Episode 5:

Easy Target

Zeke stepped around the corner to see Erika leaning against the wall, patiently waiting for him, just as agreed. He had to admit, it was nice having someone to walk to school with, at the very least it certainly made the morning trek more enjoyable.

And less dangerous.

For her part, Erika seemed to appreciate the company as well, even if her preference was for a near-silent stroll with minimal conversation. Today, however, her mood seemed more social.

"Ready to go?"

"Yeah, sorry I'm late," Zeke admitted. "Mom wanted me to wait and leave at the same time as her to drop off my sister at middle school."

Because apparently walking to school on his own during senior year was breaking some sacred family tradition. Erika raised an eyebrow but didn't comment, shrugging as she turned in the direction of the school.

Yeah, Zeke, she thinks you're real cool now.

At least he was smart enough to leave out the big kiss on the cheek that his mother had insisted on giving him as if he was still some little kid.

Real cool.

With the pleasantries and Zeke's awkward explanations exchanged, they continued walking in their usual awkward silence, joined only by the shuffling of their shoes on the concrete. Feeling nervous, Zeke considered saying something to try to break the mood. But what could they even talk about? Erika continued to present herself as a blank slate, a silent companion who gave him very little to work with. Despite having been on a Ranger team together for a few weeks now, the two basically knew nothing about each other.

Hey Erika, how's the anger counseling going? Enjoying your time of mandatory community service? Punched anyone that wasn't a Cyberdrone recently?

Yeah, that conversation would go down great…

But Zeke's pathetic considerations were cut short as they hit the corner, the dreaded alley. Since the first day of school, Zeke had avoided it; opting to take the extra block rather than stride through the more direct approach. To her credit, Erika has usually been willing to comply, respectfully acquiescing to his choice for a longer stroll.

But not today.

"Come on," she said, nodding the passage. "This way's faster."

Sure… but… Deryck could be down there.

He should've felt safer; there was no one less tolerant of Deryck's idiocy than Erika. But the last time she'd intervened on Zeke's behalf had got her nearly suspended, and Erika was still serving time at the Hub in recompense. Hell, she'd nearly decked Deryck just last week.

And now she wanted to just stride right past with Deryck's favorite target by his side?

"I mean, this way's kind of nicer," Zeke rationalized, knowing full well how lame it sounded the second it left his mouth.

Erika just shrugged and rolled her eyes. "Look, if you want to walk a whole extra block to school, be my guest. But I've got an appointment first up, and I'm late enough as it is. So, I'm going this way."

She turned and walked down the gap without saying another word.

Dammit, Erika was only late because she'd been waiting for him in the first place. Waiting because Zeke was too scared of big bad Deryck to walk to school on his own. Great going, Zeke, you can face down a wall of killer robots but you're shaking in your boots at the sight of a single douche.

"Wait up," he called to her, breathing to steel himself before picking up the pace to catch her. "You're right, this way's heaps faster."

Erika showed no annoyance in the constant chopping and changing of Zeke's mind, merely stopping as she heard his voice and quietly waited for him to catch up. Once he'd had, the two continued on, back to their usual quiet.

It was only as they reached the end of the lane that the mood finally shifted. Erika saw him first, hissing sharply as if holding back her fury. Zeke's heart stopped as he caught the warning, looking ahead to see who was blocking their path.

Deryck.

Sure enough, there he was, leaning against the corner of the building, waiting for nothing in particular. Wasting space, existing for no purpose other than to make Zeke's life a living hell. And Erika's it would seem. But Zeke's companion wasn't breaking her stride, and Deryck's face broadened into a cocky smirk as the two walked up and approached him.

"Well, if it isn't my two favorite people," he chuckled.

But Erika didn't seem the least bit perturbed, she didn't even seem annoyed. She was smiling. "Deryck, I didn't think I'd see you here. I thought trash day was next week."

"And yet here you are, in the alley." Deryck scoffed. They stared each other down, eyes narrowing as he then added, "Because you're the one that's trash."

"Yeah," Erika said flatly. "I put that together."

At that moment, Deryck's eyes flicked over Erika's shoulder to look at Zeke. The boy flinched on instinct, shying backward at renewed attention.

