Well, I'm back with another chapter of my JF series! Hope this was worth the wait!

A/N: As usual, I don't own ANYTHING PR related. I just own Gwen...Keenan owns Keenan but I guess you figured that out by now. :P ON WITH THE FIC!

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The busy sounds of the downtown hustle and bustle were interrupted by the appearance of a scowling Camille, bouncing rinshi and a stealthy serpent who caused panic with his quickness. Normally, the crafty chameleon would be grinning from all the people screaming, but this time, a sneer marred her face. Being ordered to pair up with someone who blatantly interfered in her earlier bout with the black ranger was bad enough. The final nail in her coffin was who ordered it in the first place-Carnisoar. And to add more salt to her wounds, Dai Shi backed him up!

"How can he value that pigeon's opinion over mine? It's ridiculous!" She glowered to herself as the rinshi attacked the innocent passersby. "I'm perfectly capable of frightening these weaklings on my own. I don't need or want you here!" She snapped.

The sinewy serpent just scoffed at is unwilling partner. He, too, heard of Camille's feeble attempts to best the Power Rangers and felt her bravado was unnecessary and juvenile.

"Whether you want me here or not is irrelevant. My massster ordered me to accompany you and clean up any mess you create. And judging by your last battle, the mess you would have created in your eventual botching of this assssignment would have been biblical." Velociviper hissed in his haughty voice. "Now, if you'll excusssse me, I have humans to terrify. Why don't you make yourself usssseful and make me some coffee or sssomething?" He asked condescendingly to the shocked chameleon.

Camille couldn't believe the gaul this upstart had.

"Coffee!? Why that lousy earthworm on steroids!!" She seethed as she frightened more people.

The serpentine minion of Carnisoar used his gift of acceleration to only taunt the citizens into a panic before he made his way to his intended victim. Once he reached a mother and her child, he coiled his body around the pair, hindering any chance for escape. Opening his wide jaws, his fangs, dripping with venom, glistened in the sunlight frightening the mother and child into a screaming frenzy. It was mere nanoseconds away from sinking his fangs into the young girl when...

"Cheetah Jabs!"

The yellow ranger shouted as she landed a flurry of punches to the side of Velociviper's jaw. As the monster held his mouth in pain, Lily then laid into his body with her fists of fire until he unwrapped his taut form, releasing his victims.

"Thank you so much!" The mother said as she held her daughter tightly.

"You can thank me by running somewhere safe." Lily replied, gently guiding the parent and child away. "That was too close!"

"Nice job, Lil." Casey praised as he and the other male rangers joined Lily.

"Thanks, but there are still too many people around for that snake to bite!" The cheetah observed as more people whizzed past her screaming.

Seeing the chaos caused by Camille and her cohorts, Casey took the reins and did his best to diffuse the situation.

"Okay. Theo, you and Keenan get these people to safety. Lily and I will handle the snake in the grass!" Casey ordered as the people kept running past him.

"Wait a minute! Why can't I help you fight that thing!" Theo demanded. "Why is he sticking me with the grunt work?" He thought bitterly.

Casey just faced his comrade and in as calm a voice as he can muster, he answered.

"Because you're better at keeping a level head in a crisis. I need you and Keenan to calm everyone down and get them somewhere safe. If they stay here, we won't be able to fight effectively." The red tiger explained.

The jaguar just stood there as Keenan struggled to gather the citizens in order to corral them to a safer place. He felt like a second-class member on the team. During the test to choose the three to guard Dai Shi's box, he felt like he was superior over the other candidates with Lily as an extremely close second. But ever since meeting the eager tiger cub, everything seemed to fall apart. What was worse, Theo felt that everything was being handed to Casey just because he was new-from the way he had to teach him to use the nunchucks to how RJ seemed to spend more time with the fledgling red ranger when he was supposedly there to mentor all three of them. He was about to sulk even more when Lily's voice snapped him back to reality.

"Theo, we don't have time for this! We have to hurry!" The yellow cheetah shouted as she tangled with the slithering foe.

"Theo, please! I can't calm all of these people by myself!" Keenan pleaded.

Theo looked at both of his teammates and swallowed his pride before taking action.

"Fine. We'll do this Casey's way." He sighed in frustration. "As usual." He said only in his mind.

