Abdalon, Kimberly, and Tommy settled in for their monthly sync. It had taken them the better part of a year to get a routine that worked, but they were finally in a place where there was a concerted effort to truly restore the balance between Prophets, Power Rangers, and Guardians. Restarting the academies had been an integral part of the process, but it was straining all of them more than they wanted to admit. The first class of cadets was small, with only ten being considered and Kimberly had not had any prophecies that helped them find any other prophets. There were some that the Guardians were monitoring while the Power Ranger numbers replenished, but none of them had started having issues. It also seemed like almost all of her prophecies were currently about Kiros, which caused more contention than any of them wanted.

"How have you been?" Abdalon asked as the couple glanced at each other and then back at him. "Is something going on?"

"We just got Cam's first treatment report," Kim muttered as she leaned back in her chair and looked over at Tommy. She was still trying to process it, but she knew that she was in a better state to actually talk about it. Tommy was so frustrated that they had let things get this bad right under their noses. "He's in so much pain. Erick assesses that he probably needs at least two or three more months of inpatient treatment, followed by continued outpatient treatment for the foreseeable future. I wish…"

"He wasn't ready to go before then and we just barely got him there. It was as soon as we could, babe," Tommy said as Kim barely nodded and she, absentmindedly, started rubbing her stomach.

"Is there any other news?" Abdalon asked, pointedly, as he glanced at Kimberly's stomach and then back up at Tommy. Tommy smiled over as Kimberly continued her ministrations, completely oblivious to what Abdalon had said. "How far along?"

"Five months. We've kept it pretty quiet. There were some concerns at the beginning and we just…" Tommy trailed off as Abdalon smiled over at him and nodded. There wasn't much that they were able to keep private between the Power Ranger Academy starting up, Kimberly transitioning to streaming media, and the dojo also taking off. He understood why this news was something that they would keep to themselves for as long as possible. "But we're not here to talk about these things."

"I'd say that we are- just as much as we're here to talk about issues we may be having. Our lives affect how we are able to do our jobs," Abdalon stated as Kim gave the both of them confused glances. "Congratulations."

"You told him?" Kim accused as Tommy quirked an eyebrow and she began chewing on her lower lip. "I wasn't paying attention again?"

"Something like that. I think you may have gotten lost in feet kicks and punches for a second," Tommy said as her eyes widened and she then glanced at Abdalon. "We're going to have to tell everyone pretty soon. I'm surprised more people at the Academy haven't asked."

"Do you have any more news on Guardian communication?" Kim asked, changing the subject and Tommy let out a groan. "I'm not going to do anything for the next five months, but it's been over a year, Tommy. I keep seeing that Kiros is getting closer and we're no closer to being able to warn Thomas. We have to warn Thomas, to prepare him- so he can do something this time."

"Maybe we aren't meant to warn him. Maybe…maybe the pull works both ways," Tommy stated as Kim just shook her head. She did not want to have this argument again. "I know you don't agree, but we never asked Thomas to show up. He just did."

"We've started hearing back for our fall registration," Kim changed the subject, again, as Abdalon nodded. "There's some odd…"

"You've found more ranger children?" Abdalon asked as he watched them exchange a glance. "They don't know?"

"We can't be completely sure, but Emily's son…" Tommy trailed off as he let out a long sigh. Jason had been in and out of Angel Grove for years. He knew that Jason and Emily had stayed close, but it didn't seem like Jason to just leave out that he had a son. For as close as they had been, he thought that he would have dropped a hint at being a dad along the way. "I didn't even know she had a son, much less one old enough that he could be considered for the Academy."

"There's also Katherine's daughter. She's 15- so she's one of the youngest we're considering…" Kim trailed off as Abdalon nodded. He knew the complicated history between Tommy and Katherine and how that had adversely affected Katherine over the years. "I don't know that we can ask their families…"

"You didn't send the screening letter to either of them?" Abdalon asked and they both shook their heads no. "Legacies are important, eventually we are going to need more ranger families than yours…I know that these are your friends' children, but-

"We know. We just…we are going back out to California in a couple months. Dad is turning 60 and Mom has a party planned. We thought we'd go talk to them, in person," Tommy said as Abdalon just shook his head. "You think it is a bad idea?"

"I think that the both of you are far braver than I am," Abdalon supplied as they stared at him. It didn't seem like a brave thing to them to ask their dead friends' children to fill the ranger ranks, it actually seemed supremely selfish. "But I also think that the best bet we have for getting legacies in, especially with how things went for their parents, is you talking to the family- in person."

"I hate when you're right about this stuff," Tommy grumbled as Kim forced a sad smile. "Other than those two- the screenings have gone out to people that the Command Center has identified as potential rangers. There were only 8 worldwide."

