Disclaimer: Not mine

Ashley Hammond/Astro Yellow: Okay, this part I know you didn't see, but feel free to act like you did and taunt other people:P

DizneeDol: Relax, here's more. :P

Jenny: Don't worry, the story will get normal again in a few chapter, as soon as I figure out how to get them out of here. Until then, just read all the randomness.

Chapter 6

Ashley awoke as she had every morning for the past two weeks: completely alone, her eyes shut tight in a futile attempt to escape reality. Slowly, she sat up, greeted only by the dead gray walls. Her room was a small, windowless alcove in the center of what was referred to as Arrow's palace, but was really little more than a larger than normal building. The only door was not only locked, it was guarded as well.

Curling up on the small cot, she tried to get through to Andros. She's tried every day, until her head pounded with the effort, but she couldn't stop. If only she could get the ring off... but she didn't doubt that she was being watched every minute, night or day, and she didn't dare tempt fate. Arrow had let Andros go free, but if she annoyed him in any way, she knew that Andros would die.

Closing her eyes again, she fought back the urge to scream, or to cry. When Arrow had slipped the ring over her head, it felt as though her heart had been ripped out, and then thrown back to her, torn apart.

The door opened, and Killian, the guard, entered. He smirked at her before setting a tray on the floor. "Eat it up, beautiful." Ashley glared at him, and he laughed, some life sparking into his cold eyes. Still chuckling to himself, he backed out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

Not the least bit hungry, Ashley reached for the tray on the floor, the food tasting like dirt in her mouth. She ate little, only enough to get through until her next meal. She was fed regularly, and allowed to bathe often enough, even given clothing. It was what he took from her that made her sick to her stomach.

Ashley closed her eyes as she lay down on the cot again, losing the battle against herself. A tear slowly trickled down each cheek, and she curled up, fighting as hard as she could to keep it all inside. "Andros," she whispered. "Where are you?"

If only she could know that he was safe, far away, then she could escape, or at least try. She doubted that it was possible for her to get to the end of the corridor, but if she could only just catch a glimpse of the freedom that lay beyond this prison...

The door opened again, and this time Arrow entered. Knowing what was coming, Ashley fought back the urge to be sick, but instead of moving closer to her, as she'd expected him to do, he motioned for her to stand. Confused, she stared at him.

"Get up," he snapped. "Stand. Come here."

Slowly, Ashley obeyed, finding it a great test of will to keep herself from trembling. Not allowing herself to wonder at what he was going to do to her now, she followed him out of the room and down the hall, now eerily empty except for the two of them.

"Where are you taking me?" she dared ask.

"Quiet," he ordered harshly. "Do not speak."

Ashley fell silent, and continued to follow him, eyes cast downward. The hall branched off into another hall, which led to a maze of doors that she suspected only Arrow and Killian knew what lay behind them all. Selecting one, he thrust her through the doorway. She looked up to see Killian standing in a corner of the room.

"Keep her here," Arrow ordered. "I'll be back after I deal with those fool rangers."

"Rangers?" Ashley turned, but Arrow had already slammed the door. The sound reverberated through the floor, and she could feel it pass through her heart. Sinking slowly to the floor, she drew her knees up to her chin, her arms wrapping themselves around her knees. She ignored Killian's presence completely, but Killian did not like to be ignored.

"Tell me the name of the red ranger again," he ordered her. "He is so easily forgotten."

"Andros," Ashley whispered, feeling tears well up in her eyes as she said his name. I will not cry, I will not cry, I will not cry, she repeated to herself over and over again.

Killian laughed softly. "It seems like your precious Andros has joined up with the rangers of our dimension."

Ashley said nothing. She knew that he was baiting her, and she refused to take the bait, although she was dying to know. Killian didn't speak for a long while, waiting for her resolve to break, and they sat in silence, Ashley becoming aware of distant shouts and screams.

"What's happening?" she finally asked, hating herself for needing to know.

"With the red ranger as the newest member of their team, the rangers have managed to breach the palace," Killian explained. He didn't sound the least bit concerned about the fact. "They will not get far before they are forced to retreat, but before they do, they will pass through the corridor just outside."

Ashley's eyes widened as she realized what Killian was saying. Andros would be just outside... Killian laughed cruelly.

"If you call out his name when he passes by, I have no doubts that he will attempt to rescue you," he said, his voice low and quiet as the din out in the hall grew louder.

"But your voice could easily distract him, cause him to falter, his attention to slip at a crucial moment in battle..." Killian watched her carefully, clearly enjoying himself immensely. "If Arrow captures your beloved red ranger yet again, you have nothing left to bargain for his freedom."

"Andros." Ashley whispered his name, wanting to scream it.

The battle was raging right outside now, and she could hear the voices clearly now. She recognized Arrow's voice, and the voices of some of the guards. There were several that she couldn't place. Kneeling and pressing her ear to the door, Ashley strained to hear, desperately searching for Andros' voice, but she couldn't catch even a fragment of it.

Then the door shuddered, and she heard him cry out in pain. Tears filled her eyes as she saw a faint red light through the small crack in between the floor and the bottom of the door. He'd been hit hard enough to make him demorph.

He was so close. All she had to do was shout out his name.

"I will not kill you, red ranger," she heard Arrow say clearly. "Remember, I promised your yellow ranger that I wouldn't."

"Ashley," Andros whispered. "Where is she?"

Ashley's mouth was opened in a silent scream of anguish as tears streamed noiselessly down her face. She couldn't do it, she just couldn't. Her remaining here was all that was keeping him alive.

There was another small crack between the door and the doorframe, and she pressed her eye to it, her heart aching just to catch one glimpse of his face.

"You will never know, Red Ranger," Arrow said calmly. "I suggest you take the opportunity and leave. Mercy is something I do not show often. You are the fortunate one, the offer does not cover your team."

His head was leaning against the door, interrupting the smooth line of light that entered from the hall. He was only an inch away. Ashley could almost touch him.

"We'll be back, Arrow," she heard a woman's voice say coldly, as the fight continued. "And next time, we will win."

"Let's go," another voice, this one male, said.

"Get up Andros," the woman's voice said, sounding completely exasperated. "Some people might think you actually wanted to stay here and die."

"I don't care," Andros muttered, but the pattern of light and shadodws changed as he got to his feet. For one split second, Ashley could have sworn that his hazel eyes locked onto the eye that was pressed against the crack in the wall. Then the battle moved away as the rangers retreated, and Andros was gone.

"So close," Killian taunted her. "He was so close. You could have touched him."

Pressing her palms over her ears to block out his gloating voice, Ashley huddled in a corner. Several minutes of complete silence passed before Ashley finally lost her battle with herself. Lowering her head, she began to sob.