On the Warrior Dome, Cosmo was in his office, sitting in his chair, stroking his temples as he listened to Ripcon go on and on for seemingly the millionth time about how Madame Odious had the Rangers bang to rights, and yet had managed to let almost certain victory slip through her fingers. On two separate occasions, she had four of the five Rangers trapped, and their Power Stars ripe for the picking, and for a brief period, she actually had all five trapped inside her monster! He was drowning out most of what Ripcon was saying, hearing only white noise as he paced around, waving his arms in an animated manner and ranting aloud, he had already heard all of his arguments several times.

Ripcon was a strong warrior, that much was never in dispute, but the thing he never did grasp about the business was the showmanship. His own bouts were few and far between because most of them were over in minutes flat, and with Ripcon focusing more on destroying his opponents than playing up to the crowd. That Ripcon constantly harassed him, lobbying for a job in production was nothing short of laughable to Cosmo. He couldn't make his own bouts entertaining, what made him think he could pick opponents that would give the crowd a good show? Cosmo had always strung him along though, constantly dangling the carrot with talks of "negotiations" and "meetings with the network" and suchlike to keep him from doing something stupid...and more importantly painful! Yet he knew that Ripcon's patience had to be wearing thin. He had kept the pretence up for a couple of years now, but surely even Ripcon, the man who once agreed to a bout he had to PAY to be a part of based on the mere suggestion of a rankings boost, had to have enough business savvy to realise sooner or later he was no closer to his production job than he had been for the last decade!

"Why...look, here we are at a production meeting for the next show and what is she contributing?" Ripcon roared, panning around the room. "She isn't even HERE! She didn't even deign to grace us with her presence!"

This last part was something Cosmo couldn't deny. Odious was a sneaky one, she was always disappearing, always having private discussions and slipping off to shady meetings that he knew nothing about. He had long suspected that she had an agenda of her own that he wasn't able to figure out, but since she currently owned the contracts of several of his highest-value talent and she always found a way to deliver a significant bump in his figures, he was forced to overlook a little secrecy. That didn't mean to say he wasn't trying to find out what she was up to though, he was keenly aware of how he got his job in the first place, and he was in no hurry to lose it the same way!

"Alright Ripcon, you've made your point...MULTIPLE times!" He groaned, taking a sip from his brandy glass. "So tell me, what would you suggest for this week's broadcast?"

"I have a few athletes in mind!" He said with a smile, slapping some folders down on the table. He picked up one file, handing it to Cosmo. "I've been training this one for about a year..."

"PASS!" Cosmo said, tossing the folder over his shoulder.

"But you haven't seen..."

"Exactly! I haven't seen him! He hasn't been in any of the undercards, what makes you think I should skip him straight to the big leagues?" Cosmo asked him.

"But he's one of the best..."

"I don't need GOOD, I need ENTERTAINING!" Cosmo reminded him. "This one looks like he has all the personality of my last bowel movement! Next!"

"Well...if you want entertaining, I have one here that does remarkable tricks with burning torches..."

"We had a fire monster only a couple of weeks ago Ripcon, people want something fresh!" Cosmo told him. Ripcon's nostrils started to flare as he was losing his patience.

"What do you want? Some kind of theme?" He asked.

"Well, a gimmick usually does attract a little interest." Cosmo answered. "We've done elements, we've had creepy, let's go for something fun. How about something with a little...razzle dazzle?"

"Razzle dazzle?" Ripcon asked him sceptically. "What do you want? A song and dance number?"

"Music...hmm...I haven't seen a music theme in a while, people might be into that." Cosmo said thoughtfully, stroking his chin. "Alright Ripcon, go ahead and find me my musical act!"

Ripcon grabbed his folders from the desk and stormed out of the room. He couldn't stomach all the needless showmanship and soap opera of Cosmo's show. He had been in gladiatorial bouts most of his life, and grew with the belief in the talent and skill of the warrior being more important than some flamboyant costume or silly catch phrase or wild gimmick. However, he had been given an opportunity. He was now picking talent for the show, so if Cosmo wanted a song-and-dance man, Ripcon was going to find someone to play a funeral march!

Back at the school, the preparations were underway for the dance. Monty and Victor came in, carrying a large punch bowl, setting it up on the refreshments table. Most of the food would be brought out closer to the time, but they had gone to prepare the punch largely as a way to keep Monty out of Ace's way. Ace wasn't exactly a school-spirited kind of guy, and wouldn't be going to the dance anyway, but that didn't mean he wouldn't take advantage of the time he was meant to be helping set up to cause more hassle. Sarah still didn't know what the deal was with them, but as long as Victor was close by, she knew that Monty would be fine.

