Previously, Benedict's Brigade had returned to attack the Earth. They made good on their threat by attacking the Scanrangers! First, by critically injuring GreenScanner, who is now lying in a coma, and then crushing Thunder Dolby THX and WideScreener. SilverScanner and WideScreener went down in defeat as the two robos attempted to battle the Brigade's upgraded Demolisher robot. Soon after that, the treacherous ChaosDemolisher tore into Dolby limb from limb, destroying the Scanranger's mighty warrior! Now, with two Scanrangers out of action, the depleted team's morale had fallen to lower depths in the effort to protect their planet...

Episode 21-Power Upgrade-Part Three

"Benedict Triumphant!"

The next morning, after the tragic battle, Vin, Toni, Mikey, and a search party of CPB guards seek out the missing SilverScanner. "TAKESHI! TAKESHI!" the three rangers shout out. Two hours later, they postpone the search.

"We've done all we can, sir.." said the CPB search captain. We've found only the remains of the WideScreener, but no Takeshi."

"Thank you.." said Vin. "We'll continue the search tomorrow.." He puts his hands on his hips, feeling doubtful about his role as a leader of the team. Toni and Mikey go over to him.

"Whatever it was, Vin, it's not your fault.. You did everything in your power to save Dolby.." said Toni.

"Toni's right.." said Mikey. "Don't be hard on yourself, dude..I doubt that Takeshi's dead..I would know..I would have felt it.."

"The question remains, guys.." said Vin. "How do we stop the Brigade, without Dolby? There must be an answer..I just don't know what it is now.." Alex signals the three on their communicators. "Scanrangers! Report to the IMAX briefing room immediately! We have much to discuss!" The three teleport to the base.

During the meeting, Alex reprimands B.C. for his role during the battle. "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING, B.C.? WHY DID YOU TRY TO PULL A BONEHEADED STUNT LIKE THAT? TRYING TO SACRIFICE YOURSELF?"

B.C. responds calmly, "I did what I had to do, professor.. to fight to the end..I wanted to put things right! Am I right? Am I right?"

"B.C., listen..You're getting emotional right now..Is it because Nick is out of the battle? You're letting your feelings cloud your judgment! This is not about revenge!" said Alex.

"WHAT?! You told her, Vin? How could you?"

"I found out eventually, B.C..." Alex continued. "It's obvious seen all over your face..Vin never told me a thing..Let me explain to you, just in case you've forgotten..The Scanrangers are a team..in body as well as in spirit..Even with Nick and Takeshi out, they're still with us in spirit..No one, as a cast/crew member work by themselves! The movie task force, like the real life movie industry, work together, from the star of the movie to the director! I won't tolerate any more kamikaze wanna-be's here on this team! Nor I will allow anyone on this team to fight out of revenge, myself included! I've been there, done that! What did revenge get me? Emptiness! Outright loneliness! For the time being, B.C., while we salvage whatever we can in this fight, I suggest you calm down, stay behind and concentrate on your studies for a few days.."

B.C. didn't want to listen. He cried, "I AM CALM! I just want to recover and attack! We can do this! I'm all right!"

Vin goes over to him. "B.C., you're losing control..Take the professor's advice..All you have to do-"

"SHUT UP!" B.C. lands a punch in Vin's face! Mikey, in shock, holds B.C. back. "STOP IT! What in blazes are you doing?" Toni goes to Vin, and B.C. realizes what he had done. He was about to apologize, but gives in to his emotions again.

"Y-you know..You're right..I need to stay behind..I will..permanently!! I'M OUTTA HERE!" B.C. takes off his FilmBrace and communicator and runs out of the room, and off the base.

"B.C., NO!" cried Toni. "Let him go, Toni.." said Alex. "He needs to think things through..Trying to comfort his pain now will make things even worse..Eventually, he has to come to his senses.. Toni and Mikey pick up the Scanranger leader, with Vin responding, "That.. was a humbling experience.."

Meanwhile, up in Nebultopia, Blackorg, Vixen, Ug, and Key watch the screen of the ongoing struggle. They gloat at the possible Scanranger breakup. Alongside them were Benedict, KuroGrappler, KuroFrost, and KuroFire.

The dark MAYHEM leader laughs, summoning up a wine glass,and holds it a toast while the rest of MAYHEM do the same to the others aboard the ship. "I commend you, Arno Benedict on a spectacular job..The Scanrangers are finished! There is no way they can call up even more reinforcements to protect their planet!" Key, Vixen, and Ug look at each other, envious of the Brigade defeating the movie task force.

