Power Rangers: Emergency Responders Chapter 9: Ep 8: Junior, a power rangers fanfic

Here's the second part of the chapter. This will take place directly after where I left off last time. Again, disclaimer, I don't own the concept of the Grave Digger, the show Bones does (I also don't own Power Rangers, but I think you already knew that).

Last time on Power Rangers: Emergency Responders

"Yeah, and we're trying to figure somethings out about the Grave Digger," Tori said, gesturing to the cork board in front of them. "We already sent out Sean and Taz to get some more evidence or leads. Whatever they can find."

Autumn frowned. "Who's the Grave Digger?"

"He or she is a serial killer who takes their victims and buries them alive in some sort of.. well, coffin," Tori explained. "This person will bury anyone in any kind of container that's big enough."

"That's sick," Autumn crossed her arms, walking further into the room to look at the board. "Any leads so far?"

"None," Joey sighed, pinning up a picture of a crime scene where they found a body in an old refrigerator. "The victims are scattered. None of them have any ties to each other. The only thing we have on this person is that they use a voice recording through a phone to inform people, and have them pay a ransom for the location."

Tori nodded. "That, or they just say good luck. Sometimes this person doesn't ask for anything, just kills the person inside."

Autumn rubbed her arm, a disgusted look on her face. "That's just horrible. Who could do such a thing?"

"I have no id..." Tori was cut off when her cell phone rang. She pulled it out of her pocket, frowning when she saw the unknown number. Despite not knowing who it was, she answered. "Hello?"

Now

Tori waited for a response for a moment, before frowning and speaking again. "Hello? Is someone there?"

"Victoria Fray?" A gravely, unrecognizable voice asked through the phone, almost sounding like a recording, though Tori knew there was someone on the other end.

Her eyes widened for a second, looking from Joey to Autumn. "Yes, this is she. Who is this?" Tori asked, clutching the phone tighter to her ear.

There was a slight chuckle from the other end. "My name is not important. What is important is that I have your friends, Sean Francis and Fantasia Slide." Tori's heart skipped a beat for a moment. "They are buried in an undisclosed location and have 24 hours until they run out of oxygen. If you ever want to see them alive again you will wire $5,000,000 to my bank account before that time, in exchange for their location."

Tori growled, "Let them go, or I swear I will hunt you down myself." Her statement caught the attention of Joey and Autumn, who were standing by and waiting for her.

"You have 24 hours." The voice said, before there was a click and the line went dead.

Autumn watched her take her phone from her ear. "What's going on? Who was that?"

"That was..." She trailed off, leaning against a table in shock. "That was the Grave Digger. He uh.. has Sean and Taz and wants 5 million dollars for them."

"What?!" Joey exclaimed, his expression being one of anger and shock.

Tori took in a deep breath and stood up straight. "We're gonna find them - whatever it takes. We have 24 hours before they run out of air."

Just as she spoke, Jason, Nikki, and Owen walked in through the doors, pausing when they heard what she said. "What are you talking about?" Nikki was the first to respond.

The red chief glanced at her out of the corner of her eye. "Does it matter? Why don't you handle your own case?"

"Hey," Joey scolded her. "If we're gonna do this, we'll need their help. We need everyone on board - us, the lieutenants, Masters, Lia, Sera, Sophie, Andi.. everyone."

Owen crossed his arms. "What the hell is going on?"

"Sean and Taz have been kidnapped," Autumn told her team. "By the Grave Digger." She turned to Tori. "While you may not want our help, you're gonna get it. We're not gonna stand by and avoid saving them because you don't think we're on the same level as you or something."

"I never said that," Tori glared at her. "Though I will admit that it's true." She said, as Jason moved forward slightly to look at some of their work.

Autumn glared back. "Then what's your problem?"

Tori pursed her lips. "I'm trying to do my job without distractions - I don't need you four slowing me down."

Jason touched one of the papers and frowned. "The Grave Digger usually only kidnaps one victim?" He asked quietly, interrupting them. When Tori and Autumn turned to him, looking slightly irritated, he blushed in embarrassment. "Sorry, just wondering."

"Yes, he usually only kidnaps one," Joey answered. "Why? Is that important?"

The blue lieutenant nodded. "Well, if one victim usually has 24 hours of air to breathe in before they run out, then two people who are both breathing couldn't have 24 hours of air. If the Grave Digger put Sean and Taz in the same location and.. coffin of sorts, then their individual air supplies would be cut in half."

