Chapter 21: Shane's Karma Part 1
Eight exhausted Rangers staggered down into Ninja Ops, barely able to continue standing.
"Man, I am worked," Dustin complained as he stumbled a little bit.
"No lie," Blake nodded. "Ten mile run...two fight simulations and an obstacle course," he listed off everything that Sensei had instructed them to do.
"Don't forget two hours of hard meditation," Hunter added.
"You mean the two hour nap for Ari," Zoe spoke as she passed him. Ari just smiled as she sat down on the table, before proceeding to fall backwards on it.
"Even you look tired," Dustin commented to the exhausted looking Red Ranger. "Training finally getting to you?" he asked, as Shane caught his breath and straightened up.
"I'm not getting a lot of sleep. I keep having this weird dream," Shane admitted, rubbing his eyes.
"You should pay attention to that. Sensei says your dreams can tell you a lot about yourself," Tori spoke up, looking up at him with concern.
"Speaking of dad...where is he?" Cam wondered as he realised that his father wasn't there. "Dad?" he called out, but there was no response from the guinea pig.
"Look," Tori spotted a little scroll pinned to one of the supports of the little house that Sensei used. They all gathered around as she lifted it, squinting at the tiny writing. "'Rangers, I have gone on a meditation retreat to reflection on and recharge my inner ninja'," she read aloud as they all looked curious. "'In my absence, enjoy a well-deserved day off'," as Tori read this, everyone cheered happily.
"No way, is that what it says?" Shane took the note to double check, barely able to believe that they had a day off.
"Yeah," Tori nodded, going quiet.
"Well I'm thinking, maybe the track, then a movie...or maybe a movie...then the track..." Dustin looked torn, making them all start laughing.
"Hey Tor, what's the matter?" Blake was the first to notice that Tori was the only one who didn't look happy. "Don't tell me that you can't deal with a day off," he grinned as they all looked at her.
"No, a day off is great, especially tomorrow," Tori smiled at him. "I just thought that Sensei would be around for...you know..." she trailed off.
"What?" Hunter frowned, not understanding what was going on.
"Hey, tomorrow's your birthday, isn't it?" Ari realised, and everyone let out cries of realisation. Having been so busy with training and everything else, they'd completely forgotten the date.
"How about a beach party?" Dustin suggested as he put an arm around her.
"What do you say, Tor?" Blake looked to the Blue Ranger, who was now smiling brightly.
"Alright, sure," she nodded. "Sounds great to me!"
"Alright, be at the beach first thing in the morning!" Hunter called, high-fiving Shane as they all started to head home, excited for the next day.
"Just make sure you get enough sleep tonight," Tori told Shane as she walked past him. "I think tomorrow might be something special after all," Shane looked a little worried as he watched her leave.
1-2-3-4-5
It was a beautiful day, which only helped to increase the level of excitement that the Rangers were feeling. Cam, Tori, Dustin and Ari rode in Tori's van to the beach, and as they pulled up, they spotted Hunter, Blake and Zoe already waiting for them. The four jumped out of the van, and the three walked over to help unload the van.
"Has anyone seen Shane?" Tori asked, noticing that they were still down on member of their team.
"Yeah, let's get this show on the road!" Blake cheered.
"Hey, we can't leave without him," Dustin shook his head as he walked over, a ring around his waist and an inflatable board in his hands.
"Yeah, he's bringing the cake!" Ari cheered happily.
"Hey guys!" they all looked around as Shane ran up to them, carrying a large box. "Here Tori, happy birthday," he grinned as he held it out to her, making her smile.
"Hey, that doesn't look like beachwear bro," Hunter commented as he took the box from Tori. Shane's smile faded, and he looked away.
"Don't tell me you're bailing!" Tori's smile dropped it dawned on her. Hunter shook his head, a rubber duck on his head as he walked away.
"Ok, look. I had that same dream again last night," Shane admitted. "I think it's trying to tell me something," he insisted.
"Like, how to ruin your friend's birthday?" Tori frowned, and Shane sighed.
"It's just, I have a weird sense that something isn't right. I gotta go check out the woods," he told them.
"Shane, I'm the first person to say duty before pleasure," Cam spoke up as he leaned against the van. "But I left Cyber Cam online in Ninja Ops. If anything weird shows up, he'll let us know," he insisted.
"I'll catch up, ok? I promise," Shane still wasn't convinced, starting to back up.
"Alright...but you better!" Tori warned, and Shane ran off.
"Well, it's not like it's the woods in Briarwood, he'll be fine," Ari shrugged as she held a large inflatable ball in her arms. Cam rolled his eyes, shaking his head.
"You don't seriously believe that there's something in that forest that makes people disappear, do you?" he asked sceptically, and Ari nodded. "That's crazy!" the Green Ranger insisted.
