Being Drafted (Zedd)

[Jason Scott]

(March 10th. Evening.)

Jason walked into the circus. He was still wondering how he got here. He wasn't even a ranger anymore. Sure he still had his dino coin and morpher but Astronema was the recent threat attacking Angel Grove. Did she capture him to lure out the rangers? Adam and Justin he heard had helped out the rangers so perhaps kidnapping former rangers was part of her plan. Worried that some of the others might be here he began calling out.

"Kim? Tommy? Anyone else here?" asked Jason.

As he walked forwards the door suddenly slammed shut. He rushed to it trying to open it but it was locked. He was being held here. This was a trap. He reached for his morpher but was caught off guard when Z-Putties appeared and held him against the wall. Jason struggled trying to aim for the Z wondering why Zedd was bothering to attack him. Was he upset that the golden powers were back with Trey now? He tried to move but he heard footsteps and a chuckle as he realized Zedd himself would soon be joining him.

(ooc: was thinking zedd brainwashes Jason to be evil and his servant in this thread. but not right away. as Zedd would want to gloat after all. xd)

[Deleted]

From within the circus, there came the sound of a door slamming. On any other day, it could have been caused by any passerby, but on this day Lord Zedd knew exactly who had intruded. It didn’t take long for the sounds of chaos to reach his auditory units, bringing a wicked grin to his hidden face. He walked with deliberate precision, his dark chuckles filling the air, until he found what – or rather, who – he was looking for.

Jason Scott, original Red Ranger, former leader of the Power Rangers, was quite literally up against the wall, held back by a squad of Zedd’s own Z-Putties and completely at his mercy. The Emperor of Evil could only think of a handful of sights more wonderful.

“Good evening, Red Ranger. Or should I just call you Jason, now that you’ve lost your powers? I hear you’ve been trying to outdo Tommy in that department.”

This final jab was taken from Rita had told him about Jason losing the Gold Ranger powers. Zedd smirked at the thought of the witch. He couldn’t wait to see her expression when she saw what he’d done to the Ranger who’d given them both so much trouble.

[Jason Scott]

Jason struggled in the Z-Putties grasp glaring at Zedd. Hearing him taunt him he frowned.

"I still have my powers. Let me go and I'll prove it to you." said Jason.

He broke free lunging at Zedd reaching for his morpher to find it not there. He looked back to see a Putty holding his morpher and communicator.

"Give those back!" said Jason.

Jason lunged at the Putty but gasped as he felt a blast of energy strike him and fling him to the wall. He tried to move but felt himself pinned to the wall realizing Zedd's magic must be holding him here.

"I thought we were rid of you after Divatox showed up. The last time we heard from you was when Zordon told us you blew up the Machine Empire. I should have known you were planning something. Well the other rangers will find me and you'll be sorry." said Jason.

(ooc: poor jason. believes he's still in his universe. hope this isn't too godmoddy. just figured z-putties couldn't really hold him for long and magic could. xd)

[Deleted]

“And why would I want to do that?” Lord Zedd sneered. “It’s so much more fun to see you like this, helpless before me.”

Zedd didn’t get to relish the moment as much as he would have wanted. The Putties could only hold the former Red Ranger for so long before he broke free, intending to reclaim his morpher. Zedd didn’t know if Jason was bluffing or not about being able to use his powers, but he definitely didn’t want to find out. A blast from his staff was enough to pin Jason to the wall.

“Not so fast, Jason. You’ve traveled such a long way to be here, and I’d hate for you to leave so soon.” The warlord cackled. “You will never be rid of me. Haven’t you learned that by now?”

“I should have known you were planning something. Well the other Rangers will find me and you'll be sorry.”

“Other Rangers?” Zedd laughed again, loud and mocking. “Poor little Ranger, he still thinks he’s in his world. Look around, Jason. This isn’t Angel Grove. There are no other Rangers here, no one to help you. Not even Zordon will be able to get you out of this.” A cruel chuckle. “Oh, I’m going to enjoy this.”

His staff pointed at the former Ranger, Zedd fired a bolt of white energy.

[Jason Scott]

Jason glared at him.

"Have your fun. It won't last long." said Jason.

His attempt to get his morpher had failed. Now he was trapped again.

"You can't keep me here. You're not going to get away with this." said Jason.

He paused as Zedd said this wasn't angel grove. That the other rangers and Zordon won't be able to get him out of this.

"So this is one of your other dimensions then? Well I've gotten out of your traps before. I'll get out of this one. My friends will come for me." said Jason.

He then cried out in pain as the blast struck him. That had hurt so bad. Like his whole body had been electrified at the same time.

"I don't know what your plan is but I'm a retired ranger now. The Space Rangers will find out what you've done and come find us." said Jason.

He still didn't realize he was far from home. And the only ones from his universe besides the two of them were Rita, Putties, and Tengas.

[Deleted]

“On the contrary, Jason,” Lord Zedd sneered. “My fun will last for as long as I want it to. And I have no intention of making it stop any time soon.”

