Kat was finishing up rebandaging Sky's chest, wanting to make fully sure that his ribs would heal up nicely and not get any further damage. Not a whole lot was said between the two when he came into her lab. He just sat down, took off his shirt and jacket and let her do her job.

"It's looking better, but I'd still like you to take it a little easy," she said in an almost motherly tone. She had known Sky for a number of years and hoped to know him just a little longer.

"We both know, in my line of work taking it easy is not an option," he answered sharply, as he put his shirt and jacket back on. He could die tomorrow for all he knew, and he wasn't about to let a little injury hold him back when it came to duty. He would fight no matter how badly he was hurt or in pain. He would still fight even if every bone in his body was broken.

"Maybe that's true." She eyed him firmly. "But you're no good to us dead, Sky," she reminded him, but knew it was futile to get through his thick and stubborn head. Sky never had liked anyone showing concern for him, no matter who they were.

Sky angrily hopped off the table. He had about had it with people hinting that he was going to die and sometime soon; it wasn't like he didn't know his job was dangerous. Already he had put his life in danger countless times, for the sake of duty, being a Ranger, protecting others. It was his job and for the life of him he couldn't understand why no one seemed to get that. He turned to her, his eyes fuming. "Look, I swear to God if one more person makes another comment about me trying to get myself killed, I'm going to explode!"

"I know this job is dangerous, there is no question about that." She had worked with many other Rangers before him, several of whom had long since died, most of them in the line of duty. "But there is a difference between dying with honor and dying stupidity." She gripped his shoulder, looking him hard in the eye. "Remember that."

He didn't answer, just humphed under his breath and turned away. No one could even begin to understand what he was going through, no one…. "Sky…." He heard her call his name.

"What!"" He turned around to face her, almost unwilling.

"Commander Cruger wanted to see you after my appointment with you."

Nothing was said, he just walked out, still not willing to let go of his own pride and accept the fact that people cared if he lived or died. Kat just shook her head, sighing. Sky was one of the most dedicated Rangers, one of the best they had and …one of the most troubled. He still wasn't quite willing to let others in; while he had his father's dedication to being a Ranger, he lacked his father's willingness to allow others in. Wes was always so open, though he could be stubborn; he was more than willing to listen to what others had to say when it concerned him. "You have one tough kid there, Wes…."

Sky promptly walked into the Command Center and saluted Commander Cruger. "Sir! I understand you wanted to see me."

Cruger faced Sky. He was more than just angry with the young lieutenant, he was furious. Never had he seen such recklessness from any of his officers, not even back when Eric Myers had still been in active status. He knew Sky still had much to learn, he might have what it takes to be a Red Ranger, but he still had a thing or two to learn about life. "Yes. I did." He walked up to the young man, who because of his father, he felt some sort of bond with. Not long ago he had promised himself he could no longer protect Sky; his attitude long ago would have terminated his place at the Academy, had anyone else been in charge. Now it was time for him to lay down the law on Sky. If the young lieutenant wanted to be pushed to the limits, then that's just what the old commander was going to do. "I understand that the regulation standards of the simulator are not enough for you." His voice was harsh and stern. "Is that true, Lt. Tate…."

"Sir. I can do better than what the simulator has to offer," he answered proudly, hoping that finally Cruger would see where he was coming from.

"I see. So you think you're better than your teammates?"

Sky realized yet again that Commander Cruger would not approve of him continuing training in the simulator on the highest level. "…No sir." And that was true, he did not think he was better than them. They were a team and each of them was just as important as the others, but at the same time he felt like he could handle more. "I just feel that as leader, I need to be above standards. I must work harder." He stood tall and proud, hoping to get through to his commander, to get him to understand where he was coming from.

"Even if that means going against code?" Cruger's eyes stared down the young Red Ranger's neck. He knew what Sky was trying to do and he wasn't about to be fooled, by Sky's quick and authorized responses, no matter how good they were. "There are standards for the simulation for a reason, Sky, as I told you before the maximum level is too unpredictable. Several cadets in years past have either been killed or badly injured."

"I understand that, sir. But I am not just some cadet….."

If Cruger could open his eyes any wider he would have. "No, you're not just some cadet. You're my cadet." He pointed his finger right at Sky. "You still have to answer to me." Cruger's voice rang; he wasn't liking Sky's tone. "Your foolishness could have gotten yourself and Officer Carson killed. You may be willing to put your own life on the line, but I will not let you do so to one of your teammates."

Sky was fuming with anger now, but held it back, knowing it would only make matters worse if he lashed out now. He had learned long ago that when he and Cruger got into one of their confrontations, they tended to clash. And it never ended well for him.

