"I thought Adelaide was bad when it came to cash handling," Sasha said, helping Ivan sort through the coins in his hand.
"Everything is so different these days," Ivan said.
"There's also the fact that Zandar is in Europe," Sasha said. "Their currency is different to ours."
"Indeed, M'lady," Ivan nodded.
Sasha smiled and shook her head. "Here," she handed him the correct change. "Put this in the slot, and I'll start packing."
Ivan did as instructed and Sasha started to pack up the grocery's they had been sent to collect. The cafe was running low on fresh vegetables and fruit, and she'd been tasked with replacing them while the others set up. She'd taken Ivan to give him a chance to get used to modern day things.
"Ready?" Sasha asked, packing away the last of the supplies.
Ivan took two bags from her and followed her from the store.
"I can carry them myself," Sasha said.
"You need not, M'lady," Ivan said.
Sasha laughed and took one of the bags from him. "In this time, we share the responsibilities of things," she said. "So, you carry one and I'll carry the other."
"Fair enough," Ivan said.
The two walked in silence for a few minutes, before Sasha spoke again. "How are you finding being here?" she asked, curiously. "You and the team get on well, just like I knew you would. But how are you, personally?"
"It is still very confusing," Ivan admitted. "Being a Ranger is similar to being a Knight, so I am thankful I have no lot everything. But everything is so... big," he looked around at the city buildings.
"The city takes a while to get used to, I'll agree," Sasha nodded. "When Adelaide first came here, she called me several times a day because she was so lost and confused. I was lucky that she had Chase to show her around though. I don't think I could've coped knowing she was out here getting lost."
"She is very lucky to have you," Ivan commented.
Sasha smiled. "Thanks," she said. "You mentioned, you had children in the past."
Ivan nodded.
"Tell me about them," Sasha said. "What were they like?"
"Tristan, my eldest, was very much like me as a boy," Ivan said. "He was very hard working. The day before I was captured, he told me he wanted to be a physician."
"You must have been so proud to hear that he wanted to help people," Sasha said.
"I was," Ivan nodded. "I will admit, I had wanted him to be a knight, but as long as he was helping someone, I did not mind how."
"And your daughters?"
"Cora and Victoria," Ivan sighed. "They were so much like their mother. Happy and carefree."
Sasha placed her hand on his arm. "I'm sorry, Ivan, I shouldn't have asked," she said. "Reliving those memories must be hard on you."
Ivan nodded. "It is, M'lady, but I do not blame you," he said. "It is not your fault that I did not see what became of them."
"There is a way to find out," Sasha said.
"There is?" Ivan asked.
Sasha nodded. "These days we have books and the internet, I'm sure there is something out there that has information on your family. I could do some research. Only if you wish, of course," she added quickly.
Ivan looked torn. On one hand, he really wanted to know what had become of his family after he had been captured, but on the other, he wasn't sure. What if something bad had happened, and he wasn't there to protect them.
"I would like some time to think about it," Ivan said.
"Of course," Sasha nodded. "I completely understand."
Ivan smiled and straightened. "Thank you, M'lady," he said.
Sasha chuckled and readjusted the bag in her hands.
"What is this?" a gruff voice asked, stopping the two in their tracks. Sasha and Ivan looked up to see Fury blocking their path.
Instinctively, Ivan pushed Sasha behind him as he squared off against Fury. "Stay back, you beast!" he said, setting the bag down.
"I'll call the others," Sasha said. She grabbed the bag Ivan had just set on the ground and backed away to a nearby alley. She set both bags down and pulled out her Dino Com. "Guys!"
"Sasha, what is it?" Adelaide's face loomed into view. "You're not supposed to call us when you're on a date."
Sasha rolled her eyes. Ever since she and Ivan had hit it off, Adelaide and Chase had taken to teasing her about a possible romantic relationship with the knight. "Shut it, you little rugrat!" she said, smiling. "Ivan and I've run into a spot of trouble."
"I thought you were capable of dealing with trouble," said Chase, appearing behind Adelaide's shoulder.
"Not the Fury kind."
There was a split second of silence before Adelaide spoke again. "We're on our way!" the line cut off and Sasha peered out into the street. Ivan had morphed during her call to the others and was now holding his own against Fury.
"You beat me once, Gold Ranger, but you did not defeat me," Fury growled.
"Perhaps not then, but you won't be so lucky today," Ivan said.
"See what you say in 800 years after I've locked you away again," Fury snarled. "Maybe this time I'll let you have some company, and take your pretty little friend too."
Ivan glanced over his shoulder to where Sasha was hiding. He could not let anything happen to her. "Not a chance!" he said, running at Fury and wielding his sabre around. Even though they had fought before, Ivan couldn't help but realise that Fury didn't seem as strong as he used to be. "Prepare to feel the wrath - Lightning Strike!"
"You'll pay for that!" Fury roared.
