The Gold Rescue Ranger

As Time Runs Out

~Quick A/N~

I've decided to skip over The Fifth Crystal, The Chosen Path, and Yesterday Again. Personally, I like those three episodes but there isn't much in any of them that I think Clara could contribute much to. You could argue that she doesn't contribute much in The Omega Project but that's the episode that the rangers get their Omega zords and I didn't want to leave that episode out.

~In the Desert Outside Mariner Bay~

All of the rangers, minus Clara, are currently in the Rescue Rover. They had received an alert in the Aquabase about a disturbance and are now on their way to check it out. Captain Mitchell held Clara back though just in case a monster were to appear in Mariner Bay.

"The disturbance came from this area," Dana informs Carter.

"Let's check it out," he replies and parks the rover.

They all hop out and fan out, looking for anything that could have caused the disturbance.

"Everything seems pretty quiet around here," Dana says while still looking around and up at the cliffs around them.

Right after she says that they hear Chad shout over to them.

"Over here! Hurry!"

They all run over to him and stop when they see what he is pointing at. There is a hand that appears to be reaching out from the ground. Kelsey slowly approaches it and reaches out to grab it.

"Wait," Carter says and grabs her hand to stop her. "It could be a trap."

Vines sprout out from the hand's fingers and wrap around Kelsey and Carter's wrists. The others rush forward to try and help but are stopped when more vines wrap around their wrists too.

"I can't get to my morpher!" Joel exclaims as everyone claws at their respective vines trying to get them off and panicking when they can't.

They stop and back up a couple steps when they notice the hand start to move. More vines shoot up from it and form a plant-like monster.

"Rah! It's no use trying to break the vines. They won't break their hold until they've expelled their spores!" the monster, Vilevine, informs them.

"Spores?" Dana asks.

"That's right! At twelve noon the flowers will open and spew a gazillion poisonous spores all over Mariner Bay, destroying everything in their path and the charming citizens will have you rangers to thank!" he explains before laughing evilly.

"You're plan will never work!" Carter shouts at the plant monster.

"In one hour it will be noon," he replies while turning and pointing at the sun behind him before facing the rangers once again, "we'll find out then, won't we?"

Carter leads the charge to fight the monster, hoping that defeating him will free them of the spores. The others follow close behind him. Carter throws up a kick and Joel and Chad showing up on either side of him and following his lead. Before they can hit, however, Vilevine disappears. They look at each other with worried expressions before leaving to head back to the Aquabase.

~At the Aquabase~

Carter grips the arm rests of the chair he's sitting in nervously. The other rangers are standing on either side of him while Clara watches from behind. The clock on a nearby table shows that it's now 11:40 and the rangers are running out of time fast. Ms. Fairweather approaches them with a giant laser.

"Hold perfectly still," she instructs Carter as she turns on the machine.

He nods nervously and Clara places her hands on Carter's shoulder in a supportive and comforting gesture. Ms. Fairweather fires the laser at the flower bud on his wrist in short bursts. Carter grimaces from the raising heat and Clara tightens her grip on his shoulders a little. He passes out and Ms. Fairweather immediately stops. They all shout his name repeatedly while trying to make sure he's okay. He lifts his head back up and blinks a few times before finally nodding his head.