Holding a massive grudge, the blue ranger assisted Keenan in rounding up the frantically screaming people and guiding them to safety as Casey joined Lily in her battle with the fleet-footed viper. They both had a plan in place to milk the necessary venom from the monster's fangs and were fully prepared to go to any length to save Gwen.

"Foolssss! Do you think you can best me in a battle of speed? I'll demolish you in the blink of an eye!" Velociviper boasted as he punched the red and yellow felines back into a wall.

"He's even faster than last time." Casey groaned as he helped Lily up.

"I know. Change of plans. Since, I'm the faster one, I'll draw his fire and you get ready to milk him." Lily offered.

Casey faced his friend, his body language showing his worry.

"Are you sure? You know what would happen if you miss." Casey asked.

"Yeah; it's our best shot!" The yellow ranger reassured.

Casey had to think quickly; they didn't have any to spare as it was.

"Okay. Just watch your back." Casey nodded as the two put their plan into motion.

Gaining their second wind, Casey and Lily ran back to meet their scaly opponent. Their plan firmly in place, there was no room for error on either ranger's part.

"Back for more? I mussssst admit; you rangers are surprisingly resilient." Velociviper hissed. "Now, I'm rather famished. Which would like to be my appetizer and which, the main coursssse?" He asked, his forked tongue whipping out to lick his lips. "I'm a firm believer in chivalry so, how about ladies first?"

"If you think you can keep up with me!" The cheetah ranger scoffed. In, truth, she was terrified but she held it in. She had a task to complete. "Let's go!"

"Fine by me. I like my potential meals feissssty." The large serpent replied with a glare.

Letting out screams of battle, Lily and Velociviper engage in combat testing their speed and mettle. With blows being exchanged at lightning speed, Lily had to stay focused in order to catch her opponent off guard and to make sure she didn't fall into any traps.

"Okay, now to bait my trap." Lily thought as she allowed herself to get caught in a barrage of punches delivered by the snake.

Falling backwards, Velociviper saw this as the perfect chance to dispose of one of the rangers. How wrong he was.

"Mmmm. Any lassst words, my dear?" The ninja serpent asked.

"Yeah...bite me!!" Lily taunted defiantly.

Casey stood fast, ready to jump in if Lily needed help. "I hope you know what you're doing. Lil." He thought.

Velociviper's mouth curled into a sneer as he stared down his fallen 'victim'. With a sickening hiss, he spoke.

"As you wish." The snake hissed.

"Have to time this just right." The yellow ranger thought as she got into position.

Fully prepared to enjoy his spoils in one gulp, the serpent opened his mouth as wide as he could, his fangs, again, glistening from the venom dripping from them. As he was about to clamp down upon Lily...

"Jungle Bo!!" She called out.

Remembering Gwen's tactic with Bivalvidon, she called for her bo and jammed it into Velociviper's mouth in the nick of time. The snake flailed and struggled to remove the foreign object, but to no avail.

"Casey! Now!" The cheetah ordered.

"On it!"

Casey rushed to the stunned serpent and, with a glass vial in hand, milked the ninja reptile of its precious venom. Once it was filled, the red ranger capped it off and joined his teammate.

"Yeah! I got it!" Casey shouted as Theo and Keenan ran back after getting everyone to safety.

"Awesome! Now let's skin this snake!" Keenan chimed in cracking his knuckles.

"You took the words right out of my mouth! Call to the beast inside! Free the tiger!"

"Bring out the Cheetah!"

"Unleash the Jaguar!"

"Liberate the Eagle!"

Four multicolored animal spirits sprang forth and each attacked the rinshi until they vanished and knocked Velociviper on top of Camille nearly squishing her.

"Ooof! Get off of me, you ill-mannered tapeworm! I don't like you like that!" The chameleon screamed as she pushed her unwanted partner off of her.

"Well, you're not my idea of a perfect date, either, tootssss!" Velociviper hissed in disgust. As he brushed himself off, he noticed that the area was suspiciously devoid of four rangers.

"This is bad! They got away! And with some of your venom! How could you let that happen!?" Camille shrieked.

The eyes of Velociviper seemed to radiate with his rising anger as he glared at his mouthy partner.

"Me!? How did I...why you..." He soon calmed down as he remembered a very important factoid about his venom. "Never mind. We mussst return to Carnisoar and Dai Shi."

