The following morning, Chase was no use to anyone! He accomplished more of his work rota on that morning than he had in almost two years preparing for his sister and her class arriving! No one had ever seen him work so hard!
By the time it came time for the performance, Chase had already performed nearly a week's worth of the work anyone expected of him.
The kids were all dressed in tribal dress and were on the stage performing the Kapo Haka. It was a dance made famous by the All Blacks or New Zealand Rugby team. It was a large part of New Zealand culture, the Haka was as much a sign of respect as it was a war dance. It was performed when a foreign dignitary visited. It was performed when members of the military were brought home from war zones having sacrificed their lives!"
Chase watched on as she chanted in Maori, a language that few beyond New Zealand knew of, reciting the rites of the Haka. Several of the boys in the class had large red welts on their chests and forelegs. Part of the Haka was slapping oneself hard on those locations. These kids were so fiercely proud of their heritage they were not going at it half-strength!
The room erupted into an applause as they finished the dance. Kendall was the first to step foward.
"I want to say a big thank you to our visitors from New Zealand for their wonderful performance of Kapo Haka, a traditional Maori dance." She announced.
The crowd applauded and headed off dutifully following their tour guides, Koda wasn't paying much attention to anything though; he was still in world of his own after what happened with Alessandra the previous night.
As he was about to clear a table, his morpher bleeped.
"Guys, there's a disturbance downtown!" Kendall told them. "It's Fury."
"We're on our way!" Tyler rushed out as they all ran from the restaurant. Allison just sighed.
"I guess I'm handling the morning coffee rush myself again".
The Rangers got to the site of the attack, but they found to their surprise half of the viviks were already down and out! There was a white robot pounding into them! It was far too slow and didn't hit them often, but when it did, hit sent them flying over ten feet!
"Attack Viviks" It kept repeating over and over. The Rangers rushed into the battle to join it.
"OK, whatever this thing is it's..." Tyler's words were cut off as he ended up on the receiving end of a clothesline that nearly turned him inside out! "Holy SHIT that thing hits hard!"
The battle was over before any of the Rangers could analyse the situation any further. Fury had run of when he figured he couldn't win, leaving everyone completely confused.
"What the hell is that thing?" Shelby asked as she gestured to the G-Bo. This was when Phillipe chose to break cover and reveal himself.
"I see you like my robot!" Phillipe stated. "It is the very height of combat training technology."
"This fighting machine yours?" Koda asked.
"It is." Phillipe responded. "So, how did it fare?"
Ivan was bound to the royal household of Zandar, and so he could not lie...even if doing so was bound to cause offence.
"It was...not that helpful." Ivan told him. Phillipe just looked hurt and confused.
"It kind of...got in the way." Shelby injected.
"A robot will just never have the reactions a human Ranger will." Riley added.
"I see." Phillipe answered, trying to process all he'd been told. "I was trying to help..."
"What are you even doing here?" Chase asked him. "Aren't you meant to be in Zandar or something?"
"Wait, what are they doing?" Phillipe shouted as he saw some Viviks lifting the fallen body of his G-bot "PUT THAT DOWN! COME BACK!"
By the time they had followed him around the corner, all they could see was some of Sledge's drop pods blasting off and heading into orbit.
"Damn it!" Tyler muttered.
"Don't worry; they can't control it without this!" Phillipe responded.
"I wouldn't count on it, Wrench is a sneaky bastard." Chase answered. "What were you doing here anyway?"
"Oh...I have something to discuss with Koda." He answered. "Perhaps over some burgers?"
Koda nodded enthusiastically as they walked away. Shelby just looked to Tyler.
"There's more to this than he's telling right?" She commented.
"Definitely!" Tyler answered.
Back at the cafe, Margaret was standing in a corner, keeping a safe distance while also keeping a careful eye on things. Koda had a huge pile of burgers in front of him, all courtesy of Phillipe.