He felt another cackle bubble in his chest as he listened to Jason, who still clung to the hope that the Power Rangers would somehow be able to save him.

“I wish I could take the credit for this place, but it’s a realm all its own.”

Jason’s cry of pain was enough to temporarily stop Zedd’s gloating, and the warlord drank it in with a wicked sense of delight. Too many of his glorious plans had been forced to a halt because of the boy standing before him. Now he would take his revenge. He stepped closer to the fallen Ranger and stuck out his staff, tilting Jason’s head up and forcing him to meet Zedd’s eyes.

Figuratively speaking, at least.

“The only ones here from our world are you, me, and Rita. And I doubt Rita’s going to come to your rescue.”

A second bolt of energy flowed from the staff and into Jason.

“Face it. You’re all alone.”

[Jason Scott]

Jason listened in shock as Zedd said his fun would last as long as he wanted too. And that this realm was a thing all its own. Jason cried out in pain as Zedd blasted at him again. Jason didn't want to give him the satisfaction but he was in so much pain. He couldn't keep quiet. He then looked in surprise as Zedd said the only ones from their world were him, Zedd, and Rita.

"What are you saying? We're in another world? That won't stop Tommy and the others from coming after me. We've retrieved the Sword of the Light from that planet you destroyed. The others have also gone to Edenoi, Phaedos, and other planets before. They'll find us." said Jason.

He, of course, didn't realize he was in an alternate universe where Tommy and the others couldn't follow. Or if they did it wouldn't be as a group like Jason was thinking of.

"I'm never alone. They'll come find me. And then you'll be sorry." said Jason.

[Deleted]

Lord Zedd’s amusement at Jason’s pain was short-lived, as the teen stubbornly insisted that the Rangers were going to save him. The warlord shook his head in mock disappointment. “Really, Jason, I thought you were smarter than this. This isn’t another planet, it’s another dimension. One that you can’t get in unless you’re pulled in, as you were.”

Well, that wasn’t necessarily true – Finster had apparently found a way to get into this dimension – but he wasn’t about to bring that up. Especially when he still wasn’t entirely sure about the details.

“Zordon and your little Ranger friends can’t get to you here.”

“They’ll come find me. And then you’ll be sorry.”

“I’m shaking in my exoskeleton,” Zedd reassured the former Red Ranger, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “The only one who’s going to be sorry is you. Sorry that you ever dared to stand against me.”

He raised his staff to strike Jason down again, but paused just before the energy blast could be fired. A new, more devious idea had entered his mind, something far worse than simple torture. Something that was guaranteed to break the spirit of the original Red Ranger.

“Yes.” Zedd spoke slower now, relishing each word. “Now you’ll stand beside me. You, Jason Scott, are going to be my new Ranger.”

[Jason Scott]

Jason paused listening to him and was shocked.

"Another dimension where you get pulled in? Wait. Then this isn't one of your dimensions?" asked Jason.

He was confused. How could someone as powerful as Zedd get pulled to another dimension. He paused as Zedd said they couldn't find him here and Jason was starting to believe him. A dimension that could someone as strong as Zedd in here must be hard to get in. And even if his friends did find him they weren't likely to get out. Or Zedd would have gotten out by now.

"I'm sorry we didn't finish you off sooner. I thought we were rid of you for good when Divatox started attacking the Earth. Guess I was wrong." said Divatox.

He paused as Zedd raised his staff again and Jason flinched. But he stopped as Jason looked at him confused. He then froze as Zedd said he was going to be his new ranger. Memories of Muranthias and nearly killing Tommy flashed into his head. He didn't want to be evil again.

"No. I don't want to turn evil again." said Jason.

He struggled in vain as the chains wouldn't budge. He knew Zedd wouldn't change his mind. And if what Zedd was really true there wasn't going to be a rescue for him. He frowned realizing he'd soon be evil and working for Zedd. And there was nothing he could do about it.

[Deleted]

“Finally catching on, are we?” Lord Zedd remarked dryly. “If this was one of my dimensions, I would have made use of it when I first arrived. Then I would be ruling Earth.”

“I’m sorry we didn't finish you off sooner. I thought we were rid of you for good when Divatox started attacking the Earth.”

Zedd scoffed. “Don’t be ridiculous. You were never able to ‘finish me off’, and you’ll never be rid of me, no matter how many interlopers try to replace me.”

The warlord didn’t miss Jason flinching when he raised his staff. A vindictive sense of satisfaction developed within his blackened heart. Fear – real fear – was an emotion he rarely saw with the Power Rangers’ leaders. Confusion and doubt certainly, the occasional jot of self-loathing, but not fear. He intended to savor it while he could.

“Again?”

Zedd’s curiosity was piqued. To his knowledge, neither he nor Rita had ever made Jason evil. It must have been the Machine Empire or Divatox. This disappointed him somewhat – his own success would now be mitigated. On the other hand, it would make the process that much easier.

