The Overdrive Rangers arrived at the Hartford Mansion as quickly as they could. Even though they had gone back to their own lives after their tenure, and they knew they had to be careful not to do anything that would mark them out as a potential threat now that they were being monitored by The Armada, hearing that one of theirs had been attacked was more than enough to over-ride any concerns of reprisals. Like any Ranger team, they had all formed deep bonds over their time fighting together.
Will, Rose, Dax and Ronnie all came into the house, finding Andrew still treating Spencer's wounds.
"We would have knocked, but...uh..." Will started to say, gesturing to the gaping hole in the front wall they had walked through to get in. "It seemed a little redundant."
"How are you?" Rose asked as she came to assist Andrew dealing with Spencer. The old butler was a terrible patient, very impatient and bad tempered. Despite his age, he wasn't exactly fragile, having served in the United Kingdom's Royal Navy in his youth. He maintained a lot of that mentality into his old age. He didn't like to let minor injuries slow him down, of course what he considered 'minor' was somewhat open to debate.
"I keep telling you sir, I'm fine." Spencer told him, trying to shoo Andrew away. Andrew Hartford just shook his head.
"Stubborn old bulldog." He muttered. "I just wish I had been here..."
"It wouldn't have done any good." Ronnie said in a comforting tone. "You'd probably just have been hurt or worse."
"What happened Spencer?" Dax asked him. "Who did this?"
"Rangers." He informed them. "They fired on the mansion. Before I lost consciousness...I saw two Rangers, a White Ranger and a Silver Ranger take him. They took him to a red ship."
"Rangers?" Rose asked him. "The Rangers attacked him? Why would they do that?"
"Who cares why they did it?" Will responded angrily. "They took Mack, and they hurt Spencer! They left him for dead!"
"But...they're the good guys right?" Dax asked in response. "We saw them at The White House!"
"Dax, there aren't exactly a huge number of Rangers running around these days." Will reminded him. "All the teams lost their powers! There only is one team!"
"Spencer said there was a Silver and White Ranger." Dax stated. "There isn't a White or Silver Ranger on this team."
"Dax, do you even watch the news?" Ronny asked him.
"Well, work on that sitcom keeps me kind of busy..."
"This team can turn into other teams! They can change their outfits!" Ronny informed him. "They probably just used a different set of powers!"
"Mr Hartford, I know the Armada seized most of your tech..."
"What do you take me for?" He interrupted Rose with a smile as he led them towards a panel in the wall. Moving a candlestick, it slid aside, revealing an entrance to the basement. He'd sealed off their old Command Centre under the mansion after Operation Overdrive ended, just in case. Needless to say, it wasn't something that he told The Armada about, but with his son missing, he figured he could worry about the consequences later.
He followed the Rangers down the fireman's poles, coming to rest in their Command Centre, and hit a switch, turning on a few lights...but not all of them.
"Oh." He muttered. "Um...I guess some of the bulbs need replaced..."
"Mr Hartford, how long exactly HAS it been since you've been down here?" Rose asked him, moving some cob webs off one of the computer banks. Will just looked to the massive metal globe in the centre, which was almost completely covered in the webs.
"I'd say it's been a while." Will answered. Mr Hartford just looked at them as Dax gathered up some flashlights, handing them out. It had been a while, almost seven years to be exact. The Overdrive team had been one of the "fortunate" teams, in that once their tenure ended, it truly seemed like their foes were gone for good. Moltor, Flurious, Kamdor, The Fearcats and even Thrax had all been destroyed. Miratrix had been trapped within a gem stone, but Mr Hartford had ensured that it was stored safely in a vault far from danger. They hadn't even needed to join forces with the Jungle Fury team afterwards, in short, once Operation Overdrive ended, so too did their Ranger days.
"I...I haven't actually been down here since Operation Overdrive ended." He admitted.
"I seem to remember more stuff down here..."
"The Federal Government cherry picked most of my tech as part of your immunity agreement." Mr Hartford informed them. Like most Ranger teams, the Overdrive team had caused their fair share of damage in their battles. It had cost Mr Hartford a small fortune, not to mention pulling every string he could within the Government to appease the many compensation claims levelled against them once the dust settled. The Government had agreed to waive any criminal charges they had racked up, and granted them full pardons for the laws they had broken. Unfortunately, the trade off was the concession that private citizens in possession of weapons technology the Government didn't have caused more than a few concerns. "Fortunately they left most of the computers."
