Power Rangers: Omni Force

by Syd and Z

When a new threat arises, a new team, led by familiar faces, is called on to save the world. Rated: M. R&R

1. The New Team Part 1

Power Rangers: Omni Force

A/N: Yes, another Becky & Teal story… We apologize for the severe length of it lol. We just started writing and couldn't stop! Stay tuned for updates from our other stories within the next few months. We've both been incredibly busy with school, hence the lack of updating! Enjoy.

Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, we don't own. Minus the two 'familiar faces' the characters are our own creations, please don't use them without permission and the song credits are as follows: I Can't Win – Default, Flathead – The Fratellis and It Ends Tonight – The All American Rejects.

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Kayleigh Johnson slumped down in her physics class, resting her chin in her palm. Her eyes drooped as Professor Jones droned on an on about velocity. She sat back in her chair and placed her hands on her lap, making sure they were under her desk. She stared down at her hands and smirked as she slowly changed her fingernails one by one from their colorless state to a vibrant red color. Smirking lightly, she removed her hands from her lap and placed her hands back on top of her desk.

"That's all class. Have a good afternoon." Professor Jones finished. Kayleigh smiled as she stuffed her textbooks into her black shoulder bag. She moved swiftly from the classroom and headed back towards her residence room.

"Hey, Kay!" Called a voice. Kayleigh turned to see her friend Samantha, jogging up to her.

"Hey, Sam, what's up?" Kayleigh asked.

"Did you get the email from Coach Hart?" Samantha asked. Kayleigh tilted her head to the side and shook her head.

"Email?" She asked. "No, I didn't see it. What did old battle axe Hart have to say?" Samantha's eyes widened.

"Careful! You never know who might hear you call her that. You know that the other girls are fighting you tooth and nail to be appointed captain of the team. If someone heard you and told Coach that, you'd be out of the running."

"Whatever, Sam. Anyway, what did the email say?"

"Coach cancelled tonight's practice and moved it to tomorrow night."

"Oh, super, I've got a free night. My TV will be overjoyed," Kayleigh joked. Sam grinned.

"Kay, you're hilarious. What's on TV tonight?" She questioned. Kayleigh shrugged her shoulder and brushed her black curls out of her face.

"Who knows? As long as there's no practice, I'm more than willing to just watch reruns of Sex in the City to occupy my time."

"Well, have fun with that. I've got a history test tomorrow, going to use the free night to study," Sam replied.

"Study? Wow, don't you live a thrilling life?" Kayleigh replied sarcastically.

"You know, some of us do actually worry about our G.P.As," Sam replied.

"Yeah," Kayleigh smirked, putting a hand on Sam's shoulder. "And some of us don't let trivial things like that distract us," she joked. Sam shook her head, and then caught sight of Kayleigh's hand.

"Oooh, Kay, that's an awesome color, what is it?" She asked. Kay's smirk faded as she quickly pulled her hand away.

"Uh……don't know. Borrowed it from some freshman on my floor," she said.

"Oh well it's really nice. Maybe I'll come grab that from you later." Sam replied, heading off in the direction of her car. Kay waved and let out a sigh of relief. That was close she thought. She turned around and noticed two of the girls vying for Captain of the team heading towards her.

"Shit." Kay muttered under her breath. She quickly spun back around and closed her eyes momentarily. When she reopened her eyes, gone were her soft blue eyes. In place of them were dark green ones. Her black hair was now a fiery red. Her beautiful gymnast figure was replaced with a sexy hour glass one. She spun back around and began walking towards the girls, who as she passed them, noticed nothing different. However a figure close to where Kay had changed her appearance.

"I think I just found her." The voice whispered before heading back towards the Gym.

---

"All right, Sam, keep those toes pointed…….fantastic," Kimberly Hart shouted above the sound of spring boards bouncing and girls tumbling on the mats. Samantha pointed her toes as she delicately walked along the balance beam. "Keep your arms straight," Kimberly coached. "Bend at your knees, not your back, honey," Kimberly said, making sure to attach the endearment to her coaching, trying not to come off as too demanding.

"Yeah, Sam. I think the judges will deduct points if you stick your gigantic butt out," Holly chimed in from practicing her floor routine. The unexpectedness of the insult caused Samantha to lose her balance and fall on the beam, her legs on either side of the equipment.

"Ow!" Samantha exclaimed. Kimberly rushed over to the girl and helped her off the beam, guiding her to the floor. Kayleigh, who had just stepped down from the uneven bars walked over to Holly.

"Hey, Holly?" Kayleigh said, as she approached the blonde, making her stand up from the floor.

"What?"

"I'm sure the judges will deduct points from your swollen nose," she replied calmly.

"Swollen wha…" Before Holly could finish, Kayleigh's fist slammed into the girl's nose.

"Kayleigh!" Kim shouted as Holly stumbled around the floor towards the showers.

"Practice is over for tonight everyone! Same time tomorrow. Kayleigh Johnson, stay where you are." Kim growled at the black haired gymnast. "Everyone else hit the showers. Amanda, get Holly some ice." She advised a younger gymnast. As she spoke, two of Holly's friend, Maureen and Tina, helped her to her feet. Holly held her hand over her nose, trying to keep the blood off her expensive gym gear.

"Hey, Johnson," Holly sneered. "Thanks for that. You just made the race for captain less of a problem," she said.

"Yeah, as if Coach's going to let a psycho like you be captain," Tina agreed.

"Tina, how'd you like to match your little puppet master?" Kayleigh threatened. Tina yelped and shrieked behind Holly.

"Girls, I believe I said hit the showers," Kim said to the three girls. Maureen, Holly and Tina quickly left the room, with Amanda trying to catch up with them with a hand full of ice. Kayleigh sighed once the gym was empty except for her and Kimberly. She turned to her coach.

"Well, give it to me Coach Hart. Give me the bad news. I'm not in the running for Captain anymore." Kay said, hands placed on her hips in an angry stance. Kim opened her mouth to say something but Kay shook her head. "Don't bother Coach. I get it. I'll pull myself out of the running." She grimaced as she grabbed her bag and headed for the door.

"Actually... I was gonna say: nice hit... And ask you a question," Kimberly said. Kayleigh stopped where she stood and turned her head back to Kimberly with a skeptical look on her face.

"What? No lecture about fighting? Not even a mild suggestion to do some anger management techniques or something?" She asked. Kimberly smirked.

"Don't tell the other girls I said this, but Holly's been begging for a good punch in the face for a while," she said. Kayleigh fully turned to her coach, with her eyebrows raised. "I've thought about kicking her off the team, but well, her dad's one of the most influential members of the alumni board……..and, well, I do value my job." Kay smirked. She nodded knowingly.

"So I'm free to go then?" She asked. Kim shook her head.

"No... I actually have a favor to ask..."

"A favor? What, break both of Holly's legs and get her benched for the rest of the year?" Kay asked. Kim laughed.

"Not exactly," she said. "You know what, why don't you come into my office?" Kimberly asked. Without waiting for a response, she walked to her small office set off to the side of the gym. Kay shrugged and picked up her bag, following the older woman. Once they were inside the office, Kimberly walked behind Kay and shut the office door. Kay could hear the distinctive click of the lock. Kimberly then walked behind her desk. "Sit," she said, gesturing to the chair on the other side of the desk. Kayleigh obliged. Kimberly smiled and sat down on her desk chair.

"So, this favor you wanted to ask, what is it? Coach some of the younger girls in their routines?" She asked, getting her water bottle out of her bag and taking a long sip.

"Not quite," Kimberly said. "I was actually wondering how you'd feel about saving the world," she said calmly. Kayleigh nearly spit out her water, caught off guard by the sentence. She slowly swallowed her water and stared at her.

"Come again?" She asked. Kim smiled.

"I had the same reaction you did at first." Kim grabbed a box out of her desk and held it in Kay's direction.

"I saw what you did yesterday. You completely changed your appearance... I have no idea how, but I realized that you're the one person that might be able to save this world. I'm offering you a chance to be a Power Ranger." Kim finished. Kayleigh stared at her with even wider eyes. She saw me? No……..No way, I'm always so careful. She couldn't have seen me….

"I………Change my appearance?" Kayleigh asked, spitting out a forced laugh. "Uh, Coach, have you been enjoying Happy Hour in your office or something? I mean………Really……….Change my appearance? Pshh, yeah, I wish." Kimberly frowned.

"Kay," she urged gently. "There's no need to go in denial mode. And don't worry, no one else saw."

"I……." Kayleigh sighed. She shook her head. "Anyway…….what do you mean, save the world?" She asked, deciding to humor Kimberly, as well as her own curiosity. "From what? Global warming?" She smirked. Kimberly sighed and leaned back in her chair.

"I wish," she said. She then sat up straight and Kayleigh noticed a change in her demeanor. She became even more serious. "Almost ten years ago, almost all of the universe's evil being banded together to take over the planet, as well as many others," she then looked down sadly. "Fortunately, the destruction of a powerful entity named Zordon annihilated all the evil beings, restoring peace to the universe……….Or so we thought," she said. "Somehow, one of the lesser minions, Hefaris, survived and has been using the years to gather his strength, as well as minions of his own. He wants to finish what Dark Specter hoped to accomplish—the destruction of Earth and all its inhabitants. Now, it's your job to make sure that doesn't happen," she concluded, edging the box closer to the girl. Kayleigh stared at her, dumbfounded for several long seconds before letting out a snicker that quickly erupted into hysterical laughter.

"Oh my god, Coach, you actually had me going there for a second. Evil beings? Hefaris? Where'd you come up with that? Sounds like the name of some kind of rash ointment or something," she said between her laughter. Kim blinked and said nothing for a moment.

"Your reaction was pretty much the same as mine... Kay, I was a power ranger when I was in high school. And now, a similar evil has returned and I won't stand by and watch as the world falls to ruin. Kayleigh, you are the only one that can stop it... Will you do it?" Kayleigh furrowed her brows, still not quite believing this.

"If you're a ranger, why can't you just do it?" She asked.

"Because I'm not a ranger, I was a ranger," she replied sadly.

"What happened? Got too old to do the job?" Kayleigh asked, sarcasm dripping in her tone. Kim chuckled.

"Believe it or not, I actually joined the Pan Globals, and dedicated my life to gymnastics." She replied softly. Kayleigh's eyebrows rose.

"You were in the Pan Globals?" She asked, surprised. She knew that the Pan Globals were pretty much the stepping stone to the Olympics, and was surprised to see that anyone who could actually make it to the Pan Globals wasn't off enjoying Olympic medals. "What happened?" Kayleigh asked. Kimberly sighed.

"Sometimes, when you want something so much and give up everything else in the world for it………..it almost doesn't even seem worth it anymore," she said. Kayleigh looked at her coach.

"I don't get it." She replied slowly. Kim sighed and shook her head.

"It doesn't matter," she said. She pushed the box closer to Kayleigh again. "What does matter is the safety of all humanity." Kayleigh looked at her.

"Alright. I'll do it," she replied taking the box and opening it slowly. Inside was a thin silver linked chain with a red gem lightly resting in the center. "Hmm," she mused, "stylish." She took the chain between her fingers and picked up the necklace, letting the gem dangle in the air, gazing at it. She lifted her other hand and held the gem in her palm. Suddenly, the gem glowed and her hand felt warm. "Whoa," she breathed. "What's going on?" Kimberly smiled.

"Oh good, looks like I was right in picking you for the job. The gem seems to be responding to you."

"Responding?" Kayleigh asked.

"The gems will only work with one specific person," she said. Believe me; I learned that one the hard way, she thought to herself as she remembered her attempts to use the gem.

"Wait," Kayleigh said, looking at Kimberly. "Gems? You mean, there are more people in this little function?" Kimberly shook her head.

"No," she said. "I mean, sure most ranger teams have more than one member, of course, but," she said, smiling warmly. "You're the only one we've found to fill the position perfectly."

"What happens if I screw up though? Isn't there someone who can help me?" Kayleigh demanded, feeling slightly panicked at the idea of being completely alone in this task.

"You won't screw this up," Kimberly assured her.

"How do you know that?" Kayleigh demanded. "I mean, you unload all this on me………and expect me to do it alone? Are you flippin' loony?" Kim smiled softly.

"Maybe, but I have faith in you." She sat back and wrote something down on a piece of paper before handing it over to her. "Listen, we need to talk more about this, but I've got some classes left for the day, so how about you come by my house, it's that address right there, around seven tonight and we'll talk more about this."

"You actually expect me to concentrate through the rest of the day after this?" Kayleigh asked. Kim shrugged.

"If you can't, you're more than welcome to use the equipment in the gym to release your excess energy or even go back to your dorm room." Kim told her. Kayleigh blinked and slowly stood up, clutching the box in her hand.

