Disclaimer: Everything in this story that you recognise from the PR shows belongs to Saban. Anything from Starwars belongs to George Lucas. Please don't sue me because I'm broke and my country's currency isn't worth it.

Note: Special thanks to Blackshard and De nuit for all of their constructive criticism. Without it the story probably wouldn't have been worth it's weight in paper.

Full Circle
by
Devon

~*~

"How many times I've sat and prayed
I'd find some map to show the way
How many times I've felt each day
laugh at me and just slip away.
I don't know where you are
My eyes are fixed upon your star
I know that at the journey's end
I will see your face again." ~ Journey's End by Juluka

~*~

"Dead, she is. The birth too much, it was" a small creature with pointed ears said gravely.

"What shall we do with the child Yoda?"

"Strong in the Force, he is. Train him, we shall." The Jedi Master replies. His companion looks down at the infant

"Yes but who will look after him until he is ready?" Yoda's gaze falls onto the child

"Look after him; I shall"

"Is that wise?" Yoda simply nods.

~*~

The boy is four. He is meditating with Yoda. They are in a large room which has columns, made of a grey stone, holding up the roof. The room itself is made of the same stone complete with ancient carvings. Shafts of light filter into the dimly lit room through uncovered windows. The only noise is falling water from a nearby fountain. The boy looks around the room obviously bored and his concentration broken. A voice breaks the serenity

"Concentrate, you will."

Exasperated the boy replies " I am trying Master." The two have been meditating for the past half-hour a short time for Jedi but the boy is still young and to him it seems as if they have been there for an eternity. The Jedi Master turns to look at his pupil

"William," he says, his voice is soft and neutral

"Do or do not. There is no try." The boy nods "Yes Master."

~*~

The boy is ten. He is using the signature weapon of the Jedi. A lightsaber. The training room is covered in soft mats, otherwise it is the same as the one before. Except falling water is not the only sound to be heard. The Jedi pupil is blindfolded and objects are flying towards him. He must use the Force to find them and defend himself. His lightsaber is set at a low power, its green blade slashes through the air towards one of the attackers.

"Let go. Let the living Force guide you. Not all the droids are your enemy." Yoda calls from the sidelines "Come that is enough." The boy powers down his lightsaber and walks towards his Master, removing his blindfold. "Well, you fought. But too much anger, you have." Observes the Master "Learn to control it, you must." The boy bows his head.

"Yes Master."

~*~

Now the boy is eleven. He is sitting in a room, which looks like a starry night sky. Each star has planets surrounding it. "One day I shall see all the planets in the universe" the boy thinks as he marvels at the sheer quantity of them. Someone slips into the room behind him. The Force alerts the boy of his presence but he is still inexperienced in the ways of the Force and the warning comes to late. The figure strikes the boy and he falls to the ground in an unconscious heap. The figure carries him to a ship. The young Jedi is tied up and he fades in and out of consciousness.

~*~

He is sixteen. The Temple and his training a distant memory. The comforting power of the Force is still present, giving him courage and strength, which are hidden behind a deceptive exterior. He is standing in a strange room filled with bright flashing lights. A giant head is floating above their heads. A small robot, similar to those that worked in the Temple but not as advanced, is working on one of the many flashing control panels. His friends are afraid, but the Force comforts him. He knows that the Force will leave him temporarily and he is scared and saddened by the loss of his constant companion. The teens are given strange golden coins. They morph for the first time and the boy faces his destiny. The Force is soon forgotten.

~*~

William Cranston otherwise known as Billy woke up with a start. The dream still fresh in his memory. He felt a deep sense of loss. How could he have forgotten? Suddenly he was incredibly homesick. His eyes started to focus and his blurred friends became clear. Each face was supporting a concerned look.

"What happened? Why am I in the med.-bay?" The rangers looked at each other before Tommy replied

"Don't you remember?" Billy shook his head puzzled. "I was going to ask you whether you wanted to come to the Youth Centre with us. Zordon told me that you were in the Zord bay. So I went to find you and you were lying under Kat's Zord. Unconscious."

"What does 'may the Force be with you' mean? What is the Force?" This was followed by a muffled ouch and whispering because the ranger closest to Rocky had elbowed him in the ribs. Billy, deep in thought and not paying much attention to what was going on around him, muttered

"And you to." This remark gained confused looks and raised a few eyebrows amongst the rangers. Jason stepped forward

"Billy, you feeling okay?" Billy did not look up, his brow furrowed and his mind obviously somewhere else, replied

"Um ... I'm Fine. No complaints." Jason gave a dejected sigh and gently shook his friend. Billy jumped. "What? You still here?" Jason suppressed a smile

"We're still here." Billy looked over Jason's shoulder

"So I see," he smiled sheepishly.

"Billy we're worried about you, I mean you basically told Rocky 'may the Force be with you'. What the hell does that mean?" Zordon looked down at the rangers

"THAT IS NOT IMPORTANT AT THE MOMENT. BILLY MUST REST NOW." The rangers nodded. "ALPHA DO YOU HAVE THE RESULTS OF THE TESTS YET?" Billy tensed when he heard Zordon mention the word test, but nobody noticed and Billy breathed a sigh of relief. All of the rangers' attention was focused on Alpha, as they waited impatiently for the his diagnosis of their friend.

"Sorry Zordon the results will only be ready in half an hour. The basic scans do show that there is nothing wrong with Billy."

Even with Alpha's initial report Billy had a hard time convincing Zordon and the rangers that he felt fine. He found it even harder persuading them to allow him to continue working on the Zords and after refusing all offers of help Billy teleported to the Zord Bay. He lent against the wall fighting off the unconsciousness that threatened to overwhelm him. When the bout of nausea eventually passed Billy pushed himself of the wall and then walked shakily to Zeo Zord 1 to complete its repairs. He climbed into the service lift cursing under his breath. He eyed his usual method of ascending the great Zords with distaste. A pulley system, which consisted of a rope, strung through a re-enforced curtain rail, which allowed loads to be pulled up to any part of the Zords. Billy had attached a small motor to the 'pulley' turning it into a fun ride up and down the Zords. Yes it was more fun then the boring lift. Yes it was a way to beat the monotony of the long hours he spent in the Zord Bay. Especially when he attached the pulley to a long wire, which ran from the roof to the floor. And yes it was dangerous, particularly now that the rapid ageing was starting to take effect.

~*~

He had discovered, that he was ageing at an abnormally fast rate, just after Trey had tried to give him the gold powers. His body had rejected them and he had been bitterly disappointed and embarrassed by this. So much so that he did not want to speak, see or even breathe the same air as his friends. Then, he ran a few tests, which revealed his ageing problem. They also showed, that if he had been able to receive the gold powers, he would have died soon afterwards. This made him feel slightly better but it did not take away the sting he felt every time the rangers went into battle. That was until he went to Triforia.

Trey had pointed out a few things that Billy had disregarded. Firstly if he had been able to hold the gold powers, once the novelty had worn off, he would have been a lower rank then all of his friends and this could have caused Billy more pain and anguish. The other possibility was that Billy could have gone back to being the second in command and thereby oust Adam out of his position. This could have caused Adam to resent Billy, consciously or subconsciously, either way animosity would have occurred. Billy had raised an eyebrow at Trey; told him he should be shrink and then continued his task.

~*~

Billy stepped off of the lift and walked towards the service door. He looked down at the floor. He let out a long whistle. Feeling dizzy, he lent back against the side of the Zord. His heart racing. How on earth had he survived the fall? He was amazed that he did not even have concussion. Then as if to prove he could feel worse, realisation struck: he was going to have to try and explain why he had not told the rangers about his ailment. Slowly, he slid down the side of the Zord and pulled his knees up to his chest. He put his head in his hands and closed his eyes. He must have fallen asleep because his communicator woke him, at first he felt lost and confused. Then he remembered his predicament. What was he going to do? He figured; he had two options. He could pretend that Alpha's tests were the first time he had heard of it or he could admit everything. His communicator beeped again. Sighing he teleported to the Power Chamber. Billy's teleportation beam poured into the room signalling his arrival. He was greeted by smiles and relieved looks.

"Hey Billy. We were worried about you, almost sent a search party to find you!" Billy managed to smile at the remark. He jumped up onto a console and waited with baited breath. He had decided to wait for Alpha's prognosis before he told the rangers anything.

