Between Love and Insanity, a power rangers fanfic

Disclaimer: Saban owns the Power Rangers. This is set a couple of years after Space concludes. Read on and enjoy!

Between Love and Insanity
by James Austin Valiant

The hiss of the door echoed through the hallway as it opened. A groggy, silver-robed person walked out, rubbing his eyes as he headed down to the main room.

Where could he be at this hour? I wake up in the middle of the night to reach for him, and he's gone.

Zhane's uneasy thoughts silenced as he redirected his energy into finding his partner.

Another hiss sounded as the door to the main control bay opened. There he is! thought Zhane, eyeing his stripe haired boyfriend sitting in the main control chair. Andros was staring blankly at the giant screen used for communication displays and maps, but this time the screen was filled with images. Photos of the old days, when himself, Andros and the other Space Rangers set out to purge the universe of evil.

"Andros..."Zhane began, as he came up from behind and wrapped his arms around the other man. "What exactly are you doing up so late? I turned over in the bed and you were gone. I thought you had gone..." His silvery voice dropped off at that point.

Andros removed himself from Zhane's embrace and got up from the chair. He walked over to control panel and began meaningless system checks that DECA performed routinely anyway.

He nonchalantly pushed buttons to relay the coordinates to the ship's nav computer.

"There's something bothering you, Andros. Don't even lie to me and say there isn't, because I know when you're lying, I do know."

Andros, rather uncharacteristically, sank to the floor. "Sometimes...sometimes I think the Space Rangers were all in vain. I mean, what did we do? What did we really accomplish? There's still evil in the universe. We didn't extinguish every last flame of the forces of wickedness. What did we do Zhane? What exactly did we do out there?"

"Andros, we did a heck of a lot. We got rid of Dark Specter, we got rid of many of the thorns that had been in our sides for years, and you, by releasing the Golden Wave, made the universe safer for all beings. You and me and the others." Zhane replied, taking a calm approach.

"I guess you're right. We did make an impact. I mean, the Space Rangers did defeat Dark Specter. I did release the Golden Wave. We accomplished so very much. I tell you, if there's one thing the Space Rangers weren't, it was a waste of time. All of us...you, myself, Cassie, Carlos, TJ, Ash..."He trailed off at her name, "we made it good."

Zhane sighed, which was followed by a slight chuckle. "You're doing it again, hon."

"What am I doing, Jor?"

Zhane smiled. He loved it when Andros called him by his middle name. It made him feel fuzzy.

"You're double talking. Have you been feeling ok lately?" The Silver Ranger tried to hide the concern in his voice.

"Fine." Andros didn't seem to detect Zhane's concern. In fact, Andros barely seemed to be paying attention to anything his boyfriend was saying to him. His mind was off somewhere, and the former Silver Ranger was trying desperately to reel it back in.

"Penny for your thoughts, Andros."

Andros talked, but his words were unresponsive. "I miss flying in that little spaceship. Remember? You could sort of open the bottom, and it had a glass-bottom. Looking up to see stars, and looking down to see stars...what a feeling."

Zhane walked over and helped Andros snapped back into it by kissing him. "Come on, Andros, let's get back to bed."

"Look at all the stars out there. The potential that each star has to hold planets with life and they are so vast and bountiful. It's wonderful, and there are so many...but can it get to be too much? How many horrors do those lives create that we couldn't even begin to understand?"

"Come on, Andros. It's time to go to bed." Zhane grabbed Andros firmly by the arm, and shutting off the light in the control center, left the room with thoughts running through his head. Andros is losing it. He might be stubborn sometimes...but I love him and something isn't right.

The sound of a ringing doorbell awoke the sleeping Theodore Jarvis. He grabbed his blue robe and red slippers and headed for the wood-paneled door of his bachelor pad. He had been both the red and blue Ranger at some point, and had combined both colors into a nice scheme at his home.

TJ strode to the door and swung it open. Almost as quickly, he wanted to slam it shut.

"Wait."

TJ glared. "Zhane...I don't have time for this anymore. I gave up on Rangering, you know it, I know it. It's time to move on."

Zhane smirked. "So, still sleeping until one o'clock and being unemployed is moving on?"

"There's a point to this, Zhane. Now why don't you hurry and tell me what exactly you want so I can go pour myself a bowl of sugar cereal and watch He-Man reruns?" TJ stated, half serious, half kidding.

"It's Andros."

TJ glared again. "What, did you two break up? You know, you deceived all of us when you went behind Ashley's back with your little affair. It pissed all of us off."

"I love Andros and he loves me. It's been that for a while now." His last sentence was said as though the former Silver Ranger was testifying before a jury.

TJ sighed. "Come on in...I don't want any of the neighbors seeing me in my underwear. It hurts my image as a swinging bachelor."

"Especially since they're Power Ranger underoos."

"Get inside. Now what's wrong with Andros?" TJ headed over the counter for a bowl, and opened the fridge to retrieve a carton of milk.

"He's losing it."

A sarcastic chuckle came from the man slumping over in the fridge. "Yeah, that's nothing new."

A groan erupted from Zhane. "No, TJ, he's really losing it. I mean, he's contradicting himself so much lately. I know that's wrong, because Andros prides himself on being right most of the time."

The former Blue Ranger's answer flared up Zhane's anger. "Bring him to a therapist."

"A therapist? Have you TOTALLY lost it? How does that make the Rangers look?"

"What does he need?" TJ questioned, while rummaging throw the cupboard for his Count Chocula.

"He needs to see everyone again."

"Maybe YOU should see that therapist."

A hand grasped TJ's shoulder. "I know the Space Rangers had their falling out years ago, but Andros is a man. We used to be friends. Something is happening to Andros, and we can't just stand by. He's just...he's just a little ship looking for safe harbor. Come on, TJ, just find it in your heart. Please."

The cereal clinked the bowl as the box was turned upside down. The milk made a small splash, and TJ took his first crunch. He seemed to take the longest amount of time it ever took anyone to make cereal. "Fine. I'll do it. But you're gonna have a hell of a time convincing Ashley."

"I know. That's why I'm going to see her last. Got any pointers?"

TJ grinned. "You better bring some money for bribes."

Damn, I think that was my hamstring... Zhane's lack of ground transportation was starting to take a toll on his legs. His thighs had become tight and cramped, and his feet were swelling. Yet he kept going on. TJ had given him Cassie's last known address, but she was known to never live at one place too long.

He came upon the apartment building, and walked inside. "All right, number 104. 104. Shouldn't be too hard." He checked the list of numbers on the wall to the right of him. "FOUR FLOORS?"

After trudging himself up what seemed to be a thousand flights of stairs, he knocked heavily on the door marked, surprise, in pink, 104. There was no answer. He knocked again. Frustrated, he began to pound the door. It opened, but it wasn't Cassie who had answered.

Kevin Doane rubbed his eyes. He wasn't sleeping late like TJ, though. He was dressed in work clothes, and had been napping after his graveyard shift at the hospital. "Can I help you?"

"Do you know where I can find Cassie Chan?" Zhane asked timidly.

Kevin shrugged. "What's today, Wednesday? I think she went to the animal shelter. I'd check there, I'm pretty sure that's where Cassie goes. Are you gonna go by there?"

"I was planning on it."

Kevin reached down and picked up a pair of sandals. "Please bring her these. Cassie likes having bare feet, but I keep telling where how unhealthy it is and she says 'Sweetie, if we were meant to wear shoes, we would've been born with them.' She's such a spark."

Zhane nodded. "It's not problem."

The door began to close, but the former Blue Ranger halted halfway. "Hey, I know you. You're that Silver Ranger guy. Remember last time we met?"

"Yeah."

"I heard you and Andros hooked up, Cassie mentioned something about it. She said after it was after the whole Dark Specter thing, and the whole team split on you. I wouldn't blame them, I wouldn't wanna be hanging around you two homos myself..."

Zhane cold clocked Kevin right in the side of the head with a stiff forearm. He dragged Kevin back into the apartment and shut the door.

"No one, and I mean no one, calls me a homo. Ever."

The sun draped itself over the trees, and the ground cut into at a small lake near a pretty damn spacious wooden house. "Angel Grove Animal Rescue". An Asian woman, in her early twenties, wandered around the edge of the lake, looking for a Frisbee she had thrown. The Great Dane she had been playing with hadn't been able to find it; she was going to have to.

Her bare feet slapped along the hard dirt ground. Her soles had grown leathery and accustomed to the ground; she barely felt the need for shoes anymore.

"Where is that damned Frisbee?" She asked, to no one in particular.

"I think it went in the woods. You're gonna need these." Zhane's voice echoed in Cassie's head as he tossed her sandals at her feet. She looked up at him, in the haunting look that only Cassie knew how to give.

"Zhane? Is that you?"

Without warning, she ran up to him and wrapped her arms around him, squeezing him in what most people called a 'Cassie hug'. He hugged her back. This is a surprise. The last thing I expected from Cassie was a hug.

"What's up with that, Cassie? TJ tried to slam a door in my face, and you hug me?"

She smiled. "Well, TJ can't always exactly forgive and forget. I figured that out when me and him had our little fling. But I can. And you and Andros doing what you guys did...to Ashley...it was years ago, and it doesn't matter anymore. What's up?"

"Andros is losing it. He's really losing it. He's been dressed in the same flight suit for three days straight, and been constantly mumbling to himself, having flashbacks aloud and contradicting himself."

She shook her head. "So, the clouds are a bit fuzzy for Andros, eh?"

He nodded. "You could say that. Could you put those sandals on? It looks like your getting calluses."

"Fine, fine." She grumbled as she pulled them on. "So, how am I involved in this?"

"We gotta get everyone back to see him."

"Some of us can't do that."

"Will you?"

She shot him a look. "Of course I will! And I'm sure you can convince Carlos."

"And Ashley?"

A call from the building interrupted Cassie's answer.

"Yeah, Adri, the scissors are near the blender, not in the blender," she hollered. "Ashley might be a bit of a challenge."

Zhane's brow furrowed. "Why?"

"Well, she has a full-time, very involved job and takes care of her parents since her dad had a stroke."

Zhane's jaw dropped. "You've got to talk to her for me. If I know Ashley, she won't even answer the door for me."

"I'll do it." She sighed.

Zhane turned to leave, but stopped short and spun around.

"Oh, and one more thing." He pulled the Frisbee he had retrieved with telekinesis from his jacket. "Catch."

The hesitation drained from Zhane's pores. He knew what he had to ask, and knew to get there, he had to knock on the door. The small house Carlos resided in hadn't been hard to find; even better, Cassie had offered to give him a ride, so his feet had gotten a break from their hard traveling. Cassie had wished him good luck, and that's all he had while standing in front of the door.

Zhane was about to knock, before the door flew open and a short Latino man answered.

"I came to see Carlos. Does he live here?"

"Hang on." The man turned. "CAR-LOS! VEN AQUI, POR FAVOR! ES UN MUCHACHO RUBIO PARA CON VEO TU!"

"I'm coming, Chavo, I'm coming..." Carlos, who was actually of Portuguese descent, understood Spanish, Portuguese and English. While his Spanish was rusty, he understood Chavo. Chavo and his uncle Eddy had moved him with him, and he was starting to get a hang on his Spanish again.

"Hi Carlos."

The man looked up to see Zhane, dressed in a silver shirt and khaki shorts, at his doorstep. Chavo looked at Carlos, then looked at Zhane. "He's all yours."

"Carlos, I..."

"Outside. Now." Carlos stepped out of the house, and shut the door behind him, leading Zhane to the sidewalk. He was nattily attired in a ripped t-shirt, day old black jeans and a pair of socks. He pointed.

"You see that sidewalk? Use it."

Carlos began to walk back to the house.

"Carlos...he's dying."

The man formerly known as the Black Ranger stopped short. He turned around slowly. "What? Dying? You're not serious."

"I just think...I think the best thing for him is to have everyone back, even for the little while he has left." Zhane hated to have to exaggerate, but part of what he was saying was true: Andros was dying. Well, his sanity was. And an insane Andros could be lethal not only to him, but to the world.

"I'm so sorry, Zhane...for what happened, I'm truly sorry. Aquitar..." Carlos' head fell, his black hair falling in front of his face.

"Let's not talk about that. Are you available for a few days? That should be enough time."

"That soon? Oh God...hold on...I got to tell Eddy and Chavo that's I'm going to be gone for a few days. I'll be right back."

Zhane bit his lip as he saw Carlos run inside. He hated lying to Carlos, but it was the only way he could do this. Shut up, you haven't lied. Andros' mind, his most valuable asset, is dying.

Another side of Zhane kicked in. Most valuable asset? Damn, you sound like a chick. You damn well know that's not his best asset.

"I'm ready." The sharp injection of Carlos' voice snapped Zhane away from his thought daydream. Carlos stood there with his suitcase, and both Eddy and Chavo had looked out the window to see this man who was taking away one third of their rent.

"One more thing: don't mention Andros' sickness around him or the rest of them. We don't want to upset him."

Carlos nodded his head. "No problem, Zhane. What's he have?"

