Kidnapped
by Naomi Tilley

How, he wondered helplessly, could someone like Rick Daniels be allowed to walk free, when he himself was virtually a prisoner of his own mind...?

It was beyond his comprehension, beyond what he could cope with. "Jason?" It was his father, outside the bedroom door. "Go away," Jason said in a muffled voice as he threw himself down on his pillows.

"Jason, let's talk about this," Donavon begged.

"Go away!" Jason screamed. "I don't want to talk about anything! Just go away!"

There was a long silence, and then his father spoke again. "All right, but we'll be in the kitchen if you decide you do want to talk about it."

Jason listened to the footsteps fade away, then sat up again. One thing he had become sure of was that he could not go on surviving in a world where monsters could roam free. Rick Daniels was a monster, and in Jason's mind, he likened the man to Goldar, who had once caused Jason so much torment. In his confused mind, Jason suddenly found himself unable to distinguish the human monster from the other monsters, and he began to cry again, a despairing, pitiful cry.

Unable to sort out anything in his mind other than his wish to end his life, Jason stumbled to his feet and headed for the window. Pushing it open, he slipped through and fled the house.

~*~

"You know," Adam laughed, "if I didn't know any better, I'd have to believe you destroyed that monster single handedly, Rocky."

Rocky grinned. "Hey, I had a hand in it."

"He did," Tommy added, also grinning. "He had a hand in the high fives at the end of the fight."

Rocky looked wounded, while Adam burst into a fresh fit of laughter. Tommy chuckled to himself, wiping tears from his eyes as he gazed around the park. The next instant, his laughter faded, and panic replaced his sense of humour. "Oh no...."

"Oh no what?" Rocky asked, looking around. Tommy pointed. "Over there. Please, tell me that isn't Jason...."

"It is..." Adam said, his voice suddenly quiet again. "He's alone..."

"And he looks damned upset about something," Rocky muttered. "Hey, where's he headed?"

Tommy frowned for a long moment before realising. "The road... C'mon!"

All three boys broke into a run, taking off in a desperate chase after the former Red Ranger.

~*~

~*~

At the last moment, Jason stumbled briefly over an out jutting tree root, and it gave Adam the second he needed to catch up. Launching himself through the air, he hit Jason from behind and brought the teen to the ground with a crash.

Jason gasped in shock, stunned by the impact with the ground. Adam took his chance, and quickly pinned Jason down, so he couldn't move. Rocky and Tommy arrived on the scene, then, and Tommy crouched down in front of Jason.

"What the hell are you trying to do?" he exploded, badly frightened by his friend's apparent suicide attempt.

Jason looked up at Tommy, tears flooding his eyes. "What do you care?" he choked out. "What does anyone care? I'm just a loser, I'm nothing..."

"You idiot," Adam growled. "Do you really believe that?"

"Yes!" Jason screamed, nearly hysterical. Adam looked up at Tommy helplessly. Tommy ran his fingers through his long hair, frustrated and at a loss for what to say. A long moment of silence passed, and just as Rocky started to speak, their communicators chimed.

"Aw, hell...." Tommy muttered, getting up.

Adam spoke quietly. "You guys go ahead. I'll stay with Jason."

Tommy hesitated, then consented. "Okay. We'll be back as soon as we can."

The two boys teleported out, and as soon as they did, Jason began to struggle.

"Let me up..." he growled angrily. Adam shook his head, deliberately tightening his grip.

"No way. Not until I know you aren't gonna do anything stupid. C'mon, Jase, snap out of it, will you?"

Jason's head dropped back down to the dirt. "Didn't you hear the news?"

"What news?"

"About the trial..." Jason moaned. "The judge sentenced Rick Daniels today."

"And?" Adam prompted, not entirely sure he wanted to know.

"Six year suspended sentence," the teen whispered, his body starting to shake with silent sobs.

Adam felt his heart sink. So that was it... He decided that it was past time for treating Jason with kid gloves; it was time for a serious reality check. "And you're gonna let that beat you now. Is that it, Jason?"

Jason tried to look at Adam over his shoulder. "What am I supposed to do? He's practically free...."

"And so are you," Adam argued. "Come on, Jason, get a grip, huh? So things didn't work out the way you wanted them to, so what? You've gotta get on with life. I know you won't ever be able to forget what happened, but you need to start getting your life back together. Don't let everything you do be overshadowed by what that bastard did to you!"

Jason shut his eyes against the tears. "I can't help it, Adam," he whispered. "It's too hard...."

"It's only as hard as this because you're making it hard for yourself, and you won't let anyone help you. You've gotta fight! You have to...." He trailed off abruptly, realising something with a feeling of shock. "Jason, did you make it here from your house on your own?"

"Yeah," Jason mumbled dismally. "I snuck out of the house. Mum and Dad don't know I'm gone. Why?"

"Why....? Because it's nearly a kilometre from your place to here. Just yesterday, you couldn't walk the length of your block by yourself!"

Jason faltered, realising with a sudden feeling of shock and wonder that Adam was right. He had come all that distance on his own... "I.... I guess I was too upset to be scared...."

"Whatever it was," Adam said with a smile, "it worked. C'mon, Jase, are you really gonna throw it away by stepping in front of a car? Think about it...."

The more Jason thought about it, the more logical Adam's words sounded. All of a sudden, ending his life seemed like a foolish thing to try, and maybe, if he could come all this way by himself, then maybe he could find the strength and courage to start doing more things for himself.... "Okay," he said finally. "So it was a stupid idea. Can I get up now? People are staring...."

Adam grinned and finally let Jason up. "C'mon, let's go to the Youth Centre. I'll by you a soda."

~*~

He smiled a little to himself. Adam had even left him at the corner, and he had walked the length of the street on his own. He didn't care any longer that it seemed a pretty pathetic goal to achieve; for him, it was worth the effort.

So lost in his own thoughts was he that he didn't notice the unfamiliar car in the drive, with the words 'Kingston Institute' on the side door. He wandered into the house, wondering whether Adam would be willing to start working out with him.

He walked into the family room, feeling better and more confident than he had for a long while, and gave his parents the first real smile that he'd shown for some time. "Guess what!" he said excitedly. "I made it all the way into the park on my own!"

Donavon regarded his son with a pale imitation of his own smile. "That... That's great, Jason."

The smile rapidly faded from Jason's face as he took in the expressions on his parents' faces. His mother had been crying, he could tell, and his father looked as though he was about to cry. "What's wrong?"

There was movement behind him, and he looked around to see Alex Carter standing there, flanked by a couple of obscenely strong men. Carter came forward, speaking quietly. "I went ahead and made some arrangements, Jason. You're going to be coming to stay with us at the Kingston Institute for a while."

Jason paled considerably. "No way! Dad...?"

Donavon couldn't bring himself to look Jason in the eye. "I'm sorry, Jason. It doesn't look as though we have a choice."

Panic flooded Jason's face. "But you promised... You promised you wouldn't send me away...."

"It wasn't our decision," Donavon told him, straining to keep his voice steady.

Jason moved around slowly, over to the picture window. "What if I don't want to go? Are you gonna put me in a straight jacket?"

Carter regarded Jason somberly. "As a matter of fact, there is one in the car. Do you think we'll be needing it?"

Jason felt the confidence he'd regained start to drain away. "You can't force me..." he whispered, suddenly terrified.

"Actually," Carter said, "I can. The question is, are you going to make it necessary?"

Jason looked across to his father, starting to cry. "Please, Dad, don't let them take me..."

Carter glanced back at one of the two men. "Go and get the jacket."

"No!" Donavon exploded, striding forward in anger. "No, you're not putting my son in a goddamned straight jacket! Just get back! You're scaring him, dammit!"

Donavon hurried over to where Jason was literally starting to cower in fright. "Jason, listen to me. Calm down and listen." He paused, waiting until Jason's gaze was fixed on him. "You listen now. You have to go. If you don't go willingly, they'll just take you by force. They've got a court order. You have to go to Kingston."

Jason was crying openly, by then. "I don't want to go," he sobbed. "Please, don't make me go. I won't do anything wrong anymore, I promise...."

Donavon felt his heart break. "Son, you never did anything wrong to start with. This whole thing is a big mistake, and I'm going to do everything I can to put it right."

"It's hardly a mistake," Carter put in. "Jason is simply too unstable to be left in the community like this, and with his grounding in martial arts, he's not only a danger to himself, but to others."

Donavon glared at Carter as Jason gave a distressed sob and buried his face in his father's shirt. "You can say that to an innocent boy when the man who raped him is allowed to walk free? You bastard, Carter..."

Carter didn't flinch. "I didn't take this job for popularity's sake. Jason isn't at fault here, but he needs help. It can't be given to him while he's here."

Donavon refused to let Jason go. "I swear to God, I'm going to fight you on this with everything I've got. You're taking our son away from us, dammit...."

Carter shook his head patiently. "No, Mr Scott. I'm hoping that I'll be giving him back to you. I know you don't understand now, but hopefully you will in time. And Kingston isn't a prison. You can come and see Jason everyday. If things go well, we should be able to start to organise day trips so you can spend more time with him."

Sarah had joined her husband and son by then, putting her arms around them both. "Isn't there any way we can change your mind? Please, Dr Carter, don't take Jason away from us."

Carter was remorseless. "I'm sorry. I'm not changing my mind, about this. I would appreciate it if you'd convince Jason not to put up a fight. I'd prefer to save him the humiliation of a straight jacket, or having to be sedated."

Donavon and Sarah exchanged miserable looks over Jason's head. There was clearly no escaping this.... "Jason," Donavon said softly, "look at me."

Jason gazed up at his father in distress. "Dad, please, you promised...."

Donavon spoke as strictly as he dared. "Jason, be quiet and listen. You have to go to Kingston."

"I don't want to go!" Jason sobbed, feeling the earlier hysteria start to rear its head again. "Don't make me go...."

Donavon took hold of Jason's shoulders in a tight grip. "Jason, stop it! You have to go. We don't have a choice. You're going to have to be strong, now. It's not going to do you any good to put up a fight. Please, try and be strong. For all of us..."

Jason collapsed against his father, sobbing uncontrollably. Donavon held him tightly, wishing he never had to let go. Sarah came forward and embraced him as well. "Be strong, sweetheart. You can get through this. I know you can."

Carter spoke up tentatively. "I don't like to rush this, but we have to get to Kingston by 3:30."

Sarah gently drew Jason away from his father. "C'mon, sweetheart. We'll go and pack your things." She led him from the room, sparing Carter a hostile look as they went.

Donavon waited until they were out of the room before speaking to the other psychiatrist. "You didn't give him a chance, Carter. You never even listened to him when he came in."

Carter nodded slowly. "I listened. It just didn't change my decision. Walking down a street on his own is one thing, but I'll be more impressed when I know he can do it without thinking about stepping in front of an oncoming car. You know he's suicidal, Donavon. You were there when he tried the first time. You might find there have been other times that he hasn't told you about. I don't want to lose him anymore than you do. You have to understand that...."

