Disclaimer: This chapter deals with a subject of a very serious nature. It was not my intention to offend anyone, and I apologize in advance for anyone who takes exception to it's content.

~ ~ ~  

Finally, the two of them were alone.

Tommy wasn't the most romantic person in the world, but he could tell that Jen had gone out of her way to prepare for the evening. The scent of roses was in the air as soon as he stepped in, and the only lights in the room were two candles lit on the table in the dining room. 'Jen really went all out for this,' he thought to himself, noticing how dim the lights were.

He stepped around the corner, only to see Jen in a long, black evening gown. It was very low cut, very revealing, quickly getting Tommy's undivided attention.

"You look… wow," he managed to mumble.

"So do you," she sighed, though Tommy himself felt a bit underdressed in a pair of jeans and a red tank top.

"So um, what did you want to talk to me about?" he asked.

"We have all night for that. First, I made you dinner," she said.

"Really?"

"Yes. Tonight I'm going to tell you everything that I've always…" she was interrupted when.

'Captain Logan to Tommy. Respond,' a voice said.

She didn't have to say a thing; Tommy saw the frustration on Jen's face the second the morpher went off. "Go ahead, duty calls," she sighed.

Tommy reluctantly reached for his morpher. "What is it Captain?" he asked.

'You know I hate to bother you when you're off duty, but there's a priority message coming in from a distant galaxy. You should report to the science lab,' he said.

"With all due respect sir, don't Trip and Camille handle the priority messages, especially ones from another galaxy?" he brought up.

'Under normal circumstances, yes, but this message is addressed to you,' he said.

"What? Me?"

'Like I said Lt., I think you should get down here,' he said.

"On the way," he sighed, and then turned to Jen, only to see she was gone. "Jen," he called out.

Jen walked into the room zipping up her uniform. "I'm coming with you, you made need some help," she said.

He smiled. "Thanks Jen,"

(*)

The two of them walked in the science lab where they Trip and Captain Logan were already standing near the communications panel.

"What's going on?" Tommy asked.

"The signal is very weak, we wanted to do a signal boost before you got here," Trip said, going over the calculations one more time.

"You said something about it being addressed to Tommy," Jen brought up.

"There's no way to verify we enhance the signal, but our best guess is its coming from the Torias sector," Captain Logan said, turning to Tommy. "You know anyone in the Torias sector?"

"I don't think so. Who would even know I was here?"

"We're about to find out," Trip said as it input the final command sequence. Just then, the view screen above the panel blinked on.

There was on a man on the screen with brownish blonde hair and glasses. He appeared to be in his early twenties and a gentle smile. The others had no idea who it was, but Tommy recognized him the moment he saw him.

"Billy?" he inquired.

"Long time no see Tommy. Real long time," he said.

"You look so young, how…" he was cut short.

"The subspace channel is very weak, I'll explain everything when I arrive," he said.

"You're coming to Earth?"

"According to my readings, I should be there in about 37 minutes. I'll be landing just outside of Silver Hills near the shore, meet me there," he said.

Before Tommy had a chance to respond, the communication's signal was lost. Tommy hurried over to the panel. "Can we get the signal back?" he asked.

"No, it was weak. I was surprised it lasted as long as it did," Trip said.

"Who was that?" Jen inquired.

"That was Billy Cranston. He was a power ranger, a long time ago," he said.

"Surely you don't mean the same Billy Cranston who designed the turbo megazord, the original blue ranger Zordon selected to defend the Earth?" Captain Logan asked.

"That's him,"

"But how? He should be over 1000 years old," Trip mentioned.

"So should I," he brought up.

"Your situation is unique. If you plan on going, I suggest you take Jen and the others with you. It could be a trap," the Captain said.

Tommy shook his head. "No, its okay. I have to go see what's going on with Billy. If I need you guys, I'll call," he said as he pointed at his morpher, then hurried out the lab.

"You want us to switch on the cloak and follow him?" Jen inquired.

"No, Tommy seems to trust this guy. We'll see how it plays out," Captain Logan told them.

~

Tommy stood on the shore overlooking the river just outside Silver Hills. It was strange, considering how the level of technology had changed over the last millennia, how advanced society had become, the shore had remained almost untouched by evolution. The sun was beginning to set behind the mountains as he waiting, picking up small rocks and throwing them into the river.

