The Labrynth
Jason spent several minutes pounding at the wall where his father had been, searching for the trip that had opened up what he assumed was some sort of trap door. It was sealed tight, though, and he found his efforts were totally wasted. Distressed and becoming considerably more frightened with each minute that passed, he stood up again to contemplate his position. That was when he heard it. Heavy footsteps.... metallic breathing....
Jason felt his stomach start to churn as the Minotaur monster rounded the corner and charged at the boy, bellowing its rage. Covering his ears, Jason ducked beneath the grip of the monster and slipped around behind him. It was not a clean getaway, though. As he ran, the beast's tail flicked backwards and snapped against his back, sending a current of electricity so powerful through the boy that it lifted him clean off his feet and threw him several metres down the corridor.
Stunned, Jason pushed himself up slowly, then cringed at the pain that flared up through his back. He had little time to lament over his injury, though, for one glance over his shoulder revealed the Minotaur was coming back for a second try. Groaning softly, Jason pushed himself to his feet and started to run.
~*~
Mondo chuckled cruelly as he watched both man and boy through the monitors in the castle.
"They're separated. Now it's time to have some fun."
~*~
The Rangers landed in darkness. Tommy was on his feet immediately, peering around while the others took a moment longer to pull themselves up.
"Oh god, it's freezing," Kat gasped as an icy wind hit them. Tommy switched on the flashlight that Billy had provided him with, and shone it around. The brilliant light revealed to walls on either side of them, and an endless corridor running off in two directions.
"Which way?" Tanya asked. "Forward or back?"
"Forward," Tommy murmured decisively. "Listen up, guys. Stick close together and don't forget what Zordon told us about this place. It's got more pitfalls than an arcade game. If we get separated, we may never find each other again."
"Here," Adam spoke up, and began to unravel a length of rope. "I grabbed this before we teleported here. If we all hold onto it, we might have a better chance of staying together."
Tommy nodded his approval and took hold of one end of the rope, and moved into the lead.
"Okay, let's go find Jase and his dad."
~*~
He was fairly sure that he'd lost the Minotaur. At least, he couldn't hear it any longer. Jason groaned softly as he slowed to a halt and tried to catch his breath. His back was on fire from where the monster's tale had caught him. He knew electricity could cause bad burns, and he had no doubt that his back had been burned by the surge of electricity.
_Great_ he thought dismally. _This, on top of everything else_
"Mondo!" he bellowed in a burst of anger. "If I get my hands on you I'll disassemble you so they can't ever put you back together!"
It was mere bluff. He knew it, and he supposed Mondo knew it, too. At any rate, they both knew he had no hope of standing against Mondo without any powers. His shoulders slumped and he leant back against the wall, only to push off again, wincing from the pain the contact caused.
Why? he wondered miserably, could he not be just left alone? Not a Ranger anymore, but still right in the thick of it. He rubbed his hands together, trying to fight off the icy cold. Usually it was Tommy who was the target for insane plans like this. He wasn't used to being the target or the bait at all.
A sound reached his ears, and he froze, his entire body tensed and ready to either fight or run. Footsteps echoed down the corridor towards him, close but not close enough for him to see who, or what, was coming.
"Dad?" he called out with tentative hope, but there was no answer.
Deciding not to hang around to find out what else could be sharing the maze with him, Jason turned and took off down the corridor. He reached a forked passage and, after a moment's indecision, took the left passage and vanished quickly into the darkness.
Less than a minute later, a tinge of colour became visible down the other end of the corridor, and Tommy appeared, still leading the rest of the team with the rope. They reached the fork, and Tommy finally halted, pulled up by the others.
"What are you running for?" Rocky demanded to know. Tommy looked grim.
"I thought I heard someone call out. It sounded like Jason."
"If it was him, he must have panicked and taken off," Kat mused. "He had to have gone down one of these tunnels."
"It might not have been Jason," Adam pointed out. "It could have been a trick."
"Trick or not," Tommy said, "we have to decide which way to go. Any suggestions?"
Silence fell for a long moment before Tanya spoke.
"I say we go left."
