Cassie looked forlornly out the window of her small bedroom quarters. It had been 6 months since she'd left earth. It seemed liked years ago.

So long ago since she'd seen Phantom. She had begun to wonder if he was still alive, if she would ever see him again. With a sigh she lay her chin in the palm of her hand and continued to stare at the passing stars. Involuntarily a tear trickled down her cheek. Scowling, she brushed it away. Crying wasn't going to help anything. She looked up again just in time to see a fiery star shoot across the sky.

Without much thought on the matter, she made a silent wish that Phantom, wherever he may be, was ok.

Again, she scolded herself. Shooting stars, wishing on them, crying; none of that would help her to see Phantom alive and safe. She stood up and straightened her flight suit.

She would get on with her life, with our without him.

Phantom stopped momentarily in his trek across the deserted planet. He found himself gazing up into the sky, suddenly wondering how Cassie was doing. It had been too dangerous to reach her before, but now...now...what excuse did he have? He was no longer in any grave danger, so what was holding him back from going to see Cassie? Nothing, absolutely nothing.

He filled his time with searching the zillions of planets in the solar system, hoping to find any clues that Zordon may have been there, or was still. In his 3 months of searching, he'd only come close once. Feeling discouraged, his thoughts had begun to go back to Cassie. The endless dreaming of her had returned, and he fantasized about the day he could reveal to her who he really was. He snorted in disgust. Who he really was? He was Phantom, the name Ezra Johnson wasn't in his vocabulary anymore. The fact that years ago, he himself had lived on earth with his family, was history in his mind.

All he remember, or chose to remember about his life as a true human, was the day or two before he had been abducted by Dark Specter. He remembered walking home from school one spring day with his bag slung over his shoulder, his lips moving slowly in tune with his breathing. He had never dreamed that someday an evil being from space would choose him to become his heir in ruling over the universe. He remembered a bright light overcoming him and hours later waking up in a small room, a hideous monster who he learned to be named Darkonda, standing over him. Days after that, he was put through endless attempts to brainwash him, turn him evil. He fought against all of it, with all the will power he could muster, and found himself the victim of beatings so severe he began counting the days until his death.

Then one night...the voice. The voice that strengthened him mentally enough that he found himself somehow escaping into the night, awakening days later...looking like...a...a...beast. Or so he thought.

Zordon explained to him that the Robot attire would help to strengthen him, repair the internal damage that had been done to him. In time it did...and he found himself begging Zordon to take the horrible costume away. Zordon had done many tests on him...soon discovering that if the second skin was removed, he would only live for a few days. The armor kept him alive in every way, but still Phantom prayed for the day that he could take it off, and return to normal. After 10 years, there was still no sign that he was strong enough to live without it. He would be stuck in it forever...

Zordon forbid him to return to earth, fearful that Dark Specter would try to take revenge. The pair had soon learned of his abduction of Karone of KO-35. Dark Specter had found another to fulfill his evil wishes.

Phantom dedicated his life to fighting evil with the powers Zordon had given him, and now he was determined to find Zordon, to stop Karone from destroying the entire universe...

Phantom stopped his journey down memory lane, and continued walking, but in the opposite direction. Back to his ship, back to find Cassie, let the person that had changed the way he looked on life, know how much he loved her.

"Hey...can I come in?" Ashley asked reluctantly.

Cassie turned around to face her friend. She put on a smile. "Sure. What's up?"

"Well, uh...I just wondered if you wanted to go down to the Surf Spot with the rest of us. We're gonna eat dinner and catch a movie."

Cassie thought about it for a second. She should probably get off the ship and breathe a little fresh air, but she didn't feel like. Nothing like sitting around moping and feeling sorry for yourself. She scoffed silently. Out loud she answered, "No thanks Ash. I'll just work on my Home Work for Monday."

Ashley got the look, like she wanted argue but caught her tongue in just enough time. "Ok. I'll see you in a few hours."

Cassie nodded, and Ashley left.

Her eyes wandered over to the neatly stacked homework that had been done since Friday afternoon.

She never left anything until Sunday afternoon. Suddenly, her room that had always felt cozy and comfortable felt small and too warm. She jumped off her bunk and quickly exited into the corridor.

Her feet brought her onto the bridge. She glanced around, finding Alpha no where. She shrugged. So much for talking to some one. Make an about face she walked out again, this time to the jump bay.

She opened the pink bordered locker and picked up the only evidence that she had that proved Phantom wasn't a figment of her imagination, a picture of him standing against a tree on earth. It was shortly after she had met him, and she couldn't even remember how or why she'd gotten the picture.

So occupied with the picture, she didn't hear the soft crackle of a teleportation coming in behind her. The being stood quietly, his hear soaring with the site of the Oriental girl with in arm's length.

"Cassie..." He whispered.

Cassie immediately dropped the picture, and whirling around, dropped into a fighting stance.

"Whoa! I come in peace." Phantom promised, throwing his arms in the air, in surrender.

Cassie's eyes went wide and she dropped her fists. She opened her mouth to say something, but her voice wouldn't cooperate.

Phantom closed the distance between them and wrapped his arms around her. At first she was stiff, but soon melted into his arms, tears springing to her eyes.

Her tears surprised phantom. "Cassie what's the matter?" He asked, tilting her chin up toward him.

"I...I...thought I'd never see you again! It's been 3 months! I had no way of knowing if you were even still alive!"

Phantom sighed. "I apologize for my absence, Cassie. The month after the last time I saw you were hectic, and I came so close to finding Zordon. Then...when I slowed down enough to think about others then myself, I thought it would be too late. For sure...I thought you would have moved on with your life. Found...some one else."

Cassie scowled. "Some one else? Who else is there?" Her voice was getting more shaky by the moment, "My heart loves only you." She admitted, barely above a whisper.

Phantom felt a tear run down his human cheek, unknown to her.

"Mine too, Cassie, mine too..."

"Phantom...who are you...really?" Cassie asked, rather bravely.

Phantom knew this day would come, so why did he have no idea what to say?

He took Cassie's hands inside his own and gazed into her dark eyes. "Cassie...I am Phantom. Yes, I had a previous appearance, and a previous life style, but now, this is who I am. You don't love me for the mystery do you?"

"No...of course not. I love you, because of your care for others, and your soft spirit...and because...you make me feel like no one ever has before..."

Phantom nodded. "It will be best for the both of us, if we just stop thinking about my past. Let's just think and concentrate on the future."

"The future..." Cassie said it slowly, listening to herself breath the words. It had finally happened.

Something between them. Something more then a friendship. She buried her head into his armored chest, the metal not bothering her. It felt like clouds to her.

Phantom took his hand and ran it slowly through her hair, realizing how soft it really was.

"Don't let go, Phantom, please don't let go." Cassie voice was muffled, but it came across loud and clear.

"I won't Cassie...I swear I won't..."