Intervention Part 1
"Do you really think this is a good idea?" Justin asked, glancing back at Hayley as they climbed the stairs. "He did cancel after all."
She had just picked Justin up for the weekend and they were now at Tommy's apartment for a study session. Tommy had introduced Justin and Hayley not long after he met her during the fall semester. He had thought she'd be great for helping Justin out. Still technically in high school, Justin was taking advanced classes with college level material. And that was on top of starting high school early. The two had hit it off right away and soon all three had started having regular study sessions every few weeks or whenever they could get Justin from Angel Grove. But Tommy had started canceling sessions here and there and then, quiet suddenly a few months before, he'd started canceling all of them. Justin had continued to meet with Hayley, but neither one had seen Tommy for nearly a month.
"Yes, it's a good idea," Hayley said, stalking down the hallway. "I don't care what excuses he comes up with, he's done avoiding us. If Tommy doesn't want to see either of us anymore he's going to say so to our faces. Besides, if he keeps missing classes and assignments like this he's going to fail and I'm not about to let that happen."
"Alright," Justin shrugged, still hesitant. "But how are we going to get in if he decides not to answer the door?"
Hayley smirked and pulled a key out of her pocket.
"He left a spare with me months ago," she said. "I was going to beat him here for a project we were working on and he didn't want me to have to wait in the hallway. So he gave me the spare to get in and then forgot to get it back."
Justin laughed as they approached Tommy's door.
"Sounds like Tommy," he said.
Hayley knocked on the door and they waited for an answer, but there was no response. Frowning, she waited a few moments before trying again with the same result. Tommy wasn't answering the door.
"And now we'll let ourselves in," she announced, unlocking the door and pulling it open.
Once the door was open, she strode inside with Justin right behind her. They both froze in shock when they saw Tommy sitting on the couch. Paper balls were shooting across the living room accompanied by small flashes of green light.
"What on eart—" Hayley started to exclaimed.
But Justin whipped around and started pushing her back out the door.
"Not good, not good, not good," he said. "Quick—out! Out, out, out, out, out!"
Once they were both out in the hallway, Justin slammed the door shut. He took a deep breath, shaking his head.
"This isn't good," he muttered. "I should call someone—we should really call someone…"
"Call who about what?" Hayley exclaimed. "Justin, what was that?"
"Nothing," he said evasively. "Jason—I need to call Jason."
Hayley frowned at him.
"Jason?" she said. "As in Tommy's best friend from high school?"
"Yeah, him," Justin said distractedly. "I need to call him—do you have a phone?"
He looked up at her hopefully.
"Yes," she said slowly. "But why are we calling him?"
"Because I need to," Justin said. "Oh, wait…I can't use your phone. I don't know his phone number…"
"Why do you need to call him?" Hayley repeated.
"Tommy needs help," Justin said, looking at the door. "I'm going to need his phone…But where is Tommy's phone?"
"In his apartment," Hayley said slowly.
Justin sighed.
"Yeah, I know," he mumbled. "I just don't like it."
He started reaching for the doorknob, but paused.
"You're going to have to cover me," he said. "But if anything really bad happens, run. I can handle myself—I hope."
"Cover you from what?" Hayley asked in surprise as he opened the door.
"Tommy," he answered, darting inside.
Watching from the doorway, Hayley kept an eye on Justin as he slipped around Tommy's apartment in search of his cell phone. Tommy didn't look at him at all, which surprised her. He was usually a lot more aware of his surroundings. Finally finding it on the end table next to Tommy, Justin darted forward and snatched it before bolting back out the door. Hayley shut it again as he sighed in relief.
"Ok, what is going on?" Hayley asked, crossing her arms. "Why are you so skittish of Tommy all of a sudden? And what is he doing in there?"
"It's nothing," Justin said. "I'm going to call Jason. Maybe you should go work on your project. Isn't it due at the end of the week?"
Hayley shook her head.
"I'm not worried about homework right now," she said. "Besides, seeing Tommy and now your evasive behavior is just confirming my suspicions. I would like a verbal confirmation, however."
"Of what?" Justin frowned.
"That I figured out the puzzle correctly," she said.
Justin shifted nervously.
"What puzzle?" he asked slowly. "We weren't working on a puzzle."
She sighed.
"Tommy was doing magic, wasn't he?" she asked.
"Ummm…well, he…" Justin stammered, trying to evade the question.
"Are you really going to try and deny it?" Hayley asked, hands on her hips.
"Deny what?" Justin said, giving her an innocent look.
"So you're trying to tell me that Tommy isn't doing magic in there?" she said. "Oh, and how about telling me he wasn't involved in the whole Power Ranger thing in Angel Grove. He was the green ranger, right?"
Justin's eyes widened in surprise.
"Uh…oh boy," he muttered. "Well, I can't exactly deny the whole magic thing—you kind of saw that…"
"Uh huh," Hayley said, crossing her arms. "And the rest of it? He is—well, was—a power ranger, right?"
He laughed nervously, not meeting her eyes.
"What makes you think that?" he asked. "Does Tommy really come across as a guy who would run around in a—umm… spandex—suit?"
Hayley rolled her eyes.
"Justin, he was a power ranger," she said. "And so was Jason. Red, right? I've only seen a few pictures of him but I'm pretty sure that's correct."
Justin groaned.
"Jason's gonna kill me," he muttered, shaking his head. "I am so dead… No one is supposed to know…"
"Oh, relax," Hayley reassured him. "I'm not going to tell anyone."
"He's still not gonna be happy," he grumbled. "And I have to tell him cause if he finds out later I'm really gonna be in trouble…Guess I might as well get it over with…"
Sighing, he found Jason's number on Tommy's phone and dialed. Jason answered after just a few rings.
"Jason!" Justin exclaimed. "It's Justin."
"Hey, kid," Jason said. "What are you doing on Tommy's phone? Are you over there for the weekend?"