"Based on what?" Rocky asked incredulously. "You know that in the movies, something bad always happens when you take the left door or turn."
Tanya glared at him. "Something bad is likely to happen no matter which way we turn, Rocky. I think we should go left because Jason is left-handed. If it was him that was here before, I think he would have gone left. I read a research report that people make navigational judgments according to which hand they favour."
Tommy had to smile behind his helmet. "Don't take offense, Tanya, but that's one of the most ridiculous things I've ever heard. However, I think we'll go left anyway. C'mon. And stay close."
The Rangers hurried off down the left fork, deliberately staying close to each other.
~*~
Rocky had been more right than even he would have cared. Jason had gone nearly half a kilometre down the left fork when the floor suddenly fell away beneath him, and only a frantic grab at an overhanging vine saved him from a potentially fatal fall. He hung tightly to the vine with his one good hand, swinging over a wide chasm and holding on only by sheer force of will.
Then, he made the mistake of looking down.
For the barest second, his grip loosened and he very nearly fell. So far below him that he couldn't judge the distance, was the floor of the pit, covered with tall stalagmites whose metal surfaces glinted in the dull light.
Confusion flickered in Jason's mind. Metal stalagmites...?
Panic finally hit, and the former Gold Ranger opened his mouth and lungs, and screamed.
~*~
Rob Carter froze, his ears picking up a distant cry for help. That sounded like Jason.... He waited, not even daring to breathe, for the echo to cease, hoping that the last echo would give him a good idea of which direction to take. Finally, it faded and stopped and Rob made a calculated guess as to the direction it had come from. Praying he was right, he ran off up the corridor, hoping against hope to find his son.
~*~
The Rangers reached the edge of the chasm, skidding to a halt just in time to avoid tumbling over the edge. Tommy looked breathlessly down into the pit, then back to his dangling friend.
"Jason!"
Jason looked quickly in the direction of the voice, then away again, terrified that he'd lose concentration and fall.
"He's slipping, Tommy," Kat whispered, her voice taking on a sharp edge. "What do we do?"
Tommy was at a momentary loss. What to do?
"Jason!" he called out finally. "Just hang on, bro. We're gonna get you down from there."
"Hurry," Jason begged them through clenched teeth. "I can't hold on for much longer."
"Tell him to try and swing this way," Adam said. "He might be able to swing far enough that we can grab him."
Tommy was about to concede when he remembered something.
"The rope!" he shouted. "Give it to me, quick."
He gathered up the length of rope and quickly made a lasso with one end.
"You think it'll reach him?" Rocky asked tensely. Tommy gritted his teeth in grim determination.
"It had better. Jase, listen up. I'm gonna throw a rope out to you, bro. I'm gonna try get it over your head and shoulders."
"Hurry," Jason pleaded again, and they could all hear the stark fear in his voice. Tommy drew in a deep breath and, swinging the lasso over his head, he threw it out across the chasm. The rope landed squarely over Jason's head, and the young man managed to maneuver the rope over his plastered hand and arm.
Not a moment too soon, for an instant later, the vine came free of the rock ceiling and Jason plummeted down into the pit. Tommy would surely have been hauled over the edge and into the chasm as well, but for Rocky and Adam lunging forward and grabbing hold of their leader, and slowly dragging him back, away from the edge.
"Gotta get him back up," Tommy gasped between breaths. "The rope's around his neck... It's choking him..."
The girls came in to help, and between the five of them, they managed to drag Jason up over the edge and to safety.
"Jase," Tommy said breathlessly as he quickly removed the lasso from around Jason's underarm and neck, where it had nearly become a noose. "You okay, bro?"
Jason coughed painfully, and his face gradually began to return to its normal colour, from the deep shade of purple that it had gone.
"I think so... Oh man..."
Rocky whistled softly as he peered over the edge of the chasm, to the stalagmites below.
"Wow, what a drop. Wouldn't like to be the sorry sucker to land on those things."
"I nearly was," Jason snapped, in no mood to joke. A moment later, he felt a pair of hands, gentle but firm, carefully massaging his neck where the rope had burned his skin. A glance back over his shoulder revealed it to be Tanya.
