Episode 15: Part 1
Cameron Monroe gave a content smile as he lay in the backyard hammock of the beach house taking an afternoon nap. Despite it being the end of summer, the weather was clear, sunny, and mild. As he swung gently, enjoying the shade and the sound of the ocean surf, he began to hear the sound of twangy, but pleasant music coming from inside the house.
The Blue Ranger curiously got up and headed back indoors though the rear porch and the kitchen until he came to the living room. There he found Naomi laying on the couch reading a book while in the other corner of the room, Desmond sat in a wicker chair strumming a little ukulele to himself.
He played a light bouncy Hawaiian style tune and the Red Ranger finished singing the chorus gently, "I wonder where / my little hula girl has gone / she's no longer on the beach at Waikiki…"
As he strummed the last chord, Cam smiled and gave some applause while Desmond proudly took a little bow. Turning to his other housemate, Desmond raised an eyebrow, "Well? What do you think?"
Naomi glanced up from her book and gave a playful grin, "It was great. But I don't suppose you were singing that song with any particular girl in mind, were you?"
Desmond blinked in surprise, "Like who?"
The Yellow Ranger sighed, "Oh, I don't know… maybe our friend Bailey Hampshire? Also a little Hawaiian girl from Waikiki?"
"Don't be stupid," Desmond huffed, "She's just a cool girl, who's also a good friend, and an awesome cook too."
"And what if I told you that I think she might have a little crush on you too?" the Yellow Ranger giggled in amusement.
Desmond gave a shocked look and felt his face turn as red as the color of his floral shirt, "Come on Naomi! Don't joke around like that!"
Cam chuckled and clapped Desmond on the shoulder as he passed by, "Come on man, don't listen to her. It probably wouldn't be a good idea if you went out with Bailey anyway."
"Oh? And why is that?" the Yellow Ranger challenged him while raising an eyebrow.
Cam laughed again, "Because I for one like going to her restaurant and getting markdowns on my meals. If she and Desmond dated and then broke up, well… then we all lose out."
Naomi rolled her eyes gently, "That's not very romantic of you Cameron. I think the idea of playing music for a girl is very sweet. Or are you just saying that because you can't play an instrument?"
"I know how to play an instrument," he answered defensively, "But I'm a little more familiar with the old Irish style folk songs my family taught me and I'm not sure it would sound the same on a ukulele."
Just then, the three friends heard a knock at the door and the Blue Ranger moved to open it. To his surprise he saw two enlisted Navy sailors on the front steps holding what looked to be a small guitar case.
"Lieutenant Monroe?" the first sailor asked.
Cam nodded, "Yes. I'm him."
Both sailors gave a salute, "Sir, we've come to deliver some personal effects of yours that had been tied up during your reassignment. Sorry for the delay."
They handed Cam the instrument case and he smiled, "Thanks! You guys have amazing timing."
The second sailor cleared his throat and handed over an envelope as well, "One other thing, sir. A letter from Captain Ramos."
The Blue Ranger thanked the two sailors and returned their salute before closing the door.
"What was that all about?" Naomi asked as Cam walked into the living room. He put the case down on the table and gestured to Desmond to take a look. The Red Ranger opened the case and held up a small dark wood mandolin. He held the instrument curiously and gave the strings a gentle pluck "Hey… this is pretty cool. This is really yours?"
"It's my grandpa's actually," Cam answered as he opened the letter, "He taught me to play when I was younger and then gave it as a gift when I joined the service. He thought it would be a nice reminder of home while I was away. I…"
His voice trailed away as he read the letter and a dark shadow suddenly crossed over his features.
"Cameron? What's wrong?" Naomi asked in concern while Desmond put down the instrument.
The Blue Ranger lowered the letter and gave a stunned look, "My C.O. forwarded a message from home… my grandpa… he just passed away."
Waves lapped at the shores of the Phantom Isle as General Kuta sat on a rocky outcropping sharpening the blade of his halberd with a whetstone. It had been quiet of late since their last battle with the Ocean Rangers. Admittedly, Kuta had not seen much of Hine Nui as she had been holed up in her dark cave, still likely sulking after the defeat of her projected shadow.
The monstrous warrior continued to sharpen his weapon, using it to keep him mind calm and focused. The quiet wait was irritating and the general of the Benthic Armies hated not being proactive. If his queen was not going to do something about the Rangers, then he would. Kuta stopped and examined the blade head of the weapon and caught the reflection of a warrior stepping up from behind.