He recalled the last time he saw Billy; he'd created some type of regenerator, but it had some unforeseen side effects. Billy had begun to age rapidly, and with no signs of a cure in sight, they were convinced it would die of old age in a matter of days. Cestro and the other Alien rangers of Aquitar suggested that they would be able to help, taking Billy to their planet to be cured. Although Billy later sent word back to the Earth, that he was okay, that the last any of them ever saw of Billy.

Until now……

In the distance, Tommy could see the ship making its approach. The ship itself wasn't very big, just enough room to fit one, maybe two people. It had a sleek silver design with a blue streak along the side. 'Just like Billy to add a personal touch to it,' Tommy thought.

The ship landed on the shore, and seconds later, a small hatch opened. Smoke escaped through the hatch, and through the smoke, he stepped out.

"Tommy?" he called out.

"Billy," he said, walking over to him. The two of them wrapped their arms around one another. "Its good to see you man," he said.

"Thanks," he paused. "And actually, its William now," he corrected.

"What brings you all the way back to Earth Bil.. I mean, William?" Tommy asked.

"I'm here because I want you to kill me," he said.

(*)

"You want him to do what?" Camille snapped as the six of them sat around a table, discussing the issue.

Tommy knew that this wasn't a decision he could handle alone, so he and William headed back to Time Force headquarters.

"When I originally left Earth over 1000 years ago, it was because I had a rare condition that forced my aging process to accelerate exponentially. Cestro took me to Aquitar, where they're water supply had a regenerating effect on me. Within days, I was young again, and there were no signs of the condition at all. I opted to stay on Aquitar to aid the rangers against a race of warriors known as the Vorhsoth, and when the war was over, I vowed to help rebuild Aquitar with them. By the time I was ready to come home, it was fifty or sixty years later. I knew that all my friends were long since dead from old age, not to mention I didn't want to leave behind my wife and three sons, so I stayed. I watched my children grow, and my grandchildren, and my great grandchildren, and my great great grandchildren. There's been so many now I can barely keep count anymore, but I'm a young as I was the day I left Earth 1000 years ago," he explained.

"If there was something in the water, why did they age but you didn't?" Trip asked.

"The Aquitarian people knew they're water had regenerating effects, but it is extremely limited with them. Because I wasn't Aquitarian, the water slowed down my aging process by over 10,000%. At this rate, it will be about 4000 years before I age," he said.

"But why do you want Tommy to kill you?" Katie asked.

"Do you know what it's like seeing everyone you love die? It cuts like a knife, and when you finally do get to a point where you can live with the pain, someone else dies. And another. And another. And another. Everyone who ever meant anything to me had been dead for hundreds of years, and anyone who will ever mean anything to me will eventually die as well. All humans dream of living forever, but I've done it, and it's a living hell," he told them.

"How did you know Tommy was here?"

"Word gets around the galaxy pretty quickly. In my free time – and believe me I have a lot of it – I monitor what happens here on Earth. News broadcasts didn't have very many details on how it happened, but when I heard that Tommy was here, I set a course for Earth," William said.

"I understand what you're going through Billy, but I can't kill you or anyone else," Tommy said.

"Why don't you just leave Aquitar altogether and come back to Earth? If you stayed here, you wouldn't be exposed to their water supply and your aging process would return to normal," Trip suggested.

"I've thought of that, but it would take at least another 1000 years for the effects the water had on me to wear off and allow my body to age naturally again. I've lived a full life, I've done more than I ever dreamed I'd do able to do, but its over now," he said.

"I can't do it," Tommy insisted.

"Tommy, you're the only person that can do it. I wouldn't dream of asking my family on Aquitar to do it, but you can understand better than anyone what its like to be away from everyone that ever meant anything to you. Think about it; Kim is dead, your children, Trini, Zach, Jason, Katherine, Adam, all of them are gone. We're alone Tommy, but I can't deal with it anymore," he said.

"I'm not alone. I have Jen," he paused. "And the other rangers," he added.

Jen cracked a smile.

"And that's fine for you because eventually, you'll pass away like the rest of them. Not me, I'll be here for another 4000 years before I even start to get older. Think about that Tommy; I'll be here in the year 7000, and then probably live for another 50 or sixty years after that. I can't do it anymore Tommy, I just can't," he told him.

"Maybe I can help," Camille said, injecting herself into the conversation.

"How?"

"Do you a sample of the water with you?" she asked.

"I have some aboard the ship I came in, why?"

