Chapter 12
"So, I died?" Alex asked.
"Again," Jen completed.
She and Trip had just explained to him and the other two officers about the timeline change. She had told Alex about The Mistress erasing him from history and them coming back in time to save Wes' wife before she killed her.
"And exactly how did you save Jessica Collins if The Mistress hasn't attacked her yet?" he asked her.
"Well, she was on the verge of death," Jen started. After finding Wes she had read his mind looking for information about his situation. She had learnt his wife was very sick, with pneumonia. She explained this to Alex.
"What I remember," Alex said, "is that Circuit called us telling us The Mistress was traveling to the past, so we froze Ransik, Nadira and the Golden Steelix and ran into a time ship and followed her."
"That's what we did," Trip assured him.
"Didn't you just say--" Alex began.
"That's what we did in the other timeline. In this one we came to bring The Mistress back to the future, before she does anything, like we did with Ransik."
"All right," Alex said with a resigned voice. "What has she done?"
"Nothing yet, but her time ship landed a few minutes ago on a nearby beach," Trip explained.
"So we are here to stop her from hurting Jessica Collins?" Alex said.
"Yes, because she's your ancestor," Jen said. "Just like Wes."
"Then why does Mom want to kill her? If she's my ancestor, wouldn't it make more sense if she was yours?" Alex asked.
"Well, she doesn't know Jessica is not my ancestor," Jen explained. "Although I can't blame her for the mistake."
"Why not?"
"Jessica looks like Jen the way you look like Wes," Trip explained. Jen nodded.
"So you have your very own 21st century double? " Alex asked her.
"Yeah," Jen said with a small smile.
Alex let out a heavy breath and rolled his eyes. "This is so complicated!" he complained.
"It is," Katie backed him up. "Weren't we in the hospital with Wes?"
"You and Lucas," Jen said. "But in this Time Line there was nothing wrong in the hospital yet, so you are here with us, where we landed."
"So us being in the hospital was still the other timeline?" Lucas asked.
"Yes, because the timeline changed after your actions," Trip explained.
Alex, Katie and Lucas seemed extremely confused. But their confusion was nothing compared to Trip and Jen's, who remembered both timelines, and felt as if they had been leading a double life. They had tried to make some sense out of it and explain to the others what they remembered.
Alex moved his neck up and down exaggeratedly, trying to release the tension of his cervical vertebrae. He took a deep breath. "However it happened, we are here. And Jessica Collins is still in danger," he said.
"You'd better go to the hospital," Jen said. "They're still there," she told the other three.
"Wait, you mean you're not coming with us?" Katie asked.
"How can we?" Jen asked. "There are reporters outside the hospital, all around it, if they see Alex or me, they'll think we are the Collinses and we won't have a way to explain we're not. You three would go in unnoticed," she explained.
"And what are we supposed to do there?" Lucas demanded.
"You are to reach Wesley and explain to him how his wife got miraculously healed," Alex said. Looking their bewildered expressions he added: "With a new secret experimental treatment Bio-Lab had been testing."
"What treatment?" Trip asked.
"A new drug that leaves no traces," Jen explained. "Don't worry, we will add the FDA file for that drug from here, with the aid of Buda and Tao. Trip, take Circuit with you, I want you to be able to morph and call us for help if anything should happen."
"What drug? What's its name?" Lucas asked.
"I don't think a drug is a good idea," Katie commented.
"And what would be a good idea?" Jen asked.
"If we tell what Bio-Lab truly used," Katie said matter-of-factly. Jen urged her to continue with a gesture. "The nano-machines."
"It's perfect," Trip backed her up. "It won't need an FDA record, because it's not a food, or a drug, it's a machine."
Jen looked at Alex and he nodded. "It makes sense," he commented. "You three will pass as Bio-Lab's scientists."
"What if we can explain to Wes what's going on before we have to explain to someone else and he doesn't get it?" Katie asked.
"I'll take care of that," Jen said, simply winking.
"Then all we have to do is leave now," Lucas said. "We have a long walk from here to the hospital."
"Take the vector cycles!" Alex said, his voice sounding as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"People are not used to see vector cycles around here, Alex, we'd have to morph," Lucas explained.
"Then morph," Alex concluded, shrugging.
"And how will we pass as Bio-Lab scientists if we are the Power Rangers?" Lucas demanded.
"It wouldn't be such a bad idea to admit it was the Power Rangers who helped Jessica Collins; everyone knows Wes was the red Ranger," Trip mused.
"Except none other than Mrs. Collins herself, who was in Europe when the whole Ransik thing happened," Jen said.
"You are reading her mind right now?" Alex demanded. She nodded.
"We'll take the vector cycles and demorph away from the hospital, so the walk is shorter," Trip suggested. Alex clapped and pointed at Trip, in a gesture that reminded them way too much of Wes.
"The man's got my point!" he affirmed. Jen looked at the others and they all began to laugh heartily. "What did I say?" Alex asked.