Alright..." She trailed off slowly before turning and starting towards the door.

"Oh, and Kay?" Kimberly asked, making Kayleigh turn back to her. "I'm sure this goes without saying, but it'd be best if you kept this to yourself," she said. Kayleigh rolled her eyes.

"As if anyone would believe me," she said before leaving, deciding she'd go back to her room and try to study…….or just stare blankly at the wall in shock.

---

Gabriella Ortiz stood by the entrance to the campus gymnasium, keeping herself partly hidden in the shadows around the corner. She stared at the big yard by campus, more specifically, stared at a particular boy sitting against a tree in the yard. Gabriella adjusted her thick framed glasses as a blush came upon her cheeks, as it always did whenever she stared at Yamato Kenji. She shifted nervously in her place and twirled the end of one of her long braids in her fingers as she stared at him sitting in his tight blue short sleeve shirt that framed around his muscular arms, displaying the tattoo around his left bicep and blue jeans as he read a book, completely oblivious to her existence. Gabriella was about to drift into one of her many daydreams about him when she felt someone slam into her, making her stumble to the ground and send her school papers fluttering down.

"Oh, man, I'm sorry," she heard someone say. She looked up and saw a taller girl with black curly hair wearing jeans and a red sweatshirt. She bent down and took Gabriella's arm, helping her up to her feet.

"Oh……uh…….it's……….it's okay, I…….uh……shouldn't have been uh….in your way," Gabriella stammered quietly.

"Oh man," Kayleigh said, noticing she made the girl drop her papers. "Here, let me get those," she said.

"Oh, no….it's……I can do it," Gabriella said, but Kayleigh was already gathering her papers for her. Gabriella stood their awkwardly and straightened her khaki skirt and white and pink argyle sleeveless sweater vest, brushing dirt off the sleeves of the white blouse she wore underneath and the legs of her white stockings. Kayleigh stacked the papers together and handed them back to her.

"Here you go," Kayleigh said. Gabriella smiled and reached to take the papers from her. This is great. Aren't power rangers supposed to like excel in coordination or something? Gabriella's hand stilled as it came around the papers and she stared at Kayleigh with furrowed brows. Kayleigh frowned. Uh, okay, what's this chick's deal? She wondered.

"Oh……uh……thanks," Gabriella stammered, taking the papers.

"Yeah, no problem," Kayleigh said as she turned, walking towards her dorm.

"Uh, I'm Ga…." Gabriella stopped, seeing Kayleigh had already forgotten her and was heading on her way. "Uh, never mind," she mumbled. She looked down at her papers to see if they were in order and saw that one piece was missing. She frowned and looked around the ground for it, not seeing where it could be. "Ah man," she said. She crouched down and looked around.

"Uh," she heard someone say as they tapped her shoulder. She looked up and saw Yamato standing by her. "Looking for this?" He asked, holding out her missing piece of paper.

"Oh!" She gasped, standing up quickly, which resulted in her shoulder accidentily colliding with his nose, as well as the papers in her hand falling to the ground.

"Ah!" He exclaimed, stumbling back, placing his hand on his nose as he doubled over slightly. "Just wanted to give you back your paper," he grumbled.

"Oh……oh god…….I…….I'm so sorry," Gabriella gasped. She ducked down and set her book bag on the ground, opening the small pocket in the front of her bag and fishing out a packet of tissues. She stood back up and held the packet to him. "I……Is it b…bleeding?" She asked, fearfully. Yamato stood up and looked at her through his long black bangs. He pulled his hand off his face. Gabriella was happy to see there was no blood.

"No, just sore as hell," he grumbled.

"Oh good……..I…….I mean…..not good that your sore…..just," she stammered, feeling flustered. "Uh…yay, no blood," she said.

"…..Right," he said. It'd just be my luck if this gets swollen before tonight. That's the last time I do something nice for someone, he thought to himself. Gabriella looked down.

"I didn't mean to…..uh…" she stammered.

"Yeah, whatever," he said, handing her the paper. Gabriella bit her lip before kneeling down and gathering her papers. Yamato sighed, fine, I guess one last nice thing couldn't hurt, he thought as he knelt down beside her. "Here, let me help," he said. He grouped together some papers and handed them to her. She smiled as she took it from him.

"Thanks," she said. Yamato nodded and stood up before taking her hand and helping her up to her feet. Gabriella blushed.

"See ya around," he said as he turned to leave.

"Uh…you….you should put some ice on it," she said quickly. Yamato turned back to her with a questioning look. "…Your nose…Uh….you should put some ice on it….So it doesn't swell," she stammered. Yamato chuckled.

"Thanks," he said. Gabriella nodded. "You should probably put your papers in your bag, since you've been having some trouble keeping tack of 'em," he said, smiling warmly, causing Gabriella to blush intensely.

"Right…I'll……I'll do that," she said. She bent down and opened her bag, hiding her blush as she put her papers away.

"I'm Mat, by the way," he said. Gabriella nodded.

"I kno…..Uh, I mean, uh…nice to meet you," she said, working her papers in her bag, afraid to look up at him. Yamato stood there and smirked gently.

"Do you have a name?" He asked. Gabriella closed her bag and stood up, picking her bag up from the ground.

"Uh…yeah…."

"Well?"

"Oh, uh, I'm uh," she stammered. She paused and cleared her throat. "Gabriella," she said.

"Nice to meet you, Gabs," he said, smiling. Gabriella's cheeks turned a deep crimson at that.

"Uh, I……I've got to go…." She stammered as she quickly went to walk away.

"Hey, are you doing anything tonight?" He asked. Gabriella froze and turned back to him, her eyes as wide as saucers. "Well, I'm in this band…..and we've got this show tonight…..just trying to get the word out, you know?" He reached in his back pocket and pulled out a 8x10 card and handed it to her. Gabriella looked down and saw it was a mini flyer that read: KEN-etic performing at the Scott Club. Fridays 8pm. $8.00 cover charge. "Sorry for the totally cheesy flyer. One of the other guys just made it on his computer," he said. Gabriella giggled lightly.

"It's nice," she said.

"So...?" He asked, his voice trailing off.

"Oh, uh.."

"Come on, you do owe me for injuring my nose," he kidded. Gabriella blushed again. "So I'll see you there?" He asked. Gabriella nodded.

"Sure," she said as she tucked the card in her bag.

"Awesome," he said, smiling as he swept his hair out of his face with the back of his thumb. "Oh, you are over 18 right? Cause, uh, they do card at this place," he said. Gabriella's face fell.

"I'm 21…." She said softly. Oh god, he must think I'm some little girl or something. Yamato frowned.

"Oh…uh…sorry….I……uh…" he stammered. Shoot, open mouth, insert foot. Hope she's now thinking about not coming. Gabriella smiled gently.

"It's okay," she said. "So……I……guess I'll see you at 8?" She asked. Yamato smiled.

"Yeah, yeah," he said.

"Okay," she said. "Uhm….well, see you then…" she said. She took a tentative step back before clearing her throat. "Uh, bye," she said as she walked away, turning around the corner of the gymnasium.

"Yeah, see ya Gabs!" Yamato called out after her. He turned around and went to walk the other way when he saw his friend, Lydia Washington, smirking. She wore flared stylish jeans with green embroidered flowers along the hem and a black short sleeve shirt that displayed her flat dark skinned stomach.

"Wow Mattie, smooth job talkin' up the ladies," she said, tossing her straightened caramel colored hair over her shoulder. Yamato rolled his eyes.

"I wasn't talking her up," he said. "Just being polite and trying to get some promotion out there," he said, giving a sheepish smile, walking over to her.

"Aw, she seemed kind of cute……..In a president of the chess club kind of way," she said. She smiled. "Anyway, I think she liked you." Yamato rolled his eyes and hooked his arm around her neck as the two walked off together.

"Whatever, Lyddie," he said, laughing. Unbeknownst to them, Gabriella stood against the corner of the gymnasium, looking down sadly after overhearing their conversation. She sighed and pulled the flyer out of her bag, staring down at the smooth card. She closed her eyes and held it by the edge with both of her hands, ready to rip it up. She stopped and looked down at it and sighed, putting it back in her bag as she walked away.

---

Mat turned his car into the alley behind the club, pulling into the small parking lot behind the establishment. Lydia flipped open the visor of the passenger side in the car to check her makeup as Mat shut off his car.

"Come on, Lydz, quit primping. It's time for work," Mat smirked. Lydia rolled her eyes and smacked his arm as he laughed.

"I still don't see why Mr. Scott wants us here so early. I mean we don't open until 7," Lydia grumbled as she reached in the backseat to get her backpack. Mat shrugged.

"The place just opened a few weeks ago. He wants to make sure everything's perfect every night for the first few months, I guess." Lydia rolled her eyes as the two of them got out of the car.

"Great, I lose my personal time; time I could use to use too work on my dance for the end of year recital or coordinate new outfits, because he wants to make sure his pride and joy makes money," she muttered as they walked into the club through the back entrance.

"I'm sorry to hear I'm cutting into your personal time," came a voice as they turned the corner to get to the front of the club. They both froze as they saw their boss standing behind the bar with his arms across his chest.

"Mr. Scott!" Lydia squeaked. "I...I didn't realize you were there..." she said. Jason chuckled and shook his head good naturedly. "I didn't mean that you're cutting into my personal time...I...I just mean that...uh...well..." She began to ramble as Jason, and even Mat, looked at her with amused expressions on their faces. "Please don't fire me?" She asked.

Lydia," Jason said, his voice twanged with his chuckles. "Believe me, wanting to have a life is not a reason to be fired, at least not in my book," he said. Lydia sighed, visibly relieved to hear this. "Besides," Jason added, "I can't fire you, I don't have another waitress lined up for tonight," he said. Lydia rolled her eyes as Mat chuckled.

"There you go Lyd, at least you can keep your job for tonight." He kidded lightly as his female friend smacked him lightly in the arm. "Jerk." She replied. Jason smiled at the pair.

"Hey, Mr. Scott. Took the trash out...since someone forgot to do it last night," came a voice from the backroom. The others turned to see Josh Wilson walk into the room and join them.

"Oh, sorry about that man," Mat said. "I had to leave a little early last night. The guys wanted to shove in a practice before classes today." Mat said. Josh rolled his eyes and swept his shaggy blonde hair aside.

"Whatever," Josh grumbled as he walked off to start pulling down the chairs that had been stacked on the tables the night before. Mat rolled his eyes.

"And I just can't figure out why we can't be friends," Mat muttered sarcastically to Lydia. She giggled.

"Hey now, kids," Jason said. "Play nice," he said, obviously having heard what Mat had said. Mat looked over at his boss.

"Sorry about that, sir," Mat said, standing straight and pushing his shoulders back, giving Jason a salute. "Total civility from here on out, sir." Jason shook his head.

"I really do begin to wonder why I keep you around," Jason sighed. Mat grinned.

"Simple symbiotic relationship, sir. My band provides a music act for you once a week...free of charge of course...and you give us a place to spread our tunes."

"Ah, right," Jason said. "Anyway, your music act doesn't start for a few hours, so how about you do the job I actually pay you to do here?" Mat nodded, slumping into his normal stature. "Good. I got some more rolls of paper towels and toilet paper. Can you stack them up on the shelf in the backroom?"

"Sure thing," Mat said as he departed to do as he was asked.

"I guess I'll go help tall, not-so-dark, and moody with the chairs," Lydia said as she went to go unstack the chairs.

"Hey, Lydia," Jason called after the young girl, she turned back to him. "I have to go and do something for a little while in a few hours, I probably won't be back until after we open. Could you just kind of make sure things don't get too hectic around here?"

"Sure," Lydia said. "Is everything okay?" She asked. Jason nodded.

"Yeah. A friend of mine just bought this new entertainment center and I promised I'd help her set it up," he said. "Anyway, Zeke should be here in a few hours, so you guys don't need to worry about the drinks," he said, referring to the new bartender he had hired a week ago. Lydia smirked.

"Oooh, Zeke," she said. "Hmm..." she began, thinking about the handsome bartender, only stopping when she remembered who she was talking to. "Er, I mean...Oh okay," she said. Jason cocked an eyebrow at the young lady.

"Zeke? Really?" He asked, an amused expression on his face. Lydia blushed.

"Anyway, I should… go…" She continued to blush as she exited the room quickly. Jason chuckled lightly. "Kids these days."

Lydia walked away from her boss and found the time clock by the backroom. She saw that Mat had already clocked himself in, as well as her. She smiled and decided to go find her friend and thank him.

Lydia opened the door to the backroom of the club, about to walk in when she heard a loud shout and a body falling to the ground. She walked in and saw Mat lying on his back, looking up at her. She chuckled and shut the door behind her.

