By: Quintin J. Scott
When the vehicle finally stopped and bundles unloaded, they all went for a swim. The water was cold but not unbearably so. They splashed about, playing "Marco Polo" and racing one another. Tommy became "King of the Cannonball" after swinging from a rope attached to a tree near the water's edge.
Little did the Rangers realize that Goldar, Scorpina, and Trinitus were watching their actions.
"You were defeated by those pathetic things?" Trinitus commented, sarcasm dripping off his every word.
"Those 'pathetic' things," Scorpina said, "are about to be destroyed." She eyed the duffel bag that contained the morphers and communicators. "But first, we must remove their advantage."
With that being said, she twisted and convulsed until she morphed into a small yellow scorpion. She made her way over to the bag, eyeing the Rangers to insure that they didn't see the bag moving. Using strength that betrayed her size, she pulled the bag towards the bushes Goldar and Trinitus were hiding in.
"Gotcha!" he screamed, wrapping his arms around her.
In one smooth motion, Aisha flipped him off her back, breaking the surface of the water in a big splash. He came back up, gasping for air, completely caught off guard.
"No, I got you," she laughed, splashing water in his face.
Sean was about to retaliate when he stopped and looked around. He sensed...something.
"What is it?" his girlfriend asked.
He squinted his eyes, scanning the forest surrounding them for anything that would set off his senses. His scanning had caught the attention of Tommy and Kimberly who had raced to the other side of the lake and were heading back.
"You sense it, too?" Tommy asked.
"Yeah," Sean replied, still scanning. "I can't pinpoint it. It's here. Something very close. Somethings."
"Maybe it's an animal or something," Kim provided.
The black man shook his head, turning slowly around.
Until...
"The morphers!" He shouted as he spotted the yellow duffel bag being pulled into a bush.
The four began to race towards the shore, but it was too late. From their hiding place, the evil space aliens and monster confronted the Rangers who were near the shore and stopped short.
"Well, well, well," Goldar growled, "looks like we caught you with your pants down, Rangers!"
"Damn!" Sean cursed. "And me without a witty comeback!"
"Give us back our morphers or you'll be sorry," Kimberly said.
Scorpina shook her finger at Kimberly and smirked. "I don't think so, Pink Wonder." She looked at Sean, eyes playing over his chest. "My, my, my! You're comely...for a human, Gold Ranger."
Aisha reacted in her own manner, splashing a large wave of water in Scorpina's face. "And he's mine, witch, so back off!"
"One way or another, Power Pukes," Trinitus spoke up, "you will die!"
"And without your morphers, you're nothing!" Goldar growled loudly, eyes ablaze with evil energy.
"Actually, you're forgetting one thing, Goldar," Sean said, standing taller in the water.
"Oh, and what's that?"
Sean broke into a wide smile and looked at Tommy. Tommy shouted, "NinjaTech Battle Rangers: Armor Up!"
Morphing into their metallicized armor, the NinjaTech Battle Rangers: Starstorm White Ranger, Thunderforce Gold Ranger, Earthscorch Pink Ranger, and Windbane Yellow Ranger, jumped out of the water and landed on the bank.
"The Gold Ranger is ours!" Scorpina shouted. "Trinitus, do with the others as you so please!"
"My thanks!" the monster responded and launched his purplish form into the air. On his way down, he caught the Earthscorch Pink Ranger full on the chest with his staff. Sparks ignited from the blow, knocking Kimberly back. Tommy ran full throttle towards the monster, kicking it in the back and sending it off balance.
"Kim, are you all right?" Tommy asked, voice tinged with concern.
Kimberly got up with a little assistance from Tommy. "I'll be fine. Let's get this guy!"
They struck a defensive stance in front of him. He smiled at them with malicious intent and evil.
"You're going to be sorry, little ones," Trinitus said. He caught a glimmer of yellow off his staff and smiled even more broadly. "You as well, Yellow Ranger."
Aisha jumped in the air and brought her feet down in dropkick. Trinitus reached back, grabbed her ankle, and spun her in the air before letting her go to crash into a tree. Tommy and Kim went over to help her up.
"Well, that was embarrassing!" Aisha replied.
"Let's show this guy what we're made of!" Tommy commanded. "Ninja Shield." A shield materialized in a bright flurry of ninja magic. Its edges were bladed, with a white centerpiece and Japanese characters on them.
Kimberly shouted, "Ninja Crossbow." From the small pocket universe where their weapons are stored, a shimmering pink crossbow emerged with a quiver of the same colored arrows. She lodged one in and pointed it at Trinitus.
"Ninja Sais!" Aisha ended. Two yellow-handled, three-pronged sais appeared in her hand as she expertly twirled them before striking a defensive pose.
Trinitus snorted derisively, "Pretty things. I'll make sure you eat them. But first..."
The monster began to vibrate madly, blurring slightly before the eyes of the Rangers. His stylized Roman numeral started to glow with an unearthly fuschia color. A bright burst of energy later and the Rangers were staring into the face of not one but three monsters, each represented with a stylized number.
Trinitus-1 smiled slightly, "Shall we dance?"
And they engaged a dance of death.