Wasted Years

May 24 2005 – Reefside, California

It was an unseasonably warm day, even residents in the southern half of California were reluctant to step outside into the baking sun. One brave soul was ignoring the oppressive heat though. She disliked the sun too but not for the same reasons as everyone else. The blonde haired woman couldn't believe that the sun had the gall to shine, not after everything that had occurred in the last week. Retrieving a stroller out the trunk of her car and placing a young boy no older than three into the seat, the woman carefully stepped through the gates to the Reefside Cemetery.

Katherine Oliver, known as Kat to her friends, slowly began to meander down the gravel path towards her destination. She blocked out the sound of crunching gravel underneath her plimsolls, too lost in thought to be distracted by something as mundane as her own footsteps. Periodically her young son Ben would make a quiet gurgle but even at such a young age, he knew there was something wrong with his mother.

Reefside had been a disaster for Kat almost from the very beginning. Things had already been tense with her husband Tommy for a while. He promised on multiple occasions to cut back on his work with Hexagon but each time failed to follow through. With each passing day Kat slowly lost hope that she would ever experience normal family life with her husband and son. That's why she was so surprised when Tommy announced a new teaching job in Reefside and the promise of more sociable hours.

It quickly proved to be a lie though Kat thought bitterly to herself. Almost immediately Tommy's job turned out to be nothing more than a cover for his true mission. Hexagon had uncovered three gems of tremendous power and Tommy was charged with finding three suitable owners for the gifts that the jewels would bestow. Of course this being Ranger business, things quickly went to hell as a monster known as Mesagog unleashed his creatures on the city. This in turn forced the gems onto three unwilling and ill prepared High School seniors.

Suddenly Kat was thrust into the role of unofficial mentor to the three teens as well as keeping up her 'job' as Ben's mother. To say that the former pink ranger wasn't ready for something of this magnitude was an understatement. It might have been selfish but all she wanted was a normal, quiet family life with the two men she loved more than anything in the world.

That was the bitter truth for Kat Oliver. Despite all the arguments with her husband, she still loved Tommy deeply. Looking back now it was easy to see that their marriage was disintegrating around them but neither of them wanted to admit it, mostly to themselves. When Tommy was incapacitated, Kat felt like a part of her was missing the whole time. She put on a brave smile for the teens and tried to soldier on but inside her heart was breaking. Every night she kept a silent vigil and hoped that he would wake up, sometimes sleeping next to his inert form just to feel like he was still with her.

Turning right at an intersection, Kat found the spot she had been looking for. Pushing the stroller onto the grass, the former pink ranger found a large white marble plinth in an isolated part of the cemetery. She reached underneath the stroller to retrieve a single white rose, "I'm sorry for the flower", she said out loud, "I wasn't really sure what to bring". Kat carefully placed the rose on top of the plinth and sat cross-legged on the grass. Perhaps it was her connection to nature that she still retained thanks to her ninja abilities but sitting on the ground made her feel more comfortable.

"It was a wonderful service", she continued, "none of us really knew you that well so we weren't sure what to say". A wave of guilt washed over the former ranger, it wasn't really her fault that she didn't know the deceased that well, no one who attended the funeral the previous day did. She wasn't sure if the tear forming in her eye was due to that reason or because that the only family he had was also dead. It was sad that someone so young had been put to rest with barely a handful of mourners. Even the ones who could attend were hardly close friends, quite the opposite in fact, "Such a waste of a life", Kat sniffed and wiped her eyes.

It would be easy to gloss over the terrible things the deceased had done in just the few months they had known him. He had kidnapped and aggressively stalked the team's yellow ranger, nearly killed her husband and threatened everyone she cared about on more than one occasion. Yet despite all this, it had been him that struck a decisive blow against Mesagog's force. The cost of this telling strike was his life. Unlike the times she had been a Ranger, there was no last second rescue, no daring final escape, just the final act of a person who could've been so much more than he was. Kat took a deep breath and tentatively brushed her fingers against the name engraved into the marble. Like the earth itself, it made her feel more connected to the person.

Here Lies Trent Fernandez-Mercer

July 27 1985 – May 18 2005

"Not even twenty years old", Kat spat bitterly, "what an absolute waste", she added, pouring several days of grief and bitterness into every syllable.