"The doctor's aren't sure just yet." Again, Zhane bit his lip. This is not good to get wrapped up in...

"That's too bad. We're going to the ship now?" Carlos inquired.

The other man shook his head. "I've got to back to Andros."

Carlos furrowed his eyebrow. "Makes sense. I'd hate to be the person to refuse a dying man's wishes."

"Yeah, me too." Zhane agreed. Bad idea, Zhane, bad idea.

He was alone again. Except for the onboard computer DECA, it was just him and his thoughts. This had happened many times. His thoughts were racing as they had been, burning in his head. Other thoughts refused to stick in his head and exited his cerebral cortex.

This chair is too cold.. He thought, switching from his seated position to a laying position in the bed both he and Zhane shared. Andros rustled the sheets, trying to get in a comfortable position. An old memory started to play out to him, and he saw her come to life.

The girl, clad in a yellow shirt and the standard issue gray flight pants, had tears streaming down her face. She refused to look Andros in the eye. "How dare you, you Kerovan son of bitch! You lied to me! What was all that junk about you loved me? You never loved me!"

"Ashley, I swear to God, I still do love you. It's just that...well, Zhane was first. I told myself, when he came back, I wouldn't get tangled up with him again, but it...it just happened. You gotta believe me, Ash." He said, repeating the same words he had uttered over two years ago.

She refused to look at him now. Ashley's back was turned, and he heard the occasional sniffle. A hand went up to her face every few seconds to wipe away a tear or two, and she was muttering every obscenity she could think.

He came up behind her, to wrap an arm around her.

As soon as she felt his arm, she slapped him. Hard. It wasn't the physical force behind it that made him began to tear; it was the emotional one. He got a good look at her face. Tears were still flowing, and her eyes were red from crying. Ashley unhitched the necklace he had given her for her birthday and threw it at him.

Andros fell to the floor as if it were a bullet, and saw Ashley leave, as she had done what seemed like millennia ago.

"Please don't go..."He begged, the tears falling down his face. "Please, don't leave me alone...I'm so..so very alone..." Andros grabbed a pillow he had dragged off the bed with him and clutched it tight.

Zhane had instructed DECA to keep a close eye on Andros, and her mechanical voice rang out in their room. "Andros, are you all right?" No answer. "Andros?"

"Fine, DECA. I mean, I think I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

He growled. "No I'm not sure! I'm horrible! I'm miserable!" He threw the pillows at the camera and violently flipped the bed over. Andros sobbed and went to sit back in the chair. He reached for a bottle containing several colored pills. He took several, and fell into a deep sleep, his only comfort.

Cassie pulled up at a large house where her former teammate currently resided. It was a nice, suburban style house, two stories, a small pond in the backyard and flowers and shrubs around the house were in good maintenance. She felt rather small getting out of her Jeep and approaching the front door.

Knocking loudly then, seeing a button, ringing the doorbell, she tapped her sandaled foot impatiently. It seemed to take forever for the door to open. She wondered if Ashley had already split. It finally did, and Cassie found herself nose to nose with Ashley's mother.

"Hi, Mrs. Hammond, it's me, Cassie! Is Ashley around?"

Patricia Hammond nodded. "She's here. Come in, Cassie, please!"

"Thank you." She responded, smiling politely.

Ashley's mother disappeared from the living room into the sizable kitchen, and out emerged Ashley, attired in a yellow apron and wiping her hands with a checkered towel. Her hair was pulled back into a simple ponytail, and the smile on her face spoke her happiness more than words ever could.

"Cassie, it's been too long." She squealed, embracing the former Pink Ranger in a tight hug. Cassie returned the hug, squeezing to make sure Ashley knew her sentiments were returned.

"I know, Ash, it seems like years ago...we've become supermarket friends." Cassie said.

"Yeah, you got that right," Ashley answered, "We were making sandwiches and apple crisp. You want to join us?"

"I'm fine, thanks. What I have to talk to you about is private." Cassie said, motioning her head ever slow slightly towards Ashley's mom.

Ashley nodded. "Come on, we can go out on the back porch. I've got to show you the garden I've been working on." She rambled on while passing her mother in the kitchen and heading through the dinette to swing open the double doors that led out on to the patio.

Cassie gaped in amazement. It truly was beautiful. The pond composed the center of the garden and everything around it. There were several doorways for vines to climb up, and the flowers were in full bloom, spraying their powder blues, soft pinks, pale yellows and lustrous greens throughout the yard. The only color that was mysteriously absent was red, and Cassie had an inkling as to why.

"So, what's going on? You gonna be playing the aisle game soon? You and TJ?" Ashley inquired, prying delicately.

"Nah, me and TJ...we split up a few months ago. Didn't work out for the best. We're still buddies, but I'm with Kevin Doane. I met him at the hospital when we took in a stray dog and it bit me...he's a nice guy. Anyway, someone interesting came to visit me today." She stated, as though it might've been a Jehovah's Witness.

"Who?"

"Zhane."

"Oh."

Damn you, Cassie. Ashley's still face hid it, but deep inside, canister after canister of salt being dumped into still fresh wounds. He entered her thoughts from time to time, and she had to try hard to dismiss him from them. "How is he?"

"He's fine. But Andros isn't. Zhane tells me that Andros is losing it. He's going insane, Ash."

"Uh-huh." The other girl stated, rather vindictively, as she stepped into the backyard. Her thoughts were racing, split between her hatred for Andros and the long-buried love she still carried for him.

"Ash...Ashley. Listen to me." Cassie followed Ashley in close pursuit.

Ashley flipped around. "You listen to me. You know what he did to me! You damn well know what both of them did. I don't care if I see either of them ever again."

"You don't mean that." Cassie felt a tirade coming on.

"Yes I do! I really do! I never want to see either of them again until they're both on they're deathbeds. And even then, I'm not speaking to them. Cassie, you have no idea what they did to me. Andros betrayed me and Zhane was right along with him, the entire time. You have no idea how that feels, Cassie, no idea at all." She paused. "If Andros loses it, it's none of my business anymore, all right?"

"You're being so selfish. That man...up there," She pointed towards the sky, indicating towards the Megaship, "is losing it, and all you can think about is how he hurt you? I understand why, but for God's sakes, you're happy now! You've got a decent-sized house and a good job with a major advertising firm! You know where I live? In a two bedroom apartment! TJ has a small house, and Carlos has to share rent with two other guys! The least you could do is go see Andros, settle your differences." It was Cassie's turn to pause. "I know you, Ash. You're too compassionate not to care."

Ashley rubbed her cheek and remained silent.

"He did hurt you, Ash. That part is true. But he's still only a man, one you used to care for and depend on. You used to love him, Ashley. What happened to that? It's been two years! Can't you find that love you used to have...use it to let go of hatred you still feel."

Silence flooded the backyard yet again. "Zhane thinks it'd be a good idea if we all got back on the ship. He thinks it might help Andros snap back into it."

The yellow clad girl began to walk away, before halting. "I don't know how much time I can get. If you really need me, I'm free Wednesday, Thursday and Friday afternoons. Saturdays and Sundays are a little hectic, but if I can find the time, I'll try to come. But I'm not counseling him...we have issues to resolve, and I want this weight off my mind."

Cassie half-smiled. "That's my girl. Here," she said, pulled a communicator from her pocket, "you're gonna need this again."

Ashley returned Cassie's smile. "Come on, Cassie, come join us for lunch."

"I can't," Cassie explained, "Tell you what, if you get the time, just give me a call. You know how." Cassie finished, pointing to her wrist.

A pink flow materialized, and she was gone.

The dark scared him. The dark scares everyone at certain levels; most everyone is afraid of the dark. People treat it as if it's an almost sentient being; one who waits in corners and comes out at night. The blackness meant eery quietness, it meant a jump at the slightest noise, it meant the unexpected.

But then, the dark comforted him. It made him comfortable, and countered his usual color of choice, red. He had set the Simudeck to a quiet place in Northern California he knew well. The trees cast shadows and away from streetlights, the stars and moon cast an eerie glow over the maples and oaks that populated the area. The long grass swayed to an invisible hand, the soft influence of the wind.

Andros sat on a nearby rock. His thoughts, as hurried as they had been before, were now cloudy. He tried to give up on thinking, but to do so, he had to concentrate harder than usual. The pills he had were supposed to ease such things; it hadn't exactly been working too well.

A ghostly figure appeared before him.

"Andros, come on. You know I was here before she was. We had something special. It can be rekindled. We can make it work now. We're both older and more mature." Zhane was pleading his case after surprising Andros with a passionate kiss.

He began to talk to his apparition, as he had done beforehand. "I don't know if I can do that, Zhane. I mean, Ashley loves me. She depends on me. I'm her other half. Why can't we just be friends?"

Zhane looked at the ground, drawing a circle with his foot. "You don't know how it is. Every time you walk in the Megaship, I want to reach out and hold you, yet I can't do it. I want to be able to tell you I love you and have it mean more, but I can't do it. I see you with Ashley and I get...I get so jealous."

Andros tried to conceal the same feelings. "I know what you mean, Zhane. But I.."

Before Andros could start his own reply, Zhane interrupted by once again kissing him. Andros pulled away this time, instead of letting his longing for Zhane keep him attracted. The hurt showed in Zhane's crystal blue eyes.

"I get it! I get it!" He began to yell, "Suddenly, now that you have her, you're too good for me now. Is that it? Am I just a hopeless homosexual with a crush, Andros? Is that all I am? Are you rejecting me? I...stayed with you...for five god damn years...through thick and thin...and this is how you repay me? By becoming her bitch? Make your decision. Are you with me or do you hate me?"

Andros did not respond. His silence hurt Zhane more than an answer ever could.

"Fine." Zhane began to walk away.

Andros caught him by the shoulder, and spun him around. He embraced Zhane and began to kiss him all over: his lips, his cheeks, his forehead, his eyelids. He held him in his hug tightly and had no intention of letting him go. "Zhane, you're more to me than her. Know that now, Zhane...know it now..."

At that moment, the real Zhane walked in through the doors causing the Red Ranger's hallucination to vanish. He cleared his throat.

"Come on, Andros. Time for cenaken," Zhane used Keroviania, a dialect of language used on KO-35's western continent, "Did you turn the temperature off in here? It's sub zero in here. You're gonna catch cold."

"You catch a cold from germs, not being cold." He stated defiantly.

"Hypothermia?"

"That's not a cold. Show me your medical degree from the and then we'll talk." Andros got up and shut off the simulation, and joined Zhane in the walk down the hallway.

"Where were you all day?"

Zhane thought of how to respond. "Out."

"You know, I've been using that thing, "He started, referring to the Simudeck, "all day long. I didn't have anyone to talk to. Where were you for lunch? I missed you."

The silver-clad man thought about his upset stomach from the heavy fried lunch at the greasy spoon. "I was just...out. Needed to go to Earth for a while. Missed real scenery."

They reached the dining area and long unused lockers and jump tubes. Andros walked to the Synthatron, and pushed in the combination for his favorite meal, fish prepared with KO-35's version of horseradish sauce. He waited, and opened the door.

"Damn thing gave me the wrong meal."

Zhane nodded, not even paying attention. "We got plenty of rations and juice. We can have that instead."

Andros hadn't, or at least acted like, he hadn't heard him. God, I hope he hasn't figured out it's only six and I'm trying to get him tired so I can sneak out and see the others at the Surf Spot.

"Stupid thing." Andros kicked the stand the 'tron was seated upon. Just one more time.

The Synthatron malfunctioned yet again. He growled.

"Leave it alone, Andros."

The stripe-haired boy didn't hear the blond-haired one. He picked up the Astro Blaster from the nearby table and aimed it at the Synthatron. He fired, blasting the entire machine.

Zhane jumped. "Andros! What the hell was that for?"

"It wouldn't give me my food."

"If I didn't give you any sex, would you blast me too?"

Andros placed the blaster down. "I'm going to bed. Cenaken is a stupid meal anyway."

Zhane watched as Andros stormed off. Something is very wrong with him. I hope me and the others have enough time to save him from whatever deep end he's heading towards.

The rain fell on the sidewalk and dotted it like leopard spots. Zhane pulled up the collar on his jacket. He knew where he was going, but not being in Angel Grove for two years, new landmarks had started to appear. The gas station was gone and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints had miraculously changed denominations and become a Eastern Orthodox Church, complete with onion domes.

Cassie had called him earlier and asked him to meet herself, Carlos, TJ and Ashley at the Sforza, the Italian restaurant that had replaced the Surf Spot. Adele had married and moved to Alabama to raise children; she had sold off the building to Frank Paolini, who turned into a decently-rated Italian eatery.

Zhane finally came to it. He stared at it, cocking his head sideways.

What the...? The outside of the thing...it looks like a Roman coliseum mixed with something... He shrugged and walked inside. Pushing open the door and getting a whiff of the atmosphere, he groaned again. The waiters and waitresses were dressed as mobsters, each with their names turned into Italian version. Oh, how could this get any worse?

