Z
Before it's too late
Z wasn't the kind of person who wasted an opportunity. In fact, she had always been known for acting before thinking, and yes, it was one of her biggest weaknesses to approach things before they could be settled as good or bad for her. If you have something to say, you better say it before its too late, than you can deal with the consequences.
"Attention citizens of New Tech City, this is not a simulation. Everyone report to the nearest Evacuation Cabin. I repeat this is not a simulation." Z could see people running out of their houses following the path of the electric arrows in the middle of the haste. She briefly wondered if Jack and Ally were already in the safe evacuation zone. Then her worries travelled again to Sky and Bridge.
"Z, focus, please." She snapped out of her thoughts and turned to her companion.
"What?" Syd was looking at her with worry.
"Are you all right?" she screamed so that her voice could be heard among the shuffling of the air around them. Z turned to the flying monitor trying to ignore her question.
"Fine." She said in a calm tone.
"I don't believe you."
"What?"
"Did you tell him?"
"Tell who what?" Syd just rolled her eyes and settled next to her, grabbing the microphone again.
"Attention citizens of New Tech City, this is not a simulation…"
.o.O.0.O.o.
"Sky!" the man with the commander suit turned to see his friends approach him with smiles bigger than Texas.
"Look at the new shadow ranger!" Syd said joyful.
"I'm your new commander, Cadet Drew, so remain in position."
"Oh, come on, you are not half as frightening as the big blue dog!" her comment made his cheeks burn with embarrassment and Z had to bite her lip in order not to burst in laughter in front of him. Syd always found the way of embarrassing him; she knew which point to press in order to unleash his emotions. Z didn't know why it made her feel so jealous.
"So, how is everything going without me?" Sky asked.
"Oh, fine. Though Bridge hasn't quite gotten over your departure, he fell into this drug-state again…" Syd said dramatically.
"Which drug-state?!" Sky asked scandalized by the idea.
"Buttery toast overdose." Z finished and both girls burst in laughter at the shadow ranger's priceless expression. Sky's cheeks were tomato-red again.
"Very funny."
"Oh, you should have seen your face!" Syd took a step backwards. "Well, guys, I've got to go, see you later." As Syd turned down the corner, Z shook her head and looked at their new commander with a grin.
"So, how's the new position going?" Sky scratched the back of his neck and looked away.
"I've… got a lot of paperwork" She laughed.
"So, that's the reason why Krugger was always in a bad mood." She said, hoping all-by-the-rules Sky wouldn't lecture her about responsibility and duty. He didn't, which surprised her. "You know we'll… we'll miss you… a lot."
"I'm sure Bridge shall fill my absence. And since there hasn't been any offs and goes with this team, I'm sure you'll… work it out better than when Jack left." she nodded, not too pleased by the path the conversation was taking.
"I'll… miss you." Oh, god, she said it. She had been thinking aloud. It wasn't like she didn't want him to know she had missed him, but it just sounded… awkward… like there was something else going on there.
"Oh…" was the only thing he said, as realization struck him. Z lowered her gaze and let the awkward silence fill the atmosphere. "Well, it's not like… you won't see me anymore, you know? I'll always be here. And I might come to visit you guys sometime."
"Right." she said, trying to recover herself so that she didn't look that dumb. "Of course you will." Another moment of awkward silence, and then Kat's voice was heard trough the speaker.
"Commander Tate, report to the Command Center immediately." It made them both jump.
"We've got to… yeah… bye." They both said at the same time, before turning in whichever direction helped them to run away. As Sky was heading down the hall, he turned around one last, time, still scratching the back of his neck.
"Cadet Delgado…" Z turned to face him one last time. "I'll miss you too." Sky smiled awkwardly at her before leaving. Z stayed there, frozen, for almost a minute, before realizing how stupid she looked and heading down the hall to the common room. As she turned the corner, she found Syd, hidden behind the wall, looking at her in disbelief.
"That was so close! Why didn't you just do it?"
"Do what?" Z pretended ignorance. "Have you been hidden here spying on us all this time?"
"Come on, I wouldn't call it spying, especially cause NOTHING HAPPENED!"
"What did you expect to happen?"
"I think you know! "I'll miss you"; what kind of love-declaration is that?"
"I'm not in love with him!"
"Yeah, right." Z tried to ignore her blonde friend by walking past her. Sadly, that strategy never worked with Syd. "What shall it take for you two to accept your feelings for each other?"
