Disclaimer: Buena Vista Entertainment owns the rights to Power Rangers Lost Galaxy. This story involves characters and concepts from PRLG.
The Color Black
by Starhawk
Launch week had not gone well. Terra Venture was currently on its way out of the solar system, accelerating toward main engine burn in three days' time, and that was really the only good thing that could be said for the week as a whole. It hadn't gone according to plan--nothing had--but at least the colony ship was finally under way.
The colonist register had been revised. Departure had been delayed after a late shuttle refused to lift off without authorization from the highest level of GSA command. And the last lunar combat exercise, meant to blow off steam and calm tempers at the beginning of what promised to be a very long voyage, had blown up in their faces.
Kai Chen didn't like it when things didn't go according to plan. He liked it even less when he couldn't explain what had gone wrong. Bureaucratic hiccups and technical hitches were one thing, but swirling grey vortexes that appeared on the surface of the moon and transported people to another planet were something else entirely. Especially when that other planet harbored hostiles with ray guns and blue-skinned monsters that could turn the ground to stone.
Especially when that planet claimed the life of his friend and fellow soldier. He'd had the briefest moment, there at the end, to decide whether to honor Mike Corbett's philosophy or his final words. Mike had always lived by his soldier's creed: no one gets left behind. But he had died to make sure Maya and the last of her planet's legacy made it back through that portal to the moon.
"Get them back, Kai!" He'd heard those words twice on Mirinoi and a hundred times in his memory, and he couldn't get them out of his head. He knew he'd made the choice Mike wanted him to make. But he had to live with the fact that it wasn't the one he'd wanted to make.
He also had to live with the legacy. Apparently the Power on Maya's planet, suddenly under threat of catastrophic demise, had awoken groggy and confused. It had chosen four people from another world to defend its population, only getting it right with the fifth and final saber. By the time one of its own had drawn a sword from the stone it was too late, and the invaders had destroyed the planet rather than be expelled by alien Rangers.
Successful or not, though, Kai now found himself in possession of a morpher, and it was wreaking havoc with his schedule. Not only was his meager free time constantly interrupted by people wanting interviews, or autographs, or holy water for all he knew, but his on-duty time was being compromised as well. His shift had been over forty-five minutes ago, and this was the earliest he'd been able to leave without yet another awestruck officer calling him back. He wouldn't have time to eat before the practice hour Commander Stanton had set aside for him and the other Rangers began.
It was a gracious gesture. They had exclusive use of one of the GSA training rooms starting promptly at 1800 and ending not a minute after 1900. Unfortunately, the practical consequence was that he had less than fifteen minutes to get to the training room, get suited up, and then conduct some sort of physical fitness regimen for three people of wildly varying abilities and experience. An hour was nowhere near enough time, and for the fifth day in a row it was coming at the end of an extended shift followed by no dinner.
He walked into the room knowing full well what he would see: Kendrix, Maya, and Damon, fresh from an hour off that had probably included food, chatting easily with each other as they stretched or warmed up or whatever civilians thought constituted an exercise regimen. It had been the same every day this week. He was expecting it.
He got what he expected, right down to the stretching, and he had absolutely no idea what made him snap, "Where the hell is Leo?"
Maya stopped mid-sentence, and the smile faded from Kendrix's face as she caught his eye. Her expression was sympathetic, and he couldn't tell if it was in response to the thought of Leo or to him. Damon was giving him the sort of wary look that only a tech could manage, the kind that said, If you fuck with me the imminent lack of hot water in your room will be the least of your problems.
"He's in Mike's room," Kendrix said, before he could ask again. "I was there at lunch time, to bring him something to eat, but he hasn't talked to me since yesterday."
"Still?" Kai demanded. "Has he left Mike's room since he got here?"
Kendrix and Maya exchanged glances. "No," Kendrix admitted. "I don't think so."
"Fine." Kai frowned at the three of them, wondering distantly what Commander Stanton would do when he realized they'd been left with no military supervision. "Do whatever it is you do to work out. I'm going to go get him."
No one said anything as he turned around and left. He checked the room that had been assigned to Leo on his way to the officers' dormitory, opening the door and stepping inside when he realized no lock had been set, but Kendrix was right. Not only was it empty, but the bag they'd found in one of the locker rooms with Leo's name in it was still on the floor, probably right where it had been dropped off after its discovery. It didn't look like Leo had ever been there.
He set a basic lock code on the door and headed for Mike's room. He had no idea what he thought he'd find after five days, but he knocked anyway and waited what seemed like a reasonable amount of time for a reply. This door wasn't locked either, and walking in felt like an intrusion in a way that entering Leo's empty room hadn't.
Because this was Mike's place. Mike had lived here for months before Terra Venture's departure, and he had made every part of this room his own. From the red-lit kitchen area to the messy living space to the pictures in each of the three bunks lining the wall, Mike's life left no surface untouched.
No surface, and no acquaintance. Let alone family member. This last of which was huddled forlornly on the couch under a red and black plaid blanket, eyes closed, either asleep or deliberately ignoring Kai's presence. If Leo was anything like his older brother, the latter was probably more likely.
Right. Well, his hair was a mess, but he was clean-shaven, so he'd obviously gotten up at some point. The tray Kendrix had brought earlier was empty and stacked beside the sink, unmistakably washed. There was a neat pile of electronics at the end of the counter, too--a small sign of organization that would have been unusual for Mike. Leo must have cleared the counters while he'd been working in the kitchen.
Kai folded his arms, glancing back at the figure on the couch.
Leo was watching him.
"Training started at 1800," Kai informed him. "The rest of the Rangers are in SO-335." Which Leo should know, since Kai had the computer system sending a reminder to each of them every day at 1645.
"I wasn't supposed to be a Ranger." Leo's voice was rough, like he really had been sleeping, but he spoke easily enough. "I don't belong there."
"So the Power screwed up," Kai said bluntly. "None of us should be Rangers. Except maybe Maya. That doesn't change the fact that we are, and we need to start acting like it."
"Why?" Leo hadn't moved. He was staring out at Kai from underneath that blanket, not even lifting his head. "What is there to fight for? Mirinoi is gone."
"Terra Venture isn't," Kai snapped. "And according to Maya, whoever turned her people to stone is coming for us next."
Leo just looked at him.
"The bad guys came to Mirinoi for the Quasar Sabers, Leo. It wasn't Maya's people they were trying to kill with that stone wave; it was us. But we got away, and it's only a matter of time before they figure out where we went."
"We didn't all get away," Leo said, no emotion in his voice. His lack of reaction was really starting to grate.
Kai prided himself on his ability to remain calm and cool no matter the crisis. When things went wrong, he assessed the situation and made the decisions that needed to be made. But right now it wasn't any conscious thought that drove him across the room to yank the blanket off of Leo, grabbing hold of his left hand. It was pure frustration that made him twist Leo's wrist, forcing the transmorpher to appear so he could shove it in his face.
"This was Mike's," he said harshly. "He gave it to you. He entrusted it to you. This is what he died for, and the last thing he did was to pass it on to you so you could do what he couldn't. So you could use it to protect this colony.
"Maybe that's not what you wanted," Kai continued. "But that's what you've got. You can either lie here and do nothing with it, or you can take Mike's last call and make it mean something."
Leo just laid there. His fingers twitched, and Kai dropped his hand in disgust. They were all hurting, and if Leo couldn't see that life went on, then what good could he possibly do them as the Red Ranger?
