******************** Command chamber*****************************
"Will he be alright Alpha?" Kathrine asked softly as she looked at the wizard they had returned with. He was currently under some kind of anti UV device. She didn't fully understand what it did but it seemed to be helping.
"Yes Katherine. He should be better in a few minutes. This will reduce the amount of sunlight in his body. Ai Yi Yi." Alpha 5 replied.
"Good. I'll get Kim then. Sooner we see about a cure, the better." Tommy went to leave the room when Rocky caught is arm.
"Maybe give the little guy a chance to get on his feet first?" He suggested. Lerigot was... a strange fellow indeed but Rocky knew after everything they had seen, not to judge a book by its cover.
Tommy was about to reply when Kimberly came into the room, Adam walking right beside her. "Did you find him?" She asked quietly to the leader of the rangers.
"Yeah beautiful we did. So we can..." Tommy spoke but Kimberly interrupted him.
"Tommy can we talk, in private?" She asked in a tone that spoke volumes.
Tommy nodded. "Of course." Had Kimberly been crying? He wondered.
Katherine watched the exchanged. "But Tommy...?"
"Don't worry, we won't leave the command chamber." The white ranger promised. As he and Kimberly turned to go out the way she had come in. That way lead towards the training room and small kitchen. Katherine felt something in her heart snap. She had never been able to get Tommy to respond like Kimberly just had. It always took flattery and ego praising. She shook her head. After all Tommy was technically seeing both of them at the same time and she was doing her best to be okay with that but...
He could make his final a choice any day. And she would need to live whatever he decided.
Rocky frowned, watching them leave. "What was that all about?" he asked Adam. But Adam did not answer right away. Rocky studied the frog rangers face. He knew that look. Those sad eyes of painful longing.
Great... just great. The red ranger didn't care if Adam and Kim became an item. He liked the former pink ranger like a sister but Tommy was still fiercely protective of her. One way or another, this wouldn't end well for his 'brother'. "Adam?"
"Huh, oh sorry Rocky. What did you say?"
Rocky merely shook his head. "Nothing, it wasn't important."
****************** Training room*************************
"So what's up Kim?" Tommy asked. She hadn't said a word to him and he was sure now that she had been crying. Just something in her face. Kimberly seemed to ignore the question and simply started stretching as soon as they got on the mats.
Kimberly finished rolling her shoulders and turned to Tommy. "Let's spar." She said, slipping into a defensive stance.
"Beautiful, I'm not going to fight you."
Kimberly gave him a wry smile. "Why? Scared I'll win?"
Tommy shook his head. "No, I'm never scared but I'm worried I may hurt you."
"We spared plenty at the juice bar unmorphed and you didn't hurt me then."
"Still..." Tommy shrugged.
Kimberly turned her back slightly to him. "Never thought the great Tommy Oliver would be chicken."
Tommy's head snapped up. "I'm not a chicken." he argued.
"Bwak bwak bwak." Kimberly wiggled her arms like little chicken wings. "Tommy is chicken. Bwak!" She said in a sing song teasing voice. It was a low blow, she knew it... but it always worked.
"Oh that does it. Prepare to defend yourself Kim." Tommy leapt onto the practice mats with a spark of fight in his eyes.
Kimberly smiled. "Ready when you are."
********************* Submarine*************************
"Goldar you let us out of here this instant!" Zedd's voice growled like a high pitch squeak from inside the snow globe.
Goldar smirked and gave the globe a shake. "I can't do that my former emperor. I'm in much better employment now."
"Goldar! I'll get you for this!" Rita's voice shouted.
"Hi highly doubt that oh evil one." Goldar laughed and put the snow globe down. It had been quite a nice prize Ivan Ooze had given him. His former bosses trapped forever in a realm of plastic.
Still... Goldar hated to admit it. He was having reservations about Ooze's plan. Even now Divatox was trying to wine and dine the master of evil. And he could not blame her one bit.
If Goldar had been female he might have tried the same ploy.
Still the lion- ape was worried. Letting an uncontrollable Nightmare onto the town of Angel Grove. People, they were little more the cattle for slaughter, he had killed plenty of humans. Brought plenty as slave to the moon.
Still his kills had always been clean, relatively speaking, his sword would strike true and fast. He wasn't particularly looking forward to reliving the carnage of a Nightmare.
