Ch 27
Andros was losing control.
It had started sometime during Simudeck training. Cassie, Carlos, and T.J. had just impressed him with the combined power of their weapons –the Cosmic Crossbow, Beam Blasters, and Celestial Sword. While Carlos and T.J. playfully argued over whether to call it the Tri-Blaster or Triple Decker Slam Jam, Ashley walked by Andros, giving him a subtle flirty look. He watched her leave his eye line, disappearing behind him, and he nonchalantly moved his hands behind his back, holding one out. As expected, her fingers lightly brushed his and he lightly stroked hers with a thumb and forefinger.
But he hadn't done that.
He had tried to ignore her, had tried to keep his hands to himself. When his eyes had followed her, he had tried to pull them away. When his fingers had lingered on hers, he had tried to jerk his hand back. But he hadn't. He couldn't. In those moments, Andros' body hadn't really been his.
And yet, that voice that had made itself known earlier had remained silent. What else needed to be said? This Andros was in love with this Ashley, regardless of being married to Arcadia.
But how could he do that to Arcadia? She had been the love of his life. Then Ashley showed up and all that changed?
That's why Andros stayed behind after training was over, promising Ashley with words that he'd fought to keep inside that he would see her later tonight. Once everyone had left the room, Andros locked the door, sat on the floor, and closed his eyes.
"Okay," he said after a moment of silence. "I know you're in there. Obviously, you've got something you want to say to me. So say it."
You shouldn't be here.
Andros' eyes flew open and he briefly looked around as though he were on the receiving end of a prank. But that voice had come from inside of him, just like it had before.
"I didn't exactly ask for this. But this is my body as much as yours, so –"
This is my body and my timeline! Not yours! I'm not going to be a passenger in my own body! You're not supposed to be here!
"True, but your timeline wouldn't exist if it hadn't been for me." Andros protested. "I told Zhane to retreat. Without me, you would've lost everyone except Zhane. You wouldn't have Dani."
I almost didn't have her anyway.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
I couldn't move or say anything while you were changing things, but I was still there. I heard every thought that went through your head, so I knew why you were there and what you were trying to prevent. That's how I learned about the baby –because Arcadia sure didn't tell me.
"She was going to give you an envelope with a sonogram printout."
But she didn't. She put herself and our daughter at risk by fighting those monsters. And she said nothing. After a couple of days, I told her that I knew about the baby and she got quiet. After that, we started fighting all the time. She finally told me that she never intended to have the baby and that she was never going to tell me.
"That doesn't make sense." Andros' words were distant in his ears. She didn't want their baby? Since when? Earlier, Arcadia had been so soft with him when he'd come in to rock Dani to sleep. She hadn't given him any reason to believe that she was simply resigned to motherhood. Had he caused that somehow?
We tried to make it work, but nothing got better. Got married, had Dani… By then, I'd met Ashley, helped her train. I didn't mean to fall for her. I swear I didn't. But you have an Ashley in your timeline too, so I know you understand.
"No, I don't understand. I loved Arcadia. I loved her more than anything. Letting myself even like Ashley was hard because I couldn't stop loving Cade. I still love her."
So do I. I married her because I love her. I'm still with her because I love her.
"You're cheating on her!"
We're cheating on each other. She hasn't been obvious about it, but I know she's with Zeke.
"If you still love her, then there's a chance that you can make things work," Andros said, getting to his feet.
I don't want to make things work anymore. Neither does she. Even if I wanted her back in that way, it wouldn't matter because I don't think she loves me anymore.
"So, you'll just stay married to her and keep cheating with Ashley? No." He started for the door, but dropped to his knees suddenly, unable to move his legs.
Not. Your. Body.
"What are you waiting for?" Andros asked. "You don't want to be the one to ask for a divorce? You want her to get fed up enough to do it?"
The other Andros remained silent.
"Let me do it," Andros said. "If your relationship is this broken, you shouldn't be together anymore. And this way, I can still get some answers from her."
After a moment, the hold on him released and Andros got to his feet.
Fine. But if you try to ruin what I have with Ashley, I'll stop you. I'll push you down so deep that you'll forget what light is.
-0-0-0-0-0-
Kimberly didn't exactly have a plan. Get the Damocles Sword and find a way back to her timeline. More of an outline than a plan. She didn't really know where the Damocles Sword was, only that it was with King Mondo somewhere outside of Angel Grove. She should have asked Billy to teleport her near there.
