Chapter seven

I couldn't sleep at all that night. Every time I closed my eyes, the nightmare of my father's death kept resurfacing. The only object that was truly clear was Crysus's weapon: a long sword made of rock from the shores of the Sanzu River, and that it was as red as blood. My guess is that it was stained with the blood of its victims.

It was about four in the morning when I made my decision. I sat on the middle sofa seat cradling a cup of vanilla tea. It was so quiet in the house. Cobra Zord watched me with his eyes filled with concern. He beeped once and slithered onto my hand. I weakly smiled and said to Cobra, "I'm sorry. I'm probably scaring you like this, am I?"

"You're scaring all of us."

I turned around and saw Antonio leaning against the wall. There were dark circles under his eyes. "What are you doing up?" I asked. He sighed and sat next to me, "I was going to ask you the same question. Are you ok?" I stared ahead and answered, "No. I haven't been since that meeting. There's just so much that doesn't add up." Antonio raised his eyebrows. I completely forgot that he, actually none of them, knew what the Monks told me. So I sat back and told the story. As I spoke, Antonio eye's widened. I could tell he was surprised and angered, just like I was. When I finished, I couldn't hold back another round of tears. I buried my head in my hands, a little embarrassed to have him see me like this again. "I'm sorry June," he whispered. I wiped my eyes and sighed. "It's ok. This story doesn't make sense compared to what I already know. There's only one person who can help me understand." Antonio's eyebrows furrowed. "Who?" he asked.

"My mom."

Before everyone else awoke, I got dressed, ate a small breakfast, and left a note above the eating nook outside. Antonio insisted on coming with me, even though I failed at persuading him not too. It was around seven am when we both snuck out the door and drove deep into the outskirts of a city three hours away.

The ride there seemed to be the bonding point for Antonio and me. As Adele played on my radio, Antonio let out a big breath. "So tell me again why your Mom holds the answers as to why your father died when you were one, but the funeral wasn't until you were nine?" he asked. I kept my eyes on the road and explained, "Because the Monks said Mom was there and she claimed to know everything about the Sacred Power. Plus, she once told me my dad wasn't good at keeping secrets. Maybe he told her everything." We rode on and talk about all those jackasses from my past, how Antonio became a Ranger, and so on and so forth. After two hours in the car, we finally made it to the last house I stayed with her in. I noticed there was a black Harley next to her blue Honda in the driveway. I shut the car off and grumbled. We both got out and I felt Antonio flanking my backside as we walked up to the door. Just as we were about to knock, Mom walked out with her one nightstand next to her. He was huge with 5 o clock shadow and piercings in places that should not be pierced. He laid a tongue filled kiss on Mom and I nearly gagged. She then had her eyes fall on me. Her one night stand saw Antonio and I as he staggered past us. As he past me, he slurred his words while saying, "Talk about getting something from your mama." I noticed he was looking at my chest. Before I could do anything, his attention was on Antonio. "How come the fag gets you?" Antonio bravely stared the drunk in his eyes, though he was easily three times bigger than him in body mass. The drunk chuckled and walked back to his motorcycle. Antonio's eyes turned into slits as he glared at the man. I got a devious little idea and pulled out my Samuraizer. I drew the symbol for 'metal vines' in the air and pointed it towards the lawn sprinklers that were next to the mans feet. The symbol took effect, and the sprinklers stretched out, wrapped itself around the man's feet, and pulled. He fell to the ground with a thud. He stood up and cussed as he regained his poorly sober composure. We both chuckled as he drove away. I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned to see Mom as she said, "I see your Symbol Power has improved." We both faced her as I said, "I had help though." Mom then turned to Antonio. "A fellow Ranger, I presume?" she said smiling. Antonio bowed and said, "Correct. I am Antonio the Gold Ranger." Mom laughed and took us inside.

As soon as we were in, Mom's black Labrador Sykes greeted us. After petting him, Antonio asked about the candy on the dining room table. "Help yourself," said Mom. As Antonio ate his licorice, I sat down on her black sofa in the living room that was perched under a family portrait that was taken when I was a few weeks old. I fidgeted with my hands as Cobra beeped. I set him on my knee and watched Antonio pet Sykes in the dining room and smiled. These past few months have brought feelings in me that I didn't know existed, and they all were directed at Antonio. The light from the nearby window struck his face at the exact moment he smiled, and the butterflies erupted in my stomach. Cobra beeped and hissed a whistle sound. I nudged him. I didn't need a translator to know what he was thinking. Mom then came out with a plate of strawberry covered waffles. She sat in the chair across from me and ate. "So, anything interesting happen as a Ranger?" she asked. I sat back and took a deep breath. "Nothing much. Just a few Nighlok attacks here and there," I began. Mom spooned another mouthful in as I blurted out, "And I had a requested meeting with the Tengen Gate Monks yesterday." She froze mid bite. All she could say was "really?" I got serious and leaned forward. "They told me everything Mom. They told me when dad really died and how you were there. What I don't understand is how can that be true when dad's funeral wasn't until I was nine?" My questions raged on until Mom cut me off with a long speech.

"Shit, I knew this day would come. Well, you're twenty now and I think you're old enough to know that I was there the day your father died. I'll never forget it, that's for sure. I'll never forget how that fucking conniving Nighlok took everything from us.

