Power Rangers #3.7
"Seeing Red, Part One"
Written By Tobias Christopher
Six Months Ago
"Jeremy?"
"Yeah, Wes?"
Jeremy looked over to the bed next to his, where Wes Collins, his roommate, was laying.
"What are you going to do when you get out of here?" Wes asked. Wes was thirteen years old, with shaggy dark blonde hair.
"I'm going to get my parents back together," Jeremy told the boy. "They told you why I was here, right?"
"Yeah, I heard a few rumors," Wes replied, as he looked over at his only friend in the whole place. "Jeremy, will you still be my friend, even after you get out of here?"
"Best friends," Jeremy promised as a knocking came at the door.
"GO TO SLEEP!" The orderly yelled as Jeremy closed his eyes and dreamt about life outside of these padded walls.
Jeremy opened his eyes and realized he was laying in the guest room at his cousin Jason's house, and looked across the bed at his foot, which was feeling better. Three days ago he'd been pinned by a ceiling beam during a monster attack, and sprained his ankle in the process.
Jeremy set his feet on the ground and stretched before trying to stand up. It was well after ten on a Saturday morning, and Jason was probably already with his friends at the juice bar.
Angel Grove Youth Center
"Relax guys, he just knows I was a Ranger," Jason told his friends Adam, Tommy, Trini, and Aisha as they sat at the table overlooking the exercise area. "He doesn't know who the rest of you are."
"I can't believe he figured out his cousin was a Ranger," Tommy said, watching his girlfriend Kimberly on the exercise beam.
"He's had the thought ever since he visited a few summers ago," Jason told them. "Then when Goldar referred to me by name, and then the Red and Blue Rangers didn't show with you guys, he put two and two together. I had to tell him the truth that I used to be a Ranger. It's complicated."
"So, how are things going with you and Richie?" Tommy asked, looking over at Trini.
"He's actually getting closer to asking me out," Trini excitedly told her friends. "I can't believe Richie's missed me so much since the Peace Conference. I just wish I'd come back sooner. I just miss Billy so much-"
Jason put his hand on hers to comfort her. "We all miss him."
"Hey, Trini," Richie said as he approached the group, carrying a tray of milkshakes. "My shift ends in a few minutes, and I was going to go for a walk through the park. Want to join me?"
"Sure," Trini replied as she started to blush.
Christian was spotting Kim on the balance beam, and she saw Trini and Richie flirting, and tried to pretend that it wasn't bothering him.
"I always thought those two would wind up together," Kim said as she did a handstand, before landing gracefully on her feet. "They just have this really great chemistry together."
"Really?" Christian asked as he took her hand as she stepped down. "I don't see it. Are they actually, you know, dating?"
"Well, if they were, I'm sure we'd be the first to know," Kim replied. "We are their best friends, after all. Need me to spot you?"
"No," Christian said as he grabbed his towel. "I think I'll just head home for a while. Got a lot of homework and stuff to catch up on."
Crazy Larry's Used Cars & Funeral Home
Bulk and Skull had finally made enough cash to buy their van, and today was the day they were going to make their purchase.
"We're looking for a chick magnet," Bulk said as he pictured himself driving a sleek black van down the street, with a team of super-models in the back, ready to receive some lovin' in bulk supply. "Just imagine what we can do with the right van!"
Skull's thoughts drifted to his plans for the new vehicle, and the 'A-Team' theme song began to play in his mind.
"I pity the fool who doesn't drive a van like T!"
"Well, boys, I have just what you're looking for," Crazy Larry said, so named because he had been the one responsible for the creation of UPN. "Behold the ultimate party wagon!"
Crazy Larry revealed a dilapidated green van, with one flat tire, rusted out doors, no side view mirrors, and no steering wheel.
"We'll take it!" Bulk shouted as he pulled out the money.
The Command Center
"And that should do it," Justin said as he tucked the last wire in. "Try it now."
Alpha flipped the switch and turned on the viewing screen to 'Knight Rider'.
"We've got the viewing screen working," Alpha told the boy as Justin stood up. "Now we can keep an eye out for whatever Zedd's planning next."
Justin started fiddling with the wires hanging out of the control panel in front of Zordon's empty space. "I just wish I could fix Zordon's tube. But I don't know anything about glass making."
