Disclaimer: I love board games. Too bad I own so few and get to play them even less. :) The Power Rangers belong to Saban. "Saying Goodbye to a Friend" is by Suzy Bogguss from her album Give Me Some Wheels. And the board game again belongs to some game company, somewhere.
Author's Note: Here it is, After Space #8, the final story, 'everyone's story'. Thanks to Starhawk for encouraging, proofing, and Saryn. :)

The five of you have come together to form as fine a group of superheroes as there has ever been. You've been through an extraordinary experience together. You need each other now... and the world needs you.

Through the years, the varying numbers, and the many incarnations of the Power Rangers, Zordon's words to those first Rangers had held true. The Rangers needed each other and the world needed them. Now that evil had been destroyed, the second part of the statement was no longer true, the world did not need them. But the first part was; with their identities revealed, the Rangers needed each other more than they ever had before.

All those who had been chosen to bear the Power had defended the Earth and the galaxy with honor and courage. All had fought in the name of good, worked to ensure peace, and defended the ideals handed down by Zordon. And indeed, this last team of Rangers had fought not only in his name and for his cause, they had fought for his very life. Though he had not been their mentor, as he had been for previous teams, still they had fought for his safety just as fervently.

The Earth Rangers had only met the being once, at the Power Transfer when they had become the Turbo Rangers. The others had known him better. They knew well the price of evil's defeat. Zordon's passing was the somber note that disrupted the otherwise joyous victory over evil. While the Earth rejoiced, the Rangers mourned. A great loss had been suffered in the name of victory. But such is a warrior's life... lives given in the name of freedom.

Their arrival on Earth had been in the quiet of a new dawn in Angel Grove. They chose to leave the MegaShip in a high orbit around the planet. Ashley, TJ, and Carlos had teleported down to the surface to visit their families. Cassie stayed behind, sleeping through her flu, Phantom always beside her.

They had teleported down to a vacant lot, just around the corner from the neighborhood they lived in. They had decided to visit their families together, figuring it would be easier to explain if they didn't have to do it alone. They were in for quite a shock as they rounded the corner onto Ashley's street.

An army of reporters were at each of their houses. Camped out on the front lawns and spilling into the streets, the press had been hounding their families and were eagerly awaiting the Rangers' return. Approaching any of their houses from the street was out of the question. The only way in appeared to be teleporting straight into their houses, something they had not wished to do. No reason to frighten their families any further, after all.

All of their families knew their secrets now of course, the whole world did. And their startled families welcomed them back with open arms. Though Ashley's mother made her promise to bring her boyfriend home for dinner soon. Her family had met Andros before, but had never guessed he was an alien, human though he was.

The only disappointment the Earth Rangers had that morning was when they went to visit Cassie's aunt in Stone Canyon, the one she was supposed to be staying with. Cassie had been staying with Ashley's family ever since she had moved to Angel Grove after the Power Transfer. Cassie's aunt had never cared, and unfortunately neither had her parents. TJ had always thought her parents had shipped her off to her aunt's to get rid of her as much as anything else. So he was sad for Cassie but not particularly surprised when they didn't care where she ended up.

Cassie's aunt had never been too stable either, in TJ's opinion, and her niece's newly gained world-wide popularity was apparently more than she could handle. As soon as the press had found Cassie's aunt, she had run. The Rangers found only her abandoned apartment, empty except for Cassie's few belongings that she had left on her obligatory visits. Lest they disappear, stolen by someone looking to make a profit off of the Earth Rangers, TJ, Carlos, and Ashley gathered Cassie's things and took them back to the MegaShip.

Seeking information on the condition of the planet, DECA had patched into the local and national news stations. All the reports were either about lives lost and the rebuilding from the attacks, or the identities of the Rangers. Every detail of their lives was being broadcast around the world. Cassie had been right all along. There could be no more quiet life for them, no way to be recognized for their talents alone, no pleasant anonymity. Things had definitely changed. But such is a warrior's life... innocence lost to the harshness of reality.

