Race Against Time
Chapter 7: Betrayal
By: Pink-Green-White-4ever
Last Revised: March 3, 2006

Summary: Spoilers for Endings Pt. 2 - 5 yrs. post Endings Pt. 2, and the infamous B Squad Rangers are invited to celebrate Cruger's reassignment to General and head of SPD HQ and Sky's promotion to Commander, but something goes awry, and they have to race against the clock to save one of their friends before it's too late.
Ships: Syd/Sky, Bridge/Z, Jack/Ally, Cruger/Isinia, Kat/Boom
Rating: M – changed for Adult Themed Situation.

AN: Ok, so this was supposed to be a lot longer, and have more Syd and Sky scenes in it, but the papers I had the scenes written on go lost. So sorry. I'm also sorry it's taken so long to get this out.

AN2: Etcetera Kit has graciously offered to help me on a new endeavor. I'm going to be taking most of the storyline for this story, after it's done, and turning it into an original piece, devoid of Ranger references and what not. I just wanted to thank her in advance for the help, and for making me see my dreams for writing can come true.

Dedication: For Chrissy, hope this provides some much needed relief during midterms!

--

Z had had to be sedated once the team had returned to the Academy. The A Squad Rangers had filed their reports. Sky and Isinia had briefed Anubis. Ally had gone to Jack, needing his warmth and the reminder that she was still with the one she loved.

Sydney and Nova had disappeared once everyone was back within the compound, and no one had been able to find them. "It's my fault," Sydney murmured, sitting on the ledge of the roof, Nova right next to her. "He's gone because I escaped; he's gone because I came back."

The little girl hadn't spoken since they'd left New Tech Mall after Bridge's abduction. She had sensed that Sydney didn't need words to confuse her, or someone else's emotions to deal with; the Pink Ranger was dealing with enough.

"Nova?"

"Hmm?"

"I've been having dreams," Sydney told her softly.

"They're telling you to do bad things, aren't they?" Nova asked, the child having the foresight to know that there was a reason Sydney had frozen on the battlefield at the sight of Klank. "That's what that machine was for, wasn't it?"

Sydney could only nod. "If they all go to him, the pain will leave me. But I love them; I won't give them up that easily."

"You have no choice, Pink Ranger!" a voice hissed, startling both girls. Quickly, the pair spun around and froze at the sight of Klank.

"Nova, go inside," Sydney ordered the little girl, who ran through the door into the academy. "What do you want?" Sydney growled.

"I'm here to make you a deal, Pink Ranger. My master says he'll make your headaches go away and the voices vanish for a fee," Klank informed her in his thick Scottish accent.

"What kind of fee?" Sydney warily asked, her stance shifting to a slightly more relaxed one, though she was still on guard.

"Your former teammates and Commander in exchange for peace of mind and a quiet life."

Syd's lips trembled. Her mind weighed her options. 'If I can get the others to Bridge, then we can free him and we'll be together to defeat this Master. If I can't, it's all going to go to hell in a hand basket.'

"I want a promise."

"We'll shake on it, Lassie," Klank told her, striding forward. Sydney felt her heart break as she took Klank's hand. A second later, she was crying out as electricity flowed through her body. "Do not double cross the Master, or you won't live to regret it."

"HANDS OFF!" a voice ordered right before two shots were fired. Klank was knocked away from Sydney, who managed to look up and see Sky and Kat standing in the door to the academy, both with blasters held up, ready to fire again.

"Until a later date, Pink Ranger!" Klank gasped before disappearing.

Sky and Kat rushed to Syd's side, each looking mildly frantic. "You ok?" Sky asked, kneeling next to her, his hands cupping her cheeks while his heart rate came down from panicked to steady.

Her eyes filled with tears. She couldn't tell Sky the deal she'd just made with Klank, he'd never understand. She could only nod and blink back the tears, making it seem that Klank had scared and hurt her more than they'd seen.

"Let's get her to the infirmary," Kat murmured. The feline had a suspicion Sydney wasn't telling them everything but do to lack of evidence she didn't push the subject.

--

"What did he say?" Nova asked her friend, once Sydney was settled back in Sky's room.

Sydney was silent, her eyes blankly staring at her lap. She'd heard Nova's question, but she was debating telling the young girl her plan. She didn't need the others finding out before she could set everything into motion. The less people who knew, the less likely it was to fail.

"Syd, talk to me, please!" Nova begged, fear welling inside her. The little girl had to take several deep breaths when she felt something inside her spark to life.