"Zordon's tube is made from a special sand that comes from Triforia," Alpha explained as he hobbled toward Justin. Alpha had been blown apart by Lord Zedd, but Justin had managed to rebuild him, although he didn't have all the resources he needed to complete the job. "Even if we could get that, we'd still have to make contact with Zordon's timewarp dimension."
Alpha turned on the viewing screen to check out what was going on in the world. "Justin, look, it's Rocky! He's at-"
"Turn it off," Justin said as he continued to face Zordon's chamber before whispering. "Please."
"But Justin, don't you-"
"I said it turn it off!" Justin furiously shouted as he slammed his hands on the comp. Alpha turned off the viewing screen as he requested and just stood there. He saw something wet hit the board and realized Justin was crying. "He just left me behind without saying goodbye. I thought he cared about me. I thought we were brothers."
Before Alpha could come over to console him, Justin ran out the door.
Lord Zedd's Palace
Lord Zedd watched Jason and his friends sitting in the juice bar and looked at the power coin in his hand.
"The time has come, Rita, to create my evil Red Ranger!" Zedd shouted as Rita just yawned.
"Zedd, how many times have we tried the evil Ranger schtick?" Rita asked, bored at the thought. "I failed with the Green Ranger and the badges of Darkness. You failed when you tried to make Rocky, Adam, and Aisha your dark champions, and when you tried to drain Tommy's powers to power your own dark Rangers! Give it up already!"
"Silence, woman!" Zedd shouted. "This time, we won't fail. This time, the Ranger's don't have Zordon to point out his weakness. We will make sure that our evil Ranger's one weakness won't be discovered! Golder, take the Putties, and fetch me my new evil Red Ranger!"
Jason was walking back towards his house to see if Jeremy wanted to go the martial arts exhibit at the museum, when he ran into Christian.
"Hey, you're Richie's friend," Jason said as the two shook hands. "You're that new foreign exchange student, aren't you?"
"Yeah, fresh from Australia," Christian replied. "The name's Christian."
"I'm Jason," Jason told him. "Kim says you're pretty good on the balance beam."
"I do alright," Christian said as the two walked along. "I'm going to go to the Olympics someday."
"Hey, I'm going to see if my cousin wants to go to the museum. Want to join us?" Jason asked.
Before Christian could answer, a swarm of Putties jumped out at them.
"Terrific," Jason said as he took a fighting stance. "Can you fight?"
"We'll find out," Christian replied nervously.
"Just aim for the 'Z'," Jason said as the Putties rushed forward.
A Putty swung at Jason, but he leaned toward his right and kicked the Putty under its left arm, then kick him again in the chest, sending the creature flying backward. Two Putties ran up and grabbed him, while a third rushed forward to strike. Jason kicked the charging Putty in the 'Z' and shattered it, then used all the strength he could muster to pull the Putties holding him, and slammed them into each other, sending both falling to the ground, where he kicked both and shattered them.
Christian did a backflip as a Putty tried to hit him. He landed on his feet, turned and kicked a Putty in its 'Z'. Two more rushed toward him from opposite sites as the boy ducked, causing the two creatures to collide with each other. They fell onto their backs as Christian easily punched the 'Z' on their chestplates.
"That was fun," Christian said as he stood up looked around. "Kind of scary, but fun."
It was then that a tap came on Christian's shoulder. He turned around and felt a punch from Goldar, which sent the boy flying back into Jason.
"I've come with a message from Lord Zedd!" Goldar shouted as he held his sword. "You will come with me or else!"
"Or else what, Goldar?" Jason asked as he looked at Christian, whose nose was slightly bleeding. "You're going to toss around threats until I kick your butt back to the moon?"
"Not this time," Goldar replied as he held his sword forward and shot a burst of energy at Jason, knocking to the ground, where the Putties grabbed him.
"Hey, back off!" Christian shouted as he went to attack the Putties as they all vanished, taking both Jason and Christian to Zedd's Dark Dimension.
At the Youth Center, Tommy, Aisha, and Adam were getting ready to head over to Rocky's house to see if there was any word from him. It had already been two weeks, and he'd only called once, to talk to his mother, and that was only a few days after he left. Kim was going to meet them there after she went home to change outfits.
The three were almost to the door when Master Fu Kyu Hup and his four guards entered, as everyone bowed in respect.
