"I know you're out there and if my calculations are correct, you should be about ready to hatch."
Sliding into the vacant seat beside Dr. Oliver, Anabel raised an eyebrow. "You know talking to yourself is the first sign of madness, right?" she asked.
Dr. Oliver chuckled. "Not that I mind the company, but what are you doing here?" he asked. "I thought for sure you'd rather be at the Cybercafe with the others?"
"Meh. I did stop by, but then I saw Nikki Valentina walk through the main doors," said Anabel with a shrug.
"I take it you're not a fan?"
Again, Anabel shrugged. "Put it this way, there are other celebrities out there that are better role models than her," she said. "Besides, I met Nikki last year, she's not the nicest of people. She's pretty shallow, and I can only stand being in her presence for a few minutes before I start losing brain cells."
Dr. Oliver laughed and turned back to the computers.
"What are you looking for?" Anabel asked, leaning back in her seat. She drew her feet up so that they rested on the edge of her seat, and slowly she swung back and forth.
"There's a Dino egg out there somewhere," Dr. Oliver answered. "I've been searching for it for the last twenty-four hours."
Anabel nodded. "I was about to say that you look like you haven't slept," she said. "Plus, you're wearing the same clothes from yesterday. You know starving yourself of sleep isn't healthy?"
Doctor Oliver glanced at her. "You sound like my mother," he teased.
"You did not just say that?" Anabel gasped, slapping his arm.
Doctor Oliver chuckled.
The fun was interrupted as the computers beeped, alerting the pair to trouble in the city. Snapping her attention to the mainframe, Anabel watched as the six screens merged into one, showing a horde of Tyrannodrones downtown. The image then changed to the beach, as a shark-like monster appeared in the middle of deserted strip of sand.
"Guys, we have some Tyrannodrones downtown," said Doctor Oliver, opening a link between the mainframe and the other Dino bracelets. "And a little trouble at the beach."
"We'll take the Tyrannodrones," said Conner. "Have you contacted Anabel?"
"She's with me. We'll meet you at the beach."
"On it!"
The communication ended and Doctor Oliver turned to Anabel. "Ready?" he asked.
"Ready!"
~X~
"You're about to get a makeover you'll never for-"
Nikki stumbled as the monster released its hold on her and slammed into the railing surrounding her balcony. She sighed and looked down at her fingertips, her face flushing in annoyance as she noticed the scarring and smudges on her new French tips.
"Are you okay?" Dr. Oliver asked Nikki.
"Great, where am I going to find someone to fix my nails without an appointment?" Nikki whined, storming off. She paused in front of Anabel and scrunched her eyes as she looked the teenager over. "Do I know you?"
"Nope," said Anabel, shoving Nikki through the open patio door. She closed it just as the monster recovered from its initial shock and turned on the two Rangers. "Urgh. I hate sharks…"
"You and me both," said Doctor Oliver.
The shark growled and thrust the flower in his hands at the pair. "You're going to regret interfering," he said.
"Look out!" Doctor Oliver called, his arms wrapping around Anabel and pulling her aside as he ducked out of the way.
Anabel gasped as they rolled behind a sun lounger. Doctor Oliver released her from his grasp and was then back on his feet, leaping over the lounger and planting a kick into the shark's side. Following his lead, Anabel dashed to the left, rounded a plastic table and kicked the shark in the back.
The shark growled and turned to on Anabel.
Anabel's eyes widened and she ducked a second blast. She rolled over, ducked under the sharks outstretched arm, and stumbled towards Doctor Oliver as she righted herself.
Turning once again to the pair, the Shark took aim with his flower and opened fire.
Without warning, Doctor Oliver clasped his hand around Anabel's wrist and pulled her towards the balcony.
"Dino Thunder, Power Up!" the pair called.
Anabel felt the familiar surge of power and, when she landed, her green spandex covered every inch of her body while her helmet snapped into place around her head.
"That was close," said Doctor Oliver. He looked to his left. "You okay?"
"Uh-huh," Anabel nodded.
"Dr. O, Anabel!" Conner called as he, Ethan, and Kira finally arrived.
"You pair okay?" Kira asked.
Anabel nodded.
The door to the villa opened and Nikki strolled out. She was still examining her fingernails, pouting at the smudges that still remained.
"Hey, it's Nikki," Ethan said, dreamily.