Before the Rangers had left for KO-35 they had moved the Dark Fortress from its landing site in Angel Grove and into an orbit around Earth. Now they had to decide how to get rid of it. Accompanied by Andros and Zhane, the former Queen of Evil returned there one last time to retrieve the few belongings that she wanted to take with her from her former life. Zhane couldn't help but smile when he saw her try to hide something from him in her small bundle. It was a burnt rose stem from the bouquet he had gotten for her on their failed date. He could not stop the grin that spread across his face, for he had saved a stem too; and he told her as much when she asked why he was grinning at her. She hugged him at that, and they shared a private conversation as Andros had moved a discrete distance away.

He had moved over to the window, the same window his sister had spent so many nights staring out as she had tried to choose between the evil that had raised her and the good that she had been born into. He gazed out of it at the Earth below as he tried to give some privacy to the couple talking softly behind him. He was quickly becoming used to the idea of his sister and Zhane together. He knew that Zhane was just who she needed to get her to open up to the world, just as he had helped Andros overcome his shyness on so many occasions. Zhane's outgoing nature and unflappable optimism just had that effect on people.

After her personal belongings were taken care of, the rest of the Dark Fortress was scavenged for useful data and items, with the help of TJ, Carlos, and Ashley. Between the six of them, plus DECA downloading information from the computer systems, the process did not take long. Zhane did notice however that both Andros and his sister pointedly avoided setting foot on the Dark Fortress' destroyed Bridge. From what she had shown him through their link, he knew what had happened there. He did what he could to keep them from having to go there and he intercepted any questions the others had as to why the Bridge was in such a state of disarray.

When they were finished, the Dark Fortress was taken to where it could do no harm and the self-destruct was detonated, thus destroying the last vestige of Dark Spectre's reign of terror. They all watched the explosion from the Bridge of the MegaShip, the silence unbroken as the pieces of the once mighty home of evil drifted into deep space. And such is a warrior's life... dark and unwanted memories rising unbidden, and hopefully banished forever.

The morning of their second day on Earth, Cassie awoke feeling better than she had in days. As she looked around her room she spotted the dark figure in the chair near her bed. The events of the last two nights came crashing back as she sat up quickly, moving to the edge of the bed. She moved closer, getting quite near his face as she peered at him through the darkness. She thought he had to be uncomfortable, sleeping slumped in that hard chair like he was, but she knew he had never left her side since his arrival two nights before. She wondered if she was really seeing what she thought she was; that Phantom was sitting there not only unmorphed, but sleeping. Part of her felt slightly bad for making him wait so long without giving him any type of answer as to her feelings for him. But another part argued with her saying that the one day and two nights he had waited was nothing compared to the months he had left her alone and doubting his feelings for her.

She remembered her thought from two nights before... how she had wished she could have touched his face to know he was real, a living breathing person under the armor. She tentatively reached out her hand, her fingertips hovering just above his cheek. He quietly opened his eyes and smiled at her. She jumped back, embarrassed to be caught and startled that he was so suddenly awake.

He made no attempt to move. Instead he simply sat there and continued to smile at her with quiet regard. She returned his smile and went back to the edge of the bed, pulling her legs under her. There was much they needed to talk about.

She knew she had a million and one questions she wanted to ask him, first and foremost being where had he been and why couldn't he have gotten in contact once and a while. After suffering such serious injuries on Hercuron, he could have called just to let her know he was okay. He beat her to the punch though with a question of his own that left her speechless. He asked her why she had never called.

She couldn't believe her ears. Had he really asked her that? He couldn't have been serious! She had had no idea whom he was then, let alone how to get in touch with him!

When he saw her confusion, his suspicions were confirmed. Already knowing the answer, he asked her if she had seen the third message. Upon seeing the perplexed look on her face, he pulled out the message recorder, the one he had left for her on Hercuron, from a pocket on his belt. Dutifully it activated and played the first message then shut off. The red light started blinking again and it came to life as it displayed the second message. Cassie fought the tears that sprang to her eyes when she saw him hurt so. After the second message ended, the red light started blinking again, indicating another message.

