Most of the Rangers were assembled in the entrance lobby of the Shiba House as they waited for the cab to take them to the airport. They all turned as Emily dragged a couple of huge cases into the lobby.
"Uh...Em, we're not planning to be there for long." Mike told her.
"Well...I wasn't planning on being here long either." She told him, looking a little sheepish. "My dad was a scout leader. I guess because he had two girls, he kind of needed to do some guy stuff. He really believes in the whole 'be prepared' thing."
"They limit luggage nowadays." Mia confirmed. "They won't let you take all that on."
"I just wanted to..."
She shied away a little and blushed.
"You really think I overdid it." She replied.
"So...I'm taking care of the city while you're all away?" Antonio asked.
"We know we cannot leave the city unguarded." Mentor Ji replied. "You are the only one that can form a megazord without help."
"So...I'm the whole Ranger team in one?" He teased as he nudged Jayden. "excellente!"
"Emily...they will not allow you on with all that luggage." Mentor Ji said, ignoring Antonio's comment. Emily just sighed and slid one of her cases back into the girls' room.
"Don't blame me when I get all flaky and sickly." She muttered to Mike. "I have serious problems with the sun."
"I guess someone will have to comfort you." He said as he held her. "Keep you feeling good and..."
"When's the cab coming?" Emily blurted out. "I really want to get this done."
In Jayden's room, Antonio was just closing his case. Jayden coughed to alert him to his presence.
"I'm old enough to pack for myself." He stated.
"Not according to what I've seen." Antonio chuckled. "One pair of boxers, one pair of socks...no sun cream?"
"I guess I haven't done much travelling." Jayden conceded.
"I can't believe you get to go to Japan." Antonio replied. "I mean, the fish guy doesn't get to go to one of the best fishing spots on the planet?"
"To be fair I doubt we'll have time to do any fishing." Jayden answered him as he locked up his case and set it upright on its wheels. "Hopefully we won't be gone more than a few days."
"Well, I'm sure I'll be able to amuse myself while you're all gone." Antonio assured him.
"That's kind of what I'm afraid of." Jayden laughed as he hugged his childhood friend, before taking the handle of his case. "I'll see you when I get back."
"Take care." Antonio told him as the Red Ranger left the room. He sat on the edge of his bed, and breathed a sigh as he stared at his morpher. He had only been on the team a couple of weeks, and it taken him a while to be accepted as one of them. Now, he was in the position they had no choice but to trust him to take care of the entire city by himself. It was a huge task, but he was determined to ensure that their faith in him would not be misplaced.
Meanwhile, on the opposite end of her journey, Serena was waiting by a baggage carousel for her bag, thankful that her long and uncomfortable flight was now over. She knew that Hayley and Mentor Ji would have arranged for a room for her in the city, and she was hopeful for some much-needed rest. As she saw her bag coming, she picked it up, throwing it over her shoulder and made her way towards the gate.
As she got to the other side, she saw something curious. There was a man standing, holding a sign with her name on it. He was wearing a dark blue suit. She came over to him, inspecting him thoughtfully.
"Serena?" He asked her. "A mutual friend sent me to pick you up."
"Well that solves one problem at least." She answered as he reached for her bag. "I'll hold onto this if you don't mind."
She followed the man as he took her through the airport, heading towards one of the parking lots, but seemed a little curious as he turned and seemed to walk away in a different direction.
"Isn't your car...?"
"I don't use airport parking." He replied. "There's another lot a little way from here. I don't get charged there."
Serena thought this was a little odd, but continued to follow him. She reached to her forearm, satisfying herself that the hidden blade was still there.
"So, where's Sensei Watanabe booked me into?" She asked the driver.
"It's a very nice place." He assured her as he turned, heading down an alleyway. "It has a great view of The Vatican..."
She threw her bag into him, knocking him to the ground. As the man turned to face her, she had extracted the blade.
"Sensei Watanabe wasn't the one who sent me." She warned him. "Now, who are you?"
With that, the driver turned into a Mooger. Before she knew what was happening, almost a dozen of them had seeped out of gaps all around her and surrounded her.
"Good call on this weapon Ji." She muttered as she prepared to defend herself.
Meanwhile, the other Rangers had just boarded the plane with the other passengers, and were just in the process of finding their seats. Emily found herself in a window seat, with Mike just next to her. Mia was on the other side of the aisle with Kevin, while Jayden was nearer the back of the cabin, just putting his hand luggage into the overhead locker.
"Wow, this is all so amazing!" Mia commented as she looked around. "This is my first time on a plane, I can't wait till we take off!"
"It's not that big a deal." Mike replied, settling into his seat and looking out some headphones to check out the music selection on the armrest radio. "It's kind of like a big bus."
"A really big bus." Emily commented. "How much do you think this weighs?"
"I don't know, a few tons maybe." Kevin said with a shrug.
"Aren't there a few too many people in here?" She asked, beginning to look around the cabin as it started to fill up. "Um...I mean...the plane's big and everything, but we don't want it to get too heavy."
"Just try to relax Emily." Mia told her. "It's fine. There are thousands of flights every single day. There are hardly ever any accidents, heck it's safer than walking!"
"Bungee jumping without a rope would be safer than Emily walking." Kevin said with a little smirk. Mia just hit him across the chest to chastise him. Mike took her hand and held it tightly.
"Don't worry, it'll be fine." He assured her.
