Disclaimer: Saban owns everything Power Rangers related. I own only Petra and Maggie. The character of Eurydice comes from the tv show "Young Hercules," and would be owned by Fox Kids (although I own the history I give her after she disappears from the show). I also fudge a bit with the ending of the YH ep "A Lady in Hades." Instead of going to the Elysian Fields, Eury comes back to the world of the living with Herc and Jason. Some of the idea came from "Someone to Watch Over Me" by Mele.
Author's Note: Big huge thanks to Lady Dragon for constantly mentioning this fic and nagging, I mean encouraging me to write it, as well as for everything else. LD, this is for you. Glad you're better. Thanks also to Rangergirl for being there. This is the second part of my series "The Power of Pink." Italics denote thoughts. Timeline wise, this takes place both after and in the middle of the PRLG episode "Power of Pink."
Kendrix sipped her iced tea, trying to bring herself under control. She glanced around the room, hoping to find something to distract her from the direction her thoughts had led. Her eye caught the wall between the kitchen and the couch. There was a single large picture located in the center, and two smaller ones on either side of it. She had missed them on her initial exploration of the room, although that was hard to believe, given the size of the center picture. Behind her, on the wall directly across the room from the screen, there were four medium sized pictures. Taking her iced tea with her, Kendrix stood and went to look at the wall with three pictures first.
Of the three, two were much smaller than the third. The small ones were each about the same size as a five by seven. Kendrix instinctively began with the picture on the left. It was, essentially, a head. A gray head in what looked like a tube in front of a blue background. For some unknown reason, she felt a . . . bond? tie? She had never seen the head before in her life - of that she was certain. Yet she felt as if she knew . . . him? It looked like a male, but it was just a head, and gender wasn't always easy to determine based on the head alone. Whoever or whatever he was, Kendrix undeniably felt a connection.
The small picture on the right contained two red robots. Each had a lightning bolt on their chests - one pointed straight down while the other's was curved. Kendrix easily recognized one of them as Alpha 6. Given the similarity between Alpha and the robot next to him, it could only be another robot in the same series. Perhaps Alpha 5?
The center picture was even bigger up close - at least a few feet across. Kendrix couldn't but stare in shock at it. It was a picture of her own team. With Mike. Examining it, Kendrix realized that the scene in the picture was the celebration party they had thrown after the Magna Defender had sacrificed himself for the colony and Mike had finally returned. They were in the guy's apartment, sitting on the couches. Maya and Leo were on the left of the picture on one couch, Mike was in a chair to himself to Maya's right, and she was sitting with Kai and Damon on the couch across from Maya and Leo. Kai was even still wearing his apron.
That had been such a great day, for so many reasons. After so long, Mike was finally 'home', and Leo was finally able to get that weight off his shoulders ... as well as that horrid excuse for a leather jacket. He had confessed to Kendrix shortly after they became rangers that he blamed himself for Mike's death. Leo was finally able to start to live for himself again, not for his brother. Mike was able to return to his duties as second in command to Commander Stanton, without having to explain just where he'd been. Damon was given a higher position of authority in the facilities department. Maya had confessed to her that she was considering cutting her hair, as well as that she was starting to feel some things for Leo. Kai had finally been able to relinquish the burden of second in command that he had had to assume due to Mike's absence, and he couldn't have been happier. And as for Kendrix herself ... That was the day I realized that Kai was the one meant for me.
It had been a great day for all of them, but that still didn't explain what it was doing here. Or who the pictures around it were of. True, she knew Alpha, but the other robot in the picture was still a complete mystery. And she may have felt a tie to the head, but she knew she'd never met the head before. Meeting a floating head in a tube wasn't something people forgot. Why were the pictures here? Were they connected? Just who were those various ... beings? And just how did the picture of her friends wind up here? Or even exist? There certainly hadn't been a photographer in the apartment with them. Since they had discussed ranger business, Kendrix was positive that no one else had been there.
There were still more pictures; these were on the wall behind the couch. Kendrix mentally shut out the questions and went to check out the set on the other wall. This time, there were only four pictures, all of equal size, in two rows of two. These also each had a mahogany frame, as opposed to the single pink frame on the picture of her friends on the other wall.
The top left picture was of a girl and two guys. The girl looked to be a fragile blond, with her hair pulled up and back, allowing a bit of it to come down and frame her face. With her pale complexion, she strongly reminded Kendrix of a porcelain doll. She was wearing what looked like some form of stalks of grain arranged as a collar over a dark dress. She stood in between the two guys. The one on her right was shorter than she, while the one on the left was taller. The one on her right was incredibly built, reminding Kendrix of the three identical men on the other wall. He had short dark hair, which was styled back from his face. He wore a black vest-type shirt, open in the middle, revealing his muscled chest. The vest didn't look to be cloth, and did not look very comfortable. The other guy looked more comfortable. He was taller than the girl, and also had blond hair, which fell into his eyes. His arms were crossed across his chest, but his yellow shirt was still quite visible. There were leather patches on the shoulders, and it did not have sleeves. Neither male looked happy, but the girl's expression was so flat, it was impossible to read.
