Disclaimer: Power Rangers SPD, Power Rangers Time Force and all related logos are property of Saban Entertainment and/or Saban Entertainment. I am using them without permission, but I promise to pay royalties when I get rich off this story.
A/N: This fic takes place moments after "Endings pt. 2"
New Tech City, California 2025 AD
"Rangers, I've called you together to hear this. Jack Landers has left SPD," Commander Cruger announced.
The rangers, all standing around the control panel in the command center had a look of concern and confusion on their faces, none of them quite sure how to take the news. Boom and Dr. Kat Manx, who stood alongside the commander, had equally perplexed looks on their faces.
"Resigned?" Bridge asked.
"Why? He didn't even say goodbye," Syd mentioned.
Of the entire group, Elizabeth Delgato was probably the one who wasn't shocked by the news. She'd known Jack longer than any of them; they'd practically grown up together, they were like brother and sister. Before he even made his decision, he discussed it with her. She knew he had feelings for Ally, and wanted to be able to spend more time with her. "Doesn't surprise me. Once something's over, he's gone," Z told them.
"Rangers, for your true courage, heroism and valor in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds," the commander stepped around from the other side of the control panel, standing directly in front of the rangers. "I am elevating you to A Squad," he was surprised to see the lack of excitement on their faces. "Did you hear me? I'm promoting you to A Squad," he repeated.
It was Bridge who chimed in. "No sir, we heard you, but… we talked it over and you know what? We are B Squad. That's who we are, that's who we wanna be," he announced, speaking for the group.
The commander gave a quick glance to the other rangers, who nodded, tacitly giving their approval. "Very well. B Squad it is. There will be no A Squad. But there's still one problem; you have no A Squad, you have no leader," he turned to Sky. "Sky Tate, step forward," Sky quickly stepped up, standing face to face with the commander. "If I was to appoint Syd as red ranger, would you follow her into battle?" he asked.
"Sir, I'd follow anyone into battle you felt worthy of wearing the color red," Sky said proudly.
"Congratulations Sky, you are the new red ranger," he handed Sky the red morpher as the others applauded him. The commander leaned in closer. "Your father would be very proud of you."
Sky took a step back, falling back into line with the other rangers as he admired his new morpher.
At that moment, a wormhole opened up on the opposite side of the room. All of them turned towards it, unsure of what to expect, but it was Omega ranger and Nova ranger who stepped forward. "Hey, that's our ride home," he walked over to wormhole. "Goodbye everyone, and thank you for making our future safe."
"Yes," Nova ranger chimed in. "Goodbye."
"Wait!" Z called out, hurrying over to them. "Goodbye Sam," she sighed, wrapping her arms around him. "I'll see ya in twenty years."
"Okay. I'll be there Z," he turned to Nova. "Lets go Nova."
"Right."
"Goodbye my friends," he sighed.
The others waved, saying their goodbyes as Omega and Nova stepped closer to the wormhole. In a brief instant, both of them powered down then disappeared into the wormhole before it closed.
"Goodbye Sam," Z sighed as a tear rolled down her face.
Twenty years later…
Z stood in the command center, patiently awaiting his arrival. The concept alone was confusing to her, how time travel was so difficult to understand. Over the last twenty years, she'd watched young Sam grow up, officially join SPD, become leader of the C Squad and eventually be elevated to B Squad years later. She wanted to tell him so many times that at some point he would become the Omega Ranger, but Commander Cruger warned her not to. He cautioned her that giving Sam knowledge of what was to come would affect the time line in more ways than one, so she chose not to say anything to him. It wasn't until four months ago that Commander Cruger went to Sam, recruiting him for a very important mission. He was given the Omega morpher and sent into the past to assist the other rangers, but along the way, something happened and they were unable to get a lock on his signal once he left.
At that point, Z should have been concerned, but she knew from experience exactly where he has. He was in the past along with her younger self, assisting the rangers in defeating Gruum. She remembered the day he and Nova left like it was yesterday; they both stepped into the wormhole, disappearing. "I'll see ya in twenty years," she told him, and even since that day, she'd waited for him. According to her calculations, he and Nova were scheduled to arrive at any moment, and now, she would finally be able to talk to him about all the things she'd kept to herself for a little over two decades.