Pain shone in Donavon's eyes. "The way I lost Rick Daniels' daughter? If I had have gotten through to her, none of this would have happened."

Carter shook his head. "It's no more your fault than it is Jason's. Don't start blaming yourself. It won't help your son."

A cold look formed on Donavon's face again. "Well, no matter what you say, or what pretense you use, you're still taking our son away from us. And since you got the damn court order, you can call all his friends and tell them where he is."

Without waiting for a response, Donavon stalked past Carter into the bedroom.

~*~

Donavon appeared in front of him. "Ready?" It was a ridiculous thing to say, but Jason didn't react. He simply turned and walk out of his room.

~*~

Donavon came forward, hesitated, then threw his arms around Jason in a tight hug. After a moment, Jason responded and hugged his father back.

"Don't quit fighting, Jason," he told the boy fiercely. "You keep trying to beat this."

Jason gave a muffled sob, pressing his face against his father's strong shoulder. "I love you, Dad. I'm sorry for everything."

"I love you, too, son. I love you a hell of a lot. Now be strong for me, okay?"

Jason pulled back a little. "I'll try," he whispered.

Carter spoke up, then. "Jason, it's time to go." The teen spared his parents and home one final, grief stricken look, then went and quickly got into the car.

As Carter shut the door, Donavon spoke in a forcibly calm voice. "We'll be up there first thing tomorrow."

Carter smiled, and nodded in a sickeningly pleasant way. "We'll be expecting you."

The Scotts watched in numb silence as Carter and his two men all climbed into the car. They continued to watch helplessly as it backed out of the driveway and disappeared up the street, taking their son from their sight.

~*~

It didn't take him much effort to guess what had happened. Forgetting the jacket in his hands, he turned and bolted back into the park.

~*~

They all looked around just as Adam skidded up to them, gasping for breath.

"Take it easy, man," Rocky said, clapping Adam on the shoulder. "You don't wanna hyperventilate."

Adam deliberately ignored Rocky. "Something's happened," he gasped. "Just.... Just came from Jason's place.... He's gone!"

Tommy's face darkened considerably. "What d'you mean?"

"That shrink.... the one he's been talking to, I think.... came and got him today. Saw him take.... take Jason away in a car with Kingston Institute written on the side...."

There was a long, tense silence, and then Zack spoke shakily. "They... They sent Jase to Kingston?"

Adam looked grim. "That's what it looked like."

"C'mon," Tommy growled, breaking into a fast walk across the park.

"Where're we going?" Kim asked nervously.

"To see Jason's folks. I want to know what's going on."

~*~

Jason's friends, seven in all, were coming up the street towards the house, and none of them looked happy. Donavon hurried to the front door and out onto the porch to meet them all. His wife was upset enough as it was; she didn't need a confrontation with seven angry teenagers.

"What's going on?" Tommy demanded, stomping up the porch steps to face Donavon. "Adam said he saw Jason being taken away by Dr Carter. Where is he?"

Donavon lowered his gaze. "Jason's been taken to the Kingston Institute."

A murmur of anger swept across the group, and Tommy spoke in a hoarse whisper.

"You said when he woke up that you wouldn't send him away!"

Donavon sighed heavily. "I know. We didn't have a choice. Dr Carter came this afternoon with a court order. Jason had to go."

"A court order?" Kim echoed in a trembling voice. "Why...?"

"He claimed Jason was unstable and suicidal. He believes that Jason might end up not only hurting himself, but someone else."

"That's bogus!" Zack exploded. "Jason's wouldn't hurt anyone, and he wouldn't hurt himself!"

"Actually," Rocky put in nervously, "that's not entirely true..."

"What do you mean?" Billy asked suspiciously.

"Earlier today," Adam explained quietly, "Jason tried to run in front of a car. We just managed to stop him in time."

"Well," Trini said softly, "if he tried to... you know..."

Adam looked agitated. "No. I got him talking and he snapped out of it. He was feeling a lot better! He even managed to walk home by himself from the corner back there!"

Donavon looked upset. "Adam, why didn't you come up and say something?"

Tommy looked bitter. "Would it have helped at all? I don't think so."

Donavon sighed again. "I doubt it. Carter probably really would have put Jason in a straight jacket, then. Listen, kids, I know how angry you all are. Sarah and I are just as angry and upset as the rest of you. We didn't have a say in this, and we didn't know about it until Carter showed up today with the court order. Jason was extremely upset, and he's going to need more help than ever, now."

"Can we go up there to see him?" Trini asked, and Donavon nodded quickly.

"Yes, of course. I'm sure Jason would appreciate it."

Tommy looked gloomy. "This could kill him, Mr Scott."

"That's why we have to keep reminding him that he hasn't been deserted." At that innocent comment, the teens exchanged uncomfortable and guilty glances. Only Adam remained unshaken.

"He isn't alone. We'll be there for him, just like we all promised."

Donavon nodded, greatly relieved. "Thank you."

~*~

_not a prison_ he recalled Carter saying. _yeah, right..._ he thought dismally.

The car pulled inside the huge brick wall, and rolled up the long driveway to the stop at the bottom of the steps. Jason climbed slowly out of the car just in time to see the wrought iron gates slam shut, and he felt his hopes and confidence drain a little more. Carter walked around and put a hand gently on Jason's shoulder. "C'mon, Jason. I'll take you up to your room."

~*~

"This is going to be your room for a while," Carter announced, as though it were some kind of paradise. "If you need anything at all, then just let me know, and I'll see about getting it for you."

Jason looked around slowly. The room was fairly large, and there was some open space in the center of the room where he could work out without causing any damage. "How about getting me my karate gear?" he asked quietly.

Carter paused at that. "I don't think that's such a good idea, Jason."

Jason turned around slowly to face Carter. "How am I supposed to work out if I don't have anything to work out with?"

"You're not,"Carter replied abruptly. "I think it would be best if you just forget about the martial arts while you're here. Just try and relax."

Anger filled Jason's face, and his hands clenched into fists at his sides. "You mean, you don't want me working at something that I could use to hurt others with."

Carter sighed audibly. "If you want to put it like that, then yes. That's true."

Jason was defiant. "What makes you think you can stop me? maybe I haven't worked out much lately, but I'm still a blackbelt...."

Without speaking, Carter walked over to the bed and yanked the covers back. He reached beneath the mattress, and pulled out a restraining strap. "These are fixed to nearly every bed in this institute. Don't make it necessary to use them."

Jason glared at Carter, trembling with anger. "Dad was right. You are a bastard."

Carter looked indifferent. "You can think what you like about me, but I think it's common courtesy to keep it to yourself. Now, I'll leave you alone for a while to settle in, then show you around the place."

Jason stood stiffly, watching in anger as Carter and the orderlies left the room. Then, once he was alone, he walked over and kicked the wall as hard as he could.

He had absolutely no intention of ever settling in. That would only confirm that he was going to be there for a long time. His gaze fell on the suitcase that sat by the bed, packed full with most of his clothes. He looked at it, and felt a rush of grief and anger. What right did Carter have to take him away from his family and friends?

"You can't keep me here," Jason growled softly to himself. "I'll get out of here and I'm find somewhere to hide. I will...."

~*~

Jason eyed the food being dished up with little to no enthusiasm. "I'm not hungry."

Carter spared him a small frown. "You have to eat, Jason. It's a basic necessity."

Jason glowered at the floor, determined to fight Carter in every way he possibly could. "I said, I'm not hungry."

Carter's expression darkened. For the most part, he allowed his patients one slip every so often where they missed a meal. It was an allowance given on the condition that they didn't deliberately try to starve themselves. That was something that he could not trust Jason not to do. Not yet. "I want you to eat something. Even if it's just a small amount." Jason fell stubbornly silent and Carter had to fight back a sigh. "Don't make me fight this out with you, Jason."

"What are you going to do if I don't eat?" Jason retorted.

Carter's gaze hardened considerably. "We have two options. One is sedation, and the insertion of an intravenous drip. Or, we have trained staff on hand to feed you, like a baby if necessary. Either way, you'll be fed whether you like it or not. It's your choice, Jason. You can do...." He trailed off. All of a sudden, Jason had gone white as a ghost, and seemed frozen to the spot.

_hold him, carl... he's gonna eat this, whether he likes it or not..._

Sheer panic flooded Jason's face, and Carter realised that he'd made a serious slip in mentioning the force feeding. Jason stood, trembling all over, like a bomb that was on the verge of exploding. "No..." he whispered, stricken with a sudden, inextricable terror. "Please, no.... I can't...."

Carter reached up, but stopped short of actually touching the teen. He glanced over his shoulder, and saw orderlies watching the scene, on alert and ready to act. He turned back to the stricken boy. "What is it, Jason? Talk to me..."

Jason shut his eyes tightly, trying to block it all from his mind. It was over, he told himself desperately. He had to get a grip.... Tears flooded his eyes, and it was a painful struggle to drag himself back from the terrifying memories. Carter watched all the while, watched wordlessly as Jason struggled with his memories and his fear. Then, when the teen managed to regain a decent level of calm, he spoke softly.

"Are you all right?"

Jason nodded, although he was trembling badly. "I... I think so...." Carter withheld a sigh. Jason's reaction had effectively ruled out the option of force feeding; to do so would only cause the boy worse trauma. Which meant that if Jason refused to eat, they would have to resort to sedation and using an IV.....

Jason brushed the back of his hand across his eyes, his determination and stubbornness gone. Defeated, he allowed himself to be led over to the line to select dinner.

"You don't have to eat a lot," Carter told him gently. "Even if it's just a plate of chips..."

"That'll do," Jason said in a numb voice.

Carter nodded, relieved. "Good."

~*~

Engulfed by misery, he slid out of bed and wandered into the adjoining bathroom. Kingston was actually a pretty fancy place, he had to admit. There weren't too many psychiatric hospital which afforded all the facilities that Kingston did. He didn't care, though. All he wanted was to be home, in his own room, in his own bed.

_c'mon, scott_ he told himself angrily, _you're a blackbelt, for crying out loud! you can beat a stupid security camera..._

Filled with renewed determination, Jason stood just inside the bathroom and eyed the angle of the camera. If his judgment was correct, the camera showed every part of the room except the walls. He frowned to himself, wondering if he could slip out by moving along the walls.

_only one way to find out_ he thought grimly. _c'mon... you're not gonna lose anything by trying..._

Drawing in a deep breath, Jason flattened himself against the wall and began to make his way carefully around the room. He reached the door eventually, quietly opened it and looked out. No one was about, the halls were silent. Sparing a glance back at the camera, Jason fled his room.

~*~

"This kid's seen too many movies," he chuckled to himself as he reached for the radio to contact the other guards, and Dr Carter.

