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The Dawn Before Fighting (Power Rangers in Space)
Summary: The Rangers wake up and face their final battle.
Disclaimer: None of the characters belong to me, but instead to Saban. This takes place during "Countdown to Destruction, part 2" (written by Judd Lynn), part of a series detailing the events and aftermath of the two-parter.
This is the fifth of the "Destruction... and after" series of stories and was written November 27, 1998.
The Dawn Before Fighting
By Estirose
copyright 1998
T.J. woke up first that morning. The sun rose in the sky, oblivious to the destruction all around him in Angel Grove. He wished he'd been able to sleep more, but it wasn't a day for anyone to sleep in, let alone him or the others. They had a tough task ahead of them: defeat the forces of evil on this planet, and do what no other Ranger or Ranger team had done so far in the last few days.
It was hard to believe that the only thing stopping the side of evil from taking over this one last planet was a group of people who weren't even legal adults yet. None of his team had reached their seventeenth birthday yet, much less their eighteenth. And he would be leading them today, since Andros had gone off on his own quest to save his sister. He wished that he'd been able to stop Andros, but he, too, knew how stubborn their Red Ranger could be.
If only they had a plan. They'd been up as long as they dared, but their plans for saving Earth were rather vague. Morph, and hope for the best was what it amounted to. He wondered if Zhane's idea would really work, shocking though it was. Of course, it wasn't as if breaking that one rule would have that much of a problem, if they were going to die afterwards.
Having nothing more to do for the moment, he sat down and prayed that all of them would live through the day.
* * *
Cassie stirred next, shivering as she rose from between Zhane and Ashley. They'd slept body-to-body in order to keep warm, none of them having their uniform jackets, nor wanting to call attention to themselves. Now, she wished they had.
She looked around, finding all the others sleeping, except for T.J. He was sitting on some flattish square, the rubble of one of the destroyed buildings. His eyes were closed, but he was silently muttering something. Not wanting to disturb him, she stood up as silently as she could. The sun was still rising in the east, and not many of Angel Grove's citizens seemed to be awake.
Cassie started doing her stretching exercises, not wanting to be stiff. Frightening to think that she wouldn't be doing them tomorrow, probably. They were outnumbered, and unless someone had come up with a brilliant plan and hadn't said anything, or came up with something this morning. She wasn't looking forward to dying, but she had long ago accepted her responsibility to her home planet. She couln't stand by and do nothing.
She was going to go out with a fight.
Cassie looked up to see T.J. looking at her, concerned. That's what she loved about T.J. - he was always there and concerned. She stopped her stretches to go sit next to him, just wanting to talk for a while, but not wanting to disturb the others.
"Are you okay?" she asked, leaning against a piece of wreckage which was one of the 'walls' of their little campsite.
"I'll be okay. How about you? Are you ready?" T.J. asked.
"I hope so," Cassie answered. "We've got a long day ahead of us."
"I know. I just hope we make a difference," T.J. said, sounding a bit down.
Despite her own doubts, Cassie felt compelled to cheer him up. "We will, T.J. We've been doing it for so long..."
"We've never had a situation like this before," T.J. replied, even more softly. "We've never been this overwhelmed before, had so much at stake."
"I know," Cassie replied, just as softly. "But we've gotta try."
"I wonder if anyone else got away," T.J. said, looking up into the sky and seemingly oblivious to her words and her presence. "Phantom, the Blue Senturion..."
Cassie felt a chill pass through her at the names. She pictured her beloved Phantom just as outnumbered as they were, hiding in some desolated valley in whatever planet he was on. At least it was better than imagining him dead. She would *not* do that. "If they could, they would have."
T.J. nodded. "I hope so," he said, turning his eyes towards the dawn.
They both watched the sun rise in silence, nothing more being able to be said.
* * *
Carlos woke up to the smell of something burning.
Gently removing one of Ashley's legs from on top of his own, he stretched and stood up, mostly at the same time. Only two of his teammates were sleeping, Ashley and Zhane. Opposite ends of the alphabet, he realized, but not unalike in personality.
