New York City, 1996
Trini opened the door to her hotel room, not even taking the time to take off her shoes or coat before she collapsed onto the bed, letting out a sigh of relief. It had been another long day as an Ambassador of Peace, and although she'd loved every minute of it, she was glad it was coming to an end. 'After two years of negotiating and diplomatic debates, saving the world seems like a piece of cake,' she thought to herself.
She was looking forward to going back to Angel Grove, to seeing all her friends again, to she how different things had become since she left. After all, two years is a long time. 'A lot of things can change,' she sighed inwardly.
Her thoughts shifted to how her life had changed over the last 24 months. For a while, there were some withdrawl symptoms from giving up her morpher, but after a few days, it passed. Spending months at a time living out a suitcase, going from hotel to hotel all over the world, she'd grown very close to both Jason and Zach. There were the only two people in the entire conference that she talked to. Granted, there were associates, people she respected, but none of them could be considered friends. Not like Zach and Jason. Especially like Zach.
The two of them had grown closer than she ever imagined, while Jason seemed to cling to the life he left behind. There wasn't a day that went by that he didn't mention their past, how they use to morph into action and fight unspeakable evils. Not Zach though, he seemed more than content with leaving it behind. So was she, and as a result, the two of them began to spend every free moment they had together.
Then it happened…..
It was after the conference in Germany. Accommodations were limited, and the two of them were asked to share a room. As fate would have it, the room only had one bed. Granted, it was a queen size bed, but by the end of the night, it may as well been a full size. From that day on, they'd be inseparable. It amazed her how she'd been fighting side by side with Zach for years, but didn't really see him until they were cramped into a hotel room in another country.
Her thoughts were broken as the hotel room door opened and Jason walked in, tossing his bag down on the floor next to the bed.
"It's finally over," he sighed, flopping down on the bed next to her.
Jason laid his arm out on the bed, and Trini obliged him, rolling over onto his arm. He responded by pulling her a little closer as she rested her head on his chest.
"Yeah, it'll be good to finally go home," she said.
"I think the first thing I'm doing to do is go to Ernie's and get one of the milk shakes he use to make. God, I use to love those," he said, licking his lips at the thought of it.
"I'm going to go see my cousin Sylvia. I got a letter from her mom a few weeks ago, shes going to high school in the fall," she said.
"That's great."
Just then, Zach walked into the room. "Hey, what are you doing with my girlfriend?" he asked.
"Sorry man, she couldn't resist me," Jason told him.
"He's right, I couldn't help it," she confirmed.
"Well, I guess I'll just have to give Angela a call when I get back to Angel Grove," he said.
Trini quickly sat up, walking over to him and wrapping her arms around his waist. "I changed my mind, I want you back," she said.
"Good taste. They say what you've had the Zach…." He was cut short.
"….. you never go back," Jason and Trini said in unison.
"You've been using that same line for years now man, give it a rest."
"Hey, no use changing a classic," Zach told them.
Jason sat up. "I don't know about you guys, but after sitting in that stuffy room for two hours, I'm starving."
"Me too, but our flight leaves in the next 30 minutes. We really need to get to the airport," she mentioned.
Jason looked at his watch. "Hey, didn't we pass a little store on our way back to the hotel? I think I'll head over there and grab something before we go. You guys want something?" he asked.
"I could go for a Pepsi," Zach said.
"Bring me a Snickers, a bag of hot chips," she paused. "And oh yeah, a pregnancy test," Trini said.
"Alright, I'll be….." he paused.
"What?" both Jason and Zach said with amazement.
"I didn't want to say anything until I was sure, but I missed my cycle two months in a row. I've been getting sick in the morning, and I have this weird craving for Snickers and honey," Trini confessed.
"Congratulations, both of you," he said.
Zach glanced down at Trini's stomach, amazed that he hadn't noticed her slight bulge before this moment, and simply passed out.
"And bring him as ice bag and some aspirin. He'll be needing it when he comes to," she laughed.
(*)
"Zordon, I'm detecting a temporal vortex of some sort. From the looks of it, this one is in New York City," Alpha V said, going over the readings in the Command Chamber.
"I sense it too Alpha, it's exactly like the one we encountered two years ago," Zordon added.
"Should I contact the rangers?"