Trent Fernandez-Mercer was an almost textbook example of a sociopath. Cold, almost to the point of callous, he took almost great pleasure in savagely taking down the Rangers at every possible opportunity. Whether he was aware of his father's dual identity from the very beginning or stumbled across it accidentally, no one would ever be able to find out. The only two people who knew were dead. Anton Mercer failed to separate himself from Mesagog and even with years of research, would probably never be able to. What was known was that Mercer/Mesagog gave Trent an unstable white Dino Gem that when combined with an experimental morpher, became a lethal weapon.

The powers of the White Dino Ranger were initially far in excess of the three core Rangers. Even Tommy, by now the owner of the black Dino Gem much to Kat's chagrin, with his vast training and experience struggled to keep pace with Trent. It was probably the threat of Tommy that caused Trent to target him almost immediately, dishing out a savage beating to a morphed and unmorphed Tommy that kept the black ranger in a coma for nearly a month. To the very end Trent failed to show any remorse for this attack, even showing pride in his work at some points.

His Achilles heel wasn't in his psychological makeup, it was Kira Ford. Whether a sociopath like Trent actually had any romantic towards the yellow ranger, only he knew. One more than one occasion he singled her out for special treatment, going as far as turning up inside her house in the middle of the night just to prove that he could.

What he didn't count on was the strength of feeling that actions like this stirred up in the team, especially in Conner McKnight. The red and white ranger's became deadly rivals, pushing each other to and sometimes beyond their limits. Conner's passion and emotion, especially where Kira was involved, was his biggest weakness but also his greatest strength. Just when it looked like his rival had him beaten, Conner could call on some of that passion to give him a second wind. Eventually it became clear that the pair were too evenly matched for the other to strike a decisive blow so Trent switched tactics and focused on the other female of the group, Kat herself. This was probably his second big mistake.

Targeting Kat not only brought the full wrath of a fully recovered Tommy down on the white ranger but also the Australian herself. When Trent threatened her son, Kat almost strangled the teen to death when her forest ninja power went into overdrive. Only the calming words of the team saved Kat from taking his life that day but what the blonde remembered most of all was the terrified look in the eyes of Trent. That look, coupled with his desperate attempts to free himself from a mass of tangled roots, would probably remain with Kat for the rest of her life.

Kat was slowly dragged out of her thoughts by the sound of approaching footsteps up the gravel path. She didn't need to look around to know who it was, "Shouldn't you three be in school?" she asked.

"Exams are over Mrs O", Conner stated. Kat sighed and took a deep breath, no matter how many times she told Conner not to call her Mrs O he still insisted on using the nickname. At first it was endearing but as time wore on it began to grate, she hadn't really considered herself to be 'Mrs Oliver' for several weeks. "Plus when the Headmistress is dead, the atmosphere tends to suck".

For a brief moment Kat placed her head into her hands. The fate of Principle Randall, also known as Elsa, was probably the most tragic of them all. An unwilling test subject of Anton Mercer, she was subjected to the same procedure that created Mesagog. When her power was drained by the lizard man, it also killed the human at the same time. There were no records of who she was before she became Elsa and her DNA had been altered so much by the process that it would be useless to attempt to identify her that way. There was a family out there who had no idea that their loved one had died which just put the exclamation mark on a miserable few months for the former Ranger.

Slowly raising her head Kat tapped the grass beside her and Conner, Kira and Ethan gingerly sat down. All of them appeared to have aged several years in the last few months and their hollow stares at Trent's name on the giant tombstone told its own story. When Kat met them last September they had all had lofty dreams and goals. Now it looked like finding the will to get out of bed was going to be their biggest challenge. It was like the life had been sucked out of them, leaving behind empty shells that refused to stop functioning.

"I hated him", Conner began, drawing a glare from Kira, "but he didn't deserve to die". Kat nodded gently at the red ranger's ineloquent yet accurate sentiment. "Do you know what his final words to me were", he continued, "you win, like it was all some big game to him, like his own life didn't even matter". Conner's hands were shaking but Kat wasn't sure if this was through grief, anger or perhaps a mixture of both. Kira had also noticed and squeezed her boyfriend's hand in an attempt to reassure him, "Did he really need to fly the Dragozord on a suicide mission, couldn't we have found another way?"

