"Who was that?" asked Nova, staring at Eric, who looked as though he had just seen a ghost. But Eric was too much in shock to answer; he didn't even notice as the Q-Rex began to glow bright red. "Commander Myers, are you all right?"

"Rangers! Get down!" roared Cruger. Everyone began to move in an orderly manner, so that there would be plenty of room for the explosion to take place without injuring any more people. Nova had to physically drag Eric down with her.

Jack looked up and smiled faintly behind his helmet, saluting. "You would have made a great leader, Sky."

"You're a true hero, Sky," said Bridge.

"You did good Sky," said Z. "I'll give you that."

"I want you to know, Sky, that I cared a lot about you. I just wish you knew how much." A few tears trickled down Syd's face; she was thankful for her helmet so that no one could see. But she half suspected she wasn't the only one. Sky might be tough, but he was still one of a kind, no one could ever replace him.

All that remained was Cruger, standing tall and proud and not leaving his post until the last second. "Your father would be very proud of you, Sky."

Eric sighed heavily as his heart raced with fear for what would happen in the next couple of minutes. "Self destruct will begin in five minutes," said the morpher.

"Fools. That will not be enough to stop me. I have more power than you've ever dreamed of," hissed Omni.

Sky flinched as he tried to get up, but Omni was draining his energy right out of him…..

"Come on Sky, give in. This is what you want…" Omni's voice hissed, as Sky watched while his younger self sat down for dinner with his mother, father and grandfather. It was everything he had ever wanted, a family that was always there for each other. Talking and laughing, enjoying each other's company as they talked about their day.

He had to laugh as he watched young Sky feed Trip the puppy from the table and grinned when he saw his father do the same thing. "Say it….Just let go and this will all be yours…"

"I want….Ah…" Sky grabbed a hold of his head, screaming in pain. "Ahh, What's happening?" The room around him began to spin and everything started to turn into a blur and fade away, until he was no longer in his dining room. And darkness started to cave in…. What had happened? Where was he?

"SKY!" someone yelled.

He opened his eyes part way and moaned softly. He couldn't see anything. It was all a hazy dark blur. Nobody was there. "Sky!" he heard the voice again. "Sky, you've got to snap out of it!"

"Huh?" He opened his eyes wider, but all he could see was a blurry figure standing in front of him, looking right at him, but he was too out of it to make out who it was. "Who-who's there…" he moaned.

"Sky you need to get up. Your friends need your help."

"Can't. Too weak…" His voice was soft and weak, as if Omni had pulled the very life right out of him. He had nothing left to give.

"You can!" replied the voice with encouraging force. "Please, you have to try…"

Sky lightly nodded his head. He had to at least try; that's what his father would have done. He attempted to push himself up, but dropped back down to the ground. Omni had drained too much out of him and the pain in his head was growing stronger. "I can't do it. Just go, save yourself." His voice started drifting away. "Just forget….."

"SKY!" the voice yelled. "Schuyler, you have to listen to me!" The figure knelt down in front of him, but still he couldn't make out a face. "There isn't much time left. Eric has set the Q-Rex to self-destruct, but it's not going to be enough to take Omni out, not as long as he is using your powers to shield the attack. You have to break free of Omni's hold on you. If you don't the planet and mankind as we know it is doomed…"

"Eric? He's here…" Had he heard right, was Eric really here? For the past seven years, since he had come to the Academy, he had practically ignored Eric, not wanting to have anything to do with him. Why would Eric decide to show up, after the way he had treated him? He didn't deserve it, not after the way he had acted.

"Yes. He was worried…"

"Worried?"

"About you."

"Me?"

"Yeah." He took a deep breath. "Look, I know it's hard, but you've got to have some strength left inside of you."

He's right… The stranger was right, he couldn't give up now. He couldn't let his friends down, he couldn't let the Earth fall, but for the first time he realized this was something he couldn't do on his own. For years he had pushed others away, wanting to do things his way and alone, but now he needed help more than ever. Even though he couldn't make out the face, he focused the best he could to look the stranger in the eye. "I don't think I can get up on my own…"

"You're not on your own, I'm here." The stranger took hold of Sky's hand. "Just like I always have been. Don't you remember: nothing will ever keep me from you?"

Then something clicked. Sky felt like his heart skipped a beat, as a memory of the past came back to him. "We'll always be together, right?" "You bet." Wes smiled. "Nothing will ever keep me away from you. I'll always be here, no matter what. Got it?"

It couldn't be. It wasn't possible… Sky blinked his eyes a few times, slowly the blurriness began to fade away and he could see clearly and his eyes met with the stranger that held his hand so tightly. "Dad?"

Wes smiled, and squeezed his son's hand. "Yeah, it's me."