"When your father told me of the Power he found, he was ecstatic. He said this power would change our lives. When he found out his child would inherit the power, he was determined to keep it in our grasp. As a result, he knocked me up. When you were born, the Monks celebrated. One night, they requested us to hear of a threat they received. It was from a monster named Xandred, saying if we didn't hand you and the Power over, we would all be killed. You're father refused, at the expense of the Rhino Zord. Everyday, the Rangers were severely injured; almost killed. Jayden's father tried to convince yours to hand over the Power before the team was killed, but your dad was very stubborn. He had as least seven Samurai guards and three symbol master protect the house overnight.

"It was Ji who convinced your dad to keep us under guard at the Shiba Mansion. You were about eight months old. The Monks would perform a monthly blessing on you, and at eleven months old, they decided to perform the ritual. Little did we know we were all being watched. Just as we began, Xandred attacked. The place was a nightmare. All around us was blood and bodies of Monks and Symbol Masters. Rain began to fall as the Rangers sprang in to battle. I didn't want to run, but your father gave me no choice. As I did, a mooger shot me with an arrow giving me this scar"-she pulled up her shirt sleeve to reveal a three inch long gash-"as I cried in pain, your father killed the mooger, resulting in a one on one battle with that the blink of an eye, he was gone. The Samurai world was never the same. The Monks decided to keep your dad's body frozen to preserve the Power from connecting with you until you were of age. They needed a cover up to keep you in the dark. A Symbol master by the name of Mika volunteered. With enough Symbol Power, he became a complete clone of your father. He was here to protect you all those years. When you were nine, the Monks decided you were old enough, and the funeral was set. I regretted all that so much after seeing how it hurt you."

I took this all in slowly. It all made crazy sense now. I began to sob as Mom hugged me. "I'm so happy I know," I wept. "I just wish you could have know earlier. June, you should know that I loved your father with all my heart." I looked up at her. "That's good. I mean, that biker said something else." Mom laughed. "Oh please, no one could sex a woman like your father." I jumped in embarrassment. "Oh no I do not need to hear this!" I groaned. Mom and I giggled as she kissed my forehead. We shared waffles and talked. I told her all about the team and how they were the coolest people I've ever known. Afterwards, Mom proceeded to tell me more about dad and how she discovered that men in spandex could really pick up chicks. As we walked into the kitchen, we saw Antonio playing with Sykes out back near the pool. As our eyes connected through the backdoor, he smiled, and I blushed. Mom hugged me again and said, "Something tells me that Antonio kid's got a thing for you." I barked a "Ha! Don't be crazy Mom. Antonio is way out of my league." She slapped my hand and scolded, "Don't ever say that June. You are not out of his league, he is out of yours." I rolled my eyes a little and retorted with, "How could a man like Antonio be interested in me?"-I pointed to him through the glass-"I mean, look at him! He's, well, beautiful." Mom laughed again. "You're beautiful June. And I admit, he is a good-looking kid. All I'm saying is to just give it a try. You never know what the future holds until you take a look." She began washing her plate and added, "Besides, you two would make a beautiful baby." I groaned and she flung dish soap at me. Antonio was suddenly inside holding his phone/ morpher. "Uh June," he stammered, "We might want to get back. Mentor's a little pissed off that we left without future warning." "Mentor Ji?" said Mom holding out her hand, "Here, I'll handle it." She spoke sweetly to Ji for ten minutes and handed the phone back. "Everything's fine kids. I explained everything. But he does want you back soon."

We both decided to stick around for a few more hours. We talked, ate, shared stories, and even watched a video of the day I was born. Mom pointed out Jayden in the video in the arms of his father. She said that our dad's secretly hoped that one day we both would get together. Antonio teased me about that one. I took a picture of baby Jayden for future references. In other words, I was so going to show Mia this when we got back. All the Rangers from dad's team were there, along with Ji, and even the Zords. I sighed as the camera fell on dad as he held me. He seemed like such a cool person.

When the clock struck 4pm, we had to go. Antonio was already in the car eating the BLT my Mom gave him as a parting gift. I hugged Mom tightly on the porch. I wrote down my number and handed it to her. "Call me if you need anything," I said. She smiled. "I'll be fine June. Don't worry." As I hugged her again, I teared up. I might not see her again for a long time after this. Mixing your Samurai duties and your family never worked out. Dad found that out the hard way. As I got in the car, I started sobbing again. Antonio offered to drive. We then began our long journey home while Stevie Wonder played on the radio.

It was 6:15pm when we made it back. Thank God I was wearing shorts because the air was still very warm. Everyone was on the front porch eating pizza when we pulled up. "Hey guys," shouted Mike with his mouth full, "we saved you some slices. Come and get it." Antonio had an appetite today, because he took two. I nibbled on mine. "You ok?" asked Jayden. I nodded 'yes', but hid the disdained depression with a vaudeville grin. I pulled my phone/morpher out and brought up Jayden's baby picture. "Hey Mia," I called. She turned around from her chair and caught my phone as I tossed it to her. She looked at the screen and began to giggle hysterically. The others checked it out and were laughing too. Jayden finally looked, and his face grew bright red. He looked at me and I held up my hands saying, "I have my resources." Soon, he was laughing along. "I was such a Gerber baby." Mia walked to him, intertwined there fingers, pressed their hips together and said, "You sure were." They began to kiss passionately. I glanced from them, to Kevin, Emily, and Mike and then to Ji and Antonio. It made me realize something. My Mom may be my biological family, but this right here, is my permanent family. We are not connected by blood, but by strength, passion, dedication, and friendship. And I will protect them with all my strength.