Legacy
by Gamine

Part Five—No Place Like Home

As they always do, goodbyes took longer than anticipated, but at last the ship was ready and the passengers were on board, strapped into large, well-padded seats for the first leg of the journey. The five Rangers raised their hands in farewell as the teleportation grid powered up. Tommy pressed his palm flat against the thick porthole window as though to touch them all one last time. Jason looked at each friend's face in turn, trying to memorize them through sober onyx eyes. Billy grasped Taia's hand tightly, and Peter's face was turned toward the sky and the home he'd left behind.

"May the power protect you all," whispered Zordon as Alpha waved both arm extensions frantically, howling 'ai-yi-yi' over and over. The grid glowed; the ship grew translucent, wavery, the image thinning out more and more until it faded completely from view.

Inside the ship the three younger men felt the first twinges of the familiar nausea brought on by Eltaran teleportation. Peter's face turned an unhealthy green, while Taia tilted her head back against the seat cushion and closed her eyes, breathing carefully through her nose. Shortly they materialized at the outermost rim of the grid's reach, whereupon Peter drew a long, relieved breath.

"I'd forgotten how disorienting teleportation can be. Everyone all right?" There was a quiet chorus of assent. "I'll be up in the cabin, then, if you need me. You kids do whatever you like for a while. I'll call you when we jump to subspace."

Billy and Taia wandered off to explore the ship more carefully, leaving Jason and Tommy facing each other in silence. Jason eyed his friend narrowly; after a while Tommy couldn't stand it any more.

"Because it was the right thing to do," he burst out. "Because I nearly lost you once, Jase, and I didn't even know it. Because this is where I belong, with you and Bill."

Jason quirked a small grin. "And you're not even a telepath." His expression sobered. "It means a lot to me that you're here, Tom. Even though it's not your fight."

Tommy snorted. "I don't know what you mean. It's your fight, it's Billy's fight... so it's my fight too. Now knock it off and show me around this tub."

~*~

"And you and I can bunk in here, next to Mr. C., unless you want quarters to yourself, in which case you can go in next to the Love Shack. I wouldn't advise it, though," chuckled Jason. "Bill and Tai can get pretty rambunctious."

Tommy's eyes widened. "Our Bill?" He shook his head. "Geez, if the girls at Angel Grove High had only known... thanks, I'll go in here with you if you don't mind."

"One snore and you're out on your ass, Oliver."

"Like you'll hear it over the brass band you produce. Come on, I'm hungry."

~*~

It was funny, Billy mused a day or so later, staring out a porthole, but he'd never realized that there were no stars in subspace before. Just empty blackness, as far as the imagination can go. Of course his experience with subspace was somewhat limited to theory, until now, and it wasn't something he'd given any thought to, whether one would see stars... but he missed them. They didn't need them for navigation, but the loneliness of empty space was pervasive, and boring, and depressing...

With a sigh he got up from his seat and walked away from the porthole. He was giving himself the jimjams, and that was inadvisable at the least. Billy twisted his head this way and that, trying to ease the tension that had settled there.

It wasn't the lack of stars that had him all creeped out anyway, he admitted silently. It was the lack of concrete information. Unknown situation, unknown adversaries, unknown abilities... Not knowing had always driven him crazy, hence his accelerated educational track.

He grimaced as he realized he was thinking in what his friends used to call 'Billyspeak'. He always got wordy when he was nervous. It was why few people had understood anything he'd said in high school. He'd been pretty much perpetually nervous then, always on edge for fear someone wouldn't speak to him, or worse, that they would. But that edge, however keen, was like a four-lane highway compared to the edge he teetered on now.

~*~

Meditation was not helping. Taia switched positions, hoping to find better focus, but that too was unsuccessful. She sighed irritatedly and got up from her place on the floor, stretching her arms over her head.

In a day or so they would be able to try and contact Xerya, to discover what had happened since she had been taken. She didn't quite know how to feel about that. Odds were not in favor of the rebellion prospering in her absence. More than that, Taia wondered about this traitor her father had mentioned. She'd known shortly after her capture that Paladin had been the target, not she. It seemed whoever had betrayed them was squeamish about the torture of a young woman, though that consideration had not weighed with So'Vran.

