Billy Cranston (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
morphitudinous) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
trans_92010-09-19 12:46 am
morphitudinous) wrote in trans_92010-09-19 12:46 am
The monster ain't gonna shrink [Open!]
How could he sleep with all of this on his plate?
Billy was really beginning to feel the weight of everything on his shoulders. He'd lost a friend, was now facing the possibility of losing another, and felt hopeless to stop any of it. Every waking second was spent on these thoughts, and they were starting to leak into his dreams as well. He needed to get away.
So he sought the refuge of the Command Center late one night, feeling quite protected despite the loneliness of the empty halls. Some unknown urge carried him down to one of the basement levels. It was difficult to see here, but there was a faint blue light coming from what must have been a room. Ever-curious, he entered and found cabinets lining the walls along with a central operating table.
Above him, faint light filtered through a grate---the same grate, he realized, through which he had watched Zordon and Alpha create Tommy's White Ranger powers. That had occurred in this room, but those events felt like they had taken place a lifetime ago to him. A lifetime before Ohm, death, and new friends from beyond the stars.
In this unexplored room, there was only one option: explore it! No cabinet was left unopened, no loose tile unturned, not even the one that hid a key. That fit a keyhole on the far wall, as he found out. And that keyhole opened a door, revealing a digital screen of blueprints glowing brightly.
They weren't just any blueprints, though. They were blueprints, he realized after a moment of study, for a new set of Power Morphers. Most of the key raw materials were here in the cabinets, but a few small pieces would have to be collected outside if he was to build them.
Could he really build morphers and distribute them? With his original friends absent and increasingly unlikely to be released by Stacy, that meant creating a new team from the crew members here. It was a thought that had a list of implications increasing every second. Clearly, this fledgling idea in the back of his mind would require some careful consideration before he acted.
This thought process, he believed, would be a little easier away from this place that contained so many memories. After copying the blueprints to his omnicom and gathering the raw materials he found, he exited the Command Center and made his way up to the observation deck. It was late at night, and therefore unlikely to be very crowded. That was a good sign, he thought, but late night conversation wouldn't exactly hurt him either.
Billy found a comfortable meat-couch and started tinkering with this first Green morpher, allowing his worries to sink to the back of his mind. From what he had seen on the blueprint, this Power granted weaponry far more versatile than his own. There would not be arsenal envy with the new Green Ranger if he went through with this, Billy told himself.
Billy was really beginning to feel the weight of everything on his shoulders. He'd lost a friend, was now facing the possibility of losing another, and felt hopeless to stop any of it. Every waking second was spent on these thoughts, and they were starting to leak into his dreams as well. He needed to get away.
So he sought the refuge of the Command Center late one night, feeling quite protected despite the loneliness of the empty halls. Some unknown urge carried him down to one of the basement levels. It was difficult to see here, but there was a faint blue light coming from what must have been a room. Ever-curious, he entered and found cabinets lining the walls along with a central operating table.
Above him, faint light filtered through a grate---the same grate, he realized, through which he had watched Zordon and Alpha create Tommy's White Ranger powers. That had occurred in this room, but those events felt like they had taken place a lifetime ago to him. A lifetime before Ohm, death, and new friends from beyond the stars.
In this unexplored room, there was only one option: explore it! No cabinet was left unopened, no loose tile unturned, not even the one that hid a key. That fit a keyhole on the far wall, as he found out. And that keyhole opened a door, revealing a digital screen of blueprints glowing brightly.
They weren't just any blueprints, though. They were blueprints, he realized after a moment of study, for a new set of Power Morphers. Most of the key raw materials were here in the cabinets, but a few small pieces would have to be collected outside if he was to build them.
Could he really build morphers and distribute them? With his original friends absent and increasingly unlikely to be released by Stacy, that meant creating a new team from the crew members here. It was a thought that had a list of implications increasing every second. Clearly, this fledgling idea in the back of his mind would require some careful consideration before he acted.
