Mick was working on some Ninja Stars when the door to the Ranger Base opened up. He paused for a moment as Brody came in, carrying a few bags. He didn't have much, he essentially fled the Warrior Dome with nothing but the clothes on his back, but in the short time he had been on Earth, it was surprising how much he had accumulated. The guys on the team were quite generous in ensuring he had clothes and suchlike, and he had acquired a few souvenirs and personal items. It was a little surprising that after just short of six months he had enough possessions to fill two bags, but that was where they were.

Brody had only moved out of the Ranger Base a short time ago, and he wasn't really expecting to move back. When 'Aiden' had shown up, he was pretty much expecting that was it. They had moved back into the old family farm. They had even made impressive progress in returning it to its original state on the short time he had been with them. It was all the more reason why it was so upsetting to him that now that had all been snatched away.

The being they thought of as Aiden, as Brody's long-lost brother, it transpired, had been a robot, an android that Madame Odious had created and programmed somehow with Aiden's memories to act as an infiltrator, to gain the Rangers' trust and to get close to them and their base all in the hopes of delivering a victory to Galvanax all under the Rangers' noses.

"Your old cot is over there…just as you left it." Mick told him. It was a little bit awkward for Mick at this time. While the others had expressed concerns over how timely and miraculous Aiden's return had been, but over time they had bought into the miracle and were overjoyed to see Brody so happy. To see him beginning to regain a life that had been stolen from him, but through it all, Mick had still been a voice of caution. While Brody had been on the Warrior Dome for ten years, Mick had been there over twice that time. He had been sold into slavery as a mere child, and had known Cosmo and his crew longer than he had known his own family. He was well aware of the duplicitous and back-stabbing culture that Cosmo had not only fostered, but actively encouraged in his followers. While he had ended up being proven right to be cautious around 'Aiden', he gained no satisfaction from that. He wanted it to be true just as much as everyone else.

"Thanks Mick." Brody said quietly, placing his bags on the cot. His tone was heart breaking to hear. He had allowed himself to hope against hope that he had his family back. Mick had taken care of Brody, protected and guided him since he had come aboard Galvanax's ship. To the crew, and even to other slaves, someone as young and vulnerable as Brody when he came on board was pretty much just meat. The cut-throat nature of the ship filtered down to the slaves, who being subjected to oppression and cruelty their whole lives ended up devolving into creatures of survival themselves. Beatings, theft and abuse were all rampant among slaves who were given so little resources and even food that they would often take it from each other. Mick had learned himself that a child in that environment was at best seen as an easy target and at worst, a meal. He had witnessed some slaves so desperate for resources that they had resorted to murder and even cannibalism. Seeing Brody so down, it reminded him of the frightened, devastated child he had encountered all those years ago.

"Brody…" Mick started to say, before stopping himself. He had to think what he was trying to say, what he could say in this instance. "It's…good to have you back. The place wasn't the same without you."

"Thanks Mick." Brody answered. "So, what are you working on?"

"I don't know really." Mick said, furrowing his brows. "I just wanted to make sure we had some spares in case the Nexus Prism…"

Just then, the Nexus Prism started to glow. Mick and Brody both turned towards it.

"Talk about timing." Brody commented. "You think it's ready to make something?"

"There's one way to find out." Mick answered, throwing a Ninja Star at it. The metal star rebounded off the Nexus Prism, which started to shift, showing an image. Mick and Brody watched on, intent on finding out what it was trying to show them.

"That looks like a space ship." Brody commented, seeing a lion-shaped space ship powering through an asteroid field. "Isn't that the ship we saw before?"

"I…guess it could be." Mick said, inspecting the image. They had indeed seen an image of a ship flying through space.

"No, I think it is, didn't you say it was from the Lion Galaxy?" Brody asked him. Mick just nodded.

"I guess it looks like it is." Mick answered. Brody just scratched his head.

"I wonder why the Nexus Prism is showing us this now?" He asked, before he noticed something. He saw a kind of green-blue planet with rings circling it vertically. "Wait…isn't that Uranus?"