"Scusame, can-a help-a you?" The phony accent of a waiter startled him, in a bad way. He wore a name tag that read 'Antonio'.

"Um yeah.."He responded slowly, not sure if this Antonio character was gonna pull a Tommy gun on him," I'm here to meet some friends. It was a reservation for R. Ranger."

"And-a you are-a Mr. Ranger-a?"

Don't make me hit you, kid." Yes." Zhane answered curtly, giving the indication he wanted to be seated fast. Antonio picked up on it; he wordlessly led the man to the table.

Zhane looked around at the faces. The table was round; conveniently enough, so he could look everyone in the eyes. From left to right sat Cassie, Carlos, Ashley and TJ. He paused when he got saw Ashley, the only person at the table he had not seen earlier in the day. He tried to appear casual, but failed miserably.

He sat. "Hey everyone. Thanks for coming. I know it's late and this is probably not where you want to be, but I appreciate you being here."

"We're all concerned about Andros." Carlos replied, trying to conceal his worry. The others nodded in agreement.

Zhane smiled. "That's good to hear. I've been worried about him for a while. I left him on the Megaship alone, so why don't we order now and I'll discuss the plan over our meal?"

Cassie spoke up. "We ate before you got here. You can order if you like, but we're all set. The table is reserved for us for the next hour; then we have to clear out."

"What can-a I get-a you?" A waitress with the name tag reading Cosantza asked Zhane.

"Just a ginger ale and a caesar salad, please. " Zhane responded, handing the waitress the menu that was set in front of him.

"For six months now, Andros has been steadily going downhill. At first, I thought maybe he was just sick and needed a vacation; we took a ten day trip to Triforia and a cruise on Eltar; it didn't seem to change him. After that, I had a suspicion he was sick and hiding something from me, so while he slept, I had DECA run every medical test on him that is available to run on the Megaship.

"When that failed, I told him of my concern and we went back to Eltar to have more extensive tests done. The doctor told me that Andros had extensive stomach problems and told me the only thing I could do was keep him home." Zhane's explanation tired him and he took a drink of water.

"Home? You mean the Megaship?" questioned Cassie.

"Yeah, that was basically it. Andros hasn't said much about his ailments. But he blasted the Synthatron earlier today, and has been using the Simudeck as a mean to escape for a while. I find him talking to himself far too often..." The Silver Ranger trailed off.

"Well, what's the plan of action?" asked Carlos.

Zhane took a bite of his salad. "My plan is this; we have everyone rotate their time on the ship. I'll be there permanently. Besides that, I'm open to suggestion."

Carlos spoke up again. "Myself, Eddie and Chavo have decided that it would be best for me to move out. They have a cousin over in Silver Hills who can move in with them for the time being. With Andros' condition, I think it would best for me to be there in case something happens and you can't handle it by yourself."

Zhane nodded his approval and looked to the others.

"I can be there Monday." volunteered TJ.

Cassie considered. "Wednesday is fine by me."

"Tuesday can be my turn...I mean, it's not like I'm going to be doing much else." Carlos put in.

"I've got Thursday, I guess." Ashley joined in the conversation after being silent the longest. If she had enthusiasm about the whole thing, it was being greatly disguised.

"All right, then, I guess that's settled. Now, as for course of action...I haven't said anything to Andros about any of this, but I want to make it seems like nothing out of the ordinary is going on. " Zhane wrote all this down as he finished his caesar salad and sucked the last drop of ginger ale from the glass.

"Just one more thing; we should meet once a week and give each other our observations. Just to make sure we're all keeping good notes, I dug these up from storage." He passed around little black books.

Cassie and TJ got up after leaving their portion of the bill. Ashley was about to follow, but Zhane grabbed her arm and motioned for her to sit back down.

"I'll be up tomorrow with my stuff," said Carlos, as he began counting out bills for his food, "and thanks for letting me help. I'm glad to do what I can, we were all friends once." He folded up his wallet and placed it back in his pocket as he ran to catch up with TJ and Cassie.

"He's so giving, isn't he?" inquired Zhane, speaking about Carlos.

"Yeah." responded Ashley, biting her lip. How exactly am I supposed to talk to him? Just cool off, Ashley, cool off.

Zhane thought about how to phrase his next words. "I needed to speak with you about something. Can we go for a walk?"

"It's raining."

He tapped his communicator. "Not everywhere it isn't." Zhane dropped his money, as did Ashley, and they both went out the door, to a secluded area they could use to teleport.

Ashley and Zhane had been rather quiet; the only sound between them was their footsteps. Ashley shivered and rubbed her arms; Zhane shoved his hands in his pockets.

"Where are we, Zhane?" She inquired, breaking the long silence.

"Mexico."

Ashley stopped short. "Mexico? Any particular reason?"

"Well, it's not raining here." He continued walking on. She got the feeling he was leading her somewhere, but she wasn't sure. They had been going up a hill for the past few minutes, and the only thing she had seen were sand, rocks, the occasional plant and more rocks.

"Read in the paper about your dad." He said nonchalantly, as though it wasn't a big deal.

"Yeah, well, things have gotten rough in the past few months, but my mother and I have weathered the storm. We love my dad and we'd never do anything to hurt him. We would never hurt anyone we cared about." She added in the last part to gauge Zhane's reaction.

Zhane paused. "Still holding on to that, after two years, is kind of...oh, I don't know, unhealthy."

The awkward moment resumed as the two kept going. Finally, Zhane stopped going uphill and turned into a small clearing. He led Ashley under a tree, took off his jacket, and spun around to face her.

His words were simple. "Hit me."

"What?"

"I said hit me."

She decided to obey and her leg went straight up to kick him in the crotch. He caught her leg and flipped her backwards on the ground. She got up and went for a spin kick, but he ducked. He grabbed her from behind in a sleeper hold, but she reversed it by flipping him over her head. Zhane got up and took Ashley down by snatching up both her feet, but she retaliated by kicking him in the chest, and sending him sprawling backwards. They both lay panting on the ground.

"There was a reason for that, I presume?" She asked, slowly moving to a sitting position on the stone.

"I figured if we fought first, it would clear the air so we could talk candidly." He nodded, lifting himself up onto the rock directly across from her.

"Oh."

"You did the same thing two years ago."

"Did what same thing?"

"Kicked me in the crotch."

"Oh yeah, I did."

"So, Cassie convinced you to help, huh? She must've had some pretty convincing things to say."

"Yeah, but I understand you personally went to see everyone else. How come you didn't see me?" She inquired.

Zhane shrugged. "I figured...well, when you opened the door, you would close it just as fast. TJ did that to me, and I-"

"You deceived us all, Zhane. You went behind our backs, and made Andros lie for you. You made him feel guilty. And, well, you put canyons between all of us."

"Ashley, I'm not saying we have to be the best of friends. All I want from you is some agreement, and I want to put the past behind us." He stopped short. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry?"

He pulled flowers out from inside his jacket. "Very sorry."

"What, so you bring me flowers and an apology after two years and it's supposed to make everything better?"

"But I mean it!" He insisted.

"I know you do, Zhane. It's just not enough anymore." She got up and left him wondering what he had said wrong. He called after her, but she disappeared in a stream of molecules.

This is gonna be harder than I thought... He thought, as he dropped the flowers and snatched up his jacket. Much harder.

Carlos carried his suitcase as he walked down the dark halls of the Megaship. It was darker than he had remembered; possibly tinted due to Andros' illness. He opened the door to his room and plopped the suitcase on the bed, unzipping it and extracting the contents carefully. He removed the picture of his family and placed it on the desk.

I packed all this stuff up before...I never thought I'd be unpacking it again. He finished, shoving his shirts into the middle drawers, his underwear and socks in the top drawers, and his pants in the bottom drawers. Done and done. Now, to go find Zhane and Andros.

He wandered from his room to the lift. He saw Zhane coming out of the room he shared with Andros. The silver clad man was yawning and stretched.

"You're just now getting up?"

"Yeah." Zhane rubbed his eyes.

"How'd it go with Ashley?"

Zhane rubbed his sore shoulder, an injury from the previous night. "Not exactly as planned."

Carlos tapped his foot. The lift arrived, but he decided it could wait for a second. He had noticed something upon arriving on the Megaship, but it was really scratching his curiosity itch now. "Zhane, where's Karone?"

"She's dead, Carlos."

"Since when? Why didn't you tell any of us? What exactly happened?" Carlos shot off his questions faster than a machine gun.

"Shh...Andros is still sleeping. It's better that I tell you this story at the exact place everything went down." He led Carlos down the hall, abandoning the lift and the idea of breakfast, to a room that hadn't even been walked into in months.

The room said purple, even thought the walls were a barren gray. It was clean, and the only thing that was purple were the bed sheets. Zhane hesitated at the door, but Carlos walked right in.

"Wow...no one's been in here in a while. Everything's blanketed in dust." He rubbed his finger along the dresser, and looked at the massive collection of dirt he'd picked up.

"You coming in, Zhane, or are you gonna tell me the story at the doorway?"

Zhane hesitantly walked in. The last time he had been in this room, there had been a fight that ended with the last time either him or Andros had seen Karone. Well, seen her alive, at least. He drew a deep breath as he opened up the closet door. There was only one thing in it: the flight uniform that Ashley had made up for Karone. It's a nice color selection and all...but her not taking it with her when she left, shows how much it all really meant to her...

"What exactly happened? I remember when you and Andros came out, Karone was the most supportive. She didn't seem to even give a damn about your 'thing' with her. Last I recall, she reprimanded us for being angry. 'Shame on you guys, you should be supportive of their lifestyle.' We didn't listen, of course." Carlos remembered, digging up a question or two along the way.

"Well, it turns out that Karone had decided to not stop the practice of magic. She used it constantly."

"So?"

"Practicing magic is strictly forbidden on KO-35. It is a distraction from our true mental powers, and in turn, weakens our telepathy and telekinetic abilities. Andros forbade Karone to use magic on the Megaship, but you know how Karone was. She'd do it anyway; it's not her fault, she was raised a spoiled brat."

Zhane blinked and pulled something out from under the bed. It was a large black book. He blew the dust off it and set it down on the table.

"This is Karone's magic book," He continued, "Andros and I both took it away from her many times, but she always recovered it."

He went back under the bed and pulled out something Carlos recognized; Astronema's old magic staff. The only difference was this one was snapped in half. Zhane handed it to Carlos. It sparked in Carlos' hands and sent a shock through his body. He dropped it.

"AHH! By God, why the hell didn't you tell me this thing's alive?" Carlos shook his hands, trying to cool off the surges of burning in them.

"It only does that for certain people. You must have been possessed at one time or another. What Karone, Andros and I didn't know is that the magic she was using was tied to the dark magics. Every time she cast a spell, her body was infused with more and more dark energy. Eventually, after a few months, she began to dress like Astronema again, and even grew her hair long and changed colors daily. But when she requested that Andros and I call her Astronema instead of Karone...well, that was the last straw

"She and Andros got into a huge fight one night, and it got physical. Andros morphed and she began to use her magic on him. It was almost like they forgot they were brother and sister and resumed their old enmity. He blasted her and it struck her and made a big black mark right near this wall." He moved the dresser away from the wall, and showed Carlos the mark.

That's an Astro Blaster mark all right! He thought, remembering the one that had struck his car when they had gotten into a battle near his house. "But what happened after?" He prompted.

"Well, she went down and Andros dropped his blaster to the floor, and took off his helmet. He realized that he was fighting his sister. His sister! As he caressed the side of her face, Andros noticed her eyes weren't their natural brown any longer. They had become purple. A glowing, dark purple. So he grabbed her staff, and broke it over his knee. There were no more words exchanged between them. The next day, she was gone, leaving only her book and the broken staff.

"We found a weeks ago that she was assassinated, in the Orankyton System, on the planet Hercuron. Apparently, going from planet to planet as Astronema isn't the safest idea, since many systems still have a bounty on her head. We thought she be a bit smarter than that...it really hurt Andros."

"Is that what sent him into his tailspin?" Carlos cut in. Zhane was finished, but didn't mind elaborating for his Portuguese friend.

"Nah, he was in it long before we even heard about Karone. If anything, this only made it worse. I hear him..." Zhane paused, his confusion welling up deep inside, "...he talks to her sometimes. And he asks her questions, and he hears her respond. The main thing is though, is the illness" God, I almost forgot to include that. Stupid me... "And to see that he gets better. I wanted everyone here, in case he goes, so everyone can settle their differences."

Carlos glanced at his watch. "Speaking of settling differences, TJ's gonna be here soon. We better go have breakfast if we wanna have breakfast."

"Sounds like a plan." Zhane exited the room first, anxious to get out of it and forget about the fights that had occurred and Karone's death. Carlos looked around one more time, and followed Zhane out of the room, glancing back only one more time to the room that spoke purple.

Monday

His head was smothered in shaving cream as he glided the blade carefully across his scalp. TJ had never told anyone this, but he had been shaving his head ever since he had been old enough to walk. Well, he himself hadn't been shaving his head all that time, but it had been shaved. He had taken a glance or two at old baby photos of himself; he looked quite dumb with hair.

