"I don't get it," Rebecca said. "My whole life's an obstacle course. How am I supposed to learn anything from this?"

"Master Swoop has a unique teaching style," RJ told her. "Just trust that he's got something in mind."

"Something tells me he's bullshitting. Are we ready yet?"

"We're ready," Master Swoop walked up behind her and placed his hand on her shoulder. "Before you is a maze. Reach the end of the maze and you will have passed my test."

"Test? I didn't study," Rebecca frowned. Master Swoop chuckled.

"The test is simple. Using whatever is available to you in this room, you must find your way through the maze to the end."

"There's no time limit, is there?"

"Only the time limit imposed by your enemies," Master Swoop said. "Just concentrate on making it to the end. There's no sense rushing through. In fact, it might be costly if you do."

"What do you mean?"

"Go," Swoop told her. Rebecca turned around and reached out for him, hoping to get a little more advice but he was gone. She muttered as she turned back to face the obstacle course before her. It was just a maze, but she didn't know what was on the ground for her to trip on, where any walls or barriers were or if someone or something was going to jump out at her. She gulped, took in a deep breath and stepped forward. Her foot instantly fell on what felt like a skateboard. It rolled out from under her, she lost her balance and hit the ground. She let out a cry but she heard another one in the distance. A familiar one.

"Gia?"

"Mother..." Gia grumbled and Rebecca knew it was genuine. Something had hurt her. Assuming it was just the skateboard that had flown out and hit her, Rebecca apologized.

"Sorry. My bad."

Rebecca made sure there was nothing else in her way before she took another step. With a little more confidence, she started to walk. All of a sudden, out of nowhere, a ball smacked her in the side. Rebecca fell over and hit the ground again. She grumbled but she heard another cry. Again, it was Gia and it sounded very real. Rebecca started to worry. Once was an accident. Twice had to mean something. She got to her feet quickly and started to walk again, but quickly found herself tripping right into an arm chair. This didn't hurt as much because the chair had cushions for her to land on, but Gia let out another cry, this one more painful than the last.

Three times was intentional. Worried Rebecca had put her trust in the wrong master she wanted to quickly end the maze. Without fear of what would happen to her, she tried to race through. She bumped into more furniture, slipped on some stuff they left laying on the floor, and even walked into a wall, but she eventually made it to the end. Her eyes were filled with tears, for every bump, slip, and fall she had, she heard Gia cry out in more and more pain. When she was done, she found Gia and wrapped her arms around her.

"What are they doing? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Gia said but her breathing was heavy. Rebecca turned around to face Swoop as he walked up to her. She growled.

"I don't like this! You can't hurt my friends! You're supposed to be training me!"

"I did nothing," Master Swoop told her. "You were the one causing Gia pain."

"What? How?"

"Make your way through the maze, Rebecca."

"I did! I made it! I'm bruised and frustrated, but I..."

"You didn't make it," Swoop told her. "You hit every obstacle. You failed every challenge I put before you."

"I..."

"You spend too much time focusing on what's right in front of you."

"What's right in front of me was a skateboard, a basket ball, shoes, a wet floor, an old pizza box and..."

"And if this were real life, you or your friends could have been seriously hurt," Master Swoop told her. "What if, instead of a basketball, a car hit you? What if you do step on a wet floor, or someone leaves something lying around on the floor. You trip, slip, hurt yourself, or worse."

"How do I know what's lying on the floor! I can't see!" Rebecca said. "And what's that got to do with hurting Gia? Leave her out..."

"You will walk through my maze and every time you fail a challenge, you and your friend will suffer," Master Swoop told her. "Go back to the start. I will reset everything and then you will try again."

"Gia..."

"Just concentrate, Rebecca," Gia told her. "I'll be fine. Cliff's done worse."

Rebecca's stomach turned but with Gia's reassurance and her own determination to get the maze right, she started it again. Once she got permission to start from Master Swoop she walked through the maze. This time was different from the last. Some obstacles were in different places and others had been swapped out. Rebecca avoided the skateboard this time, but when she side stepped it, she planted her foot down on a squeaky toy that startled her. She stumbled backwards and ended up stepping on the skateboard anyways and wiping out. Gia let out another painful cry, and more ever time Rebecca failed.

When she finally reached the end, Rebecca found Gia. The yellow Ranger was breathing heavily and could barely mutter out her reassurance to Rebecca that she was okay. Rebecca turned to Swoop to glare but he simply directed her back to the start. Rebecca tried the maze a third time and halfway through found herself completely frustrated when she heard Gia cry out milk. She called out for Swoop to stop his training but he refused.

"It's up to you to help your friend," he told her. Rebecca clenched her fists.

"Your stupid maze is impossible! I can't see stuff lying around. I can't avoid furniture if I don't know where it is! How is this supposed to do anything but hurt Gia and completely crush my confidence?"