"What are you doing?" She asked. Mat rolled his eyes and stood up. "Mr. Scott asked me to put the extra rolls of paper up on the top shelf..." he said, his voice trailing off. Lydia giggled.

"Aw, Mattie...was someone using his powers in the work place?" She asked. Mat rolled his eyes. "Whatever. I heard the door open, and thought it was Mr. Scott, so I kind of...panicked..."

"...And you figured if he saw you on the floor, he'd just believe you fell off the step ladder, right?" "Pretty much," Mat said. Lydia shook her head.

"Well, there's a flaw in that logic, my friend," she said. "What's that?"

"Well, the fact that the step ladder is all the way over there," she said, pointing across the room. "Which makes the whole 'I've fallen and I can't get up' routine verge into the realm of disbelief," Mat looked down sheepishly before gathering up the rolls of paper towels he dropped.

"Whatever, can you just watch the door?" He asked. Lydia laughed and nodded as Mat floated a few feet above the floor and reached the top of the high shelf with ease. Lydia saw a roll of paper that Mat and left on the floor.

"You forgot this one," she said. From her spot about two feet away from the roll, her arm stretched out as she picked it up, before stretching her arm up to Mat's level.

"Here you go," she said. Mat took the roll from her. "Thanks," he said as Lydia let her arm reseeded back to it's normal length.

"You know," Lydia said. "You are a horrible influence on me."

"I have been?" Mat asked. Lydia nodded.

"Yeah," she said. "I mean, using powers out in the open like this...that's a no-no," she said. Mat chuckled as he put the last of his rolls of paper on the shelf and floated back down to the floor to get more.

"First of all, out in the open? We're in the backroom," he said as e bent down to pick up more rolls of paper. "Second of all, don't even try to pretend you don't use your super stretching all the time when no one's around," he said as he floated back up again. Lydia shifted her eyes to the side, knowing he was right.

"Fine, maybe I do...sometimes," she said, thinking of the times she'd stretch her arm out to shut off her roommate's alarm clock when her roommate would leave for the weekend and forget to shut it off.

"Well?" Mat said. "How can I be influencing you then?" Lydia rolled her eyes.

"Forget it, Flyboy," she said. Mat laughed.

"Whatever you say, Stretchy," he said.

"But we do have to be careful," Lydia said as Mat came down again. "I'm sorry, but I don't need the whole world knowing I'm..."

"Don't say it," Mat admonished. Lydia sighed.

"Fine, I won't say the f-word," she said.

"Hey, Lydz?" Mat asked.

"What?"

"Do you think there's anyone else...I mean, anyone else who's got...these abilities?" He asked. Lydia made a face before shaking her head.

"Doubtful. I mean, we were freak accidents...What's the probability of there being other people like us?"

"Lydia, what did I say about using that word?" Mat said, wagging a finger at her. Lydia sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Yes mom." Lydia replied, rolling her eyes.

"Come on, Lydia. You're just focusing on the negative about this. We've got abilities people would kill for," he said.

"Uh yeah, maybe you do," Lydia said. "I mean, you can fly. Gosh, I would love to fly. What can I do? Ooooh, I can stretch my limps out...how wonderful," Lydia said sarcastically.

"Hey, it was good enough for Reed Richards," Mat said with a shrug. Lydia stared at him blankly. "...Reed Richards...Mr. Fantastic...The Fantastic Four," Mat said, as Lydia still stared at him blankly. Mat rolled his eyes. "It's a comic book...You know, something that isn't Cosmo,"

"Ha-ha, funny," Lydia said.

"I know I am," Mat smirked. Lydia rolled her eyes and stretched her arm out to smack his shoulder. Mat laughed.

---

Kayleigh sat on her bed, staring at her wall as her mind replayed what had gone on earlier that day. "

I'm a power ranger?" She asked herself, not believing it. Suddenly, there was a knock on her door. Kayleigh sighed and got up from the door as the knocking went on.

"I'm coming!" She snarled. Her hand closed around the doorknob. "Keep your damn.." she said as she swung the door open and froze. "...pants on..." she breathed out.

She stared at the Adonis standing in her doorway. He was tall, with a lean and muscular body that she could see though his tight black short sleeved short. He wore loose fitting jeans that she saw were held to him by a tight belt.

His skin was dark, as if he had just spent an entire lifetime in Hawaii or someplace just as sunny and his short dark hair was done up in tiny spikes. "Uh..." Kayleigh said, trying to find her voce again.

"Hi, is this Hannah's room?" He asked.

"Who?" She asked, and then blinked as she shook her head. "Uh...I mean...uh, yeah...Hannah...uh, she's my roommate..." she said. The guy smirked.

"Well, I kind of figured...since you're not Hannah, and this is her room," he said. Kayleigh laughed.

"Right, right..." she said. She stared at him again before having her wits finally return to her fully. "Uh...I'm Kayleigh," she said.

The guy smiled. "Riley Kiet," he said, extending his hand to her, which Kayleigh was more than happy to take hold of.

"So...uh...is Hannah here?" Riley asked as the two shook hands.

"Oh...Uh, no..." Kayleigh said. "She's still in class," she said. Riley nodded.

"Oh, okay," he said. He swung his book bag to his side as he reached into the pocket and pulled out a textbook. "Well, she leant me her sociology book the other day, and I just wanted to bring it back," he said, handing it to Kayleigh.

"Oh. I'll make sure she gets it," Kayleigh said, taking the book. Riley smiled, which nearly made Kayleigh melt right where she stood.

"Thanks," he said. "Tell her I said I appreciate her letting me borrow it," he said. "I went and visited some family in Thailand during Christmas break and I ended up leaving the book at my grandmother's place...all the way in Thailand...stupid me, right?" He said. "Anyway, until I can get a new one, I've been relying on the kindness of classmates to not totally fail the class," he said. Kayleigh laughed.

"Wow, that's got to suck," she said. Riley nodded. "Anyway, I'll make sure she gets the book and the message," she assured him.

"Thanks again," Riley said. "Well, I better get going," he said, situating his bag on his back again. "Have to go get ready for swim practice," he said. He stepped back and started making his way down the hall. Kayleigh leaned out her doorway as she watched him leave. "It was nice meeting you," he said, turning back to her. Kayleigh smiled.

"Same here," she said. She watched as he disappeared down the stairs, her mouth slightly agape. "My god… I can't believe Hannah didn't tell me that she lent her textbook to a god!" Slowly Kay shut the door and leaned against it, smiling. She looked down at her watch and realized it was getting close to 7pm.

"Guess I should get ready to go…" Kayleigh muttered, heading back towards her desk and grabbing her purse. She snatched the address off her bulletin board and headed back towards the door.

She was on her way out the door when she realized Hannah would be back before she would. She placed Hannah's textbook on her roommate's desk and wrote out a note on a sticky-note. 'Went out for a bit...be back later.-Kay. P.S. Riley brought your book back and says he appreciated you letting him borrow it...You could've told me a totally hot guy would be coming by the room to return your book, you know?' After she stuck the note on Hannah's text book, Kayleigh left the room, locking the door behind her.

She walked out of the dorm building and found her car in the student parking lot. She slid into the driver's seat and took a look at the directions Coach Hart gave her before pulling out of the lot and embarking on her journey. She drove along the streets of the city, following the directions and heading towards the outskirts of town.

"Why does Coach Hart live on the outskirts of town?" Kayleigh wondered out loud as she sped along. Kayleigh finally came across a lone house nestled deep in the woods. She recognized Coach Hart's car parked in the driveway, along with another. Kayleigh parked her car by the two and got out.

"This must be it," she reasoned. She walked up the porch steps of the house, marveling at the size of the house before her. "Hmm, I didn't know coaching paid so well," she said as she stood before the door and knocked. She waited a moment until she heard footsteps coming from the house. The door opened a few seconds later, revealing Coach Hart standing in the frame.

"Kay… I'm glad you came. Please come in." Kim smiled, opening the door wider so that the younger gymnast could enter.

"Thanks," Kayleigh said as she walked in. "Nice place," she said, looking at the nicely decorated living room.

"Thank you," Kimberly said. "Would you like something to drink?" She asked.

"Uh, no I'm fine, thanks," Kayleigh replied. Kimberly nodded.

"All right. Let's get down to business then," Kimberly said. "Would you follow me, please?" She asked as she began walking deep into the house. Kayleigh followed.

Kayleigh followed Kimberly as she walked past the living room, the staircase leading to the second level of the house, and the kitchen. Finally they came to a door in a room that looked like it should've been used for a study, but was currently just housing a couch and a single bookcase. Kimberly opened the door, which revealed a staircase leading downward.

"What, we going to the center of the earth or something?" Kayleigh cracked. Kimberly gave a soft chuckle.

"Not quite, come on," Kimberly said as she began to descend the stairs. Kayleigh shrugged and continued to follow her. They descended the stairs is a fairly well lit room.

Kayleigh was taken aback by the size of the room, as well as the long panel of computer equipment against the back wall, which centered on a monitor that seemed to reach all the way to the ceiling.

"Whoa," Kayleigh breathed out. "This is...wow..." she said. Kimberly smiled.

"It's not much," she said humbly. "Some friends helped me set this up, but it could've been better," she said.

"What, you're friends with NASA techs or something?" Kayleigh asked her eyes wide as saucers. Kimberly shrugged.

"Billy probably could've gotten a job at NASA...I mean, if he was still on this planet," she said with a breezy tone. Kayleigh stared at her. Kimberly chuckled. "He's on another planet. But we were able to set up communications with him. He sort of talked us through all this technical stuff," she said.

"We?" Kayleigh asked. Before Kimberly could reply, Kayleigh saw a man who looked to be about Kimberly's age walk in from another room.

"Work out room is now sufficiently set up," he announced as he walked in. He noticed Kayleigh standing there and smiled. "Ah, you must be the girl Kim told me about." Kimberly smiled as Jason approached them.

"Kay, this is Jason. Jase, this is Kayleigh," she said, introducing them. Kayleigh tilted her head as she peered at Jason.

"You're the guy who owns the club downtown, right?" She asked. Jason nodded.

"Jason Lee Scott, former power ranger and club proprietor, at your service," he said with a smirk.

"Former ranger?" Kayleigh asked. Kimberly laughed.

"You're looking at the very first red ranger," Kimberly said. Jason nodded and then gave a mock frown.

"And as you can imagine, I was a little less than thrilled to see the latest red ranger being well...different, no offense," he said, implying what he meant by 'different'. Kayleigh cocked an eyebrow at him.

"What, you think because I'm a girl I can't kick ass?" She asked, crossing her arms. Jason laughed.

"You were right, Kim, she is a tough one," he said. Kim shrugged her shoulders.

"I figured she was like you and very hard-headed, hence why I picked her." Kim replied, ignoring Kay's protest at being called hard-headed. There was silence for a moment before Jason spoke.

"Alright newbie, I suppose we should show you what everything is and how to work it." He commented, heading towards the far side of the room.

"Hang on a sec," Kayleigh said, making both of them stop. "Before you guys give me the grand tour...Who said I'm actually agreeing to do this?" She asked. Kimberly and Jason's faces visibly fell at this.

"Look, as any other kid, I grew up watching the Ranger footage on the news. I saw you guys, and people like you guys, fighting all kinds of freaky looking monsters...and a few times getting your asses royally handed to you on a silver platter," she said.

"What's your point?" Jason asked.

"My point is, you guys put your lives in danger on a regular basis. And, I'm sorry; I don't think I'm crazy enough to do that."

"It's not about being 'crazy enough'," Kimberly protested. "It's about knowing that you're the only thing between those 'freaky looking monsters' and the destruction of everything you love and hold dear." Kayleigh looked at the two former rangers standing in front of her.

"I don't understand how you two can actually think that I'm the one to be doing this. I mean what exactly qualifies me?" She questioned.

"Well, I think it goes without saying that your...extra ability...kind of puts you ahead in the running," Kimberly said. Kayleigh rolled her eyes.

"Oh, so just find the girl with special powers and automatically make her a ranger? You guys have an excellent screening process," she said. Kimberly sighed.

"You also have a strong idea of what's right and wrong, not to mention the conviction to back it up," Kimberly continued.

"What do you mean?" Kayleigh asked.

"Earlier today, your friend was getting ragged on, and you did something about it. You didn't care about getting in trouble, all you cared about was sticking up for Samantha," Kimberly said.

"...So I'm a good friend, I don't see how that qualifies me as a ranger," Kayleigh said.

"You're not afraid to do the right thing Kay." Jason spoke up. Kay turned and looked at him. "You're willing to defend those who might not normally be able to defend themselves. That's what makes you the perfect candidate to be a ranger, not to mention the leader," he said proudly. Kayleigh stared at them.

"Leader?" She asked. "But I thought I was the only one," she said. "So...who exactly would I lead?"