"Hey, baby, it's all about the red," said Conner.
Anabel rolled her eyes.
"Unless you prefer a much gentler Power Ranger," Ethan interrupted.
"What?" Conner scoffed.
Looking up, Anabel caught sight of the shark monster, her eyes widening as he took aim at the others. "Look out!" she called.
"I'm not finished with you yet," the monster said, opening fire immediately.
Anabel's grip on Doctor Oliver's arm tightened as Conner and Ethan got caught in the blast.
"Aw man," Doctor Oliver complained, touching his hand to his head. He looked down at Anabel and lowered his hand to hers, patting them comfortingly as she released his arm.
Jumping down from the balcony, the monster grabbed Nikki's arms and disappeared with her.
"You guys okay?" Doctor Oliver asked, jogging over to where Conner and Ethan were picking themselves up from the floor,
Kira shook her head at them. "Next time, check your hormones at the door before you morph," she said.
"Let's get back to the lab," Doctor Oliver suggested.
The others nodded and headed away from the villa.
~X~
Hayley was waiting for them at the lab. When the others had run off from the cafe, she had closed up earlier and resumed the search for the Dino egg while Tommy joined his students in the field. She was multitasking when they returned - splitting her talents between searching for the new egg and trying to access an invisiportal to gain entry to Mesogog's fortress.
But she was having no luck on either.
Meanwhile, Anabel had burst out laughing when Conner and Ethan had demorphed, revealing exactly what had happened to them after they had got caught in the monster's attack. To say the pair were horrified would've been an understatement.
Both Conner and Ethan were currently crowded around a mirror, fingering their faces and the pimples that had erupted all over them.
"This is not good," Ethan whined. It sounded like he had a nasal infection, but it was just a result of the way he was contorting his face to inspect every inch.
"You should be lucky you were morphed," said Doctor Oliver. "It could've been a lot worse."
"I can't believe this," said Conner. "How am I supposed to save Nikki now. Look at my face?"
"Mine looks like it should be delivered in thirty minutes or less," Ethan cried. He winced as he pressed a fresh spot, and then cringed as push spewed out. He gagged.
Kira rolled her eyes. "You know, most of us can look past the rash and see the person on the inside," she pointed out.
"Alright, but Nikki Valentina is not like most of us," said Conner.
"Two arms and legs, seems pretty much the same to me," Kira replied.
"It's not just the arms and legs," said Ethan. "What about the rest of her?"
Anabel rolled her eyes. "Oh yeah, the huge ego is a real turn on," she said, sarcastically.
"It seems like Mesogog shares your infatuation," Doctor Oliver added.
Conner and Ethan cringed.
"You got anything, Hayley?" Anabel asked, swinging around in her chair.
Hayley sighed. "He's thrown up a firewall around the invisiportals," she explained. "Not even the Raptor Cycles could get in."
~X~
A little later, after Anabel had shown Conner and Ethan a sure-steady way of concealing their acne problem, the Rangers and Hayley lapsed into a productive silence as they tried to figure out a way to get Nikki back before something bad could happen to her.
"How long do I have to wear this?" Ethan asked, picking at the face mask. "Is it supposed to sting your face?"
"No," said Anabel, brow furrowing. "How long has it been stinging you?"
"Since you put it on."
Anabel threw him a wash cloth. "Take it off," she said, quickly. "Now, before it gets worse."
"Why? What's happening?"
"It sounds like a reaction," said Anabel. "Just take it off." She turned back to Conner. This wasn't the first time she had applied a face mask to him, so she as sure that he wouldn't have a reaction to whatever she was applying. If anything, his skin seemed to just soak up the moisture naturally.
Conner smiled as he met Anabel's gaze. The last time she had been this attentive to him had been when they were dating. Back then, they used to have 'spa treatment' dates, as Anabel liked to call them, where he would provide the movies and snacks, and she was allowed to pamper and preen him to her heart's desire.
The dates had stopped after his indiscretion, and he'd be a fool to say he didn't miss them. Feeling her fingers brush gently across his face and through his hair, was one of the many things he loved about Anabel. She was so gentle, and when she was focused on something, her eyes would dilate in concentration. Similar to how they were now.
Ethan sighed in relief as he washed away the last of the face mask. His skin, while still spotty, was a little blotchy with red marks. He frowned at his reflection and glanced at Anabel. "You said you'd make me look better!" he protested.
