Here's a chapter I really had fun writing; Ari meeting her new Master! I hope you like it!

I hope you all had an excellent Christmas and are relaxing on this (very rainy, at least here) Boxing Day!

Let me know what you think!

Chapter 12: A Different Style

A painful, jarring sensation ran up Ari's arms as she used her twin swords to block Xander's powerful swing. At her grimace, he stepped back, looking a little worried.

"Are you sure you don't want to Morph?" the Green Mystic Ranger asked her worriedly.

"I'm not fragile Xander, I'm fine," Ari rolled her eyes. She then darted at him, side-stepping as he swung the large axe in his hands. He had borrowed it from RJ's large collection of weapons after Ari had asked him to join her in weapons training. Since he was supposed to leave the next day, they had been spending as much time as possible together.

"You're a little fragile," Xander grinned.

"You'll be fragile in a minute," Ari warned, making him laugh as he blocked her strike with the axe. The clashing of metal continued as they swapped barbs, and Casey watched in awe at their moves. Attacking again with her blades, Ari hit them against the large axe in her boyfriend's hands, before kicking up and catching him in the stomach. Groaning, Xander stumbled back, and with a quick hit with the handle of her swords, Ari knocked the axe out of his hands. It landed with a clatter, skidding over to stop by Casey as Ari pointed the tip of her sword at Xander with a smirk. "Told you," she teased.

"I doubt that," knowing that she wasn't about to stab him, Xander darted around her blade at him and caught her, forcing her to drop the swords as he hauled her into the air.

"Hey, let me go you gigantic dork!" Ari laughed as she clung to his head.

"Not if you keep calling me that!" Xander warned.

"You know, I like it up here," she decided with a laugh, and he rolled his eyes before setting her down.

"I gotta ask, how long have you been using those for?" Casey asked as he walked over, lifting one of the practice swords and studying it. It was blunt and couldn't do much damage, but had still seemed lethal in Ari's hands.

"Since I was about 12. I think I was about a year into my training at the Celestial Ninja Academy when Sensei Suguira let me start weapons training," Ari explained with a proud smile.

"Wow...that's awesome...you're really good with them," there was a slightly envious tone to Casey's voice as he handed it back to Ari.

"Thanks," Ari blushed. "And you're getting good with your Jungle Chucks. Just keep practising, that's how I got good," Ari told him with a bright smile, and Casey nodded, smiling back.

"And hopefully you'll not develop an ego when you do get really good," Xander told him with a smile of his own, and Ari scowled at him.

"Oh I'm sorry, is there not enough room in this relationship for two huge egos?" she asked him, and with a roll of his eyes, Xander shoved her. Ari giggled, and Casey grinned, hoping that Ari was right.

"Whoa!" Fran yelped as the tray of drinks in her hands began to topple when a man pushed past her. She was saved when Ari caught them, stopping them from falling over.

"Excuse me?" she called to the man, who looked around with a frown. "Could you not push the staff please?" Ari asked him pleasantly, and Fran blushed scarlet as other people looked up. The man faltered, going red himself when he realised that everyone was staring at him.

"Sorry," he muttered, and rushed off, almost taking Theo out as he left.

"You alright?" Ari asked as she set the glasses back down on Fran's tray.

"Yeah, thanks," Fran smiled back at her thankfully. Ari grinned, and walked off to take another table's order.

"I know we said Theo was good," Ari glanced around as Lily walked beside her. "But I think you might be a little better," she smiled, and Ari blushed. She then grinned, looking around.

"Careful not to say that too loud Lil, he might hear, and we can't damage the poor Jaguar's ego," Ari told her, making Lily giggle. "I've just had a lot of practice," she shrugged.

"Oh, now you're modest," Xander called, overhearing them.

"I will make you work," Ari warned him.

"Good luck with that," he shot back. As Ari handed over the order to Casey, their Morphers beeped and they moved quickly, leaving everything to Fran as they rushed out, leaving the young woman baffled at their rapid departure.