"So, you said the gem CHOSE you?" Phillipe asked. He knew that Koda was the first human that had ever bonded to an Energem. If anyone would understand what it took to bond to an Energem, it would be him.
"I not understand, but yes, Energem CHOOSE me!" Koda told him as he chewed through a mouthful of burger.
"Really? A caveman?" Phillipe asked. "Why?"
"Energem think I have good heart." Koda stated, pounding a fist to his chest. Phillipe fell silent at this.
"Good heart?" He asked. "How does one prove that to a gem?"
"Not know, Energems very mysterious!" Koda answered. Just then, they were interrupted as a girl came over carrying a magazine.
"You're...you're him aren't you!" She asked. Margaret was over like a shot, but Phillipe stopped her before she did any harm. "Can I get an autograph?"
"Of course, anything for a fan." Phillipe said as he signed the magazine.
"Oh you are so cute!" The girl gasped. Margaret grabbed her by the scruff of the neck, looking decidedly less than amused.
"OK, that's enough!" She barked as she gave the girl the bum's rush to the door. Phillipe didn't pay any attention though he was too busy paying attention to Koda.
So...if one wants to bond to n Energem they have to prove they have a good heart?" He asked. Koda just shrugged.
"Guess so." He answered.
"Enjoy the burgers." He replied as he walked away. "COME! We have a lot of work to do!"
The rest of the day was a hive of activity in the Zandarian Embassy. While it was a long way from being completed, or officially recognised as an embassy, Phillipe was pouring money into it to ensure it would be ready as soon as possible, but now he knew that wasn't enough! It wasn't enough to just be in Amber Beach and hold an Energem; he needed to prove he deserved it!
He was in his office, signing cheques like his life depended on it! He was no stranger to paperwork, but his hand felt like it was going to fall off at the wrist. Margaret walked in seeing him shaking some feeling back into his hand.
"Phillipe, what are you doing?" She asked.
"You heard the Blue Ranger; I need to prove I have a good heart!" He replied.
"You've given my annual salary five times over in one afternoon!" Margaret stated.
"Once the Graphite Energem says I am worthy, I will consider myself a good man." He stated. "Until then, I have work to do."
As she left the room, Margaret wiped an errant tear from her face with her wrist. She and Phillipe had grown up together, and they had been raised together. Margaret had known since she was7 years old that she was in love with Phillipe, but she didn't dare to hope that anything would happen between them. He was the heir to the Principality of Zandar...she was his bodyguard. That was all that needed to be said.
In Amber Beach, Chase came into the Dino Bite Cafe, seeing Chloe with her friends. It might only have been a year and a half since he had left New Zealand, but he felt like he had misses so much of her life in that time! She was just...she had grown so much!
"Chloe!" He said as he scooped her up in his arms. He looked down on her as he put her back down. "Wow! You've grown right out of your pants!"
"They're shorts." She giggled.
"As long as you aren't wearing them for a boy right?" He chuckle before the thought slammed into the back of his brain. "You aren't wearing them for a boy right?"
"EW gross!" She said with a look of revulsion on her face. "No I'm not wearing them for a boy, boys are gross!"
"Keep thinking that...for about another fifteen years or so." He answered. "In the meantime I DID promise to teach you how to skate..."
"YAY!" Chloe yelled as she leapt into his arms so hard she almost took him clean off his feet. Unfortunately, it wasn't to be. He could see Tyler in the doorway to the kitchen indicating for him to follow. Chase gestured to Allison.
"Look, something important just came up. I really need to go." He told the disappointed 8 year old. "Allison will look after you!"
As he ran out, Allison could see how disappointed Chloe was.
"Chloe, what he's doing is really important..."
"How important can it be? Dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years!" She sobbed as she swept away some tears. "They've been buried all that time..."
"But they are also very fragile." Allison rushed out, trying to think of an excuse. "It's a race against time when they find fossils, other teams aren't as careful..."