"Indeed, my lord..I can even arrange for your other lackeys to take on the other three,and there will be no one to stand in your way! But first, I have to complete one other task in order to achieve this victory..." said Benedict confidently. Vixen was about to sense an attack, but it was unclear.

"...DESTROYING YOU, BLACKORG!!" Benedict blasts the dark lord with his sword.

"HOW DARE YOU?!" cried Blackorg. "You dare to attack my person, even after the assistance we've given to you?"

"I DARE!" Benedict replied. "You have reached the end of your reign! Now, it is time for the next generation, the next generation to take over this motley crew of morons!"

"Not if we can help it!" replied Key. He attacks Benedict with his energy chain, yanking his sword out of his hand. KuroFrost attacks, but Vixen stops him in his tracks with a copy of a KumoMech woman. Easily distracted by the woman's wiles, Vixen then lands a kick in KuroFrost's face.

"Ug! Call up that tank like you've done before!" cried Key. "Protect Lord Blackorg!" Ug, dim-witted as he was, wasn't able to think fast enough,and as a result, KuroFire uses a version of YellowScanner's Warp-Speed Smash and knocks out the general! KuroGrappler, sending out his Grappler Gang clones, subdue Vixen and Key.

"Nice try, Blackorg.." continued Benedict. "..but remember, we're the one who stopped the Scanrangers..It's only a matter of time when we figure out how to deal with you on the grounds of high treason..."

Act two

Meanwhile, in what possibly could be another dimension,(this is what happens when one watches too much Dragonball Z), Nick's spirit and the strange being begin their next phase.

"So, you're saying my spirit's alive, but my body's still out of wack? And why am I here?""Yes, to the first question, and you are here because one of my agents heard of your plight.." said the stranger. "Years ago, MAYHEM sent Benedict's Brigade to subjugate my home planet..Those who stayed behind were made his slaves, the others who rebelled against him were slain, even women and children.."

"How dare he!" replied Nick. "However, what's this got to do with me?"

"My race, the Futurais, are well known throughout the galaxy for our high technology..I happen to one of the last of that given race..My mission, is to supply that technology to one who can be trusted to keep the spirit of our world strong..I choose you, Nick Simonds to carry on that fighting spirit..This will require, however, a power upgrade in order to help your friends.."

"I'm all ears, sir.." said Nick. "Go on.."

"As I've mentioned before, Nick, I am the last of my race..and because of your sacrifice and willing heart, you shall receive this upgrade, after which you shall transfer the remaining power to your companions. As I do so, the process will be briefly painful.." The Futurai being touches Nick's forehead, which in a few seconds, movie images flash swiftly before his eyes, even to the point where he could sense the destruction of Thunder Dolby.."My gosh..Dolby's been smashed to pieces, and WideScreener with it.."

"The time shall come when your body will heal, and you can transfer the knowledge to the other Scanrangers..For the Futurais, for the universe, protect your planet! Do not let it suffer the same fate as mine! Use your power well, my friend.." The Futurai begins to fade out.

"Wait! Wait! Don't go!" shouted Nick. "When will I recover? When will the time come?" The alien fades out, with his last words, "Farewell..Stop the MAYHEM Corps..Stop Benedict, no matter what the cost.." Nick bows his head, and in rapid speed, his spirit returns to his body, and awakens!

"Man, what a dream! H-How long have I've been out? Gotta call the professor.."

Professor Alex gets the call. "Takeshi? Is that you?"

"Keep it down, Profess.." Nick said. "Whatever you do, when you go to sleep tonight, I need for you to meet me at these coordinates.."

"Nick..Oh, thank God..You're alive..I'll-"

"Don't tell the rest of the team..not yet..I believe we've got an answer to your evil robot problem..."

Meanwhile, B.C. was sitting alone on a boat pier, upset, watching the water.

Later that night, as Alex was resting in her office, Nick appeared to her in a 'dreamtime' state. "Nick? Are you sure that's you?"

"In the spirit..My body has been upgraded to stable condition, but I can still help the team in my absence.."

Alex hands over the folder she had earlier at the hospital. "This is it, Nick..'Operation:Blockbuster'..In the case that Thunder Dolby was in grave danger, this project will help as a backup to Dolby, but.."

Nick looked through the blueprints of the mecha."I know, Professor..It was destroyed, but I have an idea.." He touches one of the blueprints, and a tiny prototype of one of the mecha appeared in front of them..It resembled a Veritech fighter in Battloid mode. Alex was amazed.

