In the space between galaxies, there is no sound, no discernible movement, and precious little light. It's a place that dreamers overlook, a place that travelers pass by--and yet it is the stuff the universe is made of.

Deep space is full of a vast nothingness, a lack of anything but the occasional wandering molecule or microscopic piece of dust. Between the tiny islands of stars and planets and moons that sentient life inhabits, there is a great darkness. A darkness where the surrounding pinpoints of light are not individual stars, but entire galaxies, reduced to minuscule specks against the fabric of space.

It is the darkness of peace, not of evil. Evil can exist only where there is also good, and deep space contains neither. The emptiness is neutral--no allegiance, no concern.

But at the galaxy's edge, the light of a thousand million suns burns through the night. The blazing starlight pushes at the darkness, trying to force it back one more step… to make it care.

And in the face of such light, shadows spring up.

***

The alarm clanged noisily once more, and Tessa laughed aloud. "Showoff," she chided, pushing his shoulder gently.

The man behind the counter handed over a pink, floppy-eared, plush bunny, and TJ grinned at her. Tessa held the twin to his second prize in her arms--another long-eared stuffed bunny, this one with blue fur, and she smiled back at him as he turned to her.

"You're the one who wouldn't let me play before," he reminded her good-naturedly, taking her hand and strolling down the amusement park's gaming alley. "Something about not wanting to carry a toy around all afternoon?"

She giggled, hugging the stuffed animal closer to her chest. "So I knew you would win. Doesn't mean you're not a showoff."

A flash of bright pink caught his eye from somewhere up ahead, and he lifted his hand to wave. Cassie had gone to get a drink while he dragged Tessa over to one of the games, and now she was heading back toward where she'd left them.

The rabbit's long ears swung wildly as he gestured, but it caught Cassie's eye. She smiled and started in their direction, and Tessa shook her head. "TJ, that's animal abuse. Stop it!"

He grinned unrepentantly. "Cassie, catch!"

Cassie stopped, her eyes wide as he tossed the stuffed animal in her direction. Her drink in her favored hand, she was forced to use her left hand to reach for the toy. She managed to catch one of the ears as it sailed by, and she made a face at him as she came closer. "Thanks a lot!"

"You're welcome," he answered cheerfully, letting go of Tessa's hand. "A rabbit for each of my favorite girls."

He pulled Cassie closer and draped one arm over each of their shoulders, steering them toward the "Demon" exit. "Now let's go see if there's anything left of Zhane and Kerone."

Karen had been delighted to learn that neither Zhane nor Kerone had ever been on a roller coaster, and she had made it her personal mission to "educate" them. She and Carlos had dragged the two through every roller coaster in the park, the "Demon" being their last stop of the afternoon.

Tessa had never been overly fond of roller coasters, and Cassie had claimed she wasn't in the right mood to be "scared out of her mind". TJ had elected to skip the lines and stay with the two of them--Andros and Ashley had joined them after the second 'coaster ride, and then wandered off on their own.

"Hey!" Zhane's shout could be heard even through the park's noise, and TJ couldn't help grinning as he saw the foursome heading down the exit ramp.

Zhane and Carlos were always an odd pair, dressed as they usually were in opposite shades of light and dark, but Kerone and Karen only added to the image. Kerone's shirt was light lavender, while Karen, by coincidence or design, was wearing black jeans and a "Phantom of the Opera" t-shirt.

"It's a good thing you can't be arrested for an adrenaline high," Carlos complained, as he got close enough for TJ to overhear. "I've been on enough roller coasters today to last me the rest of my life."

"I didn't find them particularly scary," Kerone said calmly, but she smiled a little as Zhane elbowed her.

"Whatever," he exclaimed. "You screamed along with the rest of us!"

Karen was squinting toward the entrance of the ride they had just come from. "You know, I think the line's gotten a little shorter. We could always go again--"

"No!" Carlos interrupted, immediately echoed by Zhane.

Karen grinned at his reaction. "Just thought I'd check."

"Hey," Zhane said, a little too quickly. "Where did Andros and Ashley go?"

"The IMAX movie, I think," Cassie put in, offering her soda to Tessa.

"Still?" Karen asked curiously. "I thought they were going to do that as soon as they left."

Carlos coughed deliberately. "They're probably still there," he muttered, "in the last row."

TJ saw Karen grin, and tried to keep his own face straight when Cassie shot him a reproving look. "What?" he demanded. "*I* didn't say it!"

