And… here we go! I'm ever so sorry for being late – was completely and utterly unresponsive for the last three days.
Big thanks to everyone who's still hanging around!
And the old warning is still on: review… or else.
1. Open Your Eyes
"Is this the real life?
Is this just fantasy?
Caught in a landslide
No escape from reality
Open your eyes
Look up to the skies and see"
"Bohemian Rhapsody", "Queen".
The young dark-haired woman stood at the doorway of her house and smiled as she watched her son and his friends play ball in the plaza. As much as she enjoyed watching the kids, though, it was getting late. It would soon be dark.
"Boys!" she called out loudly. "Boys, it's getting late!"
They ignored her. Being a mother to a five-years-old she had expected that, and formulated a tactic that never failed her.
"The peanut bars are ready!" she called. No kid she knew was able to resist her cooking and indeed, the kids abandoned their ball promptly and came running towards the house. Her brows furrowed as she noticed that the lone figure that went the other way was her own son. Then she saw which way he was heading and, when he turned to look at her, she nodded in confirmation.
"Zhane"
He didn't quite recognize the voice that woke him, but since the voice registered as a friend's, and as Zhane was still under the influence of his dream, he tagged it as Andros's. He evened out his breath. Let him think I'm sleeping. Let him care that I'm sleeping.
"Zhane"
"Let me sleep" he grunted.
"You want to wake up. Karone just called. She, Andros and Melissa will be here soon"
Karone's gone and Melissa is dead. What sort of a weird dream is this? Then it hit him that it wasn't a dream, and that the person trying to rouse him wasn't Andros. Zhane opened a single eye, and found himself staring into the face of a much-worried Carlos.
"I've been trying to wake you up for almost five minutes now" informed him Carlos.
"I was asleep", grunted Zhane. Belatedly, he realized what Carlos said a minute ago, and opened his other eye. "What was that about Melissa?"
"Phoenix is Melissa. We figured that much out, and she didn't bother to deny it"
Zhane just had to know. "What else did you figure?"
"That she's the princess of some planet that was taken down shortly after Karone was kidnapped, and that she apparently knows you, Andros and Karone"
"Not much"
"Would you believe that Zordon had the files locked?"
"Yeah, I would". Zhane tried to sit, and held to the bulkhead as he was attacked by a wave of nausea and his view field darkened. Carlos held him a glass of water and Zhane took it. "How did I get myself dehydrated?"
"Not dehydrated, just stressed. You practically blacked out on us back on the bridge"
"How long?"
"Four hours since we found out Andros was missing"
"So it's what, 4 p.m.?"
"About right"
Zhane finished the glass and put it down. Carlos refilled it automatically.
"Thanks"
"Thank him for being ready to miss lunch for you" said Shiera, who just came into the infirmary.
Zhane looked at Carlos quizzically before he understood.
"You set here all along?"
"Someone needed to"
"Don't believe him", advised Shiera. "He growled at Ashley when she suggested to take over". She looked somewhat amused. "And Cassie thinks I'm shy? You're almost blushing, both of you"
"Zhane's insecurity issues are a secret, Shiera", joked Carlos.
Zhane barred his teeth for lack of better response.
"What're you doing here?" asked Carlos.
"TJ got it into his head to polish the ship bottom-up. Cassie pretends to go along and cook something fancy, but she only does that to keep Ashley from fretting"
"And keep you from hitting her over the head" guessed Zhane.
"I wouldn't hit her over the head" said Shiera, sounding hurt. "A nerve pinch would be much more effective"
"I'm glad you're not my girlfriend", told her Zhane.
"Yours is a sorceress, so you're not better off" retorted Shiera. "You're worse really, as she can turn you into a frog"
"Can she?" asked Carlos curiously.
"I'm not sure", admitted Shiera, "A frog is probably not nasty enough for her taste"
"Shiera!"
"She just enjoys teasing us", said Zhane. "Between her and Karone, we'll be nervous wreckages by the end of the week"
"You're no goody-two-shoes yourself," retorted Shiera, "Fancy that it was your name TJ shouted when he got zapped from the weapon lockers"
"His fault for messing with Andros's locker!"
Carlos looked between the two. "Explain", he said finally.
"Told you, TJ is polishing the ship. Apparently, someone wired Andros's weapon locker, so he got a serious electric shock when he touched it. He's got a very impressive vocabulary for such a nice guy"
"He is a baseball player, after all", replied Carlos weakly.
