Sarah was humming contentedly as she came into her bedroom, closing the door behind her. She wasn't paying much attention as she started to get undressed. She looked across to Winny in her cage and came across, seeing her bounding around.
"Hey there girl, you're pretty active tonight." She commented. "You've barely touched your spinach."
Winny's nose twitched as she came to the front of the cage to see her owner. Sarah just checked her food and her water.
"You've got plenty there, so you should be fine for the night." She remarked. She looked to the rabbit and smiled as she started to undress. She discarded her clothes carelessly on the floor right by the foot of the bed. Hayley, who had slipped under the bed, saw the clothes hit the floor and quickly shielded her eyes as Sarah went into the bathroom for a shower. Hayley looked around quickly to see if there was a way for her to slip out. Hiding under the bed hadn't exactly been planned out, it was just the first place she could think of to hide. She was starting to regret it. Sarah's room wasn't particularly well organised, and under her bed appeared to be no exception. Quite a few things were under the bed, just kicked there instead of put away carefully.
"Hayley, Hayley, are you alright?" Calvin asked over the Ninja-Comm.
"That was WAY too close!" She whispered. Sarah started singing in the shower as she got washed up. "Any sign of Preston?"
"He closed up the garage once he finished putting that machine together." Calvin told her. "I can't see him now."
"Damn it, he must be downstairs." Hayley grumbled, trying to think of escape routes. If Preston was in the house downstairs, then she couldn't slip out of the bedroom door while Sarah was in the shower. Sarah started to sing as she washed up. If it wasn't for the situation, Hayley would have to say she was a little impressed, Sarah seemed to have a pretty decent singing voice, albeit not a talent she particularly spent much time on.
"Hayley, you have to get out of there!" Calvin whispered to her.
"Oh, really, that hadn't occurred to me!" Hayley responded sarcastically. "Any ideas of exactly HOW I do that?"
"How about the way you went in?" Calvin suggested. Just then, Hayley could hear the shower shutting off. "Dammit, she's coming!"
Hayley went quiet as Sarah came into the room, drying herself off. She tossed her towel on the floor right by Hayley's face.
"Alright Sarah, just…stay calm…this is Preston, you've known him for ages." Sarah said to herself as she tried to affirm herself as she put on her underwear. She took a deep breath. "Come on Sarah, you've fought monsters on and off for about a year now, this is just a date. You can do this."
She went into her wardrobe and pulled out some clothes, tossing them onto the bed. She started to rummage around outfits for something to wear. Meanwhile, Hayley settled in under the bed. It didn't look like she was going anywhere any time soon.
Up on the Warrior Dome, Drillion was trudging through the corridors, still seething over his meeting with Galvanax. The Galaxy Warriors Champion didn't make a habit of associating with the dregs of society when he didn't have to. He didn't spend much time going anywhere that didn't enhance his image or legend as the current Champion, but he had obviously gone out of his way to seek Drillion out.
Drillion was no simpleton, he knew exactly what Galvanax was up to, trying to needle him, trying to coax him into a battle, but right now he had other matters on his mind. Right now, he was here to protect the sitting monarch, Princess Viera.
The Princess' ascension had caused more than a little friction across the Lion Galaxy. There were many among the Noble Families that saw only a young woman, barely any more than a child, that they were expected to follow and bow to. A child who even in almost a year since her father had been slaughtered on intergalactic television for all to see had still not even set a date for her coronation. While ascension was automatic upon the death of the previous monarch, by tradition the title of King or Queen would only be bestowed during the coronation. Most rulers arranged their coronation as soon as possible after the death of the previous monarch. It wasn't the first time that a new ruler was crowned quite literally with the blood of their predecessor still dripping from their hands. Viera had delayed her coronation to deal with the schism that had occurred within the Lion Galaxy following her father's death, as warlords, nobles, and prominent commoners looking to seize power, lands and titles at the barrel of a gun became emboldened by the death of the Thresher of Worlds. It was yet another reason why some saw her as weak. Although she prioritised security within her domain over a crown that she had still to have placed upon her head, many simply wondered how they could be expected to follow a ruler who wouldn't even claim the crown they were entitled to. Drillion, if he was honest, was one of them.
