Cataclysm (Tsukino Akume, Drama/Friendship)
Today I have learned that Evil Soup is actually quite tasty. A bit spicy, though.
And hey, check it out! It's not dead!
-Prods bunnies more-
Title/: Cataclysm
Author/: Tsukino Akume
Relationship/: Andros/Ashley, Zhane/Karone, mentions of Cassie/Phantom
Rating/: K+
Warnings/: emotional trauma, mentally disturbed people, depression
Disclaimer/: If I owned the Power Rangers, this universe would exist. We would have known who the Phantom Ranger was - and it *would* have been a girl because I'm weird like that - and team snuggles would be mandatory every episode. As none of that is cannon, it's safe to assume that I don't.
Summary/: When Astronema was defeated, the Astro Rangers gave up more than their Powers. Reporters, fans, and long-lost relatives are coming out of the woodwork as the team struggles to adjust to it all. Bright Skies Universe.
Theme/: #35. Flashlight
Author's Notes/: I hate information dump chapters. -Glares and kicks chapter-
Love to rosabelle for beta! ♥
Cassie poked at her eggs with a sigh.
Zhane nudged her side gently. "You need to eat more," he reprimanded softly.
She gave him a look.
The corner of his mouth twitched. "I meant today," he clarified. "If today's going to be as long as I think it is, you'll need your strength."
She sighed and poked her eggs again, forcing herself to take another bite. Chewing slowly and methodically, she tried not to think about how tasteless it was as she swallowed and looked at Zhane expectantly. "Am I done now?" she mocked gently.
He rolled his eyes and elbowed her lightly again.
"What are we going to do?" Ashley murmured suddenly. She'd eaten even less than Cassie had, staring blankly at her plate with her chin resting on her hands.
Andros reached out to squeeze her hand, frowning in worry.
"I'm staying out of the house as much as possible," T.J. muttered darkly, scowling. "I don't want to be home any more than I have to right now."
"We should probably talk to Adam," Carlos admitted, looking reluctant. "He said he had something to tell us, right?"
Cassie frowned slightly. "Try him now," she suggested. "The sooner we talk to him, the sooner we can get this out of the way. I need to get home soon," she added, thinking of Jetson with a pang.
Her communicator went off just as Carlos nodded and reached for his own. She blinked, answering it cautiously. "This is Cassie," she said warily.
"Gooooood morning, Vietnam!" an unfamiliar voice rang out cheerfully.
There was a sigh, sounding much closer than the first voice had. "Rocky... " A pause. "This is Adam. Sorry to contact you so early Cassie, but we figured it was best to contact you all as soon as we knew you were awake."
She frowned. "We were just about to call you, actually. But ... how did you know I was awake?"
Another pause.
"There was a picture of you on the morning news, looking out a window," Adam explained awkwardly.
Her eyes widened. "Wh ... what?" she whispered, feeling cold.
A warm hand came up to squeeze her shoulder. "Cassie?" she heard T.J. say, sounding worried. "Cassie, take a deep breath for me, okay?"
No. No no no. This can't be happening, she chanted silently. She hunched forward, burying her head in her hands as she took in several shaky breaths. I spent all this time being so careful ... This *cannot* be happening!
The hand was rubbing her back now, and she heard more voices in the distance. Maybe they didn't see it, she thought hopefully. Mom's usually too busy to watch the morning news, and Dad's long gone by then. They might not even know. And if they don't know, then there's nothing to worry about. So it's okay. No one knows where I am. It's fine. It's fine.
She brought her head up slowly and found the others gathered around her, watching her worriedly. She blinked.
"Cassie?" Ashley asked cautiously, looking anxious. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she said automatically. She paused and shook her head slowly. "I just ... " She ran a hand over her hair and shrugged helplessly. There was nothing to explain exactly what she was feeling right now.
Ashley rubbed her arms soothingly, offering a hesitant smile. "It'll be okay," she promised, but the look in her eyes was too scared to make Cassie believe it.
"We'll make it okay," Zhane agreed behind her, his hand coming up to touch the back of her neck. "And hey, if lawsuits don't work on your planet, I'm totally willing to do assassinations," he said earnestly.
It was so random and completely *Zhane* that she burst out laughing. After a moment she looked up to offer him a grin. "Thanks, Zhane," she said sincerely. She knew he would know what she meant.
"You think I'm kidding?" he asked innocently, batting his eyelashes at her. But the hand on the back of her neck squeezed slightly in understanding.
She snorted. "No," she said ruefully. "Actually, I don't."
"Are you feeling better now?" Andros interrupted, narrowing his eyes at Zhane briefly before looking at her. His tone was short, but the subtle concern in his eyes was still visible. "We told Adam we'd be up to the Dark Fortress as soon as possible."
She swallowed down the last of her nerves and took a deep breath, forcing a smile. "Let's go," she said firmly.
****
The first thing Cassie noticed when the pink sparkles cleared from her vision was a pair of feet. They were small, wearing a pair of worn sneakers, and sticking out from under a console. "How's that?" a feminine voice called.