He ducked and dodged as Ivan raced at him again, swinging his sword from left to right.
"Time to take you down a notch, Fury," Ivan shouted. He swung his sword again and struck Fury's that was across his chest. He pushed the two tumbled over the side of the barrier, falling to the ground below.
Sasha gasped and run out from her hiding place. "Ivan!" she shouted, leaning over the barrier.
Ivan grunted and looked up into Sasha's worried face. She sighed in relief as she saw he was okay, and felt even better as the other Rangers arrived, surrounding him.
"Ivan, we've got you covered," Tyler said, helping the Knight stand.
"Thank you, my faithful friends," Ivan said.
Adelaide looked up and waved at her sister. "Get out of here!" she shouted.
Sasha made the 'OK' sign with her fingers and disappeared from the edge.
"Let's finish this once and for all," Ivan said as Fury regained his footing.
"Vivix's rise!" Fury commanded.
Out of the ground grew a handful of foot soldiers. They took one look at the Rangers and rushed forward. Amidst the fighting, the rangers noticed a gleaming white robot appear, chanting 'attack vivix' as it ploughed through the battle field.
"What is that thing?" Tyler asked, flooring a vivix.
The robot blocked a hit and punched a vivix in the chest. Knocking it to the ground.
"It trying to help us," Koda said, fighting his own vivix's.
Adelaide ducked as the robot swung at the vivix's around her. "Whoa. That thing nearly took my head off!" she squeaked, jumping over the robot and kicking a vivix into three more.
"Error..." the robot said, struggling as it tripped over onto Riley, knocking the green ranger to the ground.
"Well it's not doing a very good job, is it?" Riley grumbled, pushing the robot off of himself and straightening up.
"Leave it, and get Fury!" Tyler called.
The others nodded and run towards Fury. The robot could deal with the remaining Vivix while they took out Sledge's right hand.
"Vivix, get that robot!" Fury ordered as he fought off the whole team. He ducked, blocked, and kicked the seven Rangers that rushed at him, but soon even he felt overwhelmed. "I can't fight all of you. Vivix attack!" he ordered.
Another swarm of vivix appeared and surrounded the Rangers, in the confusion, Fury slipped away. Once the last vivix had been defeated, the team regrouped.
"Fury's gone," Tyler said, stating the obvious.
"I got to get back," Chase said, looking around. "I can't disappoint Chloe."
"It okay, Chase," Koda nodded.
Chase nodded and turned to Adelaide. "Meet me later?" he asked.
Adelaide nodded. "I need to check on Sasha first," she said. "But I'll meet you at the skatepark."
Chase nodded and run off as the others demorphed.
"Error..."
"Huh?" Tyler murmured, looking around. The robot seemed to be malfunctioning and was now walking into a wall nonstop.
"Error... Error..."
"What's with this thing?" Shelby frowned.
"Better question: Where did it come from?" Riley asked.
Adelaide looked up at the sound of footsteps, and her breathing caught in her chest as a familiar face appeared before her. "Prince Philip?" she asked quietly.
"Your highness," Shelby said, surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"I came to speak with either Koda or Adelaide," Prince Philip answered, smiling at them both. "When I saw you were in trouble, I decided to lend a hand." He held up a controller. "With my robot."
"This fighting machine is yours?" Koda asked.
Even though Philip was not controlling it, the robot turned on the spot and walked away.
"It fought well, did it not?" Philip asked. He looked so excited that his contraption was able to help.
"Eh, t'was, uh, not that helpful," Ivan said, somewhat awkwardly.
The hopeful look on Philip's face dropped.
"A machine just can't react the way a human Ranger can," Tyler said, quickly.
"To be honest, it kinda sorta got in the way," Shelby said, trailing off.
"I see," Philip said, looking downtrodden. "I'm sorry."
Adelaide smiled and shook her head. "It's okay, we know you were just trying to help," she said. "We appreciate that."
"Error... Error..."
Riley looked around and gasped. "The robot!" he shouted as a group of Vivix lifted the robot off of its feet and carried it away.
The Rangers, plus, Philip, hurried after the foot soldiers, but by the time they reached the corner, they had disappeared.
"They slipped through our fingers!" Ivan grumbled.
"They can't run it without the remote," Philip said, trying to sound reassuring.
"I hope you're right," Tyler said. "Fury can be pretty clever."
"You give Fury way too much credit," Adelaide said, shaking her head. "Last I checked, it was Wrench that did most of the disabling and rebuilding. Fury's just a soldier."
Tyler rolled his eyes and poked her shoulder. "Either way," he said. "If they figure out a way to bypass the remote, we could be in real danger."
Philip sighed, looking guilty.
~X~
Once back at the museum, and after checking in with her sister, Adelaide tore around the base looking for her skateboard and helmet. She packed everything else into a backpack and raced out. "See you later," she called over her shoulder as she disappeared.