"Please, rise," Master Hup said as he greeted the three teens. "Like you, I am here for a purpose."
"Master Hup, I thought you were returning to your temple," Tommy said.
"There are matters of greater importance that I must see to here in Angel Grove," Master Hup told him. "And those matters involve the three of you."
Jeremy was on his way to the Youth Center when he saw Kimberly walking the opposite way, and tried not to act like a fool around her. He'd developed a crush on her the first time he was in Angel Grove two years ago, and even though he knew she was with Tommy, couldn't help but have feelings for her.
"Hey, Jeremy," Kim said as they stopped to talk. "I thought Jason was heading back toward his house."
"Haven't seen him since last night," Jeremy told her. "He was gone when I woke up this morning. Ankle's feeling a lot better, so I thought I'd surprise him at the Youth Center."
"He probably cut through the park. Let's go see if we can meet up with him," Kim said, using it as an excuse to spy on Richie and Trini to see if they really were a couple.
Lord Zedd's Dark Dimension
"This is new," Christian said as he looked around the room, with the maroon circular wall, with a gold railing running around it, where the floor was covered in a dense fog, and there seemed to be no exit.
Lord Zedd and Rita came in, followed by Goldar, Scorpina, and a squad of Putties.
"What do you want with us?" Jason asked as Christian helped him up.
"We only wanted you," Zedd said as he motioned to Scorpina. "Get rid of our uninvited guest."
"Send him back to Earth, and I won't fight you," Jason said as he lowered his guard. "I'll give up quietly."
"You are in no position to barter," Rita said as she looked Christian over. "Zedd, we could fetch quite a bit if we sold him on the intergalactic black market."
"He does look like he'd make a good slave," Zedd replied as he looked at the boy. "Put him in the dungeon, and we'll hit the Intergalactic Flea Market this weekend."
Before Jason and Christian could fight back, they were overpowered and Christian was dragged away. The Putties held Jason down as Zedd grabbed Jason by the hair and held his head up.
"Consider yourself fortunate," Zedd said as he looked into Jason's eyes. "I'm about to restore you to your former glory."
Master Hup had brought Tommy, Adam, and Aisha to the dojo where he was staying, and showed them a scroll.
"I have come to Angel Grove to seek three champions," Master Hup explained. "Three who will rise up and defeat a terrible evil that will soon surface. My purpose is to train these three heroes, and show them the path to true enlightenment. Only then will this evil be vanquished."
Master Hup unrolled the scroll and showed three Power Ranger like beings. Their costumes were radically different, and there were only three colors Red, Blue, and Yellow.
"The Storm is coming," Master Hup told the trio. "And you are the three that will calm it."
"Those aren't our Ranger costumes," Adam said to the others, then Master Hup revealed the rest of the scroll, where Tommy, Adam, and Aisha were in these new costumes, helmetless and about to fight a dark creature.
"You three have a higher destiny," Master Hup told them. "And I must lead you to it."
The three stood there, speechless at what they just saw.
Richie and Trini were holding hands as they walked down the park trail. Over the last few days they'd really re-connected, and it was like Trini had never left.
"So, did you meet any interesting people at the Peace Conference?" Richie asked as the two walked along.
"Yeah, I made lots of friends there," Trini told him as she looked at him. "But I missed everyone here a lot."
"Does that include me?" Richie asked as they stopped and turned toward each other. Trini didn't reply as they leaned in to kiss, just as Trini spotted Kim and Jeremy headed toward them. Richie went to kiss Trini, but she moved and he fell forward into a pond as Trini rushed over to meet Kim.
"Hey, Trini, have you seen Jason?" Kim asked.
"No, I haven't seen him since he left the Youth Center. Richie and I were- Richie?" Trini asked as she saw Richie sitting in the pond, spitting pond water out.
"Are you alright?" Jeremy asked as he gave Richie a hand.
"Yeah," Richie replied as wrung his shirt out. "Good thing I'm an excellent swimmer."
"You'd better head home before you catch a cold," Trini said as the two hesitated, then shooks hands before he walked away.
"Let's go back to the Youth Center," Kim suggested. "Jason might have gone back there."
Jason was lying on a table, unconscious as Rita chanted into her crystal ball, and placed the Red Power coin in Jason's hand.
