WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Power Rangers #9 from Boom! Studios, on sale now.
The Power Rangers are no strangers to powerful alien threats coming their way, but never before have they been so helpless in the face of one as they are with the Empyreals. The Omega Rangers have already witnessed these heralds of Dark Specter annihilate two worlds firsthand, and they are running dangerously short of options for how to fight back, even going so far as to kidnap Lord Drakkon in their pursuits of a solution. Remarkably, the former tyrant has proven to be more of a help than a hindrance, and now he's looking for a rematch with the Red Ranger as payment for his assistance.
The Omega Rangers are more shaken than ever after their latest defeat. At Drakkon's suggestion, Trini attempts to make contact with the Yellow Emissary in the hopes of breaking through to the one being in the universe that might be powerful enough to stave off the Empyreal threat. While the dark lord has historically been one of the worst villains to ever cross the Rangers' path, his time with the Omegas has seen him genuinely do good alongside them. Even when presented with multiple opportunities to betray the heroes, the former Ranger has stayed the course, and he even offers Trini a good bit of advice. Afterwards, Drakkon wanders to the Vault where the most dangerous monsters and villains the Rangers have ever faced are imprisoned. When Jason finds him there, the two discuss what might happen if they are somehow victorious over the Empyreals. Specifically, Drakkon is looking for an opportunity to fight for his freedom...literally.
Jason is taken back by Drakkon's suggestion that he might be let free when the battle against the forces of Dark Specter is over, even more so when he realizes the former Green Ranger is serious. He hasn't just helped Trini find the Yellow Emissary, he has stood by the Rangers when their ship was overrun by space vampires and in their fight against the S.P.D. when the crew was stranded on Onyx. While he could have easily left the team behind at either of these points, especially when the Rangers were being held captive alongside Astronema, Drakkon decided to do everything he could to save the Omegas and keep them on course.
As noble as these acts were, they hardly absolve him of tearing reality apart at the seams. Drakkon then asks Jason if to consider facing him in combat and give him the chance to literally fight for his freedom. The tension between them has been thick from the start, and there is no doubt that the Red Omega Ranger would relish the opportunity to put Lord Drakkon in his place physically. As tempting as the offer might be, however, Jason ultimately turns it down.
The rivalry between Jason Lee Scott and Tommy Oliver has been a part of the Power Rangers mythos since the very beginning, and though Drakkon isn't Tommy in the familiar sense, that same tension still exists between them now. However, Jason isn't going to risk seeing Drakkon go free by acquiescing to any of his demands, but the fact that he has made so few does speak to there being at least one side of Drakkon that the heroes have yet to see.
While Drakkon accuses Jason of using his place as a Ranger to vent his own personal issues through violence, there is also the possibility that the tyrant is using his own place on the team to be play the role of hero without having to actually dedicate himself to doing so. The likelihood of Drakkon finding his freedom at the end of this isn't very high, but it's beginning to look like he won't be falling back into Zordon's grasp anytime soon, either.