"A suicide mission." Z snorted, before realizing that she had said it aloud, again.
.o.O.0.O.o.
"Well, you wanted to wait till his second attempt of suicide, now you've got it. So, did you tell him or not?" Z turned to Syd ready to punch her pretty face. The last thing she needed right now was a blonde princess pushing her into admitting what she had done earlier with Sky before he went downtown to kill himself.
"I don't know what you are talking about. And please! Can you let me be, for just one second?"
"You are impossible!" Sydney roared before walking into the Command Center. The scene folding in there was another drama. Sophie and Boom were having a heated argument, and by the look of Sophie's face, she was at the border of tears.
"It can't be fixed, Sophie, I… I'm sorry, we already tried everything…"
"Well you didn't try hard enough; I'll go into the system myself."
"No, you'll be dead in one second!"
"What's going on here?" Z asked.
"We lost connection with Tate and Carson! I… I lost connection!"
"It wasn't your fault, Sophie." Boom said, trying to soothe her desperation.
"Yes it was! I should have gone with them! Bridge could be already…!" Sophie turned around just to bump into Syd's already open arms. Syd hugged her tightly before looking at Boom.
"How did it happen?"
"Interference, we should have predicted this, the energy field is too strong to allow communication waves to pass through it." Boom spoke quickly. "We are trying to fix the system, but there's no use, not even Rick can pass the damage field, he'll get roasted in one second. Sophie wanted to try, but she'll run the same fate if she does."
"Why can't Rick and Sophie pass the damage field?" Z asked.
"Cause they are made of metal and electric circuits."
"So, the only way of getting to Sky and Bridge unharmed is if we are human."
"And if we are not using a power suit, which in any case is the most reckless, stupid thing we could do."
"Reckless, stupid things are my specialty." Z mumbled under her breath. "I'll go."
"What?!" they all said aloud.
"Wait a second! Z!" Syd stopped the latina, who was about to exit the room. "This is beyond stupid! You can't go in there unprotected, radiation will kill you!" A discussion might have taken place right there and then, if it hadn't been for Boom letting out the most weird, panicked scream of them all.
"Girls!"
"What?!" As the three of them turned to the monitor, which had now become clear, of Rick's vision two kilometers away from the nuclear facility, the vision of a giant implosion shook the whole command center, and as they presumed, the whole city, into gasps and screams of shock. The implosion caused a massive earthquake to shake momentarily all of New Tech City, knocking everyone to the floor and cutting the power in the whole building. Suddenly, Rick's transmission was lost and the whole room was pitched into darkness.
When you face the cutting edge, waiting to find out in any second that a person you love may never come back to you, it all resumes to the things you did; and to the things you didn't do and you should have done before it was too late. You realize that if fate was generous and gave you a second chance, you would do them, without a second thought. Without stopping to let your fears take control of the situation.
It was ironic now that she thought about it. She had never been a person who wasted an opportunity. At least that was what she had thought all her life. And yet, here she was, waiting in silence and pain to get the news that Sky might never return to her. And now she stupidly realized she needed more than a kiss from him to be happy, she needed a life by his side.
A mortal silence flooded trough the atmosphere as the emergency lights were restored. As they helped each other get back to their feet, they looked at the monitor, waiting for the static to transmit an image of whatever had happened. The explosion had been stopped, that was for sure, yet, the fate of their commander and red ranger…
"Mission succeeded." Sky's shaky voice was heard trough the monitor and suddenly the image of Bridge, the Shadow Ranger and a mechanic dog appeared on the screen. They were alive.
"Bridge!"
"Sky!"
"Rick, Thank God!" they all turned to Syd, who looked back at them.
"What?! I love that dog, Ok?" they all burst into a nervous laughter, which was followed by hoorays and hugs everywhere.
"You did it guys! Come back to the command center, I'm so happy!" Syd said through the monitor, a giant smile on her lips.
Z sighed in relief and after the shock of the first moment, she realized she didn't need another suicide mission to set her priorities anymore.
A/N: Sorry! for taking so long... I was in a problem with redactating this chapter and couldn't find the way of putting my ideas in order. Also, the internet didn't allow me to publish anything, which was sooo frustrating! anyways, another chapter and I know redaction is crap and full of mistakes... I plan on revising this story once I'm done with it, so don't worry, I'll fix them.
One last chapter to come! Wait for it! This story is on it's climax... literally XD
One question... would you mind if I added M-rating content? Should I do it, should I not? Answer meeee!