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Power Rangers GPX Episode 23: Mandla's Finest Hour
:-:-:-:PRGPX:-:-:-:
Mandla looked at his Facebook page. The posts were all old friends from Jo'burg wishing him luck in the U.S. Some of them were black, some of them were Afrikaners. It didn't matter to him. Apartheid was in the past; the future was all that mattered. But looking at his friends going "Howzit brah" made him feel a little homesick. A lot of them were gushing over how much fun they had during the World Cup. The fact Mandla had an American friend seemed to interest them.
But by all accounts, Mandla was not happy. The others didn't treat him so well. Sure, they were nice to him, but when morphed, it was a whole other story. After the last fight against Gargotron, Mandla was especially upset. He'd been tossed around like a sock puppet by the Zordonian kill-bot. It was embarrassing. His Zulu ancestors would be ashamed of him… like he'd care about being a warrior.
But the main problem was how to deal with Gargotron. The robot must have been programmed with their fighting information. He used that knowledge to narrowly beat them. It took a combination of teamwork and luck to beat it. But there was the lingering dread that the machine could come back to finish the job. The fact the suits were already damaged made it worse.
The others already dealt with this. Mandla had not. He wondered if they even had a chance to beat the Zordonians. He wondered if he even belonged with the Rangers.
He let out a sigh and stood up, grabbing his phone. He wanted to get out and clear his mind. The stress of being a Power Ranger could kill him someday if he wasn't careful.
He stepped downstairs and put on some sunscreen. It was best to be sure. As he applied the stuff, Sean just happened to be walking out of the bathroom near the foyer. "Where the hell are you going?" The American asked.
"Ag, I don't know," said Mandla. Sean raised his eyebrow. He still wasn't very familiar with South African slang.
"By the way Ndebele," said Sean. "Are you going to clean up the sink? It's your turn today."
"I'll do it just now," said Mandla.
"Great, I'll get a sponge," said Sean. He walked in the kitchen when Mandla said,
"No, don't you know what 'just now' means?"
"Yeah," said Sean. "It means immediately. Now get in the kitchen."
"Not in South Africa," said Mandla. Sean looked at him like he just spoke Chinese. "I'm not going to do it right now. I'm going out."
South Africa and the United States: two countries separated by a common language.
"Great," said Sean. "This is the same problem I had when I first met Kevin. My moms were laughing at how much I misunderstood him."
"Moms?" Mandla asked.
"Are you going to do the sink or not?" said Sean.
"I will just now," said Mandla.
"If you're not gonna do it, just say 'no'!" said Sean.
"Then 'no'!" said Mandla.
"Much better," said Sean. "When are you going to do it?"
"Just now," said Mandla.
"ARRRGGGHHH! ! !" To be honest, Mandla did that on purpose. "Just do the damn dishes," Sean growled.
"Okay, I'll do it now now," said Mandla.
"That'd better mean immediately," said Sean.
"It does," said Mandla.
Everyone did chores at the Ranger house, no matter how menial. It was part of living in the same house. Everyone chipped in. Even Hitomi, who lived with a maid, butler, etc, had to do the chores. It just so happened today Mandla had to do the dishes. He'd probably have to do the laundry next. He was madder about having to do them on a nice day. It was also because the dishes were hard to do. The food had already caked, making an easy job difficult.
"Next time, rinse your dishes first," Mandla grumbled.
"Sorry about that!" Sean called from the couch. "Why are you wearing a Springboks jersey, anyway? I thought—"
"That's in the past," Mandla said. "Besides, I don't even remember apartheid."
"Oh, right," said Sean. "That's fine."
"I just wish you would respect me as a Ranger more," said Mandla. Unfortunately, Sean heard him.
"You haven't proven yourself yet," Sean said, putting his elbows on the head of the couch. "Sure, you're nicer than Rich Boy and you make an attempt to be our friends, but until you prove yourself worthy to fill his boots as Green Ranger, forget it."
"I think you made that obvious," said Mandla. And that little beat-down by Gargotron didn't help one bit. There was also the homesickness and his anxieties. They're not a good combination.
Mandla eventually finished the dishes (Took long enough). He put the sponge on the edge of the sink and walked away. "Where are you going?" Sean asked.
