By Angel Mouse
DECA had teleported the rangers directly into the medical Bay of the Mega ship. Billy was already seated on one bed and Zaron was busily wrapping a bandage around his ribs. Andros helped Ashley to sit next to him while Zhane lay Karone down on the other medical bed. They all demorphed and Andros raised his hand, a scanner flying across the room and settling in his hand. He began to scan Ashley and with a wince, she demorphed. Zaron looked at them, confused by their sudden appearance.
"What happened down there?" Zhane had reached for another scanner, the same type as Andros was using, and began to hold it over Karone after it had landed in his outstretched hand. Cam spotted the medical supplies cupboard and went over to it, opening the cabinet and beginning to get a few things out. Andros was distracted when he finally answered.
"We were beating them when Ashley went down. Karone tried to protect her but was hit badly herself." Ashley winced as Andros sat down the scanner and gently probed her shoulder with his fingers.
"How is she doing Zhane?" Ashley's voice was full of pain but Zhane didn't look up as he scanned her.
"Not good. Looks like a bad concussion and two broken ribs." Andros nodded as he lowered his hands, he looked at his wife, concern for her on his face.
"Ashley, your wrist is broken and your shoulder dislocated. I'm going to have to put it back in. It's going to hurt even with a pain killer." Ashley managed a wan smile.
"It's okay." Cam handed Andros a hypo spray.
"Here you go Andros, DECA's prepared this already." Andros took it with a nod and quickly injected it into Ashley. Zhane left Karone a moment, knowing that that Andros would need his help with Ashley's shoulder.
"Thanks Cam. Cam, if you could see to Billy please?" Cam nodded, moving out of the way, but not before looking back at Andros.
"Will you need help with her shoulder?" Andros shook his head.
"No, Zhane and I have done this sort of thing before. We'll be able to do it as painlessly as we can." Andros nodded at Zhane who went and stood behind Ashley, holding up his hand behind her shoulder. Andros stood in front of her, holding his hand up as well, but in front of her shoulder. He looked at her.
"Are you ready?" Ashley nodded and the two of concentrated, moving their hands forward slightly. Sweat beaded on their foreheads and they frowned in concentration. Moments later a pop could be heard and Ashley gave a loud moan of pain. They lowered their hands and Zhane moved back to Karone's side. Andros smiled gently at Ashley as he reached up and touched her face gently.
"It's okay now Ashley. I'll set your wrist and then give you something to help you sleep okay?" Ashley nodded, pale and breathing hard. Andros got to work on her wrist and the three other rangers exchanged glances. Merrick had stayed out of the way, by the door, and was amazed by what the two Astro rangers did. Cam was adjusted the bandage around Billy's ribs and helping him put his top back on. Zaron had moved out of the way over to where Merrick was standing, feeling very out of place here. Merrick moved slightly and finally spoke his tone curious.
"How did you do that?"
"Do what?" Andros answered absently.
"Move things like you did. Fix her shoulder like that. How did you do that?" Zhane answered as he ran the scanner over Karone's morphed body.
"Telekinesis. All Kerovan's have it to some degree. Andros and I are very good at it, as we've been using it all our lives. Karone's not so good at it as she spent the better part of her childhood as Astronema." Cam looked up from where he had helped Billy down from the table and to stand up.
"Really? What other abilities do you guys have?" Andros finished bandaging Ashley's wrist and went over to the medicine dispenser and began programming it.
"Well, Karone's got limited empathy but Zhane and I have limited telepathy as well, mainly only with each other. I think it's because we've all been together for so long. Occasionally if we concentrate really hard we can talk to Karone and Ashley." Cam nodded fascinated.
"That sounds a handy trick to have." Zhane flashed him a quick smile and then turned his attention back to Karone.
"It's come in handy a time or two." Just then, there was a flash of pink and Karone finally demorphed. Zhane breathed a sigh of relief and without looking, held up his hand. The scanner left it and was replaced by another instrument. It was going to take the other rangers some time to get used to seeing things flying around on their own. Zhane began applying the device to her head, running it back and forth over her forehead as Andros finished up.
"I think we all need some rest. Cam, if you could help Billy back to his room. I'll go get Ashley settled and come back Zhane." Zhane looked up, his eyes locking with Andros. Seeing that the two were about to get involved in one of their intense discussions, something that the other rangers had discovered over the five day trip to Eltare, again Cam took pity on the others. When Andros and Zhane got going sometimes, it was very hard to stop them.
