Keys To The Universe
By Didi
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the recognizable characters; they are the sole property of Saban and company. I am not making any money off of this, though I wish I was, so please do not sue me. All you are going to get is pocket lint.
Rated: R due to context and language. I reserve the right to change the rating if I feel like picking up the heat a little. Enjoy.
Author's Note: A thousand apologies for the long delay. I went on vacation and didn't do any writing, which is why all the stories are getting updated so late. I'll try to do better. This story appeared to be winding down. I hope to finish it soon. I will thank everyone in advance for taking the long and rather strange journey with me.
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Chapter Thirty Six - A Ray of Hope
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-Astro Mega Ship-
She murmured something softly in her sleep, curling closer to the warmth that did not emanate from herself.
Tommy smiled as he pulled his lover closer, watching as she mewed like a kitty. She was sleeping restlessly when he came into his own quarters after being probably ordered to bed again by Adam. It would seemed the others have set up a semi schedule to relieve some of the stress from the current Rangers. Kimberly had been tossing and turning in his bed when he walked in, announcing her presence in the darkened room.
It had only been all too natural to crawl into bed with her, pulled her tightly to him and shared body heat.
Funny how after so many years apart, she still fitted into his arms like she had been born there. How easily they had slipping into patterns and routines thought long forgotten. His hands fell into familiar curves, her arms reached out consciously to familiar embraces, their bodies fitting together like two connecting pieces of a puzzle. And how quietly and easily she had just simply made herself a significant part of his life once more.
"Hum... is it time to get up?" she asked, her voice thick with slumber. Her cheeks rubbed against his shoulder blade, causing him to shiver with delight.
"No," he whispered back, not really wanting her to wake yet. "I thought I would join you in bed and take the next shift. Billy is going to cover this one with the others."
"That's nice," she murmured back, her head having found a nice position between my shoulder and the pillow. "Good night."
"Night," he replied softly, pressing a kiss to her temple. He felt like the luckiest man in the world and decided to take advantage of the relative peace they were having now. How knows how long that would last. Draping one arms over her thin waist, Tommy settled in. "I love you, Kim."
"I love you too, Tommy." Her lips moved against the muscle she was resting on. "Now go to sleep."
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-Planet Gildon-
"For the love of Zordon's Aunts, tell me you're joking!" Koran pulled his long robes on even as he was hurried down the corridor by the six young squires he had left to over see the scanner readings while he made a valiant attempt to sleep. "What happened?"
"Killian did an updated readings and we managed to pushed the scanner to the higher frequencies and extend the..."
"Get to the point Liam, I do not have the patience any more for unless information." He snapped with unusual show of temper.
"They were coming around the Shiften Belt, radiation levels so high that our scanners haven't been able to penetrate it. We didn't get any indication of any problems until they've moved pass the belt." Killian chewed on his nails, feeling his heart lodge in his throat. "I ran the scan three times now and..."
"I don't doubt it," Koran took a deep breath and closed his eyes to compose himself. When he opened those tired orbs of wisdom, he was back in control of himself if looking a little worse for wear. "Get the Council of the Elders, I'm calling an emergency meeting. After I've spoken to the Elders, I want you to get me the Rangers."
"But the fleet..."
"Godian, I don't have time to get explain to every captain why they need to pull their troops right now. Get the Council online and we'll move from there."
"Yes, sir."
Koran dropped into the seat in front of the computer and allowed his eyes to scan the new readings and held his breath, hoping these underlings had made some horrible mistake. And while Liam was a bit long winded and Godian tends to be short sighted, they were all good kids that knew what they were doing. He could only hope they got a chance to grow up into good leaders.
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-Subspace-
"Is it me or does this just never seem to end," Coran muttered under his breath.
Nudging him with her elbow, Marrian tried not to look as pained at she felt. The throbbing headache that had been developing for the past few days was really making concentration hard under normal circumstances. But this was hardly normal... this was... Oh heck, it was about as abnormal as one can get. "What can you tell us?"
"So far, we're tracking about six thousand single-seat spacecraft, nothing like we've ever seen before." Koran's eyes strained against the exhaustion as his vision blurred. "It's headed straight for the fleet."
"Friend or... never mind," Coran said with a roll of his eyes. "That's a dumb question to begin with."
"Glad I didn't have to point it out," Koran replied dryly.
"Boys," Marrian murmured distressingly. "We really do not have the time for this."
"She's right," Elder Promalia nodded her head and sighed. She's had less then twelve hours of sleep in the last three days and her patience was running thin. "What we need is a plan."
"I've got one," Elder Umbliran raised one finger to make his presence known. "Turn the ships around and head in the other direction. They're in no condition to fight another battle." He sighed and rubbed his eyes. The last ten hours had been spent glued to a screen. At his age, he should not abuse his body so.
"We cannot leave the Rangers vulnerable to an attack," Fulmore argued, his faced seemed to have aged ten years. "There has to be some other way."
"This never seems to end" Promalia complained without any bitterness. "Let's get the Ranger's input on this. We cannot make any decision without them."
"They have enough troubles as is with a broken ship and wounded Rangers, let us try to keep the problems for them at a minimum, shall we?" Kilmer suggested.
"No," Koran shook his head and wished for something with more of a kick than the weak tea he's been sipping. "They will not be happy if we keep them out of the loop. It's time."
"Get them hooked up then," Coran sighed, knowing that this was going to be the beginning of a very long day.
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-Astro Mega Ship-
"Why is it that you guys can never seem to call us with good news?" Zack complained with a roll of his eyes. He and Tanya had rushed up to the command deck when word had come to them that the Elders had called. So far, only the two of them along with Aisha, Billy and Rocky was there. The others were still resting. No need to call them up yet. "Why can't we ever get a break around here?"
Ignoring his friend, Billy sighed and asked what was needed. "Can I get the specs? I want to move on this fast. And give me all the options there, regardless of your opinion of them." His knowing eyes could easily sense the discord among the Elders.
"You shall have them," Koran replied, his eyes troubled by what he sees. "And you Rangers? How are you holding up?"
"We're hanging in there," Aisha replied, offering the concern old man a smile worthy of her position in the team. "No need to concern yourselves."