"RANGERS I HAVE SOME DISTRESSING NEWS. BILLY'S TESTS SHOW THAT HE IS AGEING AT AN ASTONISHING RATE." This was followed by several gasps. Billy took a deep breath and looked at Zordon, but even the sight of his mentor did not quell his feelings of dread.

"I know" he said softly. The rangers stopped talking and all eyes were on him. Billy sighed. Suddenly he had a problem with eye contact. In fact he had never realised that his shoes could be so interesting. Finally he found his voice "Guys you remember that invention of mine, the Regenerator?" Billy was amazed to find his voice steady. "Well it appears to have had a couple of bugs, that I should have checked out before using it." Adam lifted his head and looked directly at Billy.

"What type of side effects?" Billy tried to give them a smile. He failed miserably.

"Well the age correction process along with the destruction of the Command Centre has had adverse effects on me." Billy paused and took a deep steadying breath before continuing, "The explosion trigged a rapid ageing process. By the end of the day I should be roughly a hundred." He stared up at the ceiling, thinking about how stupid he was. Before he could think of any more choice words to insult himself with and perhaps throw in a little bit of imagination to add sting, Adam Interrupted his thoughts, breaking the stunned silence.

"How long have you known about this?" Once again Billy's feet became the most fascinating thing he had seen since his first Zord. Adam simply nodded "There aren't any negative protons, are there?" There was no reply "this ageing thing is what caused your body to reject the gold powers...isn't it!" Billy could hear the hurt in Adams voice and he felt his heart break. He looked up to see his friends sad, hurt expressions and quickly looked back at his feet, murmuring something about fixing the Zords. He hopped off the console and teleported to the Zord Bay before anyone could react.

~*~

A white light appeared in the Zord bay and materialised into a distraught figure, who immediately lent against the wall. The figure slowly slid down the cold metal surface to the floor. He hated teleportation, always had but this one was particularly bad. He felt disorientated and sick to the stomach. He was not sure whether the teleportation was the cause of the nausea or if it was the pain he had just caused his friends. He stared out into the huge dimly lit chamber that contained his giant creations. He was so confused. He felt as if he was drowning and no one could save him. He fought an inner battle that ravaged his soul. He continued to stare at nothing, willing an answer to come to him and clear his muddled thoughts. He felt so alone, so lost. He wanted to go home, to the temple where everything was clear and simple. Where the sound of waterfalls could be heard in every room and passage. He wanted to visit the star map room and most of all he wanted to hear his Master's comforting voice. Finally letting go of his pride, he allowed tears to flow down his cheeks. He sat in the quiet room; knees pulled to his chest sobbing. Alone.

~*~

Tommy was the first to break the shocked silence.

"Why didn't he tell us?" Zordon looked at his charges before eventually answering

"I DO NOT KNOW WHY HE DID NOT INFORM YOU" he confessed "THAT IS SOMETHING YOU WILL HAVE TO ASK HIM YOURSELVES. ALPHA CONTACTED BILLY AND ASK HIM TO RETURN TO THE POWER CHAMBER."

~*~

Billy was still leaning against the wall. His tears had abated and he had managed to fall into a troubled sleep. He was so tired. He wondered what had roused him. His communicator beeped. He did not want to answer it. He did not think he could face the rangers. Not yet. His communicator beeped again. He glared at it. It was starting to annoy him. He chose to continue ignoring it but the rangers were being persistent. Couldn't they take a hint? Or maybe he'd over estimated their intelligence! He drew in a deep breath.

"Yes?"

"Billy Could you come to the Main Chamber? Please."

*NO,* he screamed in his head, *I CAN'T FACE YOU!* "I'll be right there." He said his voice devoid of any emotion. Billy pressed a button and disappeared in a stream of white light.

He appeared behind the rangers and as soon as he became solid and saw them he prepared to leave again. He was too late, Zordon had seen him.

"HELLO BILLY." Fighting off a wave of nausea Billy forced himself to smile

"Hi." The rangers turned their gaze from Zordon to the team genius and an uncomfortable silence filled the room. Billy wished he could sink into the floor. Tommy walked up to him

"Billy why didn't you trust us. We're a team you should have told us what was going on." Billy lifted his gaze, from whatever it was that had grabbed his attention on the floor and planted it on Tommy.

"You guys had enough on your plate already, with all the monsters Mondo's been sending lately. So I thought I'd try to find a cure before breaking the news." He lied.

"But we're your friends. You should have told us no mater what we were going through." Tanya pointed out and the others muttered an agreement.

"I know. I'm sorry guys." The apology sounded weak even to his own ears. "Zordon can you contact the Aquitians? I want to ask Cestro..." Zordon cut him off

"CERTAINLY BILLY. ALPHA CONTACT AQUITAR." While Alpha went to do this, the rangers crowded around Billy asking question after question.

"What's your plan?"

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Billy sighed in relief as he tried to answer all of their questions.

*This is not the time to tell them that the Aquitians already know about my problem.* He smiled to himself. He noticed that Adam was giving him a 'you will tell me later, whether you like it or not' look and the smile disappeared from his face.

~*~

Cestro arrived in the Power Chamber with an array of different gadgets, which he had made with the hope of helping Billy. To Billy the next few hours went by in a blur. Everything he and Cestro tried; failed and on top of that he could not find the Regenerator. Let alone its plans. He was starting to lose hope. Now he was standing in the middle of the Power Chamber, he was holding a bottle of water from the Eternal Falls on Aquitar, which Cestra had given him. This was his last chance. If this did not work he would be going to an early grave, as an old man! He drank from the bottle and for an instant he was young again. Billy looked at the empty bottle, then at the rangers and then, finally at Cestra. She answered their unasked question

"Billy will have to come back to Aquitar with us. We will give him larger doses over several days." She paused "There is hope." The rangers watched two streams of white light leave the Power Chamber, they let out a collective sigh of relief. They had no doubt that their alien friends would cure Billy.

~*~

Aquitar two weeks later.

Billy put down the last bottle. It was over. His last treatment was finished. He was back to normal and he could go home. He knew he would never see Coruscant again. He had realised this after his first month on earth and it saddened him. Billy also knew that earth was now his home and he could not wait to return to it. Cestra stood up and motioned for Billy to follow her.

"It is time for you to go home." Billy couldn't suppress the urge to smile. They made their way to the Aquitian rangers' headquarters. Cestra in the lead and Billy trailing behind grinning like an idiot and almost jumping up and down with excitement. It took them an hour to walk to the lift that would take them to the underwater city where the Command Centre and Billy's quarters were situated. Cestra went to the Command Centre immediately to make sure that everything would be ready for Billy's departure. Billy stayed in the lift tube and went down another floor before disembarking.

He walked down the brightly lit corridor which would take him to his room. He shivered slightly, For some reason he could never stay warm in the underwater city. It reminded him of a hospital, sterile, cold and unwelcoming. His room was dimly lit and barren except for a large bed and cupboard. His bag was lying on the bed already packed. Slinging it over his shoulder, he left the room, closing the door quietly behind him. Deep in thought, Billy ran his fingers along the wall as he walked back to the lift. He pressed the button and tapped his fingers impatiently as he waited for it to come. Something was tugging at his mind telling him to leave Aquitar as quickly as possibly. He pushed the thought away as he stepped onto the lift. As it rose so did his excitement. He was finally going back to earth, where he could sit in the sun and feel warm. But even on earth he felt as if he was not welcome. The doors opened and Billy walked into the Command Centre.

He found the Aquitian rangers standing in a small group speaking to one another in hushed voices. This immediately stopped when he entered the room.

*Odd* he thought. "Right. Thanks for helping me out. Cestra has given me a clean bill of health and I have my bag so I guess this is goodbye. I'm ganna to miss you guys." Something was not right he could feel it. Cestro turned around to face him, a blaster in his hand. "Cestro. Ah. I hate to point this out to you buddy. But you do realise that you...ah have a very vicious...um weapon pointed at me." Cestro's cold, malicious smile sent shivers down Billy's spine. Billy felt a sharp pain at the base of his skull. "What the..." His vision grew fuzzy and his knees buckled. Billy slowly sank to the floor.

