Disclaimer: The usual. Don't own anything you recognize.

KINGS AND VAGABONDS

By Etcetera Kit

Chapter Twenty-Three: Star of Morning III

It was quiet – finally. Conner sank down into the couch in his apartment, not quite believing that he hadn't put the pieces together sooner. Z's real parents showed up at the academy and a rush of recognition hit him. Her parents had been the Red and White Wild Force Rangers. The archives that he had watched for entertainment value in high school suddenly came back to him – and he wished that he could go down to the lab at Doctor O's house and just watch them. Syd's parents turned out to be two of the Lightspeed Rescue Rangers – the Red and Pink. From what the others had said, he could assume that their parents were also former rangers.

He thought back to that day. Since the rest of the B-Squad had been occupied with their parents coming, he had tried to get some of his piled up research done. However, once he had met Cole and Alyssa Evans, his mind started racing, so he gave up and headed back towards his apartment. It had been a few hours before the girls got out of school.

On the way to the apartment, he had passed Kira. She gave him a cool stare that made his heart drop to his stomach. But she had brushed past him – and he felt her put something into the pocket of his uniform jacket. He had felt a piece of paper, but hadn't taken it out or done anything of that nature.

Now – he pulled his uniform top from where he had dropped it over the couch and pulled the piece of paper out. He unfolded it.

Conner, it said in Kira's familiar scrawl. Here's Doctor Oliver's contact information. I have a feeling that you're going to need it.

The number was not the same as it had been when he was in high school, but since his former teacher had moved on to bigger and better things, it was to be expected. He picked up the phone in the apartment, dialing the number. Glancing at the clock, he inwardly swore. It was nearing midnight – and most normal people wouldn't answer the phone at this hour.

The phone rang four times. Conner shook his head.

"Hello?"

He nearly dropped the phone at the sound of a familiar, albeit sleepy, voice. "Doctor Oliver?"

"Yeah," his former science teacher replied. "Who is this?"

"It's Conner McKnight."

There was silence on the other end of the phone. Doctor Oliver had to remember who he was – could someone actually forget someone they had been a Power Ranger with? He wasn't sure, but he hadn't spoken to anyone from Reefside in a long time.

"Conner… God, I haven't heard from you in ten years."

"More like fifteen."

"How have you been? What's wrong?" There was a pause. "It's midnight."

"I know… it's hard to explain. I'm the Red Ranger for the SPD B-Squad."

"You're a ranger again?" Doctor Oliver's voice held a note of surprise, but also pride. The Black Dino Ranger had been a ranger multiple times before, so there was no doubt that he would support Conner now.

"Yes, but something is wrong at SPD."

"Wrong? Like what?"

He took a deep breath. "I'm not sure. But people who were rangers before me are the parents of the B-Squad Rangers."

"That isn't surprising."

"It wouldn't surprise me – but each of them was put up for adoption at one point in time and had their last names changed to not reflect their parents or adopted parents. None of those adoptions were voluntary."

"Do you suspect someone?"

"Our commander – Anubis Cruger."

There was some fumbling on the other line. "I need the names of the other B-Squad Rangers, their real parents and whatever you can tell me about Cruger."

Conner released a long breath. It felt good to be able to tell someone all of his concerns – and have that person immediately take charge. He wasn't carrying the burden for four other people now. The other rangers – Sky, Syd, Z and Bridge – weren't much more than kids, not much older than he had been when first becoming a ranger. He wasn't quite old enough to be their parents, but it sometimes felt like he was. Now, he understood how Doctor Oliver had felt during their battle against Mesogog.

"Youngest to oldest," he said quickly. "Bridge Carson, real last name Corbett, his real parents are Mike and Maya Corbett. Elizabeth Delgado, real last name Evans, her real parents are Cole and Alyssa Evans. Sydney Drew, real last name Grayson, her real parents are Carter and Dana Grayson. Schuyler Tate, real last name Collins, his real parents are Wes and Jen Collins."

There was another long pause. "Former rangers," Doctor Oliver whispered.

"Yeah."

"What about Cruger?"

"He's a native of Sirius – the planet was destroyed about twenty years ago – and he is the only surviving member of his species."

"Anything else?"

"He established SPD on Earth and is the commander on Earth."

"Conner, listen to me, I don't know what's been going on, but I don't have a good feeling about it. You watch out for your squad and make sure they stay safe, along with their parents." He could hear Doctor O take a long breath. "I'll get back to you as soon as I can – probably by earlier this morning."

"You can get information that quickly?"

"I assume you know what my new job is, so that's why you called me."

Conner winced to himself. "Yeah."

"I have the best working for me. We'll get to the bottom of this. Take care, Conner, and watch out for your daughters."

He wasn't even going to question that. Conner just said his goodbyes and hung up the phone. Doctor Oliver directed a counter-terrorist unit – if anyone had access to more information that the public, it was him. It was the right thing to do.

For the first time in a long time, he felt like things were going to work out.

"What have you got for me?"

