After leaving the green Project Pirate behind, Damaras brought Troy inside the Zangyack Terror to show to Emperor Terror Gill what he had done. Terror Gill watched as Troy was dragged in by his shirt by Damaras. There was blood and bruises all over his face while being handcuffed.
"This is the red Project Pirate ranger. He is the one who led the Power Rangers to foil with our plans," Damaras explained.
"So this is the boy who Zaine of Eltar trusted with his powers. He's nothing but a mere and weak Earthling," Hectron commented. "I could have taken you down myself."
Troy tried to lift his head to see the ones in front of him. Due to his injuries, he couldn't move his body much but he did see the one sitting at the throne. "You must be the father of the idiots that tried to conquer Earth," Troy said. "It's a shame what happened to them. I wonder if they got their stupidity from you."
Hectron kicked Troy's face at his dishonor words to the Emperor. "You are in no position to say those things," Hectron said.
"What I'm saying is for your own good. You're wasting your time trying to takeover Earth. Earth will never fall victim to you for there will always be justice to be served to all of you," Troy continued. "You may have taken my powers and my friends but you will still never win."
"Bring this pirate out of here at once!" Terror Gill ordered Damaras. He had enough listening to all the little crap had to say. How dare a common Earthling talk to him in that manner.
"As you wish, my great Emperor," Damaras responded.
"Wait!" Terror Gill told Damaras. He stepped out of his throne and stared at Troy intently. "I know you think that I don't deserve to rule the Earth. Trust me I couldn't care less about your precious little planet."
"Then why are you going all the trouble?" Troy questioned him.
"I'm doing this because I want to fulfill the dreams of my sons. You and all the other Power Rangers stood in their way before they could fulfill their dreams. As a father, I can't leave it like this," Terror Gill answered him. "You may know something about dreams, don't you? Aren't you trying to fulfill Zaine's dreams of getting the treasure?" he questioned him.
Troy gasped inwardly. How did he know that?
"Damaras, you have earned my respect but to gain my trust again, you know what to do," Terror Gill said to him.
Damaras bowed and dragged Troy out to the room along with some Goumins. It was time for payback for his misery and he's going to start with the leader of Project Pirates.
Moments after the event that had happened, a solo Johnny teleported himself to the Command Center. He sat down on the ground while Navi started to fly furiously around the room panicking over what had just happened.
Johnny couldn't think straight. He felt at lost. He lost his friends and it was all because of him. He didn't fight strong enough to save any of them. He should have tried harder. Now Dylan, Lexi, Blair and Ben are all gone and Troy is held captive by Damaras.
"Johnny, what are you going to do now?" Navi asked him.
"What can I do Navi? I can't do anything when everyone is here. What can I do when I'm all alone now? I'm hopeless," Johnny replied to him.
"Johnny…"
"Everything happened because of me. I wasn't independent enough. The rest of them have always been protecting me from school to being rangers. I feel like I've been taking advantage of them and now that they're gone, I don't think there's any hope for Project Pirate anymore," Johnny continued.
Navi got angry and started hitting Johnny's head furiously, "Don't be an idiot Johnny! Aren't they your friends? Of course they would want to protect you. They feel the need to protect you because it's their way of paying you back."
"Paying me back?"
"You have contributed a lot of weapons to Project Pirate and have been the one upgrading the Megazord. The rest of them know they can't do anything like that so in order to repay you, they are willing to endanger themselves for you," Navi explained to him.
"That still doesn't make me feel better. I can't go up against Damaras, Boze and the Psycho rangers all by myself," Johnny said. "It was a mistake for me to join Project Pirate. It has been since the beginning."
"Johnny, remember the first time you went into battle? Do you remember what Troy said to you?" Navi asked him.
Johnny then started to remember the first time he was invited to join Project Pirate. He helped Troy, Dylan and Lexi to fix their system and they offered him a position as the green Project Pirate ranger.
"I hope you like the color green because the other one is pink," Troy said as he handed him the green Project Pirate ranger key and a mobirate.
"What's this?" Johnny asked.
"Your ranger key and your morpher. I want you to join our team," Troy answered.
"WHAT? NO!" he exclaimed. This is never on his mind when he got there.
"What do you mean no. Then why did you fix our controls?" Troy asked.