Camille's eyes betrayed her as they filled with shock. How can he be so lackadaisical about this? Didn't the rangers just secure the venom that could revive her worst enemy?

"But-" She started.

The svelte serpent hovered over his subordinate and his face was just a toxic breath away from hers.

"No butssss. If I recall correctly, I'm calling the shots." He demanded as he held her chin roughly. "Now, you can either follow me willingly or I drag you back kicking and screaming." His eyes then traveled up and down the length of the lizard's curvaceous body and again, his lips curled in a sickening grin. "Then again, I could make that happen..."

Before he finished his lecherous thought, Camille slapped him as hard as she could, making him reel back.

"Don't flatter yourself! The last snake that tried to seduce me ended up going to the spirit world on a one way ticket! And I'd be more than happy to do the same for you!" She replied defiantly before making another statement. "And even if, and I do mean if, I wanted to betray Dai Shi in that manner, you need to do something about that rancid breath of yours. Two words, snakey, breath mints!"

With that she stormed off and vanished before his eyes. Velociviper took one step before taking his hand and breathing into it. Sniffing his own breath, his face cringed as he made a mental note to himself.

"I need to lay off the rabbits." He thought as he slithered back to the lair.

Back at the loft, The rangers rushed upstairs to find RJ already there waiting on them. Apparently, Casey called him after he acquired the venom. He hated the fact that he had to leave Gwen when she needed him the most, but he knew it was necessary; this was to eventually save her life.

"Is the venom safe?" The Pai zhuq master asked, worried for Gwen.

"Got it right here, RJ." Casey replied as he produced the glass vial from his shades pocket.

"Let's just hope it's enough for the antivenom." Lily added as she and the others made their way to RJ's workstation. "We can't lose her."

RJ turned his gaze to the blonde ranger and his face that was usually reflecting his carefree demeanor, now held a steely determination that was rare for the laid back master.

"We won't lose her, Lily." He said plainly. "I won't let that happen." He thought as his heart ached.

RJ took the vial from his tiger cub and went to his microscope. Placing a dab of the venom onto a glass slide, he proceeded to fully analyze its makeup. After a few minutes, the pizza chef reached a conclusion that he didn't want to reach.

"Um, guys? We have a problem." He said with a sigh as he lifted his eyes from the microscope. The other rangers' faces furrowed with dread. 'Problem' wasn't the word they wanted to hear right now.

"What do you mean 'problem'?" Keenan asked as he grew more scared for his older sister.

RJ wiped his forehead as he grabbed a scroll he was given by Master Mao years ago. When he heard Velociviper say his name, he knew it sounded familiar. Letting the scroll unfurl, he read it and his face fell. Seeing him in such a state of worry made the rangers even more concerned.

"RJ, what is it?" Casey asked approaching his master.

"Velociviper's poison can't be converted into antivenom." RJ relayed making the rangers gasp.

"What? I thought it could be. I mean he is a snake." Theo stated with wide eyes.

"That's true, but remember, Velociviper's no ordinary snake. He has the viper spirit and I have a feeling it's gonna take a lot more than antivenom to save Gwen." Lily figured.

"And what's worse, his venom becomes more lethal the more he uses it. And as long as he's been around, he's had lots of chances to use it, meaning..." He stopped, dropping the scroll to the floor.

Keenan went to his new friend and grabbed his shoulders. Shaking violently, he brought RJ out of his trance.

"Don't you dare finish that sentence!" The eagle ordered angrily. "I know my sister and she's not gonna let a snakebite take her out without a fight! If she won't give up, then neither do we!"

It was clear to everyone that the ones who cared most for the fallen panther were her brother and RJ. As said master looked into the brown eyes of the young eagle, he saw how willing he was to save her.

"He's right. Gwen's counting on me...on us. I can't let her down...not before I..." He thought before speaking again. "You're right, Keenan. Thanks for snapping me out of it...and for not slapping me to do it." He replied with his smile returning. "I do remember Master Mao saying that even thought the venom can't be made into antivenom, there is an antidote for it."

The four younger rangers all held hope in their eyes when RJ said that. They still had a chance, but as they all knew, this wasn't going to be easy. Nothing this important ever is.