~*~

Billy found himself starring out at the now reseeding darkness. He was not scared of it, in fact he felt strangely comforted by it. He did not want the tranquillity to leave. He shifted his position slightly only to be greeted by a dull throbbing pain in his head. He moved back but this only made the pain worse. Voices started to intrude on the blissful silence, faint at first but they steadily grew louder.

"Wow! That's great."

"I always knew you wanted to explore the galaxy and met new people. I never expected you to fall in love with one of them. Congrates Bro." Billy opened his eyes. What he saw shocked him. To his left there was a group of people, the Aquitians and himself. Billy tried to call to his friends.

"Mmmmmmf!" And realised that not only was he gagged but tied up as well. He found out about the latter when he tried to remove the gag.

"Billy we'll miss you. Aquitar is a long way from here, so you'd better write us. " Billy started to panic, but struggled to no avail. He heard his friends sign off. Cestro turned from the viewing globe and walked towards Billy. He was holding something but Billy could not see what it was. As Cestro moved closer to Billy the object in his hand slowly gained clarity, it was a syringe. Billy's terrified eyes followed Cestro's hand and the needle, which could have been mistaken for a straw. He watched as it came closer. Billy twisted away from Cestro but shackles held him fast. Panic-stricken he thrashed about wildly, in a desperate attempt to avoid the syringe and whatever was in it.

Strong hands grabbed him and held him still. He felt a sharp pain in his arm as Cestro injected him. Then the pain was gone and Billy watched Cestro hand the syringe to someone. Though he could not make out who it was. A bright light surrounded Cestro and his face started to change. Billy tried to stay awake so that he could see what his friend would become, but anvils pushed his eyes closed and Billy succumbed to an unwelcome sleep.

~*~

Conscious came slowly and with it came excruciating pain. Billy could have sworn he hurt more now than earlier. He was relieved to find that his bonds had been removed. This did not mean he was going to move. He still hurt too much. He listened for any sound that would tell him whether he was alone or not. Finding this futile Billy opened his eyes. He was in a small, damp, windowless cell. The door was made from a thick wood, which he had never seen before. At the bottom was a small slot, presumably to allow the guards to slip food and water into the room, without coming into contact with the prisoner. Near the top, at about eye level, there was another slot. It had a metal covering, which could slide back and fourth. Billy discovered this when it opened. There was a pair of eyes watching him. He felt bad enough as it was and the unblinking gaze was unnerving. Billy squirmed. The pain caused him to release his breath in a hiss. As a result he heard a soft chuckle and then the door began to open. A figure walked into Billy's line of vision. One look at his captor and he was on his feet. He retreated as far away from her as possible, mouth opening and closing without making a sound. Scorpina couldn't contain her laughter any longer.

"You move very fast for someone who was incapacitated by pain just a few moments ago... Stop that! You look like a goldfish!" Billy's jaw snapped shut. "I hope you have enjoyed your stay so far. We have tried to make it as comfortable as possible."

"Humph." Billy glared at her.

"What's wrong? Cat got your tongue?" She asked amused. Billy eventually found his voice. He refused to show her any more fear. Besides he had seen worse. She definitely had nothing on Mondo.

"Sorry but I haven't seen a freak of nature for sometime and when I saw you it was quite a shock." He responded pleasantly. Scorpina's smug expression changed to one of pure rage.

"You will pay for that blue boy!" She leapt across the small gap between them and delivered a nasty blow to Billy's midsection. Billy crumpled to the floor winded. "Not so powerful are you?" Scorpina said vehemently, "where are your friends now?" It was a rhetorical question but Billy answered it anyway.

"They will come." He wheezed.

"He he he." Cough, "Your faith is touching. Unwarranted but touching. Your simple-minded friends think you are in love with Cestra. They will not come, accept it." Sniggering, she left before Billy could retaliate. Billy lay where he had fallen starring at open space. He felt his hope dissolve and vanish. Scorpina was right. The rangers would not come to his rescue. He would have to get out of this by himself.

~*~

According to Billy's calculations he had been in his prison for a week, a week which perferred not to think about, when he had called Scorpina 'a freak of nature' he must have struck a nerve and he had the distinct impression that she was holding a grudge. He had also discovered that she liked to hit stomachs. His stomach in particular and it hurt like hell. He turned his attention to the bottom of the door where his food had just appeared. It smelt horrible, as usual. At lest they had been kind enough to bring him a fork this time. Using the wall for support he struggled to his feet. Repulsed by the hideously dirty fork he turned away from the 'gourmet' meal they had given him. He sat down, back against the wall. He had to escape soon. Unfortunately no opportunity had presented itself. His eyes shifted around the room, until they finally came to rest on the fork. An idea started to form in his mind. The imbeciles had given him a plastic fork. He picked it up and proceeded to break off the prongs until only the middle one remained. He inserted the makeshift pick into the lock and twisted it until he heard the tell-tail clicking noise that meant the door was unlocked. He waited for a couple of minutes to make sure no one was coming and then opened the door. The corridor was deserted. There wasn't even a guard! He saw his duffel bag on a table across the corridor. A quick glance in each direction assured him that no one was coming and he stepped out of the room. He unzipped his bag and fished out his Swiss Army Knife. He heard a noise somewhere down the tunnel. Billy turned in the opposite direction, trying to remain calm.

He crept along the dim passage. He only had one objective in mind and that was to contact his friends and thereby get help. A sound, ahead of him, told him that someone was coming. He could not turn back so he pressed himself against the wall trying to hide in the shadows. A grinding noise caught his attention. It was very close to him. Suddenly the wall moved and he fell through a doorway. He found himself in a passageway. Billy turned to find that the wall had blocked off his exit, leaving him no other alternative except to follow the passage. He hoped that it would take him to the Command Centre. Sighing he started to make his way down the passage.

The tunnel was wet and had water trickling down the walls. The aroma of wet soil overwhelmed his sense of smell and he could hear the sound of dripping water, which echoed in the silence. Every so often he came upon small patches of soft, velvety moss growing on the wall or a torch set in a strategic place making that area brighter than the rest of the passage and giving the illusion of warmth. But the comforting light would soon dim and fade. Before long he was wet and his hands muddy. A cold breeze blew through the tunnel making him shiver. The reassuring light that had been his only companion had disappeared behind him, leaving him alone in the dark, which seemed to go on forever. The tunnel also seemed to go on for an eternity

It was getting smaller and smaller and before long Billy had to bend his head to avoid hitting it on the roof. Trying desperately to keep his claustrophobia at bay he continued up the tunnel. He carried on bending lower and lower as the space between the floor and ceiling continued to decrease. He had lost track of time, which seemed to have stopped. He was not sure when he changed from crawling to worming his way up the passage or when he caught his first glimpse of daylight. After awhile he found himself slithering out of a cave and into the open air. Billy collapsed on the ground; he was exhausted and out of breath. The effort he had made to suppress his claustrophobia had taken a lot out of him. He had to find a way to the Command Centre. Easier said than done. Billy forced himself to get up. He was on one of Aquitar's few islands and it was starting to rain. Any part of him that had been dry before was now wet. Cursing, he started walking. He hated the rain and at that moment water in general. He found a small overgrown track and started to follow it in a debilitated daze.

He trudged along the path through thick undergrowth. He started thinking about all of his friends. What were they doing? Had Rocky passed his maths test? What strange monsters had Mondo sent them and were the rangers having any trouble defeating them? Sighing he surveyed the landscape. Under different circumstances he probably would have enjoyed his 'walk'. The ground was damp and littered with decaying leaves. He was surrounded by colossal trees, which kept most of the rain off of him. For this he was grateful. Parasitic plants covered the trees and massive vines hung from their branches reaching down to the ground. The underbrush consisted of millions of plants. Some of the immense ferns could have covered the width of the Power Chamber with one leaf. The forest was alive with colour, everywhere he looked he could see flowers blooming amongst the foliage. He walked a little bit further and came to a clearing. The ground had changed from a bedding of soft, damp leaves to slippery, moss covered rocks. There was a fairly large stream running through the clearing. He could see fish swimming in the crystal clear water. Billy knelt on the bank and drank some of the delicious, cool water from his cupped hands. A tree had fallen across the stream forming a bridge. Like the rocks the tree was covered with moss which, after being probed by curious fingers, revealed to be soft and delicate. A type of fungus that looked similar to mushrooms was also growing on the tree. The Forrest had the same damp-soil smell that had overwhelmed him in the tunnel. Except now it was a faint pleasant aroma. What surprised him about the area was its deathly silence. Except for the sound of the stream there was absolutely nothing and it troubled him.