"I only wanted to know where you get this place. I didn't want to be a Power Ranger. No way! No! No! No!" Johnny made it clear.
"Well you might as well be one of us since you know how everything here works. You can be the tech dude and a Power Ranger," Lexi offered.
"Come on, we need some more members anyway. We can't fight the Zangyack Empire with just the three of us. You could be a great help," Dylan added.
Minutes later, Johnny went in to his first battle with the three of them.
He wasn't sure what to do at the point of time. All he knew was that he transformed into a Power Ranger like Troy, Dylan and Lexi and now he was holding a Pirate Saber and Pirate Blaster while running away from the Zangyack foot soldiers.
"Guys, I really don't know what I'm doing right now!" he exclaimed to the rest of them. However, they were all preoccupied fighting the Goumins themselves that they couldn't do anything yet.
While running, he accidently triggered his Pirate Blaster which almost blasted his foot off and he soon fell down. The Goumins started to surround him and were ready to blast him. Lexi then jumped into the circle and blasted the Goumins around him. Troy and Dylan slashed the Goumins from behind.
"It looks like they're a little aggressive today. Don't worry, you'll get used to it," Lexi told him while helping him up.
"I don't think I could get used to any of this. I'm not strong enough," Johnny said to her honestly.
Troy then stood beside him after overhearing what he said, "Why are you talking about? Being a ranger doesn't mean you have to be strong and I don't think it's a requirement for Project Pirate too. I know for sure that Lexi and Dylan think so too," he said to Johnny.
"But how can I contribute to fighting with you guys if I'm not strong enough?" Johnny asked him.
"Just do the best you can and you will be fine," Troy answered him.
Do the best I can…Johnny's eyes then wandered to a bunch of toxic cylinders nearby. The label even said it was explosive. This was his chance. He dropped his Pirate Saber and grabbed Lexi's Pirate Blaster. He ran to where the toxic cylinders were and pushed it towards the Goumins.
"Move you guys!" he told his teammates. After they moved, he started to blast the toxic cylinders which caused it to explode on impact of the trigger thus eliminating all the Goumins at once.
The three rangers were very impressed. "Double blasters. Nice work," Dylan commented. "But it was still a little reckless of you. That thing could have blown up the entire area with us included."
"But I like his style. No wonder he's so smart," Lexi added.
"Besides, part of being a pirate is being reckless. You're going to do just fine with us, Johnny," Troy said to him.
As the flashback ends, Johnny couldn't help but break into a smile. "I do remember what he said to me. He said to do my best and they didn't say how lame I was in the beginning," he told Navi.
"Exactly! Also, remember what you said to Blair when she first joined the team," Navi told him.
It has been five days since Blair had joined Project Pirate and she had a lot of training to do. Blair was trained under Dylan and Lexi to help her learn to use the Pirate Saber properly and she also trained with Johnny and Troy to help her learn how to handle a Pirate Blaster.
So far, she had not made any progress since she had joined the team but she was still keen on training to be the best. Even though Troy had said to her that there was no need for practicing how to fight for battle, Blair was consistent to keep on training. Johnny couldn't imagine what she had been going through. Unlike her, Johnny did not for-go any training to become the green Project Pirate ranger. He learned by getting used to it just like what Lexi said to him before.
For one session of training, Troy had suggested to practice combining their powers from the Pirate Sabers and Pirate Blasters so they could execute a final combo to defeat the bad guys. The problem was; Blair was not in sync with them. When taking a break, Johnny decided to give Blair some advice to make sure she is in sync with them.
"I don't know. Maybe I'm just not cut out for this at all. I can't be a Power Ranger. I'm not as strong as Troy, Dylan, Lexi or you. Maybe it just didn't work because I just don't belong in the team," Blair said to him.
Johnny could relate how she feels. Just two weeks ago, he felt the same way but he is telling himself to adjust to his new lifestyle if it's for the benefit of not letting the team down and to save the world.
"Why do you have to be strong us? There isn't any rule that says you have to," Johnny pointed out. "So you're a little out of sync today, doesn't mean you will be tomorrow."
"Yeah but for how long will I be able to perfect my attacks? I can't even aim correctly with my Pirate Blaster," Blair said to him, pouting.