"How..how did you do that?" Alex asked.

"Believe it or not..an alien..Somehow he upgraded my power of Special FX, and made it to an even solid form..It's like something out of 'The Matrix'.. B.C. will flip once he finds out.."

"Unfortunately, B.C. has flipped, indeed.." said Alex. "He quit the team.."

"What?!"

"After seeing you out of commission, he cracked and went crazy..swearing revenge against Benedict's Brigade.."

"We'll get back at MAYHEM..in our own way..but it's going to be as a team..We've got to bring him back, and I think I know how.."

Later, back at CJU, B.C. was watching TV, and since it was very late, he left the TV on, falling asleep in the process. He was smacked in the back of his neck, the usual way how Nick hits him after one of B.C.'s bad jokes, and wakes up.

"I can't believe you did that, B.C...Why?"

The third in command thought he was seeing things. "It can't be! Nick?!? You're supposed to be recovering! You're in the hospital! I must be dreaming!"

"Sort of..What do you mean my quitting the team, you knucklehead? If I knew that you were so concerned about me, why didn't you say so? What..you like me picking on you all the time?" Nick said in his spirit form.

"Right..Prove to me you're really Nick Simonds.."

"Don't change the subject..It's enough that you almost made a boneheaded move by staying back in Japan in the past, but not this! Whomever you hurt by quitting the Scanrangers, you need to apologize..on one condition!"

"What's that?" asked B.C.

"You don't tell the rest of the team that I'm fully recovered..yet..I don't want MAYHEM to think that I'm back... Professor Alex and I have a plan for the ultimate counterattack.."

"I..I guess I did get overemotional..I'm sorry that I got out of hand.." B.C. said humbly. "What do you think I should do?"

"Do what you must...and you know I pick on you just for fun..It's just my way of expressing myself..I guess after the battle, it showed me that I have a lot to fight for and not being so focused on me..We were chose to help protect the earth..We are indeed the chosen ones, B.C...Now get your butt ready and help the gang or else!"

"Or else what?" B.C. said jokingly.

"Or else this!" Nick using his upgraded film energy to create a copy of Moe Howard, who hits him on the head with a monkeywrench. "Now get back with those Scanrangers before I moider you, you lamebrain!" the Moe copy said. Nick fades out as B.C. awakens.

"That was Nick all right.." he said. "Okay, B.C.-san, time to redeem yourself, Scanranger style!"

The next day, Vin, Toni, and Mikey go over the plans to prepare Nick's mecha plans. As Alex watches, B.C. walks in. The three rangers briefly ignore him and continue with their work, while Alex watches.

"I thought you were going to lay low and sort things out for awhile, B.C..or are you still upset?" said Alex.

"I will..but first..Vin, listen to me..you were right, I was wrong..I let this whole thing go out of proportion..It's been stressful of late, winding up classes, not balancing my schedule in order to study..I let it affect me, because I didn't seek help..But now I've got all of this off my chest..And for the record, Vin, I apologize for blowing up like that.." Vin looks at B.C., still seemingly upset.

"Let me ask you one question!" Vin said.

"What's that?"

"Are you gonna treat us to the Leewood Park Multiplex next week?" Vin said jokingly. B.C. held out his hand. Vin then shakes his. Alex nods with her approval, while Toni and Mikey smile.

"Now that we're working together again, let's hurry up! We've still got a world to save! This is for Nick and Takeshi, wherever he is! Dr. Markby is working on the other blueprints! If Benedict's Brigade attack again, I assure you, we'll be ready! Let's do it, Scanrangers!"

Meanwhile, back on Nebultopia, the Brigade has taken over the flying fortress. Blackorg and the three captains are imprisoned in an energy cell as Arno Benedict makes his next move.

"To complete the final goal to annilhilate those heroes..we shall deliver the coup de grace..Benedict said. "I've located their headquarters at last! With our all powerful ChaosDemolisher, we shall deliver the final blow..Once and for all, we shall destroy Cape Paramount Base!!!"

To be continued..

In our next Scanranger adventure, the movie task force finally strikes back! What is Nick's secret weapon against the Brigade? How will our heroes battle the mighty ChaosDemolisher without Thunder Dolby THX and WideScreener? All shall be revealed in the incredible conclusion to the 'Power Upgrade' saga!

Next time on Movie Task Force Scanranger-Episode 22

Power Upgrade-Part Four

"Payback! The Spectacular Blockbuster Debut!!"

Roll That Film!!