"The spell is almost complete," Rita said as she looked at Zedd. "The power coin is now casting its dark magic over his Ranger form. Now, cast your evil magic and finish the spell over his human side!"
Zedd charged up his staff and fired at the table, using his dark magic to cast the spell.
"Now, arise my evil Red Ranger!" Zedd shouted as Jason sat up, his eyes glowing a dark red as he held the coin in his hand.
"Oh, can't you come up with something more original?" Jason asked as he looked over at Zedd and Rita. "Like, 'Go kill 'em, Tiger', or something? Jeez, no wonder we were always stomping your ass."
"You had to give him free will, didn't you?" Rita asked.
"That was your mistake with Tommy," Zedd told her. "He was always waiting for your orders to finish the job. Jason is totally self-reliant when it comes to his objective. Jason, what is your mission?"
"To destroy the Rangers," Jason replied. "Actually, I want to talk to you about that. Can I at least have some fun, first? Torture them a little bit. Maybe snap a few limbs or-"
"Ooh, I like the way he thinks," Rita whispered to Zedd.
"Destroy the Rangers however you see fit," Zedd told him. "Just leave Justin and Rocky alive. I have special plans for them."
"Rocky? That loser that took my power coin?" Jason asked. "Can I at least maim him a little?"
"I can tell we're going to have lots of fun with Jason around," Zedd told his wife. "Now, go to Earth and destroy the Rangers!"
"You could at least say 'please'," Jason said as he put the power coin in his pocket and headed toward Earth.
Kim, Jeremy, and Trini were about to head toward the Youth Center when Tommy, Adam, and Aisha arrived, looking confused.
"Are you guys alright?" Kim asked. "Tommy, what's wrong?"
"It's a long story," Tommy told her as he took her hand as Jeremy wished that it was him talking to her. "I'll explain it to you later, though. What do you say we go take in dinner and a movie?"
"Trini and I were going to take Jeremy-"
"I'll find Jason," Jeremy said, feeling uncomfortable. "I'll be fine by myself."
Tommy and Kim headed down the trail, leaving Jeremy, Adam, Aisha, and Trini. The group prepared to leave, just as Jeremy ran right into Jason's chest, causing him to stumble backward. "Hey, there he is. I was just-"
Jason backhanded Jeremy, sending him toward the ground.
"Jason, what was that for?" Adam asked as he helped Jeremy up.
"So, you're friends with this little prick now?" Jason asked, preparing to take out his coin at any second.
"Jason, what's gotten into you?" Jeremy asked. "Is this because I found out about-"
"No, I just can't stand you is all," Jason said as Adam, Trini, and Aisha prepared to come to the boy's defense.
"Jason, Jeremy's our friend, just like you," Trini told him. "Why are you being so mean?"
"Oh, that's right, you don't know," Jason said as he looked at Jeremy. "Hey, Jeremy, why don't you tell your 'friends' where you've been for the last year and half?"
"Jason, you promised-" Jeremy started to say.
"What's going on?" Aisha asked. "Jason, what are you-"
"Why don't you tell them about your little incident with the razor?" Jason asked as he grabbed Jeremy's wrist and pulled up his sleeve, revealing a scar. "Why don't you tell them how your parents dropped you off in the looney bin before they abandoned you?"
"You promised," Jeremy calmly said.
"And why the only reason you're here is because you're a charity case my parents felt sorry for," Jason continued. "You're pathetic."
Jeremy didn't say anything as he just ran off.
"Jason, that was cruel," Trini angrily said. "He's your family."
"Oh, he'll get over it," Jason replied. "He'll have to, he'll be dead the next time I see him. But now that the runt is gone-"
Jason pulled out the power coin as a red mist swirled around him. When it disappeared, Jason was in a red armored suit, with a gold Tyranosaurus symbol on the chestplate.
"Oh, damn," Adam said as he and Aisha reached for their morphers.
MASTODON!
SABER-TOOTH TIGER!
The Black and Yellow Rangers rushed forward as Trini rushed off to find Tommy and Kim before they left the park. Aisha kicked at Jason's side, but he blocked and punched her backward, jumped toward her and kicked her across the grass.
"So, Zedd's finally decided to use the Red coin?" Adam asked as he went to punch Jason, but they blocked each other move for move until Jason caught Adam's arm and swung him around, tossing him beside Aisha.
