Flynn sat with Dillon in awkward silence for what seemed like an eternity after what he had said. Dillon was never exactly the most open of people about what was worrying him, or how he felt, and so the admission was a little uncomfortable for him. Of course Flynn was far from his comfort zone as well given the nature of the problem.
Flynn handed him a beer and sat next to him, trying to find the words to begin.
"Have you talked to Summer about this?" He asked the Black Ranger. Dillon gave him a kind of dark look in response. "Sorry, I should have thought."
"I'm not sure it would be the best thing for her to bring this up." Dillon stated. "I love her, and I really want us to be together, but I know this is important to her."
"You're important to her." Flynn reminded him.
"I just don't want her to throw everything away for me." Dillon told him. "I know she loves me, she'd try to make it work, she'd tell me that it doesn't matter, but I saw it in her when she held that baby. I know this is important to her."
He took a long gulp of beer, before looking to the floor.
"I just don't want her to wake up one day an old woman and feel like she's missed out because of me." He continued. "It might not be an issue now, but one day she's going to want a family. If I can't give that to her, it's just going to eat her up inside, she'll grow to resent me I know she will."
"So you started a fight with her?" Flynn asked him.
"It might not be the most ingenious plan, but I figured if I got her angry enough to break up with me then it might not hurt as much in the long run." He explained as he played with the bottle in his hand.
"Well I reckon the right hook she gave you can be taken as a 'mission accomplished' on that front." Flynn commented. "You're going to have a beauty of a shiner there tomorrow."
"I know she's pissed now, maybe she hates me, but in time she'll get over this." Dillon stated. "Eventually she'll move on. She'll get together with another guy that can give her everything she deserves. Not the guy whose future seems to be either turning into a robot or back in stasis."
"First of all Dillon, we don't know that's going to happen." Flynn responded, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Dr. K's working round the clock on trying to figure out a way to stop this. Secondly, do you know for a fact you can't have kids?"
"Not really." Dillon replied, shaking his head. "Summer's the only person I've ever been with. Well…as far as I can remember anyway. It's just never been an issue."
"Alright, this I awkward, but I guess we have to do this." Flynn sighed as he tried to push the mental images of that night Summer and Dillon sent together out of his mind. "You and Summer have…"
"You know we did." Dillon interrupted him.
"So you have…"
"Everything is there Flynn." Dillon interrupted him again, becoming a little uncomfortable himself with this line of questioning. "Do we really need to talk about this?"
"Look, I can see both of you are really unhappy because of this. If there's a chance I can stop both of you doing something that'll make you miserable, I'll do it, even if it does mean asking a couple of uncomfortable questions." He replied. "So…uh…does everything…you know…rise to the occasion?"
"Mechanically everything works as it should." Dillon said in a sigh. "It's more the biological part I'm not sure about."
"But you've never actually checked?" Flynn asked him.
"Have you?" Dillon asked him. Flynn just conceded the point. It had never been an issue for him; he and Sam hadn't really talked seriously about family, and so visiting a fertility clinic had never really been high on the 'to do' list.
"I guess I haven't." Flynn replied. "Look, this thing is obviously making both of you really unhappy. You love Summer right?"
"You know I do." Dillon responded.
"Then there's a chance that all of this is all just you worrying over nothing." Flynn told him. "There are some tests…"
"Flynn, I am not going to a clinic." Dillon put down flatly. "Half of my body looks like it belongs inside an electrical appliance shop. They probably wouldn't know what to do with me."
"There's no need." Flynn assured him, flicking a thumb over his shoulder. "In case you've forgotten, probably the most advanced lab and one of the greatest scientists alive are right here."
"Dr. K?" Dillon asked him a little sceptically. "You want me to provide a sample to Dr. K? No way. Even if she agreed, you know how we've butted heads, she…"
"She's a scientist, she'll be professional." Flynn told him. "Of course I could always ask Sam…"
"Your girlfriend?" Dillon asked a little incredulously. "You seriously would want her to get involved in this?"
