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CHAPTER 5

End of Round 1

Lina's eyes slowly fluttered open. She moaned as her head throbbed in pain. She was still weak from the loss of blood but tried to get up from her table anyway.

"Aiyiyiyiyiyiyi, she's awake Zordon!" she heard a voice screech. Lina's took the time to adjust her eyes before realizing that she was in the Command Center.

"Welcome Lina," came a powerful voice. Lina turned her head to see Zordon. She smiled softly.

"Thanks for rescuing me," she said as she carefully got off the table.

"We are happy to see that you are all right, Lina," Alpha said. She smiled at the friendly robot.

"Thanks Alpha. I guess I have some explaining to do, huh?" she asked.

"I'm sure the rangers will understand anything you have to tell them. My only concern is to make sure you get better," Zordon said.

"I feel better Zordon. I'll feel even better when I have a chance to talk to everyone," Lina said.

"Will now be okay?" came a familiar voice. Lina turned to see Billy lingering in the shadows nervously. She smiled but didn't say anything, afraid of what he thought of her now.

"Aiyiyiyiyiyiyi, Billy. You should be in school," Alpha said.

"I have a free period Alpha. Zordon, can I take Lina to the lake so we can talk?" Billy asked.

"On the condition that you teleport her here immediately if she feels any pain," Zordon said. Billy nodded, agreeing with Zordon's terms. He smiled at Lina and offered his hand. She gladly took it and they were off. Twenty minutes passed by and the two were sitting next to each other near the lake, Lina had told Billy everything about her ranger team and where she was from.

"So you have no idea how long you'll be in one place?" Billy asked.

"No I don't. When I find the gem I get a two hour warning about when the portal to the next realm will open up. But one week in these realms equals a day in my time, so that's why things seem so out of whack," Lina said.

"And why I feel like I've known you longer than I have?" Billy asked. Lina blushed a little and smirked, getting caught off guard by Billy's question.

"Yea, I guess that works too," she said. There was an awkward silence before Billy posed his next question.

"So how do you get these gems?" he asked.

"It depends upon the gem itself. There's a reason for me to have each one and for all I know, I may learn that reason without doing anything in my ranger suit," Lina explained. There was more awkward silence before Lina took her turn to break it.

"Shouldn't you be getting back to school?" she asked, smirking. Billy gave an evilly, playful smile.

"I think I may be a little rebellious for one day," he said. Lina just laughed and the two enjoyed the rest of the day together. They didn't realize how much time had passed until they were interrupted at the park.

"BILLY!" cried a familiar voice. The two stopped walking and turned to see the rest of the rangers running towards them. Lina suddenly became a little shy at their prescence.

"We've been worried Billy," Trini said.

"Yea, man, you didn't come back to school," Jason said.

"Well, I was spending some time with Lina," Billy explained. The rangers focused on their new comrade.

"Are you sure you should be out and about Lina? That was a pretty nasty cut," Kim asked. Lina relaxed a little as the rangers were more concerned about her than her ranger powers, but she knew she would still have to explain the whole ordeal to them.

"Well, I do feel like sitting down. How about we get some icecream and I tell you guys my story?" Lina suggested.

"Sweet, I could go for some icecream!" Zack said. Over the next few hours, Lina hung out with all the rangers and told them her story, which they surprisingly took well. She was skeptical and careful about how much to tell them. Later on that night, Billy was walking her back to her hotel and she was staring off into space.

"Lina, are you okay?" he asked. Lina snapped out of her trance.

"Huh, yea, yea, I'm fine," she said. Billy looked at her in concern.

"No you're not. What's wrong?" he asked. Lina took a deep breath.

"I just don't know if I'm cut out for this mission Zeek sent me on. I mean, why haven't I found the first gem yet? What if I don't find all of them in time?...," Lina ranted before Billy cut her off.

"What if you just live your life the best way you can in these realms and let the adventure unfold before you? You can't bring it to you, you have to live it," Billy explained. Lina relaxed a little and smiled at him.

"You're right. I guess that's why you're the smart one in the group," Lina said. Billy chuckled. They didn't realize until just then that they were at the hotel.

"Well…good night," Billy said.

"Night Billy," Lina said quietly. She quickly gave him a kiss on the cheek before walking into the building, looking back to give the shocked blue ranger a small wave. He smiled and waved back. Lina made it to her room and collapsed on her bed.

