A/N – These chapters take place immediately after the Zeo/Turbo team up and serve as a side story to Fuel. Hope you enjoy.

Bridge Burning Part 1

Youth Center

After the battle with General Bara, the six Zeo Rangers retreated to their favourite haunt. Their first morph in nearly a year had fatigued them more than expected. Fortunately they didn't experience any of the painful side effects that had plagued them in their final days of active duty, which was a blessing. They did have to admit, they had been impressed with the Turbo Rangers. The team work and close camaraderie shown proved the younger teens had what it took to make excellent rangers. They were concerned with the way they were being led and they had expressed their opinions to Captain Mitchell. Hopefully he would listen to their concerns and take appropriate action.

When the teens arrived at the Youth Centre, the place was completely deserted. Clearly any potential customers hadn't ventured outside since the monster attack. Behind the bar Aimi greeted them warmly and offered them a free round of drinks. Seeing the serious expressions on their faces and the presence of the gold ranger, she decided to give them some space. She bid them farewell and left though the main door, locking it behind her.

The teens pulled two tables together and each took a seat, with Jason at the head of the table. The gold ranger stirred his drink idly, trying to pick the right words, "I'm sorry", he began, "I shouldn't have left the way I did".

After a few moments Tommy spoke up, "So why did you, I thought we were your friends".

"You are", Jason replied, "I guess I let my anger and frustration get the best of me". He took a quick swig of his drink, "I just watched one of my good friends sacrifice his life, my other best friends were lying in the infirmary close to death and there was a fleet of murderous robot army about to invade the planet". He took another quick sip of his shake, "Not much of a ranger am I?"

"Not a good ranger", Rocky exclaimed, "that's a load of crap Jase". He lent forward in his chair, "Do you know how hard it was replacing you as the red ranger?" Jason shook his head, "Terrifying. I had watched the red ranger on TV and couldn't believe how amazing he was and I bet loads of other kids thought the same thing. Suddenly I had to be that person and it wasn't easy. In fact I don't think I ever felt truly comfortable as the red ranger because you had made that position your own".

"I think I get why you did it", Kat began, "after my introduction to the ranger life I felt like running away. But I found the support I needed from my friends".

"That was part of the problem", Jason replied, "Initially I was so angry at you guys for the stunt you pulled that I just needed to get away. I had been accepted at NYU so I asked them if I could start early and they agreed. It was only when I got to New York that I realised I'd made a mistake".

"I thought going to NYU was your dream" Adam asked.

Jason nodded, "Yeah that was fine but the mistake I made was trying to leave my problems behind without confronting them".

Tanya spoke up next, "Then why didn't you come back?"

Jason finished of the last of his drink, "Pride, embarrassment, call it what you want. There were many times when I wanted to pick up the phone but I felt too ashamed for my actions". He paused and pulled out his wallet, "It was only recently that I got past that and I was ready to get back in contact. I guess the cog attack sped everything up". He pulled out a picture from his wallet and placed in on the table, "I owe a lot to this girl".

The teens picked up the picture strip that looks like it came from a photo booth. In the pictures were Jason and a blonde haired female, "She's very pretty", Kat commented as she slid the pictures back across the table.

"Yeah that's my girlfriend Emily", Jason responded, "when I need some sense beaten into me, she's more than willing to do it. It was her idea to come out here and catch up with you guys".

"Does she know about your ranger career?" Tommy asked.

"Nope but I think she suspects something", Jason said, "we've only been seeing each other for a few months. Perhaps if we're still together in a year's time I might tell her". He looked over his team mates, their faces a largely unreadable mask, "So am I forgiven?"

"Are you kidding bro", Tommy began, "of course we do".

"Yeah it was never in doubt", Adam added.

"Just don't do it again", Tanya smiled.

Breathing a huge sigh of relief, Jason smiled at his friends, "Thanks guys", he replied, "I've noticed that the city seems really quiet, compared to the last time I was here".

As the only one still left in the city, Adam replied, "That's because a lot of people have left. The Machine Empire's invasion fleet was the last straw for a lot of people. They could take regular putty or cog attacks but a suicide attack by a battle cruiser", he shrugged his shoulders, leaving Jason to fill in the blanks.

"Businesses are in the toilet", Kat picked up the story, "no one wants to open up a store or office in case it gets destroyed by a monster. Rebuilding projects are struggling to get off the ground. The council has simply run out of money. There's even a rumour that the school might have to shut down at the end of the year". Kat had left the city in the New Year to stay with Tommy on the reservation. It did mean her commute was nearly an hour but her Mom had decided to move down the coast to Reefside so it didn't leave her with many options.

"I dunno how true this is but there's a rumour going around the academy that they're going to abandon the city", Rocky said.

"As in move everybody out?" Jason asked.

Rocky nodded, "They'll leave behind the basics, medical facilities and cops but if you want to leave then the government will buy your house so you can start again".

"But that's crazy", Jason exclaimed.

"It's just a rumour bro", Tommy replied, "but we've heard that one at the reservation too". Jason sighed and the red zeo ranger immediately knew what he was thinking, "Everything the Power Rangers have done was still worth it. Without us then Rita or Zedd would've conquered the planet. It's just a shame that Angel Grove's taken the brunt of the attacks".

Jason nodded, "Yeah you're right I guess", he clapped his hands together, "so what else have you been up to?" The teens then launched into stories about the last year. Tanya explained about her record deal and invited the guys to record label party down in San Diego later in the year. Tommy and Kat told everyone about their plans to study at MIT in the fall. Adam bragged about the exploited of the High School soccer team. Finally Rocky shared what he learned at the Wind Ninja Academy and how well everything was going with Yuri.

As his friends shared their story's Jason smiled, for brief moment it seemed like nothing had changed. However all of the former rangers had successfully moved on to the next chapter of their lives. All of them though would share a bond that could never be broken, regardless of time or the distance between them. For the first time in nearly a year, Jason was happy. He had left Angel Grove for the wrong reasons but he was confident that he had made the right decision.