The bus rolled up to the central Corinth museum, at which Flynn pulled it into the lay by out front. Hicks pointed to the building.

"Given the fact the world was basically destroyed, the central council felt that the preservation of any and all history was vital." He began his lecture. "In this building is every major historical artefact in Corinth, creating as much of a history as we can muster. As the excavation crews find things out in the wastes, they are analysed by the University's history department, and the important ones become exhibits here."

The Samurai Rangers started to disembark, taking care around Summer so they didn't cause Dillon any stress. Although she had been fighting only days before she announced her pregnancy, suggesting it was so early in the process that she was far from any form of danger from a mere knock or bump, he was already being incredibly protective.

They followed Hicks into the main hall, where he led them up to an F16 fighter jet, with the name "Eagle 1" emblazoned on the side. Jayden saw the smile on Scott's face. While Marcus' plane was, in truth, still out in the desert, this one had been constructed in the museum as a memorial to him.

"This is a fighter plane just like those flown by Eagle Squadron during the Battle of Corinth." He told them. "Although they were outnumbered and outgunned, they were critical to protecting the evacuees, and they were honoured with this display. Only one member of the squadron survived that day, but their legacy lives on in Corinth and the people therein."

Jayden flicked a little look over to Scott. He knew that Scott had told him he was part of the air defence. He had never told him he was the only one to make it back. He felt a hand siding into his and looked down, finding it wrapping around his own. He smiled as he followed it up, finding Antonio holding it. He never asked for it, he never even indicated it, but Antonio just knew this was something that was hard for him to hear. It brought back memories of his father and his sacrifice.

"Recently, we managed to reconstruct the final communications from the flight recorder of the squad leader, Marcus Truman." Hicks continued. He started the recording, letting them hear the details of that fateful day. Jayden tightened his grip on Antonio's hand, but the Gold Ranger didn't mind. All he could do was smile.

Back in their reality, Spike and Vicky found the others as they were sitting down to lunch. He made his way over, taking a seat and pulling out his lunch as he joined them.

"Jimmy was just telling us about this morning." Mal greeted him. "Not a smart move."

"Letting him out?" Spike asked.

"Tattling to the head!" Mal whispered under his breath. "Are you trying to get your ass kicked?"

"I was trying to make sure Jimmy didn't spend the day in his locker." Spike told him dejectedly.

"Mal's right, Dr. Phelps never does anything against the football team." Vicky told him. "I mean, if one of them was standing over a kid with half a dozen bullets in him holding a smoking gun, he'd probably say it was the other kid's fault for getting in the way of the bullets."

"That's an exaggeration surely." Spike said with a little grunting laugh. None of the others joined him though. Instead, Jimmy just drew closer.

"There's a reason I didn't confirm your story." He told him. "Today I was stuffed in my locker. If I tattled, then tomorrow, I'd be hanging from the flagpole by my underwear."

Spike just looked at them all aghast.

"Don't any of you want to stop this shit?" He asked them.

"Of course we want it to end." Vicky told him. "We're just realistic."

"The smallest guy on the football team outweighs pretty much all of us by a hundred pounds." Mal told him. "If we tried anything, we'd be killed!"

"Or expelled." Jimmy chipped in. "The football team always sticks together. If it's our word against theirs, they always have about two dozen witnesses saying whatever they want their version of the story to be."

Spike wanted to argue, but from his own experiences, he could remember what bullying was like. As long as the kids stuck together, providing alibis and making sure no one was ever witnessed doing anything by the faculty, then nothing could touch them.

"We have gym class to look forward to." Vicky sighed, looking to Spike. "It's Friday, so it'll be dodgeball."

"So..."

"Just turn your back, don't get smacked in the face and walk off." She told him. "Unless you really like the idea of spending the weekend with a concussion."

Just as he was about to answer, he felt a hand clamping down on his shoulder. He winced in pain under the harsh grip of the claw digging into him with incredible force. The hand was massive, and looked like it could crush a coconut like a grape.

"Hey New Kid, I heard you had an interesting talk with Dr. Phelps." A kid commented. The voice was deep, having already broken. Spike craned his neck to look up the arm, seeing a kid that almost looked like the size of a small family car standing behind him. He had long, brown hair, and dark brown eyes. His smile held nothing but menace in it. "I guess now you have a better understanding how things work around here."

"I'm starting to get the idea." Spike replied. The big kid just dug his fingers in more harshly.

"I have a feeling coach will merge the classes today." He told him. "I'll be looking for you."

