Glavanax appeared back on the ship, holding aloft his vase full of Power Stars triumphantly. Sarah, Preston, Hayley, Levi and Calvin were struggling in the grip of a number of kudabots, while yet more rushed onto the stage carrying restraints. They fought to get free, but were quickly overwhelmed by their captors as Cosmo came into view, carrying Galvanax's championship belt over his shoulder.
"Wowee folks, did you all see that?" Cosmo declared loudly. "Once again, our champion DOMINATES the field, crushing ALL before him! Behold, five out of the six Power Rangers!"
The team were dragged forward in chains, being presented to the audience like trophies. They were all forced to their knees, and their heads yanked backwards hard to expose their faces to the hard camera.
"Is it weird that the first thought I had was I'm really glad this show isn't broadcast where I come from?" Hayley asked.
"So, Champ, what do you have to say about your challengers now that you have them here?" Cosmo asked him.
"What can I say? What can I ever say? There is NOTHING in this universe that can stand up to me!" Galvanax said gruffly. "All those other monsters may have fallen, but once I stepped into the arena, there was only ever going to be one conclusion!"
"Brody's still out there!" Levi shot out as he struggled to break free of the grip of his guards.
"Don't think I've forgotten about him." Galvanax told them. "The only reason you're still alive is because I don't believe in leaving a job half-done. Once I have all of you in one place…"
He levelled his naginata under Levi's chin, the blade cutting into the flesh. Levi didn't flinch as blood started to slowly trickle down his neck.
"I'll give the audience the show they all came for, and I'll have six new drinking goblets." He told them.
"Why do I get the feeling he's not talking about going to a souvenir shop for commemorative mugs?" Preston gulped.
"So, all season you've been trying to get the Ninja Steel. Now you have it, what do you plan to do with it?" Cosmo asked. Galvanax just looked to them.
"I shall melt them down, consume them and imbue myself with the legendary power of the Ninja Steel!" He stated. All of the Rangers just suddenly looked between each other in confusion.
"Did I just hear that right?" Hayley asked. "He said he intends to DRINK molten Ninja Steel?"
"Will that even work?" Calvin asked. "I mean, I don't claim to be an expert, but last time I checked drinking molten metal was not considered particularly good for the health."
"I've heard of getting some more iron in your diet but…"
"Seriously Preston?" Levi cut off the Blue Ranger. They all looked to Sarah. The Pink Ranger understood that she was considered 'the smart one' on the team, and often they looked to her for answers when weird things happened. Between her scientific mind and her previous experience as a technical advisor to the Amber Beach team, she did have answers a lot of the time, but unfortunately, she didn't exactly have encyclopaedic knowledge of literally everything in the universe. Alien anatomy was one of those areas she was still largely ignorant in.
"Well, Ninja Steel does greatly increase the strength and power of anything it's made out of, and I've always theorised that incorporating it into an alloy would have similar effects, like adding titanium to steel. As for its effects on Galvanax…well…without knowing his anatomical makeup…I guess it's POSSIBLE…you know, if drinking metal heated to several thousand Kelvin doesn't kill him."
"Personally, I'm kind of hoping for the latter." Levi responded. Cosmo swiped him across the face with his cane.
"HEY! No talking on the set!" He demanded. "Guests speak only when spoken to on my show!"
"GUESTS?" Sarah demanded. "You have a really strange idea of what constitutes a guest!"
"You know, if you hit me with that stick again, I'm going to stick it straight up your ass when I get out of this!" Levi told Cosmo. The flamboyant host just laughed.
"Take them away!" Cosmo told the Kudabots, who pulled the Rangers to their feet and started to drag them away. Cosmo looked to Galvanax. "So, shall we prepare your little health shake Champ?"
"Not so fast." Galvanax stated, before pulling out the five coloured Ninja Stars. "For my souvenir collection."
With that, he picked up the vase and channelled some power into it, melting down the Ninja Steel in moments. He then held it high in the air.