"Trip and I may be able to analyze it and come up with a way to counter the effects," she mentioned.

"I've tried to do that for hundreds of years on Aquitar, what makes you think you'll have any more success than I had?" he asked, not realizing how rude it sounded until it was too late.

"Because Time Force specializes in that. When the first Chryo containment modules were created, we had a find a way to ensure that the aging processed was slowed down so criminals wouldn't die of old age in containment," Trip said.

"We can crosscheck the data we had from the preliminary containment modules with the molecular structure of the water sample. We should be able to reverse whatever the water is doing to you," she added.

"Then you could come back to Earth and live a normal life again. You could die of old age like the rest of us," Katie said.

"Thank you, all of you," William sighed.

(*)

Tommy and Jen stood in the doorway as Trip, Camille and William worked in Trip's private lab. It seemed a little more sophisticated than the lab at Time Force, but a lot smaller. The three of them were mumbling to one another, something about warped DNA, cellular structures and re-sequencing molecules. All technical stuff, all of it over Tommy's heads.

"You're worried about your friend, aren't you?" she asked, putting her hand on his shoulder for comfort.

"William? No, I'm sure they'll find something. I'm just thinking about some of the things he said. If I'd lived 1000 years like he had, watching everyone who loved me die, I would feel the same way he does. I would welcome death," he said.

"You don't feel alone like he said, do you?"

"No. Like I said, I have you and the others. At first I found himself wanting to go back to the friends I left behind, but I knew that wasn't going to happen. It didn't take long, but I grew to love the life I was making for myself here. I talked to Alex the other day and he said I was up for a promotion in a few weeks. I love it here now, I love you," she glanced up at him. "And the other rangers. You're like family to me now," he said.

She paused. "When you say family, do you mean like a sister or like a distance cousin you haven't seen in a while?" she asked. The last thing she wanted to hear from Tommy was that he didn't think of her in that way.

Tommy leaned down, kissing her gently on the lips. "Does that answer your question?" he replied.

Jen hadn't even opened her eyes again yet, simply lingering on the kiss she'd been waiting for since the moment she saw him. "You may have to remind me again," she mentioned.

"It's a date," he sighed.

"That's it!" Camille yelled.

Tommy and Jen raced into the room. "What is it? What do you have?" he asked.

"I've isolated the agents in the Aquitarian water that effects the human body. It looks like an isotope of some kind, probably indigenous to Aquitar. Now that we know the cause, I can use the data from the Chryo containment units to reverse the effect and put it back to normal," she said.

"How long will it take?"

"I'll have to re-sequence the isotope with a modified spectro……"

"How long will it take?" he repeated, interrupting her.

"Done," she said.

"Really?"

"Um, yeah. The same isotopes in the water sample you brought can be reversed, but the problem is if you take too much, the process will speed up and you'll begin to age faster than your body can handle," she said. "All you have to do is drink this, but in moderation," she told him, holding up a flask with green-ish fluid inside.

"How long before it begins to work?" William asked.

"It should take effect immediately. The isotopes in the Aquitarian water were just that, watered down. We've reversed those isotopes and by removing them from the water, they should have more potency," Trip explained.

"Excellent. Thank you, all of you," he said.

"Now that you're a regular joe again, you may even want to consider a career in Time Force. They could always use someone with your knowledge and experience in the…" he stopped as he saw William pick up the flask with the isotopes in it, drinking it all down in one gulp. "What the hell are you doing?" he yelled.

"I'll finally be at peace now. Goodbye my friend," he sighed as he stood up, but stumbled over, falling to the floor as the isotopes began to take effect.

The five of them watched in amazement as William grew older in front of his eyes. He went from the young man Tommy remembered to a withering old man. His skin began to winkle until finally they couldn't even recognize him. From what they could tell, he didn't seem to be in any pain as he looked up at Tommy one last time. With the last of his strength, William reached out and grabbed Tommy's hand.

"I'm right here man," Tommy sighed.

William managed to crack a smile before his eyes glazed over for the last time.

"I'll call a coroner," Katie sighed as she walked out the room.

Camille walked over to Tommy, wrapping her arms around him. "Are you okay old man?" she asked.

"Yeah," he lied, making no attempt to control his emotions as tears rolled down his face.

"Come on Tommy, lets go home," Jen sighed.

~ ~ ~

For my mother: A. Elaine Livingston 1/26/54 – 10/23/02  

I miss you