With a flick of his wrist, Leo made the morpher vanish. Slowly, he sat up, his arm braced heavily against the cushions as he swung his legs over the side of the couch. He put his elbows on his knees and buried his head in his hands for a long moment.
"You're a real bastard," Leo muttered at last. "You know that?"
Kai snorted. "Yeah, says so in my personnel file. But it means so much more coming from you."
There was no answer. When Leo lifted his head, though, there was a flicker of something other than apathy in his expression. "What kind of training?"
He was dressed, at least. Jeans and a black t-shirt. They couldn't possibly be his, not if he'd been wearing soldier gear under his Ranger uniform and he hadn't been back for his bag since the first day. They hadn't found any other luggage they could trace to him. Mike's clothes?
"Physical fitness," Kai said, heading for the closet. "Combat training. Whatever we can all do and finish before 1900."
There was silence from behind him as he pushed aside shirts and found the jacket Mike had mentioned a week ago. Pulling it off its hanger, Kai shut the door again and turned around, tossing the jacket down on the couch beside Leo. "Present from Mike," he said curtly. "He bought it for you last week."
Leo stared, first at it and then at him. "What?"
Kai really hoped his response time was a result of recent sleep, lack of food, grieving, or anything at all so long as it was temporary. Because if he always reacted this slowly, Kai would strangle him before the end of the month, let alone the end of the journey. "He bought you a GSA jacket," Kai repeated impatiently. "He was waiting until you got here to give it to you."
Leo's hand was on the jacket, fingers ghosting across it and then clenching in the synthetic fabric. He lowered his head and was still again. Kai gritted his teeth, knowing a mistake when he saw it, but there was no way to take it back now. Those had to be Mike's clothes he was wearing. The jacket had actually been meant for him. What was the difference?
He wasn't feeling particularly patient right now, but he managed to keep his mouth shut until Leo looked up. His eyes were too bright, glittering with unshed tears, and in that instant Kai hated him. He hadn't cried for his friend and he wasn't about to start now, whether Mike's younger brother was falling apart or not. Kai looked away.
"Thanks," Leo's voice said quietly.
"Let's go," Kai growled, striding toward the door without looking back. Leo would either follow or not, but he was done here.
Leo followed, jacket rustling as he swung it over his shoulders. They made the trip back to the training room in almost complete silence. Kai saw Leo glancing around, actually paying attention as they walked, but he didn't offer any information. If Leo wanted to know where they were he could ask. Or look it up himself.
Time was more than half past when they finally reached the training room. Kai figured they would waste another five minutes or so gushing over Leo's presence and general state of being, but the principle of team practice did count for something. That was what he told himself.
He was more than a little surprised when Leo waved off their concern and told them they'd all talk after training. "We only have until 1900, right?" he added, glancing to Kai for confirmation.
"Yeah." Kai frowned, surprised he'd been listening or surprised he cared, he wasn't sure which. "Then second shift gets it back."
"Huh." Leo frowned back at him, and it was the first real expression Kai had seen on his face. "We should talk about that. An hour isn't very long. And hey, I know I'm not too familiar with the colony schedule yet, but isn't this kind of... dinnertime?"
Kai blinked, and now it was his turn to have nothing to say.
"It kind of is," Kendrix agreed, when the silence lingered. "My hours are a little more flexible, but Kai and Damon both work first shift and this is right when they'd be eating dinner."
"We ate," Maya offered, and from the way Kendrix glanced at her Kai guessed "we" meant her and Kendrix. "But Damon hasn't had food since the midday meal."
"And I bet Kai hasn't either," Kendrix put in.
Leo had looked away when she first spoke, but now he was watching Kai again. Waiting. Waiting for an answer, Kai suddenly realized. He shook his head, not totally sure how this had turned into a discussion of eating habits.
"Okay," Leo said, drawing the word out. "So... should we ditch training and just get something to eat? If you guys are hungry--"
"I'm fine," Kai said sharply. "We're here to train. We can eat later."
To his annoyance, Leo glanced at Damon.
"I'm okay," Damon said with a shrug. "They'll kick us out of here soon anyway."
Leo nodded like he understood. "Right. So." He was looking at Kai again. "What do we do?"
Kai opened his mouth, but Damon cut him off. "Kendrix was showing us a great self-defense move," he remarked. "Maybe we could skip the cardio and get to the part where we practice fighting."
Kai narrowed his eyes. "Well, if someone hadn't been half an hour late," he ground out, "maybe we wouldn't have to."
Kendrix just smiled, which wasn't unusual for her when he let his annoyance show, and she was lucky he liked her so much because the reaction only increased his irritation. "Kai, we can change our routine once in a while. It's not the end of the world."
"Besides," Leo added, before he could retort, "we can exercise any time, right? We should take advantage of the mats while we can."
"Do you do self-defense?" Kendrix asked, turning her smile and a speculative look on him.
Leo was already shaking his head. "Nah, not in training. But that's what we're going to need, right? Self-defense, sparring, hand-to-hand skills. Fencing, I guess, since we have swords. And target practice. Did you guys already set something up for target practice?"
The others were looking at him with varying degrees of surprise and skepticism. It was Maya who pointed out the obvious. "But Leo, we don't have anything to shoot with."
"We will," he predicted. "All Rangers have guns. And you know, after being out there on the moon with an energy rifle I had no idea how to shoot? I'd like to be prepared."
"We can't borrow rifles for practice," Kai protested. "There's only one shooting range, and we can't take it over just so you can learn to fire a weapon!"
Leo didn't seem to get it. "Why not?" he wanted to know. "I'm going to have to shoot something eventually. Do you really want me learning on live targets?"
"Uh..." Damon raised his hand. "I can't shoot either. I mean, if we're really going to have guns? I've never fired--well, anything, before."
"Nor have I," Maya agreed. "I would like to practice before being required to use such a thing in battle."
Now they took it seriously. Kai wanted to ask them why they were only now thinking of this as a fight, a fight that was coming to them and one they would ultimately have to win, not once, but many times over. They hadn't meant to take the Quasar Sabers. But they had, and there wasn't anyone left to give them back to. So they were going to have to defend them.
"Who do we talk to about using the shooting range?" Leo was asking him. "Can you and Kendrix train us with the rifles, or are we going to need someone else in there with us?"
Kai could only stare at him, wondering if he knew what he was asking.
"We can train you," Kendrix declared. "No problem. And I think we have to talk to the quartermaster--is that right, Kai?"
At the very least. He sighed, resigning himself to a long and risky argument in the morning. "We're going to have to get Commander Stanton's approval for target practice," he said. "I'll talk to him tomorrow."
"I'll go with you," Leo offered unexpectedly. "There are probably a few other things we should go over, too. Like this dinner thing. And getting you guys time off your shifts for training."
"What?" Kai wasn't sure he could take comfort in the fact that Kendrix and Damon seemed just as confused. After all this, he should have guessed that Leo wouldn't respect regular duty stations.
"Well, you want to train every day, right?" Leo gave him a look he couldn't interpret. "I've been getting daily reminders from you since we got here. You guys can't just add it on to your regular workday, especially if your shifts are running so long you don't have time to eat."
Kai was ready to protest that it was only an extra hour, maybe two if they got their target practice, but Damon beat him to the reply. "It's true," he said. "I'm on call two nights a week, and if I don't have evenings free those days I'm not going to sleep."