"And what are you here for, dork?" he sneered. "Looking to spend some time in the trash heap too?"

Erika was having none of it, whistling sharply as if commanding a dog. "Hey, tough guy. Eyes up here; it's rude to get distracted."

The boy ground his teeth as his gaze flicked back into a scowl. As he did, Zeke felt his shoulders relax and his breath release from holding. And with it came a little sinking, a heaviness as he realized just how much trouble he'd have been in were Erika not there.

How helpless he'd have been on his in.

"So, here's what's going to happen, Deryck," said Erika. "I'm going to keep walking, and you're not going to be a problem. Because luckily for you, I've been working on my anger and letting stuff go. But I'm not all the way through my therapy yet, which means occasionally something slips when I get frustrated and something's not going my way."

There was a low grumble in Deryck's voice as he realized where the conversation was leading. "And what's going to happen if I don't?"

"I guess it could be one of several things," Erika shrugged with an air of disinterest. "Maybe you'll become friends with the trashcan again. Or maybe, given we now know the long arm of detention reaches all the way out here, you'll become the latest inmate at the Lakeview Community Hub. I'm sure that'll be fine for you, being such a fine and upstanding citizen. You could even learn some valuable life lessons, like how to not get covered in dairy products."

Deryck's eyes twitched without breaking the glare as seething air hissed from out his nose.

"So, Deryck," Erika repeated, her own eyes now narrowing. "Are you going to be a problem?"

The two stared each other down, tension rising by the second as each refused to budge from the other's path. Zeke wanted to do something; knew he should do something. He also knew full well that if Deryck didn't back down then Erika would land herself in a whole new world of trouble.

Because of Zeke.

But he also knew that he couldn't intervene; it would mean wasting Erika's hard-earned effort. Effort she was only expending because Zeke needed her to in the first place. He just had to stand there, watching, waiting through bated breath until one of them blinked.

And Deryck did. He looked away and stepped back, growling angrily as he realized that he'd lost.

"Atta boy," Erika smiled as her path cleared.

"Whatever."

She stepped past, slyly winking as she continued her stride to school. Seeing the opening, Zeke moved to follow, only for Deryck to step back into place.

"Oh, Deryck," Erika warned. "You wouldn't be becoming a problem again, would you?"

The large boy scowled as he shot another scowl at Zeke.

"She won't be around forever, dork," he warned in a hushed whisper. "Just you wait."

Zeke needed no incentive to hurry and catch up, daring not to meet Deryck's gaze as he and Erika picked up the pace. Soon they'd left the alley behind, and the shape of Lakeview High began rising higher and higher as they drew closer.

"You didn't have to do that," Zeke told her. "I mean, you could have really ended up in trouble if he wanted to start something."

"No big," Erika shrugged. "He talks a big game, but he's most bark and no bite if he's called on it. It's fun to watch him falter."

Spoken as someone who'd never had Deryck stuff them inside a locker. Although, Zeke supposed Erika's own encounter with him a few weeks ago had given her an edge in the discourse. But even as they walked up the stairs and into the building, Deryck's words echoed through Zeke's mind.

She won't be around forever. And he was right; Erika's protection of him was limited; temporary. It was last until she got sick of doing it. And meanwhile, it was all Zeke could rely on because he wasn't strong enough to do it himself.

"I've got to go meet Ray," said Erika as they stepped inside. "See you at lunch?"

Zeke nodded, bidding farewell as the leather-jacketed teen departed up the stairs. But as he concluded the journey at his locker, he found a fresh problem awaiting him.

Whitney.

Deep in conversation with one of her cultists, she leaned against Zeke's locker like it was a convenient public space. She didn't acknowledge his presence, not even noticing as he stopped right in front of her and stared at the storage. Instead, Whitney simply continued to lean, the conversation rapidly jumping from one point to the next.

The girl just didn't shut up; it was a miracle she found space in there to breathe!

Tired of waiting, Zeke loudly cleared his throat to get her attention; big mistake. Whitney's face dropped, shifting from ignorant glee to sour irritation in an instant. Like something out of a horror film, her head turned as her beady eyes narrowed at Zeke.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"I just," Zeke began nervously, "I need to get to my locker."

"Sure, whatever," Whitney replied with a roll of her eyes. "I'll be done in a second."

