A/N: One more chapter after this one! Thank you so much for all the reviews, encouragement, and (most of all) patience! I'll be going home on leave shortly, but sometime in March (hopefully) I'll be posting "Jennifer", which will be a follow-along to my story "Alexander". Look for it:)
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"We'll just see who walks out of here, now won't we?" Lucas said, confidently.
"Yes . . . we shall."
The narrow cave was suddenly bright with the beams that shot out from Frax's arms, the Rangers ducked aside with relative ease---Jen rolling forward and jumping to her steady feet, weapon at the ready even as the wall behind her threatened to give out, raining dirt down on them; it barely registered in her mind as she ran toward Frax, facing him unflinchingly, bringing up her rifle to bash it across his metal face. She was quick, and almost quick enough . . . but Frax's arm shot out and knocked her weapon aside, sending it clattering across the ground; but Lucas was right behind her, his Chrono Saber ready, flying through the air beneath his firm grip and slashing across Frax's chest. Sparks flew up into their faces, going unnoticed by them; Katie leapt forward, striking Frax in the small of his back with the front of her foot.
He was off-balance. Wes seized the opportunity and brought his own rifle around to the front, he squeezed off a round just as a cyclobot came up from behind and knocked into him, ruining his aim---the shot went wild, hitting the roof of the cave above Frax. Wes whirled to face the bot as Alex pushed himself away from the wall and punched it squarely in the face, blood spurting from his knuckles on impact; he was clearly unsteady, his face bleached of all color, his eyes having taken on a glassy look. But he met Wes' gaze.
Neither spoke, but Wes nodded to him before turning back to join the others . . . don't worry, Alex. I'll take care of Jen. He heard the sounds behind him, but knew he couldn't leave the others battling with Frax, and could only hope Alex had enoug strength left in him to deal with the remaining cyclobots; pushing the thoughts out of his mind, he leapt up and kicked Frax under the chin, snapping his head back and disrupting his balance. Jen came from behind, kicking him in the back of the knees and sending the giant robot tumbling down; but he was still too fast, and rolled out of the way of her blaster fire, nearly causing her to hit Wes across from her.
Frax swung around with his massive fist, and it impacted against the side of Lucas' skull, the Blue Ranger crashed against the wall and sank to the ground on suddenly limp legs, collapsing completely; Katie let out a cry and charged, but was too absorbed in her fear for her friend to block Frax's blows, one caught her low in the stomach, knocking the air from her lungs, then he caught her by the throat, easily lifting her over a foot from the ground. Wes' voice called out her name as his Chrono Saber whipped across Frax's back, causing him to drop the breathless Ranger hard to ground and whirl to face him; Wes was unprepared for the hasty attack, and suddenly found himself lying on his back a good five feet away, the burns on his chest from Frax's laser sizzling painfully.
Jen gritted her teeth and ran up to Frax as he approached Wes slowly. "Frax!" she snapped, daringly reaching out and grabbing the robot's shoulder, forcing him around. "You don't want him," she spat, "you want me." She took one step back, but not out of fear, but a challenge, demorphing and resting her hand on the blaster at her hip; he could see her eyes now, and they were calm, unflinching even in the face of what was most certainly death.
"Yes, Pink Ranger," Frax said, "you always were this way . . . foolish of you."
"I think you're in for a surprise," Jen replied.
This time, when he struck, she was ready for him and easily deflected the bone-crushing blow; the momentum from his attack sent Frax stumbling forward, giving her time to shoot her leg up and bring it back down on him, hard as she could. He dropped to his knees, but once again rolled away from her next strike, thrusting out his arm and shooting out a thin laser; she dove forward into the dirt, feeling it singe the corner of her neck ever-so-slightly and hissing at the pain. Frax jumped up and met her head-on, his weight overpowering her, they tumbled around in the dirt, and she was certain she felt her ribs cracking---or worse---beneath his at least two hundred pounds; she braced her hands against his shoulders, pushing herself out from under him with great effort and struggling to right herself before he could attack again.
But now Katie had regained her strength, and was back in the fight. As Frax surely would've tackled Jen again, she brought up her blaster and shot him squarely in the back twice; he didn't fall, however, but turned to glare at her and swing out his arms, shooting two sets of lasers in her direction. One caught her in the shoulder and she reeled back in pain and shock as blood spurted from the wound and she demorphed in a shimmer of yellow light; Jen tore her eyes from the sight of her friend falling and focused back on the battle at hand, she ripped her rifle from her back again and focused in on him, it was an easy shot, he was only about twenty feet away now, almost to Katie. She squeezed the trigger slowly, not the least bit unnerved by the sharp kick that came with the action, nor the sound of the rifle booming in the small area as the projectile shot out and tore through Frax's metal back---not strong enough to withstand the power behind the 7.62 bullet.
