Disclaimer: Some incarnations are (were) Saban and others are Disney. I can't tell which. I don't own it.
RESTLESS WARRIORS
By Etcetera Kit
Chapter Twenty-Nine: Return To the Earth
Maya folded her hands behind her back as she walked through the green gardens of the Wind Ninja Academy. The weather was mild and perfect for being outdoors. She was glad to be back here. A sense of security and peacefulness reigned here, along with an underlying sense of power and age. Dustin's funeral was going to be that night. Kanoi was bringing his family here. Maya didn't know how broken up they would be or how much Dustin's final will would upset them. Most of his meager belongings went to his friends, while all preparations and responsibility for his funeral had been handed to Kanoi. What had happened between him and his family to cause this final split?
She thought back to earlier that day. Eric had offered Tori a position with the Silver Guardians. The former Blue Wind Ranger was facing a break-up with her steady boyfriend and a wide split with her family once official news of her pregnancy reached them. Eric had explained, over breakfast, that one of the guys on Wes' squad had quit to reenlist in the military. He thought she had potential to be a great Guardian and could offer her secretarial work until the baby was born, along with the cushy benefits that Alan Collins offered all the Silver Guardians. It seemed to Maya that Eric was getting a lot of people jobs with the Silver Guardians, but, as he had explained it, those were the only two positions that came open and he would rather handpick people for them any day. He had two people he trusted in those positions now.
The wind gently blew, pulling strands of her hair away from the careful ponytail she had pulled her hair into that morning. She tucked as much as she could behind her ears and sank down onto one of the stone benches. So much memory surrounded this place, this garden…
The others would be departing for their respective homes tomorrow morning. She had told them that, after the funeral at sunset, they would go to the bluff and contact Trini and Zordon one final time. It saddened her to think that she might not see some of these people again… Kira was going back to Reefside to withdraw for the semester and take care of loose ends before heading for New York. The Dino Ranger had called the school this morning and they had been overjoyed to hear she wanted to attend. Kelsey had called her boss at the rock gym and he told her that she hadn't run out of vacation or sick days, but she'd better not take off again for almost four weeks. Taylor was heading back to Turtle Cove to pack her things and settle the rent on her apartment before heading for Silver Hills where she would be living with Eric and working for the Silver Guardians.
Conner and the other Yellow Rangers would be leaving to get back to their normal lives tomorrow as well. There were eleven of them… now there were only ten. They would not be the only Yellow Rangers nor were they the only ones currently. She sighed and looked at a small patch of flowers by the entrance to the garden. Kanoi had given them each guest rooms at the academy for the night rather than letting them sleep in Ninja Ops like they had during their initial stay here. She felt like she had cried herself out last night…
"Kelsey said you might be here."
Maya looked up at the sound of the familiar voice. Mike? What was he doing here? He was supposed to be on Mirinoi. But he was here, walking into the garden. His dark hair spilled over his forehead and he smiled at her. He and his brother were so different, right down to their appearances. He was wearing a gray t-shirt with blue jeans.
"Mike?" she whispered.
He nodded. She pushed herself off the bench and flew into his arms. He hugged her tightly, almost squeezing the breath out of her. She pushed away from him and gave him a scrutinizing stare.
"How?" she asked.
"Well," he started with a smile, leading them over to the bench and sitting down. She sat down next to him, an expectant look on her face. "I didn't come here leading a rescue mission. Kelsey sent me a wire and asked me to come. Then Sensei Wantanabe the Elder sent me another wire detailing how to get here. I got on the shuttle yesterday morning and got here this morning." He paused. "You've got more than one person conspiring against you."
"I see that," she replied. "Why did you come? You didn't have to come if they asked you to."
"I wanted to," he said firmly. "I wanted to see you."
"Mike," she said softly. "So much has happened…" She trailed off, her thoughts going to the events of the last few days. Well, yesterday… It was hard to believe that the terror had ended yesterday morning. That night felt like it wouldn't end.
"I know," Mike replied. "Kanoi told me when I got here."
She shook her head. "No one was supposed to die."
Mike gently took her hands in his own. "You couldn't have prevented that, Maya," he said in a serious tone. It was a tone he used when he was addressing new recruits to the GSA or particularly inept GSA members. "You're human. I know that people from Earth forget that sometimes, but you are. There was nothing more you could have done."