Spike's face froze in an expression of contempt. This was a poorly veiled threat, but one none of them could prove even if they did complain. Spike remembered what Serena had taught him, and grabbed the behemoth's wrist, jamming a couple of fingers into just the right spot to catch the nerve. His fingers released their grip involuntarily, and Spike threw his hand off dismissively. The kid looked completely confused and horrified at what had happened. He had no idea how Spike had thrown his hand off him, but he had made a point. Brad and a few others made their way over.

"Kurt, is everything cool here?" Brad asked him. Kurt was still looking at Spike, seemingly a little confused about what had transpired. Spike made a mental note that Serena's technique had done its job. He had made a point.

"Yeah, just reminding the new kid how things work here." He replied. "That and telling him coach will probably merge the classes today."

"Yeah, that'll be fun." Brad chuckled, patting Kurt on the shoulder. "Good luck new kid."

"Home School's looking pretty good right about now isn't it?" Vicky asked him. Spike just shook his head.

"Not really." He said with a little smirk. "Lunchtimes are kind of lonely."

In Corinth, the Rangers completed their tour by arriving at City Hall. The building was impressive, but not much in and of itself, just like any government office. However, on this occasion, there was a red carped leading down to the bus, and huge banners strung across it. There was already a crowd assembled for their arrival. Flynn put on the parking brake and turned to them with a smile.

"We had to keep you distracted while they set up." He told them. The Samurai were all beaming with joy. One of the things that sucked about the secret identity shtick was that it was thankless. No one knew who to thank. There were no parades in their honour, no public holidays, rarely was there anything beyond a newscaster just saying thank you on the evening news. His time though, there was no secret in their identity, and he party was for them.

As they filed off the bus, they were almost blinded by the paparazzi as the camera flashes bombarded them. They couldn't help smiling and the excitement was exhilarating. Emily looked ready to bounce right out of her skin if Mike wasn't holding her down. The RPM rangers though were a lot more subdued. They were a bit more used to the public attention.

"You know, I could get used to this." Antonio whispered to Jayden with a little grin as he waved to the crowd. "Maybe we should reconsider the whole secret identity thing."

"Well, we all know you like attention." Jayden eased him. "After all, you did become a..."

"So, what do you reckon is with the podium?" Antonio interrupted him. Jayden just laughed. He loved having something on Antonio that he could tease him with.

"I guess there's only one way to find out." He replied. As Antonio was about to go, he grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

"Jayden?" Antonio asked. Jayden couldn't find any words though. Antonio was happier than he could remember seeing him, and it was infectious. He wanted to explain how it made him feel, but he couldn't find the words. Things had been strained between them since the whole Alexandra thing. As their eyes met, he did the only thing he could think of and pulled Antonio towards him, pressing his lips to the Gold Rangers'. He didn't even notice the whoops of approval from the crowd, or the fact that the other Rangers had turned to watch them. They only parted when Hicks cleared his throat.

"Um...the deputy Mayor wants to start the presentation." Hicks told them.

"Presentation?" Jayden asked.

"We're giving you the key to the city." Hicks told them. "So..."

"Yeah, we're ready." Antonio replied, putting his arm around Jayden. "Come on."

As they made their way to the podium, Antonio was grinning from ear to ear.

Back in their reality, Spike and Vicky had changed for gym class and arrived to find, just as predicted, that the gym teacher and football coach, Mr. Ocean, had merged the classes and arranged them in the gym for dodgeball. It was not entirely surprising; it was the final periods of a Friday, so it was an easy way for him to finish the week without actually having to arrange a lesson.

"Just remember what I said. Vicky whispered to him.

"Alright class, today is dodgeball." Mr. Ocean told them. "Seniors on the left, Sophomores on the right."

Spike knew right away that someone had spoken to the coach. No one in their right mind would ever have thought that was a fair split. The half of the seniors that didn't push the two hundred pound mark still towered over everyone on the sophomore's team. He looked across and saw Brad and Kurt sniggering as the two teams lined up.

"Alright, let's see what you have." Mr. Ocean stated, throwing the ball into play.

To say the game was a massacre would have been an understatement. Vicky had done as she had advised Spike to do and turned her back, taking a ball to the shoulder less than a minute in, and heading to the bench. The others fell in pretty quick order, but as he bounced around, trying to size up the game, Spike noticed something. No one was aiming for him. The ball soared around him several times, painfully eliminating the others, but not once was it coming anywhere near him.

Finally, he stood alone. There were still about a dozen seniors facing off against him. Brad gave him a knowing wink.

"Try to dodge this new kid." He said dismissively as they all launched their balls. Spike knew it was hopeless to avoid all of them, but he could make a point in the end. He managed to block a couple with his forearms, but also managed to kick one back, which smacked Brad square in the face. He didn't even care as the coach blew his whistle.

"You little..."

"Brad, cool it!" One of the other seniors told him, nodding in the direction of Mr. Ocean. "It's just a game."