"I mean, I've been waiting for a bit and I need my stuff so-."

"God, I said I'd be done in a sec. What's your issue?"

"Whiney?"

Zeke's heart leaped as Abbey's voice called from down the hall. No one could tangle with the Queen Cobra like Abbey, talking her in circles and humiliating her with ease. But Zeke's delight vanished just quickly, turning to greet her and seeing the company Abbey kept. Miguel was by her side.

Fantastic, her brand new bestie was just in time to see Zeke in need of rescuing.

Lena was also with them.

"Whitney," Abbey said, smiling condescendingly as she reached them. "I'm surprised that these lockers are so important to you. You know that you can't see yourself in the metal right?"

"You're so funny, Carmichael," Whitney replied. "So hilarious that maybe the clown college will finally take your application."

"But I wouldn't want to step on your toes Whitney," Abbey smirked. "I thought your slapstick routine with the shakes last week was perfect."

The girls behind snickered, only to snap back to seriousness as Whitney shot them a withering glare.

"I was just leaving anyway," she pouted, striding off in a vain attempt to save face, at last freeing Zeke's locker from her presence. With it finally in reach, he reached out and dialed the combo, pulling open the door to place his bag inside.

"The girl is the worst," Abbey grumbled, as she leaned beside him.

"Tell me about it," Miguel agreed. "Yesterday she asked in her terrible Spanish for me to refill her bottle in the cafeteria."

Zeke returned his attention to his locker as a sly smirk crept to Abbey's lips. "And what did you tell her?"

"The Portuguese word for 'shove it'," he chuckled. "I don't think she could tell the difference."

Abbey's reply was a laugh that fluttered from her chest, the kind that was way too strong for the joke that had been told. It was weird, and Zeke couldn't help but look back skeptically. Abbey never laughed like that. At least, he'd never heard her laugh like that; not at any of his jokes. He'd never seen her smile like that either…

Not at him.

"What've you got next?" Abbey asked Miguel.

"Comp-Sci," he replied. "Lab 7."

"Oh, I'm going that way too!" Abbey realized. "Walk you there?"

That also earned a suspicious eyebrow from Zeke. On Wednesdays, Abbey started with math on the other side of the school.

By the time Miguel nodded in agreement, Abbey had already looped her arm around his. And as they two set off down the hall, Zeke couldn't help but notice that Abbey seemed to lean closer with every step.

"I got to admit," said Lena as she stepped up behind him. "They do look cute together."

Wait... what?

I mean, sure they seemed to be getting close and all, despite having only known each other a few weeks, and Abbey had been acting differently when she was around the guy, certainly smiling and laughing in different ways to things that didn't seem to warrant it. But they weren't together…

Were they?

Abbey would have told him… right?

"What?" Zeke scoffed in a vain attempt to disguise his shock. "They're not together."

"I mean, if they're not they soon will be," said Lena. "I'd bet on it being any day now. Pretty soon they'll be joined at the hip."

She sounded so certain, but how could she know? Did Lena know something about Abbey that he didn't? How could that even be possible? No one knew Abbey better than him; they shared everything.

At least, that's what he'd thought…

They used to…

Seeing him begin to stare off into distant contemplation, Lena smiled and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry. Even if she's spending all her time with her new boyfriend, I'll still be around to protect you."

Her comment caught Zeke off guard, still reeling from her insinuations about Abbey and Miguel he'd almost missed what she'd said.

He pushed the hand away, face twisting into proud confusion. "I don't need protecting."

But didn't he? He'd reveled when Abbey had shown up to deal with Whitney, and the only reason he'd gone down the alley that morning was because Erika was with him. They had dealt with his problems because he couldn't do it himself.

Lena had clearly sensed his mood, and her hands raised in defensive surrender.

"Of course, you don't," she backtracked. "I just meant…"

"I know what you meant," Zeke grumbled. "I have to get to class."

Then he slammed the locker shut and walked away, leaving Lena alone in the hall.

"My master!" Ender proclaimed, sweeping into the room with an excessive level of pazazz. "I have truly the most excellent news!"

From his perch at the window, only Xavaix's head turned in acknowledgment, clearly unamused by the interruption. "Yes, Ender?"

