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"Listen to me, White Ninja," the villain sneered mockingly as he lackadaisically tossed the knife in his hand. "I'm gonna give you a choice; you, or this poor, terrified boy," the boy in question's throat bobbed as he swallowed hard, apparently uncomfortable in his current position.
The man, a low level thug in the grand scheme of things, merely a crime boss for one of Ninjago City's few gangs, was obviously new to this sort of encounter. He was tense, ready to act, but his knife was dropped low, a good few inches from the boy's neck, and his stance was sloppy. It looked like if the boy stumbled, he'd likely bring the man down with him.
The man appeared to be underestimating Zane's capabilities, as while he was ready to act, he was not poised in any sort of preparedness. He likely thought the knife was deterrent enough to keep Zane from making any sort of move to approach.
Zane wasn't sure why he ended up in messes like these.
Or he liked to claim to.
In this instance, he knew exactly what brought him to this moment in time and this place.
He'd been on patrol, keeping a look out for the few remaining at-large Kryptarium criminals, when he'd stumbled upon this bank and its robbery-in-progress. Typically, he would have backed off and let the police handle it. But the police weren't here and they wouldn't be for at least another three minutes. He and his cronies could be gone by then and anyone who was willing to threaten a child was not someone Zane would like to leave roaming the streets.
Ultimately, Zane protected those who could not protect themselves. It was just how he was wired.
It didn't help that the boy was silently crying, his eyes, once begging for help, now wide in awe and admiration. Zane could only assume it was because he was being rescued by one of the famous ninja.
"Am I correct in assuming that you offering me the options of either trading myself for the boy as your hostage or to watch as you harm the boy in an unnecessary manner?"
The man paused, giving a slow blink.
"Yes?"
"Was that a question?"
"No."
"Then I am correct in assuming that your previously stated yes was, in fact, not a question as you'd previously inferred with your tone?"
"Yes." He said firmly this time, his eyes narrowing in irritation.
Zane knew at this point he was gambling, but he believed it to be a calculated risk in his own favor.
Zane forced himself to relax marginally. It went against everything Sensei Wu had ever taught him when facing an enemy, but, again, a calculated risk. Zane was banking on the fact that the man was already fairly loose in his stance. Perhaps if Zane relaxed, the other man would relax further as well and give him the chance he needed.
"What is the third option?"
As Zane hoped, the man's knife wielding hand dropped as he stared at Zane incredulously.
"Third option? There isn't any-"
"There must be a third option," Zane insisted. "As you have approached me with a multiple choice question, you must have multiple choices. Having only two would give me to great a chance of selecting the accurate one. Unless you are attempting to present me with a true or false statement," Zane's brow arched. "Are you attempting to present me with a true or false statement? If you are, you have worded it wrong."
The man's eyebrows were drawn together in a look of fragile concentration. He seemed to be struggling to keep up with Zane's word play.
Good.
"It, uh..."
"A true or false statement is a sentence given to verify whether an individual can deduce if said statement is correct." He supplied.
"Uh-no. Its not a true or- what am I saying? I gave you two options-"
"Of which I clearly just proved was too few for a multiple choice inquiry." Zane explained patiently. "If you would like me to answer it, you will have to supply me with another-"
The man's face had been growing increasingly red with every word Zane uttered. It came as no surprise to the master of ice when he finally exploded.
"You don't need another option!" He barked. "Choose already, for the love of the First Spinjitzu Master!! You or the kid!"
Zane paused and the bank fell silent, save the huffing breaths of the enraged lower level crime boss.
"I see," Zane finally stated, talking slowly, clearly. "You do not even acknowledge the third option."
The mans face twisted into the most unattractive scowl.
"There is no third-"
"But there is," Zane smoothly interjected, his tone gentle. "As you have yet to acknowledge it, you have yet to consider it."