He climbed onto the fallen tree trunk and slowly made his way to the other side of the stream. As he jumped down a laser blast hit a tree just in front of him, where his head had been. The blast had cut a perfect hole straight through the tree's trunk. The sight of it almost gave Billy a heart attack. His adrenaline kicked in and he started running. Zigzagging through the trees. In theory a moving target is hard to hit and Billy planned to make it as hard as possible for his pursuers to hit their mark. He glanced over his shoulder to see what he was up against. He was being chased by a strange monster that looked like a tin can that had been squashed between two buses. It was covered by bits of refuge and stunk to high heaven.

*Charming.* It was flanked on either side by miniature Scorpias and strange fish things. Piranhatrons. Of cause Billy did not know this because he had never seen or heard of them before. The monster was shooting at Billy with its hands. Billy turned his head and kept his eyes straight ahead of him. In his opinion he was much to close to the creature. Billy picked up speed.

The monster, seeing that its target was getting away, shot at Billy's feet. The blast threw him off balance and he stumbled. Fortunately he managed to stay on his feet. The ground in front of him fell away to reveal a deep gorge and his momentum almost propelled him over the edge. He could not see the bottom of the ravine because of a fine mist rising from the bottom. Billy was mesmerised by the way the sun shone through the water droplets forming a rainbow. The sound of blaster fire brought him back to reality. He had to find away across the chasm. He looked around, frantically trying to find a bridge or some other escape route. He noticed a rope bridge several feet away from him. If he could just reach it he would be home free. Billy's pursuers opened fire, causing him to seek shelter.

He dived behind a rock his escape route only meters away. He could not be caught now. How could he help Aquitar if he was captured, unconscious or even worse, dead? He had to get to the bridge unharmed. The laser fire slowed down to the fact that it had almost stopped. Billy glanced at the bridge, it was now or never. He started to run towards his goal. Instantly the blaster fire picked up. For Billy, time seemed to slow. Suddenly he became aware of something. Some instinct, some forgotten power. Something that was so different and more powerful than anything he had experienced as a power ranger. It took him awhile before he recognised it. It was the Force. Billy could feel it everywhere, in his enemies, in the trees. He drew on the living Force. Allowed it to full him. He surrendered himself to it. He felt things he never had before. He knew where the laser blast was before it got there. Blurring with speed, he dived and ducked under, somersaulted over and dodged the lethal blasts. Billy ran onto the bridge. He had made it.

He had run halfway across it before he noticed that the Piranhatrons barricaded the other side. The Force told him that the monster was baring down on him from behind. His heart sank. To have come this far and fail. The monster was almost on top of him. The Force told him to jump. For some reason, probably desperation, he listened to it. Billy did a flip over the rope railing just as the monster reached him. Somehow he managed to grab onto the bottom of the narrow bridge. Using the momentum from his flip, he brought his feet up, over his head and planted them in the middle of the monsters back. The impact sent the creature flying. Out into the abyss.

Billy pulled himself back onto the bridge and watched the monster fall until the mist had swallowed it.

"Yes!" Billy yelled triumphantly punching the air. His victory was short lived. He prised his eyes away from the spot where the monster had disappeared and turned because he had heard a chopping sound off to his left. "What God did I offend?" He asked silently. The Piranhatrons were cutting the ropes that held the bridge to the cliff face. Billy did the only thing he could do. He lay down flat and wrapped the rope, which held the planks together around his hands. A snapping sound told him that the ropes had broken.

"OH SSSSSSHHHHIIIIT!" Echoed throughout the valley as the bridge sailed through the air towards the opposite side of the canyon. Billy braced himself for impact. The collision caused him to lose his grip on the rope. He landed in a heap on a ledge. Billy opened his eyes. He had not even realised that he had closed them. Picking himself of the ground Billy noticed that he was not the only one occupying the ledge. The monster was with him.

It rubbed its hands together gleefully. It was very pleased with itself. It had been considering staying on the ledge in order to avoid its masters' wrath. They would be very happy to have their prisoner returned to them. The monster was very happy to see Billy. Billy on the other hand was mortified, dumbfounded, he starred at the creature.

"Can't you just die?" He asked mournfully.

Billy could feel the Force urging him to jump off of the cliff. He took a tentative peek over the edge. Rational thought took over. There was no way in hell he was jumping! He may be desperate but he was not suicidal. He looked back at the monster, then back at the drop and back at the monster. Billy dived of the precipice. He did a somersault so that his feet were pointing downwards. He raised his arms above his head. If he survived this he would never doubt the Force again.

He fell, for what seem like forever. Eventually he entered the water. It was freezing. He felt himself continuing downwards. He watched, as bubbles rose past his face. He needed air. Billy kicked as hard as he could. He managed to stop his decent. Slowly he started rising. His head finally broke the surface and he gasped for breath. Fighting the current, as it washed him downstream, Billy swam towards the bank.

He heaved himself out of the water, and collapsed. He felt half-drowned. Then again he probably was half drowned. The sun was setting and there was a crisp chill in the night air. Billy felt like an icicle. The Force insisted that he get up and walk back to the waterfall.

"Shut up." He moaned . Billy just wanted to lie where he was and sleep for the next hundred years. But he pulled himself to his feet and staggered in the desired direction. When he reached the waterfall, the Force instructed him to walk behind the massive body of falling water. Once he had done this, the Force told him to climb up the cliff. "Ha! You've got to be kidding me!" He cried eyeing the cliff in disbelief. *Oh great. Now I'm talking to myself! This is not a good sign! What the hell did they give me?* Sighing he started his assent. Half way up he found a small crevice. It was just big enough for him to squeeze through.

Billy wriggled into the opening. He wormed his way down the passage. It was slippery and soon he found himself sliding down a tunnel.

"YOU'RE TRYING TO KILL ME." He screamed at the Force. He shot out of the tunnel and landed with a loud thud on the hard stone floor. He was inside the Command Centre. Relief filled him. Bruised and battered he scrambled to his feet and walked gingerly over to the communications console.

Billy activated the viewing globe and punched in the Power Chamber's number.

"Where are you? Please answer. Come on." Billy pleaded with the blank screen. Zordon's image finally appeared on the viewing globe. "Zordon" Billy whispered barely daring to hope that his ordeal was almost over. Then he saw Scorpina standing in the doorway. "Give me a break!" He muttered under his breath.

"BILLY IS EVERYTHING ALL RIGHT?" Billy turned his attention back to the viewing globe.

"Uh. Yes. Um... I was wondering if you knew... um... where Kim, Aisha, Trini and Zack are? I can't seem to find them."

"KIMBERLY IS STILL IN FLORIDA AND AS FAR AS OUR SENSES SHOW TRINI AND ZACK ARE IN GENEVA. AISHA IS STILL IN AFRICA. I SHALL CONTACT THEM AND BRING THEM TO THE POWER CHAMBER. WE WILL CONTACT YOU IN 10 MINUTES."

"Right thanks. Over and out." Billy looked back to where Scorpina stood holding a gun to Delphine's head.

"That was very stupid Billy boy. I thought you were supposed to be a genius. Geniuses are supposed to be clever." She sneered. Billy did not bother replying, he was vaguely aware of the piranhatrons who surrounded him. He tapped his fingers on the console, waiting with nervous impatience for Zordon's call.

He was woken from his stupor when Zordon's image reappeared on the viewing globe and relieved Scorpia's strained nerves from Billy's infuriating tapping.

"BILLY." He said by way of greeting. The image changed to reveal all of Billy's friends.

"Wow! Hi guys. How is everything?"

"Great, how are you?"

"What have you been doing?"

"How come it's taken you this long to contact us?" Came a flurry of questions.