"Plus two ranger children- so another ten," Abdalon stated as they both nodded. "If we move to the model Thomas suggested- it's another three years before your rangers are 25. The oldest ones in the Academy…"

"The current rangers know that they are probably on the hook until they are at least 27. None of us like it, but…" Tommy trailed off as he ran his fingers through his hair and let out a long sigh. There were so many pressures with opening the academy that they had never factored in until now. They had been feeling more financial pressure over the last few months and while the dojo was still generating a great deal of business- their overhead had soared in the past year. Kimberly's streaming revenue was surprisingly consistent, but they both knew it depended on her continuing to make content. Their issue with Kiros meant that there would be at least one or two sudden disappearances and that could completely cut off that revenue stream. "We all agree that this can't be a for profit Academy, but providing housing and well…the magical Command Center food only does so much for our staff. They need more and I don't know how we give to them."

"We want for them to have a way to be able to walk away from this as they get older, if the powers don't pick them, or if they just decide that it is a bad fit for their life," Kim supplied as Abdalon nodded. Over the last year they had discovered just how many Guardians were ready to leave the ranks and it couldn't be ignored that the Power Rangers would want the same. The Prophets- they hadn't seen any evidence that the powers would disappear at some point in their lives, but there might be ways to lessen their connections as well. "We won't get that option until we're in our 60s. I'd like for them…"

"I think Julia and Axel are in for life. Brandon is working on an MBA and has a family business he's expected to take over at some point. Patrick and Cam also seem like they are comfortable with staying…" Abdalon trailed off as Tommy just shook his head. "They aren't?"

"They're 22, 23. The career that I planned at that age is nowhere near where I am now. We just…I just want for them to have other options and to do that- they need to have some sort of financial stability. I don't see how we're able to provide that right now," Tommy said as Abdalon nodded and then moved over to his computer and began clicking away. The silence was only interrupted by keystrokes and mouse clicks for the next few minutes as he searched for something.

"Ah…yes- here it is," Abdalon muttered as he opened a page and then turned his computer screen around. "It seems that William established various investment accounts over the centuries that he fed into various bank accounts while he was still on Earth. The Guardians have held on to those accounts- with Billy also being a Power Ranger and having no descendents…it's a possibility we could use those accounts and continue to invest and collect interest so that we don't deplete them to a dangerous level. There also was, traditionally, a donation account when the last Academy existed."

"What was that for?" Kim asked as Tommy just shook his head as the reality hit him.

"It was a way for the people that the Power Rangers saved- to give back," Tommy stated as he let out a long sigh. He didn't like the idea of being a charity case, but he also had been asked more than once by someone that had been saved by a Power Ranger how they could financially help. "We'll have to talk to our accountant and see what would need to be done to set things up appropriately, but they're both options we should look into."

"I'll get you the information. I'm confident that you can contact Billy about these things," Abdalon stated as Tommy nodded. "Our Academy class for next year will be roughly 100, but we're expecting that class to be cut to 25 or so by the time they can finish the Academy. The ratio is roughly what it needs to be for the size classes you're expecting."

"Two guardians per ranger. What did I get?" Tommy joked as Abdalon grimaced and he glanced over at him. "That many?"

"Roberto is excellent at his duties, but when you were in your prime…" Abdalon trailed off as he shook his head. "Just know that if any of your children are even half as strong as either of you…we'll have to increase the class sizes by quite a bit. Any other business?"

"Can you give us a second?" Tommy asked as Kim looked over at him and then raised her hands in surrender before she stood up and headed out of the conference room. He watched as the door closed and then he looked back over at Abdalon. "What aren't you telling us?"

"We've heard from Atlantis. The one in Thomas's world- I really wish we had known she was pregnant before today," Abdalon stated as Tommy let out a groan as he pushed himself away from the table and started pacing. "He estimates you'll get pulled over sometime in the next two months. It's what Kimberly saw."

"What else is it?" Tommy asked as Abdalon shook his head. "Abe- the woman outside those doors is my responsibility. She's mine to keep safe and our child…"

"Atlantis said he looked forward to meeting the both of you," Abdalon stated as Tommy froze and his shoulders sagged. He did not want to meet Atlantis again. "Your children will be taken care of…you'll just have to…"

"Worry about my pregnant wife in a foreign world where the one being that can kill her is alive and hunting that world's version of Jay. Yeah…I'll just have to deal with that," Tommy ground out as he stared out the windows and then let out a long sigh. "She's going to read me like a book when I walk out of here."

"She's a prophetess- what did you expect?" Abdalon retorted as Tommy gathered his materials and nodded a thanks to Abdalon before he left the room. Abdalon sank into his chair as the door swung closed and he let out a long sigh. He would never stop Tommy from completing his destiny, but he was also acutely aware of how much more dangerous their world would be while he was away.