“You don’t have a choice!”

With that said, Zedd pointed his staff at Jason and fired a bright red beam.

[Jason Scott]

He struggled against in the chains in vain as the blast hit him. He cried out as the process did hurt.

"No! Stop this!" said Jason.

He gasped as his body seemed to glow a bright red before a Z symbol appeared on his forehead signaling he belonged to Lord Zedd. His eyes flashed red for a moment before returning to normal. Jason grinned evilly as the chains vanished. Their job done. Jason knelt before Lord Zedd immediately.

"How may I serve you Lord Zedd?" asked Jason.

(ooc: you could give him the morpher and communicator back in your next post. Perhaps test him to see if he's still a strong warrior by having him fight putties or a monster he creates maybe.)

[Deleted]

“Too late,” Lord Zedd hissed.

The warlord looked on at the transformation process with a twisted delight. Jason’s body had begun to glow a violent shade of red, a spiky “Z” appearing on his forehead. Zedd silently commanded the chains vanish and watched as the former Red Ranger kneeled before him, eager to begin his life of evil.

“How may I serve you, Lord Zedd?”

Zedd couldn’t hold back a wicked cackle. The spell had been a success. Jason Scott was now his faithful servant. Truly this was one of his greatest victories yet.

“Rise,” Zedd commanded when he had regained control of himself. The Emperor of Evil held Jason’s morpher and communicator up in the light, as though considering the objects. “You won’t be of much use to me without your toys,” he mused. “But first, a test to see if you’re worthy of them.”

He waved his staff and a platoon of Z-Putties, the largest he had ever summoned, suddenly appeared, advancing slowly on Jason.

“Defeat them all, and you’ll be rewarded with your powers.”

Zedd stepped back to watch the show.

[Jason Scott]

(ooc: up to you if it's the change in the Z-Putties is permanent or not. perhaps zedd was testing the idea with this new batch or something. it always struck me as odd they're supposedly "more powerful" than Rita's putties and yet were easier to defeat with the big Z on their chest. It always took them a lot longer to defeat Rita's putties. xD)

Jason listened to him. He paused as Z-Putties appeared. Jason nodded and charged at them. But when he hit the Z nothing happened.

"Zedd must have changed their weak spot or the design altogether. This will be tougher than I thought." thought Jason.

Jason charged doing his best punch and kicking at the Z-Putties hitting the z on their forehead which was their new weak spot as the z-putties began to shatter one by one until they were all gone. He panted catching his breath before kneeling before Zedd again.

"I didn't expect you to change the location of their weak spot. That was a brilliant move my lord. Have I proven myself to you? Or is there something else I need to do?" said Jason.

[Deleted]

(There’s a meme about that.)

Lord Zedd watched Jason charge into battle against the Putties with a dark chuckle. Of course, the former Red Ranger had no way of knowing that Zedd had made some upgrades to his clay army since he had last faced them. Their new weak spot was now on their foreheads, a much more difficult spot to hit, even for a well-trained martial artist like Jason. Zedd was disappointed that Jason had managed to figure it out as quickly as he did, but silently vowed that his other enemies would not have the same chance.

“I didn’t expect you to change the location of their weak spot. That was a brilliant move, my lord.”

“Of course it was.” Zedd crossed his arms, an aura of smugness radiating from him.

“Have I proven myself worthy to you? Or is there something else I need to do?”

The warlord shook his head. “This will suffice. For now,” he added, an undercurrent of warning in his tone.

Handing Jason his morpher and communicator, Zedd couldn’t help but feel that there was something missing from this victory. It didn’t take him long to realize what it was. There was no one to gloat to. In the past, Zedd had always had Goldar or the blueberries-for-brains Squatt and Baboo to regale with the details of his evil scheme, but now there was just Jason, and the brainwashed Ranger would hardly be able to appreciate this plan.

It soon dawned on Zedd that there was someone here he could gloat to. He just had to find her first.

“Come with me, Jason. We’re going to pay a visit to a –” Zedd briefly searched for a word to describe Rita, “– friend. Yes, that’s it.”

Now where would the witch be at this time of night?

[Jason Scott]

Jason smiled glad he passed the test. He grinned as Zedd handed him back his morpher and communicator. He looked up in surprise as Jason said they were paying a visit to a friend. He was curious following Zedd along.

"A friend? Is it someone from the army? Or are we not the only ones from our world here?" asked Jason.

XXXX

Rita meanwhile was in the living room. She was sipping wine from a goblet. She had been spending a lot of time lately with Zedd outside of meetings. She thought he was starting to like her maybe even love her. But she wasn't sure. It was kind of interesting as she could get him to actually fall in love with her the right away. No love potions like last time. Although since Finster's antidote hadn't worked it had proved he really did love her. Which had made her happy then as it does now. She paused wondering if Zedd was free. Maybe he wouldn't mind a late dinner. Or at least hanging out with her.