This thought process, he believed, would be a little easier away from this place that contained so many memories. After copying the blueprints to his omnicom and gathering the raw materials he found, he exited the Command Center and made his way up to the observation deck. It was late at night, and therefore unlikely to be very crowded. That was a good sign, he thought, but late night conversation wouldn't exactly hurt him either.
Billy found a comfortable meat-couch and started tinkering with this first Green morpher, allowing his worries to sink to the back of his mind. From what he had seen on the blueprint, this Power granted weaponry far more versatile than his own. There would not be arsenal envy with the new Green Ranger if he went through with this, Billy told himself.
no subject
There's a small part of him that wonders what it would be like to be able to do the same things Billy does. But...does he really need it? He may not be super-powered, but he can fight. And maybe, eventually, he could learn to do the other things on his own, too. He's just not sure, right now. Not to mention, Billy still has to make the decision on who to pick to start with. Would it be better to start with someone who's already a friend or a team of relative strangers?
"Look, Billy," he says after a small pause. "If ye really think I'd be a good choice, I'll consider it...but only if that's what ye decide ye want to do."
no subject
He sets the morpher down, studying its form and imagining how the finished product will look. "Thanks, Jamie. You'll be the first to know about any updates---choosing replacements is much harder than I thought it would be."
no subject
Surely that would factor into things somehow. He yawns for a moment, not bothering to try and hide it. He's a little tired, but not quite ready to try and sleep just yet. "How are ye holding up, otherwise?"
He's seen Billy in Engineering, but he's always seemed so busy - and it takes most of Jamie's concentration to try and keep up with everything that he's trying to learn, so he hasn't really had that chance to ask.
no subject
That yawn is caught, and he smiles just a little. "Don't worry, I won't be too much longer. I have a mother Renne on tracking me, and I suspect he'll be along to scold me for staying up too late at any moment. That's actually a good description of how it's been---I work, I keep up with my normal schedule, Renne watches to ensure that I'm really recovering from it all."
no subject
He smiles a little in return. "I'm not that tired, aye?" He does pull over another meat couch, however, so he can stretch out on it while still watching Billy. Even if he doesn't need his help, it's interesting to watch - and who knows, Jamie may pick up on something.
"It's good that ye have Renne keeping an eye on ye. Otherwise I think you'd work yourself until ye fell over." Billy works too hard as it is, in Jamie's opinion. "How did your friends manage to keep ye from doing that before, anyway?"
no subject
Oddly, his tone doesn't quite match the content of the words. He's speaking in self-depreciating humor, not longing or worry. Yes, his friends were great and deserved more attention than him, but...they were a unit. He still missed them dearly.
"They wouldn't disagree with you," he says with a fond shake of his head. "They were the first group of people to ever include me socially. When they invited me to join them for picnics or exercises, I was so surprised that I rejected it at first---then it came to be an experiment, an opportunity. When they knew me well enough, they knew that I couldn't bear to let them down. That extended to socializing---just by scheduling things for us to do, they kept me from locking myself away. You and the others are in charge of that now."
Not that he minds so much. It's wonderful to have people to talk things out with who will at least make an effort to understand you. And his friendships go far deeper than that.
no subject
He yawns again - although this time he does hide it behind his hand - and blinks a little sleepily, settling deeper into the meatcouch while he listens.
Nodding, he says, "Aye, well, they obviously had some sense." Pity he's not very good at coming up with things to actually do. He'll have to think about it and see if he can't come up with an idea. Maybe a little later, though, after he rests his eyes a bit.
"We should do something," he murmurs, letting his eyes drift shut. "Not sure what, though."
no subject
Shaking his head, he walks over to Jamie's couch and gently prods him. "Come on, we should both probably get some sleep. And these couches are far from the most comfortable place for it."
no subject
A little reluctantly, he pushes himself up off the meat couch. "I'll see you in Engineering tomorrow." And maybe he'll try and come up with some ideas for making sure his friend doesn't make himself sick by working too much.
"Good night, Billy."