Disclaimer: If I haven't already told you that it belongs to me, then it is the property of Saban, Disney, or whover I borrowed it from.

Ashley Hammond/Astro Yellow: Nope, Tem's not confused... and it gets even better:P

Juzblue: You're not the only one... I think I'm going to get murdured or something.

Mz. Daydream: Skylar told Tempest that she was her sister, and then she told Ryan that he was her brother. Don't worry, Andros and Ashley will have plenty of moments... but they won't all be happy.

Jenny: Yeah, I really liked that twist in PRIS. Um, I won't say anything about Ryan and his sisters until after you read this chapter. :P

Mel: Three projects? Wow. I have no idea what a responding variable is, so I can't help you there, sorry. :P

Chapter 15

"We should do something," Ashley said for what felt like the thousandth time. "We should at least find out what's wrong, you know."

"Probably," Andros agreed with a sigh, glancing at Ashley. She was five and a half months pregnant now, and he wouldn't have disagreed with her for anything less than a considerable sum of money. "I just don't want to push them, Ash."

"It's been three weeks," Ashley reminded him. "I think they need to be pushed."

Andros sighed. "You're right."

"Pity the yellow ranger is his sister," Zhane remarked. Andros glared at him as he continued cheerfully, "Or else we'd know exactly how to solve this problem... and every other problem that could possibly exist... "

"Zhane," said Ashley with a sigh. "Shut up."

"Right," Zhane said, still annoyingly cheerful. "Seriously, you guys, I'm all for talking to them, but I don't think I should be the one to do it."

"And why not?" Andros asked.

"I can think of several reasons," Karone put in dryly. "But the most relevant is that they respond best to you two. You're their colors, and somehow, that makes a much bigger difference than if I were to talk to them."

"Yeah," Ashley said slowly. "I guess that makes sense."

"Of course it does," Karone smirked. "Now go find out why they've been so reluctant to fight for the last three weeks."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Deca, where is Ryan?" Ashley asked as the Megaship appeared around her.

"He is in his room," Deca replied.

Ashley sighed and started walking, shooting a glance at Andros over his shoulder. "Let's just hope he's not like you. I really don't feel like breaking down any doors."

As it turned out, they didn't need to. When Ashley knocked on the door, there was no reply. Muffled voices floated to them from inside, and a moment later the door opened, revealing Ryan sitting sulkily on his bunk, his arms crossed against his chest, and Tempest laying on the top bunk, her upper body hanging over the side as she tried to get Ryan to talk.

"I'm not talking to you," Ryan said bluntly. "You're just wasting your time."

"I'll talk," Tempest said, glaring at her brother. "Sit down."

She gestured to the chairs that were shoved into the corner. Ashley sank down into one gratefully, but Andros remained standing. "What's going on?"

"They don't need to know," Ryan said sharply as Tempest opened her mouth. "This is between you and me, and Skylar, if she's not lying."

"Lying about what?" Ashley asked warily. "What's happened to you guys?"

"Skylar, she..." Tempest spoke softly and hesitantly before bursting out angrily, "she said she's my sister! Ryan's too!"

Ashley's eyes shot towards Andros. He watched them for several minutes with his eyes narrowed before he sighed and sat down as well. "So you think Skylar's your sister?"

"Yes," Tempest said just as Ryan said, "No!"

"I wouldn't want to believe it, either," Andros said quietly to Ryan. "I didn't want to believe it, even when I knew it was true. Astronema refused to until there was absolutely no other choice."

"Astronema was your sister?" Ryan asked increduously. "Karone was Astronema?"

Andros sighed, and nodded. "She was. We managed to bring her back to our side, only to lose her again to Dark Specter. He brainwashed her, and in our final battle, I... I killed her. Zordon's wave brought her back."

"Wow," Tempest said softly. "Do you think we can bring Skylar back?"

"If you can get through to her, anything can happen," Ashley said. "It took us awhile, but we got through to Karone."

"Well, that's certainly something to think about," Ryan said. "I think I need to do that. Alone."

"We'll go," Ashley said, taking his unsubtle hint. "If you really think about it."

"Oh, I will," Ryan muttered.

"Bye," Tempest said dully as Andros and Ashley slipped out of the room. The instant the door closed, she rounded on Ryan. "What the hell's wrong with you?"

"Tem-"

"They were trying to help us," she shouted. "They could have helped us, if you'd have just let them."