Why was he dwelling on Ashley and Zhane? He didn't know. Maybe because he was surprised the two of them didn't get together. Of course, Ashley and Andros were together, which precluded either Zhane or himself from getting her. But now, he reminded himself, was not a time to get jealous. He was going into battle in the not too distant future, and he may well not survive this time. He still hadn't the slightest idea what they were going to do- he just hoped that they would, finally, use Zhane's plan. It didn't matter, after all, if people knew who they were. If they survived, great. They'd deal with it then. And if they died - well, it didn't really matter, did it?
He noticed that Cassie and T.J. were up and talking on the other side of their area. Maybe they were swapping memories, or even talking about tactics. He didn't know. He walked over to them, sitting on the ground because there was no place to sit. "Hi, guys. What's up?" he asked.
"Nothing, really," Cassie replied. "Just talking, that's all."
"We're waiting for the rest of us to get up," T.J. answered after her. "We're just talking, about our homes, where we were born, that sort of thing."
"Sound good to me," Carlos said. "I kind of feel like doing that too."
So he chatted with them, hoping that he wouldn't be burying them soon.
* * *
Ashley was cold, and that's why she woke up. She'd always risen with the dawn, although it appeared that she'd slept in a bit today. That was okay- she'd needed the sleep.
Today was going to be one long, long day, especially without Andros by her side. Her boyfriend had gone off on his own, against everyone's wishes, to try one last time to bring his sister to his side and end the assault on Earth. She'd let him go, although she wished he hadn't. He hadn't been around for her to hold close throughout the night. Despite her brave words the night before, there was a very good chance she'd never see him again.
But she wouldn't have given up the chance to know him for anything, even to not have to fight this morning against an undefinably huge horde of Quantrons and Pirahnatrons. She might likely die today without ever brusing back his blonde-streaked brown hair again, but at least she knew him, something she treasured more than anything else. She was happy that she'd accepted Tanya's turbo key and her role as a Ranger, even if it was sometimes painful. Like today.
Yes, she'd been through a lot in the year that she'd been a Ranger. Not every person got to travel around on a spaceship (although all of them did get cabin fever sometimes), work with advanced technology, and run around the galaxy in a space ship, travelling to many, many worlds. Even if she were to die fighting, at least she knew that she'd lived her life.
It was scary to think that she wasn't much over sixteen, yet she was likely going to die for her world. Maybe this was her fate: not to die as Ashley Hammond, high school cheerleader, but Ashley Hammond, Ranger.
She became aware of the others at that point, but didn't feel like talking to them. Maybe it was unual for her to do that, but the day was unusual. They'd live. She just wanted to be alone.
* * *
Zhane, of course, woke up last.
He couldn't remember where he was for a moment, and then he realized that he was on Earth, trying one more time to make sure the bad guys didn't win, no matter how bad the odds were that he'd die in the process. He'd almost done so on KO-35, but Andros had saved him. Now he was on an alien world, in the hopes that the team and the native population would be able to overwhelm their enemy.
And nobody would save them, this time. If he died, he'd die for good. No waking up from hypersleep and finding two years had passed. No, this time he couldn't count on a last minute rescue. Oh, well. That just meant that he couldn't allow himself to die. Nothing major.
Zhane was surprised at the opposition that the others had made to his plan. He knew that there was a rule of never revealing identities on Earth, but, come on, what did it matter now? If they were going to die, along with all that had seen them, it really wan't going to matter. And if for some reason they did survive, it wasn't as if the whole team couldn't move to KO-35. The four Rangers from Earth would be gladly granted citizenship there.
He sat up to find the rest of the Rangers awake, T.J., Cassie, and Carlos sitting together, apparently having talked, and Ashley sitting in the middle of their area, alone. Probably wishing for Andros by her side, and wanting to say goodbye to him one last time.
T.J. rose, apparently after seeing him wake up, and motioned the others to get up with him. Groaning at his sore, stiff muscles, Zhane complied, waiting to hear what T.J. said.
Gathering the others to the middle of the area, T.J. spoke. "We may not make it through today, but remember- we are Power Rangers, and we're going to do what we're supposed to do. Everyone's expecting us to make one last stand. So let's do it. Everyone ready?"