Zane kept his eyes trained on the man and the boy, but he felt himself inwardly sigh in relief as glimpsed green, black and red in his peripheral. They flashed in his sight, just enough for him to become aware of their arrival before vanishing into the furnishings and shadows of the bank.
Speak of perfect timing.
And they were waiting for his cue.
"Consider what?" The man sneered. Zane's breath caught in his throat as the knife raised, closer to the boys throat than ever before. "That I hold all the cards?"
"No," Zane struggled to maintain his nonchalant facade. "The third option. And what it might be." Zane gave him a small smile. "And that, perhaps, the third option might not be yours."
"You don't have a say," the man snarled. "You don't have a choice."
"Then why did you ask me to choose? Your options, your ideas are ridiculous and foolish. I've already chosen the third option, which renders yours meaningless."
"Meaningless?" The man's knife dropped again in shock. "I could kill this kid! You think his life is meaningless?"
"No. It is because I value his life that I decided to stand here and stall, allowing my brothers the time they required to arrive. I chose to distract you." Zane's smile returned, but it was cold with anger for the man in front of him.
"This is my third option."
The man's eyes widened in realization. Before he could twitch, much less try something, Cole appeared behind him, visible only to Zane. The black ninja stood tall, his eyes glinting in uncharacteristic fury, his hammer raised.
He looked like a reaper of souls.
And his hammer fell.
It struck the man's head with enough force to topple him instantly, the boy wrenching away to stare down at the fallen assailant.
Everything was quiet.
"Cole!" Came a cry, the red and green ninja appearing. Kai whipped his mask off and glared at the master of earth. "You knew I wanted to hit him!"
"Nothing's stopping you-"
"You know darn well I can't hit a man while he's down-"
"Cole," Lloyd was staring down at the man. "Please tell me you didn't kill him."
Cole tore off his black mask, revealing his insulted expression.
"It was just a tap, Lloyd," he scoffed. "I know my own strength."
"Tell that to the coffee table," Kai grumbled.
"That was ages ago-"
"That was yesterday!"
"Yeah, well, it was one time-"
"It was our fifth coffee table, Cole-!"
Zane, who had been watching silently at his ranting brothers, glanced down at an insistent tugging on his sleeve. The white ninja hadn't even sensed the boy had moved, but there he was, looking up at Zane with nothing short of adoration.
"That was amazing," he gushed, his blue eyes alight. "You saved me! And you didn't even lift a finger!"
"I lifted a hammer," Cole sounded in the background, the oof of an elbow to the ribs following his proclamation.
Zane ignored them.
"There is power in words and even more in your choices. It is a good lesson to learn, and a better one to exercise." Zane smiled as he gave the dark hair an affectionate ruffle. "And you are very welcome. It was my pleasure to be of assistance."
Sirens filtered through the relative quiet.
"That's our cue," Lloyd stood from where he'd tightened the flexi cuffs on the knocked-senseless crime boss. "The police can handle it from here."
Kai and Cole wasted no time. There banter didn't even waver as they left, swinging from a window to make their way to a roof top, now complaining about which of them go the worst 'hood hair' from their masks.
Lloyd made to follow them, but hesitated when Zane made no move to leave.
"Zane? Are you coming?"
The boy subconsciously edged closer to Zane's side, looking up at him with a touch of fear, but not directed at Zane. The child had been held hostage with a knife to his throat and now he feared the person who'd saved him would leave him with the police, good people, but utter strangers. He'd been through so much and goodness knew where the boys parents were.
Zane planted a reassuring hand on the boys shoulder.
"I will catch up," Zane stated. "And if I encounter any other delays, I will contact you."
Lloyd's gaze flicked from the boy to Zane, his green eyes reflecting understanding.
"See you later, Zane," he offered over his shoulder as he dove out the window after his brothers.
Zane watched as his feet disappeared, then turned to the boy with a smile.
"Come," Zane said, offering his hand to the boy, leading him towards the entrance of the bank. "Let us go find your family."