"Which means?" Owen egged him on.

"It means that they only have 12 hours before they run out of air," Jason said, rubbing his arm. "That is.. assuming they're both breathing."

Tori slammed her hand down on the table, making Jason jump slightly. "They are, and they still will be when they get out." She sighed, running a hand down her face in stress. "Taz's lab has some of the victims from the crimes. Did she give you any information on them or anything at all?"

"Yeah," He nodded. "She usually does so that I can archive things for her or take over when she's not here."

"Okay, that's great. What did she say?" Tori asked, losing her patience quickly.

"All of the victims so far have been drugged," Jason told her. "Most of the time the only injuries are from a struggle, and all of them suffocated."

Joey frowned. "They were drugged?"

"Yeah," Jason responded. "Given the drugs used, they were most likely given to cause the victim to fall unconscious for easy transport, as well as to prevent a memory of the person behind it.

Autumn made a face. "So even if we save them, we're not gonna be able to stop whoever's behind it?"

Joey shook his head. "No, that's not acceptable. We're gonna stop him."

"No, we're not." Tori ordered. "Our objective right now is to save Sean and Taz. We can find out who this guy is later, but right now, they're trapped underground and are running out of air. We have our priorities." She sighed. "Jason, you get Logan and go to Taz's lab and see if you can dig up anything of importance. Nikki, you, Sera, and Sophie try to trace the call from my phone. We'll get Andi and have her find Masters and Lia. The rest of us will put all of the clues together."

"On it," Jason nodded, rushing off towards the lab. Nikki also nodded and ran over to Sera, who was calling Sophie and Andi into the room.

Autumn walked over to Tori as they all got to work. "I'm glad you made the right choice."

"You better hope it is," The red chief responded, not looking up from what she was doing. "Because if we don't find them... You just better hope for miracle. Now get to work. We don't have time waste." Autumn said nothing, and did as she was told.

- Cue Opening -

Taz groaned as she came to, shaking her head to get rid of the foggy feeling that was overtaking her thought process. She put a hand to her aching head as she pushed herself up, blinking rapidly until everything around her came into focus. When it did, she was shocked to say the least. Looking around, it was completely dark in an unknown car, besides the over head lights that were on.

She looked out of the windows, and all she saw was sand and dirt surrounding the car. Taz closed her eyes tightly and reopened them, trying to remember what happened.

A low moan came from behind her and she turned quickly to see Sean laying unconscious in the back seat. "Sean?" She asked, touching his shoulder lightly. "Sean! Wake up!"

Sean stirred and almost immediately tried to curl in on himself. Taz could see various injuries on his body and tried to hold him back. "Don't do that. You're hurt." He stopped, but leaned his head back and clenched his jaw in pain. "Where does it hurt?"

He opened his eyes and looked at her. "Taz?"

Taz nodded. "Yeah, it's me. Where does it hurt?"

"You..." He gently took one of her arms, his hands lightly ghosting over hand shaped bruises on her arms. "You're hurt."

She pulled her hand away from him. "No, I'm fine. You're hurt. You were in some kind of accident. Do you remember anything?"

"Junior," Sean responded, reaching one hand up to rub a hand down his face, while the other was wrapped slightly around his middle. "He attacked us. There was a car.. a car hit me."

"Junior? My boyfriend Junior?" She asked, prompting him to nod as he attempted to pull himself into a more comfortable position. As he did so, he cried out in pain. "Okay, okay, where is it?! Where does it hurt?" Taz asked quickly. "I can help you if you tell me!"

Sean gestured to his chest. "It hurts. My wrist and my knee hurt too."

"Does your head hurt?" She said, looking at a small cut above his eyebrow.

"Not that much." Sean groaned out, contorting his face in pain.

"Okay, let me see," Taz leaned forward, sitting on the middle console and reaching for his shirt. After a bit of a distrustful look, he allowed her to lift up his shirt, which made her blood run cold. There was a slightly large bruise-like mark on the right side of his abdomen. "Oh my god. We have to get out of here." She put his shirt down.

He stared at her fearfully. "Is it bad?"

Taz looked down, as she didn't want to look him in the eyes. "It's bad. Just don't move, okay?" She told him, tearing up slightly. "We'll be fine."

"Hey, don't cry," Sean wiped a tear from her face. "It'll be okay."