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tessa glance at her watch. "I hate to spoil things, but I have a lab tonight…"

"Don't worry," TJ said, squeezing her shoulder. "If they're not back in ten minutes, you and I can head back to campus ourselves."

She smiled up at him, green eyes catching the sunlight and making him glad his uncle had let him borrow the truck. "Thanks," she said, taking another sip of Cassie's drink.

"Why do you have a lab so late?" Carlos asked, as they began to head, by common consensus, toward the park gate.

"It's an astronomy lab," she answered, as though that was the only reply he needed.

Carlos looked at Karen, who just rolled her eyes. "Observing, Carlos. It has to be dark out to see the stars, you know."

"There's Andros," Zhane interjected suddenly, pointing off to their right.

Andros and Ashley were strolling toward them, hand in hand and apparently oblivious to the time. Ashley was twirling an empty cotton candy cone in her free hand, and she smiled at something Andros said as they came closer.

"It's about time you guys showed up," Carlos said, when they were within hearing distance.

"How was the movie?" Karen added.

TJ had to grin at Ashley's blank look. "Good," Andros offered at last. "It was very… interesting."

"And what was it about?" Zhane asked, an innocent expression on his face.

Ashley and Andros exchanged looks.

"Bumper cars!" Cassie exclaimed, for all the world as though she hadn't been paying attention. "Tessa, do you have time for one more ride?"

"Sure," Tessa said, not even bothering to glance at her watch. Ashley shot them a grateful glance. "Let's go!"

Bumper cars, TJ decided later, were not an experience that could easily be explained to an offworlder. He heard Ashley, standing behind him at the end of the line, try to tell Andros what the point was. Her voice was too quiet for him to make out--Tessa was right in front of him, after all--but a moment later, Andros repeated, "You're *supposed* to hit the other cars? Why?"

TJ just shook his head.

Unlike Andros, Zhane didn't seem to have any trouble comprehending the idea of the ride. He, of course, had had a better view from his place in line, and once inside his own car he went after his more serious friend with no remorse.

One jolt from Zhane proved to be all Andros needed, and TJ couldn't help laughing as they focused on their "war" with the exclusive concentration of two little boys. His distraction was enough that Ashley crashed into him from behind before he even knew she was there, and across the rink, he saw Tessa ram Kerone.

*That* proved to be a mistake, for Kerone was second only to Andros in vindictiveness. Withdrawn from the proceedings until that point, she pursued Tessa with a single-mindedness that was interrupted only by her accidentally careening into Zhane's car.

Andros slammed into him from the other side, and TJ was close enough to hear Zhane complain about family ganging up on him. In his attempt to evade Carlos, TJ missed Andros' indignant retort, but Kerone didn't look at all sorry.

He heard Tessa's shout from somewhere nearby, and turned in time to see Carlos holding her rabbit hostage. It had been sitting in her lap while she steered, but she probably hadn't expected anyone to go for it, either.

Carlos didn't laugh long--just before the cars began to slow, Cassie grabbed the rabbit from him and tucked it next to hers under her right arm. "Kidnapping stuffed animals is pretty low, Carlos," she teased.

Ashley glanced over his shoulder as TJ bumped into her one last time, and he grinned. "Serves you right," he said, as the friction sparks stopped and everyone started to climb out of their cars.

"Carlos is just jealous that he didn't get a rabbit," he heard Karen say, just as Ashley wrinkled her nose at him.

Cassie returned Tessa's rabbit as the two of them made their way toward the edge of the rink. TJ went to follow them and found himself behind Andros and Kerone.

"Strange game," Andros said, as though he hadn't determinedly chased Zhane for as long as his car's steering would work. Kerone, who had thrown herself into it with the same abandon, nodded solemnly at his comment.

TJ just stared after them. A poke at his shoulder roused him, and he saw Karen slip past him. "You planning to stand there all day?" she inquired with a grin.

He shook his head, amused, and followed her with a muttered, "Aliens." It didn't matter that the three Kerovans were technically human--they were from a different *galaxy*, and right now that was close enough for him.

"Hmm?" Karen asked, looking back at him.

TJ sighed. "Nothing."

***

Seated on the hood of Ashley's car, Cassie was the first to spot Carlos' SUV as it turned onto their road. She and Ashley and Andros had been standing in the Hammonds' driveway, talking while they waited for him to drop Karen off--or more accurately, Ashley and Andros had been talking while she daydreamed.

