Everything smelled charred and the ground and sky were dusty with soot and ash. I wasn't sure just where I was but other than the smell there wasn't anything around me.

I walked over the broken and splintered remains of whatever had once been where I stood now.

"Dad? Ethan?" I called as I walked but nothing called back but the echo of my own voice.

I continued to walk, calling for my friends as I did. However all that was there was silence.

Suddenly in the distance a mass appeared. I knew that I had to get there. There would be the answers to where my friends were.

The closer I got the bigger it seemed and by the time I had gotten there it was giant. I wasn't sure just what it was just that it was covered in soot. Reaching out with one hand I brushed the soot off of its surface, the dirt blackening my hand.

The letters appeared one by one. A-S-T-R-O M-E-G-A-S-H-I-P. This was the Megaship? What had happened to it?

I walked around and found the door open. Without hesitation I stepped up the gang plank and headed inside.

"Hello? Is anyone here?" I called but just like outside I got no reply.

I continued to walk through the Megaship, making my way from level to level. I called out the name of everyone I could think of but got no reply. Finally I reached the top level of the Megaship.

The doors of the elevator were stuck. It took some work but I managed to pry the doors open.

The room bridge was dark and I couldn't see anything.

"D.E.C.A? Lights?" I tried and a moment later they blinked on.

The moment I was able to see, I was overtaken with of pure horror.

Bodies covered the floor, each in a pool of it's own blood. Their eyes were open, vacant with death. My friends, my family. All of them.

Dead.

I dropped to my knees, tears falling down my cheeks. Reaching out I touched the closest hand there was, Ethan's. He was stone cold.

I sobbed harder as I laid my head on his still chest. Suddenly a noise behind me made me jump. I spun around and the first thing I saw were eyes.

They were black. Just black. No white. No blue or brown or green…just black.

A smile curled on the face under the hood of a cloak. A cold laugh filled the air, chilling me to the bone. Then before I could react it swooped down on me and I screamed.

"Izzy? IZZY! Wake up!"

I opened my eyes, still screaming. Hands held me down on the bed and I fought as hard as I could to loosen them from my arms. I scratched and bit on every piece of whoever was holding me down. Finally they released me and I sat up gasping.

Looking around I saw Drake on the floor next to my bed, three red scratch marks marring his arm.

"Oh my god! Drake! I'm sorry!" I said scrambling off the bed and kneeling next to him on the floor.

"It's okay. You were having a nightmare." he said with a small smile.

"No it's not. Hold on." I said and got up and walked into the bathroom.

I wet a wash cloth and walked back out. Drake had moved to the bed so I sat down beside him and pressed it to his arm.

"So you want to talk about it?" Drake asked as I cleaned up the blood.

"About what?" I asked.

"Your dream?"

"Oh." I replied

"C'mon…I know it had to be pretty bad Iz. Nathan and I were coming back from checking if Billy had sent any messages about Parker and we heard you before we even got off the elevator." Drake said.

When we had found out that Parker was the traitor we had contacted Zordon, Alpha and Billy immediately. They had arranged to teleport him off the ship as soon as possible so they could interrogate him themselves. They promised that they would send a message if they got anything that was useful.

I had spent nearly every night for the past 4 days awake waiting for the message. However Ethan had caught on and with Tasha's help had forced me to bed early this morning.

"N-Nathan heard me screaming?" I asked.

"Yeah. He was here until he realized that you weren't in any actual trouble." He replied.

I nodded and sat back against my pillows as he took the wash cloth from me. It kind of hurt he hadn't really been concerned that I was having a nightmare but I really didn't expect anything more since we weren't on the greatest terms at the moment.

"Are you going to tell me about the dream? Or did I risk life and limb to wake you up for nothing?" Drake smirked.

I laughed, "Life and limb? I hardly think scratches count as life and limb bub."

"Aw…come on!" he said.

"I actually really don't want to talk about it." I replied.

"That bad huh?" he asked.

I nodded, "Yeah. It was pretty bad."

He frowned and moved up my bed, "Scootch over."

"What?"

"Scoot over. Do it. As your elder Ninja I insist you do." he said.

I rolled my eyes and moved over. He moved up and put his arm around me, pushing my head onto his shoulder, stroking my hair.

"Now…tell Drakie all about your big bad dream." he said in a baby voice.

I laughed but gave up.

"Fine! I concede! I'll tell you."

"Good. Now talk." he replied.