"You're right, you are the only one," Kimberly said. "For now," she added.

"She's right. You're going to need help. You didn't actually think we'd be sending you out to fight all by yourself?" Jason asked. Kayleigh shrugged.

"Figured maybe you guys took a few too many blows to the head in your ranger days, you know, back when dinosaurs roamed the earth," she smirked.

"Ha-ha, funny," Kimberly said dryly.

"So, who am I leading?" Kayleigh asked. Jason and Kimberly shared a look before looking back and the younger girl.

"Unfortunately, we haven't exactly found them yet," Kimberly said. Kay looked at her coach, her eyes narrowing slightly.

"Great, so I'm leading the non-existent team of the blind, deaf and dumb. Thanks Coach Hart." Kayleigh replied sarcastically. Jason looked at her.

"Actually, I thought that you might be able to help us there. You might know some people, or come across them…" He trailed off. Kayleigh looked at him.

"So in other words I can pick and choose my team?" She questioned, not fully understanding the point.

"Kind of," Kimberly said. She walked over to a table near the computer console and picked up a medium sized wooden box that laid on it.

"Kind of?" Kayleigh asked as Kimberly walked back with the box.

Remember how the gem I gave you reacted when you touched it earlier?" Kimberly asked. Kayleigh nodded.

"Yeah. It felt a little warm to the touch and glowed," Kayleigh said, remembering.

"Well, we kind of need that same reaction with these," Kimberly said, opening the box. Kayleigh saw four more necklaces like the one she had been given by Kimberly, except they were different colors. There was a green one, blue one, a yellow one, and a white one.

"It's the only way the gems will work, if they're in the possession of the right person," Jason said. He sighed. "When we first found out about Hefaris, Kim and I tried to...well, take up our former job, unfortunately none of the gems reacted with either of us."

"So...the gem reacted with me, and that's why I'm supposed to be a ranger?" Kayleigh asked.

"Well, yeah...but, I mean, your other qualities don't exactly hurt you." Kimberly said with a smile. Kayleigh looked at them.

"Alright. Fine. I'll do it…" She replied looking at the other gems.

"How am I supposed to figure out how the gems will react to someone? I can't exactly run around holding them out in front of me now can I?" She asked, looking at her mentors.

"True," Jason said. "I guess it's really a judgment call," he said.

"Judgment call?" Kayleigh asked.

"Keep your eyes out for anyone who might fit the bill, like I did with you," Kimberly said.

"Fine, say I find someone who just might have it to be a ranger, how am I supposed to find out if the gem reacts to them?" Kayleigh asked.

"You'll know," Jason said. "The gems seem to have an idea who they're natural owner should be, and these gems are all connected to each other, as you and your teammates should be."

"So, what, now I'm going to have ranger-dar or something?" Kayleigh asked. Jason and Kimberly laughed.

"Not quite. More like...enhanced perception," Kimberly said.

"Yes," Kimberly said. Kayleigh nodded and picked up the four necklaces. "Now, how about that tour?" She asked with a smile. Jason looked at his watch.

"Kim, you're going to have to do the tour with out me. I have to get back to the club," he said.

"All right," Kimberly said.

"I'll come back later. Just want to show my face, make sure everything's going okay," he said as he made his way to the stairs. "It was nice meeting you Kayleigh, glad to have you on board," he said as he jogged up the stairs.

After Jason left, Kimberly looked at Kayleigh. "All right, now how about that tour?" She asked with a smile.

"Sure. I mean, if this is going to be the base of operations for this whole thing, I might as well know where everything is," Kayleigh said with a shrug. Kimberly nodded and led the girl along the room, showing her the computers and explaining how they worked, before leading her to another room. Kayleigh was surprised to see what she concluded was the work-out room Jason had mentioned earlier. It was as large as the main room.

"And this is our little training room," Kimberly said. Kayleigh stared through the large window, looking at all the equipment that was in the room. She saw that the floor was covered with a large blue mat, much like that used in the school gym for gymnastics' practice, she saw a stand with some free weights as well as a bench press stand, a balance beam and a punching bag hanging from the ceiling. "Back when Jase and I were rangers, we had a youth center in our town and that had all the work out equipment in the world. But, since this lovely town doesn't have anything like that, and Jason and I figured anyone we got to be part of the team would need some place to exercise and just generally blow off some steam, we set this place up," she said. She opened the door to the room, letting Kayleigh walk in before walking in herself.

"How...How can you afford all this?" Kayleigh asked, aghast. Kimberly smiled.

"Being part of the Pan Globals did provide some funding. Even though I left before I went onto the Olympics, I still was able to make a fair share of money. Jason had some money from doing a bunch of international peace conferences when we were younger, not to mention some inheritance. He used some of his money to buy his club, some of it here, I used some of my money to buy this house, and the rest in putting together this place." Kimberly recounted.

"All of this must've cost you like...millions or something," Kayleigh said. Kimberly shook her head.

"My mother always told me it's not polite to talk about money," Kimberly said. Kayleigh stared at her.

"Right. Sorry." Kay apologized as she looked around the room some more.

Kimberly laughed. "It's okay," she said. "So, what do you think?"

"I think I need to pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming," Kayleigh muttered. Kimberly nodded.

"I felt the same way when I first became a ranger. I mean, being told it's your job to protect the world can be pretty overwhelming," she said. Kayleigh cocked an eyebrow at her.

"Can be?" She asked.

"Okay, okay, it's incredibly huge," Kimberly said.

"Did you have doubts? Like, did you think you couldn't do it?"

"I was a spoiled rich California girl who's biggest worry was breaking a nail before first period...Of course I had my doubts," Kimberly said. She shrugged. "But I was with my friends, and I knew we could do it. Just like I know you can do it."

Kayleigh sighed and nodded. "All right. So...I guess we should start looking for potential teammates, right?" Kimberly smiled.

"Not tonight. I think you've had enough excitement for one day. Why don't you go out and have some fun, enjoy your Friday."

"All right," Kayleigh said. She looked down at her gem lying, suspended from its chain, against her chest. She reached up and traced her finger along the edge. "I guess I'll be seeing you," she said to Kimberly before walking out of the room.

---

Gabriella walked down the street on her way to the club Yamato told her about earlier that day. She had spent nearly an hour trying to figure out if she wanted to change her clothes or stay the way she was. After that decision had been made, then came trying to figure out what she would wear. She finally decided on keeping her weight tights and changing into a long black skirt and white short sleeved shirt, covered with a white cardigan sweater. Gabriella adjusted her glasses, pushing the frames up the bridge of her nose, as she came across the door to the club. She saw a short line of people waiting to get in and stood at the end of it. As the line move forward, she saw a blonde guy sitting on a stood by the door with a small flashlight that he shone on the IDs people showed him. Gabriella saw him put a stamp on some people's hands before letting them past through, and some were simply let in. As her turn was fast approaching, Gabriella fumbled in her purse for her wallet, fishing her ID out of one of the side pockets.

Once she reached the front of the line, the guy didn't even look at her before sticking his hand out for her ID. Gabriella handed it over and waited. He shone his flashlight on the card, before looking back at her, then looking back at the card again. She looks like she's 16 or something.

"Is something wrong?" Gabriella asked. "I mean...the ID isn't...uh...fake or anything," she muttered. The guy looked at her. Whatever, what do I care if the kid wants to get in?

"Right," he said before handing it back to her. As Gabriella went to put it back in her wallet, she felt him take hold of her hand. Gabriella jumped slightly and stared at him.

"What are you doing?" She asked. The guy didn't answer as he brought the stamp down on the back of the palm, pressing it down for a few seconds before letting her go.

"To make sure you don't try to buy any drinks," he said.

"Oh, I don't drink," Gabriella said. The guy rolled his eyes.

"So this won't be a problem then, will it?" He said before gesturing her to go in. Gabriella nervously pulled some loose hair behind her ear before walking into the noisy club. She scanned the room, hoping to catch a glimpse of Yamato, but there was no sign of him amongst the crowd. She frowned slightly before finding a small empty table and making her way to it. She sat down and pulled off her sweater, letting it fall on the chair at her sides. She folded her arms on the table and looked around as she tried to make her self feel at home in this new environment. After a few minutes she quickly pulled her sweater back on and sat back, looking down nervously.

---

Kayleigh arrived home much quicker than she thought. She hurried up the steps to her room, excited to just be home. She unlocked her door and pushed it open to find Hannah standing in front of her mirror, putting the finishing touches on her make-up.

"Hey Hannah." Kay smiled as she hurried past her roommate and into her own part of the room.

"Hey Kay." Came the reply as she finished applying her lipstick. "I heard that you had a run in with Riley Kiet." Hannah commented, standing in the doorframe of Kay's room. Kay's head snapped up at the comment, a pink hue coming to her cheeks.

"That I did." She replied, smiling. "Although, you never told me that he was drop dead gorgeous or that he was coming by today! God if I would have known that, I could have had time to make myself look good!" Kayleigh laughed as she picked out a strapless red bar shirt and pulled it on over her head. Hannah frowned at her roommate.

"You think he's gorgeous?" She questioned. Kayleigh looked at her.

"My god… The words 'sex god' we're floating through my mind." She laughed. Hannah scrunched up her face.

"Personally, I don't think he's that good looking, so he's all yours." She replied, before moving back into her own room. Kay looked at Hannah's retreating form before looking in the mirror. She concentrated a moment before her jet black hair began to lighten into a dark brown with Carmel highlights. She slid her black Capri's over her hips, snapped her belt closed and jammed her feet into her black heels.

"Where are you going tonight Hannah?" Kay asked as she grabbed her ID and money off her dresser. Hannah shrugged.

"Mika and Shona want to go to that new club that just opened. Club Scott or something?" She shrugged her shoulders again. "It's supposedly the hottest place in town." She finished. Kay nodded.

"We'll I guess I'll see you there then!" She replied as she headed out of the room, the door closing softly behind her. Kayleigh walked down the sidewalk outside her building as she made her way back to her car. Once she got to it, she slid in and made her way to Jason's club.

---

Lydia walked around the club dressed in her work outfit, which wasn't much different from her outfit from before, except she had changed into a green short sleeved shirt. She had soon learned that it wasn't always a good idea to dress provocatively when around people, namely guys, who've been drinking. She made her way back to the bar, where she saw Zeke handing a patron their drink. Zeke looked up at he and smiled as she approached.

"Well, hello Lydia. Aren't you looking all kinds of lovely tonight," he said as she loaded her tray with drinks that had been ordered. Lydia grinned as she gave him a wink.

"Zeke, I don't know what you're talking about, I always look good," she said as she turned and walked away, making sure to add an extra sway to her hips for him.

Lydia brought the drinks to their corresponding tables before walking by the stage area where she saw Mat and his band mates setting up for their set. She walked up behind Mat as he was plugging in an amp and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Just thought you should know, the president of the chess club is here and has been watching you this whole time," she teased. Mat furrowed his brows and turned his head to the side to look at his friend.

"What?" He asked. Lydia chuckled and tilted her head to the side. Mat's eyes followed to where she was gesturing and saw Gabriella sitting at a table alone, looking down at her hands that were firmly placed on her lap.

"She was not watching me," Mat said. Lydia looked over to the girl before looking back at him.

"Well, she's not watching you now," Lydia said. Mat rolled his eyes.

"Whatever Lydz. Let me finish up here and go do your job," he said. Lydia playfully smacked his shoulder before she walked away. She tried to hide her smirk as she walked up to Gabriella's table.

"Hey there, can I get you anything?" She asked as she came up to the girl. Gabriella looked up at her.

"Oh...uh...I...um...ju-just water, thank you," she said. Lydia pursed her lips to keep from smirking again. Water, of course, she thought to herself. Gabriella looked away.

"All right, Hun, I'll bring that right out," Lydia said as she walked away.

Before making her way to the bar, she went over by the door and stood behind Josh. "Having fun?" She asked. Josh didn't even look at her as he handed someone back their ID before letting them go in.

"What do you want?" He asked gruffly.

Lydia rolled her eyes. "Just coming by to see if you needed anything from the bar," she said.

"I'm fine," he said in a tone so curt that he might as well have been saying 'fuck off'.

Okay then," she said as she turned and walked back to the bar. Asshole, she thought to herself.

"Back so soon?" Zeke asked as Lydia stood at the bar. "I knew it, you couldn't stand to spend another minute away from me," he joked. Lydia giggled.

"Maybe," she said coyly. "Anyway, need a water for Pollyanna over there," she said. Zeke looked past her and caught sight of Gabriella nervously twirling one of her braids in her finger.

"You are an evil, evil woman," Zeke laughed as he went to pour the glass. Lydia smiled.