"Here's to the END OF THE POWER RANGERS!" He roared, before throwing it back, guzzling the steel as the audience cheered.
In the Champion's chambers, Odious was watching the screen and smiled wickedly. Victor and Monty just stared open-mouthed.
"THOSE GUYS are the Rangers?" Victor gasped.
"All those times they disappeared…the weird things that kept happening around the Shop Class…that's where the base is isn't it?" Monty asked. Viera just looked a little uncomfortable.
"This…wasn't exactly what I was hoping for when I hoped they'd come for us." Viera admitted.
"Oh champ, you are nothing if not predictable." Odious stated, before looking to Victor, Monty and Viera.
"He's infusing himself with the Ninja Steel." Monty stated. "You knew that was what he was planning."
"Yes, the champ never was particularly imaginative." She sighed. "He was also far too quick to tell people what he intended to do. I always found it better to keep one or two surprises."
"But then why are we building this Mega Mag to attract Ninja Steel?" Victor asked. "He already has…"
He suddenly paused as he started to catch up.
"If you turn on the Mega Mag while he's infused with Ninja Steel…"
"It'll tear him apart." Viera stated. "You're planning on destroying him!"
"I'm planning on taking the power for myself!" She corrected them. "If in the process it destroys Galvanax in the process, I won't lose too much sleep over it."
"Wow, that is some kind of management style." Victor said sarcastically. "At least all those guys he fought in the arena were honest about their intentions."
"Just get back to work!" She responded. "I want this thing finished as soon as possible!"
With that, she left the room. As she left, the Rangers were being dragged past the door to the Champion's chambers to some holding cells.
"Let go of us you tin-plated creeps!" Sarah yelled. Victor, Monty and Viera all ran to the door in time to see them being thrown into a cell.
"Alright, we know where they are now." Victor stated. "Monty, is the device nearly ready?"
"Yeah." Monty replied.
"Then it's time to put our plan into action." Victor said with a grin.
Back on Earth, Trevor woke up, finding the other side of his bed empty. He looked around and saw the radio alarm clock, seeing that it was now coming close to midday, and a note in his wife's handwriting. He picked up the note, reading it.
"I called into the precinct to tell them you weren't coming in today just like I promised. I told them it was food poisoning, so if anyone calls to ask just tell them you had a dodgy prawn curry." The note said. Trevor smiled a little. It wasn't her preferred way of dealing with things, but she always respected the fact that Trevor didn't like people knowing too much about his personal business. "You were still sound asleep when it was time for us to go, so I didn't want to disturb you. There are some of those crumpets you like in the cupboard. Don't hesitate to call the office if you need anything. Laura."
Trevor got up, and after a quick shower just pulled on some sweats and a t-shirt. Heading down to the kitchen, he looked out the crumpets that Laura had told him about.
He could feel something stirring inside him as he put the crumpets into the microwave to heat through. He was about to turn on the TV when a thought occurred to him. He had now slept for several hours even after his attack. He hadn't gotten any calls, he hadn't lost control, he had just…rested. Maybe that was all he needed after all. Maybe all he needed to get things under control was just a little time without any drama.
He put the controller down and instead looked for something else to do. He found a book, one that looked like one of Hayley's school books.
"Alice's Adventures in Wonderland." He stated as he pulled the crumpets out of the microwave. "I…guess I've always been curious since I saw the Disney version."
With that, he went to the couch and flopped down, placing the plate on the coffee table as he started to read.
Over at the Romero Farm, Mick and Brody pulled into the yard. Brody hadn't actually been back here since 'Aiden' had shown up and he was intending to move back into the farm and fix it up as a home for them. When Levi had shown up and they had discovered his true identity, the idea of coming back had been floated, but it had never been seriously considered. Levi and Tom already had the Weston family farm back in Texas, and Levi had a pretty nice place in the city now so there hadn't really been any kind of realistic progression towards that end. The farm was quite overgrown and it was still pretty obvious no one actually lived there, but there were a few signs of the work that Brody and 'Aiden' had done to bring it back to its former state.
