Hayley couldn't believe what she was seeing as she was trying to catch up to Levi. The Gold Ranger was putting in a strong showing, but for all the wrong reasons. He wasn't just competitive, he was outright obnoxious in the way he was behaving. He had to jump over a kid that fell right at her feet after Levi clipped his knee on the way past. Although Preston hadn't taken the time to tell her what he had done, she could still remember him dragging half a bush behind him, and the way he looked at Brody seemed to indicate he had something to do with it.
She pulled alongside Levi as they rounded the lake, heading back towards the starting point at the school, pulling the inside line. She looked aside seeing a horrendous, crazy grin on his face. He looked to her, and his eyes almost seemed to be glowing.
"Hey Hayley, want to know what's more fun than running?" He asked her. "SWIMMING!"
He rushed towards her, shoving her hard. There was no mistaking that it was deliberate, and it came with so little warning that Hayley didn't have time to even try and evade the move. She ended up flying into the lake, sinking into it. She shook her head to clear her vision as she surfaced and swam back towards the bank, attempting to climb out. It was fortunate that she was a strong swimmer, especially since she hadn't expected to be swimming fully clothed in the lake. She took a while to scramble out of the lake, as the bank kept caving in under her, but eventually she got back onto dry land, and made the sprint the final stretch of the way, in time to see Levi sprinting across the finish line and chest-bumping with his brother and Shoespike who was there to congratulate them.
"WE WON! Levi called out as their friends, still dirty, bruised and fuming from their attacks started to come over in search of an explanation for their behaviour. Instead of guilt though, all they got was gloating faces. "And you know what that makes you! LOSERS!"
Brody held his fingers in the shape of an L on his forehead. Levi saw this and did the same as they started to dance in their faces.
"Guys, what the hell was that?" Preston asked.
"That was us making you eat our DUST!" Brody taunted them.
"Guys, you totally cheated." Preston complained.
"Yeah, and you totally took the fun right out of the race." Sarah answered. "I don't mind losing if someone's better than me, but if you're that desperate to win…"
"Aw is the widdle girl gonna cwy!" Levi asked, pouting and imitating tears. Sarah was just about to answer when she noticed a strange glow around her body. Everyone else who participated in the race noticed the same thing. Before long, it became clear something strange was going on. There was a flash of light, and Sarah suddenly found herself staring at the toe cap of a pair of trainers, but it looked like it was the size of a truck! As she saw a face come down that blocked out the sun and saw it was Brody, she realised everything else hadn't gotten bigger, she had gotten smaller! She tried to move but couldn't.
"What the hell?" Brody asked as he picked up Sarah, who had now turned into a trophy. "What…what happened?"
"Oh that, that's what happens to people who lose races to me!" Shoespike informed them, his accent becoming stronger, and more bestial. Levi and Brody both turned in time to see him transform back into his true form. "I turned them into trophies because they're losers! Now they'll sit in my trophy case forever!"
"But it's not Friday!" Levi protested. "The broadcasts go out on a Friday! We're not supposed to be attacked…"
"Oh, is the Gold Ranger gonna cry about it?" Shoespike teased him. "Oh, I wasn't ready!' That's loser talk!"
Calvin arrived, looking a little out of breath, but he was surprised to find a bunch of trophies lying around on the ground and a monster standing before them.
"Release our friends NOW!" Brody yelled at him. Shoespike just laughed.
"Why would I do that? I already have three Rangers!" He pointed out. "Of course, if you want to win them back…"
"What do you want?" Levi asked him.
"A race of course!" He informed them. "My rules! Since there's three of you, a four-legged race! If you win, your friends go free! If you win, I get your power stars and you all join my collection!"
"I can beat you!" Brody answered, before looking to Levi and Calvin. "And both of you too!"
"Um…Brody, how are you going to do that if we're tied to you?" Calvin asked him. Both Levi and Brody glared at him, and he could see their eyes were glowing. He looked to Shoespike who just shrugged.
"I gave them a little boost in their competitive spirit!" He told the Yellow Ranger. "Now, how about it? Will you race? Or do you concede defeat now? Because if you do, that'll be taken as not finishing the race and if you do that…"
"We'll race!" Calvin told him as the three remaining Rangers morphed. Shoespike looked around, seeing Tom hiding behind the judge's table. He grabbed him and pulled him to the starting line.
"You, come here!" He growled at him, throwing him down. "You can judge! First one back here wins!"
Tom looked reluctant, but since everyone who took part in the race had turned into trophies, and all but a few people had already fled, he didn't feel like he had much choice. He was given even less choice as a ball and chain appeared on one of his ankles, preventing him from running. He saw a starter's pistol appear on his hand as two Basher Bots appeared either side of Shoespike tying themselves to him. The two teams lined up on the starting line.
"Alright, ready, set…GO!" He called out. Tom fired the pistol, which fired a homing energy blast that hit the Rangers and knocked them back several feet. As they got to their feet, they could already see that Shoespike had a distinct lead.