Leo nodded, and Kendrix followed suit. "I can change my schedule around to accommodate training almost any time except the beginning of first shift," she said. "That's when we do department rounds and briefings."
"Great," Leo said, like it was all settled. "Kai and I will talk to Commander Stanton tomorrow and see if we can get training time during the afternoon. In the meantime," he added, giving Kendrix an almost-smile, "I think you have a self-defense move to show us."
She did look at Kai before she nodded, but he just rolled his eyes. What could he say? Commander Stanton would explain GSA policy to him tomorrow. Considering who Leo was, he might even be gentle about it. "In the meantime," Kai didn't feel like wasting his breath.
So Kendrix demonstrated one of her favorite throws on Maya, who was remarkably willing to fall when Damon asked to try and Kendrix stepped aside to instruct. Leo tried to interject, saying that Damon should throw him instead, but Maya told him to practice falling first because when it was his turn she would throw him. That was the first time Leo smiled in the training room.
The third time he hit the mats, he ignored Maya's outstretched hand and squinted up at Kai. "Hey," he said, like he'd just noticed. "You must know how to do this. Don't you want to show off?"
"Kai won't fight with us," Kendrix told him.
"Of course I will," Kai said.
"He has to hold back against us," Maya offered.
"It's just training," Kai countered, inexplicably irritable. "We're all holding back."
"Says he's too strong for us," Damon said bluntly. "Won't spar until we get more practice."
The only one of them not wearing workout clothes, Leo was tugging his t-shirt back into place. "We're all too strong," he pointed out. "That's why we can't just take a class or something. We have to train with each other so we don't hurt someone."
"Yes, thank you," Kai muttered. "I understand the concept of Power Rangers."
"We're strong," Kendrix said. "He's stronger. It has something to do with his Quasar Saber."
"The spirit behind the saber is that of the gorilla," Maya said solemnly. "He lends Kai his strength in all things."
Kai glared at Leo. "No monkey jokes."
Leo held up his hands, but his expression was noticeably lighter than before. "All I'm saying is, my spirit's a lion, right? King of the jungle. I could totally take you."
"You're welcome to try," Kai said darkly. He could still feel his reflexes, enhanced by the Power, trying to compensate for his newfound strength. It had been five days, and he hadn't stopped being afraid to shake hands or knock on doors yet. So far his reactions were fast enough that he'd caught himself before he hurt anyone, but he wasn't used to that either. He didn't trust things he wasn't used to.
"Yeah?" Leo stepped back, away from Maya, and tipped his head a little. Presumably to indicate readiness. "You're on. Give me your best shot."
If he thought Kai was going to come at him full strength just because he said so, he deserved the lesson he was about to get. He was clearly expecting an attack that set up the throw Kendrix had been teaching them. Kai knew every defense there was against that move. Not only could he counter Leo's action, he could have him on the floor a moment later.
He went after Leo the same way Kendrix had been setting them up, ready for the sidestep that preceded the throw. He didn't even have to counter, he just let Leo grab his arm and yanked back. Leo's grip should have broken--no one else had been able to hold onto him--but it didn't, and when Kai's balance was threatened he reacted automatically.
He went to counter the throw. Leo doubled over, shoving Kai backward instead of letting his momentum carry him forward, and hooked a foot around his knee to knock his legs out from underneath him. Kai was on his back, staring up at Leo from the mats while he tried to figure out what had just happened.
"Whoa." Damon sounded annoyingly impressed. "That was cool."
"It seems the lion lends you his strength, as well," Maya observed, a smile in her voice.
"I thought you said you didn't have self-defense training!" Kendrix sounded vaguely accusing as Leo offered his hand to Kai. "That's not anything like what I was teaching you."
"No training," Leo agreed. "But I didn't grow up in the best part of town, so." He didn't meet anyone's eyes as he pulled Kai to his feet with no apparent effort.
"Again," Kai said, not releasing Leo's hand when he went to step away. Leo gave him a surprised look, and Kai tried not to frown. "Just because you surprised me, that doesn't mean you're stronger than I am."
Leo just shrugged. "Suit yourself."
"Guys," Kendrix interjected. "It's not a competition. You don't have anything to prove."
Kai ignored her, and Leo watched him warily. "Kai needs a sparring partner," he said without looking away. He did have street instincts, Kai would give him that. "If I'm the only one he doesn't overpower, we need to know that."
This time Kai feinted, pretending to duplicate Kendrix's attack and then going in low on the other side. It was a tackle, plain and simple: no style, no finesse, no goal other than to get his opponent on the ground. At this range and without the element of surprise it was inevitable, nothing more than a test of brute strength against brute strength.
Leo went down. Kai went flying. His back slammed against the mats again and Leo was on his chest, tense above him with a wild look in his eyes that gave Kai pause. He might have been able to throw Leo off. He made a split-second decision not to try.
Leo shook his head, shoving himself up out of his crouched position with a single movement. He reached back to haul Kai up behind him, an apologetic expression on his face. "You okay?" he asked.
"Yeah." Kai hesitated, but it was a fair question. "Someone done that to you before?"
Leo put a hand behind his neck, a combination of a stretch and a shrug, and glanced around at the others. "Bad neighborhood," he said again. "You learn to defend yourself."
"Can you teach us that?" Kendrix asked, like she wasn't sure it was the right thing to say but she couldn't help it. "I mean... that was great."
It was the right thing to say. Leo actually smiled at her, and Kai noted almost unconsciously that it was only the women who had provoked that reaction from him so far. "Sure," he said. "It is kind of cool, huh?"
"Very cool," Maya agreed, and Kendrix clapped her hands.
"Check you out!" she crowed. "You used 'cool' right!"
Maya was beaming, and she explained to the rest of them, "Kendrix has been coaching me in your... colloquialisms?"
"Slang," Damon put in. "You go, girl. You sound great."
"Doesn't she?" Kendrix put her arm around Maya and hugged, resting her head on Maya's shoulder for a moment. "It's not just us, though, all of the scientists are helping. It's like our mission or something."
"Kendrix allows me to help out in the horticulture department," Maya explained, and Kai followed her gaze to Leo in time to see his puzzled expression clear. "I find it comforting to be outside, under your dome, so I have been working with some of the environmental application teams."
"Gardening," Kendrix translated cheerfully. "I pretend to supervise, so it gets me outside too!"
"That's great," Leo said. "It's still kind of hard for me to believe Terra Venture has its own environment."
"Are you going to train?" Kai interrupted. "Or talk?" They only had another five minutes.
He got a dirty look from Kendrix, and a reproving one from Maya--just what he needed, the two of them on the same side--but Leo seemed to remember what they were supposed to be doing. He got Damon to help him model Kai's original attack, and then he demonstrated his counter maneuver. It was a roll for the person defending and a flip for their opponent, and Leo managed to slow it down enough that Damon didn't hit the mats as hard as Kai had.
The time it took to set it up and show it off ran out the rest of their hour. Kai knew it was 1900 when a knock on the door indicated their time was up. He opened his mouth to tell them all to clear out, but Leo, still on the floor, yelled, "Come in!"
Kai rolled his eyes, but the door slid open and O'Shea poked his head in. "Sir," he said, catching sight of Kai. "1900."
"I can tell time," Kai snapped, embarrassed to have been caught running over. He shouldn't have made Leo show them that last move. It was only curiosity that had made him want to see what it looked like when he wasn't the one in the air.
"Give us another ten minutes," Leo said, sitting up beside Damon and lifting his hand to wave at O'Shea. "We're almost done here."