"But how-"

"There's not much time left, Sky, we have to hurry." He looked Sky hard in the eyes. "Are you with me?"

"Let's do this!"

"That's my boy!" Wes helped Sky to his feet. Sky winced in pain as his father helped him up. The pressure from the tentacles still pressed against his temple. "We've got to get those tentacles off you."

"Ah…My blaster…." Sky pointed off to a corner, where his blaster had gotten knocked away.

Wes rushed over to get it. Meanwhile Omni had decided to check back up on Sky. He moved his one eye and saw Wes heading over to Sky with the blaster. "Impossible. You're supposed to be dead!"

"That makes two of us," answered Wes. "Sky, catch!" He tossed Sky the blaster, to use to cut lose the tentacles. "I'll handle Cyclops." Wes marched right up to the one eyed, big brained freak of a monster. "Let's get something straight, no one messes with my son and gets away with it!" shouted Wes. "You're going down once and for all Omni." He quickly morphed into the red Time Force Ranger. "And this time I'm going to make sure of it!"

"We shall see, Ranger," hissed Omni…..

"Hey look, the force field's down!" shouted Bridge. The others looked up and indeed the blue force field had faded away. Had Sky somehow gotten free of the fantasy he had been in or had something else happened?

A million things were racing over and over in Eric's mind, but he still couldn't begin to believe it. Even as he looked down at his morpher and continued to see the fading red blinking light, it just didn't seem possible to him…..

Sky ripped off the tentacles around his head and tossed them to the ground, but as he did he dropped to one knee and grabbed a hold of his head. Never had it hurt so much, it felt impossible to be able to focus. Omni must have drained a lot more out of him than he had thought.

Wes was fighting Omni intensely, using his sword to block any of Omni's tentacles from grabbing a hold of him. He only needed to distract Omni a little longer, just enough time to come up with a plan to get his son out of here, before everything blew up.

"I grow tired of this, human!" Omni with an enormous amount of rage plunged one of his tentacles right at Wes's neck, squeezing it so tight that his helmet plopped off. Then using another, ripped Wes's sword right from his hands and tossed it aside.

Wes gasped for air and his heart raced faster. No… I just need a little longer. Wes tried to pull the tentacles away from his neck, but it was no use. Omni was much stronger than the last time they had met.

Sky barely could hear his father's whispers, calling his name. He took a deep breath, as he put his mind at ease and stopped resisting the intense pain, and soon he felt a peace. He was able to focus now. He opened his eyes and looked straight ahead and saw that his father was in trouble. "Dad!"

He jumped to his feet. "Hang on, I'm coming!" With lighting speed Sky ran forward, scooping up his father's sword and then leaped into the air and morphed, while cutting the tentacle in half that had been choking his father. Wes dropped to his knees and gasped for air.

"You'll pay for that, boy!" Omni's eye began to glow a bright reddish color and it was aimed right towards Wes. "But first I'm going to take care of him!"

Sky had no time to think as he jumped in front of his father and shielded his face with his hands. He was vaguely aware of his father crying out his name as the blast from Omni's eye broke through his shielding, hitting his body hard. A bright light flashed and electric shocks shocked Sky's body as he clasped into his father's lap.

"SKY! No. It wasn't supposed to be like this!" Wes shook his son's shoulders. "Sky. Sky…. Please say something." He stared into his son's face, covered with cuts and scrapes, but Sky didn't budge.

Omni laughed. "A fool. Just like his father."

Wes angrily stared up at Omni. "You're going to pay for this!" He gently pushed his son's body to the side and reached for his sword as he jumped to his feet. "I'll make sure of it." Wes had tears racing down his reddened face, as he charged at Omni. Nothing seemed to matter anymore. He had failed. He had failed to protect his son. He had failed Jen…. He had promised her he would make sure that Sky was okay. "I'm sorry…'

He was so determined to take Omni out that he didn't notice as his son slowly began to move his hand. But apparently Omni had noticed, as he froze right where he was, staring at the young man who should be dead.

"Impossible. That blast should have killed you." Omni was in shock, no one had ever survived his eye blast attack.

Wes turned his head around and saw Sky slowly moving around. He was alive, but he needed help. He took a deep breath and looked at his morpher, only thirty seconds left. "Just hang in there, kid-o, help's on the way!"

Eric, along with the others, hadn't taken his eyes away. Any minute now, the Q-Rex would explode, hopefully taking with it Omni, but at an even greater cost. He started to hear static coming from his morpher. He stared down at it, as his heart skipped a beat. Maybe he wasn't imagining things….

"Eric, I need you to tell Sam to teleport in and get Sky out now!"

Eric gulped in heavily. Even though he had heard the voice, he was still having trouble believing that it was real. It just wasn't possible, Wes was….. "Who is this?"