The final major battle wasn't between the Rangers and Mesagog, instead they faced off against a deranged Zeltrax and his giant zord of destruction. One thing Kat hadn't told the teens was that in a past life, Zeltrax had been a Hexagon research assistant known as Terrence Smith or Smitty to his friends. No official report on his lab accident had been published by the Board of Directors and that made Kat feel physically sick. How much had they known about Anton Mercer and his unauthorised experiments and how long had he been on their radar? Could all of this heartache and pain been prevented by early intervention?

"His Dino Gem and morpher were unstable", Ethan said in a quiet voice, "at least that's what Hayley told me". The blue ranger idly picked at some blades of grass, more to keep his hands occupied than anything, "He knew that one more morph could set off a huge chain reaction". That was a slight understatement by Ethan, the power of the blast had been enough to blow a substantial hole in the side of the Zelzord, effectively neutralising the killer craft.

Conner twisted his head towards the blue ranger in surprise, "You never told us that", he snorted, "so the bastard took the noble way out, maybe he won after all".

The acerbic comment earned him a firm slap on the arm from Kira. The yellow ranger's eyes were ablaze with fury, "That's no way to speak of the...", he voice trailed off and all the anger dissipated. It was like she didn't want to say that Trent was dead, by doing so would make it much more real. Kira had a rather twisted relationship with the deceased white ranger. He had been her first love but it turned out that Trent was merely using her as part of his 'game' to destroy the Rangers. Naturally Kira had been heartbroken and until the end she insisted there was a good person inside the white ranger. Maybe his final sacrifice was evidence of that, unfortunately they would never know.

"Kira", Conner whispered, "I'm sorry but I can't help how I feel about the guy".

"Fine" Kira sighed in resignation, "but keep it to yourself next time". The yellow ranger heard Ben making a fuss in his stroller and instinctively reached over to let him out. Kira had been the young Oliver primary babysitter in the last few months and Kat was pleased to see that the child could still bring a smile to the dirty blonde's face. "Look at you Benny", she cooed, "not a single care in the world, must be nice". She bounced the child in her lap, drawing a cry of joy from the youngster, "Will we ever be normal again Kat?" Kira asked almost out the blue.

For a few seconds Kat stiffened, that wasn't a question she was expecting to field. She thought back to her traumatic experience at the hands of the Nusiachi to help her answer the question. Even though nearly ten years had passed since then, she still had occasional flashbacks of the things she had done. At least twice a month she dreamt about the faces of the wind ninja students she helped to kill during her possession. Seeing death up close wasn't something you ever really got over, "Honestly", Kat began heavily, "no, nothing will ever be normal again but you learn to carry on". She looked at the three teens individually, "Talk to each other and use each other for support, otherwise it'll eat away at you until it poisons your soul".

A heavy silence fell over the cemetery as the teens thought about Kat's words. Even Ben fell silent, sensing that this wasn't the time for talking. After a few minutes Conner angrily ripped off the silver bracelet that housed his Dino Gem, "I'm not hanging around this city", he said defiantly, "a soccer academy in New York has accepted my application and I'm leaving as soon as I can". He pushed the bracelet over to Kat, "So you can tell Hexagon to stick their contract, I quit".

There was a moments hesitation before Kira and Ethan did the same thing, "We were talking last night", Kira added, "were going to make the move together. I've got an internship at a record label in the city and Ethan's transferring his major to NYU". Kat continued to stare blankly at the trio until Kira continued, "We're going to do what you said but we can't do that here in Reefside, there's just too many bad memories".

The former pink ranger nodded stiffly before her gaze dropped to the ground. She wasn't whether it was as easy as that to quit Hexagon, no one had ever truly left the organisation before. The only exception was Billy Cranston and if rumour was to be believed he was hiding in Canada under an assumed name. If anyone could start again it would be these three though, Kat was sure of it. They had formed such a strong bond in the last few months and it would take more than a few corporate suits to break them apart.

Another thought flashed across her mind, causing her to pull her cell phone from the pocket of her denim shorts. She flicked through the menu until she found a message she had received months ago. She had been surprised that the sender had chosen to contact her and at the time had ignored the offer. Reading the contents again and thinking about the defiant words from the teens, Kat suddenly became emboldened. If Conner, Kira and Ethan could start again, why couldn't she? "Mrs O", Conner asked, "is everything alright?"