People ran screaming, covering their heads as Dai Shi's latest monster walked through the square, shooting spikes at them that exploded on contact. One man tripped and fell, and the monster laughed, turning his attention to the man attempting to get back up. He fired another spike, but Ari intercepted, standing between them and raising a shield. The spike bounced off, and exploded, causing Ari's shield to shatter.

"Come on, get to safety," Ari helped the man up, and he stammered his thanks before running off. As she did, Casey, Theo and Lily leapt at the monster, but were forced to dodge as he fired more spikes.

"We can't get close!" Theo complained.

"Let's try my Jungle Mace!" Lily called on her newer weapon, and spun the ball before throwing it at the monster. Instantly Erinac rolled up in a ball and spun, shooting spikes out everywhere that knocked the Mace out of the way and forced the Rangers to take cover.

"This doesn't look good," Casey gulped.

"When does it ever?" Ari called back, leaping up and throwing an energy-ball. It slammed into a spike, and caused an explosion that sent Ari flying backwards. She hit the ground, and groaned. "Ok, let's not try that again," she whimpered as the pain was felt through her body.

"Ari!" Lily called, and Ari looked up just in time to react and put up a shield to block another spike.

"I have you Rangers on the run!" Erinac laughed as he uncurled and turned to Casey, who leapt at him again. The two fought hand to hand, until the monster caught his wrist and swung him hard, throwing Casey backwards. He then fired another spike that hit the ground in front of the Red Ranger, exploding. Casey cried out, and hit the ground.

"We need to figure out a way to stop those spikes," Theo groaned as they stood together.

"Let's try splitting up, if two of us take his focus, the other two can get in close," Casey suggested.

"As good a plan as any," Ari nodded. "Let's go," the four split into two groups, and as Lily swung her Jungle Mace and Theo tossed his fan, Casey and Ari ran around his other side. Looking to each other, they nodded, and ran at Erinac as he defended from their moves.

"Nice try!" the Rinshi suddenly reacted, curling up in a ball again and spinning. The spikes shot out everywhere, and one struck Ari, exploding and making her cry out in pain. She hit the ground hard, but before she could get up, another hit the ground beside her, and she was tossed back up. She tried to land on her feet, but instantly collapsed, her suit shattering.

"Ari!" Casey ran towards her, only to be blown off his feet as well. He crashed into a table, and demorphed as well.

"We need to get out of here," Lily told Theo as Casey's Solar Morpher landed with a clatter beside the injured Tiger.

"Not so fast!" Erinac spun again, but before he could fire any more spikes, something struck him, stopping him and making him cry out. "What?!" he roared, uncurling. As soon as he had, he was struck again from behind, making him fall on his face.

"What's going on?" Ari managed to push herself into a sitting position, looking around to see a young woman strike Erinac as he attempted to get up again.

"Come on, we need to get out of here," Lily helped her to her feet, and Ari grabbed her fallen Morpher before they ran off.

"Oh man, that hedgehog packs a serious punch," Casey complained as he held an icepack to his side.

"You're telling me," Ari sighed as she massaged her shoulder.

"Are you two ok? You got hit pretty bad back there," Xander asked as Ari leaned into him.

"I'll be fine, I've taken worse hits," she shrugged.

"Yeah...don't remind me," he nudged her. Ari smiled guiltily, and he pressed a kiss to the side of her head.

"So how are we gonna take this dude out? None of us could get close enough to do anything," Ari said, looking to RJ, who was watching the replay of the fight. Ari then frowned, her ears twitching slightly.

"Yeah RJ, any idea of how we're going to do it?" Lily asked their Master.

"We could always ask her," Ari gestured up, and they looked up to the rafters, where a young woman with blonde hair was sitting watching them.

"Oh, good senses. You haven't had training with Master Swoop have you?" she asked in amusement.

"You're just as bad as Master Swoop for the entrances," RJ grinned, finally looking up. The blonde smiled, and leapt down. She flipped, and landed lightly on her feet.

