Summary – Zordon tries to protect Tommy and Zedd from a rather dark future.
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Best Laid Plans
Zordon
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"You're looking…pissed off."
"Gee I wonder why." Tilting his head in mock thought he continues, his voiced laced with immeasurable amounts of rage. "Could it be because you gave a morphing gem to a psychotic dinosaur that you knew would go after Thomas to gain access to it? Or could it be that you completely ignored my desires that the human never become a Ranger again as I wish for him to live and thus went around my back planting said gem in the hands of the psychotic dinosaur that you knew would go after Thomas to gain access to it? Or could it possibly be that you are a self-centered, maniacal, tool of the Council, son of a bitch who completely ignored my desires that the human never become a Ranger again as I wish for him to live and thus went around my back planting said gem in the hands of the psychotic dinosaur that you knew would go after Thomas to gain access to it?!"
Allowing him to complete his rant I wait patiently for him to finish before daring to spur him on once more. "So been a busy day has it?"
Anticipating his reaction I side step in the nick of time as he lunges at me, causing him to miss by no more than an inch or two, hitting the main computer desk with a rather telling crash. "Honestly Zedd, over eight thousand years old and you still have the impulses of a teenager."
Climbing to his feet and cursing a blue streak under his breath, he gives me a glare of death before resituating himself. "You. Die. Now."
"I would love to comply, but I just have so much to do today." Taking a seat fairly certain he won't attack again, at least for the moment I roll the black dino gem between my fingers heaving a weary sigh. "How is Tommy?"
"Like you care."
"You know I do Zedd." More than I should actually. Same as Zedd. Why oh why do I have to become involved with the troubled ones? If it's not Zedd trying to destroy civilizations and overrule planets it's Tommy giving Eltarian technology to unstable humans and causing scandals upon scandals for the High Council. Scandals which I might mention I am still having to cover up and defend him on.
"Really? Is that why you gave that over grown lizard a morphing gem? Is that why you let him grab Thomas, knowing he was unprotected from nearly anything that creature decided to do to him."
"I thought he would get hold of the gem before anything happened. That's why I put it in the ambergrist, no one aside a power holder would have been able to break it. All he had to do was touch it and the gem would have broken through to get to him." Honestly how hard is it to get him to touch a stone? "He should have had the gem in less then five minutes of his capture, defeated Mesagog, and gotten out."
"Yeah well that's not what happened." Snarling and in a flash of speed he has the stone from my hand holding it up between near shaking fingers. "Mesagog is smarter then your every day monster, he knew not to let him touch it. Instead he bound him up, tore off his clothes, sliced open his old wounds, and when that got old used him for his sick little pleasure."
Sitting up straight at this, I give Zedd my full attention. "What?"
"You heard me. He has an unhealthy interest in Thomas that's been clear from day one, but until now I've managed to keep him out of harms way. You however ruined all that with your little strategic plan. A plan I might add which failed in every aspect. It got my mate hurt, he didn't get the gem and he never will, and now Mesagog knows what his weaknesses are." This wasn't supposed to happen. I never meant for the boy to get hurt. Damn it, I keep making mistakes.
"Where is he?" Getting up to go and check on him myself, needing to make certain he's alright, I'm gestured to sit back down by my companion.
"He's sleeping, you're not going to go wake him up now. Besides I already looked over his injuries they're taken care of and as for the other there's nothing I can do until he wakes up and I can talk to him."
"I'm sorry I never expected that to happen."
"Yes well it did oh great one and what's worse there's absolutely nothing I can do about it!" Voice raising once more as he begins to work himself again, I can see this is going to be anything but a calm meeting. "You know I can understand and even respect him trying to torture the information from him, but to dare and cross that line…" Still battling the tidal wave of emotions coursing through him he this time at least forgoes attacking me to instead slam his fists into the nearest wall, carving out a rather decent sized nitch as he does. "He had no right to touch him like that! None!"