"Hey, don't shout at me!" Anabel snapped. "It's not my fault your stupid face is allergic to natural ingredients."
Ethan huffed while Conner sniggered.
"I don't know how," said Hayley, interrupting the trio. "But she's made it out. She's back at the beach."
Ethan grinned. "Yeah, go Nikki," he said, glancing over at Kira. "I told you she was smart."
"Yeah, as a bag of hammers," Kira retorted.
Anabel snorted and, abandoning Conner, approached Doctor Oliver. He was sat in front of one of the smaller computers, keeping a look out for any further problems in the city.
"Like that wasn't about to happen," said Doctor Oliver as the shark monster reappeared at the beach. He pushed back on his chair, narrowly miss Anabel as she side-stepped, and glanced around at Hayley. "You keep looking for that egg," he told her.
Hayley nodded. "Good luck!" she called, swinging back around to face the mainframe.
Doctor Oliver looked to his students. "Ready?" he asked.
"Ready!"
"Dino Thunder, Power Up!"
~X~
Despite the cover of spandex, Anabel could feel the cold sea breeze as she arrived with the others at the beach. Nikki was, once again, in the clutches of the shark monster, despite Ethan's claims of her being 'smart'.
"You're safe now," said Conner.
A third invisiportal opened and deposited Zeltrax on the sand. "Not for long," he said, pointing his blade at the team.
Fists clenched, Anabel rushed forward with the others and jumped over Zeltrax's sword as he swung it at her. She rolled across the ground and jumped back to her feet, kicking up and planting her boot into his side as he turned to strike her again.
"Hey!" Doctor Oliver called, rushing in and aiming a punch at Zeltrax. The cyborg caught it and twisted his arm to the left. Doctor Oliver followed the pivot and flipped over, landing back on his feet. He tugged himself free and stumbled back, gaining his footing as Zeltrax shoved Anabel toward him.
Anabel yelped and caught her footing as Doctor Oliver's arms wrapped around her. She nodded her thanks as she stepped out of his hold and turned back to face Zeltrax. "Thundermax!" she said, taking the blaster from her hip.
Zeltrax shifted his sword from side to side, deflecting each of the blasts.
"Hey, no fair!" Anabel whined. She gasped as Zeltrax rushed at her, swinging his sword at her head. She ducked at the last second and rocked backward onto her shoulders, raised her knees up towards her face and then rolled forward again, straightening her legs and pushing them into Zeltrax's chest.
Zeltrax stumbled back as Anabel jumped back to her feet. "Thundermax sabre!" she called, transforming her blaster into a sword.
With a frustrated roar, Zeltrax lunged at Anabel but missed as she side-stepped him.
"Come on!" Conner called, racing past.
"Anabel!"
Looking around, Anabel gasped as Zeltrax swung his sword at her again. She yelped and ducked, cursing herself for her moment of stupidity. If she hadn't been so focused on Conner and the others, she would've seen Zeltrax coming.
Twisting around, Anabel straightened up and turned to Doctor Oliver. "You okay here?" she asked him.
"Yeah. Go help the others," Doctor Oliver replied.
"Okay!" Anabel nodded and run off. She caught up with the others as they cornered the shark monster a little further down the beach.
"It's time you learned your lesson," said Conner, punching his fist into the palm of his hand.
"Yeah, like, don't blast people with a ray that turns their face into pepperoni pizza," said Ethan, wagging his finger at the monster.
"Good one, Ethan," said Kira.
Ethan straightened. "Really?" he asked, sounding almost impressed with himself.
"No," said Anabel and Kira.
Ethan huffed.
"Let's give this freak a blast," said Conner, unhooking his Thundermax from his waist. The others nodded and aimed their own lasers, each of them opening fire on the shark.
The shark growled as he struggled to his feet.
"Let's put them together," said Ethan.
Anabel grinned as her compy claws appeared in her hands. She glanced at the others, to see them wield their own weapons, before combining them to form the Z-Rex Blaster.
The shark howled as the ball of fiery energy hit him dead centre, and he exploded.
"Oh yeah!" Anabel cheered, high-fiving Kira.
"Nice one!" said Doctor Oliver, jogging over. He clapped Anabel on the shoulder as she rolled her head back to look at him.
"Where's Zeltrax?" Anabel asked.
"Took off," Doctor Oliver answered.
