From The Ashes
by Cheryl Roberts

Chapter 6

The morning meeting was much more relaxed than the previous evening's at least as far as the dress code was concerned. Though not in uniform, the Power Team was garbed in color-coded jumpsuits much like Vlar's: a solid color bodysuit with piping, but where Vlar's was black with red, the current Red Ranger's was red with white. Only Jax was in what Tommy considered civilian clothing; however the tunic and trousers were all in white with silver and black trimmings. He also wore about his neck a medallion identical to the one which hung around Tommy's.

Everyone was still getting settled, so Tommy used the time to study his great-grandson, who had resumed his place seated on the dais.

He looks the way I felt the day Zordon told me I was to take over as team leader, Tommy mused. He remembered being excited and scared to death, worried about his inexperience and the responsibility being put on his shoulders. The fear of knowing he could possibly send one of his friends to death.... The doubts of being able to follow in Jason's footsteps.... The dark shadows of pain and loss had come later to him, once the mantle of leadership rested more easily on his shoulders.

As Jamie had noted, his children favored their mother; Jax appeared more Threan than human. There were only slight differences: eyes more round than almond shaped, ears slightly less tapered. He was not quite as tall as most Threans, and he was a bit broader through the shoulders... tiny differences that could be explained away as regional variations. One wouldn't have known Jax wasn't fully Threan if one didn't know ahead of time. Tommy could probably stand right next to Jax and not be recognized as being family, though they shared the same mahogany coloring of hair and chocolate brown eyes.

He looks like shit.

Tommy could see how sunken the Imbera's eyes were, the deep purple shadows from lack of sleep. His face was gaunt and lined with worry. There was no luster in the brown depths of Jax's eyes; they were dull, glazed... haunted.

"I am afraid that we did not have much time for pleasantries last night," his descendant began, calling the meeting to order. "I am Jax, White Ranger and Imbera for Threa."

He then nodded to the Ranger to his right.

"Brath," the Red Ranger introduced himself, his tone curt but not unfriendly. He was solidly built stockier than the others with penetrating blue eyes and thick, close cropped blond curls. He struck Tommy as a man of few words.

"I am Synn," the Yellow Ranger spoke up. He was a lanky young man with reddish hair. Tommy could see a family resemblance to Lris; this had to be her cousin.

"Zol," the female Blue Ranger said, her mocha brown skin contrasting sharply with her pale, white-blond hair and green eyes. With her shapely curves, she could have been a model on Earth.

"I am Emd," the sharp featured Green Ranger announced with a nod. Tommy was rather taken aback by how much the Threan Ranger resembled himself in coloring and build.

Lastly, the Pink Ranger introduced herself. "Prist."

Tommy felt sorry for the pearly skinned, sable-haired young woman with jewel-like blue eyes as haunted as Jax's. According to Jamie, she was the younger sister of Jax's lifebond. Her being on the team couldn't be easy for either her or the White Ranger, and Tommy wondered what could have been the reason for Prist filling in for her sister.

"Is there anything further you can tell us about the attempt to abduct the First Born?" Brath queried. "We have reviewed our security computers and could find no evidence of a breach or any record of suspicious activity prior to the activity in the First Born's quarters."

"There was no indication that anyone had tampered with the computer," Zol added.

"Then it seems that it was either an inside job or someone knows your security system well enough to circumvent the programs without detection," Tommy murmured.

"Or, you were imagining things," Emd snorted. There was an edge to this Green Ranger as sharp as the angular plains of his face.

"If I'd been the only one to see the intruders, I'd say you had a valid argument, but I have Vlar your head of security and the First Born himself to back me up," Tommy countered.

"I spoke with Healer Ming; grandfather's wounds were not self inflicted," Jax interjected.

"Look, I realize that after centuries of peace, this seems unthinkable, but it did happen. Now you've got to try and figure out who did it and why."

"What can you tell us about the men you fought?" Synn asked.