"Yeah, it's just a game." Brad replied, glaring at Spike. "A game that kid's going to learn the rules of."

A little later, in the changing room, Spike was talking about the game with Mal when Brad showed up. He barged into the room, silencing everyone with his presence. He had another couple of seniors with him for backup. He saw Spike and made his way over.

"What the hell was that kid?" He asked.

"A game of dodgeball?" Spike answered tentatively. Brad seemed less than amused.

"No one beans me kid, no one!" He replied, shoving Spike to the floor with a thud. Spike just looked up at him. "I'm telling you kid, you need to learn your place. If you do that again, I'll knock your teeth in! I swear to God I'll knock your God Damned teeth in!"

As Brad walked away, Mal just offered Spike a hand, but he wouldn't take it. Spike instead just scrambled to his feet, and followed Brad out to the adjoining changing room. Spike approached the quarterback, picking up a pair of balled socks and launching them at his head. They rebounded off, catching the quarterback's attention.

"Do you have a death wish?" He growled.

"Do it." Spike snarled.

"What?" Brad asked him.

"You said you'd knock my teeth in, do it!" Spike barked. Brad just looked to his friends, before laughing and cracking his knuckles.

"Alright..."

"No, no here." Spike told him. "You always insist on an audience, meet me outside."

Spike ignored the cat-calls and whoops as he went outside. Although Serena had told him not to fight, by now he was finding it hard to find another option. Brad was riding him and his friends constantly. He would never leave them alone, and his experience with the staff told him that he could not expect them to intervene. He got out into the courtyard, a concrete basketball court, and turned around, taking off his jacket. By now, both the boys and the girls were filing out. Vicky ran over to him looking horrified with Mal at her side. Obviously he had relayed the story.

"Spike, have you lost your freaking mind?" She screamed at him.

"No, I've only lost my patience." He told her.

"He'll rip your head off!" She screeched, her eyes pleading with him to see sense. "Spike..."

"Don't go too far." He told her. "This'll be over soon."

Brad took off his letterman jacket, leaving him wearing only a sleeveless tee that showed off exactly why he was the quarterback. While he wasn't the biggest kid in school, he had muscles that looked like they weighed almost as much as Spike did. He was toned, and had an incredible physique. He looked to Spike and smiled.

"You know, if you want to back out..."

"No, I just want to make some conditions." Spike told him. "None of your friends interfere. It's just you and me."

"I don't need anyone to turn you into pulp, but ok." Brad told him, before looking to the crowd. "No one interferes! It's just me and him!"

Spike took off his jacket, handing it to Mal.

They circled each other for a moment, before Brad launched his way, swinging for the fences. Spike managed to duck, but he was caught off balance. For someone his size, Brad was incredibly fast, much faster than Spike had anticipated. He was starting to realise why he was on the football team.

"Keep swinging asshole." Spike beckoned him. "Maybe you'll give me a cold!"

Brad went into a rage, rushing Spike and swinging for him with everything he had. Spike was always only just able to keep out of reach, leading to some boos and jeers from the crowd who thought he was running away. In reality, he was just that little bit faster than Brad and just managed to stay out of reach.

He felt himself collide with something metal as he stepped back, and was stunned for a moment, but recovered just in time to see Brad's fist coming his way. He dodged in time, only for the quarterback to slam his hand home with a sickening crunch and a horrendous scream of pain.

Spike took the opportunity, kicking his leg out from under him, sending Brad to one knee, and then smashing him in the face with a massive roundhouse. He turned to the crowd who were already divided. The sophomores were cheering, having seen him take down Brad, but the Seniors were silent.

"Now you see what he's really like!" Spike screamed. "He's a fucking coward!"

His eyes blazed with fury and adrenaline was still coursing through him as he addressed them.

"You all shove us around and call us names because you're so brave when here's a huge group of you, but just remember this the next time you think that's cool!" Spike screamed. "The one and only time one of you had the guts to take me by myself, I handed him his ass in less than a minute!"

Vicky was becoming restless as she saw other members of the team surrounding Brad, who was still rolling around in agony.

"That's right folks, that's the real lesson here! We..."

"I think...I think I busted my hand." Brad sobbed. There was suddenly a deathly silence as all the kids looked at him. He tried to move his hand, but every movement was painful. "I busted my hand!"

Spike paused as he suddenly realised that everyone was now silent. Brad was the quarterback, and a lot of the school's prestige came from the success of the football team. There was a reason he was the king of the school. Kurt tried to move brad's hand, but all that resulted in was a horrendous scream. The rest of the football team got up and rounded on Spike.

"Spike run!" Vicky screamed. Spike didn't need to be told twice, and turned, sprinting off with the football team in hot pursuit.