Author's Notes: Hi, readers. Here's chapter twenty-one of "Ride the Wind." I didn't mean to take nearly two weeks to get it out. I had a bad case of writer's block. This chapter has some Andros/Ashley, Zhane/Karone, and Jesse/Nadine. Zhane and Karone's stories have been moved from chapters eleven and twelve over to chapter ten and combined with Ashley's as I felt they belonged there. Stay tuned for chapter twenty-two.

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Chapter 21: Stories Shared

All seventeen people were still sitting around the fire pit more than an hour later. Jesse, Nadine, Randolph, and Rae listened carefully as Jason told them about the battle with Frankenstein. Heather and Benny sat in their fathers' laps while Olivia was still in her mother's. All the corn had been shucked and were in a large pan next to Kim's chair.

"Frankenstein took his bolts and swung them at the Dragonzord and Megazord. He hit them multiple times. The Dragonzord charged and swung its tail at him. He caught it very easily. He picked up the Dragonzord and slammed it against the Megazord, knocking it down. He twirled it around several times before letting go of it. It landed right beside us," Jason said, moving his hand downward to imitate the Dragonzord's crashing into the ground. "He breathed a red mist on us that made breathing difficult."

"We formed the Dragon Megazord," Trini said and propped her head up with her elbow. "We thought it'd be a lot easier to defeat him, but we were wrong. He continued to pummel us with his bolts. We fired an energy beam from the crest, but he sent it right back to us. We powered up the Power Staff and hit him in his stomach as he charged. He broke apart and exploded." She sighed in relief.

"Wow. That was intense," Jesse said in awe.

Nadine furrowed her brow. "Who would've thought Frankenstein would be one of Rita's monsters?"

"What's weird is she had Finster create him from a clay mold instead of using body parts," Randolph said with a shake of his head.

Rae became thoughtful. "I guess she thought it wasn't worth the trouble putting body parts together."

"Most likely," Billy agreed. "She and Lord Zedd were very smart and came up with brilliant plans. Some of them came very close to succeeding." He cringed somewhat.

"Master Vile was smarter than the two of them combined. Unlike them, he didn't mess around when it came to being evil. He meant business," Tommy said, swallowing hard.

"He was looking for the Zeo Crystal when he came to our galaxy. It was actually hidden in the Caves of Deception on the moon. He gave the Tengas a special seed that made them a lot tougher. We had to call upon our Metallic Armor to fight them. Zordon determined we had to get the crystal before Vile could. Tommy decided to go. I went with him to keep Rita and Zedd occupied by pretending I wanted to be evil again," Kat said.

"Rocky, Adam, Aisha, and I went to battle Vile's monster, the Blue Globbor, with the Ninja and Shogun Megazords in Downtown Angel Grove," Billy commented. "He was draining power from Ninjor, whom he had captured earlier when he tried to help us with the Tengas. We encountered a problem when he managed to drain the Shogun Megazord of its power. We had to fight him in the Ninja Megazord, and its power was low too." He showed fear.

Tommy swallowed hard. "I was really scared when I went through the Caves of Deception to get the Zeo Crystal before Master Vile could. Its name is well deserved because nothing is what it appears to be. I encountered illusions of the team betraying me and joining Vile and Kat being turned evil by Rita and Zedd. There was even one of Kat telling me I had too much evil in me to approach the force field that protected the crystal."

Tommy took a deep breath in an effort to keep himself from losing it. He shook his head and squeezed his eyes shut. Heather glanced up at her father, concern showing in her eyes.

"You okay, Daddy?" Heather asked.

"I'm fine, darling. Don't worry about me," Tommy answered and opened his eyes. He kissed the top of his daughter's head. "Fortunately, I found the courage to fight through them and get out before Kat turned against me."

"We also rescued the Falconzord in the process. It was pretty funny seeing the shocked looks on Rita and Zedd's face after Tommy teleported into their throne room," Kat added.

Rae smiled. "I would've loved to have seen that."

Jesse let out a small chuckle. "Me too."

"Anyway, the Falconzord combined with the Ninja Megazord to form the Ninja Megafalconzord. We finished Globbor off with a double punch. He stood right up. As it turned out, he had drained all Ninjor's power and was now connected to him. He even took on various parts of him. Every time we hit him, Ninjor would be injured. He kept striking the Ninja Megafalconzord and Shogun Megazord. The cockpit exploded with so many sparks that it looked like a light show. We were ejected from the cockpit. Both Megazords fell to the ground. The Falconzord landed beside them. Globbor unleashed a vicious assault on the zords. Master Vile teleported them to a planet in the M-51 Galaxy," Kat mumbled, trying not to cry.

"That battle was scary, wasn't it, Mommy?" Olivia asked, looking up at her mother.

Kat nodded and hugged her daughter. "Very much so, sweetheart."