"So from now on instead of training in the simulator, you will be training with me, in sword to sword combat, without your morpher and your ability." He got right into Sky's face. "We will see if that measures up to your standards. Is that understood?" When Sky made no answer or attempt to look the commander in the eye, he asked again. "Is that understood, Lt. Tate?"

"Yes, sir…." Sky glared into the commander's eyes, his face furious.

"Good. Dismissed!"

"Sir!" Sky, though pissed off by the situation, saluted Commander Cruger, knowing if he didn't he would surely hear about it later.

"Hey!" exclaimed Syd, all chipper as she sat down next to Sky with his plate of food. She leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the cheek, but Sky seemed unaffected by the kiss and didn't even really acknowledge she had joined him. "Sky, is everything okay?" she asked him with a hint of concern. She knew he could be moody sometimes, but even when he was in the past he would always acknowledge her, by either looking at her with a faint smile or saying something, even if it was a light 'hi'.

But he still made no attempt to say anything to her. His thoughts were still on his blowout with Cruger. He was so angry that he barely had touched his food. Why couldn't Cruger just mind his own business? He didn't need the old dog to be keeping tabs on him, he was perfectly capable of handling himself and didn't need anyone babysitting him while he trained. "Sky…" He felt Syd wrap her arm around his shoulders, almost discreetly trying not to draw too much attention, while it was known by most that they were dating, they didn't want it to get all over SPD. "Are you feeling okay?"

"I'm fine!" he snapped, taking all his anger out on her. He watched as Syd slowly pulled her arm away, looking at him, hurt by his words and reaction. Realizing what he had done, he took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. "…..I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped like that." He tossed his fork onto his food tray, just staring at it, unable to look her in the eye, knowing that once again he had messed up. He didn't mean to yell or be so unkind towards her. She had just caught him at the wrong time.

"Was it something I did….or said?" she asked, trying to figure out what was wrong with him. It was no secret that Sky Tate was a complicated guy, but there usually was a reason for his bad moods and she wanted to know if she had anything to do with it.

"No…" Sky immediately turned to her, wanting to make it perfectly clear that she had done nothing wrong. "You haven't done anything." He looked into her eyes and smiled faintly. "I'm just having a bad day is all…."

"Are you sure that's all it is?" she asked him.

"Yeah…"

"Well, tomorrow is a new day." She took his hand into her, and gently rubbed her fingers over his palm. "I'm sure everything will be fine by then."

"…..Yeah." Maybe. He forced a smile. "I'm sure it will."

She wrapped her arm around his waist, leaning a little closer to him. "Hey, I've got an idea; why don't I cook dinner for you and Megan tonight. Chase has night duty, so it will just be the three of us, we can watch a movie and you can relax…."

"I don't know, Syd….."

"Come on Sky….. Let me do this for you." She grinned, knowing that on a few occasions her smile was capable of brightening up his day. "Even leaders need a break."

"All right," he sighed, as he briefly returned the embrace she had been giving him. "Just try not to burn the kitchen…." He smiled faintly, recalling what had happened the last time Syd had tried to cook the whole team a meal, back when they were still living in the cadet quarters.

She playfully swatted at him. "That only happened once, and in my defense, it was because Bridge forgot to turn off that computer-toaster…..whatever he calls it."

At a table not far from theirs, the other Rangers, Chase, Bridge and Z ate their lunch and had witnessed the whole scene. Though Chase had seen the whole thing go on between Sky and Syd, he acted as though he hadn't and continued to eat his lunch. Besides, he had his mind on other things than becoming involved in Sky and Syd's rollercoaster of a relationship.

Z just shook her head, staring Bridge hard in the eyes, knowing she didn't have to say a word for her young psychic friend for him to know what was going through her mind. Bridge just sighed heavily, feeling somewhat caught in the middle of everything. While he knew Z was right, that they probably should have intervened and told Syd what had happened with Sky, at the same time he had this urge to protect Sky. After all, Sky was his best friend, his former roommate, they shared a bond with each other …almost like brothers. And as a brother his first impulse was to protect him, right or wrong.

He had been trying for months to sense what was going on with Sky, but had been unsuccessful. Which made it all the harder; while he couldn't sense just what was wrong, that didn't mean he didn't know something was wrong with their leader. Bridge turned his head and watched as Sky and Syd chatted, he watched as Syd's face would lighten up every time she looked Sky in the eyes. He had known for a while even before the two had gotten together, that Syd had developed feelings for Sky, though she never had acted upon them.

"Lt. Tate, please report to the Command Center….."

They watched as Sky quickly gave Syd a brief kiss on the cheek, before getting up from the table and leaving the mess hall. With Sky's departure Syd decided to join the others and finish off her lunch.

"Hey guys," she exclaimed all cheerfully.

"You sure seem happy," said Z.

"Well of course I am; I'm going to be spending time with my boyfriend tonight. Why wouldn't I be happy?"