~*~

_calm down,_ he told himself. _remember, you're a trained ninja. Ninjas are silent, and invisible. Now, go...._

Drawing in a deep, calming breath, Jason began to make his way towards the exit.

~*~

Clarke grinned. "Heading for the stairs. Don't worry, he can't escape the cameras. We've got 'em everywhere. Boy, you should've seen him sneaking out, like he thought he was some kind of secret agent...."

"Where is he?" Carter asked abruptly, sounding anything but happy. "I don't see him anywhere, Steve."

Steve leaned in towards the monitors... and froze. "He... He was right there just a second ago..."

"Damn!" Carter exploded. "Steve, I told you to keep a close eye on him! Call the guards, tell them to get moving. I want Jason back in his room within the next half hour!"

~*~

Nearly tripping once, he reached the tree and, just as he heard voices shouting nearby, he scrambled up into the branches, making his way higher until he was level with the top of the wall. Ignoring the height, he jumped from branch to wall and slipped over the other side, dropping to the ground, ignoring the shocks of pain through his feet.

_free_ Jason thought breathlessly as he looked around. _i'm free..._ Barely able to believe that he'd succeeded in escaping Kingston, Jason started off down the hill, wondering whether he should go home, or find somewhere else to hide out. He barely made it five feet when his world vanished in a flash of white light.

~*~

He scrambled to his feet, but before he could get anywhere, security guards rounded the corner. They seemed equally surprised to see him, but recovered quickly and one of them called out loudly. "Hold it, Jason!"

Jason looked around in distress, but there was nowhere he could go. Orderlies had appeared in the other direction, cutting off all avenues of escape. Realising he had nowhere left to go, he fell back against the wall, defeated.

One of the orderlies, a man called John, came forward cautiously. "It's time to go back to your room, now, Jason. How about you come with me?"

Jason didn't protest when John gently took his arm, and miserably allowed himself to be led back to his room.

~*~

"Maybe you can explain something to me. One of the guards swore he saw you go over the wall last night. And yet, not five minutes after that, you were found in the main hall. I'm a little confused..."

Jason continued to scowl at the carpet. "Did you check his breath for alcohol?"

Carter didn't answer straight away. He watched Jason carefully for a long moment before speaking. "There's no point in staying angry, Jason. You can't leave here until I say, and that's all there is to it. And if you keep trying stunts like you did last night, it won't be any time soon. Think about that for while, then come down for breakfast."

He stood up and went to the door. "Oh, and by the way, your door will be locked at night, until you prove you won't try to escape again."

Carter left, shutting the door behind him. Jason waited until he was gone, then threw himself down on the bed and screamed furiously into the pillow.

Kingston Institute....
Donavon and Sarah Scott arrived at the Institute the next morning to a wry faced Alex Carter, and an unusual amount of activity amongst the security guards.

"What's going on?" Donavon asked as Carter led them into his office. Carter grimaced a little.

"Your son gave us all a run for our money last night. He got out of his room, reached the stairs and disappeared on us. The guards are still trying to work out how he managed to avoid the security cameras."

"Jason's gone?" Sarah asked in shock.

Carter shook his head. "No. He was caught within half an hour and taken back to his room. It was a very colourful attempt, though."

Donavon scowled. "Can you blame him? You come and take him like a goddamn prisoner...."

"He is not a prisoner," Carter replied sharply. "We've already been over that. He's just.... and involuntary patient. Look, I tried explaining this yesterday. The best thing you can do for Jason right now is assure him that this is the best place for him. It won't do him any good to see how upset and angry you both are, when he's already upset himself."

"I will not lie to my son," Donavon growled. "I don't believe this is the best place for him, and I won't lie just so you can control him better."

Carter grimaced. "Fine. Come with me, and I'll take you to him."

~*~

The orderly smiled apologetically. "Sorry, Jason, but I do. Doctor's orders."

"You really think I'd be stupid enough to try getting away in broad daylight?"

The orderly shrugged. "Maybe, since your door will be locked at night."

Jason cringed, remembering Carter had given that order. Scowling, he mumbled something incoherently under his breath. The orderly smiled, then, and went over and sat down next to the teen.

"Y'know, it really isn't so bad here, Jason. If you'd just give it half a chance...."

"I don't want to," Jason muttered, staring intently at the ground. The orderly, John, frowned at the boy.

"You ought to think yourself lucky, Jason. There are a lot of psychiatric institutes that don't afford their patients half the freedom and luxuries that you get here. You could have ended up in a place where you're locked up all day, and only get out for an hour or so to exercise. Here, you've got the freedom of the grounds, as long as you don't abuse the privilege."

"Like I did last night?" Jason asked sulkily.

John laughed. "Hell, no. Every patient in this place has tried to escape at least once. The guards are still trying to figure out how you got by all the security cameras.

Jason smiled, at that. "Is that what they were all doing this morning? Trying to figure out where I'd gone?"

John nodded. "Uh huh. Care to let me in on the secret? I heard someone saw you go over the wall."

Jason shook his head wordlessly. He dared not admit to that, for he had no way to explain how or why he'd gotten back into the main hall, and in such a short period of time. He certainly couldn't tell the truth....

John suddenly nudged Jason a little. "Hey, you got visitors." Jason looked up, and his face lit up at the sight of his parents. Scrambling to his feet, he ran to them, and threw himself into their arms.

"I missed you guys..." he said, his voice muffled by their clothes. Donavon and Sarah held on to their son tightly.

"We missed you, too, sweetheart," Sarah murmured. Donavon ruffled his son's hair affectionately.

"We heard you kept the guards up last night."

Jason pulled a face. "Yeah. I would've gotten away, too, if..." He trailed off just in time. "If they hadn't caught up with me in the main hall."

Donavon hugged him tightly. "Don't worry, Jason. It was probably better that you didn't get very far. You know they would have only come and gotten you again."

Jason pulled away from them. "Not if I go somewhere that they wouldn't think of. I can get out of here, Dad, I know I can..."

Donavon exchanged a grim look with his wife. He was almost desperate enough to tell Jason to go ahead and try. Almost, but not quite. "Jason, listen to me," he said quietly. "You have to stay here. I know you don't want to. We don't want you to have to stay here either, but we don't have a choice. It's only going to make it an even longer process if you keep trying to run away. The best thing you can do is stay here and try and work with Dr Carter as best as you can."

Tears filled Jason's eyes. "I hate him, Dad! I hate this place!"

"We know," Sarah murmured, bringing Jason to her in a warm embrace. "Honey, we know you hate it. We don't like it, either, but your father's right. If you keep trying to run away, and don't work with Dr Carter, then he'll just keep you here."

Jason's face fell completely, and he turned away from them, going back to sit down on the grass. "Why bother?" he asked miserably. "Why should I bother at all?"

"So you can get your life back on track," Donavon told him, sitting down next to Jason on the grass. "Jason, don't you remember what you said before you left with Carter yesterday? You promised us you'd try working with him. The harder you try, the sooner he'll let you come home."

Jason fell silent, not speaking for a long while. "What about my friends? Do they know?"

"They know," Donavon confirmed grimly. "They'll probably be up here to see you in the next couple of days."

"What about Claire?"

At that, Donavon hesitated. Unless one of Jason's friends told her at school, she probably wouldn't know where he was.

"We'll call her," Sarah promised him. Jason sighed softly. "Thank you."

~*~

She frowned to herself in frustration. An idea had come to her that might help Jason a lot, and she was annoyed that she couldn't find him anywhere. She knew he would be upset, but she couldn't imagine his parents keeping him home from school because of it...

Claire spotted Tommy, but stopped short of actually calling out to him. He looked anything but happy. In fact, she realised, he looked downright furious....

He joined his friends at a picnic table, and Claire realised with a sinking feeling that they were all angry about something. But what...? Gathering her courage, she went to find out.

~*~

Zack stared bleakly at the table top. "That ain't gonna do any good. You heard his dad. Carter got a court order."

"And that's bull!" Tommy snapped, unintentionally turning his anger and frustration on Zack. "Jason isn't dangerous! He wouldn't hurt anyone else! I know he wouldn't!"

"Forget what we know," Billy said dismally. "That doesn't matter now. All that matters is what Dr Carter thinks. He's the only one who can say whether Jason can come home."

"Guys, Claire's coming..." Kim said suddenly, startling them all.

Tommy got up quickly to meet the other girl. "Hey, Claire."

She nodded. "Tommy. What's wrong? You guys look really upset about something."

Tommy hesitated. "You... You haven't heard?"

"Heard what? What is it?"

Tommy sighed heavily. "It's Jason. Carter showed up at his place yesterday with a court order, and took him to Kingston."

Claire froze for a long moment before speaking. "What...?"

"He's up at Kingston," Zack muttered. "You know, the psycho hospital."

Shock filled Claire's face. "But... but you said his parents weren't going to...."

"They didn't," Tommy told her again. "Carter came with a court order. They didn't have a choice."

Claire groaned and sat down with a thud. "Damn, that screws everything up...."

"How do you mean?" Trini asked. Claire hesitated, then went on quietly.

"I had an idea yesterday. A lot of Jason's problem now is that he doesn't have anyone much to talk to that really understands what he's going through. No offense to you guys, but you couldn't possibly understand it."

Tommy nodded wordlessly. Claire continued to speak. "I'm part of a group that meets once a month in L.A. We get together for a weekend, talk about things that have happened, good and bad... talk about any problems we're having, and pretty much just try and share what we're going through. We're meeting in a week's time, and I wanted Jason to come with me. Now, that's impossible...."

"A group..." Tommy echoed. "You mean, like you and Jason?"

Claire nodded. "That's right. I thought it might help him, being with some other people who have had similar experiences."

"You're probably right," Tommy conceded. "It doesn't make much difference, now, though, does it?"

Claire didn't answer, and the silence confirmed her reluctant agreement.

~*~

Groaning softly to himself, Jason fell down onto the bed and stared miserably up at the ceiling. Right then, he didn't think he could have possibly felt worse. His self esteem was shot to hell, he was being held against his will in a place that was literally a home for the insane, and what would have been a successful escape had been foiled by a giant head in a glass tube.

He rolled over, scowling into his pillow. _note_ he thought to himself. _get tommy and the others to tell zordon to mind his own goddamn business_

Realising he was not going to get to sleep any time soon, he rolled off the bed and wandered into the bathroom. Maybe, he thought as he stared into the mirror at his reflection, he could have a shower, or something... Freshen up a little....

It was several seconds before it registered in Jason's mind that he was no longer alone. Spinning around, he came face to face with Goldar, and the over sized monkey was grinning at him in a frightening way that reminded Jason of Rick Daniels.

"Hello, Jason," Goldar rasped. "It's been a long time." Jason tried to back away, but he was already leaning against the porcelain basin. He could not go any further, and Goldar was blocking his only avenue for escape.