"Come on Merrick, give me a hand with Billy. Zaron, think you'd better go get some sleep to." The two Astro Rangers watched the others leave and turned back to each other, grinning sheepishly at one another.
"We're not that bad, are we?" Zhane gave a tiny laugh and kept working.
"Andros, go see to Ashley. I'll let you know how Karone is." Andros was torn between his wife and his sister but he finally nodded.
"Okay, thanks Zhane." Andros helped Ashley out of the room and heading towards their room. Zhane finished treating Karone and sighed. He ran a hand through his hair and raising his hand, sent the device back down in the side cupboard. He then dragged over a chair and sat down, settling himself in for a long night.
Cam woke up and quickly freshened up in the small bathroom that was in each room and dressed into his black leather training uniform. He brushed his hand over the samurai symbol that was on his uniform as he straightened the top. He smiled slightly as he was still getting used to wearing it, to being a ranger at last. It was a culmination of his dreams for the past few months, the frustration of always being on the side lines and given no respect for what he did had begun to take it's toll on him. He shook his head at that line of thought, pushing those demons to the back of his mind where they belonged. After he had returned from the past he had spent a few days wrestling with those demons and feelings and had conquered them - for the most part. He grinned self-consciously at his reflection in the mirror, shaking his head before turning away from it. If Hunter and the others could only see him now. His grin faded as he sighed, he missed his friends and his father, and more than he thought he would. Suddenly, he wished they were here. What he wouldn't give to have even the Thunder's present. Shaking his head once more at what he saw as a self-pitying line of thinking, he pushed those thoughts away as well. As Dulcea said, they would only be gone for five minutes his time, but still, he couldn't help miss them all. He even missed Hunters brooding. Sighing he put his glasses on and headed out of his room. Time to have some breakfast and then get to back to work on the problem Andros and Zhane had trusted him with. Now that was a doozey of a problem and it kept his mind busy.
Billy woke up with a soft groan as he turned over onto his side without thinking and jarred his sore ribs. Pushing himself up into a sitting position, he ran an experienced hand over his ribs, feeling where they had healed. Smiling slightly at how, once more, the Power had come through in relation to healing. Gently un-wrapping the bandages that were around his chest, he examined himself in the bathroom mirror dispassionately. His ribs had healed but he still had plenty of bruises along his chest, but they were fading fast. He finished getting undressed and had a quick shower, enjoying the feeling of the hot water over his bruised and sore body. After drying himself off, he found that he winced slightly as he raised his arms to slip a clean shirt on, which was to be expected really, but was still annoying. Running a hand through his hair to try and keep it neat, he put his glasses on and headed off to get some breakfast. Cam had mentioned last night wanting his help on some thing or other and his curiosity was peaked.
Zaron was trying to meditate and had decided to skip breakfast this morning. Having breakfast with the Rangers had become almost a ritual over the past five days but this morning, he didn't want to face the young people he had brought to the present. He felt responsible for the injuries to the three Rangers as they had only come to Eltare at his request. He knew that these young men and women were experienced fighters and used to being injured, but that didn't still stop him from feeling guilty. Sighing, he opened his eyes and reached over, sipping the glass of water he had placed in front of him on the floor. Putting it down, he closed his eyes and sat his hands on his knees and began to softly chant. He needed to focus if he was to succeed in this task he had set himself. He knew that things would only get harder from here.
Merrick awoke immediately as per usual; his body so used to waking at the crack of dawn that even being in space and millions of miles away from home he still did it. And once more he felt a pang and a tug at his heart as he remembered he wouldn't be joining the Princess to sing for the Deer Zord this morning. He missed doing that more than he thought he would. When he was being totally honest with himself, Merrick knew it wasn't the playing of the flute for the Princess he missed, but the Princess herself that his heart was crying for. After drying off he got dressed quickly, his normal closed expression back on his face as he headed off for breakfast with the others. A small smile did appear on his face though when he realised just how much he missed Alyssa's cooking. Strange how one missed the little things when away from home and family.
