Part 22

"There's nothing we can do."

"I won't accept that."

"There's always something we can do - we saved Zordon; saving Kim should be easy."

"Easy nothing – it took all five Rangers to save Zordon."

"We have Five Rangers."

"Whatever you guys are thinking we need to do it fast."

"Hang on Kim. Hang on..."

---------------

"…e's dying."

"No!"

"There has to be something we can do!"

"We can't let that happen!"

"Help her! Save my baby, please!"

"Tommy, what can we do?"

"She's too badly injured."

"Can't someone take her place? Doctors could help."

"If she demorphs, she dies."

"There has to be something!"

"Maybe there is. Kim. Can you hear me? I won't let you die, beautiful… I won't let you…"

---------------

"It didn't work."

"Then this is the only way."

"It can't be the only way."

"It is."

"Kim will never forgive us."

"At least she'll be alive. She's my daughter, Tommy. I have to do this. I need to do this."

"She won't like it."

"No, but she'll accept it as my gift to her."

"Then let me-"

"No, Tommy. Your place is beside her now."

"Is there... anything I can do?"

"Take care of her for me..."

---------------

Warmth.

Wasn't death supposed to be cold? She distinctly remembered feeling cool as Tommy had left her in her mother's care. She distinctly remembered slipping into the icy grasp that had reached for her, threatening to cool her for good. She'd thought herself dead. Or maybe she was and this was simply what came next.

Fingers brushed her face leaving trails of fire against skin that hadn't yet regained its core temperature - familiar fingers she didn't credit. She'd have known that touch anywhere and the sorrow that accompanied it was swift. If he was touching her it meant he was dead too. Those fingers brushed back again, once more drawing lines of awareness where there had previously been none, the touch achingly gentle. So gentle, she felt as if it were afraid she would break.

But she couldn't break - she was already dead.

"Did it work?"

A frown creased her brow. That hushed voice was distinctly not Tommy's. And there was no way all of the Rangers had died with her.

A shriek of pain brought her eyes open with a start. She hadn't screamed - but someone had. The colors swam before her eyes before coalescing into the canopy of leaves that had been her last waking memory. She was still in the Forest, still flat on her back, but she felt strangely numb, as if her wounds had ceased to exist - or simply ceased to affect her.

Her view changed in an instant, the concerned darkened orbs of the man who'd risked everything and more to save her time and time again looking deeply into hers. Bloody finger prints were brushed across his face, lending him a roguish look. The concern, laced with a sorrow she didn't understand, remained in his eyes even as his lips twisted into the beautiful smile she would never forget if she lived to be one hundred.

"Welcome back, beautiful."

"Tommy." She barely had a chance to breathe his name before she was enveloped in a tight, possessive hug.

Tommy buried his face in the curve of her shoulder, his voice breaking. "I thought I'd lost you, Kim."

She laughed shakily. "I thought you did too."

Tommy was silent as he held her, and she felt him shake, moisture seeping through the fabric of her Ranger suit. She closed her eyes against the waves of relief she could practically feel rolling off him, fighting the urge to give in and join him in the shared easing of tension. But she couldn't. Something felt wrong; something felt different about the whole situation. Something she couldn't put her fingers on as she clung to Tommy and dread seeped into her stomach.

He was reluctant to let her go, but within moments he regained control and pulled away, gently easing her back against the ground. His eyes were shadowed with both relief and sorrow, something she couldn't understand. Alarm gripped her as she cast a look around. "What is it? What happened?"

"Kim..." He stopped, seeming unable to voice what it was. He looked beyond her, over her head, and she tried to twist to see, but her body didn't respond. She felt lethargic, as if in a dream, and he was quick to help her. "She wanted it this way, Kim."

"Who wanted what this way?"

Tommy helped her turn and Kimberly let out a strangled gasp as she took in the sight before her.

