Chapter 8 Tug of War
A/N I'm not very good at writing action scenes, so I hope these are interesting. Enjoy and review!
Ashley landed on the planet and quickly scanned for Darkonda. "Here I am! You have what you want, now let him go!" She shouted, with as much courage and conviction as she could muster. Now she waited impatiently for him to appear with her brother.
Suddenly the two appeared, and Ashley felt nauseous. She wasn't sure if it was the sight of her bruised and beaten brother, or the pregnancy, or the fear of what Darkonda would do to her, the baby, or Andros.
"You made a wise decision yellow ranger." Darkonda sneered as he released Jeff from his chains. "Now come here and he's free."
"Ashley, NO!" Jeff screamed as she surrendered to Darkonda. "Tell Andros I'm sorry." His sister demanded as tears filled her eyes with regret. He was teleported away before he could reply.
"Finally, things are looking up." Darkonda said joyfully as he led the yellow ranger away in chains. "I'll try to be considerate of your condition." He said as he took a once over of her changing body.
Ashley cringed at his leer. She tried to pull away so he couldn't stare at her, but he pulled the chains and dragged her back to his side.
"Do that again, and I won't be so considerate." His angry tone scared her back to reality. She hated feeling so helpless, but she had to do everything in her power to protect her baby. Even if that meant succumbing to Darkonda. She had to buy the others more time.
Andros and the others teleported back to the mega ship after the attack. Andros was shocked when he didn't see Ashley sitting where he left her. 'Maybe she was tired and went back to her room.'
He turned to leave to go find her when he noticed that Deca was quiet, too quiet. She usually greeted them after a battle. "What's going on Deca?" he inquired of the computer. Deca refused to lift her camera to look at her leader. "Where's Ashley?" Andros continued on, tired of her silence.
"She's not here." The computer stated simply. Andros rolled his eyes at her vague response.
Andros got as mad as the others had ever seen him. "What? I told her to stay here!" The red ranger ranted, worried about her and the baby, which the others didn't know about. The others stared at him with various looks of shock and confusion.
Before he could explain his outburst, a video came on the screen. "Looks like I outsmarted you this time Red ranger." Darkonda taunted Andros as he appeared on the screen.
"I have your girlfriend right here. And your child. Now do what I ask and no one gets hurt. Well no one but you." He laughs evilly, convinced he's got the rangers right where he wants them. "You have a week to decide. If you don't come, then I'll be forced to do what I will. She's so pretty." He opined as he gazed affectionately at the yellow ranger.
Ashley tried hard to hide her disgust and repulsion. One to be strong for Andros, and two to keep her baby safe. He felt himself getting sick at the sight of her in chains and horrified at the thought of her being hurt.
Andros clenched his fists in anger as he watched her on the screen. He hated her being in that position. 'Don't worry Ash, I'll save you and our child.' He vowed to himself and to her. The screen faded out and the others began to discuss a plan of action.
"Andros, what's he talking about? He made up that part about Ashley being pregnant right?" Cassie asked curiously. Everyone wanted to hear his answer.
'This was not the way I planned on telling them.' Andros thought with a grimace. He looked up to stare at his bewildered teammates. "It's true." He whispered as the situation slowly sunk in and he slumped in his chair.
"Oh my god." Zhane exclaimed in shock, he was the first one to speak.
"We'll get them back Andros." Carlos declared determinedly. He couldn't believe his best friend was going to have a baby. No wonder she was so stressed...
"Andros, how long have you known?" The black ranger wondered curiously.
"Ash told me this morning." He admitted without looking up.
"So how long has she known?" TJ jumped in. This must be the missing piece to the puzzle of why Ashley had been so stressed the last few months.
"After the attack. The doctor told her in the hospital. She had no idea."
"The question I have is, how did Darkonda get her in the first place?" TJ wondered logically. Andros looked to the blue ranger, that thought had crossed his mind too.
The other rangers looked up as Jeff landed on the mega ship with a thud. "Jeff, are you okay?" Carlos demanded as he rushed up to his friend. "What are you doing here?"