She pulled away from him. "No it won't! This is all my fault! You told me about Junior and I ignored you, and now look at us! We're gonna die underground because I didn't know that my boyfriend was a fucking serial killer!"

"You can't think like that," He said. "Listen to me, we are two smart people. Together we can come up with a plan to get out of here, right?" Taz nodded after a moment. "Okay, then let's figure out. We got this."

"Okay." She wiped the tears from her face as she turned back to the front of the car.

- PRER -

"I did it," Junior crossed his arms as he stood in front Silas' desk in his study. "I kidnapped Taz and Sean. I tried to avoid him, but he ran after us, so I had to take him too."

Silas leaned back in his chair, a small smirk on his face. "Why, exactly, would you want avoid taking the blue chief?" Junior looked off to the side, and said nothing. "Was it because you know Fantasia would never forgive you for taking him?"

Junior nodded. "Yeah. I know how much she cares about him, and I knew it would break her heart if I did that."

The crime lord gave him a thoughtful look. "Why do you care so much? I mean, you don't really have feelings for her, do you? Or maybe you're feeling remorseful for all of the things you've done, which wouldn't really make much sense, would it?"

"I don't kill people for sport." He ground out. "I have an accomplice who does. I always give people a chance - I take people who have the money to pay."

Silas raised an eyebrow. "So, who is this accomplice? Or should I say, boss? I assume you're not the real Grave Digger, given the way you explain it."

"She doesn't want to be known," Junior said quickly. "And no, I'm not. I only work for her."

"Alright," Silas put his hands up. "I have another question; why do you work for her in the first place if you don't enjoy leaving people to die?"

Junior crossed his arms. "We're making money. That's what matters."

"So, you just want money, and you figured an easy way to do that was to hold people hostage?" Silas asked.

"She gives me half of our profits." He said. "Besides, I need it."

"What for?"

The officer shook his head. "It's not important. All that matters is that I'm leaving. I just wanted to tell that it happened and it's over."

"Fine," Silas nodded. "Fair enough. Hope to see you around sometime."

Junior scoffed. "Yeah, that's never gonna happen." He turned his back to Silas and walked out of the study, leaving the crime lord to smirk to himself.

- PRER -

Masters and Lia made their way out of their meeting, Lia shaking her head as they did so. "Those son's of bitches never quit, huh?" She muttered. "The higher ups always trying to tell us what to do."

"It's their job," Masters pointed out. "They don't complain about you doing your job."

Lia scoffed. "Yes, they do. That's all they complain about."

Masters made a face. "At least they're not on your ass for a 'useless power.'"

"Hey, your power isn't useless," Lia assured him. "You know more than anyone I know, and you don't even need to learn about anything before you do it! That's rather impressive in my book."

He nodded, a hard look on his face. "Yeah, thanks."

As they continued to walk, Lia frowned when she saw Andi rushing towards them. "Andi? What's wrong?"

Andi stopped in front of them, a worried look on her face. "The Grave Digger and he kidnapped Sean and Taz."

"What?" Masters said in shock. "Do we have any leads on them so far?" He said, walking quickly forward and making his way into the chief base with Lia and Andi hot on his heels.

Tori looked up when she heard him speak, and shook her head. "Not yet, but we've determined that they only have about 10 hours of air left, given that there's two of them and that they been under there for about 2 hours."

"We tried to track the phone that the call was made from," Nikki said. "But it's untraceable."

"Have you tried tracking their phones?" Lia asked. "Or their morphers? The morphers have a traceable signal."

Sophie sighed. "Not underground like they are. We already tried. It's like they practically dropped off the face of the Earth."

Masters ran a hand over his face. "Okay, what about trying to see if the locations of the previous victims can give us any clues?"

"Nothing," Autumn shook her head. "Joey and I tried to put them together, but none of them have any real relation to each other. Neither do any of the victims identities or anything."

Lia walked over to look at the cork board and the evidence so far, before shaking her head. "This isn't good. Do you think the murderer knows that we got this case this morning? That might be his motive - maybe he wants us to stop looking for him."

"No one has been in here besides us," Owen responded. "I don't think they know anything about it. Besides, he didn't say anything about it when he called Tori."

Jason and Logan made their way into the room, Jason holding a file in his hands. "Okay, the drug found in the systems of all of the victims was from a brand known as Ketalar, and is commonly known as Ketamine or Special K."