Her hands shook with remembered pain; resolutely she put it out of her mind. It was over.

Wasn't it?

~*~

Tommy threw all his weight into the kick he landed on Jason's midsection, but his friend merely huffed out a breath. It hadn't really hurt him; not that Tommy'd wanted to. But it was everything he had. Tommy rubbed his nose and tried again, to much the same response. Jason was about as affected as a punching bag full of sand would have been. The main difference was that Jason could hit back if he chose to.

What if they were all like this on Xerya? He'd wanted to help, but... Tommy didn't have any powers, not any more. He was just a guy who could kick pretty well. And who was in way over his head.

What the hell was he doing out here?

~*~

Jason could see his friend was nervous, and getting worse by the second. And he didn't blame Tommy. Jason was equally scared.

What was waiting for them?

And would they all survive?

~*~

"Oh, Lord," said Peter. "This is why we had no response from Iannos."

"Spirits," Taia whispered as they drew abreast of the landing coordinates. Billy slid his arms around her waist, drawing her back to lean against him, as they surveyed the scene before them.

Absolute devastation. Blackened hulks rose from the ground; chunks of twisted metal that might have been almost anything from a small spacecraft to a Quonset hut. Charred rubble littered the ground, which itself was scorched. What little vegetation there had been had turned to ash. The light was poor, the sun filtering through layers of smoke and steam, lending an aura of surrealism to an already unbelievable sight.

Taia began to shake. "The fault is mine." Her voice was ghostlike, her eyes huge and dark. "I should have been here, should have protected... " Her knees sagged; Billy caught her weight against him and carried her to a seat out of sight of the decimation that had been the main base of operations for the Xeryan underground.

Peter watched them, a muscle in his jaw clenching. Jason simply stared out of the thick window, speechless.

Tommy leaned forward suddenly, propelled by a realization. "Mr. C... where are the people?" Peter looked at him blankly. "The bodies. Where are the bodies? There aren't any... "

The older man finally caught on. "My God, I should be declared mentally incompetent. You're right, son." He fiddled with the console in front of him, read the results, and smacked his palm flat against the surface, hard enough to startle the others. "No traces of Xeryan casualties. No weapons signatures. Nothing to indicate that there was ever a battle here. Not... a... bloody... thing."

Billy nodded, the beginnings of a smile on his face, as he caught his father's train of thought. "Scorched earth policy."

"Exactly. Not Iannos' usual style, but not a bad idea," said Peter, approval in his tone.

Taia looked from one to the other, bewildered. "Scorched... earth? I do not... "

Jason crossed to his sister, crouching down to look her in the face. "So'Vran hasn't been here. They did it themselves, Tai, to cover their tracks." Her sudden slouch back into the seat conveyed her relief better than any words could have done.

"All right, then, Iannos," muttered Peter, more to himself than anyone else, "so where are you, and how do I find you?"

With a last glance at Taia to make sure she was all right, Billy joined his father. "If we knew what frequencies So'Vran is likely to be scanning, we could stay under the radar, so to speak." His long fingers tapped out a sequence of numbers. "This'll give us a wide-band sweep, but it's not without risk." He sent a questioning look toward the others, his index finger hovering over the final key. "So?"

Taia slowly got up from her seat, exhaustion in every line of her slim frame. Wearily she bent over the console, examining what Billy had programmed. Without a word she made a few adjustments, editing the sequence here, adding some numbers there. She nodded briefly, then left the cabin, barely navigating the narrow doorway, waving Billy away when he would have helped.

They watched her go. "Damn So'Vran for what he's done to that girl," Peter gritted angrily.

Jason put a hand on Billy's shoulder. "I'll go," he volunteered. "You take care of business." He went after his sister, concern on his handsome face.

After a moment Billy turned back to the computer screen and made a strangled noise. "What?" Tommy wanted to know.

Billy pointed a finger at the adjusted scanning screen, suddenly lit up with tiny, sparkling lights, moving toward their position. "Guys... we've got company."