Sasha chuckled and shook her head. "You'd think she'd have a date or something," she said, wandering over to where Kendall was working.
"Where is she off too?" Kendall asked.
"She's meeting Chase at the skatepark," Sasha answered. "His little sister Chloe was here this morning. Adelaide finally gets to meet her in person. I wonder if Chase was this excited to meet me?"
Kendall smiled and, without looking up from her work, said, "I heard Prince Philip returned today."
"Wait, what?" Sasha asked, staring at the scientist perplexed.
"I overheard Tyler and Shelby when they were setting up in the kitchen," Kendall said. "He came to talk with Koda or Adelaide about something."
"Do we know what?"
Kendall shook her head. "That's all I could hear," she said.
"Mhm," Sasha murmured. She wandered over to the computers and wired herself into the security cameras.
"What are you doing?" Kendall asked.
"Spying, without being seen," Sasha replied.
"Isn't that illegal?"
"Not if I have permission," Sasha said, "and you're sitting right there watching me. If you told me to stop, then I'd have too. Are you going too?"
"Is this going to hurt anyone?"
Sasha shook her head. "I'm just curious who he chose to speak with, that's all," she said. "I know Adelaide has a huge crush on him, right now, and according to Riley, Philip seemed pretty interested in Adelaide, so, you know, I wonder if he came to talk to her, but used Koda as a cover up, sort to speak."
"You really think he would do that?" Kendall asked.
Sasha shrugged. Her gaze swept through the recordings on the computer until she finally found the screen she needed. Adelaide was racing through the museum on her skateboard, heading straight for the doors at the end of the hall. Quickly Sasha switched the camera's to the ones outside and watched as her sister approached Philip as he waited outside. His usual secret service men surrounding him protectively.
"I wish there was audio on this thing!" Sasha grumbled as she watched her sister and Philip converse. They started walking towards the end of the street and soon were out of range of the cameras. "Ah, dammit!"
Kendall shook her head. "That's stalkers behaviour, you know that right?" she teased.
"It's also called being a protective big sister," Sasha countered.
Kendall chuckled and went back to work.
~X~
Adelaide stopped at the edge of the street and kicked her board into her hands. She waited while one of Philip's men opened the back door, and Philip allowed her to climb in first. He had offered to take her to the park, giving them a chance to talk.
"So, uh," hesitated Philip, leaning back in his seat beside Adelaide. He noticed as she looked around in awe and couldn't help but smile. Either side of where they were seated were two more long chairs, each occupied with a secret service agent. "Last time we met, you mentioned that... bubble?"
"My protective bubble," Adelaide nodded.
Philip nodded. "Yes, that one," he said. "You said it had been happening since you were five?"
"Yep. Since I found my energem," Adelaide said. She reached under her t-shirt and pulled out the scarlet gem. It glimmered in the dull light and Adelaide tucked it away again.
"How did you come to find it?" Philip asked, curiously. "How does a five-year-old come across such an important thing?"
"I was beachcombing at Canon Beach in Oregon," Adelaide explained. "I like seashells. Anyway, I picked up this one shell and the scarlet energem was underneath it. I also like crystals," she added. "I was five, I thought it was really pretty, and then Fury showed up. He tried to attack me but the Energem reacted and that's where my bubble came from."
Philip looked impressed. "Do the others have protective bubbles?" he asked.
"Not that we're aware," Adelaide said. "The only energem that's really protected us is my own. But according to Keeper, he protects the gems, the energems have their own sense of power, what one has another may not. That's why they're untold powers of the universe."
"I see," Philip nodded. "So you've been fighting Fury since you were five?"
Adelaide giggled and Philip felt his heart swell at the sound. He definitely liked hearing her laugh.
"No," Adelaide said, smiling. "After Keeper saved me from Fury, he wanted the gem, wanted to protect me, but I wouldn't give it back. He reluctantly let me keep it but promised that he would keep an eye on me until I was old enough to fight myself. He didn't trust Fury to not come back later, and it's a good thing too because Fury came back two years later and Keeper fought him off again."
"Keeper must really care about you?"
Adelaide smiled. "A lot of people called him my imaginary friend," she nodded. "I talked to him quite often but no one ever saw him, nobody except Sasha that is. Anyway, I'm getting off track. When I was a teenager, Keeper left me, believing that I could protect myself, and I bonded to my energem one night after Fury attacked me and Sasha. He threatened her, and I couldn't let anything happen to my sister, she was already going through a rough patch. That was two years ago."
"You bonded to the energem?" Philip repeated.
"Yep."
"How is that?"
Adelaide frowned. "How do you mean?" she asked.
"I mean, how did you bond with it?" Philip asked. "You said you had to protect your sister, but how did you bond to the energem exactly?"
