"Uncle, Kapari is being a pain again," Marah said as she stormed in, "She won't let me pick the next monster to release on the rangers."
Lothor groaned as he rubbed his temples with his fingers. For the last hour and a half, his two nieces had been arguing in the back about who gets to release the next monster on Blue Bay Harbor, "Aye," He moaned, his head pounding from the headache he got from their bickering, "Kapari, let your sister pick the next monster, you got too last time," He yelled to the back where the blond headed girl was.
"But Uncle..." Kapari whined, "I want too."
"Just do as you're told before I take your privileges away for picking the monsters."
"Fine! Marah you cry baby. You always get your way."
Cragore lurked in the shadows and smiled to himself and waited for the dark haired girl to leave before he spoke, "Looks like you got a ranger problem as well as I do too," He said to Lothor.
Lother looked up, "Who's there?" He said as he flew out of his seat and turned in the direction he heard the voice.
"You know who I am," Cragore said as he slowly walked out of the shadows.
"Well I'll be…" Lothor said as he got a good look at the man, "I never thought I'd see you here."
Cragore smiled, "I am glad to see you too, Lothor. Having some Ranger problems now are we?"
"You can say that," Lothor growled, "Those pests of Rangers have destroyed all my monsters that I've released on them."
"Maybe its time to send a new type of monster," Cragore said, as he walked closer to Lothor with a grin a mile wide, "Send those pesky Rangers to oblivion."
"Oh?" He asked and looked at Cragore questionable, "What do you have in mind?"
"An alliance, I help you, you help me," Cragore said. "We can get rid of both teams of rangers once and for all."
Lothor laughed evilly, "Sounds like a plan."
Cragore smiled evilly, "Good."
The two evil villains laughed as they worked together on a plan to destroy the Rangers.
ººº
Joey looked at the front of Storm Chargers, "Well, here we are," She said to Al.
"Yay!" She said sarcastically, "How exciting."
"You can wait out here, I'll go inside."
Alysson looked up at the sun, "Are you nuts? I'll die of a heat stroke if I stay out here."
"Then let's go," Joey said, as she grabbed her sister's arm and walked into the store.
Alysson stopped and yanked her arm out of her sister's grasp and her eyes grew large as she saw all the sporting equipment, "I think I've died and gone to sports heaven," She said as she spotted the racks with different skateboards and sorts against the wall, "Oooh, I'll be over there if you need me." And she walked away to go check out the skateboards.
Joey laughed, 'I knew she would like it,' She thought to herself as she walked over to one of the motocross bikes and ran her fingers lightly over the seat and smiled.
ºº
Alysson picked up the black and green skateboard and ran her fingers over the rough surface and then placed it on the ground and placed her foot on it and pushed it back and fourth, testing out the wheels. She frowned when the wheels on the skateboard were a little wobbly, so she picked it up off the floor and placed it back in the rack and moved on down the row to the next skateboard she liked.
ºº
Joey roamed through the shop looking at the other equipment, from helmets to protective gear. She smiled as she saw the helmet she was looking for. She picked up the helmet and tried it on, "Cool, it fits," She said as she took it off and placed it back on the shelf and then walked over to where Alysson was standing. "Find anything you like?" She asked.
"Not yet, I'm still looking," Alysson said as she picked up the next skateboard, which was Black and white with skulls underneath it, "Some of the boards are wobbly and the wheels need to be tightened or else someone is gonna take it out and either break their necks cause the wheels snapped or it's going to make the board spilt and crack and it won't be no good. You'd have to replace the whole thing."
Joey shook her head, "I hope Blake and his friends are okay," She said as she looked at the skateboards with Al.
"I'm sure they are," Alysson said, as she placed the board back on the shelf and picked up the next one, "Too heavy." And placed it back on the shelf.
"You are so picky you know that?"
"Always," She said as she spotted a skateboard at the very end and quickly went to check it out.
Joey stood there and shook her head.
"Is there something you're looking for?" Someone asked.
