Disclaimer: I don't own them, but if I did there'd be more dvds and most definitely more special features.
Quick Chapter Summary- TJ assesses the extent of Cassie's injuries
Chapter 3- Cassie's Condition
ON EARTH – IN THE CAVES AT ANGEL GROVE PARKTJ ducked under the low rock overhang leading into the caves at Angel Grove beach and he only slowed down after about 5 minutes off zooming through, over, and into as many obstacles as he could to ensure no one could possibly follow them. He landed his galaxy glider near a small pool of water and gingerly laid his fallen comrade on the ground at his feet. Wary of any tracking devices Astronema may use to capture her prey, TJ leaned over Cassie and deactivated her morpher and communicator and then his. He really didn't want to because then Andros and the others wouldn't be able to find them either, but at the moment he was more concerned with staying hidden from his enemies than being found by his friends.
TJ sat down next to Cassie, who was still unconscious, and began assessing the extent of her injuries. First off, he checked her pulse. He didn't think to check while they were still at the park, but now that he finally took a good look at her, he realized she looked so pale and unresponsive, she may very well be dead. He gently pressed his fingers to her neck and let out a deep breath he hadn't realized he was holding when he felt the faint beating against the pads of his fingers. Next, he examined the deep gash on her forehead, most likely made by a piece of flying debris. He took off his blue flannel shirt that he was wearing over a blue tank top (since his morpher was deactivated, he was back in civilian clothes rather than the standard power ranger uniform he was wearing before the fight began), ripped off a strip to dip in the cool water and placed the rest of the shirt underneath Cassie's head. He used the wet strip and gently dabbed at the deep gash and washed most the blood away so he could get a better look at it.
After cleansing the precious blood off of Cassie's face, TJ looked over her arms, legs, abdomen, and back. He found several other deep cuts and numerous bruises that were already forming on her poor battered body. Out of all of her injuries, though, he was most concerned about the deep gash on her head, which could lead to a concussion, and a very nasty bruise on her lower back. He took a mental note not to move her head or neck before she was awake and able to tell him how she felt.
TJ dipped the already blood-soaked strip of his flannel shirt into the cool water again and drizzled the water over her face. "Come on, Cassie-girl, wake up. Rise and shine. Come on," he said over and over again. He had to rouse her. If she did indeed have a concussion, the longer she stayed unconscious the greater the chances were that she wouldn't wake up at all. "Please," he pleaded. For what felt like an eternity, but was only in fact about 15 minutes, he continued talking to her and dripping water on her face before she responded.
"Wha- what happened? Where am I?," Cassie asked groggily. She tried to sit up but grimaced and collapsed onto the ground again. She looked around at her surroundings and her eyes finally fell on her friend. "TJ? Where are we?"
"You were attacked by a monster and knocked unconscious. I managed to get you out of there and at the moment we're hiding in the caves at the beach. It was the only place I could think of that the quantrons wouldn't be able to get into with their fliers." He shook his head. "They must want you pretty bad, they chased us all the way here from the park." TJ glanced warily Cassie. "How do you feel? I'm a bit concerned about your back. I didn't want to move you until woke up."
Cassie picked her arms up in the air and waved them, then she turned her head from one side to the other. Next, she lifted her legs and then she did a little wiggle on her back, all the while grimacing in pain. "Well, it hurts like heck, but I think it's safe to say I'm not paralyzed." She could see the relief on his face. "Did I scare you pretty bad?"
"That, my dear, is an understatement," he said, smiling at her. His smile slowly faded, though, as he, too, took a closer look of their surroundings. "I don't like this."
"What?"
"They may try to blow up the caves. I didn't realize how deep we were going. If they do, we'll get buried."
"How long have we been down here?"
"About a half an hour." Then he caught on to Cassie's train of thought. "What's keeping them, though? It's odd that they haven't blown us up yet."
Cassie tried again to sit up but this time TJ made her lay down, not the pain.
"Stay down, I need to dress your wounds," he said. TJ walked over to his galaxy glider, opened a compartment underneath the standing pad, and pulled out a first aid kit. He opened the kit and was a bit upset to find very meager supplies.