"I'm going out," said Mandla. "I'm taking the LYNX downtown."
"Take your morpher," said Sean. "It's on the island counter." Mandla looked on the island counter and noticed the AcceleMorpher and AcceleKey. He picked them up and walked out. "One more thing!" Mandla stopped. He sighed in frustration and turned around. "We're supposed to be getting new track jackets. They'll help us keep our secret identities."
"Track jackets?" Mandla asked. "That sounds terrible."
"Well what would you prefer?" Sean asked. "A green-and-black racing suit with the words 'Doki-doki delight' on it?"
"On second thought, I'll take the track jacket," said Mandla.
:-:-:-:We're the Best Chance, For Humanity, Power Rangers G-P-X, Let's Go!:-:-:-:
Kalderon's long-term plans needed short-term help. For that, he needed to act against the Rangers. It was a sad and monotonous job, but it had to be done; send another monster to Earth and see if the Rangers can defeat it. Could there not be a more efficient and interesting way to defeat them?
One way is, as the Terrans put it, "shake things up". He did not have to kill the Rangers; capturing them was an option. His best chance was when they were all separated. And the time was now.
"This robot will be enough to handle all five Rangers," said Eltar. "Once they are captured, we will send down organic soldiers to guard them before the transport."
"That is good," said Kalderon.
"But what if they escape?" Eltar asked. "Have you—"
"That is the reason the robot is going down," Kalderon said, putting his hand on the prince's shoulder. "I have taken the possibility of escape into account. The Rangers are resilient. We must take all possibilities into account."
:-:-:-:PRGPX:-:-:-:
Mandla hopped off the LYNX bus in downtown near the library. He walked away while the bus went in the opposite direction. Mandla put his headphones on and turned on some R&B. He started walking again, listening to some John Legend. It wasn't as bad as it was earlier in the week. The temp was down to 75; but was humid as hell. Johannesburg could be hot, but it was a dry heat. Even Americans understand the preference for dry weather.
Alone in his music, he zoned out. He also thought to himself. After the e-mail promising him a chance to find employment in America, he jumped at the chance. But those dreams were dashed. He never really wanted to be a Power Ranger. He just acted excited about it so no one would figure out he didn't want to be here.
The others were dedicated to the job. He wasn't. He just wanted to get this fight over with so he could go back to Johannesburg.
There were also his previously-mentioned anxieties. He would get nervous before morphing. Once the adrenaline started flowing, that would change.
He sighed. If only things were easier. Why did he have to be a Power Ranger? They should have found someone else, like a Russian or a Pole. If he could, he'd get out of this job as soon as possible.
:-:-:-:PRGPX:-:-:-:
Meanwhile, Sean left the gas station holding a granola bar. He took the wrapper off and turned into an alley, taking a bite as he turned. Suddenly, he felt something grab his wrist. He tried to struggle as a Swabot took hold of him. Grunting, he tried to punch it. But another Swabot had his left hand. Then, he found himself being pushed to the ground and swarmed with Swabots. He struggled as much as he could, but it was no use.
He looked up and glared at a robot walking over to him.
At the same time, Kevin was grabbed from behind as he walked down a street. Maria was knocked unconscious and Hitomi was whisked away without knowing what happened to her.
The Project Ranger command frantically tried to find them. Col. Greene rushed around the Pentagon's PR control room trying to find out what happened. Only one Ranger escaped… because he turned his morpher off.
:-:-:-:PRGPX:-:-:-:
Mandla had wandered into a slightly run-down neighborhood. He wasn't quite worried about it, though. He'd seen the townships; they were much worse than this. This place seemed a little better off. But the looks of some of the people creeped him out a little bit. He tried to ignore them. The area was an African-American neighborhood. He thought they must not have seen a man in a Springboks jer—OOF!
He found himself bumping into someone. His headphones were knocked off and the person he bumped into had fallen to the ground. An older man shook his head across the street before going back to checkers. Mandla got off the person and tried to help them up. He also reached for his headphones, which were playing Bob Marley by now. "I'm terribly sorry," he said as politely as he could.
"Could you be a little more careful next time?" The person asked in a feminine voice. "You nearly—" She stopped when she got a look at him. The green apron she was wearing was a little dusted. Mandla's heart stopped.