"They were dressed in traditional Ninja costumes, so you couldn't see anything of their features," Tommy began, then belatedly wondered if he should explain in greater detail as the Threans might not know what Ninjas were, but evidently the martial arts database that Kim had taken back with her had covered the information on the shadow warriors. No one appeared confused by the term, so he pressed on. "I saw a full compliment of traditional Ninja weapons: numchuks, shuriken, sai, tiger claws... and they were well trained in karate."

"Could they have been of human origin?" Prist asked. "Vlar's report mentioned the body type was all wrong for a Threan."

Tommy considered his observations. "No, I don't think they were human. The body was out of proportion... like the arms were too long. Also, I didn't notice that any of the attackers had a personal shield like I do."

"While we know we are not alone in our universe, we have not had much contact with our other-wordly neighbors," Zol murmured. "If we could perhaps get a sketch to feed into the computer, we might be able to come up with a few possibilities."

"I'm no artist, but I'll try."

"Was there anything else?" Brath wondered.

"Just that they seemed to want to take Jamie alive, if not whole." Tommy frowned, trying to concentrate on a sudden nagging at the back of his mind that wasn't the Presence. "I also noticed that there was one guy during the fight who didn't join in. He was like an observer or even their leader. He hung back until Vlar and Lris arrived, then he gave the signal to retreat."

"I do not like this," Prist whispered with a shudder. "I was in contact with Trin right before she vanished. She mentioned seeing a figure all in black leaving the lab area after the explosion. She followed him... noting that he had an unusual gait... then she...."

Zol quickly wrapped the stricken Pink Ranger in a comforting hug, and Tommy noted the others pointedly did not look at Jax.

"I, too, received those impressions," Jax choked out.

"And no one bothered to follow up on this intruder?" Tommy asked, incredulous.

"It has been... difficult," Synn replied.

"But Tommy is right; we should have pursued this more diligently," Emd remarked tersely.

"There's no point in worrying about what hasn't been done," Tommy said, hoping to quell the rising tension he felt. "Let's look at everything that's happened and see where that gets us. You've had two break ins in your Command Center. One resulted in a trashed lab and a dead Ranger. The other nearly cost you your First Born. Does anyone know what was in the lab that was so important? Was it just destroyed or had it been ransacked? Was anything missing?"

The Rangers looked to one another, and Tommy could see that none of them knew, not even Jax, which he found extremely odd.

"That lab was the responsibility of the team healer," Prist said at last, her voice choked and raw.

"Can we get a hold of Trin's predecessor?" Tommy asked. "Either the lab was a trick to get to Trin, or there was something important in there someone wanted and Trin got in the way."

"Marg was team healer before Trin," Jax answered, his voice as unsteady as Prist's. "She retired when Mother did."

"Do you know what exactly happened to your mom, Jax?" Tommy pursued. "It's possible it could be connected to these other assaults."

"I do not know for certain; Mother never speaks of it," the Imbera admitted. "All I can tell you is that it happened before Trin's death, and Mother was not in the complex at the time. I felt her fear for a moment, then I was overwhelmed by the power transfer.... It was so unexpected... so sudden. I was still reeling when the parent-link was severed. I knew Mother was not dead, but for all intents and purposes, she was. I could no longer touch her mind."

"Maybe Jamie knows more about it," Tommy muttered thoughtfully.

"Do you think there is a connection between all these events?" Brath inquired.

"Don't you?"

"There was a good half turn of the seasons between the assault on Imbera Twyn and Trin's death, and at least that long between what befell Trin and the events of last night," Synn pointed out.

"Three attacks. Three Imbera's injured in some way after all, Jax was hurt by his lifebond's death; it can't be a coincidence," Tommy insisted.

"When you paint it thusly...." Emd admitted grudgingly.

"I am afraid that none of us has much practical experience in dealing with such intrigues," Jax sighed. "I do not doubt our skills in battle; that, we are trained for. However, all our lives, we have only known peace. Mother's team was the last with any 'war time' experience. I would welcome any suggestions."

Tommy considered for a moment, then offered up, "We need to look a lot more closely at all three attacks. We need to know how those guys were able to get past security to get so close to the Imberas. I'd also see what some of your past foes are up to these days. Bad guys have a nasty habit of not staying dead."