"On the contrary," Marrian offered her own gentle concern to the one expressed by the rest of the Council. She may not have ever been a mother, but the soft side of her could mother with the best of them. "We do not have to be concern with the universe to be concern by the what we see happening to you. The stress has ravaged your peace. We can see that."
"We are a lot more steady than we normally appear," Billy replied quietly ignoring the slight soreness behind his eyes, where the sleepless nights seemed to have left evidence at. "At the moment. We have conceived of some routine to allow all of us some time to rest."
"Good," Promalia replied with a nod of her head. Mother of three and grandmother of seven, she was more than ready to give the youngsters a good scolding if necessary. "We shall await your suggestions."
"Thank you Elder," Rocky replied, eyes straying to the coffee that was being consumed by the gallons. "Astro Mega Ship out." When his hand left the controls, Rocky slide into the seat behind and let out a howl of frustration.
Going over, Aisha combed her fingers through her fiancé's hair and rubbed his neck. "You said it."
"This so suck," Rocky complained into his palms as he tried to physically restrain himself from picking up something and throwing it at the viewing screen. He was sick of this, just plan sick of this. The universe seemed determine to see just how much shit that Rangers can endure before they die. "I hate this fucking thing."
Though he disapproves of profanity, Billy could have put it any better himself. "Wake the others, let's call a meeting."
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"It's like we're running in circles," Carlos murmured to no one in particular as he tried to rub the sleep from his eyes and the ach from his lids. The cold was making sleeping difficult and waking up even harder. His hand reached automatically to the cross around his neck, a small piece of sanity he seemed to rely on more and more.
"Feels like it doesn't it," Jason sighed and rolled his shoulders. The medical room had the worse possible chairs to sleep in. "So what do you guys think?"
The others all tried to avoid each others eyes, no one really willing to share their thought at the moment as they considered all the possible options, or lack of them. With the exception of Trini, who was still sleeping off the effects of the seal breaking, and Rocky, who had volunteered to watch the engine room while the meeting was being held, the others were all huddled together for extra warmth.
Cassie stared up at the ceiling; her arms wrapped the blanket she had snagged from her room tight around her. "Can't let them go at it alone."
"We cannot turn this ship back," Kat groaned as she leaned against Tanya. She had only been getting to bed when the call to arms came in. All she wanted to do was get under as many covers as she can withstand and take a nice long nap.
"Turning back isn't even going to be an option," TJ replied with a sigh of regret. His decision to burn the engines to maximum speed had eliminated that possibility.
"Don't kick yourself," Tommy warned, his arms wrapped around a shivering Kimberly who was having the worse case of the morning shivers yet. The feeling in her fingers and toes were all but gone. Not even Tommy's considerable body heat had been enough to keep her from having the mild case of hypothermia. "It was a decision made and we stand by it."
"Do they plan on confronting the approaching ships?" Adam asked, his head feeling like lead as he leaned against the bulkhead of the ship. He had woken up from a restless slumber with a headache that wasn't going away even with three cups of coffee in his system already. The chill of the ship was getting worse. He wasn't sure how his body was going to tolerate any more of it.
"I'm afraid to say that it looks like the Elders are really leaning that way," Billy answered as he glanced through the notes given to him.
"They're in no condition to take on another battle, especially without us there," Ashley replied, her dark eyes filled with frustration and concern for the welfare of the nameless soldiers. "What if..."
"What is it?" Karone asked, encouraged now that someone at least have an idea of what to do.
Ashley looked at the pretty girl's hopeful face and almost groaned. "What if you guys drop us off, let us go back and help the fleet. Like you guys said, the current Rangers are unlikely to be carrying any Keys so..."
"No," Andros shook his head and winced silently as his head throbbed with pain. The near freezing conditions were no help to his physical exhaustion. "I disagree."
"As do I," Tommy added, shaking his head at the current Yellow Ranger who had a mule headed look that was just beginning to appear on her face. "First of all, you guys are in no condition to take one another battle yourselves. Most of you don't have the energy to save your own hide much less the fleet's collective ones. Second, you guys don't have your gliders anymore, remember?"
That thought had escaped Ashley's mind but she wasn't about to give up yet. "Well the status pods can keep us for a while, we wait for the next ship to come pick up us and get us to the fleet. I'm sure there has to be a couple still functioning around here that will..."
"And if it's an unexpected enemy ship that comes along first?" Kim asked sweetly, backing up her man.
"Though I really do hate to do this," TJ interjected from his corner. "But I have to agree with them, Ash. Not such a good idea, especially with so many unpredictable elements to count in."
"Then what do you suggest?" just a little stung that her friends didn't back her.
"I suggest that we come up with something that doesn't involve adding more dead bodies to the count," TJ gave her a sympathetic look. "Look we're all just a little..."
"How fast are they going?" Jason asked, his head suddenly popping up from where it had been resting on his arms. "Are they moving faster than us?"
"They're single capacity ships, probably moving faster than most larger battle ships do," Billy glanced down at his notes.
"But they have single engines with no jump capabilities," Andros did quick calculations in his head. "No, I'd say we're still a good six or seven clicks faster than anything they can do."
Karone's eyes lit up light a kid's at Christmas as her fingers dug into the arms of the half-asleep Zhane as winced and carefully pry her fingers loose. Frowning at her, the Silver Ranger glanced at his equally bewildered best friend before turning back to Karone. "What is it, baby?"
"That's absolutely brilliant, Jason," her grin wide and wide-awake now. "Why didn't we think of it sooner?"
"I have my moments," Jason replied with a quick smile for her as he got up. "You explain it to the peanut gallery. I'm going to go check on Trini again then head to bed. Don't wake me unless it's raining gasoline and someone's got a lit match. Night, you all."
Tommy watched his best friend's retreating back until the door closed. "What the hell was that?"
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"I'm not sure I understand this, Rangers," Coran was rubbing his head in frustration. "You want us to do absolutely nothing?"
"That's correct," Tommy replied, feeling slightly foolish since he didn't know why he had been elected to explain it to the Council of Elders. With Karone's understand and Billy's brilliance, one of them should be doing this. But no, everyone had taken and vote and guess what became the unlucky bastard. "Move your ships out of their way and let them through. It's us they're after, not the fleet. So they're going to have to chase us down to get to us."
