Awkwardly, sadly, Lauren sat at the head of the table in the common room. She stared at the note Jayden left and tried to hold back her tears. She was genuinely worried for her brother, and disappointed he was gone. Though the team wasn't ready for her, Jayden's absence made it official: it was her team now. These people – these strangers were now her responsibility. Their training, their battles, their lives were all led by her. A huge weight landed on her shoulders, and on top of all that, she now had to carry the guilt of knowing that she had put all this weight on her little brother.
"What do you mean, he's gone," Antonio was the very first to show concern for Jayden, and he looked ready to jump out of his seat and go after the former red Ranger. Lauren gulped, ready to explain what she read from the note, but Serena jumped in and read the note a loud.
"I'm so sorry, guys. There's no way I can ever make up for this secret I've kept from all of you. You've put your faith, your trust, and your lives in my hands. I didn't deserve it. The love and care you've all shown me was misplaced, but it will never be forgotten. You were all my true friends. I regret the pain I've caused. Lauren is your leader now, and I hope you can follow her like you've followed me. Please keep her safe. She's our only hope."
Serena handed the letter back to Lauren. The red Ranger sighed and looked around the room. Everyone was hurt and she didn't know what to do about it. She wanted to restore the team to what it was before she had shown up, but she had no idea how to do that.
"We need to bring him back," Antonio spoke up. The Rangers looked to him but they didn't say anything. Antonio stood up and glared at them, "Guys, he lied, but he's still our friend. He's still Jayden. C'mon…"
"He can take care of himself," Mike muttered. He got up from his stool and started to walk out. Mia grabbed his arm before he got too far.
"Antonio's right."
"Thank you, Mia," Antonio whispered in relief. Mia pulled Mike back down to his stool and looked each of her teammates in the eye.
"We had no idea about Lauren and the Nighlok still don't, right?" Mia turned to Lauren. She shrugged her shoulders, unsure of what to say. Serena nodded her head.
"I got her here unnoticed."
Mia turned back to the Samurai, "That means the Nighlok still think Jayden's the key. They're still going to go after him. If he's out there all alone, he's in trouble. Think of what he's done for us."
"He's lied to us," Mike rolled his eyes.
"He's tried to protect all of you," Antonio shook his head and clenched his fists, "Guys, can't you see? He's never once asked you to put yourselves in danger for him. He insisted otherwise. Protect yourselves. Don't worry about me. Doesn't that ring a bell?"
Kevin stroked his chin. Antonio did have a point, "He was kind of stubborn," he said, "The more we protected him, the more he threw himself in harm's way."
"He's a good guy! You've spent two years with him. You know him!" Antonio begged the Rangers reconsider their decision. He knew they were good people, but the burn was still too fresh. It was clouding their judgement. "Those two years were real. So… so he has a sister. Emily has a sister. Mia's got a brother."
"Jayden and Lauren's father made the decision to keep Lauren's existence a secret," Serena explained to the team again, hoping this time it would really sink in. She needed the team to come together. "With her in hiding, and with the Nighlok clueless, she would have enough time to properly master the Sealing Symbol. In the meantime, someone needed to protect her. He gave that role to Jayden. While Lauren trained, Jayden would fight the Nighlok."
"So this heroic father Jayden's always talking about was actually a huge douche," Mike scoffed. "Jayden was just a kid, wasn't he, and his dad told him to…"
"Don't you dare talk about my father that way?" Lauren jumped out of her seat and shouted. "The day my father sent me away was the hardest day for all of us, and it was one of the greatest sacrifices he made. He gave up his daughter for everyone. You included. The day of the great battle, he knew his Sealing Power was imperfect, but he used it anyways. He died creating it so we could make it to this point. So I would have enough time to truly master the Sealing Symbol. He was not a douche! He died so you could live. So we could all live."
"So then where the hell have you been?" Mike also got up and he stood toe to toe with Lauren, "Xandred's already turned up once. He nearly killed Jayden. Where were you? Making s'mores with that campfire you call Symbol Power while your little brother was risking his life? And why weren't we allowed to know? Are we not good enough? Not strong enough? Are we just stupid bodyguards? Useless?"
"That is enough!" Ji roared and silence fell over the room. Antonio took this as an opportunity to run. Jayden was outside somewhere, roaming the forest or the city streets by himself. He was hurt and he was still the Nighlok's biggest targets. Antonio needed to convince him to come back home where he was safe.
Ji looked to all the other Samurai in the room, "You have all made a huge sacrifice. I understand this secret may feel like a slap in the face to you Rangers, but it is no reason for you to turn your backs on each other. Lauren is…"
"Not our leader," Mike shook his head. He looked Lauren right in the eyes, "You will never be my leader."
He stormed out, punching the wall again, leaving another hole. He made it halfway down the hall when he realized there was someone missing. He turned around and walked back to the common room, "Emily? Guys?"
Though Lauren was trying to stay strong to prove what it took to be a leader, her eyes betrayed her. A single tear rolled down her cheek, screaming pain and guilt. Serena took the red Ranger in her arms again to comfort her while the others watched.
Mike flicked his thumb over his shoulder and pointed down the hall, "Guys, aren't you…?"
"Mike, it's not the time," James shook his head.
Mike threw his hands up in the air, "This is unbelievable. Guys, hello? Don't you remember we were lied to? Emily, what about Carrie? We could have…"
"Carrie has nothing to do with the secret," Emily shook her head and looked to Mike sadly. "Carrie died because Serrator wanted to hurt us."
"Fine, whatever," Mike rolled his eyes, "They still lied to us."
"It… it could have been worse, I guess," Mia shrugged her shoulders, "Jayden's big secret could have been… that he was a Nighlok or something. We could have been tricked worse."
"You guys are too soft," Mike shook his head and stormed out again, "This is ridiculous."
As he left, Lauren looked to Jayden's team. She pulled away from Serena and stood up, "I know… I know you all probably feel used and I get it. I get that you don't get it. I did go into hiding. I did keep my distance from my brother, and I did so willingly. I let him take my place, and I let him throw himself in harm's way for me. I let him ask you to trust him, and I let him abuse that trust. This secret is a horrible one. I'm not proud of the things I've done. I'm not proud of the fact that I put my little brother in so much danger. But… thank you. It's thanks to you he's safe. He's all I have left and I can never repay you for the sacrifices you have made for him."
Lauren gave the Samurai a slight bow and then left. Serena looked to them hopefully.
"You have no idea how painful it is to ask someone you care about to fight in your place. You guys are angry, and you have every right to be. I was angry too. But put yourselves in her shoes and in Jayden's shoes for just one damn second. We're a team. We're Samurai. Our mission is to protect the Earth from the Nighlok. Our goal is to seal them away for good. Guess what. We can do that now."
Serena got up and went after Lauren, leaving the other Samurai to think.