"Leo?" O'Shea stayed on the other side of the doorway, but he raised his right hand in return. "Hey, man. Rick O'Shea. Sorry about your brother."
Leo was getting to his feet, striding across the room without a word. When he reached the door, he held out his hand. "Hey, Rick," he said. "Leo Corbett. And thanks. I know he was important to you guys too."
"Yeah," O'Shea agreed, shaking his hand without hesitation. "Tell you the truth, I dunno what we're going to do without him."
Leo nodded once. "Me neither," he said quietly.
"Well, hey." O'Shea looked around the rest of the room, and he nodded too. "Just let us know when you're done here. Take as long as you need."
"Thanks," Leo told him.
"No problem, man." O'Shea gave him a smirk. "You're doing us a favor. It's not like we're in any big hurry to start training or anything."
That, Kai decided as the door closed behind him, was vaguely disturbing. Had Leo just outranked him? He wasn't sure exactly what to make of the interaction, or the results. And Leo just turned away from the door like it was nothing, like it was expected, like he should be able to ask favors of the military and get them, no questions asked.
"Okay," Leo said, joining Damon again. "You want me to do that again, or you want to try it yourself?"
"I got it," Damon said confidently. "Let's go."
"Kai?" Leo glanced over at him. "You think you can restrain your gorilla-like strength long enough for Damon to flip you?"
"What?" He folded his arms automatically. When a trainer didn't want to let their trainees practice on them, that was a bad sign. "What are you doing?"
"Helping Kendrix and Maya," Leo said, like it should have been obvious. "Unless you know this one. You can show them instead."
If he knew it, he wouldn't be standing around watching while the women tried to mimic what Leo was doing with Damon. "No," he said grudgingly. "Fine. I'll work with Damon."
Damon didn't look particularly thrilled about it, but maybe Kai had given him reason earlier in the week. Kendrix certainly didn't have any complaints. By the time she and Maya had each gotten the hang of throwing each other, Damon had tossed Kai to the mat five times and was now enthusiastically explaining the maneuver to him.
Anyone should have been able to see that volunteering to let him flip them at this point was a bad idea, but it wasn't until Kai snarled at him that Damon seemed to remember who he was talking to. "Hey," he said, backing off. "If you don't want a turn, all you have to do is say so."
"Henderson," Kai said through gritted teeth. "I'm strong enough to break ribs if I try to kick someone over my head the way you're doing. And it's been a long day. I'm not feeling particularly controlled right now. Still want to be my test subject?"
"When you put it like that," Damon said, rolling his shoulders and shaking out his hands and arms. "No. Thanks anyway."
"Maybe we should quit for the day," Kendrix suggested. "You guys must be hungry."
"And our time is up," Leo agreed, not that he'd seemed to care before. "Where do we find Rick?" he added, glancing at Kai.
"Locker room," Kai said shortly.
The women went one way and the rest of them went the other, and they found O'Shea and his team playing cards in the locker room. None of them leapt eagerly to their feet when they realized the training room was now free. Most of them did introduce themselves to Leo, though, and they offered condolences or sympathy on the loss of his brother. It kept him in the locker room long enough that Kai and Damon had changed and were heading out before he excused himself and caught up with them again.
"Nice guys," Leo offered, keeping his voice low.
"Yeah." Kai didn't feel like talking. Kendrix and Maya met them outside the locker rooms, which was an annoyance and a relief. Two more people who wanted to talk, but also two more people who wanted to talk. They engaged Leo and Damon in conversation about dinner almost immediately.
"We went to Huot's yesterday," Maya was saying. "I thought the food there was very good."
"I'd love to go again," Kendrix agreed. "There's something for everyone there."
"You've already eaten," Damon protested. "You don't have to come just to keep us company."
"Oh, we want to," Kendrix insisted. "Right?"
"Whether I am hungry or not, the company is always more important than the food," Maya said with a smile. "We would be happy to accompany you."
Kai narrowed his eyes, finally acknowledging their consistent use of "we." They'd gotten very friendly very quickly. And Kendrix was always like that--friendly and outgoing enough for both of them, she said--but she was also several other things that made him wonder about the easy intimacy with her new friend.
"Well, I sure won't turn down the company," Damon said. "Or the recommendation. What do you say, guys?"
"I'm in," Leo agreed. "Kendrix knows how to pick food. Thanks," he added, putting a hand on her shoulder briefly.
Whatever was going on with Maya, Kendrix positively beamed at him. Reaching up to pat his hand, she promised, "Any time. I'm just glad you're coming with us tonight."
"Me too," he said, smiling back at her. "You've all been great tonight. Even if I did call you a bastard."
It took a moment for Kai to realize this was directed at him, that Leo was watching him, waiting for some kind of acknowledgment. "Like I said," he grumbled, folding his arms. "You're not the first."
"He's not as tough as he pretends," Kendrix said with a laugh. "He's really very sweet if you give him a chance."
"I'm not," Kai retorted. "I'm also not eating anything tonight that I haven't cooked myself. I'll see you in Command at 0930 tomorrow morning," he added, shooting a dark look at Leo. "Don't be late."
Leo looked nonplussed, until Kendrix stage-whispered, "Your meeting with Commander Stanton."
"Oh, right," Leo agreed quickly. "Nine-thirty. Command. Is that... where is that, exactly?"
"It's in the control tower," Kendrix said. "I'll show you. Or the computer in your room can tell you how to get there."
"It's not my room," Leo said with unexpected vehemence.
He'd locked Leo's room. The reminder kept him from walking away, impatient while Kendrix explained the bag they'd found and the room they'd assigned to Leo. Leo nodded when she mentioned the bag, but he didn't seem any more clear on the room.
"I was supposed to bunk with Mike," he said uncertainly.
"Oh, Leo..." Kendrix sounded troubled. "Didn't anyone tell you that you had your own room? We thought you were staying in Mike's room because..." She trailed off, and Kai's eyes widened a little. Well. That put the last few days in a different light.
Congratulations, he thought grimly. By leaving him alone, you just made things worse. No wonder he wasn't talking to anyone.
"Where else was I supposed to go?" Leo was asking. "It's not like I have a job or anything. Mike got me on the list as his dependent. With him gone, I figured I was--" His voice broke, and he stopped abruptly. "I don't know," he muttered at last.
"Leo," Kendrix said, putting a hand on his elbow. "Mike wasn't the only one who cared about you. You're a colonist. You have rights, privileges..."
"Identification," Maya said earnestly. "I have an ID card that lets me get food and clothing. And you could always come and work with me and Kendrix in the science division."
That made Leo smile a little, and Kendrix slid her arm through his before he could protest. Not that he looked like he would. "You and Maya were assigned rooms the first day," she told him, resting her head against his shoulder briefly. "I'm so sorry we all forgot to tell you."
"Even I got my own room," Damon put in, awkward but giving it his best shot. "The guys I was bunking with were a little too happy to see me go, but it turns out this Power Ranger thing isn't all bad."
Leo let out a breath that might have been a chuckle. Or a sigh. "I guess you guys already had your own rooms," he said, his arm sneaking around Kendrix as he gave her a quick hug. "You and Kai."
"Oh, please." Kendrix laughed, returning his one-armed hug. "You don't expect a roommate to put up with someone as geeky as the head of the horticulture department, do you?"
"All the science department heads have their own rooms," Kai muttered. It was really the only thing he had to contribute.