"Blair, the key to success starts with believing in yourself that you can do it. If you keep telling yourself all this 'what ifs', it won't do you any good," Johnny told her.
Blair stayed silent as she thought about what he had just said, "Maybe you're right," she said to him, giving him a sincere smile. "I just have to focus and not think too much out of it."
"Exactly. Come on, I'll show you my method of how to aim properly for the final wave," Johnny offered. "To make sure your arm doesn't move after you pulled the trigger, just put your left arm under your right arm. It will give the support your right arm needs. You want to try it?"
"Sure," Blair replied.
After Johnny asked the rest of them to come back to let Blair try, they went for it. Blair followed Johnny's instructions in details and succeeded in the end.
"I did it!" Blair exclaimed excitedly.
The other three rangers were really surprised how much power has been added with Blair's power.
"Nice shot," Troy commented.
"It's all thanks to Johnny for his advice," Blair replied to him. "Thank you Johnny and I promise that I will always remember what you told me."
The flashback ended in Johnny's mind again.
"You told Blair that the key to success is to believe in herself that she could do it. Blair has been keeping your advice since then. She even told Ben about what you told her because she said you played a big role when she was training to become a good ranger," Navi said to him. "Being strong isn't all about brawns. It takes brains too. You're the brain of Project Pirate. You kept Project Pirate going by contributing something that even Zaine didn't thought of creating. Without you, Ben wouldn't have his Gold Armor."
Navi's right. He has done a lot to help the rest of them even though it's not out at the battlefield. They appreciated all the little things that he did that apparently made a big impact in their lives.
Suddenly, there was an in-call transmission at the viewing globe. It shows Damaras somewhere in Oakville Heights standing in front of a tied up Troy whose face was covered with a sack. Troy arms were tied to a pole and Goumins and even Dugomins were standing guard.
"Greetings foolish Earthlings. I have captured the leader of the Power Rangers and soon you all are the lucky ones to witness the death of him," Damaras spoke. "Let this be an example to all of you who defies the Zangyack Empire."
The screen went blank as Johnny started to worry. He can't let Damaras get away with this. Navi was right, he can't give up even if it's just him left on the team. He has to find a way out of it. Everyone will be counting on him. Even Lexi, Dylan, Blair and Ben. They would want him to keep on fighting for them.
"You know Navi; there was one point of time where even after Blair had joined the team, I wanted to quit Project Pirate. I was thinking of just leaving the ranger key, mobirate and the teleporter in Troy's locker and just forget about all of this. But I couldn't go through with it," Johnny told Navi. "I may be forced to become a Power Ranger but something tells me that even after I leave, it's going to be with me my whole life. I can't run away from the fact that I was meant to use the green Project Pirate ranger key."
"Johnny…" Navi spoke as he listened intently.
"When I met Xander from Mystic Force, he made me realize it. He made me realize that it was my fate to become a Power Ranger and I got to have faith and courage to fight on. Like Ben said to me at school, if I let all the negative things go to my head, I would have started to believe it. If I believe I can do it, then nothing can go wrong," Johnny said. "I'm going to save Troy and avenge for the others."
With Damaras, he was waiting for the arrival of Boze and his allies to start his plan of killing the red Project Pirate ranger. He had Goumins surround the red ranger while he paced back and forth waiting for the Boze's arrival. Seconds later, Boze arrived in his human form along with Sally.
"You're late," Damaras told him sternly.
"Calm down, old man. I'm here now aren't I?" Boze replied to him.
"Where are your Psycho rangers?" Damaras wondered.
"You know perfectly why I didn't want them to come here with me. I need to conserve some energy until the time is right," Boze answered him. He then walked towards a tied up Troy and took off the bag that was covering his face. "Morning sleepy head," he greeted sarcastically.
Troy could barely move and open his eyes but he could very much recognize who was talking to him, "Boze…" he hissed.
"Honestly, I didn't imagine it would have to come to this. But didn't I warn you to stay out of the game? This is what happens when you don't listen to Uncle Boze," Boze said to him. "But before they alienate you, you should know that I have the grand powers of Zeo and the Alien rangers now. Along with the Operation Overdrive, Jungle Fury and Turbo, I have five grand powers now. But after you're taken care of, I will get the rest of them."