"I'm sorry, I didn't…"
"Don't worry." Calvin interrupted him. "I have a feeling Shoespike's rules all favour him."
As they ran off, Tom took off his Stetson, throwing it to the ground in anger. Monty ran up to him, his arms loaded with trophies as he ran around gathering them up.
"Victor?" He called out. "VICTOR!"
"Monty, what the hell are you still doing here?" Tom asked him.
"I've got to find Victor!" Monty screamed at him. "I didn't see him finish…"
"Why are you still here?" He heard someone else ask. Monty started to stammer as he saw the pretty girl from earlier arriving. He stared at her with a huge, goofy grin. "That monster could tear you to pieces! Why are you…?"
"It's Victor, my friend!" Monty told her. "He was running in the race! I can't leave until I know what happened to him!"
"He's probably a trophy somewhere!" She told him.
"Then I have to find him!" Monty yelled.
Viera didn't really understand why Monty would risk himself for his friend. Self-preservation was a powerful motivator, and if Monty knew what was good for him, he would run as far and as fast from here as possible before Shoespike got back. They were interrupted as Victor arrived, running over the finish line, out of breath and incredibly red.
"I did it!" He panted. "I finished."
"Victor!" Monty called out, dropping the trophies he was holding and hugging him tightly. Victor looked a little confused.
"Monty please, there's no need to…" He started to say, before looking around, seeing all the trophies. "What happened here?"
"A monster turned everyone that ran in the race into trophies!" Monty informed him. Victor looked alarmed.
"But…but I ran in the race!" He said in a panicked voice. He covered his face, but after almost a minute realised nothing had happened to him. He started patting himself down. "What the deuce? Why am I not turning into a trophy? Everyone who ran in the race did."
"To be honest I didn't realise you were still running." Tom said honestly. Victor and Monty looked to him curiously. "You were disqualified."
"Disqualified?" Victor asked. "What for?"
"You need a three-man team to enter the relay!" Tom reminded him. "I reminded you five times!"
"And like I reminded YOU five times, I don't want to share my trophy with anyone." Tom suddenly paused as he realised something.
"Victor, Monty, do you guys want to help the Rangers?" He asked him. They both looked to him and nodded. "Monty, you go around and collect all the trophies, bring them here to me. Victor, go and collect the entry forms from the desk."
"Got it." Victor said, nodding as they both ran off.
"Oh, and Victor?" He called after him. "Don't forget my rubber stamp!"
Victor just looked confused but went to collect what Tom asked for. Tom looked down the route breathing a huge sigh.
"Come on Levi." He willed on his brother.
On the course, Levi, Brody and Calvin were struggling to get their rhythm. They stumbled a few times, but once Calvin pointed out that they were losing and encouraged them to get on the same page, they started to make some headway. He looked ahead to where Shoespike was taking a little rest to let them catch up.
"What's he hanging around for?" Brody asked.
"I wouldn't want you Rangers to get lost! I want you in sight when you turn into trophies!" He taunted them. "Plus, I'll get to see your faces when you lose!"
"Wait…look at that!" Calvin called out, noticing the two Basher Bots either side of Shoespike seemed to be slumped unnaturally. "Those aren't Basher Bots…they're stuffed dummies! He's cheating!"
"My race my rules!" Shoespike reminded him as they started to close in. "The surprises are just starting! Follow me, if you can!"
With that, he turned and ran, carrying the two dummies with him. Calvin shook his head.
"He's right, it's his race, he makes the rules." He told the others. "You're not going to let him get away with that are you guys?"
"HELL NO!" They screamed together as they drove onwards. Calvin smiled, realising that at very least he had managed to put their competitive spirit to good use, turning it against the right opponent.
They ran onward, following Shoespike, who took a detour through some woods. They followed him, knowing that if they did that, then at very least they would know the race route. As they started to run through a stream though, an explosion went off, knocking them all down.
"What was that?" Brody protested.
"It almost seemed like a landmine!" Levi answered. They saw Shoespike weaving back and forth, cackling wildly.
"That's exactly what he's done, he's set up landmines!" Calvin told them. "And he knows where they are!"
"Wait, we stepped right on a landmine but we're fine right?" Levi asked.
"I…I guess?" Brody answered.
"I have an idea!" He told them. "It's kind of crazy though!"
"Right now, I'm willing to try anything." Calvin admitted. Levi smiled.
"Have you heard of rocket jumping?" He asked. Calvin just nodded.
"OK, this is nuts, we have to be ready for a hard landing!" He told them as they started running. Calvin kept a close look for any signs on the ground of a mine. He saw a switch just sticking above the ground.
"Alright guys, jump!" He yelled. The three Rangers jumped onto the landmine, which exploded under them. The suits protected them from the worst of the harm, but the explosion sent them flying. They controlled the momentum, using it to propel them forward much faster than if they just ran. Shoespike could only watch as they sailed right over him.
"You Rangers are cheating!" He screamed at them.
"Sorry, landmines are in the rules!" Calvin yelled back.