Four heads, including Zhane's own, nodded. It was time.
-end
Disclaimer: None of the characters belong to me, but instead to Saban. This takes place during "Countdown to Destruction, part 2" (written by Judd Lynn), part of a series detailing the events and aftermath of the two-parter.
This is the fifth of the "Destruction... and after" series of stories and was written November 27, 1998.
The Dawn Before Fighting
By Estirose
copyright 1998
T.J. woke up first that morning. The sun rose in the sky, oblivious to the destruction all around him in Angel Grove. He wished he'd been able to sleep more, but it wasn't a day for anyone to sleep in, let alone him or the others. They had a tough task ahead of them: defeat the forces of evil on this planet, and do what no other Ranger or Ranger team had done so far in the last few days.
It was hard to believe that the only thing stopping the side of evil from taking over this one last planet was a group of people who weren't even legal adults yet. None of his team had reached their seventeenth birthday yet, much less their eighteenth. And he would be leading them today, since Andros had gone off on his own quest to save his sister. He wished that he'd been able to stop Andros, but he, too, knew how stubborn their Red Ranger could be.
If only they had a plan. They'd been up as long as they dared, but their plans for saving Earth were rather vague. Morph, and hope for the best was what it amounted to. He wondered if Zhane's idea would really work, shocking though it was. Of course, it wasn't as if breaking that one rule would have that much of a problem, if they were going to die afterwards.
Having nothing more to do for the moment, he sat down and prayed that all of them would live through the day.
* * *
Cassie stirred next, shivering as she rose from between Zhane and Ashley. They'd slept body-to-body in order to keep warm, none of them having their uniform jackets, nor wanting to call attention to themselves. Now, she wished they had.
She looked around, finding all the others sleeping, except for T.J. He was sitting on some flattish square, the rubble of one of the destroyed buildings. His eyes were closed, but he was silently muttering something. Not wanting to disturb him, she stood up as silently as she could. The sun was still rising in the east, and not many of Angel Grove's citizens seemed to be awake.
Cassie started doing her stretching exercises, not wanting to be stiff. Frightening to think that she wouldn't be doing them tomorrow, probably. They were outnumbered, and unless someone had come up with a brilliant plan and hadn't said anything, or came up with something this morning. She wasn't looking forward to dying, but she had long ago accepted her responsibility to her home planet. She couln't stand by and do nothing.
She was going to go out with a fight.
Cassie looked up to see T.J. looking at her, concerned. That's what she loved about T.J. - he was always there and concerned. She stopped her stretches to go sit next to him, just wanting to talk for a while, but not wanting to disturb the others.
"Are you okay?" she asked, leaning against a piece of wreckage which was one of the 'walls' of their little campsite.
"I'll be okay. How about you? Are you ready?" T.J. asked.
"I hope so," Cassie answered. "We've got a long day ahead of us."
"I know. I just hope we make a difference," T.J. said, sounding a bit down.
Despite her own doubts, Cassie felt compelled to cheer him up. "We will, T.J. We've been doing it for so long..."
"We've never had a situation like this before," T.J. replied, even more softly. "We've never been this overwhelmed before, had so much at stake."
"I know," Cassie replied, just as softly. "But we've gotta try."
"I wonder if anyone else got away," T.J. said, looking up into the sky and seemingly oblivious to her words and her presence. "Phantom, the Blue Senturion..."
Cassie felt a chill pass through her at the names. She pictured her beloved Phantom just as outnumbered as they were, hiding in some desolated valley in whatever planet he was on. At least it was better than imagining him dead. She would *not* do that. "If they could, they would have."
T.J. nodded. "I hope so," he said, turning his eyes towards the dawn.
They both watched the sun rise in silence, nothing more being able to be said.
* * *
Carlos woke up to the smell of something burning.
Gently removing one of Ashley's legs from on top of his own, he stretched and stood up, mostly at the same time. Only two of his teammates were sleeping, Ashley and Zhane. Opposite ends of the alphabet, he realized, but not unalike in personality.