"It's about time you showed up Shellelagh," the general said turning slowly to address his fellow mollusk warrior trudging up the gray sand.
"Apologies General Kuta, the ocean currents from the North Atlantic were less than favorable in getting here," the warrior replied. He was clad in a full suit of thick plate armor shaped like a vertical oyster shell around his torso. Near the top of the shell at the warrior's head were two calcified horn like protrusions adding to his intimidating appearance. "What would you have me do?"
Kuta grinned devilishly, "The humans have a large military presence here and use this island as a base for their warships. I want you to start by hindering their naval operations with the explosive pearls you can produce."
Shellelagh gave a small laugh and closed his shell armor up again, "It would be my pleasure sir. The humans won't know what hit them."
As the oyster warrior turned and headed off into the dark waters, Kuta smiled to himself. If and when his queen would stop sulking, perhaps he would have a nice surprise for her… six defeated Rangers and a conquered island.
"Yeah… okay… I'm packing my bags right now Mom," Cam said as he stood in his room talking to his parents on the phone, "I'll try to take a flight out of Honolulu as soon as I can. Okay… I'll be careful. Say hi to Dad for me and give Grandma my love. Yeah... I love you too Mom. Bye."
The Blue Ranger hung up and turned back to the half filled suitcase on his bed. Also sitting at the foot of the bed were Alex and Hannah who had come by to visit when they heard the news. Late afternoon sunlight streamed into the bedroom, bathing the three friends in a gentle orange glow.
"How's your family holding up?" Alex asked gently.
"About as well as could be expected," Cam sighed as he folded some clothes and put them away, "We all knew gramps was sick… but no one is ever really ready, you know? Everyone back home is still a little upset right now."
The Pink Ranger nodded sympathetically, "What about you? How are you feeling?"
Cam stopped for a moment and continued working, "I'll be ok… I… I'm just focusing on making my flight home for the funeral services in a few days."
Nearby, Hannah stood looking in a mirror while trying on Cam's officer cap for fun, "I saw you packed your dress whites. Was your Grandpa in the Navy too?"
He gently plucked the cap off her head and folded it down with a nod, "Yeah, he was. In fact, he was kinda the reason I joined the service in the first place."
The two girls exchanged a curious look as he continued, "Grandpa Patrick enlisted for a term right before World War II started. He was about to get out when Pearl Harbor was attacked. He was there during the battle and decided to re-enlist when he saw what had happened. From there, he went on to serve in the Pacific theater during the war."
"Wasn't his family upset?" Hannah asked sitting back down on the bed. "I mean, weren't they worried about him volunteering again and getting killed?"
Cam gave a thoughtful nod, "Well, sure. They didn't want him to go risking his life again but Grandpa Pat always had a really strong sense of duty. He was proud to serve. He really loved his country and his family so he felt he should take on the extra responsibility to protect them. I guess after surviving Pearl Harbor, he didn't want to see the same thing happen back home on the mainland."
"I can see how that would inspire you," Alex commented with a smile, "Your Grandpa sounds like a regular Captain America-type to me."
The Blue Ranger laughed gently, "I spent a lot of time with him while growing up. He'd look after me while my parents worked and he'd teach me all kinds of neat things… like how to fish, or catch bugs, or play the mandolin."
He paused and looked out the window, "Gramps would also tell me all kinds of exciting war stories about his adventures across the Pacific, but when he did, he always reminded me about how important it was to be responsible toward your country and the people you care about most. That was something I always admired about my grandpa, and I wanted to be just like him when I grew up."
He wistfully glanced at his blue Ocean Bracer for a moment, "It's kind of ironic now, isn't it? My parents were reluctant for me to join up too. Now here I am… far from home and fighting my own little war in the Pacific."
He was cut off as the Rangers' bracelets flickered with light. Hannah rose from the bed and gave an encouraging smile, "A war that we're also going to win."
Alex smiled and nodded as they headed out of the room to respond to Kanohi's call. Cam took one more glance at his suitcase and gave a firm nod of his own before following the girls downstairs and out of the house.
