Lily stumbled around as she tried to get her bearings. By using the arch as a point of reference, she knew as long as she walked straight ahead she would eventually reach the next arch.
She waved her hands in front of her, and pressed each step to the ground cautiously as she searched for obstacles in her path. She cursed the masters for their cruelty, they knew it had terrified her when she lost her sight before, she couldn't believe one of them would put her through that again. As she pressed on, sweeping branches carefully from her path, she inwardly hoped that she would regain her sight when she reached the temple.
Back in the fortress, Dai Shi flew across the room, dashed aside by Master Mao's attack.
"I defeated you once!" He roared. "I can do it again!"
"That always was your problem Jarrod." He responded. "You were a great fighter, but you treated every problem like an opponent and attacked. Some problems cannot be solved with violence."
He surged forward, launching into another attack, though finding himself passing through Mao's incorporeal form. He slammed a fist into the ground in frustration.
"What angers you so much Jarrod?" He asked him. "Is it that you cannot defeat me?"
"No!" He screamed, getting back to his feet. "I am more powerful than you!"
"You always were." Mao replied. "So what vexes you so?"
Dai Shi fell to his knees as he felt the pain in his chest and head rising again. He was again losing control. Tears fell down his face as Jarrod regained control.
"I'm sorry!" He screamed. "I'm sorry!"
"My death was not your fault Jarrod, it was Dai Shi's." He reminded him. "You must remember that and forgive yourself."
Dai Shi regained control, rising to his feet, and looking for Master Mao, but finding that he was gone. A look of confusion crossed his face as he found himself unable to fathom the motives of the old master. He heard footsteps behind him and turned slowly, finding a warrior in his golden griffon armour standing before him.
"I will destroy you!" The new arrival roared, blasting him into the wall at the other side of the room. Dai Shi pulled himself off the floor and prepared to defend himself. He was sure this had to be another of Master Mao's tricks.
"Why am I fighting myself?" He roared.
"You are not!" The Griffon Warrior replied. "But you will never defeat me!"
Realising what this meant, Dai Shi lost control to Jarrod. The young Pai Zhua faced his opponent.
"I never wanted to hurt anyone!" He screamed, launching himself at Dai Shi. "Give me back my life!"
"If you were worthy then you would take it." He sneered in response, dashing him aside with a back-handed swipe. "You and I are so alike. There is no decency or nobility in you. That's why I chose you in the first place!"
"That isn't true and you know it." He replied. "I was always a good person."
"Name one good thing you've ever done." He responded. "Why, you even stood back and did nothing as Mr. Fisher, the one man who's ever been kind to you lost everything! Now that truly is cold-hearted."
Jarrod turned on him aggressively as he said this.
"Only because you erased my good deeds." He reminded him. "I've gotten this all wrong from the beginning. You don't control me, you're afraid of me!"
Dai Shi surged forward, attempting to choke the life out of Jarrod, but finding his hands being seized and held harmlessly aside by the empowered student.
"You've done everything you can to weaken me, and I'm still breaking through." He reminded him. "Before you know it, I will have control back."
Jarrod released his wrists and stared in confusion as the golden armoured warrior shifted form into his last opponent. It was Jarrod.
Back in the Jungle of Spirits, Dominic battled the Lion Warrior with everything he had, quickly gaining the advantage. Powering up an energy blade around his fist, he swung it wildly, connecting with his head, shattering his helmet.
He found himself stopping in his tracks as he beheld the face of his younger brother. He knew that he had to carry on, but he didn't really want to hurt Jarrod.
"You never were a match for me brother!" Jarrod snapped, powering up his gauntlets and preparing to strike.
"Don't make me do this Jarrod!" He responded, powering up his energy blades again, preparing for the counter. As Jarrod surged forwards, Dominic launched himself aside, before bringing both blades to bear, smashing him out of his armoured form. Jarrod looked up at him from the ground.
"I never defeated you before because I promised RJ I'd return Lily safely." He stated. "But this time I only have to worry about my promise to dad. I'm bringing you home Jarrod!"
"I'm sure you will." He replied, disappearing. Dominic smiled as he realised he had passed his second trial. He realised that his destiny was to return Jarrod safely. His defeat at Dai Shi's hands on the two occasions they had already faced each other had left him doubting whether he could, but now he remembered what he'd always known. When he put his mind to it, there was nothing he couldn't do. Turning his attention back to the temple, he ran towards his final challenge.
Casey was still struggling to defeat Camille. He couldn't beat her; he couldn't bring himself to hurt her. As he was about to lose himself to despair, he looked to her engagement ring again, and suddenly the memory came back to him.
When he faced her in the cave along with Whiger, she paused when she saw the ring. He knew the woman he loved was still in there, all he needed to do was reach her. He grabbed his necklace, ripping it from his neck.
"Come on Camille!" He beckoned her. "You want to kill me? Come and get me!"
She lunged for him, thrusting towards him with her left hand. Casey caught her hand, twisting it into a powerful wrist lock.
"I'm not giving up on you!" He yelled, placing the ring on her finger. "Not now, not ever!"