Sydney's resolve finally crumbled under the passionate plea. "I made a deal with him."

Nova's eyes widened, her gaze shifting to Sydney's face as shock registered. She could scarcely believe she'd just heard Sydney say she'd made a deal with their enemy. "What kind of deal?" she choked out, her voice cracking.

The Pink Ranger looked up and felt the hurt from Nova's expression radiate through her. "They'll make the voices in my head go away, if I hand over Z, Cruger, Jack and Sky."

The young girl looked appalled and angered. "You can't be serious!"

Syd pinned Nova with a glare. "I made the deal, and came up with a plan."

"What?"

"It'll be easier if all of us are with Bridge when we try to save him."

Nova seemed to stop short after hearing Syd's plan – for the first time since the conversation started, the Pink Ranger was actually making sense. "You're not going to tell them, are you?"

"No. They've got to make it realistic, in order for Klank and his master to believe it and not question my loyalty or motives."

"I'll help."

Sydney shook her head. "No, Nova. I want you to make me a promise. You'll only get involved if things start going wrong. Promise me."

The little girl wanted to protest but didn't. She merely nodded her head, agreeing with her friend's plan.

--

"Is she alright?" Anubis asked as he and Sky walked around the Academy, discussing the events of the day.

Sky sighed. "She says she is, but I'm doubtful. She won't tell me what happened."

"She's having trouble adjusting," Anubis' words sounded more like comment then question.

"Sir, she's only been here two days, and look what's happened. No one in her position would be adjusting well," Sky started.

The big blue dog nodded. "Give her time, Sky. She'll get her memories back, and we'll be back to normal too."

"I hope so. Z's had to be sedated again, Nova's hardly saying anything, Kat and I have been loosing sleep, Boom's taking on more duties than I want him too, and everyone around us is feeling it."

Anubis gave him a look. "Welcome to the wonderful world of leading SPD."

--

Boom watched with wide eyes as Sydney tip toed around the lab, taking in all the gadgets and gizmos he and Kat had created in her absence. She seemed fascinated by everything, and yet, reluctant to ask questions.

"Syd?"

The blonde man winced when she jumped, her eyes round and wide. "Yeah?"

"Can I help you find something?"

She shook her head. "No, Boom, I'm...I'm just trying to get my memories back. I can't seem to jog any of them."

Boom swallowed hard and felt his heart crack at the expression on her face. She looked so vulnerable and tired of not feeling any recognition. Grinning, Boom thought of something that might help. "I might be able to help. Come with me," he suggested, holding out his hand to her. Gingerly, Sydney took it and was surprised when he pulled her out of the lab and down the hallway.

The Pink Ranger looked perplexed as they stopped just in front of the library. Boom just grinned at her and pulled her inside. "When you were a Ranger, we recorded every battle that you were involved with, from each of your perspectives. Maybe if you sit down and watch them, they'll help bring back some of your missing memories."

"It's worth a shot. Thanks Boom."

"You're welcome. Here, I'll pull them up, you just hit this button and enter your clearance code, which is pink angel, by the way, and it'll give you access to all the files from your time as a cadet and Ranger."

Sydney nodded and smiled, feeling like this might just be the breakthrough she needed. Boom sat with her through the first few battles on video, pointing out what had been happening around the academy at the time. After the fifth one, he left her alone to watch the footage while he went to speak with Sky and Kat.

--

"Well?"

"She's agreed to hand over her teammates and commander, Master."

The creature on the large throne-looking chair narrowed his eyes at Klank. "Really? We shall see, Klank. I know from past experience, Rangers can be tricky, and so do you."

"Sir, she'll do anything for peace and quiet!" Klank argued, then moved back several paces as his Master stood.

"That may be true, in most cases. You, however, have limited experience with her kind. Pink Rangers, when present, have always been considered the heart and soul of a Ranger team. Miss Drew is certainly the center of this team, they will do anything to protect her."

"And when they find out she made a deal with us?"

"They'll forgive her. It will never have occurred to them that she made the deal for her own selfish needs," he hissed. "Now, how goes our prisoner?"

"We've confined him to a solitary room, with no contact with anyone. Our plan is to throw him into the dungeons once he's comfortable enough not having felt anything from anyone."

A most evil smile appeared on the Master's face. "Sensory overload for the SPD Psychic. Good, proceed as planned. And Klank?"

"Yes sir?"

"I want our other little escapee as well. She knows too much."

"Yes sir."