"Nervous?" Sky asked, walking over to her.
It was amazing how much had changed since that day. Commander Cruger was promoted to supreme commander and sent to SPD headquarters in the beta quadrant, and Sky himself was promoted to commander of the entire Earth base. Sky, for the most part, looked exactly the same, with the exception of a mustache and goatee he'd grown, and a few gray hairs on his head.
"A little. I'm just excited to have him back," she said.
"It'll be good to have him back, both of them," he sighed.
"You miss her, don't you?"
"Of course. It's been almost four months now," Sky told her.
When they lost Sam's signal in the past, Sky ordered one of his best officers to go to the past, find Sam and retrieve him, but something went horribly wrong and Nova Ranger spent several months jumping from time to time, trying to find her way Sam and the others in the past. He'd been able to communicate with her, but couldn't assist her in finding Sam. He insisted she come home, but Nova reminded him of how the time line had to play out the way it was intended, which meant she had to find Sam and bring him home. It had taken her a little longer than any of them anticipated, but she found him, and now, they were both of their way home.
"Why'd you send your wife on a mission like this anyway?"
"She is one of our best trackers. I knew she'd be able to find Sam. Besides, you were there, you knew it had to be her," he mentioned.
"Yeah, I guess…"
She was interrupted as the wormhole appeared in the command center. Sky and Z stood back, waiting eagerly for the arrival of their friends. Within seconds, both Omega and Nova ranger stepped through the wormhole, and it disappeared.
"Sir!" they said in unison, saluting them.
Sky took a step forward. "At ease. Report," he announced.
"Everything we according to plan sir. As you know, Gruum was defeated, and the time line has been restored," Sam said.
"Excellent work Cadet Mitchell."
"Sam!" Z squealed, running over to Sam and wrapping her arms around him.
"I missed you too Z," he sighed.
"Officer Delgado and Cadet Mitchell, the command center is not the place for this, I suggest you…"
Sky was interrupted as Nova ranger walked over to him, putting her hands on his face. "Just shut up for once Sky," she said, kissing him warmly on the lips.
He responded by wrapping his arms around her, holding her tightly. "I missed you too Leann," he sighed.
"Sir," he turned to Sky "I will have a full report for you ready in the morning," Sam said, saluting him.
"Very well, you're dismissed," once Z and Sam were gone; he turned his attention to Leann. "Its good to have you home honey," he sighed.
"I just saw you a few seconds ago. I have to say, blue wasn't really your color," she commented.
"I am always partial to red," he admitted. He leaned in to kiss her again, but the panel behind him began to beep, catching his attention. Sky headed over to the controls, getting a good look at the readings. "There is a ship requesting docking permission," he pushed a button. "This is Commander Sky Tate, SPD, identity yourself."
"Commander Alexander Collins, Time Force Temporal Investigation, ID number 561807 gamma. Requesting docking permission," a voice said."Time Force?" Leann inquired.
Sky was familiar with Time Force, and was aware of its existence, but had never had the opportunity to meet an officer. The authorization code he gave was given only to delegates of high command or government officials, so the fact that he had it meant something was going on, something big. "Permission granted. Dock on landing pad four," he said.
"Very good. Assemble your senior staff and meet me in your briefing room, its imperative that we get this done as soon as possible," he said.
Leann looked over at Sky with a look of concern on her face, but he motioned for her to remain silent. "Very well. Have one of the cadets escort you to the briefing room, we'll be there," he said.
"What's going on?" she asked.
"I don't know, but he said he was from temporal investigations, it doesn't sound like a social call. Assemble Kat and the B Squad, have them meet me in the briefing room as soon as possible," he instructed.
"I'm on it," Leann said, rushing out the room.
Alexander Collins stood in the briefing room with a monotone look on his face, showing no type of emotion at all. He stood with his hands behind his back and wearing a pair of deeply tinted sunglasses, waiting for the arrival of Commander Tate and the rangers.
It wasn't long before the doors to the briefing room opened, and Commander Tate walked in, following by Dr. Kat Manx and the B Squad rangers. The rangers themselves stopped, allowing their commander to approach the stranger.