She was a beautiful black woman, around his age. Her jet black hair was tied in a ponytail and her skin was slightly lighter than his. Her brown eyes looked at him with interest. "It's safe my girl," he said.
"Excuse me?" She asked. "I don't think I've ever heard that word before."
"I'm terribly sorry," he said again. "I said it was fine."
She paused as she listened to his voice. Then she said, "You're not from around here, are you?"
"No," he said. "I'm from Johannesburg."
"Ah, I see," she said. "Your accent kind of gave you away."
"I said I was sorry," he said.
"It's okay," she said. "I can tell you didn't mean it."
"Can I make it up to you?" He asked.
"No," she said. "I could apologize to you, because I was in your way, sweeping."
"Sweeping?" He asked.
"I work here," she replied. "Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Jasmine Bullock." She extended her hand.
"I'm Mandla Ndebele," he replied, shaking her hand.
"Why don't you come in, we can talk?" Jasmine asked.
"I like that," said Mandla. Jasmine led him inside the store.
The place was a small grocery store. It was a small place, and it looked like it had been that way for a long time. In the back there was a small deli (there was a sign that read deli). It was a nice place. The owner must have looked after it with care. "This is one of the older markets in the neighborhood," Jasmine said as she led him down the store. "The reason it's been able to compete with places like Wal-Mart is because of its competitive prices and because it's so vital to the community."
"That's hundreds," said Mandla. She gave him a look and laughed.
"I'll need to get used to that," she said. "The owner is my uncle Rufus. He's owned the store since the 1970s. He even marched with Martin Luther King in Alabama."
"Hhayibo," said Mandla.
"Uncle Rufus!" Jasmine called out. "We have a visitor I want you to meet!"
"I'm coming!" a voice called from the storeroom. An older gentleman came out of the storeroom. He had a darker skin tone than Jasmine. He also had a graying mustache and hair that peeked out under a red baseball cap. A pair of glasses adorned his face. He smiled and extended his hand. "Well, who might you be?" He asked.
"I'm Mandla Ndebele," he said.
"Where you from?" Rufus asked.
"I'm from Johannesburg—South Africa."
"Ah, isn't that where they just had the World Cup?" Rufus asked.
"Yes," said Mandla.
"I wasn't really into soccer, but after the US went to the final, my wife convinced me to watch," said Rufus. He had warmness to him. "Well, what can I get you?"
"I've never tried turkey before," said Mandla. "I will have a turkey sandwich."
"Ham and cheese," said Jasmine.
A few minutes later…
"You've seen a lion?" Jasmine asked. "In the wild?" Mandla nodded. "Aren't you afraid?"
"I'm not afraid of lions," said Mandla.
"Why not?"
"They are lazy." Jasmine burst into laughter.
"So you don't remember apartheid?" Jasmine asked for confirmation.
"I was a baby when it was abolished," he said.
"Right, sorry," said Jasmine. "Rufus remembers the Civil Rights Movement. If you ask him, he might tell you a few things."
"That sounds good," Mandla said as he took a sip of his Pepsi.
"You know, I can be a good judge of people," she said. Mandla looked at her. "I can tell you're a nice guy, but from the way you hold your Pepsi, you look a little tense and nervous."
Mandla sighed. "I'm kind of nervous," he said. "I don't know if my team can actually count on me."
"How?" she asked.
"I tend to get nervous," he replied. "I don't want to tell anyone but… I'm not sure if I'm the right person for the position."
"You need to believe in yourself," said Jasmine. He looked at her. "You shouldn't care about what others think, you have nothing to prove to them, just yourself. I know your soccer team can win, you just have to believe in yourself and you will win."
Mandla smiled at her. "Thank you," he said.
"Anytime," she replied. "I need to get back to work. Oh, here's my phone number if you want to talk again." She handed a little piece of paper to him. He smiled as he got up to leave.
Just then, he heard his AcceleMorpher beep. He panicked and rushed away to try and make sure no one heard him. "What is it?" He asked.
"Where have you been, Ranger Green?" Col. Greene accosted him. "We have to turn your morpher on manually!"
"I'm sorry," said Mandla. "I just—"
"That's not important right now!" Col. Green interrupted. "The other Rangers have been kidnapped and you need to go save them now!"
Mandla's eyes widened and he took off.