"And we should simply let them?" Kilmer asked with a frown on his face.
"We're going pretty fast. By Billy and Andros's calculations, they're no way in this side of Hades that they're going to catch up with us before we reach Gildeon. So why waste man power, not to mention lives, if they are never going to reach their objectives in time to stop us."
"Hades?" one of the assistant could be heard in the background. "What's Hades?"
"Read your Earth history," someone hissed back without any sympathy.
"Hum..." the corner's of Marrian's lips twitched for a moment. "And who's idea was this?"
"Jason's," Tommy answered with a grin. "He's gone back to bed now."
"Good for him," Promalia answered with a quick laugh, the first one she's had in days. "I'm in agreement with the Rangers. Anyone else?"
"I'd be a fool not to second it," Marrian replied with a shared smile with her old friend. "Coran?"
"Dare I agree with the two of you ladies?" came the light hearted and relieved reply. "Agreed."
"Agreed."
"Agreed."
"Agreed."
"Most assuredly agreed."
"I'm in concurrence."
"Agreed."
"Put it to the other elders, Kilmer," Koran said as he turned to watch his people still scrambling about pulling reading and data from computers. "And move those ships."
"I'm on it," Kilmer replied before stepping off the screen leaning the others to take for a moment.
"What's your ETA?" Koran asked, when Coran and the others had signed off.
"At least forty-six hours," Andros replied. His eyes were never far from the count down clock and his mind never stopped to click at all the possibilities. "We should be there before..."
"Yes," Koran agreed with a nod. "Good luck Rangers. May Zordon protect you."
"Thank you Elder." Billy replied before his hand slide across the panel to sign off, sighing with relief. "Well, that went off very well, don't you think?"
Adam groaned and dropped his head into his hands. "Okay, everyone back to bed. Next shift in two hours."
"When is the next seal to go?" Tommy asked as he got up with Kimberly and headed for the door.
"Six hours," Carlos replied, his eyes on the countdown clock. "Brace yourselves guys, it's going to be a bumpy one, I just know it."
"No one stays alone, got it?" Billy reminded them all.
"Yeah."
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Andros pressed his hand to his side and tried to suppress the shiver of pain. His entire body ached, has been so since the seal exploded in his mind, weakening him considerably. The exhaustion he can deal with, it wouldn't be the first time that's his pushed himself beyond endurance. But it was the added stress from the cold that made it almost unbearable.
"You okay?" Cassie asked quietly, afraid that he would fall if she so much as touched him.
Straightening, embarrassed at having been caught at a weak moment, Andros forced himself not to groan as his entire body screamed in pain. "Cassie, is there something I can do for you?"
She studied him with a critical eyes, noting the way his appeared to be having trouble standing with the support of one hand on the wall. "Always got to be the macho man, don't you?"
"I beg your pardon?" he asked, confusion clearly clouding his understanding.
"You," she poked him with a finger then had to scramble to catch him when he stumbled. "Always got to be the strong one. The one in charge. The one that's got to do everything on their own without anyone to help. Always the top dog in the pack. Always...."
"Are you finished?" he asked, taking a moment to simply allow another to care for him before drawing himself away from her supporting arm. "I was going to go check on Trini. She was..."
"She's fine. And if you interrupt Jason with her, you're not going to be." She grinned cheerfully at him before taking his arms. "And while Trini is getting the much deserved rest that her friends, not to mention everyone else, thinks she needs, you are going a banged up job of taking over her position as the most over worked member of this team." Looping his arm over her shoulders, she steered him toward his quarters.
"Cassie..."
"Yeah? Man, you're heavier than you look."
"Cassie, stop." Andros tried to withdraw his arm but found that he was too tired to do more than put up useless struggles. "I..."
"You what?" she replied, glaring at him for his foolishness. "I just got raked over the coals for thinking that I needed to protect the others by being all brave and strong and non-complaining. All that and Adam still managed to make me feel all guilty and shit." She grunted as she stopped at his door and struggled to push the opening mechanism. "Oh hell.... DECA, could you open this door for me?"
"Opening," came the soothing reply.
"Thank you," she called back as she dragged Andros even as he still made protesting noises. "Behave oh great leader of mine or I'll sic the rest of the older Rangers on you. And let me tell you, those guys are pros at going in circles around a person and making you feel like a six year old again." She grunted as she helped in on the bed. "Please tell me you sleep on the bottom one."
"I don't think Zhane will mind," he replied as he rested his shoulder against the bed frame. His mind was screaming for him to lie down and closed his eyes for the rest of the Trip to Gildeon. Only Zordon will know what is expected of him once he reached the Chamber. But his body is telling him to get up, move around, jump up and down, fight a few bad guys... anything to get his circulation going faster and warm himself up. Forget about the fact that all his muscles felt like that horrible gelatin that Ashley liked to eat. Knowing what extreme cold could do to his body, not to mention his powers, he made an effort to stand.
"Hey, hey, hey..." Cassie, having slept three hours under the same blanket as Ashley, gave him a shove on the shoulders. Surprised when he fell back, she frowned at him. "Where do you think you're going?"
"Up," he sighed.
"No you're not," she said, picking up his feet and shifting them onto the bed. "You are going to sleep."
"Can't," he struggled to get up again and did more sighing.
"Nothing so important right now that requires..."
"Too cold," he replied, standing at last. He smiled at her, silently thanking her for her concern. "If I don't keep moving, my body becomes to stiff to be of any use if we were to need to morph again."
"Oh," she nodded her head, feeling slightly awkward now. "I thought you were going to get back to work on that silly riddle again."
"I was," he answered honestly, reaching into his jacket pocket for the printed sheet.
"You really should get some more rest."
"No time for that," he replied, already pacing the room to keep his feet moving.
She sat down on the bed, watching him for a moment. The others hadn't been wrong when they said that Andros was an introverted, over achiever and that he pushed himself harder than he would ever think about pushing any under him. Since she's met him, Andros has done nothing but what was expected of him. He hinds behind a mask of indifference, except on those rare occasions when it involved his sister. There was no expressing the joy that her presence in his had brought. Even his hate for Dark Specter and Darkonda had pales in comparison. But other than that one shining expression of himself, there was so little Cassie knew about her leader.