"Darkonda used me to get to Ashley." He explained apologetically.
"It's not your fault Jeff." TJ said to reassure him.
"How is she?" Andros asked softly. "She'll be fine Andros, it's you they want." Jeff informed the group. Andros had never been angrier in his life.
"If you turn yourself in, they'll probably let her go." Jeff suggested hopefully.
"Maybe, maybe not." Andros argued. "There's no guarantee." He said as he paced across the bridge.
"Darkonda might just kill both Ashley and the baby right in front of you." Karone added, not wanting to say it, but having to be honest.
"That's why we have the advantage." TJ declared optimistically. "Nothing will happen to her as long as we have Andros." The blue ranger advised the group.
"We've got to keep it that way. For Andros, and Ashley." Zhane said forcefully.
"So how are we going to get them back?" Cassie cried out in frustration. There was only silence as no one could offer an acceptable solution.
TJ thought back to all their previous battles, trying to figure out a game plan. Anything, that might help them prepare to get Ashley back. Something clicked as he recalled the toughest opponents they had faced in their careers, the Psychos.
"I have an idea." He announced suddenly. As the plan formed in his mind, he became more confident that it would work. He stood up and faced his teammates. "If it's the red ranger he wants, it's the red ranger he'll get." He paused as the others waited in confusion. "Six of them." He declared proudly as he crossed his arms.
"Brilliant idea Teej." Zhane enthused, remembering how they had used that ploy against the Psycho rangers.
"What do you think Karone? Do you think it will work?" Andros asked anxiously, standing still for the first time since the moment he realized Ashley was missing.
She thought about it for a minute before answering. "I think it will. I really do." Her response encouraged them.
"Alright then, Andros you go after Ashley and the rest of us will go after Talon." TJ directed the team.
"Let's Rocket!" Andros yelled out as the six were transformed into their respective suits. Karone waved her hand over their suits and turned them all the same color red. Ready to go, Andros commanded, "Deca, six to teleport."
"Good Luck rangers." Deca declared as she transported the six rangers to the planet Phaedos.
"So you decided to match. How cute!" Talon jeered as he greeted the rangers. "I'll just have to destroy you all." He shouted arrogantly as he charged them, not noticing that one was missing. If he had, he would have known that was the one that Dark Spectre was desperate to capture.
Zhane and TJ charged the bird and fired their astro blasters simultaneously, hitting the bird. Cassie and Karone joined the attack but this time their shots were deflected and the two were tossed aside. Carlos covered them as they recovered and regrouped. The five of them took down the clueless bird without much effort; it wasn't hard to defeat a creature that had no brain.
"Where is she?" Zhane threatened as he held his sword above his throat. "If you talk, maybe we won't kill you." Talon shuddered at the strength of the silver ranger and his ominous threat.
"Darkonda hid her in a cave on the other side of the planet." Talon confessed. Zhane relented and let the creature leave. The bird took off, not wanting to be seen by the power rangers or Dark Spectre again.
"All right, let's go then." Zhane decided finally. Hopefully Andros had found her already, and they could return to the mega ship. There was a lot of information he needed from his best friend.
Andros crept around the planet looking for any sign of his girlfriend. The sound of footsteps caused him to turn.
"Did you think I'd let you find her so easily?" Darkonda sneered as he faced off with Andros. "If you tell me where the real red ranger is, I won't kill you."
"Like I would trust you." Andros laughed as the two circled around to see who would be the first to make a move.
Darkonda thrust his sword in Andros' direction; He quickly jumped out of the way and pulled his spiral saber out. They battled until both were exhausted. Darkonda made his final attack trapping Andros against the wall, the sword crushing his chest.
Gasping for air Andros kicked Darkonda in the stomach, forcing him away. Pressing his advantage Andros forced his saber into Darkonda. The villain fell to his knees in pain. "This isn't over yet." He promised before teleporting away.
Andros paused a minute to catch his breath. 'Ashley.' He panicked as he raced around looking for her.