The top right picture contained only two people, a male and a female. They were standing, facing the camera. Both were laughing and he had his arms around her waist. The two of them were actually quite similar. They were about the same height, but he came out the winner by about an inch. They both had very short black hair. She was the winner in hair length, beating him by a few inches. They were dressed alike, each wearing a jumpsuit type outfit and a jacket. The outfits reminded her of the flight suits that the Space Rangers wore, but not quite. Whereas the Space Rangers wore both gray pants and jackets, with the undershirt in their Ranger color, this man and woman wore a gray one piece jumpsuit, and then differently colored jackets. She wore pink and he wore blue.
The bottom left picture again contained just two people, a man and a woman. They were both dressed quite formally, with him in a tux and her in a dark red evening gown. They were dancing, which showed clearly that they were the same height. Her slightly wavy dark brown hair reached just far enough down her back to almost tickle his hands clasped around her waist while her hands, around his neck, were still a few inches away from his dirty blond hair. They couldn't have looked happier or more in love.
Kendrix was again in shock as she looked at the final picture. It was of her. And Kai. It was just the two of them, in their GSA uniforms, somewhere on Terra Venture, sitting on a bench, laughing. Finally, she recognized it.
That was the day we met. We had been on tours of Terra Venture so that we would know what was going on before all the regular colonists were let on board. After the tour was done, Kai and I had went off and found a little place to talk. We were there so long we almost missed the GSA meeting held that evening. It was one of the best times I've ever had.
But again, she knew there was no photographer there. It was the first of many little excursions they had taken together, deliberately finding a place off the beaten path. As great as it was to be rangers and share everything with Leo, Damon and Maya, there were times that they thought of the other GSA members' single apartments with envy. It was great to simply spend time together. Kendrix got a lump in her throat remembering all the fun things she and Kai had done together, both before and after Terra Venture had left. They'd gone on hikes, visited the different attractions in the Main Dome, gone for swims in the Aqua Dome, hiking in the Mountain Dome, and all sorts of things.
Kendrix shook herself from the memories and concentrated on the wall again. Where did the pictures come from? At least this time, they were all of other humans.
Kendrix crossed to the kitchen and refilled her iced tea. Grabbing a handful of crackers as well, she decided she might as well enjoy herself while she was here. Wherever here was. And to enjoy herself, she wanted to read Adam Park's "Ninja Warriors" series. The first one in the series was titled The Journey to Phaedos. Quickly skimming the back cover, she guessed that this covered how they all met and went to a distant planet. Taking the book, she calmly relaxed on the couch and started to read.
As she began the second chapter, she heard a noise. It was the first noise she had heard in quite a while that she herself hadn't made. She glanced around, trying to figure out what had broken the absolute silence of the room. There it was again. Incredibly, it sounded like someone knocking at the door. Convinced her mind was playing tricks on her, she waited for it to happen a third time. It was definitely the sound of someone knocking. Setting the book and her iced tea on the small end table, she crossed to the door. To her complete amazement, the doorknob turned easily, opening the door. She stepped back in shock.
Into her room came three women, each dressed in some form of pink. Kendrix was pretty much expecting the pink, based off everything else in the room. She barely noticed when the door shut on its own, since she had let go of the handle as soon as the door had opened. Her attention was focused entirely on the three women.
"Welcome, Kendrix," one said. It was the first time she had heard another human voice in almost a day. As she opened her mouth to respond, the same woman held up a hand. "All of your questions will be answered in time. At least," a small grin appeared "most of them will. There are some things you can only learn on your own. But I'm getting ahead of myself. My name is Eurydice."
Kendrix immediately recognized Eurydice as the one from the first picture. She wore a salmon- covered dress, almost a toga, leaving her arms bare. Her feet were clad in delicate sandals that did NOT look very comfortable. Her hair was styled in the same manner as the picture. Despite her fragile and youthful appearance, her voice was very commanding and she was the obvious leader of the three.
The second one stepped forward. "I am called Petra." Petra was the same woman as the one in the second picture. Petra and Eurydice could not be more different. Petra was a good foot taller, and had muscles everywhere Eurydice didn't. Petra also seemed older, somehow, than Eurydice. While Eurydice didn't look more than twenty, Petra looked at least twenty-five or thirty. Petra was wearing the same outfit as in her picture - the gray jumpsuit with a pink jacket. She also wore a pair of sturdy boots that looked almost as uncomfortable as Eurydice's sandals.
"And I'm Maggie," the final woman said with a grin. Maggie was the woman from the third picture. Instead of the red dress, she was wearing a deep pink, almost red sweater and a pair of blue jeans. Her feet were clad in what Kendrix could only call tennis shoes. She was about medium height, taller than Eurydice but shorter than Petra. Her brown hair was loose, and it came down past her shoulders. She also seemed to be about Petra's age, rather than Eurydice's.
"We apologize for arriving so late," added Maggie, grinning sheepishly. "We should have been here to greet you when you first arrived, but ..." she trailed off, casting a sideways glance at Petra.
"All right, it was my fault, okay? Rafe was home on leave, and I only had two days to spend with him. I'm not going to be able to see him again until all of Captain Mutiny's remaining forces have been exiled to - " Petra quickly cut herself off, after receiving a sharp elbow to her side from Eurydice.
"Never mind that," Eurydice cut in at Kendrix's questioning gaze. "Kendrix, we are here to explain why you are. And we should have been here to greet you upon your arrival, but that was out of our control."