"That's great, Syd!" announced Bridge, hopeful that Sky would do the right thing tonight. "Isn't it, Z?"

"Yeah." She gave Bridge a stern look before turning to Syd with a bright smile. "That's great, Syd."

"Yeah. I know. I'm going to be cooking him dinner. Oh…." She turned to Chase. "I'll save you some leftovers."

"Thanks." Chase smiled as he finished up his lunch. "But I'll probably just eat something here."

Bridge was finishing up his plate when his beeper went off. He took it off his belt and read the name SOPHIE. "Is that your girlfriend?" Z grinned as she leered closer to Bridge.

"I don't know? You see, we haven't actually defined our relationship, because she's a cyborg." Bridge started expressing with his hands. "And I don't know exactly how my parents would take me dating a …..well, a machine, cause they already told me they want grandkids… And I don't know how that would work."

"A simple yes or no would have been just fine," said Z.

"This is Bridge, he doesn't give yes or no answers," stated Syd as she leaned closer to Z.

Chase just shook his head, grinning; he patted Bridge on the shoulder. "I'm sure it will all work out for you." He picked up his tray. "I'll see you guys later in weapons training."

"So what do you guys think I should do?"

"Again!" barked Cruger, as he stood back a few feet from Sky who was lying on the ground with a sword at his side. Just moments ago he had knocked the red leader to the ground. If Sky wanted a hard workout, he was going to give it to him and show no amount of mercy. "….Lt. Tate, this is not too much for you, is it? Shall I go easier on you?"

"No sir!" Sky reached for his sword and jumped to his feet. He wasn't about to let Cruger's taunts get to him. "I'm ready!" He locked his eyes with Cruger as he made the first attack, but Cruger, being highly trained and skilled in sword combat, easily blocked the move and went in with a counterattack that Sky was barely able to block.

The two continued to spar for sometime outside of the SPD base, neither one willing to back down, no matter how many times Sky crashed to the ground. Sky was too stubborn to stop and admit defeat and Cruger wasn't going to be the first to give in. He was a good fighter and knew how to make attacking blows without seriously injuring his opponent; he could go at this all day if he wanted to, which was more than Sky could do, no matter how pig-headed he was.

Sky took deep breaths, his body was exhausted and his chest hurt immensely, his ribs might not be broken, but they were bruised and he could feel the bandaging that had been around them slowly coming off. He watched as Cruger circled around him, swinging his sword and making fancy quick motions, as he lay there with one hand on the ground and the other reaching for his sword. He knew very well what Cruger was trying to do and he wasn't about to be taught a lesson, he wasn't a kid anymore; he was an adult, a grown man. He screamed loudly as he jumped to his feet with his fingers gripped tightly around the sword, as he recklessly attacked Cruger. In his blind rage he failed to see Cruger's quick motion as he sent the determined lieutenant over his shoulder, flipping in midair before he crashed to the ground head first.

The old dog turned around and put his sword to his side, watching as Sky spit a mouthful of grass out of his mouth. Sky rolled over and found his commander staring down at him. He started reaching for his sword, but Cruger stepped his foot over the weapon. "We are done for today." He reached out his hand to help Sky up, who at first refused the assistance, but eventually gave in. Cruger looked Sky in the eyes, hoping to see that stubborn and hothead attitude of his diminished, but to his disappointment it still remained. It was going to take a lot more to break Sky of his old habits.

"Before you go to weapons sessions with the other Rangers, you should go see Kat and have her fix your bandages. Is that understood?"

"…Yes sir," announced Sky, not all too happy. He saluted Cruger before making his way back into the building, doing his best to hide the fact that his body ached all over.

Cruger sighed heavily as he picked up Sky's sword from the ground. He turned and watched as Sky entered back into the building. He didn't like that he had to be so hard on Sky, but he was left with no choice. If he continued to let Sky go on the path he was on, he could lose him and he had already lost one too many Rangers during his career.

Sky entered into the shooting range to find his teammates already at practice shooting their targets. His late entrance caused a delay in their training as they turned around to face him. He appeared to be out of breath and his face looked flushed, like he had been in a recent battle of some sorts.

"Was there a battle?" asked Chase.

"No." Sky reached for his blaster, getting it loaded and ready to shoot a few rounds. 'Where would you get that idea?"

"Well for one, you're late…" Z fluttered her eyes at him, she wasn't about to let Sky get by without getting a good explanation. "And two, your face looks a bit red, like you have been fighting…"

Sky eyed his teammates and their questioning looks, Syd's and Bridge's seemed more out of concern, while Chase's was more curiosity, since he normally was never late for any of the sessions or for anything. And then there was Z, who seemed to be putting him on trial with her quick and direct accusations.

"I was late because I was meeting with Commander Cruger."

"About what?" Z pondered, knowing there had to be more to it.