"It's been a while RJ, it's good to see you again," she smiled, hugging him.

"This is Master Swift, she's the one who helped you out before," RJ introduced the Master, who smiled brightly at them. Wearing a pair of pale blue jeans and a plaid shirt hanging open over a white cami, Master Swift seemed a lot more normal than the last two Masters they had meet. "Master Swift, this is Casey, Lily, Theo, Ari, and Xander," he introduced them, and Master Swift focused on Ari.

"You've got excellent senses for a cub. How long were you at the Pai Zhuq academy before this?" she asked.

"Uh..." Ari hesitated. "A month," she admitted. Master Swoop's brow creased in confusion as the others grinned.

"Ari is the Ninja transfer who went in place of a Pai Zhuq student," RJ explained.

"Ah! Yes, that makes a lot more sense!" Master Swift nodded, her smile returning.

"So do you have any idea how to defeat this monster?" Theo asked, a little impatient. Lily nudged him, but he didn't back down as Master Swift looked to him.

"As a matter of fact, I do. Come on," she suddenly grabbed Ari's wrist and pulled her away.

"Uh...where are we going?" the Gold Ranger called as she was dragged away.

"I haven't decided yet!" Master Swift declared as they disappeared down the stairs.

"Did uh...did that Master just kidnap my girlfriend?" Xander asked with a confused look. Casey, Theo and Lily looked equally confused. RJ just laughed, and took a seat again.

"So why did you bring me out here?" Ari asked curiously as they stood in the forest.

"Well it had to be somewhere where people aren't going to stumble across your training," Master Swift chuckled.

"Wait, training? What are young training me on?" Ari frowned, completely baffled.

"On how to defeat Erinac!" Master Swift smiled, turning to her. "Master Mao said you were a Ninja, but he never said how long for. You've got a lot of skill, and I do keep up to date with the media," Ari stiffened, and swallowed. "I gotta say, I'm a big fan, Miss Mysterious Gold Ranger," Master Swift winked.

"Thanks," Ari sighed, her cheeks burning.

"But from what I've noticed, you've always used the same weapons. You're not used to having to fight at long range, are you?" Master Swift suddenly became serious.

"It's never really been necessary. If I can't get close, I usually just use these," Ari lit up an energy-ball as she replied.

"Whoa, that is so cool," Master Swift breathed as she leaned closer. "I noticed that they didn't work quite so well either. So..." she held out a whip, and Ari blinked several times.

"So this is what you were using?" she took it, and gave a small laugh.

"What? You were expecting something much more impressive?" Master Swift asked.

"No, not at all," Ari laughed as she saw Master Swift turning slightly defensive. "The whip is actually what my mum uses in battle. I've seen how dangerous they can be," she told the young Master, who relaxed.

"You're a strange one Ari, but no time to go into that. We need to teach you how to use that before the Rinshi come back," Master Swift told her. She lifted another whip, and turned to Ari. "You're going to channel the power of the Spider Monkey," she grinned.

"See if you can hit the target," Master Swift called to Ari as she sat in a tree, hanging a target down. Ari frowned. It was tiny. Taking a breath, she swung the whip, and missed completely.

"This is gonna take forever," Ari groaned.

"Did you think like that when you first started to learn how to use your swords?" Master Swift grinned. "Or your strange powers?" she laughed.

"Well...no...but..."

"But nothing. Think of the whip like your swords. It's not a weapon. It's an extension of yourself," Master Swift told her. "Try again," she told Ari, who adjusted the whip in her hand. She thought of how Althea used her whip, and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath.

"It's an extension of myself, not a weapon," she muttered, and opened her eyes, striking again. This time, she hit the target dead-on, shattering it.

"Excellent!" Master Swift cheered from the tree. "See what you can do if you put your mind to it? Don't be afraid of the new. Embrace it," she told Ari, who grinned and nodded. "Now, let's see if that was beginners luck," she challenged. Ari grinned as the young Master hung another two targets for her. Focusing again, Ari was able to hit them almost perfectly. "You're a natural," Ari grinned widely, blushing at the praise. Master Swift leapt from the tree, swinging the whip in her hand to catch the tree and swing down easily.

