The sounds of furious punches being thrown drifted up to Blake's ears before the Thunder ninja had even begun his short descent towards Ninja Ops' practice room.

Inside, his brother was busy giving the heavy punching bag the beating of its life; the Crimson Ranger put so much brute force into his punches that, if the bag hadn't been bolted to the floor as well as the ceiling, it would have swung wildly in a circle. There was clearly no workout purpose behind this thrashing, but Blake couldn't blame Hunter.

He leaned against the doorjamb, watching for a moment, but Hunter was oblivious to anything but the black bag in front of him. Finally, Blake spoke up. "Bro, if you keep this up, there'll be sand all over this floor in a minute. Not to mention that you'll be too bruised to hit the real bad guy when the time comes," he said with a pointed look at Hunter's fists, covered only by his leather bracers.

At the sound of his brother's voice, Hunter ceased in mid-punch. He put a hand on the quivering bag instead while he took a few calming breaths before he turned. When he lifted his eyes to Blake's face, the Navy Ranger saw them still burning with fury and worry.

"Believe me," he said, his voice hoarse. "Even if I broke all ten fingers of my hands right now, I would still be able to wrap them around Julio Morales' throat once we find him."

Blake nodded silently, for that pretty much summed up the way he himself and the rest of the team were feeling as well. Hearing this from Hunter, though, worried him a little nevertheless. He knew his brother well enough to know that Hunter wasn't making an idle threat. He also knew that talking him out of any notions he might be harboring would be futile, so Blake instead silently determined to stick close to Hunter from now on, just in case.

He picked up a towel and tossed it in Hunter's direction. "Come on, man, the others are waiting upstairs. We've got some plans to discuss."

The two Thunder ninjas solemnly ascended the stairs into the command center. The rest of the team was assembled on their respective cushions around the low table; all except Cam, who was stretched out on the couch close enough to participate in the debate about the Rangers' next steps.

Cam's recount of the phone call and the revelation that the Wind Academy had been used as a stashing ground for drug money and at times maybe even the drugs themselves had filled them all with disgust. Speculations erupted as to who the contemptible ninja - or sensei - could be who would so blatantly abuse and disgrace their school and the Rangers' anger and frustration had mounted quickly to a point where Sensei had to order them all to blow off some steam through exercise and practice. The Winds and Blake had gone off into the woods to spar whereas Hunter had chosen to beat the living daylights out of the practice room's sand bag.

Now the team was reassembled, still as furious as before but less likely to break any furniture or equipment in the command room while brainstorming.

Hunter chose a seat next to Cam on the couch who cast him a look from beneath exhausted, half-closed eyes. The visual signs of the Green Ranger's forced insomnia were getting more and more pronounced; the deep circles under his eyes were turning to a shade of dark violet and lines of fatigue etched the corners of his mouth. Hunter wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around his partner, but apart from the fact that Cam wouldn't appreciate being drawn into an uncharacteristic hug in front of the entire team, Hunter knew that it wasn't coddling Cam needed right now; he needed a solid plan to get the antidote.

"So," Hunter asked no one in particular, "any ideas?"

"I think it's time we ask the police for help," Shane said, looking into the faces around him for confirmation. "Sheriff Carpenter should be able to help us locate Morales pretty fast."

"You think you can just walk into BBH Metro headquarters and ask to speak to the sheriff?" Cam snapped. "They'll have an amused laugh at your expense, tell you to make an appointment and then show you out the door with a patronizing pat on the back, Shane."

Shane just looked at him calmly; no one on the team took offense at Cam's irritability. "Maybe they'll ask Shane Clark to make an appointment, but I don't think they'll turn back the Red Wind Ranger."

Cam was about to retort, but blinked instead as it penetrated his exhausted mind that Shane might have a point there. "I guess so..."

Encouraged and hopeful glances passed between the Wind and Thunder ninjas. It could work; five high-school kids might be waved off by the authorities, but the sheriff would certainly have some time to spare to assist the - almost - entire Power Rangers team. They had saved the city often enough from certain destruction, after all.

"Cool, but we all go," Dustin decreed. "More power of persuasion that way."

"Wish I could go, too," Cam mumbled feebly.

Tori touched his arm reassuringly. "We'll let you know anything we find out right away, okay?"

"Actually, I think somebody should probably be staying with Cam," Blake suddenly spoke up, his gaze grazing Hunter's for only an instant before it settled on Sensei. "I mean, just in case...No offense, Sensei, but..."