Even in his quarter, there was little evidence of Andros. The room, except for the spew of cloths that were obviously Zhanes, lacked any personal touch from the Red Ranger. No framed photos, no misplaced shirts or socks, no trinkets that told her anything about the man that paced before him.
"You should have been Duty," Cassie commented out loud when Andros's concentration had him ignoring her presence in his room.
Brown eyes like hot chocolate on a cold winter's night turned toward the Pink Ranger. "What?"
"Duty," she replied with a sigh, knowing that he was probably not going to like hearing what she had to say. "You're all about what you need to do. Everything about you is about duties that you need to perform. Find Karone, protect her from Dark Specter and herself. Save Zhane, put him on ice and hope for the best. Retrieve Zordon from the evil. Fly across the galaxy and save the universe. Everything is about what needs to get done." She shook her head at him. "Don't you every just get to sit down and enjoy life?"
"What's to enjoy?" he asked, eyes dark and penetrating. "I do what I need to so that others can enjoy themselves."
"And what about you?" she asked, brows drawn in concern.
"I am but a servant to the cause," he answered easily. He glanced down at the paper in his hand. "Everyone thinks I'm Light, even Karone."
"You are."
"I don't feel it," he turned to her, wondering why this was the first time in over two years time that he and Cassie really talked. "Light is suppose to be pure, good, wonderful, joyful... the list goes on." He smiled, a beautiful smile that he wasn't even aware of. "The only joyful moment in my life is when I found Karone... after she tried to kill me."
Cassie reached out, taking his hand. "Andros..."
"Sometimes I wonder if there was ever an Andros." He looked at their joint hand, feeling the warmth of her skin against his own numb fingers. It was strange, he's never been so aware of human touch until now. "After Karone disappeared, for a long time it was just... it was all about her. Everything in my life was consumed by her being missing. We never gave up, never quite believed that she was gone. It kept us going and kept us rooted. Then Zordon came along. I believe in him, everything he stood for, everything he wanted for his people and ours. I wanted to be part of that; dedicated myself to be what Zordon wanted his Rangers to be. Zordon offered me a chance, to do good and to find Karone. And so while others enjoy themselves, I try to make Zordon's believes a reality." He rubbed his thumb over the top of her hand, letting the friction send a shiver through him.
A little too aware of their joined hand, she slowly withdrew it. "And in doing so, you suppress your own." Her eyes were sympathetically; pained by everything Andros had to give up to live this life. Where Karone had retained her innocence cause she knew nothing more, Andros had willingly given his up too young.
He shook his head then frowned, seeing where she was going but refusing to believe it. "I could not get in the way of what needed to be. I let go." He acknowledged the truth without any regret. Picking up the frame photo of himself, Karone and Zhane by the Silver Ranger's bed, Andros knew that he made the right choice. "You learn to hear the wisdom and let go. I lose a little part of myself every time I turn around. One day there's going to be nothing left."
"That's not going to happen," Cassie said reassuringly.
"But it should," he replied, surprising the hell out of her. "To be a perfect Ranger, you have to let yourself go until there is nothing but the ideal."
"Is that what you believe?" she asked, incredulously. How could someone so exceptional but so incredibly twisted in their... well.... Adolf Hitler was thought to be a brilliant but warped man. Napoleon was a gifted if twisted individual. Okay, comparing Andros with those two men probably wasn't such a good idea. "Andros, this is so not what Zordon would have wanted for you."
He stared at her, eyes a little glazed with exhaustion. "What do you mean?"
"You know why he picked you? Not because you were a good soldier that put aside his own needs and wants for his cause. He picked you cause you are good and decent and dedicated and noble and... and..." she racked her mind for the word. "And so full of hope."
"What?"
"Hope," she got it. She finally got it. "You were so full of this light of hope, that's why Zordon wanted you as a Ranger. You never gave up. Your sister gets taken from you and you never gave up hope that she was going to come back. Zhane looked to be dead to everyone but you didn't give up that sliver of a chance that he was going to be all right. You face impossible odds and simply never gave up the shiny little beacon of hope that makes everyone else around you *believe*. That's what makes you special."
The Red Ranger stared at her.
Cassie growled at him. "No I haven't lost my mind so get that look off your face, you stubborn idiot." Crossing her arm, "And if I put this in front of any member of this team, you damn well better believe that they're going to agree with me."
He made no reply but smiled as if indulging a child.
"I hate it when people do that," then decided that he looked too tired to argue anymore. Scooting into the bed, "Come here," patting the seat next to her on the bed.
Frowning at this sudden change in moods, Andros cautiously lowered himself onto the bed. Then Cassie proceeded to tug off her jacket, his brows furrowed deeper. "Cassie, what are you doing?"
"Getting comfortable," she replied with a smile. "Take off your jacket and get in bed. We're going to sleep."
It was a rather novel experience to be ordered to bed by a woman. But now was not the time to be thinking of such things. "Um... together?"
Nodding her slowly, as if instructing a particular slow child, she peeled back the jacket from the wide shoulders. "Yes, together. How else are you going to share body heat with me so that we don't both end up in the medical bay with severe frost bites."
"Cassie, maybe this isn't such a..."
"Will you quit arguing?" she tugging him down with more strength than he thought possible. But then again, he's always hand the bad habit of underestimating women. "I'm only trying to help you know."
"I..."
"You really need to sleep."
"I know that but..."
"And I need to sleep too."
"Right but..."
Pulling the blankets up around them, "And so I thought since we both need to sleep and both of us are like going to freeze to death cause the engines are going to blow if we turn the heat up, we'd do the smart thing and share body heat since it is one of the better methods of staying warm in freezing temperatures." Patting him on the chest and settling down close, "Don't you think it's a good idea?"
He left a little like the time he had come out of a sensory deprivation tank; nothing was quite... right. "Urg..."
"Good," she smiled and closed her eyes, resting her chin on his shoulder. "I knew you'd agree with me."
Andros stared at the bottom of the top bunk. "And she thought the others had a way of talking in circles." Sighing, he settled himself down and allowed the shared heat of their bodies, lull him to sleep. "Thank you Cassie."
She smiled, eyes still closed. "You were just being stubborn, that's all."
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Teaser Line: "Tanya, for gosh sakes, just hop in bed with him and end both your miseries."