"I am Commander Tate, what is this all about?" Sky asked firmly.
"You and your officers have committed several temporal incursions to the time line, all of which have had a drastic effect on not only the present, but the future as well. When this happens, I am sent to determine the extent of that damage and resolve the matter," he paused. "By any means necessary," he told them.
"What temporal incursions? What are you talking about?"
"You and your rangers, at one point or another, have traveled through time and purposely effected the natural flow is history. I am here to determine how much damage has been done, access the situation and render a verdict," he said calmly.
"I don't recognize your authority here to do anything, so I suggest…" he was interrupted.
"If you need to confirm my rank and authority over you and this station, feel free to contact High Commander Cruger. Besides, your chief technical officer is more than familiar with me and my rank," Alex said.
Sky turned to Kat. "He's right Sky, just cooperate with him," she sighed.
"What is it you want?"
"I am to conduct an investigation, ask your officers questions. Once my interviews are concluded, I will inform you of my decision," he removed his hands from behind is back. "Which one of you is Cadet Samuel Mitchell?" he asked.
"I am," Sam said, stepping forward.
"I will need to him alone," Alex said. "But don't go too far, I'll need to talk to all of you."
The others looked to Sky, who nodded, silently instructing them to follow him out the room. One by one they left, leaving Sam alone with Alex.
"Have a seat cadet," he said. Sam sat down at the first empty seat he came to. "According to my reports, you are the Omega ranger, correct?" he asked.
"Yes sir."
"You are just one of five rangers to have received the prototype for the new enhanced morphers. If I know my history, there are five; Alpha, Delta, Nova, Omega and Beta."
"Yes sir."
"Why you were selected to go to the year 2025? Why not one of the other rangers?" he asked.
"I-I don't know sir. Commander Cruger issued me the Omega morpher and sent me to that time to assist the other rangers, that's…"
"He sent you with not only knowledge of the future, but with technology that shouldn't have been invented for another twenty years. Then, while he was there, you were kind enough to share with him information about the future," he pointed out.
"I answered his questions, but…"
"Do you have any idea what can happen if someone knows too much about their own future, the damage that it causes to the natural flow of the time line? That one conversation you had with Cruger was enough to make him second guess his own decisions, and caused a drastic incursion within the time line. Because of you, future history has been altered."
"In what way?"
"I can't discuss that with you, and you know it," he sat down on the edge of the table. "While you were in the past, you accompanied the rangers of that time even further into the past, into the year 2004, where you assisted them in defeating an army of Troobians and other soliders indigenous to that time. Because of that battle alone, Troobian technology was left in the past, and as a result, technology was left in that time, which allowed other robots to be built years before they were meant to," he told him.
"I understand that, but…"
"Cruger attempted to preserve the time line by erasing the memories of the Dino Thunder rangers, the B Squad and himself, but he left your memories intact, why?" he asked.
"I don't know sir. I was in the shuttle when it happened, and I was told not to mention it to the other rangers," he said.
"But he left you with knowledge of that event, Zeltrax, and Dr. Thomas Oliver. Thankfully Zeltrax was destroyed shortly after, and Dr. Oliver is a respected ranger in his own time, so he never revealed anything he may have learned about the future, but it doesn't change the fact that you were left with your memories in place. It doesn't make sense to me."
"Maybe its because I was already from the future. Being in that time line didn't effect anything for me, because it had already happened."
"But it didn't, at least not in a linear sense. That battle was never meant to happen, and as a result, the time line changed," he stood up. "Tell me how you were converted to light energy," he brought up.
"I don't know how it happened sir. Maybe time travel wasn't compatable with the morpher technology, or…"
"I am the red Time Force ranger, and I travel through time on a regular basis cleaning up messes like this. It had nothing to do with the morpher, nor the technology you used to travel to the past. Try again," Alex said.
"I don't know how, it just happened."
"In the entire history of time travel, which dates back to the early 18th century or Earth, yours is the only documented case of a human being converted to light energy as a result of time travel. Why?"