"Wh... What d'you want?" he asked, fighting against his fear. Goldar sneered at the frightened teen.

"Just a little chat, Jason, for old time's sake. You know, you're not half the human you once were."

Anger and pain filled Jason's heart, and he couldn't answer, for he knew Goldar was right. Goldar chuckled cruelly.

"You can't even get suicide right, you pathetic little human."

Tears welled up in Jason's eyes before he could stop them. "Why don't you get the hell out of here, Goldar?" he choked out. His voice cracked a little, and Goldar laughed out loud.

"I will, but not before I help you along."

"What d'you mean?" Jason asked, not knowing what to expect. His question was answered when Goldar lifted his sword and swung it around. Jason ducked, and the blade hit the mirror, breaking it into a thousand small pieces. Jason held his arms over his head, shielding himself from the lethal spray, and when he finally looked up again, Goldar hit him hard across the face, sending him reeling into the shower cubicle.

He gasped in pain as his lower back struck the tap, and he fell to the tiled floor, stunned. Goldar approached him slowly, a shard of the mirror in his clawed hand. "Everyone's going to think you tried to kill yourself, Jason."

Jason stared up at Goldar in a daze. _tried to...?_

Goldar laughed gratingly. "I'm not going to kill you, you useless human. I'm just helping you along with your insanity. For all you know, I could be an illusion, and you're really doing this to yourself."

Jason shut his eyes. _c'mon,_ he thought desperately. _dammit, you dodged this overgrown hairball in the dimension of darkness. get off your rear and fight him now!_

But he couldn't. It was beyond his will to fight, and had been since Rick Daniels had committed the offensive deed of rape back in the basement room. All the fight had been drained out of him months ago, and he couldn't bring himself to get up and even try to dodge Goldar.

The huge ape crouched down in front of Jason and, in a single swift motion, he slashed Jason's wrists and palms open with a small, sharp knife. Blood welled up and began to stream from the wounds, but still Jason didn't move.

Laughing, Goldar carefully placed the shard in Jason's bloodied palm, and then straightened up. "Until next time, Jason...."

He vanished in a flash of light, leaving Jason alone in the bathroom.

~*~

Steve scowled. "I wish I could. That kid's stunt last night got us all in trouble. Carter told me when I got here this afternoon that if I took my eyes off the monitors, he'd fire me on the spot."

John shrugged a little. "That's fair enough. We nearly lost Jason last night. That's not good, when he hadn't even been here a full day. Speaking of which, where is he?"

"In the bathroom," Steve muttered. "Mustn't be able to sleep. Don't worry, I've been watching him closely. He hasn't disappeared again."

John nodded thoughtfully, and was about to leave the room when a disturbing sight appeared on the monitor for Jason's room. The teen had appeared in the doorway of the bathroom, but he was on his hands and knees, and looked as though he could hardly move.

"What the hell...?" he muttered. Steve leaned in, frowning as he peered at the monitor, then swore vehemently.

"Oh shit, that's blood..."

"Call Carter," John ordered. "I'll get down there to him." John ran from the room, leaving Steve to make the call.

~*~

The door suddenly swung violently open, and John ran in, skidding to the floor beside Jason. "Aw, hell..." he muttered. "Hang on, kid." Getting up again, he went back to the door and yelled to one of the orderlies that was coming towards the room. "Get a first aid kit, now!"

Going back into the room, John found the only thing immediately available: the large towel in the bathroom. He grabbed it and went back to Jason's side, trying to stifle the bleeding.

Carter reappeared in the room, breathing heavily from running. "What's happened...? Oh, no...."

"The mirror's been smashed," John said grimly. "He probably kicked it in, or something. His feet are cut up a bit, too."

Carter dropped to his knees by Jason. "Jason? Can you hear me?" Jason moaned faintly, indicating that he could. Carter breathed a sigh of relief. "Good," Carter muttered. "Just stay still, now. We're going to help you."

Jason couldn't have moved if he'd wanted to. Too weak to do anything, he simply lay there and let himself be taken care of.

~*~

"It was an accident..." Jason mumbled, refusing to look Carter in the eye.

Carter looked understandingly sceptical. "I'm sorry, but I don't believe that. Those mirrors are supposed to be unbreakable. It would take a hell of a lot of effort to shatter one like you did to it."

_but i didn't do it!_ Jason wanted to yell. He couldn't, though. Even though he knew the vows probably no longer applied to him, he couldn't break his promise of long ago and tell the truth. Instead, he just stayed silent.

Carter sighed. "I was hoping we could trust each other, Jason. Right now you aren't doing much to help me feel like I can trust you. This is two nights in a row that you've done something foolish."

Jason shut his eyes, and he spoke in a dull voice. "It was an accident. I didn't try to kill myself."

Carter nodded slowly. "All right. I'll leave you here for tonight, and tomorrow morning we can have a proper talk. Just remember, Jason. It would be a lot better for you, for your own sake, if you just admit the truth. I won't think worse of you for it, and neither will anyone else. I'm just asking you to be truthful, with yourself as well as me."

Standing up, Carter left the infirmary. Jason watched him go, then shut his eyes again. What was the truth? He didn't think he knew anymore... Sighing miserably to himself, he tried to get some sleep.

~*~

He was quickly directed outside, and did not take long to find Jason. The teen, still in his pyjamas, was sitting on a grassy slope and staring ahead with a haunted gaze that Tommy found heart breaking.

"Hey," he said softly, approaching Jason slowly. Jason looked up, and managed a weak smile.

"Hi, Tommy."

Tommy hesitated, then sat down beside him. "The others said to say hi. They wanted to come, but Mr Caplan told them he was gonna give them a physics test tomorrow. They had to stay behind to study."

Jason looked confused. "How come you aren't studying?"

"I dropped Physics, remember?" Tommy told him gently. "A couple of months ago. Got too much for me."

Jason nodded wordlessly. Tommy hesitated, then spoke in concern. "Jase, are you okay? You look kind of... I don't know, spaced out..."

Jason spoke slowly, as though thinking about each word before he said it. "Dr Carter dosed me up with something. I don't know what it was... Everything's a little hazy at the moment."

Tommy nodded slowly, then spoke in concern, sensing something was wrong. "What's up, Jase? You didn't try breaking out again, did you? Your folks told me what happened the first night..."

Jason breathed in slowly before answering. "No... I didn't run away again... Tommy, something happened last night...."

"Like what?" Tommy asked. Jason blinked several times, as though trying to remember what he wanted to say.

"G... Goldar.... It was Goldar. He came.... Did... Did this to me..."

Tommy drew in a sharp breath of anger as he looked down at Jason's bandaged wrists and hands. "He cut your wrists?"

"Yeah... No one else saw him, and I couldn't say what really happened..."

Tommy realised what Jason was getting at. "So everyone thinks you tried to kill yourself. Damn Zedd..."

"Can you do anything?" Jason asked. Tommy thought it over for a moment.

"I'll go see Zordon tonight. See if there's anything we can do so Zedd'll leave you alone. Okay?"

Jason nodded. "Thanks."

Tommy smiled and gave Jason a quick hug. "No problem."

~*~

Tommy nodded in greeting. "Zordon, I saw Jason today. He said that Goldar showed up and attacked him. Cut his wrists and made it look like he tried to kill himself."

Zordon looked grim. "That is Jason's perspective of the incident," he said quietly, and Tommy felt his stomach tighten up.

"What d'you mean?"

Zordon hesitated, and Tommy blinked in surprise. _he actually hesitated_ he thought. Then, the ancient master went on quietly. "Tommy, I have been carefully observing Jason over the past two nights. It was I that returned Jason to Kingston two nights ago when he tried to leave...."

"Why?" Tommy burst out. "Zordon, he could've gotten away! And you're the one who told us that Jason would never get better if he went to Kingston..."

"I said that when Jason was still catatonic," Zordon corrected lightly. "Circumstances have changed. It is best for Jason now that he remain at Kingston."

Tommy ran his fingers through his long hair, confused and exasperated. He would have to argue that out with Zordon later on.... "Okay. So what happened last night, then?"

"As I said, I have been monitoring Jason closely. I am afraid that I could detect neither Goldar nor any of Zedd's minions anywhere near Jason at any time last night. What ever happened to Jason, he did it to himself."

Tommy felt sick. "Zordon, are you absolutely sure about that? I mean, Jason was pretty sure..."

"I am certain, Tommy. Jason was alone right up until he was found by the security men at Kingston. I am afraid that Goldar was not responsible for anything that happened."

"So... You're saying that Jason tried to kill himself again...."

"Yes, Tommy. I am afraid that is the truth."

"But he was sure!" Tommy burst out. "Why would he lie?"

"Jason may not even be aware that he is lying," Zordon replied in a soothing voice. "He is extremely confused at the moment, and may not have even been aware of what he was doing to himself. Goldar's presence may have been an illusion that his subconscious mind imagined to excuse the attempt."

Tommy shut his eyes, starting to feel confused himself. The problem was that Zordon's words made more sense than Jason's. Jason was suicidal, they all knew that. He had already tried to kill himself at least twice. The suggestion that he had tried again, but imagined Goldar as the aggressor, was not beyond reason.

"Tommy," Zordon spoke up suddenly, "I suggest you do not mention this conversation to Jason. We do not want to upset him anymore than is necessary. If he asks, simply tell him that you spoke to me, and I said I would make sure no more attacks occur."

Tommy nodded. "Yeah, okay. Thanks, Zordon."

"You're welcome, Tommy. Do not worry yourself about Jason. He is safe at Kingston, and I will be watching over him constantly."

Tommy nodded again, but could not rid himself of the unease that was very slowly trickling into his mind.

Angel Grove Youth Centre....
Tommy was waiting at their usual table when the rangers arrived, and his dark mood had an immediate effect on them all.

"What is it?" Kim asked nervously. "Didn't things go too well today?"

"Jason was all right," Tommy said. "A bit confused, but okay. For his state of mind."

"State of mind...?" Zack echoed. "What d'you mean? What's happened?"

Tommy sighed. "You know Jason took off on the first night?"

"Yes," Billy replied. "What about it?"

"Well, he would've gotten out, 'cept Zordon teleported him back inside Kingston."

"What!?" Trini exploded. "Why?"

Tommy stared at the table. "Zordon thinks Jason's really... confused at the moment. You know... sort of unstable...."

"You mean, suicidal," Billy said in a dangerously soft voice.

Tommy nodded quickly. "Yeah. Guys, I think he might be right. Something happened last night. The mirror in his bathroom got smashed, and Jason ended up with both his wrists being slit open. He would've bled to death, 'cept the security guards were watching his room because of the night before."

"Did Jase tell you what happened?" Kim asked softly.

"Jason said Goldar showed up and attacked him," Tommy told them, "but when I asked Zordon about it, he said he'd been keeping an eye on Jason, and Goldar was nowhere near Kingston at any time last night. He said everything that happened, Jason did to himself. Even if he wasn't aware of it."