"Yeah, just thinking", she replied quietly. Kat then stood up so quickly that it startled the teens, "I've just had an epiphany", she stated boldly, "but I need your help, otherwise I won't have the confidence to follow through".

"Whatever you need Kat", Kira stated, flashing her first genuine smile since Trent's death a week ago. Conner and Ethan were confused but quickly offered their assistance to their secondary mentor.

Kat's heart warmed at the loyalty shown by the teens and wondered if they would do the same for Tommy so quickly. "Thank you", she began, "I need to go home and grab a few things", she turned to Conner, "I assume you brought your car here today?" The red ranger nodded in confirmation, "Good, that'll come in handy later", the former pink ranger added and marched confidently towards the exit. The teens were still confused and followed Kat as quickly as they could with Ben in Kira's arms and Conner pushing the empty stroller.

The next fifteen minutes drifted past in a blank haze for the former pink ranger as drove to her home on the outskirts of the city. Tommy's choice of property had confused her in the beginning, although it soon became clear that it had been constructed especially by Hexagon as a cover for their Ranger operations. As the months past Kat began to loathe the home, it was too isolated from civilisation for her tastes. The walls seemed to retain every argument she had with Tommy, allowing the negativity to permeate throughout the day.

The final straw came on the day that Trent tried to force his way inside. The white ranger clearly hadn't done his homework otherwise he wouldn't have dared to attack a forest ninja when they were surrounded by their element. His final mistake came when he attempted to take Ben, that's when the trees came to life in an attempt to hold off the white ranger. The last time Kat felt such anger towards one person was during her possession at the hands of the Nusiachi. The house reminded her of the time she nearly crossed a line and of the worst experience of her life. It was no wonder that she didn't want to return there ever again.

The two car convoy pulled up outside the Oliver residence and Kat jumped out almost the moment the car had come to a halt. Her heart briefly fell when she spotted Tommy's jeep parked outside. This would've been easier if he wasn't here but she could have to face him at some point. Conner's Mustang followed shortly afterwards and Kat quickly jogged over to the passenger side, "Kira I need you to load Ben's car seat into Conner's car", she ordered.

"Alright", the yellow ranger frowned, confused by the command, "Kat I really don't understand what's going on here".

"I do", Conner began with a dull tone, "you're leaving aren't you", Kat leaned on the side of the car and hung her head. Her lack of response gave the teens their answer, "You know that Doctor O loves you, right?"

Kat didn't look up, if she had made eye contact with any of the teens at that moment she probably would've burst into tears. Love was one thing that Tommy Oliver did have for her but sometimes that wasn't enough to keep people together. She had lost all trust in her husband to do the right thing by her family and their son deserved to be raised in a safe environment. She had nearly lost Ben several times in the last few months, Tommy had been hospitalised for over a month and she had nearly lost herself, "When you suddenly get so insightful Conner", Kat snorted bitterly.

"Bad influences", he replied with a half smile, his gaze firmly on Kira, "but is running away really the answer?"

"Like you three are doing", Kat shot back, "moving to the other end of the country just to get away". Her comment was greeted with a stony wall of silence, "Please don't make this any harder for me than it already is", she begged the red ranger, "I'll need a lift once I've grabbed a few bits".

"What about your car?" Ethan asked his former mentor.

Kat shook the keys in her hand dropped them into Kira's lap, "Keep it if you want or sell it to help fund your new life", she sighed, "it was paid for with Hexagon's money so I really don't care". She pushed herself off the car but was stopped but a sudden touch on her arm. The blonde looked directly into Kira's eyes that were full of sympathy for her. A quick glance towards Ethan and Conner gave her the same response, "Thank you", she whispered, drawing strength from their unspoken support.

"You heard the boss", Ethan said, clapping Conner on the shoulder, "let's get the little monster loaded up". As Kat walked up the driveway towards the house Ethan called out, "If you need any further help just shout". Kat wasn't sure what trouble she would get from Tommy but she appreciated the sentiment from the blue ranger.

Wiping her damp eyes, Kat stepped inside the house and tentatively called out, "Tommy". After waiting a few moments the former ranger let out a sigh of relief, her husband wasn't in the main part of the house. She leapt up the stairs taking two at a time and burst into her room. The couple had been sleeping in separate bedroom for about a month. They hadn't told the teens, probably in an attempt to continue to ignore the obvious signs in front of them about the future relationship.