"Just relax," she told him quietly, holding him back when he tried to pull away. "Unless you want to lose all sensation over the next hour or so, then let me do this."
"She's right," Adam agreed. "Some of the nerves in your neck could have been pinched by the rope. Let her do it, Jase. We aren't going anywhere anyway. Not yet."
Jason looked aggravated. "I've had enough of this bullshit. I just want to find Dad and get the hell out of here."
Kat, who had been watching for any unwelcome characters, made a noise of surprise.
"I think we just found him. Look, guys."
They looked around to see Rob Carter appear on the other side of the chasm, looking wet and cold, but unhurt. Jason started up, only to be held down by Tommy and Adam as Tanya continued to massage his neck.
"Dad!" Jason called out. Rob peered at them through the dim light, and then relief flooded his face.
"Thank God. Are you all right?"
"He's okay," Tommy confirmed, getting up and moving to the edge of the chasm. "Are you all right, sir?"
"I'm fine, Tommy. It is Tommy, isn't it?"
Tommy froze, then looked back to Jason, who shrugged.
"Mondo spilled the beans. Not me."
A sigh escaped Tommy, and he removed his helmet.
"Yeah, it's me, Mr Carter," he confirmed. "Now, we just have to figure out how to get you over to this side. Better stay there until we do."
A wry smile touched Rob's lips. "Don't worry. I'm not going anywhere. A warning, though. Don't lean against the walls. They have a nasty habit of disappearing on you."
Tommy smiled and nodded, then looked back to his friends. "Any brilliant ideas, guys?"
Adam shook his head. "I wish Billy was with us. He'd probably be able to get the teleportation working."
Rocky's gaze fell on the rope and he was about to make a suggestion, only to be stopped cold by a threatening look from Jason.
"Don't even think about it. The rope isn't long enough, and he's heavier than I am."
Next to Tommy, Adam suddenly drew in a sharp breath of surprise. They all looked, just in time to see the dark emptiness of the pit shimmer slightly then disappear, to be replaced by what looked like solid ground. Rob stood still for a moment, then started to step forward.
"Dad, no!" Jason yelled. "That's what happened to me. I tried running across there, and the ground just disappeared!"
"Well, there's no other way across," Rob argued. "I'm not a magician, Jason. I can't levitate. I have to try it."
Jason frowned, but didn't argue. Tommy took the rope up and, untying the lasso, threw it across to Rob, who was just able to reach the end.
"Take the rope and hold on tight," Tommy told him as he put his helmet back on. "Then, if the floor vanishes again, we'll pull you up. Just don't let go."
Rob grimaced. "Thanks for the advice. God forbid I should die in this place. You'd never be able to explain it to the tabloids."
A pained look flickered across Jason's face. "Don't say that, Dad. Please..."
Rob stared at his son in surprise, then spared him a reassuring smile.
"It'll be all right, Jason. We'll get out of here, and we'll be fine. I pro..."
He faltered, and trailed off in mid-sentence.
"What's wrong?" Adam asked in confusion. Rob stiffened visibly.
"Don't you hear that?"
Jason got up, then, pulling away from Tanya. "Is it....?"
"It damn well sounds like it," Rob growled.
"What the hell is that?" Rocky spluttered as two red pinpricks of light appeared in the darkness behind Rob.
"Run, Dad!" Jason yelled. Rob needed no encouragement, and bolted across the ground just as the Minotaur emerged out of the darkness.
"Oh shit," Tommy swore, his eyes going wide behind his visor as he stared at the huge metal brute. "Hurry, Mr Carter!"
Rob picked up the pace, and was almost across when it happened. There was a shimmer of light, and the ground wavered beneath his feet.
"Jump!" Jason screamed, his voice laced with panic. "Dad, jump!"
Rob launched himself into the air, milliseconds before the ground vanished beneath his feet. Behind him, bellow of rage became an ear-piercing scream as the Minotaur fell, caught by surprise. Just as Rob landed with a crash on the very edge of the opposite side of the chasm, there was a roar as the Minotaur exploded, impaled by half a dozen metal stalagmites.