"None taken, Blake," their ten-inch teacher said. "As a matter of fact, I agree. I think Cam will probably need steady assistance very soon." Kanoi Watanabe met his son's silent glare with an even gaze. He was well aware how Cam was loath to ask for help with anything, but looking at him, Kanoi highly doubted that Cam could even make it up from the sofa without help right now.

Hunter leaned forward until his elbows rested on his knees. "I'll stay," he said - and could promptly feel Cam casting him a side glance. The Winds, however, accepted Hunter's offer with acknowledging nods and without so much as a raised eyebrow; the need to hurry clearly overruled any thoughts of scrutiny. A moment later they had all risen from their cushions and assumed their morphing positions. Once they were suited up and had assured Cam once again to call right away with any newfound information, the Red, Yellow, Blue and Navy Rangers made their hurried way out of Ninja Ops. Cam watched them go with a mixture of hope and apprehension and for a long minute, the subterranean chamber was as quiet as a tomb. Until a slight rustling sound told him that Hunter had scooted closer. An instant later, he felt a hand brushing his arm.

"Hey..."

Hunter was indeed much closer now, as he knew he could be with just Sensei in the room with them.

"They'll come up with something," his blond partner said. "You'll see."

Unfortunately, Cam's bone marrow deep weariness failed to take comfort in the assertion. "And what if they don't?"

Hunter shrugged. "Then we just have to come up with a different plan, that's all."

Cam suddenly looked up sharply. "That's all?" he barked. "My head's steadily turning to slush from lack of sleep to the point where I can barely remember my name and you want to sit down and brainstorm some more?"

Hunter blinked, momentarily taken aback at Cam's irrational outburst but immediately reminding himself that, if he were in Cam's place, his own emotional stability would probably be completely shot to hell by now. He reached out and put a comforting hand on his partner's thigh.

"Hey, relax," he said softly. "Probably won't be necessary to dig up a plan B anyways. I'm sure the others are getting all the lowdown on Morales they need from Sheriff Carpenter right now."

Cam put his hand over Hunter's. "I'm sorry." He sighed. "Didn't mean to snap at you. I'm just..." going out of my mind with the need for sleep "...edgy." He let his head fall back onto the couch cushion and took off his glasses to rub at his eyes. "God, Hunter, this whole thing is so…surreal. I'm going to be killed from lack of sleep by a drug lord who wants his hidden dope money back and we can't get it, even if we wanted to, because it's stuck on an evil ninja's space ship!" With his hands still over his eyes, he let out a frustrated exclamation. "This is all so crazy!"

Hunter felt like his heart was being squeezed at the sight of his partner's dismay. On impulse, he slipped an arm around Cam's shoulder. "First of all, you are not going to die, you hear?"

Settling his head against Hunter's offered shoulder, Cam said feebly, "I feel like I'm just a Yo-Yo on the string of fate."

Shaking his head, Hunter mumbled, "Great. Other people get delusional, he starts to metaphor." But despite the mock-exasperated comment, Hunter side-eyed his boyfriend with a look of troubled speculation. He couldn't let Cam sink into this dark mood.

"Cam, will you stop being so pessimistic? You will get through this. I'm sure the guys will find something out at the police station."

"I'm not pessimistic; I'm a realist."

"That's what all pessimists say."

Cam suddenly made a guttural noise not unlike the growl of a dying animal and raked his hands through his hair. "God, I need to sleep, SLEEP!" He remained motionless for a moment, then abruptly yanked his head around, his bloodshot eyes wide. "Hunter, we could…I mean, in our suits…there should be no problem getting in and out of a bank…"

Hunter frowned. "Whoa, wait a minute, you better not be talking about what I think you are talking about!"

"Hey, we would just be sort of borrowing that money until we free the academies and then we can pay it all back once we've found Julio's bag. The bank manager will understand…"

Now it was Hunter's turn to run his hand over his eyes. Cam's ability to think straight was clearly deteriorating. "He wants to rob a bank," he murmured to himself and when he fixed his eyes back on his boyfriend, his gaze was stern. "Cam, think about what you just said."

Cam's eyes narrowed as he made a serious attempt at rerunning his sentence through his muddled memory banks. A moment later he dropped his gaze. "You're right. I…I can't believe I just suggested that. It's just that I'm craving sleep so bad…" He made a noise in his throat that Hunter couldn't correctly identify as a sigh or a sob. "This is how a junkie must be feeling when he's coming down from a high with no more dope in sight."

