A/N: OK folks, I know Thanksgiving has been and gone, but again my writing is going out of time scale a little. Just wanted to get that out of the way before I got any queries about why I'm still talking about it in DECEMBER LOL! Hope you enjoy it.
Troy, Jake, Noah, Gia and Emma arrived at the Brainfreeze soon after their battle. Fortunately, the warehouse district wasn't too far from the mall, so they wouldn't keep Quinn and Allison waiting too long. As they arrived, they found the two girls sitting in the corner, talking, and watching some kind of video on Allison's laptop, taking advantage of the free Wi-Fi in the Brainfreeze while they waited for them to return.
"Noah!" Quinn called out, waving him over. Noah made his way over, sitting down gingerly. He was used to pain by now, used to trying to walk and move normally when just about everything ached, but even they had their limits. The battle with Rotox had been brutal, and even with their suits, they were all pretty banged up. "What...what happened?"
"Um..." Noah said, trying to think of an explanation. It was already too late for the Rangers to try and pretend they didn't have a new set of fresh injuries. As Troy sat down, they saw he had a bad scrape across his left cheek, something he couldn't claim he got from soccer, even with Jordan's rather harsh tutorial in how to play "the Stone Canyon" way. It was something they would have noticed before.
"You said you were going to pick up a delivery." Allison recalled. "Was it in the warehouse district?"
Jake looked to the TV, seeing the news was running the 24 hour feed as usual. Catching a glimpse of Allison's laptop, he could see it was a paused video image of the Ranger battle. For once, he was glad for all the media coverage.
"Uh...yeah, that's right, we were...uh..."
"We were going to pick up some old pallets to reclaim timber for the Thanksgiving float." Noah rushed out. He winced as Emma kicked him under the table. He'd already talked her and Jake into needing to prepare something for Thanksgiving with his startling inability to think of lies. Now, he had talked them into needing to build a float!
"Yeah, you know what I'm like when it comes to recycling." Emma added. "Trust me to go when some robot attacks."
"You saw the robot?" Quinn shrieked, grabbing Noah's arm and pulling him in closely. Troy just looked to her as Ernie came to the table.
"We were caught up in the stampede." Troy explained. "You wouldn't know it to watch them work, but when they're leaving, factory workers can move surprisingly quickly."
"Would...would you like a first aid kit?" Ernie asked, seeing the Rangers. Gia just smiled. Ernie knew who they were, and always found subtle ways to help when he could.
"That would be great, thanks Ernie." She replied as she looked to him. "A round of smoothies would be great too."
"Well, I think I can manage that." He assured them.
"They were caught up in that battle at the warehouse district." Quinn told him. "They were going to pick up some packing pallets to reclaim wood for a Thanksgiving float."
"Oh...well...I guess you didn't get them." Ernie said, knowing that this was probably an excuse they had come up with for the sake of Quinn and Allison.
"No, running for our lives kind of took the priority." Jake stated.
"Well...I have some out the back from my latest deliveries." Ernie told them. "I was meaning to take them to the recycling centre, but I guess this is recycling of sorts. You're welcome to them if you want them."
"That would be great, thanks Ernie." Emma replied as he went to get their first aid kit and their sundaes.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Allison asked them.
"Trust me, after twenty minutes of training with Jordan lately, this is nothing." Jake chuckled weakly.
"Well, I'd really love to stay, but I promised mom I'd help her with some Christmas shopping." Allison told them, moving her wheelchair away from the table. "Quinn, didn't you want a lift to work?"
"Yeah, sorry to cut this short guys." Quinn stated, leaning in and kissing Noah gently. "Mr Evans wanted a hand getting a lot of the animals ready for hibernation. It's a long shift, but it means I should have a lot more free time soon."
"Have a good time at work." Noah told her as they left. Jake just shook his head as he left.
"Dude, you seriously need to learn to lie better." He stated. "Now we're making a Thanksgiving float from old packing pallets?"
