Race Against Time
Chapter 9: Un-break My Heart
By: Pink-Green-White-4ever
Last Revised: March 8, 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: I've been accused of making anything that can happen, happen to Sydney.- -looks to Etcetera Kit and smiles- - I have to say, I saw so much potential in her, and she could have been so much more complex than they made her. Not to mention, she's one of my favorite Pink Rangers. So I just want to say, I'm sorry for that, but I love Syd, and I want to see her grow and mature, and this is the only way I know how.
--
The first thing he noticed was his head hurt like the dickens. He felt groggy, sore, and he was hungry. 'Buttery toast, I want buttery toast' he thought, sitting up. 'And I want Z. Where is she?' When he finally managed to open his eyes, Bridge Carson felt his world crumble.
He was inside a cell.
'Since when did I get sent to prison?' he asked himself, rubbing his temple. As he touched his own skin, he felt the memories come back. There had been a fight at New Tech Mall. He'd been trying to protect the others. Then the goons had show up.
"Great. I have no clue where I am."
"I'll tell you where you are, Green Ranger!" a voice boomed, causing Bridge to wince, his headache throbbing at his temples. "You're my guest, until the rest of your rotten little Ranger friends are brought here, courtesy of the little Pink wench who took off with my prized possession. Once Klank has done his job, I'll do what Gruumm could not, destroy the Rangers of Space Patrol Delta."
Bridge's eyes widened when he saw the figure standing in front of the bars of his cell. "You…you're…you're Master Vile!" Bridge gasped.
"Indeed I am. Enjoy your stay, Green Ranger!" Vile laughed, his voice echoing down the halls as he swept from his place in front of Bridge's cell.
"Oh, that's so not good," Bridge muttered, leaning his head back against the wall.
--
"Kat! Status report!" Sky called out as he and Syd sprinted into the Command Center. The current Rangers, Boom, and Kat were busy at consoles stationed throughout the room, each furiously typing to find their missing friends. Ally was standing in the corner, rocking her fussy son anxiously, while Isinia stood with her, trying to remain calm.
"They're morphers just suddenly disappeared!" Kat hissed angrily, switching consoles. "It was just like when Merlock took all of you, the signals just up and disappeared. I can't get a fix on anything."
Sky's face was void, his feelings boiling underneath the surface. His mind was racing a mile a minute, trying to understand what had happened. "Where were they last?"
"The park, near the fountains," Boom responded, his voice grave.
Sydney stood at the entrance to the room and watched as the scene unfolded in front of her, only there were other scenes, dozens of them, from countless battles, that were overlapping the present. She realized with startling clarity she'd never seen Kat loose her cool, or Boom sound so serious. It took the former Pink Ranger about five seconds to realize memories she thought lost were startling to filter back in.
"Damn it!" Marie yelled, kicking one of the consoles near her.
Without a second thought, Sydney walked to her, gently pushing her away from the computer, before she began to let her fingers follow her brain's subconscious lead. Marie watched in shock as Sydney suddenly pulled up whatever it was that had failed in her search and had it, and a dozen other things, up and running in a matter of seconds.
Isinia was the first, other than Marie herself, to notice that Sydney suddenly seemed completely comfortable and competent in the Command Center. The others weren't far behind when Sydney moved to the spot next to Boom and brought up the SPD mainframe.
"Syd, what are you doing?" Boom asked, catching everyone's attention.
"Routing extra power from the main computers to their morphers," Sydney mumbled. "If I can get just the right amount of power through to them, I should be able to activate the tracking devices, or at the very least, find the SWAT program and go from there."
The Rangers stood back with Isinia and Ally and watched as Kat, Boom, Sky and Syd worked in tandem with the computer. Seconds ticked by, the only sound in the room fingers flying over the keys of the computers. No one dared move or breath, praying intensely that Sydney's plan would work.
"GOT IT!" Syd cried, looking up as the holo-computer started up, displaying a map of New Tech City. "They're in a cave, near the beach."
"Rangers, GO!" Sky commanded, the five doing as they were told.
"SPD EMERGENCY!"
--
"Bridge!" Jack all but laughed as the guards dumped the trio into Bridge's cell.
"Jack! Commander!" Bridge called out and then fell silent when he saw Z, unconscious, in Doggie's arms.
The big blue dog carefully handed Bridge his wife's limp body and stepped back. Both he and Jack watched the former Green Ranger cradle his wife close, his lips brushing against her temple. "Z, Sweetheart," Bridge murmured, settling on the floor with her in his lap.
"Bridge, are you ok?" Doggie asked, crouching next to his former charge.
Bridge grinned. "Other than a massive headache, I'm good. What happened to you three?" Bridge asked.
The former Green Ranger looked startled when Jack swore. "Syd is what happened to us!" Jack growled. "She betrayed all of us, Bridge! Made a deal with that walking tin can, for us and Sky!" Bridge's face remained neutral. He could see Doggie's passive look, could feel Jack's emotions bouncing around, before he dug deep and tried to feel Sydney and Sky.