:-:-:-:PRGPX:-:-:-:
Maria glared at the Zordonian soldiers. The Rangers were confined in a force field being prepared for transport to the Zordonian ship. Several soldiers walked around, examining the Rangers. Any attempts to escape had failed.
"Why are you doing the empire's dirty work?" Sean asked a random soldier.
"It is the Swabots who perform most of the fighting," said the soldier. "We are the empire's elite soldiers."
"Yes, but why do you let the Swabots—"
"The Swabots prevent large casualties," said the soldier. "Less mothers have to worry about their son or daughter dying."
"For an unknown cause?" Sean asked. "Why do you try to conquer? Do you really—"
"Our people are proud of our empire," said the soldier. "If you are trying to make us question our mission, you will fail."
"Who do these guys think they are, Vulcans?" Kevin asked.
"Where is Mandla?" Hitomi whispered.
"My guess is they haven't found him," said Sean. "Looks like he's our best chance." Come on, Ndebele, where the hell are you?
Mandla rushed to the warehouses where his teammates were being held. His heart was racing. He'd taken the LYNX bus to this area and jumped off the bus. Using his AcceleMorpher, he tried to find the others with the GPS feature. If his friends at Joburg University knew about this, they'd be pretty surprised.
He frantically searched for the others. The GPS was plagued with interference. He growled. He gave the morpher a tap. He was getting frustrated.
Just then, he saw two men in strange clothes speaking a strange language. He ducked behind some crates. He listened as they talked among each other. They turned around and walked back the way they came. Mandla followed them.
Meanwhile, the Rangers were still waiting to be taken off planet. It was beginning to hit them they lost their fight. They thought of their families and friends. Hitomi started crying in the corner of their little cell. Sean was still trying to figure out a way out of their situation. But he could not come up with anything. Kevin and Maria were giving up hope.
It should not end like this! Maria thought. There must be something we can do. She noticed Sean banging his head on the force field. If he thought it was going to help, forget it.
"Please let us go," Hitomi begged. "We have our own families. What would they think?"
"This is kidnapping," said Kevin. "You go through with this and every military on the planet will be after you."
"Prepare the prisoners for transport," the Zordonian commander said calmly.
"Yes, sir." The Rangers' spirits sank. There was nothing they could do. All they could do was wait to kiss their lives good-bye. Kevin hung his head in his knees. Maria placed her head against the force field. Hitomi cried and Sean put his face against the force field. He was defiant to the end.
Mandla reached the warehouse the team was being held. He looked inside to see them waiting to be taken away. His blood boiled. There was no way he was going to let this happen…
But his anxieties popped up. He wasn't sure if he could do this. What if he failed? What if he died? He sighed. He wished he'd never been a Ranger. This was not his destiny. His destiny was to help the people of the townships…
You need to believe in yourself, Jasmine's words echoed through his mind. He realized something. If he failed, then the people of the townships would be in danger. His friends and family would be in danger. The whole world would be in danger! He had to save his teammates. You just have to believe in yourself and you will win. Fuck anxiety, he needed to act!
He put his hand to his chest and took a deep breath. Then, he stepped inside. "Howzit, brah?" The Zordonians and the Rangers looked at him.
"Ndebele!" Sean shouted. Mandla took out his key. He displayed his morpher.
"GPX, Start it Up!" He jammed the key into the morpher. In a flash of Green light, he was the Green Ranger. "Let's go!"
"Get him!" The Zordonian commander shouted. The Swabots and soldiers rushed Mandla.
Mandla met them halfway and fought back. He blocked a Zordonian soldier's punch. He countered with a punch to the soldier's face. With the others cheering, he tore his way through the soldiers. He did not try to kill them. That was not in his nature. He spun around and kicked one of the soldiers down.
A Swabot grabbed him from behind. He threw the Swabot off. The he punched its head right off. He kicked one of the Zordonian soldiers in the chest. He grabbed a Zordonian soldier's hand and countered with a jab to the face.
"Go Mandla!" Hitomi shouted.
"Kick their fuckin' asses!" Sean shouted.
Mandla jumped on one of the crates to avoid a Swabot. He jumped off and kicked the Swabot in the head. He flipped backwards to avoid a Swabot sword and kicked it in the head. He blocked a Zordonian's punch and countered with a jab to the stomach. He kicked another Zordonian in the chest.