Kimberly's mother lay stretched out, her hands pressed to a large red stain in her side, the gray cast to her skin meaning only one thing. Yet, the peaceful expression on her face was at odds with the painful posture.

Her last posture.

Kimberly moaned, low in her throat, and crawled forward on hands and knees that wouldn't fully support her. She touched her mother's face and drew back as if burned, burring her face in her hands as the coldness seemed to seep through her fingers.

She knew what had happened then and for a brief, single moment she despised Tommy and the Rangers for going along with it. She hated them for allowing her mother to be used as a conduit for her suffering, for allowing them to take her choice away from her. For allowing the sacrifice she'd been willing to make to be made by another - by an innocent.

"Kim?"

Tears burned her eyes and traced wet lines down her cheeks as she fought against the tightness in her chest. Against the sobs that wanted to explode and vent her sorrow and anger. She couldn't - not just yet.

Tommy's hand gripped her shoulder. "She loved you Kim - she couldn't stand the thought of losing you."

"How could you let her?" Her voice broke, unable to keep her eyes from the cool, still form of her mother. "How could you let her do this, Tommy? It was my choice; she shouldn't have-"

"She begged me for an option. We tried pooling our powers but it only partially worked - we felt you slipping away again. Your mom wanted to know if someone could take your place. Zordon confirmed it could be done, but only by a willing participant. She loved you, Kim; we all do. I'd have taken your place in a heartbeat."

"Then why didn't you?"

She heard him swallow, the guilt thick in his voice. "Without me, the transfer could never have been completed and we both would have died."

The pain in his voice was too raw to be forced and held the notes of truth she hadn't expected. Tommy hadn't wanted to let her mother make the choice, but faced with the thought of losing her, with her mother's pleas, he'd been coerced. He was wallowing in his own guilt, the strength of it eating at his insides. She knew it because she knew him. Despite the changes, Tommy had never liked seeing anyone suffer - especially her.

Kimberly turned to him then, her anger at him draining away, and was collected against the solid wall of his chest. He held her as sobs torn through her chest and erupted through dry lips, soaking his shirt in tears. The other Rangers remained at a distance, almost shadows on the edge of her vision, unwilling to intrude upon her grief. She clung to Tommy, unable to believe what was happening, but unable to refute the evidence before her eyes - and letting that sorrow find solace in his strength.

Tommy rose to his feet, cradling her in his arms as Adam, Jason and Rocky moved forward to collect the body of her mother. Archerina and Gasket were nowhere to be seen and Kimberly assumed that they must have been beaten decisively. The Rangers, a solemn group, teleported away from the scene, taking Mrs. Hart's body with them.

They arrived back in the command center, but Tommy didn't relinquish his hold on her, didn't even let her feet down. He continued to hold her, cradling her close like she was some kind of precious jewel - like he was afraid she'd disappear. Tommy looked to Zordon as Kimberly pressed her face to his shoulder and ignored the conversation around her.

Grief had overcome her quickly. Grief that her mother was gone. Grief that she was alone - her father away to who knew where - and left to fend for herself. Grief that she'd lost both confident and friend. Grief that she couldn't keep her mother here and let her be treated humanely. Only Tommy's stalwart presence, and the occasional squeeze on her shoulder from the other Rangers penetrated that cloud.

Reality intruded as Zordon was saying something about taking Kimberly and her mother to the hospital for examination.

"No."

"You are in no shape to be without medical care, Kimberly," Zordon told her sternly. "You require-"

"We don't need to be found out, Zordon." Kimberly lifted her head from its comfortable position against Tommy's shoulder, the ache in her heart something fierce at what had to be done. She choked on the words, but somehow got them out. "If my mother is returned to the arena, she becomes just another casualty of the attack."

"And you?"

Tommy's arms tightened around her at Jason's question. Kimberly opened her mouth to respond, but Tommy beat her to it. "Kimberly stays with me. We'll go back to the arena - but I'm not letting them take her anywhere without me."

