking as she glanced down at her notes. She rubbed at her eyes with a sigh and shook her head. "I haven't finished this chapter yet."

"S'okay," Ashley assured her. "I'll tell you what happens in the morning. You done with everything else?"

Cassie nodded, slumping back in her chair. "I'm so glad performance classes don't assign homework."

"Yeah, you're lucky," Ashley said dryly. She had always considered cheerleading "performance", and it took more hours a day than any class.

"Are you done?" the other girl asked sleepily, not seeming to notice her sarcasm.

Ashley nodded. "Yeah, pretty much. I think I'm going to go get some sleep."

"Me, too," Cassie agreed, yawning. "See you in the morning, Ash."

"Bright and early," she said, and Cassie made a face at her.

Ashley just smiled innocently and gathered up her books. " 'Night, Cassie."

Cassie waved a little, climbing out of her own chair as Ashley slipped out of the room. She hoped her friend would get enough sleep that she didn't feel terrible in the morning.

*At least it's Friday,* Ashley thought, stepping through her own door and putting her textbooks directly into her backpack so she wouldn't forget them. *The first and last day of the week…*

She changed into her pajamas and sat down on her bunk, and it was only then that she found she couldn't quite bring herself to go to bed. Maybe it was the excitement of the day, or just her unwillingness to go back to something as normal as school in the morning, but she suddenly wished for company.

*Andros?* she asked, hoping she wouldn't wake him up.

*That's me,* he answered immediately, and she smiled a little.

*What's up?* Her eye fell on the telekinesis ball beside her bed, and she reached for it idly.

*Just talking to Zhane,* he said, and she tossed the ball from one hand to the other. She had a brief mental image of stars, and she frowned a little.

*Where are you?* she asked curiously.

This time, he hesitated before replying. *Deck one,* he said at last. *There's kind of a window…* This time, she got a much clearer picture of the wide circular area at the top of the ship--a place she had been once or twice herself, but she had never known of any "window".

*An observatory,* she thought, startled, as he looked up toward the ceiling. *I never knew it did that.* A large section of the ceiling seemed to have irised open, revealing the familiar--to her, at least--Earthly constellations.

*I… I didn't really tell anyone,* Andros confessed. *Me and Zhane used to come up here, before…*

He hesitated again, and she understood him to mean before Zhane had "died". He wouldn't have wanted the memories such a place brought back, and she wasn't going to intrude on them now, just when they'd been reunited again. *I understand,* she said gently. *Maybe I can come see it tomorrow or something.*

*That'd be great,* he answered, sounding genuinely pleased. *You'll like it, I think.*

*I know I will,* she said with a smile, spinning the telekinesis ball on her palm. *'Night, Andros.*

*'Night--I love you.*

*Love you too,* she thought, bouncing the toy one more time in her hand before setting it down. She got to her feet and wandered out into the hall.

"DECA," TJ said sternly. "Let me explain to you the concept of flavoring. Flavoring does not mean that you just put in anything that makes the food you're preparing taste different--it's supposed to be something that makes the food taste *good*."

"You requested a grape popsicle," the computer reminded him.

"Yes!" TJ exclaimed. " 'Grape'! Not 'salt'--there's a big difference!"

Carlos rolled his eyes. "TJ, no one would put salt in a popsicle. It lowers the freezing point of the water."

"Oh, well, *that* explains why it's melting already," TJ shot back.

"There is no salt in your popsicle, TJ," DECA told him calmly.

"You could have fooled me," the Blue Ranger muttered.

"Give me that!" Carlos took his friend's popsicle and ran his finger along the bottom, where it was indeed melting. Sticking his finger in his mouth, he frowned. "Yuck. Maybe you should have stuck with ice cream or something."

"See?" TJ gave DECA's camera an indignant look. "Carlos doesn't like it either."

"Whether or not you like the food you request is not my concern," DECA replied.

"I *like* grape popsicles," TJ argued. "I just don't like whatever this thing is that you've created *instead* of a grape popsicle."

"Hey," Carlos said, catching sight of a familiar figure in the doorway. "Come on in."

"I do not wish to intrude," Saryn began, and Carlos grinned.

"Oh, don't mind TJ. He and DECA get into periodic fights--I think she's just getting even with him for blacking out all the viewscreens last week."

"I didn't do that!" TJ exclaimed.

"Sure you didn't," Carlos said, giving him a knowing look. "Who are you going to blame--Andros?"

"I would not have suspected Andros," Saryn offered, a little hesitantly, and Carlos snickered.

"That's because Andros didn't do it; TJ did. He just won't admit it."

"I'm telling you, Carlos," TJ insisted. "It wasn't me!"

"Previous experience indicates that you are the most likely culprit, TJ," DECA interjected.

TJ sighed dramatically. "I get blamed for everything around here lately. If I'm going to be everyone's scapegoat, can't I at least get a decent popsicle?"

DECA's camera blinked once, and after a moment, the Synthetron hummed. TJ looked suspiciously from it to the camera and back again, but he removed the proffered popsicle and tasted it carefully. "Hey!" With a surprised smile, he glanced up at the camera. "Thanks, DECA."

Carlos just shook his head, amused. "So, Saryn, what are you doing still awake? Other than watching DECA abuse TJ?"

The other Ranger cocked his head, finally entering the room. "I am not accustomed to sleeping this early."

"Early?" TJ raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, that's right," Carlos said, suddenly understanding. "It's earlier on Aquitar, isn't it."

Saryn nodded, but Carlos couldn't help adding, "You look exhausted, no matter what time it is."

"I am somewhat tired," the other admitted.

"Join the club," TJ offered, rejoining them and taking a seat across from Carlos. "Man, I can't believe that after all this, we still have another day of school this week!"

"You will--all attend school tomorrow?" Saryn asked.

Carlos nodded. "Yeah, all us lucky Earth people. How do Andros and Zhane get out of school, anyway?"

TJ shrugged. "I never thought to ask."

"They don't go," Ashley said from the door. "Their school system graduates kids at fifteen."

"Hey, Ash," Carlos greeted her, and TJ took his popsicle out of his mouth long enough to give her a suspicious look.

"How do *you* know?" he demanded.

Ashley shrugged, but a wide smile spoiled her nonchalant act. "I thought to ask. What do you think we talk about when we're alone, Ranger duties?"

"Man, I wish I went to their school," Carlos remarked.

"No you don't," Ashley assured him, walking over to the table. "DECA had to tutor them most of their last year there, and Andros says it was really hard. Zhane complains about it all the time."

"But not Andros?" TJ asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Here," Ashley said, pushing a stool out from under the table for Saryn as she sat down herself. "For Andros, it's been more than two years since then. Zhane remembers graduating just a couple months ago."

Saryn sat down carefully, and TJ put his popsicle back in his mouth, looking contemplative. They were all silent for a few minutes, thinking their own thoughts.

Ashley leaned forward and put her elbows on the table, and Carlos had to smile as she rested her chin on her hands. "You look pretty tired yourself, Ash. Here me and TJ thought we'd be the only ones still up."

She shook her head without lifting it. "Andros and Zhane are still up too. I didn't feel like sleeping--I guess Cassie's the only smart one of us."

"Did you guys finish your homework?" TJ asked. "Enough of it, anyway?"

"Yeah," Ashley said with a smile. "Thanks for translating that chapter for me, Carlos. That would have taken me forever to read, otherwise."

"No problem," he answered automatically. "I wish they'd let *me* take Spanish," he added as an afterthought. "It would really help my GPA."

Ashley giggled. "I think the fact that your family's bilingual might have something to do with them not wanting you in that class."

He pretended to sigh. "It's so unfair. I'm being discriminated against, and no one can see it but me."

"Right," Ashley said, tilting her head to lay it on her arms. "You just keep telling yourself that, Carlos."

"While the rest of us laugh," TJ added, finishing his popsicle with a flourish.

Ashley tried to stifle a yawn, and Carlos dropped his affronted act. "Ash, it is kind of late," he began.

"I don't see *you* in bed," she murmured.

"Andros might have something to say about that," TJ put in, and she lifted her head just enough to make a face at his joke.

"I'll go to bed if you will," Carlos suggested. "Separately," he added wryly, and she giggled a little.

"Okay," she agreed at last, and he looked over at TJ.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," TJ assured them. "Saryn?"

The other Ranger didn't answer, and Ashley sat up slowly, stretching. "Saryn?" she repeated, and he blinked.

"Are you going to bed?" Carlos asked, when it became obvious that he hadn't been paying attention.

Saryn shook his head. "Not right now, I think."

"Oh, come on," Ashley said, putting a hand over her mouth as she yawned again. "You don't want to fall asleep in here, do you? And you look like you're about to."

Saryn hesitated, and TJ clapped him on the shoulder as he came around the table. "Come on," he said good-naturedly. "The beds on this ship may be uncomfortable, but they're not *that* bad."

Saryn smiled a little at that, and at last he too got to his feet and the four of them left the holding bay.

(worth your life)

"Setting an intercept course."

The voice emanating from the flight recorder was distorted and tinged with static every time energy weapons made the shields flare. But it was real enough, and it brought the situation home to her in a way no mere explanation could have. She shook her head once before she caught herself, wishing she could prevent the action already etched into the recorder's memory.

"Starboard thruster stress tolerance above maximum levels," the Zaal computer said calmly, its voice a calm counterpoint to the frantic intership chatter that echoed over the recorder.

"Acknowledged," his voice replied, and she could hear the concentration he was pouring into his pursuit of the renegade Barox ship.

"Port thruster stress tolerance above max--"

"Acknowledged!" He cut the computer off, and though the static was now less frequent she could hear in its place the whine of overstressed thrusters.

"Lissan to Zaal," Cestria's voice broke in. "My readings indicate a severe power loss to the Barox ship. It is doubtful that it retains any capacity to withstand the descent to the ocean floor."

She held her breath, though there was a sinking feeling in her stomach that told her what his reply must have been.

His voice confirmed her suspicion a moment later. "That's not good enough, Lissan. Another moment and it will be completely disabled."

*And so will you!* her mind cried. She desperately willed him to have listened to his teammate.

"Starboard thruster overload imminent," the Zaal computer interjected.

She flinched at the horrible metallic screech that proceeded that statement, escalating until it fell off abruptly in a tearing burst of static and the sound of his voice cursing softly. She could almost see his expression, feel his frustration like a ghost inhabiting this cockpit. A ghost that no one wanted her to see--a ghost of what had been.

"Delphinius!" Cestria's voice was sharp this time, and her eyes stung. Somehow, she knew it would do no good. No matter how much she yelled, she had never been able to change his mind either. "Abandon your pursuit!"

This time he did not answer, though the recorder proved beyond a doubt that his comm had been functioning perfectly well at that point. The next voice to overlap the fighter chatter was the computer's, sounding more urgent than before and with words that would send any sane pilot scrambling. "Proximity alert. Ventral approach exceeding recommended safety margin. Proximity--"

"Pull up!" Cestria shouted, and then there was nothing but the shriek of impact and the crushing sound of static as the shields overloaded and the comm failed abruptly. The static hissed loudly in the little cockpit for what seemed like an interminable time, until finally the recorder clicked off and she was left in the same unnerving silence that must have followed the crash.

She drew in a deep breath, only then realizing that she was trembling. She unclenched her fingers slowly, leaning her head against the back of the pilot's seat and trying not to see Zaal's crumpled hull again in her mind's eye.

"I suppose you will now have me demoted for insubordination."

His voice, calm and much closer than it had been over the flight recorder, startled her badly enough that she jumped. She turned, narrowing her eyes and wondering how he had managed to enter the cockpit without her noticing. "Why?" she demanded, her eyes flicking up and down just once to reassure herself that he was really there.

"Because I know you have been waiting for the opportunity," he answered, his dark grey gaze inscrutable.

She glared at him for deliberately misunderstanding. "Why did you *do* it?"

"I had to," he replied. His words were more maddeningly cryptic than his expression, and she turned away in disgust. Pressing her fingers together, she stared at the forward console and waited for him to go away.

"I have as much right as you to be here," he said mildly. "Zaal may like you better, but she is still my zord."

She frowned at the console, refusing to look at him. "She doesn't like me better."

"She does," he contradicted. "She has told me so."

"Then why did she tell you I was here?" she muttered, irritated that he had caught her listening to his flight recorder.

"She didn't." There was a brief hesitation, and the challenge was gone from his tone when he added more quietly, "Canthris did."

She frowned more fiercely, thinking dark thoughts about Aura's zord. "She would."

"After the number of times you and Aura have fought?" he suggested agreeably. "She certainly would."

When he said nothing more, she reached out to reset the flight recorder and climb to her feet. It was true that she had no real reason to be here, and she was still reeling from the panic that stupid recording had instilled in her. She couldn't deal with him right now.

When she turned to leave, though, he was right in front of her and he made no move to step aside. "You know why I did it," he said, searching her expression.

"Because you're stubborn and contrary and you think you're always right," she muttered, looking away. "Get out of my way before I change my mind about demoting you."

"Go ahead," he said. There was a resigned note in his voice this time. "It won't change anything."

She shot a look at him out of the corner of her eye. The same thing she heard in his voice was on his face, and it troubled her. At least it did until he caught her looking at him, and his look turned to one of irritation. "That ship was trying to take out the Command Center, Cetaci."

"Trying!" she shot back, provoked. "It never would have made it, and you know it!"

"That is easy to say now," he growled. "At the time I could not take that chance."

"You could have been killed! The chance wasn't worth your life!"

He stared at her for a moment, and she glared back at his solemn and unreadable expression. When he finally spoke, his voice was quiet and he said only, "It was to me."

*But it wasn't to me!* she cried, clamping her mouth shut to keep herself from uttering the words aloud. Instead she turned her head to the side, fighting to ignore his intensity and trying desperately to suppress the turmoil of her own emotions.

Any success she might have had was swept away the moment she felt his fingers brush her cheek. "Cetaci," he said softly, then stopped.

With a frustrated cry, she flung herself into his arms and buried her face in his shoulder. "I hate you," she choked, her fists clenching as he hugged her awkwardly in return.

"I know," he whispered. To her chagrin, he sounded almost... amused. He rested his head against hers and rubbed her back soothingly. "I hate you, too."

20. Last One Back

"Hey! I was sitting there!"

Carlos shrugged unrepentantly. "Well, you got up. TJ, pass the ketchup."

"What's the magic word?" the Blue Ranger inquired, around a mouthful of pancakes.

Ashley set her plate down in Andros' place and snatched the ketchup off the table. "The magic word is, 'I'm sorry I took your seat, Ashley'!"

"That's more than one word," Carlos protested.

"Since when is that your seat?" TJ demanded.

"Since I put my juice there!"

"Well, move your juice."

"I'd rather move Carlos," Ashley said, giving him a gentle shove.

"In the interests of preserving peace," Carlos began, with a long-suffering sigh, "I'll move." He pushed his tray down a place and slid over, taking the stool with him.

"Very funny," Ashley said, taking Andros' stool and moving it into her place.

"Hey, where's Cassie?" TJ asked, reaching for his glass.

"Do you see her?" Carlos inquired.

At the same moment, Ashley added helpfully, "Not here."

TJ rolled his eyes. "DECA, did you wake Cassie up?"

"Cassie was awake at six-thirty this morning," the computer replied.

"But is she *still* awake?" Ashley demanded.

There was a pause, and DECA answered, "Unable to determine."

"In other words, no," TJ said, getting to his feet. "Don't hurt each other while I'm gone, guys."

TJ knocked on Cassie's door, but there was no response. "Cassie," he called, knocking again just to make sure. "It's TJ--are you awake?"

There was still no answer, and he shook his head. "DECA, what time is it?"

"Current time in Angel Grove is 7:10," she informed him.

TJ reached over and hit the keypad next to Cassie's door. The door slid open, and he glanced around before stepping inside. "DECA, could you turn the lights up a little?"

The lights came on, casting a dim illumination across the room. Cassie was curled up on her bunk, one arm buried underneath her and the other around her pillow. "Cass," he said gently, shaking her shoulder. "Cassie, wake up…"

"Hmm?" Her eyes fluttering open, Cassie rolled over onto her back and squinted up at him. "Shoot," she muttered. "What time is it?"

"Ten after seven," he told her, and her eyes went wide.

Scrambling into a sitting position, she impatiently brushed her hair out of her face. "Thanks, TJ--I'll be right there."

"No problem," he told her with a smile. "Just think, it's Friday. You can take a nap this afternoon."

"Good," she said with a sigh. "Would you grab some breakfast for me?"

"Sure--bagel?"

"That'd be great," she said, grabbing the bunk above her and pulling herself to her feet. "I'll be down in a few minutes."

She knew there was something wrong even before she stepped out of the lift. Shrieks were coming from the Glider holding bay, and she heard a crash as she ventured down the hallway. Peering into the holding bay, Cassie tried not to giggle.

"Carlos Vargas, you are so dead!" Ashley had wrestled Carlos' arm around behind his back and was glaring at him as he held her backpack out in front of him.

One of the stools at the table was overturned, but TJ was sitting on the other side of the table, calmly cleaning maple syrup off of his plate. "Hi Cass," he said, as she came in.

"Cassie!" Ashley exclaimed. "Make Carlos put my bag down!"

Though she tried not to, Cassie couldn't help laughing. "What are you guys *doing*?"

"Don't get involved," TJ advised, picking up his dishes and returning them to the Synthetron. "They've been like this all morning."

"He took my backpack!"

"You pushed me," Carlos argued.

"Well, if you hadn't been sitting in my place," she started, but Carlos interrupted.

"It's not your place! Andros isn't even here; why do you have to sit next to his seat?"

"I happen to like that place," Ashley retorted. "And if you drop my bag, I'm going to kill you!"

"What, are you afraid your pencil will break?" Carlos teased.

"Here," TJ said, and Cassie glanced away from her bickering teammates. He pushed a bagel and a cream cheese packet into her hand, nodding toward their friends. "They could go on like this for the rest of the day--*we* might as well be on time."

"Let go of me and I'll give you your backpack," Carlos suggested, looking over his shoulder.

"Oh, and I'm supposed to trust you?"

"Ash, I'm hurt!"

"You will be, if you drop that bag," she threatened.

"Have a good morning, guys," Cassie said. When that produced no response, she exchanged glances with TJ. He just rolled his eyes. She reached for her morpher, wondering how much sugar Carlos and Ashley had had for breakfast.

"I'm serious, Carlos!" She wasn't going to tell him *why* she would kill him for dropping her backpack, but she would. She really would.

"Then let me go!"

Reluctantly, Ashley let go of his arm and stepped back. He rolled his shoulder a little, shaking his head. "Man, I thought you were strong *before* you were a Ranger!"

He held out her backpack to her, and she snatched it out of his grip. Slipping the strap over her shoulder, she relaxed a little. "Remember that next time you steal my stuff," she told him.

He frowned a little at her serious tone. "I wouldn't really have dropped it--you know that, right?"

She hesitated a moment, then grinned. "Sure I do. But you have to admit, that was a great expression on Cassie's face when she came in."

He chuckled. "It was," he agreed, picking up his own backpack. "You ready to go?"

She glanced toward the doorway, but Andros was still nowhere in sight. *Must have slept through DECA's alarm again,* she thought, amused. There were some people that DECA really did seem to favor; TJ was right about that.

"Sure," she said, adjusting the shoulder strap on her bag. "Let's go."

The stars sparkled with a steady, luminescent fire, undimmed by the hazy air of an atmosphere. They were the first thing he saw when he woke, and for a moment, he forgot when he was. He pulled the sleeping bag closer over his shoulders and buried his head in his pillow, content.

As he lay there, though, sleep did not reclaim his consciousness, and he decided it must be late morning, at least. The steady blip, beep-beep, blip registered after a moment, and he rolled over on his side.

The solemn face of his best friend, subtly older than he expected, made him blink. The impression of being the only ones on the Megaship vanished, sliding away like the fragments of a dream as he remembered. *Two years,* he told himself firmly, but his mind knew that. He couldn't even quite recall how he had felt when he awoke--surely he hadn't forgotten about the other Rangers.

"You're the only person I know who needs two sleeping bags," Andros said, frowning down at the little digital screen in front of him.

"You have two," he pointed out, his words a little slurred from sleep as he pushed himself up onto one elbow. They were each lying on one open sleeping bag, with another serving as a blanket over them. He hated the feeling of something wrapping around him, the way a regular sleeping bag did, and Andros had always imitated him.

"More comfortable that way," Andros admitted, shoulders shifting as he poked one of the little buttons repeatedly. "Darn," he added, with another frown.

" 'Darn'?" Zhane repeated, pushing his pillow closer to Andros' and resting his elbows on it. He looked over his friend's shoulder, watching the little blue ship on the screen get hit over and over. "Man, Andros, you're still terrible at this game."

He reached out and hit the "two-player" switch, and a second ship appeared in the opposite corner. "Move over."

Andros obediently edged a little to the side, pushing the "fire" button again and actually hitting one of the tiny triangular fighters. The display beeped, then blipped again as one of them hit him back.

Zhane zoomed his own ship straight across the screen with no regard for the other fighters, shooting over and over. The screen beeped repeatedly, and Andros had to turn his own ship to the side to avoid getting caught in Zhane's path of destruction. "Watch where you're going!" he exclaimed indignantly.

Zhane turned his own ship and fired its miniature thrusters again. "I was watching. I thought you were going to move faster than that."

"I wouldn't have had to if you hadn't done that!"

Zhane grinned. "It's not real life, you know. You're not risking the Megaship. If you blow up, you just try again."

The mock lasers on Andros' ship blasted another fighter, and tracked in Zhane's direction. "Get out of the way, Zhane."

"I'm not *in* the--oops."

The screen blipped several times, and Zhane's ship turned bright orange. "That's not good," he muttered.

"I warned you," Andros said, his own ship slipping past Zhane's.

"Oh, you did not," Zhane complained. " 'Get out of the way'? What does that mean?"

"It means 'move your ship'," Andros answered firmly. He fired at the fighters closing on Zhane's injured ship, getting most of them before his laser status bar went to zero.

With a slight shrug, Andros pushed the thrusters on his ship to full and slammed into the last fighter. The shield status bar disappeared, and the screen flashed, "Game Over."

"Now *that* was good strategy," Zhane said dryly, as Andros pushed the "off" button.

" 'It's not real life, you know,' "Andros quoted. " 'If you blow up, you try again.' "

"Or you quit." Zhane glanced pointedly at the blank screen.

"I'm not quitting!" his friend exclaimed indignantly. "You're the one who lost his shields!"

"Yeah, but I didn't hit another ship."

"I did that on purpose," Andros informed him.

"Sure you did." He knew Andros had given his own ship to save Zhane's, but that wasn't the way the game worked. "You know both ships have to survive for us to win!"

"One of us would have gotten blown up either way," Andros said, pushing himself up.

"So you're going to quit?"

"I'm not quitting!"

"You said that before," Zhane reminded him. "But you're not playing anymore, either."

Andros rolled his eyes. "That's because I'm hungry."

Zhane considered that. "Well, that's a good point," he admitted. "Hey," he asked, as he sat up. "Has that game been up here this whole time?"

Andros nodded wordlessly.

Zhane was silent for a moment, then he grinned. "No wonder you haven't gotten any better at it."

Andros gave him one of those looks he was so good at. "Next time," he said calmly, "I'm going to let them blow you up."

Zhane put up his hands as Andros reached for his pillow. "You'll still lose," he said, but it didn't stop Andros from swinging the pillow at him.

Zhane grabbed it, and Andros grinned. "Yeah, but then I'll be able to blame you for it."