"You're not focused," Master Swoop told her. Rebecca could hear his voice at the end of the maze and then heard him coming closer. Either he had failed to set up obstacles in the second half or he was avoiding them all. Rebecca didn't find it fair. He had set up the maze, after all. He knew where everything was. But then she heard and felt the basketball soar past her. It missed her but never bounced on the ground. In fact, if Rebecca was hearing correctly, Master Swoop had caught it.

Then, he placed the ball in her hands. "There is one way through this maze. You must concentrate to be able to see..."

"See? See what?" Rebecca cried out. "I'm fucking blind and you're using that to torture my best friend! I want to stop this training. I want some other master or whatever to help me. You're useless!"

"Rebecca, do you want to know what I see when I look around?"

"Probably everything," Rebecca muttered. "You're probably not even blind. You just like screwing around with people."

"I see, just ahead of you, RJ's place a table. You must climb over it, not under. If you go under, Casey will throw the basket ball again and it will hit out. Once you pass the table you must walk to the left. Avoid the right. Casey's dumped his dirty laundry. Avoid it, and you'll avoid stepping on the lego blocks that are scattered right behind them. After three steps, duck, count to five, and then it will be safe to pass. You must get to your feet quickly and race to the end before my bat spirit flies into you. He will push you over. Once you cross the finish line, you will be done. Do this, and your friend won't get hurt."

"You're cheating," Rebecca growled. "You set up the obstacle course. You know..."

"Actually, I set it up," RJ said. "I've set every one up. Master Swoop has no idea what's right in front of him."

"Well, that's not true," Swoop said, "But RJ is correct. I did not have a hand with the maze. I have asked RJ to place the obstacles of his choosing wherever he saw fit."

"So then how do you know what's coming up?" Rebecca asked. "Or rather, how did you know to avoid them coming here?"

"I have an advantage most people cannot understand," Master Swoop told her. "Complete this maze, as I instructed, and I will share what I know."

Rebecca nodded her head, took a deep breath and then tried to remember what Swoop told her. She reached her hand out, felt the table and climbed up on it. As she crawled across, she heard the ball and felt the ball bounce underneath, but it didn't hit her. When she reached the end of the table she almost fell off, but she kept her balance, and carefully placed her feet on the ground. Then she stepped to the left. She wasn't sure how far to go so she kept one hand on the end of the table and walked to the very left side. Then she walked straight. She sniffed the air and could smell herself walking past Casey's dirty laundry. She plugged her nose, just to point out to the red Ranger than he needed to wash it more. After three steps she remembered to duck. Something flew right over her head and she counted to five, jumped back up to her feet and then ran as straight as she could, as fast as she could. She knew she crossed the finish line when she almost ran into a wall. She was stopped only because she held her hands out in front of her. Then she turned to Gia, found the yellow Ranger and hugged her tight.

"Everything's fine," she promised. "Whatever they're doing, they can stop. I did it!"

"You did well, young dolphin," Master Swoop announced to her as he walked over. Rebecca turned to him.

"So how did you do it?" she asked. "I had your guidance but you just breezed through it, didn't you?"

"You and I aren't so different," Master Swoop said. "In fact, do you know what the bat and the dolphin, our animal spirits, have in common?"

"Uh..." Rebecca frowned and shrugged her shoulders, "They're undercover mammals?"

Swoop chuckled. He gave her a pat on shoulder, "Echolocation."

"Gia?"

"When people or animals emit a sound and then listen for how long it takes the echo to come back to them," Gia explained to Rebecca. "They use that to navigate their environment. Bats do it in the air at night to fly safely, dolphins use it to navigate the waters."

Gia turned to master Swoop, "Are you trying to say you do it too?"

"As a young boy, I trained many years with my bat spirit to better understand what was going on around me," Master Swoop said. "I have learned to use all my senses and trust that my bat will keep me out of harm's way. Over time, it's become second nature to me."

"But that's taken time," Rebecca said. "I'm barely a dolphin master. I mean, I've summoned her a few times. We've played in the water together, but... no offence, Master Swoop, I kind of want an instant solution. Something that'll get me by, starting now."

"Use your spirit," Master Swoop said. "Trust she will not let you walk into trouble and she will be your guide. Try the maze one last time."

"I can't," Rebecca shook her head. "When Gia calls milk we have to..."

"I trust you," Gia took Rebecca's hand and squeezed it. "Just do your best."

Rebecca felt very nervous about this. Gia had already called milk and the rule was that when Gia wanted milk, whatever it was that was causing her pain or anxiety had to stop. The rule had been made because of Gia's trust issues. Breaking the rule meant betraying Gia's trust. Rebecca doubted the Jungle Rangers and Master Swoop would go so far as to causing Gia real, long term harm but she hated the idea of losing her best friend's trust.

But Rebecca had to complete this test. She had come out all this way and Gia had walked with her all the way to Ocean Bluff. To turn her back on it now would mean failing herself and letting her team and her friends down. So with a big breath she walked to the front of the maze and closed her eyes. It didn't change what she saw, but just the act helped her to focus better. Rebecca had been in touch with her dolphin spirit before, but for the first time she was asking her for her help. It took a little while, but eventually the dolphin responded. Rebecca took her first step forward and as soon as she placed her foot on the ground, she could hear the sound it made.