"You see, your most mighty magnificence, I have just finished my latest creation, a creature so destructive that the Rangers will have no choice but to bow before its might!" the blue man grinned. "Not to brag or anything, but it could well be my most greatest creation yet."

The mask concealed any reaction, merely staring blankly at the monster maker and giving nothing away. His voice, however, was another matter. "Interesting," he replied, tone curling with the implication that it was anything but. "I'll keep that in mind."

For the first time in his life, Ender was speechless. Had his master not heard him? These monsters were the very purpose for his existence, the reason Xaviax had made him.

How could he just not… care?

"Is there something on your mind, master?" Ender enquired.

"Not at all Ender," said Xaviax face returning to the window. "I simply have no need of your monster at this moment. Keep it prepared for when I do."

"But master, do you not wish to destroy the Rangers?"

"I already have things in motion for that. I have word of a fracture within the team. All it requires is pressure."

"Pressure, master?"

"Oh, Ender," he mused as a soft, sinister chuckle escaped from the grill of Xaviax's mask. "Much as I enjoy your boundless creativity, you never have been one for subtlety. But no matter, for such is the time when I must take a more active role in our affairs; when the times call for such an approach. Are the next batch of Cyberdrones ready?"

"They are." Ender nodded.

"Then this afternoon, I want you to deploy them to Lakeview Park," Xaviax ordered. "I have word that one of our dear Rangers will be… unaccompanied. It will be the perfect time to strike."

"Of course, my lord," Ender complied. "I will begin the preparations at once."

With an exaggerated bow, Ender spun on his heel to stride out toward his lab. But as he reached the door, Xaviax called him back.

"Ender?"

"Yes, my master?"

"Our… other project?" Xaviax inquired. "How is it coming along?"

"Why, it is almost at full completion!" Ender declared. "I am putting on the final touches as we speak. All that is left is the finishing touches; your personally requested modifications. Once finished, it will be ready to be deployed."

"Good," Xaviax said flatly, once again returning his gaze to the window. "Because I believe the time to use it draws near. And I have been told that we have the perfect candidate."

"Are you sure that they also think so, my lord?"

"Oh, they will," Xaviax decided. "All we need to do is apply a little… pressure."

The rest of the day had not been any better. Zeke had tried to save a seat for Abbey in math, but having followed Miguel to the other side of the building, she'd barely made it to class in time. By the time Abbey rushed in, the seat Zeke was trying to reserve had been taken, and Abbey had quietly slid into a spot at the front to avoid a fuss.

Lunch wasn't any better either. He'd tried to keep a spot open for at their table, just like he always did. But when Abbey arrived, she wasn't on her own; she'd brought Miguel.

Again.

And then she'd plonked herself down on the other side of the table, beside the unwanted extra guest, instead of in the spot that Zeke had kept for her. By the time the bell had sounded for the start of the fifth period, Abbey had barely said a word to him, instead spending the entire time completely engrossed in Miguel.

Erika and Lena had joined them not long after, but Erika was in one of her moods and Lena was still in Zeke's bad books after her comment that morning. It made for a quiet lunch, sitting there as Abbey and Miguel chirped away and Zeke sat with the others in awkward silence. The bell had been almost a blessing.

By the time the day was done, Zeke knew he was in for a lonely walk. Abbey and Erika were both scheduled for work at the Hub, and he was far from the mood to join them. And so, he found himself walking home alone. Even the buzz around the park wasn't enough to improve his mood.

It wasn't that Abbey hadn't wanted to sit with him, although it would have been nice, but at least could she have acknowledged the effort. But it seemed that these days the only time anyone paid attention to him was when he was in trouble.

When he needed rescuing.

"What's the matter Ranger?" snicked a gleeful voice behind him. "Down in the dumps?"

Zeke's heart stopped, an icy breath catching in his throat as the familiar voice curled up his spine.

Ender. And if Ender was here, that meant Cyberdrones; and Zeke was all alone.

He gulped down the panic, slowly turning to see the blue-skinned, top-hatted face grinning with a posse of robots around him. And they looked very happy to see him. Carefully, Zeke slipped his hand to the communicator on his wrist and opened the channel.