I wonder if Andros colors his hair... He mused as he rinsed the blade under the hot water of the sink. My god, what work that must be...whenever I've seen it, it's never seemed to fade out...maybe it's something in the water on KO-35. You never know what's in the water. He got the last bit of shaving cream off his head and wiped it clean.

Exiting the bathroom, he spotted his shoes by the couch, but instead headed for the cramped space that served him as a kitchen. He went into the cupboard and extracted his box of chocolate flavored cereal. TJ knew that, by now, he should've outgrown the stuff. There must be some reason I still eat this stuff...I feel like...I really should be eating something more healthy.

As fast as he had gotten out his cereal, he poured it, added the milk and slurped it all down without the aid of a spoon. He had to be early if he was gonna get through to Andros and make progress. He put the black book Zhane had given him in his pocket, and trudged out the door.

"Hey, Kate!" He called across to his neighbor, Kate Vick, who he had been trying to get in good with for the longest time. She was bent over a flower bush, picking a few of them. Kate was a florist, and flowers seemed to be one of the things that truly made her happy.

"Hello, Theodore. How is it going today?" She knew, downright knew, that he hated being called Theodore, but she did it anyway. She also was aware of his love of contractions, and refrained from using them in normal conversation.

"Fine. Just off to visit an old friend. He's sick, and I'm going to see what I can do to take care of him."

Kate nodded. "Sounds like a full day of work."

He tipped an imaginary hat. "Well, have a good day." TJ began to walk down the street, before turning in his tracks. "I'll catch you later, Kaitlin." He added, disappearing before she had a chance to turn around and scowl at him.

Zhane and Carlos were finishing the can of chicken and stars soup for breakfast when Andros entered the room, eyes with dark circles that were seemingly painted on. His steps were slow and shuffled, he ignored his boyfriend and the extra man in the room. He stopped at the Synthatron, or at least what was left of it. Only then did the former Red Ranger seem to recall what happened the night before.

"Morning, 'dros." Zhane called.

Andros didn't look up, but instead shifted his feet. His flight suit had was dirt on his jacket and pockets. Not outside dirt, but machine room grease; besides spending time in the Simudeck, he'd been in and out of the engine room with increasing regularity. Zhane had had DECA inspect to make sure Andros' tampering stayed with cleaning and readjusting.

"What's he doing here?" He asked, rather plainly.

Zhane started to speak, but Carlos interrupted him. "I was evicted. I talked to a few people, but none of them seem too interested. And, by chance, I happened to run into Zhane at Stop N' Go. He made me an offer I couldn't refuse."

"Oh." Andros was uninterested.

Carlos shook his head. "Come on, man, that was some time ago."

Andros had a certain gleam in his eye, which flickered ominously, like the reflection of a furnace. He walked over to Zhane and placed his hand firmly on the other man's shoulder. "So, I suppose, this doesn't bother you?"

Carlos shook his head. "Nope."

The stripy haired man took a seat on Zhane's lap. "This?"

"Uh-uh."

Andros sharply pulled himself up and snatched Zhane by his grey shirt. He pulled the other man in closely and kissed him passionately. Zhane's eye opened sharply, but they closed as the kiss itself started to increase in intensity.

Carlos was biting his lip, as his face turned a brilliant shade of crimson. "No, that doesn't bother me, either." He said, maybe a little too hurriedly.

Andros broke away from Zhane suddenly. "'Alas, to judge from the gloom and terror in the depths of the poor man's eyes, the battle was a sore one, and the victory anything but secure!'"

Before Zhane or Carlos could respond with the expected "What the hell?", TJ entered, dressed in a fisherman's vest, and carrying a tackle box, two poles and another jacket. The oddity of Andros' comment was substantially reduced, like a stock plummeting at Wall Street.

"Sorry I'm late, I had to stop by my Uncle Max's for the gear. He really decked me out. Andros," began TJ, his voice breaking the odd stares on him, "you ready to go fishin'?"

He flipped a Gilligan's Island-esque hat onto his head, and flashed his characteristic smile at the trio.

Andros had been trudging behind TJ for the whole of their hike through the woods to the lake. He had stayed close enough not to lose sight of TJ, but far away enough so TJ wouldn't try to initiate conversation or anything similar. I can't believe I let Zhane talk me into this! 'This'll be good for you, Andros. You need to get outside and out of the ship.'

Grudgingly, the young man had put on the brown fishing jacket and picked up the fishing rod. Now, he was in the middle of God knows where, heading to the Stone Canyon Lake to fish with a guy he hadn't seen in two years. This isn't the way I would want to spend my Monday.

"Would you kindly stop that whistling?" He shouted to TJ, who was much farther up ahead than he was.

TJ, who had been carrying the tackle box and his own fishing pole, turned around. "What's the matter, Andros? Not in a good mood?"

Andros' response was a wordless glare.

"I see." He ran back to catch up with his friend. "Something on your mind? Anything you want to talk about?"

"No."

"You sure?"

"Yes."

"So nothing at all?" TJ inquired again.

"Nothing." replied Andros, with enough conviction to convince even the sun not to shine.

"All right, then. I guess I'll do the talking and you can do the listening." TJ exclaimed, as if what he had to say was about a thousand pounds of peas to wade through.

Andros sighed. "What are you going to talk to me about?"

"I'll catch you up on what's been happening to me since we haven't been in contact." Came the answer.

Oh, now that's just great. Instead of sitting in the Megaship, I get to go fishing and listen to TJ tell about his non-existent life. Whoop-de-doo!

"After high school was all said and done," TJ began, "I began to look into college. Of course, with my grades, I was only readily accepted into a few community colleges." He paused to regain his stride alongside of Andros. "So I went to Mariner Bay State, and well, let's just say my stay wasn't amicable."

Quasi-intrigued by TJ's last sentence, Andros decided to butt in. "Yeah?"

"Yeah, not too amicable at all. I was kicked out the first time for a minor thing, really. I mean, seriously, who thought that not attending a few days of classes were reasonable grounds for expulsion?"

"A few days?"

TJ sighed. "All right, for the first month. But whatever. The second time I was expelled, it was for something a lot more serious. During Christmas break, when mostly everyone left the dorms, I stayed and so did a few others. We got very bored, and some got bored enough to go extreme. They began to drag furniture: mattresses, couches, benches, you name it, into the courtyard. When it was all out there, they tossed in some gasoline and set it aflame."

Andros' eyes went wide.

"I happened to be out there to witness this debacle. Apparently, my guilt was judged by association. About half of the people who had started the thing had been good friends of mine. Plus the fact I had been in the courtyard watching the entire thing and not doing a damn thing to stop them. Hell, what could I stop? I had no idea what was going on!" TJ huffed.

"After that whole thing was out of the way, and I was cleared of any real criminal charges, I decided not to go back to Mariner Bay State, or any other college for that matter. I did some odd jobs, saved up a bit of money and moved into a house in Angel Grove. Granted, it's not the best money can buy, but it will do for now.

"And for a while, I've had my eye on my next door neighbor, Kate Vick. She knows it, too, so she's used every opportunity she's got to turn on me or let me down somehow." TJ stopped abruptly, as they neared the lake. "And that's pretty much about it."

He handed Andros a few dollars. "Wanna go over to that little stand there and grab us some drinks?" Andros hurriedly accepted the money and practically sprinted over to the stand.

Damn, he sure is fast, thought TJ, as he began to set the lure of both their lines. I don't know what exactly we're gonna catch out here, but it should be worthwhile. Besides that, doing this will give me a chance to talk with Andros and maybe find out what's really causing him to unravel. TJ finished with the bait just in time for Andros to arrive.

In one hand, Andros carried a bottle of Coke. In the other was a bottle of Corona. He handed TJ the Coke.

"You drink?"

"Yeah." responded Andros. "Quite a bit, actually. You'd be surprised what two years of being alone with Zhane on the Megaship does to you." He took a swig of the Corona.

"You drink much, then?"

Andros nodded. "Not hardly! Drinking's not exactly the best thing for you. I try to do it sparing, you know, just every once in a while. There's a ton of other stuff for me to do on the Megaship."

There's the garbage Zhane was talking about. "Here's your pole, Andros. Let's cast them out and see what we can catch."

The young man in the noticeably dirty red shirt and gray pants held the rod in his hands. It was pretty obvious to TJ and every other guy at the shore he had no idea what he was doing; he was holding the rod backwards. Still, he stood there, sipping his beer and watching his friend with glazed eyes.

TJ gave Andros his trademark sideways glance. "You got it backwards, Andros. You hold a fishing rod the other way."

That doesn't look to hard, he thought, as he cast his own line into the lake. He sat on the same rock TJ had taken rest upon, and took another sip from his bottle.

"Did you bait your hook?"

Andros looked over at TJ. "Huh?"

"You know, like a worm or something from the tackle box. It'll help you attract fish." TJ made a motion to the box, and gazed out across the vast, blue lake.

Andros, too, looked at the box. Reeling in his line, he instead opted to go about the arduous task of looking for a worm. He began to dig his fingers into the moist soil, but quit after about two minutes of digging and finding nothing. He searched around, and lifted up a rock, revealing a big, juicy night crawler. He impaled it on the end of his hook, and cast the line into the lake, rejoining TJ on the rock.

They sat in silence for a while, watching as young dads instructed their sons in the techniques of casting and older men lived out the joy of retirement. The image was serene, but TJ's true purpose to dive deep in Andros' puzzling psyche, to try and find out the perplexing reason behind his behavior. As the early morning sun began to rise a bit more, the fishermen abandoned their post. It was time for a tough talk.

"So...how ya been, lately?" started TJ.

Andros didn't answer. Apparently, the absence of conversation had rendered the Red Ranger into a nap-like state. The former Blue Ranger shook his leader awake. "Andros, time to wakey wakey."

Andros awoke with a startled shake. "Did I catch something?" He asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Nah." TJ chuckled, "You just dozed off. I was just asking you how ya been..."

TJ began to talk, but the conversation might as well have been taking place underwater, because Andros was a million miles away from the shore of Stone Canyon Lake. A few yards from shore, he saw a visage of his sister. He tried to shake his head and not see it, but it was happening.

"Andros! Why must you protest everything I do? Why? I'm not your kid sister anymore!" She turned her back on him, and fumed while he did the same exact thing. They had been arguing for the better part of the day.

"You know, I'm just looking out for your best interest, Karone!" He shouted, at the apparition on the water.

TJ stopped. "Andros?" But Andros was too sunk into his hallucination to notice TJ's voice.

Karone spun around. "Don't you dare call me that! My name is Astronema!"

He slapped her. Or at least slapped the air in front of him.

She ran off, tears welling in her eyes.

Andros, sensing his mistake and not wanting history to repeat itself again, began to run after her. She disappeared as soon as he reached her, and collapsed in the shallow lake, as the minnows swam away from him. He put his face in his hands and began to sob. "Not again...not again..."

TJ had followed Andros out. "Come on, buddy...let's get you back onboard the Megaship. I think you might've had a bit too much Corona..." He picked Andros up, and looked around the shore. "DECA, this is TJ. Teleport me and Andros up."

As TJ and Andros disappeared into a stream of light, a girl dressed in a pale yellow shirt and blue denim shorts revealed herself from behind a tree. She bit her lip.

Oh, Andros...thought Ashley, what happened to you?

Tuesday

The sliding metal door made a whishing sound as it opened, and Carlos stepped into the room of the Red Ranger. The lights were off, and a huddled mass lay intertwined in red sheets and strewn pillows. The delusions TJ had described obviously extended to Andros' realm of sleep; either that, or Andros had not slept at all.

"Come on, Andros, time to wake up." Carlos prompted, trying to rouse the Red Ranger to rise.

The Red Ranger mumbled something, cursing in a language unknown to Earth, and threw a pillow at Carlos.

The ex-Black Ranger ducked, narrowly avoiding the rectangular object whizzing over his head. He figured if that was the way Andros wanted to play, then he'd adapt his tactics. He launched the pillow back at the lumpy form.

"Carlos, can't I get some sleep around here? Why does everyone feel the need to wake me up?"

Carlos backed into the doorway. "Shall I come back later?"

Andros arose like Lazarus. "Never mind, now I'm up." He eyed the glass of 'water' on his bedside table.

"Well, not exactly..." He reconsidered, reaching for the glass.

With the quickness of a cheetah, Carlos pounced to the bedside table and swooped up the glass, sniffing the liquid content. "Man, have some decency! It's nine o'clock in the morning."

The response was a shrug. "I need a few eye-openers."

Carlos threw the glass in a nearby waste disposal slot. "Well, not this morning. Throw some clothes, we're going soon."

"Where?"

But the Hispanic man had already vanished.

Andros nodded. "Just like Batman." Stretching, he searched around for a clean pair of pants and a shirt. Locating them, he began to change.

Carlos had some qualms as Andros sat next to him in the shotgun. The Red Ranger had originally requested to drive, but Carlos didn't feel that, in his weakened state, he should. They stopped by Starbucks for coffee, but Carlos disguised his reason for getting it. If Andros had had any eye-openers behind his back, he wanted the coffee to sober him up a bit.