"Yeah, but that's not why I'm calling," Justin said. "There's a problem, and it involves Tommy…And it's a big problem…"
Jason groaned.
"Who did what to Tommy this time?" he asked. "Did someone kidnap him again or has he been brainwashed?"
"Neither," Justin said quickly. "That's not the kind of problem I'm talking about. I actually know right where he is right now. He's in his apartment sitting on the couch."
"Then what's the problem?" Jason asked.
Justin took a deep breath.
"Actually, there're a couple of them…" Justin said, glancing at Hayley. "So do you want the bad news or the worse news?"
Hayley frowned at him but he ignored her.
"What do you mean by 'bad or worse'?" Jason growled.
"Ok, so maybe that's not the best way to explain it because I'm not exactly sure which one is worse at this point," Justin said. "But neither one is really a good thing so—"
"Justin!" Jason snapped.
"Oh, right, sorry," Justin mumbled. "I guess I'll start with what Tommy is doing first because I can tell you about the other one while you're on the way here."
"Justin, are you going to tell me what's going on?" Jason exclaimed in exasperation. "Why I am going to be coming out there?"
"Because I'm not strong enough to deal with Tommy on my own," Justin burst out. "And I don't think he'd hesitate to hurt me right now."
"I thought you said he wasn't brainwashed!" Jason exclaimed.
"He isn't!" Justin protested.
"Then what on earth are you talking about?" Jason asked. "Tommy would never hurt you on purpose."
"Well, I doubt he's actually thinking straight right now," Justin mumbled. "Tommy's using magic again…And he was in such a trance that he didn't notice me stealing his phone—"
"What?" Jason shouted into the phone, making Justin jump. "He's not supposed to be doing that. He said he was done!"
"I know," Justin said. "But I saw him, Jason. And I think it's worse than it was…He's been canceling study sessions for weeks now. The last time I was here was for a week over Christmas break. And I barely even talk to him on the phone anymore. He cancelled this study session with a text—no explanation."
"Where are you?" Jason asked sharply.
Justin could hear him moving now and the sound of keys jingling in the background.
"In the hallway outside his apartment," Justin answered.
"Good," Jason said. "Don't go back inside for anything. I'm getting help and I'll be there as soon as I can."
"Got it," Justin said. "We'll stay right here and wait."
"Wait a minute—we?" Jason said suspiciously. "Who is 'we'? Does that have anything to do with the other thing you were going to tell me?"
Justin froze.
"Oh, right," he said. "Umm… Have you met Tommy's friend Hayley?"
"No, but I've heard about her," Jason said. "Why?"
"Well…she's kind of part of the other problem," Justin said. "A big part of the problem."
"Oh, great," Jason muttered. "She's not pregnant, is she?"
Hearing part of Jason's comment, Hayley's eyes narrowed as she glared in the general direction of the phone. Justin looked at her with wide eyes, shaking his head.
"From the look she's giving you right now I'd go with no," Justin said quickly. "And that's not even close to what I was talking about anyways."
"Wait a minute," Jason growled. "She's there?"
"Yep," Justin confirmed. "And she may have seen Tommy. She also may have figured out—well, everything else…"
"What 'everything'?" Jason asked slowly.
"Well, she knows you're the original red ranger," Justin mumbled.
The line was silent for a moment.
"But it's all Tommy's fault!" Justin burst out before Jason could say anything. "She said seeing him use his magic was the last clue she needed. I swear I never said anything to her."
Jason took a deep breath.
"Just keep her there," he snapped irritably. "I'll deal with her after I make sure Tommy is alright."
"Yeah, I don't think you need to worry about her leaving," Justin said, glancing at Hayley.
Still glaring, she'd planted herself in front of Tommy's door and sat down.
"Fine," Jason said shortly. "You hold tight, kid. We're on our way."
Jason hung up. Taking a deep breath, Justin turned and sat down next to Hayley.
"So," she said. "How long have you known about Tommy being a power ranger?"
Groaning, Justin let his head fall back against the door.
"Hurry up, Jason," he mumbled.
When Jason arrived about an hour later he had Adam, Tanya, Rocky, and Zach in tow. They found Justin and Hayley still leaning against the door. Justin had been dodging Hayley's questions as best he could while they waited.
"Rocky!" Justin exclaimed when he saw the group coming down the hallway. "Guys, you're here! You have no idea how glad I am to see you."
He jumped up to greet them in excitement.
"How are you holding up?" Tanya asked, hugging him.
"Better now that you guys are here," he answered, glancing back at Hayley. "Hayley is—persistent…"
The five rangers turned their attention to Hayley. She was standing now, looking at them expectantly. Jason glared at her, but she just glared back.
"Tanya, stay out here with them," Jason said shortly. "I don't know how Tommy is going to react to us interrupting him, but we need someone to guard the door. I'll deal with this situation after. Tommy is our first priority."
Tanya nodded as Jason pulled open the door.
"Be careful," she said, an arm around Justin's shoulders.
Nodding, Jason headed inside followed by the other three men. They shut the door behind them. After a moment shouting started and they heard a loud crash. All three in the hallway flinched at the sound.
"Tommy is going to be ok, right?" Justin asked anxiously, looking up at Tanya.
She sighed.
"I hope so," she said softly. "But this magic thing is new…No ra—none of us have ever had this kind of problem with magic before…"
Hayley frowned.
"What exactly is going on with Tommy?" she asked. "I haven't seen him in weeks and now this is happening. What is so bad that all four of them are necessary to intervene?"
Tanya hesitated for a moment.
"I really don't know how much I should tell you," she finally said. "Other people aren't supposed to know about any of this…"
Justin nodded in agreement.
"I only found out cause they didn't know I was hiding under Rocky's hospital bed," Justin added. "Boy was he surprised to see me when I crawled out."
Hayley raised an eyebrow at him.