Hunter grasped his shoulders gently. "Look, I'm not even going to say that I know how you feel because I don't. What I do know, though, is that we will figure out a way of getting that antidote and once we have it, you can sleep for three days straight if you want to, but until we do, you need to rest as best as you can. Right here." He tapped his chest with one hand while he pulled Cam towards him with the other.

"Hm." Cam cast him a glance, but leaned into his partner again without any further comment. The two Rangers sat in silence for the next few minutes, savoring their closeness. Until Cam's body pressed up against Hunter – even under these dire circumstances – ultimately began to have the effect on Hunter it always had. He resisted the urge, however, to pull Cam wholly into his arms, shield him against the entire world and kiss him senseless; right now there was much more at stake than self-indulgence.

He was in the middle of thinking up an excuse to ask Cam to sit up so he could change his position when Cam suddenly stirred of his own accord. The samurai gave a small exclamation and Hunter saw his hand reach up to his chest.

"You okay?" Hunter followed the hand's path to see it wrap around the samurai amulet - which had begun to glow.

"Yeah." Cam moved, startling Hunter slightly by sitting up on his own and the two young men stared at the Green Ranger's pulsing morpher.

"What's up with your amulet?"

Cam fingered the pendant, looking thoughtful. "I don't know. It just started glowing like that. But I'm actually beginning to feel a little better. It must be transferring energy to me somehow."

Cam really did look somewhat better; his pallor wasn't quite so ashen, his eyes not as sunken-looking as they had been when Hunter had come back from the practice room.

"Well, that's a good thing, right?" Hunter said, but Cam was apparently cautious about getting his hopes up.

"Yes and no. I do feel a little more energized, but I believe it also means that my body is probably not producing enough energy to keep me going anymore so the amulet has to channel extra power into me."

For a long moment Hunter regarded the amulet with a solemn gaze. "You better not take it off anymore, then," he suggested grimly.

Cam nodded, his face grave. Then his gaze transferred over Hunter's shoulder to where Sensei was meditating in his habitat nearby. He resolutely reached up and tucked the amulet into his shirt. "Let's not tell Dad about this."

"Cam..."

The samurai silenced Hunter with a warning glance, then pulled himself up from the couch.

"Hunter, I don't know how long this is going to last, so let's put this time to good use, okay? I hate just sitting here, waiting. I have to do something, or I'll go crazy."

Hunter was right behind him as Cam sank into his desk chair and immediately began to open several browser windows. The Crimson Ranger watched while Cam called up various medical websites by memory and googled several others.

"Despite what Morales said, there's got to be some information out there about this protein mixture he shot me up with," Cam declared determinedly. "I just don't believe that this is some sort of never-seen-before prototype. There has to be something more out there!"

For the next thirty minutes they browsed through medical and pharmaceutical websites as well as online publications by half a dozen renowned biochemists, but nothing yielded the results they were looking for. Thus forced to switch tactics, they turned to focus on websites which published clinical research papers on the effects of long-term sleep deprivation instead. It turned out to be a bad move.

Cam was scrolling through the research pages of the National Sleep Foundation when he came across a disquieting article describing a non-sanctioned research project on severe sleep deprivation conducted in secrecy on three volunteers. Paid to remain awake for as long as humanly possible, the two men and one woman had been kept under twenty-four hour surveillance in a controlled laboratory environment while a team of scientists took careful notes of their changing behavior patterns.

In rapt attention, Cam and Hunter read about the test subjects' steady mental and physical declines over a period of several days until the last of the volunteers had collapsed. Physically the strongest of the three, the man's body finally went into neurological shock after the fifth day of forced wakefulness and slipped into a coma where he remained for several days until his body had recovered enough to regain consciousness.

Seeing this ultimate effect of long-term sleep deprivation, Cam closed his eyes and quelled his rising nausea by pure force of will as well as some deep breaths. This man's body had healed itself by means of a comatose sleep – an option that was not available to Cam. If he fell into a coma...

Next to him, Hunter had apparently arrived at the same paragraph of text as well as the same conclusion, for the blond ninja's entire body suddenly went rigid.

"Holy shit!"

A few feet away from the Supercomputer in his mobile habitat, Sensei twitched at the exclamation, obviously pulled out of his meditative trance. Cam gave his partner an exasperated look that said 'nice going' and quickly closed the browser window.

From the habitat came Sensei's voice. "What is going on, Cam?"

Cam deliberately kept his tone casual. "Nothing, Dad."

Hunter squinted at Cam with a frown that clearly meant 'What do you mean nothing?', but Cam fixed Hunter with a firm look. "I don't want Dad or the rest of the team to know any of this, you hear?" he said in a low voice. "They all have a lot of stuff on their minds right now. Let's not worry them unduly."