He had his red sweatshirt sleeves extended over his hands, and cradling the Styrofoam with both hands, began to blow on the hot coffee. Andros began to sip slowly, not wanting to burn his tongue. He sort of wondered where Carlos was taking him, yet the other part of him really, really didn't care.

The black SUV was put into park outside a large, Gothic building. Gargoyles hung precariously off the corners, their mouths open in a perpetual silent scream. Images of saintly figures carved into granite adorned the the front of the facade, and a massive sculpture of St. Ignatius of Loyola was set in a pedestal above the entrance.

St. Ignatius of Loyola University was founded in 1819, as the Roman Catholic population slowly made it's way to West. Father Domingo and a few hundred laborers had constructed this massive school, and it officially opened on April 12, 1901. The people had been good to the college; it was frequented attended by families of all races, but predominately Latino. Not surprisingly, the president, department heads and residing professors were all Latino, save one.

Carlos got out first, and Andros hesitantly followed behind him.

Stepping through the Romanesque arch, Andros felt a chill run through his body as he entered the college. It was dark and frankly, gave him creeps not even caffeine could get rid of.

He spotted the fountain near the door. Ah, trash! He thought, throwing the nearly-full cup into the basin.

"Damnit, Andros! That fountain was a gift from the alumni!" Carlos hissed, as he quickly retried the cup from the water. "You can't use it for trash!"

The only response Carlos got was a confused blink.

"Carlos! Good to see you. How are you?" Professor Alberto Rivera called to Carlos from the other end of the hall. He was an old man, about sixty-three, with white tufts barely covering his balding head.

Carlos smiled. "Professor Alberto, good to see you, too." He met the old erudite halfway in the aisle, as Andros sauntered cautiously behind. They shook hands and exchanged smiles.

"How is your mother?" Professor Rivera glanced over his bifocals, his green eyes showing great concern.

"She's great. Andros, this is my friend, Alberto Rivera. Professor, this is Andros." Professor Rivera extended his hand; Andros stared cautiously, and declined by brushing by the professor.

"My apologies. He's been sick for quite some time. I brought Andros here, in hopes that...well, you see, help him. Sometimes he'd care not to admit it, but we're friends." Carlos spilled his guts, but he had always trusted his friend for counseling and the like.

Alberto nodded knowingly. "The thing is, it's like the old saying...you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink." He watch Andros wander around the main hall, gazing at the massive statues of Christ on the cross, Virgin Mary and St. Joseph. "Does Andros want help?"

The other man's eyes shifted to the floor. "I think he does. I want him to. I mean, when I fell on hard times, I could always fall back on your guidance. I want him to have that same resource. I mean, there's a good chance he could die." Carlos bit his lip.

Andros had wandered his way back over to duo. "All right, Carlos, I'm all set. Can we go now?" He sounded like a whining child, asking if the long car ride was over yet.

"Andros, would you like to have a talk?" Professor Rivera secretly applauded himself for being direct and firm.

The Red Ranger barely entertained the idea. "No."

The older man's eyebrows furrowed. "Why not?"

"Well, I'm not sure you would accept me." He ignored Carlos' "cut-throat' hand gestures behind the old man's back. "I'm afraid I have h-"

Rivera put up his finger to silence the young man. "Excuse me one second, Andros. There is a man here I must attend to."

Carlos shrugged as Professor Rivera hurriedly ran to a man who had just entered. Andros, however, wanted to see what this was about. When Carlos to restrain him, he practically threw him down and caught up with his professor.

"What did I tell you about coming back around here?" Rivera yelled at the man. "No one needs any more of you, Savio!"

The smaller man cringed. "I have not done or dealt any drugs in the past year. I have records to prove it!" Savio pleaded.

Professor Rivera eyed him. "Now get out of my school and don't show your face here again. If it was in my power, I'd have you thrown in jail! And if you even think about coming here again, then I will get you a life sentence. That's a promise."

Andros was broiling with fury. "You two-faced son of a bitch!"

Rivera jumped. "Me?"

"Yeah, you." Carlos came up behind Andros, trying to calm him down. "Knock it off, Carlos. Man, this guy comes to you for help and you shun him? So he's made mistakes in the past. Isn't the underlying theme of education to educate? Or is it how much money can we pull in from the poor masses?"

Carlos spoke. "I'm sorry, Professor, he doesn't know what he's saying."

Andros stamped him foot. "I know exactly what I'm doing. I don't want any part in your school or your counseling, you understand?" Andros stormed out of the college, with Carlos in tow.

A hard shove almost made the stripy-haired man fall to knees, but he caught his balance and spun around. He stared the other man right in the face. They were nose to nose, and he could feel the slight spring breeze come up behind them.

"What was that?" Carlos huffed.

Andros growled. "Damnit, man, I don't want to be counseling from your old friends. I've got my own, and I'm damned fine with it."

"Maybe there was a better way to handle that, Andros? Maybe you didn't need to flip out like that. Didn't you ever consider the fact I have to come back here and see these people?"

Andros pulled his hair in exasperation. "Damnit, Carlos, has it occurred to you THAT I DON'T GIVE A CRAP?"

Carlos' fists clenched, his veins bulging from the wrists and beads of angry sweat gathered and pulsed on his brow. "Man, if you weren't dying, I'd pound you one right now."

Andros shook his anger for a minute to shake his head in disbelief. "Wha? Who said I was dying?"

Now it was Carlos' turn to look confused. "Zhane. Zhane said you were sick and you'd be dead soon, so it'd be a good idea to make amends with you. That's why I moved in, that's why I brought you here."

His response was met with an amused chuckle. "He would say that. I'm not dying."

Carlos mouthed some words under his breath, calling Zhane every dirty name he'd ever heard in his life, then some he just made up, and then translated them into Spanish and Portuguese and said them again. "Why did I believe him? I don't get it. I shouldn't be that stupid!"

"So I guess it's not my ass you want to kick now, is it?"

Carlos shook his head. "Maybe his lie was for the better. It is kind of unhealthy to have this much animosity between any two people. But I was still lied to."

The Portuguese man felt a hand on his shoulder. "We do need to talk, but I don't think here is the place to do it."

"Cherry strawberry with chocolate chips and...yeah, the marshmallow topping. Can you put nuts on that?"

Carlos glanced down at his own plain chocolate cone, glad he had made his order small and simple. He only had so much cash, and he wondered if Andros had any idea that was working on a tight budget.

If Kerovians were telepathic, Andros had just read Carlos' mind. "Don't worry, Carlos, I got this one." He reached into his pocket and handed the clerk a twenty, and telling him to keep the change, joined Carlos a seat outside.

"So, where should we start?" began Carlos.

"The beginning's always good."

They both fell silent.

"Do you remember what happened that day?"

Carlos nodded. "Aquitar. Like yesterday."

Andros' eyes began to wander.

The room was filled with deafening silence as Andros struggled to get out of the bed and Zhane covered himself with a sheet. Carlos stood agape in the doorway as the other Rangers came up behind him after hearing his startled yelp.

"What's going on..."Ashley pushed her way through the mess of people and saw exactly what she never wanted to see. Ever. She turned and walked off.

"This is wrong! How could you do this to her?" Carlos went into full wrath of God mode, and stormed off after the Yellow Ranger.

Cassie only uttered "Why?" and followed Carlos and Ashley down the hall.

The bald, black man shook his head and sauntered off, looking to calm Carlos down.

Andros looked at the floor, downright stared at it. No, he thought, what have I done? What the...have I done?

"Wasn't that about it?" Carlos questioned.

"Except for when you tried to chuck that book at my head, yeah." Andros licked the spoon of his ice cream, savoring the nuts and marshmallow sauce...he had forgotten how much he missed the gooeyness of the marshmallow and it's sweet, sugary taste. He placed the frozen treat down and reached into his pocket.

Carlos' eyes grew wide. "Where did you get that teleportation device? Zhane told us you didn't have access to those things."

"I don't have access, I have connections. A good Earth friend of mine hooked me up. He used to be a Ranger. Listen, if you wanna to know what's going on, I want to tell you."

He grabbed Carlos' hand and his own ice cream, then, pushing a button on the teleporter, transported the two of them to the planet of Triforia.

Triforia was a green-yellow marble in the dark, black sky. The oceans were green; a brilliant emerald that made the planet shine like a gem. The land itself emitted a yellow color, although a lot of the soil was a tannish-orange. Andros has teleported himself and Carlos to a remote boardwalk overlooking the richest fishing spot on the whole planet.

Andros again shoveled another scoop of his cherry-strawberry delight into his mouth, licking the spoon clean. He set it down on the granger wood railing, and looked out over the ocean. A slight breeze picked up, and Andros caught sight of some Underdwellers he knew.

"Hello, Kantyan! Cerona! How are you?"

A blue male and a pale white female looked up.

"Good, Andros, and how might you be?" said Cerona, the female.

"I'm ok! Lovely weather, no?"

Kantyan nodded. "Indeed it is! Good day to you, Andros, we have to get back to oil drilling down below. We only came up for a glass of yater and a biscuit!"

"Good day to you, too!" Andros waved and smiled. "Been a while since I've seen those two. They have quite an story...but that's besides the point."

Carlos listened attentively.

"Carlos, the disease the doctors have diagnosed me with is called acute mental acumen loss." He sounded like the Andros of old, which was either a good thing or a bad thing. "AMAL affects different people in different ways, so there's no treatment or cure for it. For some it can be fatal, for others, it's like a cold. Some people get it for life, others just get it chronically. When it ends for some, there are different effects again; some people have heart attacks, others just a simple head cold.

"But some details are certain: the victim will hallucinate. The victim will feel stress, and sleep more than usual. His or her temper is usually short, and the most important symptom: they consistently double talk."

Carlos nodded. "So, you have AMAL?"

"Have AMAL?" Andros blinked. "Are you mad? Why would I have AMAL? Jesus, some people..." He stomped off, eating his ice cream.

The Portuguese man rolled his eyes. "A-yi-yi-yi! This guy, I swear to God...let's go, Andros..."

Andros pushed a button on his teleporter, and they disappeared in two streams of light; one red and the other, an energetic black.

Wednesday

The sun rose early in Angel Grove, and Cassie was usually up to meet it. It was strange, really; she had never been an early riser when she was younger. Well, except for as a baby, or so her mother had told her. But she loved getting up and seeing the deep pinks and radiant oranges come in through her window. The early morning was good, too. The whole world seemed to be asleep around her.

She looked over at Kevin, sleeping opposite her in the bed. She used to try and stay up for him, but he had been working the graveyard shift lately and she just couldn't stay awake that long. Cassie needed to be asleep at a certain time to keep her early rising. She sighed. Kevin's mouth was open and there was drool coming out. Probably dreaming of me...She thought, as she closed his mouth and planted a kiss on his head.

The Asian girl threw aside her nightgown and headed into the shower. The warm water felt good as it ran over her skin and soaked her hair. She grabbed the shampoo and massaged her head. Cassie glanced at the clock outside the shower; they were on a tight budget, and five minutes with the water going was long enough. She got out and toweled off, slipping on her bathrobe.

Cassie threw a gaze of concern at the pile of endless laundry in the corner. It was Kevin's turn to do the wash this week, but as usual, it would be up to her. She gathered up the canvas bags they used and began separating their clothes.

What's today? She thought, as she picked through underwear and socks with no matches. Suddenly, her eyes grew wide. ANDROS! She had totally forgotten about Andros. Wouldn't be the first time. She hurriedly searched the room for some clothes to throw on. Cassie wouldn't be late; it was only 5:10 AM, but that thought never entered her mind.

She pulled on a pair of Kevin's boxers, jean shorts, rainbow socks with the individuals toes, and a pair of black Reeboks. She searched high and low, but she couldn't find a bra.

Cassie bit her lip. There's got to be one around here somewhere...She thought, until her eye fell upon a bathing suit top. This is gonna have to do for now. She said to herself, tying the makeshift undergarment in the back. She threw on a pink tee and grabbed her keys from the bedside table.

Running down the stairs of the third floor apartment as quietly as she could, Cassie made a mad dash for her beloved blue Toyota. She kissed the hood of the car for good luck, as she did every morning. She stopped, momentarily, to gaze at the rising sun. Cassie Chan had her work ahead of her.

The clock running in Andros Time Zone was five hours later than Cassie Time. He rose at exactly ten, which was awkward for a man who had been getting up at five of five since he was old enough to read the clock. He sulked into the bathroom, looking at his depressive form in the mirror.

It did no good to him. His dark circles were growing rapidly under his eyes, and he hadn't shaved for day. Andros looked more like a hobo than a Power Ranger. He shook his head as exorcised his morning breath with mouthwash. He glanced briefly at the scissors in the cabinet, and his mind entertained a thought.

Slowly, he drew the scissors to his hazel and golden locks, and began to cut. With the first snip, he began to laugh manically. I'm gonna love this new look!

