Up on the Warrior Dome, there was a little bit of tension in the air. While Galaxy Warriors was still the highest rated show in any network by a significant margin, the previous two weeks in a row, their shows had been an embarrassment. Between Trapsaw's embarrassingly incompetent showing and Toxitea's poisoning plot being far from action-packed, the ratings had taken a hit, and Cosmo was NOT happy!
Galvanax as usual was impatient, since he still didn't have the Ninja Power Stars, the Prism, or the Ninja Steel. Cosmo wasn't happy about the fact that his numbers were down, meaning that it was possible soon his bottom line was going to take a hit.
The Senior Staff were all called into a mandatory meeting in Cosmo's office, and the mood was decidedly less than jovial. The meeting began with a rundown of the week-to-week numbers from Cosmo, which he read with all the enthusiasm of a casualty list. He glared at all of them from behind his desk as he tented his fingers.
"We have a problem here, a REAL problem!" He stated. "Between you, I am supposed to have some of the greatest talent scouts and creative minds available, and yet in only two weeks you've managed to tank my ratings by almost fifteen percent!"
"Not to mention you all continue to fail to bring me the Power Stars!" Galvanax screamed at them all. Wrench, Ripcon and Odious all hung their heads as they cowered away from him. "The Rangers are growing in popularity every day! There are fans calling for them to take my title! Do I really need to take care of this myself?"
"Champ, let's not get too hasty!" Cosmo told him. "We're still building for that, I'm thinking of a season finale. Still, I am curious to know...is all of this just bad luck, or are there really some of you working against us?"
"Sir..." Wrench started to say, only for Galvanax to silence him with a growl.
"A CHILD could have seen that Trapsaw was no match for the Rangers!" He yelled at Ripcon. "Not to mention your investigation into the Gold Ranger has produced startlingly little."
"I have noticed that too." Galvanax growled. "It almost makes me wonder if you have been properly...motivated."
"I have ALWAYS been loyal to you!" Ripcon screamed at him. He glanced over at Odious, who he noticed was saying very little, happy instead to just let the suspicion fall on him. "But recently...my investigation has taken a very productive turn. I am sure the traitor will be unmasked soon!"
"Well, since you're so confident that you have that covered, you won't mind taking on a little extra responsibility then will you?" Cosmo asked him.
"Anything for my Champ." Ripcon said, sitting forward. Cosmo just smiled and leaned back in his chair.
"The Champ and I discussed it before this meeting, and we believe that we need something a little extra special this time around." Cosmo told him.
"I need a warrior I know is strong, one whose strength I can attest to!" Galvanax said in his gravelly voice.
"Not to mention I could use a special draw to win back some of that audience you and Odious have managed to bore away." Cosmo told him. "Congratulations Ripcon, you're behind the eight ball."
"What?" Ripcon asked.
"You've told us how much you want to get to the bottom of this Gold Ranger mystery, and you also told us how much you want to finish the Red Ranger once and for all. Well, now's your chance." Cosmo told him abruptly. "You've got your rubber match. Wrench, start getting to work on the promotional broadcasts! Ripcon Vs. Red Ranger, the final act!"
"Thank you!" Ripcon rushed out gleefully. He knew that this wasn't at all convenient timing for him. He already had a lot on his plate keeping track of Odious' actions, but this served him well. It would easily prove that he was loyal if he destroyed the Red Ranger, not to mention he would finally get to end a loathing that had been building between them for a decade. He got up and bowed. "I swear, you will not regret this!"
As they all started to leave, Cosmo cleared his throat.
"Wrench, could I speak to you for a moment?" He asked. Wrench held back as the others left, and the door closed behind him.
"You have some ideas for the promotional..."
"Please, this grudge match has promoted itself, a child could handle it." Cosmo told him. "I was just wondering if there was anything else you could tell me?"
"T...t...tell you?" Wrench stammered nervously. Cosmo just looked to him. He did know more about the situation with the others than he had told Cosmo. He knew that the lab had belonged to Odious, and that she was the one that brought the Gold Ranger on board, though she had threatened him if he revealed that information, and now it was so late in the day to reveal that information, he was bound to look complicit even if he did tell the truth. Ripcon...he had sicced Ripcon on Odious in an effort to try and rid himself of Odious, and all he had to show for it was Ripcon's embarrassing showing against the Rangers when he was drunk.
Wrench knew his position on the ship was a lot better than anything he could ever have had serving under Wrench, and a lot of that was down to Cosmo and the faith he put in him. He had advanced quickly, and had a good life on the ship, all of which could disappear just as quickly if Cosmo ever turned on him. He eventually shook his head. He wanted to be loyal to Cosmo, but was worried that by now he would look just as guilty as the others if he admitted his part in it all. Cosmo smiled.
