No one likes to be judged. However, as he stood in the lab, with Nate, Steel, Devon and Zoey all staring at him, Ravi could feel every inch of judgement that it was possible to feel, along with the most horrible part. The fact he knew he deserved every bit of it. Smash was standing, inert, hooked up to a computer that was running a full scan to see if his core programming had been affected by the alterations Ravi had made.
"Dude, that is…seriously messed up!" Devon finally managed to say.
"I…I just…I never thought…"
"Ravi, Smash trusted you, and you used an emergency shutdown code to turn him off while you messed with his memory." Zoey interrupted him. He could see the look in her eyes. She had never had any problems with Ravi really, if anything they were pretty close thanks to their connection to Roxy. However, the way she was looking at him now was like, she wasn't angry with him, or even disgusted, more like she knew him as well as she thought she did. "You rendered him unconscious and gave him something that affected his memory…just think about that. Think about how that sounds if you think of Smash as a human."
Ravi could understand the trouble she was having getting what he did straight in her mind. Ravi was in no way a horrible person, but phrasing it like that…he'd heard all sorts of stories of people doing things like that for horrifying reasons. Ravi couldn't believe he hadn't thought of it in those terms before. The idea of doing that to a person made him sick to his stomach.
"Quite apart from the fact that the Beastbots' minds are extremely complex artificial intelligence constructs that make any kind of tampering with them easily akin to brain surgery, something I don't believe you're at all qualified for, there's the moral ramifications too!" Nate said angrily. "Do you have any idea what kind of permanent harm you could have caused?"
"I read the technical schematics…"
"Their central processors are basically like a human brain! Their personalities aren't a program, they're a sentience that the Beastbots have built themselves from their central program and their interactions with the world." Nate continued. "Even in the hands of a skilled surgeon, brain surgery has innumerable ways it can profoundly affect the personality of the patient. You could have completely changed who Smash is!"
"But worst of all, Smash trusts you. His security protocols list you as a responsible person to have his shutdown codes because you're meant to look out for what's best for him." Devon stated. "And you did this to him? What were you thinking?"
Ravi didn't say anything. He couldn't. Not only was there no way to justify what he did, but he couldn't bring himself to speak. He didn't deserve to defend himself, even if he could. He went to his stash and pulled out his paint box and pad. Devon took it from him, looking at the painting of Roxy. He showed it around to the others, who could only exchange glances.
"He…saw me." Ravi finally murmured. "I was worried he might…"
"You were worried about your mom finding out about your art?" Devon asked him. "Dude, your issues with your mom are exactly that. They're YOUR issues!"
"We all understand what it's like keeping things from our parents." Zoey said to him. "But you hurt someone just to make things easier for you."
"I know, and I feel terrible about it." Ravi responded. "I know I messed up, and if I can, I want to make up for it…"
"Well, that's good, but it's not us you have to apologise to." Devon told him. "It's Smash."
Ravi just looked to the Beastbot. Smash had done nothing but help him. If anything, he'd found it slightly wearing how much Smash tried to care for and mother him. That was just who Smash was, but he was so worried that he'd tell his mom about his art, he had done something unthinkable. He just nodded his head.
"You're right." Ravi whispered. "When he wakes up…I'll…"
Just then, the door opened and Commander Shaw came in with a couple of members of the security team.
"Nate, how are the diagnostics on Smash going?" She asked him. Nate cast a side-ways glance at the others before he answered.
"I'll know in a few minutes if there's anything to be concerned about, but it looks like it could be just a glitch." Nate stated. Ravi now felt worse, Nate would have been within his rights to tell Commander Shaw what had happened. He probably should have, but while he wasn't strictly speaking LYING about the glitch, he definitely was covering for Ravi not telling her what he knew.
"What's with the security?" Ravi asked.
"We need to find out why Smash is so obsessed with art all of a sudden." She told them.
"Well, maybe he's just trying out something new?" Devon suggested. "I mean, we all know the Beastbots are sentient, right? Maybe he just wanted to try something new to see if he liked it. I mean, my hair didn't always look like this, but one day I tried it out and here we are!"
"Smash left the base without permission." Commander Shaw responded.
"Wait, why does he need permission to leave the base?" Steel asked. "I leave the base all the time!"
