A.N: This one hurt.
There's one more thing to do before my old team leaves to head back to Earth. Something I don't realize they haven't done until Andros makes a joke about it. Maya insisted that "they needed to meet the Galactabeasts for themselves", so now we're here. My Snake Zord gazes down at each of my teammates, and I know that its hiss is an approving one.
"They're incredible," TJ murmurs, and I can't help but grin. It takes quite a bit to impress the Blue Space Ranger, so his reaction just makes this experience extra special.
"We never had anything like this when we were Rangers," Ashley adds, and when I squint up at Kendrix's Wildcat Zord, I spot Cassie there.
"Hey, look at me!" She calls down to us, and per her usual habit, she bursts into song. A reassuring feeling washes over me at the sight, even as I shake my head at her antics. Despite the years we've lost, despite the distance that separated us… they're here with me now. And they haven't changed, nor forgotten me. Before I can get even more sentimental about all of this, the Wildcat lets out a roar- hopefully a delighted one- and Cassie stumbles, hitting the ground hard. Kendrix and I exchange an embarrassed glance, and then we rush over to the Pink Space Ranger to make sure she's okay.
Given Starlight Cafe's relatively small size, my workplace is nearly filled to the brim. The others occupy the only indoor seating we have left, and thanks to their jokes keeping me entertained, the shift goes by faster than normal. Just as I step out from the break room, ready to enjoy more quality time with my best friends, the guy from the bookstore walks over to me. Don't get me wrong, he's a nice guy. A fellow bookworm, too, and an avid dancer. I've seen some of his performances, and he's great, but-
"Hey, Kar. Got the next book in the series you were reading," Minhyuk greets, and I smile gratefully. I may not return his interest, but regardless of that, we're still mostly on the same wavelength.
"Sweet, thanks so much." He hands the book over, nods to my coworker, Lia, and steps closer to me. He's fidgeting with the rings he wears, a nervous habit. Oh boy.
"So. I was wondering if you'd, I don't know, like to go out for-"
"Hey, princess." Minhyuk spins around, coming face to face with Leo, and honestly, I almost burst into laughter. "Done with your shift?"
"Went by faster than normal, thanks to your guys' clowning around." Cassie does a princess wave over to me from their table, and Damon bows dramatically. Case in point… Leo laughs, his smile sending butterflies washing over me, and reaches for my hand. I give it a gentle squeeze as he pulls me to his side, and I smile apologetically at Minhyuk.
"I'm going to have to pass on that invitation. We're cool as friends though, right?" The stricken expression on the dancer's face fades to something like acceptance, and he nods.
"For sure. Also, don't forget you owe me the first book in that series!" I roll my eyes. Not like he gets an employee discount or anything like that.
"Get it yourself, 'Hyuk." We laugh, and I give him a small wave as Leo and I step away.
"So that was the bookstore guy 'Drix mentioned?" Maya asks as I slide into the seat next to her, and I nod.
"Mhm. And I mean, he's a nice guy and all, but I'm kinda, y'know, taken." I don't miss the grin on Leo's face, and Andros shoves him teasingly. Honestly, seeing the pair side-by-side is jarring just as much as it is a miracle, but all I know is that I'm grateful for this whole insane experience. "Um. If I may-"
"Rangers, come in!" That's Kendrix, and she's stressed, even more so than she would be at work. "We're pursuing Psycho Pink, she's heading to planet Rashon!"
"Psycho Pink, still alive?" Leo mutters, response muffled by the background noise of the cafe. "We're on our way."
"There's no time to waste," Andros murmurs, "We've gotta-"
"Look," Kai whispers, nodding towards the flock of Stingwingers that just touched down outside of Starlight. Ugh. I glance around, seeing my coworkers ushering the customers into the back, and I nod.
"C'mon." The others follow my lead, and we rush out of the cafe, readying ourselves for the upcoming fight. As the Stingwingers charge towards us, I form up next to Damon, Kai, Maya, and Leo. While the urge to reach for my Space morpher is strong, my first priority is to this new team.
"Go, Galactic!"