"Hey, we're a bunch of ninjas, being trained by a guinea pig, with a secret entrance behind a waterfall," Ari reminded him. "There's not much I don't believe in," she then tossed the ball at him and Tori, and they all ran off laughing as Tori spun around, kicking the ball back at them as they ran off down the beach.
1-2-3-4-5
"You guys, do you think we did the right thing?" Tori asked, still worried as they set up a spot on the beach for their things. "Maybe we should have gone with him," she wondered.
"What, because he had a nightmare?" Hunter scoffed as he pulled his shirt off.
"I dunno, maybe she's right," Dustin shrugged as he straightened up. "I mean, he did seem pretty tweaked," he commented.
"If he needs us, he can contact us," Zoe shrugged as she adjusted her glasses and tied her hair up out of the way. "We have these for a reason," she pointed out as she tapped her morpher. "Besides, he's the Red guy. He can take care of himself," she reminded them.
"Ah come on you guys, we're here now!" Blake insisted. "It's a party, right!" he reminded them, and they cheered.
"Last one in the water's a little girl!" Hunter called, and the three girls looked around at him sharply.
"You are so gonna pay for that," Tori warned, and he ran off towards the water with the three girls following. As they shoved him into the water, Dustin and Blake ran over and pushed the three into the water after him, making them cry out. The six began a water fight, splashing each other, and as Hunter got up, Zoe and Tori pushed him back down.
"Cam, come on!" Ari laughed, and squealed as the cold water hit her from behind. She turned and kicked the water up so Dustin was instantly soaked, before he and Hunter ran out and grabbed the genius, who was a little reluctant to get into the water.
"Come on guys, don't!" Cam pleaded, but was laughing all the same, before they tossed him into the water, causing a large splash that soaked the rest of the Rangers even more. Even without Shane, they were having plenty of fun.
1-2-3-4-5
Ari just emerging from the water, pushing her black hair out of her eyes as she stuck out her tongue at Dustin and Tori, who were laughing at her after throwing her into the sea, when their morphers beeped.
"Hey party animals, I think we have a problem," they all gathered around as Cyber Cam contacted them. "We've got an alien visitor in the forest, and here's a newsworthy item, he's not working for Lothor," Cyber Cam told them.
"I hate it when they don't work for Lothor. They're so much more annoying that way," Ari commented.
"Can you reach Shane?" Cam asked with a frown.
"No can do," Cyber Cam responded. "Wherever that spaceship is, it's interfering with Shane's morpher," he explained, and Cam sighed.
"Well, keep trying," he told his virtual replica. "I'm on my way," he ended the communication with Cyber Cam.
"You're going back?" Tori spoke softly, and he looked around.
"Only until I figure out what's going on," Cam promised as he turned to face the Blue Ranger, who was no longer smiling. "With dad out of town, I'll just feel better checking things out myself," he explained.
"Duty before pleasure and all that," Ari put a hand on her hip. "Need some help?" she offered him with a smile.
"Yeah, we'll come with you," Hunter offered, but Cam shook his head.
"No, stay," he insisted. "There's nothing we can do until we know what we're dealing with," he told them, and they nodded, knowing that he was right.
"Well, maybe it's a good alien?" Dustin suggested. "No-one ever considers that possibility," he pointed out.
"That's because only bad aliens show up. Only bad aliens cause this much hassle," Zoe rolled her eyes.
"Don't let this get you down, ok?" Blake smiled at Tori, who was looking dejected. "Come on, we can still have fun! Come on!" Blake planted the inflatable swan on her head, and Tori managed a small smile.
"You're right," she nodded. "I guess the day's not completely ruined..." she commented.
1-2-3-4-5
"We've got a problem," a little while later, Cam contacted the group still at the beach. "As long as that ship remains cloaked-"
"I've no way to track it," Cyber Cam finished for him.
"Any word from Shane?" Hunter asked as they stood together, worried about their friend.
"His frequency is still jammed," Cam told them.
"He must be close to the source of the disturbance," Cyber Cam added.
"Let us know if anything changes," Hunter told him as the others sighed.
"Birthday or not, I think we better head back," Tori suggested. They had all changed into dry clothes, no longer in the mood for playing in the water.
"Yeah, get outta here before some Kelzacks show up," Dustin agreed.
"Why would you say that?" Ari groaned, pointing over to where Kelzacks crept between a couple of rocks, their backs to them.
"Let's check it out," Hunter suggested, and they ran to find out why the Kelzacks were there. They crept between the rocks, and sighed as they spotted Marah and Kapri, setting up a party.