As the car's engine slowed to silence, Zhane and Kerone climbed out of the back. Carlos slammed the driver's side door shut and pocketed his keys as he walked over to them. "Anyone need a place to go for dinner?" he asked, glancing from Andros to Zhane and Kerone.

Andros shook his head. "Thanks, but I'm going to head back to the Megaship. I'll get something to eat there."

"Me too," Zhane agreed.

Kerone shrugged slightly when their gazes turned to her, and said simply, "I'm not hungry."

That was her standard reply whenever someone asked her about a meal, and Cassie wondered if someday she would shock them all by saying, "I'm starving; can the Synthetron make donuts?"

"I'm tempted to come with you guys," Ashley was saying, as Cassie slid off the car. "My parents have probably eaten already…"

Cassie saw her friend glance in her direction, and she shrugged. "Sounds good to me." She didn't say, *Let's *go* before we waste any more time,* but she thought it.

"I'll see you guys tomorrow, then," Carlos said, drawing his keys out of his pocket again.

"Carlos?" Cassie caught him just as he was turning away. "Are you going to Aquitar tonight?"

For a moment, he hesitated, but then he shook his head. "Can't," he said. "I have too much homework to do--tell Aura that if she finishes the zord project without me I'll kill her, okay?"

That brought a smile to her face as she tried to picture Aura's reaction to those words. "Right… 'night, Carlos."

He waved and headed for his car. She picked up her backpack and gathered with the others, hearing Carlos' car roll down the paved driveway. Twisting her wrist, her morpher appeared in place of the pink-striped gold band and she reached out to flip it open.

It beeped before she could touch it.

She saw Carlos' brake lights come on, and his car halted at the end of the Hammonds' driveway. Beside her, Ashley sighed. "Don't they know it's dinnertime?" she complained quietly, as they all moved a little closer together.

Andros motioned impatiently to Carlos, who was climbing out of the driver's seat for the second time and jogging back down the driveway to them. As he joined the circle, Andros tapped his morpher. "What is it, DECA?"

The computer's tone was calm and her words to the point, but they sent a chill up Cassie's spine. "Emergency signal from Aquitar," DECA told them.

Andros' fingers clenched into a fist. "We'll be right there," he said quietly, and cut the transmission off from their end. Glancing around at the others, he nodded once. "Let's go."

Cassie saw Carlos take a quick step back as the rest of them reached for their morphers. *Probably going to move his car,* she thought, as the world swirled pink around her. For some reason, her mind latched onto that thought as the teleportation stream engulfed her… and as the Megaship reformed, she knew why.

Anything to keep from thinking about why Aquitar was sending out an emergency signal.

***

By the time TJ pulled up in front of Tessa's dorm, the sun was fading from the sky. He had insisted they stop to get her "dinner to go", since she wouldn't have time to go eat on campus before her lab, and she climbed out of the truck still holding her drink and the rabbit he had won earlier.

"Thanks," she said, when he walked her to the door and paused just outside. "I had a lot of fun, TJ."

"Me too," he said with a smile. "See you Saturday, then?"

She nodded, brushing a few strands of hair out of her face and looking up at him. He braced his left arm on the doorframe behind her and leaned forward to kiss her--just as his communicator went off.

She laughed, shaking her head at him as he lowered his arm and put his hand behind his back. "Do you reset that thing every day? I've never heard your watch alarm go off at the same time two days in a row."

"Always something to do," he said, giving her a quick kiss. "I have to go--good luck in your lab."

"Thanks," she said, smiling at him. "Thanks for inviting me this afternoon."

"Thanks for coming," he countered, and she waved as he turned away.

As he closed the driver door, he watched her disappear inside the dorm. Glancing over his shoulder, he tapped his communicator. "This is TJ. What's up?"

"We don't know," Andros' voice answered. "DECA just received an emergency signal from Aquitar--you'd better meet us on the Megaship."

"I'll be right there," TJ promised, turning his hazard lights off and putting the key in the ignition. There was no way he was getting a fifty dollar ticket when there was a parking lot just down the road.

***

Carlos found the other Rangers, minus TJ, on the Bridge when he teleported in. The comm link with Aquitar was already up on the main screen, and he couldn't help scanning the faces visible in the Aquitian Ranger dome.