"Andros! We found out where Ashley is. She's in a cave on the other side of the planet." Carlos shouted as he ran to retrieve the red ranger.
The six rangers hurried across Phaedos when they saw the entrance to the cave. Andros was about to rush in but Zhane restrained him.
"TJ, Cass check it out." The silver ranger directed, and the pink and blue rangers disappeared and radioed back that it was clear. "Karone and Carlos you keep watch here. Andros and I will go in, TJ and Cass will cover us." He said with authority.
"I hope we find her." Cassie whispered worried about her best friend. "We will Cass." TJ reassured her as he led her through the dark cave.
The came to a steel door hidden in the darkness of the cave. If Zhane hadn't run into it, they never would have found it.
"I told you my clumsiness was an asset." Zhane remarked quietly. Andros shot him a look that clearly told the silver ranger he was not amused. But Zhane didn't care. That was his role, to be the calm one, and Andros to be the serious one. Not that he could blame him. If it was his pregnant girlfriend who was in there, he was sure he would be just as insufferable.
Andros pulled out his astro blaster and shot the door open, not bothering to waste time on figuring out the combination. The two walked into the room that reminded them eerily of a laboratory. There were all sorts of special equipment that Andros gathered were for collecting information and performing experiments. He shuddered to think what Ashley might have gone through. Before he could give in to full panic though, he was relieved to see her across the room.
She was lying on a steel bed, her arms and legs pin down by metal restraints. There were slight bruises from where the chains had once held her, but otherwise she looked fine. She was still unconscious though, and Andros didn't know from what. He brushed the hair away from her face while he waited for Zhane to unlock the restraints. Andros checked her pulse and heart beat before removing the tiny probes that kept track of her vital signs. He was relieved that everything was functioning on their own.
"Screw this." Zhane mumbled. Grabbing his astro blaster he shot the console. Sparks flew as the computer shut down. The restraints holding Ashley opened up and released her.
"TJ, we got her. Meet us back at the mega ship." Zhane reported over the radio. He could almost hear their sighs of relief as they obeyed his command.
Andros gently removed Ashley from the cold steel bed, and lifted her into his arms. He noticed a slight weight gain and subtle changes in her body and held her even closer to him in a protective gesture, and to warm her up. She was still in her pajamas, her tank top not offering a lot of warmth in the dark dungeon cell she had been locked up in for the past few hours.
The few seconds it took to teleport seemed like forever to Andros as he appeared in the medical bay with Zhane right behind him. The others were there waiting for them.
He placed her down on a patient bed while Alpha ran a scanner over her body. Andros waited patiently for a good report on her health, and the condition of the baby.
"They're both fine, Andros." Alpha confirmed, much to the relief and excitement of him and the rest of the team. "She should wake up in a few hours, it appears that Darkonda gave her a sedative so she wouldn't try to escape."
Carlos's stomach growled then and they remembered that they hadn't eaten all day. Reluctantly, Andros left Ashley's side and joined the others for a much needed meal. The group fell into easy conversation, more relaxed now that the threat was gone and Ashley was home safely.
"I guess I should call Jeff and let him know." Carlos declared suddenly. As soon as he stood up to leave the rangers were called back to the medical bay.
"What is it Alpha? What's going on?" Cassie demanded as she followed her teammates hurriedly down the hall and back to the yellow ranger.
They barged in the room to find Ashley in a semi-alert state tossing and turning in distress. "No!" she yelled before giving into her sobs. Cassie was the first to get to her side and gently shook her, hoping to get her to wake up.
Ashley opened her eyes to see Cassie there. The absence of Andros drove her back to sobs as she assumed the worst. "He can't be dead Cass. Andros!" she moaned as she pulled away from her friend and into a ball.
Andros was immediately at her side, holding her hand. "Ash, it's ok. I'm ok. I'm here." He said trying to break through her agony. She finally noticed someone holding her hand and a familiar soothing voice. He moved his hands to her shoulders to keep her still. He wasn't sure if all the tossing was good for the baby. He just wanted to reassure her.