"Aw, hell...." Zack muttered.

Tommy finally looked up at his friends. "Jason's really screwed up at the moment, but he doesn't even realise it. We're just gonna have to be there for him as much as we can."

"If Jason is hallucinating about seeing Goldar," Trini said softly, "then he won't tell Dr Carter about it."

Billy understood what she was saying. "And he won't be able to get any better."

Kim hesitated, then spoke tentatively. "Maybe we should ask Zordon to be able to tell Dr Carter the truth. If he knows, then Jason won't have anything to hide...."

"And he'll have a better chance of recovering from this," Zack concluded.

Tommy had to agree. "It's worth a shot. Let's go now."

The rangers all got up and hurried from the Youth Centre.

~*~

"How are you feeling?" Sarah asked as she went over and sat down on the edge of the bed. Jason glanced at her, then looked away towards the window, not replying.

Donavon leaned over, looking down at the thick bandages that covered Jason's wrists. "Dr Carter told us what happened last night." Still Jason didn't speak. Donavon sighed heavily. "Why did you try it, Jason? We know you hate it here, but why in God's name would you try to kill yourself?"

Tears filled Jason's eyes, and he half sat up. "But I didn't! It was an accident! Why won't anyone believe me?"

Donavon exchanged grim looks with his wife. "Dr Carter said the mirrors are supposed to be unbreakable, that it would have take a lot of force and effort to break one. It couldn't have possibly been an accident."

The tears came in a flood, and Jason rolled off the bed, stomping over to the window. "You don't even believe me! No one trusts me...." His shoulders slumped, and he began to sob helplessly, hurt by his parents' apparent betrayal.

Sarah went to him quickly, pulling him to her in a tight hug. "Sweetheart, we just want to help you get better, so you can come home! We're not going to be angry at you for... for anything like that. We just want you to be able to admit to it."

"But it was an accident...." Jason said, his voice muffled. "I swear...."

Donavon came over slowly. "If it was an accident, then tell us exactly what happened."

Jason faltered, then, old promises coming into force. "I... I can't...."

Donavon was unable to hold back his frustration. "If you won't say what happened, then how can you expect us to believe you? Damn it, Jason...."

Jason began to cry again, cringing visibly as his father's voice began to rise. "Please, don't yell at me...." he choked out, clinging to his mother for support and protection.

Donavon winced. "I'm sorry, Jason. I didn't mean to yell. I'm just hurt that you don't seem to want to let us help you."

"I want to," Jason moaned. "I do... but I can't tell. I promised I'd never tell...."

Donavon and Sarah exchanged startled looks. "Never tell what?" Sarah prompted. Jason shook his head, clamping his jaw firmly shut. He had said far too much already.

"Jason, you can trust us," Donavon said, anxious to get to the bottom of the mystery. "You know you can...."

"I promised him," Jason whispered, his entire body trembling. "We all did...."

Sarah looked to her husband questioningly, but Donavon only shook his head. They would nothing coherent out of Jason right then. All they could do was stay with the boy, and make sure he knew he wasn't alone.

~*~

Donavon nodded. It irked him that he was telling the information to Carter, but it was Carter who held the key to Jason's release. Only he could give the order that would allow Jason to leave Kingston. "He said he'd promised never to tell anyone, that it was a promise they all made. I presume he means his friends. After that, we couldn't get anything more out of him. Nothing that made any ounce of sense, in any case."

Carter nodded. "I'll work on that with him. Thank you, Mr Scott. I appreciate you changing your mind about helping me out here."

"I have not changed my mind," Donavon snapped. "I'm not doing this to help you, I'm doing it for my son. And you had better damn well make sure no more 'accidents' happen, or I swear I'll sue this place for everything it's worth! C'mon, Sarah. Let's go."

Carter watched them go, sighing softly to himself.

~*~

Tommy nodded. "That's the idea. So... should we go get him?"

Zordon consented. "Yes, Tommy. The sooner this is sorted out, the sooner we will be able to help Jason properly."

The rangers all nodded, and teleported out.

~*~

He grimaced as he stood up and stretched. That, he knew, would be the mission impossible. He turned towards the door... and froze when there were five flashes of coloured light and the famous, albeit mysterious Power Rangers appeared in the room.

Carter stood frozen for a long moment before speaking tentatively. "Can I... help you at all?"

The White Ranger stepped forward. "We'd like you to come with us, Dr Carter."

"What did I do?" Carter asked nervously, drawing back from the suited figure in front of him. The Ranger shook his head.

"Nothing, sir. This is in regards to Jason Scott. Please...?"

Carter stood frozen for a long moment before consenting with a single nod. The White Ranger took hold of the psychiatrist's arm and they all vanished in flash of light.

~*~

"Welcome to the Command Centre, Dr Carter." Carter looked around sharply, and his gaze finally fell on the source of the voice.

"Okay...." he said tensely. "Now I'm hallucinating."

"No, you're not." The voice came from behind him, and he looked around to see the White Ranger standing behind him. The Rangers hesitated, then reached up and carefully removed his helmet. Carter was stunned.

"Tommy...?"

He looked around, recognising each ranger as they removed their helmets. "Kids...? Good lord...."

"You have been brought here for a specific reason," the voice said. "And the identities of the Power Rangers have been made known to you for that same reason. My name is Zordon, Dr Carter. I am the one who chose these teenagers to become Power Rangers."

Carter frowned, as he realised, from memory of news clips, that one was missing. "Isn't there a Red Ranger...?" He trailed off, realisation striking him hard. "Oh god... Jason?"

"Was the Red Ranger," Zordon corrected lightly. "The powers of the Red Ranger are now in the hands of another capable teenager. Jason's experiences unfortunately left him incapable of wielding the powers."

Carter brought his hands up to gently massage his temples. "I'm confused. Can you please explain this to me from the beginning?"

Zordon nodded, and went on to explain how he had chosen Jason and the other teens to become rangers and fight first Rita, and then Zedd.

Carter nodded as things began to slip into place. "Okay. So that's the promise Jason made that he's been holding back. That he'd never tell anyone that he was a ranger."

"Exactly." Zordon replied.

"All right, that's fair enough. But how is this going to help the situation? No offence, but I have a suicidal boy on my hands...."

"Jason is haunted by past experiences," Zordon explained quietly. The other rangers had gone, and it was safe to talk without upsetting them as well. "There was always more hatred between Goldar and Jason than any of the other rangers, and I believe that is manifesting itself now. Jason would not tell you what happened the previous night when he... injured himself, because he believes it was Goldar who attacked him."

Carter was silent. That certainly made sense to him... "And was it?"

"I do not believe so. The equipment in this place is very precise, and I was unable to detect Goldar anywhere near Jason at the time of the incident."

Carter sighed. "So he really did try to kill himself."

"But he does not believe that. The hallucination was real enough that Jason is not aware that he attempted to take his own life again."

"Okay," Carter said. "That at least gives me something solid to work with." He paused. "What about this... hatred between Goldar and Jason?"

"That stems back to Tommy's time as the evil Green Ranger. It was not I who chose Tommy, but Rita, when the Green Power Coin was still in her possession. She cast a spell over Tommy and turned him against the other rangers, in an attempt to destroy them."

"And...?"

"At one point during that time, Tommy sent Jason to another dimension, where he faced Goldar without any powers. Goldar was about to destroy Jason when Tommy interrupted, at Rita's command. It gave the rangers the extra time they needed to locate Jason, and he was rescued just in time. Goldar was furious that Jason escaped, and has never failed to let it be known. It happened again, though, after the powers of the Green Ranger were lost. The other rangers were trapped in a dimension by Zedd, and were similarly losing their powers, and Jason went in to rescue them. He was was nearly trapped by Goldar, but again, managed to escape just in time. As Jason was leaving the dimension, Goldar swore he would destroy Jason, at any cost. The other rangers know nothing of this, but I am aware that it has been a burden to Jason for a very long time. These incidents may be haunting Jason to the point where he is imagining non-existent attacks."

Carter rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Jason is transferring his fears. Rick Daniels is out of the picture, but because he was released on a suspended sentence, Jason wasn't able to resolve anything. So Jason is transferring his fear to a new, albeit imagined threat."

"And unless he resolves his fear, he will never recover," Zordon concluded.

Carter smiled wryly. "When the intergalactic threats are gotten rid of, you ought to consider going into psychiatry. Okay, this could help a lot. At any rate, Jason won't have any reason not to talk to me. Thankyou. Ah.... If I have any more questions...?"

"Contact one of the rangers."

"Okay. Now, how do I get out of here?"

"I will teleport you back to Kingston. Remember, Dr Carter. Jason may not hold powers any longer, but he is still a ranger to us. He was always brave in battle, and that will never be forgotten."

Carter felt a touch of unease. Zordon was talking almost as though Jason was dead.... "I won't forget," he murmured. Zordon nodded to Alpha, who had stayed remarkably silent the whole time, and a moment later Carter vanished in a flash of white light.

Kingston Institute....
Carter ventured out of his office slowly, his mind almost spinning with all that he'd learned. Jason used to be a Power Ranger.... That answered all the questions about Jason's secrecy, at any rate. It also answered his questions about the guard who swore he had seen Jason go over the wall that first night. Carter suspected now that Jason had actually succeeded in getting away, but had been sent back by the Big Head that called himself Zordon.

He paused, glancing up at the clock. It was only eight o'clock, Jason would not be in bed yet. Making his decision, he hurried on up the corridor.

~*~

"What do you want?" The boy's voice was dull, lacking in emotion.

Carter shut the door behind him and went over and sat down on the edge of the bed. "We need to talk, Jason. About this secret that you're keeping."

Jason looked away. "You talked to Mum and Dad."

"Yes, I did. We're all concerned, Jason. It isn't good that you're keeping secrets. I need you to be honest with me if you're going to get through this."

Jason shut his eyes, remaining stubbornly silent.

Carter sighed, knowing what he had to say and do. "Zordon is a very interesting character."

Jason's eyes snapped open, and he stared at Carter in shock. "What did you say....?"

Carter regarded him grimly. "Zordon. Alpha, too. And that Command Centre is quite a place."

Jason sat up slowly. "How do you know about that....?"

"I got a visit from the Power Rangers. They took me to the Command Centre, and I had a long chat with Zordon. He explained everything to me. That you used to be the Red Ranger... and about Goldar."

Jason was pale, and the shock on his face was clear. "Zordon told you...?"

"Yes. I know all about it. Now you don't have any reason not to talk to me, do you?"

Jason rose up slowly. "What did he tell you about Goldar?"

"He told me all about the trouble you had with him when you were a ranger. About the Dimension of Darkness... and rescuing your friends from the Dimension of Doom."

Jason fell back against the wall, tears in his eyes. "And?"

"And I think we'll be talking about this first thing tomorrow morning. What do you think?"