"Who do you think?"

He gulped in heavily. Even as impossible as it seemed, he knew. He might not be able to believe it, but he knew who was on the other end of his morpher. "Wes…."

"Hurry, there's not much time left… I gotta go…"

"But wait… Wes I….." But Wes never answered. Eric gulped in heavily and turned to Sam. "Sam…"

"I'm on it!" Everyone watched as Sam disappeared.

"Oh, please get him back…." Syd cried.

"You can do it Sam. I know you can," announced Nova.

Sam appeared right away inside Omni's body suit and found Sky lying on the ground almost motionless. But his eyes were stunned to see a blond hair man wearing a red Ranger suit. He recalled seeing pictures of the man before him when he was a boy. He couldn't believe his eyes. "You're-"

"There isn't much time left, Sam. I need you to get my son out of here."

Sam nodded his head. "Right!" He started to run towards Sky, but then one of Omni's tentacles started for him.

"No one is leaving here alive!" hissed Omni.

"Oh no, you don't!" yelled Wes as he used everything he had to stop Omni from reaching Sam. He then quickly used his sword and poked Omni in the eye, knowing that would give them the time they needed. "Hurry Sam, just a few seconds."

Sam grabbed a hold of Sky, who was a little disoriented. He then looked back up at Wes. "I got him. I'm ready for you now."

Wes sighed heavily as his eyes fell onto his son. If only… "I'm can't." He hated seeing the hurt look in his son's eyes. "I'm sorry, Sky. But it was my time a long time ago." He bit his lips. "I just want you to know that I'm very proud of you, and I love you with all my heart."

"No. Dad, I can't lose you, not again!" He had just gotten him back; he couldn't lose him. It had been hard enough the first time, to go through it a second time seemed almost unbearable.

"You'll never lose me. I'm always here for you, just like today." No matter how far away he was.

Sky knew his father was right, as hard as it was he had to let him go. But at least this time he would get the chance to say goodbye. "I love you, Dad."

Wes smiled. "I know." His eyes then fell on Sam. "It's time, Sam."

"Right."

Everyone watched as the Q-Rex glowed brightly and then BOOM, a massive explosion ripped through. As the smoke cleared away both the Q-Rex and Omni were gone. Everyone started rejoicing as the darkened sky began to clear and the sun came back out. Omni had been defeated, they had won, but then it finally struck them. Both Sam and Sky were still missing.

"They got out, right?" asked Z, looking at her teammates as they demorphed, but all of them seemed as distraught as she was. A sickening feeling came over her and she imagined she wasn't the only one. "Sam!" she cried out over and over. She was vaguely aware of the others calling out to both Sky and Sam, but it was useless, no one answered their calls. It appeared as if this victory had come at a cost.

Eric seemed lost within himself. He looked at his morpher, but the blinking red light was gone. "Come on guys, where are you?" He looked up and searched around and then his eyes stopped right in the center of the haze of smoke. He watched as two darkened figures started coming towards them. "Well, I'll be damned." A smile came across his face and he couldn't help but laugh.

"I don't believe it!" Jack couldn't believe it as he saw Sam, with Sky leaning against his shoulder, coming towards them. "They're all right."

"Sam! Sky! Oh, thank God you two are all right," cried Z as she ran towards them.

Bridge wrapped an arm around Syd and smiled. "See, I told you he'd be all right."

Syd smiled and whipped a few tears from her eyes. "Yeah. I guess he is too stubborn for his own good." She and Bridge soon joined the others, leaving Eric, Nova and Cruger behind.

"Aren't you going to go up and greet him," asked Cruger, walking up behind Eric.

"Maybe later. What about you? Aren't you going to go up and greet him?"

"Once I'm through with him, there'll be nothing left," annouced Cruger, though he was grateful that Sky was still with them. It didn't change the fact that Sky had disobeyed a direct order. Something that would have to be dealt with, but for now he would stay back and watch as his Ranger celebrate their friends safe return.

Nova just stood back, smiling behind her helmet. Today was a glorious day. Today would be the start of a new future, a better future, a future she could go home to. "We did it."

"We sure did." Eric walked up to her and gripped her shoulder. "I just wanted to say thanks. You really saved me out there today." In fact she probably saved him more than once today.

"Is this the great Quantum Rangers, saying thanks?" Nova laughed. "You must have gotten hit a lot harder than I thought."

He playfully punched her. "Yeah, well, don't get used to it. One time deal." They both laughed. "So, you going to demorph or do you like living in your Ranger suit?"

"Sorry, but if I demorphed and you found out my identity then I'd have to kill you."

"What, you're the daughter of some big hotshot?"

"Something like that." Nova then ran to join the others to welcome their heroes home.