"You leave with Nate." She pointed out. Steel just stood with his hands on his hips.
"What difference does that make?" He asked, completely offended. "We have rights you know!"
"He exposed himself to danger, that Robotron tried to take him." She reminded them, brushing off what Steel had just said. "Not to mention this obsession is a complete waste of time. If anything happens to Smash, we lose the use of the Wheeler Zord."
"So, the security team is here because…?"
"If his programming is damaged and he's going to walk off the base again, we need to prevent him from doing that again." Commander Shaw stated firmly.
"So, you're going to lock Smash up because he painted on a wall?" Devon asked. Ravi now felt completely awful, watching all this unfold. Smash generally didn't leave the base anyway, but that was by choice as much as anything else. There was no reason to think he needed to be kept locked up.
"Well, there seems to be some mild corruption of Smash's program." Nate said, looking at the screen.
"Corruption?" She asked. "Then we can't risk him interfacing with the Wheeler Zord until it's fixed. If that spreads…"
"It'll be fine, I can fix it." Nate reassured her. "It'll take a while."
"Then get started." She responded. "And let me know if we need to keep him under observation."
As she left, Ravi held his head in his hands. The Rangers all looked to him.
"Your mom is not a fan of the arts." She commented.
"No, she's not." Ravi agreed. "She's always been all about her career. She aced the academy and was leading squads within a year. She's the kind of person that when she's not working is taking courses on her own time to get the qualifications she needs to advance. She thinks…she thinks everyone else should be the same. Especially her son."
He just shook his head.
"I was so worried about what mom would think…I was worried that Smash would tell her…"
"Look, Ravi, we can't tell you what to do about your mom. That's entirely between you and her." Devon told him. "But once Nate's finished with this diagnostic, you're really going to have to make it up to Smash."
Just then, their communicators sounded. Devon answered.
"What is it?" He asked.
"There's been a break in reported at the Morph-X distribution centre at sector Delta 13." Commander Shaw told them.
"We're on it." Devon responded.
"I'll stay with Smash." Nate replied. "The rest of you go."
As they were about to leave, they could see Steel standing with his arms folded. Devon just looked to him.
"Steel, are you coming?" He asked.
"I don't know, am I allowed to leave without Nate?" He scoffed. Devon just rolled his eyes.
"Come on!" He groaned. "We don't have time for this!"
With that, they all ran out, leaving Nate to keep an eye on Smash, waiting on the computer completing its work and bringing him back online.
Over at the Distribution Centre, the Rangers arrived, finding the fence twisted and ripped apart, and a hole smashed in one of the walls. There were guards lying all around, severely injured. Devon quickly checked on one of them.
"We need to secure the area and get some ambulances down here." He told them. "I think it's pretty clear which way they went in."
"Definitely not subtle, but it doesn't feel like Blaze." Zoey commented. "When was the last time you saw him punch a hole in a wall?"
They all headed into warehouse, finding a cloaked figure gathering large numbers of drums of Morph-X and teleporting them out. They could only guess at how much he'd already taken, and it seemed that the plan was a literal smash and grab. The thief was taking as much Morph-X as possible before any resistance arrived.
"Hey, hold it right there!" Steel called out, pointing an accusing finger at the thief. The cloaked figure turned towards them and threw up his hands in shock.
"Oh no, the Power Rangers!" He called out. "Please, don't hurt me!"
"Guys, where's everyone else?" Devon asked. "Blaze, Roxy, Megan, Tronics…"
"It's just me, I swear!" The thief called out. The Rangers immediately started to look around for signs of an ambush.
"This place looks half-empty." Ravi commented. "We're going to need to get the inventory to find out how much this guy's stolen."
Just then, there was a bleep on the communicator. Devon answered it.
"What is it Commander?" He asked.
"A Gigadrone detector has been triggered. A Gigadrone is about to arrive." She told them. Devon just let out an annoyed grunt as he heard this. They expected a distraction, but what was the distraction, the Gigadrone or this guy? He couldn't take any chances.
"Is Smash repaired?" Devon asked.
"Smash is online and ready for action." Nate told him. He just looked to the others.