"I guess they didn't let you rebuild the Zords." Ronny asked. He shook his head. "The Drill Blaster?"
"Not so much." He sighed sadly. "I have the Trans Tek armour in storage, it should still work...I think. It's probably best we service it."
"Well...it's a start I guess." Rose answered as she booted up more of the computers. "Dax, Will, can you do something about these lights? I'll see if I can track the movements of their ship."
Mack started to come to, only to find himself sitting in a large, open room. It was panelled with wood, and had ornate, antique furniture, reminding him of some of the palaces he had visited with his dad on their many journeys. They had met and dined with world leaders from the British Royal Family to Kim Jong-Il, and so he had seen his fair share of ostentatious decor. This was extravagant indeed for the inside of a ship. As he looked around, he saw four Rangers standing nearby. The White Mighty Morphin' Ranger, the Silver Space Ranger, the Green Samurai Ranger, and the Gold Samurai Ranger. He just rubbed his head as he tried to focus.
"Hey guys." He said, trying to sound confident. He didn't get an answer. He just smiled. "So, I guess you're using your ability to turn into different Rangers?"
He still didn't get any answer. The White Ranger just gestured to a table, which was set with fine, antique china, and ornate silver cutlery. Mack took this to mean he was meant to sit, and got up, starting to head to the table.
"OK, let's see...you two were before me, you were both Angel Grove Rangers." He stated, pointing to the White and Silver Rangers. "You...you were on Tori's team, I remember her telling me when she teamed up with us...you...you were after my time weren't you?"
The Gold Samurai Ranger didn't say anything as Mack pointed to him. He just moved the chair back, rattling it loudly on the floor for emphasis. Mack just sat down.
"You don't need to stay quiet; you already got rid of the bracelet." Mack told them. "Come on guys..."
"There's no point in talking to them, they don't talk back." He heard an unfamiliar voice saying. He turned towards the door as it opened, finding a man standing in the door frame. He looked like something out of a renaissance painting. He was taller than Mack, and had a slight build. He had smooth, angular features, and a kind of tanned flesh that looked like he had seen a lot of travel. He had long, dark hair that came down in long curls, resting over his shoulders, and a styled, pencil-thin moustache and beard. He spoke with an exotic accent that even Mack, despite his frequent travels couldn't even begin to place.
He was wearing a long, flowing crimson coat, that was trimmed with white fur, almost like a feather boa. He had a green flannel shirt, and matching trousers, which were tucked into long, leather boots. His head was topped with a cavalier style hat made of fine, black felt. He wore golden jewellery, many large rings, and an ostentatious necklace that gave him the appearance of someone who liked to flaunt his wealth. He had a long sabre strapped to his waist, and the handle of a pistol could just be seen under his coat.
"OK, the Gold guy I kind of remember seeing in a magazine a while back." Mack told him. "You, I've definitely never seen before."
"I am known as Lafitte." He told him, giving a sort of small bow to salute him.
"Either the Rangers have picked up a new ally, or these aren't the Rangers I've met." Mack responded warily, looking around the Rangers in the room. "I have a feeling it's the latter."
"That is very perceptive of you Mr Hartford." Lafitte stated as he approached the table. "I am looking for certain artefacts. I believe that is something of a speciality of yours."
"I'm an archaeologist." Mack told him. "It's kind of in the job description."
"So, you're a treasure hunter." Lafitte responded. "I suppose in that way, we are not so different."
"I've never kidnapped anyone." Mack put down abruptly. "Sure, I've bent the occasional law, and there have been a few misunderstanding with foreign governments...but I've never kidnapped anyone."
"I prefer the term shanghai." Lafitte answered, before presenting a Ranger key to him. It was the Omega Ranger key. "I've acquired some of these lately. Do you know what they are?"
"Pokemon?" Mack asked, feigning ignorance. Lafitte just smiled.
"They are called Ranger Keys." He informed Mack. "They contain the powers that used to belong to the Ranger they represent. Until recently, one of the Ranger Keys in my possession actually had the powers of your Mercury Ranger."
"So these guys...you've given them the powers of past Rangers?" Mack asked him. Lafitte just smirked.
"Something like that." He told him. "The Ranger Corsairs are searching for more of these keys. They are trying to unite all of the Past Rangers' powers."
"And I'm guessing you want the powers for yourself." Mack concluded. Lafitte just nodded. "Well, seeing as how you know who I am, the only question I have is, when there are Rangers looking for them, why would I help a pirate?"