Drillion had led an unsuccessful coup against Viera's father many years before. More than half his followers had been put to the sword during the war, and Drillion was defeated and captured. He had been tortured for almost four years before he finally agreed to bend his knee to Viera's father for all to see. Viera's father, seeing a powerful warrior, had taken him into his service, but not without extracting payment. The first payment was Drillion's left hand, the hand that had raised a banner against his King. The other…Drillion was forced to put the other half of his followers to death at his own hand, before he got his new weapon to replace the hand he lost.
However, while he feared and respected the King, he had seen Viera as she was raised, seen the young Princess as she flinched at public executions, as she questioned the brutality of her father's treatment of his enemies and those who criticised him. He had seen her speak, albeit ultimately unsuccessfully, in support of those who would stand against her father's words. With the King gone, his service passed to Viera, and as he saw her stumble and doubt and struggle with even the simplest of decisions, refusing to unleash the full fury of her armies on those who would speak against her, he saw only the child that would never earn the respect of her people.
Galvanax's words, while harsh, just pricked at feelings that Drillion already had. Viera barked commands at him as her father had, though instead of instructing him to strike, on many occasions she instructed him to stand down, calling him to heel when he should be unleashed. Galvanax was right, until she learned the ways of a strong leader, he was no beast of war, he was a pet. He was sickened to think of that, and more and more was wondering whether the time had come for him to try his hand, his other hand, at another coup.
"DRILLION!" He heard a call over his communicator. He just groaned and held it up.
"Princess Viera?" He asked. It was as much a test as anything else. She did not correct him on her title. She didn't insist he called her 'your highness'.
"Meet me by the ship!" She told him. "I wish to inspect the weapons systems."
"The weapons systems?" Drillion asked. "Princess Viera, we will not need…"
"Do as I say Lord Drillion!" She snapped in response. "I am taking no chances!"
He didn't bother to respond, he just turned his communicator off and headed for the ship. The Rangers were an obstacle to overcome, and everyone was now expecting to see the battle. Of course, since he was likely the one to be doing much of the fighting, if he was the one to strike the final blow…maybe the time had come for him to take matters into his own hand.
Down in the first floor, Preston had just finished getting changed, and left the downstairs bathroom, heading back for the living room. He was still buttoning up his shirt as he got there.
He had opted for a pretty simple outfit. He wanted Sarah to know that he was making an effort, but at the same time he didn't want to make it look like he was expecting anything from the date. He had opted for a very simple pale blue button up shirt and black suit pants. He had shined up his shoes for the occasion. He looked into the mirror over the fireplace and checked his hair. He started stroking his chin.
"Should I have shaved?" He asked himself, before taking a deep breath. "Alright Preston, just…calm down, it's Sarah. You know her, you've been friends for ages."
He started pacing around, trying to think of how the night should go. He had booked the restaurant, it was only a few blocks, so they could easily walk there and it was a nice night so they could even take something of a scenic route and still be there in good time.
He checked his wallet, being sure he had money to cover the date. He had asked Sarah out, so it seemed like it was only right that he pay. She was independent and he was sure she wasn't into the whole idea of having a guy take care of her, but since he had been the one to ask, he felt like he really should be the one to pay for this date.
He sat on the couch and started drumming his hands on his thighs.
Up in her room, Sarah had finally chosen an outfit. After a lot of thought and second-guessing, she had decided to go for a simple pink t-shirt and light blue jeans. She didn't want to look like she was trying too hard and scare Preston off. She knew that she had a few nerves about tonight and imagined Preston had to have a few as well.
She sat down in front of the mirror and tried to figure out whether or not to tie her hair up. She eventually figured she would leave it down, since that was how Preston was used to seeing her.
She got up and headed over to Winny's cage.
"Alright girl, what do you think? How do I look?" Sarah asked. Winny just twitched her nose and made a little noise. Hayley could understand exactly what Winny was saying and was glad that Sarah couldn't. Sarah kissed her fingers and touched them to the top of the cage. "Thanks, Winny."