"I'm tired," Jason said in a trembling voice. Carter nodded. "I'll leave you alone. But first thing after breakfast tomorrow, you and I will be having a very long talk. Understood?"

Jason managed to nod, and was relieved when Carter finally left the room. On one hand he was glad that he had no more reasons to hide, but at the same time.... He threw himself down onto his bed and buried his face in the pillow, crying helplessly into the silence.

~*~

Carter watched Jason silently for a long minute before speaking. "Come and sit down, Jason. Please..."

Jason hesitated, then sighed and did as he was asked. Carter nodded.

"Okay. I thought we might start at the beginning. How about you fill me in on your becoming a Power Ranger?"

When Jason remained silent, Carter spoke a little more firmly. "You've got no reason not to talk, Jason. I know the basics. You might as well co-operate."

Jason stared intently at the floor. "It was when Rita Repulsa first escaped. When we had the big earthquake. I was in the Youth Centre with the others, and Zordon and Alpha teleported us to the Command Centre."

"That must have been surprising."

"Yeah. The others were pretty freaked out by it."

"And you weren't?"

Jason hesitated, then, as he thought back. No, he realised. He hadn't been frightened like the others had. He'd been.... curious. When the others had left the Command Centre, he hadn't wanted to go. He'd wanted to stay and hear more of what Zordon had been trying to tell them. He'd left with them, of course, but they had all ended up back there when Rita foolishly sent putties to attack them.

He told all of that to Carter haltingly. Carter listened with intense curiosity.

"So if Rita hadn't attacked you kids then, you would never have become Power Rangers."

Jason shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe, maybe not. Zordon might have found five others somewhere, or he might have kept trying with us."

"Interesting. And what about this... rivalry with Goldar?" Jason winced at the choice of words, for it was more than simple rivalry. Carter made it sound as though they were feuding brothers...

"I hate him, and he hates me. He went for me when Rita first sent him to attack us. After that, whenever he showed up with the putties, the putties attacked the others, but Goldar always came for me. Then, there was what happened in the Dimension of Darkness...."

"When Tommy was the Green Ranger?"

"Yeah."

"Tell me about that."

Jason looked balefully at Carter. "I don't see how this is helping at all."

"Well, humour me for a while. I'm curious." Jason looked away again, sighing inwardly. "Rita instructed Tommy to get rid of us, and he started with me. He sent me to the Dimension of Darkness, and Goldar managed to get my morpher. I couldn't match his strength on my own, and he knew it. He beat me pretty badly in a short time, and he was about to kill me when Tommy showed up."

Carter nodded. "That gave your friends the extra time they needed to rescue you."

"Sort of. They didn't even know what had happened to me until Billy managed to teleport me back to the Command Centre. It was close. Another couple of seconds, and it would have been too late. I ended up with a scar from it as it was."

Carter was surprised. "A scar?"

Jason hesitated, then lifted his shirt to reveal a thin scar in the center of his chest. "Tommy's sword just nicked me. I didn't tell the others, and I felt sick for the next two weeks. When it finally healed, I had this scar. I told everyone who asked that I got it rock climbing."

"I see. Now, back to Goldar..."

"He was really angry at Tommy for letting me get away. Tommy told me about it later on, when we'd made our peace. He said Goldar ranted on about it like it was really personal."

"Which it was."

"I guess so. Even after we freed Tommy, Goldar still seemed to hate me the most. Even though he called Tommy a traitor, he didn't hate Tommy as much. It was worse after the Dimension of Doom."

Carter nodded his understanding. Inwardly, he was practically dancing, excited by the freedom with which Jason was talking. "Your friends were captured, weren't they?"

"Yeah. That was after Tommy lost the Green Ranger Powers, and went off up to his uncle's cabin. I had a tournament coming up, but I was so depressed that I couldn't concentrate."

"Depressed?" Carter interrupted. "Why?"

"I felt responsible," Jason explained. "I went after the green candle that was draining Tommy's powers, but I had to leave it to go and help the others. Anyway, the rest of them went to find Tommy so he and I could patch things up, but they were stopped by Goldar. He captured them, and trapped them in the Dimension of Doom, with four other candles draining their powers like Tommy's powers were drained. I had to fight the monster Zedd sent on my own, then go after them in the Dimension of Doom. I got the others out, but Goldar grabbed my foot to stop me. I kicked him away, but just as I went out, Goldar said he'd devote his life to destroying me."

Jason trailed off, vaguely surprised by all that he'd said. Carter watched him thoughtfully.

"You remember that pretty clearly, don't you?"

"I'll never forget," Jason admitted. "Goldar tried to keep his promise. >From that point on, he doubled his efforts to get rid of me. With Tommy on our side, though, he was never able to get as close as he had before. Until...."

Jason faltered, suddenly unsure. Carter gently urged him on. "Until?"

"The other night. Did... Did Zordon tell you about that?" Carter spoke quietly. "Yes, he told me. Jason, I think you've started transferring your anxieties to Goldar."

"Huh...?"

"The judge let Rick Daniels out with a suspended sentence. You never resolved your conflicts because of that. Therefore, you've transferred your anger and fear to a new, perceived threat."

Jason frowned. He'd heard enough of Billy's techno-babble to be able to get an idea of what Carter was saying.

"Perceived? You mean, not real...."

Carter paused, realising he was treading on thin ice. "Jason... You aren't a Power Ranger anymore. As much as Goldar may have hated you, he has no reason to bother you now. Even Zordon said as much."

Jason's hands slowly curled into fists. "You think I'm lying."

"I don't think you're lying. I think you're confused. There's a difference."

"What did Zordon tell you about it?"

"That doesn't matter. What matters is that..."

"It doesn matter. It matters to me. What did Zordon say?" Carter froze. Jason was sitting forward in the chair, his face reddening with tension and growing anger. His hands were clenched so tightly into fists, that his knuckles were almost bone white. Finally, the psychiatrist made himself speak.

"Jason, you have to face reality, and getting yourself all worked up and angry won't help. It was not Goldar that attacked you. You may have imagined him to be there, but he wasn't. If he had been there, it would have been on the security cameras!"

Jason rose slowly to his feet. "I am not lying."

"Jason...."

"NO!" Jason yelled, the short fuse of his temper rapidly burning out. Carter started up as well, pressing an alarm button under his desk as he did so.

"Calm down. There's no point in getting upset."

"Upset?" Jason spluttered. "Why would I get upset? You just think I'm crazy enough to try to kill myself, but why would I get upset about that?"

Even as he spoke, he advanced on Carter, causing the psychiatrist to back away.

"Jason, I never said you're crazy..."

"No, but you're thinking it. And Zordon probably thinks I'm crazy, too, doesn't he?"

"No, not at all...."

Carter hit the wall, unable to go any further. Jason shot forward, moving with startling speed, and pinned Carter squarely to the wall.

"What did he tell you about me?" Jason yelled, causing Carter to wince.

"Jason, damn it..."

Jason had started, though, and had no intention of calming down. "Did he say I was crazy?"

"No!"

"I don't believe you!"

"Jason!" The voice came from the door, and they both looked to see John the orderly, as well as a couple of others. Carter breathed a silent sigh of relief as John advanced slowly.

"Let him go, Jason. You're not doing yourself any favours, here." Jason, however, tightened his grip on Carter. "He thinks I'm crazy."

"No, he doesn't. You've gotta settle down, kid. Just let him go and back off."

Tears filled Jason eyes, and though his grip eased just a little, he still didn't let go.

"You all think I'm crazy..."

"We don't."

"Then why am I here?!"

"Because you need help!" Carter said breathlessly. "Jason, please..." John was close, by then. "Don't make us have to fight you, Jason. Please, I don't want to have to do it like this."

Jason finally let go of Carter, but backed up, away from all of them.

"Stay away from me," he said, his voice half a growl, half a whimper. John looked genuinely upset. "Please, Jason...."

"Everyone think I'm crazy...." Jason moaned, backing up to the far wall. John came up close to the teen.

"That's not true. You know it's not."

Jason stood still for a long moment, and then his temper finally snapped. Falling back on his disused martial arts skills, he pivoted around on one foot and kicked out at John with the other. The orderly went crashing over backwards into the other two orderlies. They were then forced to scramble right out of the way as Jason, in his rage, kicked the desk right over. He then turned for the door, only to be tackled by Carter.

The two hit the floor with a painful thud, and Jason shut his eyes in panic, flashing back to the first kidnap attempt, when Carl Daniels had tackled him on the pavement. A frightened cry escaped Jason and he began to fight tooth and nail against Carter.

"Get over here, damn it..." Carter gasped as Jason lashed out with his fists. The orderlies ran over and managed to pin Jason to the floor between them while Carter went to his overturned desk and found a syringe. Unwrapping it, he quickly filled it all the way with a powerful drug, then went back and quickly injected it into Jason's arm.

Jason stiffened visibly at the sharp prick of the needle, then fought even harder. He was no match for the orderlies, though, and within a minute, the drug took effect.

John groaned softly as Jason finally went limp beneath him. "Man, he can put up one hell of a fight...."

Carter looked grim. "Better get him back up to his room. Are you all right, John?"

"Yeah. He didn't get me too hard."

The other two orderlies found a wheelchair nearby and lifted Jason's limp form into it, then they took him back to his room.

"There," John muttered as they placed Jason back in bed. "You can sleep it off."

Carter spoke from the doorway. "Put him in the restraints."

John looked up sharply. "Is that really necessary, Doc? I mean, he'll probably have calmed down plenty by the time he wakes up...."

"Probably is not a certainty," Carter replied. "We have a very confused boy on our hands and I will not take any risks. Put him in the restraints."

John sighed and proceeded to lock Jason's wrists and ankles into the restraining straps. Carter nodded, satisfied.

"Good. Now, let's go." He turned and stalked out of the bedroom.

John hung back a moment, watching sadly as Jason slept. "Don't let yourself be beaten by this," he murmured softly. "Keep fighting, kid. For your own sake...."

He hesitated a moment longer, then turned and left the room in heavy silence.

Kingston Institute....
The figure stood in the shadows, his face concealed. Whether he was a benevolent or hostile figure, Jason didn't know. It frightened him. Shadows frightened him. Hell, just about everything frightened him these days. He tried to call out to the figure, ask who they were, but he could not get a sound out. His throat hurt when he tried to speak.

It was then he realized that he was not suffering nightmares. That was the moment that he woke up.

~*~

Donavon chuckled to himself at the memory, unable to help it. His amusement won him an elbow in the ribs from his wife.

"It is not funny," she hissed at him. "We can't let Jason think we condone that sort of behaviour."

Donavon fought back a grin, but his humour won through. "C'mon, Sarah, don't tell me you don't think its just a little bit funny? Jason completely trashed that son of a bitch's office!"

Sarah tried to remain stern, but her husband's sense of humour was contagious, and she began to smile. "I suppose...."

