Inspiration struck and this had to be written. A new chapter for 'To begin a change' is coming, I promise. It's just taking a liiitle longer than expected. For all I take Tae Kwan Do (Korean martial art for those who don't know, and no, I didn't mean to rhyme) I'm not very good at fight scenes, but I think I'm getting there.
Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers. The idea of Battlizer side effects is mine, though.
As the group of Ten Rangers, hyped up on Power and adrenaline, headed for the Megaship, Andros led the way with TJ shadowing his every footstep, knowing that things were going to get bad. Ten Reds, two of them more powerful than most, spelled trouble for him. They managed to get off the Moon before the trembling was bad enough that Andros couldn't pilot the ship.
"DECA, engage the autopilot," he called.
"Autopilot engaged," DECA announced. Relieved of that duty, Andros stood and almost tore the strap that held his morpher on in his haste to rid himself of the active link to the Power. He dropped it to the ground and kicked it across the room, feeling sparks of pain igniting all over his skin. Glowing Blue, TJ laid a hand on his shoulder, shielding him from the waves of energy pouring off his fellow Reds, waves that weren't anywhere near decreasing in intensity.
"Andros?" Tommy asked, concern clear in his voice. "Are you alright?"
Andros was about to respond when the firestorm of Power abated slightly. Looking over at the disturbance, he saw the newest Red, Cole, had his eyes closed and his head tilted to one side. Andros could feel him talking with the Power as easily as if he'd done it all his life. He opened his eyes and looked at Andros.
"We're hurting you," he murmured. "Our power, the Red power, it burns you."
Absolutely dumbstruck, Andros could only nod, but it was all the answer Cole needed. His eyes closed again and the intensity of the storm lessened again, the Power slowly draining from the newbie. As the other Reds caught on to what Cole was doing, they started letting go of their accumulated Power and decompressing from their battle-ready state, turning the storm into a gentle breeze. TJ began to lift the shield he'd erected, but Andros hissed as Red fire scraped his still-raw nerves and the shield descended again. Still keeping his hand on his friend's shoulder, TJ guided Andros into a seat and stood behind him.
"Andros?" Tommy asked again, and Andros sighed.
"I'm...sensitive to the Red energy," he started. "I wasn't always, but I am now. If I come into contact with too much energy at too high an intensity, my skin feels as if it's on fire, and if something's touching my skin, even if it's just cloth, it makes it worse."
"How'd it happen?" Jason asked. Andros grimaced.
"We were trapped in a place where we couldn't morph, and I was forced to use my Battlizer for the first time. But it...it was too much Power. It burned me. And it burned every time I used my Battlizer after that."
"Why didn't you stop using it?" Tommy asked. Cole answered before Andros could.
"Because he didn't want any other Red Ranger to go through the same pain as he did."
"Are you a mind-reader, or something?" TJ asked in confusion. Cole shrugged.
"I just know how to listen with my heart."
Silence descended upon the bridge for a few minutes, then Tommy spoke up.
"Is it just the Blue power that helps to counteract the effects, and if so, why?"
"Reds tend to be closely affiliated with fire, and the Red power has many fire-like attributes," TJ explained. "Blues tend to be closely affiliated with water, hence the reason why Blue power helps. I don't know if any of the other types of power might help, but even if they did, you are the strongest Ranger here, and you naturally have more power than most, so that doesn't help in this case. Jason's only a little less powerful than you, which also didn't help."
"Wielder matters that much?" Carter asked, confused.
Yes, the Power spoke. Jason, First. Special. Tommy, Chosen. Special. Wielder matters.
{beat}
"Well that answers that question."
TJ grinned at the droll tone used by the Lightspeed Rescue Red, and again dialed back the intensity of the shield of Blue energy. Andros didn't flinch this time, so he kept it at the reduced level. To his surprise, threads of White, and to a lesser extent Green, energy started to weave through the Red power, weakening its intensity and causing Andros to relax further. Glancing up, TJ saw Tommy faintly glowing with the aforementioned colors, and nodded in gratitude. Tommy returned the nod and continued muddying the waters. As they headed back towards Earth, Leo turned to Cole and asked about his earlier statement. That led to a mini 'getting-to-know-everyone' session, which passed the time nicely. By the time they reached Earth, Andros had returned to normal and TJ could relax.
Because Ten Reds in one place is a lot of firepower, in more ways than one, so naturally it would affect Andros. Sorry for the delay with 'To begin a change,' I promise another chapter is coming.