"Gimme a sec," returned a deep, male voice. "This is Ranger Base. Can you guys hear us?"
"Loud and clear," answered a male voice from somewhere they couldn't see. Cassie thought he sounded familiar.
"Gottcha," put in another woman.
"It's about time," complained yet another woman.
"You're welcome!" called the woman under the console.
There was a pause, and all three voices rang out "Thank you, Trini!"
Trini laughed, sliding out at last. She was very pretty, with long dark hair and kind, dark eyes. Her jeans were worn, and there was a grease streak on her bright yellow tank top. Large gold hoops hung from her ears, ringing softly as she turned to greet the Astro Rangers with a smile. "Hello," she said warmly. "It's nice to finally meet you all. I'm Trini." She offered a hand, which Andros shook automatically.
"Andros of KO-35," he returned formally, inclining his head politely.
Trini's smile widened, and she ran her eyes carefully over each of them. "Are any of you hurt?" she asked, sounding genuinely concerned. "We never had a chance to see if you needed anything before you left."
"We're fine," Ashley promised, stepping forward to offer her own hand. "I'm Ashley," she added, tilting her head curiously. "I don't think we've met?"
"Trini was one of Earth's first Rangers," a familiar voice spoke up behind them.
"Adam!" Carlos greeted brightly as he turned around. "How are you, man?"
Adam gave a slight wry smile. "I've been better. You got the comm fixed, Trini?"
She nodded. "Just some faulty wiring. Nothing impossible to repair," she said lightly, giving him a teasing grin.
Adam rolled his eyes. "I'm sorry we pulled you out of class, but you're the only one we could find who knows what they're doing."
"That's for sure," added another man as he joined them all. This one was tall and dark haired, folding his arms across his muscular chest as he gave Trini a look. "And if we'd tried to fix it without you, you'd just yell at me later for doing it wrong."
"I don't yell," Trini sniffed, but she was trying not to smile.
"Incoming!" called another voice.
A sharp bark caught Cassie's attention, followed by the sound of nails scraping across metal flooring. She whirled, already falling to her knees with a relieved smile. "Jetson!"
He barreled into her, wagging his tail so hard his entire body wriggled as he tried to lick her face eagerly. She laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him tight. "I missed you too, boy." She looked up as she pushed him down before he could knock her over, frowning at Adam. "What's he doing here?"
Adam, Trini, and the other man exchanged glances.
"We had to rescue him," explained another man as he joined them. This one had dark hair cropped even shorter than the man in red, dressed in a blue T-shirt and jeans. "We figured you wouldn't mind, considering the circumstances. I'm Rocky," he added.
"Jason," put in the man in Red, offering Andros a hand.
"Andros of KO-35," Andros returned solemnly, and Cassie fought a grin as T.J. rolled his eyes behind him.
She stood up, offering her own hand as the rest of her team introduced themselves. "And I'm Cassie. Thanks for taking care of Jetson for me."
"Are you kidding?" Rocky asked with a grin. "He's the best part of working up here."
"You might want to keep an eye on him," Adam warned, smirking faintly at the other man. "Just in case Rocky tries to keep him."
"It's a match made in heaven," Jason quipped.
Trini laughed as Rocky glared at them both. "You both play with him just as much as anyone does," she reminded them gently. "Rocky just has the energy to play with him longer."
"I rest my case," Jason returned, grinning as Rocky aimed a punch at his shoulder.
"Why did you need to rescue Jetson?" Ashley piped up, frowning as she reached down to pet him absently.
The four of them exchanged looks again, visibly hesitating. "Maybe we should sit down," Trini suggested carefully.
"If this is about the whole world knowing who we are, we already know," Carlos cut in, looking irritated. "We found out this morning."
"That's part of it," Jason agreed calmly. "But it's a little more involved than that."
"Involved how?" T.J. asked warily, folding his arms as he frowned.
"We can sit down in the war room," Karone spoke up, studying Jason with a calculating expression. "It's just down the hall."
"Is that one of the ones we couldn't get open?" Rocky asked, frowning.
"Possibly," Karone returned over her shoulder as she headed down the hall.
Andros rolled his eyes and followed her as Zhane snickered.
Cassie found herself falling in step beside Rocky as the rest of them trailed after, one hand on Jetson's collar. Now that she had him back, she was a little afraid to let go. She glanced at Rocky. "Thanks for taking care of him," she said sincerely.
He gave her an easy smile. "Aw, it was fun. It was getting a little dark and creepy up here, so it was nice to have someone to play with. We've all been taking turns keeping him company."
"All?" she echoed, confused.
He smiled, but only held the door open for her.
"All right," Jason began at some unspoken signal as they finally settled around the large table in the center of the war room. "The first thing you should know is that yes, the world knows who you are now. You're celebrities. Which means that everyone in Angel Grove wants to get close to you."