Joey nodded slowly. "And that is?"

"It's a commonly used date rape drug," Jason responded. "It generally provides pain relief, sedation, and memory loss. Commonly given through injection or pill form."

Autumn made a face, "There's also side-effects. It can cause hallucinations, abnormal heartbeat, increased intracranial pressure, nausea, vomiting, etc. It's usually only safely used in critically ill or severally injured patients, and only when given by a medical professional."

"How do you know so much about that?" Tori looked up at her, a bit surprised.

"I'm a paramedic, remember?" Autumn responded. "Emma and I had a few cases with women who've been drugged."

Lia sighed. "Do you know how long it takes to wear off?"

"Depends," She shrugged. "I don't know how much they had in their system, but I'm sure they were aware of their situation at one point. They weren't unconscious the whole time."

"She's right," Logan said. "All of the victims were conscious some time while they were underground."

"So, at least one of them is conscious and aware?" Masters asked, crossing his arms.

Jason nodded. "Most likely."

"Well, then maybe we should try to get a message out to them." Joey suggested.

Sophie shook her head. "There's no way possible to do that. We've tried to find their morphing signal or contact them, but it doesn't register."

Tori slammed her fist on the table for the second time that day. "We have to do something!"

"We will," Andi assured her. "With all of us here, we've gotta find something that can lead them to us."

The red chief took in a deep breath. "I'm gonna go get some air. I'll be back in a few."

They watched her leave, and Sera was about to go after her, when Autumn stood up. "I'll go talk to her." She offered.

"Are you sure?" Joey asked. "Tori's pretty stressed out."

Autumn nodded. "Yeah, I got it." She said, walking out of the chief base.

- PRER -

Taz rummaged through the compartments in the front of the car, trying to find anything they could use to call for help or get out of there. She opened the glove compartment, flipping papers around to find something.

"Taz, I don't think you're gonna find anything," Sean muttered, his breathing becoming slightly labored and very obvious to Taz. "He cleaned it out. We'll need another plan."

"What plan?" Taz said bitterly. "We're trapped underground in a car with no way to call for help. Haven't you seen the news? The Grave Digger is incredibly good at what he does. If they don't pay the ransom.. we're dead, and we both know that they won't and can't pay the ransom."

Sean sighed, leaning his head back against the slightly cool window. "We can't think like that?"

"'Think like that?'" Taz turned to him, looking at him like he was crazy. "Think with reality in mind? I can't pretend that everything is fine when I know it's not."

He shook his head. "They'll save us."

Taz scoffed. "What makes you so sure about that?"

Sean looked at her like he had never seen her before in his life. "Have you met these people? We work with them, and they're the best at what they do - we're the best at what we do. That's why we were chosen."

"So you think they can solve the unsolvable?" Taz asked.

He nodded. "Yes. We just have to have faith in them."

"Sometimes people you have faith in fail you," She pointed out. "They hurt you, even if they don't mean it. I'm sorry, but you know that's true."

"Of course I do," Sean said, trying to shift a bit so he could get more comfortable, though it wasn't really working. "But they never have, and neither have you. I hope you can see that."

Taz looked down. "You've never failed me, either."

"And I never want to," Sean assured her. "I.. you're just one of the people I would never want to let down."

"I feel the same way about that," Taz gave him a sad smile. "Which is why I'm sorry about all of this."

"Like I said earlier," He stopped her from speaking more. "It's not your fault, okay?" She nodded silently. "Okay well, look, even if they're looking for us, we still need to come up with a plan. Even though it's unlikely, is there anything up there?"

She gestured back. "I'll keep looking."

- PRER -

Junior was at the airport for the private plane to be prepared for him while he waited near the gate to be escorted over there. As he waited, he couldn't help but feel dread in the pit of his stomach.

He kidnapped two people and was leaving them for dead, all so that he could go on the run and not get killed by Silas. While he was more afraid to face Silas, he was worried about the way his accomplice would react to his abandonment.

She was a ruthless person who would kill just because she wanted to, as well as for a ransom. She had never gotten caught, mostly because the majority of people thought she was a man, as well as the fact that she was so good at what she did.

This woman could do anything, and she knew how to hide it. She hired him because she knew about his need for money and his status as a police officer kept them better hidden from others.

While Junior wasn't fond of what he did, he kept doing it - more out of fear than for money, which is what it started out as.