~*~

From the Command Center's main chamber, Tommy returned to the infirmary, and was relieved to find Jamie looking much improved.

"How did the meeting go?" Jamie queried.

"At least I have them thinking that your attempted abduction, Trin's death and Twyn's maiming are related somehow," Tommy sighed. "It's hard for me to believe that they found such a thing unthinkable. They're trained to be warriors and protectors; don't they teach you to be wary and a bit suspicious at that Academy of yours?"

"Your world has never known peace as ours has," Jamie pointed out. "Peace can breed complacency."

"But their eyes are open now," Lris interjected, making her presence known as she returned with a breakfast tray laden with a meal for two.

Tommy had the feeling that he hadn't been included in the order. However, he pressed on with business. "Jamie, I need to know what happened to Twyn. What was done to her? Did she see her assailant? Would she know anything about the lab that was broken into?"

Jamie sighed heavily.

"I do not know about the lab; it did not exist when I was Imbera. As for what happened to my daughter... I do not know the particulars, only the outcome. Whoever attacked her destroyed the telepathic centers in her brain."

Lris gasped in shock and horror.

"That... that...." she stammered, unable to find words for such an atrocity.

To address Tommy's puzzled expression, Jamie continued, "That would be the equivalent of rendering a human blind, deaf and mute and robbing one of his Morphin' Powers as well. Threans are a race of telepaths, and every Threan has a psychic bond with somebody: parent to child, lifebond to lifebond.... When Twyn's mental abilities were destroyed, she lost her link to me, to Jax and to whoever her matebond Jax's father had been. She can never hope to have another child without the mindlink, and she will never be able to wield the Imbera powers again." Jamie paused, controlling the pain he felt for his child's maiming.

"Twyn never told anyone who Jax's father was; perhaps in retrospect, it is for the best that they never lifebonded." At that, he reached for Lris' hand.

"It would not have mattered. Her matebond would have felt all her pain... felt the bond dissolve. In essence, a part of him died with her," Vlar spoke up, his tone haunted. He had arrived during Jamie's explanation, relieving the prior watch.

"I realize that this will be painful for Twyn, but we have to ask her about the attack," Tommy pursued. "We have to know what happened to see if it fits with the other two to date. If it will help, I'll be the bad guy and ask all the tough questions. Where can I find Twyn?"

"Since her injury, Twyn sees no one, not even Jax," Jamie informed his father. "She might see me... she grudgingly responds to my weekly messages."

"You are going nowhere with that injury," Lris insisted.

"She is correct," Vlar backed her up.

"If only you'd allow a healer...."

"And risk endangering his or her life?" Tommy asked pointedly, and Jamie was forced to concede.

"I could go with Tommy," Vlar suggested. "She might be willing to see me."

"No," Tommy countermanded. "You're needed here as much to guard Jamie as to be our eyes and ears."

The former Red Ranger bowed to Tommy's wisdom.

"Would I do?"

The startled quartet turned towards the door, and Tommy found himself gaping at the newcomer. He was used to the height of Threan females, but this one had the form of a body builder. Her white hair hung over her eyes in a loose mop, but it was cropped close about the base of her skull, save for a long, slender, silvery braid. The elfin eyes which peeked out from under the snowy bangs were a rich violet color.

"Beys!" Vlar exclaimed and greeted her so warmly that Tommy had to wonder about the history between the two. As he recalled, Beys had been Jamie's Pink Ranger, though she wore no trace of the signature color now.

"She and Vlar were heartbonded and thought to be lifebonded when the matebond surfaced between her and Kith," Jamie explained softly. "It was one of those rare instances where both partners were resistant to the bond. Beys bore her child, and Kith raised her when Twyn asked Beys to stay on as Pink Ranger. Last I heard, Kith and Fash had finally lifebonded.

Tommy knew the names all were Jamie's friends and teammates, but he was having trouble remembering the color assignments. Kith and Fash... Green and Yellow Rangers respectively. He shook his head; this was worse than a soap opera!