Andros woke from where he had been sleeping fitfully on the far side of their bed. Ashley had gone to sleep immediately, especially with the painkillers she had been given. He turned his head to see his wife still blissfully asleep, her bandaged wrist sitting on the outside of the bed covers. Smiling at how beautiful she was, even asleep, Andros once more thanked whatever gods there was that they had brought her into his life. He got out of bed carefully and padded softly into the bathroom where he quickly had a shower. Very carefully while he dried himself off he sent his thoughts out to Zhane, only to find that he couldn't reach his friend as his friend was obviously asleep. Drawing his mind back Andros quickly got changed into a fresh uniform and left the room, making sure Ashley was still asleep and okay before he left. He had time to check on Karone and Zhane before joining the others for breakfast. And knowing Zhane at all, he knew his friend wouldn't have left Karone's side and would be hungry as well. Deciding he'd drag Zhane down to breakfast with him, he quickly made his way towards the medical bay. Andros walked into the medical bay quietly, not wanting to disturb his sister or Zhane, who was sure would still be asleep. He grinned slightly as he saw Zhane asleep in a chair, his head resting on his folded arms that were lying on the side of the medical bed where Karone was lying, one of his hands firmly in Karone's. He looked over at his sister to find that she was awake and staring at Zhane. Andros came over and gently stroked her hair, speaking softly so as not to disturb Zhane.
"Hey Karone, how are you feeling this morning?" Karone spoke softly, her voice slightly raspy.
"Have a hell of a headache, can I have a drink please? Oh, is Ashley okay?" Andros smiled as he got her a drink of water.
"Yes, she's fine. She's sleeping still but she's okay. Broken wrist and dislocated shoulder." Karone sipped the water through a straw and nodded at Andros to take it away.
"I'm glad she's okay. Did we win?" Andros laughed softly as he sat the glass back down.
"Yes we won."
"Good, I'd hate to be hit like that again and not win." Karone managed a tiny smile for Andros and they both turned their heads slightly when a third voice joined in their soft laughter. They turned to find Zhane looking at them. He had obviously been woken by their soft voices. He looked terrible and very tired, but his eyes were bright. He stood up and moved to the top of the medical bed.
"How are you this morning my love?" Zhane's tone was soft as he reached up and stroked her face gently. Karone smiled up at him.
"Better thank you. Have you been here all night?" Zhane nodded.
"As if I'd be anywhere else when you're hurt." Karone nodded, yawning slightly.
"Am I well enough to go back to our room. This bed isn't the most comfortable." Andros held his hand up and a scanner came over. He quickly ran it over Karone, ignoring the anxious looks he was getting from his best friend and his sister. He looked up after a moment and smiled at them both.
"You should be fine to go back to your room Karone. Should just have a mild headache today, your ribs have healed so you'll also have some nice bruises there as well." Karone nodded and glanced at Zhane. He leaned over and helped her to slowly sit up. Andros put the scanner back and moved to Karone's other side and taking her other arm helped her to stand slowly. She smiled at them both and let the pair of them steady her.
"With you two by my side, I think I'll be getting plenty of rest." They grinned identical grins at her and the three of them moved away, heading towards Karone and Zhane's quarters.
Andros and Zhane walked into the ready room to find the other three male rangers sitting down with breakfast in front of them. They looked up when the other two came into the room. Cam and Billy both smiled and Merrick nodded in greeting. Zhane went over and slumped down into a chair next to Merrick while Andros went to the synthetron. Cam looked at Zhane, his brow furrowed.
"Are you alright Zhane?" Zhane just nodded, leaning against his fist on the table. Andros grinned slightly as he placed a steaming mug of tea in front of Zhane and sat down next to his friend. Zhane blinked a few times and then picked the tea up. Andros nudged him slightly.
"Zhane, Cam's talking to you." Zhane looked up, blinking a few times and that caused them to laugh at him.
"Oh sorry Cam. Bit tired. I'm okay thank you." Cam grinned.
"I'd say you were more than a bit tired. Did you sleep at all?" Zhane shrugged.
"A little. I spent the night with Karone in sickbay."
"How is she? And how's Ashley this morning Andros?" Andros finished sipping his tea and smiled at Cam.
"She's fine, sleeping soundly when I left her. And Karone's okay as well. We've just taken her to their quarters to get some more rest. Which is where I'll be dragging Zhane in a minute, once he's eaten something." Zhane stirred at the slightly teasing tone in Andros's voice.
"Hey, I can take care of myself."
"Sure you can Mr 'Let's go get hit by lightening'." Zhane just grinned at him, his eyes bright but tired.
"You don't want to get my started Mr Control Freak over here." The two of them stared at each other, wide grins on their faces. Cam just looked at the other two rangers and had a small smile on his own face, his tone wry when he spoke.