"That's why we brought Jetson here," Trini said softly. "Your neighbor was advertising pictures with the Pink Ranger's dog for a fee."
"We snuck in in the middle of the night and brought him up," Rocky added, looking grim.
Cassie stared at them in horror. Her hand tightened on Jetson's collar. "Mrs. Franklin was ... ?"
She couldn't finish that sentence.
"I wish we could say that's the worst thing that's happened," Jason said solemnly, "But there's been worse."
"My parents said my cousin couldn't get into her classes," Ashley whispered, gripping Andros' hand as she looked pale.
Adam nodded. "Anyone that's got a connection to you has been surrounded by the media. Family, friends ... "
"You probably won't see Justin for awhile," Rocky warned. "His dad's got him practically under lock and key."
"Is he all right?" T.J. asked, leaning forward with a frown.
Rocky shrugged. "He's fine, physically. A little bitter and annoyed, but that's just Justin."
Cassie frowned, absently scratching behind Jetson's ear as he wagged his tail in bliss. It is?
"But that's not the only thing we need to talk about," Jason interrupted, looking serious. He started to speak and stopped, a pained expression coming over his face. "Do you remember the golden wave that appeared, and took out all the Quantrons?" he asked finally.
The Astro Rangers all nodded. Andros' expression tightened, and Karone reached out to take his hand tentatively. He flinched, then suddenly gripped back tightly. "It was Zordon," he said stiffly, and if she hadn't known him, Cassie wouldn't have understood just how much that hurt him to admit.
Trini was giving Andros an odd, searching look, but she nodded slowly. "He went to each of us and said goodbye." She swallowed, tears shining in her eyes for a moment. "And he gave us a gift."
"Each of us?" Zhane asked, frowning.
"The other Rangers," Karone murmured, giving the four of them a strangely calculating expression. She shrugged lightly as the Astro Rangers looked at her in surprise. "Angel Grove wasn't the only place on Earth I attacked," she said simply. "It was just the best defended."
Andros scowled at her. "I thought you said you didn't remember - "
"I don't," she interrupted, giving him a look. "But I can still read a computer log."
Zhane tried and failed to hide a snicker, and Andros gave him a dark look.
Cassie ducked her head to hide her smile, pretending to cuddle Jetson.
" ... You attacked?" Jason asked slowly.
Andros and Zhane both stiffened, but Karone met Jason's gaze calmly. "I am ... was, Astronema."
"You were brainwashed," Zhane cut in, glaring at her.
"For three months," Karone agreed, her eyes flickering to him briefly before returning to Jason. "But before that I was willing."
"You were raised to believe you were evil. That's not the same thing," Andros said sharply.
Cassie frowned, sighing softly and patting Jetson soothingly as he whined. They all knew that things were going to be ... awkward, with Karone for awhile. But Zhane and Andros' determination not to let her be blamed for anything was only making things worse. "Guys," she interrupted quietly. "Not the time."
Zhane muttered something under his breath, but quieted. Andros settled for glaring at Karone, who blatantly ignored him in favor of looking at Jason, Trini, Rocky, and Adam.
Jason was giving Karone an odd look Cassie couldn't read. "You're in good company," he said finally.
Karone blinked, startled.
A wry smile tugged at the corner of Jason's mouth. "Former servant of Maligore, the flame of destruction." He pointed at Rocky and Adam. "Spell from Zedd's Hatemaster monster."
Something darkened in Adam's eyes, and Rocky slightly shuddered.
"Tommy and Kat were both brainwashed by Rita Repulsa," Trini offered. "Kim was another servant of Maligore. And they were some of our longest serving Rangers." She reached across the table to squeeze Karone's hand, which was still clenched in Andros'. "You're not the only one who's done things they regret."
Karone blinked for a moment, and her eyes seemed a little too bright. "Thank you," she said softly.
Carlos was frowning thoughtfully. "I was turned into a vampire once," he murmured. "And there was the spell on Ashley's jackets ... "
Rocky snorted. "Spells and turning evil are practically required for being a Ranger."
Adam made a face. "Don't give me ideas about Rita. Please."
"Rita?" T.J. echoed with a frown.
"Another side effect of the wave," Jason explained. "Rita Repulsa, Zedd, Divatox, and a few others have been turned good. The Machine Empire is gone, along with pretty much any evil force within the nearest three galaxies."
"*Divatox* is good?" Carlos demanded incredulously.
Rocky grinned wryly. "Yeah, that's been about the usual reaction."
Cassie blinked for several moments, trying to picture Divatox as anything but ... Divatox.
"So ... what happened to all the other Rangers?" T.J. spoke up eventually, frowning. "How were you even ... ?"
"Astronema's attack was very coordinated," Trini told them as everyone pretended not to notice the fierce pride that flashed across Karone's face. "She chose ten major cities to attack. What she didn't know at the time, is that there *were* Rangers who still had Powers left on Earth. We couldn't just stand by and let people be hurt."