"You could have contacted me yourself, instead of leaving me to find out from Gram," Beys huffed as she pulled up to Jamie's bedside.

Gram Jamie's Blue Ranger. Tommy needed a score card.

"It happened late last night; how did Gram find out?" Jamie wondered.

"He is one of my instructors," Lris said. "I had to apply for a leave of absence from the Academy to remain here. Since he was one of your Rangers and friends, I thought he would be the safest person to contact."

Tommy saw the necessity for her actions but wasn't too sure it had been a wise move since they were trying to keep what knowledge they could from leaking out.

Jamie seemed to sense what was on his mind. "Do not worry, Tommy; Gram is as trustworthy and discreet as Vlar. Besides, news of my injury will seep out in spite of our best efforts to keep it quiet. There are too many medical staff in and out of here since I am not allowed a healer."

"Why can you not have a healer and what is going on?" Beys demanded. "And who is needing to see Twyn?"

"I am," Tommy answered.

The woman stared at him, eyes narrowing in confusion. As she looked from Tommy to Jamie and back again, he could see her putting the pieces together.

"By my Ancestors!" she breathed, her eyes widening in astonishment as the final piece of the connection fell into place.

"Congratulations, Beys; you are the first person who did not need to be told who Tommy is," Jamie joked dryly.

"And I assume it is meant to be that way," the former Pink Ranger observed.

"Tommy will fill you in on the way to Twyn's," Jamie assured her.

~*~

The former Imbera's hideaway was in a remote section of the mountains, just on the edge of the treeline. Thanks to the vicious air currents, air transportation was all but impossible.

"... and Twyn has a scrambler set to screen out teleportees," Beys related.

The pair took a ground transport as far as they could then hiked the remainder of the way.

And I thought Uncle John's cabin was isolated! Tommy mused. However, he put the time to good use and updated Beys on the situation.

"I agree with your thinking," the former Pink Ranger commented once everything was laid out. "It is too convenient that all of the Imberas are in some way crippled. And why did not anyone bother investigating this lab sooner?"

"My guess is that Jax didn't have the heart to assign anyone else to do it after Trin was murdered."

"The youngling needs to pull himself out of his funk and start acting like an Imbera," Beys sniffed.

"When I lost Kim, I buried myself in my Ranger duties so I wouldn't feel the pain," Tommy said, understanding what his great-grandson was going through, "but Jax doesn't even know yet what his duties are so he can't lose himself in them."

"About the only person who might be able to get through to him is his mother if we can pull her out of her funk."

Beys was an excellent tracker, and she unerringly led them to a clearing in the trees. To Tommy's astonishment, there was a pond ringed by the foliage; he'd have thought that it would be too cold for an open body of water this high up. At the pond's edge, cleverly concealed by rocks and trees, was a modest cabin.

"She likes her privacy," Tommy began, but Beys silenced him, immediately putting him on his guard. He strained his senses, trying to catch what it was that had alerted his companion.

Suddenly, a lone figure dropped out of the trees, flattening Beys and kicking out at Tommy. He was a fraction of a second faster and ducked while countering with a low sweeping kick of his own.

The woman seemed to have no back up, and her surprise assault had left Beys down and dazed. However, Tommy felt pretty confident about the one-on-one odds. That, and his assailant seemed to be rustier than he was. The two traded punches, blocks and kicks, their sharp exclamations filling the air, as they inched closer and closer to the water's edge.

At last, Tommy found an opening in his opponent's defense. Taking advantage of that slim crack, he broke through her guard and dropped her to the forest floor. As he stood over her menacingly, he froze in amazement. Though this was a Threan woman, the features and coloring were unmistakably....

"Kimberly?" he gulped out, stunned. His distraction cost him as his opponent took advantage and kicked him backwards, sending him sprawling into the frigid water.

"Damn!" was all Tommy could sputter as he broke the surface. He shook the water from his eyes and found his sparring partner on the bank, body poised to resume the fight, eying him suspiciously.

"Who are you?" she demanded, "And how do you know the name Kimberly?"