Maggie gave Petra a teasing look before continuing the tale. "No matter why we were not here to greet you, we are here now." Her gaze turned serious. "Though we are all from various times and places, we have one thing in common. We have all wielded the Pink Quasar Saber during our life, as you do now."
Kendrix could no longer keep quiet. Her scientific mind could not grasp how three people who had wielded the Pink Quasar Saber at three different times, with the most recent being three thousand years ago could be in the same room talking to her now. Unless she was dead ... "But, how? Maya told me that the Quasar Sabers had been placed in that rock on Mirinoi three thousand years ago, yet you all look so young!"
"Thanks for the compliment. Rafe is gone so often, I've gotten used to going without praise for months at a time. It's such a refreshing feeling," Petra laughed, patting her hair.
Eurydice's face was serious. "Kendrix, do you know where you are?"
"Well ... no. I figured it couldn't be the afterlife, because I had a headache when I got here, I needed to sleep, I was the thirsty and the kitchen is fully stocked. If I was dead, I wouldn't need to eat." Kendrix looked at the three women and shrugged. "I have no clue where I am."
"You're essentially ... in the Quasar Saber," Maggie said gently. "When you destroyed the Savage Sword with it to save Cassie, that blast should have killed you. You're correct in considering the afterlife as a possibility."
"Had it not been for one thing, you would be in your own personal version of the afterlife. But you sacrificed yourself completely selflessly for Cassie and her powers. Because of you, a Power Ranger lives on, and is able to continue to battle whatever evil she may come across. You also played a role in the destruction of Psycho Pink in your sacrifice. Those two reasons are why you're still alive," Petra explained to her. "In fact, if you'd just destroyed the Savage Sword to save the Pink Space Powers and not Cassie's life, you would be dead. It was that fine a line."
"And, before you can ask, yes, there is a way to return to your former life," Eurydice stated, getting the expected gasp of joy from Kendrix. "It is not an easy task, and you cannot play a major role in the deed."
"For you to rejoin your friends, they must place all five Quasar Sabers back in the rock from which they came. Only then will you be released from here," Maggie explained, again getting the expected gasp from Kendrix. This time, however, it was a gasp of disbelief.
"They have to put them back where they found them? But that was on Mirinoi! And it's not like Mirinoi is right around the corner - we went through a portal to get there! And it closed after we came through it! Just how are we, no they supposed to put them back? And what about Trakeena? Without the Sabers, we, no they won't have any way to fight her! That's how I'm supposed to get out of here?!? Great! I'll be stuck here for the rest of my life, if I can even still call it that!" Fighting back tears, Kendrix turned her back on her three visitors and ran across the room to throw herself facedown on the mattress in the corner.
Maggie, Eurydice and Petra looked at each other. "This is unexpected," Eurydice stated, crossing her arms.
"No," Maggie cut in, "look at it this way. She's been plucked from everything familiar and placed in a completely foreign environment. Now, three strange women tell her that she's inside a sword and the only way to get out of said sword is if her friends put their swords back in a rock on a world turned to stone that's who-know's-where. No wonder she's upset."
"Oh, how terrible," Petra exclaimed, looking at the crying girl.
"There is the remote that we still need to give her," Eurydice stated. "It is major part of our mission to visit her."
Maggie walked over to the bed and cautiously sat down. "Kendrix?" The prone girl made no indication whether or not she had heard her. "We have just a few more things that we need to tell you, then we'll leave you alone."
At that, Kendrix rolled over. She swiped at her eyes, and glared at Eurydice. "What is it now? I have to find the brass monkey before the next full moon?"
Petra let out a hoot of laughter, but quickly suppressed it at the icy look from Eurydice. "Sorry, Kendrix, but that's not it. That was actually what Eurydice had to do before she could wield the Saber in the first place."
"And it was hard. It's been made into a joke now, but do you have any idea how hard that was to find? Ares had hidden it, because he knew that if I was not able to wield the Saber, then Hercules, Jason, Iolaus and Lilith would not have a full team, and would not be able to take the powers. Besides, this was only a few months after I had been rescued from Hades. Do you have any idea what I went through?! You're not the only one who died," Eurydice was practically screaming by the time she finished.
"Eurydice, calm down," Maggie reasoned from the bed. "We know what you went through. Yes, you actually did die. Not many people can say that. You're one of the very few. And we know what a great thing Hercules and Jason did to save you. And you also know that the whole ordeal was unfortunately turned into a giant joke after Strife told some other minor gods about it. So relax."
Eurydice visually composed herself, remembering that they were there for Kendrix, not for themselves. "Sorry about that. It's just that I get really annoyed about how my grueling task became a joke on other worlds."
"What Eurydice meant to say was that there is something that you still have to do. But that's for later," Petra explained. "For now, I'm sure you noticed the large screen that takes up the entire wall over there. Did you figure out a way to turn it on?"
As Kendrix shook her head, Maggie continued the tale. "That's because you didn't have the remote."
"I reasoned that there had to be one. Since the screen is so huge, it has to play a major part in whatever I'm doing here," Kendrix told the three as she sat up on the bed. Petra brought the two chairs from the kitchen area over to the bed for herself and Eurydice to use.
Kendrix continued while Petra was doing that. "I looked all around for the remote. I poked and prodded the wall space forever, thinking it might be concealed in some hidden drawer, like everything else is."
"And you didn't find it, did you," Petra said, in a way that it wasn't a question.