He gently pulled her into his arms and she sank against him, breathing in the familiar scent and taking comfort in his arms. There was something about Mike… he was a rock. No wonder he and Leo were so close—no wonder that Leo had been so broken up about his death. He was constant and always ready to hear someone's sob story. Her thoughts briefly went to the phone conversation she had had with him a few weeks ago.
"Mike?" she said suddenly.
"Yeah?" he responded.
"When I called you a few weeks ago, what did Leo want you to tell me?"
"Oh." He looked slightly disgruntled that that was being brought up. "That." He paused and took a deep breath, before muttering. "Leo needs to learn to shut his mouth." He then eased her out of his embrace and his dark eyes met hers. "I love you."
"Is that all?" Maya asked incredulously. She shook her head, a smile tugging at her lips. "It's a good thing I love you too or I'd be annoyed with you all the time."
Mike muttered something about it 'being better to not tell Leo some things.'
"Come on. I bet he tells you all kinds of things."
"Yeah, from the time we thought Kendrix had died to the time she came back, I got to hear all about how pretty and wonderful and intelligent she was." Mike paused. "And Damon and Kai had to live with him… still do…"
Maya just smiled and shook her head. She planted a kiss on his forehead. "Come on. I think Kanoi said that breakfast was being served."
The sun was sinking over the horizon. Kelsey stood in her place amongst the line of Yellow Rangers, in front of the lines of ninjas. She wasn't sure how these ninja funerals worked. Her eyes went to a small group apart from the former rangers and ninjas. Dustin's family… his parents and his sister looked sad and, in some sense, horrified. She glanced to her left. His grandmother had chosen to stand with the rangers and ninjas—Dustin's friends. Kanoi had also asked her to speak. The elderly lady was obviously made of sterner stuff than his family, because her clear brown eyes were dry and she looked thoughtfully into the sunset.
"Attention!" came the command from far off.
All the ninjas stood in their 'attention' form. It reminded Kelsey of something the military might do. She noticed that Taylor and Eric also stood at attention.
The procession started. The first people to come through were the four remaining Ninja Storm male rangers. Dustin's body had been laid on a wooden stretcher that the four supported between them. Each of them was wearing a simple black kimono with a white undershirt. The kimono was trimmed in his color. They had put Dustin in a white robe and yellow flowers surrounded his body on the stretcher. She imagined that the color of the flower would change depending on which element a ninja had been.
Kelsey swallowed the lump in the back of her throat as the four ninjas placed the stretcher on a pyre. The pyre had been built from large pieces of wood and some kind of dried dirt—peat, she supposed. Ninjas were cremated. The reasoning was something about 'coming from the earth and returning to it.' She didn't know, but the funeral seemed to be steeped in tradition. She didn't question it.
Behind Dustin's body and the four ninjas came Tori and Sensei Kanoi Wantanabe. Both were dressed as the four males had been. Tori's kimono was trimmed in blue, while Kanoi's was trimmed in white. Once the body had been placed on the pyre, the four males lined up. Tori took her place among them. Kanoi stood just to the front.
"Stand at ease," he said in a soft voice.
There was a rush of movement as the ninjas complied.
"We are here to honor Sensei Waldo Dustin Brooks," Kanoi said. "He was a child of the earth and a teacher here. He was also the Yellow Wind Power Ranger, calling upon his element. He fell while continuing his destiny as a Power Ranger."
Dustin's family looked shocked to learn he had been a Power Ranger. They had probably just viewed him as an average student, never destined to be anything great. His grandmother, however, did not look in the least bit surprised.
"He was true to his heart." He paused and looked at the other Yellow Rangers. It was all too obvious that someone was missing from their ranks. "Dustin's grandmother, Mabel Brooks, will now speak."
The woman looked tiny and frail compared to the ninjas she was standing with as she moved forward. But her age and strength shone through. "My grandson was one of the happiest people I knew," she started. "He was always positive and always looking for the bright side of a situation. We grew closer in the past two years." She paused and her stern gaze went to Dustin's nuclear family. "He needed an adult figure after the ones he had relied on betrayed him. I became that figure and between laundry and cookies, I learned that he was bright and willing to work as hard as he must to achieve his dreams. I heard so much about his friends and I felt like I knew each of them, despite the fact that I had not met them."
