PRSPD FIC: What Would You Be Willing To Do Chapter 1

[daylight_darknight]

Title: What Would You Be Willing To Do
Characters/Pairings: Jack & Z friendship
Rating: G
Summary: Jack must face the consequences of something he did five years ago.


Prologue
 

Chapter 1

        The normally vibrant colours of the ever changing common room at SPD headquarters seemed subdued that day, the gray shades focusing around the three B squad members slumped in one corner. Though the favourite relaxation spot at the academy, the room was conspicuously empty, the other cadets knowing better than to intrude on the mood of their superiors. Absent of the normal cacophony of chatter, munching and video games, the only sounds were that of Sky grumbling and stabbing his pen against paper as he viciously attacked the reports he was reading. On the couch across from him, Syd lay staring at the ceiling an unread magazine across her chest. Below her on the floor, Bridge was sprawled across the carpet resting his head on his hands occasionally picking at the slice of toast lying on a plate beside him.

“I don’t believe this!” That sudden bellow announced the arrival of the yellow ranger as she trooped into the room and crashed onto a seat beside her fellow rangers. The others jumped. Sky’s pen went flying and Syd’s forgotten magazine landed on Bridge’s head. Failing to notice, Z flung her legs over the side of the chair and proceeded to take her boots off.

“Five hours of patrolling the docks.” She tossed her footwear across the room. “The only suspicious thing out there was the lack of descent benches. Why the hell did Cruger send me there? Do you think he…” She stopped becoming aware of the stiff silent postures of her friends their eyes shifting back and forth. “What is it?”

Avoiding her gaze, Sky ducked under the coffee table to fetch his pen, Syd retrieved her magazine holding it in front of her face and Bridge proceeded to choke on a bite of his now cold toast.

“Guys…” said Z glaring intently at them.

“Nothing,” replied Syd quickly turning her magazine the right way up.

The yellow ranger grabbed the magazine tossing it over her shoulder. “I can see that.”

“I think it’s best if you went and had a talk with the commander,” said Sky refusing to glance up from his reports.

“Why? What’s wrong?”

Looks were exchanged but no one said anything.

Z knelt down on the floor next to the green ranger. “Bridge…”

He smiled nervously at her and held up his half-eaten meal. “Toast?”

“Please, Bridge.”

“I’m sorry, Z,” he began shaking his head. “This old case came up and there was this video and none of us wanted to believe it but Cruger sent us downtown to the warehouse and the judgement scanner…”

“Why is Jack locked up in one of the cells?”

Wincing at the unfortunately timed interruption, Bridge looked up to see their resident gadget tester had entered the room. Boom seemed even more dishevelled than usual and a wisp of smoke appeared to be curling up from the left sleeve of his lab coat. He looked from ranger to ranger his mouth in a thin line. Bridge looked back at Z to find her eyes wide and her teeth clenched as she put it together.

“You arrested Jack?!”

Sighing, Sky explained, “He stole a shipment of Bracktix.”

“No. There has to be some sort of mistake.” Z got up and started pacing. “Jack wouldn’t…”

Syd shrugged. “It was five years ago. You guys weren’t exactly on the right side of the law.”

“But we only stole what was needed for survival. Food and clothes, that’s it,” Z insisted.

“The judgement scanner found him guilty,” countered Sky.

“Then it’s wrong. It has to be wrong.”

Boom smiled apologetically. “They’re never wrong.”

“No machine is infallible.”

“I’m sorry.” Getting up, Bridge put a gloved hand on the yellow ranger’s shoulder. “But he’s right. We even tried it with both mine and Sky’s morphers to be sure. Besides there was the video.”

“What video?”

“Cruger…” Bridge began, but Z immediately headed out the door grabbing her discarded boots on the way.

“I’m going to talk to him.”

Slumping down into Z’s recently vacated seat, Boom ran a hand through his already chaotic hair. “I can’t believe Jack would do something like that.”

Bridge nodded.

“It’s not like we didn’t know he was a thief,” said Sky.

“This isn’t the same thing as his old Robin Hood gig and you know it,” objected Syd. “He must have had a good reason.”

“I didn’t hear him offering one when we arrested him.”

“Well, maybe if you had treated him as a friend and not a common criminal, he would have,” Bridge burst out. He dumped his toast in the garbage and left the room.

“But I…”

“He’s right you know,” said Syd. Boom nodded in agreement. Getting up, they left the red ranger on his own.

No one left to disagree with Sky looked down at the reports he’d been correcting and picking them up threw them into the air.

oooooo

        At the sound of the yellow ranger stomping into the command room, Commander Doggie Cruger bowed his head and closed his eyes waiting for the inevitable outburst.

        “Commander, would you mind telling me what the hell is going on?”

        “Cadet Delgado, I understand this is a difficult situation for you…”

        “There shouldn’t be a situation in the first place. You gave us a choice, jail or SPD, and Jack served SPD faithfully. Why is he behind bars again?”

        Cruger sighed. “I’m afraid the crime Jack is guilty of is much more serious than the petty felonies we were dealing with before. It is also not under my jurisdiction but that of the government of Eltar.”

        “Eltar?”

        “Five years ago Eltar sent a shipment of 80 kilograms of Bracktix to Earth. It was stolen from the ship shortly after it landed. Investigators determined from witness accounts that three people were involved but they were unable to identify them or determine how they managed to get into the ship. The little surveillance footage that was retrieved before the cameras were disabled was also of no use.”

        “Then how…?”

        “A few days ago the case was reopened when a similar shipment sent from Eltar to Triforia was stolen. One of the investigators reviewing the surveillance tapes had recently transferred over from here. He recognized something.” Turning to the console behind him, Commander Cruger brought up an image of a dark silhouette standing by a metal wall in what appeared to be the poorly lit corner of a ship’s cargo bay. The features of the figure were indistinguishable, but the shape of a pistol could be clearly made out pointing directly at the camera.

        “That could be anyone,” exclaimed Z.

        Cruger quickly rewound the recording to an earlier point and let it play. The cargo bay remained unoccupied for several seconds before the shadowy figure appeared. A familiar shimmering affect could be seen as the person walked right through the wall. The commander paused the video once more. Z’s eyes remained fixed on the figure.

        “Mr. Landers informed me that you were not involved in this crime in anyway. I presume from your reaction you were completely unaware of it.”

        The yellow ranger nodded numbly.

        “He remains closed mouthed in regards to anything else on the subject. If he continues as such, I’m afraid there is nothing I can do. I will be forced to extradite him to Eltar where he will be sentenced.”

        When Z didn’t respond, Doggie took her gently by the shoulder and turned her towards him. “Z, I’m sorry, but this is serious. Bracktix is very dangerous. The substance is very toxic and used as a recreational drug only by the most foolish. If there’s anything you know…”

        The yellow ranger shrugged off his hand. “If it’s that dangerous, why did Eltar ship it to Earth in the first place?”

        “Bracktix is also the only cure for the Black Vein sickness. There was an outbreak in Newtech City at the time. There’s no way of knowing how many people may have lost their lives before another shipment was received. It’s possible that… Z?”

        Z had frozen her eyes wide. “Black Vein?” Her expression shifted her mouth turning downwards into a scowl. “I’m going to kill him,” she said before dashing out of the command room.

Chapter 2
 

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Now I wonder what this Black Vein is...