"Fantastic! So where do we get it?" The blue jaguar asked anxiously.

RJ picked up the scroll from the floor and pointed to a picture of a structure in the middle of the page.

"There was a place the Pai Zhuq masters used to go to a long time ago...the Ancient Spirit Temple. When the first Pai Zhuq masters fought Velociviper, they gathered some of his venom and concocted an antidote. Knowing how much of a threat he was then and was going to be later, they kept it in that temple for emergencies." RJ read.

"Perfect! We can go to the temple, grab the antidote and get it back in time to help Gwen." Casey added proudly before RJ interjected.

"I'm afraid it's not that simple. Over the centuries, many have tried to steal the antidote so if Velociviper returned, there would be no way to save the victim. So, as a precaution, the Pai Zhuq masters bobby trapped the temple to prevent any theft. On top of that, the temple itself is guarded by two masters and a creature the dwells in the center." RJ recalled.

"That won't stop us!" Theo protested. He was willing to do whatever it took. Lily, however noticed a fatal flaw in the blue ranger's plan.

"It might stop some of us, Theo." Lily began. "I mean, we can't all go. What if that snake comes back? And what about Gwen? We can't leave her so vulnerable." The cheetah pointed out.

"Then I'll go. She's my sister." Keenan offered valiantly.

RJ admired at the lengths Keenan would go for his sister. It was the sort of display that made him wish he wasn't an only child.

"Hold on, my young eagle." RJ interrupted, his swagger returning. "We're gonna need you here; Lily too. You two are the fastest and we'll need that speed if and when that slimy snake returns." He began as his green eyes traveled to the two remaining rangers. "Theo, I need you and Casey to retrieve the antidote."

All of the rangers, save for one intuitive eagle, had wide eyes at RJ's order. Why did he come up with that particular pairing? Didn't he notice how a certain Asian was acting lately? Lily went to Keenan and whispered in his ear.

"Okay, usually there's a method to RJ's madness, but I really think he's gone off the deep end this time." She whispered in disbelief.

Keenan gave her a slight smirk before whispering back.

"I think I get it. RJ knows what he's doing. Just go with it." Keenan whispered realizing RJ's game plan. He knew that this was the perfect chance for the red and blue rangers to hash things out with each other. Nodding with uncertainty, Lily looked towards Theo who looked like someone told him he answered a Jeopardy question wrong.

"RJ, you're kidding, right?" He asked, his eyes pleading to his master. "Can't I team up with someone else? Why not you?"

"Because, young jaguar, I have to go back to the hospital to stay with Gwen. So, that leaves you and Casey." The pizza master replied with a grin.

Casey, who was standing right there and heard every word being said, couldn't believe Theo had such disdain about being paired up with him for such an important mission. Furthermore, he couldn't believe that Theo could be so childish about it.

"What did I do, Theo?" He asked, obviously hurt. "Did I do something to make you hate me?" He thought.

Theo looked at the red tiger and saw the hurt in his eyes. He did feel bad for letting Casey hear him say what he did, but not for saying it in the first place. Pushing those feelings back, he focused on his new task, whether he liked it or not.

"It's nothing." He lied. "RJ, Is there a map to this place? The sooner we grab the antidote, the better." He asked hastily not wanting to delve in to the subject further.

"Theo. take it down a notch." Lily pleaded. "I wish you'd just talk to us." She thought.

"Yeah, calm down. I've never seen you like this before." Keenan observed.

Theo just sighed heavily as RJ rummaged through his knick knacks to find the map they needed.

"Look, you said it yourself. There's no time to waste so why are we still talking about this?" Theo asked bitterly. To be honest, he really didn't want to talk about what was really bothering him. In all honesty, he didn't think he knew himself.

"He has a point, guys. RJ, did you find the map yet?" Casey asked anxiously.

After taking a few minutes to rummage through his cabinet, he found what he was looking for.

"Eureka! One temple map, coming up!" He replied as he held up the map. "Now, you and Theo be careful. Even the trip to the temple has a few pitfalls."

"We'll be fine, RJ." Casey replied as he grabbed the map. He and Theo gathered their backpacks as the red tiger faced his master. "You go back to Gwen and protect her. No doubt Velociviper will want to finish the job."

"You don't have to tell me twice." He replied seriously as he handed Casey the map.