"And the senior GSA officers," Kendrix added.
"I locked your door," Kai told Leo. He didn't know what else to say. "I stopped by to see if you were there before I went to Mike's. When I realized you hadn't been there and your stuff was just sitting on the floor, I put a code on the door. 12515. You'll need it to get in."
"My bag," Leo said, mostly to himself. "Thanks for getting that. What's the code again?" he asked, before Kai could tell him that he hadn't done it.
"12515," Kendrix repeated. "Leo."
"Yeah?" Leo gave her a curious look, but she just grinned at Kai.
"Leo," she said again. "12515 is Leo, if you number each letter of the alphabet one through twenty-six, from a to z. That's how Kai makes up codes he can remember."
Kai scowled at her, even if he should have expected her to notice and comment on Leo's "code." "I don't have time to memorize a bunch of meaningless numbers," he reminded her. "I think our rooms should recognize our IDs, like everything else on Terra Venture."
"And if they did," she countered, "anyone who lost their card would be locked out until they got a new one."
"So don't lose it," Kai complained. "How hard is that?"
"Harder than remembering a few numbers," Kendrix said, rolling her eyes. "For everyone except you."
"Twelve, five, fifteen," Leo mused. "L, e, o. Huh." He smiled a little. "Cute."
"Don't tell anyone," Kendrix advised. "It's ridiculously easy to crack his codes once you know what he's doing."
"If we're done here," Kai interrupted irritably, "I'm going to go make some dinner."
"Sure you won't join us?" Leo wanted to know. "Someone's going to have to show me where my room is later."
"Kendrix can do it." He said it without thinking, frowning at Leo's tone, only belatedly wondering why he would want Kai to show him his room. Because that was clearly the implication: that Kai, not one of the others, and not the computer, was best suited to play tour guide.
"Right after dinner," Kendrix agreed. But she gave him a glare when Leo wasn't looking. Kai gave it right back, because whatever she was thinking, she could just mind her own business.
"0930," he reminded Leo. "Command. If you're not there, I won't come looking for you."
Leo seemed to find this amusing, which as far as Kai was concerned meant that he and Kendrix should be separated immediately. Unfortunately, there probably wasn't anyone else who would put up with either of them for extended periods of time. Except maybe Maya. And apparently Damon.
Welcome to life as a Power Ranger, he thought with a grimace.
His mood was considerably improved the next morning, when Stanton agreed to a private meeting without question and Leo showed up promptly at 0930. He looked awake, alert, and surprisingly respectable in his black t-shirt and GSA jacket. Maybe it was the fact that he had combed his hair. Maybe it was the fact that he was on time. Kai didn't know and he really didn't care--not if Leo was suddenly going to act like he knew something about the military after all.
He walked into Command like he belonged there, nodded to Kai when he looked up, and then put his hands behind his back and waited to be acknowledged. Commander Stanton turned when Kai caught his eye, following his nod toward the science doors, and seemed surprised to find Leo standing at parade rest. He wasn't the only one, either.
"Leo Corbett, I presume?" Stanton studied him from his place by the engine station, and anyone who hadn't looked up before now was suddenly paying attention to only one thing: the man in black at the back of Command.
Leo nodded once. "Commander Stanton," he replied.
Kai winced. The appropriate response was "yes, sir!" But of course Leo was a civilian. It was a indicator of how much Leo had looked like his brother for a moment there that he'd actually expected to hear the response Mike would have given.
Stanton paced around the room, his steps deliberate as he came to a halt directly in front of Leo. Then, in a move that had to have surprised everyone in Command at least as much as it did Kai, Commander Stanton snapped to attention. "My condolences on your brother's passing," he said formally. "Mike Corbett's loss affects us all."
His salute was sharp and crisp, his stance as respectful as any officer honoring a surviving family member. Kai swallowed as it finally dawned on him that that was exactly what Stanton was doing. Mike was missing in action, presumed dead, and Leo was his next-of-kin. He deserved the widow's walk, at the very least.
Leo just nodded again. "Thank you, Commander," he said solemnly. "I know Mike's service to the GSA was important to him."
"And to us," Stanton agreed. "His contribution was invaluable."
Leo didn't answer. Kai wasn't sure what made him get up, but he had taken a step in their direction when Stanton glanced over his shoulder. Kai stopped, caught. A little surprised by his own reaction. When he looked back at Leo, though, he saw him lower his head and swallow hard, and he didn't regret creating that brief distraction.
"My office is this way," Stanton said, indicating the hallway on the far side of the back wall. "Mister Chen, if you'll join us?"
"Yes, sir," Kai said quickly. Stanton didn't lead them out of Command, which was strange, but again, Leo was a civilian. Civilians weren't led. It was still awkward to walk with Leo in front of the commander.
Leo didn't seem to notice. He stopped when Kai did, waiting outside the commander's office until Stanton waved them both inside. Also strange... but not nearly as odd as being invited to sit. Not because he never had been before, but because Stanton didn't do it from behind his desk. He stayed in front of it, offering them both visitors' chairs and then taking the third one for himself.
He was treating them like equals, Kai realized uncomfortably. This wasn't just civilian politeness, or survivor deference. It had gone beyond that the moment Stanton sat down across from them with no desk in between. And it had to be due to the invisible morphers on their wrists.
"Kai tells me you wanted to talk to me about scheduling some target practice for the members of your team," Stanton began.
"I do." Leo seemed to shake off whatever had taken hold of him in Command with those words, but Kai couldn't relax. Leo was unpredictable, uninformed about the military, and maybe even a little unstable right now. This meeting could have been better timed.
"There are a few other things I'd like to discuss first," Leo was saying. "Maya's been able to give us some information about the being that's after the Quasar Sabers, and I have some concerns about colony security."
Kai gave him a sharp look. That hadn't been what he was expecting.
"I'm listening," Stanton said evenly.
"I've talked with several colonists who would like to think we've left a lot of the details of Earth life behind," Leo told him. "Money, insurance... passports. Identification. I'm told more than twenty ID cards have already been reported missing, and we haven't even left the solar system yet. That kind of carelessness is going to get us into trouble when we start encountering enemies that can shapeshift, or soldiers that can cut off communication between domes and strand unidentified civilians."
Leo had been talking to people? Who? And how did he know about the ID cards? Maya must have briefed him last night at dinner; that explained the sudden knowledge of Scorpius and his minions. But the rest of it--
"Leo," Stanton said. "I understand what you're trying to do here. But you have to understand that it's difficult to accept you as an authority on these issues. Kai may have tricked our soldiers into granting you asylum here on Terra Venture, but you are currently the best example we have of what not to do.
"In addition," he continued, "while I respect Mike's decision to pass his morpher on to you, I hardly feel that you're qualified to pass judgement on the daily operations of this colony. I'm willing to work with you on matters of Ranger training and operations, within reason, but you'll have to leave the running of the ship to us."
"Commander." Leo's voice was perfectly calm. "I don't want to run Terra Venture. I can see that the Council is doing an excellent job of that, and I'm sure the GSA military serves the Council and the colonists well. As Power Rangers, we'll do our best to do the same. I think it would be in everyone's best interests for the colony's two major defensive forces to work together, but if you'd prefer me to go through the Council, I'm willing to do that."
Kai stared at him. He was afraid to look at Stanton, and unwilling to look away from Leo even if he wasn't. Mike Corbett's little brother had just delivered an ultimatum to the most senior officer on Terra Venture: work with me, or I'll go over your head. Over the Chief Officer's head. It was almost an impossible thought.
