TOMMY - A WEEK LATER - MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT
I wake up with a start, feeling like something is very wrong. Zedd's not curled up with me like usual and it takes a moment for my mind to catch up to the fact that it's not the cause of the complete and utter panic I am currently feeling – no, that would be Zedd himself. I look over and find him sitting up and panting to the point he looks near hyperventilating. Lightly, I touch his back. "Zedd? What's wrong? Are you all right?"
"No." Shit.
"What's the matter? Are you hurting? Is it the baby?" My mind instantly latching on to what happened the last time his body rejected the notion of carrying our child, and how he'd woken in a near similar manner, I pray that this isn't a repeat.
"What the hell was I thinking?" he mutters to himself.
Fully worried now, I sit up myself and pull him into my arms. "Kalleimat, what is it?"
"Thomas, what have I done?"
"What do you mean?"
"The baby, Thomas. I'm the one carrying it." Oookay.
"Right." Looking at him in great concern, I wonder briefly if I can get Pina and back here before whatever he's thinking of gets a complete hold of him.
"I'm going to ruin its life, and that's if it doesn't kill us first along with destroying everything it ever touches."
"Zedd I don't think- I mean you haven't even been- and it's just barely a week after- what?" Doing my best to follow him here and wondering if this is normal panic or not, what he says next definitely has me feeling this is anything but the first.
"It's going to spend the entire time soaking up dark power. It's going to be evil. I've finally, with your help, gotten my darker side mostly under control and now I'm going to unleash a new evil on the universe and it's going to be one I can't bring myself to ever hurt or let get hurt and I'm going to be responsible for destroying everything."
I blink as I try to absorb what he's said before coming to the slow conclusion that he has clearly lost his damn mind. "Zedd, what are you talking about? Where would you get an idea like that?"
"The dark power is a big part of who I am, who I have been for so long. The baby is surrounded with it. It's going to be running through its veins. That power is going to be as much a part of the baby as it is me, if not more so." Okay, starting to understand a bit more now.
"Zedd, mate, you need to calm down. You're having an anxiety attack and that isn't good for you or the baby. As for the other stuff, Zedd we are not going to let the power that you or I carry dictate our child's future. Yes there is every chance that the baby could have power and I'd certainly be more worried if it was just a clone of you. But I'm a part of this baby too and he or she might have some of my power not yours or even more likely none at all. Besides we've talked about this before mate, we discussed teaching our child how to hold power, be it Ranger or otherwise just for the simple fact he or she will be a possible target others try to use to get to us."
"But giving them power when older isn't the same as infusing it into them from the start. Especially not when what's being infused is evil."
"Zedd you're not evil. Why the hell would you even think th-" Suddenly, my eyes narrow as two plus two become four. "What did Jax say to you when he called this afternoon? Why did he call?"
He won't look at me again. This afternoon, I'd felt him get upset but by the time I made it to his office, he was ending the call and was somewhere between upset and angry. All he would tell me was that it was Jax and that he was being an ass again. "He - said that I had no business being a parent and that I must still be working for the Evil Alliance to bring this child into the world as it would be nothing but evil and full of dark power. He said that it was bad enough that I'd brainwashed you into thinking that I'm no longer evil but to deliberately create and raise a child that way was unthinkable. He said that both it and I should be - killed immediately."
Now I'm shaking in my rage. Zedd doesn't need this kind of stress and especially not while he's pregnant! "Zedd no one is going to hurt you or our child. I will kill them first if they even try and that's assuming your mother and sister don't beat me to it."
"What if he's right though? What if because I was careless and didn't think about the type of power I hold I've condemned our child to some horrifying, evil fate?"
Seeing he's almost past the point of being reasoned with, I search frantically for a solution to this that doesn't involve sedating my mate so he can at least calm down and get himself back together. What can I do to convince him that the baby and he will be fine? I mean if he won't listen to me, who the hell will he- got it! I kiss Zedd quickly, get out of bed, turn on the light, pull on a shirt and wake up the computer. "Hold on, mate. I'm going to fix this."
"It won't do any good to call Jax."
"That's not even close to my first move. Maybe my second." Swiftly, I type in the needed commands to initiate a conference call, followed by the appropriate contact information.
"Thomas-" He stops when I hold up my hand, not about to cease what I'm doing. Fortunately, the people I'm calling are in - essentially - different time zones and one is a night owl anyway - no pun intended. The screen splits into three as each contact picks up the line.
Knowing that they can all see and hear each other, I address them as one. "I apologize for the late call but I need help with Zedd. Someone has convinced him that our child that he's carrying will be evil due to the dark power he has and when grown will apparently end up destroying the universe."
There's dead silence for a minute before everyone starts protesting loudly. Finally, one voice cuts over them all. "Zedd, if I thought for one minute that it would be an issue, I'd have never given my approval for your binding ceremony without warning you of such a thing" Zordon says firmly.
"Agreed" Dulcea jumps in. "Not to mention Tommy is as much a part of this child as you are and - even if the child carries dark power - his would help temper any such thing. It's equally possible that the child won't hold any at all."
"But what if it does? What if he's right?"
"Who, Zeddic?" Mara asks gently.
"Jax" I answer her grimly. I hear Kerch start swearing a blue streak in the background. "I plan to call him next and set him straight about a few things. Then you can have him and do whatever you want with him."
"What else was said, Tommy?" Zordon asks.
"He said that Zedd's obviously still working for the Evil Alliance, that he brainwashed me, that deliberately creating and raising a child that way was unthinkable, that he was having the child for the Alliance and that they both should be killed immediately." Finishing my recitation on a snarl, I'm more than ready to kill Jax slowly with my bare hands.