"He's right you know," came a familiar voice. Lina opened her eyes and got a disgusted look on her face.

"Hello Zeek," she said sarcastically before rolling over to look at him across the room.

"You're doing just fine Lina, you won't always have to fight monsters to get these gems. Sometimes just learning a life lesson is all the gems want you to do. The boys are doing fine, they believe in you, as do I, and so do the rangers," Zeek explained. Lina just sighed and sat silently as Zeek disappeared back to her dimension. She sat back into the pillows and looked out her window. She still wasn't sure what to think of everything.

The night quickly shifted into the next few days. Lina didn't return to school for a couple of days on Zordon's orders but she did hang out with the rangers more. She became great friends with all of them and when she could, helped out in ranger cases. She was overjoyed when Trini and Kim gave her a picture of her and all the rangers together. Friday, she returned to school but did not get a chance to notice something until late that afternoon, she was flipping through her notebook when she fell upon something that had been in the same pocket that the picture Kim and Trini had given her had been in. She pulled them both out. One picture of her with her own team and one of her with the morphin rangers.

"I miss you guys, I promise I won't let you down," she whispered to her picture. She suddenly felt something hot in her pocket. She reached in a pulled out a shining gem.

"What..?" she whispered in dismay.

"Congratulations," Zeek said. Lina jerked her head to see him standing right beside her.

"How?" she asked.

"You always strive to keep your promises and not to let anyone down Lina, but in order to do that as a ranger, you have to have confidence in yourself. You tend to lack that as times. The reason the gem showed up is because you swore not to let anyone down, which shows you believe in yourself enough to not let it happen. But take note, it won't always come THIS easy. You have two hours before the portal opens up outside the Youth Center," Zeek explained.

"But the dance….," Lina said.

"Will be the perfect place for you to say goodbye. I'm sorry Lina, but this is how it has to be sometimes," Zeek said. Lina felt like her heart was breaking as Zeek floated away. She bit her lip, unsure of what to do. Less than an hour later, the music was blaring at the Youth Center. Zack and Trini were dancing together while Kimberly and Jason were showing off their moves. Billy was standing patiently next to the refreshment stand. Lina came in through the door and saw him. She almost didn't walk over to him, fearful to tell him that she had to leave, but she knew it wasn't fair to not tell him. She gathered up her strength and walked over to him.

"Hey Billy," she said softly. Billy's face broke into a wide smile when he realized she was there.

"Hey Lina, what's wrong?" he asked when he realized she wasn't her usually happy self.

"I got my gem today," Lina explained.

"That's great," Billy said, less enthusiastic when he realized that meant she was leaving. They were silent, as they felt like they were about to cry.

"I only have an hour, so let's not waste it," she said, gathering her emotions and grabbing Billy's hand, pulling him onto the dance floor. They let her departure leave their minds for a little bit so they could just enjoy being teenagers. Before they knew it, Lina had to go outside. They acted like they were just going out for some air and Lina waved to the other rangers, unaware to them for the last time. The blue and red inferno rangers walked hand in hand a little ways away from the Youth Center before stopping.

"Will I ever see you again?" Billy asked. Lina couldn't take it anymore, she let a few tears fall.

"I don't know," she said. Billy pulled her into a hug and ran his hand over her back comfortingly. Lina had never felt vulnerable before but she didn't care at the moment. She had grown to really care about Billy in the short time she was there. Suddenly a burst of light appeared. The two turned to see the very portal Lina had to leave in.

"I hope I see again someday," Lina said to Billy. She leaned in and captured his lips in a passionate kiss. They parted and just gazed at each other.

"Say goodbye to the others for me," she said before running into the portal and disappearing before Billy's very eyes.

"Good bye Lina," he whispered. Lina wasn't sure how much time really passed while she was in the time warp but before she knew, she was back in Angel Grove, but she knew it was a different time. She wiped the tears from her face and pulled the device Zeek had given her from her jeans pocket. She would never get used to being in different clothes once she was in a new realm. She pressed in a few codes so she knew where she was.

"Zeo days….before gold ranger arrives…Billy is still working in the Command Center," Lina reads before breaking into a huge smile and having to suppress a joyful screech. She heard some rustling behind her and turned only to see a whole mess of Cogs.

"Not the welcoming I wanted," Lina said sarcastically, before getting into a defensive stance.