A/N: Sorry about the delay, but this chapter is one I'm sure a few people have been waiting for. Finally, Troy explains what happened.
Troy was on the Red Galleon being checked over by Noah. While there was first aid supplies much closer, he really didn't feel much like answering too many questions right now.
It wasn't as though injuries were uncommon for the Rangers, hell, only a few months previously Troy had ended up having a leg amputated as a result of injuries suffered in the course of his battles. The problem with this injury though was that it hadn't been suffered in a Ranger battle. It hadn't been a monster that had done it. It had been one of his friends...well...he wasn't sure he could still count himself as a friend after what happened.
Tensou was scanning his head to make sure that the injury wasn't more serious. He already knew his nose was broken; Jake had done a pretty good job making sure of that. He just knew that the potential was there for things to be a lot more serious.
"There doesn't seem to be any signs of a concussion, and there doesn't seem to be any secondary fractures to worry about." Tensou told him. The big worry was if there were fractures along the sinuses, weakening that area. If that was the case, a heavy blow could potentially drive the bones backward into the brain. "The nose itself will heal; Noah can realign it to make sure your breathing isn't adversely affected."
This was the only reason Noah was there. Troy would have preferred not to involve any of the others in this right now, but there were certain limitations to what Tensou could do. Being a mechanical owl, he didn't have any hands, so some of the more subtle manipulations like realigning his nose were best handled by a human.
"OK, this is going to hurt." Noah told him. Troy just looked at him sceptically.
"Yeah, because right now it feels like a big warm hug." He grumbled. Noah just conceded the point. He pressed his fingers to Troy's nose, finding the affected area, and pressed it back into place. He then looked out a dressing.
"You're undoubtedly going to have a mondo headache for a while." Noah told him. "I'd probably advise some co-codamol or something."
"I'll live." Troy answered as Noah applied the dressing. As soon as he was finished, Troy could see the way he was looking at him. He just sighed.
"OK, now that's done, would you mind telling me what happened?" Noah asked.
"I really don't want to talk..."
"Troy, last time I checked, you were fine after that battle with Damaras." Noah answered. "So that means this happened after then, and we haven't had any more battles since."
"Noah..."
"And now with all these cool new Dragon Spirit powers you have, I can't think of too many people that could get close enough to you to do that if you didn't let them." Noah stated. "Now, who exactly did this?"
"Noah, just drop it." Troy told him. "It's complicated. I'll tell you what happened, but...there's someone I really need to talk to first."
"Troy, round one ended in a broken nose." Noah told him. "Don't you think going for round 2 might be a little, you know, idiotic?"
"I'm not going for revenge." Troy told him. "I just have someone I need to talk to. It looks like I've waited too long for this already."
As Troy left, Noah looked to Tensou.
"What the hell was that about?" He asked. Tensou just shook his head.
"Hey, what do I know? I just fix the ship after you guys thrash it." Tensou replied. "Speaking of which, I've got a lot of work to do. The Emperor's not going to stop just because Jake cut Damaras in half."
"Yeah, I didn't think he would." Noah answered.
Over at the hospital, Emma and Gia came back to Eric's room, carrying a book with her. A doctor had come into the room to discuss some treatment options with Eric. He had asked her to go and get him some stuff to keep him occupied while he was in the hospital. Being his second heart attack in less than a year, it was obvious that the doctors really didn't want to take any chances. Whatever happened, it was clear he wasn't going anywhere any time soon.
As they got back into the room, she saw the doctor just finishing up with Eric. Louise was with him, and looked decidedly worried about what she had heard. As they got in though, they could see that there was another person in the room, someone she recognised.
"Dad, there wasn't much in the way of magazines, so I thought you'd like a book instead. It'll last you longer anyway." Emma began as she entered. "Dana, I didn't know you were in town!"
"You...you know each other?" Eric asked as he gestured between them. Dana just smiled.
"Well, my identity is public knowledge to anyone with an internet connection, so I guess there's no danger in telling you. Your daughter and I have a shared history in the spandex. I was Lightspeed Pink."
"Wait...Lightspeed...I remember that team." Eric said with a smile. Emma was really too young at the time to remember the Lightspeed team's tenure. She was only a baby, but being the first team that were open with their identities from the start, they were pretty huge news. He could remember the newspapers as far away as Harwood dedicated nearly half their pages to the story when it was announced the Government had created their own team of Rangers. "You were a Ranger too!"
"What are you doing here?" Emma asked her. Dana looked to Emma.
"Well, you remember that kid you helped me to get that transplant organ for?" Dana asked. Emma just nodded. "Well, given the success I had with him, when I volunteered to help your dad, the hospital jumped at the chance."
"You came out of hiding, all the way here, for my dad?" Emma asked.
"We Rangers stick together." Dana reminded her. "We've just been discussing your dad's options. I really think at this point in time, a bypass is the way to go."
