Darkness. That's all there is, the darkness. It's like he's floating, floating in endless night. It's calming almost, except, no, there's something. Something about the darkness that surrounds him, something evil. Yes, the darkness is evil. But how did he know that? More importantly, who was he?

There's a small flash of- something, but then it's gone. He struggles to move, but he can't. The darkness senses his fight and encompasses him, but it's no longer calming, he's no longer floating. No, he's drowning. He's drowning in darkness and there's no way out.

No. There's always a way.

"There's always a way." He whispers.

Think, think. What defeats darkness?

-Nothing. You cannot win.-

"Who's there?!" He feels panic. Someone, no, something is there with him.

"Let go of me!"

-Never.- A wave of darkness crashes over him, and he can't breathe. He can't breathe. And his thoughts are fading, the darkness is clouding his mind, he can't think, he can't breathe, and he is dying, he can feel it.

"No." He chokes out, hands clawing at the darkness.

No, they need me. Wait, who needs me?

And the memory, his memories, are there, they are just out of reach if only he could reach-

And memories flood his mind.

My name is Jason Lee Scott.

I am a power ranger. I am the red ranger, the leader.

My friends are counting on me.

I never. Give. Up.

And he could see his friends, Tommy, Zach, Billy, Trini, Kimberly. He could see Zordon and Alpha, and his mom and dad, and Mr. Caplan, even Bulk and Skull, he could see Ernie. He could see Rita and her minions and Goldar and putties and monsters and zords and the Youth Center and the school. The gym, weight room, classroom, house, beach, Mrs. Appleby, his students, his ranger identity, his sword, the Command Center.

He could see everything. All his memories, on fast-forward. It was overwhelming, there was so much.

But suddenly, there was a break, a pause in the flood of memories. His friends, and him, hanging out, just relaxing. They were in the park, talking about the future, the possibilities of defeating Rita.

"I don't really know what will happen," he'd said. "But I do know, we will always be friends. I will always be there for you guys." He had sworn. And the others did as well, everyone putting their hands in the center, making a promise to always be there for each other, to never give up, no matter what.

Jason suddenly realized he was glowing. A bright pure red surrounded his body, straining to push back the darkness. He focused on the red light, making it stronger; he pushed back the darkness.

-Give up. You cannot win.-

No.

"Never!" He yelled, pushing with all his strength. The red glow increased.

"You can't defeat me! I am the Red Ranger!"

-You are a puny, pathetic human!-

Jason cried out in pain as the darkness suddenly lashed out at him, striking his chest. His glow decreased and flickered.

But he didn't give up. Jason fought, striking at the evil surrounding him.

But the fight was tiring. The darkness was endless, and he was tiring.

-Yes, give up. You cannot win.- The darkness hissed. The voice promised him peace and rest, he just had to let go, relax. No more fighting, no more monsters, just rest.

No. He protested weakly.

-Let go, Jason. Rest. Your team does not matter.-

His team?

Fatal mistake.

His team. His friends, his family. His rangers. Tommy, his brother in arms and sparring partner. Zach, his best friend, always cracking jokes to make him laugh. Billy, his friend who was extremely smart and kind, who always had a plan or idea. Trini, who was always calm, who translated Billy's words, who always knew just what to say. And Kimberly, who was a younger sister to him, who was the heart of the team, the heart of their family.

His family, waiting for him to come back. He couldn't leave them, he couldn't let them down.

He had to get back to them.

"Get. BACK!"

Energy exploded from him, bursting forth in a powerful, vibrant, red wave.

"You will NOT DEFEAT ME!"

Jason shot red light into the darkness. There was an inhuman, pain and rage-filled shriek.

Jason started clawing at the darkness again, trying to go up. He started moving up, he could sense that the way out was up.

-No!-

A wave of darkness slammed into him.

"Let me go!" He was sinking, the darkness dragging him down as he fought to go up.

-You will never escape!-

Jason was starting to lose ground.

No! No no no! I have to escape!

But he couldn't.

Suddenly, there was a loud crack of thunder. Jason searched for the cause of the noise, and saw what looked like a bolt of lightning headed straight for him. It was multicolored, beautiful and glowing green, blue, black, yellow, and pink.

The lightning hit Jason square in the chest, but didn't hurt him. It empowered him. He could feel his strength returning, his power growing.

-No!-

The darkness tried to smother the lightning, but shrieked in pain at its touch.

The power from the bolt collected around Jason, shielding him from the darkness, giving off a rainbow hue. Jason held out his hand, and a sword formed in it, much like his power sword.

"HIYAH!" Gripping the sword tightly, Jason delivered a mighty, two-fisted downward slash. A massive wave of light mimicked his sword, slicing straight at the darkness' heart.

An ear-piercing, mind-numbing, awful screech came from the darkness, slowly fading away as the darkness itself also faded.

Jason stood, shaking from the battle. It was grey around him, the evil darkness gone. Letting his sword fade, Jason turned when a light shone behind him. There was a door, standing there, beckoning him.

Jason approached the door without fear, opened it, and walked through.

Then he opened his eyes.