"Sir," A voice said, and he looked up to see a flight attendant standing there. "Your flight is ready."

Junior stood up and nodded. "Alright. Can I make a phone call first? Just really quick? It's important."

The flight attendant smiled, "Of course sir. I'll be waiting by the gate to escort you when you're done with your call."

"Thank you," Junior gave her a smile back and stepped to the side. He looked up at the clock. "Okay, 9 and half hours left. They have time." He whispered, pulling out his phone and dialing a number.

- PRER -

Autumn found Tori outside, leaning heavily against a wall with a hand over her face. She looked defeated and Autumn assumed that was probably how she felt as well, which made her sigh in sympathy. Autumn made her way closer to Tori, but stopped when she spoke.

"Nothing you say will make this any better, Autumn," Tori said, not looking at her. "Why don't you just go back inside?"

"Because you're hurting," Autumn responded, continuing to walk forward until she was standing next to the red chief. "We'll find them."

Tori scoffed. "You know, everyone keeps saying that and saying that but I don't see it happening. This is just gonna be like so many kidnappings where the case just goes cold and you never find out what happens. You never know if they're okay, but everyone just presumes them dead."

"Has this happened before?" Autumn asked quietly, immediately making Tori look over at her. "You don't have to tell me, but it seems like you have some history with something like this."

The red chief shook her head. "It doesn't matter."

Autumn frowned. "Yes, it does. Something so close to home can really take a toll on you. I know you don't want talk about it, and that's okay, but if you ever do, I'm here for you."

Tori looked down at the ground, a hard look crossing her face. "I won't, but thanks for the offer, I guess."

"You don't trust me," The red lieutenant concluded.

The other young woman chuckled humorlessly. "I don't, but that's not why I won't tell you. I haven't really told anybody.. I don't like to talk about it."

Autumn crossed her arms. "Why?"

"Why don't I like to talk about it?" Tori raised an eyebrow.

She shook her head. "No, why don't you trust me?"

Tori made a face. "I've only known you for a month. You expect me to just trust you on first glance?"

"No, but I thought we.. were past this," Autumn said. "Past all of this turmoil. Past you thinking I'm trying to steal your spot."

"There's no turmoil." Tori responded, frowning. "And by the way, it's not just about that. The more people there are, the more risks there are. The more likely it is for something to go wrong. Besides, when I really think about it, I wasn't worried about taking my spot - I'm a chief, you're a lieutenant. You're not on my level, and you probably never will be, so don't assume things."

"That's harsh," Autumn glared at her. "You know, I have been nothing but nice to you since I got here - I've been trying to help you - and all you've been doing is ordering me and my team around and being a bitch! What the hell is your problem?"

Tori shook her head. "Because I don't want to be your friend! I don't want to be anyone's friend; it gets in the way of doing my job! I mean, look at me! My two friends have been kidnapped and it's making me so stressed out that I can't even think straight! My feelings towards them are getting in the way of me finding them."

Autumn frowned, playing idly with a strand of her hair. "Is that really how you feel?"

"Yes, it is," Tori crossed her arms and made a face, looking away from her. "And you..." She was cut off when her phone rang. The caller ID showed an unknown number, and she answered it immediately. "Hello?"

"Victoria Fray, I have some information that may be of use to you." The electronic sounding voice spoke. "I'm going to tell you where your friends are."

Tori's eyes widened, and she gestured for Autumn to come closer and listen in with her. "You're gonna tell me where they are?"

"Sean Francis and Fantasia Slide are buried in the valley nearest to your base of operations. They are 6 feet underground in a car, and have approximately 9 hours of air left. Sean Francis was injured and needs medical attention, while Fantasia Slide was unharmed. The car is located near a small tree above ground. I assume you can take it from here." The person said.

She frowned. "Why are you helping us? Who are you?"

The other end was silent for a moment, and Tori was almost worried that they hung up. "I made a mistake getting into this. I started working for the Grave Digger for money, but I'm leaving now. You'll likely never hear of me again. I hope you catch her."

Tori was about to respond, when she heard a click once more as the line went dead. She then turned to Autumn. "We know where they are."

"And we know somethings about the Grave Digger," Autumn smiled as Tori did as well. "Let's go get them. I'll call Emma and have her get the ambulance over there."

The red chief nodded. "Alright, let's go!" She ordered as the two ran inside to get the others.