Lifting her head, she had to blink her eyes repeatedly to make sure he was real. "You're here?" she whispered in disbelief. "I'm not going anywhere Ash." He promised her, tears in his eyes for her. He lowered his head and placed a tender kiss on her head, which stopped her tears.
"I thought Darkonda killed you. He said..." She began but was cut off by her own tears. She had thought the worst when he had captured her, she didn't know how much time had passed since then. He looked her straight in the eyes. She was still shaking from fear and he gathered her in his arms to ease her pain. She started to relax in the safety of his arms.
"Doesn't matter what he said. I'm here, you're here. Everything's going to be okay." He told her. It sounded hollow to Ashley but she let him promise it anyway. They were safe for now and that's all that mattered.
The other rangers left them alone, as Andros crawled into the tiny patient bed with Ashley, holding her tightly to him, but not too tightly. Her back was pressed against his chest with his arms caressing her slightly swollen belly, imagining the child that was inside her. "I can't believe we're having a baby." He said still in awe of the fact, whispering in her ear.
"Are you happy about this, I mean really happy?" Ashley questioned a bit fearfully, as she tried to see his face and read his expression.
"Of course. I was happy this morning Ash, a bit shocked but still happy." He confirmed and he felt her relax in his arms. "I've never been happier." He could stay like this forever, while maybe not in the medical bay...
That thought startled him. He had never seen himself doing anything other than being a ranger, but tonight he knew that Ashley would have to give up being a ranger if she, they were going to keep the baby. The risks were too great; the power could only protect them so much, as they had found out from the attack a few weeks ago. And if Ashley had to give up being a ranger, what would that mean for him? He had left her many times before, and it hadn't bothered him too much until the last time. And now having gone through the experience, he knew it was one he didn't want to repeat. He didn't know exactly what that meant for the future, but that thought was too heavy for him to think about now. He had Ashley in his arms and he knew he was right where he belonged. Deep in the back of his mind, he knew there were too many things left unsettled, but her gentle breathing lulled him to sleep and he pushed all other thoughts out of his head until the morning.
A/N I'm not very good at writing action scenes, so I hope these are interesting. Enjoy and review!
Ashley landed on the planet and quickly scanned for Darkonda. "Here I am! You have what you want, now let him go!" She shouted, with as much courage and conviction as she could muster. Now she waited impatiently for him to appear with her brother.
Suddenly the two appeared, and Ashley felt nauseous. She wasn't sure if it was the sight of her bruised and beaten brother, or the pregnancy, or the fear of what Darkonda would do to her, the baby, or Andros.
"You made a wise decision yellow ranger." Darkonda sneered as he released Jeff from his chains. "Now come here and he's free."
"Ashley, NO!" Jeff screamed as she surrendered to Darkonda. "Tell Andros I'm sorry." His sister demanded as tears filled her eyes with regret. He was teleported away before he could reply.
"Finally, things are looking up." Darkonda said joyfully as he led the yellow ranger away in chains. "I'll try to be considerate of your condition." He said as he took a once over of her changing body.
Ashley cringed at his leer. She tried to pull away so he couldn't stare at her, but he pulled the chains and dragged her back to his side.
"Do that again, and I won't be so considerate." His angry tone scared her back to reality. She hated feeling so helpless, but she had to do everything in her power to protect her baby. Even if that meant succumbing to Darkonda. She had to buy the others more time.
Andros and the others teleported back to the mega ship after the attack. Andros was shocked when he didn't see Ashley sitting where he left her. 'Maybe she was tired and went back to her room.'
He turned to leave to go find her when he noticed that Deca was quiet, too quiet. She usually greeted them after a battle. "What's going on Deca?" he inquired of the computer. Deca refused to lift her camera to look at her leader. "Where's Ashley?" Andros continued on, tired of her silence.
"She's not here." The computer stated simply. Andros rolled his eyes at her vague response.
Andros got as mad as the others had ever seen him. "What? I told her to stay here!" The red ranger ranted, worried about her and the baby, which the others didn't know about. The others stared at him with various looks of shock and confusion.
