The following morning, things were very lively over in Zandar. It was now the eve of the wedding, but there wasn't going to be a ball or a lavish dinner or anything of the likes. Zandar had a long tradition of holding a large sporting event the day before a State Wedding. It dated back to the Principality's founding when they would generally hold a tourney in honour of the future monarch on the eve of the wedding. Needless to say jousting was no longer really a popular sport there, but the intent had remained the same, with some form of sporting event taking place depending largely on the taste of the current monarch. On this occasion, because Phillipe's father had been a huge fan of Jack's, they had decided to go for Zandar's very first wrestling event.

Despite Zandar's relatively low profile on the international scene, there was a pretty fair following there thanks to the advent of satellite television and internet streaming. Many people were already getting excited at their first live experience of performers they had only ever seen on screen, all coming to honour their future ruler and his bride to be.

The wrestlers were already at the castle, though it was a somewhat more sombre gathering than they were used to. Only days before most of them had been in Tokyo with Jack before he passed. Most of them knew him, and a great number of him liked him, though all of them respected him. Carl had called an early meeting to address the elephant in the room so to speak.

"Alright, we all know what this is about. We all lost a good man the other day. Jack was the reason a lot of us are where we are today." Carl began sadly. "I've known him a long time, and I'm honoured to have called him a friend for many years. It's with that in mind that I'm planning to dedicate the show in his memory."

There was a small applause from the crew, who all approved of the decision. Carl readied himself for the next part.

"On a related matter, effective immediately I'm instituting a wellness policy. I've sent you all a detailed e-mail that goes through exactly what we're looking for. I want to be very clear on this, I do not want to bury another friend this way so from now on, I want us all to take care of each other. This business is dangerous enough without us making it any more dangerous for each other."

He knew it was a pretty bold move. Not because a lot of people didn't understand why he was changing how they did things, but just because it would mean a lot of people would have to seriously re-think how they worked. Most of the guys that worked for him were independent workers who would work for many federations on a per-appearance basis. The business as a whole hadn't necessarily moved towards such measures and companies varied greatly in how much responsibility they took for the wellbeing of the wrestlers, with many taking virtually no responsibility whatsoever.

"We'll be having a ten-bell tribute at the beginning, and then we'll begin, which brings me to my next point." Carl told them. "I've already talked to the Royal Family and they understand how upset a lot of you will be right now. You're under no pressure so if anyone feels they're unable to work tonight, now's the time to speak up."

Carl was buoyed by the fact that no one raised their hand or spoke up. While it would have been understandable if one or two of them decided they didn't feel like working so soon after Jack's death, it seemed like they were all very much of the same mindset as Koda on the subject. The best way to honour him was to go ahead and put on the show. Carl went to the list.

"Thank you all for that. I'm sure Jack would be proud." The told them. "Alright, now on to the running order for the night…"

In Summer Cove, Trevor was getting ready for work. He was in the middle of breakfast, in a world of his own as his wife was talking about her work. Normally he was a pretty good listener, but right now, he couldn't really concentrate. He was lost very much in his own thoughts. He finally looked up as he heard her voice getting louder.

"Trevor! Have you been listening to a word I said?" She demanded. Trevor just stared at her for a moment.

"Yeah, sounds like you had a busy day." He said, attempting to make it sound like he had heard what she was talking about. The glare he got in response told him he had missed the mark.

"Aaron's ship is coming into the pier at one today." She reminded him. "I've got meetings at that time so I was hoping you would go and pick him up."

"Oh…right, I'm sure I could swing by." Trevor replied. Aaron was Hayley's birth father, and his wife's ex. Despite the divorce, they were still quite cordial, and had a pretty amicable relationship all in. Aaron was a marine biologist and had been at sea on a study now for some time. He would be bringing back a lot of luggage and equipment and he'd had trouble in the past getting cabs that would agree to load it all up for him. She didn't want him to be stranded on the pier longer than he needed to be.

"Good. That's better." She told him. She noticed how quiet he was and looked to him a little worried. "Trevor, is everything alright?"

"Huh?" He asked.

"You're kind of a million miles away." She explained as she put a hand on his shoulder. "Did you sleep alright? Was it more nightmares?"

Trevor tried not to burden his family with his problems, but it was pretty much impossible with his wife considering they slept in the same bedroom. His military service had left him with a lot of bad memories that would come back to him at times. He knew a great many people who had come back a lot worse, but that didn't mean he hadn't had the occasional panic attack or woken up in terror a few times. He wasn't sure how much Hayley knew. He liked to think he kept her from worrying about him, but his wife was always there for him. He loved that about her, even if he did feel a little badly about the occasional night of lost sleep.