Zordon brought up the current scene at the arena where medical crews were still trooping in and out of the area. "As you can see, confusion is still prominent in the area. If you teleport in near the judges stands, you should be able to avoid detection."

"Kim."

She turned to look wearily at Jason where he stood watching a news report. "Yeah?"

Jason turned, red-rimmed eyes meeting hers. He'd known her mother well and would grieve - in his own time - for her sacrifice. "They've pronounced you missing and presumed dead. You guys better get back there."

Kimberly closed her eyes. For a heartbeat she wished she could just slip into obscurity. The drive to be left alone, to lick her wounds and avoid the media was strong. But she knew she couldn't do it. Her father would be watching this and be frantic with worry. Her friends - those who had left the academy and chosen not to go to the competition - would likely be watching and on the edge of their seats. She couldn't do that to them, no matter how much she wanted to.

Her mother had given her a second chance, something she hadn't dared hope for when she'd willingly put herself in danger to save her friends. Kimberly hadn't expected to wake up at all. She'd expected her friends to go on, her mother to go on and honor her choice. Instead, her mother had made the ultimate sacrifice to give her that second chance. Her throat closed as she turned her face into Tommy's shoulder once more. His grip tightened, as if he understood her thoughts - but it was the care with which he held her that reached her benumbed brain.

Tommy's lips brushed her forehead, a silent promise that he wouldn't leave her side. He nodded to the other Rangers. "We'll be back once things settle down. Zordon?"

Zordon didn't say anything, not even his usual good luck phrase, simply sent them back to the arena.

Kimberly was aware of the sounds first. The screams and wails of family and friends as they stood over loved ones. The quiet sobbing of people pushed beyond their endurance and the joyous reunions of those who hadn't expected to find each other alive. The groans of the stands as they struggled to maintain their rigid structure underlay the atmosphere and Kimberly wondered just how long it would be before they finally collapsed. She was peevishly thankful they hadn't had to teleport in near that hazard.

Tommy placed her gently on the ground, leaning her against the table legs, completely hidden beneath the table skirt before offering her a small smile. His hand came up to wipe her bangs off her face, his fingers brushing tenderly against her skin. "You okay for a minute?"

She nodded, her strength - the strength she'd felt leaving her so slowly during the battle - ebbing back just as slowly. It was frustrating, for she wanted little more at that moment than the strength to bring her mother's head into her lap.

Tommy, his perception seeming unnatural, suddenly crouched and pulled her mother's body to her side. He carefully laid the cold head by her hip - not quite where she wanted it, but close enough - and then looked at her. "You should demorph."

Kimberly looked down with a start. She hadn't realized she was still wearing her Power Rangers suit. A crease formed in her brow. "Is it safe?"

He nodded. "Trust me, Kim."

She demorphed, showing him just how deeply she did trust him, and gasped as pain rippled through her body. Her side, the original wound that had caused the whole mess to begin with, twitched and contracted with a fierce spasm.

Tommy's hands slid around her waist, keeping her upright. "Your body's remembering the pain it should be feeling. Zordon thought it might happen. Take a deep breath."

She did, exhaling on a wince and then repeating the process until the sharp agony faded almost abruptly as it had struck. She lifted one trembling hand to the dull throbbing of her ribs and gasped at the tenderness underneath. Whatever the Rangers had done, however they'd done it, the pain from her injury was remembered by her body and it was protesting any kind of relief. Yet, even as she considered the implications, the sensations were fading; dissipating as if they'd never existed, leaving behind the feel of Tommy's hand cradling hers, his fingers loosely twined between hers.

Tommy's fingers squeezed hers. "Better?"

"Does this mean she didn't feel any pain?"

Tommy glanced to her mother, his expression almost sickly. "She felt some of it – she insisted. She didn't want you to face the whole effects of the injury when you demorphed. There was a chance if you did that the remembered trauma might kill you."

"How could you let her do this, Tommy?"