The waves came back to her. At first it was all a little blurry, but when Rebecca concentrated she could make out what was in front of her. The echo from her footstep helped her create an image in her mind of her environment. She saw the outline of the chair and stepped around it.

Every step produced a sound, and ever sound came back as an echo that helped her identify her surroundings. Rebecca knew she wasn't actually seeing anything, but the sound waves produced an image in her mind that seemed to fit exactly with how the maze was laid out. Rebecca walked through it, making sure to trust her senses and her dolphin spirit. She crossed the finish line without any trips, bumps, falls and without getting hit by any basketballs. She ran over to Gia and was able to see the yellow hold out her arms. Happily, Rebecca jumped in for a hug and squeezed her tight.

"It's amazing! I can do it! It's like I can see again!"

"I knew you could do it," Gia smiled. She set Rebecca back down on her feet as master Swoop came over. Rebecca turned around to face him. She could see his outline, but it was all still too blurry. She looked up at him happily.

"I did it!"

"You did. And you were excellent," Master Swoop nodded. "You are a fine young cub."

"Actually, dolphin babies are called calves," Rebecca smirked. "But thanks."

"You learn very quickly," Master Swoop said. "Smart, intuitive, and strong, just like the dolphin. It is no wonder your bond is so tight."

"I love dolphins, Master Swoop," Rebecca said. "I guess that helps too, right? I mean, it helped with Gia. Jordan's still a little slow because he's not the turtle's biggest fan..."

"Energetic as well, I see," Master Swoop chuckled when Rebecca wouldn't stop talking. Gia nodded her head.

"You have no idea."

Swoop smiled. He placed his hands on Rebecca's shoulders, "Young calf, you have done well today, but your learning has only just begun. As your bond strengthens with your spirit, so too will your abilities. The more you practice, the easier it will be to clear your mind and focus on your surroundings. In time, the way you experience life will feel completely normal. Once you accept your fate, you will find happiness."

Rebecca nodded and then threw her arms around Master Swoop, "Thanks. Thank you so much!"

"Anytime," Master Swoop said. Rebecca turned around to smile at Gia once more, then when she looked back at Master Swoop, he was gone. She frowned deeply. RJ chuckled.

"Well, he always did like to keep a little mystery about him. I take it you'll be heading out soon?"

"I wish we could stay longer," Gia sighed, "But with all the trouble the Armada and Vrak like to cause, it's really best if we don't stay away from the rest of the team for too long."

"I understand," RJ nodded. It was then Casey offered the two girls their bags. Gia grabbed hers and felt it was heavier than when she brought it in.

"I hope you don't mind, I packed a few extra treats for Tiger," Casey said with a little smirk. He looked down at the cub by Gia's feet. "I couldn't let her leave without a little something special."

"Thanks. I'm sure she'll love you for it," Gia said. She glanced at her tiger, "Did you say thank you?"

Tiger walked up to Casey and rubbed herself up against his leg. Casey picked her up for a little cuddle while Rebecca checked through her bag. She noticed there were two little slips of paper that weren't there before. She pulled them out and held them up. She could faintly see the outline of the papers, but she couldn't read. Gia took them from her and then turned to RJ.

"Jungle Karma Coupons?"

"What? I like the business," RJ shrugged his shoulders. "Come back anytime. You'll get free drinks with any large pizza you order."

"No free pizza?" Rebecca pouted. RJ shook his head.

"Hey, a man's got to earn a living. This loft isn't cheap."

"We'll try to come back after the war," Gia promised. She helped Rebecca pack up her bag, thanked RJ once again for his hospitality and then walked back to the kitchen. Casey suggested they leave through the back door. The city was still a little riled up after the loose tiger spotting the day before. Rebecca seemed eager to leave, but Gia had one last question for her fellow tiger spirit.

"So, I noticed it was just us that stayed the night. I thought last time we met you said Lily was staying here with Ava."

Casey smirked, "Yeah... about that..."

"Is everything okay?"

"The dating thing is a little... complicated," Casey said. "But Lily has given me another shot. She and Ava moved back into my apartment. With her helping me out with rent and groceries, I've been able to cut back my hours a bit at the zoo and at the Pai Zhuq. As long as I promise not to work overtime after every shift, and to keep my work at work, things should go well."

"I'm very happy to hear that," Gia smiled. "I'm sure Ava's glad to have both her parents under one roof."

"She's over the moon," Casey nodded. "She'll be pretty bummed out tonight, though."

"Why?"

"She's obsessed with you, now," he chuckled. "Ever since she met you, you're her favourite new Ranger."

"Kids..." Gia muttered. "I can't get them not to like me. You can let her know I missed her."

"Will do," Casey nodded. He then turned his attention to Rebecca, "Stay safe, alright. No more risky missions with your friends. We don't know any other Pai Zhuq masters who have lost one of their senses, so you'd be on your own."

"I'll be careful," Rebecca promised. "Come on, Gia, let's go home! I want to show Troy, Noah and the others what I learned!"