Before Tommy could answer, a low moan from up the embankment caught their attention.

"Ancestors take you, Twyn! Who taught you to fight dirty like that?"

"Beys?"

Forgotten as his granddaughter rushed to help her former teammate, Tommy slogged out of the icy water and squelched his way over to where the mind-crippled Imbera was helping the once-Pink Ranger to sit up.

"What are you doing here?" Twyn queried. It was apparent the only reason Beys had stayed down was because she had struck her temple on a rock. Blood trickled down the side of her face. "This is bad, and there is no healer here."

"We could not let one touch me even if there was one up here," Beys answered. She jerked her thumb towards the soggy third member of their party. "He would not allow it"

"Why not?" Twyn snapped, whirling to face her former opponent. Her eyes narrowed as she studied him for the first time.

"Unless she's at death's door, we can't risk losing another healer. The stakes are too high," Tommy responded through chattering teeth. As with Beys, he could see her making the connections.

"The pictures from grandmother's quarters... father showed me... you are my grandsire?"

"You look so much like your grandmother," Tommy murmured, unable to resist the urge to touch her cheek as he would have Kim's. He knew it was a liberty; his granddaughter was a total stranger, but he just couldn't help himself. Twyn, however, made no objection; she seemed to understand his need.

"Father always told me I was the very image of Grandmother. She died before I was born," Twyn said, catching Tommy's hand and holding it to her cheek. "I wish I could have known her."

"She'd be very proud of you," Tommy assured her.

"Why did not father come with you?" Twyn wondered. Somewhat sheepishly, she added, "I would not have ambushed him. I have been expecting him to come since I moved up here."

"He wanted to," Tommy began.

And Beys finished for him, "But he is in the infirmary because someone tried to rip his innards out last night."

"What?!"

"This wasn't exactly a social call," Tommy admitted ruefully. "We need your help."

Even as he spoke the words, he could see the caramel-haired elf-woman ice over. The doors inside her shut tight once again.

"Let's get Beys inside and treat her wound the old fashioned way, and we'll talk," Tommy suggested, nodding to Twyn to help him lift their injured companion.

"And we should find some dry clothing for your grandsire," Beys added, recoiling from Tommy's soggy, icy touch, "before he freezes to death."

~*~

Twyn seemed totally lost when it came to first aid, so Tommy did his fumbling best, trying to recall everything Kim and Billy had taught him about emergency medicine and hoping it would work on Threans. A Boy Scout he was not! He was doubly hampered by the white robe Twyn had found for him. She was taller and thinner than he was, so the gown was tight across the shoulders and the sleeves were too long. He kept having to push them out of the way.

As he worked on Beys, he told his granddaughter what was going on back at the Command Center.

"I wish I could help you," Twyn said in a tiny voice.

The pain and fear in her eyes unnerving. Tommy had seen the warrior in the former Imbera, but to see her reduced to this cowering shadow.... It was too much of a reminder of what he'd been through twice as the Green Ranger.

"I truly do," the stricken Ranger continued, "but there is nothing I can do."

"But there is," Tommy insisted. He finished securing Bey's (who had been uncommonly quiet thus far) bandage and turned to face his descendant, who was curled up in a tight ball amid a pile of pillows and blankets. "Jamie says the lab wasn't built during his term as Imbera, so it had to be done during yours. We need to know more about it. What was in there that was so important that someone would either steal or destroy it?

"I do not know...." Twyn whimpered like a frightened child.

"Then who does?" Tommy pursued. "Someone has to know. Trin was out looking for something or someone in connection with that lab, and she died for it. And I'm willing to bet that whoever was in that lab is the same someone who is picking off Imberas one by one. Jax was emotionally damaged by the loss of his lifebond to the point where he can barely function. Jamie was all but disemboweled and nearly kidnaped, and you...."

"... had my brains turned to mush," Twyn snapped harshly. "They destroyed a part of me... they shut me off from everything: my father, my child, my powers.... Whatever you want from me, Grandfather, I can not give it!"