By Didi
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the recognizable characters; they are the sole property of Saban and company. I am not making any money off of this, though I wish I was, so please do not sue me. All you are going to get is pocket lint.
Rated: R due to context and language. I reserve the right to change the rating if I feel like picking up the heat a little. Enjoy.
Author's Note: A thousand apologies for the long delay. I went on vacation and didn't do any writing, which is why all the stories are getting updated so late. I'll try to do better. This story appeared to be winding down. I hope to finish it soon. I will thank everyone in advance for taking the long and rather strange journey with me.
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Chapter Thirty Six - A Ray of Hope
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-Astro Mega Ship-
She murmured something softly in her sleep, curling closer to the warmth that did not emanate from herself.
Tommy smiled as he pulled his lover closer, watching as she mewed like a kitty. She was sleeping restlessly when he came into his own quarters after being probably ordered to bed again by Adam. It would seemed the others have set up a semi schedule to relieve some of the stress from the current Rangers. Kimberly had been tossing and turning in his bed when he walked in, announcing her presence in the darkened room.
It had only been all too natural to crawl into bed with her, pulled her tightly to him and shared body heat.
Funny how after so many years apart, she still fitted into his arms like she had been born there. How easily they had slipping into patterns and routines thought long forgotten. His hands fell into familiar curves, her arms reached out consciously to familiar embraces, their bodies fitting together like two connecting pieces of a puzzle. And how quietly and easily she had just simply made herself a significant part of his life once more.
"Hum... is it time to get up?" she asked, her voice thick with slumber. Her cheeks rubbed against his shoulder blade, causing him to shiver with delight.
"No," he whispered back, not really wanting her to wake yet. "I thought I would join you in bed and take the next shift. Billy is going to cover this one with the others."
"That's nice," she murmured back, her head having found a nice position between my shoulder and the pillow. "Good night."
"Night," he replied softly, pressing a kiss to her temple. He felt like the luckiest man in the world and decided to take advantage of the relative peace they were having now. How knows how long that would last. Draping one arms over her thin waist, Tommy settled in. "I love you, Kim."
"I love you too, Tommy." Her lips moved against the muscle she was resting on. "Now go to sleep."
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-Planet Gildon-
"For the love of Zordon's Aunts, tell me you're joking!" Koran pulled his long robes on even as he was hurried down the corridor by the six young squires he had left to over see the scanner readings while he made a valiant attempt to sleep. "What happened?"
"Killian did an updated readings and we managed to pushed the scanner to the higher frequencies and extend the..."
"Get to the point Liam, I do not have the patience any more for unless information." He snapped with unusual show of temper.
"They were coming around the Shiften Belt, radiation levels so high that our scanners haven't been able to penetrate it. We didn't get any indication of any problems until they've moved pass the belt." Killian chewed on his nails, feeling his heart lodge in his throat. "I ran the scan three times now and..."
"I don't doubt it," Koran took a deep breath and closed his eyes to compose himself. When he opened those tired orbs of wisdom, he was back in control of himself if looking a little worse for wear. "Get the Council of the Elders, I'm calling an emergency meeting. After I've spoken to the Elders, I want you to get me the Rangers."
"But the fleet..."
"Godian, I don't have time to get explain to every captain why they need to pull their troops right now. Get the Council online and we'll move from there."
"Yes, sir."
Koran dropped into the seat in front of the computer and allowed his eyes to scan the new readings and held his breath, hoping these underlings had made some horrible mistake. And while Liam was a bit long winded and Godian tends to be short sighted, they were all good kids that knew what they were doing. He could only hope they got a chance to grow up into good leaders.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-Subspace-
"Is it me or does this just never seem to end," Coran muttered under his breath.
Nudging him with her elbow, Marrian tried not to look as pained at she felt. The throbbing headache that had been developing for the past few days was really making concentration hard under normal circumstances. But this was hardly normal... this was... Oh heck, it was about as abnormal as one can get. "What can you tell us?"
"So far, we're tracking about six thousand single-seat spacecraft, nothing like we've ever seen before." Koran's eyes strained against the exhaustion as his vision blurred. "It's headed straight for the fleet."
"Friend or... never mind," Coran said with a roll of his eyes. "That's a dumb question to begin with."
"Glad I didn't have to point it out," Koran replied dryly.
"Boys," Marrian murmured distressingly. "We really do not have the time for this."
"She's right," Elder Promalia nodded her head and sighed. She's had less then twelve hours of sleep in the last three days and her patience was running thin. "What we need is a plan."
"I've got one," Elder Umbliran raised one finger to make his presence known. "Turn the ships around and head in the other direction. They're in no condition to fight another battle." He sighed and rubbed his eyes. The last ten hours had been spent glued to a screen. At his age, he should not abuse his body so.
"We cannot leave the Rangers vulnerable to an attack," Fulmore argued, his faced seemed to have aged ten years. "There has to be some other way."
"This never seems to end" Promalia complained without any bitterness. "Let's get the Ranger's input on this. We cannot make any decision without them."
"They have enough troubles as is with a broken ship and wounded Rangers, let us try to keep the problems for them at a minimum, shall we?" Kilmer suggested.
"No," Koran shook his head and wished for something with more of a kick than the weak tea he's been sipping. "They will not be happy if we keep them out of the loop. It's time."
"Get them hooked up then," Coran sighed, knowing that this was going to be the beginning of a very long day.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-Astro Mega Ship-
"Why is it that you guys can never seem to call us with good news?" Zack complained with a roll of his eyes. He and Tanya had rushed up to the command deck when word had come to them that the Elders had called. So far, only the two of them along with Aisha, Billy and Rocky was there. The others were still resting. No need to call them up yet. "Why can't we ever get a break around here?"
Ignoring his friend, Billy sighed and asked what was needed. "Can I get the specs? I want to move on this fast. And give me all the options there, regardless of your opinion of them." His knowing eyes could easily sense the discord among the Elders.
"You shall have them," Koran replied, his eyes troubled by what he sees. "And you Rangers? How are you holding up?"
"We're hanging in there," Aisha replied, offering the concern old man a smile worthy of her position in the team. "No need to concern yourselves."