She trailed off, her smile fading as Jason woke up, his eyes fluttering open. She hurried to his side, looking down at him in concern. "Honey?"

"Mum...." Jason croaked, barely able to speak for his sore throat. Sarah gently brushed her fingertips over his forehead.

"It's okay, baby. Just relax."

Jason looked around dazedly, and his gaze fell on his father. "Dad..."

"I'm right here, son."

Jason tried to swallow, couldn't. He tried to sit up and couldn't do it.

"Wha...?" He looked confused, unable to figure out why he was immobilized. Donavon and Sarah looked at one another, and then Donavon spoke softly.

"Jason, they put you in restraints."

A mixture of panic and anger flooded Jason's face. "Get me out of these things!" he rasped, straining uselessly against them.

Donavon was stricken, but made no move to comply. "I'm sorry, Jason. I wish I could, but that isn't our decision. Only Dr. Carter can give the word to let you out."

"Just like every other damn thing..." Jason choked out, suddenly more miserable and afraid than angry. He knew he had screwed up earlier in Carter's office, and there was no denying it.

Sarah continued to stroke his forehead and cheek lovingly. "You have to calm down, baby. Having tantrums like that isn't helping you at all."

"No?" Jason retorted dully. "I felt better."

Sarah looked exasperated, and then horrified when Donavon chortled into the back of his hand, again picturing the scene of chaos in Carter's office. Even Jason stared at his father in confusion.

"What's so funny?" he asked, and Donavon struggled to regain control of his emotions.

"Nothing. Nothing at all. I'm sorry, Jason. Listen, if you're sorry for losing your temper, then Dr. Carter may be willing to let you out of the restraints."

Jason sighed. "I am sorry," he admitted gloomily. "Not because I trashed the office, though. I'm sorry because I broke one of the primary rules of martial arts. I used it to attack, and not defend. Man, I hope John's okay...."

"John is just fine," a deep voice said from the doorway. They all looked around as John the orderly walked into the room. "What about you, Jason? How are you feeling?"

"Pretty stupid," Jason muttered dismally. "I really lost it this morning."

"Yeah, you did," John replied casually. He walked around to the bed and pulled back the blankets, revealing the wrist restraints. He leaned over and quickly undid the nearest one. "But you sound like you've calmed down plenty. Dr. Carter told me to let you out if you'd settled down."

Jason nodded wordlessly. John smiled faintly and quickly undid the three remaining straps.

"There. Better?"

Jason sat up slowly, gingerly rubbing his ankles with his bandaged hands. "Yeah. Thanks."

"No problem. I'll leave you guys alone. If you need anything, just give a yell."

He sauntered from the room, before another word could be said. They watched him go, and then Sarah spoke thoughtfully.

"He seems nice enough."

Jason nodded. "Yeah," he admitted. "John's pretty cool. I guess most of the staff are. They could have treated me pretty rough this morning if they'd wanted to. I couldn't have fought back if they'd really come at me. They just took it easy, though, til Carter knocked me out, I guess."

Sarah put an arm around Jason's shoulders and hugged him to her. "What set you off this morning? Was it something Dr. Carter said?"

Jason winced a little. All up, it had been everything Carter had said. But he couldn't tell them or could he? Surely if Zordon had consented to telling Carter the truth, then he could tell his parents... He was about to bite the bullet and try when there was a knock on the door, and Claire looked in, her parents behind her.

"Can we come in?"

Jason managed a smile, silently cursing their unintentionally bad timing, but at the same time relieved that they had not walked in while he'd been in the restraints. That would have been too humiliating to handle.

"Sure," he said softly. "Come on in." He paused, then added in a bitter voice, "Welcome to paradise."

Donavon threw his son a warning glance, but said nothing. Claire hurried over and hugged Jason close.

"I'm sorry I didn't come sooner. That's the problem with not having a license. I don'thave any freedom at all to go where I like!"

Jason managed a smile at the irony of her remark. Claire hugged him again, more tightly, when she saw she'd managed to draw a smile from him. Jason sat stiffly for just a moment before sighing a little and relaxing in her embrace.

Donavon took the liberty of greeting Claire's parents. Then, Jason stood up.

"Let's go outside. I hate this room."

He was gone before any of them could protest.

~*~

He smiled and laughed softly, cruelly to himself.

~*~

"Yeah, I guess I did. I'm not proud of it, though. I really screwed up."

"Ill say," Claire muttered. "Boy, talk about stupid..." Jason didn't react; he knew she was right. The girl slipped her arm through his.

"Don't worry, Jason. You won't do it again, will you?" The boy didn't answer, and his silence disturbed all of them. "Jason?" Donavon pressed in concern. When he still didn't respond, Ted Roberts tried.

"Jason, what is it?"

"I can't promise that," Jason whispered, staring straight ahead, suddenly feeling frightened. "When I lost it at Dr. Carter this morning I knew I was doing the wrong thing, but I couldn't stop. I've never been angry like that before. I got going, and I just couldn't stop! I... I can't promise I won't lose it like that again."

"That is not good, Jason," Donavon said, all humour suddenly gone. "If you can't promise that..."

Jason pulled away from Claire, and turned around to face them all. "What am I supposed to do? I'm stuck in a place I hate, and everyone's treating it like it's a holiday resort! How can I help getting angry?"

Claire went back to him, and caught his hands up in her own. "I know how hard it is, Jason. Admittedly, I don't know how hard this is for you, but I can imagine. You know you can't keep flipping out like you did in Carter's office. It isn't good. You'll never get out of here if you keep losing it and tearing the place up."

Jason blinked back the tears. "I just want to go home..." Donavon and Sarah moved in quickly, enclosing their son in a protective embrace.

"We want you home, too," Donavon told him. "We want you home with us more than anything. Jason, you have to work with Dr. Carter, though. You've got to focus on what you're doing."

"Focus?" Jason choked out, suddenly incredulous. "Focus? What have I got to focus on? Carter made it pretty clear that I wouldn't be getting out of here any time soon. I'm not allowed to work out, everywhere I go there's someone watching me to make sure I don't try to escape... I'm a prisoner!"

"That," Donavon growled, "is exactly what I am talking about. You're jumping the gun at the smallest things! You never used to let anything rile you up as easily as you do now. You've got to get that control back, Jason. When you do, you might find it a little easier to cope."

Jason's shoulders slumped miserably. "You're right. I know you're right. I just don't know how to get it back. I don't have anything physical to work at now, so I guess that's why I've been more..."

"Volatile?" Claire suggested, and Jason smiled weakly. "Yeah." He looked away, to the wall that loomed on the border of the estate. "My whole life just seems like one big nothing, now. I probably won't even get to graduate from high school with my friends."

They all glanced at each other, and then Claire spoke tentatively. "If you're really worried about that, then I could see if I can get all the work for you from Mr Caplan. You could work while you're here."

Donavon nodded. "We could get someone in to tutor you, if it's needed."

Jason looked hopeful, for the first time in a long while. "Really? You think you could?"

"We'll have to ask Dr. Carter..." Sarah said, and Jason's face instantly fell.

"Then I might as well forget it. He'll never let me..."

"Talking about me behind my back?"

They looked around to see Carter approaching, a wry look on his face. Donavon spared the psychiatrist a satisfied smirk. "Get your office cleaned up, Alex?"

Alex spared Donavon a prime we-are-not-amused smile, that was more of a grimace. "Yes, finally. The replacement desk will be arriving late this afternoon."

Jason stared at the ground, embarrassed and ashamed. "I... I'm sorry about that..." he mumbled. Carter's expression softened considerably.

"It's all right. I think we got a bit off-track this morning. Probably my fault as much as anyone's. But what's this about me not letting you do something...?"

"We were just discussing school," Donavon explained. "We thought we could have work sent up here to Jason, so he'd be able to graduate with his friends."

Carter nodded slowly. "That's a good idea. I'll contact the school and organize it myself."

Jason gaped in shock. "But you wouldn't let me keep up with the karate..."

Carter chuckled a little. "You can hardly do yourself injury studying for school. Unless there are any heavy duty books I should know about?"

Jason tried to ignore the joke, but couldn't, and a smile flickered across his lips.

Carter returned the smile, then side-stepped away from them. "I'll go and see about that right now. Excuse me."

He hurried away, leaving them all to watch after him in surprised silence.

~*~

"Jason..."

Jason stirred, the harsh, grating voice penetrating his subconscious. "Jason, wake up."

Jason finally awoke, and rolled over, ready to tell whoever it was to get lost. The words died in his throat as his gaze focused on Goldar, standing above him in a very threatening pose.

He started up in shock, only to be forced back down when Goldar struck him in the chest.

"Stay down, human," Goldar snarled. "You are not worthy to match my height."

Jason lay frozen in shock and growing fear. Surely this was no illusion... Goldar laughed cruelly.

"You don't even know whether I'm real or not. You're going crazy, Jason. Everyone knows it except you."

Jason shut his eyes, and pressed his palms to the sides of his head. "No...." he moaned helplessly. Goldar waved his sword tauntingly over the boy.

"I'm going to haunt you, Jason. I'm going to haunt you until your mind snaps completely. And I'm going to love doing it..." Something in Jason finally snapped, and he rolled sharply to the right, landing on the carpeted floor with a soft thud. Goldar swung at him with his sword, but he ducked the clumsy blow and darted over to the door. To his dismay, he discovered it was locked from the outside.

"Help!" Jason yelled, thumping his fists hard on the door. "John! Somebody...."

Goldar laughed cruelly. "You really think they care about one crazy human? You mean nothing to them, Jason! Nothing!"

Jason tried to force Goldar's voice from his mind, and he banged even harder, yelling as loudly as he could. The door opened unexpectedly, and he fell forward, colliding with John, who had come to investigate.

"Jason? What's wrong?"

"In my room...." Jason gasped breathlessly. "He... he's there..." John looked past the frightened boy in the room. It was completely empty. "Who's there? Jason, there's no one in your room."

Jason looked back slowly, confused. He hadn't seen the gold light of Goldar teleporting out... So where had he gone?

"I think you're a little confused, kid," John said, gently ushering him back into the room. "Look, there's no one in here."

"But there was..." Jason protested weakly.

John patted his shoulder. "Look, I'll even check the closet and under the bed if you want me to. There really is no on here but us."

"What's going on?" It was Carter, alerted by the security guards to Jason's shouts for help. Jason groaned inwardly, and fell silent, not daring to speak. Carter caught the look in his eyes, and understood. "You can go, John. I might have a little talk with Jason." John nodded, said goodnight to Jason, then left the room. Carter waited until he was gone, then turned back to Jason. "Goldar again?"

It was said with enough skepticism to make Jason cringe. "I wasn't seeing things."

"I'm sure you believe that."

"Why won't you believe me?" Jason demanded, ridden with distress. "Why...?"