"It's got nothing to do with my butt." Mick said with a weak laugh. Brody just glared at him. "It…it looks like it could be."

"So that means it's in our solar system." Brody concluded. "Why would a ship from the Lion Galaxy be here?"

"I don't know." Mick answered. "But the people of the Lion Galaxy aren't exactly known for subtlety. I'm sure if they have any business here, we'll know about it soon enough."

Brody had a feeling that Mick knew more than he was saying as he went back to work, but he didn't want to pry. Mick said very little about where he was from or what happened there, only that he had been sold as a slave from his home in the Lion Galaxy. He went to his cot and started to unpack.

Mick continued to work, taking a file and attacking a Ninja Star as he tried to sharpen it, but looked more like he was going to file all the way through it as he clenched his jaw. He had indeed seen that ship once before, it had been the ship that had taken him to Cosmo over twenty years ago. The Royal Flagship.

In another part of the city, Sarah was in her room, feeding her new rabbit. Preston had come around to work on some homework with her, to compare notes. He smiled as Sarah made a few kissy sounds at the rabbit as she fed it. He was glad to see her happy. She had been through a bit of a rough time lately with her dad being injured in the attack on the Ribbon Tree. He still hadn't been able to come home from the hospital yet, and Preston had got her the rabbit as a way to cheer her up and get her mind off things.

"Sorry about that." Sarah said as she realised that Preston was still waiting patiently for her to finish and come to work on the assignment. "Winny's just so cute that sometimes I lose track of things when I deal with her. That nose is just so adorable!"

"Yeah, it is." Preston said, his gaze never straying from Sarah. He couldn't help thinking about what his friends had been saying. Calvin and Levi had teased him about the fact he bought Sarah the rabbit, insinuating that he hadn't meant it as a gift to a friend. He didn't really think much about it, but now that they mentioned it, he did spend a lot more time around Sarah than he did anyone else on the team. They just seemed to get each other in a way that the others didn't. They had a similar sense of humour, they seemed to like a lot of the same things…was it possible they were seeing something he wasn't? Although they were friends, it wasn't as though it missed his notice that Sarah had a lot of things going for her that any guy in their right mind would find attractive. He shook his head. "So, how's your dad doing?"

"His therapy is going well, he's not in as much pain when he walks." Sarah told him. "One of the downsides of sobriety is he has to pass on a lot of meds."

"I guess that doesn't help." Preston surmised. "So…Winny? You've finally named the rabbit?"

"Yeah, I have." She told him, pulling some hair behind one of her ears as she looked at her project. "It's…um…it's short."

"Short for what?" Preston asked her. "Winnifred?"

Sarah looked to him, wondering if she should say what the name stood for. She realised he wasn't about to let it go.

"Wingardium Leviosa?" She offered. Preston's smile almost bowled her over as he pointed to her.

"You're kidding right?" He asked. "You're a fan too?"

"I…" She began, starting to think about it. As she was trying to think how to explain it, she couldn't help thinking about Hayley's grilling about how much time she spent with Preston. She did like spending time with him, and thinking about it, they did spend a lot more time with each other than they did anyone else in the group, but…dating?

She had been inspired in the name by Preston, between his love of magic, and also the fact that his own rabbit he had named Aloha Mora.

"OK, I'm a Potter-head!" She admitted, giggling. "I once did some test or other, and apparently I'm a Hufflepuff."

"Really? Hufflepuff?" He chuckled. "I was sure you'd be a Ravenclaw!"

"Hey, I'm not going to question the results!" She told him. "So, when I remembered you named your rabbit after a spell, I guess I kind of thought, what the hey? Besides, Winny's kind of cute as a nickname."

"It sure is." Preston said as they both looked to each other. There was a moment or two that passed with neither of them really knowing what to say or do. They just stared at each other. Sarah became more than a little ware of the silence, and blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

"Cookies!" She rushed out.

"What?" He asked her. She pulled out some drawings she had put together.