Cassie glanced at her watch. It was almost 10:30, and Zhane had promised to have Andros roundevous with her at Denny's at 10:15. He was fifteen minutes late. She sipped her grapefruit juice through the plastic swirly straw she'd requested. That's one the reasons she came to Denny's regularly. They never questioned her when she asked for a children's straw.

She almost didn't recognize him as he walked in the door. Sure, Andros was clad in a white t-shirt, his locket, red checkered button-down shirt and blue jeans with his black shoes, but he had...well, he had trimmed his locks. His haircut was short; he was sporting a wiffle.

He spun around for Cassie. "Well, what do you think?"

She was speechless. "It's...a change. You hungry? Want to order?"

He lowered himself in the chair across from her. "Nah, I'm all set. Full."

Cassie tried something that had been recommended by TJ on the phone yesternight. She asked the same question twice. "You wanna order or what?"

"Sounds good! I'm starving! What's good here?"

She nodded. He did the contradicting thing, and he didn't even notice it. "I like Moons Over My Hammy. Kevin usually gets the..."

"Kevin?"

"My boyfriend."

He nodded, as though he was ominous and all-knowing. "I'll go with the poached eggs and hash browns."

Cassie sipped her grapefruit juice again. I hope he likes what I got planned or else I'm sunk. With a final slurp, she finished off the grapefruit juice. "Garson!"

"So, what have you been up to?"

Cassie presented the question to Andros, but he seemed really uninterested in what she had to say. He was admiring the fine advertisements around the place. The blue and yellow sign informed him of a free glass offer, and another told him Tuesdays was the Lumberjack Special, with all you can eat pancakes for nine ninety-five. It was quite a bargain, and he made a note to come and try it.

He nodded out of it. "I'm sorry, you were saying?"

Cassie wanted to moan, but she kept it inside herself. "What have you been up to?"

"The usual, you know. Hanging around the ship, using the Simudeck, body guarding for some money. Odd, eh? I mean, you never know what you'll end up doing."

"So it's been all usual?" Instead of asking the same question, the Asian woman rephrased it in case he caught on.

"My god, the correct word here is unusual! I mean, in the span of a few days, I've seen TJ, Carlos and you. Which is weird enough in itself, but Zhane has been acting weird, and I think...I think I keep seeing things, which can never be a good sign. Last night, I kinda accidentally got my foot caught in the docking bay door, and I almost got frostbite from the cold mistress that is space."

Cassie raised her characteristic furrowed brow. Before she could respond, however, their server, ironically enough named Denny, set Andros' food down before him. The Red Ranger's eyes grew as wide as a giddy kid opening presents on Christmas morning, knowing he's got exactly what he asked Santa for. Nodding to the server as a form of thanks, he hurriedly began shoveling forkfuls of hash browns into his mouth.

"Sosh, what'sh are wesh diong todaysh?" Andros asked, his eyes still on his food as he reached for the ketchup.

Cassie stepped in with the assist, and slid the bottle to Andros. She wondered if she should be honored that Andros had dropped his normally perfect gentlemanly manners around her. But then, I wouldn't be here if everything was normal. If TJ, Carlos and Zhane can all agree something is wrong, then something's wrong. Talking to the air, assaulting a professor, wandering halfway out in the creek, drinking excessively, moody...the last one is Andros anyway, but the others...I hope he gets better.

"Well, you'll just have to wait and see." She picked up his napkin and wiped the ketchup off the edge of his chin. He didn't seem to care and just kept eating.

"I've got to hit the bathroom, but I'll be right back, k?" He didn't even look up to acknowledge her absence.

With the last piece of hash brown gone on the plate, the red clad man picked up his English muffin and ripped it in two. Piercing the yolk with his fork, he dipped the end of the muffin into the egg.

What in the hell...The yolk wasn't runny like a poached egg was supposed to be; it was hard, like a boiled egg. There were three things that set Andros off; his friends being hurt, his relatives being hurt, and his food not prepared correctly.

He slammed his fists down on the table and got up suddenly, scanning the crowded restaurant for Denny. When his eyes found him, taking the order of a young couple with two small children, he grabbed the kid and flung him up against the wall by his collar.

"Jesus Christ! What's your problem?" The acne-riddled teen tried to put a tough defense, but unfortunately, he was very close to vomiting from nervousness.

Andros met the young man nose to nose. He'd used the tactic before: with the man he had heard killed Karone, with Ecliptor, with too many foot soldiers to count. "I'll tell you what the problem is. That damned yolk on my eggs is not runny. It's solid! If I wanted a boiled egg, I would've order A BOILED EGG!"

The teen gulped. "I didn't cook your eggs. Jose did!"

The angry man made a quick glimpse toward the kitchen. "Maybe he did, but I have nothing more than respect for immigrants. Tell me, Denny, which car is yours out there?"

Denny was too scared to give him a fake answer. "The Jetta."

Picking a metal pipe that leaning against the wall from the new plumbing being laid down in the kitchen, Andros proceeded outside the door and to the Jetta. "Hey idiot! You're parked over the white line!" With that, he swung the pipe at the windshield, cracking it.

"Whoops, you've been driving illegally. Seems one of your taillights is out." He glanced at the back of the car, obviously noticing his fatal error. With one hard whack with the pipe, he corrected his error and seemed more relieved than a mother who'd found her missing child.

"I say, my boy, how are the kids supposed to get any air if you can't get the back windows down?" This time, Andros went the extra mile and broke both windows, and the shattering glass filled the morning air and the inside of the car. Crap! I'm bleeding. He looked down at his hands and looked at the small cuts.

Suddenly, a mass of jet black hair and mismatched clothing yanked the pipe from Andros' hands. Cassie grabbed Andros' wrist and pulled him away from the Jetta.

She smacked him, open handed, on the back of the head and threw the pipe on the ground. Dragging him to her car, she practically tossed him in shotgun, got in the driver's seat, and drove away as fast possible, ignoring the three cops dining inside the restaurant.

"What the heck were you doing back there?"

Andros refused Cassie's interrogation.

"Answer me, damnit. I don't like to repeat myself, you know that and I know that. Now, tell me that was all about."

"All right, all right! Will you quit yelling at me?" He broke the silence. "My egg wasn't poached, okay? The yoke was firm, not runny. I don't like people getting my food wrong, ok?"

She recalled Zhane's recounting of the Synthatron incident over the phone. "Look, I don't want to spend the rest of the day mad at each other, ok? Let's just count our lucky stars we got out of there fast enough for them not to get my license plate number."

"Amen to that." Andros said, but he didn't seem to have any sort of expression in his voice. He rolled down the window and stuck his head out, taking in the sights and smells of the road.

"Where are we going?"

"You'll see."

He vaguely recognized the Angel Grove Animal Rescue when they came upon it. The place had greatly expanded, with a new wing and a brand new color scheme of blue and gold. He sort of disfavored the blue, but the gold looked pretty nice. Andros had been dragged, almost light speed, to the Rescue many a time before by Cassie and Ashley.

Ashley...The name still roused weird feelings in Andros. He had to do his best to get thoughts off the name. It wasn't good to dwell on the past then, and it wasn't now.

Cassie took Andros by the arm and led him inside the Rescue. She knew that anyone, even the stone cold Andros, would melt at the sight of fuzzy animals. Cats were used to calm even the most vicious of prisoners and dogs were a great remedy for the lonely elderly and sickly children. She figured it would work here as well.

"Sweet! Snakes!"

She was wrong. Andros had chosen the animal which she hated the most. She wasn't scared of snakes, she just...well, she just didn't like being near them.

"What's the yellow one? He looks pretty cool to m.."

Just as Andros was reaching into the specimen tank, a hand reached forward and jerked it out. The girl was a bit taller than Cassie, yet a hair shorter than Andros. She looked up at him through her green-gray eyes. The shoulder length hair was wrapped up in a ponytail, tied by a silver elastic. A purple jacket clashed with her dark blue pants, but it all stood out thanks to her lime green t-shirt. She was also barefoot.

"Who's this stripy-haired guy here?" She asked Cassie. Without waiting for a response, she stuck out her hand. "I'm Adrienne. And you are?"

"Andros the 49th, Keeper of the Secrets of Castle Greyskull." He replied, taking her hand and kissing it lightly.

Adri giggled, getting the reference to the Masters of the Universe cartoon. "You can't just shove your hand in there...that snake was really mistreated by it's former owners. It's not used to being handled by anyone. At all."

He looked down at the floor, and gave a hearty sigh. "Then what are we going to do?"

"Well, first of all, you're going to have to remove your shoes..."

The wet animal flopped everywhere, spraying suds and water in every direction. Andros tried to hold the dog in the metal bucket, but he just wouldn't stay still. He laughed as Snacker whacked him in the knee with his soaking wet tail. He hadn't felt this good in a long while.

Cassie grinned, sensing Andros' improved mood around the dog. She knew it was only a matter of time before she got him to open up. Being in a situation with the guys had made Andros uneasy, she knew it, and had forced that apparition and outburst of behavior. He was more comfortable here; around the animals, around a person who had forgiven him and one who really didn't know him.

"All right, hosing time. Watch out or be quartered!" Adri took the green garden hose, clenching it firmly like a firefighter. She sprayed Andros briefly in the back of the head before he moved. She got Cassie on the leg, but Cassie ran into the blast and wrenched the hose from Adri, getting her completely soaked.

Cassie jumped a bit when she received a tap on the shoulder. It was another one of the shelter's volunteers, a guy by the name of Dillon. She spun around to face him.

"Now now, Cass...it's good to give, but it's also just as good to receive." With that, he revealed a rather large plastic bucket he had been hiding behind his back, filled with water. He then proceeded to empty the H2O on Cassie's head, drenching her from head to toe.

Cassie laughed as she flipped her long black hair back. "Hey!" She thought aloud

"Where'd Andros go?"

Leaving Dillon and Adri with Snacker, she went inside to look for Andros. He wasn't in the main part, and she glanced into each room. Not in the small kitchenette, and he wasn't in the check-up room either. Which left the biggest room in the place; the kennels. She walked in, softly closing the door behind her.

"Andros?" She questioned to the empty space in front of her.

"Over here." Came the whispered reply. Andros was bent over a kennel in the left corner. The door to the cage was open, the one with the pregnant golden retriever named Comet. Andros was cradling one the puppies in his arms, and the rest were all nestled near the mother.

"Wow...did you hear this from outside, Andros?"

"Yeah. Well, I didn't hear it, I sort of sensed it. The mother here had already started giving birth, and I got here around the third puppy. The sixth one here...it was here for a few seconds, but it didn't quite make it..." He held it up, handing Cassie the tiny body. She wrapped a small towel around it, and placed in a small box for burial.

A soft rap came from the entrance to the kennels. "Cass? You in here?"

A girl in a pale yellow shirt and blue jeans entered. Her hair was pulled back into a French braid, and she stopped upon catching sight of Andros. He, likewise, paused. As he pulled away from Cassie, a few of her jet black hairs clung to his days-old shirt.

"I better be going."

Ashley grew tense as the gap between her and Andros got narrower and narrower. As he passed her, for a brief moment, their eyes met. But he turned his head away, and so did she. The cans of salt that had been seemingly emptied beforehand were replenished and being dumped by the truckload into their emotional wounds.

He ran his hands through his short hair as the screen door slammed behind him. I need a drink he thought, as time forced him away from the Rescue, I need a lot of drinks.

"Every cloud has a silver lining."

He read the saying aloud this time. He wasn't quite sure what it meant, but he had a good idea. Zhane shrugged, putting down of his favorite Terran books and leaning back to look at the stars.

The cityscape was different now on KO-35. Kinwon had been able to establish a new settlement, named in honor of Zordon. Zordonia was now the new capital of KO-35, and the Kerovans had multiplied over the years, and many had immigrated, increasing their numbers.

But unlike Earth, KO-35 lacked pollution or a waste load of human destruction. The night sky was clear, and Zhane was able to see stars light years away. He could see what the Kerovans had named 987656.232 on their star charts, which was the Earth's sun. Who'd ever guessed that a small, greenish-blue marble of a planet would cause so much commotion for all of us?

"Zhane? Zhane?"

It was Andros' and Zhane's old childhood friend, now a young man, by the name of Jaustin. His hair was a brilliant white; he'd gone into a state of shock after seeing his mother killed before his eyes at the hands of Quantrons all those years ago. His eyes were a calm grey, and truly, they were windows to his soul.

"I'm over here, Jaus! Over here!" He called to his friend, watching his white head turn and turn again in search for his friend.

"Ah! Zhane!" Jaus hobbled over to Zhane, struggling with his cane and prosthetic leg. Not only had the Quantrons taken his mother's life, but the same monster who had taken two years of Zhane's life had taken Jaustin's right leg. Ever since, he had hobbled along, which had disqualified him from his dream of one day becoming a Ranger.

"What's going on, Jaus? It's been awhile." Zhane patted his friend on the shoulder, then motioned for him to take a seat on the small granger tree stump next to his own rock.

"Not a lot." Jaustin popped off his fake leg before sitting down. "Hope this doesn't bug you."