"Makes one wonder how a tender thing like Cassie managed to restrain him from bursting in here and punching Zhane awake"
The boys were about to reply, when the room was suddenly filled with dazzling yellow light. When they could see again, Karone and Melissa – the former wearing no wig, no make-up but still in her gear - were standing there, Melissa placing an unconscious Andros in a medical bed.
Zhane's good spirit was suddenly gone as he leaped out of bed and to Andros's side. He checked Andros quickly, making sure he was okay, kissed Karone lightly on her cheek, and turned to face Melissa. The redhead managed to remain mute as Zhane's voice ricocheted from the bulkheads.
"Very responsible, Melissa, how very smart indeed, presenting him with that Crystal when he's not yet ready for it! Would it hurt to wait a few more hours before your precious cousin claimed his memories back? Couldn't you wait until you got here, after waiting all those years? Where the hell have you been, Melissa? We thought you died, damn it! Andros's heart was broken over losing you, as if loosing Karone didn't shatter it enough! Have you got any idea what it took to keep him going? You said it'd just fine, and then you go play dead! I held the fort for the past twelve years, and now you just pop out of nowhere and want to make right? Reality check, it doesn't work this way!"
Zhane slammed his hand into the bulkhead, completely oblivious to the startled expressions of Karone and his teammates – TJ, Cassie and Ashley were standing by the door, not daring to come in – or the tears streaming down Melissa's face. He was about to launch another attack when Melissa said simply: "I'm sorry"
One could actually see the air being knocked out of Zhane. He wasn't furious or enraged anymore, just upset, used up and possibly inches from breaking down completely. Still, he wasn't about to let Melissa get away with a mere apology.
"You don't get to do that", he said flatly. "You don't get to disappear for twelve years, and then make it all right by saying you're sorry"
"I know", she said quietly.
Zhane waved his finger at her, about to say something, when it finally registered with him that not only she agreed with everything he said, but she was still crying. He fell backwards unto one of the medical beds, blinking hard.
Encouraged by a small nod from Shiera, Karone set by his side. The former princess of evil looked so uncertain and helpless, Ashley couldn't help but move forward and hug both her and Zhane. Carlos joined her, sitting on Zhane's other side as Ashley took Karone's. When Ashley looked around again, she saw Cassie and TJ entered the room, and that Shiera was standing by Melissa, her hand on the taller girl's shoulder.
"Would someone mind to let us in on the family fight?" asked Cassie finally. For some reason, this remark forced a very small chuckle out of Melissa.
Zhane muttered something inaudible. He repeated it a little more loudly when both Karone and Carlos prodded him. "I didn't tell them"
"Tell us what?" asked TJ.
Carlos, however, took a good hard look at Melissa's facial features. "You're Andros's relative", he said.
"Zordon said she's our cousin", said Karone, first words she's spoken since arriving on the Astro Mega Ship. "I don't remember, but than again, I don't remember nothing at all from before Darkonda. The Crystal is supposed to contain my memories", she continued, holding up the necklace that she still had in her hand. "He warned us not to put on the Crystals until we're somewhere safe, but Andros wouldn't wait"
"Melissa wears her Crystal, and she looks fine to me", said Cassie.
"That's because I had it all along", said Melissa. "My cousins missed theirs for years"
"Cousins?" asked Ashley.
"Through my mother, and their father". She shifted rather uncomfortably. "It's really a long story, and this is not a very comfortable place to tell it, isn't it?"
"The mess is just down the hall", suggested TJ.
"I'll grab us something to snack on", said Cassie. "I think we're all going to have the munchies"
" "Munchies" is when you're really hungry", explained Shiera, seeing the befuddled looks on Karone's and Melissa's faces.
"This was weird", said TJ as soon as he and Cassie were out of earshot, headed for the kitchen.
"You can say that again", agreed Cassie.
"I look at her gear and I see Astronema; than I look in her eyes, and they're just like her brother's"
"I was thinking more along the lines of how Ashley embraced her spontaneously – or the interaction between Zhane and that Melissa person"
"I was looking at out people more than at Melissa", he admitted.
"And what did you see?"
"That Carlos and Zhane came to rely on each other; it's not a passing friendship between them. And Shiera stood by Melissa mostly because there was no one else; she was dying to be at Karone's side"
As TJ was the most strong headed of the lot regarding the two girls, she couldn't help but tease him a little. "So Shiera is one of us, and the girl in the killer gear is Karone?"
