Episode 3 – Feeling Blue
Dax walks into a coffee shop on his way to the Hartford Mansion, already late for training. He joins the queue, a beautiful woman following in behind him. The Blue Ranger stans minding his own business, when the woman drops her purse. Dax turns to see the woman picking up the items and filling her bag back up. He drops down to see if he can help.
"Can I help?" he asks, handing the dropped items over.
"Thank you so much," she replies, picking up the rest of her items and shovelling them into her bag. The two stand up. "Sorry, I'm having the worst day. If it can go so wrong, it will today."
"I hate days like that," he replies. "Maybe I could buy you a coffee? Try and turn your luck around?" She smiles.
"That would be great," she answers while blushing.
"Next," the clerk behind the counter calls. The two step forward.
"Hi," Dax begins to order. "Can I get a chai latte and…" He pauses. "And you?"
"Just a black coffee please?" she asks, her voice soft and pure. The clerk writes the order up on the cup.
"Names?" the clerk says, not even looking up.
"I'm Dax and this is…" Dax looks over to the woman.
"Mira," she continues to smile.
"That'll be $10 please," the girls as Dax continues to look at Mira, completely mesmerised. "Hello?" Dax snaps out of it.
"Oh right," he quickly grabs for his wallet, dropping it in the process. He quickly picks it up and takes out a $20 bill, handing it over to the clerk. "Keep the change." The two step aside, taking their coffees when ready.
The two leave the coffee shop.
"Well," Mira begins. "I'm off to the college, so I'm this way. Thanks for the coffee. Maybe my day will take a turn anyway." The Blue Ranger realises it's the wrong way to the mansion, but he may not get this chance again.
"That's funny," he responds. "That's on my way. Do you mind if I walk with you?" She smiles back once again.
"I'd like that," Mira replies. The two set off on their walk.
At the mansion, the rest of the team are busy running as assault course on the grounds. Mr Hartford stands with a stopwatch in his hand, Spencer approaching from the main house.
"Any sign?" Hartford asks Spencer. He shakes his head.
"No sign yet," he responds. "I tried his cell phone and his Overdrive Tracker."
"That could be a bad sign," Hartford sighs. "Can you take over here?" He hands over the stop watch. "I'm going to go and search for his morpher."
"Of course sir," Spencer responds. Mr Hartford quickly walks back inside.
Rose is the first to complete the course, her experience evident. She walks up to Spencer, grabbing a towel and her pink water bottle. She takes a big gulp of water.
"Where is he off too?" Rose asks Spencer, suspicion covering her expression.
"He's trying to get hold of Dax," he answers. "One does not require your superior intellect to notice he is not present at training today." Rose sighs and breathes heavily, trying not to rise to the butler's sarcasm.
The rest of the team finish the course and join the two.
"Well done Rangers," Spencer tries to encourage the team. "Your times are getting much better."
"What did we come in at this time?" Will asks.
"I have no idea," Spencer replies. "I forgot to stop the watch."
"Then how do you know we're improving?" Will snaps back.
"Well…" Spencer stutters, thinking on his mind. "I don't. But it felt faster. And it felt like the right thing to say." Ronny and Mack laugh at Spencer's "encouraging" words.
"I don't know why you're all laughing," the Pink Ranger speaks sternly. "You need to get your times up. We need to be able to keep up with each other in the field. We're only as fast as our weakest link." Will and Ronny look at each other, a bit exasperated by the statement.
"You heard the lady, Spencer," Mack declares. "Let's go again. And make sure you get the times Spence." The faithful butler nods. The team makes their way back over to the course to reset.
"Well done Mack," Spencer utters as he smiles to himself.
Hartford exits the elevator to his lab, quickly making his way over to his computer.
"No active morph signal," Hartford speaks to himself. "That's a good sign… I hope." He scans for the Overdrive Tracker, bringing the Tracker's signal up on the screen. "He's heading away from the mansion?" Hartford scrunches up his face. He types into his computer again. "Come on Dax. What are you doing?"
Dax's tracker continues to sound as he walks with Mira. He pulls it out, silencing it.
"You sure you don't need to get that?" Mira asks. Dax stutters.
"I'm sure it's nothing," he replies.
"That's an interesting phone," Mira points out. "If it is a phone?"
"Oh, yeah," Dax thinks quickly. "It's more like a pager. For work."
"What do you do?"
"I'm a…" Dax stutters again. "I'm a stunt man. I work in movies."