"Maybe I just wanted some peace and quiet?" Zeke replied, trying to sound tough and hide the quivering in his voice. He almost believed it. "You're just butting in."

Almost.

"Oh, how rude of me," Ender conceded. "I didn't know the pity party was invite-only. That's so embarrassing; I even invited all my friends. Oh well, seeing as they're anyway. Boys?"

The robots pounced on Ender's command, lunging so quickly that Zeke barely had the chance to take a stance. He stumbled back, body moving on instinct as he put distance between himself and his attackers, mind flashing to every one of Ray's lessons at once.

Remember, leg back, balance, and…

The thought was cut by a fist swinging for his face, Zeke's eyes bulging as his wrist snapped up on instinct—block, counter, return.

Blow by blow, the muscle memory kicked in, his limbs lashing on their own to keep the attackers at bay. But they were only stalling, and the Cyberdrones weren't relenting.

"Zeke?" Hilary's voice sounded through the communicator. "What's happening? Talk to me!"

His head barely dodged another punch as his palm whipped up, grabbing the metal limb and reefing it down into a lock. Spinning around, the wriggling Cyberdrone was the only barrier Zeke had as he brought the communicator to his lips.

"Hilary!" he cried. "Ender jumped me in the park. He's got drones coming at me!"

"I've already alerted Erika and Abbey, they're on their way. Just hold tight and-"

Zeke missed the last part as the wriggling Cyberdrone broke free, throwing Zeke backward before its buddies lunged after him. Stumbling back, Zeke spun into a kick, a powerful tornado strike born more from his lack of balance. His heel cracked the face, hurling the Cyberdrone into its comrades to earn him precious seconds.

"Zeke!" Hilary ordered. "Just morph!"

Oh… right…

Duh.

Spinning to face them, the large device flashed to Zeke's wrist as he whipped out the key card. From his perch, sitting lazily on the fountain, Ender's grin widened as he burst into applause. "Finally! I thought we'd never get to the main event!"

"Remember," Zeke warned them, "you guys asked for this. Server For-!"

He'd barely raised the card when a Cyberdrone tackled him. Its arms wrapped around his waist, slamming him back as the pair went crashing into a wooden bench. Zeke hit the ground with a painful thud, kicking the Cyberdrone into the mess of splinters as he readied to try again.

The keycard!

It lay ahead of him, tossed from his grip as he'd fallen, sitting on the ground, helpless out of reach.

"We've got him now, boys!" Ender applauded. "Get him!"

Zeke scampered from the wreckage and lunged for the card, just as the Cyberdrones rushed forward to kick him while he was down. His hand shot out on instinct, the golden dome flashing around him, and the Cyberdrone bounced off as it collided. But the others didn't relent, drawing their blades to begin hammering at the forcefield, every blow reverberating through the shield.

It was taking all Zeke's effort just to keep it up. Every time one deflected, another struck, adding to strain as Zeke desperately held it high while stretching to grasp the card at his feet. His fingers grasped it tight, but now he had a new problem. He needed two hands to activate the Morpher, and if he dropped the shield the Cyberdrones would be on him in seconds.

He was trapped!

"Hey!"

Suddenly something hit them, a thundering force that forced the Cyberdrones off him. With the pressure released, Zeke dropped the shield, spinning to his feet to see the source of his rescue.

Miguel.

Having heaved the surrounding drones from the group, the teen swung in a punch, a wide haymaker that cracked into the head of a foot soldier and drew the hordes' attention. The robots shifted gear, abandoning Zeke to rush as the brawling civilian.

Great. It just had to be him. Anyone could have bailed him out, and it was Miguel who arrived at his rescue.

"And what do we have here?" Ender declared. "A new contender!"

And all of a sudden Zeke had a brand-new problem. With a civilian witnessing him, he couldn't Morph. He was lucky enough that Miguel hadn't seen the shield.

He hoped.

And now he had to make sure that the Cyberdrones couldn't hurt Miguel. Otherwise, if the goons didn't kill him, Abbey would. With a resigning growl, Zeke receded the Morpher, throwing himself at the Cyberdrones and heaving one back as he forced into the circle beside Miguel.

"What're you doing here?" he demanded.

"You're welcome," Miguel growled back. "Who are these guys?"