She was concentrating on the sound system, having almost got the mixing just to her liking. It would be her first school function at the new school, and she was determined to do her bit to make it go off without a hitch.

Victor took off his letterman jacket and handed it to Monty.

"Well, this place is looking almost as good as me; all that's left is for me to practice my moves." Victor declared, pointing over to Sarah. "Maestro! Music if you please!"

Sarah just shook her head and turned on the speakers, allowing the music to be heard as Victor struck a ridiculous bird-man pose that she couldn't quite believe. She had heard him bragging before about how dancing was just another way for him to prove his athletic prowess, and how good he was, but as soon as he started...she just stared and her jaw almost hit the floor!

She was used to seeing Victor make an ass of himself by now, the boy had virtually no shame and seemed to have such an inflated ego it verged on the outright delusional, but she had seen that he did have some talents. Dancing though, it seemed, was NOT one of them! He couldn't hold a beat, his sense of rhythm made it look like he was listening to an entirely different song to everyone else, and his moves were so wild and awkward, for a moment she thought it was a parody of an actual dance.

His balance was about all that she could say was good, but he moved more like a combination between someone trying to fight off a swarm of mosquitoes and someone who had been inadvertently hooked up to the mains supply! He was leaping about like he was trying to fly, only to realise he didn't have wings, all the while wearing an expression and looking to his audience like he genuinely believed they were admiring him.

"Oh...my...God!" Sarah gasped, unable to believe that the guy she was seeing moving like a chimpanzee being tickled with a feather duster was the same guy she had watched slipping past whole teams on the basketball court single handed in Summer Cove's games. He started a twirl, but the second he started it, Sarah could see he had lost control. She had danced herself for quite some time and she knew what a controlled twirl should look like, between his inability to focus on a point on the wall and his footing, it was no surprise whatsoever when he started to stumble and fall around. The kid from before, Ace, seemed to see this and surreptitiously put out a foot to trip Victor, sending him face-planting into the refreshments table. The punch flew across the room where it drenched Brody and Hayley, who were preparing tickets to hand out.

"Nice moves Victor!" Brody said in an annoyed tone, beginning to towel himself off while Hayley made sure none of the tickets had been destroyed. Fortunately, it seemed like only they had been drenched.

"Let's go and get changed before Victor decides to show us his super twirl again!" Hayley remarked as they headed off. Monty helped Victor get up and took him to get cleaned up as the others laughed. Sarah made her way over to Ace and his friends.

"I saw that." She whispered to him.

"It's kind of hard to miss watching the President making an ass of himself. He does it like every day." Ace laughed, backed up by his cronies.

"I meant you tripping him." Sarah warned him. Ace just looked to her.

"I don't know what you mean." He stated.

"I saw you trip him!" Sarah reiterated. Ace just smirked at her.

"What are you their bodyguard?" He asked her. "Victor can fight his own battles, he's a big boy."

"Good one Ace." One of his friends chuckled. Sarah just looked to him in disbelief.

"Ace? Really?" She asked him. "Somehow I doubt that's what's on your birth certificate."

"This is America; I'm allowed to be called whatever I want as long as it isn't for fraud." He informed her.

"So tell me, 'Ace'." Sarah began, air-quoting the Ace. "When you decided to change your name, by any chance did you change your surname to 'Hole'?"

Ace's face just slipped and he stopped laughing. He put his arm around his girlfriend and clicked his fingers.

"Come on guys, this place is boring me." He grumbled as they left.

Up on the Warrior Dome, Ripcon went into the production booth, finding Wrench rushing around in something of a panic.

"Where's Cosmo? Has anyone seen Cosmo?" He yelled as he looked around the interns and Kudabots in the booth. Ripcon went up to him and turned him towards a console.

"Start rolling!" He told him.

"But we're missing..."

"START ROLLING!" Ripcon yelled, bending him over the console. Wrench was reluctant, especially since he hadn't heard any word from Cosmo to tell him that it was alright to begin the broadcast. His gaze, however, strayed to the swords that were jutting out from under Ripcon's coat and thought better of trying to defy him.

"Stage lights up, music..."

"No music." Ripcon said with a little snigger. Wrench just shook his head.

"Alright, no music." He agreed. "Smoke, and...hit the lights, we are ROLLING!"

As soon as he directed the cameras to start rolling, he heard some carnival style music blaring, and a line of Kudabots stormed onto the stage. He watched, completely astounded and bewildered as they started dancing!

"What the...how...why...?" He started to stammer as they performed some twirls and flips on the stage, before forming up a kick-line, throwing high-kicks into the air in a bizarre can-can. "What the hell is going on here?"