"Our business project." She told him. "I…I was thinking, kids love cookies, right? What if there was some way to make cookies healthy?"

"Don't they already have low-fat cookies?" Preston asked her.

"No, I mean…like really healthy…make them out of pretty much anything. Like…fruit and vegetables and things."

"You can really do that?" Preston asked her, shifting over on the bed to look over her shoulder at the plans.

"Well, this machine should…with a little creative baking and stuff." She said, looking to Preston as he leaned over her shoulder to see. "Well, what do you think?"

"Well, my dad made a lot of money with baked potato chips." Preston said with a shrug. "He realised a lot of people don't want to give up junk food but want to eat a little healthier."

"So, you really think this is a good idea?" She asked him.

"Hey, you came up with it, of course it's…" He stared straight into her face, before coughing a little. "I mean…yeah, I think it could work. Want to go to the workshop see if we can make a start on this?"

"Yeah, sure." Sarah answered. As she got off the bed and headed out the door, Preston started to gather up his notes. He looked to Winny, who seemed to be staring at him in a way that reminded him of Levi and Calvin.

"Oh, what would you know?" He muttered as he collected all the books they would need. "You're just a rabbit!"

Meanwhile, up on the Warrior Dome, there was a lot of activity. Slaves and Kudabots scurried around, replacing lights that hadn't been working in years, scrubbing and cleaning pretty much every surface, and in general fixing up the ship like Cosmo was planning to sell it! Wrench rushed up to Cosmo, handing him a tablet for a report.

"I've made all the preparations you asked for." He told him. "The deliveries are in; the chefs have been put on notice under pain of death that everything is to be perfect…"

"Excellent!" Cosmo said excitedly. "The ruler of the Lion Galaxy on my show again! You have no idea how excited I am to see that! It's been a long time since we've had one of the Royals…"

"Um…didn't the last ruler of the Lion Galaxy die on your show?" Wrench asked him. Cosmo just waved him off.

"Details, details, he signed the waiver, he knew what he was getting into." Cosmo said in an off-hand way. "It's not my fault he had his arms ripped off and was beaten to death with them! But it made damned good television!"

"I guess." Wrench muttered. "I would just be worried his daughter might see things differently."

"Believe me, she has more to worry about than her father's demise." Cosmo told him. "From what I hear, her succession has more than a few critics. She's agreed to do the show because there are rumblings that contenders are just looking for signs of weakness!"

"They are right to question her!" Galvanax said as he arrived. They all turned to look at him. It was rare that Galvanax would bother to show up for the arrival of a new warrior on the ship. He usually only did so when it was someone that interested him in some way, that could be a potential contender to his title. His armour had been shined up and he was wearing his title belt and a long, flowing cloak, like he was trying to impress. "From what I heard, she is nothing like her father. Now there was a true ruler."

"Champ, so good to see you turn out for the new arrival!" Cosmo stated. "Have you seen Madame Odious?"

"I haven't, I thought she was with you." He commented. "No matter, I don't need a manager to speak for me to a brat."

"Ship docking!" An announcement came over the ship's systems. Cosmo took out a breath spray and sprayed it into his mouth as they headed for the hangar. Although the Royal Flag Ship was far too large to fit into the hangar, the hangar was prepared for the arrival of their contingent via teleportation.

Arriving in the hangar, Cosmo found a long, red carpet rolled out just as he promised, with Kudabots lined up on either side in formation, over fifty on each side. In the Lion Galaxy, it wasn't just seen as prudent to meet dignitaries with a show of military force, it was seen as an insult if one didn't. It was an indication that they weren't seen as a threat and showed disrespect if they weren't met with preparations for a fight. Galvanax and Wrench flanked Cosmo as he stood waiting on the arrivals. The side of the ship was open, a forcefield allowing them to see out to where the Royal Flag Ship pulled alongside. It was gigantic, red, and built to look like a lion crouched, ready to pounce. It was lined with weapons which were most certainly not there for show. In a bright flash of light, two figures appeared at the end of the carpet.