"It was all I could think of at short notice." Noah protested. Gia and Emma just looked at each other. "What?"
"Um...there might be another way." Emma suggested. "You might want to consider...you know...telling them."
"What? Are you serious?" Noah asked. The three guys quickly realised the girls weren't joking. "OK, I don't know if you missed that part, but the day we got those morphers, the big tiki head told us that we're not meant to tell anyone!"
"Yeah, we have to keep our loved ones safe." Jake told her. "Do you think I like having to lie to my folks, or my girlfriend?"
"Well, how safe are the lies keeping them really?" Emma asked them. "I'm not saying we go reveal our identities on national television or anything, I know it would be a mistake to tell everyone..."
"Emma, I know you hate lying to your dad. I don't like lying to my parents either." Troy said as he took her hand. "But if they know..."
"General Edwards didn't know and it didn't save him." Emma interrupted him. Troy was going to answer, but he found that he wasn't really able to counter that point. He looked to Noah and Jake, hoping one of them would chime in. "Guys, the fact is that Vrak and Malkor...even Metal Alice, they all know who we are. They know who we hang out with. They know where we go to school, where we live...if they're going to attack our family, it really doesn't know if they know or not!"
"So you want to tell your family?" Troy asked. Gia just took a deep breath.
"She...kind of already did." Gia told them. The guys all looked to them in shock. "Hey, don't look at me, she just went and morphed right in front of them before I could stop her!"
"Emma!"
"Don't even start with me Troy!" Emma put down flatly, putting a finger in his face. "I did what I thought was right, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat. My only regret is not telling him months ago!"
"But Emma..."
"Like I said, what happened to the General just got me thinking. They know who we are, if they're going to go for our families, then they'll do it anyway. At least now dad knows, he's aware of the danger we're in and that he's in so he can protect himself."
"Noah, you've read the same comics I have." Jake stated. "Tell them what usually happens to superheroes who let their identities come out."
"Actually...I'm starting to think maybe Emma has a point." Noah conceded. "At least if those close to us, the ones most likely to be targeted know about us, we won't have to lie and they can stand aside and let us go when we get called."
"Yeah, because my mom would really love to know what I get up to during the day." Jake replied sarcastically. "Troy, you're with me right?"
Troy though was silent for a moment as he started cleaning the graze on his cheek with some antiseptic wipes. He knew the rules were there for a reason, but he had to admit that Emma had made some compelling points.
"I can't tell any of you what to do about this." Troy stated.
"Wait...what?" Jake asked. "You're not seriously...?"
"I'm not saying we should spread the word wholesale." Troy told them. "But if you want to tell those you want to keep safe, then...I guess I have to trust your judgement on who you think you can trust with this secret."
"Besides, in some cases, the ship's already kind of sailed." Noah reminded them.
"The ship has sailed?" Jake asked. "What are we, pirates?"
"I just mean, some people have proven they can be trusted with the secret, and they've even helped us!" Noah reminded him. "Ernie figured it out. Hell, even Cat did, and she's not exactly playing with a full deck."
"Hey!" Gia warned him. Noah just backed off.
"I just mean, they're changing up their tactics, maybe it's time we did too." Noah answered.
"I guess if you guys want to start telling people, I can't stop you." Jake sighed, shaking his head. "I'm not completely on board, but if you guys want to..."
"Fine, then it's decided, it's up to each of us to decide." Troy put down flatly. As he looked to the table, Emma just drew closer.
"What is it?" Emma asked. "Are you thinking about something?"
"It's just what Noah said about changing up tactics." Troy told them. "We already know the robots are tough, and they can presumably be repaired, why else would Metal Alice want what was left of Rotox?"
"At least she's recycling right Emma?" Jake joked weakly. Emma just glared at him.
"In this case, I'd prefer it if it stayed scrap." She replied bluntly.
"I just think...they know who we are, who our loved ones are..." Troy reminded them. "So in the last couple of weeks, why has only Jordan's family been attacked? Why hasn't Metal Alice come after us?"