Understanding how he feels as I in fact feel the same, I nevertheless continue to keep a reign on my own emotions so he can finish working his out. "Did you kill him?"
"No."
Raising a surprised brow at his extremely disgruntled response I press further truly curious as to why he spared this creature's life. "Why?"
"Because the human begged me not to." Eyes blazing he looks ready to destroy something else. "Said it wouldn't be right. That Mercer the human Mesagog is still tangled up with would die too. Like that matters. Two for the price of one in my eyes."
"But innocent blood on your hands in his." Understanding exactly why Thomas would stop the act of vengeance now I heave a sigh as it still seems to be eluding Zedd though. "He doesn't want to lose you Zedd."
"Not you too!" Throwing his hands up in frustration he really can be dense at times. "He is not going to lose me over one kill! Just because I take out a psychotic, mutated, rapist, that does not mean I'm going to rejoin the dark side."
"Doesn't it?" Moving calmly and cautiously to him I do my best to phrase my wording very calmly. "Look at how you're behaving Zedd. Your rage is getting the better of you. Instead of being with your mate comforting him after what was done to him you're down here attacking me and destroying your base. You didn't even kill Mesagog, but yet your blood lust is peeking. You're…you're behaving like…
"Like what?" Voice a snarl daring me to say it, he attempts to glare me down.
"Like Zarek." Ducting quickly and barely avoiding his fists, which I knew would come at the mention of Dark Spector's son, I reach out grabbing him before he can take a second strike. Pinning his arms to his sides, I continue quickly. "Look at yourself Zedd you are behaving just like him! You're not after Mesagog for Tommy you're after him for yourself because he took what was yours, because he bested you by capturing your mate! You're putting yourself, your blood lust first and Tommy last! The boy is right if you carry through with this he will lose you because I will not be able to protect you any longer! You will die Zedd just as Zarek did and Tommy will become you because of it!"
As the last words leave my mouth and finally hit home he suddenly stops his struggling instead going limp in my arms. "W-what?"
"He will be so angry, so lost and hurt over your death at the hands of the Council he will become what you did Zedd and you know it. Do you really want him to go through all the pain you endured? Do you truly wish for him to suffer so much?"
Pulling away when I allow him to as he now seems to have become almost numbingly calm, he shakes his head sadly. "You know I'd never hurt him."
"Then control yourself better. I'm aware you have darkness built up inside you Zedd. That's been clear for more then a few thousand years. You can't harness the type of power you did and still do without it consuming at least a part of you. But it is your choice to allow it to take over or not. Today is the closest I've seen you come in a very long time to surrendering to it and frankly it worries me. I'd be very surprised if it didn't Tommy as well."
Suddenly groaning and sinking down into my vacated chair he puts his head in his hands. "I scared him."
"Yes we've already covered that-"
"No you don't understand, I mean I really scared him. I…I nearly hit him when he tried to stop me from killing Mesagog. I know he saw the strike coming before I stopped and pushed him away instead. Damn it I keep screwing up!" Don't beat yourself up you're apparently not the only one.
"You didn't screw up. You stopped yourself from hurting him, that's something. But Zedd…" Rubbing my eyes and praying he at least takes this into consideration I decide to give it one more shot. "He needs protection. Today just proves that he not only needs some form of it from his enemies but also from you, if in fact you should one day lose yourself to the darkness. If he has no powers to protect himself with he will die and very possibly by your hand."
Remaining silent for a rather long stretch of time he slowly uncurls his hand looking at the black gem still held there. "I am not going to let him be some tool for the Council to beat up and use."
"Neither am I. I have more power then any of them now, you know that. Being stuck in the middle of a power grid for over four thousand years, I could take down the Council with a flick of the wrist if I so desired. I will not let them harm Tommy, or you as long you're both under my protection. You have to trust me on this. He's safer with the power Zedd, we both know it."
"If anything happens to him I will kill you." Standing slowly and apparently having made up his mind he moves for the stairs. "And that's not a threat, it's a promise."
"I know."
To be continued……..