"Let's save the rest of that story for another time," Tanya said hastily. "For now Hayley, if you could be patient with us. Jason will—well, I'm actually not sure what he's going to tell you, but we can talk more after Tommy is—under control…"
Sighing, Hayley nodded. There was still shouting inside though they couldn't make out any of the actual words. Justin decided to peek inside to see how things were going. He pulled open the door and stuck his head inside. Letting out a yelp, he leapt away from the door as Rocky came crashing through it. He slammed into the wall on the other side of the hall and slumped to the ground, groaning.
"Rocky!" Justin exclaimed, running over to him.
Tanya was right behind him. Hayley looked back and forth between Rocky and the door in surprise. With the door open they could see Jason, Adam, and Zach struggling to pin Tommy down. His eyes flashed green.
"Shut the door!" Tanya exclaimed.
Hayley quickly pulled the door shut.
"Oh, this is going well…" she said, shaking her head.
"Could be worse," Justin said, glancing back at her from where he was crouched next to Rocky. "He hasn't morphed."
Hayley blinked in surprise. Rocky was sitting up now, leaning against the wall and holding his head. Shifting again, he grimaced.
"He can do that?" she said. "He's still a ranger?"
"Technically, no," Tanya answered as she examined Rocky's head. "He is not an active ranger anymore. But once a ranger, always a ranger. And Tommy's been a ranger for a long time—it's a part of him in more ways than any of us could ever understand."
"So he can still morph then?" Hayley said.
"Yep," Justin nodded. "It just takes a lot more energy than it used to. Can't draw directly from the grid anymore when you retire as a ranger, so the morphers draw on your own life energy—which is why it would be bad for him to morph…"
Hayley frowned, glancing toward the door.
"Rocky, I'm pretty sure you have a concussion again…" Tanya sighed.
"Yeah, I think you're right," he winced.
"Should we take him to the hospital?" Hayley asked.
"No!" all three exclaimed.
Tanya shook her head as Hayley looked at them in surprise.
"Concussions aren't something to just ignore," she frowned. "They can be serious."
Justin snorted.
"It's just a concussion," he said. "He's fine. Rocky's had worse. Besides, he's still conscious."
"We avoid hospitals as much as possible," Tanya explained. "It's just easier to take care of these things ourselves. Plus there are a lot of things we just wouldn't be able to explain…Like the signs of a concussion disappearing within a few hours…"
"Well, that would explain why Tommy avoids doctors like the plague," Hayley mused.
Tanya nodded.
"Yes," she said. "We—well, we heal at a faster rate than most humans. It's more effective when we're morphed, but some of the healing ability lingers even when we aren't actively rangers anymore. So, while extremely important for when we're battling some monster, it makes things tricky when it comes to normal human injuries—especially things that would usually be considered serious. Like Rocky's concussion. He's had a lot of them over the years. We all have."
The door opened again and both Justin and Tanya instantly tensed, staying crouched near Rocky. But it was just Jason. He was wiping some blood off of his lip with the back of his hand from where someone—probably Tommy—had split it open.
"It's safe to come in now," he said, walking out to help Rocky out. "How's your head, man?"
"Don't ask," Rocky mumbled, stumbling to his feet. "The guy shouldn't still be able to hit that hard—he wasn't using morphers! Or is he wearing Zeo?"
Jason shrugged, not sure of the answer.
"Yeah, well, he won't be hitting anyone for a few minutes," Jason said grimly, holding on to Rocky as he led the way back inside. "He used too much energy and nearly passed out."
Tanya gasped as Hayley, bringing up the rear, shut the door behind them. Tommy was sitting on the couch, leaning against the back with his eyes closed. Adam and Zach were hovering next to the couch, ready to react if he moved.
"Oh Tommy," Tanya murmured, heading straight for the couch. "What are you doing to yourself?"
His clothes were rumpled and he looked a lot thinner than he should. It was clear to all of them that he hadn't been taking very good care of himself recently.
"Be careful," Adam warned as Tanya started to sit next to Tommy. "He's worn down, but still conscious and extremely unhappy with us."
She nodded but sat down anyways. Tommy immediately jerked away, his eyes flying open as he glared around at the group.
"Tommy, are you alright?" Tanya asked, hesitantly reaching toward him.
"I was until all of you showed up," he snarled, swatting her hand away. "Why are you even here?"
"Justin called for help," Jason growled, crossing his arms as he glared down at Tommy.
He'd helped Rocky to the armchair next to the couch and moved to stand in front of Tommy.
"He and Hayley showed up for a study session," he continued. "They found you in a trance playing with magic."
"I cancelled that!" Tommy snapped, turning his glare on Justin and Hayley. "I suppose that means you stole my phone, kid, cause I know you don't have Jason's number—or your own phone."
Justin ducked his head, flinching at the accusatory tone in Tommy's voice. Hayley frowned at Tommy, but he ignored her. Rocky pushed himself out of the chair and walked over to Justin, putting an arm protectively around the boy's shoulders.
"Lay off, Tommy," he said sharply. "Justin was right to call us. You have a problem."
"The only problem I have is you guys breaking into my apartment!" Tommy exclaimed.
"They didn't," Hayley scoffed. "I unlocked the door using the key you gave me."
"You stay out of this," Tommy snarled at her. "This has nothing to do with you. You shouldn't even be here. And this has nothing to do with the rest of you either!"
Jason shook his head.
"You've lost the right to decide that," he said.
"Jason's right, man," Zach agreed. "You're not thinking straight anymore."
"I'm fine!" Tommy insisted.
"Tommy, you're not supposed to be using that magic," Adam said, shaking his head. "It's not good for you and you know that. You admitted as much after Christmas when we first found out you were having problems with it."
"It drains your life-force, Tommy," Tanya added softly.
Tommy rolled his eyes, crossing his arms as he scowled at her.
"I can use it just fine in small doses," he said. "So go away."
"This isn't small doses anymore!" Jason exclaimed. "Look at yourself. You're out of control, Tommy—it's killing you!"
"I have everything under control!" Tommy shouted, clenching his fists.
He started to leap up off of the couch, but Zach caught his shoulder and shoved him back down.