- PRER -

Taz lifted up Sean's shirt once more, looking at the purple mark on his chest, and seeing how it had spread further across. It wasn't getting any better, and Taz knew Sean would go into shock soon if they didn't get help. He was already pale, shaky, and sweaty from blood loss.

"Did you.." Sean was trying to catch his breath, but it never seemed to stay for long. "Did you find anything?"

She shook her head. "No. How are you feeling?"

He frowned. "Hot, and dizzy."

Taz bit her lip. "Do you know what's wrong with you?"

"No," He made a face. "You haven't told me."

"Oh, okay," Taz sighed, looking down as she thought of how to speak. "I believe that you.. umm.. are internally bleeding. That's why you feel dizzy and hot; it's blood loss."

Sean looked alarmed. "Can you do something to stop it? Cause.. I really don't feel good," He slurred, before blinking and frowning oddly.

"Hey!" Taz grabbed his face as she saw his eyes start to fall closed. "You can't fall asleep or pass out on me. If you do, you might not wake up." He grimaced in pain. "Please. I can't loose you."

"You won't," He put his own hand up to her face and weakly wiped a tear off. "But just in case, I have to tell you something."

"Okay, what is it?" Taz asked, feigning a smile for his benefit.

Sean gave her a loopy smile back. "I love you."

"I..." Taz trailed off, shaking her head in a bit of confusion. "I already know that. I love you too. You're one of the best people I know."

He frowned. "No, that's not what I mean," He breathed out. "I'm in love with you, like.. Jack and Rose from the Titanic, you know what I mean?"

Taz stared at him for a moment. "You are?"

The blue chief nodded. "Yeah. Remember when we met at the academy? You were 18 or 19 and I was 20 or 21 and you had just gotten in; there a meet and greet that I was at and you were looking around. You looked so beautiful and I went over to introduce myself to show you around. Little did I know that we would both be the top contenders and get to be rangers together. You were just great from the moment I met you."

"I don't know what to say," She felt his hand slip over her's as it was resting on his face, and Taz smiled softly. "Is that why you haven't dated since we met?"

Sean shrugged. "Sorta. I mean, sometimes I think I just don't deserve love from anyone, but then I look at you and I want it so bad. At the same time, I think I deserve you the least. You're the most amazing person and I feel like I have enough to offer you."

She had a tear running down her face as she leaned forward and kissed him. "You have more than enough. I.. I love you too." Taz closed her eyes for a moment, but when she didn't get a response, she opened her eyes to see Sean's closed.

"Oh my god," She whispered, grasping his shoulders and shaking him lightly. "Sean? Sean! Please!" When he didn't stir, she put her fingers to his neck, and breathed a sigh of relief when she could feel his pulse under her fingers.

Just then, a loud BANG! came from above her, and she looked up, startled, to see a dent that had just formed on the roof of the car. "Taz? Sean?" A voice yelled from above - a voice Taz recognized.

"Tori?" She called back. "Tori! Help! Sean's hurt!"

"We know! Duck!" Tori responded back, and Taz ducked over Sean as she heard a chainsaw revving up. Suddenly, the saw cut through the top of the car, and went around the whole roof until it was able to be pulled off.

The minute it was, Joey and Owen stepped down into the car, lifting Taz out before they led a few paramedics in to help Sean. Taz watched anxiously, until Autumn pulled her away. "Come on, you gotta get checked out, Taz. Sean will be alright - we're gonna meet him at the hospital."

Taz looked like she wanted to protest, but, instead she said, "Are you sure?"

"Positive." Autumn assured her, and Taz hesitantly let her take her away.

- PRER -

The rangers, Masters, Lia, Sera, and Logan waited nervously in the waiting room, hoping for any good news on either Sean or Taz, the former of which had been whisked away to surgery immediately, while the latter was getting checked out by the ER doctors. While they did this, Sophie and Andi were off with the doctors, discuss the situation.

Autumn was standing to the side, next to Emma, who was looking at her strangely. "So, we haven't seen each other lately," Emma said. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were trying to avoid me."

"But because you do know better?" Autumn looked up at her.

Emma shrugged. "Busy, maybe?"

"Yeah, quite a bit," Autumn nodded. "They said I might have to get a new partner too, just because they want all partners to both work at ER. It's not a big deal."

"It is to me," Emma crossed her arms. "That's the only real time we get to see each other."