I took a deep breath, "Okay so I was on this planet and it was all burnt like the one we just left. I was all alone too so I kept walking, looking for you guys when I came to the Megaship. And when I went inside I found you but you were all d-dead. Covered in blood. Then this thing with black eyes attacked me and then I woke up."

Drake hugged me with one arm, "That does sound scary."

"Yeah. It's like my worst nightmare. I don't want to lose any of you and I…I don't know if I could take it. And then to think that Parker was under our nose the whole time…I just…ug." I said and though I tried not to a moment later I was crying, the thoughts of my friends lying lifeless on the bridge floor filling my mind.

Drake pulled me closer so that my face was buried in his chest. He rocked me a little as I cried. Soon the tears stopped and I pulled back a little.

"I'm sorry about your shirt." I said pointing to the wet spot that stained the front of it.

Drake smiled and grabbed the hem of his shirt and brought it up, wiping away the few tears that were lingering on my cheeks, "I have others."

I smiled and sniffed, "I hate crying. It makes me feel like a big baby."

"That's a coincidence then." Drake said.

"What is?" I asked.

"I don't like it when you cry either." he said his smile growing wider.

I laughed and looked up at him. His bright blue eyes locked onto mine and I felt my stomach clench and my heart race. Then before I knew what had happened I crashed my lips into his.

At first Drake hesitated, his lips like stone against mine. However after a few seconds the shock passed and he began to kiss back. I grasped the front of his shirt as his arms wrapped around me, pulling me closer to his chest.

I felt the air around us shift and began to swirl. My hair lifted from my shoulders and fanned out behind me like it was caught in a wind tunnel.

A moment later we pulled apart. Drake rested his forehead against mine.

"You look a little wind blown dear." He said tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

"Yeah. The air system on this ship is pretty strong huh?" I giggled.

"Apparently." he laughed and leaned forward and kissed me again.

I relaxed into it for a moment but then the memories from the dream crept back to the forefront of my mind. Putting my hands on his chest I pushed and broke the kiss.

"Izzy? Did I do something wrong?" he asked.

I shook my head, "No. You didn't do anything. I shouldn't have kissed you in the first place. We…we can't do this."

I got up and moved across the room. The further the distance between Drake and I the better.

"Why not? Why can't we do this? What's stopping us?" Drake asked looking at me.

"A lot of things Drake. First off there's the fact that we're doing something that's more important that either you or I and we can't let a relationship ruin that." I said.

"Izzy…you know that neither of us is going to let our relationship get in the way of everything. We're both too smart and too dedicated to what we do to let that happen." Drake said.

"What about Nathan then? Do you realize what this could look like? I mean the whole reason we originally broke us was because he thought that something was going on between you and I. If we start something here then what will that turn into? The LAST thing we need after this traitor scare is to have World War 3 started on board." I replied.

"Nathan has Kiera. He's obviously moved on. And if you want to then you deserve to as well. You shouldn't worry about what he'd think. He's not in this equation. It's you, it's me and our feelings. Those are the only things that matter."

"What about the fact that Sensei doesn't like it when teammates date?" I asked.

Drake stopped and looked at me, "How do you even know about that? You know what? Never mind. That rule doesn't apply to the two of us. You may be part of the team but you're not an official member of the Wind Academy." Drake replied.

"Drake I-I-" but I couldn't come up with anymore excuses to make up for my fear.

However it turned out that I didn't have to. A moment later the door slid open and Tasha walked in. She paused in the doorway and looked back and forth between the two of us.

"Um…should I go and come back?" she asked.

"No! No. It's okay there's nothing going on. Izzy had a nightmare and I was just comforting her. Making her feel better. I was just getting ready to leave. Later." Drake said and left.

Once the door closed behind him Tasha turned and looked at me.

"Okay…I know that wasn't just nothing. Now spill." she said looking at me with her arms crossed.

I sighed and walked back over to my bed.

"I sort of kissed Drake. I had a nightmare, he came in and woke me up, he was sweet and I kissed him." I said.

"You kissed him?!" she asked walking over and sitting down.

"Yeah. This time it was my choice. Not his." I said staring down at the black polish that coated my nails.

"Wait…rewind that for me? Did you say 'this time'? There's been another kiss before this one?" she asked.

I buried my face in my hands, "Yeah…a few weeks ago. He kissed me when we were waiting in the hall for the simulation contest results. Nothing else happened until today though. But don't worry…I turned him down."

"Turned him down? Why would you do that?" she asked.