He fell, but she took no momentary satisfaction from it, nor did she give him a chance to recover this time; but raised her blaster and shot him again, jumping to her feet and glancing around quickly . . . dear God . . . Lucas lay against the wall, blood now oozing from the wound in his head, while Katie lay on the ground, clutching her shoulder . . . at least she's conscious . . . Wes was behind her now, forcing himself to a sitting position, he was now demorphed as well, his shirt torn by the laser and revealing red criss-crosses over his chest . . . suddenly, Jen felt her blood run cold.
Alex!
She forced herself to look.
Somehow, he was still standing, and staring straight at her with pride . . . and love. "Finish the job, Jennifer," he gasped, his voice filled with pain with fatigue.
Reassured, she nodded and returned to Frax, who was now slowly regaining his feet. "I don't think so," she muttered, kicking him in the face and rolling him onto his back. Only to discover he wasn't defeated yet.
She felt the laser sear through her even as she jumped back to avoid it, the beam ripped through her side agonizingly, and she hit the ground with a thud that caused the dust around her to shoot up in a type of mushroom cloud; immediately, he blood began to pour out onto the sand, and her vision blurred with the horrible pain. But even as she lay still for a moment, she knew the wound wasn't life-threatening . . . at least not right away . . . and she could still fight. If only she could get up . . .
. . . the sparks that flew above her came from the towering robot and brought a pained cry from him, a moment later Wes met him with his saber, but Frax reached out and grabbed the Red Ranger's wrist, holding it back; they were locked together, Wes unable to move, and Frax also unable for fear of the following attack. But Wes was not alone.
Alex grabbed the handguns he carried strapped to his hips and fire by Wes, one beam whining perilously close to his ear to strike Frax only inches away, causing him to release his grip on Wes' wrist and give him a chance to strike with his saber; Frax gasped, staggering backward as Jen managed to get up and join them, clutching her side. They stood still and silent for a moment, waiting to see what would happen next, though nearly certain of the outcome . . . Frax dropped to his knees first, but his eyes were still aglow, blazing red, and no one was foolish enough to think he was helpless.
And he wasn't.
His arms raised with lightning speed, but they were prepared: As one, all three brought up their own weapons and fired into the fallen robot, tearing through him and finally ripping away the last of his strength. At last, Frax fell face-first into the dirt, shaking and zapping, sparks coursing through his body as they continued to watch---and then they heard the voices:
"Commander Drake! Scotts, are you in here?"
"We're here!" Jen tried to yell, annoyed to find her voice so hoarse.
In a moment, a party of officers ran out from around the corner, then froze at the unexpected scene: Frax laying on the ground, completely disabled. Two Rangers bleeding heavily, unconscious. And three remaining standing, although injured, exhausted, and quite ready to collapse themselves. One young lieutenant was the first to speak, and take charge:
"Wade, Decker---see to those two back there! Gregory, Arnold---make sure Frax is secure!"
Half-listening to the officer bark out orders, Jen turned to Wes and Alex and gazed at them for a moment: Their faces covered in dirt and blood, streaks from the sweat that ran down, breathing heavily and bleeding just as much. And then Alex swayed slightly, his face losing even more of his usual color, though she hadn't thought it possible---at once, she and Wes grabbed his arms to steady him, only to find they were hardly any more steady themselves.
"Oh my god," Jen gasped, looking down at Alex's leg, "get down, Alex . . . let me look."
"You're hurt," he protested, even as he sank to the ground.
"Shut up." With nimble hands, she worked to untie the tourniquet and tore it off, swallowing when she saw the dried blood around the open hole that led down to his bone. "I can't believe you came in here . . . god, you could've been killed . . . " She thought she heard him chuckle, and when she looked up, he had a wistful smile on his face. "What the hell is so funny?"
"Nothing . . . "
She cringed at that one word, suddenly realizing just how weak he had become, Wes seemed to sense the same thing, as he grabbed Alex's shoulders and gently lowered him down so he was lying flat on the cave floor; the wound was no longer bleeding, Jen noted with relief, so she scooted up closer to him, her face hovering over his. Ignoring those around her, she lowered it and pressed her parched lips to his own . . . wincing at her own pain, and when she heard him moan at someone's touch out of sight.
"Shh . . . " Jen soothed, "you'll be all right. We all will be."
"Jennifer . . . " his eyes were drooping shut, and his breaths were growing shallow.
