A/N: This is slightly AU, so some details will be off, but just roll with it.

Prologue

Kimberly

I came back. Of course I came back.

It had been about two months after my fall, about the same time since I stopped replying to calls and letters from everyone, and three since I last saw Jason in Switzerland.

I remember the exact time I learnt from Trini that Jason had left the Conference so abruptly. He had simply up and vanished, after being paid a late night visit almost exactly to the hour that I had turned up at his doorstep those months ago.

I had scrambled for the phone, unused to the action after having let the answering machine do most of the work for so long.

"Whaddya mean?" I had asked, out of breath from my fumbling with the handset.

"Kim? Oh thank God finally."

"What do you mean?" I repeated, ignoring her comment.

She sighed and I could hear Zack in the background stomping around in between outbursts of "Goddamn Tommy Oliver ".

"It's Jason. He's left for Angel Grove."

"What?!"

There was a rustle and hushed words were exchanged before Zack's voice came over the line. "Your boyfriend showed up last night lookin' like he'd done been through the wringer. Top secret so he wouldn't tell us what was goin' on. Only that it's an emergency and a matter of life and death or some'n. Grabs Jase and goes."

He sounded frustrated and I couldn't fault him. "We've not heard from Jason since. We tried Billy and the Command Center but something seems to be jammin' communication lines." I heard him tell Trini something and a moment later his voice came back over the line. "Kim, we're worried."

That was about three days ago.

Three days later, and still no news from Jason. In the meantime, I had bitten my nails down to the quick. Spent too much time on the phone with Zack, learnt that Tommy had "teleported in a streak of red like since when was Tommy red, man", that Jason had borrowed a bandana, shades and a trench coat from Zack because Tommy was insistent that no one could know just who he was bringing back to Angel Grove with him. I did not like the sound of that and it worried me greatly.

All this time and I still had told neither him nor Trini that I'd broken up with Tommy months ago. Nor why I had stopped returning their calls and correspondence.

I checked my answering machine any moment I could. Checked and double-checked that the handset was hooked back properly on the cradle every fifteen seconds; hoping for that one voice, that one call.

I was unprepared for the moment he finally did call again. The machine picked it up when I was in the shower, and I nearly cracked my head on the tiles skidding out to hear his disbelieving "Jesus, Kimberly. You broke up with Tommy in a letter?"

Of all the things he could have chosen to say. I harrumphed and glared at the machine. At least I knew he was okay. A heavy fog lifted from my person, for news reports from Angel Grove had been sporadic and from what little there had been, it had been grim.

We knew that the outskirts of the city had been utterly destroyed, and a huge battle was raging between the Rangers and The Machine Empire. But what had really gotten to us was the appearance of a new ranger. Incredibly powerful and absolutely stunning in gold; Zack, Trini and I had discussed to death the threat and probability of this new ranger being one of the Empire's — like what Rita's Green Ranger had been to us back then.

This news terrified me, and I had no idea what in the world Tommy could have wanted with Jason. A myriad of possibilities raced through my mind, and I had the tendency to go from zero to a hundred in a millisecond, so every other scenario usually ended up with Jason being mutilated and killed or sacrificed on the Altar of the Metal Gods.

"Kim, calm down, I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation for this," Trini, ever cool-headed, said. "I highly doubt that Tommy would let any real harm come to him."

"Oh yeah? You weren't there when our Zords got turned to mush," I had muttered darkly.

I stared at the machine as it relayed the remainder of Jason's message. I heard him sigh, and could very well picture him running a hand through his hair. The image tugged at my heart. "I suppose it's none of my business, but why didn't you tell me? Tell us?" A pause, another sigh, deeper this time, and then, "Call me okay, Kim?" A beep signalled the end of the message.

I wanted to scream at him. Of course it was his business. But then, I hadn't really given him the impression that I wanted anything to be his business for the last two months. It was only later that I realized that he neglected to mention Tommy or what he had wanted with him back in Angel Grove.

I assumed that things would return to normal, 'normal' here being that Jason would continue trailblazing his way through Europe, and I would hobble along with the pieces of my life here in Florida. But another phone call from Trini changed things and turned my life upside down.

For I found out that Jason had been specially hunted down and called back into Angel Grove for a higher purpose. He had been returned to and had reclaimed his powers again. And not just his old ones, but superhuman, otherworldly, Gold ones.

It clicked then, the brief images of the stunning figure in gold that was captured in grainy resolution by some newsman. Fear came swiftly after that, as I put into perspective what I know now — that the explosions and gunfire I had seen on screen were directed at the Gold Ranger, and not from him.

He was a walking target for weapon fire.

Goddamn Tommy Oliver.

I didn't want to go back. But of course I did. I had to.