Dustin's parents looked upset that she was putting them in such a light.
"I loved him," Mrs. Brooks continued. "But I was one of many people who loved him. Recently, he told me about the four young women he was working with. The four of you contributed so much to his last days. He called me the day before he passed on and told me how much he had learned from the four of you and how much he loved you."
Kelsey felt a tear roll down her cheek and tried to keep from sobbing aloud. None of them had ever known what Dustin felt or how he really felt about them.
"We will miss him," she whispered before stepping back to her place beside Kelsey.
Kanoi stepped forward. He raised his hands towards the sinking sun.
"From the earth we come," he intoned. "And to the earth we return." He turned to Dustin and said softly, "Goodbye."
Two ninja students came down the center 'aisle' left between the lines of ninjas and rangers. Both of them were Earth students, their leather uniforms trimmed in yellow. Each of them had two lit torches. The yellow light oddly illuminated their faces in the rapidly dwindling sunlight. They carried them in outstretched arms.
Hunter and his brother, who was also a Thunder ninja, met the student on the left and each took one of the torches. Shane and Tori took the torches from the student on the right. The students retreated once they had been relieved of the torches. The four ninjas each stood at a corner of the pyre.
Cam picked up a wreath of flowers that had been perched towards the bottom of the pyre. Kelsey looked at the wreath. Some kind of greenery had been woven into roses and lilies. Two other kinds of flowers—one blue and one dark red that Kelsey did not recognize—were woven in as well. The Samurai placed the wreath on Dustin's chest.
"Air, Water, Earth, Thunder and Samurai as one," he whispered.
In unison, the four ninjas placed the torches onto the pyre. Immediately, the entire construction went up in flames. The yellow and orange flames licked the night sky. The ninjas stepped back, watching the conflagration. It was almost frightening, watching the cremation like this. She was so used to things in the non-ninja world, when no one except the mortician would see something like this. She reached up and wiped at the tears.
Kanoi started to lead the procession out. Tori and Shane along with the Thunder brother in navy blue followed him. Cam and Hunter remained watching the fire. The ninjas then filed out quietly along with Dustin's family. The other Yellow Rangers followed suit. Soon, it was Kelsey, Taylor, Kira and Maya still standing there.
"Go," Hunter said quietly. "We'll take care of this."
"What will you do?" Maya asked.
Cam sighed. "We'll take the ashes to the Mountain of Lost Ninjas where they'll be spread."
"We should go with you."
Hunter shook his head. "I understand why you want to, but it's not a good idea for anyone other than ninjas to go there."
"The ghosts can get violent," Cam added blandly.
Maya nodded slowly and started to walk away from the large field. The sun had set and the moon and stars shone brightly above them. Kelsey followed her. Taylor fell into step behind her and Kira brought up the rear. The only sounds heard were those of the crackling flames.
Shivering in the cool breeze coming off the bay, Taylor stayed in step behind Kelsey as Maya led the way up to the bluff. She had requested that all of the Yellow Rangers and Tori, Conner and Eric come with them. She figured that it had something to do with the fact that all of those people had been in contact with the spirit world before or the spirit world had come to them. They stepped off the footpath to the bluff. Maya had a pile of wood waiting for them. Taylor knew that Mike had come to see Maya—he had been at the funeral, but he wasn't here. She almost found that reason too obvious.
Maya instructed the others to stand in a half circle.
The four of them quickly built the fire. Soon enough, they had built a large fire bordering on the size of a bonfire. The yellow flames reached for the sky, dancing in their own unique rhythm. She watched as Maya threw the normal dust on the fire. It flared and settled down—the flames turning cool shades of blue and purple before returning to the warm yellow.
"I call on the spirit of the Yellow Ranger that has gone beyond. I call on her for guidance in this moment of confusion." She took a small pocket knife from her belt and made a cut in her finger. A drop of blood fell onto the flames with a faint 'hiss.' Maya turned and looked at the three of them. Taylor, Kelsey and Kira stepped forward and each of them contributed a drop of blood to the fire.
Tiny blue lights rose from the fire and formed into shapes on the opposite side of the fire from where they were. "A wish made with blood is an offering to those who have gone beyond," Trini said as she materialized.
Taylor watched who had materialized with her. Zordon had come that was to be expected, but someone else had come… someone they hadn't called before. In fact, the guy looked quite a bit like…
"Dustin?" Tori asked from the circle behind them.