Joey turned around to see a woman standing there and could tell that she worked there when she saw her name tag pinned on her shirt, "Ummm... No we're just looking for now."
"Okay," Kelly said, "Let me know if you need anything."
"Thank you," Joey said as she watched the woman walk off to go greet the customer that just walked in.
ºº
Alysson picked up the light purple with crazy dark blue lines that wrapped all the way around from top to bottom, skateboard and noticed that it was made with light weight wood, just what she was looking for. She placed the skateboard on the floor and placed her foot on it and moved it back and forth. The wheels didn't feel wobbly like the others; it moved soft and graceful like her old board and knew she had to have it. She flipped the board on its back wheels and caught it with her hand. Smiling, she picked it up and walked back to where her sister was standing.
"You found one?" Joey asked.
"Almost like the old board I use to have," Alysson said, "It's perfect."
"That's cool," Her sister said, "I found this cool helmet but I haven't decided if I want it yet."
"Show me it," Alysson said as she followed Joey to where she had seen the Purple with Gold Lightning Streaks on the sides, helmet.
Joey picked the helmet up and showed it to her sister.
"I think it looks cool, if you want it you should get it," Alysson told her, "I know your old one is just about had it."
"You think I should?" Joey asked.
Alysson nodded.
Joey smiled, "Then I will get it and you are right, I could use a new one."
"Good, now let's go before we decide to buy out the whole store." Both girls laughed as they knew that it was possible for them both to do that.
ººº
The bell above the door rang as the door opened, letting everyone know that there were new customers. Joey and Alysson looked up as Blake and the others walked in.
"Hey guys." Kelly greeted them.
Blake smiled, "Hey Kelly."
"What's up Kelly," Dustin and Shane both said.
"Not much guys," Kelly said, "How are you guys doing?"
"We're doing fine," Tori said.
"That's good," She told them, "Well back to work I go. Let me know if you guys need anything."
"Will do," Hunter said.
Kelly smiled at the group of friends and walked away to go check out the customer that was waiting for her."
ººº
"I'm gonna go pay for my board," Alysson said as she saw their new friends walk in and waved, "Want me to pay for your helmet?"
"No, I have my own money," Joey said as she walked to the register. She saw Blake by the window and smiled.
"Okay, I was just trying to be nice for once," Alysson said as she walked up to the group of friends, "Hello Yellow, I see that you guys finally made it, was beginning to wonder if you guys were coming at all."
"Sorry it took so long," Tori said, "We ran into a little trouble on the way over."
"I hope all is well," Alysson said, "But if you excuse me for a minute, I need to go pay for my new skateboard. Be with you guys in a sec." And Alysson walked to the register and paid with the money she had stashed in her sock.
ºº
"Hey guys," Joey said, as she walked over to them after she paid for her new helmet.
"Hey, I hope you and your sister found the Storm Chargers all right," Blake said.
"Yeah, it wasn't hard to find," Joey said as she held her helmet close to her, "So everything alright, your business taken care of?" She asked them.
"For the time being," He told her.
"We're gonna go find a seat, care to join us?" Shane asked.
Joey nodded, "Sure."
"So, where are you and your sister from?" Hunter asked, as he took a seat at one of the tables, flipping the chair around first.
"We're from Coppertown. It's actually not far from here," She told him, "We just came for a visit."
"That's cool," Dustin said, "Do you have family or friends here in Blue Bay?"
Joey shook her head. "No, we came for a vacation."
"Oh," He said, "What made you decide to come to Blue Bay for vacation? Blue Bay Harbor isn't all that fun and I've lived here my whole life."
"Just something different, I guess. It's not very exciting in Coppertown either."
"I think it's the monster attacks that draw the attention of others," Tori said.
"Monster attacks?" Joey asked, as she shifted in her chair and looked at Tori slightly questionable, "What monster attacks?"
"Yeah, the occasional monster attack, but don't worry, Blue Bay Harbor is safe," Tori added.
Shane elbowed Tori in the side to keep her quiet.