"On the contrary," Marrian offered her own gentle concern to the one expressed by the rest of the Council. She may not have ever been a mother, but the soft side of her could mother with the best of them. "We do not have to be concern with the universe to be concern by the what we see happening to you. The stress has ravaged your peace. We can see that."
"We are a lot more steady than we normally appear," Billy replied quietly ignoring the slight soreness behind his eyes, where the sleepless nights seemed to have left evidence at. "At the moment. We have conceived of some routine to allow all of us some time to rest."
"Good," Promalia replied with a nod of her head. Mother of three and grandmother of seven, she was more than ready to give the youngsters a good scolding if necessary. "We shall await your suggestions."
"Thank you Elder," Rocky replied, eyes straying to the coffee that was being consumed by the gallons. "Astro Mega Ship out." When his hand left the controls, Rocky slide into the seat behind and let out a howl of frustration.
Going over, Aisha combed her fingers through her fiancé's hair and rubbed his neck. "You said it."
"This so suck," Rocky complained into his palms as he tried to physically restrain himself from picking up something and throwing it at the viewing screen. He was sick of this, just plan sick of this. The universe seemed determine to see just how much shit that Rangers can endure before they die. "I hate this fucking thing."
Though he disapproves of profanity, Billy could have put it any better himself. "Wake the others, let's call a meeting."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"It's like we're running in circles," Carlos murmured to no one in particular as he tried to rub the sleep from his eyes and the ach from his lids. The cold was making sleeping difficult and waking up even harder. His hand reached automatically to the cross around his neck, a small piece of sanity he seemed to rely on more and more.
"Feels like it doesn't it," Jason sighed and rolled his shoulders. The medical room had the worse possible chairs to sleep in. "So what do you guys think?"
The others all tried to avoid each others eyes, no one really willing to share their thought at the moment as they considered all the possible options, or lack of them. With the exception of Trini, who was still sleeping off the effects of the seal breaking, and Rocky, who had volunteered to watch the engine room while the meeting was being held, the others were all huddled together for extra warmth.
Cassie stared up at the ceiling; her arms wrapped the blanket she had snagged from her room tight around her. "Can't let them go at it alone."
"We cannot turn this ship back," Kat groaned as she leaned against Tanya. She had only been getting to bed when the call to arms came in. All she wanted to do was get under as many covers as she can withstand and take a nice long nap.
"Turning back isn't even going to be an option," TJ replied with a sigh of regret. His decision to burn the engines to maximum speed had eliminated that possibility.
"Don't kick yourself," Tommy warned, his arms wrapped around a shivering Kimberly who was having the worse case of the morning shivers yet. The feeling in her fingers and toes were all but gone. Not even Tommy's considerable body heat had been enough to keep her from having the mild case of hypothermia. "It was a decision made and we stand by it."
"Do they plan on confronting the approaching ships?" Adam asked, his head feeling like lead as he leaned against the bulkhead of the ship. He had woken up from a restless slumber with a headache that wasn't going away even with three cups of coffee in his system already. The chill of the ship was getting worse. He wasn't sure how his body was going to tolerate any more of it.
"I'm afraid to say that it looks like the Elders are really leaning that way," Billy answered as he glanced through the notes given to him.
"They're in no condition to take on another battle, especially without us there," Ashley replied, her dark eyes filled with frustration and concern for the welfare of the nameless soldiers. "What if..."
"What is it?" Karone asked, encouraged now that someone at least have an idea of what to do.
Ashley looked at the pretty girl's hopeful face and almost groaned. "What if you guys drop us off, let us go back and help the fleet. Like you guys said, the current Rangers are unlikely to be carrying any Keys so..."
"No," Andros shook his head and winced silently as his head throbbed with pain. The near freezing conditions were no help to his physical exhaustion. "I disagree."
"As do I," Tommy added, shaking his head at the current Yellow Ranger who had a mule headed look that was just beginning to appear on her face. "First of all, you guys are in no condition to take one another battle yourselves. Most of you don't have the energy to save your own hide much less the fleet's collective ones. Second, you guys don't have your gliders anymore, remember?"
That thought had escaped Ashley's mind but she wasn't about to give up yet. "Well the status pods can keep us for a while, we wait for the next ship to come pick up us and get us to the fleet. I'm sure there has to be a couple still functioning around here that will..."
"And if it's an unexpected enemy ship that comes along first?" Kim asked sweetly, backing up her man.
"Though I really do hate to do this," TJ interjected from his corner. "But I have to agree with them, Ash. Not such a good idea, especially with so many unpredictable elements to count in."
"Then what do you suggest?" just a little stung that her friends didn't back her.
"I suggest that we come up with something that doesn't involve adding more dead bodies to the count," TJ gave her a sympathetic look. "Look we're all just a little..."
"How fast are they going?" Jason asked, his head suddenly popping up from where it had been resting on his arms. "Are they moving faster than us?"
"They're single capacity ships, probably moving faster than most larger battle ships do," Billy glanced down at his notes.
"But they have single engines with no jump capabilities," Andros did quick calculations in his head. "No, I'd say we're still a good six or seven clicks faster than anything they can do."
Karone's eyes lit up light a kid's at Christmas as her fingers dug into the arms of the half-asleep Zhane as winced and carefully pry her fingers loose. Frowning at her, the Silver Ranger glanced at his equally bewildered best friend before turning back to Karone. "What is it, baby?"
"That's absolutely brilliant, Jason," her grin wide and wide-awake now. "Why didn't we think of it sooner?"
"I have my moments," Jason replied with a quick smile for her as he got up. "You explain it to the peanut gallery. I'm going to go check on Trini again then head to bed. Don't wake me unless it's raining gasoline and someone's got a lit match. Night, you all."
Tommy watched his best friend's retreating back until the door closed. "What the hell was that?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I'm not sure I understand this, Rangers," Coran was rubbing his head in frustration. "You want us to do absolutely nothing?"
"That's correct," Tommy replied, feeling slightly foolish since he didn't know why he had been elected to explain it to the Council of Elders. With Karone's understand and Billy's brilliance, one of them should be doing this. But no, everyone had taken and vote and guess what became the unlucky bastard. "Move your ships out of their way and let them through. It's us they're after, not the fleet. So they're going to have to chase us down to get to us."