"No, it never has and it never will." Zhane finished with that, and they sat in silence. The night air around them carried the aromas of nerf steaks and tater mashers. Sounds penetrated them from all sides, Triforian fiddlers to the east and Terran rock music to the north. Of course, there were the ever present chirp of the crickets. The silence was killing Jaustin, and he finally spoke up.

"Something's bugging you, though."

Zhane opted not to give a verbal response, just nodding slightly.

"Does have to do with Andros?"

This time, the blond man decided to speak. "You bet. He was with Cassie today...the old Pink Space Ranger...and she told me he beat up a waiter's car for getting his eggs unpoached. Then, he ran into Ashley, his old girlfriend, at the kennels. He started drinking when he got back to the Megaship...he hasn't stopped. He's going to..."Zhane stopped, as tears flowed freely down his face,

The white-haired man put a firm hand on his friend's shoulder. "Look, Zhane, you know that things happen for a reason."

"I don't know about that. With all the stuff that's been going on, and tomorrow, tomorrow will be the toughest challenge of all. He has to meet up with Ashley tomorrow, and I'm afraid of how it's all going to go down. Jaus, I'm just so afraid for him. So very afraid."

"Look at the sky, Zhane."

Zhane obeyed his handicapable friend.

"All those stars in the night sky, look at them. Have you ever tried to count them? It's impossible to number those stars. Those stars represent the many who have come before us, and those who are yet to come. There's a star up there for you, and one for Andros, or so the saying goes.

"You know how some stars rotate around each other making a twin star? I'm betting that's how you and Andros work. But the thing is, you have to believe in the Beyonder's grace, that She'll pull you and Andros through this mess. But most all, believe in yourself. Things will get better. You just have to let them."

"But Ashley and.."

Jaustin put a finger up, silencing Zhane. "I'd be less worried about Andros and more worried about yourself."

Zhane's eyebrows furrowed. "Are you trying to tell me what I hope you're not trying to tell me?"

Jaustin nodded as he popped his leg back on, and got up, leaning on his cane. "Don't worry about Andros. He'll be fine. Worry about you and Andros." With that, he hobbled away, leaving Zhane alone, wondering.

Thursday

The darkness engulfed Andros yet again. This time, he was really in Northern California, visiting his favorite spot. He loved the dark; it embraced him and made him feel like nothing mattered. That's why he loved sleep...why he loved space...it was dark. The dark was warm and inviting. It made him feel like nothing mattered; nothing in the world mattered.

The rock he often chose to sit upon was on a small cliff overlooking a massive field, with a smattering of trees here and there. Someone had built an iron fence there, insuring no one accidentally went over the side; it was a sharp drop and quite a long one at that.

There were two trees at the right side of his rock, and three more at the other side. There was a small fire pit were he and Ashley would come and roast marshmallows...back in the day...

The ghostly figures came to him again, but now, instead of being involved, he observed himself.

The fire burned brightly on the cold night, as he and Ashley sat close to each other, wrapped in a Angel Grove High blanket. They had come at sunset, and watched the sun go down. Then, as the stars slowly came out, he built a roaring fire as she skewered the marshmallows on the sticks.

He held his in, rotating it. He liked his lightly crisped, not too burnt. Andros wished he hadn't forgotten grahams and chocolate; but he had been too preoccupied with Ashley to remember.

Ashley finished hers early, lighting it on fire. It was the way she liked hers; black on the outside and melty-sticky on the inside. She blew of the fire, and took the mallow off the stick with a fork.

"Oh Andros..."She called, prompting him to turn toward her. When he did, she shoved the mallow in his mouth, and he ended up getting more of it on his face than in his mouth. She giggled, and he laughed. After he finished it, he told her the words she'd be dying to hear.

"I love you, Ashley."

Andros shook his head and snapped out of it. Running his hand along his newly-shortened wiffle, he sighed. It had been a long time since that happened...a lot of things had happened. And he knew, when he told her he loved her, he had meant it. Sure, maybe he had told Zhane a million times...but that night, that atmosphere...it was something he never kindled with Zhane.

"Andros?"

He spun around. It was Ashley. Her amber hair hung in curls that reached her shoulder...she was wearing her old flight suit jacket, with a yellow tank top and black jeans. Her purple sandals didn't seem to fit the ensemble at all. In her hands, she nervously clenched two metal skewers, a bag of marshmallows and a book of matches.

He was about to spin on his heels and run, but something inside compelled him to stay. Instead of running, he began to pile dry kindling and sticks onto their old fire pit, not wanting to initiate conversation.

She really didn't want to start talking, but she was going to have to.

"So...how've things been?"

He didn't want to answer, but he didn't like the silence. "Fine."

She coughed as he snatched the matches from her and tried to start a fire. She dropped the marshmallows and skewers on the ground and turned to face him, but he kept his back to her.

"How's Zhane?"

Nice going, Ash...load the gun, why don'tcha... "He's fine. He's happy and well-satisfied. How is your family?"

Ashley shot him a glare he didn't see.

"My mother's fine, but my father had a stroke. And second of all, don't get so defensive. I'm only trying to make conversation."

"Maybe I don't want to talk?"

She gave an exasperated yell. "I'm trying to be as nice as I can here, Andros. I just want to things to be better between us!"

"Maybe they'll never be better, you ever think of that?"

She was fuming now. "Well, you know what? The only reason they'll never get better is because you're so stubborn!"

He snorted. "Oh well, excuse me, Ms. Priss. Don't forget, you're insanely hard to work with. Remember the time you and Cassie tried to make that birthday cake for TJ? You wanted chocolate and she wanted vanilla? You guys didn't talk for weeks."

"What, the fact you decided to do a little gay romping with your best friend? To cheat on me? The fact that this is your fault in the first place?"

"Maybe I had to do what I did because I wasn't being satisfied by who I was with at the present time." His words were icy and cold.

"You son of a...I gave you my love, my body, my soul! And you repaid me how? By having sex with your best friend? I gave you everything...and you threw it all away." Tears were beginning to well in her eyes as she shouted.

"Well, maybe I shouldn't've tossed around 'I love you' as much as I did."

She was silent. Stunned and silent. She cried openly now as she collapsed onto the ground. Her body shook with sobs, and her wailing was enough to make wolves howl along with her.

Andros was cold, but he wasn't an incompassionate animal. He fed the fire a few more logs and went over to her, joining her on the ground. He put an arm around her, and she fell into her old spot on his shoulder, letting the tears sink in on his day-old shirt.

Feeling a bit more consoled, she unwrapped Andros' arm from around her and began to skewer marshmallows on the sticks. She made sure she put the same amount of marshmallows on each stick; three on hers, three on his. Just the way they used to.

The way we used to...She smiled as she watched Andros build the fire, making it bigger and better. Ashley didn't realize it, but she had been thinking of those more often than she usually did. Her memory flashed back to a time she knew she'd never forget.

They had been in the park all day. Both of them, her and Andros. They had arrived shortly after breakfast, and had lunched there as well. Between then, they had thrown around the Frisbee, joined in a pick-up game of volleyball, and basically had just enjoyed each other's company.

But the day was closing, as the sun set itself in the sky. As he lowered deep into the horizon, brilliant oranges, deep reds and even a hint of purple were seen. Andros and Ashley sat, side by side, watching. She was nestled in his arms, her head resting on his shoulder.

He smiled, and kissed her softly on the head.

"I love you, you know."

She smiled, feeling content. "I know. And I love you, too."

By this time, Andros had a fire roaring and he was sitting on the opposite side of Ashley. He was meticulously turning his marshmallows, making sure they became browned equally on all sides. Andros hated his food prepared incorrectly.

Ashley's own preference in marshmallows varied on her mood. If she was angry, she needed uncooked marshmallows. If she was giggly, it was definitely mini-marshmallows. If she was just plain happy, it was marshmallows, burnt to a crisp. But if she possessed the anxiety like she did currently, she needed them only slightly burnt.

"So, you've been taking care of your father, huh?" Andros questioned casually, as though the last scene between the two of them hadn't occurred at all.

"Yeah."

"That's been a challenge?"

"Yes."

He paused to fill his mouth with one of the warm, sticky, gooey treats. Savoring the marshmallow flavor, he shifted it from one side of his mouth to the other, enjoying the entire confection before letting it sink down into his gullet.

The Red Ranger thought about his next question for quite a while before presenting it. "You ever think about kids?"

She wasn't prepared for that one. "Sometimes. I mean, I'd like to have a little girl, or maybe a boy..." The former cheerleader stopped short. They had had a discussion like this before.

Laying awake in bed one night, with Ashley wrapped in his right arm, he began to ponder. He thought of the past, what was going on now, and into the future. Andros then stopped short, stuck on one particular topic. He gently roused Ashley from a deep slumber, and she awoke with a start.

"Andros? What is it, hon? Did you have another nightmare?"

He shook his head. "You ever think about kids?"

She wasn't prepared for that one. "Sometimes. I mean, I'd like to have a little girl or maybe a boy. I've got a lot of love to give, and I've always wanted to be a mother."

"What about names?"

This one made her think. "Never really thought about that one."

"I think Adrian would be a great name for boy. Spectacular, even." He suggested.

Ashley mumbled something, then rolled over and went back to sleep.

She shook her head out of the flashback. "Yeah. It would be fun to have kids. Or maybe dogs instead. Dogs are easier to manage."

Ashley nodded her head yes.

"I see." He got up and went over to sit next to Ashley. "I was going to propose to you, you know." He stated, as matter of fact.

Her eyes bulged out her head. "Really? You're kidding."

"Nope." He pulled a worn ring box out his pocket, and tossed it to her. She opened it up. Inside, on a red-felt like material, sat a ring. The silver was showing signs of age, but it still shone to some extent. And in the middle was an orange stone, with flecks of white in it.

"Andros, it's...it's beautiful."

"The orange-white stone is found in certain mineral deposits on the planet Viscure. I obtained this one in a game of Sabek from a Rendorian bounty hunter. Seems he also had intentions of proposing to a special someone; or someones...Rendorians have three different genders and require all of them to mate. Male, female and omnale." He explained, wondering how he'd gone from informing her about the stone to the coital differences in the Rendorian species.

"Can I keep this?"

"I have no other use for it."

The former Yellow Ranger picked a marshmallow off her skewer. "You deserve this." She said, shoving it into his mouth. She laughed as his eyes opened wide with surprise.

Upon swallowing it, he chuckled a bit. Before long, their eyes locked. Andros tried to break it, he did, but it was too hard. Her lips edged closer to his, and both of their heart rates sped up considerably.

He hesitated at first, not wanting it. His hesitation gave way, and Andros began to feel his oats as he went in deeper. She fell backwards onto the grass, and he came along with her. His kisses left her lips and began to trail down her neck, sending shivers down her spine.

Just as his hands were finding their way upwards, he stopped. Gazing at Ashley, sprawled out on the grass. As the moonlight shone down on her, he saw it reflected in her eyes. His voice became choked.

"I...I can't do this to you. Not...not again." He sprang up, and she stood up, looking him right in the eye.

"Look me in the eye and tell me you didn't want that. Tell me." She demanded, her fists clenched so hard she could feel her fingernails digging into her palms.

Andros kissed her again, and he began to kiss down her neck. They became wrapped up in each other, and the world around them began to fade away.

Friday

The rain was again falling. It had been all day, on and off, and on and off again. The weathermen had issued a thunderstorm warning until eight o'clock that night, but the threat of an impending storm seemed quite out the question. Still, he walked along briskly to Coppola's; he didn't want to be out in the rain any longer than he had to.

They were all seated as he came in. The waitress, Angelina, led him to the table without saying a word, and left him there to talk with his friends.

"Sorry I'm late guys," TJ apologized, "but I had the hardest time finding my house keys, and I didn't want to leave without them. And, like the old saying goes, it's always the last place you look."

"Where was it?" questioned Cassie.

"What?"

"The last place you looked. Where was it?"

TJ shrugged. "Under my pillow." He drew blank stares from everyone. "Trust me, I don't know how they got there either."

"Riiiight." Zhane summarized what everyone else was thinking. "On the other hand, I think it's time to call this meeting to order. Did everyone take notes on their time spent with Andros?"

The four seated around him nodded. Cassie pulled out a small pink notebook, as TJ pulled several pieces of loose leaf paper out of his pockets. Carlos had his thoughts on his Palm Pilot, and Ashley had everything written out in a yellow, spiral bound notebook.

Ok then...I guess everybody misplaced the little black diaries I gave them... Zhane thought as he watched.

Zhane pulled out a black diary from his own pocket and set it down on the table.

He nodded to TJ. "TJ, you got to be with him first. Why don't you go first?"

TJ scrambled through his various sheets of paper, searching for the beginning of his observations. His scrambled, ink-smeared writing made his search even more daunting and in vain. Finally finding what he was looking for, he began to read.

"Log on the condition of Andros, by TJ. I arrived on the Megaship, ready to take Andros fishing. I figured, it had helped me and my dad bond when I was little, it might have the same effect on Andros as well. He might open up to me during the long time it took to catch a fish.