"Sorry," Tori said quietly.
Joey smiled, "So what do you guys like to do for fun?" She asked changing the subject, but knew she had to keep that little bit of info in the back of her mind.
"Dustin, Hunter and I motocross," Blake started, "Tori is a big surfer girl and Shane likes to Skateboard. Cam here is into computers and creating little gadgets. What about you?"
"Me? I'm also into Motocross. Alysson is a skateboarder."
ººº
"Did you find everything that you were looking for?" The woman asked Alysson.
"Yes I did, thank you. I just have one question though, is there a ramp around here where I could test out my new board?" Alysson asked as she paid the blond hair woman the money.
"As a matter of fact, the Storm Chargers has its very own ramp out back if you would like to try it some time," She told Alysson as she handed her, her change.
"That would be awesome, thank you."
"You're welcome. When you do, just go out the back door and you can't miss it."
Alysson grabbed the skateboard off the counter, thanked the woman for her help and hurried over to her sister to tell her the news.
ººº
"Cool, we don't see many girls that are into Motocross and skateboards," Blake said and smiled at Joey when their eyes met.
"I would love to go out and ride with you guys. I think it would be fun," Joey said.
"Joey...Joey!" Alysson said as she flew into the chair next to her sister, "Hi guys. Joey...guess what?"
"What?"
Alysson danced around in her seat as she was excited to go test out her new skateboard, "They...they have a ramp. I asked and the woman told me I can use it to test out my new board. This is so cool."
Joey turned back to the others, "You see what I mean," She said, "You want to try it out right?"
The others laughed as they watched Alysson get all excited over testing out her skateboard. Shane watched in amusement, finally someone his own age that liked what he did.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah...come with me," Alysson said as she tugged on her sister's arm, "Pppllleeeaaassseee!" And batted her eyelashes.
"Yeah, go ahead."
"You're coming right?" Alysson asked as she flew out of her chair and then turned to the others, "You guys can come too and see me whip out since it's been like a year and a half since I been on a skateboard."
"I will be right out."
"Okay. I'll see you out there. I need to go buy some elbow pads. I forgot mine at home. Bye guys." With that, Alysson went to go check out the elbow and knee pads and gloves.
Joey sighed as she watched her sister walk away happy. She shocked her head, "I am never going to get use to being the big sister."
"Tell me about it," Hunter said, "I'm the oldest between Blake and I, and it can be hard."
"But only by a few months," Blake said as he looked at his brother.
"Well we better go watch her," Joey said, as she stood to her feet, "Don't want her to wait. She gets cranky and it's an ugly sight."
"I'll be out there in a few minutes," Dustin said as he stood up, "I need to check with Kelly to find out what time I work tomorrow."
"See you out there Dustin," Tori said.
ººº
Alysson quickly searched through the elbow and knee pads and found a pair of purple & black elbow and matching knee pads and grabbed the first pair of black gloves and went to go pay for them and then headed her way out the back door.
ººº
Dustin walked away and made his way up to the front counter where Kelly was working.
Joey turned to Blake and smiled, "So motocross is your sport huh?"
"Yeah," He told her as they headed out the back door where the skating ramp was located.
"I'd like to take you on sometime. I promise I won't beat you that bad."
Blake chuckled a little, "Is that a challenge?"
Tori looked over at Shane and smiled, "Looks like someone has a crush," She whispered to him.
Shane laughed and looked at the two, "Yeah it looks that way."
"Yeah, it's a challenge," Joey said.
"Then how about tomorrow? You meet me here say around 2:00 and I'll take you out to the track and see what you got," Blake said.
"You're on." Joey said.
"Then it's a deal," Blake said as he held out his hand to Joey and smiled.
Joey took it and shocked it.
"So, how long has your sister been skateboarding?" Shane asked as Alysson walked out the door and over to them, grinned at Joey as she took her helmet to borrow and smiled at the others before walking over to the side of the ramp to check it out.