Cetaci stood in front of the comm station in the Aquitians' auxiliary control room, and Delphinius could be seen conferring with Cestria on the other side of the room. But there was no large viewing screen in secondary operations, as there was in main control, and the comm screen didn't provide a wide enough field of view for him to see more.

"There were more than three million people in that colony," Cetaci was saying as Carlos joined his teammates. "Most of them fled to the outer planets, but the colony itself has fallen. They have no support, no organized defense if they are to evacuate further."

"What about their Rangers?" Zhane wanted to know.

"Rysia is not a League world," Cetaci said flatly. "The colony is non-aligned, but its inhabitants resisted Dark Spectre's forces, and for that he will destroy them."

*Non-aligned--no Alliance protection either, then,* Carlos thought. *Damn.*

"What about their homeworld?" Andros demanded. "They must have *some* protection!"

"The Rysian colony is all that's left of the homeworld," Cestria supplied, stepping into the picture. "Their sun went nova almost a hundred years ago."

"Do they even have the resources to get everyone out, then?" Andros asked.

Cestria shook her head, but it was Cetaci who answered. "The Inner Alliance will provide transports--if we can guarantee that they will be adequately defended."

Surprised, Carlos almost missed the looks Andros and Zhane exchanged. Before anyone could say anything, Andros turned back to the viewscreen and said, "Zhane and I will go. We'll take the new zords and escort the transports."

"You can't go alone," Ashley objected. "You need four zords for the Mega V transformation--I'm going with you."

"I will take the fourth," Kerone volunteered, but Andros shook his head.

"Zhane and I can handle it, and you're both needed here. Ashley," he said, catching her eye, "if Dark Spectre's assault has reached this galaxy, you, Cassie, TJ, and Carlos are Earth's only defense. And Kerone, you know Ecliptor won't talk to anyone but you--you *have* to stay, or we risk losing his help."

"This galaxy?" Carlos repeated, sure he had missed something in the few seconds that he had stayed behind to park his car in the Hammonds' driveway. "What are you talking about?"

"Rysia is on the edge of the Milky Way," Cassie offered, from her place next to the nav station. "Dark Spectre has started to invade our galaxy."

***

TJ knew something was wrong even before he heard Cassie's grim announcement. The comm link with Aquitar was caught off moments later, and he stood unnoticed in the doorway, listening to Ashley argue with Andros. Emergency signal aside, things had to be serious if the two of them were fighting.

"Look, at least find out where the Rysians are being evacuated to," Ashley insisted. "There's no reason *that* Ranger team can't escort the transports."

"The Alliance will take care of that," Andros tried to say, but Ashley interrupted.

"The *Alliance* isn't going to be out there with only two zords against Dark Spectre's invasion fleet!"

A movement by the nav console caught his eye, and TJ saw Cassie slip past Carlos, her hand on his shoulder as she headed quietly for the door. He went along with it, and Ashley and Andros paid no attention as Zhane and Kerone followed them out.

"Hey, TJ," Carlos greeted him quietly. As the five of them withdrew to the holding bay, he asked, "How much did you hear?"

"Enough," TJ answered wryly, glancing back toward the Bridge. "Dark Spectre's made it to the Milky Way in force, and Andros and Zhane are going to try and rescue his first victims alone. That about sum it up?"

"With Alliance help," Zhane interjected, but Carlos and Cassie exchanged glances.

"Yeah, I'd say that pretty much covers it," Carlos agreed, ignoring Zhane.

*And if tomorrow was Saturday instead of Friday, we'd be going with them,* TJ thought, frustrated. "High school sucks," he muttered, and he heard Cassie sigh in agreement.

"Hey," Zhane cut in. "Andros was right; you guys are needed here. Earth is the only planet without a permanent Ranger team, and it's only a League world by default.

"As long as it *has* Rangers, your membership in the League can't be contested, but if you guys aren't here, Earth has no one to speak for it. With Dark Spectre's forces in this galaxy, this planet needs your protection more than ever."

There was silence for a moment.

"I didn't think about it that way," Cassie said finally.

TJ frowned. "Neither did I--are you saying the League won't protect Earth if we're not here?"

"The League won't protect *anyone*," Zhane told them. "It's a political organization, not a military one. Ranger teams have always been enough in the past. It's the Alliance that won't protect non-aligned worlds, which Earth would be without your team. You can see how much trouble it is just to get the Rysian refugees evacuated, and their world has already been conquered."