"Trini and Kat protected London," Jason added with a nod. "Kim was in Paris visiting her mother, and Aisha made it to Cairo ... somehow. No one really knows how she did it. Zack's school is in New York, and the three of us, Tanya, and Justin all still live in Angel Grove."
"You were the ones keeping the crowd back," Cassie realized.
Jason nodded again. "We all had some sort of powers left, so we made do with what we had."
"But that's not the most important part," Trini said patiently. "The wave ... it did more than just purify evil. It restored our powers."
"All of them," Adam put in.
Cassie stared at them. She wasn't the only one.
" ... You can do that?" Ashley asked slowly.
Rocky grinned faintly. "After about two years of being a Ranger, you learn that Zordon can do just about anything."
Trini smiled at that, but Cassie noted the way she squeezed Jason's arm as he swallowed hard and looked away. Adam managed a slight smile, but his eyes were shadowed.
They were grieving, she realized with a sudden pang. She hadn't known Zordon, not personally. But these were his Rangers, and they were still struggling to accept that he was gone.
She looked down at her lap, cuddling Jetson again as she tried to bury the feelings of guilt that suddenly welled.
"When you say all of them," Andros said slowly, looking wary.
"We mean all of them," Adam confirmed with a sigh. He reached behind him, placing what looked like a silver belt buckle on the table. Then he flicked his wrists, displaying a set of morphers that reminded Cassie of the Turbo Morphers. "No one's been able to figure out exactly how it works, but we've got every single Mighty Morphin Power Ranger back, and some of us are sharing Powers somehow. Then we've got the Zeo Rangers and the Ninja Powers. Justin's a Turbo Ranger again, but he said he already was." He glanced at Rocky.
Rocky shrugged. "He told me Storm Blaster wasn't talking, but whatever he did, he gave Justin a full-powered morpher."
"We know the Turbo Powers were restored too," Adam added. "But they went to you four instead of us."
Cassie frowned, automatically flicking her wrists as she focused on trying to find the Turbo Power she'd lost nearly a year ago. Her eyes widened as they appeared in a flash of pink light. "I don't understand ... " She looked up, puzzled. "Shouldn't these be Kat's?"
"We think because the Zeo Rangers had their Powers restored, the Turbo Powers *had* to go to the four of you," Trini explained. "The Turbo Powers were based off the Zeo Crystal, so our theory is that they couldn't be held by the same person."
"Gave us some interesting side effects, though," Rocky spoke up. He grinned wryly. "Apparently when Justin and I morph at the same time, we start reading each others' minds."
Zhane gave him an odd look. "That's not normal for you?"
Cassie rolled her eyes fondly as Rocky chuckled. "Not really, no. Scared me half to death when I morphed and all of a sudden I can hear Justin swearing up a storm in my head."
T.J. stared at him. "*Justin* swears?"
"As much as the Power allows," Rocky agreed with a nod. He gave another slight smile, but this time it seemed sad. "When we're morphed, we can share thoughts, and I kind of get an idea of where he's at and how he's doing. Only when I'm Blue Zeo, though. It didn't work as Red."
Carlos stared first at him, then at Adam. "That's ... really creepy."
Adam snorted, looking amused. "Thank you. I'm glad someone agrees with me."
"Sounds like you've gotten a lot done while we were gone," Andros spoke up. There was a strangely blank expression on his face, but Cassie read it as surprise and tried not to roll her eyes again. A year of fighting together, and Andros still had trouble admitting that Earth wasn't as backwards as he wanted to believe.
"There are eleven of us," Trini pointed out with a smile. "We all have our specialties, and we're used to working together. It wasn't that hard to organize."
"What have you done so far?" Zhane asked, looking intrigued.
"The major cities that were hit hardest in the attack - " Jason paused, glancing around. "Rocky, do you still have the map?"
"Got it," Adam spoke up, standing up.
He returned with a large world map, which was spread over the center of the table.
"The attack focused on major cities in major countries all over the world," Jason went on. He pointed to several spots on the map that had been circled in different colors. "Rome, Sydney, Hong Kong, Tokyo, and Brasilia are in the worst shape, because there weren't any Rangers there at the time. London, Paris, Cairo, and New York are bad, but they're in better shape than the rest. Angel Grove is in the most damaged even though we had Rangers here, because it was the center of the attack. We've designated a Ranger to each city as their representative for the cleanup effort, and to monitor communications between them and us up here at the base. "
"Justin doesn't have a city," Rocky put in, "Since he can't get out much. But he sneaks up here to help out whenever he can."
"We keep one person up here at all times, in case there's any incoming calls," Trini added. "We take turns as often as we can, since most of us are in school."
Rocky grinned. "Adam got the short end of the stick, since he hasn't had much work lately."
Adam gave him a dirty look, which he ignored.
"This is amazing," Zhane murmured, looking over the map. He glanced up with a puzzled frown. "But I thought Earth was never a war zone."
"It wasn't," Jason agreed. "But like Trini said, we all have our talents."