Almost. Because the military did answer to the civilian Council. While the two were mostly responsible for overseeing different aspects of the colony, the Council was the highest authority there was, and if Leo could get them to listen to him, then he would effectively outrank everyone in the GSA military division.
"I see," Stanton said at last. His tone was flat, revealing nothing. "Then, considering the fact that you only stowed away on--I'm sorry, 'boarded'--Terra Venture five days ago, with no prior relevant knowledge or training, I have to ask you again. What exactly do you think qualifies you to determine how you can best serve this colony?"
Kai wondered if perhaps holding very still would make them forget he was here.
Leo didn't so much as flinch. "My team," he said simply. "One of my Rangers is a senior officer in Command. One of them is a science division department head. One of them is a shift supervisor in Engine Room Four, and one of them has more extensive knowledge of the Power--and its enemies--than anyone on this ship.
"I'm nobody, Commander. A nobody who happens to have the Red transmorpher and four of the best-informed people in this colony as his teammates. If you think I'm not smart enough to understand the problems inherent in lost IDs," he added, "that's fine. But don't insult my team."
Kai finally snuck a look at the commander and was horrified to see a small smile on his face. I'm going to be discharged, he thought wonderingly. He had never let himself consider the possibility before, but there it was, looming large in front of him. He was going to get fired through no fault of his own.
"Understood," Stanton said, startling him. The smile was gone, but now he included Kai in his look. "In that case, I'm willing to hear any recommendations you and your team might have on the subject."
"Public service announcements," Leo said immediately. "Let people know why we want them to carry their IDs at all times. And if there's a fine, something small but inconvenient, for replacing an ID, that would make people keep better track of them."
"Appealing to their sense of civic responsibility and their laziness at the same time," Stanton remarked. "How appropriate."
"Whichever part of the audience we miss with the first one, we'll get with the second," Leo agreed easily. "I'd also like all of the Rangers to have security overrides that will let us locate identified personnel."
Illegal for civilians and carefully restricted among the military, overrides like that destroyed any illusion of privacy on a deep space ship. Stanton only hesitated a moment. "Yes," he admitted, "I can see the benefit of that. You know, of course, that any use of those overrides will be monitored and logged by Terra Venture's central AI?"
"We're not going to go around stalking people," Leo told him. "If we're going to defend them, we need to know where they are."
Stanton actually nodded. "I'll make sure your identification includes the override by the end of the day."
"Thank you," Leo said, and Kai could only stare. As a senior officer he had an override that let him into all secured areas, including dormitory rooms, when the colony was on alert. But even he didn't have a security override for the location of identified personnel. Or at least, he hadn't until today.
"Now, as far as training goes," Leo was saying. "You've set aside SO-335 for Ranger use during the second hour of second shift. Most of my team is working first shift. I'd like them released from their duty stations early so that their training can be part of their regular workday instead of something that's added on at the end."
"They already have a regular workday, Leo. They work a full shift, and sometimes longer, because that's the amount of time it takes to do their job." Stanton didn't look any more receptive than he had before, but then, he'd conceded twice already.
"Being a Ranger is their job now," Leo told. "As much as anything else they're doing. And it's a job no one else can do. If they leave their stations at 1500 each day, they'll do six hours of regular shift work, an hour and a half of training, and then they can be back to take care of anything they need to do before first shift ends at 1700."
"An hour and a half," Stanton noted. "1500 to 1630?"
"Ranger training is difficult and time-consuming, Commander." Leo glanced at Kai for the first time, and Kai was unprepared to do anything more than look back at him. "Kai doesn't go easy on us. We need the time, and we need it in the afternoon, while we still have energy left to keep up with him."
Now Stanton was looking at him too. "Yes," he agreed, not smiling but clearly amused. "I can imagine. All right," he added, turning back to Leo, "you'll get an hour and a half starting at 1500. Are you going to want the room on off days too?"
Leo didn't hesitate. "Yes," he said. "To hear Kai tell it, we need all the practice we can get."
"I've never known him to be wrong," Stanton said gravely. "Can you handle these ragtag warriors, Kai, or do you want assistance with training?"
"Sir," he said. Unexpected, maybe, but he could hear the seriousness behind the gentle teasing. "Between the five of us, I think we know what we need better than anyone else. We're too strong to train with non-Rangers, and we have all the knowledge we need fed to us by our morphers. It's just a matter of learning to execute it."
"Understood," Stanton said again. "What about rifle training?"
Kai glanced at Leo automatically. It had been his idea. But Leo just shook his head, murmuring, "You're the one who knows the weapons."
"I can train them," Kai said, already afraid he would regret this later. He hadn't seen any of them other than Kendrix shoot. "Sir."
"All right." Stanton put his hands on his knees, a clear indicator that he considered the meeting almost over. "Talk to the quartermaster about equipment and range times. If you need anything else, Leo, you can contact me directly or have Kai let me know."
"I'll do that." Leo didn't get up. "There's just one more thing."
Stanton waited, and Kai wondered what else he could possibly ask.
Leo twisted his left wrist to make the Red morpher appear. "I know I'm not the man you would have chosen for this responsibility, Commander Stanton," he said evenly. "But I'm the one you have. I appreciate your willingness to deal with me."
The commander looked at him for a long moment. "You'll do, Mr. Corbett." He nodded once, a small smile on his face, and he repeated, "You'll do."
Leo got up first. Kai and Stanton stood at the same time, and again, Kai found himself being shown out of the office instead of following his superior officer. When Leo turned to him in the hallway and asked, "Do you have a minute to show me the shooting range now?" he was careful not to look back for permission before nodding.
In Command, though, Leo headed for the science doors instead of the elevator. "Let's just check in with Kendrix before we go," he said casually, and Kai had no choice but to follow.
The science division was a world apart from the military arm of the GSA. Stepping from one side of the control tower to the other was like night and day. Where Command hummed along with a quiet efficiency, officers mostly staying put at one duty station or another, the science division was loud and bright and constantly in motion. People were in and out all day as they monitored projects, held meetings, and conducted proto-experiments at their benches.
Kai was convinced that none of the scientists kept any consistent hours at all, instead wandering through whenever the mood struck--or whenever they lost one of their cohorts and needed the research log to track them down. He didn't know why Leo expected Kendrix to be in the control tower at all. He'd caught her there once on launch day and only twice since then: both times during a pre-arranged visit, to meet for lunch and to consult on a new project.
"Leo!" Kendrix's voice greeted them from the direction of the benches--her bench, even--and unlike Command, almost no one looked up. "How did it go?"
Leo's serious expression was gone, no trace of the solemn almost-soldier who had taken on Commander Stanton and won. Instead he was grinning, his whole face lit up in a way Kai had never seen, and he gave Kendrix a double thumbs-up. "It was awesome," he declared happily. "I was awesome! I'll never doubt you again!"
Kendrix laughed, and then she was pushing away from her bench and skipping around everyone in the way to reach him. She threw her arms around Leo's neck, and he lifted her off the ground in a hug. "Did you ever doubt me?" she demanded.
"If I did," Leo said, smirking over her shoulder at Kai, "I wouldn't admit it now. She coached me," he added. "All morning. What did you think?"
Kai stared at them, the pieces starting to click into place. Leo's attitude, his confidence, his sudden knowledge of colony procedure and problems... even his arguments. It hadn't sounded like Kendrix. But it had definitely sounded like Kendrix's information.