~*~

The group of muddy, black-armored figures crept closer. They carried lethal-looking energy weapons that had seen better days; reflective visors obscured their faces. One of them gestured to the large silver pod. "Who do you think they are?" the helmeted figure asked another, his voice squawking through the communicator.

The figure in the lead shrugged, looking back over the group, then forward to the gleaming spacecraft. "Stay down."

The first figure made a grab for the second and missed as she lit out for the ship. "Damn it, Aji!" he growled into his helmet comm. "What are you trying to prove?"

"Shut up, Deorth, and keep your men down until I say so," she said. The dark figure reached the spacecraft and leaned back against the metallic shell, gesturing to the others. "Move into position."

"Caution, Aji. They could be friendly," said Deorth as he hustled into position with the others.

"I could be a medruni. But I am not," her voice crackled over the comm. "Hostile until proven otherwise."

"Aji..."

He was ignored. Aji's voice, over a broadband frequency, brooked no argument. "Attention alien ship. You will exit now and give yourselves into our custody, or we will open fire." The black-clad figures leveled weapons at the entrance, waiting. With a hiss of escaping air the door to the pod slid open; the watchers tensed.

A middle-aged man in a pewter-colored pressure suit came out, hands raised.

"Name?" Aji demanded.

"P'Tyr Krann." Two other men joined him; these were younger. Black-gloved fingers twitched ever so slightly on their triggers. "This is my son, Billy, and his friend, Tommy Oliver," the older man said loudly.

"How many others?"

"Two," P'Tyr Krann said. He seemed to want to say more, but waited.

Aji took careful aim at his head, ignoring the younger Krann's hissed intake of breath. "Bring them out."

P'Tyr called over his shoulder without taking his eyes off Aji. "Jason, Taia, you'd better get out here."

"Taia?" Deorth said involuntarily, lowering his weapon slightly. "Guardian?"

"Impossible," Aji snapped. "Guardian's dead."

"No," said Taia, stepping from the spacecraft. "These are friends, Aji."

Aji started, flinching back at the sight of her. "Lower your weapons," she bit out after the briefest pause. "Welcome back, Guardian." With that Aji turned and walked away.

~*~

"You were right, Tommy. Deorth here tells me the base has moved north of here." Peter clapped him on the back in passing as he led the troop of soldiers onto the ship. "Are you sure your docking bay will hold her?" This last was addressed to the Xeryan second in command.

Deorth removed his helmet, revealing a crop of spiky blond hair and a pair of intelligent gray eyes. He shrugged. "It should, though I do not know the exact dimensions. If it does not... we cannot leave the ship for So'Vran's armies to find."

Peter shot the soldier a grin. "Let's just hope she does. I'd rather not burn her." He fed the coordinates Deorth supplied into the navigational computer. "What about your leader?"

"Aji?" Deorth raised his pale eyebrows. "It has been a difficult week for her. She would perhaps prefer to meet us there." He glanced uncertainly at Taia, who looked confused.

"Was it I she sought to avoid? But... we have been friends since childhood..."

Jason chimed in. "So what's her problem?"

Deorth shrugged. "It would be best if we left this place; all your questions will be answered when we are safely at the base."

~*~

A tall, silver-haired man dressed head to toe in gray met them anxiously.

"Counselor Jerawyr," Peter clasped the man's forearm in greeting. "It has been a long time, my friend."

"Too long, P'Tyr." Jerawyr bobbed his head with a small smile. "This is your son, I can see that," he nodded at Billy, "and this can be no one other than Iannos' son, and Taia's brother."

"Jason," the dark-haired young man smiled, grasping Jerawyr's forearm as he had seen Peter do. "And this is our friend Tommy."

The tall Counselor greeted Tommy, then folded Taia in a hug. "The spirits have blessed us, that you have returned, Guardian."

She returned the embrace. "Where is my father, Jerawyr?"

He frowned, shaking his head. "I had best take you to him."

~*~

He lay so still; only the gentle rise and fall of his chest gave any indication that Iannos K'Vlir still lived. Jason stared at him, this figure who had haunted most of his waking hours from childhood, ever since he'd been told he was adopted. It was strange, but even the holographic image seemed to have more substance than this puppet lying on the examining bed, his hair and beard standing in stark contrast to the unnatural whiteness of his skin.