"Alright, time to die," Jason said as he spun around and produced his power sword.
"You want to play dirty?" Adam asked as he stood up and pulled out his power axe, and turned it to cannon mode. "Let's have a blast."
Adam fired as Jason rolled out of the way. Before he could fire again, Jason leaped into the air and swung his sword, knocking the axe from Adam's hand, and took another swipe to knock Adam backward. Jason held his hand and punched Aisha as she tried to attack from behind.
"Tell me again how you guys were chosen to be Rangers?" Jason asked as he grabbed Aisha and tossed her into a tree as hard as he could. He then grabbed Adam and bodyslammed him onto the concrete. "You guys couldn't take a twelve year old."
Jason looked down as Adam and Aisha demorphed from being knocked unconscious.
"Two down."
Jeremy was sitting on the steps of his house, crying to himself as Justin walked past on his way home.
"Are you alright?" Justin asked as he looked at Jeremy. "You're Jason's cousin, right?"
"Far from alright," Jeremy said as he tried to stop the tears. "I just lost my only chance at making friends, and the one guy I thought I could trust turned on me."
"You can trust me," Justin said as he sat down next to Jeremy. "I've been there. I looked up to my step-brother, Rocky. But he left without saying goodbye. It's like he never even cared about me."
"I have a little brother," Jeremy said as he stared forward out into the street. "He's about your age. Haven't seen him in years."
"What happened to him?" Justin asked.
"Lives with my mom somewhere," Jeremy replied, trying to remember the last time he saw his baby brother. "Don't know where. She doesn't want me to know. It's a long story."
"Want to hang out with me?" Justin asked. "If you need a friend-"
"You don't want to hang around with me," Jeremy replied. "You'll just wind up hating me when you find out about me."
"Do you like Aaron Carter?" Justin asked.
"No," Jeremy replied.
"Do you drown puppies while you're dressed up as a clown while singing the theme song from 'Jem' ?"
"... ... No," Jeremy replied.
"Then we're cool," Justin told him as Jeremy smiled, having actually just made a friend.
"I just wish I knew why Jason betrayed me," Jeremy wondered as an unmorphed Jason appeared from out of nowhere.
"Let's see," Jason said as he picked Jeremy up and kneed him in the stomach. "First of all, you're a loser," Jason kneed him again, causing the boy to almost vomit.
"Second, you ate the last of my Honeycomb for breakfast," Jason then rammed Jeremy as hard as could into the wall, making a small indent. Jeremy fell to the ground, unconscious. "And third... well, the Honeycomb thing was what really pissed me off the most."
Jason turned his attention toward Justin and cracked his knuckles.
"Now, I'm supposed to bring you in alive," Jason said as he tilted his neck to crack it. "But I'm sure Zedd will understand if you're a little... damaged."
Justin knew better than to try to fight someone like Jason, who was almost twice as big, and was a martial arts master. Justin had only limited training, and since Rocky had left, no one had been around to teach him. In a situation like this, Justin could only think of one way to fight.
So he took off his right shoe and tossed it at Jason, which made a squeaky sound as it bounced off of Jason's chest. An awkward silence filled the air as the two just stood there, motionless. Finally, after about thirty seconds of silence
"Did you just throw a shoe at me?" Jason asked. "...That's just dumb."
Before Justin could run, Jason had grabbed him by the shirt, but Justin decided to make an attempt to fight and punched Jason in the gut, cracking his knuckle on Jason's abs.
"OW!" Justin said as he shook his hand in pain. "I want you tested for steroids if I live through this."
Jason just laughed as he punched Justin, knocking him out with one blow, but not before Justin tried to hold on to something, grabbing the necklace around Jason's neck, taking it to the ground with him.
Christian was sitting in a dungeon in Zedd's palace, hoping that someone would come to his rescue soon. He hoped Richie would be the one to come bursting through the door to free him, but he knew the odds of that were impossible. He was starting to wonder if anyone even realized he was missing.
The teen looked around and tried to find a way to escape. Jason was out there somewhere, and if Christian could find him, they could find a way out together. That's when he saw the keys to the dungeon hanging on the wall across the room, but there was no way to reach them. Christian pulled off his black t-shirt and start to rip it into long strips. No more waiting around to be rescued.
Jason slung the unconscious Justin over his shoulder and prepared to head toward Zedd's palace when a white handled sword flew down in front of him.
