"Pizza!" Roberto called as he walked into the main bay of the Command Center and froze in his tracks. There was blood all over the console and while it looked like the rangers had definitely been here, he had no idea if the blood had happened before or after the pizza order. He quickly transformed into his Guardian attire and began sensing what had happened. He felt that the disturbance had originated in the building above and he shuddered. They had promised to protect Kimberly and Tommy- what had gone wrong.
"I think we have a problem," Tommy said as he opened the door to the living quarters and Roberto stared at him. "Come on back, Kimberly needs food."
"Tommy, what happened?" Roberto asked as he closed the distance and he saw the concern in Tommy's eyes. It was something that he had not seen in him before. Tommy had always been in control in their past meetings, but he was desperate now.
"I'm not sure, but your expertise would be appreciated," Tommy said as he grabbed the top pizza from him and nodded for him to follow. He had never dared go back to the living quarters of a Command Center. The only Guardian he knew who had done that was Billy and Billy was an exception. "And Kimberly…she doesn't…"
"Why is Roberto wearing the same glittery crap Atlantis was wearing?" Kim blurted out and Roberto quickly changed back into street clothes. He watched the elder ranger stare back and forth between him and her husband.
"He's here to help and here's your food," Tommy avoided and he watched the man place the pizza in front of her as she glared at him. He was sure a lesser man would have cowered under her stare, but Tommy merely opened the box and motioned for her to eat. As he revealed his back, Roberto saw the fresh wound that Tommy was sporting and cringed. "I was heading up for dinner- I felt something appear behind me. The Command Center teleported me down here- but not before I got what I am sure will be a lovely scar. I thought between my protections and yours that we should be safe at home. What went wrong?"
"You should be. Give me a minute," Roberto responded and he closed his eyes. He needed to mind walk through what had happened and see if there was something that had failed them. As the scene replayed in front of him, he felt a growing sense of unease. He did not see any of the protections fail. He could not explain why this being had been able to get in. As he saw the rangers defeat the being, it led to even more confusion. A being that powerful should not have been that easy to defeat. "Nothing failed."
"You said that only a Guardian could breach these protections. Who else has gone rogue?" Tommy growled and Roberto held up his hands. He watched the man pace in front of him and risked another glance at Kimberly.
"She's pregnant?" Roberto asked and he let that settle over him. "I only accounted for the two of you and your powers- not the baby's."
"I'm sorry…what?" Julia blurted out and he turned to face the younger ranger. It would be easier to deliver this news while not looking at Kimberly or Tommy. Apparently, this was a lesson that the Command Center had decided to not share with Kimberly and Tommy when they had communed with it.
"In their case, the powers are hereditary. It is something that happens with soul mate rangers. I should be able to recalibrate everything to account for it," Roberto said and he slowly turned to face Kimberly and Tommy. Their faces spoke volumes to how this news was hitting them and it told him he needed to pacify them, quickly. "Once the baby is born, there will be a far less volatile signature- but between now and then I'll need to recalibrate things every few months- although it looks like it may only need this recalibration."
"We're having twins," Tommy whispered and Roberto stilled. "Roberto…"
"Well…that's interesting," Roberto remarked and he let out a sigh. With how powerful the both of them were- this might be very difficult, even close to impossible. "I'm going to have to talk with the other Elders. We haven't protected this powerful of a ranger since well…you."
"My parents weren't rangers," Tommy stated and Kimberly gently grabbed his arm. "What?"
"Your adoptive parents aren't…but your real parents were at least able to have powers. I met them one of the times I time traveled. I thought I told you," Kim whispered and he watched Tommy sink into the couch and place his head in his hands. "I also met your grandfather- who is a dead ringer for you."
"How far does it go back in my family?" Tommy asked as he met his gaze and Roberto let out a long sigh. He had been sure that Tommy knew this level of history about himself. He had been sure that Zordon would tell him.
"Several generations. You were foretold in Guardian prophecy. Surely Zordon knew that," Roberto supplied and Tommy barely shook his head. "How is this possible?"
"The Command Center told me that a lot was lost when the rangers went after the Guardians. Apparently there was a lot that Zordon had no idea about- it makes sense that this would be one of those things," Kimberly stated and Roberto grimaced. No, something was wrong with this- every Guardian knew about Tommy. Every Guardian.
"It was Billy's duty to inform Zordon…" Roberto trailed off at the ferocity of Tommy's glare. He feared for Billy if he ever came back to this world and had to face them. "Of course. I'm sure the Command Center will provide you a room for the next few nights. I'll find out if Billy has anything to do with this and bring in some reinforcements to help with the power surges."
"Power surges?" Kim whispered and Roberto barely nodded. "You're not saying…"
"The babies will get drastically more powerful before they are born. Fortunately you're powerful in your own right," Roberto stated as he gathered up the pizza delivery bag and nodded to all of them. He knew that he would not have much time before Tommy's patience wore out. He was going to have to do things no other Guardian had ever had to do and that might require reinforcements. "I'll be in touch."
AN: If you or someone you know are struggling, call the Suicide and Crisis lifeline at 988 (for the U.S.). Please do not suffer in silence, reach out and get the help you need.