Doctor Tommy Oliver strode into the deserted office, throwing his jacket on a nearby desk and pulling a chair up to the man at the work station. Ethan James tucked a pencil behind his ear, fingers flying over the keyboard. The former Blue Ranger's cover story was that he worked for the GSA – Galactic Space Alliance – as a top secret program designer. He was one of the best members on the CTU team in Los Angeles. If anyone could get the information he needed on SPD quickly and efficiently, it was Ethan.

"These rangers are whack," Ethan replied.

"Give me the basics on each of them."

"Youngest is Bridge Carson – birth date March 15, 2003. Biological parents are Mike and Maya Corbett." Ethan paused. "We know them as the Magna Defender and the Yellow Galaxy Ranger. He was given up for adoption in 2006, but the terms of his adoption were that he be given a random last name and enroll at the SPD Academy at age 15. Before his official adoption, his legal guardian was Eric Myers."

"The Quantum Ranger," Tommy muttered.

"Exactly. Adopted parents are a Brian and Marie Powell. He's currently an A-level cadet at the SPD Academy and the B-Squad Green Ranger. He also has genetic mutations that make him telepathic, psychometric and able to read psychic residue."

"What about his genetic mutations?"

"As far as I can tell, Mike Corbett worked for SPD for a few months in 2001 and was exposed to chemicals that altered his DNA. The purpose and results of the experiments he was involved in are classified and it would take too long to break into them."

Tommy let out a long breath. This situation was already spiraling into dangerous territory. The office was eerie late at night with no one except themselves in it – and there was a distinct possibility that they would be turning in their resignation letters in the morning. "Continue with the rangers," he said quietly.

Ethan brought up his next screen. "Elizabeth Delgado – birth date March 11, 2003. Biological parents are Cole and Alyssa Evans – also known at the Red and White Wild Force Rangers. She was also given up for adoption in 2006 and placed in a group home in LA. She ran away in 2009 and wasn't heard from again until she enrolled at the SPD Academy in 2020. She also has a list of petty crime charges a mile long."

"She was left on the streets?"

"Looks like that's the case. She has the same rank as Carson, except that she's the Yellow Ranger. Her genetic mutations allow her to replicate herself."

"Which parent worked for SPD?"

"Alyssa Evans, before she was a ranger – and, before you ask, she was involved in the same top-secret experiments as Corbett."

This was starting to add up. "Who else?"

Ethan was off typing again. "Sydney Drew – birth date April 9, 2002. Biological parents are Carter and Dana Grayson – the Red and Pink Lightspeed Rescue Rangers." He shrugged as if to say that that was expected. "Given up for adoption in 2006, she was immediately adopted and placed with Glenn and Melody Kensington, along with her older twin siblings. Terms of her adoption were the same as Carson's."

"Her siblings?"

"Twins – Austin and Paris – birth date February 7, 2001. Drew's the same level as Carson and Delgado – she's the Pink Ranger. Her brother is at the Nebula Academy where he's an A-level cadet and her sister is a graduated patrol officer."

"Genetic mutations?"

"Drew can turn her hands into whatever she's touching. The twins can phase. Carter Grayson worked for SPD in the same experiments."

"Who else?"

"Last is Schuyler Tate – birth date January 23, 2000. Biological parents are Wesley and Jennifer Collins."

"Red and Pink Time Force," Tommy filled in for him.

Ethan didn't miss a beat. "Eric Myers has been his legal guardian since 2003 and officially adopted him in 2005. He joined SPD in 2015 of his own volition and is the Blue Ranger. Genetic mutation allows him to create force fields with his mind." He paused. "Wesley Collins was involved in the experiments in 2001."

"How did it affect Tate?"

"Time jumps – he was conceived in 2002, but born in 2000."

"Interesting – tell me about Cruger."

"Refugee from the planet, Sirius after it was invaded and drained of resources by the Troovian forces. He was the only survivor." Ethan typed in a few commands. "He started a small branch of SPD in 2000 when he arrived on Earth, recruiting several renown scientists, including Katherine Manx. Helped establish and enforce the interplanetary immigration laws… Currently commander of SPD on Earth and he's roughly one hundred and fifty Earth years old."

"How is he connected to the rangers?"

"Funny you should mention that," Ethan said with a wry smile. He brought up a few news articles from Mirinoi. Tommy took one look at the headlines.

"You think he kidnapped the children and then made it legal?"

"Oh, that's exactly what he did. I also think that he recruited Conner because he found out about the Dino-Gem abilities."

"We're dealing with a paranoid commander."

"So it would seem." Ethan glanced up at him. "And he's done a great job covering this up all these years – no publicity, no publicized court cases, making sure that his actions could be considered completely legal so that no one can prosecute him, bringing the kids to SPD, keeping the parents quiet – it's amazing."

Tommy met Ethan's gaze. They had known each other for a long time – been rangers together, worked together – and they knew when they hit something huge. He glanced to the clock on the wall that told him it was nearing two in the morning. He had spoken with Cruger shortly after becoming director of CTU – and now the conversation made sense.

"What should we do?"

He sighed. "Call Conner in the morning and let him know we're on our way – call Trent now and tell him what's going on. I have a feeling that SPD is going to need all the outside support they can get once this gets out."

"Is it?"

"Conner wouldn't have called unless the parents started showing up."