"Very well. Bring me a draft of your proposal by the end of the day." Cosmo said cheerfully, patting him on the shoulder. "Oh, and keep an eye on Ripcon would you? We all know he has a habit of being a little spontaneous."
"S...s...spontaneous?" Wrench stammered again. Cosmo just smiled and nodded.
"Of course! He's impatient! Don't want him starting the fight until the cameras are rolling do we?" Cosmo told him. "Remember, no one dies off camera on my show!"
Down on the Romero Farm, Brody was sitting at the kitchen table while Aiden worked on the dinner. The farm was slowly starting to take shape and once more look like a home. With Aiden working at the school and Brody at school during the days, they didn't have a lot of time to work on the farm but they did make the best of it when they did.
Even though he was working through some chemistry homework that looked a lot more like it was written in Sanskrit and he was certain he'd be getting half of it wrong and need Sarah to show him his mistakes before he handed it in tomorrow, he couldn't help being happy. His brother Aiden was back, he was back at home, and the farm was close to being just as it once was.
"Alright, books away, it's dinner time!" Aiden said as he came in with a couple of plates, putting one down in front of Brody, and taking one himself. Brody just smiled.
"Raman Noodles...again!" He said as he looked to the dish. Aiden just shrugged.
"What?" He asked.
"Don't think I'm complaining or anything, but I think five days in a row is kind of a stretch." Brody told him.
"You don't like it, you make dinner." Aiden teased him, twirling his fork and shoving in a mouthful. "Only...don't set the curtains on fire like you did when you tried to make toasted bagels."
"Let's face it; dad was always the chef in this family." Brody answered. "One of these days, one of us is really going to have to learn how to cook."
"Oh, talking of dad, you just reminded me!" Aiden told him, shoving more noodles into his mouth and heading out the door. "Wait right there!"
Brody twirled some noodles onto his fork and stared at them. He loved noodles as much as the next guy, but it was true that neither of them had really taken much time to learn basic domestic skills. Brody had never worked in the kitchens at the Warrior Dome, he just got handed a meal whenever they felt like the slaves were getting too weak to work. Aiden, from what little he had gathered, had been on the streets until recently. He didn't imagine he got much in the way of an opportunity to learn to cook. He probably just took meals whenever he had the opportunity.
"I guess I need to start paying more attention in home ec." Brody sighed as he started eating. Just then, he heard something, it was the strumming of a guitar, and a very familiar song starting to play. Aiden came into the room, playing the guitar, another strapped across his back.
"I'm with you,
So far from home I'm still with you,
A family bond that can't break!"
Brody got up, his eyes wide as he heard the song. Their dad had sang it for them when they were kids. Shortly after their mom had passed, he had wanted to assure the young boys that although their mother was no longer around, that their family was still together.
"I choose a star,
Its light leads me home to be without,
A family bond that can't break!" Brody sang in reply.
"Altogether, we are one!" The brothers sang together. "Wow, that was..."
"I found these when I was looking for some tools earlier!" Aiden told him, smiling. "We'll need to clean them up a little, but I was thinking that we could sing that song for the talent show Levi's putting on."
"I...I don't know..."
"Oh come on, it was a great song! And I know my little brother gets stage fright!" Aiden told him.
"Yeah, but isn't that against the rules or something?" Brody asked him. "You know, since you're working at the school."
"Not as a teacher I'm not." He reminded him. "I have literally nothing to do with the show other than stacking up the chairs and sweeping the floors afterwards. I can't affect the outcome. Why would they care if I took part?"
"I guess it would be nice to sing it again." Brody answered with a smile. "I'm sure dad would get a kick out of it too."
"Yeah...yeah, that sounds great!" Brody agreed. "So, want to go through the song again to make sure we have it down?"
"Uh...maybe later." Aiden told him as he heard a bleeping sound. Brody just furrowed his brows. "That's probably Principal Hastings..."
"When did you get a cell phone?" Brody asked.
"When I signed on." Aiden told him. "I swear, it's probably just her reminding me of the repairs that need done tomorrow, as if I don't already know! I'll be quick!"
As he left the room, Brody just sat back down to the plate, humming the song. It was a long time since he'd heard anyone else sing it, but he had kept it in his mind and he heard it any time things got tough, to remind him that somewhere out there, his family was still there and one day he'd be back together with them. He twirled more noodles onto his fork.
"Five days of the same thing." Brody chuckled. "I guess there are worse things."