"A lot of reasons Tash! There's the fact that we're out here miles from home, fighting god knows what! There's the fact that my ex-boyfriend who has already accused me of cheating on him with the guy I'm kissing is on board. I mean it's a crazy idea." I replied.

"Izzy remember that letter that your Dad sent you? Do you remember what it said?" she asked.

"That he was proud of me?"

Tasha rolled her eyes, "It told you to trust your heart and your gut. That they were your best weapons. What are they telling you now? And don't try and lie to me Izzy. I know when you're lying." she said.

I sat in silence for a few moments as I thought about what she had just said. After a few minutes I came to my conclusion.

"They're saying that I really do care for Drake and that I want to give him a shot."

Tasha smiled, "Then go for it! You deserve a little happiness after everything that's gone on the past few months."

"I do?" I asked.

"Of course! Izzy! You watch out for every single person on this ship and don't think about yourself at all! When was the last time you did something that really made you happy that didn't involve doing something for someone else?" she asked.

I racked my brain but really couldn't think of anything.

"Maybe you're right." I sighed.

"Damn straight I'm right! Now go! Go tell Ninja boy that you're all his!" Tasha laughed.

I smiled, "I will. Thanks Tasha." I grinned and hugged her.

"Anytime. Now move!" she laughed.

Smiling I put on my slippers and headed to find Drake. Walking out into the hall I saw Daphne.

"Hey have you seen your brother?" I asked.

"Oh. He's up in the Rec Room with you assho-I mean brother. Sorry Iz. I really try to keep that under control." she said looking genuinely guilty.

I laughed, "It's okay. I get that you two don't get alone. Just don't hit him okay. You're one of my best friends. I really don't want to have to hurt you."

"Don't worry. I won't let it get that far. However I must ask…does tripping count? How about pranking?" she asked.

"All are fine by me as long as there is no major or lasting damage. But anyhow I have to go find Drake." I said.

Daphne looked at me, one eyebrow raised, "Whoa….hold on missy…is there a reason you're in such a rush to see my brother…especially in your pajamas?"

"Um…maybe. You'll just have to wait and see." I smiled and with a wink I stepped past her.

As I climbed onto the elevator I heard her yell, "I better be Maid of Honor if you get married!"

Laughing the doors slid closed and the elevator moved up. Soon the doors slid open and I walked to the Rec Room.

Ethan and Drake were sitting in the corner with Jakob and Steven. I saw Nathan and Kiera in another corner talking quietly with smiles on their faces. Lara was over by the wall laughing about something with Heather and Iris but looked up at me when I walked in.

Taking a deep breath I walked over to the table where Drake, my brother and friends sat.

"Hey! I thought I told you to get some sleep." Ethan said.

"Chill down big brother. I'll go back to bed in a few. I just need to talk to Drake." I said.

"O-Okay." Drake said and stood up.

We walked out into the hall, stopping a ways from the door.

"So…what's up?" Drake asked.

"I wanted to talk to you about earlier." I replied.

"Oh. That. Look Izzy I'm sorry if you felt that I was pressuring you. I just really really REALLY like you." he replied.

"I really really REALLY like you too." I smiled up at him

"But?" he asked.

I shook my head, "No buts. I thought about what you said and Tasha talked to me a little and I realized that I want to be with you. I want to try and see if there's a possibility of an us." I replied.

"Are you sure? Like really? Like I said I don't want to pressure you." Drake said bending his knees so that he could look me straight in my eye.

I grinned, "I don't feel an ounce of pressure from you or anyone. Now either shut up and kiss me or-" but I didn't get a chance to reply.

Drake put his hands on either side of my face and lowered his lips to meet mine. The kiss was gentle and sweet and warmed me from the top of head to the tips of my toes.

A moment later there was a loud 'whoop'. The two of us jumped apart and looked over to see Lara, Heather and Iris grinning at us.

"A little privacy?" I asked smiled.

"Aww…come on! Just a little show?" Heather asked sticking her tongue out.

"Not even." Drake laughed.

"Ug…you two are useless! We don't have TV here! You're the closest to a damn show we have!" Iris said poking her lip out.

"Still not happening." I smirked.

"Oh well. We had to try." Lara shrugged.

"What are you three out here babbling about?" Steven asked as he came out of the Rec Room with Ethan and Jakob in tow. Just over their shoulders I saw Nathan and Kiera.

"Nothing much…just Izzy and Drake kissing." Heather replied.

"What?!" Ethan asked, his head snapping around to look at me.