Kendrix answered anyway. "No, I didn't find it. But I'm thinking that I didn't find it because it's not kept in this room. In fact, I think one of you have it!"
"And you think correctly," Eurydice answered, pleased with Kendrix's conclusions, as she drew the remote from the fold in her toga. "Here it is. We'll have to show you how to use it."
Taking the remote from Eurydice, Maggie held it out in front of Kendrix. It was black and about six inches long. The top right corner had a large pink triangle-shaped button. Under that, in two rows of three, were six square buttons of different colors. The top row had blue, then red, then green. The row under it held yellow, then pink, then black. Under the six buttons was a long thin pink rectangular button that stretched across the remote. Below it were two more rectangular buttons, slightly larger than the six colored ones. The one on the left was a pinkish red, while the one on the right was a light blue. Directly below each was a circular button. The left one was white and the right one was peach. Below these two was one fairly large square button in the most annoying shade of pea-green. Finally, at the bottom of the remote were three sets of pink up and down arrow keys, with a small purple circular button in between each set. There was no writing on the remote at all, except at the bottom. The two purple buttons were labeled 'mute' and 'info,' and the three sets of arrows were labeled 'C,' 'V' and 'Z.'
"This large triangle key is the power switch. You'd use it to turn it on or off. Pretty simple. Stop me whenever you have a question," Maggie mentioned before continuing. "Next, you have the six colored buttons. Each of these is a ranger. For example, by pressing the blue key, it will show you Billy."
"Billy? Who's that?" Kendrix asked, confused, as Petra leaned over and smacked Maggie.
"Sorry, wrong ranger team. Um ... Rocky? Chad? TJ? Justin? Help me out here," Maggie asked, scratching her head a bit.
"Kai."
Maggie quickly smacked herself on the forehead! "Kai! I knew that one! Anywho, pressing the blue button would show you Kai. Red would be Leo, green Damon, etc."
"What about pink? What would that show, since I'm here?" Kendrix queried, finding the obvious flaw in what she was being told.
"Find out. Press the pink button," Eurydice suggested.
Kendrix pushed it. Nothing happened.
"Try turning it on first," Petra suggested.
Kendrix pushed the triangle, and the screen came to life, although showing nothing but a pink screen. Kendrix pressed the pink button again, and the screen went black.
"Since you are here, there is no Pink Ranger for it to show. However, just to prove that the remote does in fact work, pick a different ranger to view," Eurydice explained to her.
Without hesitating, Kendrix pressed the yellow button. The black screen flashed yellow briefly, then showed Kendrix and Maya's room on Terra Venture. Maya was laying in her hammock. Her hands covered her face, and her body shook with sobs. Kendrix couldn't stand to watch her friend cry, and quickly selected the blue button. The screen flashed blue before showing Kai at his shift in command headquarters. Mike stood behind him, as Commander Stanton gave them instructions. Kai's uniform was wrinkled, his hair looked more disheveled than usual, and his hands were clenched into fists at his sides. Mike's uniform looked immaculate, as always. His hair was also slightly mussed, as if he had run his fingers through it far too many times. Mike's hands were behind his back, and his shoulders were hunched. Neither guy looked anywhere close to their normal happy selves. Kendrix couldn't hear what the Commander was saying.
"The long thin button shows the Quasar Saber itself. This can be useful at times when you're not sure if the Saber is with the Pink Ranger or not," Maggie said, doing her best not to give anything away. There were many things that Kendrix was supposed to discover on her own, and the three had strict orders not to reveal too much. She quickly moved on before Kendrix could test this button. "The next two buttons will show you two places on Terra Venture. One is the Research and Development department where you worked, and the other is Command Headquarters."
"Why would I want to see those places?" Kendrix couldn't help but asking. "Well, I can understand why I would want to see the R&D department, because I care what happens to the all of the work I was doing, with my plants as well as with the Galaxy Book. Since none of the other rangers worked there, I couldn't simply use a Ranger button to show it. But with the command room, Mike and Kai are practically always there. Why would I want or need to see it when they're not?"
"Kendrix, there are things that we can't tell you. There are events that are going to transpire that we have the knowledge about, as does the Saber. There will be an occasion for you to use that button when neither Mike nor Kai were in the room. But that's all we can tell you," Eurydice asserted, glad to have distracted Kendrix before she could ask about the Saber button.
"The next two buttons deal with how you view each situation. The white button would show you what the currently selected ranger would be seeing, and the peach button would show you the ranger. For example, you have Kai selected at the moment, and he shows up on the screen. You currently are seeing Kai. By pressing the white button, you would see what Kai sees," Maggie stated, trying to explain clearly one of the more confusing aspects of the remote.
Petra could tell that Kendrix had almost grasped the concept, but not yet all of it. "Why don't you try it out? Pick a different ranger, then use the two buttons to go back and forth."
After a brief pause, Kendrix pressed the red button. The screen flashed red briefly, then showed Leo. Leo was out for a jog, and was running through what looked to be the jungle dome. He was wearing another in his seemingly endless supply of red tank tops, as well as black sweatpants. Kendrix pushed the peach button. Nothing happened.
"The peach button is the default mode. That's what you're currently seeing. Try the white one," Eurydice suggested.
Kendrix pushed the white button. The screen flashed red again, and the picture no longer showed Leo. Now, it showed a dirt path, with trees on either side. The scenery was moving, much like one would see while traveling in a car ... or while running. Pushing the peach button again, she saw another red flash, and there was Leo running again.
