Chapter 20 – Rescue Rangers, Away!
"Are you sure you two want to do this?" Clara asks in a worried tone. "I mean, I could stay behind, and…"
"Nonsense," Tammy waved off. "You and Chip go ahead with the others. Midge and I will stay and look after the twins."
"You're absolutely sure?" Chip leans in to get clarification.
"Yes, of course, Mr. Chip." Midge nods. "It will be good for you to get back into doing Rescue Ranger work again."
"But daddy, we want to come too." Tucker pleads.
"Yeah, we want to be Rescue Rangers like you." Amber whines.
Chip smiles down at his children. It warms his heart for them to call him a Rescue Ranger, not only that but to follow in his footsteps and become one themselves. In his head, Chip can picture his kids joining him, Clara, and the other Rangers in future cases, but for now…
"Maybe when you older, okay." He tells them. "Now behave ourselves, and listen to Auntie Tammy, and Auntie Midge while we're gone."
"Fine…" the twins grumble in unison.
Chip and Clara hop onto the Ranger Wing and sit in the back seat. Dale, this time, joins them. Monterey, Zipper, and Gadget jump in the front seats, Gadget being behind the wheel. Foxglove prepares to fly beside the Ranger Wing. They all take off with Tammy, Midge, and the twins waving them off.
OoOoOoOoOoOo
The curator and two assistances bring the painting into an exhibit room of the museum. The assistance readied the hangers while the curator supervises.
"Okay, now let's get out the level to make sure it's straight." The curator instructs.
The two men look around and realize the level is missing.
"Ah sir, we seem to have missed placed it." One of the men bashfully admits.
The curator lets out an exasperated sigh. "Come on; we need to find it."
As the crew leaves the scene, Fat Cat, along with Mepps and Mole are hiding behind one of the display cases. Fat Cat gently kicks the level further back behind him.
"Now's our chance, you dunderheads." Fat Cat can't seem to help to throw in an insult at his minions. "Let's get that painting."
OoOoOoOoOoOo
Meanwhile, the Rangers spot Fat Cat and the gang on the upper levels of the museum.
Dale turns to Chip and asks, "Are you sure you and Clara want to stay back?"
"Yes, I'm sure." Chip confirms. "I'm a little out of practice; I don't want to slow any of you down."
Clara quickly glances at Chip and notices he is clasping one hand over the other. She can see he's trying very hard containing an anxiety attack.
Giving the Rangers a sheepish grin, Clara adds, "Actually, he's doing this more for my benefit, since I've never done anything like this before." She lied.
"Well, okay," Dale says, shifting his eyes from Clara to Chip. Something about their excuses didn't make sense to him.
"Come on; we need to get down there before Fat Cat and his gang getaway." Foxglove pleads.
"Foxglove is right, mates." Monty agrees. "Rescue Rangers, away!"
The two of them are the first to start heading for the stairs.
"We'll be right back." Gadget assures Chip and Clara, before following Monty and Foxglove down the stairs.
Dale slowly backs away, looking at Chip. He worries about his friend, considering he was initially excited to be back to the team again. Chip tries to smile at him convincingly, but only shows the insecurity in his eyes. Not willing to pursue the subject any further, Dale decides the job is more important right now. He turns and quickly catches up to the rest of the team.
As soon as the others are out of earshot, Chip sheepishly turns to his wife.
"Thanks." He tells her.
Clara shoots him a side glance.
"Are you going to tell me what's wrong?" She asks him. "…Or do I need to tug your ears real hard until you speak?"
Clara reaches over with a threatening paw up towards her husband's head. She aims for one of the ears that are sticking up from the side of his fedora.
Chip's eyes widened, he remembers the one, and only other time she yanked his ears. It was when she went into labor with the twins. Holly had to coax her into letting go. Instantly shaking his head, Chip responds.
"No, That's okay, darling." He quickly assures her, gently pushing her paw away from his head.
Chip lets out a long sigh as he collects his thoughts.
"I was actually looking forward to participating in this case," he smiles to a memory that cleared up in his mind. "I once lived, breathed, and slept being a Rescue Ranger."
Chip frowns and slumps his shoulders forward as reality creeps in. "But the closer we got to the museum, the more panicked I suddenly felt. What if I screwed up? What if they expect me to be the Chip that they remembered? I mean, regardless of my memories slowly coming back, I realize I'm just not the same guy I was five years ago." He admits with a shameful frown.
Clara's face softens. She takes a step over to Chip and puts a hand on his shoulder.
"You are just feeling a little pressure, you want to make a good impression, and I get that. You just need to be your confident self that I know you are." Clara tells him.