"You sounded just like Wes," Jen explained. Wes had never actually made that move or said those words while they were with him, but the attitude was just too alike, too happy-go-lucky, too carefree rich boy-like. Alex shrugged and focused on the screen Buda had just started in front of him. "Get going," Jen told the others. "Don't take too long."
"Ready?" Lucas asked the other two.
"Ready!"
"Time for Time Force!!"
**************************
Samantha Drake had made her way to the hospital and found it surrounded by reporters. "What's going on here?" she asked aloud, but everybody was too interested in the hospital's door to pay her any attention.
She turned on her heels and began walking back to her ship. If she wanted to get to Jessica Collins (maiden name Smith) she was going to need to get rid of all those reporters. As she was walking back, she saw, in the distance, the yellow, blue and green Time Force Rangers demorphing and heading to the hospital; she hid from them as smoothly as she could and pulled out a communication device.
"Yes, ma'am?" a mutant in the ship asked.
"Catta," she said. "I need you all in the hospital, hurry," she ordered and closed the line. Nice try, Farm Girl, but you are about to get a big, big surprise.
*********************************
The doctors had kept on examining Jessica over and over, trying, as if they needed to, to find something wrong with her. She and Wes were holding hands and staring lovingly into each other's eyes. Wes caressed the back of her hand, his face shining with happiness. She smiled brightly at him, all the tubes and such gone for good.
"I can't believe this," he said.
She beamed. "Me neither. And yet, here I am, healthy, alive and loving you more than ever!" He moved to her and kissed her forehead.
"Are you admitting you didn't love me before?" he asked playfully.
"NO!" she answered in the same playful mood, letting go of his hand. "I'm just saying that now I'm more willing to-- to show you my love, more than I was before."
Wes laughed softly at her obvious embarrassment. "So, Mrs. Collins can't love?"
"I CAN love, I can't show my love, there's a difference," she said defensively.
He pulled her into a tight hug and looked her in the eye. "Then we'll have to do something about that, won't we?" he whispered and he leaned in to kiss her. Once again she didn't response to his kiss as he expected, she tensed and started opening and closing her mouth clumsily as if she was gasping for air. "Relax," he whispered into her mouth.
They heard someone clear her throat. They looked towards the door and found a stern looking woman who was looking reproachfully at Jessica.
"In the hospital room. Jessica?" she asked coldly.
"In the hospital room, indeed," Jessica answered; her voice just as cold, although her eyes were burning with rage. "In the hospital room and everywhere we want to, Mother."
to be continued..
"So, I died?" Alex asked.
"Again," Jen completed.
She and Trip had just explained to him and the other two officers about the timeline change. She had told Alex about The Mistress erasing him from history and them coming back in time to save Wes' wife before she killed her.
"And exactly how did you save Jessica Collins if The Mistress hasn't attacked her yet?" he asked her.
"Well, she was on the verge of death," Jen started. After finding Wes she had read his mind looking for information about his situation. She had learnt his wife was very sick, with pneumonia. She explained this to Alex.
"What I remember," Alex said, "is that Circuit called us telling us The Mistress was traveling to the past, so we froze Ransik, Nadira and the Golden Steelix and ran into a time ship and followed her."
"That's what we did," Trip assured him.
"Didn't you just say--" Alex began.
"That's what we did in the other timeline. In this one we came to bring The Mistress back to the future, before she does anything, like we did with Ransik."
"All right," Alex said with a resigned voice. "What has she done?"
"Nothing yet, but her time ship landed a few minutes ago on a nearby beach," Trip explained.
"So we are here to stop her from hurting Jessica Collins?" Alex said.
"Yes, because she's your ancestor," Jen said. "Just like Wes."
"Then why does Mom want to kill her? If she's my ancestor, wouldn't it make more sense if she was yours?" Alex asked.
"Well, she doesn't know Jessica is not my ancestor," Jen explained. "Although I can't blame her for the mistake."
"Why not?"
"Jessica looks like Jen the way you look like Wes," Trip explained. Jen nodded.
"So you have your very own 21st century double? " Alex asked her.
"Yeah," Jen said with a small smile.
Alex let out a heavy breath and rolled his eyes. "This is so complicated!" he complained.
"It is," Katie backed him up. "Weren't we in the hospital with Wes?"
"You and Lucas," Jen said. "But in this Time Line there was nothing wrong in the hospital yet, so you are here with us, where we landed."
"So us being in the hospital was still the other timeline?" Lucas asked.
"Yes, because the timeline changed after your actions," Trip explained.
Alex, Katie and Lucas seemed extremely confused. But their confusion was nothing compared to Trip and Jen's, who remembered both timelines, and felt as if they had been leading a double life. They had tried to make some sense out of it and explain to the others what they remembered.
Alex moved his neck up and down exaggeratedly, trying to release the tension of his cervical vertebrae. He took a deep breath. "However it happened, we are here. And Jessica Collins is still in danger," he said.
"You'd better go to the hospital," Jen said. "They're still there," she told the other three.