"Don't touch me!" Tommy said harshly, throwing Zach's hand off. "And all of you leave me alone. I don't need your help. Everything is under control."
"Tommy, you threw Rocky out of your apartment—literally!" Jason snapped. "That is not under control."
"I wouldn't have done anything to him if he'd just minded his own business," Tommy snarled. "Just like the rest of you. You're just getting what you asked for."
"Listen to yourself!" Jason exclaimed in frustration. "Can't you hear how you sound right now?"
"Tommy, you don't really want to hurt us, right?" Justin asked quietly.
"I just want everyone to leave me alone!" Tommy snapped at him. "So go away!"
Rocky's grip tightened around Justin's shoulders as his gaze hardened. He scowled at Tommy, who just glared back.
"Too late for that, bro," Jason said, shaking his head. "You're addicted and you've already proven you can't break out of it on your own like you claimed. You can't be alone anymore—and that's not a choice."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Tommy scowled.
Jason took a deep breath. While all of the rangers were focused on Tommy, Hayley pulled out her phone and disappeared from the room.
"It means I'm moving in so I can keep an eye on you," Jason said shortly. "I know you're not going to admit to being addicted, but it's obvious to the rest of us. And I'm not about to let you kill yourself over this."
"I don't need a babysitter!" Tommy yelled.
"No, you need help," Zach countered. "Jason is right. You shouldn't be alone right now."
Tommy scoffed.
"I'll just have all of you kicked out of the building," he growled. "None of you have any right to be here without my permission."
He stood, facing down Jason who stayed right where he was. The two men glared at each other.
"And just how are you going to do that?" Jason scoffed. "We're not letting you out of here to talk to anyone right now."
Tommy smirked.
"How about I start by taking my phone back from the kid?" he said.
Jason's eyes widened as Tommy spun and made a grab for Justin. Rocky moved him quickly out of the way as Justin let out a yelp of surprise. Adam, Zach, and Jason grabbed Tommy again and shoved him back down on the couch. Tanya stood up, moving to stand by Justin as Rocky moved a little closer to Tommy, still hovering between him and Justin.
"Tommy!" Jason snarled, holding him pinned against the back of the couch. "You need to snap out of it before you seriously hurt someone!"
"And you need to leave me alone!" Tommy shouted back, shoving Jason away from him.
"I'm not going anywhere," Jason growled.
"Sorry to interrupt," Hayley said, drawing all of their attention. "But I have something important to say."
She was holding her phone, which was currently on mute.
"Tommy," she said, looking straight at him. "I just spoke to your mother about what's going on."
Everyone froze, looking at Hayley in complete shock.
"Oh, relax," she said, rolling her eyes. "I told her he was addicted to the pain meds from his accident last year, not to magic."
The previous summer, before the beginning of the fall semester, Tommy had been in a rather serious racing accident. He'd been released from the hospital after a week or two, but he'd scared all of them. Starting his first semester of college while recovering from the accident had been difficult, but that's when he'd met Hayley. She was in several of his classes and they'd gotten along from the start. Hayley helped Tommy with homework or projects when he needed it and he did the same with her. Then he'd introduced Justin and the three had all started studying together.
"She says you have two choices," Hayley continued. "Either Jason is moving in with you or she's coming to get you and you're moving home until you're over it. And good luck explaining any of this to her."
Tommy glared daggers at Hayley but didn't say anything.
"She's waiting for an answer," Hayley smirked, waving her phone.
"Fine!" Tommy shouted, getting to his feet again. "Jason, you can stay. Happy?"
"No," Jason snapped. "But it's a start."
Tommy stormed toward his bedroom, slamming the door behind him, as Hayley walked away to tell Mrs. Oliver his answer. Jason sighed, running a hand over his head.
"Umm…Shouldn't we go after him?" Zach asked hesitantly, watching Tommy go.
"Not yet," Jason said. "Give him a few minutes to cool down."
Hayley came walking back to join them, tucking her phone away.
"Great cover," Adam said approvingly. "And Mrs. Oliver is one of the tougher moms to fool."
Jason nodded in agreement.
"Not bad," he said. "But that doesn't mean I'm alright with this yet."
Hayley rolled her eyes as he turned to the other rangers.
"Alright guys," he said. "We need to find his morphers. Anyone know where he stashes them?"
Justin slowly raised his hand.
"I do," he said hesitantly. "He showed me over Christmas break when I stayed with him for a week. Said I could keep mine there while I was visiting. Said it would be a good thing to know in case of emergency."
Hayley frowned.
"You were a ranger," she said flatly.
Justin shrugged sheepishly, grinning at her.
"I should have known," she sighed. "But really—he's thirteen!"
"And he was twelve when he started," Rocky said. "Justin's a good ranger. He knows what he's doing and he doesn't back down from a fight if it's necessary."
"He's thirteen," Hayley repeated. "And you let him fight with you."
"You don't choose to be a ranger," Jason said gruffly. "You're chosen. The only choice you get is whether to accept it or not."
"Jason's right," Zach said. "Just look at Tommy. He's been a ranger for years. Five different teams since he moved to Angel Grove—and he led most of them."
"Well that explains several odd gaps," Hayley muttered to herself. "But I still don't think it was a good idea to let Justin fight with you. He's half your size for goodness sakes!"
"Not as a ranger," Justin grinned. "When I morph the grid accelerates my body's age to match everyone else's. Evens the playing field a little. I'm also one of the only ones with an active morpher—well, kind of. It's technically retired now, but at least it isn't broken like some of the others' morphers."
"You're going to have to explain how that works," Hayley said, looking at him in surprise. "The aging thing and the grid."
"But not right now," Jason growled. "Justin—where are those morphers?"
"Oh, right," Justin said.
Spinning, he darted over to the TV stand. Reaching behind, he snagged a small, black lockbox and straightened back up. He brought it back over to Jason as he entered the combination on the lock.