Taia growled. "What happened?"

Jerawyr sighed. "He went after the traitor. But they were waiting for him."

"When?"

"Only a few days ago." Jerawyr shook his head, adjusting a console at the foot of the bed slightly. "When he was found yesterday, he was as you see him now."

Taia fell silent. Billy looked at his love, who was obviously in the throes of some internal struggle. "Who found him?" he asked. "How?"

Jerawyr flickered a glance at Deorth, who had followed them into the med bay. "Aji," the blond soldier supplied. "She went after him, refused to rest until he was found. She risked her life repeatedly to bring him back to us."

Tommy frowned. "That doesn't jibe with the way she greeted us. She acted like we had the plague. Why?"

There was a long silence, during which Deorth and Jerawyr exchanged looks, each glancing nervously at Taia.

"You may as well tell me." Taia folded her arms across her chest.

"The traitor..." Jerawyr grasped her by the upper arms, his expression earnest. "You must not seek revenge against the innocent, Guardian." The disdainful look she gave him expressed her opinion of that statement. "She knew nothing of his perfidy."

"Tell me," was her only response.

"Frid. It was Frid Resgro who betrayed us to So'Vran. He, who engineered your capture, and that of Paladin." Whatever Taia had been expecting, clearly this was not it, as astonishment and hurt and fury warred on her face.

"That is impossible!" she spat out. "He and my father are as brothers! He would not... could not... where is Aji?"

Jerawyr shook her. "Swear to me, Guardian. She has been though enough."

"Deorth," Tommy said quietly. "What does Jerawyr mean, no revenge against the innocent? Who does he mean?"

"I told you, Aji has had a difficult week. Frid Resgro is her father."

"Billy," Peter's voice broke in urgently. "I need your help here." The younger scientist went to his father. "Same technology as used against Taia. They're trying not just to kill Iannos, but to destroy the Paladin energy as well. Get in there." Billy nodded, liquid bronze already flowing over him.

Jason drew his attention from his father to meet Jerawyr's gaze. "This Frid Resgro... is he still alive?"

"He has joined So'Vran's armies. We presume he lives," said Deorth.

Jason gave a cold smile. "I can change that." Tommy put a warning hand on his friend's arm, but Jason roughly shook him off, his dark gaze returning to his father's face.

Long, silent moments ticked by as the metallic bronze form of Sentinel sat by Iannos' side, unmoving, while Peter dismantled So'Vran's handiwork; finally the older man drew a deep breath. "Done," he said quietly. "Fortunately there wasn't anywhere near the damage Taia had suffered. He'll be fine, though he'll probably sleep for a while."

"Will you find me when he wakes?" Taia asked, still frowning.

"Of course," Jerawyr gave a slight bow. "Where will you be?"

"Talking to Aji." With that she stalked purposefully from the room, the door shutting behind her with a mournful thump.

~*~

They were still refusing to look at her, Aji noted as she returned to base, parking the troop hoverskid and hopping lightly to the ground. People she had fought alongside, people she had known all her life, were turning away as she approached rather than acknowledge her. Her lips thinned beneath the visor.

Their good opinions mattered little right now. What mattered was So'Vran's ultimate defeat. She would give her life to that cause, and perhaps, in time, she would be remembered kindly.

And Taia was alive, thank the spirits. At least her father did not have that blood on his hands. Though Aji did not relish facing Guardian when she discovered the truth.

She sat wearily on a low bench and pulled off her helmet, running both hands through her tousled red hair. For the thousandth time Aji wondered how her father could have so cavalierly destroyed so many lives of those who loved him. And who knew how many more would die because of his betrayal?

She clenched her jaw. None. This she swore. This was her reason to live, and to die if need be. Once she had held other dreams, other hopes. But that was another Aji, in another life.

"Aji."

She glanced up to see the person she most dreaded facing. "Tai."

~*~

Jerawyr spoke in low tones. "We were preparing to send him to you as we did Taia. But there was a problem with the pod, though I do not know why. We readied it using your files concerning the dimensional barrier, as we did for the pod that carried Guardian."