I think we're starting to get that, Cassie thought wryly, looking over the map.
And hey, check it out! It's not dead!
-Prods bunnies more-
Title/: Cataclysm
Author/: Tsukino Akume
Relationship/: Andros/Ashley, Zhane/Karone, mentions of Cassie/Phantom
Rating/: K+
Warnings/: emotional trauma, mentally disturbed people, depression
Disclaimer/: If I owned the Power Rangers, this universe would exist. We would have known who the Phantom Ranger was - and it *would* have been a girl because I'm weird like that - and team snuggles would be mandatory every episode. As none of that is cannon, it's safe to assume that I don't.
Summary/: When Astronema was defeated, the Astro Rangers gave up more than their Powers. Reporters, fans, and long-lost relatives are coming out of the woodwork as the team struggles to adjust to it all. Bright Skies Universe.
Theme/: #35. Flashlight
Author's Notes/: I hate information dump chapters. -Glares and kicks chapter-
Love to rosabelle for beta! ♥
Cassie poked at her eggs with a sigh.
Zhane nudged her side gently. "You need to eat more," he reprimanded softly.
She gave him a look.
The corner of his mouth twitched. "I meant today," he clarified. "If today's going to be as long as I think it is, you'll need your strength."
She sighed and poked her eggs again, forcing herself to take another bite. Chewing slowly and methodically, she tried not to think about how tasteless it was as she swallowed and looked at Zhane expectantly. "Am I done now?" she mocked gently.
He rolled his eyes and elbowed her lightly again.
"What are we going to do?" Ashley murmured suddenly. She'd eaten even less than Cassie had, staring blankly at her plate with her chin resting on her hands.
Andros reached out to squeeze her hand, frowning in worry.
"I'm staying out of the house as much as possible," T.J. muttered darkly, scowling. "I don't want to be home any more than I have to right now."
"We should probably talk to Adam," Carlos admitted, looking reluctant. "He said he had something to tell us, right?"
Cassie frowned slightly. "Try him now," she suggested. "The sooner we talk to him, the sooner we can get this out of the way. I need to get home soon," she added, thinking of Jetson with a pang.
Her communicator went off just as Carlos nodded and reached for his own. She blinked, answering it cautiously. "This is Cassie," she said warily.
"Gooooood morning, Vietnam!" an unfamiliar voice rang out cheerfully.
There was a sigh, sounding much closer than the first voice had. "Rocky... " A pause. "This is Adam. Sorry to contact you so early Cassie, but we figured it was best to contact you all as soon as we knew you were awake."
She frowned. "We were just about to call you, actually. But ... how did you know I was awake?"
Another pause.
"There was a picture of you on the morning news, looking out a window," Adam explained awkwardly.
Her eyes widened. "Wh ... what?" she whispered, feeling cold.
A warm hand came up to squeeze her shoulder. "Cassie?" she heard T.J. say, sounding worried. "Cassie, take a deep breath for me, okay?"
No. No no no. This can't be happening, she chanted silently. She hunched forward, burying her head in her hands as she took in several shaky breaths. I spent all this time being so careful ... This *cannot* be happening!
The hand was rubbing her back now, and she heard more voices in the distance. Maybe they didn't see it, she thought hopefully. Mom's usually too busy to watch the morning news, and Dad's long gone by then. They might not even know. And if they don't know, then there's nothing to worry about. So it's okay. No one knows where I am. It's fine. It's fine.
She brought her head up slowly and found the others gathered around her, watching her worriedly. She blinked.
"Cassie?" Ashley asked cautiously, looking anxious. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she said automatically. She paused and shook her head slowly. "I just ... " She ran a hand over her hair and shrugged helplessly. There was nothing to explain exactly what she was feeling right now.
Ashley rubbed her arms soothingly, offering a hesitant smile. "It'll be okay," she promised, but the look in her eyes was too scared to make Cassie believe it.
"We'll make it okay," Zhane agreed behind her, his hand coming up to touch the back of her neck. "And hey, if lawsuits don't work on your planet, I'm totally willing to do assassinations," he said earnestly.
It was so random and completely *Zhane* that she burst out laughing. After a moment she looked up to offer him a grin. "Thanks, Zhane," she said sincerely. She knew he would know what she meant.
"You think I'm kidding?" he asked innocently, batting his eyelashes at her. But the hand on the back of her neck squeezed slightly in understanding.
She snorted. "No," she said ruefully. "Actually, I don't."
"Are you feeling better now?" Andros interrupted, narrowing his eyes at Zhane briefly before looking at her. His tone was short, but the subtle concern in his eyes was still visible. "We told Adam we'd be up to the Dark Fortress as soon as possible."
She swallowed down the last of her nerves and took a deep breath, forcing a smile. "Let's go," she said firmly.
****
The first thing Cassie noticed when the pink sparkles cleared from her vision was a pair of feet. They were small, wearing a pair of worn sneakers, and sticking out from under a console. "How's that?" a feminine voice called.