He let go of the pillow abruptly, and Zhane fell backwards, exclaiming as he saw Andros dive for *his* pillow. "Hey!" Zhane yelped, as his friend whacked him across the shoulders with it. "It's against the rules to hit someone with their own pillow!"

"Then you have the wrong pillow," Andros said, grabbing for it.

"You can't have bo--" Zhane's indignation was muffled as Andros tossed his pillow at him.

"Now give me mine!"

Zhane just laughed. "No!" he said, rolling out of the way. He scrambled after his own pillow, still holding Andros', and heard his friend slip on the sleeping bags.

He made the mistake of looking back over his shoulder--just as Andros tackled him from behind. He couldn't help yelping as he hit the ground, and he heard Andros laughing at him.

"Incoming transmission from NASADA," DECA interrupted.

"Okay, DECA!" Andros called, hitting Zhane with the other pillow.

"Hey!" Zhane exclaimed, holding up Andros' pillow in defense. That was a mistake, for Andros just grabbed it again and started another tug-of-war over it.

"Incoming transmission," DECA repeated, and this time Zhane cut her off.

"Thanks DECA!" he shouted, wrapping his arm around the pillow and trying to roll away.

Andros was laughing again, and it made his grip weaker--Zhane found himself right next to his own pillow, and he threw Andros' back at him as he lunged for his own. "Hah!" he exclaimed triumphantly, grabbing his pillow by the corners and swinging it back at his friend.

"Forfeit!" Andros yelled, holding up his arms in defense, and Zhane tumbled forward to avoid following through on his swing.

He landed right next to his friend, his pillow cushioning his fall, and he rolled over onto his back, gasping for breath. "Cheater," he accused, when he had enough air. "You can't forfeit in the middle of an attack!"

"I can so!" Andros exclaimed. He paused for a moment, catching his breath, and then added, "It worked, didn't it?"

Zhane tossed his pillow half-heartedly at his friend. Andros pushed it back at him, sitting up. "Come on--we have to go find out what NASADA wants."

"Like *this*?" Zhane asked, looking at his friend in disbelief. They were both still in pajamas, and looking somewhat the worse for wear.

Andros just grinned. "Earth doesn't know who its Rangers are; NASADA included. We'll just morph."

Unconsciousness deserted him immediately, but he did not move or open his eyes until he was sure of where he was.

The surroundings were unfamiliar--there was no generator hum, and the whisper of nearby breathing was absent. He felt his heartbeat increase, and he held absolutely still as he let his eyes slide open carefully.

There was no muted, barely visible glow from the coral walls, and he knew with sudden certainty that he was not on Aquitar. His hand moved involuntarily, seeking the familiar presence that his mind had already informed him was not there.

*Cassie!* He tried to suppress the instinctive panic that leaped into his mind. What had happened to her? She was supposed to be here--but where was here?

Then he felt the subtle pressure on his mind, and he found himself relaxing involuntarily. Cassie, wherever she was, was not alarmed or worried. She was calm, and he could feel her doing her best to project that feeling onto him.

He let himself take a deep breath, telling himself that if she was all right then there was no need to be concerned. Wherever he was--

*The Megaship,* he realized suddenly. Of course. He closed his eyes, shaking his head in a futile effort to clear the fog away from it. He recognized the feeling abruptly; it was the same disorientation that always came when he strained his Power crystal. He couldn't remember what he'd done to drain it this time, but he knew it must have been necessary.

He drew in another deep breath. Cassie didn't need him distracting her, especially not while she was in school.

*School…* He frowned. Aquitar--they had returned to Earth from Aquitar. The others were in school. Why hadn't DECA woken him?

"DECA," he muttered, wincing as he sat up. He had pushed his crystal too hard, and he could feel it in everything he did. He was still tired, stiff when he tried to move, and the Power was sluggish to respond when he reached for it. "What time is it?"

"Angel Grove time is 11:05 in the morning," the computer replied, then added, "Aquitian Ranger dome time is six and a quarter."

*Early,* he thought, then smiled. *Or so Cassie would complain.* But it shouldn't matter--he had been sleeping last night during what would have been evening on Aquitar. It would have been more than enough rest, if not for--

The control room. The memory came back to him with breathtaking force, as he remembered the need to protect Cassie at all costs, the wall of fire overwhelming the strength of his ruby, and then nothing. Until the feeling of her soul, closer by than he had ever felt it, had reawakened his awareness, and Power, his and hers, had flooded through him with a strength he had never known.

He had been dead. He had died, for the second time in his life, and once more, his own will had not been enough to bring him back. He wasn't strong enough to stand alone. Had he ever been?

He just sat there, staring into the dimness. He owed Cassie his life--and he didn't care. He had owed his own teammates his life several times over, and that had not bothered him either. He owed the Astro team his life at least once, and the Aquitian team as well.

"In politics, it's everyone for themselves. You can't do that on a team," Jenna had said when he was first introduced to the Elisian Rangers he was to lead. "We have to be here for you, and you have to be here for us. Always--that's what being a Ranger means.

Ashley, years later, had reminded him of that first lesson with her own words. "You've always been one of us, in spirit at least. That's what being a Power Ranger is all about."

"I am a Ranger," he whispered. He smiled a little, seeing DECA's camera light flicker. *I am a Ranger.* Still. And always, as Jenna had first told him. And Rangers couldn't do what they did alone.

He was no longer alone. The steady presence in his mind assured him of that, as much the fact that his continued residence on this ship went unquestioned, even welcomed. He was again one of a team--as they were all meant to be.

Andros looked up as the lift doors slid open, somewhat surprised to see Saryn standing there. When the other Ranger had remained absent all morning, Andros had assumed that he preferred to have the time to himself--yet here he was, stepping hesitantly onto the Bridge, as though he wasn't quite sure of Andros' reaction.

" 'Morning," Andros greeted him, as he would any of the others. "We'd have come and gotten you for breakfast, but we weren't sure whether you wanted to be alone."

Saryn shook his head. "I--only just woke up. Your computer does not seem to consider me a member of the ship's complement yet."

Andros did his best not to grin at that "yet". Ever since the Phantom Ranger had demorphed, he had hoped that his longtime ally would consider remaining on the Megaship. He seemed to find a kind of peace here, though whether it was being with the team or simply being near Cassie, Andros had never been able to tell. Either way, he himself had managed to find happiness here, and he would be glad to see Saryn find--and accept--it as well.

"The Phantom Ranger has been listed as a transient member of the Megaship's crew for several weeks," DECA interjected, sounding a bit miffed.

Andros looked over at her camera. "So why didn't you wake him up this morning?"

"The request not to disturb the Phantom Ranger came from Cassie," DECA replied.

Andros caught Saryn's eye, and saw the other smile, just a little. Assuming that answered the question, Andros glanced back down at the console in front of him and diverted a little more power to the scanner array.

*Zhane?* he asked.

*Looks good,* his friend answered from the engine room. *The distribution curve is still stable. I'm going to check the laser arrays.*

"Andros?"

Saryn was standing by the nav station now, staring in bemusement at the digital screen that insisted on beeping at him. Andros reminded himself not to apologize for having fun, and walked over to join the other Ranger. "It's a game. It thinks you're going to play."

"A game?" Saryn repeated, as though he had never heard the word before.

"Yeah. Zhane brought it down here this morning--he and I have a kind of competition going with ourselves, trying to beat our highest score."

When Saryn didn't look any more enlightened, Andros reached around him and triggered the controls. "See, you're this little ship that starts over here in the corner. Here's your thruster controls, and your lasers--" A swarm of little triangles started to trickle across the screen, and Andros pointed to them. "Those are the enemy fighters. You win the game by destroying all of them."

"They are evil?" Saryn asked, staring at the screen.

"No--well, maybe," Andros said, firing the thrusters and sending the ship careening across the screen. The view shifted to follow it as it flew off the "edge". "It doesn't really matter. It's just a game."

"But why would you wish to destroy ships if they are not evil?"

"You're not really destroying the ships," Andros tried to explain. "They're not real. It's like a battle sim, only you don't do it to stay in practice, you just play for fun."

Saryn watched for a moment, while Andros used the simulated lasers to shoot at the leading group of fighters. A muted green flash in the upper left corner got his attention, and his ship zipped forward, the view shifting again as it hid inside the shielded station for the few seconds it took the fighters to fly past.

"These little bars tell you how much fuel, shields, and laser power you have left," Andros added, pointing to the right side of the display. "When you run low, you have to find these little green station things."

"This is a very complex game," Saryn observed, watching Andros maneuver through what was supposed to be a solar magnetic field.

"Nothing like flying a real ship," Andros said with a shrug. "It just takes practice. Here, you try."

Saryn shot him a dubious look, but he obediently took over the controls. He was hopelessly inexperienced at the game, but he had better coordination than Andros had expected. He managed to take out almost a dozen ships before his shields failed, and "Game Over" flashed on the screen.

"I am not very good at this," he remarked, as the computer displayed both his score and the list of high scores that Andros and Zhane had accumulated.

Andros snorted. "Neither am I, according to Zhane."

"He is very good?" Saryn asked.

"No, not really. He just likes to make fun of me."

"Zhane mocks many things," Saryn said, no expression on his face as he gazed down at the little screen.

Andros glanced at him, wondering if the other Ranger was upset. "He does, I guess," he admitted. "But--he doesn't mean any harm. He makes jokes to cheer people up, not to hurt anyone."

Saryn seemed to consider that. "Does it cheer you to hear him say that you are not good at this game?"

"Well--" He couldn't help smiling. "Yeah, it does. I know he doesn't *mean* it. And… I know he'd never say something like that to someone he didn't really care about. You can tease your friends, because they know how you really feel about them. You can't tease other people without offending them."

"It is a sign of affection, in this case," Saryn said slowly.

"Sure--I've heard Cassie tease you," Andros said. "It's the same thing. I think you just assume that when Zhane does it, he means it in a bad way."

Saryn's gaze shifted toward him sharply, but after a moment, he nodded. "I am afraid you are correct. Zhane and I--have little in common."

Andros looked at him in surprise. "I don't think that's really true. You've both lost an awful lot, you know. You just--deal with it differently."

Saryn looked away. "You and Zhane have a chance of reclaiming your home. I do not."

"Our people are still together," Andros agreed. "But none of them are the people Zhane remembers. It's been two *years* since the time he's still a part of, Saryn. He's lost everything he knew--it's all different now, and he can't ever go back. He has to try and make a new life, just like you did."

"Oh, it's not *that* bad," Zhane's voice drawled from somewhere behind them.

Andros did his best not to jump. Glancing over his shoulder, he demanded, *How long have you been listening?*

*Long enough,* Zhane answered, grinning at their discomfort. Walking over to the nav station, he draped one arm over Andros' shoulder and peered down at the game still sitting on the console. "I still have you, after all. Man, is this *your* score?"

"It's Saryn's," Andros replied, trying not to smile at Zhane's irrepressible attitude.

"He's even worse than you!" Zhane exclaimed, feigning astonishment. "I didn't think that was possible!"

Andros rolled his eyes. "He kept his shields longer than you did!"

"I was out of practice," Zhane argued.

"He's never *played*," Andros reminded him wryly.

"Huh," Zhane admitted. "Good point. Good job, Saryn."

Saryn hesitated, and Andros hoped the other was remembering what he had said about teasing. He could almost hear Ashley saying, "Don't take everything so personally!" and he tried not to smile.

"I do not see that I am deserving of congratulations," Saryn said at last, his expression neutral. "My score is significantly lower than any of yours."

"Those are the highest scores we've ever gotten, though," Andros pointed out. "We don't usually do that well either."

"Plus, me and Andros play at the same time," Zhane said with a grin. "See, if you hit this--" He switched the game to two-player mode, and the display changed. "Two ships always do better than one."

Andros reached over and hit the "play" button.

"Hey!" Zhane exclaimed, as little triangular fighters appeared on the screen. He automatically moved one of the ships out of the way as a fighter fired on it. "Saryn, move that other ship, would you?"

The other Ranger made no move toward the controls. "I do not know--"

"Those are your thruster controls," Andros reminded him, pointing over his shoulder. "Don't get too far away from Zhane's ship, or the screen will split, and then things get *really* confusing."

Saryn shot him a helpless look, and for a moment Andros almost felt sorry for him. But then he shook his head and grinned. "It's just a game," he said gently. "It doesn't matter."

"Oh, you're one to talk," Zhane said, his eyes still on the screen. "The person who got mad at me because I was flying too fast!"

Saryn edged his ship away from the wave of fighters, and Andros went around to the other side of the console to see better. "Go over this way," he advised, pointing. "They can't see inside the magnetic fields."

"Neither can we!" Zhane objected.

"So you stay outside it," Andros said, watching Saryn's ship struggle with three of the fighters. "Saryn, go inside here. You can use Zhane's scanners to tell where you are."

As his ship slipped into the magnetic field, half the screen went blank--except for the dotted outlines produced by the "scanners" on Zhane's ship. Saryn looked surprised. "That is very helpful," he said, and Zhane chuckled.

"To you, maybe. I just lost half my visibility."

"See, they don't know where you are." Andros pointed as the fighters followed Saryn's ship into the field, and then started to wander around aimlessly as their scanners were scrambled.

"Good, now come out," Zhane interjected. "I can't see anything!"

"You have your tactical map," Andros reminded him, tapping the little square. "Hey, watch out for those--"

"Oh, not good," Zhane muttered. "Andros, wasn't there a station around here somewhere?"

"Yeah…" He frowned at the screen, trying to orient himself. "I think it's over this way."

"Saryn, I'm moving out of range," Zhane warned. "You're not going to be able to see in that field--"

The screen split suddenly, and Saryn's half went blank. He fired his thrusters just as a green flash on Zhane's side caught Andros' attention. Zhane dove into the protection of the station, and Saryn's ship eased out of the magnetic field--to find half a dozen fighters waiting for him.

"Those weren't there before!" Zhane exclaimed indignantly. "I think this game cheats."

"Is that possible?" Saryn asked, doing his best to fight his way out of the tangle of ships.

"Why not? DECA programmed it," Zhane replied. Saryn's shields vanished, and the game blipped as his ship disappeared from the screen. "Game Over" flashed in large letters. "Oops."

"My apologies," Saryn said. "It appears I do not play on your level."

"Are you kidding?" Zhane gave him a wry look. "You should have seen me the first time I played this. I destroyed my ship by crashing into one of the stations."

Andros grinned. "He did, too. And the stations' shields are always supposed to let you through--you shouldn't be *able* to crash into them."

"I'm telling you," Zhane insisted. "This game cheats!"

"The game abides by all appropriate rules, with no variation since its original programming," DECA told him.

"And who decides what's appropriate?" Zhane demanded.

"I do," DECA replied. "Based, of course, on past experience with other forms of digitally interactive entertainment."

"Of course," Zhane muttered, giving her camera a suspicious look.

"Give up, Zhane," Andros advised, amused. "You know you can't win against DECA."

"Someday, I *am* going to win," Zhane informed him. "And believe me, you'll know it."

"TJ also seems to believe this," Saryn offered. "Logic does not stop him from arguing with the ship's computer."

"That's because computers have an attitude," Zhane said blithely. "They think they're always right. It's our job to remind them that that isn't true."

Saryn raised an eyebrow. "You do not seem to be succeeding so far."

"I will," Zhane replied confidently. "Just wait."

"It is 2:15 in Angel Grove," DECA announced, and he saw Andros look up.

"Thanks, DECA," Andros said. He reached for his communicator. "Zhane, how are you doing?"

"Good," Zhane's voice answered. "The engines are as close to optimum as they're going to get. You leaving?"

Andros nodded. "Yeah, it's almost two-thirty; I'm going to meet Ash. She says the others are planning to head to the park this afternoon--want to go?"

"Sure," Zhane replied, sounding more enthusiastic than usual. "I'll meet you down there in a few minutes."

"Great," Andros said, a smile on his face as he tapped his communicator again. "What about you, Saryn? Will you come to the park with us?"

He hesitated. "No one--will recognize me, on Earth."

Andros actually laughed. "No, they definitely won't. Earth doesn't even know who its *own* Rangers are, let alone anyone else's. You'll be just another kid, like the rest of us. It's kind of fun," he added. "Once you get used to it."

It was a strange feeling, being invited to join in the gatherings he had, once or twice, watched from the shadows. He was neither their age, nor of their world, and yet they all seemed willing to overlook that and include him anyway.

"I will come," he said at last, hoping he was not making a mistake.

"Good--I'll tell Zhane to wait for you," Andros said, reaching for his communicator again. But instead of calling his friend, the other Ranger disappeared into a flash of bright red, and he blinked.

After a moment, he went over to the comm console and signaled the engine room. "Zhane?"

"Right here," Zhane said, stepping onto the Bridge. "You don't have a communicator, do you. We should probably do something about that."

He hadn't needed a communicator outside of his armor for years. "It is not necessary," he began, but Zhane interrupted him.

"It's team policy to make sure everyone can communicate with everyone else--you can't without morphing, can you?"

He shook his head slowly.

"Andros says Ashley's not using her old communicator--he's going to ask if she'll let you have it," Zhane said a moment later.

"Andros left very quickly," he said, still puzzled by the other's disappearance.

Zhane laughed. "He wanted to surprise Ashley by meeting her as soon as she got out of school. I think she knows he's coming, though. Andros isn't very good at keeping secrets, especially from her.

"Oh--Ashley says she still has Carlos' communicator from a few weeks ago, and she doesn't think he'd mind. It's a better color for you, anyway," Zhane said with a grin. "I'll go get it."

Somewhat overwhelmed by Zhane's sudden energy, he nonetheless followed the other up to deck five. Zhane walked into Ashley's room without hesitation, and reappeared a moment later with a black-banded gold communicator.

"Found it," Zhane announced unnecessarily, handing him the device. "You ready?"

"No," he said carefully, sliding the communicator into his pocket. "I--wish to apologize, for the way I have reacted to you in the past."

He hesitated, but Zhane said nothing. "I have taken offense at things which Andros assures me you did not mean in a negative way," he continued. "I am sorry for this."

This time when he paused, Zhane shook his head. His enthusiasm was suddenly subdued, and the Silver Ranger looked, for once, thoughtful. "It's not your fault," Zhane said. "It's just--it's the way I deal with things.

"Like Andros said, we both have a lot of things we'd like to forget about, but we deal with them totally differently." Zhane smiled a little. "I talk more to hide things, and you talk less. Like Andros."

"And yet you and Andros are friends," he pointed out quietly.

Zhane shrugged, and the brief moment of solemnity was gone when he grinned. "Well, as Ashley would say, maybe there's hope for us yet. Come on; let's go."

21. Stickers

Sparkles of sunlight swirled on the ground as the glass ornament turned gently in the breeze. The light made the crimson color of the star shine, while the lighter red seemed to glow.

Andros watched it intently as it spun on the end of its silver thread, and she shrugged a little, embarrassed. "It's just that you don't have many decorations in your room, and it made me think of you. If you don't like it--"

"No," he interrupted softly. "It's beautiful, Ash. Thank you."

She ducked her head, pleased. "Oh--I almost forgot," she said, reaching into her backpack again. "DECA made this for it."

She held out the little grey disc, pushing the button on its side with her thumb. A shimmering light sprang up, forming a flattened sphere over the disc. As soon as the globe was complete, the light faded into invisibility, and she could see Andros knew what it was.

A smile spread across his face as she put it in his hand. He deactivated the shield long enough to set the glass star on top of the disc, then pressed the button again. As the light encompassed the disc once more, tiny antigravs floated the ornament into the middle of the sphere, where it bobbed idly until they stabilized.

"I was afraid it would break," Ashley started to explain, but his expression of awe stopped her when he looked up.

"Thank you," he whispered again, reaching out to hug her. She returned his embrace happily, and he added quietly, "I haven't gotten a present in a long time."

"That's what friends are for," she murmured, blinking tears out of her eyes.

"I didn't think I needed friends," he breathed, hugging her more tightly. "I was wrong, and I'm glad."

"Me, too." She closed her eyes, feeling the sun warm on her back even as Andros' hard-earned trust warmed her heart.

"Saryn!"

The figure in black turned, not seeming to notice as the sun struck his eyes. Cassie dropped her backpack on the ground and ran toward him, so glad to see him that she didn't think to wonder what could have convinced him to come.

He caught her as she flung her arms around him, and she was sure she heard him laugh as he tightened his grip and swung her around. She couldn't help giggling herself as her feet found the ground again and she pulled away, staring up at him breathlessly.

"You are pleased that I am here, then," he said quietly, still smiling but searching her expression intently.

"Of course!" She hugged him again, elated. "I was going to go up to the Megaship and try and talk you into coming! I'm *so* glad you're here!"

"I was not sure you would want me… imposing on your life," he admitted.

"That's the silliest thing I have ever, ever heard," she said with a grin, trying not to laugh again. "Come on; I have to introduce you! You know Justin, of course, but Carlos brought Karen and you couldn't possibly have met her before."

She knew she was babbling, but she didn't care. It was so strange to see Saryn *here*, in her normal, everyday life--all of a sudden he seemed so *real*. She couldn't help feeling overwhelmed, and overjoyed at the same time.

"Cassie," he said softly, as she tugged on his hand.

With a little skip, she turned back toward him expectantly. She cocked her head, startled to see the frightened look that flickered across his face before he could hide it.

"I'm sorry," she said instantly, as she realized her overenthusiasm wasn't helping his self-consciousness any. She took a deep breath, trying to calm down a little. "I'm sorry; I don't mean to get weird on you… Are you okay?"

"It is not your fault; do not worry," he assured her, trying to smile. "I am just--I have not dealt with… civilians in a long time."

"Saryn!" Zhane yelled, from just far enough away that his shout was justifiable. "Get over here and introduce yourself!"

The look flashed across his face again, and he flinched back. "Perhaps this was not a good idea," he began, but Cassie took his hand again as it slipped out of hers.

"No, Saryn…" She did her best not to frown, suddenly annoyed with Carlos for bringing Karen along with them. "I think it was wonderful of you to come, and I'd really like it if you would stay," she pleaded. "Karen's no different from the rest of us, and all you have to do is say hi. Please?"

"Cassie, make Saryn come socialize!" Zhane called, and Cassie rolled her eyes.

"Shut up, Zhane!" she shouted. Turning back to Saryn, she told him quietly, "Just give us a chance. Stay for a few more minutes--if you really don't like it, I'll come with you back to the Megaship, okay?"

"No, Cassie, I did not mean for you to leave your friends," he began, and she just shook her head at him.

"They're your friends too," she promised. "Come on."

Hand in hand, Andros and Ashley stepped off the sidewalk and headed deeper into the park. They had trailed behind the others until Ashley finally stopped at the edge of the park and told him she had something she had been meaning to give him since Tuesday.

"Our beach day got sort of interrupted," she'd admitted with a smile. "And I haven't managed to find a good time since."

He glanced down automatically at the object he held in his hand, turning it over and watching the antigravs turn the glass star so that it appeared right side up again. "Like a snowglobe," Ashley said, seeing him playing with it.

He looked at her curiously. "A what?"

"It's sort of like that," she said with a grin. "It has a base and a glass globe with a little scene in it. It has white stuff, or glitter or something inside it to look like snow, and when you turn it over, it looks like it's snowing."

Andros frowned. "What's snow?"

She gave him an incredulous look, and then she must have realized he was teasing her. Giving him a gentle shove, she retorted, "Very funny. You've seen snow on the Simudeck."