"Wait...what?" Emma asked. "He's only just got through a heart attack, and you want to take him into surgery?"
"Emma, I wouldn't recommend it if I didn't think it was the best thing for him." Dana assured her. "Your dad's had two heart attacks inside a year. It's clear the damage is pretty severe. This operation could really improve his quality of life."
"Listen to her sweetheart." Louise told Emma. "We're all worried about this, but if Dana thinks it's for the best, we should consider it."
Emma just looked to Dana, her eyes pleading with her.
"You're absolutely certain this is the best thing?" Emma asked.
"There is a risk, but I'm confident it'll drastically improve his health." Dana told her. "I considered his case, weighed up all the risks and benefits and I really think that this is the best time for this."
"When...when would you do it?" Emma asked her.
"Well, as soon as possible." Dana told her. "I want to wait a few days to let your dad build up his strength, but it'll be within a couple of weeks."
"A couple of weeks?" Emma asked her. "You want to operate in a couple of weeks?"
"Sweetheart, please, I know this is scary." Eric told her. "I want to get well, and if this is the best way to do it, then I guess this is what I want to do."
He pulled her in closer.
"Besides, I have a good history of Pink Rangers taking care of me." He reminded her with a smile. "I'm sure I'm in good hands."
"I think you are too." Emma replied, holding his hand softly.
"Alright, we'll just leave you to it." Dana stated. "I've taken enough of your visiting time."
With that, she left the family alone. Gia held Emma as she sat with her father dejectedly.
"What's with the long face sweetheart?" Eric asked her. "I'm the one going into surgery."
"I'm just really worried." Emma told him.
"Hey, you just worry about those alien scumbags. Let me worry about this." Eric told her. He then looked to Louise.
"Um...listen, we've been talking, and we know you girls have a lot on your plate." Louise began, shifting nervously.
"Yeah, you could say that." Gia sighed. "We still don't know what to expect with this new guy, but if Vrak and Vekar were scared of him..."
"Well, we figured that all of us have had enough of bad news for a while." Eric announced. "So Louise and I were talking, and she let me know about an interesting little chat she had with Emma..."
"Wait, you're not serious are you?" Gia asked. Louise just went into her bag, getting out a jewellery box. Both girls' faces noticeably lit up as she handed it to Eric.
"Oh my god..." Emma exclaimed, starting to tear up. Eric just looked to the girls and frowned.
"You know traditionally the guy gets to ask before he gets this kind of reaction." He reminded them. He pulled himself up as much as he could on the bed, opening the box and pulling out a ring. He took Louise's hand. "Louise Miranda Moran, would you do me the honour of making me the happiest man on the planet?"
"Yes, of course I will!" She replied, letting him put the ring on her finger. The girls immediately embraced Eric and Louise.
"Congratulations!" Emma rushed out.
"Yeah, you really picked a great man this time." Gia answered. "So, do we get to be Goodalls now?"
"Only if you really want to." Eric told her. "You are over 18."
"Let's see, I can keep the name of the guy that threw me out of the house, then kidnapped me and tried to brainwash me into being straight, or the guy that put a roof over my head and saved my mom from that jackass." Gia answered sarcastically. "Yeah, that's a difficult choice."
"I know I can't wait to be a Goodall." Louise told them. "And Emma, I'd be really pleased if you'd agree to be Maid of Honour."
"Of course I will!" Emma shrieked. "But...I thought Gia..."
"Well, in the interest of being non-traditional, I was thinking Gia might like to be my Best Man...well...you get the idea." Eric answered. "We really want both of you there at the altar."
"It would be my pleasure." Gia answered, smiling brightly. The girls settled in for the rest of the visiting time, feeling a massive lift. Although they still had a lot of battles and troubled times ahead, Eric and Louise had been right, this would give them a much-needed boost.
Elsewhere, Noah swung by the Holling house, looking for Jake. All the Rangers had gone their separate ways to spend time with their families. Now that Vrak and Vekar were gone, there wasn't the same worry about anyone specifically targeting their families. To the best of their knowledge, the Emperor Mavro had not been present for the rest of the war. He had left his sons to take care of the Earth. It seemed safe to presume that all he knew of the Rangers was that they stood against him. He didn't care who their families were, or who they were under the helmets. To him, they were just soldiers standing in his way.
"Hey Jake!" Noah called out, arriving on the porch. He noticed that Jake didn't seem to be in a good mood. He hardly even acknowledged him as he arrived. "It feels good being back in your own home doesn't it?"
"I guess." Jake muttered.
"I mean, the Red Galleon's great and all, but I just couldn't believe what it was like getting back to my room." Noah stated. "All my stuff, my comic books, my action figures...I thought mom would have thrown them out ages ago without me there to tell her what I wanted to keep, but it's like I never left! It's like she kept it as a shrine or something."
"It's a room Noah." Jake responded. "It's the same as any other."