"Are you feeling left out?" Jake asked.
"I think he's suggesting there's something we're not seeing." Gia stated. "You don't think it was a case of just targeting one of us...you think..."
"She singled out Jordan." Troy confirmed. "The only question is, why?"
Back in the underwater base, Metal Alice put the finishing touches on Rotox. The Rangers had completely wrecked him by any human standards, she was certain that even if the feeble human mind could begin to comprehend their technology, they were far too weak, soft and lazy to effect repairs. Mountains of discarded, though perfectly serviceable technology all over the world stood testament to the human habit of merely discarding technology when it was broken or outdated, often without even taking the effort to harvest it for components that could very well be repurposed. To the inferior humans, Rotox was destroyed, but to her, he was just damaged.
Mist escaped her creation chamber as he stepped out of it. Vrak, watching from the viewing screen noticed he looked significantly different.
"I have compiled the data from his memory banks and added it to the tactical database." She told him. "With the new information regarding their tactics and weapons capabilities, I have not only repaired Rotox, but I have upgraded him. Meet Rotox DX."
Vrak just considered him for a moment as she sent him some data.
"His potential power output has been increased by fifty percent, and his weapons systems have been vastly improved upon. His arsenal is now thirty percent increased in range and power."
"I'm repaired, upgraded and ready for action!" He stated as he presented himself to the viewing screen for inspection. Vrak just looked at him, seemingly impressed.
"Excellent, how I envy your immortality!" He stated as he looked to him. Metal Alice observed from the corner of the room, tightening her grip on her tablet as she prepared for his orders. "You machines are truly the next step in evolution! Instead of being destroyed, they've only succeeded in making you stronger!"
"Master, may I suggest that it would be tactically advantageous to send Rotox DX into the city now?" Metal Alice asked him. "Their frail human physiology would not have had time to heal from the previous battle. Even the most basic, superficial healing would take many more hours for them."
"Whereas you come back stronger after only a couple of hours! Excellent!" He commented. "Of course, Go wreak havoc in the city!"
"As you command sir!" Rotox DX replied as he teleported out of the base.
"I will go too." Metal Alice replied. "This time I will make sure he functions as intended."
"Of course, but you have direct instructions to return to base if he is destroyed." Vrak told her. "I have further plans for you."
"As you command my lord." She stated as she teleported out.
Meanwhile, in another area of town, Jordan was just wandering around after his 'little chat' with the police. He only went because they told him they had leads on his father's attacker, and he needed to know what they believed. After all, the story he had told them was short on details, and made it seem like the attacker was human. If they had anyone at all in mind as a suspect, then Jordan already knew that they'd be potentially putting an innocent person behind bars.
In the end, it seemed all they had done was confirm the dimensions and chemical composition of the weapon, and asked him a few questions. He was starting to think that perhaps he was the one they had in mind as a suspect.
As much as the thought angered him, he didn't blame them really. He had a difficult relationship with General Edwards before, but since finding out what he had, that had started to turn into something so much more. He'd been lied to all his life, by his mom, his 'dad', by everyone! He didn't know what he would say or do now if General Edwards were to stand before him, now that he knew. It made sense now why the General had never gotten on with him, why he had always been so distant. If he could have that time now...
Of course, the worst part was, as much as he knew he wasn't to blame for his death, at least in the respect of not being the one to deliver the blow, there was no way he could tell the police that would convince them of the fact without revealing who he really was...which would likely only open him up to a huge array of other charges. The Robo Knight, while a lot more popular now, was still technically responsible for a lot of damage and carnage in the city.
As he pondered his situation, his Robo Morpher bleeped.
"What is it?" Jordan asked.
"Rangers, there's another attack in the Civic Centre." Tensou squealed. "This time, there are two power signatures. One of them is Metal Alice!"
That was all Jordan needed to hear. Checking no one was around, he broke into a run, his armour forming up around him as he went, and launched himself into the air, converting into flight mode.