Autumn frowned. "Well, I don't really know what to say. I can't just tell them no - it's not my decision." She shook her head. "Look, this isn't the time to have this conversation, Emma. Can we talk about it when there isn't a possibility of someone dying?"

"Sure," Emma leaned down and kissed her on the forehead, and Autumn did nothing about it. "I love you."

The red lieutenant didn't look at her. "Love you too."

Just then, Andi and Sophie made their way into the room, having been talking to the doctors to see if they could find out anything. "How are they?" Masters asked as the large group all crowded over to the two.

"Taz should be fine, just some bruising on her arms and a slight headache from the drugs," Andi said, before looking to Sophie.

Sophie sighed. "Sean just got out of surgery - he did well, but it's gonna be a while before he wakes up or gets back to work. His liver had a small laceration, his wrist was sprained, and his knee was fractured, as well as a small cut above his eyebrow. Other than that, he's alright and the doctors are hopeful."

"A while before he wakes up?" Joey repeated, frowning deeply. "How long is a while?"

"It's hard to tell," Andi told them. "Most likely a day or two, but he'll be in the hospital for about two or so weeks, and he can return to work in 6 to 8."

"So, he'll be alright, then?" Tori asked, crossing her arms.

Sophie nodded. "Yes. He's in recovery right now, and we'll be able to see him one at a time by tomorrow, since it's getting late tonight."

"What about Taz? Where is she?" Nikki asked, looking around.

Andi gestured behind her. "They're gonna keep her tonight to make sure there aren't any side effects of the Ketamine, but they're both gonna be alright."

Autumn looked at the group. "Should we wait here to hear more?"

Lia shook her head. "No, we should all get home and get some rest. We all had a long day, and I know we need it." She and Masters led the group out, making sure they all made it out and on their ways alright.

- PRER -

Thorn walked carefully into Silas' study, not exactly wanting to give him the news he had, but knowing that he had to. He opened the door quietly, though he was stopped when he saw Silas talking to a woman inside the room. She had long brown hair and dark skin, and was wearing a blue button-up dress with white heels.

When Thorn entered, they stopped talking. The woman looked back at him out of the corner of her eye. "What is he doing in here?"

"Ah, I'm glad he's here," Silas stood and pulled Thorn over, showing him to the woman. "This is Edgar Thorne; Thorn, this is Cora Wilson, better known as the real Grave Digger."

Cora looked Thorn up and down. "Nice to meet you," She said in a smooth voice.

Thorn nodded. "Umm, sir?" Silas looked over at him. "The blue and green chief rangers were rescued earlier today."

Silas made a face. "We're aware. Junior failed, but Cora never has."

"So, is she going to capture the rangers again?" Thorn asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Of course not," Cora looked at him like he was stupid. "Do you think I'm an idiot? I'm going into hiding - I have no idea what Junior told the rangers about my operations. Once I assume that it's safe again, perhaps in 6 months or maybe even a year, I'll be returning with a new apprentice to kidnap one of the rangers."

The crime lord smirked. "I've given her a ticket to Costa Rica, where she'll remain until she's ready to come back. When she is.. we'll come up with a plan. Until then, you and I can handle things on our own.. The rangers have no idea what's coming to them."

Next time on Power Rangers Emergency Responders: Autumn must break it to Emma that she's not working with her anymore, which prompts Emma to become overly attached, making Autumn question whether or not to continue their relationship. Meanwhile, Sean gets out of the hospital and has a pleasant surprise thrown his way.

Next Chapter Title: Partner

So, Sean and Taz are safe, and Junior escaped. I know you probably wanted him to get caught, but he will be back in a later chapter, as will the real Grave Digger, Cora, with a new plan. Also, if you were wondering why Sean remembered Junior's attack and Taz didn't, it's because, while she was drugged, he wasn't due to his injuries, which means he didn't forget who attacked them.

This is my second chapter in my birthday mass update, and I'll be updating Rainbow Fighters and Earth Defenders sometime before the day ends as well, so you should check those out if you haven't already!

Anyways, here's the lineup for the next five chapters!

Ep 10: Owen's Success - Owen focused chapter.

Ep 11: Home Is Where The Heart Is - Joey focused chapter.

Ep 12: Test - Nikki focused chapter.

Ep 13: Kidnapping Reds - Tori and Autumn focused chapter. Possibly a two-parter.

Ep 14: Purple Lieutenant - New ranger appears!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you guys back with the next one!