He smiled, remembering their first snowboarding excursion. The only person worse at it than Ashley was him, and they had spent a great deal of time falling down together. "I'd like to see it again sometime," he said, twisting the little shield sphere again. The star turned over once more.

"It's a date," she replied quietly, letting go of his hand and putting her arm through his. He looked over at her, and she smiled at him.

"Hey, guys!" TJ called, as they finally caught up to their friends. "We thought you'd gotten lost."

"It's a big park," Ashley answered impishly. "We thought *you* were lost."

"Nice to meet you," Karen was telling Saryn, who looked strangely out of place in clothes that Andros hadn't thought twice about on the Megaship.

At that thought, he looked around for Zhane, unable to remember what his friend had been wearing. "It is--nice to meet you as well," Saryn replied, his hesitation almost imperceptible.

"I don't understand," Zhane was telling Carlos.

"Look," Justin interrupted. "We'll show you. Come over here."

Andros tried not to smile as a mystified Zhane was dragged away from the group for whatever "explanation" Justin wanted to offer. The Silver Ranger was still dressed in jeans and a light grey t-shirt, a combination that would draw no more attention than Andros' own.

"What is that?" Karen asked curiously, and Andros glanced at her to find her looking at the little globe in his hand.

He lifted it up for her to see automatically. "Ashley gave it to me," he said with a smile, and saw TJ and Ashley look at each other oddly.

"Um, don't touch it," Ashley said quickly, as Karen reached for it. "It's--uh, held up by magnets, and it's really hard to get it back in the right place once you push it out."

"Oh," Karen said, nodding her understanding. "I was wondering how it was suspended like that--that's really cool!"

"Yeah," Ashley said, flashing a relieved smile. "I found it at the mall."

"Hey, Karen," TJ interjected. "You a frisbee fan?"

"Definitely," she said with a grin. "Do you have one?"

TJ pretended to be insulted. "I *always* have a frisbee--check it out."

He pulled a bright blue disc from his backpack with a flourish, and she laughed. "Nice!" she said appreciatively, inspecting it.

Ashley stepped in front of Andros, blocking his view, and he caught her eye. "Can I see that?" she asked sweetly, indicating the object in his hand.

He nodded, puzzled, and handed it to her. She took it far more carefully than the shield sphere's protection warranted, and walked a little past him with it as TJ took Karen off in the other direction.

Ashley glanced over her shoulder, then back at him. "Andros," she said quietly, amusement in her tone. "We don't have these on Earth. You might as well hold up a sign that says 'alien' on it."

"But I'm not--"

"Andros. We only have two kinds of offworld visitors on this planet," she told him patiently. "The bad guys, and the good guys. If you're not one of Dark Spectre's henchmen, then you're a Power Ranger. And you're a little too good-looking to be one of the bad guys, you know?"

He blushed, not sure what to say.

"All the bad guys are ugly, huh?" Cassie said wryly, joining them. "That thing's really cool, by the way."

Ashley glanced down at it, then passed it back to him. "Sorry, Andros," she said suddenly, sounding a little sheepish. "I didn't even think about the fact that Karen was with us."

He gave her a surprised look. "It's not your fault. I still don't know enough about Earth, I guess."

"Hey, it doesn't matter," Cassie put in gently. "Karen bought the magnetics explanation--that was good thinking, Ash."

Ashley cleared her throat. "It doesn't even *look* metal, but that was the only thing I could think of. You can put it in my backpack if you want, Andros."

He bounced it on his palm for a moment, reluctant to part with it. Cassie watched him play with it, then shook her head. "That is *really* cool," she said with a rueful smile. "You have to show me how you did that, Ash."

"Cassie, heads!" TJ's shout made them all look up, and Cassie put her hands up instinctively.

The frisbee bounced off them, skidding to a halt on the grass, and she chased after it. "Funny, Teej!" she yelled, throwing it back.

"Well, get over here and play," he retorted good-naturedly, and she laughed.

Andros knelt by the backpack Ashley had dropped with the others', unzipping it just enough to slip the shield sphere inside. It rolled across the top of her books, the glass ornament twisting within as the top point of the star tried to keep pointing upwards. He smiled to himself as he closed her bag again and got to his feet.

"Want to play frisbee?" Ashley asked, holding her hand out to him.

"Tell TJ I'm too tired, okay?" Cassie added. "It's been a long week."

"Sure," Ashley agreed, smiling at Andros as he took her hand. "You okay, Cass?"

"Yeah, just tired," she promised. But one look at Saryn convinced Andros that Cassie was doing it for him. The other Ranger looked as tired as she claimed to be, despite his few hours of wakefulness today.

*She never did tell us what happened yesterday,* Andros mused. "Get some rest," he advised gently, and saw Saryn's gaze turn towards him. He caught the other's eyes, and Saryn nodded a little.

"And no telekinesis," Ashley chided, as he followed her across the grass. "Earth people can't do that, either, you know."

"You can," he pointed out.

"But I'm not going to tell anyone!" she exclaimed, her eyes sparkling as she smiled. "And I can't use it on anything except a telekinesis ball, so no one has to worry about me cheating at frisbee."

"Cheating?" he asked, amused. "Is it cheating to use a skill you've worked to develop?"

She didn't answer right away, and he looked over at her. "I don't know," she said at last, giving him a shrug and a smile. "And as long as Karen doesn't see you do it, I suppose it doesn't matter."

He didn't realize he was staring at her until she squeezed his hand. Then he blinked, looking away. "We never practice together anymore," he said, a little wistfully.

"We can," she said, sounding eager. "I thought you didn't *like* teaching me."

"Of course I do." He gave her a surprised look. "I thought you didn't want me to anymore."

She giggled. "We definitely have to talk more."

"You can't play frisbee holding hands!" TJ shouted, as they both paused near TJ and Karen.

"You're just jealous, TJ!" Ashley yelled back, letting go of Andros' hand.

The Blue Ranger laughed. "Andros really isn't my type," he countered.

Andros rolled his eyes. "You don't know how glad I am to hear that," he said, just loudly enough for TJ to hear, and Ashley burst out laughing.

*Good call,* he heard her say in his mind, and he looked over in her direction in time to see her wink at him.

"You're tired," Cassie said, concerned, as they followed Andros and Ashley more slowly.

He was exhausted. He wasn't used to being unmorphed so much of the time, to not having the Power there constantly. He knew some of it was the enormous amount of energy Cassie had had to call on yesterday to keep him alive, but he couldn't help thinking that some of his fatigue was simple withdrawal.

"I am all right," he assured her, and she sighed.

"Saryn, someday I'm going to ask you if you're all right and you're going to say, 'No, Cassie, I'm not. I feel terrible; why don't we sit down for a while?' And I'll probably faint from the shock."

He felt a smile tug at his lips. "You do not seem prone to fainting," he pointed out. "But if you were, I would try to avoid anything that would cause such a reaction in you."

"Well, don't," she said firmly. "I can take it."

His vision blurred alarmingly, and he reached out for her hand. "In that case," he murmured, resisting the temptation to shake his head, "why don't we sit down for a while?"

She looked at him worriedly, but she caught his arm and led him over to one of the massive oaks that sheltered the park. "Sit," she said gently, crouching down beside him as he lowered himself to the ground. "Are you all right?"

No sooner had she asked the question than she slapped her forehead with her hand. "I can't believe I just asked that."

"Yes," he said, unable to keep from smiling. "Truly, Cassie, I will be fine."

She rolled her eyes. "Of course you *will* be--I'm asking how you are *now*."

He hesitated, then admitted, "I am tired. But I promise you, there is nothing else wrong with me."

"Are you sure?" she asked, letting go of his arm to settle herself on the ground next to him. He felt suddenly worse again, and at last it clicked.

"Maybe we should have DECA check you out," she was saying, and he shook his head.

"No, Cassie. It is just my ruby," he told her, putting together what Billy had said with his own experience. "I am sure."

"How?" she said curiously, and he smiled.

"Because every time you touch me, it gets better."

She gave him a startled look, and he shrugged slightly. "Billy said we were sharing Power," he reminded her. "Yours is somehow boosting mine, I think. It has happened before."

"The first time you were on the Megaship," she whispered, a faraway look in her eyes. "You had those dizzy spells--and you always reached for me."

"I would have done that anyway, if I thought you would let me," he said with a smile. "But touching you made things go back to normal, at least for a time."

She slid her hand down the inside of his arm, twining her fingers through his and leaning against his shoulder. "Then do it as often as you want," she said quietly. "It doesn't make *me* feel any different--you're the one whose Power is connected to your life force."

"That has been hard to forget, lately," he murmured. Shifting a little, he leaned back against the trunk of the tree. Cassie moved too, edging closer and resting her head on his shoulder again.

"Does it bother you?" she asked after a moment.

He paused, wondering. He had never thought about it that way. The Power had, for some time, kept him from joining his friends, and for that he had resented it. After that, it had become no more than a tool, a way of fulfilling the mission he, Tobin, and Linnse had set for themselves. But now--did he regret his dependence on his ruby?

"No," he said at last. "Because to change it, I would have had to feel less strongly about my old teammates. And the bond we five had is not one I would surrender, at any cost."

"Good," she whispered. "It makes you stronger."

He considered that for a moment, watching three of the Rangers and one of the Rangers' friends play with their plastic disc. "Which?" he asked after a while.

"Both," Cassie answered, squeezing his fingers. "Your ruby, and your feelings for your team."

Not far away from the others, Carlos and Justin were trying to explain the principles of a different game to Zhane. The Silver Ranger did not seem to be grasping the concept, and it took an effort not to smile at the other's predicament.

"My old team," he corrected gently. "If it is acceptable to you, I would consider myself a part of this team, now."

She tilted her head so she could see his expression, her eyes shining. "*Very* acceptable," she whispered, and he leaned down to kiss her softly.

TJ whistled as the frisbee's curve brought it almost directly into Andros' hands. "Good shot, Karen!"

Ashley laughed as Karen bowed in all directions. "Thank you, thank you!"

Andros readjusted his grip and tossed the frisbee toward her, with a little too much force. Ashley backed up and leapt after it, but the disc sailed by overhead so that she had to chase it across the grass.

Behind her, she heard Zhane laugh. Carlos and Justin were trying to teach him to juggle with a hackey sack--without much success, as far as she could tell. But it didn't stop him from periodically commenting on the frisbee game.

"Stop throwing it so high, Andros!" the Silver Ranger shouted. "We know you just want to see Ashley jump!"

"Shut up, Zhane," Andros answered, just as Ashley grabbed the frisbee off the ground and started back toward them.

" 'Shut up'?" Zhane mimicked. "Am I the only one who can come up with witty repartee around here?"

"Did you just mention wits, Zhane?" TJ asked, holding his hand to his ear as though he hadn't heard. "I didn't know you had any of those!"

"That's always been a problem on this team," Zhane retorted good-naturedly.

"TJ, let Zhane practice," Ashley reproved, tossing the frisbee at him and hoping Karen didn't ask about the "team" comment. "He's bad enough without you distracting him."

"Oh, and *you* can do this?" Zhane challenged. "It's harder than it looks!"

Ashley smiled smugly. "You bet I can." She wandered away from the four-cornered frisbee catch and snatched the hackey sack away from Carlos.

The Black Ranger grinned. "Zhane, you just challenged the wrong person. Ashley's the only person I know who's almost as good as Justin."

"And that's 'cause I taught her," Justin added.

Ashley placed the little beanbag on her foot and tossed it up into the air, juggling it off her knee, heel, and the top of her foot again before passing it off to Justin. The former Blue Ranger smirked, kicking it high enough to bounce it off his head and then over his shoulder and into his hand.

"That's how it's done," he said confidently. "I don't know why you're having so much trouble, Zhane."

Zhane just stared at him. "I can't believe you do that without telekinesis," he said finally, and Justin spread his hands out to the sides ingenuously.

Ashley glanced around, and saw Cassie watching them idly. "Hey, guys, I'll be right back," she said, waving at them.

" 'Kay, Ash," Carlos agreed, obviously amused by Zhane's amazement.

"See, it isn't that hard," Justin began as she walked away. "Try starting it like this…"

"Hey," Ashley said, dropping to the ground next to Cassie. "What's up?"

"Not much," her friend replied peacefully, not making any move away from Saryn. "How 'bout you?"

Ashley leaned forward enough to catch Saryn's eye, and she waved at him in acknowledgement. He smiled, and she grinned back, turning her mischievous expression on Cassie. "Well, actually, I thought you might want to help me with something."

Cassie immediately looked interested, probably suspecting a prank. "What's going on?"

Ashley leaned forward and whispered in her ear. She wasn't convinced that Saryn couldn't hear, but she doubted he would be able to make sense of what she had said.

Cassie grinned outright. "Let's do it," she agreed, straightening up a little. "I'll be right back, Saryn."

"Is this a secret?" he asked, letting go of Cassie's hand.

"Yes," Ashley answered, grabbing Cassie's other hand and hauling her to her feet. "You'll find out later."

Cassie laughed. "We'll be right back," she repeated, and they headed toward the pile of backpacks the group had left in the shade of another tree. Halfway there, Ashley broke into a jog, and they both ran the rest of the way.

Giggling, Ashley threw herself down next to her bag. "I had them in my notebook all day," she confessed. "I was hoping we could get up to the Megaship when no one else was there."

Peering around the tree, Ashley made sure no one was looking in their direction before pulling the sheets out of her backpack. Cassie crouched down beside her, a smile spreading across her face as she inspected the stickers. "Those are *perfect*," she agreed. "Let's go!"

Ashley tried to stifle another giggle as they both looked over their shoulders at the same time. Then, with a solemn nod spoiled only by Cassie's grin, they touched their morphers and teleported out.

Cassie turned as soon as the walls of the holding bay appeared around them, heading for the door. Ashley was right behind her, and she couldn't help giggling as she caught her friend's eye.

They were just stepping into the lift when something odd registered. Cassie looked over her shoulder, but the door was already closing, and she shook her head. *Must have been my imagination.*

The lift opened onto deck five, and she glanced at the silver plate by the door just to make sure. Her eyes widened, and she stopped abruptly.

"What--" Ashley stopped right behind her, looking curiously over her shoulder.

The silver plate by the lift door read, "Deck two."

They glanced at each other uncertainly. "That ride wasn't long enough to take us up four decks, was it?" Ashley asked slowly.

Cassie frowned. "It couldn't have been. DECA, what deck are we on?"

"You are currently on deck five," DECA replied.

Ashley started to grin. It took Cassie a moment longer to get it, but then she laughed. "TJ."

Ashley nodded. "I wonder if he did all the decks, or just this one…"

"I think deck six was switched too," Cassie offered, remembering the sense of something not quite right as she got into the lift. "When did he have *time*?"

Ashley giggled. "I have no idea. He's good."

"We'd better hurry and put these up," Cassie realized suddenly. "If we're gone too long, they're going to think it's us!"

Ashley set her backpack on the floor and dropped down beside it, unzipping it quickly. She tugged the sheets of star stickers out of her bag and passed them to Cassie as she stood up. "Do you want the honor of doing Saryn's?"

Cassie grinned, looking down at the stars. "Thanks. Where did you *find* these?"

"Well, I still had the regular colors from last time," Ashley said, pausing outside Andros' door. "Here, pass me that one and I'll do his right now."

Cassie handed over a sheet with three stars missing, and Ashley carefully peeled away the red star in the upper left corner. She inspected the part of the bulkhead the keypad was set into, then placed the star right in the middle of the top edge.

Cassie clapped, one hand still holding the other sheet of stickers. "Nice--but I still want to know where you found the metallic ones."

Ashley caught her arm and pulled her down the hallway, a smug look on her face. "It's a secret. Do you want to do Zhane's, or should I?"

"Go ahead," Cassie said, handing them over.

Ashley peeled a silver star off the second sheet and placed it carefully on the keypad outside Zhane's door. She regarded it critically for a moment, then asked, "Do you think anyone will be offended that theirs are shiny?"

Cassie just laughed. "They're all 'special' stars, Ash. If anyone has a problem, they can go buy their own stickers!"

Ashley shrugged. "Well, that's true," she admitted with a grin.

As they headed on down the hallway, Ashley added, "How did Andros convince us that Zhane's door wasn't a room, by the way?"

Cassie tried not to giggle. "I was just wondering about that. I don't know… I guess we'd never seen a spaceship before, so we just took his word for it."

"Makes you feel kind of silly now, doesn't it?" Ashley said with a grin.

They stopped in front of Saryn's door, and Ashley gave her the stickers. "Since when is 'garnet' a metal?" Cassie asked rhetorically, peeling off a dark red star.

Ashley frowned a little. "Is that the right choice? I wasn't really sure. I still have that strip of black stars we used on Carlos' door, you know."

Cassie just shook her head, leaning closer to position the star over the keypad. "No," she said, pressing it down with her thumb and stepping back to admire her work. "I think he'll like that one."

She glanced down the hallway, smiling at the flecks of color that now adorned all seven doors. "Good job, Ash."

"Good job yourself," Ashley said with a grin, putting her arm around Cassie's shoulders. "Now let's go, quick, before someone misses us and decides that we're the ones who switched the deck plates."

"TJ!" Ashley shouted, running toward the frisbee game that had grown to include Carlos and Justin. "Can I talk to you for a sec?"

"Sure," he answered, tossing the frisbee off to Justin. "What's up?"

Grabbing his arm, she guided him a little way away from the others. "Did you switch the deck plates?" she asked breathlessly, watching for his reaction.

"What?" TJ frowned.

"The deck plates," she repeated. "You know, outside the lifts where it says what deck you're on. Did you switch them all around?"

TJ gave her an odd look. "I didn't know they came off."

"They must," she said, trying to catch her breath. "The one on deck five says deck two, and Cassie thinks the one on deck six was switched, too."

"How do you know?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

She glanced over her shoulder automatically. "Don't tell the others, okay?" she whispered.

TJ grinned at her secrecy. "Cross my heart," he said, drawing an "X" over his heart.

"We found star stickers for Andros, Saryn, and Zhane," she told him. "We were trying to put them up without anyone knowing--but then we saw the deck plates, and we thought it was you."

TJ shook his head. "When would *I* have time to do that? I was in school all day, same as you."

Ashley peered more closely at him. "I know you, TJ. You could find a way."

He threw up his hands. "This is just like the viewscreens last week! No one ever believes me!"

Ashley giggled. "That's because you always do it."

"But I *didn't*," he insisted. "Come on, Ash. This time I have an alibi. I left for school with Cassie, you saw me in Lit and Spanish, and I was with Carlos until last period with you again!"

She thought about that for a moment, tempted to get the others to verify his story. But he looked so serious that she couldn't doubt him, and she frowned a little. "But if it wasn't you, then who *was* it?"

Zhane put his hands behind his head and leaned back against the tree, watching the frisbee game with interest. It had degenerated from a friendly game of catch to a sort of keep-away--only the target seemed to change depending on who was holding the frisbee.

He had elected not to get involved, feeling a little melancholy as he watched Andros laugh along with everyone else. Not that he begrudged his friend the happiness--quite the contrary; he was terribly pleased that Andros *could* laugh so often now. But he couldn't help feeling that it was just one more difference between the world he knew, and the one he now found himself in.

Earth was nice. He truly liked the small planet, and Andros had been right when he told him that the new Astro team would adopt Zhane as one of their own. He felt like he belonged to a sort of extended family--as though he had more than just a brother, now.

But every so often, he wondered how much he had missed. It had been a long two years that had passed like seconds in hypersleep. Andros had told him so much, not only about what had happened in the universe, but what had happened on the Megaship. But he had still missed it. He was still two years in the future, with seventeen years to his name and no memory of how he had spent the last two.

A movement to his right caught his attention, and he turned his head in that direction idly. The park had been oddly quiet this afternoon. There were far fewer people here than there had been during the summer, and the Rangers' little group dominated the vast expanse of grass and trees. He was somewhat surprised to find someone else so nearby--and even more so when he realized who it was.

He tried to stay as casual as possible, not moving from his lounging position, not even removing his hands from behind his head. *She's just another girl,* he reminded himself. *Just another girl who misses her family and wishes she had friends, just like the rest of us.*

"Hey, Astrea," he said quietly, smiling in her direction. "What's up?"

She shrugged a little, putting her hands behind her back. "Nothing."

She was standing behind the twin tree to his, just out of sight of the others in the park. And she was fidgeting, shifting her weight from one foot to another as though she couldn't quite decide what to do with herself. He had never seen her so uncertain, and he tilted his head.

"Are you okay?" he asked, a little concerned.

She nodded, though, and he supposed he would have to take her word for it. "Right," he said, turning his head back toward the frisbee game. Or frisbee fight, as it was starting to appear.

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, and realized she had followed his gaze. "Cassie is--good again," she said abruptly, her tone making it not quite a question.

He nodded anyway, automatically looking for his teammate. Cassie and Saryn were the only others who hadn't joined in the game. They were sitting under another tree some distance away, and looking very cozy.

"She is," he agreed, looking over at Astrea. "Saryn seems to be doing all right, too."

"They look very comfortable." Astrea rested her hands against the trunk of her tree and leaned back against them, her head craned over her shoulder to keep an eye on the other Rangers.

Zhane didn't see that there was really anything to say to that, so he stayed silent.

"He is the Phantom Ranger, then," Astrea said after a moment.

Startled, Zhane looked over at her, then back at Cassie and Saryn. It hadn't even occurred to him that she wouldn't recognize Saryn unmorphed--but even as he thought about it, he realized the mistake he'd made.

"Saryn?" he repeated, wondering how in the universe he was going to get out of this one. "Why do you say that?"

She gave him a measured look. "Because you said that Cassie and the Phantom Ranger are bonded. She could not love another. And--" There was a hint of amusement in her tone this time. "Because you called the Phantom Ranger 'Saryn' in the Medical bay."

"Did I?" Zhane asked, a little embarrassed. There *wasn't* any way out. "He's not going to be very happy with me, then."

Astrea did not say anything for a moment. Then she asked, "Why does he hide his identity?"

Zhane hesitated, but no matter how much he liked Astrea, Saryn was his teammate. That was a confidence he couldn't betray. "I don't know," he said at last.

"You don't know, or you won't tell me?" she asked calmly.

He sighed. "I can't tell you," he admitted. "I'm sorry. It's important to him."

She shifted again, leaning one shoulder against her tree. "But not to you?" she asked carefully.

He looked up in surprise. "He thinks it's important," he said finally. "That makes it important to me."

"Because he's a Ranger?" Astrea asked, looking out at the others again.

"Because he's my friend, Astrea," Zhane said quietly. "Same as you."

She twisted a little, giving him a wide-eyed look. Though still close to the tree, she was now standing in what had to be full view of anyone who chose to look in their direction. "I am your friend?" she repeated.

He smiled a little. "Of course--if you want to be. I hope you do," he added impulsively.

She cocked her head, for all the world as though she were considering the offer. "I do," she said at last. "Does that mean that… you are also my friend?"

Zhane nodded, charmed by the hopeful lilt of her voice. "Yeah, it does," he agreed. He held out his hand to her. "Friends?"

Her gaze flicked down to his hand, then back to his eyes. Then, before he could try to explain, she stepped away from her tree and sat down cross-legged in the grass beside him. Extending her own hand, she clasped his wrist tentatively.

Surprised that she recognized the greeting, he wrapped his fingers around her wrist and smiled at her. For the first time since she had appeared this afternoon, she smiled back.

22. Friday Night

"I decree," Carlos began, the frisbee held high above his head.

"That we're going to be late for dinner," Karen interrupted.

"Hey!" He glared at her. "Do you have the talking frisbee? No. Stay quiet!"