"Whoa! Guys slow down. I can't understand a word you're saying. I'm fine. I've been busy...uh settling in. I haven't had access to the communications systems because of renivations. I think that answers everything that I could make out. Uh. I just wanted to say goodbye to Kim, Aisha, Trini and Zack in person. I can see from here that they're peeved. Sorry I didn't contact you sooner and that you had to hear it seconds hand." He looked up at someone who the rangers could not see. "I'm running out of time. I'm going to have to auction off some of my stuff to pay for this. What? I have to wrap it up. Okay. Well it was nice to see you guys. I'm sorry it was so short. I'll have to call you collect next time. Uh. I'll miss you guys and in Kim's immortal words. Catch ya on the flip side. Bye guys." He watched them fade away and whispered "Miss you, I will." Tears welled in his eyes.

As soon as the picture disappeared, Piranhatrons started to close in on him. There were hundreds of the annoying little creatures. He surveyed the area around him. The Aquitian's morphers were lying on a console just behind the Piranhatrons. If he could just get passed them he would be able to get the morphers to Delphine. But how? He closed his eyes and let the Force guide him. He did a perfect aerial somersault over the heads of the Piranhatrons and landed neatly behind them. In one swift move he grabbed the morphers and hurled them at Delphine.

"Delphine catch! RUN!"

Immediately Piranhatrons swamped him. He fought them as best he could the Force telling him where they were and what they were going to do. He was not going to be recaptured without a fight. Something gave him a glancing blow and pain rocketed through his body. He reached out to steady himself and someone struck his head. The last thing he saw was the floor coming up to greet him.

~*~

Delphine sprinted down one of many corridors. She knew that she had to get to the others before something happened to Billy. What was he doing on Aquitar anyway? She ran into a large chamber filled with prison cells. Delphine headed for the one containing her team mates. She threw their morphers to them. Within seconds they were all morphed and standing next to her. Delphine led the way back to the Command Centre. The rangers stormed the building and were attacked by Scorpina's minions.

"Where is she?" Desperately, Scorpina searched for Divatox as the room filled with the sounds of battle. She realised that there were no Piranhatrons in the skirmish. The cowardly pirate had deserted her. It was time for her to make an exit. At lest the day had not been a total loss. She had after all done the evil community a great favour by relieving it of one, of the irritating power rangers. It should be easier for the earth to be concurred now that the rangers had lost their brain. With a click of her fingers, Scorpina disappeared taking her lackeys with her.

The rangers were just gaining the upper hand when they found themselves fighting thin air. Delphine wasted no time by joining in the celebrations. Instead she scoured the room looking for their terrestrial friend.

"Billy." There was no reply. "Cestro play the security tapes. They may show us what happened." Cestro stopped dancing with Cestra and started to tinker with the viewing globe. An image started to appear on the screen. What the rangers saw left them speechless. Delphine looked at the other rangers breaking their stunned thoughts. "Contact earth."

~*~

The rangers arrived in the Power Chamber in a string of multicoloured lights.

"What's wrong Zordon?" Tommy asked as soon as they were all solid.

"RANGERS. THE AQUITIANS HAVE JUST CONTACTED ME." The rangers looked at their mentor. A deep sense of unease filled the room.

" What about? Has something happened to Billy?" Adam asked his gaze planted firmly on Zordon. They had all agreed that Billy had been acting very strangely when they had spoken to him earlier.

"BEHOLD THE VIEWING GLOBE." The rangers turned to look as a picture replaced the snow balls.

~*~

Scorpina held up her hand to signal a cease-fire. She smiled when she saw a figure lying on the floor. Well at least they had got one of them.

"Feisty little bugger. I told her we should have kept him drugged. Divatox!" She called. The notorious Space Pirate walked to her side.

"Is he dead?"

"I don't know and if he isn't he soon will be. Get rid of him." Divatox signalled her Piranhatrons to remove the prone figure of William Cranston.

~*~

The rangers looked at each other in shocked silence.

"Zordon is...is he all right?" Zordon watched his distraught charges.

"I DO NOT KNOW RANGERS. THERE IS A VERY SLIM CHANCE THAT HE MAY STILL BE ALIVE AND IN DIVATOX'S HANDS. THE AQUITIANS HAVE INFORMED ME THAT HE IS NOT ON AQUITAR. I WILL SCAN THE AREA TO SEE IF DIVATOX HAS HIM. IF HE IS NOT IN HER CUSTODY THEN WE CAN ONLY ASSUME THE WORST. I WILL ASK MY CONTACTS TO KEEP AN EYE OUT. RANGERS DO NOT GET YOUR HOPES UP. BILLY IS PROBABLY DEAD. DIVATOX IS RUTHLESS."

"Alpha contact Kim and the others. They need to know." Jason said slipping into his leader mode. His eyes swivelled around the room. Adam and Tanya were huddled in a corner trying to comfort each other. Rocky was staring at the floor in shock. Tommy was hugging Kat both of them had tears sliding down their cheeks. Jason wondered how Kim would take the news. First Divatox had turned her and Jason evil and now Divatox had taken her best friend. Kim was going to flip.

"Alpha. Instead of just telling them, I think we should bring them here and tell them in person. We are going to need each other is we are to survive this." Alpha glanced at Zordon. After getting the okay from the old sage he proceeded to teleport Kim, Zack, Trini and Aisha back to the Power Chamber.

Four streams of white light faded to reveal the former rangers. They were incredibly confused. What now? All around them the rangers were on the floor in sobbing heaps. Jason walked towards them. His eyes were red and his face streaked with tears.

"Guys something's happened to Billy. There is a very strong possibility that he is..." his voice faltered "that h...he is d...d...dead." Jason finally got the words out and fresh tears stung his eyes. Kim's hand flew to her mouth.

"No. I don't believe you. Your lying!" Jason did not trust his voice, he only shook his head. Kim launched herself into his arms sobbing. "No...no...no..." Trini and Zack collapsed in shock. Aisha just stood there in a stunned silence.

~*~

A young man stepped off of a ship. He was of medium height and had brown hair. Although you couldn't be sure of his hair colour because of all the sand and grime in it, from the ship's hold. His skin was tanned light brown, possibly by a combination of days spent in the sun and the ship's hold. He wore a light grey tunic and loose grey pants, which were stiff with sweet from hours of hard labour. He had knee high, brown boots and was carrying a canvas haversack. On his wrist he bore the sign of slavery, a bracelet. It was about four centimetres wide. It had a strip of a strange, beautiful metal in the middle. The metal looked like a combination between mother of pearl and blue cowrie shell. he wore the bracelet on his left wrist. This signified that he was a slave of high value. However, this was not its only purpose, the bracelet although beautiful allowed the slave traders to control their merchandise. When activated an electric field would be created around the metal causing indescribable pain to course through the victims body.

He had been told that he was in Mos Eisley a spaceport on the remote planet of Tatooine. This meant nothing to him. He had never heard of the place and if he had he could not remember it. He sighed, he could not remember much of his past. He did however know the entire history of an artist named Picasso and over the past few weeks he had grown to loathe the man. He surveyed the area around him. He was awed by what he saw. The city was huge and there were so many people, in a verity of different species. The houses were half buried in order to protect the inhabitants from the searing heat caused by the planet's twin suns. There was no designated area, for the sole purpose of docking ships. There were docking bays scattered throughout the metropolis. The entire city was one enormous spaceport. He was being taken to a Hutt who was stationed in the next town, which was called Mos Espa. The Hutt was in Mos Eisley on business.

The young man followed his owner, Teh Almenac, into a crumbling building. The room was dark and once his eyes had adjusted to the dim light he was amazed to find himself in a dingy bar. His master walked over to a lone figure sitting at the bar.

"Sculie Bakar?" He asked the Hutt. It nodded its head in confirmation. "Here is the slave I promised you. As you can see it is a human boy. He is still young. You will get many years of service out him." The Hutt grunted.

"He looks fit. But I cannot tell in this light we will step out side in a moment. First we shall drink." The Hutt finished a glass of a strange blue liquid and threw a few credits onto the counter.

The slave followed Teh out of the bar, the Hutt was close behind. The slave blinked when he stepped into the bright sunlight. Sculie Bakar gave the young man the once over.

"Hum. He is satisfactory. I will give you fifty thousand credits for him." Teh gave the Hutt an incredulous look.