"Another one bites the dust," Rocky muttered, peering over the edge at the wrecked metal far below. Tommy helped Rob up, drawing him away from the edge.
"Are you okay, Mr Carter?"
Rob nodded. "Yes. Shaken, but not stirred." He paused, and shook his head when the joke brought no reaction. "Sorry. Little movie in-joke. Jason?"
Jason didn't wait for an invitation, but threw his arms around Rob in a tight hug. Rob smiled faintly at his son's reaction, and returned the hug happily.
Moon castle
"Uh Daddy?" Sprocket spoke up tentatively. Mondo began to walk over to his son.
"What is it, Sprocket?"
"I don't think you're gonna like it. The Rangers destroyed the Minotaur."
"What?" Mondo exploded. "How is that possible? That monster was indestructible!"
"I guess someone forgot to tell that to the Rangers," Sprocket suggested cheekily. Mondo turned away, almost steaming with fury.
"That is it! Clank! Go in there with a squad of cogs, and destroy them! Now!"
Clank barely withheld a heavy sigh. "Yes, yer majesty."
~*~
"Ow!"
Rob drew back quickly from his son, looking Jason over in concern.
"What is it?"
Jason cringed a little. "It... It's nothing. It's just...."
"Your back!" Kat exclaimed, seeing the rip in the material, and the burned flesh through the hole. Rob turned Jason around firmly and lifted up the shirt to reveal a space of three or four square inches of burned flesh.
"That monster?" Rob asked, and Jason nodded.
"Yeah. It showed up after you fell through the wall. Caught me with its tail."
A smirk cross the older man's face. "Hope you like hospital food. You're going to be back in there as soon as we get out of here."
Jason looked mortified, but before he could make any sort of protest, there was a now-familiar flash of light.
"Cogs," Adam moaned. "Damn!"
Tommy moved forward, fists clenched. "Clank? Do you really want to take us on right now?"
Clank snorted in response. "It isn't as though I have a choice, Red Ranger. Cogs, attack!"
The Rangers all leapt forward into the fight, while Rob drew back with Jason.
"I'm getting dejavu," Rob muttered. Jason glanced back at his father.
"This is what got us into trouble in the first place. Excuse me."
Before Rob could protest, Jason threw himself into the fight, broken arm and all. For several seconds, Rob stood there in silence, watching the battle worriedly. However, it soon became apparent that his concern was unwarranted. The Rangers had no intention of being beaten, or tricked, twice in a row. Within minutes, all the cogs had been demolished, and the Rangers were advancing on a startled Clank.
"Now, take it easy," Clank pleaded with them. "I'm just a lowly hench- man. You wouldn't hit a lacky, would you?"
Tommy thumped his right fist into his left palm. "That depends how fast you clear out of here."
"I'm going, I'm going," Clank reassured them frantically. A moment later, he vanished, leaving them alone. Tommy nodded, satisfied, and looked around at the small group.
"I think it's time to get the hell out of here."
"That," Rob agreed as he moved up beside Jason, "is the best idea I've heard yet."
Tommy smiled behind his visor, and lifted his communicator.
"Billy, do you read me?"
"I read you, Tommy," Billy's voice came back, laced with static, but understandable. "Stand by for teleportation. We'll have you out of there in just a second."
Silence reigned for a long moment, and then there was a flash of rainbow light as they all teleported out of the maze.
~*~
"Back on solid, safe ground," Rob muttered as they arrived back in the Power Chamber. "Thank God."
Tommy approached cautiously, removing his helmet. "Mr Carter, technically, our identities all of this is supposed to be secret. We need you to vow to keep it that way."
Jason elbowed Rob lightly in the side. "That means no movies about the Power Rangers, and the people behind them."
Rob smiled, but the amusement had faded to be replaced by a genuine understanding.
"Don't worry, kids. The secret will be safe with me. I promise."
"Here, Mr Carter."
Rob looked around as Billy came forward, and was surprised when the young man offered him a bracelet the same as those worn by the other teens.
"It's a communicator," Jason explained. "Everyone who knows about the Rangers has one. You don't have to wear it. Just keep it close by."