"No, it's nothing." Trevor lied. "Just…thinking about something that happened at work. Just a case I've been working on."

"Well, as long as you're sure you're alright." She said, not sounding entirely convinced, but he could see the way she was checking her watch and knew she was keenly aware of the time and the fact she needed to be at the office. "Just remember, one o clock…"

"At the harbour." Trevor answered. "I'll remember."

As she left, he went to get himself a re-fill of his coffee. He hated lying to his wife, but she was already so understanding about the nightmares and the panic attacks, he wasn't sure how much more he wanted to, or even could put upon her. After all, how exactly did someone tell their wife that an alien entity living within them was stirring, energised by the emergence of a war criminal that had almost ruined his life once before?

In Millport, Brody was just putting the finishing touches on Redbot. With the workshop now built, all that remained was to set it up. Dane had planned to put the forge back in there, to give them a space to work on the Ninja Super Steel once they tracked down the asteroid that had crashed to Earth following the battle with Galvanax. Of course now that they had kind of offered to let the school finally get their paint room back, they were also planning to set up a section of it as a Command Post for the search. They still had their old computer equipment and with Redbot's help Brody was sure he'd be able to turn at least part of it into a workable lab.

"How's that feel?" Brody asked him.

"It feels considerably better." Redbot told him, flexing one of his legs, checking the movement in it. "It really feels good to have feet again."

"Yeah, I'm sorry it took so long to put you back together." Brody replied apologetically. He noticed Levi coming in, checking himself in the mirror. He appeared to be humming as he checked out his appearance. "Levi? What's going on?"

"Oh, nothing. I just need to go out today." Levi told him. "Unlike all you school kids, I don't get to just turn up on the day the holiday ends. I actually need to put in some work on lesson plans."

"Really?" Brody asked. "And…who are you doing these lesson plans with?"

"What's that meant to mean?" Levi asked him.

"Well, you haven't shaved the rest of the time you've been here but you have today." Brody said, inspecting him. "And…since when do you wear cologne to the school?"

"Brody, we've virtually rebuilt a whole farm in record-breaking time." Levi reminded him. "Excuse me if I'm just taking a little…overdue attention to personal grooming."

"So you're going to the school?" Brody asked him.

"Wow, you worked that one out?" Levi asked sarcastically. "So, do you want to come to the rest of your classes or should we just give you your diploma now?"

"So who else is going to be there?" Brody asked with a sly grin.

"Other teachers." Levi told him. "Like I said, we don't get to just turn up when the holiday ends. All those materials and things you kids use without thinking about? Magical fairies don't come in and set all that up for you."

"Other teachers huh?" Brody asked with an irritating little look on his face. Levi just rolled his eyes, picking up his hat and putting it on his head.

"You need to show some respect for your teachers." Levi warned him. "I may be your brother but I can still give you detention!"

As Levi left, Brody turned back to Redbot.

"So, do you feel ready to set up your new home?" Brody asked.

"Ready, willing and able." Redbot answered.

Over in Summer Cove High, Levi arrived, finding the other teachers starting to come in with their supplies and paperwork for the new semester. One of the common misconceptions about teaching was that because school kids got so many holidays over the year, between in-service days, comparatively long breaks between semesters and suchlike that teachers got the same. That combined with a "short" school day meant a lot of people thought that teachers had a very easy job or had very easy hours, however nothing could be further from the truth. Long before the kids came back, the teachers had to be in to prepare for the new semester. Not only did they have to have their lesson plans in to be approved by the department in good time so they could make amendments where necessary, hear any new curriculum points that needed to be added and suchlike, not to mention all the work such as marking and assignments they took home, often teachers worked a lot longer than people realised.

"Man it's good to be back!" Levi declared with a bright smile as he looked around the hallway. He'd never given much thought to coming back to High School. He'd already graduated, and he only got a teaching diploma as a fall-back for if his singing career ever faltered or if he felt like taking a break from it for a while, but he never really foresaw using it now during the height of his career. Circumstances might have brought him to the school and caused him to take a job that…bizarrely enough, he now realised Madame Odious, disguised as Principal Hastings had encouraged him to take as a cover so that no one thought it was odd an adult would hang around a school all day, but in that time he'd actually found himself enjoying this time here.