With that, she went to the bedroom window and pulled it closed, locking it, before heading out of her bedroom. She ran down the stairs, stumbling a little as she went. She found Preston in the Living Room, drumming his feet and his hands, awaiting her arrival. As he saw her, he got up, looking to her and smiled.
"Wow, you look…you look great." Sarah said with a nervous smile. "Um…I almost feel a little under-dressed."
"No, it's fine, you look, you look great!" Preston stammered out. "So…um…you want to go?"
"Yeah, just…let me get my jacket." She told him. She gathered up her jacket and came up to Preston, who was holding out an arm for her. She saw this, and hesitated for a moment, trying to remind herself that they had done this before. She hooked her arm with his as they walked out of the house, closing the door behind them.
"Hayley, Sarah and Preston just left the house." He told her.
"Alright, keep eyes on them and keep me posted!" Hayley told him. "I'll give it ten minutes to make sure they're gone and slip out. I'll meet up with you."
"You know, we've had some pretty weird dates, but this is kind of a new level." Calvin told her, preparing to make his move as Preston and Sarah walked down the street.
"Oh, don't pretend you don't love this." Hayley responded. Calvin smiled.
"Right, they're far enough ahead." He told her. "I love you Hayls."
With that, he leapt from the tree and started heading along the street, using the bushes and fences for cover.
Back up on the Warrior Dome, Princess Viera had returned to her ship, which was docked at the side, while Drillion stood guard. Viera, while having a lot less desire for battle than her father, had shown since her youth an aptitude for technology. It was something that her father encouraged, hoping that encouraging her to appreciate and work with the instruments of destruction that kept them in power she would eventually come to terms with their use. Drillion didn't see the point in checking on the ship. It had been in full working order when they left the Lion Galaxy, and he doubted anything would have changed in that time. He also didn't think that the ship would be necessary. He had wiped out planets on his own. He had even wiped out around half of his own followers by himself. He somehow doubted that six children with fancy suits would provide him with much difficulty.
He heard a rattle a little further down the corridor and turned to face it.
"Who's there?" He demanded. "Show yourself!"
He started to make his way down the hall, searching for the source of the noise. As he got to the end of the corridor, he couldn't see anyone, but something still troubled him. He took a long sniff, before reaching out, grabbing something in the air, and slamming it against the wall. Wrench's holographic camouflage shimmered and dissipated, leaving him visible. Drillion held his drill weapon level with his face.
"YOU! You're one of Galvanax's warriors, aren't you?" He demanded. "So, sabotage is his game now?"
"No, no! It's not, I promise!" Wrench shrieked as he held up his hands defensively. "I'm just running a few checks, doing some tuning, I promise!"
"You expect me to believe that?" Drillion demanded. Wrench waved his hands frantically.
"I…I'm working for Cosmo! He insists I check over all the equipment of the warriors on his show, make sure that everyone is able to put on the best show possible!" Wrench told him. "Princess Viera refused our help, but he wanted me to make sure her ship was ready in case she called it! The Rangers' Zords are really powerful and he…"
"ENOUGH!" Drillion answered, tossing Wrench onto the floor. He powered up his drill weapon. "Get out! If I see you on this ship again, I'll be sending you back to Cosmo in pieces!"
"That…that weapon, can I see it?" He asked. Drillion just growled.
"If you don't get off this ship right now, you'll get a VERY close look at it!" He warned Wrench.
"But…but I think I can upgrade…"
He was silenced as Drillion started it up. Wrench took to heel and ran before Drillion could carry out his threat. Drillion just went back to his position, standing guard over the cockpit where Princess Viera was working, completely unaware that one of her hosts had been on her ship and in perfect position to sabotage or even assassinate her. If she didn't learn and learn quickly, her time was growing short.
Sarah and Preston arrived at the restaurant, after taking a long walk through the park. It wasn't like they hadn't gone through the park before, but in the early evening, it was a little different. Most of the work crowd using it as a shortcut home were gone, the kids had gone home for dinner and it was the time between when young couples would use it for a little privacy and when the night time crowd came out.