She stared at it, disbelieving. She must have turned away that day and hadn't seen the indicator light come back on. Something inside had told her to pick up the recorder and take it with her, but she hadn't. She had regretted it every day since. And now she felt even worse. She looked up at him, trying to read his face. He still wore that rueful smile as he told her that the last message's trigger had been set to be activated by her Power signature alone, that way if the device had fallen into evil hands no damage could be done.

He held it out to her, but she was almost too scared to take it. Finally she got her hands to work as she fumbled for the recorder. As it touched her hands it sprang to life for a final time, the little image of Saryn in full armor falling on her bed. As he had gotten visibly weaker in each of the first two messages, this one was no exception. He was shaking on his feet as he strained to collect his thoughts. He told her that he was going to follow Zordon and he told her how to contact him whenever she wished, using a complex series of stations and relays at which she could leave messages for him. He told her he would try to meet up with them in the park on Earth in one week and hopefully he would have news on Zordon's location. He gasped in pain as he fell to his knees. He told her he loved her and he would see her soon. The message ended and the room fell silent as the beacon shut off, the red light finally extinguished.

He had hoped that she would call, if only to see if he was okay. He would have known then that she loved him too. But the call never came, making him fear that he had made a terrible mistake by revealing his feelings to her. Her silence then had only convinced him that his feelings were not returned. But he had kept his promise and had made his way to Earth to rendezvous with them. Looking at her now, he knew he would never tell her any of this. She was looking at him with such a sad and guilty look that he couldn't say anything that would make her feel any worse. Instead he told her simply that he had gone to Earth that day.

She looked up at him, at a loss for words, and she listened as he recounted his days since Hercuron, his days without her. He had waited in the park, but they had never shown. He unfortunately didn't have any information on Zordon. He had come to Earth just to see her. For once he was going to keep a promise he had made to her. But as the hours passed and they never came, he had begun to get worried. When night fell on Earth, he returned to Hercuron on an impulse. Sure enough, in the middle of the clearing where he had left it was the message recorder, the light still blinking. He had picked it up, never knowing if the third message had been seen by her. Until now... now he knew, and she did to. She had seen the message, and she had heard what he had tried to tell her months ago; that he loved her.

He had tried to catch up with them after that, or at least contact them, but he could never locate the MegaShip. He always arrived some place after they were gone. And his duties allowed him little time to look. The best he could do was try to contact her, and his starfighter's communications capabilities were limited on distance.

She tried to find words, but couldn't. It was as much her fault as it was his that they hadn't been together! If only she had picked up the recorder... Finally she met his eyes, tears shining in hers as she told him she was sorry; sorry she hadn't been there when he had needed her, sorry she hadn't met him that day to tell him that she loved him too. He shook his head, moving to sit on her bed as he pulled her into a hug. She let him and wrapped her arms around him too. He told her that he was the one who was sorry. He had always gone so long between contacting her and always disappearing, that she had taken that as normal from him. There was no way she could have possibly known that he would act any differently. The message had been uncharacteristically open of him. He had never done anything but run from her. Why should she have expected him to change?

She just sat there in his arms wondering... so much could have been different. The war wouldn't have ended any differently, but at least they wouldn't have had to go through it alone. Alone... for all her bitterness, for all her hidden jealousies of Andros and Ashley, she really hadn't been alone. She had always had her friends, her team. They always had, and always would be there for her. He had had no one. But she would fix that. If he wanted, he never needed to be alone again.

The moment was disturbed by a tentative knock at her door. Since her outburst the other night, the Rangers had remembered at least some of their manners. She answered half-heartedly, not really wanting to move from his embrace, but knowing that if she didn't answer, the remembered manners would most likely be forgotten again as whomever it was would be in to check on her.

Ashley's voice called quietly, asking if she was feeling better and if she wanted to come to breakfast. It took the mention of food to make Cassie realize she hadn't eaten in two days. She pulled back a little so she could see his face, to meet his beautiful blue eyes. He smiled and answered her unspoken question with a quiet nod, despite the uncertainty and fear she knew he felt. She responded with a joyful and reassuring smile of her own.

Yes Ashley, we're coming, she answered. We're both coming. Minutes later in the holding bay, everyone was shocked to see the tall boy standing hand-in-hand with Cassie, as Phantom met the Astro Rangers for the first time without his armor to protect him. And such is a warrior's life... love's strength often tested, stands strong.