"Wait, you mean you're not coming with us?" Katie asked.
"How can we?" Jen asked. "There are reporters outside the hospital, all around it, if they see Alex or me, they'll think we are the Collinses and we won't have a way to explain we're not. You three would go in unnoticed," she explained.
"And what are we supposed to do there?" Lucas demanded.
"You are to reach Wesley and explain to him how his wife got miraculously healed," Alex said. Looking their bewildered expressions he added: "With a new secret experimental treatment Bio-Lab had been testing."
"What treatment?" Trip asked.
"A new drug that leaves no traces," Jen explained. "Don't worry, we will add the FDA file for that drug from here, with the aid of Buda and Tao. Trip, take Circuit with you, I want you to be able to morph and call us for help if anything should happen."
"What drug? What's its name?" Lucas asked.
"I don't think a drug is a good idea," Katie commented.
"And what would be a good idea?" Jen asked.
"If we tell what Bio-Lab truly used," Katie said matter-of-factly. Jen urged her to continue with a gesture. "The nano-machines."
"It's perfect," Trip backed her up. "It won't need an FDA record, because it's not a food, or a drug, it's a machine."
Jen looked at Alex and he nodded. "It makes sense," he commented. "You three will pass as Bio-Lab's scientists."
"What if we can explain to Wes what's going on before we have to explain to someone else and he doesn't get it?" Katie asked.
"I'll take care of that," Jen said, simply winking.
"Then all we have to do is leave now," Lucas said. "We have a long walk from here to the hospital."
"Take the vector cycles!" Alex said, his voice sounding as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"People are not used to see vector cycles around here, Alex, we'd have to morph," Lucas explained.
"Then morph," Alex concluded, shrugging.
"And how will we pass as Bio-Lab scientists if we are the Power Rangers?" Lucas demanded.
"It wouldn't be such a bad idea to admit it was the Power Rangers who helped Jessica Collins; everyone knows Wes was the red Ranger," Trip mused.
"Except none other than Mrs. Collins herself, who was in Europe when the whole Ransik thing happened," Jen said.
"You are reading her mind right now?" Alex demanded. She nodded.
"We'll take the vector cycles and demorph away from the hospital, so the walk is shorter," Trip suggested. Alex clapped and pointed at Trip, in a gesture that reminded them way too much of Wes.
"The man's got my point!" he affirmed. Jen looked at the others and they all began to laugh heartily. "What did I say?" Alex asked.
"You sounded just like Wes," Jen explained. Wes had never actually made that move or said those words while they were with him, but the attitude was just too alike, too happy-go-lucky, too carefree rich boy-like. Alex shrugged and focused on the screen Buda had just started in front of him. "Get going," Jen told the others. "Don't take too long."
"Ready?" Lucas asked the other two.
"Ready!"
"Time for Time Force!!"
**************************
Samantha Drake had made her way to the hospital and found it surrounded by reporters. "What's going on here?" she asked aloud, but everybody was too interested in the hospital's door to pay her any attention.
She turned on her heels and began walking back to her ship. If she wanted to get to Jessica Collins (maiden name Smith) she was going to need to get rid of all those reporters. As she was walking back, she saw, in the distance, the yellow, blue and green Time Force Rangers demorphing and heading to the hospital; she hid from them as smoothly as she could and pulled out a communication device.
"Yes, ma'am?" a mutant in the ship asked.
"Catta," she said. "I need you all in the hospital, hurry," she ordered and closed the line. Nice try, Farm Girl, but you are about to get a big, big surprise.
*********************************
The doctors had kept on examining Jessica over and over, trying, as if they needed to, to find something wrong with her. She and Wes were holding hands and staring lovingly into each other's eyes. Wes caressed the back of her hand, his face shining with happiness. She smiled brightly at him, all the tubes and such gone for good.
"I can't believe this," he said.
She beamed. "Me neither. And yet, here I am, healthy, alive and loving you more than ever!" He moved to her and kissed her forehead.
"Are you admitting you didn't love me before?" he asked playfully.
"NO!" she answered in the same playful mood, letting go of his hand. "I'm just saying that now I'm more willing to-- to show you my love, more than I was before."
Wes laughed softly at her obvious embarrassment. "So, Mrs. Collins can't love?"
"I CAN love, I can't show my love, there's a difference," she said defensively.
He pulled her into a tight hug and looked her in the eye. "Then we'll have to do something about that, won't we?" he whispered and he leaned in to kiss her. Once again she didn't response to his kiss as he expected, she tensed and started opening and closing her mouth clumsily as if she was gasping for air. "Relax," he whispered into her mouth.
They heard someone clear her throat. They looked towards the door and found a stern looking woman who was looking reproachfully at Jessica.
"In the hospital room. Jessica?" she asked coldly.
"In the hospital room, indeed," Jessica answered; her voice just as cold, although her eyes were burning with rage. "In the hospital room and everywhere we want to, Mother."
to be continued..