"Since she was little, our parents couldn't get her off of it once she started," She told him. She laughed at the memory.
"That's cool." Shane said as he watched Alysson walk out onto the ramp and started jumping on it, "What is she doing?" He asked and laughed.
"No clue. Never saw her do that before."
"Hey, Alysson what are you doing?" Tori called out at her as she laughed when Alysson jumped again.
"I'm checking out the ramp...it can't be all crooked if I'm gonna test out my board."
"Will you get going already," Joey called to her sister, "I'll fall asleep of boredom if you don't get your butt up there and do something."
"Yes, mother." Alysson stuck out her tongue at Joey and got off the ramp and walked to the side where the ladder was at and began to climb it.
Joey rolled her eyes. She did not like having a little sister, but knew she couldn't avoid it, but also knew that she wouldn't give it up either. She was her blood and her lil sister and she loved her, even though she could be quite the pain in the ass. "She is really good at this," She said as she went to go stand next to Blake, "She was the first girl to win a trophy for freestyle skateboarding a few years back."
"That's cool," He said, nodding as he watched Alysson on the ramp.
Alysson got to the top of the ramp and placed her board down and put on her gear. She waved to the guys at the bottom, positioned her board at the edge of the ramp, placed her foot firmly on it, took a deep breath and pushed off; going from side to side, slow at first until she could pick up enough speed to really do anything.
"Let's go Alysson," Joey yelled.
"I'm moving, I'm moving," Alysson said as she went from one end of the ramp to the other a few more time before she got enough speed and started out with simple tricks. One handed hand stands, then adding a few half turns, riding the edge of the ramp and then she started to get really daring with full turns, balancing her board on both feet as she did a two handed hand stand on the rail and walked a little ways across before grabbing the board with one hand and flipping over and landing on her board and going to the other side.
Joey sighed as she grew nervous with each turn her sister did, afraid that she would hurt herself, 'She is going to hurt herself one of these days,' She thought to herself.
"She's good," Hunter said as he watched Alysson do another full turn.
"Yeah, took her a while to get that good though," She said.
"Well it had paid off," He said but spoke too soon.
All that hard work for all those years for Alysson had not paid off for her when she whipped out, her board took off and she slid down the ramp on her knees.
"Shit," Alysson said as she slammed her fists on the ramp.
"Hey you almost had it," Joey said as her and the others went to go see if she was okay.
"Are you alright?" Hunter asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Almost doesn't cut it," Alysson said as she got to her feet and walked to her skateboard and picked it up, "Well, for it being new, it rides pretty nice but I think the wheels could be tightened a little."
"You're always so picky," Joey said.
"Damn right I am," Alysson said, "But look who's talkin, you're just as picky as I am when it comes to your dirt bike."
Joey bit her lower lip, "I am not going to argue about that right now."
"Because you know I'm right."
"Fine, you're right," Joey said as she walked back into the store.
The guys turned to Alysson and she only shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know what crawled up her butt and died."
ººº
Joey was getting frustrated. She wanted to go find Cragore and put him out of his misery. She closed her eyes and remembered her ninja training and then took a couple of deep breaths and relaxed.
ººº
Alysson turned back to the others and shrugged her shoulders again, "So, what do you do for fun around here?"
Tori looked at the others. "I usually spend my time at the beach," She said smiling.
"That's cool. I've never been to an actual beach until today," Alysson said as she rested her board against her leg, "I usually spend my time in the gym or training in Martial Arts." She turned to the other three, "What about you guys and weren't there 6 of you guys? What happened to um...Dustin and Cam I think his name was?"
"They had stuff that needed to get done. They should be back soon," Shane said.
"Cool." Just then the communication pad on her wrist started to vibrate and Alysson looked down at it and then looked at them for a few seconds before hitting the black button to stop the vibration, "Stupid watch. Could you excuse me for a minute, I'm gonna go find Joey and see what she's doing."
"Sure," Tori said. "We will be right in."