"You'll be sorry when we get to the finish line!" Shoespike called out, re-doubling his efforts to catch up.
Back at the finish line, Monty had finished gathering the trophies, while Victor brought the paperwork to Tom. He looked at the trophies carefully, picking out three of them.
"Monty, take these three and put them out of sight…behind that bush." He told him. Monty just looked confused. "Just do it!"
As Monty left to do as he was told, Victor handed him the paperwork. He grabbed the registration forms and started leafing through them, tossing papers away frantically.
"What are you doing?" Victor asked.
"I need to concentrate Victor." He grumbled as he looked through. "Come on, come on, come on…YES! I've got it!"
"Here they come!" Monty screamed as he saw the Rangers and Shoespike rounding the last corner. Shoespike barely managed to bypass the Rangers, shoving them out of the way as he took the inside track aggressively.
"Out of my way losers!" He screamed. "I'm doing it! I'm doing it! I'm actually winning!"
As he approached the finish line, the Rangers were close behind, but in a photo-finish, he reached forwards, tearing the tape with his fingertips. He started leaping up and down in triumph.
"I did it! I won!" He screamed as he started to dance with glee. "You know what that means right? TROPHY TIME!"
Levi, Calvin and Brody all turned into trophies as he cackled maniacally. He looked up to the skies, screaming to an imaginary audience.
"Did you see that? Did you see? I did it! I beat the Rangers! The Power Stars are MINE!" He screamed. "Next, I'm coming for the Galaxy Warriors Championship!"
"You might want to hold off on that." Tom announced. Shoespike looked to him and scoffed.
"Why, what are you going to do?" He asked. "You have no powers!"
"Oh, I have the ultimate power. I was a race judge." He reminded him. "And I saw how your team cheated, which means…Shoespike, you Brody and Levi are all…disqualified."
He took a stamp and stamped the word "Disqualified" on all three registration forms. Shoespike just laughed.
"What do I care?" He asked him.
"Well, if you're disqualified that means you didn't win." Tom said with a smile. "Which means…"
Just then, all the trophies other than the ones he got from Levi, Brody and Calvin started to glow. Shoespike watched as they all turned back into humans.
"What? NOOOO!" He called out. "I can't believe it!"
"Believe it scumbag!" He heard Sarah yelling as she, Hayley and Preston all appeared from behind a bush, morphed and ready for action. "Ninja Blaster, Whiplash Attack!"
They all aimed and fired, knocking him down. Shoespike started to get back up, ready to face them.
"I beat you once, I can beat you again!" He called out.
"Sorry, we're not playing your games anymore!" Preston told him as they all formed up their Power Bows. "Ninja Morphers, Final…"
They didn't get a chance to finish. They were all blown aside by an energy blast. Everyone looked around for the source of the blast, finding something incredibly unusual. There was a patch of scorched earth around someone, and a trail leading from them, but it wasn't a monster…at least…it didn't look like it. They all watched as Principal Hastings stood up, an angry look on her face. The seemed to be shifting in form.
"Principal Hastings?" Preston asked.
"What is going on?" Hayley agreed.
Madame Odious had run in the race as Principal Hastings, and so had been turned into a trophy, something that made her furious, but even worse than that, being trapped as a trophy, she was unable to take another dose of the serum she used to take on Principal Hastings' form. Everyone gasped as in a flash of light, she turned back into her true form.
"Madame Odious?" Sarah gasped.
"Madame Odious!" Shoespike screamed, realising his error. He fell to his knees before her. "I'm sorry, I didn't know…"
"You ruined EVERYTHING!" She screamed, firing off a huge blast, completely obliterating him. She looked around at the stunned crowd, and at the Rangers who were starting to compose themselves and prepare for another battle. Seeing Levi, Brody and Calvin turn back into their Ranger forms, she realised that her cover had been blown, and the only ways this could end would be a fight for which she hadn't prepared, or in retreat. She sneered at the Rangers.
"That fool cost me my cover!" She screamed at them. "I'll be back Rangers, don't worry about that, I'll be back!"
With that, she disappeared, leaving the Rangers, and the entire school completely confused. The team gathered together as they tried to make sense of everything.
"Madame Odious was Principal Hastings?" Hayley gasped.
"She's…she's been right under our noses and we didn't even know it!" Sarah remarked.
"But…she can't always have been Principal Hastings." Calvin answered. "They only arrived a few months ago, Principal Hastings has been the principal for years."
"We should check out her place." Brody suggested. He got onto the Ninja Comms.
"Uh…yeah…you guys get right on that." Levi told them as he started to walk away.
"What?" Sarah asked. "Where are you going?"
"Oh…I just need to go shower." He told them. "In bleach…for…like…forever."
As he left, the others just looked curious.
"What do you think that was about?" Brody asked. They all just shrugged.
"Damned if I know." Sarah answered, getting onto her Ninja Comm. "Mick, do you know where Principal Hastings lives?"
"Um…no, but it should be on record in her office." Mick answered. "Why?"
"Oh, do we have a long story to tell you!" Sarah replied.