"When?" Kai wanted to know. The meeting with Stanton had been half an hour into first shift. When had they found that kind of time?
"I came to work with her this morning," Leo said.
At the same time, Kendrix said, "He bunked with me last night," and they looked at each other and grinned. Arms still around each other, Kai's mind filled in the first conclusion that came to him and he didn't like it at all.
"My room was pretty uninviting," Leo admitted, and again, Kendrix spoke right on top of him.
"No one should have to be alone unless they want to be," she said firmly. "I've got two empty bunks, so Leo stayed with me."
"I couldn't sleep anyway," Leo added. Her matter-of-factness seemed to make him open up. Or maybe that was just what he was like when he wasn't weighed down by grief, Kai had no way of knowing. "And she gets up in the middle of the night--"
"0500," she corrected, nudging him.
"Oh-dark-hundred," Leo said, squeezing her shoulders, "to be at work at the crack of dawn, and she let me come with her."
"They keep saying that!" Kendrix exclaimed, apparently appealing to him now. "Maya says that too, that I 'let' her come to work! Like it's some great privilege to come in and work your butt off for the science division!"
"You love it," Leo said with a grin. An easy grin, one that had been nowhere to be seen the day before and now wouldn't seem to go away.
"Yeah, I love it," she agreed. "I don't expect everyone else to!"
"So she told me what to say," Leo finished. "And how to say it, and it actually worked! You," he said, hugging her shoulders again, "get an hour and a half off your shift today to come and train with us."
"Great!" she exclaimed, beaming at him. "I knew you could do it!
"Crap," she added, just as suddenly, her delighted expression falling away. "What was I thinking? Why did I tell you to make it an hour and a half?"
Leo just looked at her. "I don't know," he said, amusement obvious in his tone. "Why did you tell me to make it an hour and a half?"
"I don't want to train for an hour and a half!" she protested. "Kai! Why did you let him do that?"
Kai held up his hands, disclaiming all responsibility for what had happened in that office. "I don't know what you expected me to do," he told her. Apparently, they had taken over the team and the entire military division in a single morning. "I just sat there and nodded."
"Yeah, I'm going to need your help," Leo told him. "I could see you'd had kind of a bad day yesterday, and no one in their right mind gets up as early as Kendrix, but I could really use some military advice--soon."
Kai gave him a skeptical look. "Seemed like you had everything under control earlier."
"Leo!" Kendrix exclaimed, slapping his chest gently with her free hand. "You impressed Kai! If even he thinks you did a decent job, then you really were awesome."
"I told you," Leo said, but he was looking at Kai. "All I knew this morning was what Kendrix told me. She told me what to say. She even made me practice answering questions," he added, smirking at Kendrix. "He asked 'why are you qualified', by the way."
"Ha!" Kendrix exclaimed. "See? That's why I'm such a good coach! I know how military minds think!"
"Hey," Kai interrupted, frowning at her.
"I know how Kai thinks too," she said blithely, "but only because he's such a good friend."
He grimaced, but he was forced to admit, "You did a good job."
"Me?" she asked with a grin. "Or Leo?"
Kai didn't know what that look was for, but he told her, "Both of you. I thought I was going to get fired six different times during that meeting, and I walked out of there with my job and a six and a half hour shift. I still don't know how you did it."
"It was mostly Leo," Kendrix said.
"It was all you," Leo countered, but she shook her head.
"No, I'm serious. I told you what to expect and I helped you with some of the arguments, but you have this way of talking. You're really confident, you know? It makes people listen."
"Yeah." Kai hadn't meant to say it, but with both of them looking at him now he didn't have a choice. "Confidence will get you a long way in the military."
"Arrogance, you mean," Kendrix teased.
"Attitude," Leo said. "It's attitude," he repeated, when Kai glanced at him, "and it usually gets me into more trouble with authority than it gets me out of."
"I don't believe you," Kendrix announced. "If you get into trouble, something must get you out, because you're too smooth to be one of the neighborhood toughs. It must be your charm."
Leo scoffed at this, which took Kai by surprise. He would never have said it first--he wouldn't admit it aloud even now--but "charming" was an obvious and easy descriptor for Leo Corbett. Even in mourning, he was a powerful presence that seemed used to getting what he wanted.
"I'm serious," Kendrix insisted. "I could have gone up to Commander Stanton and said exactly the same things you said, and he wouldn't have listened to me. You did this, Leo. You made it happen."
"Well." Leo shrugged it off. "I need you guys to keep making it happen. Training's at three this afternoon, same room. Me and Kai are going to check out the shooting range, see if we can set something up there.
"In the meantime," he said, grinning down at her again, "you just keep working on that list of things you think we should have, and I'll be your charming spokesperson whenever you want."
"You've got a deal," Kendrix agreed with a laugh. "Get Kai to help you too. He's good at this kind of thing."
"I can imagine." Leo was still grinning, and when he turned that look on Kai he realized Leo was mimicking Stanton. "I hear he's never wrong."
Predictably, Kendrix found this hilarious. Kai glared at her, then at Leo, until Leo patted her on the shoulder one last time and let her go. "Say hi to Maya for us," he said cheerfully. "Ready?"
Kai assumed this last was directed at him. He further assumed no response was required, since Leo seemed to be on a roll and would probably charge out of the science division without waiting for an answer from him. The second part of his assumption turned out to be wrong.
"Yeah," Kai said belatedly. Leo was just standing there, comfortable in his civilian clothes even in the midst of GSA science. And Kendrix was giving him a look that was too amused, like she thought he had been distracted by something. "Sure."
"Have a good time!" Kendrix called after them as they made their way toward the elevator.
Luckily, a main elevator was already at the top of the tower, so they didn't have to wait for one to make its way all the way from the surface under the dome. Even the wait for an elevator from the administration building, the tallest skyscraper on Terra Venture, was significant. Especially when his oldest friend in the GSA was watching him stand next to her newest and apparently laughing silently.
For no reason, he reminded himself. Kendrix got ideas like this all the time. It didn't mean there was anything to them.
"So, thanks," Leo said, as they got into the elevator together. When the doors closed behind him, he added, "For backing me up in there."
His first thought was, with Kendrix? Then he realized that Leo meant Commander Stanton, and Kai gave him a sideways look. "I didn't do anything," he pointed out. He reached over and keyed in the surface as their destination, and the elevator started to descend.
"I would have asked you." Leo sounded earnest. "For advice, I mean. I know you know a lot more than Kendrix, it's just... she was there, and she offered."
Kai felt himself relaxing involuntarily. Leo thought he was offended because he'd been excluded. "She's a good coach," he agreed. "I wasn't kidding when I said you did a good job."
"Yeah?" Leo visible brightened. "Thanks!"
He felt his lips twitch. He tried not to smile, but Leo was... strange. Unexpected. Grieving one moment, throwing Kai to the mat the next. Confronting Stanton, then celebrating with Kendrix. Confident, then absurdly pleased by the smallest compliment.
"So," Leo repeated, leaning back against a part of the elevator that didn't open. "Kendrix and Maya, huh?"
Kai glanced at him. He supposed that was confirmation, then. If anyone would know, apparently it was Leo, who had spent the night and most of the morning with one or both of them. "Kendrix and Maya, what?" he said. He wasn't going to gossip about it either way.
"They have a thing?" Leo prompted. "When did that happen? I mean, they only met five days ago."