"When he's gone, you can take everything that belongs to Project Pirate. He won't need them once I'm through with him," Damaras said. "Once he's gone, there will be no more Project Pirate."
Troy really wished he had super strength right now so he can break through the metal chain that was tying him. But even then, he knew it was useless. He's all alone now. All of his friends are gone. They can't save him. Then he remembered that not all of his friends are gone.
"You're wrong Damaras. I have one more friend that you didn't kill," Troy told him.
"Are you referring to your weak tech guy? The one who couldn't walk two steps without falling over? Don't make me laugh. He's useless," Damaras replied. "Dugomins, get into your positions!" he ordered the two royal Dugomins. Both of them held their staffs up at Troy's neck.
"Any last words?" Damaras questioned him.
"Yes, I do and this is to you and to your Emperor. You should never underestimate what Power Rangers are made of. Even though they appear weak to you, they will step up at their game when you least expect it because as heroes, we will never give up," Troy said to him.
The Dugomins powered up their staffs and was about to fire at Troy but they were blasted by an unknown source. More blasts kept on coming at the Dugomins and Damaras. Troy looked up and tried to spot where it was coming from. Then he saw a brown-headed guy in a green plaid shirt walking to them.
"Johnny," Troy spoke as soon he recognized who it was.
"I didn't see that coming," Boze said.
When Damaras and the Dugomins were busy paying attention to Johnny, Boze heard someone trying to break Troy's chain. When Boze turned, he saw Navi trying to get him out. Boze had to admit, he was impressed with what he saw. He could have stopped them but he would prefer to watch the show.
"Who dares to intrude?" Damaras questioned Johnny.
"I do and I will never let you or the Zangyack Empire take over Earth," Johnny replied.
"Then it looks like we're going to kill one more Power Ranger then," Damaras responded. "Sugomins!"
The Sugomins start piling in and Johnny prepared himself with his Pirate Saber and Pirate Blaster. He fought the Sugomins unmorphed and tried to dodge every attack he can. When the Sugomins started to use their weapons to blast him, Johnny morphed into his ranger form.
"I told you he would come," Troy said to Damaras. Damaras simply growl as he continued watched the green Project Pirate ranger.
Johnny then decided to start using the other ranger keys. First he morphed into green Galaxy rangers. He used the elemental power of wind from the Quasar Sabers to defend himself against the Goumins. He then morphed into the green Mystic ranger and used the MagiStaff to make vines grow on the ground to tie the Goumins in. He then used the Axe Mode to hit all of the Goumins.
"This is taking too long! I will kill him myself!" Damaras said as he pushed through the Goumins and slashed Johnny until he demorphed.
Troy then finally gets released by Navi and jumped in front of Johnny. "Not another step," he said to Damaras.
"You planned this," Damaras accused at Johnny.
"What can I say? I surprise people when they least expect it," Johnny said to him.
"Nice job Johnny. I knew you would pull through," Troy said. "So what's the plan now?"
"Well I was hoping you would do the next part of the plan. I didn't actually think my plan would make it this far," Johnny replied to his sheepishly. "But I did what I could and that is all that matters when being on the team right?"
Troy chuckled as he looked at his friend. He remembered how scared Johnny was during his first battle and now he's here to save the day. "I guess you're right. Let's take him down," Troy said.
"Two of you will never win against me," Damaras told them.
Suddenly blasts started to attack Damaras again. Everyone looked to their right and saw the four figures standing. Troy and Johnny couldn't believe who it was.
"It's them!" Johnny exclaimed.
It was Ben, Blair, Dylan and Lexi. They looked like they were worn out and they had lots of injuries like Troy did.
"Sorry for the delay," Dylan said to his friends.
"I thought you guys were gone forever," Johnny told them.
"Sorry we kept you worried, Johnny. But it took a while to regain consciousness right after what happened," Lexi responded to him.
"But how did you guys escape Boze's power?" Troy asked.
"It appears that we had some unexpected help," Blair answered.
"While it seems that we got killed, Sally brought us out in lightspeed. She then placed us somewhere behind an alley and ran off," Ben added.
Even though it doesn't made sense to Troy, he sighed in relief, "I'm just glad all of you are back," he said, while looking mainly at Blair. Blair then returned him a smile.