TJ glanced at Kerone, and she folded her arms defensively. "I didn't know this would happen," she said. "I haven't heard from Ecliptor in days."

"I know," he said quickly. He hadn't meant to imply anything. "I didn't expect you to; sorry."

Ashley stalked into the holding bay, clearly not as convinced as the rest of them that most of the Astro team had to stay behind. She went to the Synthetron without a word, and a moment later, Andros appeared in the doorway.

Zhane caught his eye, and Andros shook his head. TJ wanted to ask when the two of them were leaving, but if Ashley's stony silence was anything to go by, it was not a topic that should be brought up again. Maybe after they'd eaten and had a chance to calm down.

***

The Aquitians' auxiliary control hummed with activity. The main control room was still not fully functional, and the only thing that kept the smaller room from being filled past capacity was that it contained no time warp. With Zordon confined to the research domes, anyone seeking an audience with him was forced to go there instead of the Ranger dome.

Cassie had seen the sight many times in recent weeks, so she just leaned against the doorframe and waited. Saryn was morphed, but she knew exactly when he noticed her presence. He looked up from the console he was working at, glancing over his shoulder and turning his head in her direction.

He made some final adjustment to the readout in front of him, then caught Cestria's attention as she passed. She stopped, glancing Cassie's way when he cocked his head in her direction, and nodded to him. Then he was striding toward the door, and she felt a smile spread across her face.

He caught her hand and drew her out into the hallway. As soon as they were out of line of sight from the door his armor flickered and vanished, and she saw an answering smile on his face. He stepped closer, and she found her back against the wall as he kissed her hard enough to take her breath away.

"I have waited to do that all evening," he murmured as he pulled away. "And you are late."

"I know," she whispered, backpack sliding from her fingers to rest on the floor as she put her arms around him. "I was with the others, and then Cetaci called about Rysia…"

He kissed her again, keeping her from explaining any more. "I have heard nothing but talk of the war all day," he said quietly. "Do you have time for less important conversations?"

"Yes," she breathed, hugging him quickly. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Anything, that I may hear your voice," he said, taking her hand and leading her down the corridor. "Tell me what you did this afternoon."

She smiled, and started to describe Kerone's reaction to the first theme park she'd ever seen.

***

"We can't protect ten transports!"

"Any less, and the convoy will have to make multiple runs," Cetaci said calmly.

"I *know* that," Andros told her. "I also know that even with whatever's left of the Rysian fighters, ten is too big a target!"

"Delphinius has already contacted the Cai system. It contains the nearest comparable planet to that of the Rysian colony--if the Cai agree to the relocation, their Rangers will accompany you."

Somewhat mollified, Andros relaxed a little. "Let us know when you get word."

Cetaci inclined her head. "Of course."

He turned away as the comm screen darkened, to find Zhane standing in the doorway. "Ten transports?" the Silver Ranger repeated.

Andros nodded wordlessly.

"That's some convoy." Zhane's expression was neutral, but he was watching his friend carefully.

"Dark Spectre has better things to do than shoot down unarmed civilians," Andros said, though he knew that wouldn't stop the Monarch of Evil.

"Never stopped him before," Zhane replied, echoing his thoughts.

"*We'll* stop him," Andros said firmly. "That's why we're going. Get some sleep; I'll wake you up when we know anything else."

"You should sleep too," Zhane reminded him.

Andros shook his head. "I have to find Ashley first."

***

Temporarily abandoning his homework in favor of stargazing, TJ found himself staring out one of the windows on deck six. Earth was between the Megaship and the sun right now, affording him a spectacular view of the stars that stretched away from the Sol system toward the edge of their galaxy.

He couldn't make out the small glow that was the Aquitians' galaxy. Even outside the atmosphere, the light from what Tessa called Lesser Magellanic was too dim be seen from Earth without a telescope. But it was there, and TJ couldn't help looking for it.

"Looking for something?"

Surprised, TJ looked over his shoulder. Kerone stood a short distance down the hall, watching him calmly.

"The Aquitians' galaxy," he said, turning back to the window. "Rysia. Dark Spectre. Maybe a sign that all this isn't for nothing; I don't know."

She came closer, and he moved a little to let her look as well. "It isn't all for nothing," she said after a moment.

"I know," he agreed automatically, and she glanced at him.

"It isn't all for nothing," she repeated, as though he might not have heard the first time. "When I was on the Dark Fortress, no one really cared, except Ecliptor. They didn't care about me, or about each other, or even much about themselves.