The phoenix armour melted away, leaving Camille in her human form smiling at him. She pulled him in, kissing him tenderly.
"I know we'll be together again." She whispered. "I believe in you."
She disappeared, leaving Casey holding her engagement ring in his hand. He had lost a lot of time on his first trial, and he knew he would have to hurry if he was to complete his other two trials before nightfall.
Theo powered up his Jungle fans using the full power of his Jaguar spirit as he gained the advantage.
"One down!" He yelled, throwing one of them at Cardin, destroying him in a massive explosion. "None to go!" He continued as the second fan destroyed Bai Li. "You were losers before and you still are."
He took a second to gather his bearings after utilising so much of his power. He knew he did not have far to go, less than half a mile now separated him and the temple. However, he knew that the final challenge was going to be the hardest of all. Now he had to face one of the masters.
Composing himself, he looked to the sun, seeing it beginning to fall in the sky. He had time left, but he knew that the longer he had, the better his chances of besting his opponent in time to ascend the temple. He ran towards his final destination, preparing for the moment of truth.
Lily stumbled and fell, completely losing her bearings. She thrashed her hands around in the vain hope of finding some point of reference. She knew that if she didn't, then she would have no idea which way it was to the temple. She could end up walking in completely the wrong direction and have no idea. Tears of frustration ran down her face as she felt her heart sinking. She was about to fail and she had no way of stopping it.
Sitting and hanging her head in despair, she couldn't even begin to fathom where she was. There wasn't even any sounds she could identify to help her get her bearings.
That was when she regained hope. She remembered what Swoop had told them of the temple. He said it was a place so sacred, even the animals fell silent out of respect. That was why she thought it was so odd, there were no animal sounds. No birds were singing. She had to be near the temple.
Crawling around on her knees for a while, she swept her hands around, smiling as he felt her hand come across cold, hard stone. Feeling it, she realised it was the arch. Using it to help her back to her feet, she made her way through the arch, breathing a sigh of relief as her sight returned to her.
Looking around, she marvelled at the ancient structure. It was a kind of stepped pyramid built out of worn, yellow sandstone. At the very top, she could see the crystal shining in the late sun. She realised she still had time, but there was one challenge left.
Making her way into the courtyard, she looked around realising that she was the first to arrive. A pillar stood a short way from her position, holding up a statue of a cheetah. Making her way over, she realised her solar morpher was at the statue's feet.
"Lily!" Dom called out, arriving a short way to her right. He made his way towards her, but an invisible field separated them.
"I guess that's to make sure we only face our own opponents." She surmised, pressing her hand to the field.
"Where'd you get your moprher?" Dominic asked her, seeing it in her hand.
"At the base of the statue." She told him. Dominic looked around, seeing a rhino statue a short way from him. He made his way over, picking up his morpher and placing it on his wrist. He saw Theo arriving to Lily's left.
"Theo, your morpher's by the Jaguar statue." He told him. Theo nodded in understanding and collected his morpher.
"So who am I fighting?" Lily asked, activating her morpher. In response, she was only barely able to avoid the first attack as the Shark Ranger lunged at her with his sabres at the ready.
"Oh great, most people get to get married BEFORE they start fighting with their in-laws." She grumbled, calling forth her Jungle Bo. "Come on Master Finn!"
Theo morphed himself just as he saw RJ stepping out from behind a pillar.
"A Wolf taking on a Jaguar." He commented, pulling into a guard. "Now this should be interesting."
"I guess one of us had to draw the short straw." He replied, calling on his Jungle Tonfa. "I suppose it's just as well Lily didn't."
RJ smiled as he said this. It wasn't going to be easy facing any of them, they all meant so much to him, but it all but killed him when he pulled Lily's chip out the pot.
"Thanks Dad." He whispered under his breath before launching into the battle.
"So who do I get, the bat or the elephant?" Dominic asked, powering up into Ranger Mode and extending his rhino morpher's blade.
"You get to face me." Phant replied as the Jungle Mace narrowly missed Dom, shattering the stone beneath his feet. "Let's see what you learned on your travels."
"I'd be honoured to show you." He replied.
Casey stepped through the second arch, only to feel his tiger spirit leaving him. He realised now what his next challenge would be. He would have to face his greatest challenge again.
"Whiger!" He called out, beckoning the fallen Phantom Beast General. "Come and face me!"
"My worthiest of foes." Whiger greeted him, appearing out of the ether. "We meet again!"
Looking over Whiger's head he saw the crystal at the top of the temple glowing orange. The sun was only a short way above it, he knew he didn't have long left.
"I don't have time to fight you and a master." He mused to himself. "But I didn't have to fight you."
"No you didn't." Whiger replied. "You showed me the true meaning of honour."
"You made me promise to defeat Dai Shi for the sake of all tigers." Casey reminded him. "Stand aside and I'll make sure I fulfil my promise."
"I know you will." Whiger replied as he vanished. "Farewell Red Ranger."
"Farewell Whiger." He replied as he sprinted toward the temple.
Master Phant slammed the Jungle Mace into Dom's chest, sending him to the ground. He growled in frustration as he struggled to find a hole in his defence. He just didn't have the reach to score a blow through his defence, the Jungle mace was simply too long.