"Great. Lily and I'll keep watch over the city from here. If anything comes up, We'll let you know." Keenan replied from the viewing area.

RJ nodded as he, Casey and Theo made their way down the stairs with RJ on his way to the hospital and the red and blue rangers on their trek to the Ancient temple. Keenan and Lily held down the fort as they vigilantly watched over the city using RJ's surveillance system. Meanwhile at Dai Shi's lair, Camille stormed in, seething with anger from head to toe as she faced her lord and his new teacher.

"What news do you bring, Camille? Good, I hope..for your sake." The black lion growled.

Camille would normally be chilled when he was in this mood, but for the first time in centuries, she felt bold. Standing her ground, she addressed him.

"News? I got some news for you." She started. "This...worm you paired me up with managed to get some of his venom milked by the rangers! Now they can save that panther! So, if you have any bones to pick, there's your snake!" She said pointing to Velociviper as he slithered in smugly.

"Once again, your ignorance overwhelms me, Camille." Carnisoar insults.

The chameleon glares daggers at the sky overlord wishing she had real ones. But before she could spit an insult back, Velociviper interjects.

"What he means is even though they did...manage to steal some of my venom, it's moot point. The ninja serpent began. "My venom has been gaining toxicity for so many centuries that it can't be made into a cure. The only antidote is being held in an ancient temple that has so many traps and obstacles that those who have tried to claim it have all perished. Either way, the panther who's been making you look like a fool is done for." He smirked.

As Dai Shi listens to the explanation given by Carnisoar's warrior, he grows increasingly pleased. Finally, things were going his way.

"Excellent. It seems my master was wise in bringing you into the fold." He commends making Camille greener than her armor. "But knowing those rangers, they'll try to go to the temple. I want some rinshi to stall them. Camille, I want you to take Velociviper and find where the black ranger is being held. You can destroy her while her friends obtain the antidote."

"Of coursssse, Dai Shi. Come, Camille, you can watch and learn how a real reptile gets things done!" Velociviper taunted as he walked out.

Camille hung back for a minute. After her last encounter, she didn't want to be anywhere near him.

"That was an order, Camille! Go!" Carnisoar bellowed, his eyes glowing.

"Oh...fine! Just don't be surprised if I come back sporting a new pair of boots!" She crowed before leaving the throne room.

Meanwhile...

Somewhere in a large forest, Casey and Theo trudged over steep hills and dense foliage as they searched for the elusive Ancient Spirit Temple that housed the antidote they needed. As they walked up a rocky incline, Theo's ever present grudge against the red tiger was still growing. Casey held up the map against a tree trunk and tried to find his bearings.

"Okay...according to the map, the temple should be just beyond this lake." Casey informed as they continued along the unmarked path towards the lake. Theo never said a word as he followed along behind. He wanted ore than anything for this little field trip to be over as quickly as possible. Not only because a friend's life depended on it, but because he didn't care for the company. As the pair came across the sapphire lake, Casey gawked as he saw how far they would have to walk around it because there was no viable way to cross it.

"This is just great! We need to find a way across that lake; it's way to big around to walk and we don't have any time to spare." Casey stated as he tried to think of a plan. Theo, on the other hand, looked around and noticed that the few dead trees surrounding the lake were tall enough to be made into bridges...provided that one fell. Seeing a chance to take the lead, he called out...

"Jungle Fans!"

In a blinding golden flash, the blue jaguar slashed he base of one dead tree until it toppled over. As it fell, the very top just barely reached the other side. Casey's surprise was voiced as he looked on.

"Wow! Good call, Theo!" He praised.

Theo kept silent as he pushed past Casey and walked across the fallen trunk. The red tiger took offense and grabbed Theo's arm preventing him from going any further.

"Theo, your attitude lately has been really lousy. Just what is your problem?" He asked, more because he was concerned and less because he was angry. "Just tell me what's wrong, man." He thought.

"It's nothing. Let's just go." Theo lied as he jerked his arm from Casey's grasp.

As Theo left in a huff, Casey let out a heavy sigh before making his way across the fallen tree. After reaching the other side and continuing their trek, they finally reached their destination. They stood in front of the Ancient Spirit temple and the appearance of it caused them both to make some very astute guesses.

"It kind of reminds me of a beehive." Casey wondered aloud.