"Here it's different. Everyone on the Megaship cares about something. Everyone on your planet seems to care too. It's the caring that makes things happen, TJ. And it's the caring that makes things matter." She paused for a minute, then added, "I think that as long as you care, it can't be for nothing."

A motion from farther down the hallway caught TJ's attention, and he saw Carlos standing in the holding bay entrance. "I didn't mean to overhear," the other apologized. "I just came for a snack…"

TJ waved it away. "Don't worry about it. Kerone was just explaining to me about the meaning of life."

Carlos grinned. "And doing a darn good job of it, from what I heard. Want to come care about some hot chocolate with me?"

"Sure," TJ agreed, giving the window one last glance.

When Kerone did not refuse Carlos' offer, TJ held out his arm to her in a mock-gallant gesture. She must have seen him do the same for Tessa, for she put her arm through his tentatively and smiled a little when he grinned. "Let's go," he suggested, and they strolled down the hallway.

Just outside the holding bay doors, he stopped suddenly. "Kerone…"

She looked over at him.

"Thanks," TJ told her with a smile. "And for what it's worth--I think you might be right."

***

It was early for him to be trying to sleep, but if there was fighting at Rysia he would need all the rest he could get. He had wanted to go to the observatory--he found himself sleeping there more and more often lately, finding comfort in having the view of space above him--but DECA had told him someone was already up there.

He sighed, turning on his side and sliding his arm under his pillow. It was depressingly dark in his room, but he knew turning the lights on wouldn't help. Then he would just be able to see how closed in he was.

"DECA," he said suddenly, and he saw a red light flicker on across the room. "Would you play some music?"

"Please specify," the computer reproved mildly.

Zhane sighed again. "I don't care. I just want to know there's a world outside, you know?"

"Receiving radio broadcast from Earth," DECA said, more quietly, and he smiled a little.

"Thanks." The words of some Earth-based musical group started to flow into his room, a welcome sound rather than an intrusive one.

"Zhane and I will go." Andros' words echoed in his mind, and he sought the familiar spark that was his best friend. It lingered on the edges of his awareness, never fading completely even while they slept. "We'll stop Dark Spectre. That's why we're going."

And go they would, together, as always. He closed his eyes, reminding himself that whatever happened, they would have each other. *We'll vow to fight as a team forever…*

The music continued, its soft strains reminding him that he wasn't alone in the darkness, that he wasn't trapped anywhere, and that he was not lost again in the timeless limbo of hypersleep. As he started to relax, the words that drifted gently through the room made him think, not of Andros, but of Andros' sister.

Did she too have trouble sleeping? The Megaship wasn't the Dark Fortress, and there was no constant bustle of activity to comfort her when she lay down in her own room. He wondered if she noticed the quiet, and if it bothered her the way the darkness bothered him.

***

He couldn't help glancing at the time display on the Aquitians' comm console. He had returned to auxiliary control hours ago, when the Cai had insisted that sending Rangers to protect the Rysians would leave their own system undefended. Delphinius had not been able to sway them, and Cestria had asked if he would try.

Cassie had said she would stay up a while longer, working in their room on her homework. But though it was early evening here on Aquitar, he knew that on her planet it was late, and the vague awareness of her in his mind had faded some time ago. He knew she was probably asleep, and it only increased his irritation with the Cai that they had cut short his time with her.

He had managed to keep it from showing, though, and with Zordon's assistance the Cai Rangers had been persuaded to help with the evacuation effort. When he was finally able to excuse himself from the discussion, he drew Cestria aside.

"It is late," he said quietly, and she nodded her understanding. The statement might have sounded odd, except that she knew he got up soon after Cassie left each morning--seven o'clock in Angel Grove was before two in the Ranger dome.

"Sleep well," she answered. "The evacuation will proceed, and we will see you in the morning."

He nodded and moved out into the corridor. The hall was empty as he made his way toward the lift--nearly empty, anyway. As the lift doors opened, he heard Aura's voice in his mind.

*Good night, Saryn.*

He turned to see her emerging from one of the diver exits at the other end of the hall. Billy was with her--they must have just returned from the zord bays. Without a word, he let his armor vanish as he took a step backward. He raised his hand in farewell, and he saw Billy smile just before the lift doors closed on him.

"Level two," he said, not bothering to morph again. The control room was a priority destination; the lift would not stop for other passengers until it arrived. And with the control room closed for repairs since the Barox had destroyed it, there would be no one who did not already know him inside.