Ethan smiled, a renewed sense of purpose on his face. "It won't be hard to get Trent up here – last I heard, he was taking some time off from Anton Mercer Industries and working on a new comic book series."

"Make it happen." He turned towards his office.

"What are you going to do?"

"Call someone at SPD and find out what exactly has been going on there today. No one messes with former rangers and ultimately gets away with it."

Ethan grinned and picked up the phone at his work station. Tommy nodded as he disappeared into his office. Someone had to know what was going on – and he knew three of the parents involved in this along with a reliable contact at SPD. It looked like he, Ethan and Trent were going to get back into action before too much longer.

Trent Fernandez had come to the conclusion a long time ago that when the phone rang between ten at night and seven in the morning it generally signaled disaster. Three such phone calls stuck out in his mind – the first being when his parents were killed in that accident at the archaeological dig. The second happened in college when he received news of his father's first heart attack. The third and final one happened five years ago when Doctor Oliver had been shot while tracking potential presidential assassins. That incident had sealed a friendship between himself, Ethan and Tommy – before that, he had been long estranged from his former teammates.

"Hello?" he asked, dragging his mind painfully to awareness. His voice sounded scratchy and hoarse. He glanced at the clock – two in the morning.

"Trent – it's Ethan."

"Ethan, it's two in the morning. What's happening?"

"You know SPD?"

"Of course, they only patrol my neighborhood every night." Now that he had been able to wake-up, he wanted to know what was going on and not listen to Ethan get to the point in a roundabout fashion.

"The commander of SPD has a past that he has kept successfully covered for the past fourteen years. It has just now come to light and Tommy feels it would be in the best interest of SPD to have us there as a support system to keep things from cratering."

"What kind of past?"

"Kidnapped kids – legally."

"Impressive."

"And get this – all of the kids' parents are former rangers."

"Ouch."

"You said it."

"What are we supposed to do?"

Ethan sighed. "Other than be around to help parents pick up their kids and lock up once everyone leaves, I'm not sure. Remember where the CTU building in LA is?"

"Sure." The location of CTU was kept vague on purpose. Trent had found out when Tommy had been injured five years ago.

"Get here. Tommy will be off the phone with the SPD people by then and we can talk about what we can do to stop the situation from exploding to the media and ruining SPD as we know it."

Trent understood the implications of that. SPD was as good as the regular police force. In fact, some areas would be overrun if it weren't for SPD and the crime rate would skyrocket if the organization closed. They would need to quietly prevent the place from falling into chaos – especially since the commander would be through. Oh, he might not have any charges against him, but he would be run out of town on a rail.

"On my way."

"And there's one more thing, Trent."

"What?"

"Conner is the B-Squad Red Ranger and Kira is a teacher there."

Trent blinked, feeling the breath leave him for a moment. He clutched the phone receiver to his ear, afraid he hadn't heard correctly. He hadn't spoken to Conner in fifteen years, but Kira… they had gone their separate ways early in college, but that didn't stop him from thinking about her and wondering…

"Trent?"

"Yeah – I'm coming."

"Good – see you in a few."

He disconnected the call, looking for some clothes. It would be odd seeing the whole team together again. Things had gotten so difficult and now… he pushed all those thoughts out of his head and concentrated on getting ready.

Cruger, Paris, Kat… the triangle was coming dangerously close to exploding. Bridge didn't even need his powers to see that. Kat had been scarce all day – the one time he had seen her, she looked tired and haunted. Cruger was nowhere to be found. Paris had been charging around the academy like she still worked there and was more than a patrol officer. She was acting more like she was a ranger or worked for one of the specialized patrol units.

It didn't make sense.

He sighed and rolled over, holding Z's blanket to his chest. It was strange being in the room by himself. He was used to at least hearing Sky breath or Z or… someone. Z had asked if he wanted to sleep in the girls' room, but he hadn't wanted to risk getting in trouble when his parents were close to arriving and, with all the emotional currents all day and the fact that he felt close to a breaking point, he hadn't felt like it would be a good idea to sleep in someone else's bed. In a way, he wanted Z here…

Burying his face in his pillow, he squeezed back frustrated tears. When he had first been conscious of his powers and tried to keep them from running rampant, he had shed a lot of tears, mostly in fear and anger. Now… he wanted someone here that he trusted – Sky, Z… He could go to the girls' room and Z would help him, but she was so happy that he couldn't bring himself to dampen that with his own worries.

"I don't know anymore," he whispered to the darkness.

He had learned in a short time to close his mind to the emotional currents and images that touched everything. The telepathy required concentration, but psychometrics, that just was. It was like erecting a steel wall around his mind in order to keep that in check, especially without the gloves. Being with the girls until a few hours ago had helped, but being alone in his room had brought it all back.

Envisioning a steel wall without any openings around his mind, he tuned out all of the psychic residue in the air that his hands touched. His parents coming here… he was afraid of Cruger – what would happen when he found out? What would happen to them?

Unshed tears burned in his chest. He was just afraid.

Curling into a ball, he allowed the sobs to overtake him, surrendering to the physical release of the anger and frustration and fear. Crying seemed better than exploding.

To Be Continued...