"The next button will show you the evil being that the rangers are currently fighting. In your case, it would show Trakeena on the Scorpion Stinger. This can be useful when you want to see why the evil being has left you alone for a while, or just to check to see how an evil being lives. It can actually be kind of fun," Maggie grinned.
Kendrix pressed the pea-green button, and what could only be the Scorpion Stinger appeared on the screen. Trakeena was pacing back and forth, and it looked like she was yelling at Deviot for screwing up with the Psychos.
"Why can't I hear them?" Kendrix asked as a rather odd thought struck her. I wonder if they're glad I'm gone. One Ranger down and all that.
"That brings us to the next part of the remote. You'll notice the three sets of up and down arrows near the bottom. One lets you surf through the different 'channels,' one controls the volume, and one lets you zoom in and out in the current screen," Maggie explained, before continuing. "You were asking about volume - that's the center set of arrows. They go alphabetically from left to right: channel on the left, volume in the middle, and zoom on the right."
Kendrix quickly increased the volume and caught the end of Trakeena's rant. "At least those blasted Space Rangers have headed back to Earth. Deviot, just be glad that Psycho Pink got something done, or else you'd be history." With that, Trakeena stomped through a doorway, and was out of view.
"So I'm the reason that Deviot still gets to work for Trakeena. Oh goodie," Kendrix sarcastically muttered to herself.
Petra just laughed. "That's how they live. I still get a kick out of watching Barbarax kiss up to Captain Mutiny."
"Petra," Eurydice cut in, glaring at her friend, "I thought you agreed to not mention any specific details that ... should remain unmentioned."
"Oh please, Eury. Calm down. Two names are not going to alter the future and what must happen," Petra reasoned, glaring back. "Now, if I had said something about the nasty history between Scorpius and Captain Mutiny, then that would be different."
"PETRA!"
"Relax, both of you," Maggie broke in. "Petra, you know better than to deliberately push Eurydice's buttons. And Eurydice, I don't think her first statement was that bad."
"Maggie, you know she's deliberately being uptight about all this," Petra complained.
"Might I remind you that I come from a time almost 10000 years before yours?" Eurydice pointed out, crossing her arms.
"So? Were people more uptight back then?" Petra countered, crossing her arms as well.
Before Eurydice could retaliate or Maggie could intervene, the room shook, causing Petra and Eurydice to fall over. Maggie and Kendrix, from their positions on the bed, were not affected in the slightest.
"Okay, I guess I went too far," Petra decided aloud as she stood up, holding a hand out to Eurydice. "Sorry, Eury."
Taking Petra's hand, Eurydice pulled herself up. "It's okay, Petra. Sorry I overreacted. Just don't do it any more!"
Kendrix just looked at her three visitors. Since she'd never heard of this Captain Mutiny guy, it didn't seem to matter that Petra kept mentioning him. Deciding to wait until they sorted everything out, Kendrix tried out the channel change arrow keys, scrolling through all of the different scenes. Kai and Mike were still in Command Headquarters, Leo was still out running, and Damon was on the MegaShip with Alpha. Maya was no longer crying, and Kendrix decided she'd watch her best friend do the grocery shopping.
Well, now she can eat all of those weird jungle type dishes that she kept trying to have me eat all the time.
"Kendrix?" A voice interrupted, drawing her away from her thoughts. She blinked and saw all three of her visitors were now standing in a row, looking at her.
"Work everything out?" she couldn't help but ask.
"Yes, we did. In fact, we're almost done here," Petra announced, before turning and checking with Eurydice. "I mean, aren't we?"
"We've explained to you all of the remote, except those two purple buttons in between the arrows on the bottom," Eurydice declared. "Both are labeled, which makes it easier."
Maggie picked up the explanation from there. "The one on the left is the mute function, which is the same as all other mute buttons you've seen. The one on the right is the 'info' button." Maggie suddenly grinned. "Guess what it's for."
Kendrix looked at the small purple button. Sure enough, it was labeled 'info.' "I'm thinking it gives information," she decided, going for the obvious approach.
"Yep! It gives info." Maggie turned around and glanced at the screen. "Okay, we have Maya doing some grocery shopping. Say you didn't know where she was. Press the info button."
As soon as Kendrix complied, a text window popped up along the bottom of the screen, with large enough print to be legible from across the room.
"See," Maggie pointed out, "we have Maya -Yellow Ranger, in Galaxy Groceries, Main Dome, Terra Venture."
"And that's the remote. Pretty nifty, huh." Petra concluded.
"Yes, it is." Kendrix agreed, looking at it.
"Okay, other business that we have," Eurydice said, pulling a list from the fold in her toga. "Let's see ... explain remote - done. Next is 'Explain room.' " Folding the list, Eurydice brought her gaze back to Kendrix. "As you may or may not have realized, you will still have all normal bodily functions while you're here. That's why you have the fully stocked kitchen and the mattress and everything."
"One thing that you probably haven't even realized that you need is a bathroom," Petra continued, taking over the tale from Eurydice. She watched as understanding crossed Kendrix's face, followed by a slight blush. "Don't worry, there is a bathroom here. Like most of the things in room, it's hidden in the walls." As she finished speaking, she crossed the room to where the wall with the three pictures met the wall with the four pictures. Touching a latch that Kendrix could swear was not there before, Petra opened part of the wall to reveal a good sized bathroom. "You can't see all of it, but it's fully equipped."