"What, only fifty thousand credits. But he is a fine specimen and of high value," Teh indicated the bracelet. "He is worth a million at least. If not more." Scalie Bakar laughed

"Teh, you are a fool, but I am a fair Hutt. Why don't we go to the races in Mos Espa. I will have a small bet with you. If my Bantha loses the race then I will pay you, your one million credits. Perhaps more. If I win you will pay me one million and give me the slave." Teh was a greedy man who had expensive tastes and he knew that he could not afford the bet. His business was sinking in a sea of debt and this was the first decent slave he had had in years. If he lost the bet he would have to give Sculie his ship and then work for the rest of his life in order to pay the remainder of his debt. It was too risky.

"You have a deal." The offer was too much for the greedy slave trader to refuse. Sculie shook Teh's outstreached hand. A large diabolical grin spread across Sculie's face as he turned to lead the way to his ship. Teh looked at his possession only to find him starring down a dark ally in a daze. Teh called to him but the boy made no movement. He tuned to see Sculie walking away from him. If he was going to make anything from this slave he had to get a move on. He hit the boy snapping him out of his trance. Teh jogged down the street pulling his slave behind him as he tried to catch up with Sculie.

The slave followed Teh lost in his own thoughts. He watched the buildings they passed without actually seeing them. They rounded a corner and entered one of the many spaceports that littered the city. The small party boarded Sculie Bakar's transport and were soon winging their way towards Mos Espa. The young slave was with others of his class, in the back of the ship. He was sitting next to a gruff old man who was whistling a cheerful song. The man looked at his tentative, sad companion.

"Hello," His merry voice matched the tune of his whistle and he had a thick Irish accent, "The name's Alconon Skulwurt. What's yours." The bernette's train of thought was broken and he looked at the callused hand offered by his neighbour, startled.

" Um...I don't know. Well Actually I do know But I'm not sure that it's my name and I forget to answer to it. I was given a name when I was on Master Teh's ship..." His nervous babble was interrupted by Alconon. The old man could barely contain the laughter that was fighting to surface.

"Well what is it?" Alconon's young companion gave him a sheepish smile

"Uh. Sorry about that. The name that could be mine is Billy but on Teh's ship they um...they called me Haggis. Though I'm not sure why." Alconon broke out into guffaws.

"Do you know what that means?" He asked when he had calmed down a bit. Billy, wondering why everyone laughed when he told them the nickname he had been given, shook his head mutely. "Good." A fresh bout of laughter erupted from the old man's lips. Alconon was called to go and serve his master and entourage. Billy was left alone for the remainder of the journey.

He starred out of the window as the large ship skimmed across the dunes of the desert wastes of Tatooine towards a large dark spot that loomed on the horizon. Mos Espa was a massive city with huge domes shielding it from the blazing heat. Between the houses was a marketplace and workshops selling a variety of bizarre goods. The city had several immense entertainment arenas. The ship was headed towards a spaceport near the largest one.

Billy followed Teh and Sculie off of the ship and into the mammoth stadium. It was packed. The place was bursting at the seams. There was an assortment of different creatures standing, sitting and hanging out of the stands. Billy had been impressed by Mos Eisley but this place took his breath away. He was seated next to Sculie Bakar. Slaves on Tatooine were a form of prestige, unlike most parts of the galaxy where they served as cheap labour. Though even here it was rare to see slave and owner seated next to one another. All around him, Billy could hear the excited banter of the betters.

The stadium suddenly fell silent. The competitors where introduced, causing a roar of approval from the crowd, and then the race was started. Billy was swept away by the excitement and found himself cheering for no-one in particular. A cheer went around the ground as the first, surprisingly fast, Bantha dashed across the finish line.

Billy looked around the stadium, he was surrounded by an array of different emotions. He had become very observant during his time in Teh Almenac's care. He liked to watch people's behaviour. He had started this hobby out of pure boredom. Now, in the aftermath of the race, he had the perfect opportunity to entertain himself at the betters' expense. His eyes rested on Teh, he had obviously lost. Sculie Bakar on the other hand had a look of smug delight on his face and he rubbed his hands together in satisfaction. The crowd was beginning to disperse and Billy looked forward to going to bed. He had had a long day and now he was exhausted. He turned to look at Teh hoping that the slave trader was ready to go. Much to his surprise he found Teh and Sculie in a heated argument and they appeared to be on the verge of blows. Billy knew he could nothing to stop them because he was only a lowly slave and therefore they would not pay any attention to him. So he tried to tune out their shouts. After all if they killed each other there was the possibility that he would no longer be a slave. Billy knew that doing nothing was not noble or good but what could he do? Try to persuade two thieves who would not listen to him and probably beat him if he spoke. He watched the two with concern. Behind them he saw a large Hutt collecting money from some of the losers. Billy signalled for it to come to him. The Hutt towered over him.

"Uh hi. Um..." he ran his hand through his hair, "My friends don't seem to be able to sort out a little argument. Can you help out?" The Hutt looked at him taking in the bracelet. Billy could see the shock on its face. The Hutt turned from Billy and entered into the fight. Sighing; Billy sat down on a bench watching the last stragglers leave. His tired eyes wandered back to Teh and Sculie who were still arguing. He heard Teh accuse Sculie of cheating yet again. He turned his attention away from them, the Hutt seemed to be doing a good job at keeping them from killing each other. Billy made sure no-one was watching him and took a small locket off of his neck He opened it and stared at the pictures inside. The first one was of a group off nine people and the other one showed many of the same people except four had left and there were two new faces. He could not remember the people smiling out at him, though he knew somewhere in his heart that he knew them and he missed them.

"I'm sorry. I hope you're not worried about me, whoever you are." He mumbled under his breath and a single tear slid down his filthy cheek. He always looked at the locket, it always steeled his will towards finding out who he was and where he came from. For some reason he knew that he had to tell them that he was okay. He quickly put the locket into his pocket, he did not want someone to take it away from him. It was the only thing he had left of his past that and a knife with initials BC inscribed on its red surface. Sculie called to Billy. He had won the argument.

"You belong to me. He will show to your quarters." He waved his hand to where Alconon was waiting. Billy jogged over to Alconon, who turned to leave the stand. He started to whistle, the same song as the one he had sung on the ship. Alconon's cheerful mood was infectious and Billy soon found himself joining in. By the time they left the actual stadium, Billy was grinning. Alconon led Billy to a rather run-down building, it had loud music and yellow light pouring out of it.

"Where are we going?" Billy asked, he was a light sleeper and if he was staying at this place he knew he would get no sleep.

"To celebrate, laddie. I won some money on the race." Alconon led the way into the building. "Personally I wish we could have stayed in Mos Espa for the Podraces. This way."

The room they walked into was dimly lit and there were people singing and dancing. Billy and Alconon made their way to an empty table every so often they had to dodge people and step over others who had passed out. The table Alconon chose was fairly clean and in a far corner where they were out of the way of the dancers.

"What's a Podrace?"

"Very fast high speed race. Much more exciting then watching those Banthas especially when there're Raiders close by. But Master Bakar wanted Banthas cause they're easier to predict. I mean you can tell a temperamental Bantha a mile off but with a pod anything could go wrong from sudden engine failure to the pilot crashing. To many uncertainties..."

"What's a pod?" Alconon looked at Billy with disbelief.

"A pod," he started slowly, "is a very fast racing machine..."

"A pod tis li'le more then handlebars and an engine. Now a swoop tis somethin' wif a li'le class. Them races at Anchorhead, much be'er than a silly Podrace." Billy turned to look at the woman who had spoken. She was tall and thin with long locks of blue hair framing her face. A face which told a story of a life with little joy and to much alcohol.

"Halloo Mari."

" 'ello Skulwart, who's this fine li'le creature you 'ave wif you?" Mari held Billy's gaze for a moment before purposely letting her eyes slide over his body. Billy had to fight the urge to squirm.

"Stop it Mari, you making the boy nervous." She smiled and took one last appreciative look at Billy before turning back to Alconon.

"What ya having?"

"Corellian shandy."

"What abou' your pretty li'le frien'?"

"I'll have the same please."

"Polite li'le thing ain't 'e? You paying this time or tis it on ya tab?"

"I'm paying."

"You'll 'ave to go to the bar then." She gave Billy a hungry look. "You get tired of this guy, come fin' me." Billy was relieved to see her go.