Too late now. Jason's communicator had disappeared from her wrist not long after she'd started toward Angel Grove. Jason would've been looking for it, so it made sense that he might've asked Billy to teleport it back to the Power Chamber. So, no more teleporting for her.
It didn't matter much. She didn't have to wait long before she felt that familiar quaking under her feet. Had to be King Mondo. But he wasn't in Angel Grove. She would've seen him.
Minutes passed and the quaking continued. Then, it stopped. When it began again, the sky turned very dark and the footfalls got closer. Kimberly watched as King Mondo brought his sword down on a building, reducing most of it to rubble.
Where were the rangers?
Kimberly ducked behind the nearest building, briefly looking around to make certain that the coast was clear. "Veo Tech time!"
But there was no way that she was going to successfully fight a gigantic Mondo without a zord. She and the others had tested a few theories after becoming the Turbo Rangers briefly. They had discovered that they could become other teams of rangers, as long as they were familiar with those teams, up to and including the Astroranger team. But they had never tried calling for their old zords. Most of, if not all, of those zords had been destroyed, so calling them seemed out of the question. Then again, the Power Coins had been destroyed too, and she had used those old powers.
King Mondo brought the Damocles Sword crashing into another building. Kimberly needed to do something now.
Anything was worth a shot.
Kimberly closed her eyes and concentrated. "Super Zeo Zord Power now!"
The ground rumbled and Kimberly watched the prism in her wrist glow brightly. As she stared down at it, a brief image of the Pink Super Zeo Zord flashed and was immediately over her head and flying toward King Mondo. Kimberly squealed and jumped into it, maneuvering the zord behind Mondo just a few seconds before the Super Zeo Zords arrived and transformed into the Super Zeo Megazord.
The Megazord went straight for Mondo, but the other rangers clearly saw the duplicate zord behind him. When King Mondo was shoved out of the way, the Megazord took a few steps toward the Pink Super Zeo Zord being piloted by a pink ranger that wasn't Katherine.
"Who are you?" Tommy's voice called.
Tommy would know her voice. They all would. She couldn't take a chance on that. She wasn't supposed to be here, and for all she knew, taking part in this fight could've drastically changed something already. Instead, she lined up the front of Super Zeo Zord I with King Mondo and fired a beam of energy from its pink circular torso plate. Mondo stumbled backward, but his grip on the sword remained tight.
She followed it up with a kick and a punch, which did nothing in her favor.
The Megazord was on its way over, wielding the Twin Zeo Sabers and likely to aim for the Damocles Sword. Kimberly distracted Mondo with another blast, pulling the sword free before the smoke and dust settled. Then, she stood aside, watching the Megazord combine the sabers into a single saber before running King Mondo through with it.
Just before King Mondo exploded, Kimberly was out of her zord and holding onto a smaller version of the Damocles Sword. Then, everything around her got brighter and brighter.
-0-0-0-0-0-
The door to Andros' bedroom opened and he walked into the room, lightly running his fingers through Dani's hair as she lay sleeping in her bed. She stirred a little and Andros pulled back his hand, not wanting to wake her.
"Back already?"
Andros turned around to Arcadia, who barely looked up from the tablet on the desk in front of her. He sat on the edge of the desk, angling his body to face her. "Yeah, training went pretty well… You and Dani were good?"
Arcadia shrugged. "Dani woke up when you left, and I got her back to sleep. I've been reading ever since."
"What are you reading?"
With a deep sigh, Arcadia lifted her head and slid the tablet away from her. "Did you want something?"
"I feel like we haven't really talked."
"About?"
Eyes lowered to his lap and his throat suddenly in need of clearing, Andros began. "I'm not even sure where to start… How about we start with whatever's going on between you and Zeke?"
Arcadia frowned and folded her arms. "Excuse me?"
Andros swallowed hard and clenched his fists. That hadn't come from him. He hadn't even thought it. That was the other Andros. What was he trying to do? The last thing he wanted was a fight, and that sort of question would put them well on their way to one.
"Sorry," he said. "I, um… " This had all seemed easier on the way here. She was one of his best friends. They could talk about anything. Maybe something had changed between this Andros and Arcadia, but he could do this. "Why didn't you tell me about Dani?"
Arcadia rolled her eyes. "Not again, Andros. Please."
"I'm not trying to start a fight. I just… You and I used to talk about having kids. You said you wanted that with me. And I get it, okay? You didn't want a baby right now, but you could have told me. I would have supported whatever decision you made."
"I know you would have. And I wish I'd told you when I found out, but I didn't. And what was worse was that I had no idea why I didn't. And I couldn't let that go. Then, I started thinking: what's wrong with our relationship that I couldn't tell him?"