Adelaide looked down, her brow furrowed in confusion. "You know, now that you mention it, I've never really thought of it," she said. "Keeper says it's because I have a good heart and I showed bravery, apparently an Energem will only choose someone who is worthy of its power."
"How does one prove that to a gem?" Philip asked, looking both confused and excited.
"I don't know," Adelaide said with a small shrug. "It just... happened. Why do you want to know?"
Before Philip had a chance to answer, the screen separating them and the driver lowered and a man's voice called back. "Your highness, we're coming up onto the skatepark," he said.
"Thank you, Davis," Philip replied. He pressed a button to his left and the screen returned to its normal place.
Adelaide grabbed her backpack from the floor at her feet and slipped it onto her shoulders. The man than sitting opposite her handed her the skateboard he had placed beside him on the seat. "Thanks," she said, happily. She turned back to Philip. "Thank you for the ride, and I hope I was of some help to you."
"You were," Philip nodded as the car pulled to a stop. "Thank you, Miss. Adelaide."
"Please, just call me Adelaide or Ade."
"Adelaide," Philip said, testing the name on his tongue.
The door behind her opened, and Adelaide slid out into the sunlight. It was bright against her eyes after being in the semi-darkness of the car.
"Bye," Adelaide said, turning to wave to Philip. She then run a short distance away, tossed her skateboard onto the floor, and jumped on to it, skating away as she clipped her helmet on right.
Philip watched her disappear down the small incline near the skate park and then the door closed again. He sighed and sat back, while Adelaide had been helpful, he was still confused his latest venture.
~X~
"Can you should me how to do a midair 360?"
Chase chuckled as he clipped the helmet under Chloe's chin. He was so excited to spend some time with his little sister that he had suggested the skate park, especially since Chloe was eager to learn as much about skateboarding as she could.
"That's lesson two," Chase said. "Lesson one is..." he straightened up and took both her hands, "foot on board." he helped her steady herself on the board, his foot against the wheels so it didn't roll away.
"Lesson two? More like twenty-two."
Chase looked up as Adelaide rolled to a stop beside him. "Hey, you made it!" he grinned.
"Here," Adelaide said, shrugging off her backpack. She reached inside and removed a set of pads. "Sasha said you left these at the museum."
"Thanks," Chase said, taking the pads and unbuckling them. "Oh, Chloe, you remember Ade, right?"
Chloe smiled and nodded. "You live with Chase," she said.
"Yep," Adelaide said.
"But you're not his girlfriend?"
Adelaide laughed and shook her head. "No," she said. "I love your brother, but not like that."
"Mum says that's how relationships usually start," Chloe said, smiling. "She said that she and my dad used to be good friends in school before they got married."
Adelaide smiled and exchanged a look with Chase. "Even your mother's planning an advanced wedding," she said. "Let's hope she and Shelby never meet in person."
"Hey, that just means our wedding will be amazing!" Chase teased.
"It's never going to happen," Adelaide said.
"Never say never," Chase said.
Adelaide shook her head and looked around at the two girls' with Chase. They were obviously Chloe's friends from school. "Are you two skating too?" she asked.
They quickly shook their heads.
"Alright," Adelaide said. "Hey, I'm gonna hit the ramp. Be back in a few."
Chase saluted and knelt to help Chloe put on the pads. He buckled them around her knees and elbows while she watched Adelaide from afar.
"She's really good," Chloe said.
"Yep," Chase nodded.
"Is she the only girl here?"
"There's sometimes other girl's too," Chase said. "Adelaide's usually only here if I am."
"Why?"
Chase shrugged and shook his head. "Issues when she first arrived. You ready for step one?"
"Foot on board, yes."
"Good. Now, step one B is all about balance."
Chloe nodded, listening intently to her brother has he told her ways to keep her balance while on a skateboard. It was a lot different to balancing on a bike where all you needed to do was to just keep pedalling.
After a few attempts, Chloe jumped off the board and squealed, bouncing up and down as she finally got the hang of it. She had managed to balance herself on the board while it was standing still, and while it was moving.
"Way to go!" Adelaide said. "Now you're ready for lesson two. Don't worry if you screw up the first time, it took a while to learn the basics, but you've got both me and your brother here to help you."
"Thanks, Adelaide," Chloe smiled.
"Call me, Ade, it's easier."
Chloe grinned and looked back at Chase. "Can you teach me some tricks now?" she asked.
"Sure. We'll start with -" Chase broke off as he heard the beeping of his Dino Com from his backpack.
"I'll get it," Adelaide said, rolling over on her own skateboard. She reached into her backpack and pulled out her coms. "What's up?"
"We need you and Chase here, now," said Shelby.
Adelaide bit her lip and looked over her shoulder. "Do you really need the pair of us?" she asked. Chase had been looking forward to spending time with Chloe ever since his mother had told him about the dance recital coming to Amber Beach.
"It's Ranger related."
"Okay," Adelaide sighed. "I'll grab Chase and meet you. Text me the details."