She giggled. "Then give me the talking frisbee!"

"Make me!"

Karen tackled him, dragging his arm down and reaching for the frisbee. He switched it to his other hand, laughing at her, but he let her grab it when she went for it again.

"*I* decree," Karen declared, holding the frisbee aloft triumphantly, "That it's quarter of five, and if you want to eat before we go to the theater, we have to leave right now."

"Eating?" Carlos pretended to be surprised. "What's that?"

She slapped his shoulder with the frisbee. "Nothing you'd know about, Mr. I-only-eat-breakfast-once-a-week."

The frisbee circle started to break up, and Carlos said their goodbyes while Karen went to get their backpacks. Passing the frisbee back to TJ, he glanced around, looking for Zhane.

"Astrea" was still sitting next to him, watching the group gather in the middle of the clearing. They two were the only ones who hadn't gotten up to see Carlos and Karen off, but Carlos figured he could forgive them that. He still wasn't sure how he felt about one of Dark Spectre's lackeys joining them in the park, Andros' sister or not.

"Hey," Karen said, putting a hand on his arm as she came up behind him. "You ready?"

He flashed a smile in her direction, taking his backpack from her and swinging it over his shoulder. "Sure. See you guys later, all right?"

"Have a good night," Ashley said, waving after them.

He waved as he turned away, reaching for Karen's hand as he let his arm fall. "So, did you have a good time?" he asked, when they were far enough away that they didn't have to worry about being overheard.

"Yeah," Karen said immediately. "I like your friends. They're not like the people I hang out with."

Carlos looked at her in surprise. "What do you mean?"

She shrugged a little. "A lot of the people I know are really--stressed, I guess. Too serious. You know how to have fun."

Swinging their clasped hands, she smiled up at him, and he found himself smiling back. "I'm glad you like them," Carlos told her.

"Who's Cassie's artist boyfriend?" Karen asked a moment later, as they stepped out onto the sidewalk.

"Artist boyfriend?" he repeated, amused at the description. "You mean Saryn?"

"Yeah," Karen agreed. "Is he not an artist? He dresses like one. And he's really quiet."

Carlos tried not to laugh. Cassie was going to love this, he thought. "I don't know," he said. "He goes to the university--Andros introduced them."

*Convenient that this is a college town,* Carlos mused wryly, as Karen appeared to accept that explanation. They had so far explained every offworld visitor as a university student, and no one had questioned it. The former Rangers had told Andros and Zhane enough about college life to get them by in casual conversation, and AGU was a big campus. No one was surprised when they didn't know someone's older brother or sister.

"What about that girl with Zhane?" Karen asked, glancing over at him. "I don't think I've ever seen her with you guys before."

Carlos frowned a little. "I'm not really sure," he said truthfully. "I've seen her with Zhane once or twice." That was certainly no lie. "But I don't really know anything about her, and he's never introduced us."

"Maybe she's shy," Karen suggested, sounding a little doubtful. "She didn't really *look* it, but I thought she'd have come over or something."

"She didn't look shy, did she," Carlos said thoughtfully. "She looked sort of--distant. Like she belonged somewhere else," he added, thinking how true that was.

"Really?" Karen glanced over at him. "She looked like she wanted to play frisbee, to me. That's why I was surprised she didn't join us."

Carlos tried to picture Astronema playing frisbee with them, and failed miserably. "You're kidding."

"What's wrong with frisbee?" she teased, elbowing him gently.

"Nothing," he said quickly. He tried to smile. "I just didn't think of her that way, I guess."

Karen gave him an odd look. "But you said you don't know her."

He shrugged uncomfortably. "Maybe she just didn't look like the frisbee type to me."

"Carlos," she said, a puzzled smile on her face. "You know something about her. What?"

"No, I really don't," he said, realizing at last how complete Astronema's disguise was. When Karen looked at her, she saw nothing more than a girl, about their age, whom she assumed had just gotten out of school and was enjoying the beginning of the weekend like everyone else.

"Let's see," Karen began speculatively. "Is she… pregnant?"

When Carlos gave her a startled look, she giggled. "Didn't think so. Is she a runaway? Maybe that's it; she's living with Zhane until she's eighteen and her parents can't come after her."

Carlos tried not to grin at the thought of Zhane and Astronema sharing a dorm room on the AGU campus somewhere. He didn't quite hide his amusement, though, and Karen saw it.

"That's it, isn't it! She's going to be a police officer when she gets old enough--" She grinned when Carlos chuckled, but she kept going. "And she'll hang around parks, just waiting to catch illegal frisbee players! You were right after all; she *isn't* the frisbee type!"

She let out a shriek of laughter when Carlos let go of her hand to tickle her affectionately. They had made it to the AGH parking lot by now, but their progress stopped when she doubled over, laughing as he wrapped his arms around her and tickled her sides unrepentantly.

In between giggles, she managed to gasp, "Dinner, remember?"

Reluctantly, Carlos let go, shaking his head at her. "You have such a one-track mind," he complained good-naturedly, picking up her bag from where it had fallen on the sidewalk.

She took it, grinning up at him. "No, I just know how irritable you get when you don't eat in the evenings."

He chuckled, putting an arm around her shoulders as they walked toward her car. "Well, I wouldn't want you to suffer unnecessarily, so let's go."

"Me!" she squeaked, letting him guide her across the pavement. "You make it sound like *I'm* the one who'll complain!"

He just grinned at her, pausing by the driver's side door. Reaching for her wrist, he slipped her key bracelet off and opened the door for her. "After you," he said gallantly, gesturing to the car.

She tossed her bag in and started to duck inside, but suddenly she stopped. "Carlos, wait!" Her expression was so serious that he paused.

"What?" he asked, concerned.

"I've got it!" She stared at him with wide eyes. "The girl with Zhane--she's an alien, isn't she!"

He froze, unable to come up with a suitable reply.

Karen burst into giggles, snatching her keys out of his hand. "Gotcha!" she exclaimed triumphantly.

Breathing a sigh of relief, he managed to roll his eyes at her. "An alien, right. I'm sure that's it, Karen."

Still giggling, she climbed into the car and unlocked the passenger door for him. He closed her door and walked around the front of the car, shaking his head.

"I'm just going to tell him we're going," Andros argued.

"I think he knows," Ashley told him gently. "Look, if he thought she could take it, he would have brought her over here instead of just watching."

"I'll be right back," he said, and turned away.

Ashley sighed, watching him walk across the grass toward his sister and Zhane. The girl jumped to her feet as he approached, and Ashley shook her head, hoping he hadn't scared her off.

"They never listen, do they," Cassie said from behind her.

Looking over her shoulder, she couldn't help grinning at the expression of mock-dismay on her friend's face. "They don't," she agreed, glancing after Andros again.

Zhane had gotten to his feet as well, standing a little away from the girl as he spoke to Andros. That probably helped more than anything, and Ashley could see Kerone relaxing a little when neither of them so much as looked at her.

Then TJ stepped in front of her, tossing Justin's hackey sack up in the air and catching it again. "If you're trying not freak her out, we probably shouldn't stand here staring at them," he pointed out, smiling.

Ashley sighed. "I know," she admitted, shifting slightly to glance over his shoulder. Zhane was stretching, a deliberately casual counterpoint to Kerone's stiffness as Andros turned to face her.

"I can't help it," she said sheepishly, looking back at TJ when she realized she was staring again. "I'll get better, I promise."

"Sure you will," TJ said, exchanging knowing looks with Justin. "So what's happening?"

She shot a quick look over his shoulder again, and to her relief she saw Andros on his way back. "Andros is coming over here--Kerone's still with Zhane, so I guess he didn't scare her too much."

"The princess of evil?" Justin scoffed. "What's going to scare her?"

"Sometimes what you do not know is more frightening that what you do," Saryn interjected quietly.

Andros paused between TJ and Ashley, looking over at her. "Zhane's going to stay here for a little while," he said, as though he wasn't quite sure what to think of that.

"Kerone too?" Ashley asked, catching his eye.

He nodded wordlessly.

"Well," Justin said into the quiet, glancing down at his watch. "It was great hanging out with you guys, but I've got to go."

"I'll walk you home," TJ offered. "I've got some time to kill."

"Sure," Justin said, snatching his hackey sack away from the Blue Ranger. "And hey, Ashley, Cassie." He shook his head, a disapproving look on his face. "Try not to miss so much school next time."

Cassie gave him a push, and he tossed the hackey sack at her. "Hey!" She ducked, but the beanbag hit her shoulder anyway and she grabbed it, throwing it back at him.

Justin caught it out of the air with a grin. "Stay out of trouble, guys," he said cheerfully, heading over toward the pile of backpacks.

"See you later," TJ said with a wave, as he followed their younger friend.

Ashley waved back, glancing over at Andros as she did so. He was still silent, an impassive expression on his face as he stared down at the ground, and she gave him a gentle nudge. "You okay?" she asked softly.

"Yeah," he said, looking up and trying to muster a smile. "Just thinking about Kerone, I guess."

"Just because she has been evil," Saryn offered, one hand on Cassie's shoulder, "it does not mean that she doesn't care about you."

Ashley didn't miss the look Cassie gave Saryn, and she smiled at the tenderness in his eyes when he looked at her friend.

Andros nodded, looking over his shoulder. "I know," he said, and she followed his gaze. Zhane was leaning against the trunk of the tree he had been sitting under earlier, saying something to the girl who lingered nearby.

"She's wearing her locket," Ashley pointed out, squinting over at them.

"I know," Andros repeated, looking back at them. "Zhane thinks she just needs time."

Ashley linked her arm through his, tugging him gently away from the scene. "He's probably right; he knows her better than any of us."

"Yeah," Andros admitted, and she wondered suddenly if that was what was bothering him. But then he smiled at her, and added, "We'd better hurry if we're going to be at your parents' house by five."

"We don't have to go," she said, searching his expression. "I'm sure they'd understand if--"

He reached for her backpack, picking it up and holding it for her as she slipped the straps over her shoulders. "No, it'll be fun. I like your parents. Besides, it's been days since you saw them--they probably think you've been kidnapped or something."

"What, by you?" she teased, turning toward him to give him a quick kiss.

"Don't give me any ideas," he said softly, and she grinned at him.

"We'll see you later," Ashley offered, seeing Cassie and Saryn waiting nearby.

"Have a good night," Cassie said, smiling calmly. When Andros looked away, though, she caught Ashley's eye and winked.

"You too," Ashley said, doing her best not to giggle. She reached for Andros' hand, and they headed for the edge of the park together.

"Where are we going?" she wanted to know.

Zhane, strolling casually at her side, refused to tell her. "It's a surprise," was all he would say.

"I don't like surprises," she warned him.

At that he stopped, and squinted off across the park. "There," he said finally, pointing. "That's where we're going."

She looked where he indicated, but she saw nothing more than a small tangled structure of metal and wood. "What's over there?"

"The playground."

She frowned. "What's a playground?"

He grinned at her. "If you come with me, you'll see."

She followed him, making sure he knew it was with reluctance, but the truth was that she knew better than to be suspicious of anything Zhane suggested. She had taken to watching for him when the Megaship was in orbit around Earth, waiting for him to be alone and then slipping away from her own ship to join him.

In all that time, he had never done anything to make her wary. True, he hadn't known who she was for most of that time, but somewhere in among those haphazard meetings she had started to trust him. Trust wasn't something she was used to having with most people, and she found that it was difficult to stop trusting once she started.

"Here we are," he said simply, interrupting her musings.

She looked around, somewhat bemused. She said nothing, though, accustomed to hiding her confusion. Confusion, like so many other things, was a sign of weakness that she would not tolerate.

"Do you remember swings?" he asked, sitting down on one of the hanging supports.

"Remember?" she repeated in spite of herself.

"They're not exactly like the ones we had on KO-35," he admitted, pushing his feet against the ground. The swing moved gently, taking him with it, and he smiled a little.

His blond hair caught the sunlight, and she found herself envisioning him in silver instead of grey. "Do I know you?" she asked suddenly.

He cocked his head, frowning at her. She tried not to blush, letting her hair fall in front of her eyes as she turned toward the swing next to his. She sat gingerly on it, clasping the metal chain links to either side with both hands.

"You okay?" he asked quietly.

Without looking at him, she nodded.

He didn't say anything, and finally she confessed, "I--I feel like I know you from somewhere. Somewhere before here."

It sounded silly to her even as she said it, but Zhane appeared to take it seriously. "You do," he said after a moment. "I was so young when we met that I don't even remember it, but me and your brother used to play together all the time."

She reached for her locket inadvertently. "Andros," she murmured, and out of the corner of her eye she saw Zhane nod.

He was quiet for a while, and finally she had to know. "Ecliptor says my whole family was killed by Power Rangers." She looked over at him, saw the shock on his face. "That's not true, is it."

Instead of immediately denying it, he just stared back at her. "Do you think it is?"

She looked away. "Andros is alive," she said uncertainly.

"Astrea." She bit her lip, grateful that he had not yet started calling her Kerone. "That's not what I asked. Do *you* think Power Rangers killed your family?"

She hesitated a moment longer, then shook her head wordlessly.

She heard him sigh in relief, but he didn't press the issue any farther. She watched him, sideways, as he dug his sneakers into the ground and pushed his swing back and forth a little.

"You're a Ranger," she said abruptly, and saw him look up. "Andros… he was always going to be a Ranger, wasn't he."

Zhane nodded. "Andros was. You were too, you know, until you were kidnapped. I wasn't."

"You weren't?" She looked at him in surprise, ignoring what he had said about her. "Why not?"

He gave her his best devilish grin. "I wasn't responsible enough. They thought I'd get someone hurt, I suppose."

"I can't imagine you hurting anyone," she said, before she could stop herself. She looked down, embarrassed that she had spoken before she thought, but she couldn't help darting a glance in his direction to catch his reaction.

He looked, if anything, pleased. "Thanks," he said sincerely. "Luckily for me, Andros couldn't either, and we've been teammates for a long time."

She smiled, a little wistfully. Andros was red--she had been yellow, she was sure. Ironic that her magic was now purple; the exact opposite of the color she must once have worn. "I wish I could have been on your team," she whispered without thinking.

Zhane was silent for a moment, and she heard the clink of his swing as he twisted it in her direction. "Astrea," he said quietly. "You're going to have to choose, you know. Maybe not now, but someday. You can't keep being the princess of evil *and* the friend of the Power Rangers."

She tilted her head a little, her hair sliding farther forward as she stared down at the ground. She couldn't let him see the tears she knew were lurking in her eyes--she had not cried in years, and she would not start again now.

"Astrea?" he repeated gently, and she felt his fingers brushing her hair away from her face.

She jerked away, her swing twisting as she pushed it back, away from him. She blinked fiercely, trying to keep her eyes dry.

"I'm sorry," he said, his voice awkward. "I didn't mean to…"

He trailed off as she whispered, "I did choose."

He froze, staring at her. "What?"

"I did choose," she repeated, a little more loudly. He did not look over his shoulder, as would have been her first instinct. After all, if her next words were just slightly different, he would be finding himself in the middle of a particularly vicious quantron attack.

But something had ensured his safety. His own charm, his unquestioning friendship--she wasn't sure. Or maybe it was simply her own resurfacing memories, once again due to him, of the way things were supposed to be that had made her choose as she did.

"The Dark Fortress was ordered to Aquitar two days ago," she said, swallowing hard. "It came to Earth instead."

He just kept looking at her with an intent regard that she couldn't read. "But… you were already *at* Aquitar," he said finally, as though he didn't understand what she was saying.

"Not by Dark Spectre's order. I went--" She hesitated. There were the reasons she had giving Ecliptor, even told herself, and then there was the real reason. "I went so I wouldn't have to fight you. And then you were there anyway."

His lips quirked a little. "Sorry," he offered wryly.

She sniffed, but she found herself almost giggling at his apology. It was so ridiculous that she couldn't help but smile.

"Then Cassie was evil, and I asked you to meet me here," he said suddenly, his own smile fading. "Oh, I'm sorry, Astrea. I didn't know--"

She shook her head, letting go of the swing's chains to rub her eyes. "No," she told him. "You were right. I had to choose. You, or the Alliance of Evil."

"I had no idea what I was up against," he said, but his quick smile assured her that he was teasing.

She took a deep breath, gripping the chains again. "The Dark Fortress came here," she repeated, hearing her voice steady a little. "It's been here ever since, against Dark Spectre's explicit orders."

"You're a rogue ship," he said softly, and she nodded.

He got to his feet abruptly, circling around behind her. She twisted to follow his movement, and he shook his head. "No, turn back the other way. Trust me," he added, catching her eye.

She gazed at him for a moment, then, hesitantly, turned around. "Now pick your feet up," he said, from right next to her shoulder. "And hold on."

She did as she was told, then drew in a sharp breath as he grabbed the chains near the base of her swing and pulled them backward. She tensed, waiting for him to let go, but when he did it didn't feel as much like falling as she had expected.

She swung backward again, and this time she felt his hands on her lower back, giving her a gentle shove forward. She smiled as the breeze blew her hair away from her face, and then into her face again as the swing changed direction.

Zhane pushed her again, and she put her feet out instinctively as the swing climbed higher. She tucked them underneath her as she fell backward, and she heard Zhane laugh as he pushed her. "You do remember!"

Her smile widened and she stretched her legs out again, feeling safe for the first time since the Dark Fortress had disobeyed Dark Spectre to come to Earth.

She watched him stare down at the board she had set up. Saryn's hair was in his eyes, as usual, but his gaze was so intent that she wasn't sure he had noticed. Finally, he reached out and skipped one of the dark glass marbles over top of one of hers and looked at her expectantly.

She braced her hands on either side of the checkerboard and leaned forward to kiss him gently. The rule about kissing the player who captured your piece wasn't one she had been taught, of course, but right now it suited Cassie just fine.

He sighed as she pulled away. "I wish you would take one of my pieces," he complained. "I don't think this game is fair."

She studied the board, but he was too tactically minded to allow her any openings. She moved one of the clear pink marbles forward and shrugged at him in amusement. "How was I supposed to know you'd be so good at it?"

He shook his head, taking another one of her pieces. She leaned forward to kiss him again, just barely touching her lips to his. He closed his eyes when she drew back, and she didn't miss the way he clenched his hand around the piece he had just captured. "You are doing this to me on purpose," he muttered.

She bit her lip to keep from giggling. "Maybe a little," she admitted, moving another marble forward.

He gave her a dark look, but having to shake his hair away from his face to do it lessened the impact somewhat. She just smiled back at him innocently.

He looked back down at the board, and after a moment's consideration, moved one of his pieces. She looked at him in surprise--he hadn't failed to take one of her "checkers" since their two sides had met in the middle of the playing board.

He just stared back at her, waiting, and she glanced at the board again. Her eyes widened as she realized what he had done. And done deliberately, she had no doubt.

Without hesitation, she hopped one of her pieces over his and captured the first black marble he had let her have. She drew back in surprise as he pushed the board out of the way. Sliding across the floor toward her, he murmured, "I want a real kiss."

"A *real* kiss?" she exclaimed indignantly, but then his mouth covered hers and she forgot how to breathe, let alone speak.

His hand cupped the side of her face, his fingers slipping into her hair, and she leaned forward, pressing closer to him. His other hand slid around behind her neck and he kissed her harder, making her pay for every time she had only just touched him during their game. It was a debt she was only too happy to let him collect on.

Finally he pulled away, and she could barely hear his whisper over the pounding of her heart. "Do you--do you wish to finish our game?"

She reached out, knowing what it would do to him but unable to stop herself, and ran her fingers through his hair. He closed his eyes, and she smiled a little. "What did you have in mind?" she asked softly.

His eyes flickered open, and he caught her hand as she let it fall. Raising her fingers to his lips, he kissed them gently, his gaze not wavering from hers. "I want you," he breathed.

For answer, she leaned over their clasped hands and pressed her lips to his. She felt some of the tension drain out of him as he slid an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer and returning her kiss with a passion she could feel in her own heart. She uncurled the fingers of her left hand and let the captured game piece slide to the floor, unnoticed.

She didn't see DECA's camera light turn on, but a moment later the computer's voice announced, "Incoming transmission for the Phantom Ranger."

Cassie turned her head, trying to focus as he kissed her neck softly, his fingers trailing down her spine. "Saryn," she whispered, and she heard him sigh.

He drew away, closing his eyes and tilting his head toward the ceiling. "Who is it, DECA?"

"Transmission from Linnse, of the Frontier Defense," DECA answered.

He didn't move. "Put her through, please, audio only."

Cassie shifted, and his hand rubbed her back soothingly. "I don't mind," she whispered, but he cut her off.

"*I* mind," he said firmly, catching her eye and brushing her hair away from her face. "If it isn't important--"

"Phantom?" Linnse's voice intruded.

She glanced toward the computer terminal, but it remained dark, as he had requested. "Yes, Linnse?" His tone was nothing less than impatient.

"Not very subtle," Linnse remarked dryly. "Your departure yesterday afternoon, that is. If you don't want anyone to know where you're going, you could at least take your starfighter."

He sighed, tightening his arm around her. "I will remember that next time. Is there something you wished to speak with me about?"

"Actually, yes." Linnse's tone was suddenly serious. "It's about that girl."

Cassie gave him a puzzled look, and the angry expression on his face made her heart sink. Linnse was talking about *her*.

"Her name is Cassie, Linnse," he said, his voice hard. "I would appreciate it if you would use it."

There was a brief silence, and when Linnse answered, her words were as formal as his. "Very well. I want to speak to you about Cassie."

His jaw clenched, and he glanced at her. "Should I go?" she breathed, very quietly.

He shook his head. "Please stay," he whispered in her ear, and she nodded wordlessly, relieved.

"One moment," he told the air. "I'm sorry," he whispered, kissing her cheek softly.

She smiled to let him know it was all right, and he climbed to his feet and walked over to her computer terminal. "DECA, route the audio-visual signal through this station."

The camera light blinked, and Linnse's face appeared on the small screen. He sat down, folding his arms in an oddly human gesture, and waited for her to speak first.

Cassie leaned back against her bunk, out of the terminal's visual pickup range, and pulled her knees up to her chest. She had never officially met Linnse, though she had been present for some of the communications between Aquitar and the Defense. She had always rather liked the woman, but her sudden description of Cassie as "that girl" was not an endearing development.

"This girl," Linnse began, and Cassie made a face at her image. "I've seen her a few times in the Ranger dome on Aquitar recently."

"Yes."

Cassie couldn't help smiling.

"But she's not Aquitian," Linnse pressed.

"No."

She bit her lip to keep from giggling. This was Saryn at his most uncooperative, and she found it terribly funny when it was turned on someone else.

"Phantom, help me out here!" Linnse demanded. It was the appeal of a friend to another friend, but Cassie found it somehow intrusive anyway.

Apparently, Saryn did too. Slumped in the chair in front of the computer, his arms were still crossed over his chest in what would be a defensive gesture in a human. She could almost see him raising an eyebrow at the screen. "Why?"

Linnse glared at him. "Because I'm worried about you!"

He seemed to consider that. "Why?" he repeated, but his tone was no longer deliberately antagonistic, just curious.

She sighed a little, and as her glare faded her expression did indeed look concerned. "Phantom, you've answered a comm transmission unmorphed twice in as many days. If you've decided not to conceal your identity anymore, I wish you'd tell me."

"I have not," he answered steadily. "Both times, I have known it was you calling for me. You know who I am, thus there is no danger."

"You're on the Megaship," she said. "Does that mean the Astro Rangers know who you are as well?"