"A bunch of lowlifes with nothing better to do," Zeke replied. He swung out a kick, the sole of his sneaker planting firm into a robot's chest to fling it backward. The numbers behind crumbled beneath the weight of their comrade, opening a brief gap in the forces. "Come on, we've got to get out of here!"

"Oh ho!" Ender chuckled. "I don't think so!"

As the boys lunged for the gap, the blue-skinned warrior lunged at them in a typical ostentatious fashion. As the boys leaped for freedom, Ender swung his cane, gleefully dancing deeper into the fray as the Zeke narrowly dodged and stumbled back.

"Now this is quite a show!" Ender laughed. "I wasn't expecting audience participation today!"

This guy just wouldn't let up!

"Get back!"

Zeke had barely recovered his footing when Ender struck again, and with barely any balance, he had nowhere to dodge. But as the pommel of the cane cracked towards him, Miguel moved faster. Planting his hands on Zeke's chest, he pushed backward, thrusting him to the ground as the blow connected.

The weapon hit him square in the chest. With the full strength of- whatever Ender was- Miguel's eyes bulged as he was thrown from his feet, soaring across the park before tumbling in a heap on the hill.

Oh no! Abbey was going to kill him!

Seizing the moment of distraction, Zeke threw up a shield, the latest strike bouncing off as he dived into the fallen teen. The boy was groaning, but he was conscious. But in his last-ditch effort of concern, Zeke had given up their position, and now the Cyberdrones were closing in.

"Well, well, it has been fun," Ender snickered. And then he added more darkly, "But all good things come to an end."

He lowered the cane, pointing it at the helpless pair as its end began to glow. Bracing himself for the end, Zeke squeezed his eyes and waited.

"So long…" Ender said with a sinister smile. "Farewell…"

Then the lasers split the sky. Beams of red and powder blue rained down from above, bursting on contact with the ground and blossoming into spectacular balls of flame. The Cyberdrones scattered, cast backward by the blasts as two figures somersaulted overhead. The two morphed Rangers landed between the boys and horde, Security Pistols snapping into blade mode as they raised their guards in readiness.

The cavalry had arrived.

"Saying goodbye already?" Erika snarled from within her helmet. "I thought it was rude to leave a party early."

Abbey tilted her head to look back at the two crouching boys. "Sorry for being fashionably late."

As the Cyberdrones recovered, they flocked to their commander, and Ender glared at the two new Rangers with a sneer of displeasure.

"It's all fun and games until someone invites the rabble," he said. "It's not the sort of event I'd want to be seen at."

His hand snapped to the sky, and a burst of green engulfed them before snatching him and the horde. In the span of a blink, he was gone. With the danger averted the two Rangers turned to the boys, Abbey immediately dropping to Miguel's side.

"Miguel!" she cried, "Are you okay?"

The boy blinked, almost in a daze as he rubbed at his chest and allowed Abbey to help him up "Ah, yeah I'm fine," he said. "How do you know my name?"

"Uh…"

Behind them, Zeke could only roll his eyes. Because of course, she'd lose her composure in front of Miguel.

Thankfully Erika was thinking quickly.

"We're abreast of all Lakeview's citizens," she declared in what was clearly her best superhero voice. "All in our work of keeping the innocents safe!"

Miguel seemed to buy it, but Zeke shot Erika a skeptical look. The Red Ranger shrugged.

"You could have been seriously hurt…" Abbey warned.

"I'm fine too by the way," Zeke cut in.

"I'll be fine," Miguel insisted. "It's just a bruise, it looks worse than it is. I'll just put some ice on it when I get home."

"Are you sure?" Abbey asked. "Because if you need someone to take you to the hospital…"

But Miguel just smiled and waved her off. "That's kind of you, but I think it's fine. I promise I'll see a doctor if I think it's more serious."

"Well, if you're sure…"

"Honestly, it's okay," Miguel insisted. "I'm just glad Zeke here's doing okay."

"Well thank you for your help, ah, citizen," said Erika. "In the future, try to leave the robot fighting to the professionals."

"Of course!" Miguel replied. "I just saw Zeke here getting wailed on, and I couldn't just do nothing."

Oh yeah, because he was such a big help. But Abbey was clearly lapping it up.