Damaras could believe what he overheard. Sally? That means Boze sent her to do it. Which could only mean… Before he could finish thinking, he felt a stabbed behind his back. He turned his neck to see Boze (in his monster form) doing it. Even the rangers were surprised with what they had witness.
"Boze ka Jolokia…" Damaras growled.
"I guess you can say now that I stabbed you in the back," Boze said to him.
"Why?"
Boze continued to push his sword inside of him, "I don't like being told what to do and the reason why I chose not to kill the rangers is because I need them for something. They should be alive to see what I'm going to show them. Since you already know what it is, you'll be the first one to go and I'm letting them defeat you for good," he explained and pulled out his sword out. He took Troy's ranger key and morpher and passed it to him.
"Don't think the wrong way. We don't owe each other any favors," Boze said to them and left with Sally.
Troy was very confused over what had just happened. Did Boze say that he needed them for something? But Troy couldn't let the thought distract him. Now was their chance.
"Come on guys, let's morph," Troy said to his team.
"IT'S MORPHIN' TIME!" they called out and inserted their ranger key inside their morpher.
All of them charged their way to fight Damaras every way they can but even though he is injured, he can still beat them with his sword.
"He's too strong for us. We will never win," Blair said.
"Don't worry Blair. Remember what I told you," Johnny tried to remind her. "The key to success starts with believing in yourself that you can do it. If you keep telling yourself all this 'what ifs', it won't do you any good."
Blair turned to her friend and nodded, "You're right."
"He's right you guys, we have to believe we can do it," Ben told his teammates.
"But he is really tough," Lexi debated.
"We just have to do the best we can and we will be fine," Johnny said to her. "Right Troy?"
"Right you are," Troy said.
Damaras then started to get angry and started to swing his sword directly at the rangers. Dylan, Lexi, Blair and Ben stood in front of Troy and Johnny to block the attack and Troy did sneak attack and used his Pirate Blaster to blast Damaras. Johnny then jumped in slash Damaras but Damaras pushed him back. Troy passed his Pirate Blaster to Johnny and took his Pirate Saber.
While Johnny aimed Damaras' feet, Troy switched the two Pirate Sabers in his hand into full power and slashed Damaras. However it was not strong enough to defeat him.
Ben used his Gold Armor ranger key and activated it. "GOLD ARMOR, POWER UP!" he called out. He then used his spear to add more power to attack Damaras. "GOLD ARMOR, LEGENDARY MODE!"
The core Project Pirate rangers used another one of Johnny's invention, the Armada Buster to finish Damaras off. Everyone insert their ranger keys in the key hole.
"ARMADA STRIKE, RED MODE!" Troy called out as he powered up the weapon and triggered it. The first attack however wasn't effective.
Johnny had another idea, "Ben, can you power up again?" he asked Ben.
"Sure," Ben answered him and got ready again.
"Fire off at the same time as us," Johnny instructed him. He then took the Armada Buster into his hand and his ranger keys switched places with Troy's. He then powered up the Armada Buster. "ARMADA STRIKE, GREEN MODE!"
"GOLD ARMOR, LEGENDARY MODE!" Ben called out.
Johnny fired off the Armada Buster and Ben fire up his power. With their powers together, it was enough to defeat Damaras. The rangers watched as Damaras drop his sword and fell to his knees.
"How could I lose to all of you?" Damaras said.
"Looks like you underestimated Johnny when you chose not to get rid of him," Troy responded. Damaras fell flat and soon exploded in front of them.
"Nice plan Johnny," Lexi commented to him.
"Looks like you keep on giving us good ideas. I'm glad you decided to stick around even after your first mission," Dylan added.
"Thanks guys," Johnny replied. "I'm just happy you guys are alright."
"I don't believe it. The strongest man in the universe got deceived and defeated at the same time," Hectron mocked.
"It seems that it was a mistake to bring him as the action commander. I should've known that he is weak," Terror Gill said.
Insarn couldn't believe it either. Damaras is gone. This will not look good on her as she was the one who brought upon the idea of sending him to Earth. But those Power Rangers just keeps on surprising them and getting more and more power. They are just so unpredictable.
"Well Insarn, anymore bright ideas?" Hectron questioned her.