"Speak for yourself!" Someone muttered, brushing past him. Levi didn't say anything. He knew that not everyone was as pleased to be back.

"Ignore him, he's probably still hung over from the holiday." Mrs Finch stated. Levi just nodded.

"It sure smells like it." Levi answered. "I thought he was getting a job in Stone Canyon."

"Oh, he certainly applied." Mrs Finch stated. "He's been sending out CV's like machine gun fire. I'd like to say he's the only one. A lot of the teachers were trying to get out of town with the attacks."

"I suppose I can understand that." Levi conceded regretfully. Although the attacks had now stopped, there were still a lot of people and areas of the town struggling to recover. There were some who were convinced that it wasn't yet over and wanted to get the hell out before they started up again. Others wanted to cut their losses and start somewhere else, while others were forging ahead, hoping to rebuild the town they loved, almost as an act of defiance, to spite those that tried to take what they loved. "Did you apply anywhere?"

"If I'd seen one of those monsters, I'd have told them the same thing I told Mr Finch when he tried to take the house in the divorce." She replied with a smirk. "This is my home, you want me out of it, you can drag me out when I'm cold and stiff!"

"You know, I almost forgot how feisty you were." Levi beamed brightly as they headed to the main reception. Principal Hastings was there to greet the returning teachers.

"Alright, thank you all for coming in, I know we have a lot to do but I'll try to keep this as informal as possible." She announced. "First of all, thank you to all of you who are returning. I know this past semester has been very trying here and we've certainly seen more than our fair share of hardships, but we're all hoping that this semester things will be a little bit quieter."

She gestured to some boxes in the corner.

"Thanks to some generous benefactors, a lot of our supplies, many of which have been damaged across the last year…and surprisingly not all of them by Victor and Monty…are being replaced. I've already arranged them so take a look and see if there's a nice little surprise for your department."

Levi smiled as the teachers finally had something to be cheerful about. He knew indirectly through Mick, that the 'benefactor' was most likely Hastings herself. She didn't advertise the fact but she came from an old-money family that had at one time owned most of the city. Having no interest in the business herself she had sold out most of it to the Tiens. Teaching really was a passion for Principal Hastings and with the exception of keeping herself comfortable, the money was more valuable to her as a way of ensuring the school had what it needed.

"Finally, I'm pleased to announce that the shop class finally has its paint room back." She told them. "We've had the compressor rebuilt so now the students should be able to spray their projects. Which brings us on to our one sad piece of news. I'm sorry to say but as of this time, Mr Kanik is on sabbatical."

"Sabbatical?" One of the teachers asked. "He's a shop teacher, he spends all day goofing around with spanners, what does he have to take a sabbatical FROM?"

Principal Hastings didn't seem to take that too kindly. Levi could understand why. It wasn't like she could tell anyone that Mick had gone to another galaxy to take part in a war to return the deposed ruler who had until the end of the previous term been posing as one of the students to the throne. He also knew that she cared deeply for Mick, and while the Rangers missed him terribly and hoped one day he would at least be able to send word to them to tell him how he was, that he meant a lot more to her.

"At this time!" She said a little loudly, silencing the other teacher. "We have not heard from Mr Kanik about his intention to return. For the time being we will keep his position open and will use honour students and temps to fill in, but we hope to hear from him soon regarding whether or not he will return. Needless to say we all wish him the best."

There was a small murmur among them and a polite applause. Despite the bad joke, Mick was pretty well liked among the staff. He was a little strange and he was certainly different, but he was always cheerful. He had a good rapport with the students and he was always happy to help the teachers and the other staff whenever they needed help with anything. Principal Hastings picked up a few large folders.

"Alright, now onto the final item of business, the one that's always fun." She said with a slightly sarcastic tone in her voice. "Dividing up responsibility for the extra-curricular clubs. I know, I know, it's always a chore but we all know it has to be done. Now, this year we all have to pick at least two clubs to oversee, so the folder are here, pick them how you will."

"I'd rather play Russian Roulette with a full gun." One of them muttered.

"Oh come on, it can be fun!" Mrs Finch declared, bounding over to the files enthusiastically and looking through them. "Alright, first we have…a LARP group."

"LARP? What's that?" Levi asked.

"Oh, you know, it's a gaming group! Live Action Role Play!" She told him.

"What, like Dungeons and Dragons and stuff?" He asked.