"Got it." Shelby hung up and minutes later a text message arrived on Ade's phone. She checked the address and turned back to the others.
"Uh, we got an emergency," Adelaide said, looking expectantly at Chase. "They need us."
Chase's smile dropped. "Again?" he stressed.
Adelaide nodded. "I did ask if they desperately needed the two of us," she said, "but apparently it is too important for just one."
Chase sighed. "Okay." He looked to Chloe as she lowered her gaze. "I'm sorry, Chloe," he apologised. "But, um -"
"Work again, huh?" Chloe asked.
"Yeah," Chase nodded. "Why don't you go play with your mates? I'll be back as soon as I can, okay?"
Chloe nodded.
Chase ruffled her hair and grabbed his skateboard and helmet.
Adelaide squatted down beside Chloe. "We'll make this quick, alright?" she said, hand on the little girl's shoulder. "Then you'll be whizzing around this skate park like a pro."
Chloe grinned. "Thanks, Ade," she said.
"See you soon," Adelaide said. She jumped to her feet and skated off alongside Chase.
~X~
When Chase and Adelaide arrived at the address Shelby had sent, they both realised it was a small cafe on the outskirts of the city. Chase rolled to a stop at the familiar limo parked out front and turned back to Adelaide. "You didn't tell me Prince Philip was back," he said.
"It never came up," Adelaide said with a shrug. "Besides, we were both too busy. You had Chloe, and I was doing what I do best - showing off."
Chase rolled his eyes and kicked his board into his arms. "How are you dealing with all this?" he asked. The last time Philip had been around, it had taken he and Sasha a while to distract Adelaide from her growing fondness.
"I was really surprised when I first saw him," Adelaide said. "But, I don't know. How am I supposed to feel? I mean, yeah, I like him, but I don't know what to do about that. I can't just go up to him and tell him that I do, he probably gets that all the time. I'll be just like another fan girl to him."
"Aw, little Adelaide's growing up!" Chase teased, squeezing her in a one-armed hug.
"Shut up!" Adelaide said, blushing deeply. She pushed him away and he stumbled through the interior courtyard. Sitting a table where the other rangers and Prince Philip, behind them, standing at attention and scoping the area for any possible dangers, were the security detail.
Tyler looked up and rolled his eyes. "Do you pair ever grow up?" he asked.
"She pushed me," Chase defended, pointing over his shoulder at Adelaide.
"You started it," Adelaide said. She skated closer to the table and landed, with a flop, onto Koda's back. The caveman smiled and made a big enough space between himself and Tyler so Adelaide had room to kneel, while Chase took a seat beside Riley.
Tyler looked around at everyone and returned his attention to Prince Philip. "Now that everyone's here," he said. "You asked to see us."
"Nothing is more noble than helping one's fellow man, and I wanted to help you on your mission to keep the Earth safe," Philip explained. "A few days ago, I found this." He reached into his coat and pulled out a grey crystal.
"Graphite Energem!" Koda said, shocked.
"Why didn't you tell us?" Tyler asked.
"Well, I hoped it would bond with me," Philip admitted, somewhat embarrassedly.
Adelaide leaned forward on her elbows. "That's why you wanted to know how I bonded to mine," she said, realising the intentions of their conversation earlier that day.
"I did everything I could, but... clearly I'm not worthy of being a Power Ranger." He looked around at them before his gaze met Adelaide's, she smiled, despite looking confused. "Perhaps you can find someone more fitting?" he asked, handing the gem to Tyler.
Tyler smiled and took the gem in hand. "Thanks, Prince Philip. This means a lot," he said.
Philip smiled and nodded. He may not have got what he wanted, but he was glad that he could help the rangers in their mission of obtaining the last five energems.
Suddenly an explosion rocked the surrounding area, causing the Rangers to jump back in alarm. In his surprise, Tyler threw the energem into the air and it disappeared into a nearby fountain. Looking over his shoulder, Chase noticed Fury through the shimmering shield of Adelaide's bubble.
"Ah, Ade?" Chase said softly.
"Huh, this thing got a mind of its own," Adelaide said, looking down at her energem.
"Be thankful for that," Shelby said. "Fury could've done a lot of damage to us then."
Adelaide shrugged in response and looked back up. Fury looked even more furious than he usually did.
"Isn't that -?" Chase started, pointing out the robot that had tried to help them earlier.
"My robot," Philip gasped. "That's impossible."
"Like my new weapon?" Fury asked. "Time to crush you with your own technology."
Tyler jumped to his feet and stepped around his friends. "That hunk of steel doesn't stand a chance against us," he said, defiantly. He run forward, through the protective shield as it disappeared, and the others followed quickly.
"Now!" Fury ordered.
"Destroy Rangers," the Robot said, following Fury into battle. "Attack!" it swung its fist at Chase and Adelaide, both of whom blocked and pushed back, causing the robot to stumble away.