"I guess I'd just feel a little more comfortable closer to my element." Emily answered, flicking a thumb in Mia's direction as she saw the Pink Ranger getting comfortable for her journey. "I mean, sky is her element, of course she's fine."
"Well do you see any trees in here?" Mike chuckled. "And the nearest water's going to be about 15,000 feet below us in half an hour..."
"15,000 feet?" She shrieked.
"Just look at Jayden." Mike told her, pointing to where the Red Ranger was getting out a packet of sweets, taking one and sucking it as he got ready for take-off. "You don't see him panicking do you?"
"But he's near his element too." She reminded him. "The engines burn Kerosene, and...Oh my God, they burn Kerosene! Kerosene explodes!" She yelled, beginning to really panic.
"It's not going to explode!" He told her. He got an idea as he thought about her situation. "Would you prefer a seat away from the window?"
"Um...I'm not sure." Emily replied. "I have heard the window seat's good for..."
"Excuse me, but I couldn't help overhearing." One of the stewardesses said as she came over, kneeling next to them. She looked over to Emily. "Would you like something to help you relax?"
Emily just nodded frantically, at which the stewardess went to get her something. Mike put an arm around her, holding her.
"Emily, there are millions of flights every year. How many of them do you think anything ever happens on?" He asked her. "Seriously, just try to calm down. Maybe you can get some sleep during the flight."
"I doubt there's any danger of that happening." She muttered as she took her pillow and hugged it. "Now, didn't that stewardess say something about drugs to calm me down?"
In another part of the cabin though, Jayden was having a somewhat different experience. He was almost ready to sleep already. Although he hadn't done much travelling, his training meant that he was generally able to remain calm in most situations. He rested back in his seat, listening to music from the headset, some generic pop song that was hardly his taste, with his eyes closed, resting. He found himself blinking as something struck him, and he looked down, seeing it was a Red Samurai Ranger beanie baby. He looked to the seat in front of him, seeing a young boy looking over the back of the chair, his eyes locked on the toy. Jayden just smiled.
"Is this yours?" He asked. The little boy nodded nervously. Jayden just smiled at him and handed it over. "Is the Red Ranger your favourite?"
"Lucas, don't bother the nice young man." His mother chastised the little boy. "I'm sorry, I keep telling him to be more careful with his toys."
"It's quite alright." Jayden assured her. "So, is the Red Ranger your favourite?"
The little boy nodded gently. Jayden held up the bag of sweets, showing them to the boy's mother. "Is it alright if he...?"
"What do you say to the nice man?" The mother asked. Lucas took a sweet.
"Thank you." Lucas answered as he took it.
"You know, it's my first time on a plane." Jayden told him. "How about you?"
"It is." His mother confirmed.
"I guess this is all new to you too then." Jayden answered, looking to the boy. "Don't worry, I'm sure the Red Ranger won't let anything happen to you."
The little boy turned and settled into his seat as the stewardesses came to give the safety talk. The young woman turned to face Jayden.
"You really have a way with kids." She told him. "Luke was nervous all day about this."
"We're all nervous the first time we do something." Jayden assured her. "I'm just glad I could help."
Back in Italy, Serena fought with the Moogers, smashing into them violently, sending another of them tumbling back to the ground. Eventually, it seemed like they had all they could take and disappeared almost as quickly as they had arrived. She immediately looked out her earwig and put it in, activating it.
"Alright Hayley, I just got attacked by Moogers." She told her. "It looks like my little trip's no longer a secret."
"That'll make things more difficult." Hayley responded. "Are you alright?"
"Hey, whoever came up with that hidden blade is definitely on my Christmas card list." Serena assured her as she gathered up her belongings. "So where to now?"
"Serena?" A man asked as he came into view. He was wearing a suit, but it looked a little messed up. "Are you alright? I just got jumped by Moogers..."
"Join the club." She said as she approached him. "So you'll forgive me if I'm a little sceptical and would like some confirmation."
"My name's Vincenzo Di Cazzo." He told her. "I have a password. What was it, um...oh right. Tell Hayley that I chose the lead casket."
"That's him alright." Hayley told Serena. "He'll take you to your hotel. I'll contact you with your briefing when you're there."
"Can I take your bags?" Vincenzo asked her. Serena just grabbed her bags and pointed up the street.
"Just...get the car." She snapped. "I have the worst case of jet lag."
Back on the other plane, the Rangers were just settling in for their flight. Emily was having a look out the window, longing to have her feet on the ground as it started to taxi onto the runway.
"Isn't that tablet meant to be working by now?" She asked him. "Why isn't it working?"
"Emily, would you just relax?" Mike chuckled. "Seriously, it's fine. See, that's the sound of the engines speeding up."
She felt the plane start to rumble forward a little faster. He felt her grip on his hand tighten.
"See, now you can feel it getting up to speed..."
"Um...what's happening to the wings?" She asked him. "Are they moving?"
"Yeah, they do that a little." Mike assured her. "It's something to do with the design, they flex while in flight so they don't snap off."
"They could snap off?" She shrieked as her grip tightened even further. Mike started to wince in pain.
"Emily, my hand!" He complained.
"Oh God, this is no good, this is so not good!" She started to ramble. Just then, the path got a little smoother. "What just happened?"
"That would be us taking off." Mike grunted out. "Emily, seriously, my hand!"
Emily looked out the window, watching her beloved Earth moving further and further away as the plane took flight, apparently oblivious to Mike's pained screams as she crushed his hand in a panicked grip.