"Well…yes, but instead of playing with pieces on a board the players all get dressed up and act out the parts themselves!" She told him. "It's kind of like improvisational theatre and gaming combined! Pretending to be knights, wizards…"

"You know…that doesn't sound too bad actually." Levi said, reaching out for it. "Yeah, I'll take that!"

"Alright magic club…oh, I wonder who suggested that one?" She asked sarcastically. "Any takers?"

In another part of the city, Trevor was heading into the harbour. Spike got out and looked around, taking in a big, deep breath.

"Man, I love the smell of fish!" He said cheerfully. "It really reminds me of home!"

"Aaron's ship is just over there." Trevor told him.

"If the ship's in what's taking him so long?" Spike asked.

"Knowing Aaron he's probably tangled up in customs." Trevor said, rolling his eyes. "I'll see if I can speed this along. You stay here."

"Hey, no problem!" Spike replied as Trevor left, going to one of the fishing trawlers. "Hey, don't let the uniform scare you, is that your over-catch? Cause if it is I'll take some off your hands! It's been ages since I made clam chowder!"

Trevor meanwhile headed through, looking for the customs checkpoint. Since the ship had come in from international waters, Aaron and his crew would have to clear customs to ensure they weren't bringing anything back that they weren't meant to. Aaron was about as far from a smuggler as anyone could get. He was obsessed with the ocean and all the life in it. He was the kind of guy that could tell you the scientific names of over a hundred different species of shrimp but needed his ex-wife to text him to remind him when his daughter's birthday was coming up. He wasn't a bad man by any chalk. He genuinely loved Hayley, and he was always there for her when it counted but his devotion to his studies did sometimes mean he neglected some of the little things. It was just one of the reasons his marriage ended.

As he was heading to the customs station though, he found his way blocked by two men in suits. He just let out a breath of exasperation.

"Seriously?" He asked.

"Mr Tracker…"

"Mr Tracker and I already spoke." Trevor interrupted the man.

"Yes, but he said you weren't too clear." The other man replied. "He was hoping for some assurances about the…unpleasantness…"

"Well that's an interesting way to put it." Trevor snapped. "You can tell him from me I've spent a long time putting all that behind me. I have as little desire as him to see it come up now."

"I'm sure you do." The first one said, getting into his way. "You've made a nice little life for yourself here."

"Yes, I have no thanks to him." Trevor answered.

"Remember, he's not the only one facing charges if this blows up." One of them warned him. "I wonder what that lovely wife of yours would think seeing you hauled off to a Military Court."

Trevor stopped cold. He didn't want to hear any more from these men. He never wanted to see or hear from Tracker again, but now, now they were in his life if he wanted it or not. He tensed up and the power started to flare up.

"They threaten your life! They threaten the ones you love!" Psycho Green told him. "You know they won't stop!"

"Don't…ever…mention…them….AGAIN!" Trevor growled, his eyes beginning to glow green. The two men didn't seem to notice though, and were ignorant of the danger they were in.

"Hey, what happens to them is up to you." One of them answered.

"He doesn't know how right he is!" Psycho Green told him. "DO IT! END THEM NOW!"

"Hey, Trevor!" Someone called out. He turned to see Aaron a little way up the dock, waving enthusiastically. Trevor took a deep breath, easing himself down and looked back to the men.

"Don't push." Trevor warned them. "You might not like what comes."

With that, he brushed past them to where Aaron was standing. He just smiled.

"I was just coming to help." He stated. "Trouble with customs again?"

"They didn't believe me when I told them this was sensitive scientific equipment." Aaron told him, gesturing to a large purple object on the dock. "I swear one of them was about to call the bomb squad."

"For that thing?" Trevor asked. "It looks like a toy submarine!"

"I'll have you know that drone is the result of three years and tens of thousands of dollars in research and development brought to life!" Aaron stated. Trevor just stared at him.

"Tens of thousands?" He asked. "Aaron, you can barely afford your apartment. Where did you get that kind of money?"

"Some grants, a few donations, some loans and a few credit cards." Aaron told him honestly. Trevor just face-palmed.

"Really Aaron?" He asked.

"Hey, sometimes science needs a little personal investment!" Aaron told him. "I've got some amazing data that'll really make the anti-climate-change talking heads take notice.."

"And now you also have to find a way to pay those loans back." Trevor sighed.

"Yeah, but…it looks cool doesn't it?" Aaron asked. Trevor just picked up the drone.

"Well it looks like a toy submarine to me!" Trevor muttered. "Come on, I'll stop by an ATM on the way! Save Hayley from a month living on Ramen Noodles!"