"No," Ryan said sharply. "We have to leave them out of this."

"Why?" Tempest demanded. "Why can't you let someone help us?"

"I'll show you why," Ryan said unexpectedly. "Deca, are Andros and Ashley off of the Megaship?"

"Affirmative," the AI answered them.

"Then come on," Ryan said, standing up and heading out of the door. Tempest jumped down from the top bunk, her face changing colors at an alarming rate as blood began circulating properly again. She followed Ryan onto the bridge, sitting beside him as he fiddled with the controls. "Deca, play every battle against the Overlords."

"Every battle?" Tempest repeated increduously. "Ry-"

"Shh," he said. "Just watch Skylar."

So she did. Several hours later, Tempest had had enough, and reached out to pause the footage manually.

"No more," she insisted. "What's so important?"

"Were you watching Skylar?"

"I've been staring at her for the past five hours!" Tempest shrieked. "What am I supposed to see?"

"How does she fight?" Ryan asked her.

Tempest rolled her eyes at him, but answered. "She's very focused. Focused enough that taunting us doesn't distract her."

"Okay," Ryan said slowly. "That's one thing. Anything else?"

"Ryan," Tempest said warningly. "If you don't tell me what's so important, I might just save the Overlords the trouble of killing you."

"All right, all right, calm down," Ryan said, sensing that he was pushing her patience far past its normal limits. "Did you see how Skylar and Ximena always block for each other but ignore Spyridon almost completely?"

"Yeah, actually, I did," Tempest said. "So?"

"Isn't that a little odd?"

"You've watched this before, haven't you?" Tempest accused him.

"About five dozen times in the last three weeks," Ryan confirmed. "I don't want to believe it, but there's not much choice."

"Believe what?" Tempest said. "That Skylar is our sister? You didn't need to force me to watch this for five hours to see that! I believed her!"

"Skylar will always block for Ximena," Ryan said, "because they are sisters."

"We have another sister?" Tempest cried. "Another evil sister?"

"I think so."

"You think?" Tempest shouted. "You'd better know before you start telling me this stuff!"

"If Skylar was telling us the truth, that makes us blood brother and sister," Ryan said. "Did you think of that?"

"Do I look like an idiot? Of course I did! Ryan, just tell me whatever it is that you're trying to get me to see."

"I can't," Ryan said. "If I point it out to you, you won't believe it, and you'll think I'm crazy."

"I already think that!"

"Fine," Ryan said. "Did you hear Aidan ask me what happened to my sister?"

"No," Tempest said. "What'd you tell him?"

"I told him that I'd had a sister about the same age as the twins," he said. "But then I kept seeing myself holding a baby. The memories were so fuzzy I wasn't even sure that they were real... but now I know that they are."

"All right," Tempest said. "So if I was the baby, then who's the other one? You're trying to convince me that both Skylar and Ximena are our sisters, but you only remember one."

"No," Ryan said. "They just looked too much alike for me to remember that there were two of them."

"Twins?" Tempest repeated. Ryan nodded, and Tempest blanched as she saw what Ryan was pointing at, and she agreed with at least one thing he had said. "You are crazy!"

"I don't think so."

"Ryan," Tempest said. "This is all too convenient, don't you think? You having these memories when a month ago you had nothing! Skylar put you under a spell or something!"

"Oh, I'm sure that someone put me under a spell," Ryan said. "But I very much doubt that it was Skylar. Why else would Auntie send us back, Tempest?"

"We... we had to stop the Overlords," Tempest said, her voice suddenly small. In the space of a minute, now she was the one in denial, as Ryan was trying to make her see the truth.

"We could have stopped them there, and you know it," Ryan said quietly. "She didn't need to send us back. But she did."

"But..."

"Think, Tempest," Ryan said. "What else are we doing fourteen years in the past? There's no future now, except the one that we make now."

"This is crazy," Tempest said, shaking her head. "We can't do this! If we failed the first time, what makes you think we can make a difference now?"

"I was eight the first time!" Ryan exclaimed. "You were four weeks old!" In a softer voice, he added, "I thought your name was Sara."

"Sara," Tempest repeated. "That's pretty."

"I was wrong," Ryan said. "It wasn't Sara."

"Ryan, tell me my name!" Tempest insisted, on the verge of hysteria. "I want to know who I am!"

"Your name," Ryan said with an oddly twisted smile, "is Seren."