"Look out!" Chase said, shoving Adelaide aside as the robot took another swing at her. Her energem reacted and a bubble burst from her chest, protecting her from any other blows. Chase, on the other hand, wasn't as lucky and got thrown back by the robot's arm.
"Chase!" Adelaide yelled. She summoned her dino morpher and blasted the robot as he rushed towards her best friend. She dropped her shield and opened fire, causing the robot to stop and wheel around onto her.
Chase gasped and jumped back to his feet, stopping in his intent to help Adelaide by the call of his name. He looked up as Chloe run towards him from the road. "Chloe, no, stop!" he yelled, holding out a hand.
Chloe stopped short as Chase was blasted off of his feet. She stared, wide-eyed and terrified at her brother as a robot grabbed her brother's arms, forcefully pulling him to his feet. "Chase, help!" she cried, looking around as Fury and Tyler blocked her path to the road.
"Chloe!" Adelaide called, spotting the girl. She tried to run towards the youngester but her path became blocked by a swarm of vivix. "Chloe!"
"Adelaide!" Chloe yelled, spotting her brother's best friend.
"Get the girl!" Fury ordered, finally spotting Chloe from where he was fighting.
Chloe gasped and took up hiding behind a statue. It wasn't enough from the ruckus, and she didn't feel safe once the robot had started firing up on her. "Help!" Chloe yelled.
"Stop it!" Adelaide yelled, blasting the vivix with her morpher. She blocked another's punch with her arm and kicked another in the stomach.
"No!" Chase gasped as he tried to reach his sister, only for the robot to catch him around the middle and throw him aside.
"Hey!" Adelaide yelled, finishing up the vivix and running towards the robot. She kicked it in the back and ducked as it spun around, trying to hit her. "Too slow!" she laughed, before cutting off as the robot hit her in the stomach, lifted her off of her feet and threw her into Chase as he tried to sneak past.
The two groaned and hit the ground.
"This isn't working!" Adelaide grumbled as the robot bared down upon them again. "We need another plan!"
"I'm all ears," Chase called, fighting off the robot. It didn't matter whether he or Adelaide was free from fighting, every time one of them tried to reach Chloe another obstacle appeared in their path.
Seeing the Rangers weren't having any luck in saving the young girl, Prince Philip threw off his guards as they tried to stop him, and entered the fray himself. He pulled his robot away from Adelaide and Chase and even kicked aside a few vivix's as they surrounded Chloe.
"Come with me," Philip said, lifting Chloe into his arms and running out of the way of the fighting. He set her down and looked around as Chase and Adelaide rushed over.
"Chloe!" Chase called, pulling his sister into a tight hug. Relief washed over him as she hugged him back. She was shaking in fear, but Chase was just thankful she was safe and alive.
"Are you alright?" Adelaide asked.
"Yeah," Chloe breathed.
"Oh, my gosh!" Chase sighed. "I was really scared."
"I think she was too," Adelaide said.
Chloe nodded and unwound herself from Chase's hug. She looked up as Prince Philip's security detail joined them.
"Look, these guys will take you back to the museum," said Chase, pushing her lightly towards the secret service. "I'll be there soon."
The security detail looked to Philip. He nodded once, silently telling them to do as Chase said.
"Okay, Chase," Chloe said, obviously still shaken. "Bye, Ade!"
"See you in few, Chloe," Adelaide called.
"Thank you, mate," said Chase, turning quickly to Prince Philip. "I owe you one."
Adelaide smiled and turned to face the Prince also. "I bet you didn't think of doing that when you tried to bonding to the Graphite Energem, huh?" she asked.
Philip shook his head.
"You may be in luck," Adelaide added, pointing towards the fountain the graphite energem had dropped into. The gem had risen into the air, shimmering brightly in the afternoon light before zooming across the quad and into Philip's hand. The force knocked the Prince off of his feet.
"Your highness!" Chase exclaimed.
Philip sat up, unscratched, and stared at the gem in the palm of his hand. "It chose me?" he breathed.
Chase chuckled and helped him back to his feet. "Congratulations," he complimented.
"Energem very smart," Koda said, running over with the others in tow.
Philip looked around at the shocked faces of the other rangers, just as a fossilised morpher appeared in his hand. He held it up and the stone fell away to reveal a yellow and black blaster.
"This proves that your earlier assumption was wrong," Adelaide said. "You are worthy enough to be a Power Ranger."
Philip met her gaze and smiled. Maybe she was right.
"Ms Morgan, you're not going to believe what happened," Shelby laughed, using her dino comm to contact Kendall at the base.
"Another Ranger?" Fury roared. "Not for long!"
"It is morphin' time?" Philip asked, tearing his gaze away from Adelaide and turning it onto Fury.
"You bet it is," Tyler nodded.
"You beat me once, but it won't happen again," Fury warned.