Kat pulled the closet doors open and grabbed a large duffel bag off the floor. Inside were enough clothes to keep her and Ben going for a couple of weeks until they were set up somewhere new. She quickly grabbed their passports from the dresser before pulling open the top drawer. Kat found an envelope that was filled with hundreds of dollars in cash that she had saved away in secret over the years. Stuffing the envelope and passports into the bag, she bounded down the stair as fast as she could.

It wasn't fast enough though as when she reached the foot of the stairs, she heard the door to the basement lab opening. Hayley had already left the city and returned to Headquarters so it could only be one person. The lab had been totalled just before the final battle so quite why her husband was hiding down there was a mystery, "Kat?" Tommy asked in confusion at the sight of the bag on her shoulder, "something you need to tell me?"

The blonde froze with her hand on the door handle for a moment until answering with a quiet tone, "Why bother, you never listen anyway", she pulled the door open and slammed it shut behind her.

Kat knew that this wouldn't be the end of the confrontation so she wanted to get as much distance between her and house as possible. If she was closer to her final destination, the more likely it would be that she would follow through with her conviction. She was about half way towards Conner's car when the front door opened, "Kat please, can't we talk about this", Tommy's voice called out.

The Australian stopped and through her bag onto the gravel drive, "Tommy let's be honest with each other, we haven't been a proper couple since we moved to Reefside", she said with an angry yet calm voice. "Even before then, nothing's been right between us for a very long time".

"That's not true", Tommy replied but his hesitant tone told its own story.

"Yes it is", Kat's voice cracked with emotion, "but until now, neither of us has had the balls to admit it out loud". The standoff continued for a few more seconds as Tommy made no attempt to counter his wife's claim, "You're married to someone Tommy and it's not me", the blonde continued, "you've continued to put your job at Hexagon before me and more importantly, before your own son".

A flash of anger shot across Tommy's eyes, "I love my son more than anything", he spat, "why do you think I've spent so long working on this project?"

"Just your son", Kat responded in a cool tone, quickly picking on his choice of words. That seemed to deflate any counter argument from the black ranger as he realised what he had just said, "Yeah that's what I thought", she added and picked up the bag. "I've been begging you for years to slow down and spend more time at home, I asked you not to go on that red ranger mission but you ignored me. I pleaded with you not to go to Mercer's private island-".

"That was different, I was ordered there", Tommy said weakly.

"Tommy I've got news for you", Kat hissed, "you're not a soldier, you can say no if you really wanted to". She shook her head as once again Tommy failed to offer a defence to that point, "That's the truth isn't it, you didn't want to say no".

Tommy's shoulders slumped in defeat, "I just wanted to make the world safe for my son", he offered weakly

"Based on the last few months, the safest place for him is as far away from you as possible", Kat angrily pulled her wedding and engagement ring off her finger and tossed them onto the drive, "Have a nice life Tommy", she added and practically jogged towards Conner's waiting car.

"I won't let you take Ben from me Kat", Tommy yelled and when Kat looked over her shoulder, he had disappeared. She cursed that invisibility power of his and sprinted as fast as she could towards the car.

Once again she wasn't fast enough as moments later Tommy reappeared next to car and began to wrestle Kira for the car seat that Ben was still strapped into, "Doctor O I don't want to get involved in this but I really think you should respect Kat's wishes", the yellow ranger pleaded with her former mentor. As the seconds passed Ben was becoming more distressed by the violent tugging motion.

Not wanting to upset his child any more than necessary, Tommy let go of the seat but unfortunately this coincided with one of Kira's tugs. The yellow ranger tumbled backwards and landed heavily on her right arm as she attempted to protect Ben from harm. Immediately a look of remorse flashed across Tommy's face when he realised what had happened, "Kira I'm so-", his sentence was cut off by an ear piercing Ptera Scream from the yellow ranger that caused him to stagger back.

Almost simultaneously a couple of tree roots burst up from the ground, anchoring him to the drive and that was swiftly followed by a strong blow across his jaw. The tree roots wrapped around his legs prevented him from falling to the ground but he was definitely staggered by the punch, "I believe the ladies said to respect their wishes", Conner hissed, shaking his sore fist.

"Conner please, you don't understand", Tommy pleaded with the red ranger.