"Well it's not my idea of the ideal date with her." Flynn said a little sarcastically. "But she is a forensic scientist. I'm pretty sure she's dealt with…"
"Do you really think this is worth it?" Dillon asked him. Flynn just looked at him.
"There's a chance." Flynn stated with authority. "For Summer's sake, isn't that enough?"
Dillon just smiled a little and nodded his head.
"I guess there's no harm in finding out right?" He asked the Blue Ranger. "Dr. K's working on a lot. Maybe Sam should do it."
"This is already a little uncomfortable. Let's just leave it to tomorrow." Flynn suggested. "Maybe we should just go to bed on it for now."
Dillon and Flynn just stared at each other a little awkwardly as he realised what he had said.
"Can…we just pretend I didn't say that?" Flynn asked him.
"I think it would be best." Dillon agreed. "Flynn thanks for this."
"What can I say? I'm a romantic at heart." He replied. "The last thing I want is to see the two of you unhappy."
The following morning, Tenaya came into the main room, finding Summer and Ziggy at the kitchenette. Ziggy was making his way through a massive breakfast, presumably to make sure he had plenty of energy for the game, while Summer ran through a last-minute reminder of the rules, what few there were in Lightningball, to make sure he had memorised them.
"So the play starts..."
"The day starts when the ball is fired from the centre spot to the launcher in the ceiling." Ziggy stated, remembering the detail. "The launcher then fires it in a random direction into the rink."
"That's right. Each play ends..."
"The play ends when the ball in play is placed into one of the scoring pods or the time period ends." Ziggy told her. "Each period is 20 minutes long."
"Okay, and how many periods are there?" Summer asked him. Ziggy put down his fork and sighed.
"The game continues until one team scores in all five of their opponents' scoring pods." He sighed. "I'm going to get creamed."
"Relax Ziggy; you don't give yourself enough credit." Tenaya told him warmly, sitting next to him and plucking a sausage from his plate, biting it. "You're a Ranger. You fight Venjix robots almost every day. How hard can this really be?"
"Usually I have the suit to help me." He reminded her. "Besides, have you seen the size of those guys?"
"Ziggy, just relax, everything will be fine." Tenaya assured him, putting her arm around him and holding him closely. "Besides, I think you'll look really cute in that tight armour."
"Of course that'll make all the difference." Ziggy grumbled in response. "I'm sure I'll look really adorable when the referee's scraping me off the floor with a spatula."
"Look, we've been over this, you're as ready as you're ever going to be." Summer stated as she poured herself some OJ. "Just remember what I taught you. You're a scorer, so..."
"Stay sharp on my feet, only tackle when I need to and try to outrun the defenders." Ziggy interrupted her.
"And if things look too hairy..."
"Drop the ball and run like hell." Ziggy replied.
"Sounds like great tactics." Dillon said as he arrived in the room, taking a seat. "Could you hand me..."
Summer didn't even look at him as she just picked up the jug of orange juice and placed it in front of the Black Ranger. Tenaya and Ziggy just looked at each other a little uneasily. The mood in the room had noticeably chilled when they got together. Dillon's cheek and eye had swollen up and darkened as a result of their altercation the night before hand. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out something had gone down between them.
"Uh...I should be going." Ziggy stammered, shovelling the last couple of mouthfuls down quickly. "I'm going to the stadium. Chas will be waiting."
"I'll go with you." Tenaya rushed out, grabbing a stack of toast and running after him. She had no desire to remain with her brother and his girlfriend when they were like this, and of course, she also really wanted to make sure she got a good seat in the press box for the game. She had watched a few games with Ziggy while he was studying to prepare himself, and she was terrified he would get hurt.
Dillon took a sip of OJ as he tried to find a way to talk to Summer. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't find any way to begin. He knew that he had to have hurt her terribly with his careless words the night before. He had continually needled and provoked her, hoping that she would end their relationship, thinking that in the long run he would be doing her a favour. He believed that getting her to break up with him would make the split easier for her, but now he could see exactly how much he had hurt her. She couldn't even look at him.