"Maybe it was because of the genetic enhancers that my parents were…"
"If that were the case, the others would have been converted to light energy when they traveled through time as well. What's of even more interest to me is that now that you're back in this time, you are no longer light energy. What changed? Why are you normal again?"
"I don't have the answers you're looking for, I'm sorry."
Alex sighed. "Lets talk about why you were sent back in time in the first place. Cruger sent you to assist the other rangers in the year 2025 because on that day, Gruum had been able to defeat SPD, correct?"
"Yes sir."
"So, when you left originally, Gruum was already in control of Earth?"
"Yes sir, I was sent to prevent it."
"Do you have any idea how many times the rangers have been defeated, how many times the forces of evil have been able to gain control of the planet? What gives you or your commander the right to go back in time and alter history to your liking?" he screamed.
"We were doing what we thought was right."
"Right for who? For you? For SPD? Because of your decisions, countless millions who were meant to be born ceased to exist in the blink of an eye, technologies and medicines that were going to be developed weren't, which means those who depended on those medicines suffered before they died. Yes, Gruum had taken over, but it was the natural flow of the time line. The new morphers were going to be developed, and Gruum would have been defeated, but you took it upon yourself to alter history. Why?" he snapped.
Sam stood up. "Because Z was going to die!"
"Z? You mean Officer Delgado?"
"Yes. Before I left, Z was killed in an assault on the base. Commander Cruger sent me back because most of SPD had been destroyed; it needed to be done. Going back saved Z, saved all the others, and none of them have any knowledge that things were ever different. I made the future better."
"For who Cadet Mitchell? For your schoolboy crush on Delgado? To save a handful of people. Weigh that against the MILLIONS who died because of your disregard to the time line. Is the future better for them too?" he snapped.
"With all due respect sir, I…"
"You what? You're sorry? It doesn't excuse what you've done. You are in violation of several temporal protocols, the results of which have altered not only my future, not only your future, but the past as well. The people were there to protect as still in danger, all because of mistakes that were made in that time," he sat down across from them. "I understand you meant well. Your mother was the same way, always trying to help people no matter the cost."
"You knew my mother?"
Alex nodded. "Yes, I met Dana several times because of other incursions in the time line, but I gave her memory adaptation shortly after, so she'll have no knowledge of those conversations."
"Are you going to give me memory adaptation?"
"Yes, it's a necessary precaution."
"Since I won't remember any of it anyway, can you tell me what happens to Z and the others in the past?" he asked.
"Jack Landers was never meant to leave SPD. Because of your arrival, there was an extra ranger, which allowed him more time away from SPD. He met Ally, and soon after SPD completely. Sky Tate was promoted, and a chain reaction of other events lead to an alien presence assuming control of SPD. I won't go into detail, but it took years for SPD to recover."
"I didn't mean to…"
"I know you didn't. Thank you for your time cadet, please send in Leann Tate. You're dismissed," Alex said.
Sam stood up, making his way out the briefing room. Moments later, Leann walked in. "You wanted to see me?" she asked.
"Yes, have a seat Mrs. Tate," she sat down. "You were selected to retrieve Cadet Mitchell when his signal was lost, correct?"
"Yes."
"And from there, you spent almost three months traveling back and forth through time."
"It was closer to four months, but yes."
"Why? What went wrong? Why weren't you able to get a lock on Cadet Mitchell?"
"We believe because he being was converted into light energy somehow, I can't be sure," she said.
"I'm still trying to figure out why he was converted to light energy when he traveled through time, but you weren't when you went through. What's different about his morpher and yours?"
"In all honesty, you'd have to talk to Kat about it. I don't really know much about how they work."
"You're married to Sky Tate, correct?"
"Yes, for three years now."
"So when you were asked to travel the time line to search for Sam, you were excited about seeing your future husband at that point in time, weren't you?" he asked her.
She nodded. "I admit, I was curious to know what he looked like then."
"Where were you at that point in time? In 2025, what were you doing?"
"I wasn't even part of SPD yet. I worked in a hospital with sick children," she said.
"Do you know what Sodium Zethamene is?" he asked.
She paused. "Yes, it's a vaccine that regenerates dormant cells and enhances them. Its used on people who are declared brain dead or any victims who are…" she was cut short.