Orange sunlight hung over the beaches as the mollusk warrior Shellelagh stood organizing a group of Nightmarcher warriors. The undead minions huddled around and strung together a group of large round objects about the size of beach balls. After another minute, the mollusk opened his shell armor and removed another gray colored sphere before handing it off, "There. That should be enough for the first string of sea mines. We still have some time before the Coast Guard ships pass by on patrol so be careful with those pearls!"
He was suddenly cut off as six morphed Ocean Rangers burst from the nearby waters and rushed up the sandy beach. The monsters turned to face their opponents just as Desmond stepped forward and raised a confident fist, "Okay shell brain, I don't know what you're up to, but I think it's time for a little clam bake!"
The mollusk gave an infuriated growl toward the Red Ranger, "Clam? I'm an oyster you fool! I am Shellelagh, demolition expert of the Benthic Armies!"
"Shell-lelagh? That's a terrible pun! You are not an Irish war club!" Cam called out clenching his fists indignantly, "Ok, I'm kinda offended now!"
"Then come and do something about it boy!" the monster cackled as he kicked a pearl at the Rangers.
The six tumbled away as the oversized pearl exploded, kicking up a cloud of sand.
"Whoah! Those things pack a punch!" Naomi exclaimed rolling into a ready stance.
Desmond charged forward with his spear leveled, "Let's rush him before he gets off another one!"
As the Rangers plowed through the few Nightmarcher zombies blocking the way, Shellelagh laughed and closed his shell up again to meet the attack. Desmond struck first, but his fiery spearhead glanced off the thick shell without a scratch. David followed up next and landed a powerful blow with his club, but again it could do nothing against the monster's thick armor plates.
Undeterred, the Orange Ranger moved next and lashed out her bladed hook whip, snaring one of the monster's horns. Shellelagh laughed and whipped his body sideways to pull the Ranger and hurl her away by her own weapon.
Hannah gave a surprised cry as she was hurled through the air and thrown right into Desmond and David causing the three to fall over each other in a heap. Alex glanced over and saw her friends in trouble before she turned to the Yellow ranger, "You ready Naomi?"
Naomi nodded and called up a powerful gust of wind to blow sand in the face of the monster. Shellelagh closed up his shell again to keep out the blinding winds before the two female Rangers pounced with their own melee weapons. Despite an aggressive flurry of blows from the clubs and knuckles, the monster's shell held firm until he opened it again in a close range surprise attack.
Before the two girls knew what hit them, the mollusk spat an explosive pearl in their faces and blew them backwards with a powerful burst. As Shellelagh laughed again, he heard Cam call out from the flank, "Hey shell brain! Did you forget about me?"
The monster saw the Blue Ranger charge his saber sword, and closed up his shell, preparing to deflect another direct melee attack. As the monster withdrew into his armor, Cam instead grabbed one of the remaining explosive pearls there were still on the beach and rolled it along the sand like a bowling ball. The moment the rolling bomb hit the monster's lightly armored legs, it exploded and threw Shellelagh to the sandy turf.
The top-heavy monster growled and struggled to rise, shaking off the stunning blast. No sooner had the mollusk warrior risen, when the Blue Ranger let loose the charged energy in his blade. As Cam attacked, Shellelagh's shell was lashed with several concussive waves of water energy slashes before the final slash threw the monster back into the ocean, forcing it to retreat.
While the Ocean Rangers had succeeded at driving off the monster for now, they had failed to injure it, or even score a significant blow.
Desmond walked over beside his housemate while watching the monster retreat back into the water, "Whew. Nice fakeout there. Things were starting to look pretty bad for a minute."
"Agreed," Alex said stretching out her arm as she joined them, "That guy was a lot tougher than the other mollusks. We just couldn't break through that thing's defenses."
Nearby, David carefully picked up one of the remaining explosive pearls, "I'd be more worried about what that monster was planning to do. It looks like he had a bunch of these things strung together."
The Rangers all paused a moment as they spotted a Coast Guard cutter in the distance, making its way on patrol. Hannah shifted uncomfortably and looked at the pearl. "You guys don't think that Hine Nui was plotting to plant a bunch of sea mines, do you? Imagine what would have happened if that cutter hit this line of explosives."
"I'd rather not," Cam answered with a very dark tone in his voice, "If that shellfish was targeting surface ships... especially military ones... that's unforgivable."
Desmond nodded and put a calming hand on his friend's shoulder, "We won't let that happen. Now come on. What do you say we go bring this pearl back to Kanohi and get to the bottom of all this?"