"No I don't think you understand", Conner shook with anger, "you have destroyed our lives, nothing will ever be the same for us again". He took a couple of second to calm himself, "Tell your buddies at Hexagon to leave us alone, all of us", he added with venom.

Kat ignored the fight between her soon to be ex-husband and the red ranger, she was more focused on the safety of her son. She was certain that Tommy hadn't meant to harm either Kira or Ben deliberately. He had just been so desperate in the moment that the rational side of his brain had switched off. Kat quickly checked Ben over and was happy that he was suffering no ill effects from his minor tumble. She then turned her attention to Kira, "I'm fine", the yellow ranger reassured her, "I'll heal quickly".

She knew that her vines wouldn't hold forever but she could see out the corner of her eye that Tommy's spirit had been broken and he wouldn't oppose her departure any more. Ethan quickly loaded Kat's bag into the Mustang and helped her secure the car seat. The former ranger offered one final look towards Tommy and chewed her lip silently. She hadn't wanted things to end this way and the blonde had to shoulder some of the responsibility for that. Trying to sneak away without saying a word was probably the wrong course of action but there was nothing she could do about that now. Offering a muted farewell to Kira and Ethan, Kat numbly took her seat in the rear of the car. She barely even registered Conner starting his Mustang and pulling away. She didn't even look back as the home she shared with Tommy for the last few months disappeared into the distance.

The car had been on the road for a few minutes before Conner spoke up, "Where are we going?"

"Airport", Kat said simply, staring at the road ahead resolutely. When Conner looked at her in the rear view mirror she continued, "If money's a problem I can pay you".

"Don't be silly", the red ranger replied, "I'm just interested to know where you're heading".

"Very good question", Kat whispered and retrieved her cell phone. Her finger hovered over the call button for a few seconds before she swallowed her fear and gave it a press.

The phone rang for a couple of seconds until a voice that she hadn't heard for nearly ten years answered, "Wondered when you'd get around to answering my message".

"Hello Yuri", the Australian began with a muted tone, "been a while hasn't it".

The forest ninja gave an amused chuckle at her former 'sister's' comment, "Ten years is nothing to someone like me", the ancient ninja replied, "you've decided to take us up on our offer then".

"Us?" Kat frowned, "I thought you preferred to work alone these days".

"Oh my dear Katherine, you're more out the loop than I thought", Yuri chuckled, "didn't your Hexagon buddies tell you, I've accumulated a few thunder ninjas in the last year".

"More like the other way around", a male voice called out in the background.

"Quiet Hunter, there's a good boy", Yuri said to the background voice before directing her attention back to Kat, "I can't say too much over the phone, you never know who will be listening".

Kat frowned in confusion, she didn't remember Yuri being his paranoid before, "I'm heading for Reefside Airport, can you at least tell me where to meet you?"

There was a brief pause until Yuri responded, "When you get there go directly to the United Airlines desk, we'll have a couple of tickets waiting for you and your little one". Kat was stunned into silence, how had Yuri known that she was bringing Ben with her? "It'll be good to see you again blondie", Yuri offered a parting comment before terminating the call.

Kat looked blankly at the end phone before pocketing it away. This might be a big mistake, last she heard Yuri was doing some investigation work independently of everyone else but now it seemed she was working with a bunch of renegade ninjas. For a while she sensed there was something rotten with Hexagon and the best way to get some evidence would be from the shadows. At least a group of ninjas would keep her out the spotlight for a while. Only time would tell if she had made the right decision but right now, she felt better than she had done in several years.

A/N - Well this is an unexpected surprised isn't it. Literally had a sudden wave of inspiration to add something new to the Hexagon series this weekend. Originally (and those who read the original Wasted Years will know) that I planned this as a multi-chapter epic but I didn't have the desire to do 80-100k words. So what I've done instead is written what would've been the climax of the story and summised some of the tweaks I made to Dino Thunder as a one shot. The biggest change is Trent, who's story more closely mirrors AbareKiller from Abaranger. Apologies to Trent fans but his death serves as a real kick up the backside for several people in this universe. Least of all Kat.

So what now? Good question, I have something else I'm working on that might fit into Hexagon, I just need to have a think about how I want to write the climax before committing to any solid plans. So keep an eye out, you never know when the next story will come...