To my surprise, Dulcea laughs. "Oh by the powers is he stupid! Apologies, Mara and Kerch, I know he's your child, but really." It takes her almost a full minute to pull herself together. "Dark power doesn't always mean evil. If that were true, Lord Zedd would have been totally unredeemable. And yet, he can use his power for good when he chooses to. Zedd was evil because he wanted to be - chose to be. If the child holds power, he or she can be taught to be good, just like any child."
Zordon puts his two cents worth in next. "Never mind that if Zedd were still evil, what was said wouldn't have bothered him in the least. In fact, I have no doubt that all that would have happened is that his brother's name would have moved up on his 'People To Destroy' list - quite possibly above mine."
My mate seems to have thankfully calmed considerably. "Right under yours at the very least" he agrees before he continues nervously. "So - we don't have to worry about this?"
"No."
"Certainly not, young lord."
"No more than any other parent worries about their children in general."
"I was never worried about it, mate" I finish. "Are you all right now?"
"Yeah." He looks a little shamefaced. "I shouldn't have let him get to me like that, I know, but then the nightmare kind of reinforced what he'd said."
"That will be handled" Kerch says firmly. "Tommy, if you would message me when you're finished having your say, I would appreciate it."
"I will" I assure him. "Thank you, everyone."
Just before the call disconnects, Mara speaks. "Zeddic, call me tomorrow." He nods even as I exchange looks with Kerch. I have no doubt that he and I will be speaking tomorrow as well.
Once the call disconnects properly, I immediately initiate the call to Jax - with a few extra keystrokes. "Thomas, this won't change anything."
"Probably not, but it's long overdue" I respond. I wait impatiently until Jax's wife picks up the line. "Jax. Now" I growl at her. It's not long before he's on the screen, rolling his eyes at me.
"What do you want, mutt?"
"Aside you collared and chained to the wall of our dungeon for a few hundred years? I'll settle right now for removing your tongue."
"Charming, but I don't suppose there's a point to this is there?"
"Don't ever call here and stress my mate again - especially while he's pregnant" I hiss. The feminine gasp on the other end gives me a certain amount of satisfaction. While I'm fairly certain that she knows what a bastard her husband is, I have no problem making sure there is no doubt.
"Look if he doesn't wish to interact with me then he should have kept his nose out of my business when he showed up here the first time to parade you in front of my parents" he hisses in return.
"What in all the hells are you talking about? Zedd never discussed you with anyone as far as I know - other than to mention to your mother that you two still despised each other."
"Oh, sure he didn't" he mocks. "He didn't tell Father that I had pets."
With sudden clarity, I know what he's talking about. "First of all, you're a hypocrite - giving him hell over supposedly having pets when you had them yourself. Second, Zedd doesn't know anything about it - even now. One of your little associates revealed that information when I escaped from the hospital while I was so sick."
"Sure he did. Tell me another one."
"He tried to coax me into going with him and Kerch stepped in and stopped him. He said that you owed him one for stealing a client from him and that you'd never had a problem sharing your toys before."
"And who is this supposed associate?" he asks mockingly.
"Wopenga - the same one that came after us later with the full intent of taking me whether the others were alive or dead - with or without my consent." Now Jax looks extremely uncomfortable.
Zedd steps in. "Oh, didn't Father tell you when he called you to find out where Wopenga went?"
He shakes his head uncertainly. "No, he just said that Wopenga had stolen something that belonged to the family. I offered to talk to him but Father said that it was something that he had to deal with himself." Realization crashes down on him and his gaze focuses back on me. "You were what he'd stolen! Damn you! Now I wish I hadn't told him. You'd be nothing but a pet by now and that evil little brat of an offspring wouldn't be cutting into my inheritance and bringing down the family name even more then Zedd has by wedding a mutt that by all rights should have been a pet!" Ah, I see.
I can feel the surge of rage from my mate, but instead I laugh - just to piss him off. "Oh, I don't tame that easily." I lock eyes with him, waiting until he looks away. When he finally does, I say firmly, "Leave us alone, Jax. No calls, no visits, no sending anyone after us. If you don't leave us alone, I will do whatever I have to do to keep my mate, my child, and the rest of my family safe - no matter what it is. I will kill if necessary and without hesitation. Do not test me or you will be sorry."
I don't let him respond, essentially hanging up on him before quickly calling Kerch back. As soon as he picks up, I hit a few buttons on the keyboard. "I recorded the conversation, Kerch. Do whatever you want to with it, but I'd advise you to listen to it first so that you know what was said before you contact him."
He nods before he speaks thoughtfully. "You know, I thought that Jax was like me, but he's really not. What I thought was ruthlessness in business is actually cruelty. As bad as Zeddic got, he would never have done some of the things that I've discovered about Jax. I'll talk to you tomorrow, Tommy."
He disconnects the call and I shut down the program before climbing back in bed with my mate, pulling him close. "I swear to you, Zedd, I will not allow our baby to be evil - dark power or not. And you know that none of the rest of our families - blood and chosen - will allow such a thing either."
"I know," he admits softly. "But it was kind of like some of the nightmares you've had. They seem so real that it's hard to shake off when you wake up."
I squeeze him lightly in understanding. "It's all right, mate. Get some rest. You don't want to worry the baby too, do you?"
We both know that the child is far too small and young to know what's going on, but I can feel him smile a little. "Right. Wouldn't want to worry the baby." He curls up against me and sighs. "Sorry, love."
I kiss him tenderly. "Forgiven, of course." I make sure that he's asleep before I allow myself the same luxury.