With Philip leading them, the Rangers squared off against Fury and his band of misfit monsters. "Graphite Energem!" Philip called, holding out his newly bonded crystal.
"Dino Chargers, ready!"
"Energise! Unleash the power!"
Once morphed, the eight Rangers flipped into the fray, each breaking off and dealing with their own set of monsters.
"Dino Steel, Armour on!" Adelaide called, running her morpher down her arm and summoning her Dimetro Bow. She loaded an arrow and unleashed it onto the unexpecting Vivix. "These losers are too easy!" she said, landing beside Chase.
"They never learn," Chase agreed, firing off another round from his dino morpher.
"Vivix, rise, and finish the job!" Fury suddenly yelled over the noise. He'd had enough fighting a losing battle, and had no ill feelings to leaving the Vivix and Spikeballs to take the fall while he departed. He disappeared just as two giant vivizords towered over the city.
"We've got trouble!" Shelby said, running over to where Adelaide and Chase were finishing up fighting.
"Tyler, watch out!" Ivan yelled.
Shelby, Adelaide, and Chase whipped around just in time to see a vivizord kick Tyler through several concrete pillars. The red Ranger groaned as he hit the ground, but thankfully he didn't demorph.
"Tyler!" Shelby called, racing over. The others in tow.
"You alright?" Adelaide asked.
"Yeah," Tyler groaned. He looked up and his eyes widened. "Look at that," he added, pointing out the mechanical Pachysaurus head-butting the vivizords. It reared up and then swung its tail around numerous times, before unleashing it on the last vivizord.
Adelaide grinned and took off towards the end of the dock.
"Ade, wait!" Chase called, following after her. The others weren't that far behind.
Chase reached Adelaide just as she broke the corner, both of them witnessing Prince Philip's final attack on the robot.
"Error... Error... Error..." the robot repeated as it fell over and exploded.
"Robot destroyed!" Philip announced.
Adelaide laughed and rushed over, grabbing his hand and bouncing up and down in her excitement. "You did it!" she cheered.
"You pack quite a punch," Tyler said, clapping Philip on the shoulder as he joined them. "Prince Philip, that was..."
"Awesome!" the others cheered.
"You're a natural," Adelaide complimented.
"I wouldn't go that far," Philip said, slightly embarrassed.
Adelaide demorphed and smiled brightly. The others followed suit, and as Philip relinquished his morph, Adelaide's hand slipped further into his palm. She blushed and pulled her hand away. Philip sighed lightly.
"You met your Pachy zord," said Koda, not realising what had just happened.
"Indeed, I have," Philip agreed tearing his gaze away from Adelaide. The zord roared and stomped away. "Thank you, Pachy Zord." The Prince saluted as it disappeared.
~X~
Adelaide grinned as she watched Chase hold Chloe's hands and guide her towards the street on his skateboard. While it hadn't been the trip the siblings had expected, it was still fun to have seen each other and, in Adelaide and Chloe's case, finally meet each other.
"You're doing great," Adelaide said as Chloe jumped from the skateboard. "You'll be a pro in no time!"
"Woo-hoo!" Chloe cheered. "Just like my big brother."
A horn sounded from the road, and the three of them looked around to see a car pull up to the curb. Chloe groaned as she realised her time in Amber Beach was over. "Aw, I have to go already," she whined. She walked over to her backpack and reached inside, pulling out a small present. "It's for you. Open it," she turned and called over her shoulder. "Be right there" before turning back to Chase.
Chase opened the box and stared at its contents.
"It's a plane ticket to New Zealand, so you can come see Mum and me for Christmas," Chloe said, happily.
"Chloe, this might just be the best present I ever got," Chase said, looking up from the ticket. "I wouldn't miss it for the world." He leaned down and grabbed her around the legs, throwing her over his shoulder.
Chloe giggled and held onto her helmet.
"Let's go," Chase said, grabbing her backpack from beside Adelaide and carried her to the car. He set her on the vacated seat and pulled back. "Message me when you land."
Chloe nodded and looked out at Adelaide. "Bye," she called. "It was nice meeting you."
"You too, Chloe, have a safe flight," Adelaide called. She waited as Chase rejoined her and waved as the car drove away down the street. "Aw, I miss her already."
"Maybe our friendship was fate," Chase said, grabbing his helmet and backpack from the wall.
"What do you mean?" Adelaide asked, confused.
"Well, we've both met each other's respective parents, and hit it off. I met your sister face-to-face, and she approved, and you've met my sister face-to-face and she approves. Maybe we were meant to be friends."
Adelaide rolled her eyes. "Chloe should come around more often," she said. "You get sentimental when she's here."
Chase rolled his eyes and poked her shoulder. "Speaking of being around more often," he said. "We should head back."
"Why?" Adelaide asked, wondering how heading back to the museum had anything to do with their current conversation.