"Jack, I'm sure its some misunderstanding. Sydney would never betray us!"
"We heard the tape of her making the deal," Jack spat as if he had a bad taste in his mouth.
"Sir?"
Doggie looked into Bridge's eyes and let his own say what he thought. A slight nod acknowledged the big blue dog's thoughts before the former Green Ranger turned his attention back to his still unconscious wife.
Carefully, Bridge attempted to wake her by linking their minds. "Z, Sweetheart," Bridge murmured again, kissing her, trying to physically and mentally nudge her into consciousness.
"Bridge…" her sleepy voice responded. "I miss you."
Bridge just grinned. "Open your eyes, Z, I'm right here."
Slowly, Z's eyes fluttered open, her mouth dropped, and a strangled sob came out when she realized her husband was really holding her. "BRIDGE!" Like a shot, Z was sitting up, her arms around him, while she buried her face in his neck.
"Shh, Z, it's ok," Bridge murmured in reassurance, his lips caressing her face before he settled them over hers.
Jack and Doggie smiled at each other, watching their friends' reunion. "He's going to flip when he realizes Syd betrayed us," Jack muttered, just loud enough for Doggie to hear.
"All will work out, Jack; you just need to have faith."
Jack shot Doggie a look that spoke volumes. "You know something, don't you."
"I have a hunch." Jack just nodded, knowing his former Commander would tell them all in due time.
--
Sydney watched him like a hawk. He was sitting at one of the consoles, monitoring his Rangers, who were searching for the missing trio of their friends. She knew Klank had taken Jack, Z and Anubis. There was no other explanation but that. 'Can I really pull this off?' she thought for the millionth time. As she thought it, the consequences fell over her like rain; she knew she'd loose their love and friendship over this, of that she had no doubt, but she just hoped she could make sure they survived long enough after she died to know she'd loved them more than she could say, even without all her memories back.
"Commander."
"Go ahead Nick."
"Sir, you and Ms. Drew better come see this."
The former Rangers shot each other a look before bounding to their feet. "We're on our way!" Sky called even as he and Syd were streaking out the door.
--
Jack tried phasing through the walls and couldn't. Bridge tried to use his powers against the guards, but found them all to be robots, and there for not susceptible to him.
"This sucks," Jack grumbled. Doggie was pacing in front of him, quiet as always. Bridge and Z were huddled together, the former Green Ranger cradling his wife against his chest. Jack could see a physical difference in Z with Bridge holding her. Jack had never fully realized how much Bridge and Z depended on each other until now.
"Patience, Jack," Doggie told him. "Sky and Sydney will find us."
"You mean Sky's gonna end up in here with us while Syd goes on with her life?"
"No. Sky and Sydney will find us."
--
"Hey Nova!"
Turning, the little girl in question smiled when she saw Sam racing toward her. Sam stopped just in front of her, smiling wildly and only slightly out of breath. "What can I do for you, Sam?"
"Kat wants to see us in the lab, pronto."
Nova looked startled. She'd only been to the lab one time since she'd come to Earth. "Ok." She was even more surprised when Sam took her hand and started pulling her down the hallway.
When the pair burst through the door to the lab, Kat was waiting for them, and wasn't the least surprised to see them out of breath. "Nova, come here," Kat beckoned, gesturing to the chair. Sam helped her climb up onto it before standing next to her.
"Dr. Manx?"
Kat smiled. Despite all the madness going on around them, she'd been running a database search on Nova, trying to figure out who she was. "I've found out who you are."
"You have?"
Kat nodded. "Your parents weren't at SPD, per say, but they've been associated with us. It seems your real name is Melody McKnight."
"No way!" Sam muttered. He remembered hearing all about the Dino Thunder Rangers. If Kat was right, Nova was the daughter of Dino Thunder's Red Ranger, Conner McKnight.
"Yes way," Kat laughed. "You're the daughter of Conner and Kira McKnight, the Dino Thunder Red and Yellow Rangers."
"Oh wow," Nova whispered, shocked.
The feline scientist let the two younger members of SPD regain their composure before she continued. "There's more. I think I found out why Klank's master wants you so bad."
"Why?" Nova asked nervously. She'd worked extremely hard to keep her secret since coming to S.P.D.
"You've got powers, don't you?"
Sam reached over and hugged her to him while she nodded, then started to cry. "They nicknamed me Nova, because I can create bursts of energy with my hands."
"Nova, honey, I'm not mad. I would have kept it a secret too if I'd been you. I'm going to need your help, both of you."
"Ok."
"We're down a few Rangers, Syd and Sky are going to need you both to help them. I believe you're ready for what I have for you."
The two youngsters looked confused. "Huh?"