Brody couldn't think where else to go when they were forced to flee from the school. Abandoning the truck, they went straight into the workshop. Their first priority had been to get somewhere safe to regroup. To get a moment to breathe and gather their thoughts. Unfortunately, right now the only thought Brody could come up with was anger. His friends were gone, his weapons had been taken and now, he had been reduced to running and hiding. He started pacing intently.
"This isn't right Mick!" Brody told him. "We shouldn't be running, we should turn around and fight!"
"Brody, you're a ninja…"
"A self-taught ninja." Brody interrupted him.
"You ARE a ninja!" Mick reiterated. "But even not being a ninja, I know that staying and fighting wouldn't have accomplished anything."
"Mick, we need to go back and get the others…"
"Brody, he'll have taken them to the Warrior Dome." Mick stated as he tried to reason with the Red Ranger. "I…I just got a text from Jennifer. She's making sure that the stuff in the lab wouldn't be found, and she saw the end of the battle. Galvanax teleported away and he took the others with him."
"Then we go to the Warrior Dome." Brody stated.
"How? In the truck?" Mick asked him. "Calvin's good but last time I checked he didn't turn your truck into a space ship! We can't get on and they can't get off."
Brody leant on the workbench and glared at Mick.
"So, what do you suggest?" Brody asked him.
"Alright, what is it you always said about ninjas?" Mick tried to remind him. "They were used to being on an uphill fight. The feudal lords they targeted had armies, they had weapons, they had money, they had power, the ninjas still took them down. There is nothing more dangerous than a ninja when it looks like they don't have a hope."
"Right. That's what dad always said." Brody said, starting to pace again. "OK, first thing's first. We need to take stock, instead of lamenting what we don't have, figure out what we do have."
"OK, well we have you…we have me…and we have one Power Star." Mick told him. Brody pulled out his Power Star and stared at it.
"It's not a lot is it?" He asked.
"Practically nothing." Mick agreed. "Yeah, I wouldn't mind a little more."
Just then, Brody's Ninja-Comm activated. They both looked to each other, wondering who could be calling them. Brody answered.
"Redbot?" He asked. "You're safe!"
"Yes, I managed to relocate with the equipment from the lab to another area of the school." Redbot told them. "Jennifer gave me the keys to somewhere she calls the boiler room. She said hardly anyone ever comes down here, so it was a good choice to bring our equipment before the authorities arrived. You got out of there just in time. Some very unfriendly looking cops showed up about five minutes after you left."
"I kept them at bay as long as I could." Principal Hastings said, squeezing into view on the screen. "Redbot managed to get everything down to the boiler room while I was going over the finer points of what they could and couldn't view without a warrant."
"You blocked the cops?" Brody asked her. She just shrugged.
"Even students have rights." She told him.
"We've found something on the scans." Redbot told Mick. "The asteroid is within range now. If we can just reach it, we might be able to get our hands on Super Ninja Steel."
"Unfortunately, Galvanax has our Astro Zord star." Mick said, trying to think of a solution to the issue. "Is it on a path to Earth?"
"It'll miss the Earth by thousands of miles." Redbot replied. "We would need to bring it here or go to it."
"Then we need a space ship." Mick thought aloud. "Where can we get a space ship on short notice?"
"We have a space ship, we just have no way of accessing it." Brody responded. "Unless…unless we do!"
"What are you thinking?" Mick asked as he saw the look on Brody's face as he started searching the workshop.
"Dad made himself a katana out of Ninja Steel, right?" Brody asked him.
"Yeah, he did." Mick answered. "But we melted that down to make the Ultrazord Star."