"Do you have any idea what would happen to someone if Sodium Zethamene is exposed to high levels of radiation?"
"No, but I suspect that it would alter than DNA on a genetic level. But, it exposure to an equal or greater amount of radiation would revert any alternations to the DNA," she said.
"You know a lot about it, don't you?"
"I think so yes."
"But you had no idea that it would effect Sam when he went through that wormhole, did you?" he moved in closer. "You gave Sam doses of Sodium Zethamene to give to your younger self in the past in an attempt to cure the children you were working with, didn't you? You didn't know that exposure to the radiation would compare the vaccine to Sam's already mutated DNA, turning him into light energy, did you?" he asked.
She held her head down. "I only wanted to help the children," she sighed.
"When you lost the signal on Sam, you knew right away what he happened, so when it was time to try to track him down, you went to work in your lab to alter the vaccine, to prevent it from doing to you what it did to him. What you didn't count on was that the vaccine would have an adverse effect on the wormhole itself, and you got lost in the time line," he explained.
"Yes," she admitted.
"You never told your husband, did you? You knew he wouldn't allow you to go if you told him what you were trying to do," Alex said.
"I didn't tell anyone, only Sam. I knew he'd be going to that time, and I thought…"
"You wanted to help the children, I know. Those children never got the vaccine, did they? What happened?"
"A lot of them died, but years later, we were able to perfect the vaccine and save some of the others," she said.
"So even without outside influence, the vaccine was perfected and lives were saved. But, as a result of your attempts to alter the time line, you had an unforeseen effect on the future. Then, all your exploits in different periods in time didn't help matters either. Your attempt to help those children caused nothing but problems. Though your intentions were noble, it wasn't your decision to make, and there were consequences to that decision," he told her.
"Are you here to relieve me of duty?"
He shook his head. "No, I'm here to access the damage done to the time line and determine if it's in risk of happening again. Your superiors will be informed, and the decision will be left up to them, but the fact that you'll be receiving memory adaptation will play a factor in their decision. Thank you for your honesty Leann," Alex said. "You're dismissed. Please send in your husband."
Leann stood up with a cautious look on her face, walking out the room. Within moments, Sky Tate entered the room with a monotone look on her face. "Sir!" he said firmly, saluting him.
"At ease Commander. Have a seat," Sky didn't move. "Suit yourself, stand," Alex sat down on the opposite end of the table. "You were promoted to the ramp of commander when Cruger was elevated and sent to another quadrant, correct?" he asked.
"Yes, about four months ago."
"Right around the same time Samuel Mitchell was sent to the past to assist you and the other rangers defeat Gruum."
"Yes, but I…"
"You've always been a level headed, logical person. Didn't it seem odd to you that Cruger allowed someone from the future to assist you in the past, knowing it would effect the time line?" he asked him.
"At the time, I didn't give it much thought."
"And now?"
"Now, it was necessary. Sam traveled back to that time, so it made sense that he was sent. When Cruger made the decision to send him, it was his attempt to preserve history," Sky said.
"Preserving history would have been not allowing Sam to go back. He wasn't meant to be there, bringing with him technology that wasn't meant to exist at that point in time. While he was there, he gave all of you key information on the future, allowed his technology to be examined, caused countless alternations to the natural flow of the time stream. Do…"
"Sam came to help us!" he insisted.
"You didn't have enough faith in your team to do it alone? Oh that's right, at the time you were only the blue ranger," he mentioned.
His statement struck a nerve. "Heroes come in all colors," he defended. "I had complete trust in my team and in the others we served with. We would have defeated Gruum with or without Sam's help."
"Is that why you constantly second guessed your superior officer? Disregarded your red ranger's orders? Because of your pig headedness, several missions that would have succeeded didn't."
"Cadet Landers and I worked out our issues, and when it counted, I followed him into battle."
"It always counts Sky. Your constant bickering was one of many reasons why Jack decided to leave SPD, did you know that? He knew your desire to be red ranger, and he knew that as long as he was there, you never would. He stepped down for you, but that isn't how the events were supposed to play out. He was under the impression that Sam would remain at SPD, and none of you bothered to mention to him that Sam went back to his own time. Do you see what I'm saying? Sam being there had and adverse effect on the decisions made in that time, and as a result, future history was changed. You were never meant to be red ranger, to command this station. Your actions have altered destiny…" he was cut short.