On that second day they made an attempt to help with the rebuilding efforts in Angel Grove. 'Attempt' is the key word. Wherever they went, they were mobbed by the public and press. They had gone morphed, in the false hope that it would allow them some privacy. It didn't though. Everyone knew who they were and they all had questions. They all wanted something from the newest stars, the latest heroes of the planet. Finally they gave up trying to help publicly, deciding to work in the cover of night when they were less likely to be seen.

Avoiding contact with the public was something that the formerly outgoing Earth teenagers were not accustomed to. The others took it in stride, as being alone was something they were used to. Especially Andros' sister, who took it as an opportunity to continue to construct her new life. In an attempt to further create her own identity, she made one last change to her appearance. As Astronema had been infamous for changing her hair's style and color more often than most people change their socks, the girl now 'magicked' her hair one last time. She kept it her natural color of pale blonde, but she lengthened it considerably. It now fell to her waist in blonde waves. She said it was a permanent spell, meaning that she would only change her hair again by natural means.

Instead they spent the rest of that day working on a 'rebuilding' effort of their own. With the technology of the MegaShip and the girl's sorcery, it didn't take nearly as long as expected. The mountain that had once been home to the Power Rangers, the site of their once-believed impenetrable base, was much as it had been when the Turbo Rangers left it over a year ago. The wreckage of the Power Chamber littered the mountaintop, a painful reminder of losses suffered. Rebuilding the Power Chamber was not the goal. But they purposefully cleared away the rubble, returning the mountaintop to a semblance of what it must have looked like eons ago, before the Command Center was ever built.

TJ had volunteered for contact duty. He remained friends with Tommy, talking to him often after the Power Transfer. And now he called up his old friend with a request for assistance. Using old communicators and the MegaShip's teleportation capabilities, the two former Red Rangers made the preparations for the following morning.

The Rangers had a personal mission to achieve here, a plan. And they were determined to carry it out. And such is a warrior's life... new paths to aspirations found.

Late on their second night back, Zhane decided that they needed to have some fun, a little distraction from their personal mission. And ever the adventurous and bold one, he decided he would go rent movies for them to watch. He reasoned that he was the most logical choice to go since even though he had been at the final battle and everyone had seen he was a Ranger, he was not well known in Angel Grove. He had only been on Earth, let alone in town, a few times, and he reasoned that he would be less likely to be recognized.

Despite their arguments that he was as recognizable as the rest of them and that DECA could always pick up the signals from cable satellites so they could watch whatever they wanted, he was determined to go, just for the fun of it. They thought they had him though, when they pointed out that he didn't have a video rental card at any store. But the girl announced that she was accompanying him, and stopped any argument on his part by saying she could use her magic to make him a card easily.

They ended up in a Video Vault on the outskirts of town. The Earth Rangers had made a list of movies for them to get, but as usual when one goes to the video store, one seldom comes home with what they went there to get. While Ashley had requested a love story, Andros had added to Zhane, *with more explosions*. He had picked up Armageddon, thinking it was perfect; explosions with a love story on the side, when it hit him that that movie just might not be the best of choices. Huge meteor speeding toward Earth? That was a little too familiar a topic, and it would too easily remind the Astro Rangers of the loss they suffered the day they had tried to stop their meteor.

He could not stop the flood of memories of their futile rescue attempt, or the unbearable feeling of helplessness he had endured when he knew that the only thing he could do was to call a retreat to keep Andros from getting himself killed. Overwhelmed by a sudden sense of panic, he stopped himself just short of telepathically screaming out for her. Instead he looked around frantically for the girl he had come to realize he didn't ever want to live without.

She was several aisles over, perusing the recent releases. He felt incredibly protective of her and didn't want to let her out of his sight. He wondered how he could nonchalantly make his way over to her without making her mad by hovering too close. He dumped Armageddon back on the shelf and grabbed the first thing his hand fell on. He walked over to her and grinned when she looked up.