Over in the Civic Centre, Rotox was putting his new and improved arsenal to good use, firing off a salvo of artillery, which brought down an office block. The Rangers got there quickly, the mall not being too far away. They confronted Rotox, seeing him standing before them.
"Well I guess we confirmed one thing." Troy stated. "They can be repaired."
"That's the same guy from this morning." Jake confirmed. "Unless I'm seeing things."
"Great, I don't even have time for an ice-pack and a night's sleep and he's already repaired?" Noah complained. "How's that fair?"
"Look on the bright side, at least you got to finish your sundae." Jake reminded him.
"Your confusion is understandable." Metal Alice stated as she stepped into view, carrying her tablet. "This is the new and improved model of the robot you faced this morning. This is Rotox DX."
"Metal Alice?" Noah asked. "Great, that's all we need."
"Then let's cut down the odds." Troy stated. "Megaforce Blaster!"
They quickly assembled their weapon, at which Rotox stepped forward, and waved, almost like he was enticing them to shoot him. They fired off the Dynamic Victory Charge, sending the blast his way.
Rotox turned to his side, and seemed to actually catch the energy blast in one of his new bladed hook weapons. Twirling his arm around and around, he finally managed to dissipate the blast harmlessly.
"What?" Jake exclaimed.
"No way!" Emma added. Metal Alice just stepped forward.
"I told you Rangers, he's new and improved." Metal Alice stated. "Show them!"
Rotox fired off some preliminary blasts, which the Rangers charged through, Gia and Jake getting to him first. He smashed through them, just as Emma and Noah launched ranged attacks with their weapons. He shrugged off the blast, not even bothering to dissipate it properly. He knew their weapons didn't have the power to cause significant harm. He send a charge of electricity through the ground, shocking both of them and knocking them down.
Troy tried to attack with the Dragon Sword, but Rotox, having studied his moves from the previous battle, seemed to anticipate them. He slashed Troy painfully, leaving him in a heap on the ground.
"He's definitely much stronger than before." He commented.
"And Metal Alice hasn't even done anything yet." Noah reminded them. "If she joins in..."
"Well, it looks like they're not the only ones that get another set of hands." Gia replied, pointing to the sky. Robo Knight converted back to his combat mode, dropping to a knee and sending concrete flying. Standing up straight, he stared straight at Metal Alice.
"Well well, if it isn't the Robo Knight. I was wondering when we'd meet again." She stated.
Jordan didn't say anything as she converted her tablet into its sword mode. Seeing it, all Jordan could think of was the fact that in her hand was the weapon that caused all of this pain, the weapon that killed General Edwards.
"I see you remember me...or is it this?" She asked him. "Now, how about you step aside before you end up like that human?"
Jordan pulled out the Robo Blade.
"Jordan, don't let her get under your skin." Troy warned him. "It's what she wants!"
"Just think, we have no interest in destroying the world, just taking over the humans and making them our slaves." She stated. "Imagine it, no more free will. No more pollution, no more crime, no more suffering..."
"Without free will, what's the point in living?" Emma screamed at her. "Of course there are bad things about free will, but without it, we'd all just be heartless, soulless machines like you!"
"What's wrong with being soulless?" She asked in response. "Think about it. You humans are the ones that cause all the harm in the world. The world will be so much better off with us in control."
"That's just crazy!" Jake stated. "There's no way we'd let you do that!"
"Well, if you won't let us, then some losses will be...unavoidable." She replied as she joined Rotox.
"Alright guys, we need to split them up." Troy told them. "Emma, you Gia and I will take Alice, while Jake, Noah and..."
With a massive roar, the first and only thing he said, he rushed straight at Metal Alice, completely ignoring Rotox, and tackled her through the side of a building.
"Jordan!" He called after him, but before anyone could go to help him, Rotox fired more of his artillery shells, cutting them off. "Or...we could do that."
"Troy, what about...?"
"We have our own problem to deal with." Troy interrupted Jake. "We just have to hope Jordan can hold out until we're finished."