She was certain her blood was ice. "Don't speak," she ordered, tears springing to her eyes, this felt all too familiar . . . "Just rest. Pretty soon we'll be back on the ship, and you'll be in a bed, and I'll be fussing---"
He smiled, and she stopped. "I love you," he murmured, his voice more breath than sound.
"Alex . . . I love you, too." With those words, she buried her face in his shoulder and cried softly as he lost consciousness and the medics around them worked frantically; she heard his steady heartbeat, found it comforting, and soon found herself slipping into blessed unconsciousness.
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Jen sat up slowly and painfully, the world returning to her through unclear eyes, but they focused gradually and she found herself in the white room of the infirmary, placed on one of the cots lined up against the wall; she gingerly swung her legs to one side and slipped off the bed, feeling a dull ache in her side that reminded her of the injury there, and she wondered just how long it had been.
"Jen?"
She turned and smiled at Lucas, who was sitting up in bed and looking extremely impatient to get out of it. "You're looking better," Jen said, "how're you feeling?"
"I'm fine . . . " he smiled. "Alex is just across the room."
She smiled, too, then carefully began walking the length of the room on slipper-covered feet, till she recognized the still form laying in bed, the monitors above him beeping steadily, his eyes closed in a peaceful sleep; she stood next to Alex, taking one of his strong hands in her's, then brought it to her lips gently. "Alex."
His eyelids fluttered once, then the blue orbs she had come to love so much focused on her, and immediately seemed to soften. "Jennifer," he said, softly.
"How're you doing?"
He paused, as if thinking it over. "Okay, I guess. What are you doing out of bed?"
She raised an eyebrow. "What'd you think?" she laughed, "I had to come check on you!" Nervously, she ran one hand down from his tight stomach to his injured leg, watching his face; he only winced slightly, then reached out to her, touching her face tenderly.
"It's over," he sighed.
"Yeah . . . "
And even through their joint happiness, their mutual fears and doubts were clear: Alex would return to HQ in San Francisco. Jen would undoubtedly return to Specials OPS, she loved it so much. Sure, they were in love. But neither would expect the other to sacrifice everything for the other. And Jen was aware Alex was wondering the same thing even as she did:
Are we over, too?
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"So when exactly are you getting your ass back here?"
Wes smirked. "The timeship's due to leave in three days," he answered, "I'm just sticking around here a little longer to, you know, say goodbye to everyone. And make sure my ribs fuse together properly."
Eric snorted. "I don't trust that futuristic medicine," he scoffed, "you aren't coming back as a robot or some shit, are you?"
Wes couldn't repress a small flinch, Eric's words hit close to home with the enemy they had only recently defeated, although he couldn't have known it. "No, don't worry," he assured him, "I'm still me. Which means I'm still gonna piss you off everyday like always . . . haven't you enjoyed your time away from me?"
"Well . . . it's a bother trying to deal with all these guys. You've made them soft."
"Why, Eric, do you need my help?"
The Quantum Ranger scowled. "Nooo, Rich Boy, don't go that far. But I think all the guys want their mommy back."
"Seeing as how their dad can be such a royal prick," Wes commented.
"Screw you."
"Always screaming at them for something---" Wes continued, hardly able to control his laughter.
"In the ass!"
"Not to mention runnin' off with his super-hot, blonde girlfriend and bangin' her in his office!" He still remembered walking in on Taylor and Eric, the latter turned a deep shade of red and insisted it was all her fault; and from the mischievous grin on Taylor's face, Wes suspected Eric's words were the truth.
"With a rubber dildo!" Eric finished his spew.
Wes burst into a fit of laughter. "Is that a promise?"
"Again, I say---"
"All right, all right. Just take care, okay? I'll be back to annoy you in a few days."
"Fine. Until then I'll be bangin' my super-hot girlfriend."
"Yeah, have fun with that." Wes hit the button and terminated the link between them just as Alex walked in, still limping badly and supporting himself on a cane, something even Wes could tell he was embarrassed to have to do. "Hey there," he said, trying his best not to sound awkward, "you're looking better."
Alex hesitated. "You, too." He came over to rest his palms on the counter, balancing himself there and gazing out the viewing screen. "You'll, uh, be going back soon."
"Yep," Wes confirmed, "I'm looking forward to it. Kinda' miss my dad, and Eric even." He smirked, thinking of their brief conversation only minutes before. "How's your leg doing?"
Alex couldn't suppress a scowl, or the bitterness in his voice: "It's another reason for Time Force to stick me behind a desk."
Wes recognized the feelings, he had seen Eric express them as well, both of them hated deskwork, as if they had to be out in the action just to live. "Well, that can't be all bad," he commented, "I mean, at least you'll be safe. I'm sure Jen likes that." And he instantly regretted his words when he saw Alex wince slightly, lowering his head. What's going on, Alex? Are you two staying together, or not? But he bit his tongue, knowing it wasn't any of his business, and certainly not his place to ask Alex, whom he barely knew.
