Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers, but hey I can dream can't I?

*Italic indicates thought

Chapter Eight: Shdows in the Dark?

A/N: Happy Independence Day! Here's the next chapter. Please read and review! Pretty please!

"We've all got both light a dark inside of us. What matters is the part we chose to act on, that's who we really are." -Sirius Black

It wasn't that Antonio didn't like the dark. Or even that he hated it. It was that he was so terrified, he couldn't stand being outside when there was no sunlight or even moonlight. So naturally, when Mike suggested they play a friendly game of Marco polo in the forest at night, he was the fist one against it.

"It sounds like a stupid idea," he said. "Running around in the woods at night is just asking for someone to sprain their ankle."

"What're you scared?" the green ranger teased.

"No," Antonio said defensively. "Don't be ridiculous."

"Then you should have nothing to worry about."

So this was how Antonio found himself walking gently through a darkened forest. "Of course Ji had to say this would be a good training exercise," he muttered. "Teaches us about using our other senses. I could do that perfectly well when it's light out."

He stopped when he heard a noise off to his left. He gulped and tried to quiet his unsteady breath. The point of the game was to be be be the last person found. It was more hide-and-seek. "Mike needs to get his games straight," Antonio muttered. He listened bit didn't hear anything else. He continued on his way, hands out in front of him. He looked up. There was no moon, and it was cloudy, making the stars hard to see.

Antonio heard his heartbeat in his chest as he kept moving. He had his morpher, but using it as a light was against the rules. Plus it would draw Kevin to him like a moth to a flame. He stopped again when he heard another noise. He listened for it again. It sounded like a foot stepping lightly on fallen leaves. Probably one of the others. He looked around. It was difficult to see.

He found his way to a tree and felt some low branches. He pulled himself up and settled on a branch. He listened for the sound again, but it had stopped. "Gotta keep moving," he whispered, his voice sounding loud in his ears compared to the silent world around him. He dropped to the ground, landing harder than he would've liked, and kept moving.

He stumbled on a tree root, and reached for something to help him balance. He'd thought he was alone, so he jumped back and screamed when he felt whatever he'd grabbed onto grab him back. He jerked his wrist away and stumbled to the ground. The darkness was suffocating, and he could just make out a shadow. He gulped. This was the reason he was scarred of the dark. He gasped when he saw two red eyes peering at him through the shadows.

He got up and ran the opposite way. He kept tripping over roots, and snapping twigs but he didn't care. He wanted far away from the shadow. He heard a pursuit behind him. He cried out in fear and pushed thorny bushes away as fast as he could. A couple slapped him in the face, giving him small scratches, but he didn't care. He tripped on a rock and landed face down in the dirt. He heard the footsteps of his pursuer getting closer and wasted no time getting up. He ran a little slower, his head starting to hurt. He felt a small trickle of blood on his temple, but he didn't care.

He didn't look back for fear of what he would see. He suddenly found himself on the ground as someone jumped on him. "Ah!" he shouted trying to throw them off. He couldn't make out their face, but the grip on him was strong. He screamed in terror. He captor may have said something, but he couldn't hear them. He was in full panic mode. His heart thumped, bruising his rib cage.

"Antonio!" Lauren shouted running up. She shone her flashlight on him. "Calm down."

Kevin and Mike crashed through the trees next and shone their lights on whoever was holding Antonio down. The gold ranger was shocked to see Jayden. The red ranger's face was dirty, and a little bloody. He was put of breath from chasing his friend.

"Jayden-" Antonio said breathlessly. "You...You were chasing me?"

"Yeah," Jayden said letting him up.

Antonio got to his feet and looked around. All the others were here now and watching him. "But...it couldn't have been you."

"It was though. I started chasing you after you flipped out. I thought you were in trouble."

"But I thought-"

"What?"

"The shadow..." He whispered.

"Shadow?" Kevin asked, concerned.

"The shadow. It...it was a person. With glowing red eyes."

The rangers all looked at each other. "Antonio," Mia said. "There is no shadow."

"We would've seen it," Lauren said.

"But it was there. It had been following me! I saw it!"

Mike shook his head like he thought Antonio was crazy.

"Antonio," Lauren said kindly, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. "There is no shadow. You imagined it."

"No! I really didn't!"

"The darkness must've freaked you out and your mind played tricks on you," Emily said.

"No! There's something out here!" He grabbed a light from one of them. "I'll sow you!"

He took off running the way he'd come.

"Antonio stop!" Laurens shouted as they followed him.

He stopped at the place he'd seen the shadow. He shone the light in the area. "See! Right there-" He realized the light was shining on nothing. Just a bush. "But-"

"Dude there's nothing there," Mike said.

Antonio shook his head."I don't understand it."

"There's nothing to understand," Kevin said firmly. "You imagined it."

"No!" he shouted turning to face them. "I didn't. It was real!"

Jayden sighed. "I think we should go home."

Lauren grabbed Antonio's wrist. "Come on 'tonio."

He followed her reluctantly. He stopped and took one last look at the spot. They didn't believe him. But there really had been something there. He wasn't crazy.

Right?