"Of course I do. I am the brilliant scientist for nothing. I will be the one to eliminate those Power Rangers once and for all," Insarn told him.
"I will give you one more chance to redeem yourself, Insarn," Terror Gill informed her.
"Don't worry, my Emperor. I will not let you down," Insarn replied while bowing at him.
Xx
After the battle with Damaras, the rangers at first went to Command Center to treat their wounds. They were all exhausted by the fight and just wanted to lie down. Ben then suggested that they all go to the park and lay down on the grass. The rest didn't care where they were, they just needed a break.
As they lie down and looked at the clear blue sky, each of the remained quiet to think until Ben spoke.
"What a day this has been," Ben said.
Dylan sighed, "For a moment, I really thought we were done for."
"If it wasn't for Johnny, I don't think we will manage to defeat Damaras for good," Blair added.
"Guys, I told you to not give me all the credit. We all played a part in it," Johnny told them.
"You're being too modest," Blair replied back.
"But it is true. Navi told us what happened after we were all gone. You were doubting yourself weren't you?" Lexi asked him.
"Well yeah. I should have done something instead of standing there and being scared. I feel I let you guys down. You guys did a lot of things for me like standing up for me in school and protecting me in fights, I wanted to show you guys that I appreciated all the things you did for me," Johnny responded. "Then I realized that whenever you guys protect me, you guys always end up hurting."
"You're right, we do get hurt but we're all friends here. We can't blame you for wanting to defend you," Troy told him.
"But I want to be able to defend myself for once," Johnny replied.
"If you want it so badly then sure, we'll let you face your own problems," Lexi said to him.
"But if you can't handle it, you know who to turn to if you need someone beat up some guy you don't like," Dylan joked.
"Thanks guys," Johnny thanked then. He then turned to Troy and Blair who had reconciled, "I'm especially sorry for what happened between you two today."
"I told you it wasn't your fault. It was my mistake," Troy replied.
"What did you do?" Lexi inquired.
"Well, last year for Valentines' Day, someone gave me some chocolate which turns out to be expired. Because of that, I got stomach cramps before practice and when I went to the bathroom, they ran out of toilet paper. I heard Kyle was outside so I told him to pass me some toilet paper but instead he passed me the Valentines' Card from Blair which was inside my bag. I was really desperate so I used it," Troy explained.
"I have entirely lost respect for you…and I feel disgusted," Lexi commented.
"Well I didn't know it was Blair's until after I cleaned myself," Troy added. "I'm really sorry Blair."
Blair simply smiled at him, "It's ok. I bought the card last year anyways. I was a little too lazy to hand made it. I'm just sorry I didn't let you explain."
"Alright you two, remember the group's policy; never kiss in front of us," Lexi told them.
"Fine then, let's go get pizza to eat. I'm starved," Troy suggested.
In the Free Joker, Boze was inside his secret room where he kept Zaine's body inside the energy tube. He sat in the chair in front of him and smiled. Zaine's body was covered wires and he was unconscious.
"Well Zaine, I could say it was quite productive today. I guess it was a nice idea you trusting that Troy with your powers," Boze said to him. "However, I still think you're a fool."
Boze got up and checked on the computers that were connected to Zaine. He turned it on and it shows the powers of the Psycho rangers. All of the power and energy Zaine has was being transmitted to the Psycho rangers.
"I have to say, this is my most brilliant idea ever; yet people say you're the brilliant mind of The Anchors," Boze said. "You do remember The Anchors right? It's the group we were in before you decided to abandon me and my dreams. But it's ok, I'll get over it. But let's just see how your precious little Project Pirate group will handle finding out this little secret of mine."
As Boze turned his computer off, he exited the room without covering the tube with the blanket back. Inside the tube, Zaine's body started reacting. He knows he was alive but he can't seem to open his eyes. He was too weak. His fingers started moving slowly. I will get out of here…one day…
Thank you for all the kind reviews I received from you guys! I really appreciate it very much!
So what do you think of this chapter? I decided to give Terror Gill some soul about fulfilling Troy's dream because I don't believe the Zangyack Empire are really bad guys. They just want to fulfill their dreams like the rangers are.
Anyways, PLEASE REVIEW!