"Really?" Peter frowned. "Show me." Jerawyr pulled them up on the computer; Peter's frown deepened as he studied them.

"Should we go after Taia?" asked Tommy. "She's pretty angry."

"With reason, don't you think?" Jason nodded toward his father. "How exactly do we know that this Aji wasn't in on this?" This last was directed at Deorth, who bristled.

"If you knew Aji you would not ask that."

"Maybe. But we don't. Maybe we should go have a talk with her too."

Deorth moved to block their exit. "If by 'talk' you mean 'blame' you would not be the first. She is not responsible for Frid Resgro's choices. And Iannos owes her his life. She went after him alone, Jason, before any of us realized who was behind our recent travails. And it was Aji who brought him home."

Billy's voice cut across the silence that followed. "I know you're looking for someone to blame, Jase; God knows if I were in your shoes I'd want someone to beat on too. But she shouldn't have to pay for her father's crimes."

"Son?" Peter interrupted them. "Come take a look at this and tell me I'm being paranoid."

~*~

The redhead looked up at Taia. A purple-black bruise decorated Aji's cheekbone and her lower lip was split. "Go ahead; I will not fight you."

Taia struggled to hold onto her anger, but it was slipping as she registered her friend's sadness. "What do you mean?"

"You wish to punish me for what my father did, I can see it in your eyes. If it will ease your pain, I shall not fight you." Aji stood. "Come, Guardian, do not make me wait."

"Is that what happened here?" She reached to touch the bruise, but Aji jerked back, and Taia felt her temper simmer again. "Who did this to you?"

Aji shrugged. "What can it possibly matter?"

"It matters to me."

Aji's green eyes flared in sudden rage. "Why should it? My father nearly had you destroyed, tried to kill your father. His blood is my own," she shouted, drawing the attention of several passers-by. "Come, then, Guardian, do that for which you were born!" She gave Taia a mighty shove, her body canted forward, her fists clenched. "Here is your enemy. Here! Come then and take me!"

Taia shoved back. "Damn you, Aji, I should! You thick-skulled fool, how dare you assume your father's guilt? Did you know what he planned? DID YOU?" Energy began to crackle around her.

"NO! I knew nothing! I was blind, a fool!" Aji launched herself at Tai, who fought back, throwing the slim redhead aside. Aji rolled easily to her feet, fists at the ready.

Taia went on the offensive then, shoulder down as she tackled Aji to the ground. "You will listen to me, Aji," she growled. "The fault is not yours. You did not know. And you brought my father home."

"But I should have known! I should have stopped him!" With a burst of strength Aji threw Taia off, getting to her feet. "Come then, Taia, it is what these people gather to see. My blood owes yours a debt, and I would see it paid!"

Strong arms pulled Taia back from the fray, wrapping around her securely. "Stop this, Tai. She doesn't deserve this," came Billy's voice, warm in her ear.

"I was trying not to fight her, William, but she would not have it," panted Taia.

Jason made a grab for Aji as she would have come at Taia again, grasping her arm, spinning her around and into the solid wall of his chest. She tilted her head back; they froze, staring at one another.

Suddenly Aji broke free. "No," she moaned brokenly.

"Aji..." Jason reached for her, but she dodged back. "Aji, wait...!" She merely shook her head, never taking her eyes from Jason, backing away until she was free of the crowd that had gathered; then she turned on her heel and ran. Jason simply watched her go, the oddest expression on his face.

"Now what was that about?" Billy asked, his blue gaze resting on his old friend. "He looks like he's been hit by lightning."

Taia nodded slowly. "He has. His blood...it sings."

~*~

Billy rubbed away a smudge of dirt from Taia's cheek. "You were seconds from summoning Guardian, weren't you?"

"To my shame, I was. Aji has always excelled at unleashing my temper, though she is my dearest friend." Taia smiled bitterly. "At least she was. Has my father awakened, then?"

"Not when I left the med bay, though he may have by now," Billy said. "But we do have a problem."

~*~

"Man, you've got a problem," Tommy shook his head sympathetically as they walked back to the med bay. "Are you sure it was the Bloodsong?"