"You think I'd need it?" Rob asked. There was no hint of mockery in his voice; just surprise and curiosity.
"Maybe," Tommy said with a shrug. "Our parents have been taken hostage before to try and make us do what they want. If nothing else, though, it'll cut down on big phone bills for you and Jason."
Rob grinned, then, and latched the communicator onto his wrist. "I'll never take it off. Well, hardly ever, anyway." He reached over and slung his arm around Jason's shoulders. "I think we'd better get our sorry butts back to town, son. Your mother and my wife will be insane with worry by now. And besides that, we have a movie to finish."
Alpha spoke up from where he stood at the control panel.
"Teleporting now."
Then, they were gone in a flash of white light.
The question came from Rocky, and Tommy couldn't resist a grin.
"At the Youth Centre, helping Ernie. You didn't really expect him to come with us, did you?"
Rocky shrugged. "No, I guess not."
"Don't worry about him," Tanya said with a smirk. "He's simply annoyed that he won't have a chance to mock Jason during the movie."
Billy smiled knowingly. "From what little I've seen of the movie, there's little chance that Rocky would have the opportunity to mock Jason."
Tommy nodded as the teens made their way towards the designated cinema.
"Billy's right. And anyway, why would Jase need to be here? Don't forget, his dad dragged him along to the premiere in Canada."
Adam shook his head. "I don't understand why they chose Canada for the premiere. I mean, it was made in the U.S.!"
"That's true," Kat conceded, "but look at Bean: The Movie. That was a British made movie that was filmed in America and premiered in Australia."
"I'd say it was premiered in Canada because that's where they made the biggest box office profits with the first movie," Tommy reasoned. "Nothing like the thought of big bucks to make your decisions for you."
"Well, Jason is going to miss out on a great time," Rocky decided, ignoring the looks from his friends. "Seriously We're out enjoying a movie, and he's stuck drying dishes. I know where I'd rather be."
While the others only laughed, Billy spoke mindfully.
"We'll see, Rocky. I'd like to propose that if Rocky makes it through the entire film dry-eyed, I'll shout the first round of drinks back at the Youth Centre."
Rocky regarded Billy suspiciously as they paused at the doorway to the darkened cinema. "And if I don't?"
Billy favoured him with a shark-like grin. "Then you buy the drinks, and make a public apology to Jason for pestering him so much about the movie."
Rocky hesitated, then bristled with mock anger when Adam made clucking sounds.
"You're on. Hope you've got a full wallet, Billy. You're gonna need it."
Youth Centre
Ernie paused, watching as Jason fastidiously dried dishes and put them
away in their correct places. After the truth had come out about Alan Scott,
and in those weeks following, Jason had changed a lot. Ernie wasn't sure that
he could pinpoint it But there was definitely something different about the
young man. Perhaps it was that he had grown in maturity a little... Or maybe it
was simply that he was finally prospering after escaping the cruel abuse of a
man that he had only thought was his father.
Whatever it was, Jason Scott was becoming more confident and more content with his life with every day that passed. Shaking himself back to reality, Ernie walked over and patted Jason on the shoulder.
"Go and take a break, Jason. I'll finish up this lot."
Jason smiled and nodded, surrendering the towel to Ernie and making his way back out to the bar. The job with Ernie had been a suggestion that he had literally pounced on. After finally graduating, Jason had found himself not knowing exactly what he wanted to do. With a short break between graduation and the start of college, he'd decided to get a part-time job for some extra pocket money while he considered his options.
His friends thought him nuts, until he explained to them that the trust fund his father had provided him with was inaccessible until he was twenty-one. That was not for another two years, and the money he'd made from the movie had already been divided into the trust fund and several other investments. All up, as far as money in his pocket went, he was no better off than any of his friends.
He finished blending a smoothie for himself and was about to take it to a table when something caught his eye, and he looked to see his friends coming into the Youth Centre. A smirk touched his lips, and it was all he could do to keep a straight face. None of them were speaking; they were all cloaked in a very somber silence.
"What's the matter with you lot?" he asked, fighting back a grin as they approached the counter. "You all look like someone died."
Tommy looked up at Jason, then, glaring at his friend with half-hearted anger.