"She insisted. Jason or I wanted to do it, but Zordon said that if we did, there wouldn't be enough power to make the transfer before the pain cut off our ability to focus. We couldn't risk losing two Rangers."

"But I expected to die. You had to know that."

"I couldn't let you, Kim."

"It wasn't your choice."

He flinched at the accusation in her tone, but didn't respond to it the way she'd expected him to. Instead he countered it. "It was your mother's choice. She told me before we started the transfer that she had been given the chance at life but you hadn't yet. You were still young and she wanted to do everything she could to ensure you got the chance to experience the joys she did."

"It wasn't her decision to make."

"She's your mother, Kim. With you down and out, it fell to her to make a choice. She chose to give you life for a second time. How can you not appreciate and respect her sacrifice? No parent wants to watch their child die in their arms – it just about killed her. If you'd seen her face when she realized what was happening, you wouldn't be asking me how I could have let her."

Kimberly hung her head, biting her lip to resist the sobs that threatened to tear through her again. Her mother was gone, dead because of a choice she'd made, a conscious choice that should have resulted in her own death – not someone else's. The guilt of knowing she was responsible for her mother's death was unbearable even as Tommy's words whirled through her mind.

As if reading her thoughts, he continued. "You're not responsible for her choice, Kim. You'd made yours, an honorable sacrifice with the intention of saving your mom and me, but she made hers too. You didn't choose to let her die; you didn't even know she could assume your wounds. None of us did. She made her choice knowing full well what the likely consequences were going to be and she did it gladly. She did it because she loved you."

"I know." The whisper barely passed her lips as she struggled against the guilt that wouldn't ease and the knowledge that Tommy was right. If she wanted to honor what her mother had done, living was the best way to do it. She swallowed past the lump in her throat and met his gaze. "Did I hear her ask you to take care of me, Tommy?"

"Yeah." His half-smile appeared. "I will if you'll let me, Kim."

"You always have."

Whatever he would have said was interrupted by a shout and the appearance of paramedics suddenly swarming over the table.

"We've got a live one here!"

"Another body too."

"Bad."

"You alright kid?"

Kimberly was lifted off the ground, protesting at the rough treatment, her hand extending towards her mother. "Mom!"

"It's alright, miss, we've got you."

Tommy's voice intruded and his arms were suddenly around her, lifting her with a jerk from the arms of the man who'd been trying to stand. "I've got her. This is Kimberly Hart; that's her mother."

There was silence for a moment and then a cry went up behind them.

"Kimberly's alive!"

Tommy shielded Kimberly with his body as the paramedic, the man he'd pulled her from, attempted to take her back. She didn't object – Tommy's hold was tight and possessive, but it didn't hurt the way the other man's had. "I've got her. Just tell me where you want her."

"We've got to get her to the hospital. If you'll just give her here-"

"No."

Kimberly echoed Tommy's sentiment, though her protest was lost in the ambient noise. She wanted to sleep, to pretend like this was just a bad dream. She closed her eyes, tucking her head under Tommy's chin as he fought with the paramedic.

"Sir, I have to insist. She may have been wounded-"

"She stays with me. If you're worried about her injuries, then tell me which way to the ambulance."

The Paramedic's frustration was clear, but he obviously had no time to argue. "Go through that exit behind you and out onto the street. There's an ambulance parked against the dock that should be able to take her."

Tommy didn't wait to hear move. He turned, leaving the paramedics to cover Kimberly's mother, and headed in the direction they'd indicated. Kimberly felt each stride as if her body were tuned to his. She clung to him, taking comfort from the fact that he didn't want to let her go, and the knowledge that he had only done what her mother had begged her to do.

She was supposed to be dead and Tommy held her as if she was. She idly wondered just what good could come of this tragedy and if Tommy's awareness of her as a woman returned – if his awareness of her as someone to care about was reawakened – perhaps everything wasn't lost. Nothing would replace her mother, but she could honor her mother's choice and live for them both.