"Here," he said. "They should all be in there. Tommy wanted to keep them safe."
Jason nodded, taking the box. Opening it, he started sifting through the contents to count the morphers.
"White tiger coin," he muttered. "Turbo key, ninjetti coin—oh, great…"
"What's wrong?" Tanya frowned.
Jason sighed, closing the box again and handing it back to Justin.
"The green power coin and Zeo morphers are missing," he said grimly, striding toward Tommy's door. "Which means he has them."
"Aw, man," Rocky muttered.
The rest of the rangers groaned in agreement and followed Jason. Justin trailed behind with the box, Hayley walking with him. Jason pounded on Tommy's door.
"Open this door!" he demanded. "You have to give me those morphers!"
"Go away, Jason!" Tommy shouted back.
Taking a deep breath, Jason turned away.
"Anyone know how to pick a lock?" Zach asked. "Cause I don't want to have to pay for breaking down that door…"
"Why is it so important that you get those morphers?" Hayley asked, crossing her arms.
Jason turned to look at her.
"Because," he said after a moment. "If we don't get them away Tommy is going to be able to continue to draw on their power to boost his energy. If he tries morphing with them, it'll drain him quickly. But as long as he is just wearing them as a connection to the grid he'll be able to keep using magic without feeling as drained—and that's what's going to kill him. He won't realize how much he's drained himself until it's too late. That magic is tied directly into his life-force now. And at this point the only way we're going to be able to stop him from using it is to get all of the morphers away from him."
Hayley nodded.
"Fair enough," she said. "Just a moment."
Hayley spun around and walked over to the door. She had dropped her bag on the floor just inside. After rummaging inside for a moment, she straightened up and strode up to Tommy's door. But instead of trying to pick the lock like they expected, she started fussing with the hinges. As the rangers all watched in surprise, she unscrewed both hinges from the wall with a small screwdriver and popped the lock, letting the door fall to the ground as she stepped out of the way. Tommy whipped around in shock as the door hit the ground, his gaze landing on Hayley. Snarling, he leapt to his feet and stormed straight toward her. Adam grabbed Hayley from behind and pulled her out of harm's way, moving to a safer distance. Justin, also standing a little too close, the lockbox still in hand, was pulled backward by Tanya as Jason, Rocky, and Zach intercepted Tommy to take away his morphers.
"I can take care of myself," Hayley protested, extracting herself from Adam's grip.
"Against him?" he said grimly, turning to go help with Tommy.
Hayley turned to look and saw Tommy fighting the other three tooth and nail. Jason grabbed Tommy from behind as he spun, hooking his arms under the other man's shoulders. Zach and Rocky each grabbed an arm, holding on tight. Tommy's eyes were flashing green again.
"Someone grab the coin!" Jason exclaimed. "It's in his pocket!"
Adam started to leap toward them, but Tanya was closer. She darted in to snatch the green power coin out of Tommy's pocket as the three men held him as best they could. Tanya got it, but before she could move completely away Tommy managed to twist himself and land a hard kick to her side. Stifling a cry, she stumbled away and Adam caught her.
"I'm fine," she winced, straightening up. "Go help them."
Tommy, even angrier now that they'd taken his coin, had broken away from the other three. They were circled around him now, keeping him from getting close to Hayley, Justin, or Tanya and keeping him by the doorway of his bedroom.
"Too slow, Tommy," Jason taunted as Tommy swung at him and missed. "You're losing your edge."
Tommy snarled and swung again, but Jason just dodged out of the way. Adam joined and the four rangers continued to work together. But they weren't physically attacking Tommy. Instead they had switched to taunting and insulting him, trying to get a reaction.
"What are they doing?" Hayley exclaimed. "I thought you wanted him under control—this is not going to help."
Tanya nodded, taking a deep breath and wincing. She put a hand to the side of her ribcage as she handed the coin to Justin to put away.
"We do," she said. "But first he needs to lose control—sort of."
Hayley just stared at her in confusion. Tanya sighed.
"He's wearing his Zeo morphers," she said. "And the only way for us to get them is for him to call them first."
"Call them?" Hayley frowned.
"Yes," Tanya nodded, holding out her own wrists. "See? I'm wearing mine right now."
"I don't see anything," Hayley said, looking at Tanya's bare wrists.
Tanya flicked both of her wrists and the morphers appeared.
"That's amazing!" Hayley exclaimed. "How do they do that?"
She took Tanya's wrist, trying to examine the morpher. But Tanya pulled her hand away and flicked her wrists again so the morphers disappeared.
"Beats me," she shrugged.
The four men were still taunting Tommy, but he still hadn't made a move to morph.
"It's something to do with the morphing grid," Tanya said, watching them in concern. "But the point is, the only way to take them from him is for him to call them first. We can't do it for him. And the only way he's going to do that right now is if he's angry enough to fight with them. He may not be thinking clearly, but he knows it's a bad idea to morph as a retired ranger—except in dire emergencies—so it's going to take some convincing…"
Hayley nodded.
"That makes perfect sense now," she said, studying Tommy. "Just give me one moment."
Turning, she rushed over to the kitchen. Tanya frowned, but kept her attention on the fight. Justin stayed next to her, holding tightly to the lockbox.
"Come on, Tommy," Rocky smirked, leaping out of the way of a kick. "You've got to be able to do better than that as our so-called-leader. You can't really be this out of practice already, can you? At this rate even Justin could take you down and he's barely half your size."
"I don't know," Zach grinned. "I think Hayley would work just fine—and she doesn't even have powers."
As Tommy lunged toward Zach, Hayley came stalking back over with a glass of water in hand. Without pausing, she walked right up to the fight and tossed the contents of the glass in Tommy's face. Everyone froze in shock.
"Stop throwing a temper tantrum and go take a shower," Hayley said calmly, eying Tommy. "You need one."
Turning around, she strode away again. Behind her, Tommy exploded in anger. The glass of water had been the last straw.