"I've not seen him in nearly two years!" Chloe sobbed. Allison just looked to her.
"Tell you what, I'm kind of a skater too, how about I take you to the skate park and show you a few things?" She asked. "One condition though, you've known Chase a lot longer than me; I need to see some embarrassing baby photos!"
"Deal!" Chloe answered, high-fiving Allison.
Over at the Embassy, Phillipe was in his office, working out. Margaret just dodged aside as one of his security detail almost hit her.
"Margaret, good to see you!" The responded, only to be hit with a right cross right across the jaw! He had been distracted when she walked in, but his strict instructions were that training sessions were not to be interrupted! His guards had only taken his instructions literally and hadn't stopped when they were interrupted.
"Your highness I'm sorry..."
"Do not be, you were only doing as I commanded." Phillipe assured him.
"You called for me?" Margaret asked him. Phillipe just nodded
"The Energem has still not responded to me." He told her. "Are you certain those donations were sent?"
"Yes, they were!" Margaret replied dumping a whole sack of letters onto his desk. "If you don't believe me, maybe you should read your thank you letters!"
With that, she overturned a huge sack of mail all over the Prince's desk. Hundreds, possibly thousands of letters tumbled out onto the desk. He just stared at them,
"I...I don't understand, I've done everything I can think of!" Phillipe muttered, seeing the hundreds of hand-written letters all addressed to him. "What more can I do?"
"Maybe...maybe there isn't anything else you can do." Margaret suggested. "The Energems choose the Rangers. I know you're a good person, and I'm certain you'd fight well as a Ranger, but maybe...maybe that Energem just isn't for you."
"I can't believe all that work was all for nothing." He muttered. He gathered up his jacket, heading for the door. "There's only one thing for it then. If the Energem won't bond to me, then I should return it to its rightful place."
A couple of hours later, Phillipe was waiting in a nearby park when the Rangers arrived. It was a humbling experience for him to admit that he was not worthy of being a Ranger...his was life of privilege, a life where things were simply handed to him...it was not common he was refused anything, but in this case, it seemed he was.
"Your Highness, what do you wish to speak about?" Ivan asked. Phillipe produce the Graphite Energem without a word.
"The Graphite Energem?" Tyler asked "But how...?"
"It was found in Zandar over a month ago." He admitted.
"A MONTH?" They all chorused as they stared at him.
"I swear I didn't keep it from you on purpose!" He rushed out. "One of my ancestors once worked as a double-agent for the Allies in World War 2! I hoped...I hoped that I could live up to that."
He handed the Energem to Tyler.
"I don't know why, but clearly I am not worthy." He stated. "Perhaps you can find someone more fitting?"
"Well, we're not happy you kept it for so long, but thanks for giving this to us." Tyler replied.
The air was filled with the stench of burned ozone as a power blast sent them flying in all directions. They were all struggling to get back up.
"What the hell...?"
"Attack Rangers!" The heard a mechanical voice saying. It was only then that they say G-bot! "Attack Rangers!"
"What the HELL did you programme that thing to do?" Riley asked Phillipe.
"It was a training tool! IT was only designed to fight me when I wanted it to!" Phillipe told them. "But it's programmed with the moves of some of the best fighters in existence!"
"You made something like that WHY exactly?" Chase asked as he ducked into cover to escape a power blast.
"BECAUSE I WAS TRYING TO BECOME A RANGER!" He yelled. "I'm sorry; I never expected it to be used against us!"
They all ran into the battle, leaving Margaret to hold Phillipe in her arms.
"I...I never meant for any of this to happen." He whispered.
On a path, a little closer than anyone would be happy about; Chloe was rolling on a skateboard with Allison holding her hands to keep her steady. Allison, true to her word was teaching her the basics of skateboarding to keep her occupied until Chase could return.
"You see? It's easy!" Allison told her. "You'll be pulling mid-air 360's before you know it!"