"They are Cassie's team," he said quietly. "They will not betray me."

"What about the people *they* tell?" Linnse persisted. "Do you trust them, also? That girl must be spending a good deal of time with the Aquitians, after all, and her friends--"

"Stop," Saryn said, his voice tight.

"--could be telling anyone," Linnse said, heedless of his warning.

"Linnse." Saryn spoke over her when she did not pause. "If you do not stop referring to Cassie as 'that girl', I will take offense. I object to your inference that she is not trustworthy as well.

"The Aquitian Rangers know," he continued, and Linnse's eyes widened. Before she could get another word in, though, he added, "Both the Aquitian and Astro teams have sworn to keep this secret, though I have never asked such a vow of Cassie. I love her, Linnse, and I can not believe she would ever hurt me."

Cassie shivered at his intensity, but she couldn't help a tiny bit of satisfaction when Linnse had no immediate reply.

"I trust these Rangers to stay silent," Saryn said after a moment. "Even as I trusted your team years ago. I do not believe either trust has been misplaced."

Linnse didn't look away, but at last she nodded a little. "Your trust in us was not misplaced. I only hope your judgement when it comes to this--to Cassie's friends is equally sound."

When he didn't volunteer a reply, she sighed. "May it go well," Linnse offered, and the screen went black.

He didn't move. Tentatively, Cassie said, "She's just worried about you, you know."

The chair swiveled, and he turned to look at her. His expression of dismay startled her. "I am sorry you heard that," he said quietly. "She *is* worried, but she does not know you. I hope you have never doubted my trust in you."

She shook her head, looking up at him as he stood and walked over to her. "No," she assured him, taking his hand when he offered it. "I never have. I love you, Saryn."

He pulled her to her feet, and she leaned closer when he put his arms around her. "I love you, too," he whispered, and his embrace was all she needed in the face of Linnse's skepticism.

"Thank you for being who you are," she murmured suddenly, and she felt his arms tighten around her.

"I could say the same of you," he answered softly.

It was just after midnight when TJ returned to the Megaship, but by DECA's tally--which, to his surprise, she gave to him without argument--there were still four Rangers unaccounted for on Earth.

*To get up at seven, or not to get up at seven,* he thought to himself as he headed for the Bridge. *That is not much of a question.*

Standing in front of the console, he glanced over at DECA's camera. It was lit, and glowing at him reprovingly. He hesitated over the controls that would disable her voice. She *had* been oddly polite to him ever since last night, after all.

"Hey, DECA?" The red light blinked at him in acknowledgement, and he asked, "Could I convince you to wake us up at, say, ten, instead of seven?"

The computer considered that. "That is within my programming," she allowed at last, and he raised an eyebrow.

"Would you do that tomorrow, then?"

"Certainly," DECA agreed, and he gave her a suspicious look.

"DECA?" *I can't leave well enough alone,* he mused. "Why are you being so nice to me all of a sudden?"

He got the impression that if DECA could have cocked her head, she would have. "You were correct when you said you were not responsible for blacking out shipboard viewscreens last week," she said finally. "I was in error when I believed the prank was yours, and I am attempting to remedy my mistake."

TJ tried not to look as surprised as he felt. "How did you find out?"

"The viewscreens were programmed to fail simultaneously." DECA's camera blinked once. "I did not investigate the source of the programming until you protested last night. It did not originate in your room."

"Zhane's," TJ guessed, and there was a brief pause.

"Yes," DECA confirmed. "How did *you* discover this?"

TJ grinned. "Ashley told me about the deck plates after school. The only people who had the opportunity to pull that one off were Andros, Saryn, and Zhane. Zhane was the logical suspect."

"Neither Andros nor the Phantom Ranger are prone to practical jokes," DECA agreed.

TJ frowned at that, and wondered if he should push his luck by asking. *What the heck,* he decided at last. "Why do you keep calling him the Phantom Ranger? He told us we could call him Saryn."

DECA's camera blinked again. "He told *you* you could call him by his name," she corrected. "He informed me some time ago that I was to refer to him only as the Phantom Ranger, and he has never revoked that command."

Surprised, TJ asked, "How long have you known who he was?"

"Longer than you," she said simply.

TJ laughed. "That's the DECA I know and love. All right, I know when to stop asking questions." He looked at her camera out of the corner of his eye. "You're still going to let us sleep till ten, right?"

"Of course," she replied, sounding miffed.

"All of us?" TJ persisted.

"Yes, TJ," DECA said, sounding as close to sighing as he had ever heard her. "Even you."

She sounded remarkably human at that moment, and TJ grinned at her. "Thanks, DECA."

The red light blinked at him. "Good night, TJ."

" 'Night, DECA."

(close your eyes)

She sat up with a gasp, her heart racing as she stared blindly into the night.

The darkness stared back at her. Faint outlines shimmered dimly across the barely visible walls. Nothing else moved, and there was no sound but that of her own breathing and the rush of blood pounding in her ears.

"Damn him," she whispered, squeezing her eyes shut. The lingering tendrils of thought solidified and strengthened, drawing her back toward a dream he wouldn't like to admit to anymore, and her eyes snapped open again. "Damn you, Delphinius!"

It wasn't the first time this had happened. Her telepathy might never have manifested itself if it hadn't been for him and his damnable Ranger genes, but ever since it had they hadn't been able to keep from sharing the occasional dream. Not that they had tried to stop it, at first.

*We liked it, then,* she thought, staring intently at the wall in front of her. She would not close her eyes again. They had thought then that it was harmless--even fun.

And it had been, she admitted, if only to herself now. If she hadn't already been so warm, she might have flushed at some of those memories. Back then, telepathy was just a game--a dangerous one for her, maybe, but he was Ranger kin. As long as they didn't flaunt it, no one had seemed inclined to make trouble.

The first time it had happened, neither of them had realized it until they woke up in each other's arms the next morning. "I dreamed about you," were the first words out of their mouths.

After that, though, they had started to recognize the dreams before they were over, began to learn what it was like to see another person looking out at you from inside your own dream. They began to notice the signs of shared unconsciousness and make the best of it, to her delight as well as his.

It was a delight that had turned to chagrin days after their first unresolved arguments about the Rangers. The dream had been his that time, and she had been too annoyed with him to acknowledge it. That night she had thought, in some distant part of her brain, that they would laugh about this when they finally made up.

They hadn't laughed about it yet, and the infrequent dreams showed no sign of stopping. The second dream had found the two of them even more at odds, and she had stormed into his room to confront him over it. That "confrontation" had led to her waking up in his bed alone the next morning, without a note or any hint of acknowledgement.

The same basic scenario had repeated itself twice in the interim, though she hadn't allowed herself to fall asleep again. Usually the dream was his; once it had been hers; and each time she knew in the back of her mind what would happen when she went to his door. But she always did, and for days afterward they would have to do their level best to pretend it hadn't happened. Until the next time.

"No 'next time'," she muttered, glaring down at her hands. She gave them a shake, clenching her fingers briefly. "This is stupid."

She wasn't going to go running to him just because she was restless. Even if it was his fault. Even if his damn dream had dredged up feelings they spent most of their time trying to deny. Even if he was probably huddled in his bed right now, shaking from reaction but too proud to do anything about it.

She swore quietly, clenching her fists again. Being able to recognize the dreams meant that they could wake themselves, and she hadn't yet failed to jerk herself out of one as soon as she realized what was happening. But she knew it hurt him when she did. The backlash burned his mind, making him twice as vulnerable and yet no more likely to ask for help.

She was too proud to let anyone train her, and he was too proud to complain. She shook her head in disgust, knowing his friend had been right about the two of them--they were too much alike.

"I hate you," she whispered half-heartedly, pushing the covers aside. She stumbled out of bed, tugging her lace-up tunic tighter around her in an effort to keep the warmth in as she made her way toward the door. She couldn't let him suffer because of her.

She hesitated just long enough to make sure there was no one in the hallway before she stepped out into it. His room was directly across from hers, and she felt the familiar flicker of doubt as she touched the keypad. Each time she came, it was an open question as to whether or not her code would still open the door.

It did. His would open hers as well, but to her knowledge he had no reason to know that.

The room was dimmer than the corridor, but not quite as dark as hers. She could just make out his shadowed form against the wall's faint luminescence, and her heart skipped a beat. He was doubled over, head down and both arms wrapped around one knee. His posture practically screamed "pain", and she swallowed hard.

She hugged her arms closer and made her way quietly over to him. He didn't move, didn't acknowledge her in any way, but she knew he knew she was there. She sat down beside him on the bed, reaching out gingerly to touch his forehead

Anguish lanced through her head the moment she touched his skin, and she couldn't keep from crying out. He flinched, pushing her away, and she shoved him back harder than she'd intended. She laid her hand across his forehead again, holding him down and gritting her teeth against the shared pain.

She was no healer, despite the fact that most civilian telepaths on Aquitar entered the medical profession. It was the only place they were truly accepted--but she had been a scientist by both training and desire, and she had refused to give that up. Nonetheless, she understood enough about their bond to know how to soothe what she had already done.

Her mind crept back into his, pressing gently against the places that had been scraped raw when she tore away from him. She felt him tremble a little, but she couldn't tell if it was an instinctive reaction to what she was doing or something else.

"Why didn't you *say* something," she muttered at last, angry with herself for causing this and with him for hiding it. It had never been this bad before.

His eyes slid open and he caught her hand as she started to withdraw it. "Because I knew you'd come," he whispered, staring up at her.

She curled her fingers into a fist and punched him in the chest. "I hate--"

"You hate me, I know," he murmured, pulling her other hand closer to him and ignoring the half-hearted blow. He spread her fingers and ran his thumb gently across her palm. "Don't talk. Just close your eyes."

She hesitated, gaze drawn irresistibly toward their joined hands. "But..."

He slid his fingers over the back of her hand, still tracing the lines on her palm with his thumb, and she caught her breath. His skin was warm against hers as he took her other hand and pulled her closer, and she only resisted a moment when he tugged her down beside him on the bed.

"Ci," he whispered, tugging the laces of her tunic free. "Don't leave this time."

She swallowed, trying not to think past the sensation and the warmth that he brought so easily to her awareness. But he spoke again, and she had to listen. "Be here when I wake up," he murmured.

She didn't answer, and he didn't ask again. For a little while, though, she let herself pretend. She pretended that this was all that mattered, and that this moment would never end. She let herself get lost in the feeling of his hands on her body, and she closed her eyes on the rest of the world.

23. Pajama Brigade

*Andros!*

He turned restlessly, his eyes snapping open at the sound of his friend's voice. The bed beneath him was unfamiliar, and he had a moment of panic as he tried and failed to remember where he was.

*Zhane?* His friend's alarm came across loud and clear, and he struggled to sit up. The room came into abrupt focus around him, and he recognized the Hammonds' living room.

*Someone's after Astrea!*

Andros shook his head, pushing his loose hair away from his face impatiently as he scrambled off the foldout sofa bed. *Ashley!* He twined an elastic around his hair as he stood up, catching a glimpse of the playground in the park from Zhane's mind.

He felt the Yellow Ranger waking up, coming alert more quickly than he had. *Meet us in the park,* he told her, twisting his wrist and punching the coordinates into his morpher.

The flare of red before his eyes subsided into the early morning shadows of the park's east side, and he felt the rush of Power that came with an instantaneous morph. His eyes barely had time to adjust before a bolt of pale blue lightning seared his vision and cast the scene before him into sharp relief.

Zhane too was morphed, crouched by the bottom of the slide and using it as cover to return the monster's fire. Kerone lay crumpled on the ground just behind him, and Andros' heart leapt into his throat at the sight of her lying there, defenseless and more vulnerable than she had ever appeared as Astronema.

Two more streaks of teleportation lit the area with an unnatural glow the just-rising sun did not dispel, even as his own weapon tracked toward the source of the electric fire that threatened Zhane. There was no monster, though, and he faltered just long enough for the civilian to turn that lightning-charged power on him.

"Andros!" He felt someone behind him, shoving him to the ground just as the electric fire engulfed him.

"Star Slinger!"

Ashley's weapon fired over and over again, but the "civilian" only stumbled backward before bringing its weapon to bear on her. She knew, even as she dove out of the way, that "it" was the right word for a monster that appeared human but could wield such a destructive weapon without remorse.

Neither Saryn nor Andros moved from where they had fallen when it turned its electric charge on them, and both their morphs had failed. Fear gave her the impetus she needed to roll to her feet again, her Power weapon blazing to life once more.

From the relative shelter of the playground's slide, Zhane was working with her to catch the monster in their crossfire. She could feel something pushing at her mind and she knew he was trying to tell her something, but she couldn't hear him clearly enough to make out the words.

The sudden familiar drone of Gliders told her the cavalry had arrived, and she threw herself to the ground as her teammates opened fire. Cassie, TJ, and Carlos cruised past, the Pink Glider at the point of their wedge formation.

Ashley scrambled to her feet, using the distraction to dart over to Andros. She slid to the ground beside him, seeing him stir even as she reached out to him. "Andros?"

He pushed himself up with an effort, his hand going to his head. "I--" He hesitated, and she stared at his confused expression worriedly. "I am well," he said at last.

The roaring crackle of an explosion drowned out anything else he might have added, and Ashley found herself thrown forward. Andros' arms caught her even as she twisted, adrenaline augmenting the Power as she sought out her friends with her eyes.

Closest to the monster, Carlos and TJ were both prone on the ground. It did not appear to care, moving past the demorphed Rangers with a slithering gate that marked it as inhuman as clearly as the weapon it still held. Farther away, Cassie's Glider lingered nearby as she tumbled to a stop on the ground, rolling to her feet with her stunner in her hand and her armor still in place.

"Hold it right there!" she shouted, not waiting for any kind of acknowledgement. She opened fire on the monster, but it barely faltered in its direct line toward the playground's slide.

Ashley's Star Slinger joined in the assault, but it paid no attention. She found that she could get to her feet and follow it, still firing, and it did not care. It was showing the effects, but slowly, and she knew they would not stop it from reaching Zhane. She also knew, instinctively, that Zhane would not simply let Andros' sister be taken.

It fired on him from no more than a meter away, and this time he did not duck. She flinched as she ran toward them, but the bolt never reached Zhane. A staticky purple field sprang up in front of the Silver Ranger, and the electricity dissipated against it, reaching sparkling tentacles toward the ground on either side of the shield and vanishing into nothingness.

The shield disappeared, and Ashley saw Kerone struggling to sit up. The monster was on top of them by now, and an abrupt and fiery teleportation enveloped all three. They faded with the glow in less time than it took to blink.

He could feel grass beneath his hands as he tried to push himself into a sitting position. The Power roared in his ears despite the fact that his morph was gone, and he could feel it surging through him like a living thing. It was the only thing keeping him conscious and giving him the strength to accept the hand that was offered to him.

Andros took the hand blindly, letting one of his teammates pull him to his feet. He must have been hit harder than he thought, for the world felt inexplicably wrong. He was still dizzy, perhaps, for everything looked slightly smaller, and almost the wrong color.

The bright flash of pink as Cassie demorphed did not hurt his eyes, and she wrapped her arms around him in a strangely affectionate gesture. "Don't scare me like that," she whispered in his ear, just as Ashley called for them from somewhere nearby.

TJ and Carlos had no visible sign of injury; their Power had protected them that far, at least. But Andros was on his feet again, and they still had not stirred. She hoped it was only because they had been hit after he had, rather than because the monster had changed tactics.

To her immense gratification, Carlos' eyes opened tentatively as she knelt down beside him. He flinched as she demorphed, the bright flare of yellow probably making his eyes sting. "Are you all right?" she asked contritely.

He squeezed his eyes shut, but he managed to nod. "Yeah," he muttered, pushing himself up. She put a hand behind his shoulder to help him, hearing TJ groan as he too came back to consciousness.

"You guys!" she called, looking over her shoulder. Andros had started in their direction already, but Cassie was still "helping" Saryn. Ashley rolled her eyes a little, though she knew she would have done no less if Andros had given her the opportunity.

Her lips pressed against his, and there was nothing even remotely platonic about the kiss. To his horror, he found himself responding, his arms sliding around her and his mouth welcoming hers even as his mind screamed at him to stop.

He *couldn't* stop; he needed her and he had never been able to resist the feeling. It was a gift she had, to make him so aware of everything about her so quickly--Cassie was wearing her nightshirt over jeans, pulled on as soon as DECA's monster alert had woken them both this morning, and he could feel her entire body warm against his. Her fingers pushed his hair away from his face as she drew away, and he felt himself shiver involuntarily.

Andros could only stare at her, appalled by his own reaction to his teammate. Cassie was beautiful, certainly, but he had never *ever* thought of her the way he now remembered feeling for so long.

Cassie was frowning up at him, and her words froze his heart. "Saryn--what's wrong?"

Ashley's head swung around as she heard TJ cry out, and she gave him a stern look. "Don't move," she ordered, scooting past Carlos to help him up anyway. She knew the Blue Ranger wouldn't listen, but the pain in his expression was obvious.

Carlos took his other arm, carefully, and they lifted TJ to his feet. "Andros!" she called over her shoulder. "TJ's hurt; we'll meet you in the Medical bay."

"Right." It was Saryn who answered, but as TJ cradled his injured wrist against his chest she didn't stop to wonder.

"DECA," she said, slapping her morpher. "Three to teleport."

As the world disappeared into golden sparkles, she spared a last glance for Andros, silently urging him to hurry. She didn't want him out of her sight for any longer than he had to be, not with a monster that could look perfectly human roaming around Angel Grove.

His gaze swung across the park as he answered Ashley, and he caught sight of the only team member he had not yet accounted for--but it wasn't Saryn. He could only stare as he came face to face with *himself*... and the expression of terrible jealousy on "his" features took him aback.

A flash of light signaled the departure of the other three Rangers, but Andros couldn't take his eyes away from this mirror image of himself. He felt Cassie falter at his side, lowering her head and twisting it to the side as though struck.

"Saryn?" she whispered, and she lifted her gaze to stare directly at "Andros".

Andros saw the other nod slowly, and he glanced down involuntarily. Dark hair fell in his face as he tilted his head, and Saryn's ruby hung on a gold chain around his neck. His clothes, while wrinkled and obviously thrown on in haste when DECA's alert sounded, were both black and distinctly Eltaran.

Cassie swallowed, looking back at Andros. "I'm--I'm sorry," she stammered, taking a quick step away from him. "I thought..."

She trailed off, and he tried to smile. It didn't help that he was still reacting to her the way Saryn did--he didn't *want* her to go, and he had to clench his hands to keep the feeling from completely overpowering him. "It's all right. What--"

He looked over at Saryn, doing his best to ignore the fact that it was *his* face he saw. "What *happened*?"

"We are no longer as we were," Saryn said slowly, his gaze still flickering between Andros and Cassie.

Folding his arms, Andros surreptitiously moved a little farther away from Cassie. "Yeah, I can see that. That monster... it hit us both at the same time. You think it did this?"

Saryn shook his head, but his words were affirmative. "I see no other explanation."

Cassie sighed, and Andros looked in her direction before he thought. He could feel his heart rate jump just looking at her, and he knew beyond a doubt that she and Saryn were more than just girlfriend and boyfriend to each other.

He yanked his gaze away, shooting a guilty look in Saryn's direction. The ghostly flicker of things Saryn knew in Andros' mind, more feelings than memories but there nonetheless, made him wonder suddenly what Saryn now knew about *him*.

"It must have been sent to bring Kerone back to the Dark Fortress," Cassie said, shifting uncomfortably. "Maybe someone there thought Zhane kidnapped her or something. We're going to have to go after them."

Startled, Andros realized that he had almost forgotten about Zhane's disappearance. Worry for his friend's safety should have been the first thing on his mind, no matter how strange things had suddenly become. "You're right," he agreed, straightening up. "We *have* to get them out of there."

"Zhane, at least," Saryn said quietly. "We do not know whom your sister is loyal to at this point, Andros."

Andros started to object, then closed his mouth as he realized the other was right. "Right," he agreed reluctantly. "At least Zhane."

He reached out, trying to touch his friend's mind, but there was only darkness. "He's unconscious," Andros told them. He hadn't been when the monster teleported them out, and that worried Andros. "Let's go."

"Whoa, wait," Cassie interrupted, as he reached for a morpher that wasn't on his wrist. "Can we think this out? First, we need to tell the others what's going on, and second, we can't just teleport onto the Dark Fortress."

Saryn looked over at her, his expression unreadable as he offered, "DECA can determine the necessary coordinates."

"But can she get us past the shields?" Cassie countered.

Andros nodded. "She should be able to, but we're not going to be able to go morphed. We'd probably set off half the alarms on the ship."

Cassie folded her arms, unconsciously mimicking his stance. "What about the others?"

"There is no need for you to come with us," Saryn interjected. "If you tell the others where we are, Andros and I will retrieve Zhane."

"Oh, really!" Cassie glared at him. "Nice try, but there's no way you're leaving me behind."

"Cassie," Andros began, glancing over at Saryn and trying not to blink. "You really don't--"

His eyes widened as she threw her arms around Saryn and kissed him. Saryn's body ached as he watched Cassie and "Andros", and Andros reminded himself to *never* again let Zhane flirt with the Pink Ranger. He wasn't Saryn, and he could still feel it tearing him up inside to watch.

"That's why I have to go," Cassie said breathlessly, drawing away from Saryn's embrace. "Don't you see? I can feel how weird this is for you guys, for Saryn at least, and it's no picnic for me either. You may be the same people, inside, but you still feel things the way the other does."

Andros flinched a little, for he knew himself how deeply Saryn trusted Cassie--and yet Andros' body had still stiffened when she touched him. He hoped he did not react that way to Ashley, but to his dismay, he couldn't be sure he did not.

"All the more reason you should not come," Saryn said softly, reaching out with an odd deliberateness to stroke her hair.

"No." Andros finally found his voice--or at least, Saryn's voice. He shook his head, and couldn't help feeling irritated when Saryn's hair fell in his eyes again. "You're right, Cass; it's your problem as much as ours. Let's go."

She gave a short nod, not meeting his eyes as she linked her morpher briefly to DECA's systems. He saw his morpher flash along with hers as she downloaded the coordinates. The Power rumbled in his ears again as his fingers closed around Saryn's ruby, and he felt the surge of raw strength catch him up in a heavily shadowed red light.

"Hold *still*," Ashley demanded impatiently, as TJ fidgeted on the patient bed.

"Let me," Carlos offered, grasping TJ's hand and taking the unwrapped portion of bandage from her. "Hold still," he repeated, but his tone was wry as he glanced at TJ.

Ashley sighed. "You'll be all right," she said, settling down beside him and to watch Carlos wind the bandage around his wrist. "It's just sprained, I think."

TJ winced. "Yeah, thanks--tell that to my wrist."

Ashley's lips twitched. "Just be glad it'll heal quickly," she told him.

He breathed an exaggerated sigh of relief as Carlos clipped the bandage into place and let go of his hand. " 'That's all set,' " he said, mimicking the school nurse. " 'Try to keep the bandage nice and clean. I don't want to see you in here again, young man!' "

TJ snickered. "She'd probably have a fit if she knew how many times we've treated ourselves over the last year or so."

"DECA?" Ashley asked, glancing over at the camera. She had expected Andros and the others to teleport into the Medical bay first, but she supposed they might have gone directly to the Bridge. "Are the others back yet?"

"Andros, Saryn, and Cassie are not on the Megaship," DECA replied.

She saw Carlos frown. "What are they still doing in the park, having a picnic?"