"Gee, I'd hate to see these two fight." That cracked them all up and they finished eating, chatting about little things. After about half an hour, Andros stood up.
"I'm going to check on Ashley and get Zhane to bed. Can you guys grab Zaron and head up to the bridge and we'll figure out what we'll do today." Cam, who had began to clean up out of habit, nodded and Merrick stood.
"I'll get Zaron." He left and Andros and Zhane followed him. Billy picked his plate up and helped Cam, looking at him a moment before speaking.
"Cam,"
"Yes?"
"You said you had something you needed my help on?" Cam nodded as he carried the dishes over to the synthetron.
"Yes, how's your knowledge and experience with time travel?"
Merrick knocked softly on Zaron's door and waited for a reply. For a few moments there was nothing but silence so Merrick knocked again and finally he was answered.
"Yes?" Merrick hit the control to open the door and stepped inside and looked around. He spotted Zaron sitting on the floor and nodded his head at him in greeting.
"Zaron. We're gathering on the bridge to work out what we are going to do next." Zaron didn't answer him for a moment, his head lowered and looking at the floor. Merrick titled his head to one side slightly and studied the older man before him. The corner of his mouth twitched slightly in a tiny smile at that thought - out of them all, Merrick was defiantly the oldest one of them. Moving into the room more Merrick crouched down in front of the Elataran, not at all in the slightest worried about the fact that the person before him was an alien.
"What's the problem?" Zaron jerked his head up, startled by Merrick's closeness. One thing he had noticed about the Lunar wolf Ranger was that he didn't like being physically close to anyone and generally kept his distance from everyone, but was still a part of the group. He blinked a few times and then sighed, looking away from Merrick's intense gaze.
"It's my fault." The words hung between them for a long moment and then Merrick unexpectedly laughed softly as he shook his head.
"I've lost track of the times I've said that since I've awoken Zaron. What exactly is your fault." Zaron looked startled and shocked at Merrick's tone and the fact that he had said more than three words in one sentence. Frustration welled up at him and he lashed out at the only person that was nearby - which was Merrick.
"What do you mean, exactly my fault! Why, everything is! You and your friends being here dragged from different times, places and planets! The women are hurt! The fighting, everything! This whole mess is my fault!" Zaron had sprung to his feet and began pacing, anger and frustration rolling off him in waves. Merrick had stood up and stood back, folding his arms and staring dispassionately at Zaron. Finally Zaron gave an exasperated sigh and looked at Merrick finally. He noticed the way Merrick was standing and he thought he could detect faint amusement in his eyes. "What?" Merrick just gave a tiny sigh and titled his head to one side, looking at Zaron from behind world weary eyes and the bangs falling down over his eyes slightly.
"Zaron, I can safely save right at this moment, at the ripe old age of over three thousand years old, that nothing ever is your fault unless you let the guilt for your actions eat you up inside. Three thousand years ago in Anamaria, I made a choice and a decision that cost me my soul for all that length of time. The guilt for my actions still eats at me right up until this day. And it will for eternity. But I made a choice to fight for my home, my people, my.." Merrick paused and swallowed, then continued. "But the price will forever be too high for me personally. But I tell you this now Zaron, no price is too high for the safety and the freedom of those we love and protect." And with that, Merrick turned and left Zaron to his thoughts.
Andros had left Zhane curled up on the bed with Karone, as soon as his head had hit the pillow he was asleep, instinctively curling his arms around Karone. Andros had long ago gotten used to the fact his best friend was in love with his sister, and she was in love with him. They hadn't taken the final step to cementing their love with a joining ceremony, but he knew that Karone had begun discussing it with Zhane. He smiled fondly as he remembered his own wedding and joining ceremony. They had gone through both ceremonies for both planets cultures, which had been an experience in itself but both of them had wanted it this way. It had been a hectic week that week, but well worth it. He had checked in with Ashley to find she was still sleeping soundly and making sure she was warm enough, he had left her to sleep. He arrived back on the bridge to find Billy and Cam pouring over a console, heads down and talking softly. Merrick was standing off to one side and had his arms crossed and his expression neutral. Zaron was standing over the other side of the bridge and Andros nodded to them all. He cleared his throat and they all looked up at him.
"Now, shall we figure out what to do next?"
tbc…In our next chapter they attempt once more to explore the ruins of Eltare for weapons to fight the evil pervading the universe…