Jason shot him a look. "It isn't as though I've got anything to compare it to, Tom. But, yeah, I'm pretty sure."

Tommy snorted. "Nice choice."

"Shut up."

"She doesn't seem too happy about it."

"Thanks for the insight, Sherlock."

Tom shrugged. "She's been through a lot, bro. She'll come around."

"Maybe." Jason looked back, in the direction Aji had run.

~*~

Iannos sat up slowly, hoping the world would stop tilting. Someone spoke his name, and he looked around gingerly, holding his head. "P'Tyr!" he said in some surprise. "If you are here, then..."

"Taia's fine," Peter crossed the room to his old friend with a smile. "Jason too. You'll see them shortly, I'll wager. How are you feeling?"

"As though I have been ingested by a grat'lest and come out the other end," Iannos groaned slightly, then remembered something. "By the spirits... Aji. Where is Aji? She must be told gently..."

Peter shook his head. "It's a bit late for that, Iannos. Aji knows."

Iannos shook his head sadly. "Poor child; she had no way of knowing of her father's treachery. Her heart is true, of that I am certain."

Peter studied his friend. "I don't disagree with you, I'm just curious. How can you be?"

Iannos looked at him. "Grief can do strange and awful things to a man, P'Tyr, as you and I have cause to know. When his lifebound was killed in the raid on Thulera, Frid became withdrawn and driven, spending little time with Aji, always focused on the battle with So'Vran. Aji came to live with Taia and I, while Frid took foolish chances, leaping into situations, ignoring the odds. He was taken by the enemy, held prisoner for a time. What they did to him I do not know, but he told me once he wished I had not brought him back." He sighed heavily. "It is true I did not see that he would turn against me. But I know Aji as well as I know my own daughter, and I would trust her with my life."

The scientist nodded. "You already have, Iannos. It was Aji who brought you home."

Iannos got to his feet. "I must find her; she is carrying the burden of guilt by association, I am certain, and there are those among us who will be all too willing to let her."

Peter shook his head. "I'm afraid that will have to wait. We have a problem."

The door to the med bay opened to admit Jason, Taia, Billy, and Tommy. Taia flew into her father's embrace.

"Are you well, little one?" his deep voice was full of affection. She nodded wordlessly, burying her head in her father's shoulder. "Shh. It's all right, Tai. I missed you." He stroked the dusky hair, tilting up her face to look at her. "Come, what have you been up to? Your face is dirty." She sniffed loudly, wiping her tears with the heel of one hand, reaching for her brother with the other.

"Father, this is Jason. He has come home at last, just as you said."

Jason looked at his father uncertainly; Iannos stared at him for a moment, not quite able to believe he was finally there. "My son," he whispered, and then he wrapped trembling arms around both his children for the first time, and nothing was said for a long while.

Peter slipped an arm around Billy's shoulder; when Iannos emerged from the embrace, he stepped forward, tugging his son along. "Iannos, this is my son William, called Billy. He carries the power of Sentinel, as did his mother before him."

Iannos grinned. "He could be no other. He has a look of Nelin about him as well."

Peter chuckled. "He does indeed. I hope you will be glad to know that he is now your son as well, as Taia has become my daughter."

"Lifebound? Really?" Iannos looked from his daughter to Billy. "It doesn't seem possible that you are old enough." He chuckled, then spoke more seriously. "I honor your Bloodsong, my daughter. I welcome this union."

Billy looked down at Taia with a blinding smile; she reached up and kissed him. "I told you not to worry so," she said teasingly.

"Father," Jason said the word awkwardly, as though not yet used to it. He gestured to Tommy, who stood slightly to one side. "This is... "

"Tommy, I know," Iannos filled in. "Tommy Oliver, one of your closest friends and allies, once the Green Ranger, then White. P'Tyr has sent me images of you over the years; he figured in many of them. I am glad to know you, Tommy."

"I'm honored to know you, sir," returned Tommy.

"Dad," said Billy with an apologetic glance around at the others, "we've got sort of a pressing matter to deal with."

"Yes, you mentioned a problem," said Iannos. "What has happened?"