While Eurydice consulted her list again, Maggie couldn't resist. "You sound like a used car salesman, calling a bathroom 'fully equipped.' "
Eurydice glanced up from her list to look curiously at Maggie. "Car?" Instead of answering, Maggie held her hands up and pantomimed being behind a steering wheel. Eurydice's eyes widened in understanding and she turned her attention back down to her list, much to Kendrix's amusement. "Moving on, the next thing is 'Explain powers.' Maggie, that's you."
"Now, Kendrix, if you remember, we mentioned when we first got here what had to happen for you to rejoin your friends. We also mentioned that you couldn't play a major role in that end result. What we didn't mention was that you can play a role. Just not a major one."
By now, Petra had closed the wall and rejoined the other two. "What Maggie means is that you can subliminally suggest things to your teammates, but only on certain occasions. Some things are going to happen that you won't like. And, unfortunately, these things have to happen."
"And," Eurydice added quickly, holding up a hand to ward off the question she knew was coming, "no, we can't tell you what events these are. If you knew before they happened, you might try to prevent them. And they have to happen. We can't stress that enough."
"Anyway, back to how. Have you ever meditated?" Maggie asked.
"Yes. I used to, before I joined the GSA. It was a great way to relax."
"Good. Then this won't be that difficult. To suggest things to your teammates, you have to be in a deep meditative trance. Have whomever you want to talk to on screen. Then just keep repeating to yourself what you want to tell them."
"Now Kendrix," Eurydice added, when she felt Maggie had finished her explanation. "This is also something that has to be said. It doesn't reflect at all how we feel about you, or the type of person we believe you to be. We know that you have feelings for Kai, but you cannot use this to make him fall in love with you. Yes, I know, you would never do that. But it has to be said."
"Sorry, Kendrix," Maggie quickly said, eyeing Kendrix's look of shock.
"Yeah, there were specific things that we were supposed to mention," Petra added, as Eurydice once again whipped out her list.
"And not mention," Eurydice interrupted, eyeing Petra.
"And using the suggestion power for personal gain was one of them," Petra finished, pretending Eurydice hadn't said anything. "So, what's left Eury? We forget anything?"
"There's still a few more things. Three, to be exact. Magic, messages, and visitors."
"Magic and messages are me," Maggie announced.
"And I guess I can do visitors," Petra volunteered. "Maggie, feel free to start."
"Gee, thanks. You're too kind."
"I try."
Noticing the glare they were both getting from Eurydice and remembering how the Saber had intervened earlier, Maggie decided she had better start. "There is also a way to leave a message for someone. Instead of merely suggesting something, this is actually presenting a talking image of you to wherever you're leaving the message.
"It's actually easiest to do this in dreams - that way, you can actually interact with whomever you're leaving the message. When they're awake, all you'll really be doing is showing them a recording of your message."
"That makes sense," Kendrix reasoned, thinking aloud.
"However, this must only be done rarely. It is hard to do right and should only be done in matters of grave urgency," Eurydice reminded Kendrix. "Again, not for personal gain."
"This is also done through meditation, with a slight variation. When you're doing this, have the screen off and lie down. Think of where you want to leave your message - not what you want to say. Almost project yourself there. When it works, you'll know," Maggie explained. "This is when you want to give your message. Only now should you think about what you're going to say."
"And remember, you can't tell anyone where you are. Be as vague as possible," Eurydice warned.
"And that's how to leave messages," Maggie concluded. "Make sense?"
"Makes sense to me," Kendrix decided, going over it in her mind.
"Next is also my topic: magic," Maggie announced, once she felt Kendrix was ready to move on. "Since you are in the Pink Quasar Saber, which is the source of the powers for the Pink Galaxy Ranger, there is an unbelievable amount of magic humming in this room. The magic provides practically everything you could want, and almost before you realize you want it. Because you wielded the saber for as long as you did, it had a link into your subconscious. That's how it knew all the things about your preferences that seemingly no one else could know. That's also how it will know what you want, and sometimes the saber reacts to something it detected in your subconscious before it enters your conscious mind." Maggie paused. "Does that make any sense?"
It was like a light had suddenly clicked on above Kendrix's head. "So that's how everything was perfectly suited to fit me and my preferences. That's how it knew what brands of everything to get. That's how it knew what food to have. That's how it knew what books to give me. That's how it knew everything!"
"Exactly," Eurydice told her, showing a rare smile at the speed Kendrix was catching on.
"There's another really interesting aspect of the magic element of the room," Petra suddenly said. "Maggie mentioned that the room will give you what you want, almost before you want it. Well, it reacts to voice commands, too. Say you wanted to try a different type of food than usual - just say so. Or if you feel in the mood for something different to read - just say so. The possibilities are endless."
"One thing to keep in mind," Eurydice warned. "Don't get too extravagant. This is only temporary until your fellow Rangers return the Sabers. And don't get too used to this kind of surface. Once you leave this room, you'll probably never see some of these things again: the books, the furniture, the specific brands."
"So then I definitely will be released?" Kendrix couldn't help but ask hopefully.