"Yes". They just entered the kitchen. "Do we even have anything edible here?"
"The rice is just ready, and we have some leftover vegetable soup and brownies"
"We need coke"
"Definitely, and some chocolate chip cookies too"
"And pizza"
"Now that would take too much time, but I can drop down to Angel Grove and come back in a minute with the rest"
"Do that. I'll see to the rest"
"Thanks"
"Oh, good, there's bread, so bring peanut butter and we'll have sandwiches too"
With all his concern for Zhane, Carlos couldn't help but notice the glances Shiera and Karone exchanged with each other.
"She can walk for herself, Ash" he said, and yanked her from Karone's side.
Shiera was by Karone promptly. She didn't physically hold the taller girl, but she managed to make herself noticeable nonetheless. It was very clear that Shiera still considered Karone to be her princess.
Carlos thought he saw the blonde shooting a quick, grateful look in his direction, and smiled back just in case.
They've entered the mess. Carlos set on Zhane's side, with Karone sitting next to her boyfriend and Shiera next to her. Her eyes and Carlos's crossed: something in Shiera's eyes hinted to Carlos that she thought the sitting arrangement amusing. Then her eyes trailed to notice that Ashley was sitting by Melissa, and the green Ranger was a little surprised. Carlos, however, thought it was just like Ashley to stick up with the "new girl".
"It'll probably take Cassie and TJ a little more time", offered Ashley.
"I've waited twelve years", said Melissa evenly.
"Where were you?" asked Zhane.
"Hiding", said Melissa. "I was hunted"
Zhane nodded. "Neraya and Ketro figured as much. Andros and Karone's parents", he added for the others' knowledge. "There were so many things they couldn't tell Andros, so they taught me"
"They're dead, aren't they?"
"Yes"
"And your family?"
"I don't know. We only met one group of the Kerovan refugees"
"So I didn't risk blowing my cover for nothing". Melissa sounded genuinely pleased, even if mildly. "I covered for their escape that day"
"Watching our backs?"
"Also", she admitted. "I tailed the Mega Ship for weeks after KO-35 fell".
Melissa's face clouded as she spoke the last remark, and Ashley asked gently: "What's wrong?"
"I risked so much then. Whenever I think of that time, I wonder what Jes…" her voice broke, and Melissa looked down as her eyes flooded with tears again.
Ashley put her hand on Melissa's shoulder. Melissa almost shrugged it away, but controlled herself.
"I was alone too long" she murmured.
It was in that instant that TJ entered, carrying a very loaded tray. Shiera helped him unload it.
"Cassie will be here in a minute", he said, "The kitchen was depleted"
"She went grocery shopping?" asked Shiera, at the same time that Ashley said: "Tell me we didn't run out of chocolate"
"Yes and yes", answered TJ, as soon as he untangled the words in his mind. "Next time please speak one at a time, ladies"
"You don't have a right to say anything about manners, with the vocabulary you displayed before" answered Shiera automatically.
"You don't forget anything, do you?" asked TJ. They finished unloading, and TJ set on Ashley's other side while Shiera took her place by Karone.
"Not if I can use it"
Karone stiffened a giggle. "Do you always speak like that to each other?" she asked.
"Not really" answered Carlos, "Why?"
"Because if otherwise, it would have been a serious surprise that you're still alive". She shook her head. "The number of times I nearly had you!"
"As long as you don't try to do us in again, it doesn't matter that you once tried", said Ashley.
"Do you really mean that?" asked Karone.
"That's part of what makes us the good guys", said TJ with a smile.
Cassie materialized at the mess' door, carrying two grocery bags. TJ helped her unpack, and then made her sit as he prepared the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and poured the cookies into bowls. "We'll have the proper food later", he said, "Sugar is better right now. And I want to see everyone drinking"
Melissa eyed her glass of coke suspiciously.
"It's okay" assured her Shiera.
"It's weird, but it's nice once you get used to it" added Karone.
Melissa took a careful sip, and then another one.
" "Weird" is one way to put it", she said. "Are we all ready?"
"As ready as can be" answered Cassie.
"Let's reserve ancient history for later", said Zhane suddenly.
Melissa looked at him searchingly before she relented. "You want to start, I presume?"
"Definitely". He took a deep breath. "Here goes"
Next time: "But why?"