"Because there has been absolutely no proof that he was ever here. Not even a scrap of fur to suggest it. I don't think you're lying, Jason. I just think you don't realize what you're telling me is not the truth."

Jason looked around the room slowly, feeling worse with each second that passed. "But... He was here... He was..."

Carter gently guided Jason to his bed. "How about you get some sleep, and we'll talk about this in the morning. All right?"

Jason lay back down without protest, and didn't object when Carter covered him up. He hesitated, then spoke softly.

"Do you think I'm crazy?"

Carter looked down at Jason in concern. It was that same question that had led them into hot water that morning... Jason propped himself up on his elbows.

"Please... I won't flip out or anything. I just want to know the truth."

Carter sat down on the edge of the bed. "Jason, you aren't crazy. I promise you that. What you are at the moment is very confused. That's why you're here. It isn't because I think you're crazy. You need help to deal with everything that's happened to you. I think that right now, this is the best place for you."

Jason stared at him for a long moment, not saying a word. "I'm not crazy?"

"No! Jason, you are not crazy. I'd swear to that in court. There is a very big difference between being crazy and being confused."

Jason lay back down, resting his head on the soft pillow. "I was scared that I was going crazy."

"You can rest easy about that. You aren't going crazy, and you're in no danger of going crazy."

Jason smiled up at Carter, and it was a genuine smile that was filled with relief and gratitude.

"Thank you."

Carter gently patted Jason on the shoulder. "You're very welcome. Now, get some sleep. I have feeling we're going to have a very productive day ahead of us tomorrow."

~*~

Smiling to himself with relieved satisfaction, Carter turned and headed off up the hallway, ignorant to the pair of blood-red eyes that watched him from the darkness.

Kingston Institute....
Jason awoke the next morning feeling remarkably stupid. He'd laid in bed after Carter had left last night and thought everything over. Maybe, he started to concede, he was only imagining Goldar. Maybe he wasn't really aware of what he was doing. Maybe....

He sighed and got up, wandering slowly into the bathroom to have a shower. Perhaps it was time to have a proper talk with Dr Carter, and sort everything out once and for all.

Filled with renewed determination, Jason unbuttoned his pyjama top and started to take it off, only to suddenly freeze in shock. Right in the centre of his chest, a huge bruisewas developing, accompanied by numerous scratches. Exactly the same type of bruising he had ended up with after being pummeled by Goldar in the Dimension of Darkness... And the scratches that accompanied the bruising matched the tiny metal razors that adorned Goldar fist plates.

Jason stepped back from the mirror, his breath quickening with sudden fear. So he had not imagined it. There was no way he could have caused himself an injury like this. The bruising, maybe, but not the tiny lacerations. He had no access to anything that could cause it. Shrugging his top back on, Jason went to the door and tried it, expecting to find it locked. He was surprised and relieved to find it swung open easily.

Glancing back fearfully into the room, Jason fled down the corridor towards Carter's office.

~*~

"Jason?" Carter rose up slowly from his chair. "What's wrong?" "Tell me," Jason said breathlessly. "You know I wouldn't hurt myself. Not now. I know there's no point to it."

Carter blinked, confused. "What are you getting at?" "Just tell me! I wouldn't hurt myself. Not unless it was was a real suicide attempt. I wouldn't hurt myself to try and make you think Goldar really was here."

"I'd like to believe that," Carter said carefully, not knowing where it was leading.

"And you'd trust me not to do that? Please, it's important" "Well... Yes, I would trust you. After yesterday afternoon and last night, I would. You seem to be gaining some sense."

"So you don't think I'd injure myself."

"No. Jason, what's going on?"

Jason pulled his top open, revealing the bruise, which seemed to be growing even then. "Then tell me how this happened."

"Good god..." Carter murmured. "How did this happen?" "That's what I'm asking you. I didn't do it to myself. There's no point, it wouldn't gain me anything. And since you're so sure Goldar wasn't there last night, I'd like to hear your explanation."

Carter leaned in close to examine the bruising. "All these scratches... They look like they were made with some sort of a razor."

"I don't have access to any sharp things like razors," Jason pointed out. "The sharpest thing I have right now are my pens."

Carter looked grim. "Let's go to the infirmary. This looks like it's getting infected. We'll have it seen to, and then we'll eliminate the possibilities. All right?"

Jason nodded his agreement. "Okay. But do something for me. This is bleeding. If you take just a few drops of my blood and take it to the Command Centre, Alpha will be able to run a check."

"Run a check for what?"

"I'm not sure," Jason replied as they started to walk. "I've just got a weird feeling."

Carter consented. "All right. I'll do that, after we get that seen to. Let's go."

~*~

Finally, Billy spoke. "Okay, the results should be coming through now." He had barely spoken when a single sheet of paper was printed out. Billy tore it off and quickly scanned it. Alpha, reading over the genius' shoulder, gave a startled exclamation. Billy looked grim.

"Looks as though you were wrong, Zordon." Carter strode forward. "What is it?"

Billy handed the sheet to Carter, who stared blankly at the data. "I'm sorry," Carter apologized. "This means nothing to me." "It's the blood analysis," Billy explained. "It shows a trace of poison that has entered Jason's bloodstream. The poison is a mixture of chemicals not found on Earth. It's an exact match for the poison that we know Goldar uses to brush over his fist plates before battles."

Carter felt light-headed all of a sudden. "Then Jason really was attacked by Goldar."

"It looks that way," Billy replied. "More than likely it was Goldar that attacked him on the second night, as well. Zedd must have found a way of getting Goldar in and out of Kingston without alerting the Centre's alarm system."

Zordon, who had remained silent throughout the exchange, finally spoke. "I am afraid I owe Jason an apology for doubting him."

"I'd say we all do," Carter muttered. "Okay... What can you do about this? If Goldar's attacked Jason twice, then he'll try again."

"Goldar doesn't seem to be intending to do any real harm to Jason," Zordon said quietly. "I would be inclined to believe he has another goal in mind."

Carter moaned softly. "He's dragging Jason down mentally. Confusing him... Jason asked me last night if he was crazy. It was the same question that I tried to dispute yesterday morning that caused him to go... to lose his temper in my office, but last night, I think he would have accepted anything I said. Even if I'd said he was crazy."

"It's got to stop," Billy growled, angered by the continued abuse that Jason was seemingly being forced to suffer. "He isn't even a ranger anymore! Why would Goldar be so determined to bring Jase down?"

"Evil always holds a grudge," Zordon murmured. Carter agreed. "Yes, it does. That was proven when Rock Daniels kidnapped Jason in the first place, simply because he held a grudge against Jason's father. Now, we have to help Jason separate the real monsters from the human ones, so he can start to fight them properly."

"What about Goldar?" Billy demanded, looking up at Zordon. "Even if he isn't intending to really hurt Jason, we can't let him get away with this."

"No," Zordon conceded. "Until we know how Goldar is coming and going from Kingston, though, there is little we can do."

"There's one thing we can do," Carter said, "and that's give Jason a boost to his self confidence. Billy, would you mind coming with me? You don't have to stay long. I'm just concerned that if I tell Jason we believe him about Goldar, he might be... skeptical."

Billy nodded. "Certainly. Zordon, could you teleport us to Kingston?" Zordon nodded. "Yes. Alpha, activate the teleportation beam." The robot did so, and the two vanished in a flash of blue and white light.

~*~

"If you've come to see Jason, Alex, I'm afraid you won't get anything out of him. The poison has had a heavy sedating effect on him, and he lost consciousness nearly twenty minutes ago."

Carter felt a touch of concern. "Excuse us, Mark. We'd like to see him anyway."

The doctor nodded and let them through, eyeing Billy curiously as they went.

"Is it anything to be worried about?" Carter asked Billy in a low voice as they stood by the bed in which Jason lay. Billy shook his head.

"No. It's just a mild poison. No lasting effects. He'll be out for the next day or so, though."

Carter sighed. "How the hell am I going to explain this to his parents...?"

"Zordon agreed that they'd have to be told the truth at some point," Billy said tentatively. Carter eyed Billy curiously.

"Meaning...?"

"There's no time like the present."

Carter chuckled, despite all that had happened. "You do have a way with words, Mr Cranston."

Billy only smiled a little to himself.

"I have to confess" Billy said as Carter showed him to his office, a safe place to teleport from. "I initially thought you were just another psychiatrist looking for an interestingresearch case."

Carter lifted a single eyebrow in amusement. "You mean Jason?" He sighed and shook his head. "I know my tactics weren't the most subtle, but that couldn't be helped. I've spent the past few days trying to convince everyone that I'm not as evil as they'd like to believe. I didn't bring Jason here because I thought he was a threat to society. I brought him here because I was worried about him. He wasn't stable, Billy. You all know that. If he was even halfway sound in his mind, he would never have tried committing suicide."

Billy sighed. "More than once..."

Carter looked sideways at the teen. "I was right, then. He did try more than that one time."

Billy nodded. "Yes. At least one more time that we know of. You... You do want to help Jason, don't you? You aren't trying to hurt him..."

"Of course I'm not trying to hurt him! Billy, as harsh as I might seem, I'm not a villain. My job is seeing that Jason gets out of here as soon as possible and gets on with his life. I have to convince him that he does actually have a life to live. I do care about Jason, just like I care about all of my patients. I don't want to see him go under any more than you do. Which is why I'm happy to admit I was wrong about Goldar. That is going to be a welcome bit of stability to Jason, knowing he was not hallucinating and injuring himself."

Billy nodded wordlessly. Slowly, his image of the psychiatrist was changing. All of a sudden, the man actually seemed human....

They entered his office, and Carter sat down behind his desk with a thud.

"The best part is that Jason has started to open up to me. I think he is actually starting to trust me. If that's the case, then he may be out of here sooner than he thinks."

"Really?" Billy asked. Carter smiled.

"Trust is a very important thing to people like Jason. He hasn't really trusted anyone since the kidnapping, has he?"

Billy looked embarrassed, thinking of the general feeling that the rangers had deserted Jason. "Well...."

"It's all right. None of you are to blame. Jason hasn't really even trusted his own parents. Not completely. He only really trusted Claire. Didn't he?"

Billy had to concede. "She seemed to be able to get through to him when the rest of us couldn't."

Carter nodded. "Exactly. There was one time that I was at the Scott home that neither I nor Jason's own father could pull him out of the corner of his room. Claire not only did that, but she put him to bed and to sleep."

Billy gaped in shock. That was something he had not heard.... "I think, though," Carter said with quiet confidence, "that Jason has started to take a few steps towards recovery. There is a long way to go, still, but he's on the right path. Now, I... all of us... have to make sure he stays on that path."

Billy started to reach for his communicator to teleport, then paused. "Dr Carter... Jason is going to pull through this isn't he?"

Carter stared at Billy for a long moment before replying. "Yes. I believe he is, Billy."

The Blue Ranger smiled with clear relief and gratitude, and teleported out without another word.