Kai folded his arms. "I don't know what you're talking about."
Strangely, this seemed to give Leo pause. "Is the GSA against that kind of thing?" he wanted to know.
Kai frowned. That wasn't what he'd meant, but he supposed it was a fair question. "The science division gets away with a lot more than the military," he said at last.
"Huh." Leo was quiet for a long moment. His tone sounded carefully neutral when he asked, "So, no gays in the military?"
Kai didn't take his eyes off of the door. It was a long way to the surface from the top of the dome, and if anyone stopped their elevator in the administration building it would be even longer. "That's not what I said."
"No," Leo agreed. Now he sounded sort of amused. "You just implied that the GSA military division disapproves of same-sex relationships."
"Which it does," Kai told the door. "That doesn't mean we don't have our share of queers."
There was another pause. "You don't seem like the kind of guy who uses slurs, Kai."
It was either a question or a warning. Maybe both.
"What people do on their own time is their business," Kai said stiffly. "Discrimination has no place in the GSA. Military or otherwise."
Leo hadn't moved from his place against the wall. "It's not a slur if you're describing yourself," he observed.
What the hell had Kendrix told him? And why did Leo care? She liked to send the cute, quirky ones his way, no matter how often he told her to mind her own business, but most of them knew how to take a hint. If all else failed, Kai was very good at the cold shoulder.
"I'm not trying to piss you off," Leo offered, when he didn't answer. There was a rueful note in his voice when he added, "No matter what it sounds like."
He was doing a good job of it anyway. "Military policy on same-sex relationships really doesn't concern you," Kai muttered. "Be glad, and leave it at that."
"It could concern me," Leo remarked. He sounded casual, speculative, and just as smooth as Kendrix had accused him of being. "If someone wanted it to."
Kai snorted, mustering a look of utter disdain and throwing it Leo's way. "If one of them was interested in you, you mean?"
"Why not?" Leo's grin was disarming. He seemed unfazed by Kai's automatic rejection. "I'm a good-looking guy."
So he couldn't take a hint, and he couldn't be intimidated. It was still possible he could be embarrassed. They were into the administration building now, and the elevator could stop at any moment, so if Kai was going to call him on what he was doing it had to be now.
"Leo," he said, putting as much skepticism in his voice as he could manage. "Are you flirting with me?"
Leo shrugged, and without so much as a stammer he replied, "Just having a conversation."
"I don't like small talk," Kai informed him.
"Yeah?" Leo was watching him, still smiling, giving every impression of filing away that fact for future use. "I tried to get to the point last night, but you brushed me off. Figured I'd try something else."
"The point being?" Kai demanded. He hadn't forgotten Leo's invitation to help him find his room, and he didn't do one night stands. Not ever, and definitely not now. Not on a colony ship the size of a very small city headed off into the far reaches of space.
"I'm flirting with you," Leo said patiently. "The point is that I think you're cute, and I'd like to hang out with you sometime. I don't want to get you in trouble or anything. I'd just like to get to know you."
He was going to have to kill Kendrix. That was all there was to it. It was a shame, because she was a good friend, but she couldn't keep doing this to him.
"No," he said aloud. "I don't do that."
The display beside the door they'd entered through registered their arrival at the surface, but it didn't stop Leo. "What?" he wanted to know. "Date?"
"Drop it," Kai said firmly. The elevator was leveling with the surface now, doors closed until the sensors registered an even step from inside to out. He sometimes wished the things didn't have to be so precise. Now was one of those times.
"Okay," Leo agreed, surprising him yet again. "Forget I said anything."
The doors finally opened, and Kai gave him a suspicious look before stepping out of the elevator on the dome side, exiting into the "outdoors" without having to go through the administration building on the other side. Leo didn't say another word, though, and they walked down the street toward the military complex in silence. If it didn't seem as comfortable as it had before, Leo changed that with what sounded like a perfectly natural question: how had they decided what went in the dome and what was located below in the more secure ship section of Terra Venture?
Kai answered curtly, tempted to reiterate his feelings about small talk. But Leo asked again, about specifics, about the shooting range as opposed to the dorms, about civilian apartments and the administration building and the outer mall. He seemed genuinely curious.
He was listening, too, which made him less annoying than ninety-five percent of the other colonists when they asked questions. And, for better or worse, Leo wasn't lying when he said he was a good-looking guy. He turned heads. He could, and probably would in the future, ask anyone at all and get just as thorough an explanation.
Privately, in a part of his mind that he would never, ever admit to anyone else, Kai felt the tiniest bit flattered.
True to his word, though, Leo didn't bring it up again. Kai finally stopped looking over his shoulder about an hour into their tour of the military complex. By the time lunch had crept up on him, he'd actually put it out of his mind. So when Leo mentioned that he was meeting Kendrix on the surface at noon and that Kai should come with them, he agreed without thinking about it first.
Luckily, Kendrix had picked up Maya somewhere along the way. Between Maya's morning adventures and Leo's soldier stories, Kendrix didn't seem to have time to smirk at him. Much. No more than usual, anyway.
Leo left with Kendrix and Maya after lunch, taking Kendrix up on her offer of horticulture work, and Kai rode back up to the control tower alone. No one questioned his extended absence, so he didn't offer any explanation. Kendrix came back to the tower long enough to pass on project instructions to her minions and pull him away from his station for training.
She didn't say anything to him about Leo, though, and he couldn't bring himself to open that door again. He'd overreacted, plain and simple. So Leo had asked him out. Not even that, if it came down to it: Leo had implied that he might be willing to ask him out. Kai had said no, and that was the end of it.
Kendrix wasn't an irrepressible matchmaker, either. She was just a friend who thought he might appreciate someone she found handsome every now and then. If he let this time bother him, the only one he could really blame was himself.
They trained. Leo continued to act like someone who had remembered there were things worth living for, and not at all like someone who had flirted with Kai in the elevator on the way down from the control tower. Kai went back to his duty station, stayed late as usual, and went home and made himself dinner.
He didn't see any of the other Rangers the next day. He had a lot to catch up on in Command, and he ended up working through lunch. Without Kendrix to intercede, he found himself falling into the familiar and somewhat irritating routine of not being able to leave. Normal. Predictable, at least. Pretty much according to plan.
Until a direct link from one of the training rooms asked for and got his attention. "Command," a familiar voice drawled. "Leo Corbett. I'm looking for my Blue Ranger. You haven't seen him, have you?"
Kai glanced at the clock automatically. "Leo, it's 1454." Later than he would have liked, yes, but still not late by any stretch.
"Yeah," Leo's voice agreed. "And I hear you're half an hour early to everything. Making you, by personal standards, very late."
He heard that, did he? Kai needed to find a way to split Leo and Kendrix up, because they were clearly a dangerous combination. "I'm on my way," he told the comm.
"I know how long that elevator takes," Leo replied cryptically. "Better hurry."
Kai's mouth quirked, and he tried to keep it out of his voice because the last thing he needed was Leo thinking that Kai found him funny. "Sir," he muttered, "yes, sir."
The comm at his station was audio only, but he didn't have to see Leo to know that he was grinning. "That's the spirit," he declared cheerfully. "We'll be waiting."
The link shut down without a reply. Kai closed the rest of his work and got up, aware that every eye in Command was on him right now. He crossed the room to the elevator and waited there, feeling the attention follow him the whole way.
It didn't bother him as much as he'd expected.