"Stay here I'll go get the drinks." Billy nodded then settled to watched the mayhem before him. A group of people were twirling round in a circle. One of them let go and went careering across a table knocking everything that was on it to the floor. Billy was glad that Alconon had chosen a table far away from the dance floor.

"Here you go." Alconon handed Billy a glass of a strange green liquid. Billy watched as Alconon drained his glass, then shrugging he followed suit. The drink was strong and stung his throat causing him to cough violently, much to Alconon's amusement.

"This is horrible!" he gasped in a hoarse vioce.

"Want another one?" Alconon waved to Mari and ordered before Billy could reply. Billy gulped down the second drink, he watched as two Alconons ordered another round. Their drinks came. Billy looked at the glass in front of him. Sometimes there were two then he would blink and one would disappear.

*Weird.* He tried to pick one of the glasses up and watched with amassment as his hand went straight through it. He ran his hand through his hair in confusion. He grabbed at the glass and again he came away with nothing. He decided to try for the other one. He moved in quickly hoping to catch it off guard. Success, he felt his hand close around the elusive drink. He laughed in triumph but no-one had noticed his battle. He stopped laughing and started to concentrate on how he was going to get the green liquid into his mouth. Usually this would not have been a challenge but after the glass fiasco he was not going to chance it.

Billy was so busy concentrating on which hand was the real one that he did not notice Alconon walk up to the stage. Alconon announced something and then walked back to the table. He pulled Billy out of his seat. Saving him the embarrassment of pouring the drink down his front. Alconon pushed him onto the stage.

"Karaoke." He whispered

"Huh?"

"Sing"

"Oh." Alconon transferred Billy's clutching hand to the microphone and stepped away. "What?"

"Anything." Billy shrugged and racked his brain for some form of song.

"Right." He started to sing in a drunken stupor. He was quite good even though the words were indistinguishable. Billy was enjoying himself and did not realise that the crowd was starting to get restless. Someone throw a bottle at him and the bar erupted. He carried on singing oblivious to the chaos in front of him. Alconon waved at him trying to get him to shut up and get off the stage. Billy waved back and walked towards Alconon. He did not notice that the stage was higher than the floor. Billy stumbled but managed to stay on his feet. He smiled at Alconon and passed out.

Alconon ran to the unconscious teen cutting Mari off. He slung Billy over his shoulder and staggered out of the bar. He walked down the road towards the slave quarters, which were on the outskirts of the city.

Alconon staggered through the empty narrow streets. He saw the slave quarters and breathed a sigh of relief. he was finally going to get rid of his heavy burden. he walked towards the miserable little places. The shacks were built one on top of the other and in a state of disrepair. Some of them were so bad that they could have been mistaken for an archaeological site. These were uninhabited, Skulwurt carried Billy to one of them. With some difficulty Alconon opened the door and carried his friend inside. He dumped Billy on the bed and left.

~*~

Sculie Bakar waited impatiently for his new prize. He had made a few unfavourable deals over the past year and he owed money to a particularly savage person named Liam Ki'tet. Ki'tet had turned many businessmen over to the authorities because of lack of payment and Sculie was not going to be one of them. Teh had been right. Once the slave was clean he would be worth a fortune and with any luck soon Ki'tet would owe him money.

~*~

Billy woke up and wished that he had not. He groaned. He could not remember being in so much pain. He opened his eyes and was shocked to find himself on a bed. Billy eased himself into a sitting position and saw a note on the table next to him.

Good morning Laddie

The pill is for your head. Good luck with the Hutt. I'm going to give you a piece of advice. Don't tell people your called Haggis. If you do your will have 'hit me' written across your forehead.

Bye A S

Billy pulled himself out of bed and stumbled to the kitchen. He would think about Alconon's letter later. First he wanted coffee and a bath. After his coffee, the pill that Alconon had given him and a long, relaxing bath had eased the pain; Billy felt human. He was glad to be rid of the dirt that had covered him for who knew how long. All he cared about was the fact that he had had a bath and the irritating itch caused by the grime had gone. His cloths had been washed and it felt wonderful to be clean, the fact that his headache had been cured was an added bonus. He was waiting for someone to take him to his new owner. There was a knock. Billy put the locket, that he had been fingering nervously, around his neck. It was time to go.

Billy followed his guide through the busy streets of Mos Espa. He had never seen so many people before in his life. Well at least not as far as he could remember. He kept having to dodge people and he almost walked into several individuals who just suddenly stopped. He found the stalls fascinating and he stopped at several to examine goods that he had no hope of buying. The heat was intense and Billy shuddered to think what it would be like in the unprotected desert. Eventually, they came to a medium sized mansion and Billy's guide led him through the gates and into a fairly large courtyard. The courtyard was square in shape and the floor was paved. The walls surrounding him had the most unexpected covering of ivy and there was a fountain, of all things, in the middle of the square. How Sculie had managed to get the ivy to grow was beyond Billy.

~*~

Sculie had stopped pacing and had dropped into a chair. He was tapping his fingers impatiently. Ki'tet would be there in a matter of minutes and his key bargaining chip had not arrived yet. The doors opened startling the Hutt out of his thoughts. Soothes walked into the room with a distracted Billy following some distance behind.

*Good and not a moment to soon. Though he looks different somehow.* Sculie mused as Inam, his butler, stood in the doorway and bowed low signalling someone to walk passed him.

An imposing figure stepped into the room. He was wearing a loose cream tunic with loose fitting cream pants. He had knee-high brown boots and he wore a long, dark-brown cloak. He walked with a fast, graceful, stride that oozed confidence and his face was impassive. When he spoke to Sculie his voice was soft and neutral.

"You asked to see me." He said by way of greeting. Sculie was very uneasy. He was not afraid of humans, after all the were tinny, minuscule beings compared to a great Hutt, but this one made him nervous. He could not explain it. Perhaps it was the way he walked, Sculie did not know. He did know, however, that he was nervous and when he spoke his voice betrayed him

"Mr Ki'tet. As you are well aware, I owe you seventy thousand credits. Today I plan to repay my dept. Here is a slave worth over one million credits," he said indicating Billy. "I am going to give him to you in payment of my dept. But he is worth more than I owe you and therefore you will owe me thirty thousand credits." Sculie was very pleased with himself. He was actually going to get money from the man before him and it gave him a thrill. Ki'tet's face remained impartial.

"Mr Bakar," his voice was still neutral and gave no hint of emotion. His eyes, however, danced with amusement. "You are forgetting interest. You owed me seventy thousand when I gave you the loan. Now you owe me one and a half million credits." Sculie fidgeted under Ki'tet's gaze. He knew it had been a good idea to get Teh to pay him as well as give him the slave.

"I am still in the process of gaining the amount owed in interest. I am paying the bulk of what I owe." Ki'tet nodded

"Until next time." Ki'tet ushered Billy out of the room. Sculie was relieved that he had gone. Then it hit him.

"His hair." Suclie Bakar's slaves gave him worried looks. Could their master have finally lost his mind?

~*~

Once they were some distance from Sculie's mansion Ki'tet turned to the young slave who was following him. The boy was distracted. He was looking at everything around him with an awed fascination. He was so distracted that he did not notice that Ki'tet had stopped and he walked right into Ki'tet. When he realised who it was he had bumped into, he quickly averted his gaze and closed his eyes.

"I apologise, master. I did not mean to walk into you." Billy was expecting a blow and when nothing happened he opened a tentative eye and chanced a quick glance up at Ki'tet. The expression on his face startled Billy. Ki'tet was smiling and he appeared to have no intention of hitting Billy.

"Give me your hand." Ki'tet instructed the nervous boy in front of him. The boy couldn't be more than nineteen years old! *How could anyone enslave some one so young?* Ki'tet thought angrily but then again he had met many slaves who were far younger. Billy slowly lifted his hand. He was going to be punished after all. His new owner was obviously one of those people who enjoyed beating slaves. He closed his eyes and waited. He heard a beep.

"There." Ki'tet looked down at the bracelet, that now lay on the ground, with satisfaction. Billy reopened his eyes and gasped in shock when he saw that he no longer wore the bracelet. He looked up at Ki'tet with uncertainty. "You're free. Go home." Ki'tet started to walk away from the dazed teen when a soft hesitant voice stopped him.