"Why the hell didn't you tell us that your character died? Geez, Jase, you could've warned us!"
Jason shrugged. "Would've spoiled the ending." He watched them, eyes sparkling with humour. "So, what did you think?"
"I think it's gonna be a while before I see another movie," Tommy muttered, sitting down with a thud on one of the stools.
"It was good, really," Kat spoke up. "The critics don't have a leg to stand on, that's for sure. But tell us something, Jason. How much did it affect you? Honestly."
Jason's smile faded, then. "Honestly? It did affect me pretty badly in some places." His gaze went to Billy, and the other young man nodded his understanding. Jason came around the counter to join his friends on the other side, motioning them over to their regular table. "Most of the time, when we were shooting it, I was okay. But occasionally, there were some spots that threw me. Like, the abuse scenes. There were a couple of times during shooting that I just froze up completely."
"That scene in the hospital," Tanya said quietly. "That was done at St. James, wasn't it?"
Jason nodded. "Yeah. We had to get those last scenes shot, but at the time I wasn't fit enough to leave hospital. So Dad arranged with the hospital directors to shoot the scenes there. See, John was originally supposed to find Austin in the basement of the house. Dad had the scene rewritten to fit a hospital."
"Let me guess," Rocky said dryly. "He convinced them to let him use the hospital with a blank cheque?"
"Actually," Jason said with a chuckle, "he threatened to sue the hospital for screwing up my blood test. It wasn't just that it caused a mix-up between us. After you guys got me to hospital, I needed a blood transfusion during the operation, and they gave me the wrong type blood as a result of the blood test getting mixed up. That could have finished off what Alan started to do in the Youth Centre. Dad was furious, and the directors of the hospital just panicked and said he could do whatever he liked, as long as he didn't sue."
The others laughed, and momentary quiet settled on the group. It was then that Adam elbowed Rocky in the side.
"Don't you have something to say, Rocky?"
Rocky scowled: he'd hoped that they would have forgotten. "Yeah, yeah. Don't rush me."
"C'mon, Rocky," Kat said with a smirk. "We're all waiting."
Rocky scowled at her, then forced himself to look at Jason. "I just wanted to say, you know... Sorry for hassling you so much. You know, over this movie business. Okay?"
Jason regarded Rocky in surprise, then looked around at the amused grins on his friends' faces.
"What's that about?"
Billy grinned broadly as he spoke. "Rocky and I had a little wager before the movie. If he made it all the way through dry-eyed, I would buy the first round of drinks upon arrival back here. If he didn't make it all the way through, then he would buy the first round, and apologize to you for pestering you so much about being in the movie."
Understanding dawned on Jason's face, and he couldn't resist a chuckle.
"I see." He looked to Rocky, bemused. "So that means..."
"He was crying like a baby when the film ended," Tanya confirmed. Rocky turned a glare on her.
"Tell the whole damn Youth Centre, why don't you?"
Tanya only smiled cheekily at him, much to the former Blue Ranger's annoyance. Jason laughed and shook his head.
"Don't worry about it, Rocky. Man, if you think that's embarrassing, you should have seen my mother after she and Amy saw it. I think she cried all night. I half wished I'd told her not to go."
"Anyway," Rocky grumbled, "the rest of you don't have anything on me. You were all bawling yourselves!"
"Yeah, we were," Tommy agreed. "But we're not too embarrassed to let anyone know."
Rocky scowled and, mumbling about needing to get drinks, got up and stalked off to the counter.
"He'll get over it," Adam said with a chuckle. "In a couple of years..."
Jason laughed and shook his head. "You're cruel, all of you."
"Hey, it's you we're defending!" Tommy protested. "Fine thanks we get for it."
A smirk formed on Jason's face. "Knock it off, Tommy. You know I appreciate you."
"But you don't show it anymore," Tommy gushed teasingly, and Jason went beet red, causing the others to dissolve into laughter once more.
"Funny," Jason grumbled, only half serious. Leaning across, Kat grasped Jason's hand and squeezed it reassuringly.