It was at that point that Cosmo showed up, running onto the stage, cane in hand and started dancing with them as they continued their kick line. He made his way to the edge of the stage, pulling a full flip, before landing and falling to his knees, greeting the audience with a jazz-hands. The music stopped as a monster walked onto the stage.

"What...what...what's going on? Where am I?" Cosmo asked as he looked out, seeing the audience before him cheering and clapping for him. He looked around and realised he was standing on the stage. The last he remembered, he was in his office, waiting on Ripcon bringing him the monster he had promised him. He could see the Kudabots behind him who were no less confused as to what they were doing there. "Was I...dancing?"

"Hi, I'm Badpipes! With my hornpipes I can control anyone!" The monster declared in a strongly accented voice that grated on Cosmo almost as much as the violation of having his body taken over and made to humiliate himself in front of his entire audience. "With my pipes, the Rangers will deliver the Power Stars right into my hands!"

"Then...let's...let's get underway shall we?" He said, hitting a command and sending Badpipes down to Earth. He stormed off the stage, furious and humiliated by Ripcon's actions. "For his sake, Badpipes had better get those Power Stars!"

Down at the school, Hayley and Brody made their way into the Ranger Base to change. Mick was gone, having gone with Principal Hastings earlier in the day to a nearby cash-and-carry to pick up supplies.

"Redbot?" Brody called out, looking around, still irritated by what had happened. He couldn't see any sign of him. "Where is he?"

Kody barked, almost in response.

"What did he say?" Brody asked.

"I don't know." Hayley sniggered. "I don't speak dog."

"If he means the robot he left." Hayley heard the voice again. "He went out a little after you did."

"Hayley?" Brody asked, looking at her. Hayley realised that he was staring at her as she looked around, trying to locate the source of the voice.

"He...um...he went out." She told him.

"How do you know that?" Brody asked. Hayley didn't know how to answer that. She didn't exactly know how Brody would take hearing that a voice in her head had told her that Redbot had left the Ranger base after she had.

"Well...it's not the biggest room is it?" She asked him. "Do you see him here?"

Brody just shrugged, taking this explanation at face value. Brody noticed a book lying open by the pile of books Redbot had been reading. He picked it up; looking at the page it was open to.

"And so the Prince stood before the fair maiden and said 'Won't you accompany me to the Grand Ball?'." Brody read aloud. Hayley's ears pricked up hearing this.

"Wait...that was exactly what Redbot said to me earlier." She commented.

"Yeah, when you shot him down." The voice responded.

"He asked you to the dance?" Brody asked her. "What did you say?"

"I said no! Obviously!" Hayley said in a slightly derisive laugh. Brody though didn't seem to find this funny. If anything he seemed to be thinking about something.

"Maybe you hurt his feelings when you said no." Brody suggested. Hayley just stared at him.

"You're kidding, right?" She asked him. "He's a robot! Robots don't have feelings, anymore than a...a toaster does, or a coffee maker!"

"Ooh, sick burn on the robot!" The voice said, causing Hayley to start spinning around, looking for signs of who was talking to her.

"Redbot does." Brody told her. "He's very advanced."

"Uh oh, someone's in trouble!" The voice said.

"Brody, he's a machine. He...he can't have feelings." She told him. "He might have programming that LOOKS like feelings, like empathy, but..."

"No, he really does. He's a serving droid." Brody told her. "He's designed to be a servant. The engineers of the Lion Galaxy figured it would make them better servants if they can figure out how people are feeling. It makes them better able to anticipate their needs if they can tell if someone's sick, or tired or sad or whatever. They programmed in empathy and with it feelings."

"Can't fault that logic." The voice replied. "I know when you need a hug."

"He has feelings." Hayley said, trying to ignore the voice. She still couldn't imagine a robot having actual feelings.

"Maybe I should go after him." Brody said, getting ready to leave.

"No...no, you promised to help set up." Hayley responded. "Kody and I will go."

"OK, just...call if you need any help." Brody told her, changing his t-shirt and leaving to head back to the main hall. Hayley took the book and held it for Kody.

"Here Kody, get Redbot's scent." She told him.

"His scent? You know he's a machine right?" She heard the voice ask as Kody stared at her. "He only smells of oil."

Hayley just held out the book, but didn't say anything.

"Alright then." The voice came again as Kody sniffed the book. "Hmm...he does smell a little different...I guess his oil's different from Calvin's engine oil."

Kody turned away and headed out. Hayley just watched him go, and a really strange thought occurred to her. She shook her head and gathered up her jacket.

"Hayley you are definitely losing it." She muttered to herself, shaking her head, staring after Kody as he went. She shook her head again. "No, definitely not."