"Or a pajama party," TJ suggested, glancing pointedly around at their clothes.

Ashley grinned, but DECA's reply brought her up short. "They are no longer in the park."

She exchanged wide-eyed glances with Carlos. "Where *are* they?"

"Cassie requested coordinates for the Dark Fortress several minutes ago," DECA informed them calmly.

"And you didn't *tell* us?" Carlos demanded.

DECA seemed to consider that. "You did not ask."

Carlos rolled his eyes. "DECA, did three of our teammates just teleport over to an enemy ship in their pajamas without telling us? Is that what you expected me to say?"

"Come on," TJ said before DECA could reply. He got to his feet and headed for the door. "We can track them from the Bridge."

He put a hand out to steady himself as the teleportation stream released him, finding the wall without seeing as his vision blurred uncontrollably and he struggled not to stumble. Then the Power strengthened, pushing the wave of exhaustion away, and he blinked.

"What's wrong?" Cassie whispered.

They were standing in a deserted hallway, strange shadows falling through the metal grid to their right and the whisper of quantron speech barely noticeable from somewhere not far enough away. He shook his head, glancing down the hall toward what should be the main control area of the Dark Fortress.

"Nothing," Andros answered, as quietly as he could. He could feel the Power compensating now, in a rush he was used to feeling only when morphed. But for a moment he had been frighteningly close to blacking out.

Saryn was watching him inscrutably, and he had to ask, "Is it always like this?"

"No," Saryn replied softly. "My crystal was overtaxed two days ago, and if often leaves me feeling somewhat... tired."

Andros had to restrain himself from repeating "tired" aloud in a tone of sheer disbelief. The word did not begin to describe it.

Instead, he looked down the hallway again, brushing Saryn's hair out of his eyes impatiently. "That should be the main control area," he whispered. "Assuming DECA's coordinates are right. Let's go."

He saw "Andros" reach for Cassie's hand as they crept down the corridor, and he looked away. He could hear a voice he recognized as Ecliptor's as they approached the open doors, and he motioned to the others to stay where they were.

Creeping closer, he felt Saryn's ruby swing as he leaned forward. It reminded him just a little too much of his own locket, and Andros caught the stone and tucked it under the other's black overshirt. When he looked up, Saryn's hair was in his eyes again, and it was all he could do to keep from sighing in exasperation.

Crouching beside the doors, he shook the hair away from his face yet again and wished for an elastic. Then the sound of his sister's voice reached his ears, answering Ecliptor, and drove the thought out of his mind.

"There was no danger!" Kerone was insisting, her tone angry, and Andros felt the sudden lightening he had been waiting for in his mind.

*Zhane?*

For a moment, there was no answer, and Andros chanced a quick look around the doorframe. Kerone's argument with her guardian had broken off as Zhane struggled upright, and Kerone, clad once more as Astronema, extended a tentative hand in his direction.

He took it without hesitation, not even seeming to notice her transformation, and Andros heard his friend reply, *I'm all right. Where are you?*

*Right outside,* Andros told him, knowing Zhane could tell how close he was. *It's me, Saryn, and Cassie--should we charge in, or wait?*

*Wait,* Zhane said immediately.

Getting to his feet, the Silver Ranger let go of Astronema's hand and made a show of brushing himself off. "The spell wasn't really necessary, was it?" he asked mildly.

Even from where he was, Andros could see the look of chagrin on her face. "It wasn't me," she said, giving Ecliptor a dark look. "Ecliptor sedated you as soon as we materialized. Are you all right?"

"Yeah, thanks," Zhane answered. "What's going on?"

Andros looked away from the scene for just a moment, long enough to cock his head at the others and gesture for them to join him.

"He thinks you--were holding me against my will," Astronema answered, and Andros glanced back into the room.

"What's happening?" Cassie whispered.

He started to turn, and remembered at the last moment not to look at her. "Ecliptor thought she was in trouble--he must have sent that monster to 'rescue' her," Andros said quietly. "Zhane's conscious again, but he doesn't seem to be in any danger."

"Am I to understand--" Ecliptor's low rumble filled the room, spilling over into the hallway. "That you *wished* to be with this... Power Ranger?"

Andros peered around the doorway again, holding his breath.

Astronema--Kerone--lifted her chin and stared back at him. "Yes. I knew what I was doing, Ecliptor."

For several seconds, no one moved. Then Ecliptor lowered his gaze and turned his head away in defeat. "You are no longer evil," he said, as though pronouncing her doom.

Kerone took a deep breath, and her "Astronema" appearance faded away in a shimmer of violet sparkles. Andros' heart went out to her as he realized she was trembling, and he was grateful to see Zhane step forward and touch her shoulder tentatively.

She looked back at him, catching his eye, but she did not pull away. "Maybe..." Glancing at Ecliptor again, she continued quietly, "Maybe I never really was, Ecliptor. I--I'm sorry."

Ecliptor actually sighed, and it was such a sad sound that Andros almost felt sorry for him before he remembered who he was. "No, my princess. You must not apologize for what you are... and have always been, no matter how I might have wanted it to be different."

She swallowed. "But I *am* sorry..." To Andros' infinite surprise, she stepped away from Zhane and threw her arms around Ecliptor.

*Zhane?* Andros asked, drawing away from the door as he caught the sound of quantron footsteps on the metal deck. *I don't mean to rush you...*

Letting go of her guardian, Kerone turned toward the door and said loudly, "You might as well come in now, Andros. The quantrons aren't going to be happy to find you all out there in the hallway."

He exchanged sheepish glances with his teammates, and they climbed to their feet. He had forgotten that she could hear everything he and Zhane said to each other.

Ecliptor's hand went to his broadsword when the three of them appeared in the doorway, and he took a step back as they entered the room. He did not draw the weapon, however, and with an unreadable look at his "princess", he said nothing.

Zhane, however, did a double take, looking from Andros to Saryn and back again. Andros tried not to be amused at his friend's predicament--he didn't know what had tipped the other off to the fact that something wasn't right, but there was no way he could know that they weren't who they seemed to be.

Then Zhane startled him by looking straight at him and asking, "Andros?"

He shot a quick look at Saryn, but the other looked as surprised as Andros felt. It was disconcerting to see the expression on "his" face, so he turned back to Zhane. "Yeah," he agreed. "That's me--how'd you know?"

*You didn't seem right,* Zhane answered, turning on Kerone. "You said the Body Switcher could only switch *itself* with someone else!"

She tossed her head, and her short blonde hair swirled around her face. "I was wrong," she said, in such a way that it sounded more like a pronouncement than an admission.

"I do not understand," Ecliptor said, a scowl in his voice as he spoke for the first time since they had entered the room.

Zhane pointed. "Your monster switched them. Andros and--" He visibly hesitated as "Andros" glared at him. "Um, yeah. They're switched."

Andros tried to suppress a smile, and he saw Zhane give him an irritated look. *What was I supposed to say? He doesn't want me to say "Phantom", and he'll kill me if I say "Saryn".*

"Can you change us back?" Andros asked, listening with amusement as Zhane fumed quietly. He glanced over at his sister, and Saryn's hair fell in his face again.

*No offense, Saryn,* he added silently, as he pushed it out of his eyes for the fiftieth time, *but I really hate your hair.*

"I can," Kerone said, not quite meeting his eyes. Astronema's staff appeared in her hand, and purple power spiraled around it, climbing from her hand toward the diamond shaped tip.

As the staff started to glow, glittering streamers reached for him and Saryn. He saw Cassie stiffen a little, but she stayed where she was. The purple light drifted into his eyes, and he stumbled, suddenly disoriented.

Then he felt a hand on his arm, steadying him, and he opened eyes he couldn't remember closing. Zhane stood at his side, staring at him worriedly until their gazes met. A smile spread across his face when his blue eyes caught Andros', and his hand tightened on Andros' arm.

Andros could feel things once more the way they should be, and he started to smile in return. The wild, barely controlled Power was gone, taking with it the feeling of only just being able to keep his eyes open. His hair stayed in its ponytail when he glanced down, and he saw a red tank top instead of black long sleeves.

He sighed in relief, curling his fingers into a fist and reaching out to cross wrists with Zhane. His friend let go of his arm to return the gesture, and his eyes twinkled at Andros over their clasped hands. *So I've been rescued by the Pajama Brigade, is that it?*

Andros rolled his eyes. *If you ever wake me up that early again, I'll kill you myself!*

Zhane grinned, then tilted his head slightly, his gaze slipping over Andros' shoulder. Andros twisted to follow his gaze, and saw Saryn holding Cassie close with no concern for the presence of both Kerone and Ecliptor.

Then his eye caught his sister's as she watched him with Zhane, and he didn't let his smile fade. Her lips curved tentatively in response, and he saw her eyes flicker toward Zhane.

Andros looked back at his friend as well, and saw Zhane give him an impatient look. *Well?* his expression said, clear as words, though he heard no thought in his mind.

"Thank you," Andros said quickly, letting go of his friend's hands and turning toward her.

She shrugged slightly. "I only disrupted the spell the Body Switcher cast."

"It is an effort we very much appreciate," Saryn said, looking in her direction. His arms were still around Cassie, and a grin tugged at Kerone's features.

She looked down in an attempt to hide her expression, but she did murmur, "You're welcome."

"Will you come with us?" Andros asked, knowing that that was what Zhane had really wanted him to say. "There's always been a place for you on the Megaship, you know."

"Me?" Kerone's head came up, her knowing smile replaced by a startled look. She glanced automatically at Ecliptor, who was watching her with what Andros would have called a wistful expression on anyone else.

Ecliptor straightened under her gaze. "It is no longer safe for you here, my princess. You *must* go. Return--" He hesitated, looking directly at Andros. "Return to your family."

With wide eyes, Kerone glanced from him to Andros, and then to Zhane.

The Silver Ranger stepped forward, holding his hand out in silent appeal. "I won't ask you to come if you don't want to," he said, not looking at anyone but her. "But *I* want you to. And nothing would be the same without you."

Andros watched the two of them stare at each other, oblivious to anyone else in the room, and he frowned a little. His friend was in earnest--none of the jokes or careless banter that he so often hid behind. He spoke to Kerone with the same openness that Andros saw in him when they were alone, and Andros wondered suddenly just how well they *did* know each other.

After a seemingly endless moment, Kerone took a step forward and reached out to Zhane. He clasped her wrist, and when she returned the gesture she took another step, moving closer to him even as she twisted to face Ecliptor.

"Thank you," she said quietly. "Thank you for everything you've done for me. You've been my father for years and years, and I will never forget that--or you."

He nodded once, and a sparkle of violet swirled around his wrist. He held up his arm as a thin band of shadowy purple stars appeared there, blending into the black like a form-fitting, almost invisible bracelet.

"Don't forget me either," Kerone whispered.

If Andros hadn't known it was impossible, he would have sworn Ecliptor smiled at her. "Never, my princess."

Andros caught Cassie's eye as she looked in his direction, and she nodded. Glancing toward Zhane, he saw Kerone take another step back, eyes still on Ecliptor but her hand in Zhane's.

*Let's go,* Zhane said in Andros' mind, and he triggered the teleportation sequence on his morpher.

His last thought as they all disappeared was that Ashley was not going to be pleased if she found out that he had kissed Cassie.

(body switcher)

The monster alert was not his idea of a good way to wake up. Always a bad omen, the shrill alert ripped him from a peaceful sleep that had been unattainable for days. But duty was just that, and he put a hand on Cassie's shoulder to ease her transition into the conscious world.

"What's going on?" she mumbled, barely half awake as she rolled away from him and sat up to give him room. Clad only in her pink nightshirt, she was already reaching for her jeans as he slid past her. "I thought we were monster free for a few days."

"Perhaps Astronema has remembered who she is." His tunic was only slightly less wrinkled than the clothes he had worn to bed, but California mornings were cool and he wasn't going without it. "Who's on the surface?"

"Andros and Ashley," Cassie answered, skipping through the doorway as she pulled her sandals on. "Maybe Zhane. It must be bad if they didn't have time to call us."

He followed her down the hallway at a run, joining TJ in the lift and holding the door as Carlos charged in behind them. "DECA says it's in the park," TJ informed them. "Andros and Ash are already on their way."

That was all they had time for before the lift discharged them outside the Glider holding bay. Cassie squeezed his hand and he nodded to her, watching the three Astro Rangers swarm the jump tubes. He reached up to wrap his fingers around his crystal and the Megaship vanished in a flash of ruby-tinted black.

Andros was morphed. Zhane was under fire. Ashley's teleportation must have been simultaneous with his own. The source of fire was--civilian?

The details of the scene registered reflexively in his brain, and he saw Andros and the civilian turning toward each other at the same moment. Both had weapons drawn, but the civilian had obviously anticipated his target. Andros had no such advantage, and he was a fraction of a second too slow.

"Andros!" His shout served neither to warn Andros nor distract the civilian, but he thought he had reached the Red Ranger in time to avoid the weapon's blast. He was wrong. Electric fire wrapped around them both as they fell, and the Power deserted him.

The next thing he knew, Ashley was hovering over him with a worried expression on her face. He knew something was wrong even before she asked, for the Power was a steady but distant force that lent no aid as he struggled to sit up. He tried to brush off her concern, looking around for Cassie instinctively--

Something blew up in his face. He winced, felt Ashley thrown into him, fought to stay upright as he registered several distressing facts simultaneously. His vision was blurred by the green afterimage of the explosion. Two of the Astro Rangers were down. And he was clutching Ashley tightly to his chest.

He felt her wrench away, saw the bright light of her weapon pierce the haze in front of his eyes. His desert-adapted vision should have been able to handle the fireworks, but he flinched away from the light when his eyes started to tear. Brilliant purple surrounded the place where his attention had been inevitably drawn, and when it dimmed and vanished there was nothing there.

He was on his feet before he knew what had happened. He might be reeling from sensory overload, but TJ and Carlos needed help. Ashley was bent over them, and she lifted her head to catch his eye before perusing the rest of the battlefield. He followed suit automatically, the awareness of something missing in the back of his mind as he sought Cassie once more.

The world stopped as rage flared fast and harsh against the background of uncertainty. His fists clenched and angry strength poured through every fiber of his body--

But there was no Power. It should have reacted to such intense emotion: singing, recoiling, something, *anything* but the emptiness he felt and that was all that made him hesitate long enough to process what he was seeing. It was *Saryn* that Cassie was kissing--it was him!

She let him go, an adoring smile on her face as she stared up at the imposter wearing his form, and he half expected his blaster to appear on his wrist. He barely heard the teleportation behind him, though he saw "Saryn" lift his head and say something to the others. Then the blue eyes of his own mirror image caught his stare.

Still too aware of Cassie, he saw her stumble back as her confusion blossomed in his mind. Her eyes were closed, as though trying to deny the lie they told, and for one terrible moment he thought he would see a stranger reflected in her gaze when she looked up. His heart constricted painfully--but there was something missing.

Cassie opened her eyes and looked straight into his soul. "Saryn?"

Fighting the urge to yank her away, pull her out of the reach of the person wearing his face, he nodded once. It took all his control to stay still. When he saw "Saryn" look down he did the same, and suddenly Ashley's concern made sense. But there was still something missing.

It tickled his thoughts more and more insistently as their situation became clear, and finally he admitted that it wasn't just jealousy at seeing Cassie with... Andros. "Saryn". It didn't matter. He didn't like this at all.

"It must have been sent to bring Kerone back to the Dark Fortress," Cassie was saying. "Maybe someone there thought Zhane had kidnapped her or something..."

His fists clenched involuntarily as the name rippled through his mind. It was Zhane that was missing. It was the Silver Ranger that had left this rift in his heart, and it was as painful as it was disconcerting. He wasn't Andros--he didn't even *like* the carefree Kerovan. And yet there it was: Zhane's absence was making him uncomfortable.

"You're right," Andros agreed, and for a moment the conversation was lost on Saryn. Then the Red Ranger added, "We have to get them out of there."

"Zhane, at least." The words were out before he knew what he was going to say, and he tried to cover it up when two surprised gazes turned toward him. "We do not know whom your sister is loyal to at this point, Andros."

It nothing more than a flicker, a leftover impression from Andros' subconscious, or perhaps... He sighed softly as a more likely explanation occurred to him. Perhaps a feeling so strong that it was indelibly written into Andros' physical reactions. Which meant that if they couldn't find a way to switch themselves back, the familiar could be alien for a long time to come.

He wondered what exactly his body was telling Andros. Which secrets traveled with his mind, and which were rooted in something more corporeal? He wasn't sure there was any satisfying answer to that question.

He did know, however, that when Kerone said the spell was reversible he was more relieved than he had been in a long time. He didn't miss the fact that, aside from Cassie, Zhane had been the only one to recognize the change in the two of them. Ashley had been under some pressure at the time, of course, but the Silver Ranger called "Saryn" by his real name after only the briefest hesitation.

He didn't pull away when Zhane reached through the violet sparkles to take his arm, but inwardly he flinched. If this didn't work...

Then Cassie's arms were around him, and he heard the Power roar in his ears as the magic faded. His crystal protested the sorceress' intrusion even as it succumbed to Cassie's presence, quieting to a grumble as her spirit touched and tamed his own. How much of that was him and her, and how much was the Power?

He didn't know, and right now he didn't care. He had reached for this solace in the corridors of the Dark Fortress, taking her hand in an effort to center his thoughts on her instead of someone he barely considered a teammate, let alone a friend. It hadn't worked then, but now the feeling was his to claim and he wasn't going to waste any time.

"Thank you," the Red Ranger had said, but the words didn't begin to cover it. As Cassie's arms tightened around him, Saryn realized that for the first time in years he was truly grateful to be who he was.

*Ash?*

She heard his warning in her mind a half-second before the flash of teleportation filled the Bridge, and she turned in time to see three streams of color appear. The red was Andros, and she knew the darkest one would be Saryn and Cassie--her friend seemed perfectly willing to let him teleport her wherever they went--but she was surprised to see two distinct forms emerge from Zhane's silver sparkles as well.

"Kerone?" she said aloud, and the girl's chin lifted.

"She's going to stay with us for a while," Andros said quickly, before either of them could say anything further.

There was a brief moment of silence, and then TJ broke into it with a single word: "Look."

Ashley glanced at him, saw him watching the main viewscreen. She turned toward the front of the Bridge, where the Dark Fortress was slowly accelerating out of Earth orbit. The ship's powerful thrusters were firing in unison, increasing the massive battleship's speed until the gently lengthening curve of its flight path took it around the other side of the planet and out of sight.

Seconds later, a brief flash signaled the Fortress's departure into hyperspace as it threw off the chains of Earth gravity altogether and vanished into the stars. Ashley glanced over at Andros' sister, the former princess of evil and commander of that very battleship.

Her head held high, the girl watched the ship disappear with no expression on her face. Zhane stood at her side, looking thoughtfully at the viewscreen.

"Welcome aboard," Carlos said, quietly, as though he was afraid of disturbing the slightly melancholy atmosphere that now pervaded the Bridge.

Watching her, Ashley saw the girl beside Zhane blink and glance at Carlos in surprise. "Thank you," she replied gravely. Her composure didn't waver--she could have been accepting a formal greeting in the midst of her own ship and crew.

"I'm TJ," TJ offered, breaking into the serious mood with a casual tone and the easy grin he wore so often. "We've met, but I don't think we were ever introduced. I'd shake your hand--" He held up his bandaged wrist ruefully. "But I really shouldn't."

"Shake--my hand?" Kerone looked somewhat disdainful, an expression Ashley suspected was a cover for her confusion.

She remembered seeing the exact same look on Andros' face when they first met, and she stepped forward with a smile. "Like this," she said, offering her hand. "I'm Ashley."

The blond-haired girl looked down uncertainly, then stretched out her own hand. The image of Andros and Saryn clasping wrists sprang to mind in vivid detail, and Ashley caught Kerone's hand before she could try that.

Kerone glanced up, and she smiled a little. Her gaze slid over Ashley's shoulder as Carlos stepped up and offered his own hand, and the Black Ranger said simply, "Carlos."

Kerone nodded, letting go of Ashley's hand and accepting his. Ashley moved out of the way and almost bumped into Cassie, who had come forward to introduce herself with a friendly smile.

Saryn lingered by the doorway, clearly not intending to participate. Ashley glared at him, jerking her head toward Andros' sister, who was smiling more now and actually giving Cassie a shy "hello". Saryn shook his head once, and Ashley rolled her eyes.

Luckily for him, Andros distracted her before she could say anything. His hand on her shoulder startled her before she even realized he had moved, and she turned her head to see him gazing back at her.

She meant to chastise him for not telling her where he was going, but this time it was Kerone's turn to forestall conversation. Her innocent question, though probably directed at Cassie, reached everyone on the Bridge: "Why do you all look different?"

"What do you mean?" Even as Cassie glanced around, Ashley suddenly realized what Kerone meant.

She tried not to giggle. "Zhane woke us up really early this morning when that monster came after you. We didn't have time to put on real clothes."

Cassie did laugh, and Ashley saw Carlos shift uncomfortably. "I thought of that as we were teleporting to the Dark Fortress," the Pink Ranger admitted. "But you know Andros and Saryn--I couldn't exactly tell them to wait because I was still in my nightshirt."

" 'Nightshirt'?" Kerone repeated.

"You know--pajamas," TJ prompted, but Kerone's blank look said that she did not.

"Clothes you wear to bed," Ashley supplied, and Kerone looked at her.

"You wear different clothes while you sleep?"

Ashley gave Andros a fond shove. "She sounds just like you!"

"I'm wearing pajamas," he defended himself indignantly.

"For the first time in ages!"

"Yeah, and how do *you* know what he wears to bed, Ash?" TJ teased.

If she hadn't been looking right at Andros, she might not have seen the quick smirk he gave her. "Because she sneaks--"

Startled that he would say anything at all, it was a second before she could react. Clapping her hand over his mouth, Ashley smiled sweetly and corrected, "Because I'm psychic."

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kerone give her a considering look, as though she had said something else entirely. TJ just laughed. "Sure, Ash; we believe you."

"Hey," Cassie interrupted, drawing their attention back to Kerone. "Can we give you a tour of the Megaship? We'll show you around, and you can pick one of the guestrooms for yourself."

Kerone gave her a quick glance, as though assessing her sincerity, then offered a tentative smile. "All right," she said, looking over at Zhane.

Ashley caught Cassie's eye. She mouthed, "thank you" and her friend grinned.

"This is deck six," Zhane was saying, as he escorted Kerone toward the Bridge doors. "The hangar bay takes up most of this deck and the two above it, but the Bridge and the Glider holding bay are on this level..."

Ashley smiled at the look of complete absorption on Kerone's face. It was not the expression of someone trying to memorize information. Neither was Zhane's tone that of someone addressing one who needed to be taught.

She glanced over at Andros, wondering how long it would take him to notice. The pensive expression on his face, though, said he already had.

Andros watched his best friend and his sister walk off the Bridge together, and he frowned a little. The scene was oddly familiar, and he wondered suddenly if he had been so obvious when he took Ashley on *her* first tour of the Megaship.

"What are you thinking?" Ashley whispered, slipping her arm through his.

His frown dissolved, and he looked over at her with a smile. "I was just remembering giving you guys this tour."

She sighed, leaning against him for a moment while the others, with varying levels of enthusiasm, followed Zhane and Kerone off the Bridge. "Do you know I can't remember a single thing from that tour?"

"Really?" he said, just so he had something to say. Maybe it was the way she was leaning on him, or the dreamy look on her face, but he found himself wishing he could kiss her now the way Cassie had kissed "Saryn" earlier.