Before he could explain his outburst, a video came on the screen. "Looks like I outsmarted you this time Red ranger." Darkonda taunted Andros as he appeared on the screen.
"I have your girlfriend right here. And your child. Now do what I ask and no one gets hurt. Well no one but you." He laughs evilly, convinced he's got the rangers right where he wants them. "You have a week to decide. If you don't come, then I'll be forced to do what I will. She's so pretty." He opined as he gazed affectionately at the yellow ranger.
Ashley tried hard to hide her disgust and repulsion. One to be strong for Andros, and two to keep her baby safe. He felt himself getting sick at the sight of her in chains and horrified at the thought of her being hurt.
Andros clenched his fists in anger as he watched her on the screen. He hated her being in that position. 'Don't worry Ash, I'll save you and our child.' He vowed to himself and to her. The screen faded out and the others began to discuss a plan of action.
"Andros, what's he talking about? He made up that part about Ashley being pregnant right?" Cassie asked curiously. Everyone wanted to hear his answer.
'This was not the way I planned on telling them.' Andros thought with a grimace. He looked up to stare at his bewildered teammates. "It's true." He whispered as the situation slowly sunk in and he slumped in his chair.
"Oh my god." Zhane exclaimed in shock, he was the first one to speak.
"We'll get them back Andros." Carlos declared determinedly. He couldn't believe his best friend was going to have a baby. No wonder she was so stressed...
"Andros, how long have you known?" The black ranger wondered curiously.
"Ash told me this morning." He admitted without looking up.
"So how long has she known?" TJ jumped in. This must be the missing piece to the puzzle of why Ashley had been so stressed the last few months.
"After the attack. The doctor told her in the hospital. She had no idea."
"The question I have is, how did Darkonda get her in the first place?" TJ wondered logically. Andros looked to the blue ranger, that thought had crossed his mind too.
The other rangers looked up as Jeff landed on the mega ship with a thud. "Jeff, are you okay?" Carlos demanded as he rushed up to his friend. "What are you doing here?"
"Darkonda used me to get to Ashley." He explained apologetically.
"It's not your fault Jeff." TJ said to reassure him.
"How is she?" Andros asked softly. "She'll be fine Andros, it's you they want." Jeff informed the group. Andros had never been angrier in his life.
"If you turn yourself in, they'll probably let her go." Jeff suggested hopefully.
"Maybe, maybe not." Andros argued. "There's no guarantee." He said as he paced across the bridge.
"Darkonda might just kill both Ashley and the baby right in front of you." Karone added, not wanting to say it, but having to be honest.
"That's why we have the advantage." TJ declared optimistically. "Nothing will happen to her as long as we have Andros." The blue ranger advised the group.
"We've got to keep it that way. For Andros, and Ashley." Zhane said forcefully.
"So how are we going to get them back?" Cassie cried out in frustration. There was only silence as no one could offer an acceptable solution.
TJ thought back to all their previous battles, trying to figure out a game plan. Anything, that might help them prepare to get Ashley back. Something clicked as he recalled the toughest opponents they had faced in their careers, the Psychos.
"I have an idea." He announced suddenly. As the plan formed in his mind, he became more confident that it would work. He stood up and faced his teammates. "If it's the red ranger he wants, it's the red ranger he'll get." He paused as the others waited in confusion. "Six of them." He declared proudly as he crossed his arms.
"Brilliant idea Teej." Zhane enthused, remembering how they had used that ploy against the Psycho rangers.
"What do you think Karone? Do you think it will work?" Andros asked anxiously, standing still for the first time since the moment he realized Ashley was missing.
She thought about it for a minute before answering. "I think it will. I really do." Her response encouraged them.
"Alright then, Andros you go after Ashley and the rest of us will go after Talon." TJ directed the team.
"Let's Rocket!" Andros yelled out as the six were transformed into their respective suits. Karone waved her hand over their suits and turned them all the same color red. Ready to go, Andros commanded, "Deca, six to teleport."
