Disclaimer: Power Rangers belongs to Disney and the like, which I am not affliated with.
"Body?" Conner echoed. "What do you...what..."
"You better get over here fast."
"I'm on my way," Conner said, shutting off transmission with a numb feeling in his bones that wasn't a result of the water. He launched himself out of the tub, miraculously not spilling any water. The only liquid that splashed onto the floor was the water running off his own body as he hastily dried himself off. He then ducked into his bedroom to change, pulling a long-sleeved shirt from the bottom his drawer, even though it was unseasonably warm outside.
Dr. O. had said 'body.' Which translated into absolutely nothing good. Conner had stayed behind to make sure that Trent didn't attack him while his back was turned, but had it occurred to Conner to check and make sure that Trent wasn't dead?
No. Trent wasn't dead. Conner hadn't held back, that was true, but he wasn't capable of killing someone. Not physically, and certainly not morally, no matter how much he hated Trent.
He couldn't have.
"Conner?" he heard his mother call from the kitchen as he thundered down the stairs.
"I'm going out, Mom," Conner yelled back.
"Oh, like hell you are." She dashed into the foyer to intercept him. Conner was taller than most people that he knew, and his mother was no exception. He towered over her, but she still provided an intimidating form, with her hands on her hips and a no-nonsense look in her eyes. "You just came back in here, bruised and bleeding, and you think you're just going to head out again? You're going off to get in another fight, aren't you?"
He couldn't ever remember his mom being like this before. She was usually a very casual mom, something that had suited his needs quite well. But he didn't have time for this. "Kira called me. Her car died and she needs a ride."
She softened somewhat. "Fine. Go. But don't be too long, okay? And Conner, do me a favor and one of these days, I want to actually meet this girl that you get into fights for and go rushing out to rescue."
"Sure, Mom," he promised absently, already out the door.
He couldn't be dead.
Oh, God, what if he was? What would Conner say? He was pretty sure it was against the Power Ranger code to go out killing your enemies. Especially if your enemy was another Ranger.
Conner broke the speed limit consistently on the drive to Dr. O.'s, and he was in the basement in only a matter of minutes. A new record, to be sure.
An interesting sight was greeting him. Ethan was manning the console, and though he faced the many screens, he wasn't watching any of them, his eyes trained on Kira, who was slumped over in a chair. Dr. O. and Hayley were circling around one of the cots Dr. O. kept stored. Prone on the cot was none other than Trent.
"What's going on?" Conner asked.
All four of them looked up at him, as though somewhat surprised to see him there. "You made good time," Dr. O. said blankly, then shook his head, a deadly serious look returning to his eye. "We found Trent in the quarry when we were doing a scan of the area," Dr. O. explained.
"Is he..."
"He's okay," Hayley confirmed quickly, and Conner felt a rush of relief. "He's just unconscious, and pretty banged up. We're cleaning him up."
"It's a bad idea having him here," Ethan said grimly.
"I'm with Ethan on this one," Kira piped up, and Conner shot a quick glance in her direction, fortified by her words.
"He could be faking it," Ethan continued, "trying to sneak his way in here."
"Look. If we didn't take care of him, no one would," Dr. O. said. "And you can't fake those stats," he added, sweeping his hand at a monitor reading Trent's vitals.
"Stupid Ranger ethics," Ethan grumbled, turning to face the console once more. "Gonna get us all killed."
"You weren't wearing that this morning," Kira said, and Conner realized she was staring at him.
"What?"
"You weren't wearing that this morning. Why'd you change?"
"Oh, you're noticing his clothes now?" Ethan teased. "Happen to check what kind of pants he's wearing?"
"I dislike you," she said, rolling her eyes.
"I had to change after practice," Conner said.
"You didn't have practice today," Ethan said. "Coach was sick, remember?"
"Just 'cause he was sick doesn't mean that I couldn't practice on my own," Conner retorted hotly. "I don't get much chance to play soccer anymore, in case you forgot."
"How could I forget? You only remind me every five seconds."
"Would you three shut it?" Dr. O. said, and though his words were irritable, his tone was not. "He's waking up."
Ethan looked away from the computer screens, Kira stood up and moved closer, Conner just stared. Trent was indeed stirring, his eyelids fluttering. He groaned, and sat up slightly. "Kira..?"
Kira looked as though she might faint; she was pale and casting confused glances at her friends in turn. "Um, I'm here?"
His eyes opened, alighting on her. "Hey."
"Hey..." she said softly, and Conner thought he detected a note in her voice that he didn't like, one that suggested evidence of her former (or perhaps current) crush on him.
Trent blinked. "What's going on? Where am I? Why are you guys here? What happened?"
"How much do you remember, Trent?" Dr. O. said.
"What's the Black Ranger doing here?" Trent said, finally seeing Dr. O. "What's going on?"
"I don't think he remembers," Kira said. "Any of it."
"Remember what?" Trent said, his voice raising consistently as the other five in the room all exchanged worried glances. "Guys..?"