"You know we can't tell you that. Specific things have to happen, but there are so many variables that could swing the tide of events in all sorts of ways. Even we do not know the true course of events. We don't even know what the certain things that have to happen are," Eurydice explained, as gently as she knew how.
"On that lovely note, we come to my topic: visitors," Petra announced cheerily.
"Visitors? You mean, you'll come back?" Kendrix queried with a frown.
"Well, yes and no. Kendrix, you will have visitors while you're here. The three of us, either together or separately could come back at any time to give you further instruction, or just give you someone to talk to. You may also be visited by previous Power Rangers from Earth, or other places. The one constant with your visitors is that they will never be people from your own Ranger team, or people that your Ranger team would have contact with," Petra stated.
"The main thing with the visitors is that your team, unfortunately, has to think that you're dead," Eurydice said bluntly.
"Which is annoying, we know," Maggie added.
"And that is all. We should be going," Eurydice decided.
"Wait, what about the first message that she hasn't left?" Maggie asked, looking in confusion at the blond girl in the toga.
"Oh, right. That," Eurydice said, blushing slightly. "Maggie, that's your field. Explain away," she maneuvered deftly, recovering quickly.
"Oh, Eury messed up," Petra teased, as Eurydice glared at her.
Laughing, Maggie started to explain. "Kendrix, there is one teensy-weensy problem with us getting here so late. You were supposed to have left a message to your team and the Space Rangers immediately after you destroyed the Savage Sword. But, since we weren't here to explain to you how to do it, it didn't happen. All the two teams know is that there was an explosion, then ... nothing. They didn't find a body, so they really don't know what to think except that you're gone."
"And that has to be fixed. You have to give them some small measure of hope. Some way to know that, while you're not there with them, you'll always be a part of them. It gives them a small bit of closure to your 'death,' " Petra added.
"As soon as we leave, give them this message. This is the only message that you'll leave that won't be given in the present. You'll go back to yesterday and leave it. When you wake up here again, you'll be at today again. You won't have to re-live the past day," Maggie explained.
"Time travel is pretty confusing. And annoying. Did that make sense to you?" Eurydice asked, since the first message left by Kendrix was one of the key messages.
"I think so. When I meditate before leaving this message, I should think of the place and time from yesterday when I destroyed the sword. All the rest of my messages won't involve going back in time."
"Correct. In fact, you won't be allowed to leave messages in either the future or the past. You could try and try, but it won't allow it. We're only making an exception this first time because of the importance of the message and the fact that it was Petra's fault," Eurydice explained further, ending with a pointed glance at her tall companion.
"Hey! I already apologized for that!" Petra exclaimed loudly.
"Well, is that everything now? My list has everything checked off." Eurydice declared, ignoring Petra's comment.
"I think we hit it all," Maggie agreed.
Petra didn't say anything; she just glared at Eurydice.
Trying to hide her grin, Maggie turned from Petra and looked at Kendrix. "Well, that's everything from our end. Do you have any questions?"
Thousands of questions raced through Kendrix's mind. She knew, however, that most of them would not be answered. She settled on one that seemed pretty likely. "Could you explain the pictures on the wall?"
"Pictures?" Petra asked, looking quizzical. "What pictures?"
"Those pictures," Kendrix explained, pointing to both walls. "You guys are on that wall, and the other wall has a picture of a floating head, two alpha units and a group shot of my best friends."
"Pictures of us?" Maggie asked, looking at Eurydice. "Why would there be pictures of us?"
Instead of answering, Eurydice walked over to the wall with her picture on it. She let out a small gasp when she reached it.
The other three hurried over to her, concerned. "Eury? What is it?" Maggie asked.
"That's from when I was in Hades. Hercules and Jason ..." she swallowed, painfully, then continued, "Hercules and Jason came and got me. They rescued me, since I shouldn't have died .... That was one of the best days of my life," she finished softly, tracing a finger across the blond guy's face. "Herc was so brave, taking on his uncle Hades the way he did. I don't think I ever loved him more than I did that day."
Maggie gave Eurydice a hug as Petra discovered her picture. "Oh ... my ... God!"
Maggie turned to Petra, concerned again. "Petra, what is it?"
Petra just looked in utter shock at her picture. "That's me and Rafe. From before. Before the wars started. That's the day he proposed," she continued, her voice getting stronger as she continued the tale. "He had just found out that he'd gotten chosen to go to Balidor with the rest of his training group, but he couldn't bring anyone with. Unless it was his wife. The ring he gave me was one he'd bought weeks before; the mission was the incentive he needed to actually go through with it."
Kendrix looked to Maggie, the only one who hadn't commented on her picture. Eurydice, in tears, kept trailing a finger across the blond guy, who had to be Hercules. Petra had her gaze locked on her picture, and it didn't look like she could stop looking if her life depended on it. Maggie was just grinning.
"So, since that's you, is that your guy?" Kendrix finally asked, when Maggie didn't say anything.
"Yep, that's Matt."
When it became clear that Maggie wasn't going to expand, Kendrix prodded her along. "And?"
Turning her attention from the picture to Kendrix, Maggie just kept smiling. "I suppose you want the story behind it. That's me and Matt at his company's annual party. They're so utterly formal, we wouldn't even have been let in if Matt wasn't wearing a tux. That night, while we were dancing, Matt told me that he'd been offered a huge promotion in the company - Vice President of Operations. I was so happy for him; we'd been waiting for something like this to happen for years. The only possible problem was that the company headquarters were off world, and we'd have to move there. Since we're both orphans, we didn't even hesitate. After that song, Matt went over and accepted it. We moved to Zathra the next month."