"Don't worry about us. We just need some time to get over the shock." She paused, then added teasingly, "Tell us, have you had any other movie offers?"
Jason laughed, then. "Actually, I have. I sent polite refusals, though. I don't want to go into that area. It's too uncertain. Besides, I have other plans, thanks very much."
"So you wouldn't go in for that even if your dad asked you to?" Adam wondered. Jason hesitated, staring at the tabletop.
"I don't think he would ask me. After this time.... He doesn't want me taking my career in that direction. I agree with him. I don't want to be an actor."
"Wait till someone offers him over ten million," Tommy chortled. "I bet he might change his mind then."
Jason snorted. "I don't think so. Dad set me up well and truly, thanks to that trust fund. As soon as I turn twenty-one, I'll be doing just fine." He looked at Tommy with a half-smirk. "Unless you're trying to tell me that you don't want to go into the karate school with me anymore?"
Tommy smiled, knowing he was beaten. "You know I do, bro."
Rocky arrived back with the drinks then, still grumbling, and talk fell to less serious matters for a while. Finally, the other had to go, eventually leaving Tommy alone in the Youth Centre with Jason. By then, everyone else had left, and only Ernie remained, to finish cleaning up and locking up the place. Jason and Tommy offered to take care of it, seeing the opportunity to have serious talk away from all prying ears and eyes. Ernie accepted, and soon the two boys had the Youth Centre to themselves.
"So, what did you really think?" Jason asked, and for the first time, Tommy noted the worry and pain in his friend's eyes.
"It really was good, Jase. Tanya was right. But man, it was heavy. No offence, but I don't think I could sit through it again."
"I understand," Jason agreed. "Seeing the premiere was almost too much for me. I could never see it again."
"It really was as bad as that, huh?"
Jason understood what Tommy was talking about. "Yeah. Sometimes worse. It all depended what sort of mood Alan was in. But the weirdest part is that it never actually occurred to me that it was abuse. I always thought it was my fault, somehow. I honestly believed that I'd done something to deserve it. It wasn't until Mum told me the truth that it started to occur to me that maybe it wasn't me after all."
Tommy sighed softly. He knew he couldn't begin to imagine what Jason had lived with for so long.
"Is that why you never told anyone?"
Jason didn't answer straight away, and Tommy felt a momentary touch of concern that perhaps he'd pushed it too far. He was surprised when Jason favoured him with a sad smile.
"I didn't keep it to myself, Tommy. I told someone else a long time ago, and I made her promise never to tell anyone else."
"Her?" Tommy echoed. His eyes widened in shock. "You told Kim, didn't you?"
Jason nodded slowly. "Yeah. It was when we were eight or nine. She knew something was wrong. She's a hell of a lot smarter than some people ever gave her credit for. It was for American History, and we were assigned as partners to work an a major term-long assignment. Most time I went around to Kim's place, or we met at the library. Before that assignment, I'd never really had any friends to ask around, so it never bothered me much I mean, with the way that Alan treated me and all. I probably wouldn't have thought about it if Kim had come to my place first. But this was before Kim's folks started fighting, and having problems, and I got a firsthand look at how fathers treated their kids. I started comparing Mr Heart to Alan, and I started realising then that something was wrong. It's kind of hard to explain. I guess it was just that Mr Heart treated me really kindly, where Alan made me think that I was the kind of person that no one could find it in them to be nice to. I thought there was something wrong with me, you know? After that, I didn't want Kim to come to my place. I started to get scared of what would happen if other people found out that my dad treated me differently to the way that other dads treat their kids. I didn't know what might have happened, but I was too scared to find out."
"But Kim did..." Tommy guessed.
"Sort of," Jason confirmed. "I don't know what she thought about all the excuses that I came up with to keep her away from my place, but one day she just fronted me after school and asked why I didn't want her to come to my place. I panicked and just ran. Pretty stupid thing to do, but it did the trick. Kim got sick of me being so evasive She'd already figured out that I was having problems at home; she just hadn't been able to guess what. So she followed me home that day. Alan wasn't there when she arrived, and Mum just sent her through to me in my room. She flatly refused to leave. Said we had to work to do on the assignment, and that we might as well work on it while she was there. I agreed just in the hope that we'd finish before Alan got home. Not that it would have mattered. Amy was so nasty to me all afternoon that by the time Alan came home she was really starting to wonder just what was going on."