"Globbor drained us of our power when we fought him at his normal size. Not even the Metallic Armor stopped him. We used the power we had left to blind him before going back to the Command Center. Zordon restored our power. Vile made everyone party at the Youth Center with monsters like there was no tomorrow. Moreover, he had darkened the planet with an eclipse. After we located the zords, we went to get them back. Master Vile used the crystal to destroy parts of the Earth while we were inside the Shogun Megazord trying to get to it. We reached it and broke his connection to it. We returned to Earth with the zords to battle Globbor for a second time. He used the power he absorbed from us to turn himself into a multi-headed monstrosity. We went back and forth with him several times before Alpha reversed the spell of darkness. This weakened Globbor to the point that Ninjor was able to free himself. Vile made himself grow. After we destroyed Globbor, we used the Shogun Megafalconzord to give him a piece of our mind. He realized he was defeated and retreated. Tommy destroyed the crystal with Saba after I suggested that it be broken into pieces, so Zordon could scatter them throughout time," Billy finished.

Jesse, Nadine, Randolph, and Rae had amazed expressions on their faces. They looked at each other for thirty seconds before returning their attention to their friends.

"Despite I was scared throughout the battle, being a Power Ranger did give me confidence. It helped me to see there was hope if we just stuck together. I was happy we made it out alive," Kat said with pride.

Tommy laughed lightly. "We all were."

"Everyone knows it's important to have confidence in yourself. When you do, you can accomplish anything," Andros said truthfully.

Ashley crossed her arms. "Yep."

"All I can say is you had a lot of confidence when you fought the forces of evil. Because of the Power Rangers, the universe is at peace," Jesse said in great happiness.

"For that, we thank you," Nadine added.

Zhane formed a big smile on his face. "You're welcome."

Jesse, Nadine, Randolph, and Rae couldn't stop themselves from chuckling. Benny started singing nonsense, causing them to look at him.

"Why are you singing nonsense, Benny?" Randolph asked in curiosity.

"Because I'm silly," Benny admitted, sitting up tall and proud. "So is everyone else in our group, especially Mommy and Daddy."

"If you ask me, the title of the silliest person in our group should go to Zhane," Karone commented, eyeing her boyfriend, who shook his head.

"Yeah, right," Zhane whispered, sarcasm dropping from his voice. He ducked when his girlfriend tried to ruffle his hair. He came back up. "Ha, ha. You were too slow." A big smirk formed on his face.

"Wipe off that silly smirk. This is the army," Karone replied in Haithi's voice. She giggled at seeing his smirk vanish. "I got you to stop smirking."

"You did, but you didn't expect this!" Zhane yelled and tickled her neck, making her squeal with laughter. He ceased his assault on her.

"You two can be so—" Andros started.

"Andros," Ashley warned as she looked at him, a disapproving expression on her face.

"Nutty. I was going to say nutty, Ashley," Andros answered and groaned loudly. "Geez. Do you always have to assume I will say a bad word in front of the kids?"

"Hey, I just want you to be careful. The same goes for everyone else and myself," Ashley commented.

"At least you care enough for wanting everyone to be careful with their language," Andros replied, kissing her temple and putting his arm around her.

Jesse and Nadine looked at each other with a shrug. She felt the baby move and placed her hand on her stomach. He laid his on it. They laughed at feeling the baby kick against their hands. Tommy smiled slyly.

"You got a real active baby there?" Tommy wondered.

Jesse nodded. "Oh, yeah. This isn't actually our first child. It's our second. Our first was lost to a miscarriage." Sadness showed on his and Nadine's faces.

"Oh, we are so sorry," Kat whispered in sympathy.

Kim touched her throat. "Tommy and I know how you and Nadine feel, Jesse. We lost our second child to a miscarriage."

"My baby sibling is in heaven," Heather added.

"On top of that, I wasn't as fortunate when I was a kid. My life was really messed up before I was adopted by Glen and Annie Greenwood," Jesse commented.

"I'm adopted too. My parents abandoned me when I was six years old. Josh and Jerry Oliver adopted me not long after. It wasn't until I was a teenager that I learned I had an older brother named David," Tommy said.

Jesse gasped in shock. "Wow! I have a brother too. He's a half-brother, actually. His name is Elvis, and he's younger than me."

"Would you like to hear an incredible story?" Randolph asked.

"Sure," the former Rangers and the children replied eagerly.

"Okay," Randolph said and rubbed his hands together. "I want to tell you about someone who is a very important individual in Jesse's life. He influenced him to become a better person. He is an orca named Willy. Back in 1992, he was taken illegally from the wild and brought to Northwest Adventure Park. He was nowhere near trainable. The owners of the park were furious about the amount of money they were losing. The tank was also too small. Willy's dorsal flopped over after only a few months in captivity."