One was a huge, powerful looking creature, almost seven feet tall, and muscularly built. It had the head of a lion, and deep, green skin. It carried the scars of many battles, the most obvious of which was one missing hand, which had been replaced with a drill weapon. His eyes were focused and darted around the room, as though sizing up everyone there. His gaze quickly settled on Galvanax.

The other looked significantly different. It was a young woman, who looked like she was in her late teens at the most, and was clad in deep red armour that looked far too large for her. A black cloak was pinned to the back of it, and the crest of the Royal Family was on the breast plate. She strode towards Cosmo, with the warrior never leaving her side. Cosmo bowed to her.

"Princess Viera, I'm so honoured to have you on our humble ship." Cosmo greeted her. "Please, if there's anything you need…"

"If there's anything I need, my bodyguard Lord Drillion will tell you." She interrupted him. Galvanax looked her up and down and sneered.

"Do you have something to say?" Lord Drillion demanded of Galvanax, stepping up closer to him. Galvanax just snorted with derision.

"I was just thinking about when her father was here." Galvanax stated.

"What about it?" Drillion asked him, standing chest-to-chest with Galvanax, glaring straight into his eyes. Galvanax stared straight back. This was something that Cosmo really didn't need, he was keen to make the most of Princess Viera's appearance on the show, the last thing he needed was the whole thing and a significant proportion of both sides being decimated by a measuring contest between Galvanax and Princess Viera's bodyguard. Viera just sighed.

"Settle down Lord Drillion." She told him. "We've travelled a long way, I want to rest."

"Ah, a good idea." Cosmo answered. "We want you to be your best for when you take on the Rangers…"

"My father paid the price for taking on an opponent without some research." Viera said as she eyed Galvanax up and down. "I wish to see the Rangers in action."

"Of course, I'll give you full access to footage of their fights…"

"I need to see them for myself, up close." She interrupted him. "You will send a warrior against them so that I may observe."

"You…you want me to…"

"I will pay you the man's worth." Viera told him. "Best case scenario, your man wins and you have no need of us. Worst case…I pay you the man's value and finish them myself."

"You want us to waste…?"

"Of course, Your Highness, it will be arranged." Cosmo assured her. "Wrench, set something up, will you?"

"Good, I expect you to let me know when they are ready to go." Viera answered. "In the meantime, I would like to be shown to my quarters."

"You heard her!" Drillion snapped, powering up his weapon. Cosmo interjected himself between both sides.

"Of course, of course, just follow this Kudabot." He told them. Viera followed the Kudabot, but Drillion stayed, staring down Galvanax. She just looked back.

"DRILLION!"

"This man is in my way." He stated. Galvanax didn't move an inch. Viera just sighed.

"Drillion, come at once!" She snapped. "You will get your fill of battle soon enough!"

"As you wish!" Drillion answered, stepping around Galvanax. Although he was made to step aside by his mistress' order, he made sure to bump shoulders with the champion, letting him know he wasn't backing down. Galvanax turned as they walked away.

"Champ…" Galvanax didn't stick around to hear what Cosmo had to say though, face-palming him out of the way as he left to go back to his quarters. Wrench steadied Cosmo as he straightened himself out.

"You want me to send a monster?" Wrench asked. "There isn't another broadcast until…"

"I said I'd send a monster. I didn't say what CALIBER of monster." Cosmo stated. "The Princess is willing to pay his worth, and I'm not getting any revenue from it, find someone, anyone. Shoe-string budget."

"Shoe string?" Wrench asked. "I…think I have an idea."

"Good." Cosmo answered. "Have him ready to go in the morning. Contact me when you have your loser. In the meantime, I need to go keep our Royal guest in the manner to which she is accustomed."

A/N: Hey folks! Sorry about the long delay, I've had serious computer problems. By which I mean I ended up needing to replace the damn thing! Anyway, now I'm back and hoping to play some serious catch-up to make up for the long absence. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!