But Alex seemed to sense the unspoken, he spoke in the tone of a man who'd seen too much life to expect a happy ending: "Life's a bitch, Wes."
He chuckled. "Yeah, I guess it can be."
"You know . . . things go great for a little while, then something comes along to mess it up, or someone, or whatever." Alex shifted and sat down slowly, stretching out his leg. "I don't blame you anymore, you know that? I guess you wouldn't, because I didn't even know until recently." He sighed. "I don't know if Jennifer would've left me if she hadn't met you, but it doesn't really matter now. Too much has changed."
"Well, you two are together now," Wes brought up, "so it worked out."
"I don't know about that."
Wes frowned. "What'd you mean? I know you two were having some, uh, troubles when I first came here . . . but I thought that was over."
"It is," Alex said, quickly, "I've gotten over myself on that subject. On you." For the first time since Wes had met him, he allowed himself to smile slightly, though there was little happiness in it. "We just didn't think things through enough, I guess . . . we forgot that we both have lives, and our lives don't exactly correspond with each other anymore. Not like they used to."
"You mean, she's going back to her unit," Wes concluded.
"And I'm going back to San Francisco," Alex added.
"Hmm . . . guess that does make for a difficult relationship, doesn't it?" Even he was surprised at his ability to discuss Alex and Jen, after all, he did still love her . . . didn't he? "Kinda' stretches the definition of 'long-distance'."
Alex chuckled. "Yeah, it does."
"But you know what I think?"
Alex looked up, meeting his eyes. "No, I really don't."
"I think it'd be worth it," Wes said, quietly, "I know you love her. I think I was the only one who could tell back when things were really bad, when we first met an' all . . . and I know she loves you, hell, she adores you." He fidgeted uncomfortably in his chair. "And I know how you feel, because I've felt the same thing for her, for a long time now." And I don't anymore, do I? "But, you know, if I'd had the chance---I wouldn't have let anything come between me and her those years ago. Nothing."
"I don't want to," Alex said, "but it's not . . . fair, to ask her to be tied down to me. Or to ask her to leave a job I know she loves."
"Then don't ask her," Wes told him, "just . . . be there. Let her make up her own mind."
"The last time I did that . . . I ended up holding a ring in my hand," Alex laughed, somewhat sadly.
Wes nodded. "Then, no matter how hard it is, it wasn't meant to be." He laughed in spite of himself. "Listen to me! Handing out relationship counsel when I haven't even been in a steady one since . . . oh hell . . . " he frowned, rubbing the spot between his eyes thoughtfully. "Umm . . . "
"Damn. That long?"
"'Fraid so." To himself, he admitted he'd never been in a steady relationship, he hadn't known what love was till he met Jen. "Anyway, I'm no expert. That's just the way I see things. Jen's an incredible woman, you don't need me to tell you that. So don't just give up on her again. No matter what happens."
"I won't," Alex assured him, "whether we're just friends . . . or more. There's no way I'm going to lose her."
Wes grinned. "This has certainly been a wild turn of events, huh?"
And now Alex smiled, his eyes twinkling in the same way Wes' did. "You did good out there the other day," he complimented his counterpart, "you saved my life with that tourniquet."
"You can thank Eric for that," Wes said, "and you did pretty good yourself, I might add."
"Well . . . let's cut that bullshit now. We're almost sounding like friends." Alex pushed himself up, taking his cane with a look of disgust. "I'm a goddamn grandpa in my twenties!"
"It's only been three days, Alex."
"Yeah, well . . . I'm impatient." The former Red Ranger paused. "Come on, let's grab a beer."
"They still have those in this time?" Wes blinked in surprise.
"Hell yes, are you kidding? Nothing could convince man to give up the three most important things in life." Alex eyed him mischievously, and the look was returned with a grin from his former rival, now friend.
"Food, beer---" Wes started.
"And sex," they finished, in unison, causing them both to laugh.
"Speaking of which . . . " Wes began, as they made their way to the doors.
"If you're about to ask me what Jen looks like naked, you can forget it." Alex shook his head. "I'm not telling."
"I know what she looks like naked!" Wes laughed, "walked in on her once when she was in the showers back at the Clock Tower, she never saw me---" he smiled at the memory "---she was freakin' hot, too."
"Hey now . . . "
"Sorry, sorry." Wes raised his hands. "See? Hands off. And I won't even ask what she's like in bed, though I've wondered quite often myself."
The smile Alex wore was somewhat devilish as he said, walking into the hallway: "She likes it on top."
TBC