"What did you find out?"
"That I was angry, and I wasn't ready to be a parent. I wasn't ready to make such a life-altering decision like that for myself. But suddenly, I had to do that –and it wasn't as simple as have the baby or don't. It was about giving up on our mission to fight for good and to bring our people back home. It was all of my training going to waste because my new mission would be my child. Or I could be selfish in the name of that mission and my training, but live with knowing that I gave up being a mother in that moment. Knowing that once you knew, you'd hate me."
"I wouldn't have hated you. Nothing could ever make me hate you."
She smiled sadly. "You don't know that. But I made my choice. I had Dani and I don't regret that. I love our daughter… But I couldn't stop being angry with you. Your life didn't change like mine did, and I guess I was jealous. You asked me about fighting once I knew I was pregnant, about why I'd put us in danger like that, but I didn't think about it like that. There was a fight in front of me and I wasn't about to run away from it. But the thing that really kept me angry was that without us discussing it even once, we had somehow decided that I was the one who was giving everything up."
"I know we didn't discuss it," the other Andros spoke up. "But that was because giving up your morpher was never supposed to be permanent."
"And so how would that work?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "We sit out every other fight so that someone's always here with Dani? Or I take my morpher from Ashley and let her watch Dani for us?"
"I made a morpher for Ashley, just like I did for the others. It's waiting for her the second you're ready for your morpher."
Arcadia shook her head. "I made my choice. Maybe somewhere down the line, I can be more than just Dani's mother, but that's all I should be right now. I can handle that. I'm not as angry anymore, not even about you and Ashley."
Unsurprisingly, the other Andros retreated at that, bringing Andros to face the situation alone. What could he even say? He hadn't been the one to cheat. He could never have imagined that he was capable of cheating on Arcadia. Other than sorry, what was he supposed to feel?
"I never meant… " His voice broke and he cleared his throat. "Cheating on you – I never wanted that. I mean, I loved you, and –"
"Andros, it's okay. I was angry and I pushed you away. I hurt you, and I ran you right into her arms."
"That's not what happened." But the other Andros was pretty adamant about that being the case. Andros knew better. He had been through this before, only less directly. "I made a choice too. I met Ashley and was attracted to her. Then, I chose to be with Ashley while still trying to hold onto you. I loved you both, and I was selfish enough to want you both, but that wasn't fair to you or Ashley. I wasn't strong enough to choose between you."
"But you've chosen now?" she asked.
"I think we both have," he answered. "You've been seeing Zeke for a while now, right?"
She lowered her eyes. "For a few months now."
"You love him?"
"I don't know. It's still new, but… I'm happy with him."
"Good." He took her hand in his and lightly squeezed her fingers. "I mean that. I want you to be happy. And if Zeke does that for you, then I'm happy for you guys. I want us both to be happy. You shouldn't have to hide what you have with Zeke, and I don't want to keep hiding with Ashley. They deserve better than that… Not to mention Dani. I don't think we can raise a well-adjusted daughter if we aren't."
Arcadia looked into his eyes with a deep sigh. "So, this is it. We're breaking up."
Andros felt a tear slide down his face. "Believe me, I'd much rather not, but things can't stay the way they are. So, yes, I think we should get a divorce." He pulled her to her feet and opened his arms, waiting until her arms were around his waist before he hugged her back and kissed the top of her head. "I'm sorry, Cade."
"Don't be. I love you," she said.
"I love you too. I'll love you for the rest of my life."
Arcadia held onto him for a moment longer and finally pulled back. "I guess I'll start moving back into my room," she said, taking a look around. "It would be a little weird if I stayed, wouldn't it?"
"I'm not pushing you out. Take all the time you need." Andros could barely feel anything below his head. It was almost like he was just floating there. Was this what breaking up with someone was supposed to feel like? No intense hurt, just numbness? "You need anything?"
"I'm good, Andros. Really. I won't lie. All of this hurts. I think it will for a while, but I also think –" She smiled to herself. "I know this will be good for us. So don't worry. I'm okay."
"Okay. And let me know if you want me to be more present with Dani. If you need a break or need some time alone with Zeke or whatever –you'll let me know?"
"I will. Thank you. Now, go be happy."
"Right. I'll let you get back to reading. If you want, I can send Zeke –"
"Andros, get out," Arcadia said with a grin.
Andros smiled and left the room. He lingered in the hallway for a moment, trying to figure out what to do next. He knew where the other Andros would want to go, but Andros was still in control and there were slightly more pressing matters.