"Why would a stuntman need a fancy pager?"
"I get notifications for jobs on it."
"And you're skipping those jobs?" Dax blushes at the awkward question.
"I do sometimes."
They approach an alleyway and Mira stops to turn in.
"Isn't the college that way?" Dax points forward.
"This is a shortcut to my campus."
"Neat," Dax accepts the explanation and the two walk into the alley. "So, what's your major?"
Before Mira has a chance to answer, they are stopped by a monster.
"That's far enough," the monster declares. The blue and black monster stands tall, a key hole on his head.
"What is that thing?" Mira gasps. Dax pushes her behind him.
"What do you want?" Dax demands.
"To take you down," the monster shouts back, preparing to charge. The Blue Ranger begins to panic. He decides he needs to risk it. Pulling his morpher, it flips open.
"Get back Mira," the Blue Ranger declares. "Overdrive Accelerate." He rolls the morpher down his arm, morphing into the Blue Ranger.
"Oh my," Mira looks stunned. "You're a Power Ranger?"
Dax charges forward to meet the monster, trying to land a punch. It doesn't impact the monster, who strikes back, knocking the Blue Ranger back.
In the lab, Mr Hartford see's the morphing sequence activating on his monitor.
"This is what I was worried about," Hartford declares, running towards the elevator.
The Rangers complete the assault course, Rose once again outclassing the rest of her team.
"Rangers," the team hear Hartford call. "Dax is in trouble." They look at each other and then begin to run inside. They run into the garage and grab their uniforms. Suited up, they jump into the and speed out towards the battle scene.
Dax is thrown out of the alley and into the open street. The monster grabs hold of Mira and walks out of the alley.
"You're no match for the mighty Ultrog," the monster declares.
"Dax, help me," Mira calls out.
The team's jeep arrives at the scene. The team jump out, having morphed on the way. They run over. Ronny checks to see if Dax is okay, as the other three over them.
"Are you okay?" Ronny asks.
"I'm fine," Dax gets himself up, stepping forward. "Let her go Ultrog. I won't ask twice." The monster begins to laugh.
"Your threat's would be more credible if I hadn't already beaten you Ranger," the monster retorts. "I'll make this easy for you. Bring me the Aurora Crown, and I'll return the girl. You have until tonight. 8pm. In the City Square. The choice is yours."
"Dax," Mira calls out again, the monster teleporting the two away. Dax runs forward, unable to do anything.
"How did she know your name?" Rose asks, stepping forward. Dax begins to stutter.
"Well," the Blue Ranger begins. "I met Mira at the coffee shop this morning."
"Please tell me you didn't morph in front of her," Rose asks sternly. The Blue Ranger doesn't answer. "Never mind, we'll talk about this later. Let's get back to the manor and figure this out."
The team assemble back at the Hartford Mansion to plan their next move, meeting Mr Hartford in the parlour.
"What happened out there?" Hartford asks.
"A monster attacked me in the city and took a girl hostage," Dax explains.
"He said that he'd trade her for the Aurora Crown," Ronny adds.
"Could we find it in that time?" Ronny adds.
"Could we find it in that time?" Will asks.
"We have too," Mack asserts. "We have to save Mira. We can't just leave her with the monster." Rose and Hartford look at each other.
"We won't be able to get our hands on the Crown," Rose declares crossing her arms. The Rangers look at Rose before turning back to Hartford.
"What does she mean Dad?" Mack asks.
"The Crown is stored in a government facility known as The Vault," Hartford explains.
"I thought the original team failed to retrieve the Crown?" Will tries to make sense of the information they have received so far.
"Why do you need us if you know where the Crown is?" Ronny follows up.
"Can we get it to trade for Mira?" Dax suddenly feels more optimistic.
"It's not as simple as all that," Hartford tries to explain. "Five years ago, the original Operation Overdrive team recovered the base of the Crown and one of the jewels that powers it. The other four are missing. When I detected two jewel signals, that's when I contacted Rose. I haven't been to The Vault since the original operation ended.
"So you never contacted General McKnight?" Rose asks.
"No, I didn't," Hartford replies.
"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Rose rolls her eyes.
"Listen," Dax snaps. "I don't need a history lesson. What are we going to do about Mira?"
"Let's go down to the lab and talk about this," Ronny suggests.
"We'll follow you down," Hartford declares, meaning him and Rose. The four Rangers head down to the lab as tension fills the parlour. "This has go to stop Rose. You can't keep making comments like that in front of the others."