"And we should simply let them?" Kilmer asked with a frown on his face.
"We're going pretty fast. By Billy and Andros's calculations, they're no way in this side of Hades that they're going to catch up with us before we reach Gildeon. So why waste man power, not to mention lives, if they are never going to reach their objectives in time to stop us."
"Hades?" one of the assistant could be heard in the background. "What's Hades?"
"Read your Earth history," someone hissed back without any sympathy.
"Hum..." the corner's of Marrian's lips twitched for a moment. "And who's idea was this?"
"Jason's," Tommy answered with a grin. "He's gone back to bed now."
"Good for him," Promalia answered with a quick laugh, the first one she's had in days. "I'm in agreement with the Rangers. Anyone else?"
"I'd be a fool not to second it," Marrian replied with a shared smile with her old friend. "Coran?"
"Dare I agree with the two of you ladies?" came the light hearted and relieved reply. "Agreed."
"Agreed."
"Agreed."
"Agreed."
"Most assuredly agreed."
"I'm in concurrence."
"Agreed."
"Put it to the other elders, Kilmer," Koran said as he turned to watch his people still scrambling about pulling reading and data from computers. "And move those ships."
"I'm on it," Kilmer replied before stepping off the screen leaning the others to take for a moment.
"What's your ETA?" Koran asked, when Coran and the others had signed off.
"At least forty-six hours," Andros replied. His eyes were never far from the count down clock and his mind never stopped to click at all the possibilities. "We should be there before..."
"Yes," Koran agreed with a nod. "Good luck Rangers. May Zordon protect you."
"Thank you Elder." Billy replied before his hand slide across the panel to sign off, sighing with relief. "Well, that went off very well, don't you think?"
Adam groaned and dropped his head into his hands. "Okay, everyone back to bed. Next shift in two hours."
"When is the next seal to go?" Tommy asked as he got up with Kimberly and headed for the door.
"Six hours," Carlos replied, his eyes on the countdown clock. "Brace yourselves guys, it's going to be a bumpy one, I just know it."
"No one stays alone, got it?" Billy reminded them all.
"Yeah."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Andros pressed his hand to his side and tried to suppress the shiver of pain. His entire body ached, has been so since the seal exploded in his mind, weakening him considerably. The exhaustion he can deal with, it wouldn't be the first time that's his pushed himself beyond endurance. But it was the added stress from the cold that made it almost unbearable.
"You okay?" Cassie asked quietly, afraid that he would fall if she so much as touched him.
Straightening, embarrassed at having been caught at a weak moment, Andros forced himself not to groan as his entire body screamed in pain. "Cassie, is there something I can do for you?"
She studied him with a critical eyes, noting the way his appeared to be having trouble standing with the support of one hand on the wall. "Always got to be the macho man, don't you?"
"I beg your pardon?" he asked, confusion clearly clouding his understanding.
"You," she poked him with a finger then had to scramble to catch him when he stumbled. "Always got to be the strong one. The one in charge. The one that's got to do everything on their own without anyone to help. Always the top dog in the pack. Always...."
"Are you finished?" he asked, taking a moment to simply allow another to care for him before drawing himself away from her supporting arm. "I was going to go check on Trini. She was..."
"She's fine. And if you interrupt Jason with her, you're not going to be." She grinned cheerfully at him before taking his arms. "And while Trini is getting the much deserved rest that her friends, not to mention everyone else, thinks she needs, you are going a banged up job of taking over her position as the most over worked member of this team." Looping his arm over her shoulders, she steered him toward his quarters.
"Cassie..."
"Yeah? Man, you're heavier than you look."
"Cassie, stop." Andros tried to withdraw his arm but found that he was too tired to do more than put up useless struggles. "I..."
"You what?" she replied, glaring at him for his foolishness. "I just got raked over the coals for thinking that I needed to protect the others by being all brave and strong and non-complaining. All that and Adam still managed to make me feel all guilty and shit." She grunted as she stopped at his door and struggled to push the opening mechanism. "Oh hell.... DECA, could you open this door for me?"
"Opening," came the soothing reply.
"Thank you," she called back as she dragged Andros even as he still made protesting noises. "Behave oh great leader of mine or I'll sic the rest of the older Rangers on you. And let me tell you, those guys are pros at going in circles around a person and making you feel like a six year old again." She grunted as she helped in on the bed. "Please tell me you sleep on the bottom one."
"I don't think Zhane will mind," he replied as he rested his shoulder against the bed frame. His mind was screaming for him to lie down and closed his eyes for the rest of the Trip to Gildeon. Only Zordon will know what is expected of him once he reached the Chamber. But his body is telling him to get up, move around, jump up and down, fight a few bad guys... anything to get his circulation going faster and warm himself up. Forget about the fact that all his muscles felt like that horrible gelatin that Ashley liked to eat. Knowing what extreme cold could do to his body, not to mention his powers, he made an effort to stand.
"Hey, hey, hey..." Cassie, having slept three hours under the same blanket as Ashley, gave him a shove on the shoulders. Surprised when he fell back, she frowned at him. "Where do you think you're going?"
"Up," he sighed.
"No you're not," she said, picking up his feet and shifting them onto the bed. "You are going to sleep."
"Can't," he struggled to get up again and did more sighing.
"Nothing so important right now that requires..."
"Too cold," he replied, standing at last. He smiled at her, silently thanking her for her concern. "If I don't keep moving, my body becomes to stiff to be of any use if we were to need to morph again."
"Oh," she nodded her head, feeling slightly awkward now. "I thought you were going to get back to work on that silly riddle again."
"I was," he answered honestly, reaching into his jacket pocket for the printed sheet.
"You really should get some more rest."
"No time for that," he replied, already pacing the room to keep his feet moving.
She sat down on the bed, watching him for a moment. The others hadn't been wrong when they said that Andros was an introverted, over achiever and that he pushed himself harder than he would ever think about pushing any under him. Since she's met him, Andros has done nothing but what was expected of him. He hinds behind a mask of indifference, except on those rare occasions when it involved his sister. There was no expressing the joy that her presence in his had brought. Even his hate for Dark Specter and Darkonda had pales in comparison. But other than that one shining expression of himself, there was so little Cassie knew about her leader.