Ashley felt her jaw drop. "There was an orca with a flopped-over dorsal we saw on the ferry ride to the island."

"You saw Willy?" Nadine asked in surprise.

"Was that him?" Andros wondered.

"Yes, it is. He's the only orca among the Southern Residents with a completely flopped-over dorsal," Nadine said, happiness showing in her voice.

The former Rangers and their children broke into excited chatter, especially Andros and Ashley. They couldn't believe they saw Willy. They thought that was so neat. They stopped after ten seconds.

"Anyway, Jesse broke into the aquatic theater's maintenance building. He found some spray paint and vandalized underwater viewing area. The cops showed up and busted him. He turned out to be a street kid who had only a couple days until he moved in with the Greenwoods. As a result, he had to clean up the mess he made. He had a fascination with Willy from the start. He helped Willy's official trainer, Rae, with chores. One night, he sneaked out and went to the tank to say goodbye to Willy because he was almost done with his job. While there, he slipped and fell into the tank unconscious. Willy got him out and onto stable ground. I found him and took him home to his parents. I offered him a summer job to help with Willy's training. I knew that if anyone could train him, it was Jesse," Randolph explained.

"Wow," Kim said, raising her eyebrows.

Jesse smiled widely. "Randolph and Rae saw Willy and me playing around one afternoon. Willy still would not respond to her when she approached us. Randolph told me Nastelane's story to help me understand. I'll save that for another time. I managed to train Willy very quickly. I was even diving into the water to swim with him. Rae, Willy, and I did an audition for the park's owners, who were ecstatic about his performance. A show was set up. It promised to be an enormous hit and provide enough money to expand Willy's too-small tank."

"The first day brought waves of people into the theater, but everything was going wrong from the start. Willy wouldn't respond to the signals Jesse gave him and chose to swim in circles at nearly top speed. To add to that, he barreled into the tank wall. It caused a leak that was quickly patched up. Jesse was embarrassed and fled the park," Rae added.

Jesse's smile faded as he remembered that fateful day. He hated how he had spoken to Dwight, who was only trying to help him. He didn't want to listen to him or anyone else. He wished he had been more mature about the situation. He regained his composure.

"I returned to say goodbye to Willy that night. I was hoping to find my birth mother in California. Her name was Nancy, and she abandoned me when I was six. Before I left, I realized Willy's family was why he was acting so strangely. He was homesick. His family would cry out to him from the adjoining bay. Then I saw someone widening the hole in the tank," Jesse said and cleared his throat.

"Jesse ran to get me," Randolph continued. "I found that the park's owner had been trying to collect the insurance money. Willy was worth one million dollars. Jesse got the idea that we should free Willy, but it was a race against the clock. We took Glen's truck and used it to tow the sling Willy was carried in. We barely got him out in time with Rae's help. The glass burst, flooding the underwater viewing area. We decided to take a forest road, but we were blocked by a tree. Trying to back up, the trailer went off the road and began to slide down a steep hill. We radioed Glen and Annie for help when we couldn't get it back up. Glen helped us out. We headed for Dawson's Marina. We'd lost much time. There was already a crew ready to keep Willy penned in. Jesse ran to the breakwater. He called for Willy to follow him. After a short pep talk, Jesse gave Willy a signal. Everyone watched as Willy backed up and swam at top speed. Jesse and I repeated Nastelane's prayer. He cued Willy to leap. Everyone held their breath as Willy flew high into the air over Jesse's head and to his freedom. I was surprised at how well off he was, despite he hadn't been in the wild in a long time. Jesse was overjoyed, but we knew he missed Willy." He smiled in triumphant.

Tommy, Kim, Heather, Jason, Trini, Benny, Billy, Kat, Olivia, Andros, Ashley, Zhane, and Karone appeared very awed by what they had heard. They saw looks on their friends' faces that told them there was more to the story. They were eager to hear the rest.

"In 1995, Jesse, Glen, Annie, and Elvis visited the island for a camping trip. By that time, I was working for the Orca Research Institute. The day they arrived, I took Jesse out on this boat with my goddaughter, Nadine. Her father once worked with me in commercial fishing. He and his wife chose me to be their daughter's godfather when she was born. Jesse saw Willy for the first time in two years. I was going to take him out again the next day, but there was a problem with the bilge pump. He and Nadine encountered Willy at the Rubbing Rocks. That night, an oil tanker ran aground in a nearby reef. It spilled oil everywhere. Willy, Littlespot, and Luna were trapped in the cove. Luna is Willy's younger sister, and Littlespot is his younger brother. She can be identified by a crescent-shaped marking on her dorsal, and he has black spots in his eyepatches that identify him. Jesse found that Luna had beached herself. Nadine and I took samples. We were afraid the oil had gotten into her lungs. She was very sick. A good friend of mine, Kate Haley, attempted to give her antibiotics, but Willy wouldn't let her near his sister," Randolph said.