"Isn't that part of my charm?" She asked. Zeke laughed and shook his head and handed the glass to her. Lydia grinned as she placed the water on the tray and headed towards where Gabby was sitting, still twirling her hair. Lydia placed the tray down on the table and removed the glass and placed it in front of Gabby.

"There you go. Let me know if you need anything else." Lydia smiled. Gabby gave a small, forced smile back.

"Thanks." Gabby replied softly. Lydia went to walk away but decided she'd have a little fun with the girl, as she sometimes did with other girls who had an attraction to her oldest and dearest friend.

"I'm Lydia, by the way," she said. Gabby looked at her.

"Gabriella," she said.

"Aw, that's a pretty name," Lydia replied.

"I guess," Gabby said. "But I guess Polly would better suit me, don't you think?" Lydia stared at her with a blank expression. "Hmm, no. Not Polly," Gabby said, she tilted her head as if she was deep in thought. "Pollyanna. Yeah, that'd probably suit me, hmm?" She asked. Lydia's eyes widened.

"Uh...I guess...Well, uh...it was nice meeting you...But I should really be getting back to work," she said. She heard me talking to Zeke from all the way over here? What, does this girl got sonar hearing or something?

"Yeah, nice meeting you too, Lydia," Gabby said as she watched Lydia walked away. She smirked a bit before turning her attention to her glass of water. She stirred the ice a bit with her straw before taking a sip.

The buzzing sound of amps turning on brought Gabby's attention back to the stage area where she saw Mat standing behind a microphone with a guitar hanging by a shoulder strap as two other guys plugged in their guitar and bass behind him, and another sat behind the drum set, while the last member sat behind his keyboard. The music that had been playing in the club became softer before it shut off completely.

"Hey everyone," Mat said into the microphone. "We're KEN-etic," he said. Gabby noticed a small group of barely dressed girls gathering before the stage.

"We love you Mat!" One of the girls yelled. Mat smiled and peered down at them.

"Thank you, girls," he said.

"Well, as I was saying," he said. "We're KEN-etic...and we're gonna play a few songs for you guys...so get up and dance, rock out, go crazy," he said. He adjusted the strap on his shoulder and plucked a few strings on his guitar before stopping. "All right then, you guys have been a great audience, good night" he said, making people laugh. Mat laughed. "Anyway, our first song is a little ditty we like to call I Can't Win...Because that's the name of the song," he said, making people laugh again.

Gabby watched intently as Mat leaned back from the microphone and played the opening chords of the song before the second guitar, bass and drums joined in. She watched with a small smile on her lips as he stepped forward, his lips mere inches from the microphone, with his eyes shut.

"Please don't talk about it, just leave it alone. What you need is too much for me, you can't squeeze blood from a stone..." he began to sing. The girls standing in front of the stage swayed their hips and tossed their hair about as they danced as the song went on.

By the time the song reached the bridge, there were a few more people dancing. Gabby recognized one of the new dancers as the girl who had bumped into her earlier that day.

The song soon ended to applause and hollering from the crowd. "Whoo!" Mat exclaimed as he finished the song. "Thank you, thank you," he said as the applause died down.

"Now, for something a little different. A little Flathead for you folks," he said as he started playing his guitar, with the drums playing a deep beat. Mat moved slightly with the up tempo beat. "Just because she feeds me well and made me talk dirty in a pink hotel, doesn't mean she's got eyes for me..." he sang, the dancing girls moving their hips to the change in tempo. The song went on with the bass and guitar players moving up to their microphones and singing along with Mat at the chorus. Gabby sat and watched this, briefly wondering if she should get up and be like the small group of girls gathered by the stage, she figured they were like the groupies of the band or something. Maybe it'll get his attention, she considered. She went to stand up. Eh, no, the area looks pretty crowded, she thought to herself as she quickly sat back down.

"Something wrong?" She heard someone ask. She looked up and saw Lydia standing by her.

"No," Gabby replied, shaking her head. "Just...uh...shifting in my chair," she said.

"Ah," Lydia then saw the empty water glass by the girl. "Can I get you another?" Not driving, are you? Lydia thought sarcastically to herself. Gabby blinked.

"Sure," she said, giving the waitress a tight smile.

"All righty then," Lydia said as she took the glass and walked back to the bar.

"All right you crazy kids," Mat said after the song was over. "This next song will be our last one for the night," he said. The groupies voiced their displeasure at this. "I know, I know, it sucks. But hey, even more reason to come out next Friday, right?" He kidded. The drummer behind him played a rim shot. "Thanks a lot, Barry," Mat muttered, laughing gently.

"Anyway, we're going to slow it down a bit now," Mat said. "It Ends Tonight," he said before the keyboard player started playing. "Your subtleties, they strangle me. I can't explain myself at all..." he sang as he slowly started to play his guitar and the rest of the instruments joined in.

Once the song was over, the crowd clapped. "Thank you, thank you very much. You guys have been great," Mat said before he and his band mates left the stage.

Mat and the band mates disappeared behind the stage area for a long while before Gabby saw the guitar, bass, keyboard and drum players appear and sit at one of the tables. Some time later, Mat re-appeared with his hair pulled back in a hair tie. He made his way to the bar and grabbed an extra order tray that was lying there.

Mat went to go off to some tables when he saw Gabby sitting there. He smiled and walked over to her.

"Hey," he said, "you made it," he said. Gabby gave a small nervous smile.

"Well...I...I said I would..." she said softly. "Uh...you...you were really good," she said. Mat smiled.

"Thanks," he said. He sighed as he waved the tray a bit. "But rock star time is over now, time for work," he said, joking slightly. "I'll talk to you later," he said as he walked off.

"O...oh...okay," Gabby said, blushing slightly at the idea of him possibly coming back to talk to her.

The music from the stereo system came back on in full swing and some people went back to dancing. Kayleigh walked over to the bar to get herself a drink. Kayleigh ordered herself a martini, showing her hand to the bartender so he could see that there wasn't a stamp on her hand. After he gave her the drink, she took a sip so as it wasn't so close to the rim and spill as she walked back to her table. She turned around to go back to her table and gasped as she bumped into someone, her drink splashing over the rim and hitting the person's shirt.

"Oh man, I-" she looked up and was surprised to come face to face with Riley. "Oh...I...uh, sorry" she said. She quickly set her drink on the bar and grabbed some napkins.

Riley smiled and took the napkins from her as he began to dap on the small wet spot on his shirt. "No problem," he said.

"I'm really sorry," Kayleigh said as she saw him give up on the spot and put the napkins on the table. "Is it a dry clean shirt? Cause...I'll so pay for it..." Riley laughed.

"Don't worry, it's nothing a round in the washing machine won't fix," he said.

"It's fine," he said. He looked at her before giving her a small smile. "Actually, there is something you could do to compensate for this," he said.

"What?" Kayleigh asked, retrieving her drink and taking a sip.

"Dance with me?" He asked, sticking his hand to her. Kayleigh blinked, slightly shocked. Riley frowned. "Aw come on, you're not going to bruise my ego after spilling your drink on me, are you?" He asked. Kayleigh giggled gently.

"Oh, no, sorry...I mean, yes, I'd love to dance with you," she said. She placed her hand in his and giggled softly as he led her to the dance floor. She set her drink down on a nearby table on her way to the dance floor with him.

Gabriella looked up as the drink was placed on her table while the girl in the red top went to the dance floor with a guy. She sat back and sipped solemnly on her water. Back on the dance floor, Riley threw an arm around Kayleigh's waist and pulled her close as the two slowly moved together to the music. Gabby watched them interact, her face falling slowly. The girl in red was absolutely beautiful and the guy she was dancing with, who one would automatically assume was her boyfriend, was just as handsome as his companion.

Gabby sighed as she silently wished she could be like that girl. She blinked and looked up, trying to see any sign of Mat. Her face fell completely when he saw him standing at a table filled with the groupie girls. He was smiling at them and putting his hands on some of their shoulders as the girls giggled. What was I thinking, she wondered. As if he was really going to come back to talk to someone like me.

Gabby finished her glass of water before setting it down and walking over to the bar and getting the bartender's attention.

"Can I get you something? Another water?" He asked. Gabby shook her head.

"How much do I owe?" She asked, implying she had an intention of leaving. Zeke bit back a smile.

"Water's free, girl," he said. Gabby blushed.

"Oh..." she said. "Uh...so, just the cover charge, then? The guy at the door forgot to get it," she said. Zeke nodded and accepted the money she held out to him. "Do you also have the number for a cab company?" She asked. Zeke nodded.

"Sure, let me go get that for you," he said as he walked away. Gabby sighed as she leaned against the bar, waiting for his return. She heard the sound of a tray being placed on the bar beside her. She looked over and saw Lydia standing there, obviously waiting for Zeke's return. Lydia caught Gabby looking and gave the girl a smile, which Gabby returned tightly.

"Not leaving already, are you?" Lydia asked.

"It's getting late," Gabby replied.

"It's barely even ten yet," Lydia stated. Gabby sighed.

"That's late for me," she muttered.

Gabby looked down and waited for Zeke to come back with the number. Lydia took the hint that the girl didn't want to talk to her anymore. Snob, she thought to herself.

"Hey there, sweet thing," came a voice as Lydia felt someone come up behind her. Lydia turned her head and saw one of the patrons who had pretty much been the reason why she stopped dressing provocatively while working. "When do you get off? Cause I was thinking we could-"

"I'm here till closing, then I go home," she said in an even voice. The guy frowned.

"Aw, there's no reason to be mean," he said. Lydia rolled her eyes. She looked over and saw Gabby looking at her.

"Whatever, I'm working," she said to the guy. She went to step past him to make her way to the other end of the bar but felt him grab her wrist with such force that she dropped her order tray.

"I'm just trying to be friendly," the guy said. Lydia tightened her jaw as she tried to pull her arm free.

"Not interested in your friendliness," Lydia said, not having much progress in getting free.

"Uh...ma...maybe you sh-should leave her alone," Lydia heard someone say. She looked over and saw Gabby standing by them. The guy looked at the small girl and raised an eyebrow at her.

"Stay out of this, shorty," he said, using his free hand to push her back. She stumbled backwards, her foot catching on the edge of the bar, making her trip and land on her backside. The guy snickered. "Loser," he said. Gabby looked down as she pulled herself back to her feet, tears tickling her eyes. She felt a hand on the small back and looked up to see Mat standing behind her.

"You okay?" He asked. Gabby nodded silently. Mat nodded, satisfied with her response before going over to Lydia. He stepped in between Lydia and the guy, forcing him to finally let go of her. "Look buddy, the lady's not interested, so why don't you just do all of humanity a favor and crawl back into the cave you came from."

The guy narrowed his eyes into thin angry slits. "Fine," he said as he turned to leave. You want to mess with me, rockstar? I'll show you not to mess... Gabby's eyes widened as she stepped back.

By this time, a small crowd had started to form around what was going on. Look out, he's got a knife! A female voice in Mat's head screamed. Mat looked up and put his arms out just as the guy tried to swing a box cutter at him. Mat grabbed his arm and slammed it against the bar, making the guy cry out before dropping his weapon. Mat twisted his arm behind his back and looked towards the door.

"Hey, Josh! Mind coming over and doing the job you're paid for?" He yelled. Josh came over and roughly took hold of the injured guy before dragging him to the door. Mat sighed and leaned against the bar as the crowd clapped for him. He felt Lydia put a hand on his shoulder.

"Are you okay?" She asked. Mat nodded. He looked over to the crowd and frowned when he saw someone missing.

"Where'd she go?" He asked.

"Who?" Lydia asked.

"That girl...Gabriella..." Mat said. Lydia searched the crowd and shook her head.

"She must've run out," she said. Mat looked around once more, sighing lightly.

"That sucks. I wanted to thank her." Lydia looked at him.

"Why?" She questioned, disbelief in her voice. Mat looked at his best friend.

"Well Lyds, she did save my life, so I think that I at least owe her a thank you." He replied.

"Saved your life?" Lydia asked. "What are you talking about?" Mat looked at her incredulously.

"Wasn't she the one who said the guy had a knife?" Mat asked. Lydia's brows furrowed. "I thought it was her...it sounded like her..."

"Mattie...no one said anything about a knife..." She said. Mat stared at her.

"Very funny, Lydz," he said. "But I heard it. Someone said 'look out, he's got a knife'." Lydia shook her head.

"I'm serious, Mat, no one said anything," she said. She squeezed his shoulder. "Are you sure you're okay?" She asked. Mat blinked and looked at her.

"Uh...yeah," he said. "I guess I just...thought I heard someone scream..." he muttered. Around them, the crowd began to disperse as people returned to their tables after the excitement.

"Hey," where'd that Pollyanna girl go?" Zeke asked as he came back, holding a business card. "She wanted the number for a cab..." Lydia shrugged, while Mat didn't even hear him, his mind was too distracted by trying to figure out what had just happened.