"Really? It looks like it has sort of an ant farm theme going." Theo replied.

In a way, they were both right. The pillars outside the temple were the color of fresh honey; they were even transparent like honey and the golden doors had a honeycomb pattern. The topiary surrounding the temple and wall carvings resembled the tunnels made by ants who toil in those sand-filled glass boxes. Not wanting to waste any more time, Casey opened the double doors. The second they set foot inside, an intense glow momentarily blinded the two rangers as a rumbling voice echoed throughout the chamber.

"Who dares desecrate the sanctity of the Pai Zhuq?" The voice bellowed.

Casey and Theo stood firm. Neither of them wanted to show any fear...thinking about fear...they did that just fine.

"Gwen better appreciate this!" Theo thought as he swallowed loudly.

"We are members of the Pai Zhuq sent by our master." Casey replied bravely.

As the rangers waited for an answer, Casey thought he heard something within the depths of the chamber. Something that sounded like...buzzing and crawling.

"Theo, please tell me you hear that, too." The red tiger stutteted.

All Theo could do was nod. Taking defensive stances, both rangers waited for the source of the sounds to make itself known. In the blink of an eye, Casey was surrounded by a swarm of bees while Theo was being overrun by a colony of ants. Both tried to fight them off in vain and were about to succumb to the attack when...

"That's enough. Leave them be." A female voice ordered.

Immediately, the bees and ants obeyed and retreated back to the depths of the chamber from whence they came. Casey and Theo were shocked to see that despite the attack, neither of them were harmed. Casey was the first to notice that they were not alone in the room. Standing in front of them were two people, a tall, muscular man who wore dark red armor and a beautiful woman whose outfit resembled that of a honeybee complete with stripes, wings and golden goggles.

"I am Pai Zhuq Master Buzz. Spirit of the Bee." The woman announced as she pulled up her goggles.

"And I am Pai Zhuq Master Arthro. Spirit of the Ant." The man replied in a deep voice. "What business do you have here?"

Both Casey and Theo bowed to them respectfully before introducing themselves.

"My name's Casey and I hold the spirit of the tiger."

"I'm Theo, holder of the spirit of the jaguar."

Master Buzz and master Arthro both looked upon these youngsters and had a hard time believing them.

"As for why we're here, one of our friends was bitten by a monster named Velociviper and we need the antidote to save her." Casey explained with urgency.

Both masters looked at each other when Casey mentioned the snake's name.

"You do understand that we can't just give you the antidote outright." Master Buzz explained.

"Nor can we just take the word of a couple of children." Master Arthro added. "Many have tried to pass themselves off as Pai Zhuq in order to retrieve the antidote and they perished for their troubles."

"If you truly are Pai Zhuq, then you won't object to us making you pass a test." Master Buzz replied with a smirk.

Casey nodded in agreement as Theo let out a heavy sigh.

"A little bird told me there was gonna be a catch." The blue ranger grumbled. "Alright, what sort of test is it? Strength? Endurance? Wits?"

Master Arthro chuckled at the young jaguar's confidence. "No, jaguar. In this temple, we focus on trusting your teammate."

Casey just scoffed, but it was in no means disrespectful. He just couldn;t believe that this test would be so easy. He completely trusted Theo. Little did he know that the feeling was far from mutual.

"Then this should be a cake walk. Theo and I trust each other completely." Casey replied proudly.

"Do you?" Master Buzz asked. Her gaze was focused on Theo and it made the jaguar look away. He didn't want to let on that she was right.

"It seems that there are some issues between you that need to be addressed." Master Arthro observed.

"But we'll deal with that later. Right now, you have a test to complete. The two of you will navigate through our temple to retrieve the antidote that lies in the center chamber. But I must warn you, the way is treacherous." Master Buzz warned.

"We'll be careful." Theo replied still avoiding Master Buzz's gaze.

"Then we wish you both the best of luck. You're going to need it."

With that, both mastered faded with their respective saffron and crimson auras wafting through the air. In the back of the room, Casey and Theo watched as another set of double doors opened leading to the maze. In a moment, Theo's observation about it resembling an ant farm would prove to be correct.

Back at Ocean Bluff, RJ arrived at the hospital and was on his way up to Gwen's room when his cell phone rang. He took it out of his pocket and saw Keenan's name appear on the screen.

