NOVEMBER 2, 1998

COUNTDOWN: Four Days

It had taken Tommy a long time to get used to the quiet. In more ways than one.

Baldwin University, in the sleepy college town of Eagle Ridge, Massachusetts, was calm and still. Save for the sound of the trees rustling in the autumn breeze. The sun wouldn't even be up for more than an hour. Heading down the steps in front of the Marchand Residence Hall, he checked his watch. 4:58.

The literal silence wasn't nearly as trying as the mental silence. The simple presence of time with nothing to occupy it. Nothing of great consequence, anyway. Not like before.

In the last 15 months, Tommy had learned that certain consistencies and routines were good for him. College was advantageous in that sense. You had your classes every week, and you structured your meals around them accordingly. But there was also time to devote to homework, and time to devote to whatever hijinks his roommates would come up with.

Then there was training. Six days a week, 5 a.m. sharp, at the Baldwin University Rec Center. A convenient trot away from Marchand Hall.

The breeze pushed at Tommy's long hair, pulled back and under a bandana. He was wearing his usual black tank top, kick pants, and sneakers. Over his shoulder was a duffle bag, which always carried, among other things, his sparring shoes and whatever weapon he'd chose to work with that day. Today it was the shinai.

Martial arts. The one constant in Tommy's life since he was five years old (with the exception of a rough patch he'd had earlier this year).

As usual, the rec center doors were unlocked. When the semester started, the students working this early hadn't been used to someone actually being there at 5 on the dot every morning. There had been days he'd been shut out for 10 to 15 minutes at a time. Now there was practically someone waiting for him at the front door each day.

Usually it was Abby.

She unlatched the door and pushed it open. Abby somehow always had a warm smile on her face despite the time of day. Her shoulder-length blonde hair was usually in a pony tail behind a headband. She was short, but with an athletic build. She wore a "Baldwin University Athletics" t-shirt and sweatpants.

"They should just leave this place unlocked for you," she said.

"And risk someone taking my workout spot?" He motioned through the ghost town of a weight room toward the dance rehearsal space. "No thanks."

Abby gave the joke more of a laugh than it deserved.

She was…pretty. Really pretty, actually. But in an understated sort of way. When Tommy saw her each morning, she wasn't dressed to impress. No make-up either. But whether it was her confidence, her personality, or just the fact that she seemed genuinely nice, she managed to shine every time he saw her. Abby didn't need to be touched up or fancy. She was Abby.

She motioned to his bag. "So today's a stick day, huh?"

Tommy saw that the shinai was poking at the bag at an awkward angle. "You know it."

"One day you'll have to tell me how you got so good at this karate stuff," Abby said, going back to the front desk.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," Tommy muttered to himself, heading into the men's locker room.

15 MONTHS AGO

Laughter echoed throughout…wherever this place was. Based on the starry look of the walls around them, it actually could have been the remains of the old Command Center. That would have been fitting, all things considered.

Tommy watched them from a distance, atop one of the strange rock formations. They were clumped together in a group. Chatting, giving words of encouragement, offering farewells. Adam, Katherine, Tanya, Justin, the Alphas, and the new team. The Power Rangers.

Tommy rubbed his left wrist, which felt naked without the wrist communicator. He'd used the same one all these years. Various different colored wrist bands, of course. But the same device. TJ had it now. Tommy had handed it to him quickly.

Reality was starting to sink in, so he needed a moment to himself.

It was over. It was really and truly over.

Electricity crackled behind him. He turned to see a large but familiar face looking down at him. Until recently, Zordon had existed solely in a time warp. Now he was free to wander as an interdimensional being comprised largely of morphological energy. Tommy felt like he could make out a little more definition in Zordon's face now. Then again, maybe he was just imagining things.

"So this was really your idea, then?" Tommy asked.

"Yes," he replied in his booming baritone voice. "From the beginning."

Tommy nodded. It was consistent with some of Zordon's previous decisions. He'd let Jason and the others go. He'd let Aisha go. He'd let Rocky go. Now it was their time.

"With few exceptions, the power isn't meant to be held by an individual for such a prolonged period of time," Zordon continued. "It is meant to be passed on. The responsibility shared. We can only ask so much of you."