"I prefer the title privateer." Lafitte corrected him. "And you seem to be under the mistaken impression you have a choice. We have learned from the Rangers that they are looking for Atlantis. I believe you know where that is."
"Atlantis?" Mack asked him. Lafitte just sighed.
"Oh, if you insist, we'll do this the hard way." Lafitte responded. He snapped his fingers at which the four Rangers all gathered around Mack. "Try not to damage him too much. I'll need him once we get to Atlantis."
As he turned to walk away, the White Ranger and Silver Ranger grabbed him, at which the Green Samurai and Gold Samurai started taking turns to punch him. Lafitte closed the door behind him as he made his way to the bridge.
Back at the Hartford Mansion, the remaining Overdrive Rangers were taking stock of their situation. As Ronny came into the room, she was carrying a tool kit, with grease covering her hands and arms.
"The Trans Tec armour is back online." She informed them. "The Sharc is still in working order too, so we should be able to catch up to them."
"These still seem to work." Will added, placing a few blasters down on the table. "It's not much, but it's what we have."
"We've faced worse odds." Andrew reminded them.
"I just know I would be happier if at least we had our civilian powers." Ronny grumbled, glaring at the tracking bracelet. "Stupid bracelet."
"Well, because of those stupid bracelets, we know we can probably expect The Armada any minute." Andrew reminded them. "We need to find them..."
"I don't think that's going to be a problem." Rose informed them. "I tracked the last sightings of their ship from police and military transmissions. According to this, they're coming here."
"They're coming here?" Will asked her. "Why would they come back?"
"I don't know, but if my calculations are right...they should be arriving any time now." Rose told them.
"We know better than to doubt your calculations." Mr Hartford stated, picking up one of the blasters.
"Mr Harford..."
"They have my son!" Andrew interrupted Will. "I might not have become Overdrive Red like I intended, but if they've got my son; they'll have hell to pay."
On the Galleon, Troy and the other Rangers were making their way over San Angeles. Emma checked the long range scans.
"No signs of any ships." She called across to Troy. "I can't see any signs of ground forces either. I don't think there's a garrison here."
"It looks like we might just be in luck." Gia said with a smile. "We might be able to get in and pick Mack up before anyone notices. By the time anyone responds, we could be well on our way to Atlantis."
As they made their way over the city though, Noah seemed to notice something odd. Pulling up a long-range image, he enlarged it, finding the mansion with a huge, gaping hole in the front wall.
"Uh...I'm going out on a limb and suggesting that's not a good sign." Noah stated.
"And what would you say that is?" Jake asked, pointing down as the Trans Tek Armour crashed out through the wall, enlarging the hole in it. Rose, Will, Ronny and Dax all spilled out onto the lawn as the Trans Tec Armour aimed its cannons at their ship.
"I'd say that's even less good." Noah replied as it fired across their bow in warning.
"They're obviously pissed about something." Troy told them. "If they're using weapons like that openly, they obviously aren't worried about consequences."
"What are they firing on us for?" Gia asked.
"I don't know, but we can ask them once we make them stop." Troy answered, getting up from his chair. "Come on guys, let's shut them down."
Meanwhile, back on Lafitte's ship, the privateer returned to the dining room, finding his Ranger puppets still beating on Mack. He said something to them in an unfamiliar language, at which they stopped. He looked to Mack as he was shoved into a chair.
"Are you ready to be a little more co-operative?" He asked, offering Mack a handkerchief. Mack just nodded as he accepted it, beginning to mop up his lip. Lafitte took out a map, placing it down in front of Mack.
"Where is Atlantis?" He demanded. Mack took a look at the map, before jabbing a finger into it.
"Here." He told him. Lafitte just smiled.
"Well, now we know where we're going." Lafitte told him. "I don't suppose you'd mind staying a little longer would you? I think it would be good to have a guide who has been to the city before."
"Well, with hospitality like this, how can I refuse?" Mack asked him. Lafitte just went to the bridge, leaving his four Ranger puppets to guard Mack. The former Red Overdrive Ranger just sat back, keeping his eye on the Rangers. He had shown Lafitte the location of Atlantis, but he remembered from the time he had been there that the city and the surrounding caves were full of dangerous traps. He hoped it would be enough to delay them until his friends figured out what had happened and sent the Rangers after them. He didn't know a lot about the Rangers, but having only known Lafitte a short time, he knew who he would prefer to take those powers.