"Sore loser," Anabel joked.
Doctor Oliver chuckled.
A dark cloud shrouded the area, covering everything in darkness, and with a crack of thunder the downpour was quick and seeming less.
"Aw, come on!" Anabel whined as the monster returned, bigger than ever. "Just one time. Just once!"
"Brachio!" Doctor Oliver called into his morpher.
The ground shook as the Brachiozord lumbered into view. It stopped just short of the beach, and it's humped back opened, revealing four compartments. The T-Rex roared as it stood tall and then stomped down it's ramp, into the city. The Stego shook it's great head and charged forward, while the Ptera spread its wings and soared into the air.
With a squeak, the Compy staggered down the neck of the Brachio and threw itself off the head. It landed on the back of the Ptera and then launched itself sideways, extending its clawed feet at the Shark as the Ptera swooped overhead.
"Let's go!" said Conner, leading the charge.
Anabel smiled as she jumped and landed in the cockpit of her Compy. "Hey, girl," she cooed, gently petting the sphere console as it appeared in front of her.
The compy purred in response.
"Online!" the others echoed.
"Let's bring them together," said Anabel, punching several buttons on her console. She closed her eyes and when she reopened them, Conner and Ethan stood either side of her.
Stomping forward, the shark monster swung arm around and up, but missed as Ethan raised the Stego arm and blocked.
"I'm the catch of the day!" the shark bellowed, throwing a second punch.
The Megazord met him with a blow from the Tyranno tail. Bouncing from side to side, the Megazord raised the Stego arm and punched forward, rapping one of the horns into the Shark's face.
He howled as he was thrown backwards. Struggling back to his feet, he turned and glared at the Rangers. "You asked for this!" he said. "Fish Breath!" he cupped his mouth and then unleashed a torrent of water at them.
Anabel gasped as her console flashed violent green, and next second she winced as she landed on her side, back on the ground.
"What happened?" Kira asked.
"Guys, you alright?" Doctor Oliver asked, running over. He checked on Kira and Conner first, before helping Anabel and Ethan to their feet.
Anabel shook her head and looked up. "That could've been a lot worse," she said, touching a hand to her head. "How do we fight him?"
"Look at that swell," said the shark, looking out to sea.
Anabel turned and gasped as a massive tidal wave sped towards the city. "There's no way we'd survive that if it hit us," she said to the others.
The sound of an engine and screeching tyres caused the team to turn towards the end of the docks. Hayley swerved to a halt and looked up, grinning from ear-to-ear. "Guys, I found the egg!" she called. "Here. Catch." She tossed the oval shaped object at them, and Ethan snatched it out of the air.
"Here," said Ethan, turning to hand it off to Doctor Oliver. He gasped as his morpher flashed, changing from a blue triceratops to an indigo Stegosaurus.
Anabel grinned and looked down at the egg. Five green lights flashed, and, with a crack, the egg shattered into two halves leaving a miniature Stegosaurus standing in Ethan's palm.
"Whoa!" Ethan said, mesmerised.
The Stego flicked it's tiny pointy tail and jumped from Ethan's hand. Before it even touched the ground, it was the size of a regular zord.
"He's amazing!" Anabel laughed.
"Alright, guys, we got a new friend," said Doctor Oliver, taking the two egg shells from Ethan. "Use your telepathy to tame the Stego and combine with him."
The others nodded and rushed off, jumping back into the cockpit of their zords and combining once again to form their Megazord.
"Are you ready, Stego?" Ethan asked.
The Stego lumbered alongside the Megazord, its eye glinting in the afternoon light. It seemed to nod as it's back opened up, creating a flat surface.
"It's working!" said Conner.
"I think he wants us to climb on," said Kira.
Anabel grinned. "Then what are we waiting for?" she asked. "Surfs up!"
The others laughed and, pushing off from the ground, landed safely and securely on the back of the Stego. It lumbered towards the edge of the docks and jumped into the ocean.
"Now it's our turn!" said Kira.
"Let's turn this fool into a plate of sushi," said Conner.
"Talk about a fish out of water," Ethan grinned.
Curving up the underside of the wave, the Rangers raced past the Shark, striking him with the spikes on the side of the Sego's back. He cried out as the wave washed over him, drowning him in salt water.
"We have to destroy him, fast!" said Anabel. The wave was almost to the city, and she was definitely sure that it would result in a wipe out for the innocents of Reefside.