"Oh, I'm sorry," Rose replies sarcastically. "I forgot I'm not allowed to have feelings now." Hartford throws his hands up in frustration. "You don't get it. Dax morphed in front of a civilian today, compromising his identity. Putting us all at risk. They are all so blue. They're not ready for this."
"Oh and you were?" Hartford snaps back. Rose is shocked by the outburst. "Maybe we should go to The Vault and get Liam and Ben's reports about you. About how you thought you knew better? About how you always had a plan of your own? About how you questioned orders? If we had listened to them back then, you wouldn't be standing in front of me right now."
"And if they hadn't listened to you they might be standing in front of you right now," Rose answers quickly.
Silence.
Silence fills the room. The two are visibly shocked at each-others outburst.
"What did you say to them to bring them round?" Rose finally speaks her tone significantly softer. Hartford puts his hands on his hips.
"I told them that no-one comes ready," Hartford responds, his tone softening too. "Share your experience with them. We might never see eye to eye. That's okay. We can achieve what to need too, but only if we work together."
"I can't promise not to feel anything," Rose declares. "But I will try to reign it in around the others."
"Thank you," Hartford does acknowledge how difficult this is for the Pink Ranger, but he needs to ensure this team succeeds where the last one failed. "Did you scan the monster?"
"No, I didn't have the chance," Rose replies, things much calmer now. "He teleported away too quickly."
"Do you think Glacia and Moltor have something to do with this?"
"Perhaps. There are still two other jewels out there though. There could be other monsters too." Hartford and Rose sigh. "We better get down there."
The two go down to the lab, hearing the other four arguing about what to do next. Rose puts her fingers in her mouth, whistling to bring the team to attention. They turn to face her.
"Right guys," Rose takes charge. "We all agree we need to do something. But, we won't get anywhere talking over each other." The team nod along as she talks. "Now, let's get some ideas on the table. I
n an Underground Cave, Ultrog discusses the result of his plan with another monster, who stands in the shadows.
"The Rangers will bring the Aurora Crown to us in exchange for the girl," Ultrog declares. "We will succeed Master Kamdor." Kamdor emerges from the shadows, walking towards Mira.
"Do you think the Blue Ranger cares enough about you enough to convince the other Rangers to hand over the Crown?" Kamdor asks Mira. "You were only together for a short time."
"He is a good person," Mira replies. "Good people always do the right thing."
"I hope you're alright," Kamdor declares. "I'd hate for you to face the consequences if you didn't."
Hartford comes into the lab to join the five Rangers, holding onto a box.
"I've got it Rangers," Hartford states as he enters. "I didn't think I'd get back in time." He opens the box, revealing the Aurora Crown. The team, minus Rose, look on in awe, their first time seeing the Crown.
"Do you think this will work?" Will asks the team.
"It has too," Dax replies. "For Mira's sake."
"It's nearly time guys," Rose states. "Let's get going."
"I think we should morph before we head out," Mack asserts. "This could go downhill quickly."
"I agree," Rose responds. "Take the lead Mack." The Red Ranger smiles, the five Rangers lining up. They take out their morphers, opening them up.
"Overdrive Accelerate," the team calls, rolling their morphers down their arms.
The morphed Rangers get to the meeting site, Dax standing with the box in hand.
"How long have we got?" Ronny asks. Will takes out his morpher.
"It's 7pm," the Black Ranger replies.
As he finishes talking, Ultrog teleports in, holding onto Mira.
"You're punctual Rangers," the monster declares. "Do you have the Crown?"
"We've got it," Dax responds. He opens the box, revealing the Crown to the monster.
"You did well Rangers," Ultrog laughs. "Step towards me, put the box down and then step back."
"And what about Mira?" the Blue Ranger asks.
"She'll bring me the box. Then you can have her. Now, put the box down." Dax pauses, not sure if he should go ahead. "Come on Blue Ranger, she's waiting."
"Dax, help me," Mira calls out. The Blue Ranger finally reacts. He steps forward, moving about halfway between the team and the Rangers. He places the box down, stepping back and re-joining the team.
"Go," Ultrog releases Mira, pushing her forward. She steps forward and picks up the box. Opening it, Mira takes the Crown out and throws the box away.
"Come on Mira," Dax shouts to her. "Hand it over and get to safety."