"Hey guys, is everyone ready for the big game?" Scott asked as he came down the stairs. Neither of them answered him. "Hello? Am I talking to myself?"
"No, sorry Scott, I was distracted." Summer responded. "Yeah, I'm looking forward to it."
"Did I just miss something?" He asked them, noting the frosty atmosphere between them. "Dillon, what happened to your face?"
"I...uh...walked into a door." He lied. "I have something I need to take care of. I'll see you at the stadium."
He left, making his way into his room. Scott turned to Summer.
"What exactly happened between you two?" He asked her. "We've been friends too long Summer, if anything's bothering you..."
"Everything's fine." She interrupted him sharply. "Come on, we should get going."
Scott wasn't happy that she seemed to be upset. He wanted to pursue the issue further, but he also knew that Summer could be just as stubborn as he could. If she wasn't ready to talk to him, then he knew he wouldn't be able to make her. All he could do was hope that she would feel comfortable to talk to him soon.
Over at the stadium, Ziggy found his way to the locker room, knocking the door gently. Chas and three others were already inside, beginning to get strapped into their armour.
"Sorry, I couldn't find the locker rooms." He greeted them as he arrived in the room. "Hey Chas."
"Don't worry about it Ziggy, I asked you all to come early because I wanted to take some time to go over the tactics." He told him. "Your armour's over there. Start getting changed, I'll just introduce you around."
The first man to come over was wearing much heavier armour than the others, and was considerably larger. He must have been close to seven feet in his armour, and was almost as broad as Ziggy was tall. He was carrying a large, heavy steel bo staff. Pulling off his helmet, he flashed Ziggy a bright smile. He was African American, and had a shaven head.
"This is Ross, our Guardian." Chas introduced him. "He played with the Jackals until last season."
"I spent a lot of time in juvenile detention centres as a kid until I discovered sports." He told Ziggy, shaking his hand with a grip that threatened to tear his hand clean off. "I'm retired, but when Chas told me some of the money was going to the orphanage and the youth correctional groups, I couldn't resist getting back on the rink. You're the Ranger aren't you?"
"I am." Ziggy replied, stroking his hand gently.
"I can't believe I'm playing with a Ranger. My kids and I are huge fans!" He screamed enthusiastically. He grabbed a programme and a large marker pen. "Could you get me an autograph?"
"Sure!" Ziggy replied with a huge grin. He knew that his position as a Ranger had earned him a measure of fame, and a few fans, but this was the first time anyone had been this enthusiastic about meeting him. It felt good. In that moment, he felt like he could take on anything and his nerves about the game eased considerably. "I'll tell you what, after the game I'll see about getting the rest of them to sign it for you."
"That would be amazing; my kids are going to go nuts!" He gushed, accepting the programme.
"Over here are the two defenders, Lee and Harry Forbes." He introduced them.
"We've met before." Lee informed Chas. "It's been a while, hasn't it Grover?"
Ziggy nodded as they shook his hand. The Forbes brothers were both guards at the prison Ziggy had spent time in. They were taller than him, and impressively toned. Having seen a couple of fights being broken up in the prison, he knew that both of them were experienced martial-artists with a sadistic streak and evil tempers. In this instance though, it could prove to be a good thing. Lee was a little taller than his brother, with bright red hair and a few freckles across his nose. Harry had black hair, and a small scar across his right cheek, the reminder of one of the riots he had helped to quell in the prison.
"So are you ready for this?" Chas asked him, putting an arm around his shoulders.
"I'm as ready as I'll ever be." Ziggy replied.
"Well you're not ready yet." A familiar voice said from the door. They all turned around to see Hicks walking in with a bright smile on his face. He was not limping anymore, and his arm wasn't in a sling, though a support splint on his wrist and forearm indicated his injuries hadn't yet completely healed. Chas came over, shaking his hand.