"So you can see your Prince before he leaves, duh," Chase said.
Adelaide blushed. "He's not my Prince!" she defended.
"Uh-huh, but you wish he was!" Chase teased. "Oh, and for the record, I saw what happened earlier."
"What are you talking about?" Adelaide asked, panicking slightly.
"When you demorphed," said Chase. "Your hand in his, and then you pulled away. I guess you're not ready for the hand holding stage yet, are you?"
Adelaide blushed harder and Chase chuckled. "I'm going to get you!" she said, grabbing her skateboard.
Chase skated away and Adelaide followed.
~X~
Prince Philip looked around at the Rangers present in the base. They had brought him back to meet Kendall, Sasha, and Keeper after he had bonded to the Graphite Energem and destroyed the robot that had threatened the city. His tour of the base was also to give him a basic understanding of how things were done behind the Ranger scenes.
Unfortunately, Adelaide and Chase were not present during the tour. Chase had decided to spend the little time he had left with his sister, and Adelaide had gone because it was her chance of meeting Chloe in the flesh.
To say Philip was disappointed that Adelaide had chosen to accompany Chase, and not remain behind with him would've been an understatement. He was still trying to figure out his growing fondness for the brunette, all the while trying to figure out where he stood if he were to pursue her.
As he examined the Graphite Energem at the crystal beds, Philip sensed another presence and turned to find Sasha, Adelaide's older sister, standing beside him. He understood completely that if he were to ever consider dating Adelaide he would need Sasha's permission, especially since he couldn't get her parents.
"I hear you wanted to speak with Adelaide this morning," Sasha said.
"I wished to ask her about her Energem," Philip assured the older woman.
Sasha smiled. "I'm not prying," she said. "What you and Adelaide talk about is none of my business, but at the end of the day she is my little sister, I don't want to see her hurt."
"I would never hurt her," Philip said quickly.
"That's good to know," Sasha said, nodding. "Because, I'm not the only older sibling she has, she also has two older twin brothers. Regardless of whether you're a prince, neither I nor my brothers, like to see Adelaide upset."
Philip swallowed and nodded in understanding. He knew there was nothing they could do to him physically, but the idea of three overprotective siblings was enough to shake anyone to the core. "You need not worry about my intentions with your sister," he said. "From what I can gather, she only sees me as a friend."
Sasha bit back a scoff. "I wouldn't say that exactly," she said. "She'll probably kill me for saying this but, Adelaide has a deep fondness for you, one that she doesn't really understand herself. She put herself on the line to protect you last time you were here, and while, as a Ranger, she should do that for everyone, you were different. And I know you feel the same way," she added.
"I do care about your sister," Philip admitted. "But..."
"There's a but?" Sasha asked.
Philip nodded. "I've seen the way she is with Chase," he said. "She seems happy. I wouldn't want to come between them."
Sasha chuckled. "I know exactly what you mean. But Adelaide and Chase are just friends," she assured him. "Look, don't get me wrong, the rest of us often tease them about the way they are together, but I know nothing romantic will ever come of their relationship. Unless, of course, they're both in their 30s and still single, then it'd be a different story."
Philip cracked a smile.
"I guess, what I'm saying is," said Sasha. "If you ever did intend to pursue that growing fondness for my sister, I won't stop you." She smiled. "I just want Adelaide to be happy."
"Thank you," Philip said. He looked down at his energem. It pulled from his hand and took its rightful place in the crystal bed alongside Ivan's. He smiled.
The trap door leading to the T-Rex head opened and Chase slid down the slide into view. He was in the process of removing himself from the slide when Adelaide slid down behind him, knocking him to the floor.
"Hey!" Chase whined, untangling himself.
"You're supposed to move!" Adelaide said, rolling away.
"You couldn't have waited, oh, I don't know, ten seconds?" Chase asked, standing. He pulled Adelaide back to her feet.
Adelaide shrugged. "Does it take you ten seconds to get off the slide?" she asked.
"You're a pain," Chase grumbled.
"Takes one to know one," Adelaide retorted.
Chase stuck his tongue out and Adelaide copied his actions.
"Took you guy's long enough," Shelby huffed.
Adelaide pointed at Chase. "He said he knew a shortcut, and we ended up getting lost. Twice," she said.
"Don't blame me!" Chase said, pushing her hand away. "You were the one who got distracted."
The Rangers groaned and turned away from the bickering pair.
Sasha rolled her eyes and glanced at Philip. "Still have that fondness?" she asked.
"Frankly, yes," Philip said with a smile.
"That's good," Sasha said. "Because I don't think Adelaide's ever going to change."
"That's not necessarily a bad thing."
Sasha laughed lightly. "Well, they do say opposites attract," she said, "and you and Adelaide couldn't be any more opposite."
After much deliberating, I edited a few past chapters to coincide with a new idea. There are now 12 Energems not 11, making it five new energems to find.