"What about your injuries?" Cassie pointed at TJ's arms, which were now visible since he took off his flannel shirt to put under her head. She managed to sit up, despite TJ's protests, and examine his arms more closely. "My god, TJ, what happened to you?" From the crease inside his elbow all the way up to his shoulders he had what could best be described as a really REALLY bad road rash, the kind you get when you crash your bike and slide on the gravel a couple 2, 3, 10 feet. They were bleeding and looked incredibly painful.
"I managed to squeeze out of the energy bonds holding me during the fight to get to you. Don't ask me how, though. It doesn't hurt very badly. Come on, lie down." He put on a brave front and tried to get Cassie to lie down again, but she wasn't going to budge. He winced when she lightly touched his arm.
"Don't say it doesn't hurt, because I can tell it does," she said. She reached for the first aid kit but TJ pulled it out of her reach.
"I'll make a deal with you. Let me take care of the gash on your head and any other little cuts and scratches you have, and when I'm done, you can play doctor," he said, still holding the kit out of her reach when she repeatedly tried to get to it.
Cassie stopped reaching for the kit and gave TJ a hard look. "You promise?," she asked. He nodded and made the cross my heart gesture. "Fine, you get to play nurse, and then I get to play doctor."
He shook his head at her last comment, and looked at her, pleased to see most traces of grogginess gone from her eyes, replaced by playfulness. "Now, LIE DOWN," he said forcefully. His actions belittled his words, though, as he eased her down with as much gentleness as if he were handling a porcelain doll. He showed the same tender care as he dressed her wounds. She was wearing jeans and a pink tank top, so it was easy to bandage her arms and abdomen, however he had to concede that he wouldn't be able bandage any part of her legs above the knees.
He finally finished and Cassie nearly ripped the kit out of his hands. She didn't make him lie down while she cleaned and bandaged his arms since it would make it difficult, however she did make him lie down long enough to check the rest of his body for injuries. Satisfied he was in one piece, she let him kneel on his knees while she dressed his wounds. "I can't believe you were able to break free of the energy beam," she said while she cleaned wound with hydrogen peroxide and then sprayed it with a pain relieving anti-bacterial spray.
"I wasn't about to let you get destroyed by that monster. You mean too much to me…" he trailed off, surprised he had just confessed that to her.
Cassie paused as she finished tying a knot it the gauze that she had wrapped around his upper arm. She slowly worked herself around so she was in front of him. They were both kneeling on the hard ground, and even kneeling, he was a good 4 or 5 inches taller than her. She looked into his eyes and saw the genuine love in their depths. Cassie tilted her head up and lightly kissed him on his lips. When she pulled away, he leaned towards her and continued the kiss. When he pulled away and looked at her, her eyes were closed and her lips and cheeks looked more rosy than usual. A stray lock of hair had fallen in her face so he reached up and tucked it behind her ear. She opened her eyes and smiled at him. Then she seemed to regain her mind and moved to his other side to clean and bandage his other arm. The rest of the time she worked, they were both silent, their minds reeling over what had just happened.
When she finished, TJ lead her over next to the water to sit down and he cleaned up the kit and put it away. He noticed that also tucked underneath the standing pad of the glider was a blanket, a jug of water, and food packages, those kind that the astronauts use, the "instant steak, just add water" kind of food. He pulled out the blanket, water, and "food", and started towards Cassie. She wasn't by the water anymore, though. "Cassie? Cassie! Where are you?," he yelled, his panic rising. Where did she go? She didn't pass out and fall in the water, did she?
"Over here, by the wall," she said.
Breathing a sigh a relief, he walked over to Casse, who was leaning by the wall at one edge of the water. He covered her with the blanket before settling down next to her. She grabbed a corner of the blanket and pulled it away from her and over him. Then she curled up against his side, with the blanket draped over both of them. He circled his bandaged arm around her and kissed the top of her head. Cassie was just drifting off to sleep when she felt an odd vibrating against her side. "What the-? My cell phone!," TJ said.
"Wow, it actually works in here? I would think the rock would block the signal. Who is it?"
TJ shifted away from Cassie slightly so he could get to the little vibrating machine in his pocket. He looked at the LCD screen and said, "It's a text message- from Carlos!"