"Really," she agreed. "I was too busy watching you to pay attention."

Her mouth curved as she smiled at the memory, and he found himself entranced. "Can I--"

But she was always telling him not to ask. He reached for her free hand and turned so he could kiss her, smiling as her expression lit up. She tilted her head toward him and closed her eyes as he kissed her gently, her fingers tightening on his.

"Andros!" TJ's voice broke into the moment without apology. "Come explain the Synthetron to Kerone--Zhane doesn't know what he's talking about!"

Ashley's giggle was almost inaudible as she looked down, resting her forehead against his shoulder. "We'd better go."

"Coming!" Andros called. He looked back at her as she lifted her head and stepped back, squeezing his hand. "Will you go out with me tonight?" he whispered.

"Where?" she asked, her wide-eyed expression making his heart skip a beat.

"I don't care," he said quietly. "I just want to see you alone."

"I can't believe I just asked that," she murmured, an expression of rueful amusement on her face. "Of course I will."

She gave him a quick kiss, and he smiled at her, clasping her hand as they headed for the Bridge doors.

24. Marshmallows

She stared out her window, watching the stars spin slowly past as the Megaship fell around the curve of the Earth's surface. She had seen the sight a hundred times before, but it looked different from here, and for the last hour she had found herself unable to look away from the sight.

Now, though, she was surprised to find herself growing slightly--bored. She was thinking too much. If every star out in that infinite expanse represented one of her myriad thoughts since she had sat down in front of this window, she was not convinced that there would be enough celestial bodies to account for them all.

For the last few days, she had had little more to do than contemplate things. She had made a conscious decision to break away from Dark Spectre's control when Zhane called her, and she had spent all the time since wondering if she had done the right thing.

Then there had been their conversation last night, lasting for hours before they fell asleep, still in the park. Another flurry of activity this morning, when she had once again been required to act quickly and make the decision that would alter her entire future--and then nothing.

The Rangers had shown her around their ship, of course, and it had been some time before the last of them had finally left her alone in what they called "her" room. What she had done had only just been sinking in, and she had wanted to get away and try to figure some of it out. She had found this windowseat in a small niche off one of the main corridors, and she had settled herself there.

She had gone over everything she had thought in the last three days, and reassured herself that this was the decision she had been waiting for all along. But the "what now?" question occupied a good deal more time.

She had looked to her familiar stars for the answers, but had not been able to find any. She was no longer the person she had been--or rather, she *was* that person, but she found her circumstances inevitably changed by the situation she had chosen, by default, when she gave up the Dark Fortress.

She had had nowhere else to go, and she knew it. But the truth was that if she hadn't *had* the Megaship to go to, hadn't had Zhane to urge her into it, that she probably would have stayed on the Dark Fortress indefinitely--or at least until someone had been sent to bring her back into the service of Dark Spectre.

She did not know whether she would have fought that or not. Under Dark Spectre, she had had a purpose, a goal and something to fight for. But lately, she had grown more and more restless with Dark Spectre's reign.

The Alliance of Evil seemed to be more about what the Monarch decided he wanted from moment to moment than what would be best for his empire. His "goals" had been becoming less and less *her* goals, and she thought now that the Dark Fortress might have turned its weapons on any ship that had come to return her to his service.

She remembered, with a slight twist of her lips, her reckless vow of several days before. *One way or another--I *will* be free of Dark Spectre.* Dangerous words. And a statement easier said than done.

But she had done it, hadn't she? She was free, if not in exactly the way she had meant it at the time. The stars twinkled through the window at her, seeming to sparkle with the promise of a bright future.

With a sigh, she gave them a half-hearted glare. What did the stars know about the future? Her future, once so promising under Dark Spectre, was now bleak and empty. It seemed to be full of thinking, doubting, questioning--no certainties or acting only for the sake of acting.

The future, frankly, looked a lot like her day had been ever since she had convinced the Rangers to leave her to her own thoughts: quiet and boring.

"Cheating!" Carlos yelled, and Zhane clapped his hands over his ears.

"Okay, okay," he grumbled. "I'm sorry."

TJ caught the ball with his left hand as it rebounded off the pavement, falling from a basket that had been all net. Zhane insisted that using telekinesis was instinct, that he wasn't doing it on purpose, but interestingly enough, *Andros* had never had that problem.

"Come on, Zhane," TJ said with a grin, dribbling with his good hand until the Silver Ranger looked at him. Scooping the basketball up, he tossed it in Zhane's direction. "You have two hands. You should be able to beat me any day."

Zhane caught the ball just before it hit him in the chest, shaking his head in TJ's direction. "What's the word for when the other players are better than you?"

"Handicap?" TJ suggested.

At the same time, Carlos remarked, "Unfair?"

TJ grinned as Zhane rolled his eyes. "Yeah, handicap. That's--"

"It is eight o'clock," DECA interrupted.

"Thanks, DECA," Carlos said, while Zhane just looked puzzled.

TJ grabbed his sweatshirt from the side of the court and headed toward the place he remembered the door being. Carlos was right behind him, calling over his shoulder, "Ready to go, Zhane?"

"Where?" the Silver Ranger demanded, dropping the basketball carelessly to the ground and following them.

"You'll see," TJ said with a grin.

Ashley stared in silent amazement as the metal portal slowly irised open above her. It had to be heavy, but it moved without complaint, making no noise as the blackness of space and the steady fire of the stars were revealed beyond.

"Wow," she whispered at last, as the circle reached its full diameter and the motion ceased.

Although night in Angel Grove did not necessarily mean that the Megaship would be on the darkened side of the Earth, another half an hour would pass before the ship's orbit took it out of the planet's shadow again. And until then, the stars shimmered against the velvety black of a darker sky than anyone on Earth would ever see.

She felt more than saw Andros shrug at her side. But when she glanced over at him, she saw a small smile on his face as he watched her awed expression.

"It's beautiful," she breathed, glancing back up at the ceiling.

The large empty space looked much as it had the few other times she had seen it, with the exception of the sleeping bags strewn across the center of the room. Andros had made her sit down before the slightly curved overhead dome slid open, and now she was glad.

"I'm glad you like it," he said quietly, and she looked at him again.

His eyes were still on her, rather than the stars above them, and she smiled back at him, charmed by his attention even more than the gorgeous view he had shared with her.

"A campfire," Carlos was trying to explain. "You know, a fire on the beach. You burn driftwood, and toast marshmallows..."

Zhane looked at him oddly. "What are marshmallows?"

TJ just laughed, shaking his head in mock-regret. "Never mind; we'll show you. You want to go get Ast--Kerone? Astrea? Whatever we're supposed to call her now? Carlos and I will get the others."

"Sure," Zhane said, sounding a little too eager. "No problem."

As he walked quickly away, Carlos caught TJ's eye. The Blue Ranger's expression broke into a wide grin as Carlos mimicked, " 'Sure; no problem.' I *bet* it's no problem--we probably should have gone with him to chaperone!"

TJ shook his head. "How long has *that* been going on?" he asked rhetorically.

"Longer than we'll know," Carlos guessed. If Zhane really did have feelings for her, he wasn't likely to talk, and somehow Carlos couldn't picture asking the former princess of evil about her love life.

"Hey, DECA," TJ said, and for a moment Carlos thought he was going to ask the computer if she knew anything. But all he said was, "Where are the others?"

"Andros and Ashley are on deck one," DECA replied. "Cassie and the Phantom Ranger are on deck five."

TJ cocked his head at Carlos. "Want to split up?"

"No way," Carlos objected. "I haven't seen Cassie or Saryn since this morning, and I *know* Ash had plans with Andros tonight. There's no way I'm going alone to explain this to either of them."

For the first time, TJ looked a little uncertain about their plan. "Maybe we shouldn't--"

"Oh yes we should," Carlos said with a grin. "Come on, all they have to do is say no." Besides, he couldn't help thinking that with Karen working and Tessa busy, what else did he and TJ have to do but make things difficult for their fellow Rangers?

The glint in TJ's eye said that he knew exactly what Carlos was thinking. "Right," he agreed. "Let's go!"

He had expected her to be in her room, but no one answered when he knocked. "Astrea?" Zhane called, knocking again. He hesitated to say "Kerone" when that was not the way she had introduced herself the first time, but maybe she preferred it. "Kerone?"

The name felt strange even as he said it, but it produced no more response than his original attempt. Finally, he appealed to the camera across the hall. "DECA?" The little purple star next to the door caught his eye as he turned, and he shook his head. He would have to ask what those meant sometime. "Where's Astrea?"

Movement from the corner of his eye was all the warning he had before he heard, "I'm right here."

Zhane turned. She was standing just down the hall, leaning casually against the bulkhead as though she had been there all along. He was positive she hadn't been--but he had to stop and think about it to make sure.

"Hi," he said with a smile. "We're going to go down to the beach for a while--want to come?"

She seemed to consider that. "Why?"

He shrugged, not sure how to answer. "Because that's what friends do?" he suggested, trying to sound as charming as possible

"So... to be your friend I must participate?"

His eyes widened. "No, not at all!"

Luckily, she didn't respond right away, and he had a moment to think of how to explain it. "It's *because* you're our friend that I'm asking if you want to come. But you can say yes or no, whichever you like."

She was silent for a moment, and he studied her. He had never been able to read her very well; she seemed expressionless a good deal of the time. But he was starting to realize that when she dipped her head the way she was doing now, hiding her eyes, she wasn't just avoiding his gaze--he thought she was confused, and didn't want him to know.

"You don't owe us anything, you know," he said gently, resisting the urge to step closer to her. "You're free to do whatever you want."

She looked up, and the lost look in her eyes took his breath away. He told himself not to go to her, remembering how she had jerked away from his touch on the swings, but he couldn't help moving a little nearer. "What's wrong?" he pleaded quietly, her expression cutting into his heart.

"Can I *really* do whatever I want?" she asked. "Or can I only do things that you and your friends approve of?"

"Anything," he said firmly, even though he hoped fervently that she did not wish for her old life back. If it made her happy, he couldn't stop her, but he didn't want to think about what it would mean. "You can do anything you want."

For a long, agonizing moment, she was silent. He held her gaze, waiting on her judgement and dreading what he might hear.

Finally, she straightened her shoulders and looked down at her hands. "I want to go to the beach," she said quietly, as though she were announcing the time of day.

He let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding and gave her his most sincere smile. "Me too." *And I want to go with you,* he added silently.

He thought she knew that he was about to kiss her. He hoped she didn't mind--it wasn't why he had brought her here, after all. But the stars, for all their beauty, had nothing on her when she smiled at him like that.

Andros leaned forward, closing his eyes as her lips just barely touched his. He had a single moment to be grateful that they had the entire evening to themselves, before a banging on the observatory door made the two of them jump apart.

Ashley sighed, glancing upward in a silent appeal to the heavens. "They have the *worst* timing, you know?"

He tried not to sigh himself, but she saw it in his expression nonetheless. With a smile, she leaned forward and kissed him gently, ignoring a second and more determined knocking by their teammates.

Then they heard TJ's voice through the metal reinforced door. "We know you're in there, you guys! Open up, or I'll make DECA override the lock!"

Their kiss ended as Ashley dissolved into giggles, and Andros found himself smiling in spite of himself. "What do you want?" he called, loudly enough that his voice seemed to echo across the empty room.

His words only set Ashley off again, and he heard TJ answer, "We want to make your lives miserable; what do you think? Open the door!"

"DECA, let them in before they break the door down," Ashley said, still giggling.

The door slid open and TJ burst in, with Carlos on his heels. The two of them stopped short when they caught sight of their friends, and Andros tried not to blush as he realized what it probably looked like to them.

Ashley must have realized at nearly the same time, for she said hastily, "It's not what you think."

"Right," TJ said, raising his eyebrow at them.

No matter how innocent Andros' intent, the sight of him and Ashley sitting close together on sleeping bags in the middle of an empty observatory was probably not going to convince anyone.

Andros sighed. "Zhane and I were up here a couple nights ago," he said, trying to explain anyway. "We never put our sleeping bags away, and I brought Ash up here this evening just so she could see the stars."

Carlos glanced up at that, and TJ whistled as he followed his friend's gaze. "Wow," he said, momentarily diverted. "That's amazing."

Ashley scrambled to her feet while they were distracted, and he took her hand when she offered it. She pulled him to his feet, and as Carlos looked back at them Ashley demanded, "So what's so important that you had to threaten to break in?"

The two of them exchanged slightly guilty glances, but finally TJ said, "We thought we'd have a campfire on the beach, but you don't have to come if you don't want to."

"Just to celebrate being home," Carlos added. "Zhane already went to find Kerone."

It was Ashley's turn to look guilty for her outburst, and Andros could tell from her expression that they would go. "Sure," he said for them both. "That sounds great."

"Marshmallows?" Ashley asked suddenly, perking up a little.

Carlos grinned at her. "You bet."

"Now we just have to find Cassie and Saryn," TJ added.

"I'll go get them," Ashley offered quickly, and Andros saw TJ catch her eye.

"I'll go with you," he said, an uninterpretable expression on his face.

Andros frowned a little. There was something about the way they were looking at each other--"You know," he said suddenly, looking back and forth between them. Maybe everyone had known, and he had just been too oblivious to see what "Saryn's" reaction to Cassie had revealed before the Body Switcher's spell was broken.

TJ glanced sharply at him. "She told you?"

"Who told *you*?" Ashley interrupted.

"Man," Carlos muttered, and in his peripheral vision Andros saw the Black Ranger's exaggerated gesture of impatience. "Nobody tells me anything."

"Cassie did," TJ answered, ignoring Carlos.

Ashley turned her questioning look on Andros, and he shrugged uncomfortably. "I found out by accident." He had told her about the Body Switcher, but he hadn't thought it necessary to include *every* part of the story.

TJ threw up his hands. "That's what Cassie said about Ashley! I really don't want to know how everyone is finding this out 'by accident'!"

"I really want to know *what* everyone is finding out," Carlos interjected. "Would someone tell me what's going on?"

The little reading light was directed downward, spilling a pool of bright but contained light over the pages of her book. Propped on her elbows, chin on her fists, Cassie lay on the floor beside Saryn's bed and tried to concentrate on the Lit chapters that had been assigned.

She had just decided that there was no excuse for the irritating way nineteenth century English aristocrats spoke when she felt a whisper of thought slip into her mind. She glanced up with a smile, knowing what she would see.

Although he had made no noise, Saryn was awake and gazing down at her as she studied. "DECA," he said, when he caught her eye, "turn the lights up to full strength, please."

Cassie squinted as the room brightened, and he slid off the edge of the bed to turn her reading light off. "I can sleep with the lights on," he said quietly. "You need not be so concerned."

"But it would have woken you up when I turned them on," she said, rolling over onto her back and stretching her arms over her head. The worn paperback binding of "Pride and Prejudice" ensured that the book stayed open to her place without help, and she ignored her English assignment in favor of gazing up at Saryn.

"I woke when you returned from dinner anyway," he said, picking up her book and regarding it thoughtfully. "It did not bother me."

"Are you going to eat?" she asked idly, running her hand across the floor in search of her bookmark.

He plucked it off the floor just as her fingers found it, and placed the bookmark carefully between the pages she had been reading. Setting the book off to one side, he answered, "I am not hungry."

At her disapproving look, he smiled slightly. "But I might be persuaded," he added, "if you were to accompany me."

"Deal," she said, sighing happily as she stretched once more.

He watched, an expression she was starting to recognize flickering across his face. "You must stop that," he said softly, and she felt his fingers stroking her hair, "if you expect me to willingly leave this room."

She blushed, putting her elbows underneath her and pushing herself up. Then she squeaked as she felt his arms go around her, lifting her with an easy strength that she was inclined to forget he had. He kissed her even as he set her on her feet, startling her further, and she leaned into him without thinking.

A loud rap on the door brought her back to her senses, and she felt him tighten his arms around her instinctively as he lifted his head.

"It's Ashley!" her friend's voice called through the door, and Cassie sighed.

"I will answer," Saryn whispered, stepping away from her.

"No." He stopped and looked over at her. Cassie took a deep breath and glanced at the door. "First, we're not even doing anything. And second, I'm not going to keep sneaking around the Megaship.

"*I'll* get it,* she said firmly, when he said nothing. She knew he had never understood why she didn't want their friends to know when they spent the night together, and she was tired of worrying about it.

The door slid open at her approach, and she bit her lip when she saw TJ standing there with Ashley. "What's up?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady. She was grateful to feel Saryn standing next to her, and she was even more thankful that TJ didn't so much as blink.

"We're going to the beach," the Blue Ranger said cheerfully. "Want to come? Andros and Carlos are down there right now, starting a campfire, and Zhane went to find Kerone a few minutes ago."

She looked back at Saryn, silently asking him what he wanted. He smiled at her. "I would enjoy that," he offered quietly.

"That sounds great," Cassie said, delighted that he wanted to come. Turning back to the others, she asked, "Who's bringing the marshmallows?"

"That's TJ's job," Ashley said with a grin.

"Yeah, but if you guys help me, we can bring graham crackers and chocolate too," TJ pointed out, and Ashley clapped once.

"I'm in!" she exclaimed, and Cassie had to laugh at her enthusiasm.

"Me too," she agreed. Glancing over her shoulder, she caught sight of Saryn's tolerant gaze, and she gave him a gentle push. "Go get your other shirt," she suggested with a smile. "Then I'll tell you."

"Yes, Cassie," he murmured, ducking back into the room to retrieve his overshirt from the chair by the window.

TJ caught her arm as Saryn turned away, and he whispered, "Andros and Carlos know about you guys too. I just thought you'd want to know."

She gave him a wide-eyed look. "How do *they* know?"

He rolled his eyes. "Andros says he 'found out by accident', and then we had to tell Carlos. We felt bad for him."

She couldn't bring herself to be upset, not when he had just given her several fewer things to worry about. But she hadn't realized that Saryn could overhear until he joined them in the doorway again and said, "Zhane knows as well."

Cassie didn't know whether to laugh or sigh. "Why was I worried?" she demanded of the ceiling.

"How did *Zhane* find out?" Ashley asked curiously.

"Please don't say 'by accident'," TJ added.

"Zhane and I--argued, often, while Cassie was under the evilyzer spell," Saryn said, meeting her gaze uncomfortably. "He... provoked me to say something. I am sorry."

Cassie threw her arms around him without hesitation. "I don't mind," she said softly, wanting only to drive away that desperate look that threatened to encroach on his expression again. She had seen it too often while she was under that awful spell, and she never wanted to again.

"So basically, we all knew," Ashley said wryly. "And here we were all trying to keep it a secret from each other."

"And *Andros* was the one that blew it," TJ said with a grin. "I'd never have suspected him.

"Now let's go," the Blue Ranger added, before Cassie could ask what he meant about Andros. "I'm not sure I trust Carlos with a fire for any length of time, and I hate to think what Andros could do with his telekinesis."

"Andros!" Out of the corner of his eye, Carlos saw his friend reach for the fire, and he batted the Red Ranger's wrist away without thinking.

Andros just gave him a patient look and pointed at the fire again. One of the smaller pieces of wood turned a little, its thin end falling toward the middle of the fire and slowly starting to burn.

Embarrassed, Carlos shrugged a little. "Sorry," he offered, hoping Andros hadn't taken offense. "I just didn't think."

"We do have fire on KO-35," Andros answered, sounding somewhat amused.

"I know," Carlos said uncomfortably. "I guess I've just gotten used to..."

He trailed off, but Andros finished the sentence for him. "Babysitting me? I may be used to a higher level of technology, Carlos, but I do know that fire burns."

"Sorry," Carlos muttered again.

"Don't be," Andros said with a smile. "I know what you meant. It's just hard to--" He gestured around at the beach, but Carlos understood him to mean the city as a whole. "Hard to adjust to all of this, sometimes."

"Think how much trouble we're still having adjusting to space," Carlos pointed out ruefully. "You've learned quicker than we did. And we only had to get used to the Megaship--you have a whole world to understand."

Andros gave him a wry look. "I'm not sure 'understand' is the right word. I may *never* understand. But at least no one's asked me what planet I'm from in a while."

Carlos poked the fire with the blunt stick he had kept out of the pile for just that purpose. "Any improvement is good improvement," he joked.

Andros didn't answer, but when Carlos glanced sideways at him, the other was still smiling. Abruptly, Andros pointed at the fire again, and one of the larger pieces of wood settled more firmly into place amidst the improvised kindling.

"Wish I could do that," Carlos said, watching.

Andros shrugged. "Ashley learned. There's no reason you can't, too."

"Ashley had motivation," Carlos replied with a grin. "I'm not sure I'd be so dedicated to it."

"Her teacher was motivated too," Andros said quietly, but there was a glint in his eyes that had nothing to do with the firelight.

Carlos chuckled, but twin flashes of light interrupted him before he could answer. Not far away, Zhane's silver sparkles and the luminescent purple outline of the former princess of evil coalesced into two distinct forms. The glow of their teleportation was just barely enough to cast its own brief shadows on the sandy beach, before it was drowned out by the still-bright fire of the setting sun.

"Hey, guys!" Carlos called.

Zhane waved in return, and as the two of them walked toward the little fire, Carlos noticed that he waited for Kerone to sit down first. She didn't, though--she just came to a halt on Andros' side of the fire and regarded the flames for a long moment, until Zhane seated himself on her other side.

Then she deigned to lower herself to the ground, tucking her legs carefully underneath her. Carlos saw her glance sideways at Andros, but neither of them spoke.

"Did everyone else get lost?" Zhane asked, making a show of rearranging himself on the sand. Either he didn't notice the subtle tension, or he was electing to ignore it. "Andros is here, so Ashley can't be far behind. Did TJ find Cassie and Saryn?"

"Hope so," Carlos said with a grin. "TJ was in charge of bringing the marshmallows, so if he doesn't find the others quick, we won't be eating."

"Ashley went with him," Andros offered, looking up from the fire and not seeming to notice that Kerone glanced quickly away. "She says they're on their way now."

The bright flare of teleportation confirmed his words, and four separate beams appeared nearby. As Rangers stepped out of them, Carlos grinned at what they carried. "S'mores!"

"That's right," Ashley said cheerfully, tossing the chocolate down in front of him and pushing his shoulder. "Move over Carlos; that's my seat."

Carlos laughed and obligingly made room for Ashley between him and Andros. "Anything for the one who brings the chocolate," he teased.

On the other side of the circle, Cassie dropped to the ground beside Zhane and leaned into his shoulder. "Move down," she ordered, a smile in her voice. "You guys can't take up all the room here, you know."

Zhane seemed perfectly willing to move closer to Kerone, but the blond-haired girl showed obvious reluctance to get any nearer to Andros. Ashley remedied the situation by copying Cassie's tactic and nudging Andros to the side. He moved toward Kerone, and the circle shifted.

"Make way for the graham crackers," TJ was saying with a grin, tossing the box into Carlos' lap with his good hand as he sat down.

"Since when was this my responsibility?" Carlos demanded.

TJ shrugged. "I can't open the package. All you have to do is open the crackers."

"You are what you eat," Ashley told Carlos, and TJ snickered.

Across the circle, Cassie had torn the marshmallow bag open. "I don't suppose you thought to find sticks for these?" she asked, but Carlos was glaring suspiciously at TJ.

"How did you manage to sprain your wrist, anyway?" he demanded. "Isn't that just a little too convenient an injury?"

"I fell wrong," TJ said good-naturedly. "That monster demorphed me, and I wasn't exactly conscious when I hit the ground."