"It's pretty odd, though. I never had these anxieties when we traveled and ended up helping people that were in trouble." Chip shrugs.
Clara thinks for a moment before dragging her hand down his arm and taking hold of his hand.
"Remember when we first met? I was afraid of everything and did my very best to avoid talking to people I didn't know, even you. Eventually, we did start speaking, but still took me a while to show any trust." She tells him.
Chip smiles at her. He nods to ensure he is listening to her story. How Chip admires how much Clara has grown since the day he saw her for the first time.
"After I did start trusting you, that trust grew into friendship, and from there, well," she blushes slightly before adding, "Love."
"Perhaps the reason why you didn't have any anxiety during our travels is that we were working together as a team," Clara concludes.
"We do make a great team." Chip agrees. He reaches over and takes hold of Clara's free hand.
Their loving moment is interrupted when they hear the Rangers cry out in surprise.
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At the bottom of the staircase, the rangers sneak by some statues. From behind one of the marble stone figure, Snout and Wart peek out.
"Looks like Fat Cat was right, we did have a Rescue Ranger spying on us back at the factory." Wart whispers.
"Yeah, time to release the trap." Snout murmurs. He reaches up on the side of the statue and pulls the rope.
A contraption set up on top of the statue springs into action as it catapults over to the staircase.
A large net falls on top of the Rescue Rangers. Foxglove and Zipper even try to fly out of the way, but they are not quick enough.
Snout and Wart come out from behind the statue looking rather smug. Each of them holds strong string in their paws, ready to wrap the Rangers in it.
"Hey, Boss, we got 'em!" Snout shouts.
"Yes, your plan worked perfectly." Wart adds.
Before Dale and the others could manage an escape, the goons start tying them up with the net still on top of them.
OoOoOoOoOoOo
Chip and Clara rush to the edge of the railing and look down at the scene.
"It's a trap," Chip deduced. "Fat Cat knew we'd show up."
Clara notices a certain twinkle in her husband's eyes. She's witnessed the same posture he gives when he's readying himself for action. Clara smirks as she puts a hand on her hip.
"Well, are we going to do something about this, or do you still plan on sitting this one out?" Clara sarcastically asks him.
Chip returns with a crooked smile, showing her that her subtle tone is not lost.
"No, you're right." He straightens up before looking around at his options. "Ah," Chip spots a long piece of thick string. The construction crews must have left behind from their last remodeling of a showroom.
Grabbing the string, Chip runs back to his wife. After creating a noose, he lassos it over to a statue standing near the staircase. Making sure the line is sturdy, Chip then reaches for Clara to come closer to him. She eagerly leans up against his body, with her arms over his shoulder. Chip pauses, temporarily lost in her eyes. Clara returns a bashful grin.
"I love you." He sings in a sappy tone.
"I love you too." Clara purrs in response.
With that, the two of them leap off the platform and swing down.
OoOoOoOoOoOo
"Ah, if it isn't for the putrid rangers." Fat Cat Chuckles. "It's certainly been a while, hasn't it?"
"Not long enough," Dale grumbles.
"So true," Fat Cat agrees. "However, for the first time, I'm not going to waste time talking about ending you sickening rodents, I'll just go ahead do it."
Fat Cat picks up the level he hid from the curator and lifts it over his head. He prepares himself to swing it down over the Ranger's heads.
"Hold it right there!" Chip calls out from behind.
Everyone turns, and like an image right out of an Indiana Jones movie, Chip stands with string rolled up in his tight little grip, and Clara standing firmly beside him. It takes a moment for Fat Cat to recognize Chip, and when he does, he is in absolute shock.
"No, it can't be. You were dead! I was told you were dead!" The tabby cat gasps.
"Let's just say, my demise is grossly exaggerated." Chip responds with a shrug. He then addresses Clara to them. "By the way, this is my wife, Clara."
"Hello," she waves sweetly to the criminals.
"I'm not impressed," Fat Cat growls. He looks around at his henchmen and starts baring his teeth at them. "Don't just stand there, you idiots! Get them!"
Clara and Chip glance at each other briefly with a knowing smirk before crisscrossing each other in different directions. As Clara distracts the henchmen with her skills and speed, Chip heads towards the captured Rangers.
"I'll deal with you myself, you diminutive nut muncher." Fat Cat growls as steps in front of Chip in an attempt to grab him.
"Chip, lookout!" Dale hollers.