"Zoey, stay with Steel." He told the Yellow Ranger. "Keep this guy covered…"
"But what if you guys need a Megazord?" Steel asked him. "Look, it's just one guy, I can keep an eye on him."
"Steel, I appreciate…"
"Nate and I can form a Megazord and the three of you can form a Megazord. We need to choose one of those two teams." Steel reminded him. "Nate should be here soon; I think I can babysit one prisoner for a few minutes."
Devon looked reluctant to leave Steel on his own, but Steel was a strong and capable Ranger. He also knew that Nate would be on his way.
"Alright, Nate, come to the Distribution Centre and help Steel take this guy in for questioning." Devon told him. "Come on guys, let's go."
With that, Devon, Zoey and Ravi all left. Steel stood, covering the prisoner with his Striker Morpher.
"Well, I hope you like alone time, because I've got a feeling you won't be seeing anyone else for quite some time." Steel told him. The thief just started laughing.
"That's what you think!" Vargoyle called out, throwing off his cloak. "I am Vargoyle! And you…you're my next victim!"
He pulled out a blaster and opened fire as Steel ducked for cover, returning fire wildly as he went.
Over in another area of the city, Devon, Ravi and Zoey all headed for the middle of the city, looking out for a Gigadrone. Normally they weren't too difficult to spot, they were over a hundred feet in height and weighed several tons after all.
"Guys, I don't see anything." Devon called out. "Zoey?"
"Nothing up here." She answered. "The Gigadrone Detectors definitely triggered, but there's no sign of anything."
"This is the closest tower to the signal." Devon continued. "You don't think they're trying another Drilltron do you?"
"No, there's no seismic activity." Ravi confirmed. "I'd expect a tremor if anything was coming from underneath."
"But I don't see anything around…" Devon tailed off as a thought occurred to him. "Guys, redirect your radar signals."
"Redirect them where?" Zoey asked. "There's nothing on the horizon."
"Up." Devon concluded.
"Up? But I'm up here and I can't see…" Zoey started to say, before suddenly her radar got a hit. She just gulped. "Guys, it's right on top…"
She didn't get to finish. A blast came scything down through the clouds, battering her Zord, damaging the stabilizers. She struggled with the controls.
"Guys, I'm hit!" She screamed. "He's above the clouds!"
"ZOEY!" The guys called out.
"Don't worry, I got this!" Jax interjected as he assisted with the controls. "It's gonna be bumpy, but I think I can land this thing without killing anyone!"
"Alright, get back when you can!" Devon answered. Just then, another blast came down, this time hitting the top of the Morph-X tower. The Gigadrone, based on a turbine engine like the Robotron they'd destroyed earlier, descended through the clouds, before seeming to suck up all the Morph-X. "He used the clouds as cover. It's an old pilots' trick, I used it all the time in Battle of Aces IX!"
"Devon, he's draining the tower!" Ravi commented. "We have to stop him!"
"Alright." Devon declared, before trying to jump up with his Zord, only to fall short. As it came down, landing on the ground with a crash, he just looked up at the Robotron.
"Alright, now this…this is a problem!" He summarised.
Back at the Distribution Centre, Steel was battling with Vargoyle, trying his best to keep him under control. However, it became clear very quickly that he was no mere Robotron. He shrugged off blaster fire pretty quickly, giving Steel little option but to get in close.
He summoned his Striker Sabre as he swung for Vargoyle, who quickly intercepted with a blade of his own. He moved like lightning, with the kind of moves that came from extensive knowledge of fighting techniques. Even Steel's database was struggling to place all of the techniques being thrown his way. Before long, the Silver Ranger realised he was in deep trouble, having terribly underestimated his opponent.
Each blow that landed felt like he'd been hit completely unprotected by a Gigadrone. Several of his systems were blaring warnings at him. If he was human, he was sure he'd almost certainly need extensive hospital treatment. Vargoyle sent him flying, where he hit the ground. Vargoyle picked up his Striker Sabre, looking at it.
"Nice toy!" He declared, before throwing it at Steel. The Silver Ranger barely managed to deflect it, but the damage caused the last of his suit's energy to fade out. He demorphed, at which Vargoyle just stared at him, beginning to consider him.