"Good Luck rangers." Deca declared as she transported the six rangers to the planet Phaedos.
"So you decided to match. How cute!" Talon jeered as he greeted the rangers. "I'll just have to destroy you all." He shouted arrogantly as he charged them, not noticing that one was missing. If he had, he would have known that was the one that Dark Spectre was desperate to capture.
Zhane and TJ charged the bird and fired their astro blasters simultaneously, hitting the bird. Cassie and Karone joined the attack but this time their shots were deflected and the two were tossed aside. Carlos covered them as they recovered and regrouped. The five of them took down the clueless bird without much effort; it wasn't hard to defeat a creature that had no brain.
"Where is she?" Zhane threatened as he held his sword above his throat. "If you talk, maybe we won't kill you." Talon shuddered at the strength of the silver ranger and his ominous threat.
"Darkonda hid her in a cave on the other side of the planet." Talon confessed. Zhane relented and let the creature leave. The bird took off, not wanting to be seen by the power rangers or Dark Spectre again.
"All right, let's go then." Zhane decided finally. Hopefully Andros had found her already, and they could return to the mega ship. There was a lot of information he needed from his best friend.
Andros crept around the planet looking for any sign of his girlfriend. The sound of footsteps caused him to turn.
"Did you think I'd let you find her so easily?" Darkonda sneered as he faced off with Andros. "If you tell me where the real red ranger is, I won't kill you."
"Like I would trust you." Andros laughed as the two circled around to see who would be the first to make a move.
Darkonda thrust his sword in Andros' direction; He quickly jumped out of the way and pulled his spiral saber out. They battled until both were exhausted. Darkonda made his final attack trapping Andros against the wall, the sword crushing his chest.
Gasping for air Andros kicked Darkonda in the stomach, forcing him away. Pressing his advantage Andros forced his saber into Darkonda. The villain fell to his knees in pain. "This isn't over yet." He promised before teleporting away.
Andros paused a minute to catch his breath. 'Ashley.' He panicked as he raced around looking for her.
"Andros! We found out where Ashley is. She's in a cave on the other side of the planet." Carlos shouted as he ran to retrieve the red ranger.
The six rangers hurried across Phaedos when they saw the entrance to the cave. Andros was about to rush in but Zhane restrained him.
"TJ, Cass check it out." The silver ranger directed, and the pink and blue rangers disappeared and radioed back that it was clear. "Karone and Carlos you keep watch here. Andros and I will go in, TJ and Cass will cover us." He said with authority.
"I hope we find her." Cassie whispered worried about her best friend. "We will Cass." TJ reassured her as he led her through the dark cave.
The came to a steel door hidden in the darkness of the cave. If Zhane hadn't run into it, they never would have found it.
"I told you my clumsiness was an asset." Zhane remarked quietly. Andros shot him a look that clearly told the silver ranger he was not amused. But Zhane didn't care. That was his role, to be the calm one, and Andros to be the serious one. Not that he could blame him. If it was his pregnant girlfriend who was in there, he was sure he would be just as insufferable.
Andros pulled out his astro blaster and shot the door open, not bothering to waste time on figuring out the combination. The two walked into the room that reminded them eerily of a laboratory. There were all sorts of special equipment that Andros gathered were for collecting information and performing experiments. He shuddered to think what Ashley might have gone through. Before he could give in to full panic though, he was relieved to see her across the room.
She was lying on a steel bed, her arms and legs pin down by metal restraints. There were slight bruises from where the chains had once held her, but otherwise she looked fine. She was still unconscious though, and Andros didn't know from what. He brushed the hair away from her face while he waited for Zhane to unlock the restraints. Andros checked her pulse and heart beat before removing the tiny probes that kept track of her vital signs. He was relieved that everything was functioning on their own.
"Screw this." Zhane mumbled. Grabbing his astro blaster he shot the console. Sparks flew as the computer shut down. The restraints holding Ashley opened up and released her.
"TJ, we got her. Meet us back at the mega ship." Zhane reported over the radio. He could almost hear their sighs of relief as they obeyed his command.