"That's so sweet of you."

Please.

"We have a few more questions for young Zeke, here," Erika interrupted. "So if you're sure you're fine, best run along home where it's safe. We wouldn't want those robo creeps showing up again."

Miguel nodded, and after affirming a thousandth time to Abbey that he was going to be alright, he bid them all farewell.

"Thanks for coming to the rescue," he said to the two Rangers before turning to look at Zeke. "And I'm glad you're doing okay."

And then he hurried off, leaving Zeke alone with the others. Finally, the girls did a quick check before powering down, returning to their civilian forms in a flash.

"What happened?" Abbey asked as her helmet disappeared. "We just got a call from Hilary saying you'd been jumped."

"Ender showed up out of the blue," Zeke explained. "It was weird, it's like he was waiting for me. It's like he knew I'd be coming this way."

Erika frowned, looking back at the place where Ender and the Cyberdrones had retreated with annoyed contemplation. "Whatever they're up to, it can't be good. If they jump you on your own again, don't be a hero and try to take them. Better fall back and wait for backup."

The rest she'd left unsaid, but Zeke knew exactly what she meant. Wait for them to save him. Again.

"I don't need rescuing," he said curtly.

"Zeke," said Abbey, "she didn't mean-."

"Yeah, she did," said Zeke as his expression narrowed into a glare. "That's exactly what she meant."

Erika's posture shifted, shoulders straitening as she turned back to give him her full attention as her eyes narrowed disapprovingly.

"That's what you think, isn't it?" Zeke pressed. "That I can't look after myself."

"Well," Erika scoffed, nodding over the ruined bench. "If what happened here is anything to go by…"

"I was doing just fine on my own," Zeke sneered. "I had everything under control."

"Really?" said Erika. "Because Hilary told us to hurry up because for some reason you weren't morphing. Must have been in real trouble if you were struggling to fit the key in the slot."

"You've got to admit, Zeke," Abbey admitted softly. "Things were looking pretty bad. If Miguel hadn't shown up when he did…"

He was so. Sick. Of hearing. About. Miguel!

"If he's so amazing, why are you still hanging out with me then?" Zeke hissed. "Why don't you go chase after Wonder Boy? Given that's clearly where you'd rather be?"

The string of barbs took her off guard, and Abbey flinched in recoil as her face betrayed her confusion. "Zeke, what are you talking about?"

"We both knew you'd rather be spending time with him, so why don't you stop wasting your time?"

"Zeke," said Abbey. "I'm here because I care about you. I'm here because I was worried you'd be hurt. That maybe Ender was trying to do something to you."

"So, I'm only interesting to you when I need saving, is that it?"

"That's not what I said!" Abbey cried, "You're putting words in my mouth!"

"Then how come the only time you seem to want to be around me is when I'm in some kind of trouble?"

"Well, in Abbey's defense," Erika sneered. "It's pretty much a default state for you."

Oh, that…!

"I don't ask you to do that!" he snapped, taking a step into Erika's space to angrily stare her down. "I don't need you hanging around me just because it gives you something to punch."

"I don't need to punch anything," Erika retorted. "But right now, I'm starting to want to."

"Stop it! Both of you!" Abbey's hands shot between them, forcing them apart to plant herself in the middle of the conflict. "Zeke, you need to back off. All any of us were trying to do was help-."

"Did you ever think about not?" he demanded "I'm not some charity case that you can just take on whenever you want to feel better about yourself!"

The words unfurled from his tongue like venom from a cobra's tooth, his jaw clenching back more as his heart thundered angrily in readiness for another volley. But Abbey didn't reply, gasping back a sniffle as her eyes began to water. Because Zeke had found the place to strike, and he'd hit it far too hard.

"You know what?" Abbey said, gulping down as she blinked back her tears. "Screw you. Good luck on your own, Zeke!"

Then she stormed right past him, her shoulder colliding with Zeke's to knock him aside as she kept on going. With purpose, hurt, and fury in her stride, Abbey vanished up the path moments later.

Erika merely looked back at him, eyes rolling in dismissive condescension. "Nice one."

Then she too walked away, ignoring Zeke completely as she moved up the path to follow the Blue Ranger, leaving him completely alone.

Yeah. Nice one.