"Wait." He turned back to face the boy. Billy took this as encouragement and brushing a defiant lock of brown hair from his eyes, continued "Thank you for freeing me..." Ki'tet cut him off with a wave of his hand.

"It was my pleasure." Billy watched the retreating figure and jogged after him.

" Please can I come with you?" He called after the clocked form. Ki'tet sighed and he turned to face the boy.

"Go home." Billy was not going to give up that easily.

"I don't have a home. And if I do I don't remember it. Please let me come with you. Please. I have nowhere else to go!" He pleaded with Ki'tet who looked at the boy's forlorn expression and sighed. He did not like this. He motioned Billy to follow him.

Billy bounced along next to Ki'tet. He was free and the future held countless, untold possibilities. Ki'tet watched the happy teen.

"What's your name?" He could hardly go around calling the kid Hey you or Boy.

"Billy and you?" This time He was not going to make the mistake of saying Haggis.

"Liam Ki'tet." came the short, curt answer. Billy nodded. The two made their way to Liam's ship, The Nova Beta. It was a magnificent ship. It looked sleek and graceful and was shaped like an arrow head. Liam had parked just outside the city and soon they had left the hubbub of the busy spaceport far behind.

~*~

Billy looked out of the window and watched the desert pass beneath him in a blur. He did not know where they were going but for some reason he trusted Liam. He turned away from the window. Starring at the ground was starting to make him feel queasy so he found solace in watching Liam fly the craft.

"What does that do?" He asked pointing to one of the many buttons on the flight console. Liam looked up from what he was doing.

"That," he replied, "is the engine modulator" Billy nodded digesting the information. Then another screen caught his attention.

"And that?" Liam looked at Billy. The boy was bored, even a droid could tell that. He did however seem truly interested in the mechanics of the ship.

Liam continued to explain all of the different buttons, screens and other gadgets that could be found on the instrument panel. Finally he decided to put a stop to the barrage of questions. Liam handed the controls over to Billy.

*This,* he thought to himself, *is going to be interesting.* To say Billy was shocked to have the controls shoved into his hands would have been an understatement. He was flabbergasted.

Billy flew cautiously. The last thing he wanted to do was crash Liam's ship and as a result, they were going at a snails pace. Perhaps slower. Liam was becoming annoyed.

"It is not fragile. You can go faster. I'm not going to kill you if you scratch her." Billy threw him a startled glance. Gently he pushed the joystick forward. A slow smile spread across Billy's features as he gunned the motor.

The small craft shot across The Jundland Wastes of the Tatooine desert. It flew at breakneck speed and its occupants were having a ball. Liam was impressed with Billy's driving skills.

*Maybe bringing him along wasn't such a bad idea.* He mused. Liam took the ship's controls back. Billy lent back in his chair, that was definitely something he wanted to do again. Liam could see their destination appear on the horizon.

"Billy. I have a proposition for you."

"Shoot."

"I fight for the Rebels..."

"What rebels? What are you fighting against?" Billy asked confused by the amazed look that Liam shot him.

"Where have you been? Living in a hole on Zeltron 5?" Billy started to answer but Liam did not let him speak. "The galaxy has been conquered by a Sith lord, Darth Sidious. By the look on your face I can tell that you have no idea what I am talking about. The Sith are a group of beings that use the dark side of the Force..."

"The What?" Liam rubbed his forehead in frustration.

"How can you not know what the Force is? No don't answer that. When you were flying just now did you notice something, guiding you, telling you when to take the ship up and then drop it again?" Billy nodded "That was the Force. The Force is something that flows through every living creature. Some people can feel the Force i.e. are Force sensitive like yourself."

"Okay I see."

"Where was I....Galaxy...Ah yes...The Sith have conquered the galaxy and I am a member of the Rebel Alliance which is trying to defeat them and take back the galaxy. Now my proposition is, will you join us." Billy's brow creased in thought. This, he realised was not something to take lightly. He did not know why but he felt that it was the right thing to do. finally he answered.

"Yes."

Liam smiled "A good thing you agreed otherwise I'd have had to kill you." He joked as he landed Nov Beta on the rebel base's dusty tarmac. He looked at the controls for a moment deep in thought before looking out at the runway where he could see the ground crew running out to greet him. Boy did have a surprise for them. He looked over at his companion who was busy reading the fight manual.

"And to think I let you fly her." He said in mock horror. Billy put the fight manual down and smiled.

"Hey, we all do something stupid at lest once in our lives. Yours, however, may have hit top spot on the idiocy chats." Liam was glad that his new charge was not so nervous anymore. He led the way down the ships ramp and onto the runway.

Billy took in his surroundings with a quick glance. They were in the middle of nowhere, literally. Sand dunes formed walls on three sides and on the forth, sand stretched as far as the eye could see. It was compacted to form the runway. The heat was oppressive and Billy could see mirages of desert lakes in the distance. In fact the end of the tarmac looked as if it was under water. He followed Liam to a less than pleased welcoming party with whom Liam entered into a heated debate with the leader. The group shuffled towards the base of one of the sand dunes where Billy was shocked to find a door.

The room they entered was surprisingly clean. There was not a speck of dust to be seen anywhere. Liam finally ended his debate and walk over to Billy with a triumphant look on his face.

"Welcome to our little desert paradise. This will be your home until the end of the war." Liam said, sounding like an air hostess telling passengers to enjoy their flight, he motioned for Billy to follow him. They walked down a long corridor and after passing several doors Liam stopped and inserted a key into the lock.

"This is my room and you will be sharing with me. Get yourself settled and I will see you in about an hour." With that Liam turned and strode down the corridor, back the way they had come. Billy stepped into the room.

The room was fairly small and had minimal furnishings. There was a window opposite the door set between the only two beds. Next to each bed was a small nightstand with lamp. There was a cupboard standing to the right of the door. To the left was another door and upon further investigation revealed to be a bathroom. Billy dropped his haversack on the floor and headed for the shower. Out of the corner of his eye he saw something on the windowsill, gleaming in the rays of the setting sun. He turned in its direction to find a strange tube. He walked over to it. It looked familiar he could have sworn that he had seen it or something very similar before. The tube was heavy and just bigger than both his hands. It had a small black button on one side. Billy pressed it and a long blue light shot out in front of him. He could feel the energy pulsating in his hands. The laser blade warmed the heavy handle.

The sun set leaving the outside world in an impenetrable darkness as there was no moon. The only light in the room was the soft blue glow emitted by the blade in Billy's hands. He was mesmerised by it. Hypnotised by its shimmering glow. Instinctively he moved the blade through the air. The sound it created was strange. It sounded similar to a generator, but different. Instinctively Billy ran through a series of manoeuvres, which showed he had had some practice with the weapon which felt at home in his hands. He did not know why but he felt comforted by the feel of the 'sabre in his hands. All of his attention was focused on the movements of the blade and then suddenly he stopped. He stopped slicing the imaginary enemies and switched off the lightsaber. Then as if he had been called he turned to face the door. Liam stood watching him.

"Where did you learn how to do that? The lightsaber is the weapon of the Jedi Order. Are you a Jedi?" Liam's voice was neutral but Billy sensed a deep urgency in his new friend's question.

*This is where we hit a grey area.* he thought. "I have no idea." Billy handed the weapon to Liam. "I don't know. I can't remember anything about my Past! *Except for that bastard Picasso.* Something Liam had said started to sink into Billy's mind and he looked at Laim curiously. "You said that the lightsaber was the weapon of the Jedi," he stated studying Liam's face, "are you a Jedi?" Liam's face remained expressionless but his eyes were all the answer Billy needed. He turned away from Billy and started walking down the passage.

"Come if you want something to eat. We'll start your training tomorrow." He paused; then looking over his shoulder, "Don't mention the lightsaber to anyone." His voice barely audible. Billy stood in the doorway and stared at the retreating figure for a moment before following. He jogged down the passage after Liam. His curiosity aroused. He had every intention of obeying Liam's request but first he had some questions for his mysterious friend.

"Liam. Why can't I speak to anyone about this?" Nothing, Billy was about to repeat his question when Liam started to speak.

"I'll tell you later. It's to open here." They walked on in silence.