"Whoa, that is awesome," Ari commented. "No way could I ever do that...I'd probably break my neck...Zoe would kill me for even considering it..." she muttered, shivering.

"With practice, you can do anything," Master Swift told her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "You act confident Ari, but you're very uncertain of your abilities," she told the girl, who blushed.

"I..." Ari started, but knew she was right. "I've only been with Pai Zhuq a little while. I was only there a month when Master Mao asked me to become a Guardian. I try to stick to only what I've learned here, but sometimes..."

"You slip into old habits?" Master Swift finished for her. Ari nodded. "Ari, you're a Power Ranger, and a pretty good one too. Who cares if you don't stick to what you've learned here? Keeping this world safe is all that matters," she told Ari, who nodded.

"You're right. I just...without my Ninja training, and everything else, I'd be..."

"You feel like you have an unfair advantage over the others if you used your other skills," Master Swift realised.

"It's weird that you keep doing that," Ari complained, making her laugh.

"It's ok to have an advantage once in a while. You should be confident in your abilities," Master Swift told her.

"I just...I don't want to become overconfident..." Ari admitted. "I can't. Not again," Master Swift gave her a confused look, and Ari shook her head. "It's nothing. Now, should we get some more practise in before that hedgehog gets back?" she asked, and Master Swift's smile returned.

"Now that's what I like to hear!" she nodded in approval, and the two continued training.

"Close!" Master Swift cheered Ari on as the Gold Ranger narrowly missed the moving target. She then hurled another target into the air for her student to hit. Ari's eyes narrowed in focus, and she swung again. With a snap, the whip cracked through the air and slammed into the target, breaking the plate in half. "Excellent. I think you might be my favourite pupil," Ari blushed at the praise.

"Thanks. You're probably the teacher I've annoyed the least," Ari grinned back, making her teacher laugh.

"Well of course," Master Swift winked. Ari giggled, before hearing her Morpher beep in her bag. She ran over, grabbing it and slipping the Solar Morpher on over her eyes.

"What's up?" she responded as RJ's image flickered into view.

"Your spiky friend is back. The others have already gone to fight, can you join them?" he asked her quickly.

"Of course. I owe that guy a couple of hits," Ari grinned, making RJ smile.

"I'll send you the coordinates now," RJ told her, before hearing a shout. "And Xander says be careful. He gets quite worried, you wouldn't happen to get into trouble a lot, would you?" he asked with an amused grin.

"Not in the slightest. I'm very careful," Ari replied with a straight face, and heard a mock laugh in the background. Ending the transmission, Ari pulled the sunglasses off and looked to her Master.

"Show that Rinshi not to mess with you," Master Swift told her with a smile, handing her the whip she had been using.

"Will do," Ari grinned, and hurried off to the battle.

Theo hit the ground once again as he was blasted off his feet. Everywhere hurt as Erinac laughed loudly.

"Come on kitties! Can't you keep up?" he taunted, before blasting Lily as she raced towards him.

"Where's Ari?" Theo called as Casey helped Lily back to her feet. Erinac rolled up again, but as he made to spin, a strike knocked him rolling into a wall.

"Right here!" the Gold Ranger called from the wall she stood on. In her hand was a silver whip, with black at the handle. "And I brought a new toy to try out!" she told them with a grin.

"You again?" Erinac cried out as he unrolled. He fired more spikes at her, and Ari dodged, leaping into the air. She twisted, throwing out her arm and striking him with the whip again. As she landed, she used it to wrap around his wrist and swung, throwing him across the square.

"Whoa, that's awesome!" Lily cheered Ari on as she ran at Erinac. The hedgehog Rinshi rolled up again, but Ari struck him again.