"I'm doing it! I'm really doing it!" Chloe rushed out excitedly. They heard an explosion and looked up, seeing Fury and his goons attacking the park.
"Alright guys, we all know what to do!" Tyler called out as they started to regroup. He pulled out his morpher, preparing to activate it, but Shelby grabbed his hand.
"Tyler, look!" Shelby said, pointing over to where Chloe and Allison were diving for cover.
"Chase! Help!" Chloe screamed as she dived to avoid a blast, getting into cover behind a water fountain. Unfortunately, once she was there, she was hopelessly pinned down.
"CHLOE!" Chase yelled as he tried in vain to get to her, but he was caught and held back by some Viviks. Fury could see him struggling, and looked across seeing the terrified girl cowering behind the fountain. He had no idea who she was, but it was clear that she was important to the Black Ranger. He looked to the G-Bo
"G-Bo...new target!" He growled, pointing towards Chloe. Chase re-doubled his efforts to break free, but Viviks piled onto him, keeping him from going anywhere.
"CHLOE!" He screamed as he tried in vain to reach out for her, but he was much too far away.
Phillipe saw the robot aiming for the terrified little girl and looked around for the Rangers. They were all busy, struggling with their opponents. There was no way any of them would reach Chloe in time. He started to get to his feet as Margaret grabbed his arm.
"Phillipe...I know you're not thinking..." Before she could say anything else though, Phillipe had ripped away from her and broke cover, running straight at the G-Bot. He started to attack it, getting its attention away from Chloe. He managed to kick it away, before running over, scooping up Chloe in his arms. He ran for all he was worth, carrying the terrified girl to safety a little way off. He looked down to the little girl in his arms.
"Are you alright?" He asked her. Chloe just looked up to him, a bright little smile crossing her face.
"Uh huh!" She finally managed to say. She could only look up into his face, seeing the warm smile on his face as he checked on her. A moment later, Margaret, Allison and Chase had all managed to get to him.
"Chloe, oh my gosh!" Chase yelled frantically as he hurriedly checked over his sister. She had a few minor scrapes from flying debris, but it looked like she had gotten away mostly unharmed. He grabbed her in a tight hug, before looking to Phillipe. "Thank you mate!"
"Margaret, take them to the Embassy! They'll be safe there!" Phillipe told her.
"Come, the car's this way!" Margaret told them, leading Allison and Chloe away. Chase just looked to Phillipe gratefully.
"Thank you so much mate!" He said to him. "If anything had happened to Chloe...I owe you one!"
"Well, I do kind of owe you for all of this." Phillipe responded. "I'd say we're even."
Just then, their attention was grabbed as the Graphite Energem, which had been thrown out of Tyler's hand by the first attack, suddenly started to rise into the air, glowing brightly.
Before anyone knew what was happening, it flew straight at Phillipe with such force it knocked him off his feet as it flew into his hand. Lying on the ground, stunned, Phillipe suddenly felt energy coursing through him, and could see flashes in his mind of the Pachysaurus. Chase reached down to him, helping Phillipe to his feet.
"The Energem, I don't understand." Phillipe stated as the others gathered round him. "Why did it bond to me now?"
"You very brave to save Chloe." Koda complimented him. "Energem make very wise choice."
"Ms Morgan, you aren't going to believe what just happened!" Shelby announced down her communicator.
"I think I know exactly what happened." Kendall replied. Phillipe looked down as his morpher appeared in his hand, and smiled. This was everything he was hoping for. He turned his attention to the monsters before them.
"Is it Morphin' time?" He asked. Tyler just nodded.
"It is indeed." Tyler told him. "And since this is your first time, I'll let you lead off."
With that, Phillipe stepped up, putting his Dino Charger into the morpher.
"UNLEASH THE POWER!" He called out, as the Rangers all joined him, morphing ready for battle. Fury could only watch as he saw the newest addition to the team preparing for battle. The Graphite Ranger had arrived!