"My father always told me we make our down destiny," Sky protested.
His statement was enough to force Alex to stand up. "Let me tell you something about your father; he had no respect for the natural flow of the time line either. Do you have any idea how many temporal incursions I had to clean up because of him? His self-righteous notion of making his own destiny almost destroyed the entire space/time continuum. He was given technology that shouldn't have had, was given access to information he shouldn't have, and justified it by claiming to make his own destiny! History regards him as one of the best rangers of all time, but history has a way for filtering out what doesn't want to be remembered, but I was there, I knew your father, and his attempts to alter the time line was even worse than red ranger before him!" he snapped.
"Wait, what do you mean before him?"
"The red Time Force ranger in 2001 was Wesley Collins, but when he stepped down, his morpher and its technology was given to your father, who joined SPD and assisted them in defeating some of the vicious criminals this galaxy has ever seen. Wes Collins was never meant to be red ranger, your father was never meant to be red ranger, and you were never meant to be anything more than a blue ranger. Your father's quest to be more than he was changed the timeline, and changed every string of events to follow it. As bad as it was, nothing he did comes close to what you and your superiors did here. Sending a man back in time to help you, gaining access to the future to help you defeat Gruum, using Sam's morpher as a template to create the next generation of morphers to be created years before they were meant to. Do you have any idea what this does to history, to future history?"
"With all due respect, the decisions we make here and now aren't made based on how it might effect people in 10 years, or 20 years. Our decision to use the information Sam provided us was based on saving the world from Gruum, and we did that. The time line may have been altered, but it wasn't taking into consideration while we were out there risking our lives. You're asking me to feel guilty for changing things that for me haven't even happened yet, and I will not. I don't know how time was meant to play out, but here and now I am the commander of this station and I will continue to be until my superiors say otherwise. Now, if there's nothing else, sir, I have work to do," Sky told him, turning around and headed towards the door.
"Commander Tate," he called out. Sky turned around. "You're more like your father than you know," he walked over to him. "I'm going to tell you something that I've never told anymore before. In 2001, I made a decision that affected the time line as well; I saved a man's life though I knew he was fated to die that day. My decision altered the time line, and at the time, I felt it was the right thing to do. I understand why you made the decisions you made, and if put in your position, I may have done the same thing. I'm not here to judge you, only to access the damage to the time line."
"Was history really that much better then? If things hadn't changed at all, would it have been better?"
"Whether or not I think its better or worse is irrelevant. The time line has been changed, the damage is done, my job is to ensure to things don't get worse," Alex told him.
"Shall I send in someone else for you to interview?"
Alex shook his head. "No, I think my business here is finished. Report to Dr. Manx for memory adaptation," he said.
"Yes sir."
Once Sky walked out the room, Alex reached for his morpher, pushing a button. Seconds later, a holographic image of Captain Logan appeared.
"Report."
"Its as you suspected sir, none of them had any knowledge of the changes they made. I told all of them how they're altered the time line, but it is my opinion that none of them here have any malicious intentions," he said.
"Is the damage severe?""Not a severe as I led them to believe. In fact, the only significant change that I can see is that Commander Tate was promoted sooner, and that he is apparently married to Nova ranger. There is no real damage here, no cause for concern."
"What about Nova Ranger? She spent several months going from one point in time to another. Was there any contamination to the timeline?"
"Very little, but corrections have already beed made."
"Very good. Thank you for your thoroughness. Ensure that memory adaptation is carried out, and return home."
"Yes sir, very good sir." Alex glanced around one final time, admiring the briefing room. It amazed him how closely it resembled the Time Force briefing rooms, how for all the advancements Time Force made over the years, the changes weren't as major as he may have suspected. The technology Time Force had developed was obviously superior to what SPD had to offer, but he respected that SPD was the humble beginnings to Time Force.
He removed his sunglasses, looking around the room one final time, then walked out the room.
end