He glanced around when the lift let him out, and he had to admit that the room was looking better. The floor had been completely rewoven, and a force field now protected the center while the coral grew back. Most of the consoles had been replaced, and the remainder were recovered.

Skirting the edge of the energy field, he walked around the control room and paused in front of the door leading to the Rangers' living quarters. He placed his hand against the keypad, and the scanner flashed as it registered his Power signature. The door slid open.

He hesitated again in front of the door to his own room. This close, he could tell without even trying that she was asleep, so he did not announce himself. He just reached out and tapped in his code, and the door opened onto darkness.

Stepping inside he waited for his eyes to adjust to the dim glow from the window. Cassie was sleeping curled up, with her arm around the stuffed toy TJ had won for her, and he tried not to sigh. At least the animal was pink and not blue, he told himself. Blue would have been worse.

*My fault,* he reminded himself. He wished he could spend more time with her, but there always seemed to be something more urgent, more… important.

"You are the most important thing in the universe to me," he had told her once. But she had always insisted that he put his life first, and he still did not know how she managed to juggle both her Ranger duties and her civilian life. He had once known how to do that, but no matter how hard he tried to reclaim the ability he couldn't seem to do it.

Leaving his overshirt draped over the chair, he pulled off his boots and sat down on the bed beside her. He thought he could watch her sleep all night, but she would not be happy to find out if he did.

He smiled, for as long as there had been no one to care what happened to him, it had been easy not to care himself. But now that it mattered to someone else whether he was tired, or hungry, or cold, he found it was starting to matter to him. And more than that, he found he enjoyed caring for her the same way.

And so he lay down beside Cassie, putting his arm over her and her "rabbit", as she called it. He hugged her close, careful not to disturb her sleep. He closed his eyes, and the darkness embraced them both.

***

"Ash?"

The observatory portal was open above her, but she turned away from gazing at the wall when Andros called to her. "Hey," she said, a rueful smile on her face. "I wanted to apologize--I was pretty awful earlier."

Walking across the room to join her, he shook his head. "It's okay. I'd feel the same way if you were going somewhere alone."

She sighed. "I just worry, you know? I don't want to lose you, Andros."

He sat down beside her, putting an arm around her shoulders, and she leaned into him. "I don't want to lose you, either," he said quietly. "But I won't, and neither will you. We're not going to Rysia to fight, Ash. We'll get those people out, and that's all."

"I know," she whispered. But she also knew that it wouldn't be that simple. So did he. He was just trying to make her feel better. "Take care of yourself. Please."

"I will," he promised.

For a moment, they were quiet, and she took some comfort in the feeling of his arm around her. Then he took a deep breath and squeezed her shoulder. "We heard from Aquitar a few minutes ago. The Cai Rangers will meet us outsystem of Rysia in less than an hour."

She drew back, searching his expression. "Did you get any sleep?"

His lips quirked. "Not really. Remind me never to argue with you just before I'm trying to rest."

She turned and hugged him, hard. "I'm sorry. It was my fault."

"No it wasn't, and don't worry. The Power will give me plenty of energy, and it won't be that long. We should be back by the weekend."

He hugged her back, and she smiled a little. "I'll hold you to that."

"Good," he whispered.

Finally, he pulled away. Getting to his feet, he reached for his morpher, and she watched the gold numbers fade into the air. Crimson light sparkled around him, and the Red Ranger stood looking down at her.

She took his hand and stood up, searching for an expression she could no longer read behind his visor. "I love you, Andros."

She heard his answer in her mind, and it took some of her tension away. *I love you too. See you soon.*

*See you soon,* she echoed, feeling better to know that he truly believed it.

Then he stepped back, into the teleportation stream, and he was gone. Turning her eyes up toward the observatory dome, she thought she could almost see the red and silver sparkles that flew out to meet the new Astro zords--a gift from Zordon little more than a week before.

"Starlight, star bright," she whispered, watching them shine down at her. "First star I see tonight…"

Perhaps it wouldn't work, if she wasn't wishing on the first star. She picked one anyway and gazed at it, willing the heavens to listen to her. "I wish I may, I wish I might, have the wish I wish tonight."

The star stared back at her, drifting slowly across the dome as the Megaship continued on in its orbit of Earth. Hoping against hope that her wish counted for something out there in that vastness, Ashley wished for the war to be over.