"You're going to regret that," he snarled, flicking his wrists. "Zeo Ranger F—"
He was cut off as all four of the other men grabbed him, preventing him from morphing.
"I was kidding about Hayley doing anything," Zach grunted as Jason pulled the morphers off of Tommy's wrists. "But I guess it worked."
With both morphers in hand, Jason turned and tossed them to Tanya. She snatched them out of midair and turned to Justin.
"Open the box," she said quickly. "And change the code."
He already had it open so she stuck the morphers right inside.
"Already changed," he confirmed, locking the box. "And I'm keeping the number to myself."
"Those are mine!" Tommy shouted, struggling to free himself. "You have no right to take them!"
"Sorry, bro," Jason said, trying to help pin Tommy again. "But it's for your own good."
"Get off of me!" Tommy roared.
His eyes flashed green again as he shoved them off. Before the other four men could catch their balance, Tommy shot streaks of green magic at each of them. The attack caught them off guard and sent all four flying backward in different directions. Rocky flew further into Tommy's room, hitting into the wall by the bed and cracking his head against the wall again. Adam slammed into the doorframe with a cry and fell to the ground. Zach went flying out into the living room, tumbling over the couch and crashing into the coffee table. Jason was thrown toward the kitchen, nearly knocking Tanya, Hayley, and Justin off of their feet as he hit the floor and went sliding into the counter. They leapt out of the way in shock, turning to look at Tommy. He was stalking toward them now, his gaze focused on Justin who was clinging to the lockbox. Tanya shoved Justin and Hayley behind her, holding a defensive position as she faced Tommy. Jason was pushing himself to his feet, but he wasn't close enough to reach the out-of-control ranger.
"Tommy, please stop," Tanya pleaded, holding out her hands. "You aren't yourself. Snap out of it!"
"You can't stop me," he scoffed. "Ninja Ranger Power Now!"
Coin or no coin, he morphed into his ninjetti form. Tanya reacted by calling her Zeo morphers back, ready to morph if he wouldn't stop. Tommy was stumbling a little now, though he seemed determined to retrieve his morphers no matter the cost.
"Tommy, no!" she exclaimed, backing up and pushing Justin and Hayley back. "Please don't make me fight you!"
"Give me back my morphers," he growled, not pausing.
Tanya took a breath to begin her morphing sequence, but Tommy stumbled again, barely catching himself. Putting a hand to his head, he swayed as he tried taking another step. But he'd used too much energy. De-morphing, he collapsed to the ground and didn't move. Jason, who had finally made it to his feet, stumbled toward them.
"Tommy?" Tanya said hesitantly, taking a step toward him.
But he didn't move. Jason reached him first, dropping down next to him. He carefully reached out to touch Tommy's shoulder, ready to move if Tommy lashed out at him.
"He's out cold," Jason said grimly when Tommy didn't react to his touch at all. "He went too far…"
"Can you get him off the floor?" Hayley asked. "I'd say a hospital visit was in order—"
Jason shot a glare at her which she returned.
"But I understand why that is a bad idea in this particular situation," she finished, crossing her arms.
"Yeah, just keep that in mind," Jason growled. "It's not your life that's going to be put on display if we're outed—just ours. No one else gets involved in this."
She rolled her eyes, but didn't argue. Adam and Rocky, both moving slowly and clearly in some pain, joined them. Zach wasn't far behind. He was holding his left arm close, trying to stop the gash he'd gotten on the coffee table from bleeding all over everything. Tanya eyed him as Rocky and Adam helped Jason get Tommy up off of the floor.
"Zach, go clean that up," she ordered.
"But the bleeding is already stopping," he protested. "I brought my morpher, remember? It's fine."
"I don't care how fast you heal," she frowned. "You still need to clean that and wrap it before you get blood all over anything."
Grumbling, Zach limped off toward the bathroom. The other three had pulled Tommy up with some effort and were moving him over to the couch. As Zach passed Hayley, he paused.
"By the way," he said. "You are either a mad genius or a really bad friend—I was not expecting that whole water bit out of you."
She smirked as he continued toward the bathroom.
"It's definitely mad genius," she said. "I do have an IQ of 185 after all."
"Mine's only 163!" Justin exclaimed, looking at Hayley in surprise.
She smiled at him, shrugging. The three men had gotten Tommy on the couch, carefully laying him down as they tried not to aggravate their own injuries.
"I wish we could take him to the Command Center…" Adam said, shaking his head as he looked at Tommy. "We'd at least be able to take readings on him to make sure he's going to be alright…"
"Well, we can't," Jason said roughly. "It's gone—and so is the Power Chamber. We're on our own this time."
"Not completely," Zach said, walking out of the bathroom. "We still have Billy. He knows how all of that stuff ran and how to build most of it. He's bound to know how to build a scanner."
"He's also completely out of our reach," Jason pointed out. "He can't build one we can use."
"Not completely," Justin said, shaking his head. "Tommy has a transmitter. We used it over Christmas break so Billy could help with a project I was working on for school. He was a great help."
"Billy?" Hayley frowned, interrupting. "I haven't heard about a Billy."
The rangers exchanged glances.
"Well, there's a reason for that," Jason said. "But you're about to meet him. Justin, can you get Tommy's computer set up with the transmitter? Send Billy an emergency alert—he'll answer quickly."
"On it," Justin grinned, darting away toward Tommy's bedroom.
He came back out a moment later holding the laptop and a small square device. Hayley looked at it curiously as he set it down next to the computer on the coffee table.
"What exactly is that?" she asked.
Justin glanced up briefly and then went back to what he was doing on the computer.
"It's a interplanetary transmitter," he said. "Billy made them to make staying in contact with him easier. It bounces the signal of the video call through several strategically placed satellites that boost the signal enough to get it all the way to him."
"Wait a minute," Hayley said, raising an eyebrow. "Interplanetary? Where exactly does he live that you need that kind of equipment to get him a message?"
"Aquitar," Zach sighed. "Been there for a few years now…Kind of wish he'd come back home…"
Hayley raised an eyebrow.