"Hello?" RJ answered.

"Hey. Is Gwen okay? How is she?" He asked worried about his sister.

"I'm standing outside her room now." He looks through the window and sees that her condition hasn't changed much. "I'll call you back in a minute."

"Okay." Keenan said as he ended the call.

RJ slowly walks into her room and takes a seat next to her bed. He gently took her hand in his and as he watched her sleep, he started tingling all over. True, that tingling began the day he first laid eyes on her and seemed to grow as the days passed until he gathered the nerve to finally introduce himself to her. But this was different...much different. Lately, it seemed as if the mere mention of her name would send him into such a state of euphoria that he'd become sidetracked from the simplest of tasks. He's had crushes before; lots of them-during his Pai Zhuq years and after leaving to come to Ocean Bluff. And all of those girls were attractive, but there was something special about Gwen and he pondered over what it was as he brushed a few strands of hair from her face.

"She looks so helpless." He thought sadly as he laid eyes on her.

Seeing her in this state sent his thoughts back to when the roles were reversed. He was brought out of them when he hears Gwen moaning quietly as she woke up. A smile gradually graced his face as the panther slowly opened her brown eyes to gaze into his green ones.

"Hey." He said softly.

"Hey." She replied just as quietly. "Talk about deja vu...in reverse." She chuckled as she tried to sit up.

"Hey, don't." RJ protested. He took his hands and gently pushed her back in bed. "You need to rest."

"It's not like I'm dying, RJ." She joked. But in the back of her mind, she knew that it was a real possibility. RJ knew it, too and it broke his heart. There was a chance that he could lose the first woman he truly cared about.

Just as she did when he was in the hospital, RJ took his right hand and cupped her cheek gently. Gwen closed her eyes and leaned her head into it, enjoying the sensation with a soft moan escaping her lips. His hand slowly moved over and stroked her long, black hair for the first time.

"Oh, it's so soft." He thought wistfully.

Gwen opened her eyes and looked at the worried expression on his face and knew he was thinking about the last thing she said...about her not dying. To ease his mind, she brings her left hand to rest on the one clutching her right hand tightly.

"RJ, the rangers are gonna come through for me. I'll be fine; I promise." She said with a soft smile.

RJ flashed a smile of his own as his heart warmed. "I'm holding you to that promise." He replied.

Just as the two were settling into a comfortable silence, a loud explosion is heard outside the hospital making RJ run to the window. To his horror, he sees Camille and a group of rinshi attacking the hospital itself. Doctors and other hospital staff ran out screaming as the chameleon led the charge. RJ looked to Gwen and let her know that they were in trouble before calling Keenan on his cell.

"Um, guys...not to bring you down or anything, but we have a situation here." He said, still keeping his swagger intact.

"We know and we're on our way!" Keenan said before hanging up. "Let's roll, Cheetah Girl! We need to buy Casey and Theo some time."

"Let's do it!" Lily agreed.

Both the yellow and silver rangers grab vines and swing through the portal above RJ's chair. At the hospital, Camille was sneering wickedly as she felt that the black ranger's demise was close at hand. Even if she did have to rely on Velociviper's help.

"This is where the black ranger is holed up! Tear this place down brick by brick if you have to! I want that cat skinned!" Camille snarled.

As the rinshi hop into attack formation, Lily and Keenan arrive in their uniforms to save the day by striking down the warriors with their bo and katanas.

"Don't even think about it Camille! You want Gwen, you have to go through us!" Keenan shouted as he and Lily took fighting stances in front of the hospital.

"Don't lose focus. That snake could be lurking anywhere so keep your eyes peeled." Lily warned.

"You, too." The silver eagle agreed.

"How cute. The cat and the little birdie are here to keep me from harming their friend." Camille replied sarcastically.

"But this cat and this birdie both have claws! Sharp claws!" Keenan shot back. "So if you want to get sliced to ribbons, bring it!"

Keenan and Lily stood ready to do battle with Camille who was now without her hopping backup; but that didn't mean she didn't have a backup plan.

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End of Chapter 3

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Yikes, a test through a booby trapped temple, an ambush at the hospital, Gwen running out of time...How are they gonna get thru this one? Youguys know the drill...read and leave LOTS of reviews! :)