"I won't be handing this over Blue Rangers," Mira responds. She begins to laugh maniacally. "I can't believe you fell for this." Mira begins to glow, a blue armour forming over her.
"Mira?" the Blue Ranger calls out in confusion. Rose takes out her morpher and quickly scans the two morpher.
"I prefer Miratrix," she responds. "You fell for my plan hook, line and sinker." She turns to the monster. "Ultrog, destroy the Rangers." She turns back. "Goodbye Dax." She teleports away.
Ultrog fires an energy blast at the Rangers. Dax rolls low on the ground as the blast hits the other four Ranger's back.
"Drive Vortex," the Blue Ranger runs forward, summoning his weapon. Dax leaps forward. Slamming the weapon into the monster's chest.
"Drive Blaster," Ronny, Mack and Rose jump into the air and fire their blasters. The team come back together; all having summoned their Drive Blasters.
"Let's bring the monster down," Mack declares. The team attach a sniper scope to the Drive Blasters. The scope's lock onto Ultrog.
"Full Power," the team call, firing their blasters. The blasters fire energy beams, connecting together as they approach the monster. The monster is knocked back by the powerful attack.
In the underground cave, Kamdor watches on as his monster loses.
"Pathetic," the monster declares. "Maybe it's time to go big." He places his hands together. Sheets of paper surround Kamdor. "Enlargement Technique." The paper sheets fly out of the cave, teleporting to the scene and attaching to Ultrog. The monster grows, towering over the city.
"Let's call the zords," Dax says to the team. They pull out their Overdrive Trackers.
"DriveMax Zords," the team calls.
In the lab, Hartford gets an error message on the screen whilst trying to send the zords. Spencer joins him, seeing the lack of frustration on Hartford's face.
"What's wrong sir?" Spencer asks.
"It's the zords," he replies. "I can't get them to leave the zord bay."
"How come?" Spencer follows up. "You didn't have any issues last time?"
"Mr Hartford," Rose's voice is heard in the lab. "We need the zords, now."
They're on their way," Hartford responds to the Pink Ranger. "I'll have to take down the fire wall that's stopping me from getting access."
"You sound concerned?"
"They might be able to track our location. But I don't have a choice." He quickly types on the computer.
The zords in the Zord Bay begin to move and make their way to the scene. The Rangers summon their Control Drivers and jump into their zords.
"Locking in," Dax places his Control Drive, locking it into place and placing his Overdrive Tracker.
The zords line up. The Dozer Driver puts its shovel into the ground as the zord opens up and straightens out. The back of the Sub Driver moves up, revealing a fist. They move in and attack to the Dump Driver. The top of the Dump Driver moves up. They flip over, coming down to the ground, forming the Megazord's legs. The Speed Drives races towards the Megazord, driving up it as it ascends from the ground. It tops at the top of the Megazord, forming the Megazord's chest plate. It opens up and connects to the top of the Megazord, the head popping up. The Gyro Driver flies in, the helmet piece separating from the back. The wings fold up and the front of the zord connects to the back of the Megazord. The helmet attaches to the head. Mack's control Driver detaches from his cockpit, the Red Ranger taking his morpher. He descends from his cockpit.
He ascends into the team's cockpit, the other Rangers joining him.
"DriveMax Megazord, online," the Rangers call, setting their Control Driver's into their new home. They push their controls forward, placing their Overdrive Trackers in place.
The DriveMax Megazord charges with the DriveMax Sabre in hand. The two sabre's collide, Ultrog emitting an energy wave through the Megazord. The team are thrown back, the Megazord falling to the ground.
"He packs a punch," Mack declares. "Let's go to full power." The Megazord gets back up and powers up, the zord glowing.
Ultrog charges at the team. The team uses it's powered up sabre to strike back at the monster, breaking Ultrog's sabre. It glows, breaking into two scrolls and shrinking. They drop to the ground.
"That's how it's done," Dax celebrates from the cockpit.
"Time to finish this," the Red Ranger declares.
The Megazord extends its arm out. Power emanates through the Megazord and into the sabre.
"DriveMax Sabre," the rangers call. The Megazord spins the sabre around, completing a full rotation. The Operation Overdrive symbol appears before the Megazord. "Drive Max Strike." The DriveMax Sabre strikes through the symbol, landing a powerful blow against the monster. The monster drops to its knees, falling to the ground and exploding.
In the underground cave, Kamdor is displeased with the outcome of the battle.