"No, the equipment we have now is vastly superior to the technology we had then, we should be able to determine what is causing these vortexes' and put a stop to them ourselves. Besides, this is a critical time for the rangers, we're still waiting for Tommy to return with a candidate for the golden powers," he said.
"I hope you're right Zordon."
(*)
"Welcome to New York City, the city that never sleeps," Jen said as she and Tommy walked down the crowded streets.
"I thought that was Las Vegas," he mentioned.
She paused. "You're right, I was never any again good with 21st century trivia," she admitted.
The two of them had already been in the city for a while, and Jen had taken the liberty to find herself some civilian clothes. After all, the 21st century wasn't ready to accept a Time Force officer.
Tommy couldn't help but admire the way the skirt Jen picked out for herself clung to her waist and hips. He found himself distracted from the mission, but quickly shook it off. 'I'm a married man, damn it,' he reminded himself. "If memories serves me right, Jason and the others are staying at the Hilton, we should work our way there and check all the convenience stores," he suggested.
"That could take hours, and that's time we don't have."
"So what do you suggest?"
The two of them stopped in front of a store. "Come on, we'll go in here and ask how far the Hilton is from here," she said.
"Good, after all this time traveling, I could use a Pepsi," Tommy said as the two of them walked into the store.
Tommy headed to the back of the store while Jen approached the counter. "Excuse me," she said, hoping to get the attention of the man behind the counter.
He turned around, and his eyes lit up with fear. "Oh my God," he mumbled.
"What?"
Before Jen could move, someone grabbed her arms, putting them behind her back, then pressed a gun to the back of her head. "Give me all the money in the drawer or this bitch gets it!" a voice said.
Jen glanced up at the mirror in the corner, where she saw Tommy ready to make a move, but she shook her head slightly, signaling him to wait.
"Whatever you say," the man behind the counter said, quickly opening the drawer.
At that moment, the door to the store opened and Jason walked in. "Hey, do you guys have any….." before he could finish his sentence, Jen took her opening and rammed an elbow into the attacker's ribs, forcing him to drop the gun. As it fell to the ground, it went off.
It all happened so quickly as the attacker rushed out the door and Jen dusted herself off. She glanced down, only to see Jason lying on the floor.
"Oh no," she sighed.
Tommy rushed from the back of the store, rolling Jason over. "He's okay, it just looks like he bumped his head on the side the counter when he fell. I don't see any bullet wounds or any blood, he's fine," he assured her.
"When is your other self suppose to meet up with him?"
He paused. "As I remember it, I went to the hotel, but he'd already checked out. I saw Zach in the hallway and we headed down here to meet up with Jason. That means….." before he could finish his sentence, the door opened as Zach and Tommy walked in.
Tommy quickly laid on his stomach, face down on the floor.
"Oh my God, what happened?" Zach screamed, tending to Jason on the floor.
"There was a guy in here, he put a gun to my head and tried to rob the store, but-" she paused. "-My boyfriend stopped him," Jen explained.
"I'll go after the guy," Zach said as he rushed out the store.
"What about him? Is he okay?" Tommy asked, trying to tend to the man face down on the floor.
"He'll be fine, but your friend might have a concussion. You should call for help," she said.
"Right," he said as he rushed out the store as well.
They waited a moment until they were sure he was gone, and then Tommy sat up, dusting himself off. "That was too close," Tommy sighed.
"Yeah, it was a good thing…." She paused. "Wait a second, you said this is the way you remembered all of this happening the first time?" she asked.
"Yeah."
"That means the saboteur is still here," Jen said.
"Do you think he was the guy with the gun?" he asked.
"Could be."
Tommy turned to the man behind the counter. "Sir, we need the tape from your security camera," he told him.
"You saved my life and stopped that hooligan from robbing my store, it's the least I can do," he said as he hurried to the back of the store, coming back a few seconds later with a tape in hand.
"We should get this back to Captain Logan," Jen said.
"Thanks again," he said as he nodded at the man behind the counter, and then rushed out the store.
(*)
'They think they're so smart. They think if they go behind me and clean up my dirty work, they'll save themselves and their own time. Those fools don't even realize what they're doing, and soon, very soon, the entire universe; past, present and future, will belong to me,' he thought to himself, letting out a sinister laugh as he set coordinates in his timeship.
'Coordinates set and locked. Destination, Angel Grove 1998. Prepare for temporal displacement,' the computer warned.
The vortex opened, and the time ship flew inside.