She looked at his choice, and asked him if Scream was a love story or had Andros' explosions. Zhane looked at the video in his hand and wondered how a horror flick had gotten on the shelf with the action movies. He just shrugged and said that they would find out soon enough what was in it. The girl, meanwhile, had picked City of Angels and an animated movie about a missing princess, saying only that they 'looked good to her'.

They were paying for their rentals when Zhane heard Andros' telepathic call, asking him to come back to the MegaShip. Curious, Zhane asked what was wrong. Andros didn't sound like he was in any danger; he just sounded extremely nervous. Andros wouldn't say why, he only urged Zhane to hurry up with the movies.

Zhane related to the girl what little he knew about what was going on. And he was sorely tempted to suggest that they take their time in returning to the ship, just because. But curiosity won out and they returned to the Bridge, where the others had set up a comfortable viewing area using pillows and cushions on the floor, and intending to use the main viewer as the movie screen.

But the Bridge was deserted. Zhane had gotten the impression of the observatory from Andros so they walked up there, wondering what was Andros' big hurry. Upon entering they were struck by the unusual sight of the Astro Rangers holding very odd poses as they tried to keep their hands and feet on small colored circles on a plastic tarp. The only one not participating was Phantom, who was lucky enough to get out of it somehow. Cassie had given him 'spinner duty' instead. Zhane thought that was actually kind of nice of Cassie, as she was trying to spare Phantom from participating in something she knew would make him uncomfortable. Though Phantom did not look very comfortable sitting there either, holding the spinner like it was a dead trout that he wasn't quite sure what to do with.

Ashley on the other hand had no such qualms about pushing Andros to participate. And looking at the tangled mass of Ranger arms and legs, Zhane knew why Andros had wanted them to hurry with the movies. Andros could not be liking this game, he thought, knowing his friend's terrible shyness.

The true object of the game was a mystery to Zhane as he had never seen it before, but at present it seemed to have degenerated into a match of who could trip whom first. Cassie was on top and she succeeded in tripping TJ, who fell on Carlos, then Ashley, and then Andros, who hit the floor with a thud. Zhane and the girl couldn't help but laugh at Cassie standing over the heap of Rangers, as she made a show of wiping off her hands and skipping over to Phantom.

TJ wasn't going to let her go that easily though, and he grabbed her ankle as she skipped past. She started to stumble, yelling good-naturedly at TJ to quit. Phantom threw the spinner aside, jumping up to catch her. She smiled up at him fondly and he returned her loving gaze. It ended only because she turned to stick her tongue out at TJ who let go of her ankle with a grin. The laughter continued as Ashley asked them to get off of her so she could breathe. Carlos jokingly poked at her, but he started to move when TJ stood.

Andros was hiding his nervousness very well, but he had shot a pleading look at Zhane who had been standing there laughing the entire time. Zhane finally relented and telepathically told Andros that if he would just calm down and relax for once he would see the good points of the game, namely that his girlfriend was lying on top of him. Judging from the look on Andros' face, that thought actually made him more nervous than before. But Andros turned his head when he felt a tapping on his shoulder.

TJ and Carlos were gone. It was just Ashley and she was smiling at him, the same bright cheerful smile that had stolen his heart long ago. Unconsciously Andros felt himself relaxing a little as he returned her smile. Ashley did let him up, but she took his hand in hers as everyone left the observatory to head to the Bridge.

Andros and Ashley hung back, watching everyone file out, joking, laughing, pushing to be first on the Bridge to get the most comfortable seats. Phantom and Cassie were letting the other four fight it out, but finally they left too, waiting only long enough for the others to get far enough down the hall so they could be alone. Phantom had set up a seat at the back of the Bridge for them, and Cassie had already called 'dibs' on it.

When they were gone, Andros turned to Ashley and found her staring at his hand she still held in hers. She seemed strangely quiet for someone who just moments ago had been pinning him to the floor, giggling. With his other hand he tilted her head up. She was still smiling, but her eyes had a faraway look. She refocused on him with an effort. When he asked her what was wrong, she claimed she was only thinking, thinking about how lucky she was to have him.