Surfing back around, the team pulled back on the T-Rex arm and powered it up. "Dino Drill!" they called, thrusting it out ahead of them and piercing the sharks armour.
As the shark exploded for the second time, the wave disappeared instantly.
"We did it!" Kira cheered.
"Yeah!" Ethan and Anabel laughed, high-fiving one another.
~X~
Anabel whined as she checked her phone.
"Problem?" Doctor Oliver asked.
"For me, yes," said Anabel. "Not so much for my mum's estate. Nikki Valentina's manager just got in touch, after the events of today, they want to move filming out of Reefside and into Long Beach."
"And that affects you, how?" Kira asked.
"They want to use Mum's villa for the block of episodes they're currently filming," said Anabel, showing Kira the text from her Mother.
Conner grinned. "Wait, so you're telling me that you know exactly where Nikki Valentina is going to be right now?" he asked. "Oh! Can I go with you? Please?"
"I don't want to go myself," said Anabel, tucking her phone into her pocket. "The last time Nikki used the villa she threw a party and almost trashed everything. Why is Mum agreeing to let her use it again?"
Ethan frowned and cocked his head to the side. "Wait, you have a villa in Long Beach?" he asked.
"Yeah," said Anabel.
"But, you live here, in Reefside," said Ethan, looking more confused.
Anabel nodded. "Yep. We don't use the Villa much. Mum rents it out to movie stars and, occasionally, TV shows for recording purposes. It's directly on the sea front, and most of the surrounding beach is privately owned by Mum. It's perfect for directors who are looking for a personal touch. Plus, Mum doesn't charge much."
"Do you hire it out to anyone other than movie starts?" Kira asked.
"Sometimes I'm allowed to host parties there," said Anabel. "The last party I hosted was Homecoming last year - Conner and the soccer team had just beat the Sacramento Snakes, and me and the squad had been named the Cheer Champions of '07. So, we celebrated."
Kira nodded. She could remember the excitement at school when both the Soccer team and Cheerleaders are won their respective championship games, granted, at the time, she hadn't been invited to the afterparty, not that she would've gone, anyway. Until this year, she wasn't exactly considered a 'popular' person, and the only reason her popularity had currently soared was because of her surprised friendship with Anabel and Conner, both of whom seemed to be high school celebrities.
"Do you own any other properties?" Ethan asked. He still couldn't wrap his head around the fact that Anabel had more than one house in the city of L.A.
"Yes, I also have a summer home in the South of France," said Anabel. "It's where I spent all my time over Summer break."
Ethan gaped.
"You're going to catch flies," said Anabel, pushing his jaw back into place.
"The term 'spoilt little rich kid' doesn't fit you anymore," said Ethan. "How about, 'super spoilt little rich kid?"
Anabel rolled her eyes. "Technically, the deeds for these houses are in my mother's name," she pointed out. "So, my mother is the 'spoilt rich kid' that you insist on calling me."
"Yeah, but you'll get them all in her will, won't you?"
Anabel nodded.
"My statement still stands."
Anabel rolled her eyes, although she couldn't help but smile. "Anyway, back to why I don't want to go to Long Beach. Mum wants me to take the keys down to the set and lay down the rules of Nikki's stay there. Like I said, last time she stayed, she trashed the place."
"I repeat, please take me with you!" Conner begged.
"Why don't you all come down?" Anabel asked, looking around at Ethan and Kira, too. "Trust me, I could use the company."
Ethan's eyes alighted. "A chance to see a real life film set and meet my dream girl? Deal!" she grinned.
Kira rolled her eyes.
Anabel turned to Doctor Oliver and Hayley. "You're both welcome to come, too," she said, extending her offer. "There's plenty of room."
"I'm good," said Hayley. "I have to run stock inventory at the cafe, anyway. But thanks for the offer."
Anabel nodded and turned her attention to Doctor Oliver. "Let me guess, you're going to stay here and talk to yourself?" she teased. "Re-establish the insanity act?"
Doctor Oliver chuckled. "I was actually going to say I have papers to grade," he said. "But re-establishing the insanity act sounds a little more fun."
Anabel smiled and nodded. "Okay. I guess we'll see you tomorrow," she jumped up from her seat and, linking arms with Kira, followed an over-energetic Conner and Ethan from the lab.