"What got you in such a foul mood?" Noah asked. "I thought you'd be stoked to be back. Your parents weren't exactly on board when you left; now you're a freaking hero!"
"Yeah, my parents are proud alright." Jake answered. "Everything's wonderful. We knock down one bad guy and an even bigger bad guy comes along, and now we just have to wait on HIM deciding to do something."
"Wow, way to dampen the mood." Noah grumbled. Just then, as he sat with Jake, he noticed something. His knuckles were badly bruised.
"Jake, what happened to your hand?" He asked. Jake just shrugged.
"I guess it happened when I hit Damaras." Jake answered.
"Wait, you were morphed when you fought him, the suit should have..." Noah's words tailed off as the two pieces of the puzzle clicked together. His mouth hung open. "You hit Troy?"
"What if I did?" Jake asked.
"Last time I checked, you don't make a habit of going around cold-cocking your team mates!" Noah stated. "Jake, the Armada's coming in strong; we know they'll strike any moment now!"
"I know that Noah!" Jake answered.
"We have enough problems right now Jake!" Noah snapped at him. "The Armada's causing us enough headaches, they don't need our help!"
Jake just turned away from him. Noah ran a hand through his hair as he tried to keep his cool.
"So, are you going to tell me exactly WHY you punched Troy?" Noah asked.
Jake just turned towards him, taking a deep breath.
"I can't tell you." He answered. "Not yet anyway."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Noah asked.
"Just...trust me on this." Jake told him. "You'll hear all about it soon enough."
A little later, at the Goodall place, Louise and the girls had gone home after visiting time. They were all sitting down to lasagne when the doorbell rang. Gia looked to Emma.
"Well, neither of us is expecting anyone." She said with a little smile. Emma just looked to Louise, who nodded.
"You can always heat some in the microwave." Louise told her.
Emma got up, with a huge smile on her face. She went to the door, stopping by the mirror to straighten out her hair as she got there. She opened the door, finding Troy standing on the doorstep.
"Hi Troy, today's been incredible, you won't believe what..." Her words tailed off as he stepped into the light, and she could see his face. By now, his eyes were both black, and his nose was pretty unmissable. "...What happened?"
"Emma, please..."
"What happened, who did this to you?" Emma rushed out. "Are you alright?"
"Emma, I'm fine really." He told her. "I have a headache, but..."
"Hey, what's all the...WHAO!" Gia said as she arrived in the hall. "What happened to you?"
"Gia, would you please give us a moment?" Troy asked her. Emma just nodded to indicate it was alright. She just reached up to his face.
"Troy, are you...?"
"Please, Emma I'm fine, I just...I have something I really need to talk to you about." He told her, taking her outside for some privacy.
"What's this about Troy?" She asked him. He took a deep breath as he tried to find a way to begin.
"Emma, there's not an easy way to tell you this." He sighed as he struggled to bring this up. Looking into Emma's eyes, he could see she was already worried. "A lot about me has changed since I got back to Harwood."
"Yeah, you've already told me that." Emma answered. "I know but..."
"Emma, the thing is, a lot has happened." He told her. "When I lost my leg, all I could think about was getting stronger, to be able to come back and get back into the fight."
"I know and I was always hoping..."
"The thing is, it was a lot more than just my body I needed to get used to all this." He told her. "I spent so long being so angry that this happened, and I was trying to use that to fuel me, but in the end, it was holding me back. When Allison took me to the support group and I could see others learning to deal with things that happened to them, it really changed a lot."
"Troy, what is this about?" Emma asked him, starting to become worried. Troy just looked to her regretfully. The last thing he wanted to do was cause her any more pain. Emma had already been through a lot recently. Unfortunately, he knew this was something he had to tell her.
"I've been spending a lot of time with Allison." He told her. "Between the support group, and just a lot of other stuff, and somewhere along the way, something just changed."
"You and Allison?" Emma asked him. Troy looked to her regretfully.
"We realised we had a lot more in common than we first realised, and we just got closer." Troy continued. "Emma, I'm really sorry."
"Do you love her?" Emma asked him. Troy nodded sadly as he approached her.
"Emma, I would have told you sooner, but between The Armada and all this stuff with your dad, I really didn't want to see you hurt anymore." Troy told her. Emma just wiped away some tears.
"So, do you love her?" Emma asked him. "Is this it? Is it over?"
Troy just gulped as he struggled to remain strong. He never wanted to hurt Emma, but he couldn't deny what was in his heart. It wouldn't be fair to either of them to let things continue.
"Emma, I really am sorry about this." He told her.
"So am I." Emma answered. "I really think you should leave."
"Emma..."
"Troy, if you want to do what's right by me, please just go." Emma interrupted him. "I really have to not be around you right now."
Troy nodded in understanding, before leaving the house, closing the door behind him. As he did, Gia came out into the hall.
"Did Troy just..." As she arrived though, she could see Emma beginning to tear up. She just went over, hugging her tightly.