Andros gently removed Ashley from the cold steel bed, and lifted her into his arms. He noticed a slight weight gain and subtle changes in her body and held her even closer to him in a protective gesture, and to warm her up. She was still in her pajamas, her tank top not offering a lot of warmth in the dark dungeon cell she had been locked up in for the past few hours.
The few seconds it took to teleport seemed like forever to Andros as he appeared in the medical bay with Zhane right behind him. The others were there waiting for them.
He placed her down on a patient bed while Alpha ran a scanner over her body. Andros waited patiently for a good report on her health, and the condition of the baby.
"They're both fine, Andros." Alpha confirmed, much to the relief and excitement of him and the rest of the team. "She should wake up in a few hours, it appears that Darkonda gave her a sedative so she wouldn't try to escape."
Carlos's stomach growled then and they remembered that they hadn't eaten all day. Reluctantly, Andros left Ashley's side and joined the others for a much needed meal. The group fell into easy conversation, more relaxed now that the threat was gone and Ashley was home safely.
"I guess I should call Jeff and let him know." Carlos declared suddenly. As soon as he stood up to leave the rangers were called back to the medical bay.
"What is it Alpha? What's going on?" Cassie demanded as she followed her teammates hurriedly down the hall and back to the yellow ranger.
They barged in the room to find Ashley in a semi-alert state tossing and turning in distress. "No!" she yelled before giving into her sobs. Cassie was the first to get to her side and gently shook her, hoping to get her to wake up.
Ashley opened her eyes to see Cassie there. The absence of Andros drove her back to sobs as she assumed the worst. "He can't be dead Cass. Andros!" she moaned as she pulled away from her friend and into a ball.
Andros was immediately at her side, holding her hand. "Ash, it's ok. I'm ok. I'm here." He said trying to break through her agony. She finally noticed someone holding her hand and a familiar soothing voice. He moved his hands to her shoulders to keep her still. He wasn't sure if all the tossing was good for the baby. He just wanted to reassure her.
Lifting her head, she had to blink her eyes repeatedly to make sure he was real. "You're here?" she whispered in disbelief. "I'm not going anywhere Ash." He promised her, tears in his eyes for her. He lowered his head and placed a tender kiss on her head, which stopped her tears.
"I thought Darkonda killed you. He said..." She began but was cut off by her own tears. She had thought the worst when he had captured her, she didn't know how much time had passed since then. He looked her straight in the eyes. She was still shaking from fear and he gathered her in his arms to ease her pain. She started to relax in the safety of his arms.
"Doesn't matter what he said. I'm here, you're here. Everything's going to be okay." He told her. It sounded hollow to Ashley but she let him promise it anyway. They were safe for now and that's all that mattered.
The other rangers left them alone, as Andros crawled into the tiny patient bed with Ashley, holding her tightly to him, but not too tightly. Her back was pressed against his chest with his arms caressing her slightly swollen belly, imagining the child that was inside her. "I can't believe we're having a baby." He said still in awe of the fact, whispering in her ear.
"Are you happy about this, I mean really happy?" Ashley questioned a bit fearfully, as she tried to see his face and read his expression.
"Of course. I was happy this morning Ash, a bit shocked but still happy." He confirmed and he felt her relax in his arms. "I've never been happier." He could stay like this forever, while maybe not in the medical bay...
That thought startled him. He had never seen himself doing anything other than being a ranger, but tonight he knew that Ashley would have to give up being a ranger if she, they were going to keep the baby. The risks were too great; the power could only protect them so much, as they had found out from the attack a few weeks ago. And if Ashley had to give up being a ranger, what would that mean for him? He had left her many times before, and it hadn't bothered him too much until the last time. And now having gone through the experience, he knew it was one he didn't want to repeat. He didn't know exactly what that meant for the future, but that thought was too heavy for him to think about now. He had Ashley in his arms and he knew he was right where he belonged. Deep in the back of his mind, he knew there were too many things left unsettled, but her gentle breathing lulled him to sleep and he pushed all other thoughts out of his head until the morning.