They approached the front of the restaurant, walking arm in arm as they approached. Sarah was still laughing at one of his stories.
"You're kidding right?" She asked him.
"I swear to God, I was in that box for three hours!" Preston told her. "Mom was beside herself when she finally let me out! She told me I wasn't to do tricks like that again unless someone was there to keep an eye on me in case things went wrong."
"That's probably a good idea." She chuckled as he concluded. Preston looked to her a little awkwardly.
"Sarah, I really need to go." He told her.
"Go?" She asked. "We just got here!"
"No, I mean…I need to…go!" He explained, gesturing to a sign. She saw that it was for the bathrooms. "I promise I'll be right back."
"I'll just check in for our tables." Sarah told him.
As Preston left as quickly as dignity would allow, wishing he'd had the foresight to go when he was getting changed in the Thompson House before they left. Sarah approached the desk and put her jacket on the desk. The Greeter just looked to the jacket, and then to her.
"Can I…help you?" He asked, looking to Sarah. She smiled.
"Oh, is this not where I check my jacket?" She asked him. "I have a table booked for tonight."
"Really." He asked, staring her up and down. "I think you might have the wrong place madam."
"No, this is where we're booked." Sarah answered. "Table for two under the name of Tien."
"Tien. As in Marcus Tien?" He asked her. Sarah couldn't mistake the look on his face. She was suddenly very aware of her casual clothing. While she knew it was a fancy place, restaurants tended not to enforce a dress code in the modern era. Most were happy just to get business, and Preston had assured her the Tien name meant a lot in this city, the reason they had a booking in a restaurant that normally was booked out up to two years in advance. "Nice try miss, somehow I don't think you look much like a Tien. I definitely think you're in the wrong place. There is a pizza parlour down the street that I think would suit you better."
"Wait…what's that meant to mean?" She asked him, standing defiantly. The man picked up her jacket and held it out for her.
"Madam, please leave without a fuss." He told her.
"A fuss?" Sarah demanded. "I haven't BEGUN to make a fuss yet!"
"If you don't leave, I will call the police." The greeter told her. "You are clearly in the wrong place, but there's no way I would let you take a booking from…"
"Hey, sorry about that." Preston said as he arrived. "I thought you were getting our table."
"Well I tried, but this guy was going to throw me out!" Sarah snapped angrily.
"Wait, what?" Preston asked. "You were going to throw her out?"
"Sir, this young woman claimed to have a table booked under Tien…"
"We do!" Preston told him, showing him his driver's licence. "Preston Tien!"
"Mr…Mr Tien!" The greeter rushed out nervously, realising his mistake. "I…I'm sorry, I thought…"
"You didn't think you judgemental jackass!" Sarah yelled at him. "You looked at me and how I was dressed and decided I wasn't good enough to eat here!"
"Mr Tien, I'm sorry…"
"Don't apologise to me, apologise to her!" Preston demanded. The greeter started to stammer out an awkward apology, but Sarah just cut her off.
"You know what? Never mind, you clearly don't mean it anyway!" Sarah told him. "Preston, let's go somewhere that wants our business!"
Preston glared angrily at the greeter before they both left. As they got outside, Calvin had to dive quickly behind a car to prevent being seen.
"I'm sorry Sarah, really I am!" Preston told her. "I can't believe…"
"Preston, I know you didn't have anything to do with that." She told him. "Please, let's just go somewhere else."
"Where would you like to go?" He asked her. Sarah almost suggested the Pizza Parlour, but remembering that was where the jerk at the desk recommended, she didn't want to give him the satisfaction. Her eyes came to rest on a poster and she smiled.
"Preston, how about there?" She asked. Preston looked to the poster and smiled.
"The carnival?" He asked her. She just nodded.
"I thought about going, but I knew it was only going to be in town a couple of nights." She told him. "So, what do you say?"
"I say this place can keep their escargot." He told her, waving to the restaurant dismissively. "I'm in the mood for a corn dog and roller coasters."
As they left, Calvin got onto his Ninja-Comm.
"Hayley, how do you feel about corn dogs?" He asked. "It looks like we're going to the carnival."