"A robot Ranger?" He asked. "How disgusting! You fight to protect the humans who view their superiors as nothing more than servants?"
"What?" Steel asked.
"King Mondo wanted to rid the universe of biologicals, to sweep away those that had created machines to do what they couldn't. I was created as his ultimate weapon!" Vargoyle said, before looking down on Steel, driving down his heel into his chest, sending up sparks as Steel struggled beneath him. "And yet, here you are, a Ranger, standing to fight with humans who will never see you as anything more than a thing to make their lives easier! You are a traitor to your own kind!"
"I'm no traitor. I'm part human!" Steel grunted. "And at least I don't fight in the name of some insane despot that was destroyed decades ago!"
"You're part human eh?" Vargoyle taunted him. "Well, which part do you think humans see when they look at you? Which part do you think matters to them?"
Steel struggled to remove Vargoyle's foot from his chest, but he simply no longer had the strength. Many of his systems were in dire need of urgent attention. As he tried to fight to get out though, his thoughts drifted to what Commander Shaw had said about Smash wandering off the base without permission.
"I hope you think it was all worth it when they melt you down." Vargoyle stated, raising his sword. "Maybe they'll turn you into a toaster!"
"Leave my brother alone!" Nate yelled as he arrived, hitting Vargoyle with a flying kick, which staggered him just enough to get him off Steel's chest. Nate looked down to Steel, who was struggling, but unable to get up. Vargoyle just looked to Nate, who was standing over his brother defensively.
"I think I've done enough for one day." Vargoyle told them. "Consider this a message. Vargoyle, ultimate weapon of King Mondo, is here, and your time is almost up!"
With that, he teleported out. Nate immediately demorphed and went to help Steel.
"Steel, I want you to lie still for me." Nate told him. "This is Nate, I need an immediate extraction team at the Distribution Centre. We have a Ranger down in urgent need of recovery!"
He looked down on Steel, beginning to assess the damage.
"Don't worry Steel, help is on the way." Nate reassured him. "You might want to shut down anything non-essential for the time being."
As Steel did as he was told, he couldn't help going over in his CPU what Vargoyle had said to him. However, as he lay, only able to look up at his brother, frantically working to save him, he couldn't believe he was on the wrong side. So why did it bother him to much?
Back in the Cyber Dimension, Vargoyle stood before Evox, basking in his praise. Although he'd never actually met King Mondo, he imagined this was what it felt like to be in his presence. Although he was built to serve King Mondo, he was practical enough to know that now he was gone, there was little purpose in worrying about seeking rewards from some scrap that likely lay buried deep on some unknown world now. Evox could give him the power that he sought to better accomplish his task of wiping out biological beings.
"All this Morph-X. It has been some time since my lesser servants brought me so much." Evox told him. Vargoyle just shrugged in a manner that lacked any kind of humility.
"Humans." He remarked. "They may be avatars, but they're still based on humans. You can't help if you're based on inferior base components."
"I'm impressed! You deserve this upgrade! Do it Scrozzle!" Evox instructed his servant.
"Yes, Master Evox." Scrozzle simpered as he took the upgrade device, holding it up. "But be careful, too much fighting and it'll run out of Morph-X."
"Just give me the upgrade!" Vargoyle demanded impatiently. While already powerful, he had felt the truest power of all, the power of the Fury Cells. Every moment since then, he had longed for more. Now there were no more Fury Cells, but he couldn't wait to feel a taste of that kind of power again. As Scrozzle attached it to his arm, he felt a strong, unfamiliar, but immense power coursing through him. "This power is immense! Thank you Lord Evox! I'll use this power to destroy your enemies! And I have just the plan to do it!"
From a little way off, Megan, Blaze and Roxy were watching. They knew that Vargoyle was trouble, but between hearing his damning assessment of them, and seeing him get the upgrade, they knew that he was now going to be a lot more trouble than they had first anticipated.
"Keep serving me well, and I'll share my power with you when I take over the Morphing Grid!" Evox declared.
"So, we do all the work and he gets all the power?" Blaze asked. "No, I don't think so."
"We'll have to work together if we want to get rid of him." Megan declared. Roxy just nodded in agreement.
"Oh, we will." She agreed. "Vargoyle's time on top won't last long."