Of course Deviot has to show up now. The lasers he fires off from his robotic arm are too far away for me to divert them, and they strike Ashley and Maya. Then, as he grabs Maya's arm, twisting it behind her back, I summon my Galaxy Gauntlet. Ashley glances towards me, and at her nod, we unleash our attacks, knocking Deviot away from the Yellow Galaxy Ranger.
"That thing is so sick," Ashley gushes, and I raise an eyebrow.
"Says the girl literally wielding a satellite gun." We bump fists, but the celebration doesn't last for long: a reddish cloud starts to spread over the horizon, and the ground starts to shake as it does. And something tells me that this has something to do with-
"Psycho Pink must be busy," Deviot announces, and I grit my teeth. If that bitch does anything to Cassie or Kendrix… "Goodbye for now, Rangers!" Leo's fear pulses through the bond, and when it mingles with my own, I have to fight down the rising sense of panic.
"Come on!"
I know we're going as fast as we can, but when we touch down on Rashon, it still feels like an eternity's passed. I don't care if it was minutes or hours since we left Terra Venture because when we arrive at the scene, Cassie's down, unmorphed, and Kendrix is standing alone against a giant sized Psycho Pink. The Galaxy Megazord throws a punch, giving 'Drix just enough time to help Cassie up. But buying time won't be enough. We slash and slash at Psycho Pink, our drive fueling our attack speed all the way until our opponent shoves back at us. The first hit throws us off balance, the second sends sparks flying out of the Megazord, and the following kick hurls us to the ground. Not good.
"I've got you now, Rangers." What's taking the others so long- the telltale zap of the Mega Voyager's attack sounds, and I breathe a sigh of relief. "I've got enough power to handle both of you," Psycho Pink snarls, and call me overconfident, but I doubt she does. We take turns slashing and hacking away at the creature, but despite our onslaught of attacks, she refuses to fall.
"Dammit," Leo hisses, "Galaxy Megazord saber, now!" That finally does the trick, but even though Psycho Pink's out of the picture, the black funnel I'd spotted still spirals into the air. That can only mean one thing: that Cassie and Kendrix are still in trouble. I nearly stumble as I leap out of the Megazord, rushing to demorph.
"I've almost made it to the morpher!" Kendrix announces, and the roar in the background is a clear giveaway as to what she's doing to get there.
"Kendrix, stop!"
"Kara, this is the only way to save Cassie!" No. There has to be something else we can do. Maybe with all of us, maybe we can siphon the energy out of the sword, away from the morpher. She just needs to wait for us to get there, then we can finish this together, like we always do. Like we always did. Just like I'd expected, the Pink Galaxy Ranger has somehow made it all the way into the middle of the black funnel, and is stumbling her way towards Cassie's morpher.
"Kendrix, no!" Leo shouts, and all the commanding tone that he usually carries as our leader is gone. He's desperate, but aren't we all?
"Kendrix!" Damon cries.
"No, please!" Kai begs.
Maya and I are silent. We both know that in the face of something like this, there's nothing we can do to stop Kendrix. No matter what the cost, she'll do it. But just this once, I wish she wouldn't. I wish she'd prioritize herself, wish she'd allow us to help her. She's always been a workaholic, staying way past her shift in sci div. I'd try to wait up for her, but the times I'd fallen asleep on the couch watching old reruns, I'd wake up covered with a blanket, the tv turned off, and a sticky note on my forehead saying I should have just slept. Maya told me that when I'd quit the team (or been kicked off, depending how you see it), Kendrix was barely in our shared apartment. She'd buried herself in work, desperately trying to fix her thoughts on something other than the reality of everything.
The reality of the truth I'd said, that I hadn't even gotten to tell her. I'd told Leo that I needed to come clean to the rest of the team on my own. That they deserve to know what I'd told him, regardless of whether it was by Sincerax's force or not.
Some time ago, when Alpha first told me that Zayne had likely cut off our telekinetic bond himself, Kendrix had promised that she'd help me find my old team. And I'd found them. They stand by my side now. But what I've come to realize is that the safety of my old team shouldn't come at the cost of my new one.