"Aquitar?" she repeated, looking around for an explanation.
"Billy lives on another planet right now," Jason said. "These calls are our only form of communication with him."
"Oh," Hayley said in surprise. "Well, I guess that makes a lot more sense."
Jason nodded, still watching what Justin was doing on the computer.
"Message sent," Justin said, looking up at him. "It shouldn't be more than a few minutes for him to at least send a message back—if not just call us."
"Good," Jason said, glancing over at Tommy again.
Tommy hadn't moved since they'd laid him down on the couch. Tanya had sat down next to him. She was taking careful breaths as she checked on Tommy.
"How's he doing?" Jason asked.
She sighed, shaking her head.
"I don't know…" she answered. "He's breathing normally enough, but he's really pale…This fight wasn't good for him…"
"It wasn't good for any of you," Hayley pointed out. "Tommy is a fifth degree blackbelt—not to mention he just threw four of you across his apartment. Rangers or no, there's no way you can tell me you aren't feeling that."
"Bruises go away," Adam shrugged, wincing with the movement. "So do cuts and concussions and broken bones. It might take a little while, but all of those things heal eventually. But Tommy's been draining his life-force. That doesn't just go away. And if he's taken it too far…"
"Then it may already be too late," Jason said grimly, looking down at Tommy.
The room fell silent again. All of them were extremely worried about Tommy. Then the computer started beeping and everyone's attention turned there as Justin connected the incoming call. Billy appeared on the screen, looking at them in concern.
"Greetings," he said quickly, fixing his gaze on Jason. "Jason, what is the emergency?"
Jason moved so he was closer to the computer, grimacing as he crouched down next to Justin.
"Hey, Billy," he said. "We have a problem—and we're going to need your help."
"What is the problem?" Billy asked.
Jason took a deep breath, glancing behind him.
"It's Tommy," he said. "The dark magic inside him. He's become addicted to it and it's starting to control him. He's unconscious now, but he attacked us when we tried to snap him out of it. Billy, he's killing himself and we have no way to see what damage has already been done or if it's too late—"
Jason cut off, taking another deep breath. Billy's face was grim as his eyes flickered toward Tommy on the couch.
"This is indeed a dilemma," he said after a moment. "Approximately how long has this been happening?"
The rangers exchanged glances, trying to come up with a time period.
"He was fine over Christmas break," Justin finally said. "I think…I guess looking back he was a little off sometimes, but nothing bad enough that I really noticed. It was after that when he started canceling everything and not seeing anyone anymore."
"And we did catch him using magic once or twice over the summer and fall," Jason said slowly. "Just little things spread out over long periods of time. Someone scolded him and that was that—but that didn't start until after he'd passed his powers to TJ right after graduation."
"And then he had his accident," Adam added. "He was in the hospital for a while."
Billy nodded.
"It is possible Tommy was not prepared for dealing with the magic without the backing of active ranger powers," he said. "And after his accident he would have been weakened and unable to fight it as effectively. That is probably when the magic began taking hold of him again. We need to see just how strong of a hold it has right now—do you have access to any kind of scanner?"
Jason shook his head.
"Nothing," he said. "Everything of ours was destroyed with the Power Chamber and I have no idea what kind of equipment Andros has on that spaceship of his. I doubt we could even find pieces of any of the original equipment now. Do you have anything left at your lab at your dad's house?"
"Negative," Billy said, shaking his head. "All of the functioning equipment was relocated to the Power Chamber before I departed for Aquitar to allow all of you easier access. The only things I left at the house were unnecessary parts and unfinished projects—things that couldn't link back to the rangers in the state they were in."
"So then what do we do?" Tanya said quietly. "Tommy could be—"
She cut off, looking down at the floor.
"I wish Zordon was here," Zach said. "He would know what to do…He always knew how to fix everything…"
"I want him back, too, Zach," Jason sighed. "But until Andros and the others find him, we're on our own."
"I'm sorry," Hayley said, speaking up. "But who is Zordon?"
Billy looked around in surprise, trying to place the unfamiliar voice. Hayley moved into the view of the camera, waving at Billy. He stared back with eyes wide.
"It's alright, Billy," Jason said, shooting a glare at Hayley. "She's a friend—I think. I'm still deciding how much I trust her."
She raised an eyebrow at that.
"Zordon is our mentor," Zach said, answering her question. "He's the one who made us rangers. He chose us and taught us."
"He's the one who brought all of us together," Tanya added. "And he's always been the first one to help us when we had a problem."
"And now he's gone…" Rocky said quietly. "Stolen from us while we couldn't do anything to stop it."
"Zordon would have been able to help Tommy…" Justin mumbled.
They all fell silent for a moment. Billy sighed, rubbing a hand across his forehead.
"Perhaps if you can gather the necessary components I can direct you in constructing a basic scanner," he said. "It would not be as functional as we are all accustomed to, but it would serve our purpose."
Jason frowned.
"Billy, what kind of construction are we talking here?" he asked. "Just basic 'connect part A to part B' or are we talking complicated—like you trying to piece back the Command Center after Tommy wrecked it?"
"The latter," Billy admitted. "I am not saying it will be a simple project, but perhaps with Justin's aid it would be possible."
The older rangers all looked at Justin. He shrugged.
"I can give it a go," he said. "No promises on the end result. I've never built anything like that before. I mean, I did help Alpha around the Power Chamber, but he was always right there to double check me…"
"What kind of scanner are you talking about building?" Hayley asked, looking at Billy.
He paused, then started going over the specs of the scanner. The rangers listened for a short time, then tuned it out as they lost track of what he was explaining. Justin was the only one who continued to pay close attention. As they were talking, she grabbed a notebook and a pen and started making a list of supplies.
"I think I can pull something like that together," Hayley finally said. "As long as I can find the right parts."
"Several of the key components should still be stored in my lab there on earth," Billy said. "The rest should not be difficult to find at most hardware stores."