"Okay," Alysson said as she picked up her board and ran inside. She spotted Joey looking around and walked up to her, "Hey Joey, we got a call."
"Huh?" Joey said as she snapped out of her trance.
"Call, we got a call when I was out back," Alysson said as she rolled her eyes, "It was probably Sensei contacting us about Sensei Kanoi."
"Let's go," Joey said as she grabbed her helmet from the table.
"We can head outside," Alysson said.
Joey went back outside and tried to find a quiet spot.
Once they were out of sight, Alysson flipped open her communication pad and pressed the blue button, "Sensei Lee, what did you find out?"
"I have reached Sensei Kanoi and he has agreed to meet with him," Lee said, "Also, I have some terrible news."
"Let me guess, Lothor and Cragore," Joey said.
"Well isn't that wonderful to know there is terrible news," Alysson said, "What is it?"
"Joey is correct. Lothor and Cragore just formed an alliance."
"That's just great, more crazy people to deal with," Alysson said and sighed heavily, "What did you want us to do about it?"
"I want you two to watch out. With those to together, they will be unstoppable."
"Understood. Where can we find Sensei Kanoi?
"Go to the forest just outside of town. There he will meet with you."
"Okay."
Joey nodded.
"Be careful out there. I don't want to see you get hurt," Lee told them, "We both want you two to return to us in one piece."
"We will," Alysson said as she closed her communication pad and turned to look at her sister, "Looks like we have some bigger problems then we expected."
"I am not looking forward to this." Joey said, as she played with her amulet.
"I'm not either," She said, "Cragore is bad enough to deal with but Lothor and Cragore together. If Sensei Chen & Lee are right about how evil Lothor is, we're in for a world of trouble."
"We better get trucking if we are going to meet Sensei Kanoi," Joey said.
"Yeah, but what should we tell the others?" Alysson asked, "They're probably inside waiting for us."
"You're right."
"Got a good lie?" She asked as they headed back inside and saw the group of people that they had befriended.
Joey shook her head, "Got to catch the bus?"
"Nah, we told them that we were standing for a while," Alysson said as she thought for a minute, "How about we need to go check into a hotel and we would catch up with them tomorrow?"
She nodded and agreed.
"Okay it works for me. Now did you want to tell them or should I?"
"You. I nominate you."
"I figured that," Alysson said as they came up to the others.
"Is everything okay?" Tori asked, "We came in and we didn't see you guys in here. We thought maybe something happened."
"No, no everything is fine. Joey wasn't feeling that well so we went outside for some fresh air. But we're gonna head out and find our hotel. Joey would like to lie down for a while and I'm kinda whipped out from the trip."
"I guess I will see you tomorrow?" Joey asked Blake, hoping that their deal was still on.
"Yeah and I hope you feel better," He told her.
"Maybe we all could do something tomorrow," Alysson said, "We'll be in town for a few weeks and maybe you guys could show us around and show us what Blue Bay Harbor is all about."
"That would be nice." Tori said. "We will see you tomorrow."
"See ya guy," Joey said and waved bye to them.
"Later guys," Alysson said as she looked up at Hunter and for once she really got a good look at him and smiled, "It was nice meeting you all."
ººº
Joey looked at Aly, "I saw that," She said once they were outside.
"What? I didn't do anything," Alysson lied, "I just looked."
"You're starting to like him. I knew it, I just knew it."
"Like him? I don't even know him," She said shocked that her sister would think that.
Joey smiled slyly.
"So, any crazy ideas that you have going on in that head of yours you can get rid of them, because there isn't anything to worry about."
"We will see about that," Joey said.
"There isn't anything to see about," Alysson told her, "I don't even know him so how can I like someone if I don't know him?"
Joey just shook her head. "I saw the way you were looking at him."
"I'm telling you Joey, I just looked at him. Is that so wrong to look at a guy without having you assume that I like him?"
"Okay. Sorry." Joey said.
The area where they were supposed to meet Sensei Kanoi came into view as they walked through the woods, "Come on, let's get this over with."
Joey nodded.