"Is that where you wielded the Quasar Saber?" Kendrix asked, studying the four pictures thoughtfully.
"Yeah, it is, but that's a pretty long story in itself," Maggie hedged, not really answering. "Let's see if we can break those two out of their trances and get them away from their pictures."
Kendrix doubted that Maggie would be able to do that. Eurydice and Petra seemed pretty attached to their photographs. They would probably love to have copies of those pictures. Too bad I have no idea how to do that, and I really doubt they can just take the ones off the walls. Although it would be nice to take that one of me with Kai and the one of all of us after Mike came back with me when I leave. Doubt that's possible. Of course, that's if I leave.
Kendrix shook herself and came back to the present. Incredibly, Maggie had managed to extract Petra, who was now sitting in the recliner. As Maggie worked on Eurydice, Kendrix brought the two chairs back to the table, and snagged her glass of iced tea from the end table by the couch. At least, her glass of what had been iced tea. Now, it was her glass of incredibly watered down tea.
As she emptied the glass into the sink and rinsed it out, Kendrix glanced back at Petra, sitting on the couch. She was looking across the room, but her eyes weren't focused on anything. Maybe I can help Maggie get them out of their trances.
"Petra?" Kendrix called. "Petra? I was thinking of having something to drink. Would you like anything?"
Petra slowly turned her head in Kendrix's direction. "Sorry, did you say something?"
Kendrix held up her empty glass and jiggled it. "Want something to drink?"
Petra blinked, then shook herself. "Yeah, that sounds good. What do you have?" she asked, rising and joining Kendrix in the kitchen.
Kendrix laughed. "You were the one that told me I can have practically everything because of the room's magic. I'll probably find whatever you want as I'm going through the different cupboards."
"True. But the room is set to pick up on your subconscious wants, not mine. I could sit here hoping and hoping for a leather jacket, and it wouldn't care," Petra said with a grin before taking a seat at the table. "Whatever you're having is fine with me, Kendrix."
"Well, I was drinking iced tea when you guys came, so I'm in the mood for something different," Kendrix explained as she started rummaging through the various cupboards. "How do you feel about Tang?"
Petra burst out laughing. "The drink the astronauts took the moon. How appropriate. I'll have that."
"Make that two more," Maggie said as she approached the table, before helping the still-crying Eurydice into the remaining chair.
"Four glasses of Tang, coming up."
Kendrix started the hunt for glasses, trying to remember what cupboard they had been in earlier. Her first guess was a cabinet that actually had breakfast cereals. Her second guess yielded plates. The third cupboard she tried held pictures. The fourth ... Wait a second, pictures? Kendrix quickly went back to the last cupboard. Sure enough, it had three framed pictures in it. Recognizing the frame, Kendrix immediately realized that they were copies of the pictures on the walls for her three visitors to take with them. Thank you. she mentally told the Saber.
The Saber must have heard her, because she found the glasses in the next cupboard she tried. "Found the glasses!" she announced loudly. She grabbed four, filled them with cold water and set them on the table, along with the jar of Tang mix. "Add however much, or little, you like."
Kendrix watched her three visitors as they made their drinks. Almost by unspoken rule, Petra and Maggie let Eurydice go first. It was weird, seeing Eurydice so emotional. She had been so ... in control earlier, and the only times she really wasn't was when Petra was deliberately baiting her. But she just lost it when she saw her picture. Which I guess is understandable, because that must have been an important day for her.
That can't be very comfortable for Maggie to be just standing. Too bad I don't have more chairs. Not that I want more chairs she thought quickly, before the Saber had time to produce some. Well, it looks like they're almost done with their drinks. Or at least, as much as they're going to drink, since I doubt Eury's going to finish that. It's like she only wanted it so she could have something for her hands to hold.
"Well, I think we need to be going," Petra said, standing. Maggie nodded, and helped Eurydice up, since she still hadn't fully recovered.
"Before you go, I have something I want you to have," Kendrix told them, setting down her glass and moving to the cupboard with the pictures. "Or rather, that the Saber wants you to have." With that said, she gave them their framed photographs.
Eurydice gasped and hugged her picture to herself, while Petra and Maggie simply smiled.
"Thanks, Kendrix. We know you didn't do it, but you had to have wished it for it to happen," Maggie reasoned, giving Kendrix a hug, followed by Petra.
"Thank you so much," Eurydice said, also hugging Kendrix. "But we need to go, and you need to leave that message."
"It was nice meeting you," Petra said, heading for the door.
"Same here," Kendrix answered, watching Maggie help Eurydice out.
"As one of your Earth Rangers used to say, 'Catch ya on the flip side!,' " Petra said with a grin.
"Who used to say that?" Kendrix asked, puzzled.
Maggie smiled. "That short Pink Ranger Kimber...never mind. See ya!"
Eurydice just looked at the two of them and pulled them through the door, calling out over her shoulder. "Bye Kendrix!"
After the door closed, Kendrix sank down into one of the kitchen chairs and eyed the three glasses. Petra's was half gone. Maggie had drained hers. And Eurydice's looked like it had barely been touched.
"Well, that was interesting."