"It doesn't concern you," answered Sky with a strong tone, as he looked her directly in the eyes.

"Why?" Z got right into his face. "Do you have something to hide, Sky?"

"Z…." hissed Bridge, sensing that things could get ugly and that this wasn't the time or the place for that to happen.

"No….There are certain things that go on between Cruger and me, that the team does not have to be involved with." He put on his safety goggles and leaned closer to Z, almost breathing down her neck. "Now get back to your training, you've wasted enough time with your pointless questions."

"Yes sir," snarled Z.

"What was all that about?" asked Syd, walking up behind Z, wanting to know why her friend was giving her boyfriend the cold shoulder.

"You'll have to ask your boyfriend…" With that said, Z went back to her post and began shooting her targets.

"Doggie!" exclaimed Kat, as she marched into the command center to find Cruger with his wife Isinia going over the daily reports. "I just got done seeing Sky. What the hell were you thinking?" she demanded. Not only had she needed to rebandage him, she had had to tend to some bruising and cuts.

Cruger had been expecting Kat to show up. He knew she would not agree with his tactics at trying to get through to Sky. "It was just a lesson, Kat…."

"A lesson that could have gotten him killed," she responded. "Is this your alternative to his wanting to train in the simulator on the max level?"

"It is no more different than the training I went through back in my early days at the Academy."

Kat took a step forward. "Sky is human. His body cannot withstand the same things yours can, even with his ability."

"I am aware of that, Dr. Manx, but I know what I'm doing. I need you to trust me this is the only way to get through to him. I can assure you no real harm will come to him during any of the lessons we have in the future." He eyed her. "Is there anything else, or is that all?"

"No. That's it," said Kat as she left the command center, leaving the two once again alone. She knew it was useless to argue with Cruger, if anything he was just as bad as Sky, if not worse.

"Don't even say it," he grumbled, knowing that his wife would have a thing or two to say about how he was dealing with Sky.

"But you know I am going to." She turned to face him. "I know Sky is difficult to deal with, but it wasn't so long ago someone else in this room was the same way…."

"I wish you didn't have to go so soon," exclaimed Hayley as she hugged Lilly goodbye. The two stood outside in the driveway by Lilly's car.

"I know, but I'll be back in a few weeks. Once I get everything settled back at home, letting the kids know what's going to happen." She had decided this would be the perfect place to move her children to. She would have close friends here and she really liked the setup for the Reefside schools, not to mention one of her oldest friends was the teacher at the high school. Her son and daughter were only thirteen and ten, but it wouldn't be long until they were in high school.

"I know." Hayley smiled. "It was just really good to be able to spend some time with you and talk. It's been so long…."

"I know…" There was something in both of their eyes of unspoken words, something that neither one needed the other to say, to know what the other was thinking. "You never told him, did you?"

Hayley shook her head. "No. Nobody knows…..only those who knew before."

"I know it was hard for you, but keeping this from him-from everyone..."

"It hasn't been easy, especially now with everything he's going through." Hayley sighed heavily, for she held a deep dark secret that no one knew about, not even one of her closest friends. "…..I can't help but feel a little guilty."

Lilly wrapped her arms around her friend, letting her know she was there for her. "Don't. You did what you had to do back then." She pulled away and looked her friend in the eyes. "It was the right thing to do."

"You think I should tell him, don't you?"

"I think he has a right to know …both of them do."

"I know." Hayley smiled faintly. "It won't be easy, but it is time…."

"Call me and tell me how it all goes."

"Of course."

Later that night….

Hayley sat on her and Eric's bed, staring at the small photo that had haunted her for years. Tears almost fell from her eyes; it seemed so unreal that so much time had passed since she last had looked at the picture.

"You okay?"

Hayley looked up and watched as Eric walked into their bedroom, his face full of concern. She quickly dried her tears away and took a deep breath, as a grave amount of fear and even guilt came over her. Not knowing what to expect, what would come out of this or how he would react. They had always been honest with each other, but she had been keeping a secret from him for years. A secret she never thought she would ever have to reveal, a secret that could change everything.

"Hayls..." Eric was even more concerned now. He had never seen Hayley like this, not for as long as they had been married, had she ever acted in this way. "What's wrong?" He sat down next to her, wrapping his arm around her.

She leaned against him, thankful for the strength of his strong arms, but unsure how long that would last, once she told him. "I need to tell you something…." She slowly handed the small picture to him, that she had been looking at.

Slightly hesitant, not liking the soft tone in her voice, Eric took the photo and stared at it for a few moments. It was of her, holding a baby, not something he would expect her to be so upset over. He turned to her, needing to know why this had upset her. "You wanted to show me a picture of you and Wesley?" But even as he said it, just as if the light finally had gone on in his eyes, he knew…