"Ultrog's performance was pitiful," Kamdor declares. "Those Rangers cannot be allowed to get in the way of my plans."
"At least we got the Aurora Crown," Miratrix tries to soften the blow of their defeat. She hands the over the Crown. He accepts it, trying to feel the power form it as he holds I tin his hands.
"Miratrix," Kamdor shrieks. He throws the Crown to the ground, smashing it apart.
"What are you doing?" Miratrix looks on in horror.
"IT'S A FAKE!" Kamdor shouts at his minion.
"They tricked us," she laments. "I can't believe it."
"You better not fail me again," he declares. "Or you won't be around long enough to regret it."
The following day, the Rangers arrive at the Hartford mansion for that day's training. Dax is looking solemn as they enter. Mack meets them in the parlour.
"Morning team," the Red Ranger greets the team.
"Morning," Rose complains. "Has your Dad studied the scrolls?"
"I think he just put them in the safe," he replies. "Probably do them today."
Hartford joins the team from the back of the parlour.
"Hi everyone," he now greets the team. "We'll get started soon. Rose, can I have a quick word?" The two moves to the other side of the parlour, out of earshot from the team. "I looked at the data you sent me, the scans of Ultrog and Miratrix."
"No jewel signals?" she quickly asks. He shakes his head.
"The power signal wasn't strong enough," Hartford stats.
"What about the scrolls?" Rose follows up.
"I'm going to see what I can find out about them today," he responds. "The only thing is they were part of the original Operation Overdrive."
"What do you mean?"
"There was a list of items that we had heard about that we wanted to retrieve. We were shut down before we got to them all."
"That's extrapolation. Who has seen the list?"
"Only a few people. Only myself, McKnight and…" He pauses for a second. "Liam and Ben were the only other two that I'm aware of. They helped me complete the list before you joined. The General and I would agree what we were going to set as the retrieval mission. I don't see why anyone else would have had access."
"I'm sure it's just a coincidence," she states, sighing. "We better get started. We can come back to this."
"I'll let you guys get breakfast, I need to have a quick chat with Dax first."
"Why don't you let me handle him? You did make a point that the more experience Rangers did help me get ready when I was starting out." Hartford chuckles to himself, nodding as he does. They walk back to the rest of the team.
"Let's go guys," Hartford calls on the team. "Spencer's got breakfast ready for us." The team begin to walk through the parlour, heading towards the dining room. Rose takes hold of Dax's arm as he tries to pass.
"Not you," Rose stops the Blue Ranger, the others leaving the room. "Let's grab a seat and talk." The two sit down on the sofa.
"I know I made a mistake," Dax tries to get in front of the conversation. "I shouldn't have trusted Mira. I put us all at risk. I never should have morphed in front of her either."
"You did," she replies. "But, you're human. And you're going to make mistakes. But, you need to learn from these mistakes. Previous Rangers have talked about how evil knew they were, but the world didn't. We're not going to be Rangers forever. You will need a life to go back too."
"That's a good point. I never even thought about that. I never intended to reveal I was a Ranger." He signs. "Can I tell you something? Between us?" She nods, trying to make feel more comfortable. "I'm a stuntman. Everyone know the actor's name I work for, but no-one knows mine. I spend my life in the background. This was my chance to be seen." Rose smiles and laughs.
"I understand. That's one of the reasons I joined. I'm a teacher. I shape the minds of the future. But, ultimately, I'm just a footnote in their story."
"You do get it. When I got the call from Hartford, I had just been sent a script for a new film. I sat reading the script as I thought about his offer, but I knew this is where I was supposed to be."
"What was the film about?"
"Oh. Billionaire playboy creates a suit of armour made of iron and becomes a superhero. It's Batman, but with a sense of humour." The two laugh at the ridiculousness of the concept.
"I think you're better off here. That's not going to be a big film. Just remember, we see you." Dax smiles.
"Thanks Rose." The two get up. "We better get breakfast before Mack…"
The two are interrupted, hearing the front doors bang open. They turn to see soldiers coming in. The soldiers line up, allowing their commanding officer to walk up through the middle of them.
The rest of the team come running into the parlour, Mr Hartford and Spencer joining them.
"What are you doing here?" Hartford calls out.
"Are you Andrew Hartford?" the commanding officer responds with his own question.
"I am," he answer, sweat appearing on his forehead.
"I'm General Montgomery, United States Military. And you're all under arrest.
To Be Continued