"We were kissing? Didn't you hear the girl?" I asked looking at Ethan.

"Are you two a couple?" Jakob asked.

I looked at Drake who shrugged before looking back at Ethan, "Yeah. We are."

The girls broke into grins. However I saw Nathan frown a little. When he saw me looking though he quickly ducked back into the Rec Room. From him my eyes went to my brother.

Ethan gave me a look that asked if I really wanted to do this and I nodded. With that he smiled and walked over and hugged me.

"Congrads. I'm glad you're happy." he said.

"Me too." I replied.

The happy moment though was interrupted when D.E.C.A spoke.

"Now receiving a transmission from Earth."

Without hesitation we all hurried to the bridge. Once everyone was there we pulled it up.

"Can you read me clearly?" Billy asked.

"We read you loud and clear Billy. What's going on?" Ethan asked.

"It's taken some time but we've managed to gain some information from Parker." Billy said.

"What is Zard doing? Where is he?" Drake asked.

Billy shook his head, "We didn't find anything out like that."

"Then what did you find out?" I asked.

"What else could you find?" Steven added.

"We did some scans on Parker since according to not only all of you but to Dustin as well, things like this are out of character. While doing the scans we found some abnormalities." Billy said.

"Abnormalities?" Bridge asked.

"Yes. We determined that sometime since boarding the Megaship he has gone under partial or subconscious indoctrination." Billy said.

"English please Billy?" I asked.

"He's been brainwashed. Either part of the way or only on a level that he's not aware of. Anything he is guilty of is not entirely his fault. It's most likely due to some form of hypnosis." Billy said.

"Hypnotized?! Really?" Lara asked.

"Indeed. The question is when did it happen?" Billy asked.

"Parker was kidnapped!" Sebastian said suddenly.

"You're right! He was there for awhile! Tasha said so herself!" Drake nodded.

"Billy, do you think it's possible that it's possible that the damage could be done in the hour and a half hour or so that it took us to get him out of there?" Ethan asked.

"The brainwashing was quiet thorough but the possibility is there. The other one is that it occurred sometime afterwards which is just as likely." Billy said.

"So it's still possible that one of us could still be involved?" I asked.

Billy nodded, "I'm afraid so."

"I think it happened when he was stuck in that fortress." Lara said suddenly.

"So do I." May-Lily nodded.

"Well to prevent anything like this from happening again we've chosen to not send Parker back. There could be a trigger there that might send him back into sabotage mode. He'll be returning to Blue Bay Harbor unless you truly need him." Billy said.

"That sounds like the best option." Drake nodded.

"Well if you guys don't mind Parker wants to talk to you." Billy said.

"Put him on." Ethan said.

Billy moved aside and Parker came on screen.

"Hey guys." he said his voice quiet.

"Hey Park. How are you feeling?" Daphne asked.

"I'm doing okay. Look…I just want to tell you guys how sorry I am about everything. I feel so bad about it. I cost all those people their lives and the worst part is I don't remember anything about it." he said.

"Parker it wasn't you fault. You weren't yourself." Drake protested.

"Still. It's my fault. I don't deserve to be a Ranger." Parker replied.

"You deserve it every bit as much as we do" Lara said.

"And we'll find out who did this and we'll stop them." Sebastian swore.

Parker gave a small smile but it was more of a sad one than one of gratefulness.

He gave a nod and looked back at all of us, "I gotta go guys because I have a plane back to Blue Bay to catch but I wish you guys luck. I know you can do it." he said.

We all bid him goodbye and he disappeared from screen.

"I'll contact you if I find anything else out." Billy said.

"Thanks Billy." Ethan nodded.

"Hey! Billy!" Jakob said suddenly.

"Yes Jakob?" Billy asked.

"How's Ann doing?" he asked.

Billy smiled, "She's doing well. She and the other Rangers are helping us monitor galactic situations."

"Good. If you talk to her again let her know we all miss her." Jakob said.

"Will do guys. Bye." Billy said and the screen went black.

Everyone went their separate ways, Drake and I heading back to my room at Ethan's insistence that I get some more sleep.

"So do you really think that Zard's general had something to do with Parker?" I asked.

Drake sighed, "I do…at least I hope so."

I smiled, "I'm going to go lay down. I'll catch up with you later okay?" I asked.

He nodded, "Later sweetheart."

He leaned down and kissed me softly before I headed to my room. For the first time in a long time I was able to push all the negative thoughts aside and I fell asleep with a smile on my face.