Kat smiled and moved to grab the case next to her, opening it and showing its contents to them. "Therese are the Omega and Nova Ranger morphers."
Nova blinked while Sam laughed. Contrary to popular belief, he had his future self had run into each other several times during Omega's trip back five years before. "Me? A Ranger?"
Kat nodded. "Five years ago, your future self came back to save Sam's future self, who was here helping us defeat Gruumm." Kat knew Sam and Omega had met, so she felt no need to skirt the issue. "Since then, I've been working to develop the morphers you two carried with you."
"You've succeeded, haven't you?" Sam asked, excitement shining in his eyes.
"The prototypes are ready. Are you two willing to take them?"
Nova and Sam shared a look before nodding. Kat carefully took the morphers out and handed them to their respective owners. "Good luck, and be careful."
The two of them slipped their morphers on their wrists and smiled. "So now what?"
"You'll wait until you're needed, which is going to be soon."
--
"You seem awfully quiet," Sam started. He had Nova had left Kat's lab ten minutes ago and were now sitting in the common room.
Nova was debating on what to tell him. The weight of the morpher at her wrist reminded her of the weight on her heart. "Sam, I have something to tell you, but you can't tell anyone else."
"What?" Sam asked, looking over at her.
She seemed disturbed to Sam. "Sydney made a deal with that walking tin can Klank."
The red-headed teen looked angry and confused. "WHAT?"
"She made a deal with Klank; Commander Tate, General Cruger, and Bridge, Z and Jack in exchange for Klank reversing whatever he did to her on the planet they rescued us from."
"She's a traitor!" Sam seemed to bellow.
"SHH!" Nova hissed. "There's more." When Sam remained silent, she continued. "She's got a plan. She told me it would be easier to save Bridge if they were all together. She's planning to save them, all of them, even if means giving up her own life. You didn't see her when she told me Sam, she looked...broken."
Sam looked startled, both by Syd's plan and Nova's depth of reading Syd's emotions and feelings. "That actually makes some sense. But how's she going to do that when she doesn't even remember how to be a Ranger?"
"She's remembering, slowly. Sam, Sky's the only one left; we're going to have to help her. He's never going to calm down long enough to understand her reasoning once he finds out."
The newest edition of the Ranger family sighed, knowing how true his partner's words were. "He's going to feel she betrayed him."
"I know."
"Then I guess we'll have to make sure her plan works, won't we?" They just grinned at each other and nodded.
--
Nick was the only one of the five Rangers brave enough to approach Sky and Syd when they arrived at the beach. The Red Ranger handed Sky the note he'd found as well as the four morphers that had been with it.
Quickly, Sky read the note then handed it to Sydney.
Four down, one to go. Thank you, Pink Ranger.
When Sydney looked up, Sky was looking at her curiously. Swallowing hard, she held his gaze before turning and walking back to the jeep. "Back to base!" Sky ordered, his voice level and hard as nails.
--
The ride in the jeep was quiet, and tense. Sydney stared straight ahead and said nothing. Sky's face was blank, his eyes focused on the road. His anger and confusion boiled inside him. "Are you going to explain that note to me now?" Sky demanded.
"What do you want me to say?"
His jaw tightened, the muscles ticking in response. "What did it mean, Sydney?"
She blinked back the tears stinging her eyes and took a deep breath. "I can explain, but you're not going to like the explanation."
The moment she said it, Sky's heart broke all over again. "Why?"
Knowing he needed to believe she'd betrayed him, Sydney proceeded to breath both their hearts. "I made a deal with Klank, which now that it's in motion, cannot be stopped."
Sky's nostrils flared as he stopped the jeep suddenly. "What did you just say?"
"In exchange for my former teammates and Commander, Klank's master will reverse what his machine did to me."
"TRAITOR!" Sky screamed at her. From the corner of her eye, Sydney watched him fall apart and knew she'd just destroyed them both. He stared at her, his eyes full of tears and hatred and Sydney felt the bile rise in her throat. 'One day, when this is all over, I hope you understand why, my love,' she thought wincing when Sky called the base to ready a cell for her.
"When we get back, I'm taking you to a cell. You can sit in it and rot for what you've done. You came back, you let me love you, you let me make love to you, and all this time you've been secretly dancing with the devil!"
Syd swallowed and nodded. "Fair enough, if you can catch me!"
Before Sky could react, she was out of the jeep and out of sight. All that remained was her morpher, sitting on the seat where she'd been. "SYDNEY!"
--
Nova and Sam winced when they heard Sky screaming in his office. News of Syd's betrayal had spread throughout the base quickly upon Sky's call during his drive back. When Sky had finally arrived, he'd locked himself in his office to rage.
"What are we gonna do?" Nova whispered to Sam.
Sam looked thoughtful. "We're going to find Sydney. Klank's bound to find her after he takes Sky."
Nodding, the pair ran from outside Sky's door and headed for the academy's entrance, unsure of what lay before them.