"Jungle Whip, Spinning Strike!" Ari called, catching Erinac's arm again as he was forced to unroll. She began to spin, and the monster screeched as he was thrown into the air. As he began his descent back down, Ari struck him hard, and the Rinshi hit the ground, exploding.

"Nice one Ari!" Casey cheered as he, Theo and Lily ran over to the Gold Ranger.

"Thanks guys," Ari grinned. "This Jungle Whip is pretty cool, huh?" she looked down at the whip in her hand.

"No doubt!" Lily agreed, before they heard a yell. Looking around, they saw Erinac stand up.

"You can't defeat me that easily!" he shrieked, growing much larger.

"Here we go again," Ari laughed.

"Animal spirits unite as one! Jungle Pride Megazord!" the Rangers formed their Megazord and faced Erinac, who hurled multiple spikes at them.

"Watch it!" Theo yelled, and they dove out of the way, but as they faced the Rinshi again, he blasted them again.

"We can't get close!" Casey groaned.

'Ari,' the Gold Ranger's head lifted as she heard a voice whisper. 'You know how to channel my Spider Monkey to use the whip, now try with your Megazord!' Master Swift told her.

"No problem Master!" Ari grinned, and the other three looked to her. "Guys, do what I do!" she told them. They nodded, and threw a hand into the air. "Spirit of the Spider Monkey!" Ari called. With a loud chirping noise, a spider monkey cloaked in a silver aura bounded towards them, leaping from building to building. It leapt through the air, and used its tail to strike Erinac before landing in front of the Megazord.

"Spirit of the Spider Monkey, combine!" the spirit combined with the Megazord, forming a black and silver helmet with rounded ears, and a long tail.

"I won't be beaten by a stupid monkey!" Erinac shrieked, and threw more spikes at them. With more agility, the Megazord dodged each spike, before turning, its tail wrapping around Erinac's arm. "Not again!" he cried.

"Oh yeah!" Ari laughed. "Let's finish this guys!" she called, and the others nodded. With a quick turn, the Megazord yanked Erinac towards them, and he stumbled right into their powerful kick. The Megazord then leapt into the air, and began to flip forwards multiple times until it was a full spin, and struck Erinac with their tail one final time. As they bounced on him and leapt away, the hedgehog Rinshi shrieked, and exploded.

"That was amazing!" Master Swift grinned as she met the Rangers when they returned to Jungle Karma Pizza.

"It was all thanks to your help," Ari told her her with a thankful smile.

"Yeah, anyone who helps Ari get into less danger is good in my eyes," Xander grinned as he walked over. Ari stuck out her tongue at him, and Master Swift laughed.

"It was the least I could do for all you guys are doing for Pai Zhuq. I'm proud to be your teacher," she told Ari, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Just, be careful, ok?" Ari blushed as they all laughed at her.

"I am!"

"Not," Casey, Theo, Lily and Xander chorused, making her blush grow.

"Are you leaving, Master Swift?" Ari asked, choosing to change the subject.

"I am, for now. I've got some business to attend to elsewhere," Master Swift told her with a nod. "So behave yourself," she told her sternly. "It was lovely meeting you all, and it was nice to see you again, RJ," she turned to their Master, who grinned and hugged her as she walked over.

"You too Jenna," he told her. Ari elbowed Xander instantly, her eyes lighting up. Once she released him and said her goodbyes, Master Swift left, and Ari smirked.

"So...Jenna, huh?" RJ paused as the Gold Ranger spoke up. He looked around at the five, who were all grinning.

"Jenna is an old friend who I trained with when I was in the academy," he told them, clearing his throat and hoping his face wasn't as red as it felt.

"Uhuh..." Lily giggled, not looking convinced.

"Awful close for...old friends," Xander cleared his throat.

"How about you all go do the work I pay you for?" RJ asked with a raised eyebrow, which only incited more teasing as he groaned, and they laughed.

Jenna is one of my preferred characters so far, and she will of course be making a return!

Hope you enjoyed it!

Please review!