"You missed it, Zeke," Lydia said. "Mat just swooped in and kicked some ass," she said. She bent down and picked up her tray before seeing a small white wallet on the floor. She picked it up and placed it on the bar. "Hey, looks like someone just fed the lost and found," she said. Zeke took the wallet and placed it in the box under the bar.

Mat blinked as his senses returned and he looked at Lydia. "You know, Lydz, you should thank her too," he said. Lydia looked at him.

"What?" She asked.

"Gabby," Mat said.

"And why, pray tell, should I thank her?" Lydia said as she loaded her tray with drinks. Mat went over to her.

"Because she tried to help out," he said. Lydia frowned and looked at him.

"What? By stuttering and stammering at the guy and getting herself knocked on her ass?" She asked. Mat looked at her in disbelief.

"She stood up for you when you were being harassed. God forbid that you get past the fact that she's probably not the most popular person in the world. She defended you when you treated her like absolute garbage." Mat snapped back at Lydia before turning on his heel and stalking away. Lydia stood there, mouth agape trying to think of something to say, but no words came to her. She nearly jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder and spun around to see her boss standing behind her.

"Mr. Scott, you scared me," she said, placing a hand on her chest.

"Sorry," he said. "Was in my office, heard all the commotion going on...Are you okay?" He asked. Lydia nodded.

"Yeah. Mat and Josh took care of the guy," she said. Jason nodded.

"I saw Josh escorting the guy out. Apparently someone called the cops while all this was going on."

"Is everything okay?" Lydia asked.

"Yeah," Jason said with a nod. "A cruiser just came and the cops took the guy in and got an account of what happened from Josh," he said. Lydia nodded.

"Okay," she said. Jason patted her shoulder.

"Hey, if you feel shaken up, you can leave early," he said. Lydia shook her head.

"No, no, I'm fine, really," she said. Jason nodded and moved forward slightly as someone crashed into him.

"Oh shit, I'm sorry!" Came the female voice. Jason turned around and came face to face with Kayleigh. Her face paled slightly.

"Uh Ja…Mr. Scott… I didn't know you'd be here tonight." She commented. Jason nodded.

"Yes, I had to come oversee some things. Anything I can help you with?" He asked. Kay shook her head.

"No, no. I'm just going to get another drink." She replied. Jason chuckled.

"Play safe." He grinned before walking away.

Kayleigh watched him leave before she felt a hand slide against her arm. She looked over and saw Riley standing behind her.

"Hey," he said. Kayleigh smiled.

"Hey," she said, leaning back against him a bit, making it seem like she just wanted to be closer to hear him over the music.

"I've got early morning practice tomorrow, so I should get going," he said. Kayleigh did her best to hide her smile. "This was fun," he said. He leaned over her shoulder and placed a kiss on the side of her cheek, causing Kayleigh's eyes to widen and her cheeks to redden. "Hope we can do it again sometime," he said before leaving.

Kayleigh watched him leave, placing her hand on her cheek where he had kissed her. She smiled, feeling tingles all throughout her body.

"My, my, you just met the guy and already you're getting lip action?" Said a voice, Kayleigh turned and saw Hannah standing nearby, a smirk gracing her features. "Kay, you little hussy," she said. Kayleigh laughed.

"It was just a kiss on the cheek." She replied. Hannah laughed.

"Even still!" She replied, grinning. Kayleigh laughed and walked over to Hannah, linking her arm with hers as they walked back to the table Hannah was sharing with her friends so Kayleigh could join them.

---

Kayleigh groaned as the sunlight hit her through her window. She slowly got up and stumbled to the window, pulling the curtains shut. "Ugh...that's it...no more drinking...ever..." she muttered.

She shuffled over to her mirror and saw that she was still wearing her club outfit. Her hair was sticking up on all ends, looking like a poorly made birds nest that had just been hit by a tornado. There were dark circles under her eyes from her eye makeup smudging in her sleep.

Kayleigh ran her hands along her hair, trying to flatten out the unrully mess, but having very little success. "Screw this," she muttered. She closed her eyes as her hair slowly converted into neat and orderly curls and the makeup on her face faded. She opened her eyes and looked in the mirror. "Hmm, much better," she said. She grabbed a hair tie and pulled her curls back into a ponytail. She changed into jeans and a red tank top and grabbed a bottle of water from her mini-fridge before sitting down on her bed and enjoying some early morning cartoons.

She was about to sink into the warmth of her bed when she heard her cell phone go off. "...It is unholy to call someone on a Saturday at..." she looked at her watch, expecting it to be at least 7am. "...10am..." she groaned. She sighed and walked over to her desk, answering her phone. "Hello?"

"Kayleigh? Hi, it's Kimberly," was the reply on the phone. Kayleigh made a face at how strange it was to hear her first name instead of Coach Hart. This of course told her that her reasons for the call weren't to do with the gymnastics team. "Jason just gave me a call; he said there was something we definitely needed to see. Can you come over?"

"Uh..." Kayleigh said, feeling less than thrilled that her Saturday had just been ruined. "Yeah," she said.

"Good," Kimberly said before hanging up. Kayleigh sighed and took a long swig of her water before grabbing her sunglasses and car keys and leaving the room. She headed down the steps and just as she reached the door for outside, she put her sunglasses over her eyes and stepped out into the bright morning sunlight.

"Goddamnit, why is it so bright out?" She muttered as she headed towards her car. She reached her car, climbed in and turned it on. The music blasted out of the radio and Kayleigh groaned before turning it down significantly.

"I'm gonna hurt you Mika." She muttered under her breath as she searched her glove compartment for her bottle of aspirin. She found it, popped two and took a swig of the bottled water she brought with her.

She drove to Kimberly's house, remembering the address from yesterday. Once she got there, she only saw Kimberly's car parked in the driveway, meaning Jason hadn't arrived yet. She parked her car and got out, going to the front door and knocking. A few seconds later, Kimberly opened the door and let her in.

"Nice shades," Kimberly said. Kayleigh sighed.

"Don't ask," she said. Kimberly chuckled. "So, what's this thing that Jason wanted to show us?" Kimberly shrugged.

"He didn't say. Just that it was important," she said. "Want some breakfast?" She offered. Kayleigh smiled and nodded as she followed the older woman to the kitchen.

---

Mat walked around campus, his head still trying to comprehend what had happened the night before. How come no one else heard it? He wondered. I mean...it was loud...clear as day... he sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He stopped as he turned a corner and saw Gabby sitting on a bench and eating an apple. He tucked his hair behind his ear before walking up behind the bench. Just as he was by the bench, he saw Gabby quickly look up behind her, looking at him. The suddenness of her action made Mat jump a little.

"Hey," he said, giving her a half smile.

"Hi," Gabby said. She adjusted her glasses and turned back forward. Mat figured it was all right to join her. He sat down beside her. He watched as she sat there dressed in a white short sleeved shirt and blue overalls, quietly eating her apple, nervously wiping her mouth with the back of her free hand. Mat noticed that the stamp from the club was still on her hand and couldn't help chuckle a bit. Gabby looked at him.

"You know, you're supposed to wash that off," he said. Gabby looked down at her hand and blushed, feeling foolish.

"Oh right, I forgot," she said.

"Understandable," he said. "Last night was pretty crazy," he said. Gabby nodded. "But it's not usually that hectic...I mean, sure, the club's only been opened for about two months, but I can safely tell you that those two months have been pretty tame," he assured her.

"Oh," Gabby said, before shrugging. "It's not really my place anyway," she added. "I'm not really the...um...go out and party...type..." she said.

"Oh," Mat said. He looked at her closely. Gabby looked at him.

"What?" She asked.

"Huh?" He asked, before blinking. "Oh...nothing...uh, was just wondering if you were okay, after last night, I mean," he said. Gabby nodded.

"Yeah...don't know if I'll be practicing my Good Samaritan act anytime soon, but other than that I'm fine," she said, giving a small rueful chuckle

"Yeah...Well...I'm sure Lydia appreciates you trying to help her out," he said.

"Emphasis on the word 'trying'," Gabby muttered. She sighed. "Are you okay?" She asked.

"Yeah," Mat said. "The guy didn't get me or anything," he said. He paused. "The weirdest thing happened though," he said.

"Oh?" Gabby asked, looking down and putting her attention back to her apple.

"Yeah...I...I know this is going to sound weird but...I knew the guy was going to pull a knife out. Like...someone told me," he said.

"Oh?" Gabby asked.

"Yeah...like, I heard someone scream he had a knife...but the weird thing is that no one else heard it. I mean, Lydia said no one said anything, but I could've sworn I heard it," he said. She has to know something about it, he thought to himself.

"Uh...well...I...I once read somewhere that like...everyone has a sixth sense for danger...you know, the whole hair standing at the back of your neck kind of thing...Maybe something told you this guy wasn't just going to back off..." Gabby said.

"...Yeah, but it wasn't like I sensed it...I heard someone say it...It kind of sounded like you, to be honest," he said.

Gabby gasped softly as her apple dropped from her hand. "Uh...well...wow...that is weird..." she stammered, standing up quickly. "Well, I've got to go, it was nice talking to you," she said as she quickly went to leave. Mat stood up and went after her.

"Hey, wait," he said, making her stop and turn back to him. "Uh...did you..." he paused. No way, that sounds crazy... "Uh, lose your wallet last night?" He asked. "Lydia found one, after the incident and...just wondering if it was yours..."

"Uh...I might have..." she said. "I mean, I couldn't find my wallet this morning...I thought I left it in the cab or something...What did it look like?"

"It was this little white shiny wallet with a sipper on the outside," he said. Gabby looked relieved.

"Yeah, that's mine," she said. "So, it's at the club?"

"Yeah," he said. "If you want, I can take you there now and we can get it," he offered.

"Oh...uh...okay, sure," she said, nervously shoving her hands in the back pockets of her overalls. Mat smiled and walked over to her, leading her to where his car was parked.

---

By the time Kim and Kayleigh had finished eating breakfast, Jason had arrived. He grabbed a cup of coffee and the three of them headed downstairs into the basement. As Jason placed his mug next to the keyboard, he looked at Kay.

"So how did you feel this morning Kay?" He asked, a smile twitching at his cheeks. Kay blushed a deep red and muttered an inaudible response. Kim looked at her protégé and oldest friend with a look of confusion on her face.

"Did I miss something?" She questioned. Jason laughed, causing Kay to blush even harder.

"Kay was at the club last night." He commented, not making any reference to what she'd done the night before. Kay gave her predecessor a look of thanks as Kim looked at her.

"Don't worry Kim, I didn't do anything stupid." Kayleigh defended. Kim seemed happy with the answer and moved towards the consol.

"So what is it that you have to show us Jason?" Kim questioned. Jason smiled. "Ah, right," he said. He went over to the shoulder bag he had brought with him and pulled out two video tapes.

"Home movies?" Kayleigh asked. Jason chuckled.

"Not exactly," he said. "When I first bought the club and did all the legal stuff...you know, insurance and what not, my company made me put in surveillance cameras in it...I mean, it was either that or have one hell of a premium to pay."

"Okay...what's your point?" Kimberly asked.

"Just watch," he said. He went over and put one of the tapes in a tape deck that was in the main console. Soon, one of the monitors began to play. On the screen was just the backroom of the club.

"What is this?" Kayleigh asked.

"Just keep watching," Jason said. After a few seconds, the door to the room opened as someone walked into the room. Jason paused the video.

"That's Yamato Kenji," he informed. "He works at the club and his band plays there sometimes," he said before letting the video go on. They watched as Yamato picked up a few rolls of paper towels and walked over to the tall shelf. "And this is where it gets interesting," Jason said. Kayleigh and Kimberly's mouths fell agape as they watched Yamato float above ground as he started placing the rolls on the top of the shelf.

"Oh my god," Kayleigh said, shocked.

"Looks like you're not the only one with special powers," Kimberly remarked.

"Oh, keep watching, it gets even better," Jason said. The women did as they were told and soon saw the door start to open, suddenly, Mat fell down to the ground as someone else walked in. "That's Lydia Washington, she works as a waitress at the club,"

They watched as the two looked to be talking before Mat again floated above to the shelf.

"He's using his ability right in front of her?" Kayleigh asked, amazed.

"He's not the only one," Jason said. Kimberly and Kayleigh sat back in shock as they saw Lydia's arm stretch out and grab a roll from the floor and reach up to put it on the shelf before letting it recede to it's normal length.

"Oh my god..." Kayleigh whispered. "Two of them?" Jason stopped the tape and took it out of the deck, replacing it with the second one. "Possibly three," he said.

He played the tape, letting the image of the incident that went on in the club last night play.