"Neither was I!" Carlos exclaimed, picking up the thin sticks he had sent Andros after and passing them around the circle. "Notice, however, that I'm fine."

"Well, someone has to do the work," TJ pointed out, taking one of the sticks. "How 'bout one of those marshmallows, Cass?"

But Cassie was tugging on Saryn's hand, the marshmallows forgotten on the sand beside her. "Come on, Saryn, you have to sit down. That's the whole point of a campfire, to have everyone sit around it."

TJ leaned in front of him and grabbed the marshmallows. "Aha!"

Carlos rolled his eyes. "I suppose you want me to put one of those on your stick for you."

"Nope," TJ said, tucking the stick under his right elbow and spearing the marshmallow in his left hand. "I'm too coordinated for that."

"But not coordinated enough to open the graham cracker package," Ashley reminded him, putting a marshmallow on a stick and passing it to Andros. "Just toast it, don't catch it on fire," she said, her tone half-teasing and half-serious.

"What are you talking about?" TJ demanded, letting his stick dip dangerously low over the flames. "There's something to be said for charbroiled marshmallows."

His marshmallow caught fire, glowing blue and orange as he drew it out of the fire. He regarded it carefully for a moment, then put his hand behind it and calmly blew it out. "What?" TJ asked, looking up to find Ashley and Carlos staring at him. "They're good this way."

"Do *not* listen to him," Ashley advised Andros, poking her own marshmallow into the fire.

"Can I have the graham crackers?" Cassie asked, and Carlos handed them to TJ. TJ snagged one before passing them to Saryn, who regarded them with total noncomprehension.

Cassie took them before he could ask, and Ashley volunteered, "Have some chocolate." She too, took some before she passed it, and Carlos followed suit.

Carlos tried not to grin as he glanced up and realized Cassie's predicament. Stuck between Zhane and Saryn, she was faced with the dual challenge of explaining to the both of them what a s'more was and why they would want to eat one.

TJ passed him the marshmallow bag, and Carlos skewered two before handing it to Ashley. "Cheater," she accused, watching him put them both on the end of his stick.

"Watch it," Carlos said, pointing to her own marshmallow. It was perilously close to melting right off her stick, and she drew it back before it could fall.

"Can we have the graham crackers over here?" Ashley asked, nudging Andros and pointing to his own marshmallow. He pulled it out of the fire obediently, and Carlos raised his eyebrow as the graham cracker package drifted across the sand to land in front of Andros.

With the way Andros and Zhane exchanged glances and grinned at each other, Carlos couldn't tell which of them had done it. But Ashley just laughed, snatching a cracker up and breaking it in half without complaint. "Thanks!"

Andros watched her carefully, and when she handed him some of her chocolate, he put in on the graham cracker as she had. As Carlos watched, Andros managed to get his marshmallow off the stick and onto the chocolate without too much fuss, and Ashley leaned over his arm to take his second graham cracker half and press it down on top of the melted marshmallow.

He drew back as it oozed out the sides, giving her a look that said plainly, "You eat this?"

Carlos tried not to grin, and glanced over to see how Cassie was doing. He was just in time to see her pass her own marshmallow stick to Zhane and grab Saryn's hand. "You have to watch it," she said, lifting the stick from where it had been hovering between the flames. "It's sugar, Saryn; it melts!"

Her reprimand reminded Carlos to pay attention to his own toasting job, and he studied the lightly browned marshmallows on the end of his stick. "This is how it's done," he announced, pulling it out of the fire. "The perfect marshmallow toasting!"

"They look a little undercooked to me," TJ offered, and Carlos just shook his head.

"You, my friend, have no concept of 'toasting'," Carlos told him. "It's either raw or burned to a crisp with you."

"That's right," TJ said, as though he were proud of that fact.

"Anyone need a marshmallow?" Carlos offered, pointedly ignoring his friend.

He saw Ashley glance in his direction, and he realized she was strangely s'more-less. He hadn't been paying close enough attention to see who she had given hers to. "You look like you could use another one," he said gallantly, and she grinned.

Placing chocolate on her graham cracker, she held it out to him. With great care, Carlos removed the first of his marshmallows and placed it on her cracker. She covered it up and bit into it with great relish--an amusing sight in and of itself, since Ashley was usually so neat. There was just no way to be neat and simultaneously eat a s'more.

"Thank you," she said, around her mouthful of graham cracker and marshmallow and chocolate.

He laughed, removing the second marshmallow and putting together his own gooey concoction. "You're welcome."

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Andros taking another marshmallow out of the fire. Oddly enough, Andros' first s'more lay untouched on the graham cracker wrapper beside him, but he was going to some trouble to put another one together.

As Carlos watched, taking a small bite of his own s'more and noting with amusement that Cassie had taken her stick back from Zhane and given it to Saryn to hold on the condition that he didn't get it anywhere near the fire, Andros put the finishing touches on the second s'more. Quietly, he proffered it to Kerone.

She glanced up from the piece of chocolate she had been nibbling on, meeting his gaze at last. He smiled a little, and Carlos realized abruptly that Andros' locket was hanging loose over his red tank top. *When did that happen?* he wondered.

Kerone, too, wore her locket over her t-shirt, and she smiled tentatively back at Andros. More than that, she accepted the s'more and did not protest when Andros picked up the stick Zhane had taken for her when they went around earlier. Andros put a marshmallow on the end of it and calmly held it out over the fire.

Carlos saw Ashley glance at Andros, then down at the s'more beside him, and she smiled as she turned away. "Do you have the chocolate?" she asked Carlos, and he glanced around.

"Saryn," he called. "Pass me the chocolate?"

Saryn looked down at the two sticks he held as though he couldn't quite decide what to do with them. At last, he transferred them both to one hand and reached across Cassie to retrieve the chocolate and hand it to TJ.

"Thanks," Carlos said, watching as Cassie deftly removed both sticks from Saryn and asked for the graham crackers. Zhane seemed to have had some luck with his own marshmallow, and Carlos looked away long enough to take the chocolate from TJ and give it to Ashley.

"Thanks," she said, withdrawing a square and taking a bite of it. Catching his eye, she added, "Sometimes you just have to have plain chocolate, you know?"

Carlos noticed that Kerone didn't miss that comment. She looked up from the s'more Andros had given her and actually smiled a little in Ashley's direction.

"Saryn!" Cassie exclaimed. "I'm never letting you near marshmallows again!"

She had just rescued her recently constructed s'more from the ground, and she gave it to him with finality. "Eat that," she declared, leaving no room for argument. "And give me that stick. It's a dangerous weapon in your hands."

"Many marshmallows have met their death on that stick," TJ--who had obviously been watching longer than Carlos--added smugly.

Cassie gave it a suspicious look. "Maybe it's the stick. Kerone, you'd know--could he have cursed it somehow?"

Carlos glanced automatically at Andros' sister, but her wide-eyed look said she had absolutely no idea how to respond. Zhane, whether knowingly or not, came to her rescue.

"I think it's too tame an activity for him," he opined. "If the point isn't to make it explode or burst into flames, Saryn can't do it."

As Carlos had expected, Saryn gave Zhane a dark look. Zhane just grinned back, but it wasn't his usual cocky expression--it was a lopsided grin that had the look of sincerity, and even as Carlos watched, Saryn's annoyance seemed to fade a little.

"Maybe you should teach him then, TJ," Cassie said with a giggle. "I give up."

Saryn's expression softened the rest of the way, and he reached out to squeeze her fingers with his free hand. "It is not a skill I will need often, I think."

She shook her head, smiling at him. "Probably not."

"TJ!" Ashley exclaimed, and the Blue Ranger positively smirked at her as he lifted another flaming marshmallow high above the fire.

"To friends," he declared, and Carlos lifted his own marshmallowless stick.

"To friends," Carlos repeated, and one by one, the others followed suit. Even Saryn, when Cassie let him have his stick back, and Kerone, when Andros passed his own to her to raise with the group.

All eight sticks hovered over the fire, and six more voices, some louder and some quiet, repeated, "To friends!"

25. Freedom

He watched the flames leap and flicker from one side of the fire to the other, more luminous with every passing moment. He had caught the subtle dimming of light as the lower edge of the sun's disc sank below the rim of the world, and he knew that twilight would soon be on them.

Cassie's homeworld turned faster than the planet on which he had been raised, and even there, dusk came and went quickly. Elisia's unending deserts met the sky in almost every direction, and once the sun began to disappear, the light did not linger long.

Here, with the sun setting over an alien ocean, the effect was similar. Except that nowhere on Elisia was there a body of water to rival this one, and he couldn't help feeling awed by the sight.

Whenever he could do so without being noticed, he turned his gaze away from the flames and looked out at the seemingly infinite expanse of ocean. Cassie had almost caught him staring when they first teleported down--her reminder to sit down had broken the spell, and he had turned away from the view and taken his place at her side.

She had tried to explain to him the principles of "marshmallow toasting", but he had been too easily distracted. Finally, she had taken his stick away, and he was grateful. He seemed to have no talent for the activity.

Now he shot covert glances at the ocean, its muted roar and ceaseless waves a wonder in and of themselves, and used the time in between to watch the others gathered around the campfire.

The initial push to make these "s'mores" seemed to have tapered off. He had eaten one, which as far as he was concerned fulfilled his social obligation to the event, and he was perfectly willing to forgo any repetitions of the experience.

The others had continued making them for a while longer, though apparently eating the ingredients separately also constituted "making a s'more". TJ and Carlos had fallen unusually quiet, once Ashley had stopped arguing with TJ about his habit of catching the marshmallows on fire. Carlos was poking at the fire, while beside him Ashley now occupied herself by playing with Andros' locket.

She had asked to see the necklace several minutes ago, and he had given it to her without question. Kerone had watched, and when Ashley looked up and asked if hers was exactly the same, the sorceress had handed hers over as well.

He had stared at her for some time after that, surprised by the act of trust and wondering if perhaps he had been wrong about her. His instinctive suspicion regarding the princess of evil was starting to fade a little--Cassie had trusted her ever since she found out that it was Astronema who helped him break the evilyzer spell, and he could see for himself that Zhane and Andros trusted her.

Ashley returned the necklace after a careful inspection, and Zhane had intercepted it. Kerone stiffened, but he only offered to fasten the clasp for her. Unlike Andros', her locket no longer hung on its original chain, and the new one wasn't long enough to slip over her head.

Again to his surprise, Kerone accepted Zhane's gesture. He supposed the fact that she seemed partial to Zhane wasn't necessarily a point in her favor, but it probably did mean that she was less likely to turn on them.

"Hey," Cassie murmured, leaning against his shoulder. "What are you thinking about?"

He smiled, shooting another quick glance toward the ocean. "I have never seen so much water so close," he admitted quietly, and she turned her head to smile up at him. It might not have been *exactly* what was on his mind, but it hadn't been far from his thoughts all evening.

"Want to see it closer?" she offered.

"Could I?" He looked down the sandy shore of the small cove in which their campfire burned. "I would like that."

"Here here," TJ agreed, overhearing their conversation. "I'm going to go wash some of this sugar off my hands."

"Coming with you," Carlos said, setting down the stick he had been using to poke the fire.

Cassie just smiled indulgently, shifting a little as she prepared to stand up. She reached out to take his hand, and her fingers brushed the corner of his overshirt. He was glad she had made him bring it--as the sun sank, a seabreeze had sprung up, and he knew the air would feel chilly to his skin.

"What's this?" Cassie asked curiously. Before he knew what she meant, she had slid Carlos' old communicator out of his pocket.

"Zhane thought I should have some way to contact the rest of you," he said, glancing over at the Silver Ranger.

"I told him he could use it," Carlos added, already on his feet.

Cassie climbed to her feet, shaking her head as he stood as well. "Silly," she said with a smile, reaching for his hand again. "You're supposed to wear it on your wrist!"

He held his arm out patiently while she fastened the black and gold band around his left wrist, watching as she closed the clasp. The small mechanism had baffled him at first, and rather than taking the time to bother with it, he had simply put it in his pocket.

"There," Cassie said, twining her fingers through his and holding their clasped hands up for his inspection. "What do you think?"

She must have seen him glance at her morpher, for she held her right hand out in front of her as well. Her morpher was currently pretending to be a gold wristband, just like his except for the color of the stripes.

He smiled, catching her eye. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." She smiled back and let her right hand fall.

"Kerone," she added, turning back toward the fire. "If you want, you can wear my old communicator. I'll give it to you when we get back to the Megaship--it's not quite purple, but it's close."

Zhane laughed, displaying his own red-banded communicator. "Mine's not silver, but I like it." He caught Andros' eye, and they grinned at each other.

"Thank you," Kerone said, looking from Zhane to Cassie.

"Welcome," Cassie said, and he could hear the smile in her voice.

Then she stepped out of her sandals and nudged them off to one side with her foot. "Let's go see the water," she declared, squeezing his hand.

As the others left, Ashley glanced back down at the locket in her hand. The sun was more than half gone, and the firelight caught the edges of the etched patterns and made them sparkle. Two young faces looked up at her from the pictures in that locket, and one of them was a face she knew very well--better than she should, in fact.

"Andros?" she asked finally. It was something she had wondered about for several days now, and she knew it would keep bothering her if she didn't ask. "You know when the Megaship went through that gateway?"

Andros nodded, and though she didn't look at him, she could feel his eyes on her.

"You said that... everyone got switched with their counterparts in that other dimension."

"Everyone who was awake," he said, his voice tinged with quiet amusement. "You and Carlos didn't, and Zhane says he doesn't remember *anything* from hypersleep."

Ashley was silent for a moment. Maybe it *was* crazy. If they had been switched with their doubles anyway, wouldn't Carlos and Zhane remember something too? Wouldn't *she* remember it in something more than dreams?

"Ash?" Andros prompted gently.

She sighed. "I don't know. I guess I was just wondering if we could have been in that other dimension too, without knowing it."

Andros didn't answer that right away. "Why?" he asked at last.

She looked up. Zhane was listening idly, and Andros' expression was curious. Kerone was watching Ashley's fingers fidget with the locket.

She sighed. "This is going to sound crazy."

"That's nothing new," Zhane joked, and she smiled a little.

"I've been having these dreams," she said, looking over at Andros. He didn't laugh, and Zhane made no further comment. "I see you, when you were younger. Sometimes at school, sometimes at the beach, sometimes places I don't remember when I wake up--but I always recognize them in the dream, and I'm always with you."

He shook his head slowly. "We weren't together," he said quietly. "In the other dimension, you weren't with me."

"You said you saw KO-35," she said, remembering her attempts to corner him about who he had been in that other dimension. He had never seemed to want to talk about it, and he had not told her much.

"Yeah," he said, swallowing. Glancing around, he added, "Zhane was there, and Kerone. We were all on KO-35 during Ranger training."

Catching her eye again, he continued, "It was like a dream. But the whole time, I had this sense of something missing. And when we came out of the gateway in our own dimension, I knew what it was--you weren't there.

"So," he said, trying to smile. "You couldn't be remembering the gateway trip, because if you were you would have been on KO-35 in my vision too."

"Another dimension," Kerone said softly, and Ashley glanced at her. She lifted her chin and straightened when Andros and Zhane turned to look at her too. In a stronger voice, she continued, "A ship that attempts to leave a gateway without the appropriate programming would rarely hit only one alternate dimension on its way out. It is entirely possible that you are remembering a different reality than Andros."

"How do you know about gateways?" Zhane asked, and she gave him an impatient look that Ashley recognized instantly.

She had to stifle a giggle at Zhane's startled expression--he must have identified it just as quickly. Kerone was staring at him with the same Look that Andros gave someone when he was particularly disgusted with something they had said or done.

"The Dark Fortress wasn't my first command," she said, as though he should have known that. "And before I was old enough, I watched Ecliptor. I probably know more about space travel than *you* do."

Zhane looked indignant, but Andros surprised them all by laughing. "You probably do," he agreed. "You'll have to teach us. So you think Ash might actually have seen this stuff?"

With a last look at Zhane, Kerone shrugged. "I would have expected time to be more of a constant than that--I'm surprised you were younger in this other dimension, but I don't doubt that it could exist."

Ashley frowned a little. "I wasn't younger," she said thoughtfully. "Neither were you, Andros; I just *remember* us being younger. Sometimes, when I dream, we're the same age we are here--but I always feel like I'm looking back."

"Maybe when you switched dimensions your double was doing something that made her remember events," Kerone suggested, seeming to forget her uncertainty in the face of a challenge. "Any accounts I've heard of ships hitting another dimension say that the people involved remember only what they were thinking about or doing at the time. They remember nothing about their backgrounds--unless it directly related to their double's activities at the time they switched."

"You think I was looking through a photo album?" Ashley asked, half joking.

Kerone didn't seem to notice her tone. "Maybe," she said seriously.

Ashley glanced at Andros. He was staring down at the locket she still held in her hands, and she followed his gaze. Two smiling faces looked back, silent and mysterious as she wondered about them.

It had taken some doing, but she had finally persuaded Saryn to take his shoes off. "You can't be on the beach without being barefoot," she had told him firmly. "It's just wrong."

Now he walked slowly along beside her, studying the water as it splashed around their feet. From time to time, he would look up and stare toward the horizon, as though he still couldn't comprehend the magnitude of the ocean they stood at the edge of.

They had left TJ and Carlos down the beach a ways, Carlos hunting for shells in the waning light and TJ trying to convince him to come with him on a climb out on the breakwater. The Black Ranger had adamantly refused, but TJ wasn't giving up that easily. Cassie wouldn't be surprised if she turned around and saw two shadows out there before the sun's last rays vanished from the sky.

"Your planet is very beautiful," Saryn said, breaking into her thoughts.

The slight edge of wistfulness in his voice caught her attention, and she glanced over at him. His hand in hers, he was once more staring at the little wave remnants that washed across the sand and played at their feet as they walked. The expression on his face was one that she hadn't seen since he told her about Lyris--one of controlled homesickness, a longing for something that had once been.

"Yes," she agreed, for lack of anything more comforting to say. Then she remembered something Aura had once told her, and she repeated it for him. "All free planets are beautiful."

She saw him swallow, and she added, "Elisia *will* be free again someday."

"It doesn't matter," he said stonily. He lifted his gaze to the horizon again. "I can't go back."

She squeezed his hand, feeling an indescribable sadness impinging on her mind. "No. But they're still with you--and you're not alone anymore."

The sadness ebbed a little, and he turned toward her. She paused, feeling cool sand swirl around her suddenly still feet. "No, I'm not," he agreed quietly, his eyes searching hers. "Thank you... for everything your team has done for me."

She smiled, squeezing his fingers again. "Our team," she corrected.

"Our team," he repeated, as though trying out the words. "Everything our team has done."

Leaning close enough to whisper the words in his ear, for it was the only way he would hear them over the sound of the surf, she said softly, "You're welcome."

He wouldn't have noticed it if he weren't staring out across the sea, following the sparkling trail of Earth's sun with his eyes, but the air darkened almost imperceptibly as the last slice of the sky's fiery disc slid down behind the horizon. At his side, he felt the girl he had seen so often after sunset shiver, and he looked over at her in concern.

"Thanks," Ashley said abruptly, threading her fingers through Andros' locket chain and holding it out to him.

Diverted, Zhane watched in amusement as Andros looked down and let her slip the chain over his head. "No problem," he said quietly, touching the locket automatically as it slid into place.

For another long moment, none of them spoke. The fire still crackled, and Andros' sister reached out and picked up Carlos' fire stick. She poked it idly into the flames, and they all watched as sparks rose into the twilight and vanished.

Then Zhane saw Andros turn his head toward Ashley. "Want to go for a walk?" he asked, making no movement.

She nodded, but continued to stare into the fire.

At last, she sighed and looked over at him with a smile. "Yeah, I do." She held out her hand, and he took it as they got to their feet.

*Stay out of trouble.* Andros' silent words did nothing to disturb the contemplative atmosphere that lingered around the fire, but when Zhane looked up, his friend caught his eye.

Andros' fond look and knowing smile as he tilted his head ever so slightly toward his sister made Zhane feel better. He didn't think anyone had missed the marshmallow incident earlier--he had offered Andros' sister a marshmallow when the bag was passed to him, and to his infinite surprise, she had taken a bite as he held it out to her.

She had giggled a little at his expression and snatched it away from him before he could say anything, and Ashley had demanded that he stop hogging the marshmallows. No one had said anything, and as his shock fell away he realized that the conversation continued as though nothing had happened.

But something *had*--she wasn't just another girl anymore. She wasn't even Andros' sister, or the former princess of evil. She was someone he suddenly wished he could touch.

He didn't know what made her different all of a sudden, but she was, and he wasn't sure exactly what to say to her. All he knew was that he wouldn't mind feeding her another marshmallow--and he needed to talk to Andros.

But Andros had seen that moment of truth, even if Zhane himself wasn't sure exactly what that truth was, and he had asked Ashley to go for a walk anyway. He was deliberately leaving the two of them alone by the fire.

Zhane smiled a little in return, hoping he didn't look too confused, and Andros turned away. He and Ashley wandered down toward the water, and silence descended once more around the fire.

Then a sparkle of violet caught Zhane's eye, and he looked over in time to see a light, long-sleeved, and distinctly Kerovan blouse appear around the girl's shoulders. She looked down as though not sure what she would see, and caught the sides of it to tug it closer around her.

"That must be useful," he said, a little surprised.

She shrugged, playing with one of the button-up sides. "I'm not used to clothes like this," she admitted.

"You look pretty in them," Zhane said, before he could stop himself.

She smiled, glancing up and catching his eye. "Thank you," she said simply.

After a moment, she added, "It's strange, to--to think about what I look like."

"Other than scary and intimidating?" he offered, then held his breath as he hoped she wouldn't take that the wrong way.

To his relief, she giggled a little. "Yes. Other than that."

She poked the fire again, and he watched the flames play around the stick. "Zhane?" she said, a minute later.

He looked up from the campfire. "Yeah?"

"You said before that I could do anything I wanted," she said, sounding just the slightest bit uncertain.

He nodded.

"But what if I do something that *you* don't want? I--I don't usually worry about that," she added, looking over at him. "But I am now."

He frowned. "What could you possibly do that *I* wouldn't like?"

She hesitated, then, before he knew what she was doing, she leaned over and kissed him quickly. Her hair brushed his cheek as she pulled away, and she tucked it behind her ear as she shot a sideways glance in his direction.

He could only stare as his mind tried to formulate some sort of coherent sentence. Something other than "do that again," preferably.

Finally, he repeated, "What could you possibly do that I wouldn't like?"

A smile broke over her features, and she looked down at her hands. Mind racing, Zhane tried to think of something else to say, but she beat him to it.

"Thanks for coming after me," she told him, playing with the fire stick. "When that monster came to take me back to the Dark Fortress."

"You're welcome," he said automatically. Then, on impulse, he added, "I'm glad you're here."

She looked up, the smile still on her face. "Me too." She gazed down toward the ocean, where their friends were vague shadows at the water's edge. Stars were starting to sparkle in the sky overhead, their light glittering in a way it did not from the Megaship's windows.

"I was thinking earlier, about whether I made the right choice when I left the Dark Fortress," she said abruptly.

He glanced toward her, her blond hair shimmering in the fading light and her long-sleeved shirt billowing gently behind her as the breeze drifted around them. "What did you decide?"

She turned her head toward him, the firelight playing across her features and making her expression readable even in the shadows. For as long as he had known her, a troubled look had lurked in the back of her gaze--a distressed expression that was now gone.

Her eyes were peaceful as she looked back at him, and her smile was genuine. "I did. It's nice to be free, Zhane."