He nodded.
Zordon stepped forward. "I know this had been said before, but you have done well." He smiled at them. "The Yellow Rangers live up to their legacy."
Trini smiled. "Do you now understand what I was trying to tell you?"
Kelsey, Kira and Taylor nodded. Taylor knew that she understood it now. She hadn't—hadn't wanted to—understood what it meant, knowing that all the signs pointed to Eric.
"It is now time for you to return your powers," Zordon said. "Those of you that had to have your powers restored, step forward."
Taylor and Kira stepped forward. With them came Tori, Conner, Aisha and Tanya. Zordon closed his eyes and held his hand out. The wrist morphers disappeared in a burst of blue sparkles, while Taylor felt the weight in her pocket—where her growl phone had been—lift. Their powers were gone… again. It was almost too strange how their powers seemed to come and go in the blink of an eye.
Dustin now stepped forward. Like Trini, he was wearing some kind of yellow robe. He looked as he had when they last saw him. The only difference was that he was now transparent and surrounded by a blue shimmering light. He stepped to Tori. The Blue Wind Ranger gasped as he smiled at her.
"I had thought Trini was trying to tell me that I loved you," he said softly to her. "But now I realize that I was supposed to help you and Blake stay together."
"He doesn't know," Tori whispered.
"You guys are supposed to be together!" Dustin said empathically. "True blue… sapphire blue… that's you and Blake. Not me." He paused. "He'll understand. Just give him time… I like to think I know him halfway decently."
Tori nodded, tears in her eyes. Dustin stepped back with Trini and Zordon.
"It is time for our final goodbye," Zordon said. "You will not need to contact us again." He gave all of them a fond look. "Your task is done." He glanced to Z. "Or your task is just beginning."
"I don't think I could have had better successors," Trini added.
Zordon motioned to Dustin. The Yellow Wind Ranger stepped forward and went to Maya. She smiled, barely concealing her tears. "Maya," he said softly. "We couldn't have done this mission without you. You taught us all that we needed to listen to nature and our hearts."
He then moved to Kelsey. "Thanks for keeping us sane." Kelsey laughed before tears threatened to take over once more.
Taylor's heart began to beat a staccato rhythm as he moved to her. "You are not a nice person," Dustin said. "But you made all of us focus on what was important. You became the kind of leader most people can only hope to have." She smiled, trying to glare at his jabs, but not succeeding.
He moved to Kira. "You're smarter than you give yourself credit for," he said. "Follow your dreams." Kira smiled sadly.
Dustin moved back in line with Trini and Zordon.
"We'll never see you again?" Maya asked.
"I wouldn't say that," Zordon replied. "Our spirits remain in the spirit realm for all eternity, but we can impart pieces of ourselves on others." He paused and looked at Taylor. Eric had moved so that he was standing next to her. "I think when the two of you look into the eyes of your first son, you'll see a familiar spirit."
Their first son… Dustin would pass parts of his spirit onto their child? Taylor knew she wasn't pregnant, but something about thinking that far in the future scared her. For some reason, children never figured into equations of married life with Eric. But their first son? Was that implying that they would have more than one child? She didn't know and thought it better not to dwell on that for too long.
"You have all made us proud in many ways before now," Zordon continued. He then glanced at Z. "The newest addition to the legacy seems to be of the same ilk as the rest." Z smiled subconsciously.
"Goodbye," Trini said, raising her hand in farewell.
Dustin and Zordon followed suite and the three of them disappeared into a swirl of blue sparkles. Taylor stared after them. They would never see Dustin again… She thought to the pictures Kelsey had taken with her digital camera… She would have to ask for copies of those, since those were some of the last pictures taken of Dustin.
No one said anything as they put out the fire. Each one was wrapped up in his or her own thoughts. Soon the fire was out and the pale moonlight was the only thing guiding their way back to the academy. Kanoi had given each of them guest rooms this time around—and she and Eric had their own room.
Everyone filed down the footpath. Taylor felt Eric take her hand. It was such a simple gesture, but it made her want to shed tears of joy. Perhaps their relationship and eventual marriage would work out.
The wind blew and as she strained to hear, she thought she heard Dustin calling his final farewell to them.To Be Continued...
Author's Note: There will be an epilogue and end credits, so stay tuned!