Tommy understood it. Even respected it. But that didn't make it easy.

"I can only ask so much," Zordon added.

Tommy had been a Power Ranger for more than four years. At 14, he'd gotten a front-row seat to the world being irrevocably changed. He'd seen things that defied the laws of human nature. Things modern science hadn't even touched. Things too spectacular, too horrific, and too ridiculous to be true. Alien life. The Morphing Grid. Sorcery. Mind control. Giant war machines. A centuries-old wizard caught in a time warp.

And that was just day one.

But Tommy loved it. He hadn't wanted to. He hadn't meant to. But he did. He didn't love the danger, the destruction, and certainly not the secrets. But somehow it all just fit. He was good at it. He took to it naturally. Like he'd found something he was meant to do from the start.

"Y'know, after all this time, I've never said thank you."

"For what?" Zordon asked.

He'd meant to say this to Zordon months ago, before he'd been freed from the time warp and journeyed back to Eltar. But Zordon had to leave so quickly that the moment never came.

"For trusting me," Tommy replied. He gestured out to everything around them. "With all of this. After everything that happened at the beginning. I almost tore it all down. But you brought me on. And you didn't even hesitate. Then you made me the leader. You didn't have to do that."

Zordon wasn't usually emotionally expressive, per se. There wasn't necessarily time to be, as he was constantly forced to endure the conflicts and hardships of the war he'd taken on. But when he did express something, it was a sign something special was taking place. Tommy had a fond memory of him chuckling when he returned as the White Ranger.

So when a smile spread across Zordon's face, Tommy felt a strong tug at his heartstrings.

"You were given only what you had earned," Zordon assured him. " As I said once before, you are a strong and courageous fighter, Tommy. And an honorable man. I am very proud of you. Of all of you."

Tommy felt his eyes well up. "I've been a Ranger for so long, Zordon. It's felt like my calling. Sometimes it feels like all I know how to do. So where do I go from here?"

"That is a question only you can answer," Zordon replied. "But I very much look forward to finding out."

"So does that mean we'll see you again someday?"

Tommy hadn't meant it to come out that abruptly. But with he and the others stepping down, and Zordon now on Eltar, it was a pertinent question. One that Zordon seemed to ponder himself.

"One can -"

"Tommy!" Justin, the young Blue Ranger, rushed to the bottom of the rock formation. "C'mon! We're going to show them how the zords work!"

Tommy had grown to love Justin like a little brother. But his sense of timing left something to be desired. "Sure, Justin. But Zordon and I were just-"

Energy crackled behind him once again, and Zordon had shifted back back to the spot on which he and Alpha 5 had transported in. He gently nodded to the robot, who promptly shuffled over.

"Go now then," he announced to the room. "New Rangers, destiny awaits. Look to one another for guidance in this new era. You need each other now, and the world needs you."

As Tommy came down off the rocks, he felt Katherine come up beside him. He wrapped his arm around the small of her back, as her head came down on his shoulder.

"And to the now former Rangers," Zordon continued. "May the power protect you, evermore."

With that, and a small wave from Alpha 5, they were gone in a flash of light.

"You too, old friend," Tommy whispered. "You too."

Tommy checked the clock. 7:30.

He'd gone into the dance studio at 5:07. It was the only space roomy enough to accommodate him. Every morning he began with 30 minutes of meditation. Then he'd run drills for 45 minutes, followed by 30 minutes with his weapon of choice for that day. He closed with 30 minutes of Tai chi to cool down. His first class was at 9. That gave him about 90 minutes to get home and showered.

He wiped his brow with a towel and tossed it in one of the bins. The rec center was fairly crowded now. He stood amongst a symphony of whirring tread mills, clanking weights, and moderately groggy conversation. "Intergalactic Planetary" was playing over the sound system.

Heading back up the stairs, he saw Abby at the front desk again. She met his gaze, then gave him a smile and a little wave.

Tommy felt his stomach flutter.

Soundtrack:

Intergalactic Planetary (Tommy at the Gym)

Eagle-Eye Cherry - "Save Tonight" (Passing the Torch)