"Come on Dominic, you're better than this!" Phant encouraged him. "You are one of the most powerful students ever to go to Pai Zhuq."
"I need to get closer." Dominic said to himself. He smiled as he got an idea.
"Come on Master Phant, show me what you have." He implored him. Phant smiled and began swinging the Jungle Mace, before throwing it forward. Dom deflected it, wrapping the chain around his wrist so that he couldn't retrieve it. Dom rushed forward, powering up the Rhino Morpher.
"Super Blade Attack!" He yelled loudly, smashing him to the ground. Phant de-morphed, looking up at him.
"I yield." He said with a smile, holding his hands up in submission. "Congratulations Dominic."
Dominic de-morphed himself, before running up the steps. Arriving at the top, he placed his hand on the crystal, finding himself held fast. He had passed, now all he could do was wait on the others. Looking down, he saw Theo gaining the upper hand over RJ, connecting with a telling blow to his head. RJ rolled back to his feet as he de-morphed.
"You've got me Theo." He replied. "Well done, I knew you had it in you."
Theo made his way up the temple, taking his place beside Dom, also resting his hand on the crystal, feeling himself held in place by the same unseen force Dom had.
"I can't believe it!" He yelled excitedly. "I did it!"
"I knew you had it in you Theo." Dominic complimented him. "It looks like Lily's faring well against Master Finn too."
"Where's Casey?" He asked, straining to see. The courtyard below where Casey was to face Swoop was still empty.
"There he is!" Dominic replied as he saw Casey arrive through the arch.
"He doesn't have much time." Theo stated.
"If anyone can do it, Casey can." Dom reminded him. "You know what happens when you count Casey out."
Meanwhile back in the fortress, Jarrod confronted the imposter.
"You always were your own worst enemy Jarrod!" The clone sneered as he faced off against the bearer of the lion spirit. "Come on!"
"No." He whispered. "I can't fight myself, I'll never win."
"Shame you never figured that out sooner." The spirit replied as it disappeared. "Maybe you should realise that and stop. Then you'll be able to cast out Dai Shi."
Dai Shi shook his head, completely confused as to what had happened. He had no idea how or why the spirits had assaulted him like that. All he knew was that for the time being he was back in control.
Lily disarmed Finn with a swipe of her Jungle Bo, before spinning and taking out his legs. Finn started laughing as he de-morphed and looked up at her, impressed by her strength.
"Go and claim your victory." He told her. "You deserve it."
"Thanks Master Finn." She responded, de-morphing and heading up the side of the pyramid. She took her place with the others, touching the crystal and claiming her place in the history of the temple.
"I knew you'd do it Lily!" Theo said excitedly, high-fiving her.
"You made it!" Dom chipped in, also high-fiving her. "You deserve it. You always were one of the strongest people I've known."
"Thanks guys." She replied, blushing a little at the praise, before casting a gaze down to the courtyard. "But Casey's still not finished with Swoop."
"He doesn't have long." Dominic stated, pointing to the west where the sun hung only just over the tree-line.
"Come on Casey, you can do it!" Lily called out encouragingly.
Down at the foot of the pyramid, Casey and Swoop seemed to be locked in a stalemate. Neither man was significantly stronger or faster than the other. Casey struggled to find the opportunity to press the advantage, but Swoop was finding the opportunity to take down his opponent equally elusive.
"I don't have time for this!" He snarled in frustration as he realised the sun had almost set.
"Are you giving up?" Swoop asked him. "That doesn't seem like you."
"No, it's when everything seems hopeless that I'm at my strongest." Casey roared in return. "Junglechuks, full power!"
Powering up his weapon with the power of his tiger spirit, Casey smashed the Bat Master to the ground and out of his Ranger Form. He rushed to Swoop's side as he rolled to a halt.
"Are you alright?" Casey asked him, checking over him.
"I'm fine, I'm just winded." He replied. "Casey, go before its too late!"
Casey looked to the blind master once more, satisfying himself that he was uninjured, before sprinting up the side of the temple.
"Come on Casey!" Dominic yelled encouragement. "You can do it, we all know you can!"
"Casey, come on!" Lily yelled. "You're nearly there."
"Guys." Theo said sadly as he pointed to the west. The sun sank beneath the tree-line. Casey reached out, but felt his heart sinking as the crystal stopped glowing. The rangers found themselves being teleported back to the apartment.
None of them could mistake the look of disappointment in Casey's face as he turned and wordlessly left the room, his shoulders slumped in defeat.
"Casey!" Lily called out, but RJ held up a hand and shook his head. If Casey wanted to talk, then he would, but right now he had to overcome his disappointment. RJ sighed as he realised what he had feared had come to pass. Casey's mind wasn't able to focus on the task at hand because he still felt guilty about Camille being kidnapped.
"What do we do?" Dominic asked him.
"We wait for him to come to us." RJ replied. "Until then, we can't help him."
The others looked at each other sadly. Despite their accomplishment, despite their pride in their achievement, they couldn't feel less like celebrating. He hadn't reached the crystal in time.
Casey had failed.