In another part of town, 'Principal Hastings', in truth Madame Odious in disguise, put some offal and other things from her fridge into a blender and started it up, while waiting for Aiden to answer his communicator or call her back. She understood that now he was living with Brody, it wouldn't necessarily be convenient for him to answer immediately as soon as she called. She poured the vile looking 'smoothie' into a plastic cup and carried it downstairs.
There, the real Principal Hastings was sitting, signing some papers and going over some paperwork. While Odious for the most part could fool people at the school she was who she said she was, there were certain tasks she needed Principal Hastings to perform, documents the education department needed, forms that needed signed, things of that nature. It was the only reason she was still alive. Odious arrived, taking the forms from her and giving them a cursory glance.
"Well, it seems you're doing a fine job. It looks like you eat today." She stated, handing her the disgusting smoothie. Principal Hastings snatched it with desperation and guzzled it, forcing it down despite her body's instinct to gag. She knew she wouldn't get anything else; she had been forcing this disgusting 'meal' down now whenever Odious saw fit to feed her for weeks. Odious' communicator bleeped, indicating that Aiden could now speak. "Excuse me, I need to take this."
She moved away from the pathetic figure of the woman whose identity, whose life she had stolen to get close to the Rangers and to manipulate their lives in ways that they had no idea she was capable of. She answered her communicator.
"What is it?" Aiden asked her.
"Cosmo held a meeting today. This week, he's sending Ripcon to battle the Rangers."
"Ricpon?" He asked. This was big news indeed. Whether it was good or bad news remained to be seen. It could be good news since the Rangers had the opportunity to rid them of one of the few it seemed didn't know of their treachery on the ship. Of course, Ripcon was a powerful warrior, and the one thing they couldn't discount was the possibility he could actually win. If he did, he was bound to hand the Power Stars and the Ninja Steel straight to Galvanax, and doing that would make his position and his word on the ship nigh-near untouchable.
"Don't panic." She told him. "I already have a plan. If you do exactly as I say, then by the time this broadcast is done, we could have the Ninja Steel, the Power Stars, and be shot of Ripcon once and for all."
"I like the sound of that." Aiden said with a smile. "What do you want me to do?"
"I want you to call Ripcon." She told him. "I want you to offer to deliver the Ninja Steel to him."
"You want me to do what?" Aiden asked. "I think I'm going to need to hear more of this plan!"
Up on the Warrior Dome, Ripcon was in his chambers, preparing for the fight of his life. Many warriors prepared for a battle, but to Ripcon, there was a whole different level to it all. Battle to him wasn't just about winning and losing; it wasn't even just about life and death. To his kind, and to those who were trained like him, there was no shame in losing or dying in battle so long as one fought bravely, honourably and to the best of their abilities. The only thing that was seen as being almost as good as a glorious and hard-fought victory was a good death at the hands of a superior opponent that had won fair and square.
He had incense burners hanging all around his chambers, many with herbal concoctions that had spiritual significance, others...that provided chemical benefits to his body when inhaled. He sat, meditating as he drew his sword along a whetting stone, sharpening it for the battle ahead. For him, this was more important than any title or any mere trophy, this...this was going to be a work of art, where he put down his hated Rat Bait once and for all!
His eyes snapped open as he heard a Data-Comm sounding. He looked around, wondering who would dare to enter his chambers while he was preparing, but finding that he was alone. It took him a moment to realise it was his OWN Data-Comm that was signalling him. He activated it.
"This better be good!" Ripcon warned the person on the other end. He only had limited supplies for his incense burners and he didn't want to waste any of his preparation time.
"It is." He heard an electronically distorted voice on the other end say. "Meet me at the old tuna cannery on east dock in twenty minutes."
"What? Who is this?" He demanded.
"I'm the best chance you have of getting everything you want!" The voice told him. "Twenty minutes, if you're not there, I'm taking what I know and going elsewhere. Your decision!"
The line went dead, and Ripcon just stared at the Data-Comm. He was no lackey to be simply ordered around, to be sent to fetch and run and carry like a common slave.
He also knew that the offer was vague. The voice hadn't even told him what was on offer. They hadn't mentioned HOW they were going to help him or with what. It was possible it was just a prank, or a lure into a trap.
On the other hand, his search, while it was gaining ground, it was doing so slowly. If someone that had an in with Odious was willing to turn, then perhaps it was only natural that they would be cautious.
He made his decision and got up, sheathing his sword, before making his way to the teleporter. One way or another, he'd find out who this informant was. Best case scenario, he would finally have everything he needed on Odious. At worst, if it was a prank, then there would just be one more monster that learned the hard way what it meant to cross Ripcon!