SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Monkeerangerfan: Thanks. Here you go.

Alex B. Goode: Thanks. I will.

DISCLAIMER

Belongs to Haim Saban, Fox Kids, and Disney. I only own the plot and original characters.

That night, Jason was back home, lying on his bed, his mind racing with the day's earlier events. After Detective Stone had called his parents to tell them that he was back, they had practically showed up right away and had held him close; as if afraid he'd disappear if they let him go. He had gone with his story that he had been captured by a strange creature and had finally been rescued by the Power Rangers. He sighed and tossed a baseball from hand to hand. He wasn't sure what to do. Magnus was probably thinking up ways to get him back right now. His eyes clouded as he remembered the ring fights, beatings, and torture. If that freak ever got his hands on him again…Jason shuddered and forced the thought away. He was going to be fine. Ashley and the others were on it. They wouldn't let anything happen to him. And then there was the matter of finding Zordon. I wonder where Dark Specter's holding him, he thought. How had Zordon even been captured in the first place? And how could his powers be drained? A knock on his door broke the former Ranger from his troubled thoughts.

"Come in," he called. His father, Michael, appeared in the doorway.

"How you holdin' up, Kiddo?" he questioned.

"I'm fine, Dad. I'm just glad I'm finally home," he responded.

"We're glad you're back. I just can't believe it took the Power Rangers this long to do it," the man stated with disapproval.

"Dad, don't---don't blame them. They have a lot on their plate dealing with assorted monsters and I'm sure that as soon as they were aware of the situation, they sprang into action," his son responded. I'm certain Ashley started looking as soon as she found my communicator, he thought to himself. "You know, all I really want to do is see if I can get into some classes at AGCC," he told him, changing the subject.

"Jason, are you sure?" his father questioned.

"Yeah, I'm sure. I just want to put everything behind me," he replied.

"All right. We can start looking into it tomorrow," the man promised. Jason flashed a small smile and the man left. Then, the boy sighed and his eyes clouded. What was he going to do? If Magnus came for him again, there'd be no way to stop him. Relax, Jason. The Rangers have it covered. Everything's going to be fine, he assured himself. Then, he closed his eyes and drifted off to a fitful sleep. The next morning, he got up, got dressed, ate some breakfast, and then went to the phone and dialed a number.

"Hello? Yeah, my name is Jason Lee Scott and I'm interested in the fall schedule for Angel Grove Community College." He made some attentive noises and wrote something down. He hung up the phone just as his father came into the kitchen.

"What's going on?" the man asked.

"I've got a meeting with admittance at AGCC later today," he explained.

"They were open this early?" his father asked.

"Yeah. They started coming in earlier when more and more students started applying," came the answer. The man looked at his son in confusion.

"I was going there before I got kidnapped," he reminded him.

"Oh, right. Of course," the man said. Then, "What are your plans for the meantime?"

"Thought I'd go to the Youth Center and get a workout in."

"Jason, are you sure that's wise?" Jason sighed. He understood where his father was coming from since he was worried about getting snatched again as well, but they couldn't let their fears stop them.

"I'll be fine." Then, he headed out. At the Youth Center, Jason set up some mats and then began a strenuous kata as a few other people, including a boy about twelve, worked on the weight machines. Suddenly, he heard a scream.

"What the---" With a gasp, he turned around and watched as a swarm of monsters surged into building. "Oh, man," he breathed. Then, he began to herd the others away. However, they were soon blocked off.

"What's going on here?" a guy asked.

"Are we being invaded?" a girl added. I'm thinking 'yes', Jason thought to himself.

"Well, I'm not going down without a fight," the boy stated, coming to stand beside Jason.

"Easy, kid," Jason warned. Now why does he look familiar? he wondered.

"Don't worry. I'll be fine," the boy insisted. The ex-Ranger grabbed the boy's wrist and then stopped when he saw the blue communicator. Oh, yeah. The kid who replaced Rocky, he recalled.

"Just play it cool. Our first priority's the civilians," he whispered. The boy nodded.

"Right," he agreed. The creatures surrounded the small group and thundering footsteps were heard. Jason froze. He knew those footsteps. No, no, no, no, no, no, no! his mind screamed. The creatures parted ways to let their leader through. Jason watched as a very familiar monster walked through the Youth Center and approached them. It stopped right in front of them.

"Who's that ugly freak?" the boy questioned.

"Magnus," Jason whispered.