"Ndebele, the console!" Kevin shouted.
Mandla pressed his belt buckle. The Mountain Axe materialized in front of him. He took the axe by the handle. He swung it at a Swabot and smashed it. He kicked the Zordonian soldiers one-by-one to get to the control console. The Zordonian commander drew a crystalline sword. Mandla rushed forward while the Zordonian rushed him. Mandla swung the axe and smashed the sword. Then, he elbowed the Zordonian in the face. The Rangers cheered.
He turned his attention to the console. He lifted the axe and swung downward. The machine was smashed and burst. The others watched as the force field de-materialized. "ZU-LU! ! !" Mandla shouted, for no real reason other than the face he felt like it.
"ZU-LU! ! !" Sean replied.
"Nice, let's get out of—where did they come from?" Kevin was interrupted when a force of Florida National Guardsmen rushed into the warehouse. The Zordonian soldiers, who had been disarmed by Mandla, put their hands up to surrender.
"Take them away," said the captain. The Guardsmen cuffed the Zordonians and took them away. The first Zordonian POWs. The captain then turned to Mandla and saluted him. "Col. Greene told us to follow you. He must have had good reason."
"I guess so," said Mandla. The captain walked away as the Zordonian prisoners were taken away.
Then the Rangers heard their mophers beep. "Rangers, there's a Zordonian robot attacking downtown," said Col. Greene, "Get downtown ASAP!"
"You got it," said Sean. "Let's go!" The Rangers rushed out, Mandla bringing up the rear. They pulled out their keys. "Ready!" He shouted.
"Ready!" Kevin, Maria and Hitomi shouted.
"GPX, Start it Up!" In a multi-colored flash, they were transformed into the Red, Blue, Yellow and Pink Rangers.
"Indys!" Sean shouted. Five Indy Cars popped up and the Rangers jumped inside. The revved them up and sped downtown.
:-:-:-:PRGPX:-:-:-:
The Indys skidded to a stop and the Rangers hopped out. The Zordonian robot (which had been shooting up the place) turned around to see them coming. "How did you escape?" said the robot, which looked like the NFL on Fox robot.
"You forgot one!" said Sean. "Our Green Ranger!"
"What! ?" The robot shouted. "How—you—What happened?"
"I must have turned off my morpher," said Mandla. "Now let's go!"
"Let's get 'im!" Sean shouted. The Rangers pressed their belt buckles and their weapons materialized in front of them. "Let's go!" The Rangers spread out and surrounded the robot.
Kevin got things started with a couple of shots. Sparks flew and the robot was knocked off balance. Hitomi went next, leaping over the robot. She slashed it with her naginata-like Am Staff. The robot stumbled backwards again. Maria kept the robot on its heels. She thrust her Haz Daggers in the robot's face. It came to Mandla, who took a big chop of the Mountain Axe and embedded it in the robot's back. That left it to Sean. He took a big cut with the GT Sword and knocked the robot on its back.
The robot—known as Gradius—fought back. Its physical size made it tough to actually destroy quickly. It was also strong enough to knock the other Rangers around… except Mandla.
Fighting with renewed confidence, Mandla blocked each attack from Gradius. The Mountain Axe was perfect for this kind of fight. The other Rangers watched in amazement. Sean, however, was not amazed. He was impressed. Mandla fought with intensity. Gradius was surprised by his spirit. And it wasn't long before the others joined in.
"Am Stab!" Hitomi shouted, thrusting the Am Staff at Gradius. Maria came back and stabbed Gradius in the leg. Mandla rushed back in and took a massive swing at Gradius. Gradius drew a sword to defend himself. But Mandla smashed the sword to pieces.
Gradius countered with the big guns. It shot up the Rangers, forcing them to scatter. Sean rushed up and punched Gradius.
"OW, FUCK! ! !" Unfortunately, it hurt. "AH, DAMMIT! ! !"
"HAHAHA!" Gradius laughed. "I'm made of harder stuff than Swabots!"
"Gah, FUCK this hurts!" Sean wailed.
"Ranger Red, other than the obvious fact your hand hurts," said Col. Greene. "You have no broken bones in either your hand or arm. Now get back to work!"