"Hey!" Blake called, earning their attention. "If an alien freak throws a party, and nobody shows up, is it still a party?" he called with a laugh, and the two groaned.
"Aw man, I hate it when they do that," Kapri whined. "Come on!" she called to Marah, who was frowning.
"Wait, I'm just thinking about it," she told her sister, which made the Rangers start laughing. "If an alien freak throws a party..." she wondered. Kapri rolled her eyes.
"Would you come on!" she yelled, hitting her sister. "Hey Kelzacks!" Kapri roared at the footsoldiers, who dropped what they were doing and ran at the six. The Rangers jumped from the rocks and started fighting, instantly wrecking the party area that had been set up. Spinning and kicking one of the Kelzacks back, Ari ducked to avoid a chair being thrown at her. She grabbed it as it hit the sand, and she slammed it into another Kelzack, before blocking a hit and punching one.
"Guys, we've got a bigger problem!" Cam contacted them as they fought. "Zurgane is taking a new Zord out for a test drive, and I can't access the Thunder Zords portals," he told them, making them groan.
"Hey Tor, Ari, you ready?" Dustin looked to the only other two there who had Zords that could be accessed.
"Oh yeah. No-one ruins my birthday," Tori growled.
"We'll take care of this mess," Hunter told them, and they straightened up.
"Ready?"
"Ready!"
"NINJA STORM!"
"CELESTIAL STORM!"
"THUNDER STORM!"
"RANGER FORM, HA!"
"Power of Earth!"
"Power of Water!"
"Power of the Sun!"
"Power of the Moon!"
"Power of Thunder!"
"Let's go," Tori called, and as Hunter, Blake and Zoe started fighting off the Kelzacks, Tori and Dustin formed the Storm Megazord, and Ari leapt into her Swan Zord. "You're toast!" Tori shouted at the General.
"Oh yeah!" Dustin cheered.
"You're gonna regret messing with us!" Ari nodded, her hands on the controls of her Zord. As they moved towards Zurgane, he blasted them with lasers, knocking them back.
"Time to light my fire!" the Yellow Ranger called. "Lightning mode, now!" they swapped forms, and leapt at Zurgane's Zord again. They kicked it, but it didn't even leave a mark.
"Impressive!" Zurgane spoke mockingly. "But you're not the only one with a lightning mode at your disposal!" he declared. He laughed, and parts of his Zord disappeared, allowing it to become more streamlined. "Power Rangers!" he laughed even more.
"That's P for Power Rangers!"
"He's got a lightning mode!" Tori cried in horror, and Ari swallowed nervously. While her Zord was fast, it didn't match up to the speed of the lightning mode of a Zord.
"And I know how to use it!" Zurgane's Zord slammed into Ari's Zord before she could defend, and was knocked to the ground with a cry. He then leapt into the air to meet the Storm Megazord, and he punched them, before bouncing off a building and knocking them to the ground with a kick. As he went to attack again, Cam's one Zord flew towards them. It switched into the Samurai Star Megazord, and floated in the air.
"You got room for one more?" Cam called. Zurgane leapt into the air, still much faster than the others due to his Lightning Mode, and knocked the Green Ranger's Megazord out of the air. He pinned him with his foot, and laughed as the other two Megazords got up. Before they could attack, Zurgane attacked them several times.
"Man, he's brutal!" Dustin cried out as their Megazord hit the ground again.
"He's too fast, we can't even move!" Ari tried to force her Zord up, but it wouldn't move.
"Your number is up, Power Rangers!" he mocked, and he blasted the Storm Megazord with electricity, forcing them out of their Zord. "And now to finish the job! Goodbye Rangers!" as he went to finish Dustin and Tori off, both Cam and Ari slammed into his Zord.
"Guys, back to Ops!" Cam yelled, and both he and Ari disappeared in clouds of smoke, with the other two close behind.
1-2-3-4-5
"The Storm and the Samurai Star Megazords are badly damaged. Not to mention the Swan Zord," Cam told them as they walked into Ninja Ops. "It'll take hours, maybe days to make repairs," he said grimly.
"What about the Thunder Zords?" Hunter asked.
"No luck accessing them yet," Cam shook his head.
"It would have been handy to have a Zord..." Zoe muttered irritably. Like the morpher that she had repaired, the Owl Zord that had belonged to the Silver Moon Ranger had been destroyed long ago, only there wasn't enough of it left to fix.
"Some day off..." Blake muttered.
"This must be the worst birthday ever..." Dustin commented as he put an arm around Tori sympathetically.
"I can't even think about that right now," Tori mumbled. "I just have this really bad feeling that Shane is in trouble," she shivered, and Ari stopped at the entrance to Ninja Ops. She frowned, her fists clenched, before she turned and headed back out before anyone even realised that she was gone.