Why was he dwelling on Ashley and Zhane? He didn't know. Maybe because he was surprised the two of them didn't get together. Of course, Ashley and Andros were together, which precluded either Zhane or himself from getting her. But now, he reminded himself, was not a time to get jealous. He was going into battle in the not too distant future, and he may well not survive this time. He still hadn't the slightest idea what they were going to do- he just hoped that they would, finally, use Zhane's plan. It didn't matter, after all, if people knew who they were. If they survived, great. They'd deal with it then. And if they died - well, it didn't really matter, did it?
He noticed that Cassie and T.J. were up and talking on the other side of their area. Maybe they were swapping memories, or even talking about tactics. He didn't know. He walked over to them, sitting on the ground because there was no place to sit. "Hi, guys. What's up?" he asked.
"Nothing, really," Cassie replied. "Just talking, that's all."
"We're waiting for the rest of us to get up," T.J. answered after her. "We're just talking, about our homes, where we were born, that sort of thing."
"Sound good to me," Carlos said. "I kind of feel like doing that too."
So he chatted with them, hoping that he wouldn't be burying them soon.
* * *
Ashley was cold, and that's why she woke up. She'd always risen with the dawn, although it appeared that she'd slept in a bit today. That was okay- she'd needed the sleep.
Today was going to be one long, long day, especially without Andros by her side. Her boyfriend had gone off on his own, against everyone's wishes, to try one last time to bring his sister to his side and end the assault on Earth. She'd let him go, although she wished he hadn't. He hadn't been around for her to hold close throughout the night. Despite her brave words the night before, there was a very good chance she'd never see him again.
But she wouldn't have given up the chance to know him for anything, even to not have to fight this morning against an undefinably huge horde of Quantrons and Pirahnatrons. She might likely die today without ever brusing back his blonde-streaked brown hair again, but at least she knew him, something she treasured more than anything else. She was happy that she'd accepted Tanya's turbo key and her role as a Ranger, even if it was sometimes painful. Like today.
Yes, she'd been through a lot in the year that she'd been a Ranger. Not every person got to travel around on a spaceship (although all of them did get cabin fever sometimes), work with advanced technology, and run around the galaxy in a space ship, travelling to many, many worlds. Even if she were to die fighting, at least she knew that she'd lived her life.
It was scary to think that she wasn't much over sixteen, yet she was likely going to die for her world. Maybe this was her fate: not to die as Ashley Hammond, high school cheerleader, but Ashley Hammond, Ranger.
She became aware of the others at that point, but didn't feel like talking to them. Maybe it was unual for her to do that, but the day was unusual. They'd live. She just wanted to be alone.
* * *
Zhane, of course, woke up last.
He couldn't remember where he was for a moment, and then he realized that he was on Earth, trying one more time to make sure the bad guys didn't win, no matter how bad the odds were that he'd die in the process. He'd almost done so on KO-35, but Andros had saved him. Now he was on an alien world, in the hopes that the team and the native population would be able to overwhelm their enemy.
And nobody would save them, this time. If he died, he'd die for good. No waking up from hypersleep and finding two years had passed. No, this time he couldn't count on a last minute rescue. Oh, well. That just meant that he couldn't allow himself to die. Nothing major.
Zhane was surprised at the opposition that the others had made to his plan. He knew that there was a rule of never revealing identities on Earth, but, come on, what did it matter now? If they were going to die, along with all that had seen them, it really wan't going to matter. And if for some reason they did survive, it wasn't as if the whole team couldn't move to KO-35. The four Rangers from Earth would be gladly granted citizenship there.
He sat up to find the rest of the Rangers awake, T.J., Cassie, and Carlos sitting together, apparently having talked, and Ashley sitting in the middle of their area, alone. Probably wishing for Andros by her side, and wanting to say goodbye to him one last time.
T.J. rose, apparently after seeing him wake up, and motioned the others to get up with him. Groaning at his sore, stiff muscles, Zhane complied, waiting to hear what T.J. said.
Gathering the others to the middle of the area, T.J. spoke. "We may not make it through today, but remember- we are Power Rangers, and we're going to do what we're supposed to do. Everyone's expecting us to make one last stand. So let's do it. Everyone ready?"
Four heads, including Zhane's own, nodded. It was time.
-end