"I had to distract him, so Luna could be given the medicine. Randolph taught me how to make a strong, ancient medicine called skookum from plants found on the island. Luna was better by the next morning. However, Elvis had run off during the night. He overheard a conversation in a Friday Harbor coffee shop. Two men that Randolph and I had been working with were planning to take the orcas into rehab and sell them to an aquarium. I used Willy's old tricks to break the netted boom and free them. Elvis, Nadine, and I followed them in Dad's boat. The grounded tanker exploded, and the oil caught fire. A rescue copter managed to get Elvis and Nadine out, but I was trapped. Willy carried me under the flames on his back. Afterward, he, Littlespot, and Luna made it back to their family," Jesse added.

"Jesse and I started a relationship during all that. We continued it after he and his family returned home. Then my parents and I moved to Seattle that fall, and they started a sporting goods store. He was happy about me attending the same high school as he was," Nadine said, a happy smile crossing her lips.

The former Rangers and the children showed much amazement. They broke into quiet chatter. They became quiet after ten seconds.

"In 1997, Jesse helped on a big research vessel with me," Randolph said and rubbed his nose. "We found Willy with a spear in his flukes one morning. He'd been shot at by a whaling vessel. We learned Willy was to be a father soon after. The mother was Nikki, and she has a distinctive knick in her dorsal. She was originally from L-Pod. Jesse had recently become friends with a boy named Max. He found out later Max was to follow in his father's footsteps and become a whaler." He became a little tense at the last word, but he regained his composure quickly. "Jesse helped him change his mind by bringing him to Willy, and they goofed around for the day. Max started spoiling his father's whaling attempts. One night, Jesse and I took out the research vessel with one of the other researchers. It was foggy when we rammed the ship to stop the crew from harming the orcas. The whaler, John Wesley, ended up in the water. Willy began to attack him, but Max stopped him. An unstable post with a net tied to it fell on Wesley. He became entangled and started drowning. As ironic as it sounds, Willy saved him, causing him to have an immediate change of heart. Soon after, Nikki gave birth to a calf Jesse named Max."

"Great story!" Benny yelled delightfully.

"Oh, there's more. Willy and Nikki had a daughter named Isabella in 2003. Luna found her mate in Alex, a male orca from K-Pod. They have two offspring, a son named Ben born in 1999 and a daughter named Sparkle born in 2005. Nadine and I ended our romance in our junior year of high school, but we remained friends. We rekindled it while we attended Washington University. We started that after we graduated high school in 1999. During the summers, we stayed with Randolph and went out with him to gain experience in case we wanted to study orcas elsewhere. After we got our marine biology degrees in 2004, we started working alongside him not long after. Elvis started attending the same college we did after he graduated high school in 2005. He wanted to get a marine biology degree and study orcas. Nadine and I moved into our cabin after my grandfather died of a heart attack that same year. He was my dad's father and willed it to my family. We've lived there ever since. Elvis stayed with us during the summers and would go out with Randolph and us, so he could gain experience in case he wanted to study orcas elsewhere. He is staying with friends in San Francisco this summer," Jesse said, clearing his throat.

"Nadine was in Boston with her parents during the poaching crisis. I was working to get my PhD in marine biology at Washington University when the oil spill occurred. I got that in 1996. I went on to study orcas in Newfoundland. I've visited Seattle and San Juan Island a couple of times to see my friends. I decided to live here this summer," Rae added.

Tommy, Kim, Heather, Jason, Trini, Benny, Billy, Kat, Olivia, Andros, Ashley, Zhane, and Karone took slow yet even breaths. They considered the story their friends told them to be the most incredible they'd ever heard, especially when it came to Jesse and Willy. Not once did they ever think they'd meet someone who had freed a captive orca. It seemed almost unreal to them.

"Jesse, has Willy ever bitten you?" Trini asked curiously.

"No, but I was nervous about petting his tongue for the first time," Jesse said with a hearty laugh. "I thought he would bite me by accident. I learned to do it eventually." He looked toward Rae, who smiled at him.

"Orcas do love to have their tongues stroked," Rae commented.

"The orcas at the aquarium have pretended to bite Trini and me a few times," Karone admitted. "They love to see what they can get away with."

"I imagine," Jesse whispered, winking at Trini and Karone.

"How about we look at some pictures of Willy and his podmates?" Randolph suggested.

"That'd be nice," Tommy said in a warm voice. The others voiced their agreement. "Let's get dinner cooking too."

"Okay," Nadine said in happiness. She laughed at the others voicing their agreement again. "I'm starving."

"Only because of the baby," Jesse quipped. He laughed at feeling Nadine elbow him in the arm. He and Randolph stood up to go their trucks to get picture albums. Billy proceeded to get a fire going.