"I've got some ideas," Hayley smiled.
Billy smiled back.
"Call me back once you've gotten everything together," he said. "And I will oversee the construction from here to the best of my abilities."
Jason nodded.
"We'll talk to you soon, Billy," he said.
Billy ended the call and Jason turned to Hayley.
"You know everything you need?" he asked.
"It's all right here," she said, holding up the notebook.
"Then let's go," he said. "We'll take my car and head to Angel Grove first to get whatever we can from Billy's place. Then we'll hit the stores for everything else on the way back."
Hayley nodded and started heading for the door.
"I'm coming, too," Justin announced, darting after her. "I wanna see Billy's lab."
Jason chuckled, but nodded.
"You, too, Zach," he said as he headed toward the door.
"Wait, what?" Zach exclaimed. "Why do I have to go?"
Jason paused, looking at him.
"Because someone has to distract Billy's dad while we're in his lab," he said. "Unless you've got a really good cover story for why we need all of those parts."
Zach huffed, but headed for the door, grumbling to himself as he left the apartment.
"That's what I thought," Jason smirked, following. "Call if anything happens and we'll get back here as soon as possible."
Adam, Rocky, and Tanya nodded in agreement as he shut the door behind him.
"Alright," Tanya said, rounding on the two men. "Both of you sit down."
"What?" Rocky said.
She rolled her eyes, pushing them toward chairs.
"Sit," she said. "I want to make sure neither of you has any injuries that need immediate attention."
"Tanya, we're fine," Adam protested.
He winced as he sat down, however, and she crossed her arms as she glared at him. Rocky sat down without a protest.
"I'll be the judge of that," she said. "Now shirts off."
Both of them opened their mouths to protest, but seeing the look on Tanya's face they thought better of it. Grumbling, they both carefully pulled their shirts off. Both already had bruises starting to appear where they'd taken hard hits. Tanya went to Adam first, biting her lip when she took a look at his back. He had a couple of other bruises here and there, but there was an entire series of bruises starting to darken on his back that ran almost the full length—the result of being slammed into the doorframe with a force that should have thrown him across the room.
"Oh, Adam," she said, gently touching his back.
He flinched at her touch, biting back a pained exclamation. She took a deep breath, probing as gently as she could with her fingertips to make sure she couldn't find anything broken or fractured. Adam continued to flinch at her touch no matter how hard he tried to hide it.
"I'm sorry…" Tanya said, touching a particularly painful spot. "I'm trying to be careful…"
"You're fine," he said. "Just finish up and I'll be fine."
Finish her check-up of Adam, she took a deep breath.
"I think it's just bruises," she said. "I didn't feel anything out of place…"
Adam smiled at her and took her hand.
"Come here," he said, tugging her down onto the chair. "Everything is going to be alright."
She sighed, leaning carefully against his shoulder.
"Is it?" she said, glancing over at Tommy unconscious on the couch. "Right now it seems like things were so much easier when all we were fighting were monsters…"
Rocky nodded in agreement and Adam put an arm around her, hugging her gently. Tanya flinched, a gasp of pain escaping as he touched her side. Frowning, Adam looked at her. Rocky had noticed the look on her face when Adam touched her side, too. He leaned forward.
"Tanya, how hard did Tommy kick you?" Rocky asked.
She shrugged.
"Not that hard," she said. "I'm fine. You just hit a tender spot, that's all."
Adam sighed and stood up slowly—straightening up proved difficult with his bruised back.
"Come on," he said, holding out his hand. "Up. Let me take a look at your side."
She looked up at him but he just waited patiently with his hand out. Sighing, Tanya gave in and got up. She took off the t-shirt she was wearing, leaving on the cami underneath. Pulling up just the side, she turned so Adam could see.
"Ouch…" Rocky said, catching a glimpse of the darkening bruises there. "He really got you good, didn't he?"
Adam carefully checked along Tanya's ribcage as she concentrated on not flinching.
"Nothing's broken that I can feel," he said after a moment. "But he might have cracked a rib or two. That was just not a good spot for that kick to land…"
Focused on Tanya, none of them noticed Tommy shifting on the couch. He opened his eyes slowly, looking around in confusion. Adam's back was to him as he fussed over Tanya. Frowning, Tommy stared at him for a moment as he tried to figure out what was going on. They were done being rangers, so Adam shouldn't have bruises like that anymore. And Tanya and Rocky were hurt, too. But Tommy couldn't figure out why he didn't remember being part of a fight—or how they all ended up in his apartment. He had to help though because his friends were hurt. Pushing himself slowly up, Tommy used the couch to lever himself to his feet. The room started spinning around him and he held onto the couch for a moment. Little flickers of the afternoon started coming back to him as he took a shaky step toward his friends.
"No," he gasped as the memories returned.
With his vision blurring again and his legs giving out, Tommy collapsed to the floor, catching the attention of the other three rangers. They all spun to look at the fallen ranger.
"Tommy?" Tanya exclaimed, taking a hesitant step toward him.
Rocky was on his feet again, moving to stand with Adam and Tanya as they moved carefully to Tommy's side. He was beginning to lose consciousness again, muttering as he shook his head. Hesitantly, Tanya crouched down next to him.
"Tommy?" she said again, reaching out a hand toward him. "Tommy, is that you?"
"No," he mumbled, jerking slightly away from her. "No…I didn't…didn't mean…"
With a sigh, Tommy lost consciousness again. Tanya looked up at Rocky and Adam with a worried expression.
"Come on," Adam said, shaking his head. "Let's get him off the floor again…"
Working together, the three of them got Tommy back up on the couch. Tanya started to turn to Rocky, but Adam stopped her.
"You need to wrap those ribs first before you make them worse," he said firmly, directing her toward the bathroom. "Go find Tommy's first aid kit and see what you can find. I'll make sure Rocky's head—and the rest of him—is still in one piece."
Tanya rolled her eyes, but headed toward the bathroom.