He was free to be with Ashley, but Andros wasn't entirely comfortable with that. He didn't know this Ashley. And what would he do once the other Andros was strong enough to take over? Where would he go? Would he just be trapped in this timeline forever? Would he eventually cease to be? Would the timeline he'd left behind eventually cease to be?
There was only one person who would be able to tell him anything definitive.
Andros headed to the bridge, interrupting Zhane and Cassie's make-out session. They tore themselves apart the second he walked into the room, but Andros barely reacted to it. Not his business. Not in either timeline. He mumbled an apology and started pressing buttons at his station.
"DECA, open communications with Wan of Bromak-7."
"Communications open," DECA said after a few moments, a blond teenager appearing on the screen.
Wan stared at Andros for a moment or two before finally speaking. "Hello, Andros."
"Hello." Andros didn't know the last time he had spoken with this Wan. Had there even been a search for the Veo Prism here? "The Veo Prism –"
"You don't want that," Wan replied quickly.
"You don't understand."
"I understand more than you know," Wan answered. "You want to use the Veo Prism to go back to your timeline, right?"
Was that why Wan had stared at him like that? Had he sensed or maybe even seen that Andros wasn't Andros?
"The Veo Prism got me here. It's the only thing that can get me back."
"What are you two talking about?" Zhane was back to looking at Andros as though he should be tied down in the infirmary for a while. "'Back to your timeline'? Are you feeling okay?"
Andros simply shook his head. There was too much to explain, but trying to keep it a secret wasn't going to get him any closer to home. "I'll tell you later," he promised.
"Your Veo Prism," Wan said. "Not ours. You need a bridge between your timeline and this one –that's your prism. Did you not bring it with you?"
It took a few breaths to keep Andros' voice steady enough to answer. He was in pure panic mode now. "I never had it, and I wasn't trying to use it. I was standing on the bridge with the other rangers and the next thing I knew, I was here."
Wan nodded. "I understand. You're like I was. You're not in your body because your body is still where you were. It's just not occupied at the moment. The Veo Prism wants to show you this, but it's going to give you a chance to go back. You just have to decide if you want to. But if you stay…"
"I'll end up like you," Andros finished.
"It's possible, but I went back far beyond my own lifetime. You didn't go as far back, so you may not endure the same consequences. But you will have to merge with the Andros you've got trapped in there. You'll gain memories, lose some, but your two halves will be made truly whole."
Andros was already shaking his head at that. "No, I'm not –I don't want that." Losing memories? His first kiss with Ashley. All the time they'd spent together since, training and talking and holding each other. "I don't want that," he repeated.
"I said the same thing once," Wan said. "But sometimes what's best for the universe isn't always going to result in what's best for you. Weigh your options. Is going back the best thing for your friends and family? Can you afford to be selfish?"
Andros hadn't expected any of that to offend him, but his eyes were narrowed and he could feel his face heating up. "Coming here in the first place was selfish. Sometimes bad things happen to the people we love. We mourn. We move on. In my timeline, you warned me not to use the prism. Now, you're telling me to weigh my options? What about my friends in the other timeline? What happens to them?"
Wan sighed softly. "They either continue on without you or they cease to exist. I don't know for sure. Those are questions that keep me up at night. But you don't know what it was like where I came from. Rita Repulsa had taken over the universe. Most of my team had perished because of her and her monsters. In this timeline, I got to hold onto them a little longer."
"Now who's selfish?"
Wan frowned. "Were you born enslaved? Because I was. The Power Rangers were more myth than legend. I changed that."
"No. You ran from that." Andros folded his arms. "You lost your team, and I get that. Believe me, I do. But what if you were meant to lead a new team to victory over Rita? What if you were one battle away from taking back the universe from the monsters?"
"What if I was one battle away from joining my friends? What if the real reason I'm stuck in a time loop is because my original body never would have aged beyond the year I left?"
"You'll never know because you didn't give your world a chance! You said you lost most of your team, which means that you abandoned the ones you had left… If your world still exists without you, that means you abandoned them. I won't do that to my friends."
Wan nodded to himself. "I couldn't watch anyone else die," he said. "I made my choice, and I'd make the same one every time. I'm proud of the work I've done here, and I have no regrets. You and countless others were born free because of my choice. If my world exists without me, then I hope they were victorious. I hope they lived free. But here, I know they did."
Andros lowered his eyes and said nothing.
"Whatever you decide," Wan went on, preparing to end the transmission. "I wish you luck."