"Unduly?" Hunter hissed and drew himself up, obviously intent on letting Cam know his opinion on what he considered definitely noteworthy enough to tell the team, when a familiar noise from the stairs staunched the potential argument.

Hunter's head whipped around towards the approaching boot steps, a bad feeling rising in his gut. They said they'd call if they found out something... He glanced at Cam and saw the same thought mirrored on his partner's face.

A moment later, Shane Dustin, Tori and Blake stepped into the room and it was immediately clear from their subdued body language that the news wasn't good. They raised their wrists in unison. "Power down!"

With faces as demoralized as their postures, the four ninjas approached their teammates and Shane didn't even try to beat around the bush. "Nothing. Sheriff Carpenter said Morales is the slipperiest eel he'd ever tried to catch."

"Morales seems to be really well organized," Blake chimed in. "According to the sheriff, every time they busted one of his meth labs so far, they found it cleaned out. And either his people are crazy loyal or scared to death of him, because no one's snitching."

"Carpenter said that they've been looking for Morales' latest hideout for months now, but no luck so far," Tori said grimly. "He thinks he must have moved it out of town."

"Sorry, Cam." The abject and guilty expression on the four teens' faces were moving, and Cam would have given them an encouraging smile if he could have mustered it. Instead, he leaned back into his chair, rubbing his temples and making an effort not to sound as downhearted as he felt. "It's okay, guys. You did all you could."

A depressing silence descended upon Ninja Ops for a long moment. The Rangers were staring at the floor, at their hands, at the walls - anywhere but at Cam, whose desperate situation suddenly seemed darker than ever before.

Dustin finally, albeit piteously, voiced what was on everyone's mind. "Now what?"

"Well, since the police were no help, we'll just have to find Morales our own way," Shane proposed.

That caused Hunter to look up at him. "What, you wanna walk into Crack Alley and ask the dealers to show you the way?"

Shane cast him a half-amused glance. Apparently Cam and Hunter were spending way too much time together; the samurai's sarcasm was rubbing off on the Thunder ninja. "Actually, you're not too far off with that thought," he said. "I was thinking about that on the way back here: If we can't get to Morales, why not have Morales come to us, then?"

The Air ninja paused, smiling grimly before he continued. "We go undercover, Dustin, Tori and me," he said firmly. "Pose as rich kids and potential drug buyers, try to draw him out with a large order or something of that sort." He glanced at the Thunder ninjas. "Sorry guys, but too many people might get the pushers suspicious."

Shane raised an inquisitive eyebrow in an 'what do you think' expression while his teammates were staring at him with expressions that ranged from enthusiastic – in Dustin's case – to point-blank disapproval from Cam which he was quick to voice.

"No!"

Shane turned at the exclamation, spreading his arms. "And how do you suggest we find Morales otherwise, Cam? The Yellow Pages? Yeah, there are gonna be a dozen Julio Moraleses listed there, but I don't think any of those numbers is going to be the direct line to his secret headquarters."

Ignoring the sarcasm, Cam kept shaking his head. "There's got to be some other way..."

"There may be...if we had the time to plan this out better," Tori intervened on Shane's behalf. "But we don't; we have to move on this today."

"I will not have you endanger yourselves!"

"Cam, we're highly trained ninjas, we can handle a few drug pushers in a dark alley," Dustin took up the argument. "We've dealt with worse; you know that."

Cam turned to his father. "Dad..." But the guinea pig teacher simply spread his paws.

"I have no better plan to offer, Cam, and frankly, time is running out. I am not happy about the risks involved, but I have confidence in my students' skills and sense of caution."

There was a moment of silence before Shane said quietly, "Sorry Cam, looks like you're overruled."

The Air ninja deliberately fixed his eyes onto Tori and Dustin in an attempt to evade Cam's angry look, but even after he turned, he could still feel those almond eyes burning a hole into his back.

"All right," he said resolutely, "let's get going. We have some preparing to do if we want to look the parts."

The three Wind ninjas turned to go, but Cam's voice made them pause.

"Just make sure you have your morphers somewhere on you." Cam remained slumped in his desk chair, still peeved, yet looking mostly resigned by now. "I'll be monitoring your positions and Hunter and Blake are going to stand by, just in case you run into any trouble."

The Winds nodded in acknowledgement and headed towards the exit. On the way up the stairs, Shane's voice drifted back into the command center, speaking to Tori and Dustin.

"And just to be on the safe side, let's stay away from our usual colors."