"Going somewhere?" The White Ranger asked.
"Oh, for the love of-" Jason said as he tossed Justin to the ground and morphed into the Red Ranger, pulling out his power sword. "You people just don't give up."
The two clashed swords as Tommy pushed Jason out into the yard, where they began their fight. The two continued to swing their swords as Tommy tried to talk sense into his friend.
"Jason, you saved me when I was evil," Tommy pleaded. "Let me help me you before it's too late."
"It was too late when I took out Adam and Aisha," Jason told him as he slashed at Tommy, knocking him backward. "It was really too late when I beat the stuffing out of Jeremy. And once I get rid of you-"
Jason brought his sword down as Tommy ducked and kicked Jason in the side, sending him flying toward the ground.
"You can't win," Tommy told him. "Zordon designed the White Ranger's powers to be the strongest ones."
"You see, I have to question Zordon's decision making skills," Jason said as he picked up his sword and ran toward Tommy. "He makes the guy who almost killed us leader, he picks a grade A moron to become the Red Ranger, and he let the only one of you that was able to form a coherant thought get himself killed. Wise mentor, my ass."
Jason slashed his sword, knocking Tommy backward.
"Maybe the White Ranger's powers are stronger," Jason said as he jumped over Tommy and slashed at the support beams on the porch roof. "But how's your moral judgement?"
Jason grabbed Justin, leaving Jeremy lying on the porch as Tommy rushed forward and tossed Jeremy onto the grass before the small roof collapsed on top of him, trapping Tommy underneath. Jason walked up to Tommy, who had become unmorphed, and was buried underneath the rubble and couldn't get out.
"Remember when you were evil and you trapped me in Zedd's Dark Dimension?" Jason asked. "Well, it's time I returned the favor."
Jason teleported himself, Justin, and Tommy away, leaving Jeremy lying in the grass as Kim rushed up to him.
The Command Center
"Ay yi yi!" Alpha shouted as he rushed around, trying to figure out why the alarms were going off. "What is going out there?"
A bruised Adam and Aisha arrived in the Power Chamber along with Trini, who had found them in the park.
"Jason's got the Red coin," Aisha said as Alpha went to get the first aid kit. "Zedd's turned him evil."
"Out of all of us, Jason was always the best fighter," Trini said as she ran her hand through her hair. "And now that's he's evil-"
"Wait a minute, where's Tommy?" Adam asked.
Just then, Kim arrived, holding Jeremy up with his arm around her shoulder.
"We're too late," Kim said. "Jason's got Tommy and Justin. He beat up Jeremy pretty badly."
"Get him to the medbay," Adam told Alpha. "If he wakes up, he might have a clue about how to stop Jason. It's all we got to go on right now. I just hope Tommy and Justin are alright."
Tommy opened his eyes and looked around. He was lying on a beach that looked familiar. A few feet away, Justin was laying in the sand, still unconscious. His eye was black and blue from where Jason had punched him, but other than that he looked to be fine.
"Justin, wake up," Tommy said as he shook Justin. The boy sat up and felt his swollen eye.
"Did I miss something?" Justin asked. "When did we get to the Caribbean?"
"This isn't a tropical island," Tommy told him. "It's the Island of Illusion. Rita must have recreated it."
"It was recreated for Zedd and Rita's honeymoon!" Goldar shouted. Tommy almost threw up at the thought of what those two did on the island while they were there.
"Alright, Goldar, it's Morphin-" Tommy reached for his morpher, which wasn't there. It was lying on Jason's front porch.
"What's the matter, Tommy, lose something?" Goldar asked as he pulled out his sword. "Too bad you have no powers to protect you."
"I don't need powers to beat you," Tommy said as he rushed forward.
"We have no hope of beating Jason like this," Adam said as he paced around. "We need Tommy. We need the Blue power coin. We need-"
"Billy and Zordon," Kim said as she hoped Tommy was alright. She looked up at Zordon's empty tube. "It's just the three of us now. Adam, Aisha, I think that-"
Kim heard the sound of two objects smashing into each other, turned around and found Adam and Aisha lying on the ground, with Jason standing over them.
"Hello, Kim," Jason said, looking at the two unconscious Rangers on the ground. Kim's eyes went wide as Jason rushed toward her.