"Yes, you can," Tommy fired back in full command voice, to the astonishment of his listeners. Silently, he prayed, Kim, you reached me with words once; I hope I can do as much for Twyn.

"While you still live and breathe, powers or not, you are a Power Ranger. You were the White Ranger, the Imbera, the leader of a team that protected all of Threa, and nothing can ever take that away from you. You swore an oath when you accepted those powers; you gave your word of honor to do everything in your power to serve and protect. I'm holding you to that vow now. Threa needs you.

"You're not the only Ranger who has ever been 'crippled;' nor are you the only one who ever tried to hide from it all when the pain the loss was too great to handle. I only voluntarily surrendered my powers once: when I retired. Between Zedd and Rita, my powers were stolen or destroyed four times: twice when I was the Green Ranger and twice as the White Ranger. And I can't even count how many times my brains had been turned to mush and my will subverted by all the bad guys who turned me to evil.

"I may not know what it's like to be a telepath and have that part of me closed off forever, but I do know what it's like to be made blind, deaf and dumb. The Power is a part of you. When they stole my powers, it was like they ripped out my heart and soul. It was like being locked in a dark closet. I felt like I wasn't whole any more... that I was powerless and useless and unfit to even associate with my friends and teammates.

"Four times, Twyn. I went through the same Hell you're going through four times. Even your grandmother went through it twice. And do you know how we crawled out of that pit of despair? Our friends and teammates needed our help. Powers or no, we were still needed, and in spite of our pain, we knew our duty.

"You are needed, Twyn Hart-Oliver whether it's for your martial arts skills or for your knowledge of the Command Center, you are needed, White Ranger."

Tommy felt completely drained. Speeches were not his forte; that was Jason and Kim's jobs to give the pep talks to him. Yet, he stood there regarding Twyn sternly, hands on hips in what Kim always called his superhero pose.

However, the charged silence was broken by irreverent snickering. Annoyed, Tommy turned to glare at Beys and caught a glimpse of what had so amused the retired Pink Ranger. He saw his reflection. He felt as puffed up and confident as if he was wearing his full armor, but he was dressed in a flowing white robe that was too large for him, and his wet, bedraggled hair streamed down his back in limp, wavy strands. Though his expression was fierce, he looked ridiculous. With sigh of exasperation, he returned his attention to the injured Imbera. His tone softened as he addressed her.

"No one can force you, Twyn, but I beg you to help us. If not for Threa, then for your family. Jax is in danger, and so is whoever is the next Imbera after him."

"You're not being fair."

"Life's not fair. If it was, your grandmother and I would have lived happily ever after on Earth."

"So, how many times have you give than rousing speech?" Beys wondered.

"Never, but I got it often enough from Kim and my best friend Jason to have it memorized," he answered. He flashed Twyn a sheepish grin. "You weren't the only one to hole up in a cabin in the mountains to lick your wounds and whine about your losses."

Twyn said nothing, but she did manage a small smile.

Just then, an all too familiar chime sounded, and both former White Rangers snapped to attention.

Beys activated her communicator. "Yes, Vlar?"

"You and Tommy are needed back at the Command Center."

Tommy snuck a peek at Twyn; he saw the rise of painful shadows in her eyes. He caught her hand and gave it a supportive squeeze. The gesture elicited a small smile of gratitude.

"What has happened?" Beys asked.

"I do not know yet, but the Rangers are mobilizing the Megazord."

"Twyn, can you shut down your scrambler so we can teleport out of here?" Tommy requested; it would take too much time to trek back to the ground car.

"All right," she acquiesced reluctantly.

"Shall I have Vlar teleport two or three?" Beys asked.

"Two, for now." Tommy was about to say something, but Twyn silenced him with a gesture. "I will come to the complex, but I can't teleport. It is... too soon. Plus, there is something I need to look into for you: someone who should know about that lab."

"Thank you," Tommy said with heartfelt gratitude, and he gave his granddaughter a hug.

"Ready when you are, Vlar," Beys radioed. "Two to teleport.. and Vlar, have some practical clothing waiting for Tommy."

Chapter 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Epilogue