To everyone's surprise, Chip temporarily drops the rope to defend himself. Using Cha Chi moves, he can block each swing of Fat Cat's clawed paws. Chip, using Fat Cat's weight and height against him, shifts his feet over to the left, which causes Fat Cat to lose his balance.
As the Cat tries to regain his posture, Chip reaches down to pick up his string, then swinging himself around Fat Cat's back and kicks the feline in the behind.
The action leaves Fat Cat falling forward onto his face.
"How…?" The purple-clad Cat hisses.
Chip hops his way to his friends as they all look at him with confusion and astonishment.
"Say Chipper, where did you learn those cool wicket moves," Dale asks.
"I'll explain later." Chip assures his friend. "…But first, let's get you guys out of this trap."
As Chip gnaws at the rope with his teeth, Gadget, Foxglove, Zipper, Monterey, and Dale are distracted by Clara's moves. The golden-tan chipmunk zigs and zags her way around mob boss's minions. She even uses some Cha Chi moves on them when they try throwing a few punches at her.
"Crikey, she's fast." Monty gasps. Zipper nods, and squeaks in agreement.
"I told you the twins get their speed from their mother." Chip proudly states. He successfully frees his friends from the net before adding, "What do you say we finish this case, Rescue Ranger style?"
"Yeah!" The other cheer.
"So, what's the plan, Chipper?" Monty asks eagerly.
"Huh," Chip pauses, realizing he may be overstepping his boundaries.
He's not the leader anymore, Dale is. Looking over at his best friend, Chip waits to see if he has a plan instead. With an encouraging smile and a nod from Dale, Chip realizes that his former teammates are waiting for him actually to call the shots.
He quickly takes notice that his wife needs some back up before bringing his attention back to the Rangers.
"I'll go help Clara; you guys secure the painting." Chip orders.
"Aye, aye." The team solute in unison before running off to their post.
"Gosh, it feels like old times, doesn't it fellas?" Gadget gushes.
"Too right, Gadget, Luv," Monty adds.
"Defiantly feels like the old Chip is back." Dale chimes.
"Dale, lookout." Foxglove screech, seeing Fat Cat in front of them with his claws bared.
"I'm not going to let you stop me this time." The feline boss growls with teeth bared.
Thinking quickly, Dale spots a tarp draped over a table. "Foxglove, Zipper, the tarp!" Dale orders pointing past Fat Cat.
Responding to their leader's command, the two flying members of the team rush over the Cat's head and pick up the tarp. They throw it over Fat Cat's body, instantly making the feline struggle to find an escape.
Monterey grabs a board lying down beside the tarp, and slams it down on Fat Cat's head, stunning the feline.
Meanwhile, Chip uses the string to lasso Mepps wrist before the orange Cat can swing down at Clara. Chip yanks back, causing the scraggly Cat to crash into Wart. The two goons land on Mole as they fall over each other.
Snout quickly glances behind him to see his fallen teammates before returning to the golden-tan chipmunk. He notices that she is getting short of breath and smirks.
"Getting tired, sweetheart," he says creepily. "Why don't you lie down?" Shout emphasizes as he lunges at her with his fists one more time.
The rat is intercepted by Chip before he could land the punch. The chestnut chipmunk blocks not just one blow, but three. After Chip finds an opening to throw a few punches of his own, bringing the rat down on his back.
"Nobody lays a hand on my wife, especially scum like you." Chip growls.
Clara's ears tweak when human voices echo from down the hall. She points past her husband and says, "Sounds like the curator is coming back. Perhaps we should go?"
"I think you're right." Chip nods in agreement. "Hey guys," he shouts at the other Rangers. "We should go now."
"Okay, just a second, Chip." Gadget says. She drags the level out in plain view for the curator to find. Gadget then sprints to catch up to the rest as they all head out of the room.
The henchmen get on their feet and rush over to their leader.
"Hey, boss, we need to go." Mepps whines.
"Yeah, the humans are coming back." Snout adds.
They uncover Fat Cat, and instantly he starts to panic.
"No!" He cries. "I can't fail, not again."
Fat Cat desperately reaches for the painting, but his minions hold him back.
"I did not spend over two years in a retreat for villainous felines for nothing. It was supposed to be different this time!" He crows pathetically. "Let go; I must get that painting!" He pleads with his band of misfits.
"We can't, boss, we need to go, or the humans will catch us." Mepps pushes his chunky leader.
It takes all four mobsters to lift Fat Cat and carry him out of the room.
"Oh, hey, Mr. Donaldson." One of the assistants cried out as he re-enters the room. "I found the level."
"You mean to tell me it's been in here the whole time." The curator groans. "I think I need a vacation after this exhibit show."