"He seemed reluctant to leave the ship, but myself, Zhane and Carlos coaxed him into it, telling him he needed the fresh air. During our walk to Stone Canyon Lake, he seemed to be listening to my stories about getting kicked out of college rather.

"When we got there, I suggested he get us some drink. He bought a Coke for me and a Corona for himself. I asked him if he drank a lot, and he contradicted himself here. First he said he needed it, being on the Megaship for two years. And then he said he didn't drink a loft, seeing as how it was bad for you.

"I handed him his pole, and he dug a night crawler out from under a rock and baited his hook. From what I gather from talking with Zhane about it, he had an apparition of Karone where she was standing in the middle of the lake. He tried to walk out to her. I stopped him and brought him back in. That's about it." He finished, wrapping it up.

The other had listened intently, and Ashley took in what TJ had said. She happened to be there that day, enjoying a walk when she came upon Andros and TJ. She had listened, and wondered what had happened to him.

Zhane rubbed his forehead. "Ok, take it, Carlos."

Carlos pulled up the file on his Palm Pilot marked 'Observations'. "Ok, my plan was to bring Andros with me to my college and meet an old friend of mine, Alberto Rivera. I had hoped, through talking with Professor Alberto and me, Andros would help us understand what exactly was going on in his head. However, it wasn't meant to be. An ex-druggie and dealer by the name of Savio came into the church, and when Alberto asked him kindly to leave, Andros flipped out and called Father Alberto a two-faced son of a bitch and stormed out.

"From there on, we were about to fight. Andros revealed to me he had never had stomach cancer, or any cancer for that matter. I decided not to hold Zhane's lie against him. We went to go get ice cream, and teleported to Triforia. It was there he informed me he had acute mental acumen loss. He then denied having AMAL, which further served to confuse me. It was then he left me, and went back to the Megaship."

"That's odd..."Zhane started. "There's no such thing as acute mental acumen loss. He's making things up. This is grand, just grand. All right, Cass?"

Cassie gave everyone a reassuring smile as she started her story. "I met Andros at Denny's. He walked in with his new haircut, a wiffle. I was surprised, to say the very least. I just got grapefruit juice; he had hash browns and two poached eggs. He wolfed down the hash browns; I left for the bathroom as he started on the eggs. Apparently, they were hard; not runny the way he had preferred them. Andros then proceeded to threaten the eighteen year old waiter who had served us, and went outside, smashing the crap out the guy's car.

"Luckily, I got outside in time to stop from causing too much damage, and we drove to the Animal Rescue. There, he checked out the snakes and met my friends there, Adri and Dillon. Aft.."

Zhane put a finger up. "Sorry to interrupt, Cassie, but I'm getting a call from DECA." He pulled out his cell phone, listening intently to every word the sentient computer said. He turned ghastly pale as he closed the phone and looked around at his companions.

"She said...she said Andros was drinking again. Straight up vodka, right from the bottle. He left the ship, screaming about myself, and Karone and Ashley. She doesn't know where he went, but she pinpointed his Power source. And apparently..."He trailed off.

"Apparently...what?" Ashley prompted.

"He's at the Angel Grove Cliffs."

The thunderstorm warnings had proved to indeed be true. Andros stumbled a bit as he headed toward the railing of that separated him from the cold, dark chasm below. He put the bottle to his lips, sucking the vodka from it. The lightning lit up the sky, as the thunder boomed shortly after it. The rain fell as heavy as semi; he laughed as he drew nearer to the edge.

The lightning again struck, and it seemed to be a bit nearer, yet still off in the distance. The thunder seemed to have shape now, it seemed to have a voice all it's own. A distinct voice; that of a man. It was indistinct, but Andros took it as an answer from God.

The wind tore through the trees, and the rain fell harder, as if great buckets of water were being dumped from the sky. Andros chuckled as they came down, but his chuckle soon turned to maniacal laughter.

"It's over! It's all over! I'm finished here! You hear that? I'm done for!" He sucked the last drops of alcohol out of the bottle and tossed it over the side of the railing. He listened for it, and even through the thunder and lightning, heard it crash and break on the rocks below.

Satisfied with the crash, he began to slowly go over the guard rail. He lifted his right leg up, swung it over the side and planted it firmly on the slippery soil on the other side. The Red Ranger then brought his left leg over to follow it, and put his arms up, in a Christ-like position.

"Andros!"

The call came from behind him. He spun his head around, his vision clouded by the rain that would just not let up. He saw five figures, but could only truly make out two. Two figures that ran towards him quickly. One was clad in bright yellow, the other had a shimmering silver shirt on. He climbed down a step on the cliff, reaching the next level. Andros was far enough down so that his head was concealed from anyone who wasn't close up.

"Don't do it, Andros! It's not worth it!" Zhane was calling out, practically crying.

Ashley, too, was weeping. "Please, Andros...please, come back up here."

Andros shook his head. "No! NO! I have to do this. This has to end now! It all ends now!" He went to jump.

He heard "I love you."

He paused, and turned back to both of them. Ashley had tears her eyes, welling up and falling down her cheeks. Zhane was also weeping, but wiping his tears away with the ends of his silver sleeves.

"I'm dead to the world...I'm already gone. Do not cry for me, do not hold onto me. Let me go!" With that he prepared to jump. Raising his head and arms in air as a diver would, he prepared to fall into the sweet abyss.

He was held back, dangling. Ashley held onto his right sleeve; Zhane was hanging onto his left. They held with all their might, but the sleeves were tearing on the ratty shirt.

"Come on, Andros. Help us! Pull yourself up and out of there!" Zhane screamed at Andros, trying to knock some sense back into his head.

Andros only looked up at Zhane, then at Ashley. "Zhane, you were my first love. You helped me understand love. You gave me stability and confidence, and to you, I am forever grateful. I love you, Zhane." With that, the sleeve Zhane was holding ripping completely away from him and the only thing separating Andros from the wet, rocky ground below was Ashley's strength.

The threads began to tighten, and the sleeve began to rip. "Ashley," Andros began to his former girlfriend, "you were my great love. I would've loved to have a life with you, growing old together. You opened me up and showed me what the good things in life are... I.." He choked as the rain dripped down his face, "I love you, Ashley."

With that, the final threads lost their place and Ashley was left with was the sleeve of her love. She sobbed into it, and turned away, not wanting to see Andros fall.

Zhane leapt and grabbed for Andros, anything to stop his fall. The Red Ranger fell slowly, like a feather, and picked up pace. Collapsing in anguish, the Silver Ranger soon lost sight of his boyfriend. Zhane, tears streaming down his face and shaking with sobs, listened and waited.

He heard it. A stomach-dropping, heart-wrenching sickening crash of flesh and bone against bare rock. His stomach reached his knees, and his heart lifted itself up to his throat.

He could think of nothing else to do. He walked over to Ashley, and she looked up at him, her eyes glassy and red. He kissed her on the forehead, and drew her into his arms. The others gathered around the two, in somber ceremony. The rain fell around them, and the lightning crackled in the sky. The thunder roared, as if it, too, was about what had just occurred. The five of them, knowing now the true affliction that plagued their friend, stood in silence. The rain continued to fall.

Two Years Later

It was sunny. The scene was much different that it was two years ago. There was no lightning, no thunder, no wind and no rain. Perfect sunshine, with a slight breeze. It was ideal weather for any number of activities. But the occasion today was a solemn one. Even nature seemed to sense it.

A woman clad in a bright yellow sundress arrived first; in her hand she held two roses in full bloom, one crimson red and the other a sunny yellow. In her arms rested a healthy baby boy.

The man in silver came shortly after she did. He was dressed in a silver, short-sleeve button up shirt. He had grown his hair out long; it almost reached to the small of his back. In his hands were two roxiums; flowers native to KO-35. One was the traditional silver; the other was of the specially bred red variety. He paused and stood beside her.

"Zhane," she greeted.

"Ashley," he said in reply.

After a few more minutes, the others began to appear on the scene. The Portuguese man was different, he didn't look any older. Around his neck was a black tie and he clutched a white flower.

The last two made their way to the spot. One was in a blue t-shirt and shorts; the other, a pink tank top and Capri shorts. They walked hand in hand, talking, giggling. TJ and Cassie were silent as they came upon the spot with the others.

Carlos Valerte stepped forward.

He cleared his throat. "Andros was my friend. Sometimes, I forgot that fact. I'm sorry I ever did. I never realized how much Andros had done for us, and how much he truly meant to our lives. Abandoning him...abandoning him was the cruelest act I've ever done in my life. I don't know if I can ever forgive myself, but I know I tried to help him. I only hope that he can rest now."

Squeezing Cassie's hand for assurance, TJ stepped forward next. He patted Carlos on the back, and kicked the dirt, trying to think of something to say.

"Andros...Andros was a good man, a great Ranger, and a great friend. When we met him that fateful day, he was reluctant to accept us. But, as time went on, he opened up and became one of my nearest and dearest friends. On the battlefield, as in life, he was always ready to lend a hand in case things got out of control for you. I miss him, even today. I wish...I wish I could've acted sooner, said something different, made him feel better so he wouldn't have done this. Goodbye, Andros...may you rest in peace."

He was holding back his tears, so Cassie came forward and, with a gentle nod, let him know it was ok to cry. He let the tears fall slowly, and backed away. Cassie pulled a piece of paper from her pocket.

"What I'm about to read is a Hopi prayer..." She paused, before beginning again.

"Do not stand at my grave and weep, I am not there, I do not sleep, I am a thousand winds that blow, I am the diamond glint on snow, I am the sunlight on the ripened grain, I am the gently falling autumn rain. When you wake in the morning hush, I am the swift up lighting rush, of quiet birds in circling flight, I am the soft star light at night. Do not stand at my grave and weep. I am not there, I do not sleep."

With that, she went to TJ's side and wrapped an arm around his waist, wiping away her own slowly-forming tears. Zhane glanced around, and seeing as how he was certain that Ashley would want to speak last, he went before them.

He spoke plainly, but there was still that old silver ring in his voice. "It's good to see you, everyone. Cassie, TJ, Carlos, Ashley. I'm glad you all made it here."

Zhane, unlike TJ and Cassie, didn't cry. He had finished crying for Andros a long time ago. Whispering a few last words in Kerovan, he put the two roxioms down, leaning them on the guardrail.

"I'll always love you, Andros." The Silver Ranger stated simply.

The yellow-clad woman stepped up to Zhane, and hugged him. Handing her son to him, she rubbed her face, thinking of the right words to say. They came to her, and she spoke.

"I loved Andros. I loved him with all my heart, all of my mind, all of my body and all of my soul. I never told any of you this, but the night I met with him, we kissed. And I felt it. I know he felt it, too. The old chemistry was still there between us. I don't know why he killed himself. Was he really that far gone, really desperate enough to give his life away? I guess we'll never understand. But when Andros died that day, two years ago, a part of me died with him. I guess a part of all of us died with him. He influenced our lives in ways we'll never forget; he influenced mine in way no one ever will again. I loved Andros, and I still do. Rest in peace, my love." Instead of leaning her two flowers at the side, she leaned her yellow one, but symbolically tossed the red one over the side.

"We are separated now, but we will someday meet him again." Carlos reassured.

They all nodded. Zhane handed the baby back to Ashley, and she hugged the child. One by one, the others began to leave. TJ and Cassie left first, and Carlos had an appointment. It was just Zhane and Ashley.

"How are you doing?" He asked.

"I'm well."

They remained silent a few more minutes.

Zhane raised an eyebrow. "Does anyone have any idea who the baby's father is?"

She shook her head no.

"Let's keep it that way then. There's no need anyone knowing." He kissed the baby's forehead and teleported away.

A crow cawed off in the distance. The screeching sound woke the baby, and he began to cry. His mother rocked him back and forth, trying to silence him back into a slumber. He only cried louder.

"Shhh..."She whispered. "Shhh, Adrian, shhh..."

Author's Note: This is the second version, a re-write of the first piece of epic fanfiction I ever took on. I'm happy that I've altered it to fit how I envisioned the revision, and I will never forget these wonderful, spandex-clad characters that were the first to dominate my imagination. First off, I'd like to thank myself. Without me, I could've never written this. Thanks, James.

Secondly, I'd like to thank everyone here who was supportive of this; Starhawk, from the get go, wanted to see it finished; WhiteZeo, who always replied and gave the boost when I need it. To Add, Cat, TJ and Lenni, who gave praise on what I was doing. To Jenny and the other reviewers of the original Between Love and Insanity, who's kind words helped lead me to continue writing. To Multi-Facets, who helped me write this epilogue. To Miss Emily, who, even though she's only recently joined me, went through this and helped me immensely with the rewrite.

To Arthur Miller and Death of a Salesman, the admirable work of, from which I drew some of the story ideas. To Andros and the incredible PRiS producers, Judd Lynn and Jonathan Tzachor, who brought to life one of the best PR seasons ever. Thanks for the inspiration. Most importantly, thanks to all of you for reading. You're just too wonderful for words.

- James Austin Valiant, February 9th, 2011 at 9:56 PM.