"Gimme a sec," returned a deep, male voice. "This is Ranger Base. Can you guys hear us?"
"Loud and clear," answered a male voice from somewhere they couldn't see. Cassie thought he sounded familiar.
"Gottcha," put in another woman.
"It's about time," complained yet another woman.
"You're welcome!" called the woman under the console.
There was a pause, and all three voices rang out "Thank you, Trini!"
Trini laughed, sliding out at last. She was very pretty, with long dark hair and kind, dark eyes. Her jeans were worn, and there was a grease streak on her bright yellow tank top. Large gold hoops hung from her ears, ringing softly as she turned to greet the Astro Rangers with a smile. "Hello," she said warmly. "It's nice to finally meet you all. I'm Trini." She offered a hand, which Andros shook automatically.
"Andros of KO-35," he returned formally, inclining his head politely.
Trini's smile widened, and she ran her eyes carefully over each of them. "Are any of you hurt?" she asked, sounding genuinely concerned. "We never had a chance to see if you needed anything before you left."
"We're fine," Ashley promised, stepping forward to offer her own hand. "I'm Ashley," she added, tilting her head curiously. "I don't think we've met?"
"Trini was one of Earth's first Rangers," a familiar voice spoke up behind them.
"Adam!" Carlos greeted brightly as he turned around. "How are you, man?"
Adam gave a slight wry smile. "I've been better. You got the comm fixed, Trini?"
She nodded. "Just some faulty wiring. Nothing impossible to repair," she said lightly, giving him a teasing grin.
Adam rolled his eyes. "I'm sorry we pulled you out of class, but you're the only one we could find who knows what they're doing."
"That's for sure," added another man as he joined them all. This one was tall and dark haired, folding his arms across his muscular chest as he gave Trini a look. "And if we'd tried to fix it without you, you'd just yell at me later for doing it wrong."
"I don't yell," Trini sniffed, but she was trying not to smile.
"Incoming!" called another voice.
A sharp bark caught Cassie's attention, followed by the sound of nails scraping across metal flooring. She whirled, already falling to her knees with a relieved smile. "Jetson!"
He barreled into her, wagging his tail so hard his entire body wriggled as he tried to lick her face eagerly. She laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him tight. "I missed you too, boy." She looked up as she pushed him down before he could knock her over, frowning at Adam. "What's he doing here?"
Adam, Trini, and the other man exchanged glances.
"We had to rescue him," explained another man as he joined them. This one had dark hair cropped even shorter than the man in red, dressed in a blue T-shirt and jeans. "We figured you wouldn't mind, considering the circumstances. I'm Rocky," he added.
"Jason," put in the man in Red, offering Andros a hand.
"Andros of KO-35," Andros returned solemnly, and Cassie fought a grin as T.J. rolled his eyes behind him.
She stood up, offering her own hand as the rest of her team introduced themselves. "And I'm Cassie. Thanks for taking care of Jetson for me."
"Are you kidding?" Rocky asked with a grin. "He's the best part of working up here."
"You might want to keep an eye on him," Adam warned, smirking faintly at the other man. "Just in case Rocky tries to keep him."
"It's a match made in heaven," Jason quipped.
Trini laughed as Rocky glared at them both. "You both play with him just as much as anyone does," she reminded them gently. "Rocky just has the energy to play with him longer."
"I rest my case," Jason returned, grinning as Rocky aimed a punch at his shoulder.
"Why did you need to rescue Jetson?" Ashley piped up, frowning as she reached down to pet him absently.
The four of them exchanged looks again, visibly hesitating. "Maybe we should sit down," Trini suggested carefully.
"If this is about the whole world knowing who we are, we already know," Carlos cut in, looking irritated. "We found out this morning."
"That's part of it," Jason agreed calmly. "But it's a little more involved than that."
"Involved how?" T.J. asked warily, folding his arms as he frowned.
"We can sit down in the war room," Karone spoke up, studying Jason with a calculating expression. "It's just down the hall."
"Is that one of the ones we couldn't get open?" Rocky asked, frowning.
"Possibly," Karone returned over her shoulder as she headed down the hall.
Andros rolled his eyes and followed her as Zhane snickered.
Cassie found herself falling in step beside Rocky as the rest of them trailed after, one hand on Jetson's collar. Now that she had him back, she was a little afraid to let go. She glanced at Rocky. "Thanks for taking care of him," she said sincerely.
He gave her an easy smile. "Aw, it was fun. It was getting a little dark and creepy up here, so it was nice to have someone to play with. We've all been taking turns keeping him company."
"All?" she echoed, confused.
He smiled, but only held the door open for her.
"All right," Jason began at some unspoken signal as they finally settled around the large table in the center of the war room. "The first thing you should know is that yes, the world knows who you are now. You're celebrities. Which means that everyone in Angel Grove wants to get close to you."
"That's why we brought Jetson here," Trini said softly. "Your neighbor was advertising pictures with the Pink Ranger's dog for a fee."