Despite all the odds against two people from different planets even meeting, they had found each other and had fallen in love. She told him how thankful she was for whatever had conspired to make that happen. He jokingly told her to thank DECA and Alpha for convincing him to turn around and pick them up after he had left them and the shuttle behind. She gave him a playful shove and started pulling him toward the door. As they left the observatory, she promised him that the next time they played a game together, the others wouldn't be there. Andros could only smile. And such is a warrior's life... the simple things in life are cherished and appreciated all the more in their rarity.

It was during the animated movie that Andros' sister made her decision. She knew her name. She had seen it before of course, on the movie's box, but as soon as she had heard it spoken in the movie she had known that it was hers: Anastasia. She scooted out from under Zhane's arm and left the Bridge abruptly. He looked after her, curious as to her reasons for suddenly leaving.

No one else had noticed as she exited the Bridge, but Zhane quietly followed her. She went just outside the door as she stopped in the hallway, looking for some privacy to talk to DECA. DECA informed her that the name meant, "resurrection". That cinched it for her. Zhane added his quiet approval from where he stood in the doorway. She turned and saw him there, looking at her. He had heard DECA's interpretation and smiled at her saying that the name fit her as she had returned time and time again no matter the circumstances, even from her own death. She ran into his arms, thanking him for being there. She thanked him for being who he was, someone who had loved her despite everything.

They returned to the Bridge and she made her announcement. She was unsure as to how they would react, but she had not expected them to applaud. Ashley came over to hug her, as Andros smiled at his sister, still thrilled just to have her there after so long.

Carlos and TJ were laughing amongst themselves as Carlos had whispered to TJ that Anastasia sounded a little too much like Astronema for him. A pillow smacked Carlos in the back of his head, and he turned to see Cassie grinning at him. She quietly told him to hush or else someone would hear him. He smirked and threw the pillow back, only to see Phantom deftly snatch it out of the air and send it hurtling back.

TJ was still adjusting to the idea of seeing their usually stoic ally unmorphed, so he was justifiably shocked to see him participating in the beginnings of a pillow fight. And for Cassie's sake, he was thrilled to see Phantom trying so hard to put aside his self-imposed isolation and let them accept him into their group.

Carlos was not expecting it either and the pillow hit him in the face. A free-for-all began as everyone scrambled for ammunition. Still standing by the door, Zhane and the newly-named Anastasia looked at each other and shrugged before they joined in also. Chaos ensued. And such is a warrior's life... choices are made, but true friends offer acceptance regardless of the outcome.

The mood was somber as the AstroRangers gathered the next morning on the mountaintop. The rubble gone, the destruction cleared, it was again a peaceful place. Before them stood an obelisk of stone. Magically formed from the remains of the Power Chamber by Anastasia's sorcery, it was carved with the symbol of each team that had followed Zordon. It was to stand as a testament to the interdimensional being who had sacrificed himself to save the universe.

The paths their lives would take were unknown. They had only planned as far as this moment, and now that it was here they were realizing the uncertainties of the futures that lay before them. Regardless of what they chose to do though, they knew they would always have each other to lean on. Soon the others would be there also. All the former Rangers had answered TJ and Tommy's call and had agreed to return.

And as the AstroRangers stood solemnly to the side, streaks of white light started to appear. One by one the teleportation beams began to reform the separated molecules into the beings they had been transporting. For it was time, time for friends to gather and bid farewell to one of their own. And such is a warrior's life... friendships formed in the heat of battle, stronger than any force, that no evil can tear asunder.

Final Note: This is it. I actually finished a series. :) I would like to thank a few people who contributed along the way.

Blue, who taught me how to build a website. Because of his generosity I was able to post After Space with the proper visual enhancements. Thank you Blue. :)

Everyone in chat for their support. To Lenni for her letters and for the talk we had about Part #8. To PRRed1 and TJ335 for telling me that I "couldn't kill the girl". *grin*

Everyone who gave me feedback on this series. Thanks. :)

And to Starhawk, who was brave enough to proof every one of these weird little stories. *grin* Thank you for the advice, for understanding, for Saryn, and for caring enough to stomp. :)

And thanks to the cast of PRiS for a *wonderful* ride. We miss you. :)