"How are we going to finish this doff off?" Mandla asked. "We lost the Nitro Cannon."
"Maybe if we used the AcceleKeys," said Maria. She took her key out and found a key slot in the Haz Dagger. "Here we go." She gave the key a turn. The dagger's blade energized.
"Okay, that will work," said Sean. He turned his key and the GT Sword's blade energized, too. The others followed suit. "Alright," he said. "Grand Prix Final Strike! Let's do this!"
Sean rushed forward, the wheels on his boots spinning. "GT Strike!" He slashed Gradius.
"Turbo Shot!" Kevin fired a couple of shots.
"Lightning Throw!"
"Am Stab!"
"Tornado Spin!" Mandla finished it off.
The Rangers posed in victory as Gradius overloaded and exploded. The people of Orlando cheered for the Rangers. Underneath his helmet Mandla had a massive smile on his face.
:-:-:-:PRGPX:-:-:-:
Why have all of my plans failed? Kalderon thought while tapping his head against a wall. Blasted Rangers. Now I have to talk to the soldiers' families. This is a nightmare.
"When you are done hurting your head," said Eltar. "Emperor Rashon wants to speak with you."
"Tell him I will be along," said Kalderon. Eltar turned around and left Kalderon to bang his head on the wall. Frustration hurts.
He was interrupted when a flurry of cherry blossoms appeared. Kalderon did not even try to look. "Leave me alone Tirna," he said.
"Why?" Tirna asked. "You looked so disappointed there? Can I not try to console you?"
"Knowing you it would just make things worse," said Kalderon.
"Oh, that's right," said Tirna.
"I have an audience with the Emperor soon," said Kalderon. "Could you not leave me alone?"
"What is the meaning of this?" Zentor asked when he arrived. "Have you been insulting my apprentice?"
"Tell your apprentice to stay out of others' misery," said Kalderon. Zentor understood Kalderon's frustration and led Tirna away. When will my other plan start to wield results?
:-:-:-:PRGPX:-:-:-:
Mandla had never been greeted like this. He'd never had anyone giving him a massive group hug like this. But, he felt he actually liked it. For once, they were showing love and not disdain. He never really wanted to be a part of this group, but he felt like he could actually fit in now. His old friends would be surprised to see a scene like this.
"Ndebele that was great!" said Kevin. "You were a badarse out there!"
"I didn't think you had it in you," said Maria. "Not bad for a pacifist!"
"Thank you," said Hitomi. "I knew you could do it!"
"Looks like I underestimated you," said Sean. "I guess I can't call you 'newbie' anymore."
"You'd better not," said Mandla. The others laughed.
"Well, I'm not too crazy about calling you Mandla, either," said Sean. "Nothing personal, really."
"I understand," said Mandla. "What are you suggesting?"
"We either call you by a nickname," said Kevin.
"Or we use your nickname," said Maria. "Like Manny."
"Sounds like Manny Ramirez," said Sean. "You got a middle name?"
"Yes, I do," said Mandla. "It's Aaron."
"Aaron it is!" said Sean. Mandla/Aaron shrugged. "Just wait till Rich Boy g—speak of the devil!"
Daisuke, the previous Green Ranger just happened to walk in as the Rangers were giving Mandla/Aaron a noogie. It was a slightly awkward scene as he looked at the scene. "Am I missing anything?" he asked.
"Yeah," said Sean. Mandla—I mean, Aaron—is on his way to replacing you. Daisuke raised his eyebrow in interest.
"Brother, it was amazing!" said Hitomi. "The Zordonians captured us, but Mandla stepped in and said, 'howzit brah' and kicked their butts!"
"Did you get any of that?" Kevin asked Maria. Maria shook her head.
"I think she just said I was fantastic," said Mandla/Aaron.
"Probably," said Sean. "But yeah Rich Boy, this brah just saved our asses. I highly doubt you would have done the same."
"You still do not like me," Daisuke concluded.
"Nope," said Sean.
"Could you not make this about me?" Mandla/Aaron asked.
"I commend you on your rescue of the others," Daisuke said, giving him a light bow. "I wish you luck in your coming mission."
"Thanks," said Mandla/Aaron. "I guess."
:-:-:-:PRGPX:-:-:-:
End chapter