"We snuck in in the middle of the night and brought him up," Rocky added, looking grim.
Cassie stared at them in horror. Her hand tightened on Jetson's collar. "Mrs. Franklin was ... ?"
She couldn't finish that sentence.
"I wish we could say that's the worst thing that's happened," Jason said solemnly, "But there's been worse."
"My parents said my cousin couldn't get into her classes," Ashley whispered, gripping Andros' hand as she looked pale.
Adam nodded. "Anyone that's got a connection to you has been surrounded by the media. Family, friends ... "
"You probably won't see Justin for awhile," Rocky warned. "His dad's got him practically under lock and key."
"Is he all right?" T.J. asked, leaning forward with a frown.
Rocky shrugged. "He's fine, physically. A little bitter and annoyed, but that's just Justin."
Cassie frowned, absently scratching behind Jetson's ear as he wagged his tail in bliss. It is?
"But that's not the only thing we need to talk about," Jason interrupted, looking serious. He started to speak and stopped, a pained expression coming over his face. "Do you remember the golden wave that appeared, and took out all the Quantrons?" he asked finally.
The Astro Rangers all nodded. Andros' expression tightened, and Karone reached out to take his hand tentatively. He flinched, then suddenly gripped back tightly. "It was Zordon," he said stiffly, and if she hadn't known him, Cassie wouldn't have understood just how much that hurt him to admit.
Trini was giving Andros an odd, searching look, but she nodded slowly. "He went to each of us and said goodbye." She swallowed, tears shining in her eyes for a moment. "And he gave us a gift."
"Each of us?" Zhane asked, frowning.
"The other Rangers," Karone murmured, giving the four of them a strangely calculating expression. She shrugged lightly as the Astro Rangers looked at her in surprise. "Angel Grove wasn't the only place on Earth I attacked," she said simply. "It was just the best defended."
Andros scowled at her. "I thought you said you didn't remember - "
"I don't," she interrupted, giving him a look. "But I can still read a computer log."
Zhane tried and failed to hide a snicker, and Andros gave him a dark look.
Cassie ducked her head to hide her smile, pretending to cuddle Jetson.
" ... You attacked?" Jason asked slowly.
Andros and Zhane both stiffened, but Karone met Jason's gaze calmly. "I am ... was, Astronema."
"You were brainwashed," Zhane cut in, glaring at her.
"For three months," Karone agreed, her eyes flickering to him briefly before returning to Jason. "But before that I was willing."
"You were raised to believe you were evil. That's not the same thing," Andros said sharply.
Cassie frowned, sighing softly and patting Jetson soothingly as he whined. They all knew that things were going to be ... awkward, with Karone for awhile. But Zhane and Andros' determination not to let her be blamed for anything was only making things worse. "Guys," she interrupted quietly. "Not the time."
Zhane muttered something under his breath, but quieted. Andros settled for glaring at Karone, who blatantly ignored him in favor of looking at Jason, Trini, Rocky, and Adam.
Jason was giving Karone an odd look Cassie couldn't read. "You're in good company," he said finally.
Karone blinked, startled.
A wry smile tugged at the corner of Jason's mouth. "Former servant of Maligore, the flame of destruction." He pointed at Rocky and Adam. "Spell from Zedd's Hatemaster monster."
Something darkened in Adam's eyes, and Rocky slightly shuddered.
"Tommy and Kat were both brainwashed by Rita Repulsa," Trini offered. "Kim was another servant of Maligore. And they were some of our longest serving Rangers." She reached across the table to squeeze Karone's hand, which was still clenched in Andros'. "You're not the only one who's done things they regret."
Karone blinked for a moment, and her eyes seemed a little too bright. "Thank you," she said softly.
Carlos was frowning thoughtfully. "I was turned into a vampire once," he murmured. "And there was the spell on Ashley's jackets ... "
Rocky snorted. "Spells and turning evil are practically required for being a Ranger."
Adam made a face. "Don't give me ideas about Rita. Please."
"Rita?" T.J. echoed with a frown.
"Another side effect of the wave," Jason explained. "Rita Repulsa, Zedd, Divatox, and a few others have been turned good. The Machine Empire is gone, along with pretty much any evil force within the nearest three galaxies."
"*Divatox* is good?" Carlos demanded incredulously.
Rocky grinned wryly. "Yeah, that's been about the usual reaction."
Cassie blinked for several moments, trying to picture Divatox as anything but ... Divatox.
"So ... what happened to all the other Rangers?" T.J. spoke up eventually, frowning. "How were you even ... ?"
"Astronema's attack was very coordinated," Trini told them as everyone pretended not to notice the fierce pride that flashed across Karone's face. "She chose ten major cities to attack. What she didn't know at the time, is that there *were* Rangers who still had Powers left on Earth. We couldn't just stand by and let people be hurt."