"But we just assumed that's ALL he made out of Ninja Steel." Brody told him. "He was working with it right? So, he needed tools, and what better to work Ninja Steel…"
"Than tools made out of Ninja Steel!" Mick concluded as he began to help Brody search. They both knew it was a desperate hope, but right now they were willing to try just about anything. After turning out virtually every toolbox, cabinet and drawer they could find though, hope seemed to be fading fast. Brody picked up a toolbox, throwing it against the wall in frustration.
"Damn it!" He called out. "That's it, we're done Mick, we're DONE!"
"We're not done!" Mick stated.
"We are Mick, we need that Super Ninja Steel!" Brody stated. "But without the Astro Zord Star…"
"There…is…one last source…of Ninja Steel." Mick suggested. "But it is literally the biggest gamble."
"What are you talking about Mick?" Brody asked. "The only Ninja Steel we have left is…"
Mick just nodded. Brody pulled out his Power Star.
"You want me to…?" Brody asked. "Mick, if we do that, we are literally giving up the last weapon we have left."
"Like I said, it's a gamble." Mick told him. "Whatever play you want to make, I'll back you all the way."
Brody just stared at his Power Star. It was literally an all-or-nothing gamble. They would need to get it to the Nexus Prism, but if they melted down the Power Star, they would not have any access to Brody's ninja powers. They could use the Astro Zord to get the Super Ninja Steel, but if they failed, if they were stopped from getting there or if they were unable to catch it before it was out of range then they were all but defenceless.
Just then, they heard a loud crash outside. Brody stood bolt-upright. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.
"What is it Brody?" Mick asked him.
"Mick, if you want to run, I won't hold it against you." Brody told him.
"Run?" Mick asked him. Brody went to the door and stepped outside, where he found Galvanax standing, waiting for him. He was wearing his championship belt.
"Red Ranger! How fitting that we find ourselves back here!" Galvanax greeted him. "It almost seems fitting that this is where it would end."
"This is where you took everything from me!" Brody yelled at him. "How DARE you come here!"
"I am the all powerful Galvanax!" He said, as though this was explanation enough. He took of his belt, holding it up. "THIS is all that matters!"
"Brody, look!" Mick told him, pointing to the belt. Brody could see the other five Power Stars attached to the side plates. Brody gripped his Power Star tightly in one hand as his morpher appeared in the other.
"Then you've made your second mistake Galvanax." Brody growled as he tensed up. "Your first was coming here! NINJA SPIN!"
Galvanax tossed the Championship Belt aside, twirling his naginata and sinking down into a guard.
"For a moment I thought you would run again." Galvanax said, sounding impressed.
"I've been running long enough!" Brody yelled as they sprinted towards each other.
Up on the Warrior Dome, the rest of the team were in their cell.
"I can't believe we're just sitting here." Levi stated.
"It's not like we have much of a choice." Sarah told him. "They attached our shackles to the floor!"
"You know what I mean!" Levi replied. "I believe in Brody, but I just feel like we should be helping!"
"We can't do much from in here though can we?" Preston said with a smile. "Fortunately, that's not going to be a problem much…"
With that, they all pulled their hands in front of themselves.
"…longer." Preston stated.
"How did you…?"
"I've read literally everything Houdini has ever written." Preston interrupted Hayley. "How did you…?"
"I got one of my hair pins." She told him, beginning to work on her ankle shackles. "I picked the lock. Calvin?"
"Slightly less refined, I've always had big wrists and small hands." He told them, showing them his hands as Hayley passed him the hair pin. "I just scratched to get a little blood going as a lubricant and slipped right out."
"I dislocated my thumb." Sarah told them, clicking it back into place. "Brody dislocated it in training a few months back and now I can pretty much do it whenever I want."
"I always have a guitar pick." Levi stated, handing it to Sarah. "I picked the lock."
"Well aren't we all clever!" Calvin said with a smirk as they all finally freed themselves from their shackles. "OK, that's one problem down, now how do we get out of here?"
"Alright, no disrespect to Houdini Presto, but I think this might be more my area of expertise." Sarah replied as she started to inspect the electronic keypad. "This might take a while."