Even in his quarter, there was little evidence of Andros. The room, except for the spew of cloths that were obviously Zhanes, lacked any personal touch from the Red Ranger. No framed photos, no misplaced shirts or socks, no trinkets that told her anything about the man that paced before him.
"You should have been Duty," Cassie commented out loud when Andros's concentration had him ignoring her presence in his room.
Brown eyes like hot chocolate on a cold winter's night turned toward the Pink Ranger. "What?"
"Duty," she replied with a sigh, knowing that he was probably not going to like hearing what she had to say. "You're all about what you need to do. Everything about you is about duties that you need to perform. Find Karone, protect her from Dark Specter and herself. Save Zhane, put him on ice and hope for the best. Retrieve Zordon from the evil. Fly across the galaxy and save the universe. Everything is about what needs to get done." She shook her head at him. "Don't you every just get to sit down and enjoy life?"
"What's to enjoy?" he asked, eyes dark and penetrating. "I do what I need to so that others can enjoy themselves."
"And what about you?" she asked, brows drawn in concern.
"I am but a servant to the cause," he answered easily. He glanced down at the paper in his hand. "Everyone thinks I'm Light, even Karone."
"You are."
"I don't feel it," he turned to her, wondering why this was the first time in over two years time that he and Cassie really talked. "Light is suppose to be pure, good, wonderful, joyful... the list goes on." He smiled, a beautiful smile that he wasn't even aware of. "The only joyful moment in my life is when I found Karone... after she tried to kill me."
Cassie reached out, taking his hand. "Andros..."
"Sometimes I wonder if there was ever an Andros." He looked at their joint hand, feeling the warmth of her skin against his own numb fingers. It was strange, he's never been so aware of human touch until now. "After Karone disappeared, for a long time it was just... it was all about her. Everything in my life was consumed by her being missing. We never gave up, never quite believed that she was gone. It kept us going and kept us rooted. Then Zordon came along. I believe in him, everything he stood for, everything he wanted for his people and ours. I wanted to be part of that; dedicated myself to be what Zordon wanted his Rangers to be. Zordon offered me a chance, to do good and to find Karone. And so while others enjoy themselves, I try to make Zordon's believes a reality." He rubbed his thumb over the top of her hand, letting the friction send a shiver through him.
A little too aware of their joined hand, she slowly withdrew it. "And in doing so, you suppress your own." Her eyes were sympathetically; pained by everything Andros had to give up to live this life. Where Karone had retained her innocence cause she knew nothing more, Andros had willingly given his up too young.
He shook his head then frowned, seeing where she was going but refusing to believe it. "I could not get in the way of what needed to be. I let go." He acknowledged the truth without any regret. Picking up the frame photo of himself, Karone and Zhane by the Silver Ranger's bed, Andros knew that he made the right choice. "You learn to hear the wisdom and let go. I lose a little part of myself every time I turn around. One day there's going to be nothing left."
"That's not going to happen," Cassie said reassuringly.
"But it should," he replied, surprising the hell out of her. "To be a perfect Ranger, you have to let yourself go until there is nothing but the ideal."
"Is that what you believe?" she asked, incredulously. How could someone so exceptional but so incredibly twisted in their... well.... Adolf Hitler was thought to be a brilliant but warped man. Napoleon was a gifted if twisted individual. Okay, comparing Andros with those two men probably wasn't such a good idea. "Andros, this is so not what Zordon would have wanted for you."
He stared at her, eyes a little glazed with exhaustion. "What do you mean?"
"You know why he picked you? Not because you were a good soldier that put aside his own needs and wants for his cause. He picked you cause you are good and decent and dedicated and noble and... and..." she racked her mind for the word. "And so full of hope."
"What?"
"Hope," she got it. She finally got it. "You were so full of this light of hope, that's why Zordon wanted you as a Ranger. You never gave up. Your sister gets taken from you and you never gave up hope that she was going to come back. Zhane looked to be dead to everyone but you didn't give up that sliver of a chance that he was going to be all right. You face impossible odds and simply never gave up the shiny little beacon of hope that makes everyone else around you *believe*. That's what makes you special."
The Red Ranger stared at her.
Cassie growled at him. "No I haven't lost my mind so get that look off your face, you stubborn idiot." Crossing her arm, "And if I put this in front of any member of this team, you damn well better believe that they're going to agree with me."
He made no reply but smiled as if indulging a child.
"I hate it when people do that," then decided that he looked too tired to argue anymore. Scooting into the bed, "Come here," patting the seat next to her on the bed.
Frowning at this sudden change in moods, Andros cautiously lowered himself onto the bed. Then Cassie proceeded to tug off her jacket, his brows furrowed deeper. "Cassie, what are you doing?"
"Getting comfortable," she replied with a smile. "Take off your jacket and get in bed. We're going to sleep."
It was a rather novel experience to be ordered to bed by a woman. But now was not the time to be thinking of such things. "Um... together?"
Nodding her slowly, as if instructing a particular slow child, she peeled back the jacket from the wide shoulders. "Yes, together. How else are you going to share body heat with me so that we don't both end up in the medical bay with severe frost bites."
"Cassie, maybe this isn't such a..."
"Will you quit arguing?" she tugging him down with more strength than he thought possible. But then again, he's always hand the bad habit of underestimating women. "I'm only trying to help you know."
"I..."
"You really need to sleep."
"I know that but..."
"And I need to sleep too."
"Right but..."
Pulling the blankets up around them, "And so I thought since we both need to sleep and both of us are like going to freeze to death cause the engines are going to blow if we turn the heat up, we'd do the smart thing and share body heat since it is one of the better methods of staying warm in freezing temperatures." Patting him on the chest and settling down close, "Don't you think it's a good idea?"
He left a little like the time he had come out of a sensory deprivation tank; nothing was quite... right. "Urg..."
"Good," she smiled and closed her eyes, resting her chin on his shoulder. "I knew you'd agree with me."
Andros stared at the bottom of the top bunk. "And she thought the others had a way of talking in circles." Sighing, he settled himself down and allowed the shared heat of their bodies, lull him to sleep. "Thank you Cassie."
She smiled, eyes still closed. "You were just being stubborn, that's all."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Teaser Line: "Tanya, for gosh sakes, just hop in bed with him and end both your miseries."