Goldar touched the vial of cure in his belt. He had no idea how he would get it into Billy but if he had to stop him. He would find a way.
As long as he benefited from it.
*********************** Command Chamber***********************
Lerigot was up and about, communicating to Alpha was if his coos and clicks were the easiest thing in the world to understand.
"I can't believe the understand each other." Katherine mumbled.
"As all good friends should." Rocky said coming over to the girl. "How's your leg?"
Kat smiled. "It's fine Rocky. I've never been healed by magic before. It was strange. I mean... unless... we're not magic right? We are technology based power rangers?"
Rocky shrugged, "If you had asked when we got our ninja powers I would have said yes we are magic but none of the command chamber is magic. So I'm not sure."
Katherine was quiet for a moment. "Do you think Tommy and Kim should be back by now?"
Rocky tried to hide the sadness in his eyes. "Give them a little longer Kat. If they are not back in a little bit, I can go get them."
She simply nodded before asking. "Where's Aisha and Justin?"
"Bear and wolf went to go check on the community center. Seems Ernie has been having some trouble ever since Tommy refused to become mayor."
Katherine hummed slightly in agreement. She has heard about that from Bulk and Skull. Someone had trashed the place and used spray paint all over the inside.
Adam was working at the computers still searching for any sign of Billy. But he heard there conversation.
And wondered what Kimberly was saying to Tommy.
*************************** Training room******************************
"That all you got Oliver?" Kimberly asked, after she had flipped away, putting some distance between her and the white ranger. She was dripping with sweat and desperate for a breather. Unlike Rocky who she could out pace with stamina or Adam who attacked slowly with calculation. Tommy was both a power house of stamina and strength.
"Getting tired Kim? We can stop. A-Yah!" He pounce at her, Kimberly barely dodging in time. "As soon as you apologies for that chicken remark."
"No way Tommy. Not until you listen to what I have to say and sometimes the only way you ever listen is when sparing. Ki-Yah!" Kimberly kicked at Tommy's head and he easily blocked the move. She retracted her leg quickly before he could grab it.
"I'm all ears." He said circling her slowly like a tiger.
Kimberly didn't drop her guard. "The teams in a mess. You've stopped thinking clearly since we decided to see other people. I've given you plenty of time. At least as much time as I think we are going to get. "Hi-Ya!" Kimberly's kick connected this time and Tommy stumbled backwards a few feet off balance.
"I'm doing my best Kim." Tommy countered. "I still don't know who I..."
Kimberly interrupted. "I don't care about that right now. I'm talking about team dynamics. Tommy you can't do it all. None of us could. Jason relied on us as a team."
Tommy frowned. "I'm not Jason."
"I know that Tommy, I never said you were but you still have a team. We are a team. More than that. We are a family. You need to start delegating. You need to start leading and listening to all of us." Kimberly had let he guard drop.
Tommy paused for a moment as if in thought before pouncing on the former pink ranger. She squealed in his grasp. "Tommy!"
Tommy said nothing as he held her tightly to his chest. His nose on the top of her head, breathing in her scent. "Kimberly I never told you. What Rita did to me. Not on the moon the second time. That is nothing compared to the... torture she put me through when I became her green ranger. I... lack the words... to describe the pain. How everyday she..." Kimberly felt several drops of something wet fall into her hair. Tommy sniffed loudly. "But you woke me up from all that. You saved me. Jason may have destroyed the sword of darkness but... you brought me back to life." He pulled her just a bit closer and whispered. "Kim, I am scared. I admit it. I'm so scared that we will fail again that I will lose you forever. And now if this Ooze guy gets free...There will be no hope anymore... and... I'm so... lost."
Kimberly's could feel the fatigue in his muscles as he spoke. "Tommy no matter what happens, I will be here for you and so will the others. Once a ranger, always a ranger. Trust us, we can face anything together as a team. I'm not saying we will win but I believe in this team. I believe in you."
Tommy smiled slightly and let Kimberly go. "Never knew you to be so smart."
Kim laughed and tapped her chest. "Emotional heart center." she teased. It was what Zordon had once called her. The pink heart center of the team. "Come on Lerigot might be awake by now."
Tommy smiled. "Yeah and I have some delegating to do."
"Spoken like a leader."