"Wait, this is just that incident with the aggressive guy from last night," Kayleigh said. Having been at the club, she saw what happened and didn't understand why Jason was playing the tape now.

"Just watch, keep your eye on this girl over here," Jason said, pointing at the girl who was just knocked down by the guy.

"What about her?" Kimberly asked. Jason rolled his eyes.

"Would you two stop being so impatiant? Just watch." Jason said. The two watched as Mat tried to diffuse the situation and the guy turned away as if he were leaving. "Watch how Mat somehow already knows something's going to happen before the guy fully turns around," he said. Surely enough, he was right. Mat stuck out his hands a few seconds before the guy turned back with the knife. As he disarmed the guy, they watched as the girl quickly pushed through the crowd and ran out of the club.

"I don't get it," Kimberly said as Jason let the tape keep running to the image of Mat looking around the crowd.

"I didn't either, at first," Jason said. "But something just struck me as a little off. How did Mat know to be ready for the knife? Why did that girl take off like a bat out of hell after it happened?"

Kayleigh reached over and rewound the tape, getting another look at the girl.

"I know her," she said. Jason and Kimberly looked at her. "Well, not really...I mean, I bumped into her yesterday after...well, after you dropped that bombshell on me in your office," Kayleigh said to Kimberly.

"I still don't see how this means anything," Kimberly said.

"I don't know...just...something tells me she knew what was going to happen..." Jason said. Kayleigh shrugged.

"Maybe… But what's this supposed to mean?" She questioned. Jason looked at her.

"These people have powers, similar to yours. It might just mean that the gems could react with them." He finished. Kay looked at him.

"So we're back at square one. Am I supposed to just run around holding out the gems being all like 'Don't be afraid of the freak running after you! I just want you to touch the pretty stone!'?" Kayleigh questioned, her hands on her hips. Kim snorted from beside her, while Jason raised an eyebrow.

"Well, you were at the club last night. Did you get anything off of them when you were around them?" Jason asked.

"I don't know," Kayleigh said.

"I wasn't really around any of them...except for the guy when he brought some drinks to the girls at my table," she said.

"And?" Kimberly asked.

"Well...I don't know, I guess I...He seemed familiar...but I just figured that I'd seen him around campus or something," she said. Kimberly and Jason both gave her looks, causing her to groan and throw her hands up in frustration. "Hey, how was I supposed to know I was possibly in the presence of a possible teammate?" Kim and Jason looked at Kay.

"Well maybe…" Kim started. Kayleigh shook her head.

"No, do not tell me that I have to carry around the gems." Kay replied, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Maybe you'd get a better idea if you did," Kimberly said, shrugging slightly.

"Oh my god, do you know how weird I'm going to look? Carrying around four little necklaces every where I go? No, no fricken way. I am putting my foot down," she said, turning away from them, annoyed.

Jason sighed and rubbed his face. "Are you sure Mat's the only one you got a reading off of?"

"I don't even know if it was a reading," Kayleigh said. "I just felt like I knew him...who knows, maybe I had a class with him in freshman year and I just don't remember...Or I sat beside him at orientation, I don't flipping' know!"

"Okay, okay," Kimberly said, standing up and walking over to Kayleigh. She put her hands on her shoulders. "Let's all just calm down," she said.

Kayleigh let her shoulder's slump as she heaved a deep sigh and ran her hand over her face. Suddenly, something struck her. "Hang on a sec," she said, turning back and walking over to the console.

"Play the part where Mat took care of the jerk," she said. Jason nodded and rewound the tape. He stopped it just when Mat slammed the guy's arm to the bar. "No, back a bit more," she said. Jason rewound it to a little before the incident, when the guy was turning away. "Pause it, right there," she said. Jason did so. Kayleigh looked at the screen.

"What is it?" Kimberly asked, walking over. Kayleigh pointed at the screen, her finger landing on the girl with the braids. "She's backing away," she said.

"Yeah, and?" Kimberly asked.

"Well, to everyone else, it looked like the situation had already been dealt with, no more problems. So why is she backing away?"

"I'm not following," Jason said.

"Let it play for a little bit," she said. Jason did so. "Right there," she said. "Before Mat stuck his arms out, he looked to the side, for like a second...As if someone said something."

"As far as I know, Mat just reacted to the knife being swung at him," Jason said. "No one said anything."

"Maybe not out loud," Kayleigh said.

"Come again?" Kimberly said.

Kayleigh stepped back. "When I bumped into that girl yesterday, I knocked her over. When I was helping her gather her papers up, she had this weird look on her face."

"...Okay, Kayleigh can you possibly come to a point anytime soon?" Jason asked.

"When I knocked her down, I was still thinking about what Kimberly just told me...I remember thinking something like...uh...oh god, what was it..." she muttered as she tried to think. "Oh, got it. I thought something like about how power rangers are supposed to be coordinated...and that's when she gave me this weird look."

Kimberly and Jason's eyes lit up. "It was almost as if she heard me," Kayleigh concluded

"So...what you're saying is, you think this girl can read minds?" Kimberly asked.

"Which...would explain how she knew that guy had the knife," Jason said. "She started to back away because she was afraid something was going to happen."

"And if she can read minds, maybe she can also send messages to people. Which would explain how Mat knew to be ready," Kayleigh said.

"All right then," Jason said, sitting back. "But this still doesn't help us. We might have three people who have powers like you, but we still need to figure out if they can be rangers." Kayleigh was silent for a moment.

"Maybe we should go back to the club and see if the gems react with them then?" She questioned. Jason looked at her.

"That, is a perfect idea. Lets get going."

---

Meanwhile, in a fortress high above the earth, a shrouded figure sat on a throne, his long, talon like fingers, traced the edge of the armrests. A soft knock was heard in the room.

"Enter," the creature bellowed. In entered a small, thin creature with wrangled yellow skin.

"Ah, Sajno, what news do you bring me?" He asked. Sajno carefully approached the throne. "Lord Hefaris, we've learned that they have recruited someone to be a ranger," he said. Hefaris groaned.

"Those two retired rangers are proving to be more trouble than I like," he said. He held up a chain, letting the small black gem on it dangle in the air. "What of the other task I gave you?" He asked.

"We've learned of others who possess powers...Any of which would be a fine candidate, my lord," Sajno said.

"Well?" Hefaris said. "Why the devil are you standing here? Send some Rasprites down and get them!" Sajno took several shaky steps back as Hefaris slapped his fist on the arm rest of the throne.

"Ri...right. Ye-yes, my lord, right away," he said as he scurried away.

---

Lydia sighed as she dragged the broom across the floor of the club. Mat was supposed to meet her over an hour ago to help her open up the club, but she was unable to reach him. Josh was busy across the club, putting away some of the band equipment left from the night before.

"Where's your buddy?" He called over to her. Lydia looked over to him. "Shouldn't he be here helping out?" Lydia sighed and shrugged.

"No clue. His phone keeps going straight to voicemail, and when I tried calling his place, one of his roommates said he wasn't there." Josh snorted.

"Probably with one of his dumb groupies." He commented loudly. Lydia turned and shot him a look.

"Jealous much?" She replied as she continued to sweep the floor.

Josh rolled his eyes. "Sounds like you're the one who's jealous," he said.

Lydia furrowed her brows. "Excuse me?"

Josh shrugged as he moved one of the amps to the side, straining as he did so. "It's got to suck...Mat being surrounded by all those girls and him not even looking at you," he said.

Lydia snorted before laughing hysterically. "You...oh my god," she said through her laughter. "You think I like Mat?"

Josh looked at her. "Well don't you?"

"No!" She exclaimed. "God...that'd be like...so wrong," she said. She gave a small shudder. "Mat's like my brother. Crushing on him would probably verge pretty close to being incestuous or something." Josh looked at her.

"Could've fooled me." Josh stepped off the stage and walked over to the bar, passing her.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked. Josh got behind the bar and poured himself a glass of water.

"The two of you are always together...you're always touching him...he 'swooped' in to save poor damsel in distress Lydia last night," he said before taking a sip of water.

"He's like my brother," she stated. "We grew up together. I mean, even played in the sandbox together when we were toddlers. Besides, the only reason he 'swooped' in, was because you were doing a piss poor job of...well, doing your job."

Josh seemed to flinch at that and looked down. "I was busy," he muttered.

"Whatever," Lydia said. "Besides, why do you care if I like Mat anyway?"

"I don't," Josh said as he downed the rest of his water and put the glass on the counter.

Lydia groaned and tossed the broom aside. She walked over and leaned against the bar.

"Oh, I forget, Mr. Joshua Wilson is too good to associate with other human beings by actually having a conversation," she said. Josh snorted.

"I'm the one with a superiority complex? Yeah, whatever...Hello, pot, I'm kettle...oh you say I'm black?" He said.

"What are you talking about? I do not have a superiority complex," she said.

"Yeah, sure, whatever. I've seen you talk about some girls here, basically rip them to shreds just because their purse just might not match their shoes," he said as she stepped out from behind the bar and made his way back to the stage.

Lydia frowned. "So I have a few opinions about fashion? What's the big deal?" She asked. Josh chuckled and shook his head.

"You wouldn't know what kindness was if it..." he said as he looked at her, his voice trailing off. Lydia looked at him.

"What? I wouldn't know what kindness was if what?" She asked. Josh's eyes widened as he seemed to stare at something behind her.

"Lydia," he said softly as his hand slowly went to a microphone stand.

"What?" Lydia snarled.

"Duck!" Josh yelled as he heaved the stand towards her. Lydia screamed as instinct took over and her arms stretched over her head and grabbed onto one of the ceiling rafters. She pulled herself up.

"What the hell is your problem!" She screamed, looking down at Josh, who was now staring at her like she had just grown a second head. "Oh...shit..." She muttered, realizing she had just used her powers in front of someone who wasn't Mat. She looked down and saw a strange looking brown creature with purple armor and a matching mask holding something that looked like a small dagger, stumble back against the bar stools. "Oh my god," she said. She looked over at Josh and nearly shrieked at the sight of several more of those things appearing behind him. Josh swung around and ducked as one tried to swing its dagger at him.

"What the hell!" He yelled as he moved towards the bar. Lydia grabbed a bar stool and threw it at one of the monsters.

"What are those things?" Lydia exclaimed.

"No clue...but they keep coming," he said as he saw more and more of the creatures appearing, seemingly rising out of the floor.

Lydia felt her grip on the rafter slipping. She gave a shriek as she began to fall. Josh looked up and quickly moved forward to catch her. Lydia looked up at him.

"Thanks," she said. Josh said nothing as he set her down on the ground

"How'd you do that?" He asked.

"While a bunch of creepy looking things are looking like they want our heads...so not a good time for explanations.." she said. She and Josh quickly jumped apart as one of the creatures charged towards them.

---

Mat slowed his car down to a halt and parked in front of the club's entrance.

"Are you sure it's okay to be here this early?" Gabby asked as she climbed out of his car. Mat nodded as he climbed out as well.

"Yeah, this is around the time we're supposed to be starting to open up, so no worries," he said. He walked around the front of his car and made his way to the door with Gabby following him.

"Okay," she said. Mat opened the door.

"After you," he said, smiling. Gabby smiled and went to walk in, only to stop suddenly, a frightened look on her face. "What's wrong?" Mat asked.

Gabby looked at him. "I...It..." she began, but was cut off by a scream coming from inside.

Mat's eyes widened as he quickly rushed in.

"Wait, no, don't go in there!" Gabby warned, but it was too late. She opened the door and went in after him.

"What… the hell?" Mat questioned as soon as he reached the main room. Josh and Lydia were cornered near the bar with what seemed to be hundreds of thin ugly monsters surrounding them.

Gabby rushed in and came to a stop behind him. "What's going on here?" Mat asked.

"Your guess is as good as ours, man," Josh said. Gabby stepped back and went to run back out, only to have her path cut off by two of the creatures blocking the doorway.

"AHH!" Gabby screamed. Mat turned towards her and saw the two creatures. One of them grabbed Gabby by the wrist and spun her towards it, throwing the other arm around her neck.

"Hey!" Mat exclaimed. He took a step towards the creatures when the other slammed its foot into his midsection. Mat grunted as the force of the blow made him sail backwards a few feet, falling flat on the dance floor.

"Mat!" Lydia exclaimed. She narrowed her eyes and glared at the creatures surrounding herself and Josh. "That's it, no one, and I mean no one, messes with my friend," she said. She balled her hands into fists and stretched out her arms, punching a few of the creatures around her. Josh looked at her before grabbing a nearby barstool and bashing it across the head of one of the creatures. Gabby was too busy struggling against the creature holding her to take notice of what was going on.

Lydia stretched her legs, elevating herself as her arms stretched, allowing her to flip over the horde of creatures as Mat slowly pulled himself up to his feet. Josh was busy grabbing one of the fallen creatures by the leg and using it to hit the remaining creatures.