"Trini and Kat protected London," Jason added with a nod. "Kim was in Paris visiting her mother, and Aisha made it to Cairo ... somehow. No one really knows how she did it. Zack's school is in New York, and the three of us, Tanya, and Justin all still live in Angel Grove."
"You were the ones keeping the crowd back," Cassie realized.
Jason nodded again. "We all had some sort of powers left, so we made do with what we had."
"But that's not the most important part," Trini said patiently. "The wave ... it did more than just purify evil. It restored our powers."
"All of them," Adam put in.
Cassie stared at them. She wasn't the only one.
" ... You can do that?" Ashley asked slowly.
Rocky grinned faintly. "After about two years of being a Ranger, you learn that Zordon can do just about anything."
Trini smiled at that, but Cassie noted the way she squeezed Jason's arm as he swallowed hard and looked away. Adam managed a slight smile, but his eyes were shadowed.
They were grieving, she realized with a sudden pang. She hadn't known Zordon, not personally. But these were his Rangers, and they were still struggling to accept that he was gone.
She looked down at her lap, cuddling Jetson again as she tried to bury the feelings of guilt that suddenly welled.
"When you say all of them," Andros said slowly, looking wary.
"We mean all of them," Adam confirmed with a sigh. He reached behind him, placing what looked like a silver belt buckle on the table. Then he flicked his wrists, displaying a set of morphers that reminded Cassie of the Turbo Morphers. "No one's been able to figure out exactly how it works, but we've got every single Mighty Morphin Power Ranger back, and some of us are sharing Powers somehow. Then we've got the Zeo Rangers and the Ninja Powers. Justin's a Turbo Ranger again, but he said he already was." He glanced at Rocky.
Rocky shrugged. "He told me Storm Blaster wasn't talking, but whatever he did, he gave Justin a full-powered morpher."
"We know the Turbo Powers were restored too," Adam added. "But they went to you four instead of us."
Cassie frowned, automatically flicking her wrists as she focused on trying to find the Turbo Power she'd lost nearly a year ago. Her eyes widened as they appeared in a flash of pink light. "I don't understand ... " She looked up, puzzled. "Shouldn't these be Kat's?"
"We think because the Zeo Rangers had their Powers restored, the Turbo Powers *had* to go to the four of you," Trini explained. "The Turbo Powers were based off the Zeo Crystal, so our theory is that they couldn't be held by the same person."
"Gave us some interesting side effects, though," Rocky spoke up. He grinned wryly. "Apparently when Justin and I morph at the same time, we start reading each others' minds."
Zhane gave him an odd look. "That's not normal for you?"
Cassie rolled her eyes fondly as Rocky chuckled. "Not really, no. Scared me half to death when I morphed and all of a sudden I can hear Justin swearing up a storm in my head."
T.J. stared at him. "*Justin* swears?"
"As much as the Power allows," Rocky agreed with a nod. He gave another slight smile, but this time it seemed sad. "When we're morphed, we can share thoughts, and I kind of get an idea of where he's at and how he's doing. Only when I'm Blue Zeo, though. It didn't work as Red."
Carlos stared first at him, then at Adam. "That's ... really creepy."
Adam snorted, looking amused. "Thank you. I'm glad someone agrees with me."
"Sounds like you've gotten a lot done while we were gone," Andros spoke up. There was a strangely blank expression on his face, but Cassie read it as surprise and tried not to roll her eyes again. A year of fighting together, and Andros still had trouble admitting that Earth wasn't as backwards as he wanted to believe.
"There are eleven of us," Trini pointed out with a smile. "We all have our specialties, and we're used to working together. It wasn't that hard to organize."
"What have you done so far?" Zhane asked, looking intrigued.
"The major cities that were hit hardest in the attack - " Jason paused, glancing around. "Rocky, do you still have the map?"
"Got it," Adam spoke up, standing up.
He returned with a large world map, which was spread over the center of the table.
"The attack focused on major cities in major countries all over the world," Jason went on. He pointed to several spots on the map that had been circled in different colors. "Rome, Sydney, Hong Kong, Tokyo, and Brasilia are in the worst shape, because there weren't any Rangers there at the time. London, Paris, Cairo, and New York are bad, but they're in better shape than the rest. Angel Grove is in the most damaged even though we had Rangers here, because it was the center of the attack. We've designated a Ranger to each city as their representative for the cleanup effort, and to monitor communications between them and us up here at the base. "
"Justin doesn't have a city," Rocky put in, "Since he can't get out much. But he sneaks up here to help out whenever he can."
"We keep one person up here at all times, in case there's any incoming calls," Trini added. "We take turns as often as we can, since most of us are in school."
Rocky grinned. "Adam got the short end of the stick, since he hasn't had much work lately."
Adam gave him a dirty look, which he ignored.
"This is amazing," Zhane murmured, looking over the map. He glanced up with a puzzled frown. "But I thought Earth was never a war zone."
"It wasn't," Jason agreed. "But like Trini said, we all have our talents."
I think we're starting to get that, Cassie thought wryly, looking over the map.