"Jerawyr brought it to my attention," Peter began. "He mentioned that they were having a problem with the specs for your pod; since you'd built one for Tai successfully, it seemed to me that something must have happened in just the last few days, so I looked at the files. At first there didn't seem to be anything wrong; but you know how easy it is to miss errors when you are the one who wrote them, so I asked Billy to have a look, and he found the problem."

The young genius led them to the computer console, his fingers flying over the keyboard to show them what he'd found. "The files are corrupted by a slow-moving virus, nearly undetectable until the file is useless, garbled. It's been chewing its way through your databanks for a couple of days, beginning in the files on the dimensional barrier." Billy frowned, pointing to a readout on the monitor. "I checked the log and it seems those files were copied a short time ago, probably immediately before the virus was introduced. I was able to stop its progress, but the damage is irreparable. And somebody has information on the barrier."

Iannos' shoulders slumped. "Frid Resgro."

"He seems a likely suspect," interposed Peter. "The question is, what will he do with the information?"

"Take it to So'Vran," said a voice from the doorway. They turned in a body to see Aji standing there, her helmet under her arm. "You know what he is going to do with it. So'Vran wants that barrier down. Those files are just the tool he needs."

Jason said nothing, his dark eyes burning as he stared at her; the others started forward.

Aji's chin raised a notch as Taia faced her. "I am sorry for my loss of temper, Aji. I ask you to forgive me."

"There is nothing to forgive, Guardian."

Taia was hurt. "Guardian? Aji, please... we are friends. Please do not shut me out."

Aji looked at her steadily. "That was another life, Taia. I wish you well, but I have nothing to offer you."

"Aji, my child," said Iannos gently, "do not let the foolishness of others destroy you." His fingers touched the bruise on her cheek gingerly. "You bear no responsibility for this."

Her green eyes softened for a moment, then went flint-hard again. "No one can destroy what does not exist, Paladin. While I appreciate your concern, I merely came by to tell you that I am leaving immediately to track Frid Resgro, to prevent him from reaching So'Vran's stronghold in the Tarilean desert."

Iannos sighed. "Not alone, Aji. The risk is too great."

"It is my risk to take, Paladin."

"And your life to lose, is that it?" Iannos' dark gaze grew stormy. "Do you not see, child, that this is the same road that led your father to ruin?" She was silent.

"I'll go with her," said Jason quietly.

That got a rise out of Aji. "You shall not!"

He folded his muscular arms across his chest. "Are you trying to tell me what to do?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Not trying, doing."

"I don't think so, Red."

Tommy stepped between them. "Play nice, kids. I'm going too."

They both looked at him. "No!"

Billy smiled slightly. "At least they agree on something. I'm going."

"And I," said Taia.

"Very well," said Iannos. "All five shall go. P'Tyr and I will try to contact Eltar, to discover if there is a way to protect the barrier. I give you your orders: stay together; the desert winds can bring change when least expected. Use your powers judiciously; for they burn brightly, but can burn too hot, and leave you empty. And So'Vran may find you before you are ready if he has your power signature to trace. Take a runabout; a hoverskid is faster but will offer you little protection from the elements." He sighed, looking at each of them in turn. "Taia, remember you are still healing from your recent ordeal. Billy, explore the parameters of your power slowly, do not push yourself too far or too fast until you are certain of the extent of your abilities. Tommy, you will need to go with Aji to be outfitted with armor and weapons. Jason..." He held out his hands. "Come here."

Jason did so, a question in his dark eyes.

"Sentinel and Guardian were set free long ago by the deaths of their conduits; Paladin is still tied to me." Iannos took his son's face between his hands. "I bequeath that tie to you." Gold liquid poured from beneath the older man's skin to cover his fingers, his palms, his forearms... and then it came from Jason himself as though in answer to a silent call, covering his head and face, then gushing from every pore to cover his body completely. And finally Jason stood revealed as Paladin, his golden energy pulsing with a faint beat. Iannos concentrated for a moment more, and a second Paladin stood before the astonished group.

Peter was the first to recover his voice. "I had no idea you could do that."

Iannos grinned. "It has been many generations since any power has been shared. Long overdue, in my opinion."

Peter merely nodded, looking at the five. "Be careful, all of you."

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