Once Lydia was over the horde, she stalked over to the fallen microphone stand and picked it up, making her way to Gabby and the two creatures.

"Hey Pollyanna," Lydia said, causing Gabby to look up. "Duck." Gabby doubled over as Lydia swung the stand, catching both of the creatures in the head. The creatures fell to the ground, their grips on Gabby loosening, allowing the girl to quickly crawl away from them. She stood up and looked over to the dance floor, surprised to see that Mat was no longer there, instead he was helping Josh fight the remaining creatures.

She felt Lydia grab her arm and pull her back towards the dance floor with her. Gabby looked over and saw four new creatures appearing where the two had fallen.

"What are these things?" Gabby exclaimed.

"Hey, you pretty much know as much as we do," Lydia said. The two jumped at the sound of a roar behind them. They turned towards the stage and saw a few more creatures there.

"There's too many of them," Mat said as he and Josh continued fighting them.

"No shit, Sherlock," Josh replied as he grabbed one of them by the front and slammed it's head against the bar. Over by the girls, a few of the creatures charged at them. One of them slammed it's foot against Lydia's chest, knocking her back against the steps separating the bar and dance floor, while the other got Gabby at the side of the head, making her slide on the ground and collide with some tables.

Gabby curled up as the tables tipped over and fell over her. Lydia looked over and reached out, stretching her arms as she grabbed the tables and used them to hit some of the creatures.

Over by the bar, the guys were able to dispose of a good percentage of the creatures. Lydia was able to beat a few up them down with the tables before she stood up and went over to Gabby, lifting the dazed girl to her feet. Suddenly Suddenly one of the creatures by the stage lift up a large amp, holding it over its head before hurling it towards the girls.

"Look out!" Josh and Mat said. Mat threw aside the creature he was handling and soared across the room as fast as he could. He grabbed both Lydia and Gabby by the waist and floated up towards the ceiling with them in tow.

He looked down and nearly gasped in shock at the sight below them. There was Josh, holding the amp high over his head, as if it were a mere pillow or something just as light. He stepped back and hurled the amp right back at the creature, taking out a few others with it.

"Oh my god..." Lydia breathed. Mat slowly drifted back to the floor, noticing that the creatures by the bar and the entrance to the club had disappeared, as well as the ones pinned down by the amp.

Josh looked at the three of them as Mat let go of Lydia before turning his attention to Gabby

"You okay?" He asked. Gabby looked around the room, her legs feeling a little shakey beneath her, before nodding.

"Ye...yeah. Just a little dizzy, but I'm okay," she said. Lydia and Josh faced them, the four of them standing in a form of a circle.

"...How did you do that?" Lydia asked Josh. "I mean, you caught that amp like it was nothing."

"Probably the same way you were able to reach the tables all the way across the room, and Mat here was able to pull a Superman on you two Lois Lanes," Josh said.

"So...the three of us..." Mat muttered.

Make that four said a voice in Josh, Mat and Lydia's heads. The three of them stared at Gabby.

"Did you just..." Josh said, his voice trailing off. She nodded.

"I knew it! I knew I heard you last night!" Mat exclaimed. Gabby gave a sheepish smile before nodding. Her smile quickly faded as she saw something behind Josh's shoulder. She grabbed a nearby chair and stepped forward, shoving Josh aside, the other three quickly turned just in time to see Gabby swing the chair to the head of a creature. The creature fell to the floor and quickly disappeared. She threw the chair aside and turned around to re-face the group. The sound of high heels clicking on the floor alerted them that they were no longer alone. A female dressed in black jeans and a red tank top appeared in the doorway.

"Well, you guys made my job a ton easier." She commented. They looked at her, questioning looks crossing all their faces.

Two more people joined her, Jason and another woman who looked about his age. Jason stepped towards them.

"Wow," he said. "Now, Mat and Lydia...we already knew about you two...we had our suspicions about you," he said, looking at Gabby before bringing his eyes to Josh. "But you...total surprise," he said.

"What?" Lydia asked.

"And look," the young girl said, bringing the other's attention back to her, they saw her holding up four necklaces with different colored glowing gems on them. "All four gems are reacting," she said.

Gabby squeezed her eyes shut as she felt herself swaying slightly. She shook her head and looked at the girl. "You..." she said. "You're that crazy girl...the one who thought she was a power ranger..." she said. Kayleigh frowned.

"Well, I guess that removes any doubt about her powers," Kayleigh said. Mat took a step towards Gabby.

"Gabby?" He asked, noticing her less that sturdy composure. Gabby closed her eyes as she felt herself falling backwards.

Jason quickly stepped forward and caught the girl before she fell back.

"What's wrong with her?" Kimberly asked worriedly as she and Kayleigh went over to them.

"One of those things kicked her in the head," Lydia said. Kim looked at the group.

"Bring her along with us. I have something you should all see." She commented, heading out of the building.

"Wait," Josh said, "hang on. We're not going anywhere," he said.

Kimberly stopped and turned towards him. "Oh?" She asked.

"Are you kidding?" Lydia asked. "First an army of freaky looking things try to kick our asses, then skinny white girl over there holds up a bunch of glowing rocks, and you expect us to go with you? How do we know you people aren't involved with this? Maybe you sent those things after us."

It's not nice to read people's minds without their permission, she thought. Gabby gave a weak chuckle. True, but what's the fun in asking for it? She asked. Kimberly's smile widened at that. So, what do you know? Kimberly asked. Nothing, head's pounding too much to make sense of anything.

"What's going on?" Josh asked. Gabby blinked and looked at her new comrades.

"We need to go with them," she said. Mat looked at her.

"Are you sure?" He asked. Gabby nodded. "All right, I guess we'll follow you guys in my car," he said, casting a look at the other three.

"Excellent," Kayleigh said as she and Jason followed Kimberly out of the club. The group of four looked at each other before following them out into the parking lot. Josh, Mat, Lydia and Gabby climbed into Mat's car, while Kayleigh climbed into her own. Jason and Kim slid into Jason's jeep, and they headed towards the edge of town… To Kim's house.

Once they all reached Kimberly's house, everyone parked their cars. Josh and Mat got out of the front seats and helped a still somewhat dazed Gabby out of the back as Lydia followed. The other three led the way into the house, past the living room, past the stairs, past the kitchen and to the door. Jason, Kimberly and Kayleigh walked down the stairs before Lydia went down, followed by Josh who was then followed by Gabby, and lastly Mat.

"Hang onto the banister," Mat told Gabby as they descended the stairs before coming to the big room.

"Whoa," Lydia breathed out as the four of them looked around the room. "What is this place?"

"I think I need to sit down," Gabby said softly. Mat nodded and took her arm, leading her to a nearby chair and letting her sit down.

"Maybe we should wait until all of you are a hundred percent," Jason said.

"I'm okay," Gabby assured. She rubbed her fingertips against her temples and breathed in slowly.

"Alright." Kim began. "Kayleigh has heard this already, but here's the scoop." She moved around the room slowly, talking as she went.

"Jason and myself hand-picked Kayleigh to lead you, and we decided that in order to be the team that we need in order to save the world, we needed four more members. And now we've found them. I'm hoping, that you'll each do the right thing, and take the necklaces that Kay has and accept the fact that you have special abilities and you were picked for a reason."

"Whoa whoa, wait," Josh said. "Lead us in what? Save the world? What the hell is going on?"

"Yeah, you're giving us the cliff notes here, we kind of need the whole unabridged story," Lydia said. Kimberly paused.

"Oh right..." she said. She cleared her throat and told them all the same story she told Kayleigh the day before, explaining the ranger duties and everything. Once she was finished, the room was engulfed in silence.

"You...want us...to be power rangers?" Mat asked, trying to grasp what Kimberly had just told them.

"In a nutshell," Kimberly said. Again, there was silence.

"Cool!" Mat exclaimed.

"The outfits have those little glove things right? Because...yeah...I so don't want to break a nail," Lydia said.

Kayleigh laughed and held out the four necklaces. She walked over to the four of them. First, she stood before Josh and looked down at the gems. After a few seconds she plucked the yellow gem from the bunch and handed it to him. Josh took the necklace and looked at her. Kayleigh then moved down the line to Lydia, looked at the gems again, then gave her the green gem. She then moved down to Mat, looking down at the two remaining gems before handing the blue one to him. She then stepped over to Gabby and gave her the white gem.

The four of them looked down as the gems glowed even brighter in their touch, a strange warmth tickling their hands.

"Wait, isn't the leader of these things supposed to have red," Josh said, looking down at his gem.

"She does," Kayleigh said. "Did you miss the part where she just said I was picked to lead the team?"

"You're the red ranger?" Josh said. Jason sighed.

"Yup, she's the red ranger."

"But she's a girl...she should be the pi-" Josh stared. Kayleigh raised an eyebrow.

"Do you really want to finish that sentence?" She snapped.

"...Okay, then...so moving on," Kimberly said, hoping to ease out of the friction.

"So, how do these things work?" Mat asked. "Where's the on button?"

"All you have to do to activate your powers is hold the gem out in front of you and say 'omni' your color, and 'power up'." Kimberly said.

"So, am I right to assume you guys are all in?" Kayleigh asked.

"Definitely," Mat said, putting the necklace on.

"Sure," Lydia said, putting hers on as well.

"I guess I can get used to having a girl for a leader," Josh grumbled as he put his on.

"I'll do my best to help you cope," Kayleigh said sarcastically.

All right, so we're all power rangers, whoohoo!" Mat said.

"Hang on, what about Gabby?" Lydia said.

"Oh, damn, sorry," Mat said. He stepped back and looked at the girl who had been quiet the whole entire time. Gabby looked at the others and slowly stood up. She cast a look at Lydia.

"Oh, so now you know my name? What happened to 'Pollyanna'?" She asked. Lydia bit her lip and looked down. She looked at the others. "...My answer's no, by the way," she said. They all quickly looked at her.

"What are you talking about?" Mat asked. "You have to, I mean, the gem-"

"No," Gabby said. She looked down. "I don't care what this thing says..." she said, waving the necklace about. "I'm not a power ranger."

"Yes you are," Kimberly said. Gabby shook her head.

"Did you guys not see me earlier? I mean, the three of you were kicking monster butt...me...I was like some little kid waiting for the big kids to come save her from the bad bullies. I'm not going to go out there and fight possibly bigger and badder things...Trust me, you guys are better off without me," she said before placing her gem on the console and running up the stairs.

"Gabby, wait," Mat called after her as he went to follow her.

"You guys stay, we'll go talk to her," Kimberly said. She patted Jason's shoulder before the two left to follow Gabby.

---

Gabby walked off Kimberly's porch as she made her way through the woods.

"Gabby, wait up," she heard as Jason and Kimberly caught up to her. Gabby kept on walking.

"You're just going to try and talk me into doing it...just save your breath, it's not going to work," Gabriella said. Kimberly sighed before grabbing the girl's arm and making her stop.

"Look, I know you're scared. Do you think you're the only one? The others are just as scared as you are."

"She's right. It's only natural to be scared. But you have to fight through that. You have to be brave," Jason said.

"I'm not brave!" Gabby protested. "I've never been brave, and you know what, I think I'll just live the rest of my life not being brave, thank you."

"Gabby," Kimberly said gently.

"No! Te dige que no." Gabby said before snatching her arm away. She turned to continue walking away, only to come face to face with one of the creatures from the club. Gabby screamed and stepped back. Kimberly and Jason pushed the young girl behind them as more of the creatures appeared, surrounding them.

"Huh, fighting a bunch of mindless drones...I think I'm feeling a little nostalgic," Jason said. Kimberly chuckled gently.

"You ready?" She asked. Jason nodded. The two of them stepped into fighting stances. "Gabby, we'll keep them distracted, you run back to the house and get the others," Kimberly said.

"Let's do this," Jason said. He and Kimberly began to fight the creatures, kicking, punching, flipping about with complete ease. As this went on, Gabby slowly eased away before breaking out into a run to the house.

Just as she was a few feet from the house, she felt a pair of arms grab her from behind.

"No! Let me go!" She screamed as she struggled. The creature simply lifted her off of the ground and brought her back to the rest of them. Kimberly and Jason this and went to help the girl.

This only resulted in one of the creatures grabbing Jason and throwing him to the ground and another grabbing hold of Kimberly.

"Jase!" Kimberly exclaimed worriedly. Slowly, she watched as the other creatures sank into the ground and disappeared. Jason looked up.

"Kim!" Jason pulled himself up to his feet and went to charge at the creatures, but the remaining two creatures disappeared as well, taking Gabby and Kimberly with them.

"Kim! Gabby!" He yelled as he fought to catch his breath. He sighed and fell to his knees.