Jason paused, shaking his head as he recalled the fateful day. "Alan was furious when he found Kim in my room. I mean, we'd only been working on the history assignment, and I don't know what he thought we were going to get up to... I mean, shit, we were only eight! Anyway, Alan flipped and sent me out to the shed. Told Mum to take Kim home straight away. I missed nearly a week of school after that, and when I got back, Kim confronted me and wanted to know straight out if Alan was beating me. I couldn't lie to her, but I somehow managed to get her to promise never to tell anyone. I don't know how she kept that promise..."
"Neither do I," Tommy muttered. "It must have nearly killed her. One thing's for sure, there's nothing that could have made me keep my mouth shut."
Jason nodded. "And that's why I never told you."
Tommy stared at Jason, not sure whether to be hurt or angered. Jason sighed heavily, sitting down on one of the counter stools.
"Don't get me wrong, Tommy. It wasn't because I didn't trust you. By then, I could almost see freedom. Another year and a half till I turned eighteen, and then I'd be free to leave home, if that was what I needed to do. And after everything, I think I was more worried about Mum than myself. In my own mind, I could cope with the beatings. I just didn't know if Mum would be able to survive without Alan."
Tommy had to smile, then, thinking of how independent Melissa Scott had become. He'd often heard his own mother praising her to his father.
"I don't think you gave your mother enough credit, Jase."
Jason laughed. "I know I didn't. But it didn't stop me thinking that. I guess that, in one way, it was an excuse for me not to try and break away, or make him stop. Aside from how bad it was, there was some security there as well. I didn't know what would happen if I decided to leave home, or even just go to the police about Alan. That scared me pretty badly."
"I'm almost tempted to thank Bruce Davis for beating you up that day. By the way... Just why did you let him beat you up? You could hold your own against him easily."
Jason sighed. "Not when I'd already taken a pretty severe beating the night before."
Tommy glowered at that. "Shit... No wonder you ended up in hospital. Three beatings in two days... Christ, no one should have to put up with that!"
Jason quirked a half-smile at his friend. "Except, maybe, Goldar."
The Red Ranger laughed out loud. "Oh yeah, ain't that the truth."
Momentary silence fell, and then Tommy spoke softly, seriously.
"I wish I could say that I understand, but I don't. Not really. I don't think I could ever understand. But you know I'm behind you all the way. You've got my support, no matter what."
Jason reached out to take Tommy's hand in his own, squeezing tightly.
"I know, Tommy. And that's all I ever wanted."
"But it's going to okay, now," Tommy murmured, his gaze flickering just briefly to the thin scar that now lined Jason's cheek, from where Alan had got him with the knife. Jason noticed Tommy's gaze, and one hand came up automatically, his fingertips tracing the outline of the scar down the length of his cheek.
"It's not a secret anymore. Alan made sure of that. Everytime people look at me, they know what he's responsible for. He'll never be able to live in this town again."
"If he ever gets out of jail," Tommy added, meaning the life sentence that Alan Scott had been given for the crimes of abuse, assault, attempted murder, among many others. Jason sighed.
"Yeah. With any luck, I'll never have to lay eyes on him again." He hesitated, then stood up. "I'm free now. It's not the way I imagined it happening, but it's finally happened. And the best part is that I don't have to acknowledge him as my father anymore. I've got a father now who really cares about me. I can't believe how good it's all turned out."
Tommy stood there, feeling momentary discomfort. He wanted, badly, to embrace his friend, but something held him back. Jason, however, saw the look in his friend's eyes and took the initiative, leaning over and wrapping his arms around Tommy in a huge bear hug. Tommy responded immediately, almost lifting Jason off the floor in his enthusiasm.
"I love you, Tommy."
The words were barely audible, but Tommy caught them and they brought tears to his eyes. This was his brother- maybe not by blood, but in every other sense. Brothers for life, and beyond.
"I love you too, bro," he answered, and meant it.