It's true that I'd missed Cassie terribly, but Kendrix has never been merely a replacement for her. She's been a best friend, a confidant, a mentor. Irreplaceable.
But when the black funnel fades away, the reddish cloud dissipating on the horizon, I know what's happened, the cost that's been paid. For a moment, I feel absolutely nothing as a glowing silhouette of the Pink Galaxy Ranger appears above the ground. Then, it's like the whole world's stopped, like if I were to breathe, I would simply break. Maya and I rush forward, but Kai and Leo hold us back. Kendrix unmorphs, but her Quasar Saber is still clutched in her left hand.
Even in the next life, she's still holding onto it, still protecting us. I would hit the ground if not for my brother supporting me, but he's trembling, too.
"I'm okay." Everything shatters. A sob escapes me, and the tears I'd been fighting flow freely down my face. I don't like crying in sadness. I feel like crying as a response to being sad means that whatever's making me feel that way is actually happening. That even though my mind doesn't want to wrap itself around the situation, my heart does it instinctively.
But I don't want to accept this. I'm not sure if I ever will.
"I'll always be here."
"We'll never forget what happened here. Good luck you guys." Ashley's words ring out in the quiet stillness of the docking area. My old team is morphed, ready to head back to Earth. We've spent the trek back here processing. I haven't spoken much, if at all. This… this is final. Not like how it was when I'd lost Andros, TJ, Carlos, Ashley, and Cassie. Not even like how it was when Mike had fallen into the earth.
This is real. The damage has been done, the cost has been paid.
I take turns hugging each of the Space Rangers, having already said my personal goodbyes once I'd drummed up the words to say. Honestly, emotions don't seem to be working for me. Everything's a blur, muffling out the sounds of the world around me like I'm constantly underwater. Tears constantly prick at the backs of my eyes, and the grief I feel from the others only adds to my own.
"You going to be okay?" Ashley murmurs, and Maya steps forward.
"I think so."
"We have to be," Kai adds, "We still have a mission to protect Terra Venture."
"And we have our mission, too," TJ replies. Damon reaches forward, shakes Carlos' hand.
"Thanks for all your help."
"I really wish things had turned out differently." I don't miss it when Cassie steps away from the group, and I follow after her.
"I'm so sorry." Her voice wobbles, and I can tell that the guilt's broken her. But none of this is her fault. I'm not sure if blame can even be placed, and if it can be, where to put it.
"Don't apologize. Kendrix…" My own voice breaks, and I take a deep breath, "Kendrix knew the cost."
"Kara's right," Andros murmurs, "We all took a risk when we became Rangers, and she knew that."
"I wish I could stay and help." I take Cassie's hand in mine gently, giving it a squeeze.
"Me too," Andros replies, "But we have to continue our own mission. Kendrix sacrificed her powers to destroy the Savage Sword so you could get yours back. She would want you to carry on. You know that." The price was high, too high, but it had to be paid. Even though I can't understand this fully, even though my grief weighs me down, I understand that much.
"You're right. Let's go. Kara…"
"Alpha made us that video communicator, remember? We'll be in contact, no matter how far away we are from each other." The Space Rangers nod, and each of my old team members gives me one final hug. It's weird. This is not how I thought we'd be saying goodbye. I honestly can't even bring myself to feel sad, reminiscent. It's all just… numb. An unnerving sense of quiet.
"It was an honor fighting beside you guys."
"No, Leo. The honor was all ours," Andros replies, then turns his glance onto me. "I'll miss you, Kara."
"I'll miss you more, Red. Stay safe out there, alright?" My first-in-command nods, giving a small salute.
"Until next time, then." He leaps onto his Galaxy Glider, but before they can take off, Carlos, TJ, Cassie, and Ashley turn back around, each of their eyes on me. They don't say a word, but that's because they don't need to. I understand. The bond between each of us will never fade, no matter the space separating us. Then, they're off, zooming back into the stars heading for earth.
Then, reality hits. There's five of us now. Not six. Five. I'd once said that seven is a perfect number for a friend group. The number of completion. But it'll never be that again.
"What do we do now?"