"I thought you were still on restricted duties." He commented.
"I am for a while yet, but you know I couldn't miss this game." Hicks told him. "You'll be pretty busy out there captaining your team. How would you like me to handle the coaching duties on the sidelines?"
"Why do you think I still have the headset?" Chas asked him, tossing him a radio headset. "If you can't be in the game, then at least I have you on the sidelines. No one knows more about tactics than you."
"Wow, this is what we're up against?" Ryker asked from the door. The two players behind him just laughed as he stepped in, looking around the room with an arrogant sneer. "How's the leg Chas?"
"You'll find out when I stick my foot up your ass!" He responded, moving forward. Hicks just put a hand across his chest, hoping to prevent the game starting early. Ryker and his boys just laughed at him.
"Ross, how long has it been since we last kicked your ass?" He continued. "I thought you retired because you were sick of getting your ass handed to you."
"None of your guys scared me when I was playing." Ross told him coldly, tapping the end of his staff against his hand menacingly. "That hasn't changed pretty boy."
Ryker walked past him, standing chest-to-chest with Ziggy. Without a word, he just put his hand on his own head and traced a line across, indicating the difference in height between them, causing the others to laugh.
"You're out of your depth Ziggy." He whispered. "Fresno Bob says hi."
"Alright, you've had your fun Ryker now get out of here." Hicks warned him.
"Oh, we're going alright." He chuckled. "Why kick your ass in here when we can do it in public?"
"This is for charity." Ziggy reminded him. "It's a friendly match."
"This might be for charity as a publicity stunt for Chas to make himself look good, but trust me, it'll be anything but friendly." Ryker stated. "Just like the boss, we don't play nice. That's why we're the champions. Other people play nice, we play to win."
"Hope you kissed Brie goodbye!" One of the players over Ryker's shoulder taunted him. "We're gonna make her a widow."
Chas was about to attack, but Hicks and the Forbes brothers grabbed him and held him fast to prevent him doing anything stupid.
"She'd only be a widow if we were married you moron!" Chas screamed at him. "You're going down Ryker! Your ass is mine!"
Ryker just laughed as he and his team left, leaving the others to calm Chas down. Hicks shoved him down onto a bench.
"Chas, what the hell is with you?" He asked him.
"Sorry, the guy just gets under my skin." Chas told him.
"You know as well as I do how dangerous they are." Hicks told him. As he saw that Chas wasn't listening, he slapped him to return his focus. "Save it for the rink."
"I'll try." He replied. "Can I have a moment?"
"We need to do the briefing." Hicks reminded him.
"Hicks, I've played on the military team as long as you. I know the playbook backwards." He reminded him. "Just get the others up to speed. I already know the calls."
Hicks just gestured to the others to follow him as Ziggy finished strapping on his armour. They all gathered their helmets and left to go into another room to discuss tactics. Once he was sure they were gone, Chas reached into his bag, and pulled out another needle.
Meanwhile, out in the parking lot, a man in a black business suit quickly checked to make sure no one was watching. He held the earpiece communicator to make sure he could be heard.
"No one's here." He stated.
"Do you see Winchester's car?" Fresno Bob asked him.
"That would be an affirmative." The gangster responded. "A beat up Ford POS, in Crimson Fury. It's a little bit of a comedown from daddy's rides."
"Standby." Fresno Bob instructed him. He hit a button on the console in front of him, killing power to the stadium's security cameras. "You're good to go."
The gangster came out of his hiding place, carrying a briefcase and approached the car, pulling out a couple of tools. He quickly worked the lock, popping the trunk. He threw the case inside, before closing and locking it. He ran from the parking garage, into the fire escape.
"It's done." He replied. Fresno Bob re-activated the security cameras. "What about the Willis?"
"He's finished with Chas' apartment." Fresno Bob told him. "This game's just about to get interesting."
